Tag: Johns Hopkins University

Adityanath Misleads Modi, Shah on ‘Harvard’ Study Praising UP Government

Document handed over by embattled UP chief minister still carries Harvard logo even though institute publishing the report had removed it since it was improperly used.

There have been reports of a growing political tussle between the Central government and the Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh which will go to poll next year. Speculations of a rift are circulating amid Prime Minister Modi’s mishandling of COVID-19 and Adityanath facing flak over the rising number of dead bodies found in Ganga.

The UP chief minister has dismissed rumours of BJP’s unhappiness with his leadership. On June 10, he met home minister Amit Shah in Delhi. A photograph from the meeting showed Adityanath handing over a book to him titled ‘कोविड-19 एवं प्रवासी संकट का समाधान: उत्तर प्रदेश पर एक रिपोर्ट’’ (‘COVID-19 and the Migrant Crisis Resolution: A Report On Uttar Pradesh’).

The next day, Adityanath presented the book to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, President Ram Nath Kovind and BJP President JP Nadda. The photo with Nadda shows an English version of the same report – “COVID-19 & The Migrant Crisis Resolution: A Report On Uttar Pradesh”.

News agency UNI reported, “As a testimony of some excellent work in tackling probably the biggest migrant crisis in about a century, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath handed over a copy of the book to Prime Minister Narendra Modi released on the study conducted by Harvard University.”

“In fact, CM Yogi presented three books to PM Modi, one regarding the study of Harvard University, another the similar study by John Hopkins University and the third one by the suggested model of ascertaining Gross Domestic Product at the district level,” the report added.

The Daily Pioneer reported the same on June 12.

The study is not by Harvard

The book handed over by Adityanath to the home minister is the Hindi translation (‘कोविड-19 एवं प्रवासी संकट का समाधान: उत्तर प्रदेश पर एक रिपोर्ट’) of the study ‘COVID-19 & The Migrant Crisis Resolution: A Report On Uttar Pradesh’. The cover page of the book has two logos – Institute For Competitiveness (IFC) and Microeconomics of Competitiveness (MOC), an affiliate network of Harvard Business School.

Back in April, the same study was hailed by certain news outlets as Harvard University lauding the Yogi Adityanath government for handling the migrant crisis more effectively than other states. Alt News had revealed that the study was not prepared by Harvard University but IFC.

The study was shared on a WhatsApp group ‘State Media 1’ where the UP government communicates with journalists. This time as well, the study was misrepresented as a Harvard study and shared on the same group.

According to IFC’s website, it is “the Indian knot in the global network” of the Institute for Strategy and Competitiveness (ISC) at Harvard Business School. IFC doesn’t refer to itself as a part of Harvard Business School. ISC prospectus lists IFC as an affiliate of MOC, which is essentially a Harvard course on competitiveness and economic development. It was developed by Professor Michael Porter and the staff and affiliates of ISC.

Amit Kapoor, honorary chairman at IFC, had told Alt News over an email conversation, “It is not accurate to refer to a study by an MOC affiliate as a Harvard study.” Kapoor also informed, “Contrary to media reports, our study doesn’t conclude UP government handled the migrant crisis more effectively than other states. The document is not a comparative statement on the handling of the crisis by different states. It is documentation pertaining to the effort of the Uttar Pradesh government and extracting insights from the same.”

Also read: We Know the ‘Harvard’ Study on UP is Not from Harvard. It’s Also Not Much of a ‘Study’.

“The document was for internal consumption and was not intended to be made public. In addition, as you note, the study/document was not projected as a Harvard study anywhere in the document, rather as a work of the Institute For Competitiveness. The interpretation was unexpected. The logo from the report will be removed to correct the interpretation and to not project anything wrong,” he continued.

But after the study was handed over to the Prime Minister, the President and home minister still carried the logo, Alt News contacted Kapoor for clarification. “As stated earlier, the report was meant for internal use and not to be released in public. To your question, IFC did remove the MOC network logo from the report, which I am also attaching in the email. This report had not yet been released by Institute For Competitiveness in the public domain and the document is for limited internal circulation. These reports being shared have not been printed or published by Institute For Competitiveness.”

