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☆ India’s capital renews firecracker ban to combat pollution
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-11 | by ( Blassy Boben | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW DELHI, Sept 11 (Reuters) - India's New Delhi has reimposed a ban on firecrackers ahead of the Diwali festival to curb air pollution in the winter, when air quality reaches hazardous levels, the capital city's environment minister said on Monday. "Manufacturing, storage, sale, online delivery and bursting of any type of firecrackers is completely prohibited in Delhi," Minister Gopal Rai said at a press conference, adding that police have been instructed to stop issuing licenses for fireworks. Firecrackers are a part of celebrations for the Hindu festival of Diwali, which falls in mid-November this year. The government said that the city reported its best air quality since 2015 last year, driven by measures including a push for greener vehicles. Reporting by Blassy Boben; Editing by Sharon SingletonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Gopal Rai, Blassy Boben, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Thomson Locations: DELHI, Delhi, New Delhi, India

☆ Factbox: Who is attending the G20 summit in New Delhi?
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

People stand infront of Nataraja, a statue of Hindu lord Shiva as the cosmic dancer, installed next to 'Bharat Mandapam', the main venue of the G20 Summit, in New Delhi, India, September 7, 2023. REUTERS/Altaf Hussain Acquire Licensing RightsNEW DELHI, Sept 8 (Reuters) - Leaders from the Group of 20 (G20) major economies kick off an annual summit meeting on Saturday to coordinate policy on food security, debt problems of vulnerable countries and climate action. Here is a list of those attending and some key leaders who are skipping the meeting in the Indian capital, New Delhi. G20 LEADERS:ARGENTINA'S PRESIDENT ALBERTO FERNANDEZ AUSTRALIAN PRIME MINISTER ANTHONY ALBANESE BRAZIL'S PRESIDENT LUIZ INACIO LULA DA SILVABRITISH PRIME MINISTER RISHI SUNAK CANADIAN PRIME MINISTER JUSTIN TRUDEAU FRENCH PRESIDENT EMMANUEL MACRON GERMAN CHANCELLOR OLAF SCHOLZINDIAN PRIME MINISTER NARENDRA MODI INDONESIAN PRESIDENT JOKO WIDODOITALIAN PRIME MINISTER GIORGIA MELONIJAPANESE PRIME MINISTER FUMIO KISHIDA SAUDI ARABIA'S CROWN PRINCE MOHAMMED BIN SALMANSOUTH AFRICAN PRESIDENT CYRIL RAMAPHOSA SOUTH KOREAN PRESIDENT YOON SUK-YEOLTURKISH PRESIDENT TAYYIP ERDOGAN U.S. PRESIDENT JOE BIDENEUROPEAN UNION: PRESIDENT OF THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION URSULA VON DER LEYEN AND PRESIDENT OF THE EUROPEAN COUNCIL, CHARLES MICHELSPECIAL INVITEES:BANGLADESH PRIME MINISTER SHEIKH HASINAEGYPT PRESIDENT ABDEL FATTAH AL-SISIMAURITUIUS PRIME MINISTER PRAVIND KUMAR JUGNAUTHNETHERLANDS PRIME MINISTER MARK RUTTE NIGERIA'S PRESIDENT BOLA TINUBU OMAN'S SULTAN HAITHAM BIN TARIK AL-SAID SINGAPORE PRIME MINISTER LEE HSIEN LOONG UAE PRESIDENT SHEIKH MOHAMMED BIN ZAYEDOTHERS ATTENDINGU.S. Treasury Secretary Janet YellenThe heads of the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, the World Health Organisation, the World Trade Organisation, the International Labour Organisation, the Financial Stability Board and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development. NOTABLE MISSING GUESTSCHINESE PRESIDENT XI JINPING (represented by Prime Minister Li Qiang)MEXICAN PRESIDENT ANDRES MANUEL LOPEZ OBRADORRUSSIAN PRESIDENT VLADIMIR PUTIN (represented by Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov)Sources: Reuters, officials, state media and domestic mediaCompiled by Aftab Ahmed and Shivangi Acharya; Editing by Sanjeev Miglani and Raju GopalakrishnanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Shiva, Bharat Mandapam, Altaf Hussain, ALBERTO FERNANDEZ, ANTHONY ALBANESE, LUIZ INACIO LULA DA SILVA, JUSTIN TRUDEAU, EMMANUEL MACRON, OLAF SCHOLZ INDIAN, NARENDRA MODI, JOKO, GIORGIA, FUMIO KISHIDA, FUMIO KISHIDA SAUDI ARABIA'S CROWN PRINCE MOHAMMED BIN SALMAN, CYRIL RAMAPHOSA, YOON SUK, TAYYIP ERDOGAN, JOE BIDEN, URSULA VON DER, CHARLES MICHEL SPECIAL, SHEIKH HASINA, ABDEL FATTAH, PRAVIND KUMAR, MARK RUTTE, BOLA TINUBU, HAITHAM BIN TARIK, LEE HSIEN LOONG, SHEIKH MOHAMMED BIN ZAYED, Janet Yellen, XI JINPING, Li Qiang, ANDRES MANUEL LOPEZ, VLADIMIR PUTIN, Sergei Lavrov, Aftab Ahmed, Shivangi, Sanjeev Miglani, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: REUTERS, LUIZ INACIO LULA DA SILVA BRITISH, FUMIO KISHIDA SAUDI ARABIA'S CROWN, CYRIL RAMAPHOSA SOUTH, TAYYIP ERDOGAN U.S, OF, EUROPEAN, CHARLES MICHEL SPECIAL INVITEES, ABDEL FATTAH AL, Treasury, United Nations, International Monetary Fund, World Bank, World Health Organisation, World Trade Organisation, International Labour Organisation, Organisation for Economic Cooperation, Development, Foreign, Thomson Locations: New Delhi, India, DELHI, BANGLADESH, SHEIKH HASINA EGYPT, NETHERLANDS, SINGAPORE, LEE HSIEN LOONG UAE, MEXICAN, RUSSIAN

