Singapore’s ruling People’s Action Party retains power

Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) has returned to power, winning 83 of the 93 seats contested in the  General Elections, even as the opposition registered minor gains.

Lee, 68, was re-elected from his Group Representation Constituency (GRC) of Ang Mo Kio. 

The opposition Workers’ Party — led by Indian-origin leader Pritam Singh — won 10 seats.

Over 2.65 million Singaporeans donning face masks and gloves voted in the elections on July 10 for selecting 93 members of Parliament out of 192 candidates contesting for seats through 17 GRCs — which groups together candidates in four or five — and 14 Single Member Constituencies.

The PAP has ruled Singapore since independence in 1965 with absolute majority. 

In the last elections in September 2015, the PAP contested all 89 seats and won 83 of them, an absolute majority in the house.

Lee, who is the country’s third prime minister, has led the government since 2004. His father Lee Kuan Yew was Singapore’s first prime minister and he transformed the city-state into an affluent nation during his 31-year rule.

Smart Cities Mission launches programme to promote cycling

The ministry of housing and urban affairs invited cities to come up with quick solutions to promote cycling, in the wake of the impact of COVID-19 on public transport.

Smart Cities Mission, a flagship programme of the central government, has started accepting registrations for the ‘India Cycles4Change Challenge’.

According to a statement, in October this year, 11 cities will be shortlisted under this initiative. These cities will receive awards of Rs 1 crore and guidance from national and international experts to further scale-up the initiatives.

It stated that the challenge aims to help cities connect with their citizens as well as experts to develop a unified vision to promote cycling.

Significance of cycling challenge:

The need for personalised forms of transport is expected to increase as a response to COVID-19. A recent survey by the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP) programme shows that cycling would increase by 50-65 per cent as cities come out of lockdown. 

Cities around the world are leveraging the opportunity to expand their cycling networks and public bicycle-sharing systems. As per ITDP, increasing cycling can help cities in a green economic recovery. Investments in cycling infrastructure have economic benefits of up to 5.5 times the initial investment. Cycling for short distances can result in an annual benefit of Rs 1.8 trillion to the Indian economy.

Facts on Smart Cities Mission:

The government launched the Smart Cities Mission on June 25, 2015.

Under the SCM, 100 Smart Cities have been selected in four rounds based on the All India Competition. All 100 cities have incorporated Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs). 

Since the launch of the mission, a total of 5,151 projects have been identified for implementation by the cities worth more than Rs 2 lakh crore which are in various stages of implementation in the 100 cities. According to official data, 534 projects worth Rs. 10,116 crore have been completed. 

WHO chief praises efforts to control COVID-19 in Dharavi 

The World Health Organisation has praised the efforts taken to contain the spread of the COVID-19 in Dharavi, one of the world's largest slums, underscoring the need for community engagement along with national unity and global solidarity to turn the pandemic around.

Dharavi in Mumbai, is spread over an area of 2.5 square kilometres and has a population of 650,000. People live in shanties and dilapidated buildings with narrow lanes and open sewers.

On June 9, the tally of the coronavirus cases in Dharavi, once a COVID-19 hotspot in the city, reached 2,347. 

Currently, Dharavi has only 291 active COVID-19 cases, while 1,815 patients have recovered and discharged from COVID-19 facilities.

Meanwhile, India’s COVID-19 tally reached 8.2 lakh with 22,123 deaths.

Also, Biotechnology major Biocon said it has received approval from the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) for use of its biologic drug Itolizumab for the treatment of moderate to severe COVID-19 patients.

Itolizumab is a drug used for treatment of skin ailment psoriasis. 

The company received the approval to market Itolizumab injection 25mg/5mL solution for emergency use in India for the treatment of cytokine release syndrome in moderate to severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) patients due to COVID-19, Biocon said.

The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has given green signal to 29 general and health insurers to launch short-term Corona Kavach health insurance policies to cover medical expenses of coronavirus disease.

IRDAI is an autonomous, statutory body tasked with regulating and promoting the insurance and reinsurance industries in India.

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