It is noteworthy that the document does not carry a disclaimer stating that it is only meant for internal use.

What did the Johns Hopkins study say?

UNI reported that another “similar study” by Johns Hopkins was also presented to the prime minister. Two months ago, Newsroom Post, Web Dunia and The Pioneer wrongly hailed Uttar Pradesh as a ‘topper’ in COVID-19 management, citing a report by Johns Hopkins. Dr David Peters, a professor at the university’s Department of International Health and one of the authors of the study, had refuted claims made by Indian media.

“The case study covered activities in UP from January 30, 2020, to January 15, 2021, and aimed to document the range of actions taken in Uttar Pradesh in response to COVID-19 and to identify lessons for how to respond in resource-constrained settings. As you can see in the report itself, the case study did not make comparisons to other countries or states, nor make claims about which states or countries are top performers,” he told Alt News.

In April, two studies were incorrectly projected by the media as studies by Harvard University and Johns Hopkins University lauding the UP government for managing the migrant crisis and COVID-19 better than other states. These claims were further amplified on social media and WhatsApp.

The study that was falsely attributed to Harvard especially gained a lot of traction with even prominent journalists tweeting about it. However, neither the claims nor the attribution was correct.

Despite clarifications published two months ago, UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath presented these studies to the Home Minister, the President and the Prime Minister. The false claims were also repeated on a WhatsApp group where the UP government communicates with journalists.

This article was originally published on AltNews.

COVID-19 Deaths in India Are Rising the Fastest In the World: Data

According to numbers from Johns Hopkins University, new deaths rose by 143% on the subcontinent compared to three and four weeks ago.

Out of all countries with more than 25 daily average deaths from COVID-19, the death toll rose the quickest in India in the last 14 days. New deaths rose by 143% on the subcontinent compared to the three and four weeks ago. India now counts an absolute number of almost 212,000 COVID-19 deaths. This is according to numbers from Johns Hopkins University published by Our World in Data.

India’s count of new deaths increased most despite being one of the bigger outbreaks. Japan’s new death toll increase came second, increasing by three quarters within 14 days. The country has declared a new state of emergency for several regions, among them Tokyo, where the Summer Olympic Games are scheduled to kick off in less than three months. Other than India, Japan remains a smaller outbreak, however, with only around 10,000 deaths in total to date.

Iran, an early hotspot of the COVID-19 pandemic, showed a worrying trend once more, as did several outbreaks in Latin America, affecting Argentina, Ecuador and Paraguay.

Infographic: Where COVID-19 Deaths Are Rising Fastest | Statista

You will find more infographics at Statista where this article was originally published.

Eight Inmates Killed, 37 Others Injured in Sri Lankan Prison Riot: Official

The incident comes as pandemic-related unrest has been growing in Sri Lanka’s overcrowded prisons.

Colombo: At least eight prisoners were killed and 37 others injured when a riot broke out on Sunday at a prison on the outskirts of Sri Lanka’s capital when some inmates tried to force open a door and escape, prompting the authorities to use force, police said on Monday.

Police spokesman Ajith Rohana said inmates created unrest at the Mahara prison located about 15 kilometres north of Colombo and prison officials took steps to control the situation.

The incident comes as pandemic-related unrest has been growing in Sri Lanka’s overcrowded prisons. Inmates have staged protests in recent weeks in several prisons as the number of confirmed COVID-19 positive cases spiked in the country’s overcrowded jails.

The incident was started by a set of remand prisoners when they tried to force open a door and escape following which the authorities had to use force, Rohana said.

He said during the entire incident at least 37 more, including two jailors, were injured and all of them were transferred to the nearby Ragama hospital.

The residents near the prison said smoke was coming out of the premises due to fire.

Prisons authorities said the rioters had set fire to the kitchen and a record room of the prison.

An attempt by the rioting inmates to take the jailors hostage was thwarted, officials said.