☆ South Korean teachers to rally after colleague's death
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-04 | by ( Soo-Hyang Choi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The South Korean teachers union is not involved in organising the demonstrations on Monday, said the group leading the protests, Everyone Together As One. President Yoon Suk Yeol on Monday ordered officials to listen to the teachers' demands and work to protect their rights, his office said. In July, an elementary school teacher was found dead at school after reportedly expressing anxiety over complaints from a parent over a dispute among students. One hundred public school teachers committed suicide in South Korea during the past six years as of June. The education ministry has vowed to prevent incidents of teachers' being punished for legitimate educational activity, and improve communication between teachers and parents.

Persons: Kim Hong, Yoon Suk, Soo, hyang Choi, Gerry Doyle Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, . Government, Authorities, South, Monday, Teachers, National Assembly, World Health Organisation, Thomson Locations: Seoul, South Korea, Rights SEOUL, Korea

A G20 logo is pictured in front of the main venue of the summit in New Delhi, India, August 24, 2023. The heads of the United Nations, International Monetary Fund, World Bank, World Trade Organisation and World Health Organisation will also be present. DEFENCE IN THE SKIESThe city will be guarded by nearly 130,000 security personnel, including the 80,000-strong Delhi Police, officials said. Modi inaugurated a $300 million venue in the capital in July to host the summit meeting - a conch shell-shaped building that can seat more than 3,000. The government has also leased 20 bullet-proof limousines at a cost of 180 million Indian rupees ($2.18 million) for ferrying leaders.

Persons: Adnan Abidi, Narendra Modi, Joe Biden, Rishi Sunak, Saudi Arabia's Mohammed Bin Salman, Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin, Sergei Lavrov, Dependra Pathak, Pathak, Ranvir Singh, Biden, Modi, Rupam Jain, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: REUTERS, NEW, India, British, Foreign, United Nations, International Monetary Fund, World Bank, World Trade Organisation, World Health, Delhi Police, Border Security Force, Indian Air Force, Reuters, Thomson Locations: New Delhi, India, Delhi, NEW DELHI, U.S, Saudi, Beijing, Japan, Australia, France, Germany, Ukraine, Pragati, Gurugram, New, Arunachal Pradesh, Srinagar, Kashmir

☆ Japan set to release Fukushima water amid criticism, seafood import bans
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-23 | by ( Sakura Murakami | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/4] An aerial view shows the storage tanks for treated water at the tsunami-crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Okuma town, Fukushima prefecture, Japan August 22, 2023, in this photo taken by Kyodo. Japan has maintained that the water release is safe. "Being told something is scientifically safe and feeling reassured are two different things... Proof that the water release is scientifically safe may not remove reputational damage," he said. The water will initially be released in smaller portions and with extra checks, with the first discharge totalling 7,800 cubic metres over about 17 days, Fukushima power plant operator Tepco (9501.T) said on Tuesday.

