IIT team makes machine to sanitise floors, buses

New Delhi: A team at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) has developed a low-cost LED-based machine which can be used for disinfection of floors at hospitals as well as buses and trains to aid the fight against Covid-19 in the country. IIT, Guwahati, is also filing a patent for the machine, which when commercialised, will be available at a cost of Rs1,000. The current prototype of the machine, requires to be manually manned, however, the team is working on making it a robot manned machine which requires limited human intervention. PTI

11-yr-old girl offers piggy bank to help poor

Dehradun: Alia Chawla, an 11-year-old girl from Rishikesh, went to a police station with her father and offered her piggy bank to the policemen and asked to use the money to feed those who are not able to get food amid the lockdown. While offering the piggy bank, she said: “Uncle, I don’t know how much money is there in it but you can break it and use the money to feed the hungry people and animals.” IANS

MP couple names son ‘Lockdown’

Sheopur (MP): A couple in Madhya Pradesh’s Sheopur district has named their newborn son after “Lockdown” to celebrate the “collective resolve” shown by people of the country to defeat coronavirus on the appeal of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The boy was born to Raghunath Mali and his 24-year-old wife Manju, both residents of Bachheri village in Sheopur district, at a private hospital on April 6. When asked about the reason, Mali, a farmer, said it would forever remind them about this unprecedented period. PTI

Bachchan, Rajinikanth unite for short film

Mumbai: Megastar Amitabh Bachchan has unveiled a short film, Family, which talks about the importance of staying at home, maintaining hygiene and social distancing amid the coronavirus pandemic. ‘Family’, which has been conceptuali-sed and virtually directed by Prasoon Pandey, also features Rajinikanth, Ranbir Kapoor, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Alia Bhatt, Diljit Dosanjh, Chiranjeevi, Mohanlal, Mammootty, Sonali Kulkarni, Shiv Raj Kumar and Prosenjit Chatterjee. PTI

Crack down on hoarders: Shah to officials

New Delhi: Union Home Minister Amit Shah today held a review meeting on the status of the lockdown measures being taken in the country, including issues related to security and supply of essential commodities in the country. Punya Salila Srivastava, Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), said, “The Home Minister directed the officials to ensure, with the cooperation of the state governments, that there was no hoarding of essential items, including food and medical supplies.” TNS

Covid scare disrupts onion trade

Mumbai: Onion prices have fallen to around Rs 3 per kg with demand plummeting due to the Covid pandemic across the country. According to information available from traders at the Lasalgaon onion market, the country’s biggest market for the bulb, the countrywide lockdown has disrupted the supply chain. TNS

Activists seek WHO ban on wildlife markets

New Delhi: On the occasion of the World Health Day on Tuesday, over 200 wildlife protection organisations from across the world urged the World Health Organization (WHO) to endorse a permanent ban on live wildlife markets and use of wildlife in traditional medicine. TNS