Rohana said the detainees wanted them to be transferred elsewhere as the Mahara prison has detected over 175 COVID-19 infections among the inmates.

Also read: Over 6,700 Prisoners Released on Bail Amid COVID-19 to Surrender in a Phased Manner

From the mid of this month, prisons across the island went into a lockdown as infections were reported both among inmates and guards.

Over 1,000 cases have been reported among those connected to prisons.

In similar unrest last week, an inmate was killed. Another prisoner died in March.

Sri Lankan prisons are highly congested with more than 26,000 inmates crowded in facilities with the capacity of 10,000.

Sri Lanka, which has been taking tough measures to contain the spread of the coronavirus, has reported 22,988 cases and 109 deaths due to the contagious virus, according to Johns Hopkins University.

COVID-19: India Reports Close to 12,000 New Cases Again

This is the third day in a row when more than 10,000 cases of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) have been recorded in India, now the fourth worst-hit nation by the pandemic.

New Delhi: India’s cases rose by more than 11,000 for the second consecutive day, as the country reported 11,929 novel coronavirus cases in the 24 hours before 8 am on Sunday, the highest single-day spike yet. The country now has more than 3.2 lakh confirmed cases, while the death toll is now more than 9,000, after 311 fresh deaths were recorded, according to the health ministry.

This is the third day in a row when more than 10,000 cases of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) have been recorded in India, now the fourth worst-hit nation by the pandemic.

The total confirmed coronavirus cases rose to 3,20,922, including 9,195 deaths, according to the health ministry’s data updated in the morning. There are 1,49,348 active COVID-19 cases, while 1,62,378 people have recovered or been discharged and a patient has migrated. The number of recoveries are more than the active cases as 50.60% of the patients have recovered so far.

India now has the ninth highest death toll due to COVID-19 in the world.

Of the total 9,195 deaths, Maharashtra has recorded 3,830 fatalities, followed 1,448 by Gujarat and 1,271 in Delhi. The toll from the pandemic rose to 463 in West Bengal, 447 in Madhya Pradesh, 397 in Tamil Nadu and 385 in Uttar Pradesh. There have been 282 COVID-19 deaths in Rajasthan and 182 in Telangana.

Cases in Maharashtra alone are now more than 1 lakh. The state has recorded 1,04,568 infections, followed by Tamil Nadu (42,687 , Delhi (38,958) and Gujarat (23,038). The tally rose to 13,118 in Uttar Pradesh, 12,401 in Rajasthan and 10,698 in West Bengal and 10,641 in Madhya Pradesh.

Across the world, there have now been more than 77.8 lakh cases of the virus, which has claimed over 4.3 lakh deaths. The US has reported more than 2 million cases, while Brazil and Russia occupy the second and third places with over 850,000 and 519,000 cases respectively, according to data provided by Johns Hopkins University.

Patients who recovered from COVID-19 prepare to leave Krishna Hospital in Karad, June 10, 2020. Photo: PTI

Health ministry adds new symptoms

Loss of smell or taste has been added to the list of COVID-19 symptoms, according to the revised clinical management protocols released by the Union health ministry on Saturday.

The ministry listed muscle pain, diarrhoea, congested nasal cavity, sputum production as COVID-19 symptoms, besides fever, cough, fatigue, sore throat and shortness of breath.

People have also complained of loss of smell (anosmia) or loss of taste (ageusia) preceding the onset of respiratory symptoms, it said.

According to an expert, though it is not specific to COVID-19 as one may even suffer from loss of smell and taste when they have flu or influenza, but then it could be one of the early signs of the onset of the disease and may help in timely detection and treatment.

In its revised ‘Clinical Management Protocols for COVID-19 released on Saturday, the health ministry said older people and immune-suppressed patients in particular may present with atypical symptoms such as fatigue, reduced alertness, reduced mobility, diarrhoea, loss of appetite, delirium, and absence of fever, the ministry said.