Persons: Wang Wenbin, Japan's, Yoon Suk, John Lee, Masanobu Sakamoto, Sakura Murakami, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: Kyodo, REUTERS, Rights Companies Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, Hong, National Federation of Fisheries Cooperative, World Health, Tepco, Thomson Locations: Okuma, Fukushima prefecture, Japan, China, Hong Kong, Macau, Tokyo, Fukushima

☆ Art therapy offers relief to Afghan women struggling with mental health
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

But she sank into depression since the Taliban closed tertiary institutions to women in December, requiring psychiatric treatment where she was recommended art therapy classes. But many women, particularly in urban areas, who gained opportunities in education and work during the 20-year presence of foreign troops and a Western-backed government are now struggling with a deep sense of despair and mental health challenges, Afghan women and mental health experts say. There are few reliable figures on mental health trends but anecdotally doctors and aid workers say more women are struggling with mental health in the wake of the orders restricting women's work and education. Not only did I make good friends here, I also receive art therapy," said a former university student at the class. Khushi said the art therapy gave her a respite from home and a little hope for the future.

Persons: Khushi, I'm, Charlotte Greenfield, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: Health, Reuters, Thomson Locations: MAZAR, SHARIF, Afghanistan, Balkh province's, Islamic Emirate, Balkh's, Mazar

The World Health Organisation (WHO) logo is seen near its headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, February 2, 2023. "Collectively, available evidence does not suggest that EG.5 has additional public health risks relative to the other currently circulating Omicron descendent lineages," the WHO said in a risk evaluation. COVID-19 has killed more than 6.9 million people globally, with more than 768 million confirmed cases since the virus emerged. Maria Van Kerkhove, the WHO's technical lead on COVID-19, said EG.5 had an increased transmissibility but was not more severe than other Omicron variants. Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus deplored that many countries were not reporting COVID-19 data to WHO.

Persons: Denis Balibouse, Maria Van Kerkhove, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Van Kerkhove, Leroy Leo, Gabrielle Tétrault, Farber, Toby Chopra, Angus MacSwan Organizations: World Health Organisation, REUTERS, World Health Organization, EG, WHO, Thomson Locations: Geneva, Switzerland, United States, China, South Korea, Japan, Canada, Bengaluru

☆ Global temperatures near record highs as US, China meet on climate
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-17 | by ( Charlie Devereux | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

REUTERS/Remo CasilliSummary Weather extremes experienced around the worldBiggest polluters United States and China meetClimate crisis 'is happening', says WHO bossMADRID, July 17 (Reuters) - Global temperatures were soaring to historic highs as the world's two biggest carbon emitters, the United States and China, sought on Monday to reignite talks on climate change. Wildfires in Europe raged ahead of a second heat wave in two weeks that was set to send temperatures as high as 48C. Ahead of meeting Chinese counterpart Xie Zhenhua in Beijing, U.S. climate envoy John Kerry urged China to partner with the United States to cut methane emissions and coal-fired power. Prolonged high temperatures in China are threatening power grids and crops and raising concerns about a repeat of last year's drought, the most severe in 60 years. The heat dome across the western United States also helped to generate heavy rains in the northeast, claiming at least five lives.

Persons: Remo, MADRID, reignite, Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Xie Zhenhua, John Kerry, Talim, Charon, Matilde, Angelica Aureli, it's, Ruben del Campo, Sergio Rodriguez, Kayla Hill, Carlo Buontempo, Buontempo, Charlie Devereux, Emma Pinedo, Giselda Vagnoni, Emma Farge, Kate Abnett, Andrew Cawthorne Organizations: REUTERS, United, World Health, ACT, Italy's Air Force, La Palma, Canaries, TVE, World Meteorological Organization, National, Thomson Locations: Italy, Rome, United States, China, Sanbao, Europe, Beijing, U.S, Guangdong, Hainan, South Korea, Seoul, Sardinia, Spain, La, Florida, Furnace Creek, Salt Lake City , Utah, Madrid, Geneva, Brussels

