14, March 2019 14/03/2019 – Posted in: Press Information Bureau – Tags: , ,

West Nile Virus

(Ministry of Health and Family Welfare)

WHAT

A seven year old boy from Malappuram District of Kerala is suffering from a West Nile Virus (WNV).

  • The Health Ministry has dispatched a multi-disciplinary Central team from National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC).
  • The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has also been alerted and a close watch is being maintained at Central and State level.

BACKGROUND

  • West Nile Virus (WNV) is a mosquito-borne disease.
  • It is mostly reported in the continental United States.

TRANSMISSION

  • It is most commonly spread to people by the bite of an infected mosquito.
  • Most people infected with WNV do not feel sick.
  • About 1 out of 150 infected people develop a serious, sometimes fatal, illness.

VACCINE

  • There are no vaccines to prevent or medications to treat WNV in people.
  • Over-the-counter pain relievers can be used to reduce fever and relieve some symptoms.
NICD

  • The National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD) had its origin as Central Malaria Bureau, established at Kasauli (Himachal Pradesh) in 1909 and following expansion was renamed in 1927 as the Malaria Survey of India.
  • The organization was shifted to Delhi in 1938 and called as the Malaria Institute of India (MII).
  • In view of the drastic reduction achieved in the incidence of malaria under National Malaria Eradication Programme (NMEP), Government of India decided to reorganize and expand the activities of the institute to cover other communicable diseases.
  • Thus, on July 30, 1963 the erstwhile MII was renamed as NICD to shoulder these additional responsibilities.

ICMR

The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), New Delhi, the apex body in India for the formulation, coordination and promotion of biomedical research, is one of the oldest medical research bodies in the world.

Source: PIB

 

Wholesale Price Index

(Ministry of Commerce & Industry)

WHAT

The official Wholesale Price Index for ‘All Commodities’ (Base: 2011-12=100) for the month of February, 2019 rose by 0.3 percent to 119.5 (provisional) from 119.2 (provisional) for the previous month.

WPI

The Wholesale Price Index (WPI) is the price of a representative basket of wholesale goods. The first index number of wholesale prices commenced in India for the base week ending August 19, 1939= 100.

WPI constitutes three major groups – Primary articles, Fuel and Power, and Manufactured Products.

For details: http://pib.nic.in/PressReleseDetail.aspx?PRID=1568802

Source: PIB

 

 

Man Portable Anti Tank Guided Missile

(Ministry of Defence)

WHAT

Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully test fired Man Portable Anti-Tank Guided Missile (MPATGM).

  • Indigenously developed.
  • Low weight.
  • Fire and Forget.
  • Imaging Infrared Radar (IIR).

Source: PIB