China launches new tech database to help communities fight Covid-19

Beijing, September 14

The Chinese government is compiling a database of technologies that can be used to combat the coronavirus pandemic, the Ministry of Science and Technology said in a post on Monday.

According to the post, officials have compiled a list of more than 2,000 “new technologies” and their providers, ranging from automatic temperature detection to diagnosis and hospital information systems, the South China morning Post (SCMP) newspaper reported.

The Ministry has planned to proliferate technology-based applications among hospitals and communities, which have been on the frontlines of the outbreak, as well as to companies which are now coping with the aftermath of a nearly two month-long lockdown.

An initial list of 283 technology products was published earlier this month, covering solutions for diagnosis and treatment of the virus, construction of hospital information systems, as well as delivery systems for necessary supplies and disinfection services, according to the post.

The efforts aim to “encourage adoption and application of new technologies in a compliant and effective manner” and support outbreak prevention and business resumption, the Ministry added.

The pooling of technologies into a single platform comes amid Chinese President Xi Jinping’s call for science and technology to provide “strong backing” in fighting the virus, the SCMP newspaper citen an article published in Qiushi magazine on Sunday.

Positive progress has been made over the past month as China coordinated 12 state departments to devise treatment plans, carry out research into vaccines and construct epidemiology and viral pathology models, Xi wrote in the article.

As of Monday morning, the overall number of global coronavirus cases stood at 28,891,676, while the deaths have increased to 922,441, according to the Johns Hopkins University.

The US accounted for the world’s highest number of cases and deaths at 6,519,121 and 194,041 respectively.

India is currently in the second place in terms of cases at 4,754,356, while the country’s death toll stood at 78,586. — IANS

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