☆ EU announces deal with Pfizer, others to reserve vaccines for future pandemic
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( Maggie Fick | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, June 30 (Reuters) - The European Commission has contracted Pfizer (PFE.N) and several European companies to reserve capacity to make up to 325 million vaccines per year in case of a future global health emergency, it said on Friday. The European Commission said in a statement announcing the deal that the COVID pandemic showed that Europe needs to be better prepared for future health emergencies. But vaccine equity activists said the EU risked a repeat of what the World Health Organization dubbed "vaccine apartheid" during COVID-19. The Commission has selected Pfizer's plants in Ireland and Belgium to reserve capacity to produce mRNA vaccines. It selected Spanish companies Reig Jofre (RJFE.MC) and Laboratorios Hipra SA to reserve capacity for protein-based vaccines and Bilthoven Biologicals B.V. of the Netherlands for vector-based vaccines.

Persons: Mohga Kamal, Reig, Maggie Fick, Jennifer Rigby, Elaine Hardcastle Organizations: European Commission, Pfizer, Reuters, EU, World Health Organization, People’s Vaccine, Laboratorios Hipra SA, World Health, Thomson Locations: Europe, Ireland, Belgium, Netherlands, London

A weekly injection of Wegovy leads to an average weight loss of around 15%, alongside changes to diet and exercise. That has effectively delayed the launch in most of Europe, following the recent launch of Wegovy in Denmark and Norway. Novo Nordisk has also had to overcome problems at a contract manufacturer. Novo Nordisk also said the number of people with obesity is forecast to rise to 1.5 billion by 2035. Research and development chief Martin Lange said that the company plans to investigate how to maintain the weight loss after stopping the drug.

Persons: Lars Fruergaard Jorgensen, Camilla Sylvest, Jorgensen, Wegovy, Martin Lange, Maggie Fick, Nikolaj Skydsgaard, Jennifer Rigby, Louise Heavens, Emma Rumney Organizations: pharma, Novo Nordisk, World Health Organisation, WHO, World Obesity Federation, Reuters, Research, Thomson Locations: COPENHAGEN, Europe, United States, U.S, Danish, Wegovy, Denmark, Norway, London, Copenhagen

☆ WHO rushes supplies to Ukraine, readies to tackle disease in flood areas
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] Director-General of the World Health Organisation (WHO) Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus gives a statement with German Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (not pictured) in Geneva, Switzerland, February 2, 2023. REUTERS/Denis BalibouseGENEVA, June 8 (Reuters) - The World Health Organization has rushed emergency supplies to flood-hit parts of Ukraine and are preparing to respond to an array of health risks including trauma, drowning and waterborne diseases like cholera, officials said on Thursday. "The WHO has rushed in to support the authorities and health care workers in preventive measures against waterborne diseases and to improve disease surveillance." The huge Kakhovka Dam on the Dnipro River separates Russian and Ukrainian forces and people have been affected on both sides of its banks. He said Russian authorities had given them assurances that people living in areas it occupies were being "well monitored, well cared for, well fed (and) well supported".

Persons: Tedros, Karl Lauterbach, Denis Balibouse GENEVA, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Teresa Zakaria, Mike Ryan, Emma Farge, Leroy Leo, William Maclean Organizations: World Health Organisation, WHO, German Health, REUTERS, World Health Organization, WHO's, Thomson Locations: Geneva, Switzerland, Ukraine, Russia, Dnipro, Russian, Ukrainian

☆ Animal health body urges bird flu vaccination to avoid pandemic
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-21 | by ( Sybille De La Hamaide | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The severity of the current outbreak of avian influenza, commonly called bird flu, and the economic and personal damage it has caused, has led governments to reconsider vaccinating poultry. A WOAH survey showed only 25% of its member states would accept imports of products from poultry vaccinated against HPAI. The European Union's 27 member states agreed last year to implement a bird flu vaccine strategy. The risk to humans from bird flu remains low but countries must prepare for any change in the status quo, the World Health Organization has said. Eloit said vaccination should focus on free-range poultry, mainly ducks, since bird flu is transmitted by infected migrating wild birds.