Protests in Nepal

Police in Nepal arrested 10 people, including seven foreigners, on Saturday as demonstrations against the government’s handling of the coronavirus crisis continued with hundreds of protesters gathering in the capital city Kathmandu.

According to news agency Reuters, the country’s cases have been spiking despite a complete lockdown imposed in March after reporting its second confirmed coronavirus case. Now, the country has more than 5,000 cases and 16 deaths. The government has come under fire for not doing enough to contain the outbreak.

Police officials said an estimated 1,000 people had gathered on a major thoroughfare in Kathmandu for the third day, where seven foreign nationals were arrested. “The foreigners were arrested for interfering in Nepal’s internal affairs,” police official Basant Lama told Reuters.

Earlier this week, police used baton charges, water cannons and tear gas to break up protests near the prime minister’s residence. No such clashes took place on Saturday.

A protester gets detained during a protest demanding better and effective response from the government to fight COVID-19 in Kathmandu, Nepal June 13, 2020. Photo: REUTERS/Navesh Chitrakar

Protesters are demanding better quarantine facilities, more tests and transparency in the purchase of medical supplies to fight the crisis.

“Quarantine facilities lack water, sanitation and safety,” protester Ramesh Pradhan said. “They are becoming the breeding centres for the coronavirus. This must be improved.”

Nepal’s government says it has spent about $89 million to fight the pandemic, has conducted around 310,000 tests and quarantined some 158,000 people. But activists insist this is not enough in a country of 30 million people.

“The government is committed to increase tests, boost medical services and improve the quarantine facilities,” Deputy Prime Minister Ishwor Pokhrel, who is leading the country’s coronavirus response, said in a statement on Saturday.

Watch | Coronavirus Updates, April 6: AIIMS RDA Raises Concern Over Trolling of Doctors

The highest number of confirmed cases is from Maharashtra at 690, followed by Tamil Nadu at 571 and Delhi at 503. Cases in Uttar Pradesh are rising and are close to breaching the 300-mark.

Over 4,067 people have been infected by COVID-19 in India so far. Of this number, 291 have been cured or discharged and 109 have died. Twenty one new deaths were reported from Maharashtra, two each from Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu and one from Punjab.

The highest number of confirmed cases is from Maharashtra at 690, followed by Tamil Nadu (571) and Delhi (503). Cases in Uttar Pradesh are rising and are close to breaching the 300-mark.

Over 1,275,542 confirmed cases have been reported globally. According to Johns Hopkins University, the global death toll due to COVID-19 stands at 69,498.

Amidst Famines and Conflict, the UN Now Faces US Funding Cuts

If the US cuts its funds to the UN, it will come at a time when the number of people needing organisational assistance has peaked since records began.

If the US cuts its funds to the UN, it will come at a time when the number of people needing organisational assistance has peaked since records began.

Snow falls outside of the UN headquarters Secretariat building in New York. Credit: UN Photo/Rick Bajornas

Snow falls outside of the UN headquarters Secretariat building in New York. Credit: UN Photo/Rick Bajornas

United Nations: In the midst of responding to the worst humanitarian crisis since records began, the UN is now faced with potential funding cuts from its biggest donor, the US.

On Thursday, US President Donald Trump released ‘America First: A Budget Blueprint to Make America Great Again‘, the first such budget proposal of his presidency. The blueprint’s biggest proposed cuts target the Department of State, which would lose 29% of its budget, and the Environment Protection Agency, which would lose 31%.

Although details of exactly how the proposed cuts – which still require approval of US Congress – would be made are yet to emerge, funding for the UN and the USAID, which both fall under the State Department, is at risk.

“If approved – and that’s a big “if” – the White House’s plans could slash several billions in UN funding,” Natalie Samarasinghe, executive director of the United Nations Association of the UK, told IPS.

These billions of dollars of potential cuts come at a time when the UN is occupied, responding to both acute and chronic crises around the world.

“Some 20 million people are facing famine in Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen,” said Samarasinghe.

“The number of people forced to flee their homes is now the biggest since records began,” she said. “These are people for whom the UN is literally the difference between life and death,” she said.

Michel Gabaudan, president of Refugees International, told IPS that it is important to keep the US contribution in perspective when assessing the potential cuts.

“The US’s contribution is critical, it is generous it is vital but it is not unduly high compared to other countries of the western bloc – who are the main funders of humanitarian aid – and we must keep this contribution in perspective.”

“The total foreign aid of the US is about 1% of the budget – not 10 or 15% as some people seem to think – it’s 1%.”

“The magnitude of the US economy means that, that 1% of money is critical to humanitarian relief and to development programs but if you compare this with what some European countries are doing, like Switzerland, like the Nordics, like the Dutch … they are certainly giving more in terms of dollar per capita of their citizens,” he said.

Samarasinghe also noted that the proposed cuts are “still a relatively small amount compared to, say, fossil fuel subsidies.”

She said that it would be “politically challenging for European countries to pick up the slack, especially with elections looming in a number of countries.”

As an example, said Samarasinghe, a recent appeal from the Netherlands to fund reproductive health and safe abortions has not yet reached its $600 million target. That appeal was set up after Trump re-instated the Global Gag Rule, which removes US funding from non-governmental organisations that carry out any activities related to safe abortion, regardless of the funding source.

Meanwhile, Deborah Brautigam, an expert on China in Africa told IPS that it is unlikely that China will increase its funding to the UN as the US steps back, because China already feels “very comfortable” in its current position at the UN. This position includes a permanent seat on the UN Security Council and UN development policies, which align with China’s priorities, such as industrialisation, said Brautigam who is professor of international political economy and director of the China Africa Research Initiative at Johns Hopkins University.

Two UN agencies that receive the most funding from the US are the World Food Program, which provides emergency food assistance, and the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR).

However Gabaudan said that both the more immediate humanitarian aid as well as long-term development assistance are needed to address the world’s crises.

“The state department funds UNHCR and USAID funds development programs which tie the humanitarian aid with longer term issues,” said Gabaudan.

“Most displacement crises are protracted, people don’t leave and get back home after a year or two,” he said, as is the case with the Syrian conflict, which just surpassed six year on March 15.

The budget proposal also reinforces other aspects of the emerging Trump Republican administration policies, including sweeping cuts to environment programs and cuts to programs, which assist the poor in the US.

Nikki Haley, US permanent representative to the UN said in a statement that the cuts reflected a desire to make the UN more effective and efficient.

“I look forward to working with Members of Congress to craft a budget that advances US interests at the UN, and I look forward to working with my UN colleagues to make the organisation more effective and efficient.”

“In many areas, the UN spends more money than it should, and in many ways it places a much larger financial burden on the US than on other countries.”

However that financial relationship between the UN and the host of UN Headquarters is not unidirectional. According to the latest New York City UN Impact Report, the UN community contributed 3.69 billion dollars to the New York City economy in 2014.

In response to the budget blueprint, Stéphane Dujarric, spokesman for UN secretary general Antonio Guterres said that “the secretary-general is grateful for the support the United States has given to the United Nations over the years as the organisation’s largest financial contributor.”

“The secretary-general is totally committed to reforming the United Nations and ensuring that it is fit for purpose and delivers results in the most efficient and cost-effective manner.”

“However, abrupt funding cuts can force the adoption of ad hoc measures that will undermine the impact of longer-term reform efforts,” said Dujarric.

Dujarric’s statement also addressed aspects of the proposed budget, which claim to address terrorism. The proposal, which significantly increases spending on the US military appears to favour a “hard power” militaristic approach over a “soft power” diplomatic and humanitarian approach.

“The secretary-general fully subscribes to the necessity to effectively combat terrorism but believes that it requires more than military spending,” said Dujarric. “There is also a need to address the underlying drivers of terrorism through continuing investments in conflict prevention, conflict resolution, countering violent extremism, peacekeeping, peacebuilding, sustainable and inclusive development, the enhancement and respect of human rights, and timely responses to humanitarian crises.”

This article was originally published in the Inter-Press Service.