☆ India builds more hospitals as population surges but doctors in short supply
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Shivam Patel | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

The problem is a lack of doctors, a shortage that is reaching crucial levels as India becomes the world's most populous nation. Inaugurating the first specialised medical institute in northeast India last month, Modi said his government had sought to increase the number of doctors by setting up more medical colleges. The number of public hospitals, excluding specialised institutes, has risen some 9% in Modi’s time at the top, government data shows. The government says there was a near 80% shortage of surgeons, physicians, gynaecologists and paediatricians at community health centres in rural India as of March 2022. Specialist doctors tend to go overseas or join the private sector in metropolitan and other large cities, said Dr K. Srinath Reddy, at the Public Health Foundation of India non-profit.

☆ Sudan faces displacement crisis as truce talks yield no progress
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/5] Sudanese refugees, who fled the violence in their country, wait to receive food supplies from a Turkish aid group (IHH) near the border between Sudan and Chad in Koufroun, Chad May 7, 2023. The violence has accelerated a wave of people fleeing their homes, with the number of people internally displaced inside Sudan more than doubling in a week to more than 700,000 the U.N.'s migration agency said. Meanwhile there has been no outward sign of progress in the talks that have taken place in Saudi Arabia since Saturday despite their limited goal of a ceasefire to allow humanitarian access. "We believe the peaceful solution is the ideal route to handle this crisis," he said, but gave no indication he was ready to make concessions. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan's office said he had spoken with Burhan on Tuesday and said Ankara was willing to host further talks on a more comprehensive settlement.

[1/3] A man walks while smoke rises above buildings after aerial bombardment, during clashes between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and the army in Khartoum North, Sudan, May 1, 2023. Riyadh and Washington earlier welcomed the "pre-negotiation talks" between the army and the RSF, and urged them to actively engage following numerous violated ceasefires. But both sides have made it clear they would only discuss a humanitarian truce, not negotiate an end to the war. Turkey's foreign minister said Turkey would move its embassy from Khartoum to Port Sudan following the attack. White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan was travelling to Saudi Arabia at the weekend for talks with Saudi leaders.

☆ One case of Crimean-Congo fever detected in Senegal
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

DAKAR, April 30 (Reuters) - Senegal's health ministry confirmed a case of Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever (CCHF) in a hospital on the outskirts of the capital Dakar, it said in a statement. The case was detected on April 21 in the Dalal Jamm hospital in Guediawaye, the health ministry said in the statement released late on Saturday. According to the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, the largest recent outbreak was detected in Mauritania in 2003, with 35 cases and six deaths. South Africa had 17 cases and five deaths in 2011. Reporting by Diadie Ba and Edward McAllister;Editing by Elaine HardcastleOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

[1/4] People gather at the station to flee from Khartoum during clashes between the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and the army in Khartoum, Sudan April 19, 2023. Guterres and senior officials from the U.S., Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey and Egypt called Sudan's army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan to urge an end to violence. Urging a three-day ceasefire, he said civilians trapped in conflict zones should be allowed to escape and to seek medical treatment, food and other supplies. Witnesses in the city of El-Obeid, east of Darfur, described clashes between the army and RSF troops and widespread looting. Many other local people remain trapped, along with thousands of foreigners in a city that has become a war zone.

"The hospitals now serving the wounded are so few, with limited number of doctors, so there's overcrowding of wounded," said Esraa Abou Shama, a doctor at Sudan's health ministry. Over four days of fighting nine hospitals in Sudan have been hit by artillery and 16 forcibly evacuated, the Sudanese Doctors' Union said, with none still providing a full service inside the capital. His hospital's water and cooking gas tanks have been hit, many staff fled, and diesel fuel for the power generator is almost exhausted, he said. Staff cannot access the morgue because of the fighting, so dead bodies are stored in rooms with air conditioning turned up. "We all have the same problems - electricity, water, staff.

☆ China records world's first human death from H3N8 bird flu, WHO says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

All of the cases have been in China, with the first two cases reported last year. Sporadic infections in people with bird flu are common in China where avian flu viruses constantly circulate in huge poultry and wild bird populations. Though rare in people, H3N8 is common in birds in which it causes little to no sign of disease. There were no other cases found among close contacts of the infected woman, the WHO said. Monitoring of all avian influenza viruses is considered important given their ability to evolve and cause a pandemic.

☆ India asks states to ramp up testing as COVID-19 cases climb
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MUMBAI, April 7 (Reuters) - India's federal government asked states to identify emergency hotspots and ramp up-testing for COVID-19, after the country recorded its highest daily case count since September, a Reuters tally showed on Friday. There were 6,050 new cases of COVID-19 in the last 24 hours, the federal health ministry said on Friday, continuing a sharp upward trend since a lull last year. At a meeting to review the degree to which the states are prepared, health minister Mansukh Mandaviya asked them to ramp up genome testing and conduct mock drills in hospitals, a government statement said. Active cases totalled more than 28,300 with 14 deaths during the last 24 hours, taking the country's official death toll from the disease to 530,943. India has recorded more than 44.7 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 since the start of the pandemic three years ago, the third-highest tally after the United States and China.

☆ Tanzania detects its first-ever cases of the highly fatal Marburg viral disease
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

DAR ES SALAAM, March 22 (Reuters) - Tanzania has confirmed its first-ever cases of Marburg, a high-fatality viral hemorrhagic fever with symptoms broadly similar to those of Ebola, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said. "The efforts by Tanzania's health authorities to establish the cause of the disease is a clear indication of the determination to effectively respond to the outbreak," said Matshidiso Moeti, WHO regional director for Africa. With a fatality rate of as high as 88%, Marburg is from the same virus family responsible for Ebola and is transmitted to people from fruit bats. Symptoms include high fever, severe headache and malaise which typically develop within seven days of infection, according to the WHO. Equatorial Guinea is also battling its first-ever outbreak of Marburg that was confirmed in February.

☆ Britain to overhaul clinical trial regulation to fast-track approvals
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 21 (Reuters) - Britain's health regulator said on Tuesday it would introduce new measures for faster and easier approval and execution of clinical trials in the country. The move comes months after an industry report showed that the number of annual clinical trials started in Britain dropped by 41% between 2017 and 2021, posing a "clear and serious threat" to its reputation as a clinical research destination. "This overhaul of the clinical trials legislation will ... help to streamline approvals by removing granular and duplicative regulatory requirements," Marc Bailey, Chief Science and Innovation Officer at the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) said. An application review will need to be completed within 30 days, while a maximum of 10 days will be given for a decision to be granted, the regulator said. Reporting by Radhika Anilkumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Vinay DwivediOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Chinese doctor who blew the whistle on SARS dies at 91
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Laurie Chen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

BEIJING, March 15 (Reuters) - A Chinese military doctor who exposed the full extent of the SARS epidemic when it ripped through Beijing in 2003 has died at the age of 91, according to his friends and local media reports. Jiang Yanyong accused the government of deliberately underreporting the spread of the respiratory disease in an open letter sent to state media in 2003. News of his death was not reported in Chinese state media, as is the norm with politically sensitive public figures. Some media including the South China Morning Post said he died on Saturday of pneumonia, citing sources. SARS infected 8,908 people worldwide after emerging in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong, eventually killing 774, according to World Health Organisation data.

☆ WHO fires director in Asia accused of racist misconduct
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Tedros did not refer to Kasai by name, referencing only his title as regional director in the Western Pacific. It is the first time in WHO's history that a regional director has been dismissed. He said that the process of naming a new regional director for the Western Pacific would begin next month, with the election to be held in October. In January, the AP reported that a WHO doctor hoping to replace Kasai as regional director in the Western Pacific had previously faced sexual misconduct accusations. With support of some WHO colleagues and his home country, Waqanivalu was preparing to run for the regional director job.

☆ Please go home! Indian firm deploys software for work-life balance
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

The measure comes amid an increased focus on and research into the adverse effect of long working hours on the health and relationships of employees across the world. "The thought behind this is providing employees a good work-life balance so that they can spend time with their families and loved ones," Chief Executive Ajay Golani told Reuters partner ANI. The pop-up created a social media buzz recently when an employee, Tanvi Khandelwal, shared a picture of the warning on a company desktop. "They put this special reminder, which locks my desktop after business hours and issues a warning," Khandelwal shared on LinkedIn a week ago. Kritika Dubey, one of 40 people employed at the company, told ANI that the pop-up helped her leave on time and fulfil other responsibilities at home.

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