nearly 5 years after the covid-19 outbreak China may now have a mystery virus on the prowl according to reports China has been battling an outbreak of human meta numo virus or hmpv what is known about it how dangerous is it as per the information available so far hmpv causes symptoms symptoms similar to influenza as well as covid-19 however unlike the it currently does not have any corresponding vaccine how concerning is that let's first tell you more about what is known according to experts hmpv infections Rose in mainland China over the past few days in the
northern Province in China reportedly the infection rate has shown an upward trend on Friday China's diseases Control Authority said that it was piloting a monitoring system for pneumonia whose origin is unknown as of now the Chinese medical body reportedly also said that cases of some respiratory diseases are expected to rise through the winter it's reportedly to establish a dedicated system that can help the authorities set up protocols to handle unknown pathogens not just that according to the state broadcaster CCTV the national Disease Control and prevention Administration is set to establish a separate procedure for Laboratories
to report as well as for prevention agencies to verify and handle cases you see all of this is happening and is being closely looked at given the backdrop of the covid-19 Mayhem responding to this outbreak the deputy director of Taiwan Centers for Disease Control or CDC has said that Taiwan is closely monitoring the virus as well why is that as it suspects that the outbreak might also affect taian meanwhile in Hong Kong a leading epidemology has recently reportedly said that levels of hmpv remained low even amid the outbreak in mainland China but what exactly is
hmpv and what do we know about it according to the official of thaan CDC it is a common type of respiratory virus that mainly causes more s more serious illness in young children and older adults as well as those with compromised immune systems in others the symptoms of this infection are in fact quite similar to those of the common cold therefore symptoms commonly associated with hmpv include cough fever nasal congestion and shortness of breath however clinical symptoms of hmpv infection May progress to bronchitis or pneumonia and are similar to other viruses that cause upper and
lower respiratory infections now can it turn deadly according to the Chinese CDC while the virus usually poses no major risks those with pre-existing lung conditions like asthma chronic obstructive pulmonary disease Etc are at a higher risk of severe outcomes how does it get transmitted hmpv most likely gets spread from an infected person to others through secretions from coughing and sneezing and close personal contacts such as touching or shaking hands or even touching parts of of the face after touching objects or surfaces which may be contaminated with the virus I know what you're thinking sounds a
lot like co9 right perhaps sounds like a nightmarish Deja Vu nobody wants to play out in real life well the similarities are simply hard to miss however there is one big difference a crucial one that stands out the fact that hmpv has no vaccine as of now nor does it have an effective cure medical experts in fact saying that it's still mostly unknown to the general public and this makes a difference when it comes to raising awareness surrounding it you see it may be purely incidental that almost 5 Years After official cases of co9 were
first recorded that China is battling another virus outbreak however what happened then and what happens now can be separated by one factor the factor of transparency you see there are several reports critical accounts suggesting that China had withheld critical information in the early stages of the covid-19 outbreak not just that as per investigations that were LED postco 19 researchers were said to have isolated and mapped the virus causing covid-19 this was at least two weeks before Beijing revealed details of the virus to the world this time around will that change can China be expected to
take the outbreak of hmpv a lot more seriously also exercise transparency regarding the plausible dangers that the virus may be posing in China and Beyond as well as China's plans to tackle the virus should it turn even more severe in the coming days former US President Jimmy Carter is no more have you heard about the village of Carter Puri carterpuri village located in India's gurugram District it holds a unique place in both local and international contexts due to its association with the former American president it's often called uh his India connection we are sadan sible
getting us this report take a look this place can be any other place in the suburbs of Delhi with its kacha roads and newly built houses but this place has been an important milestone in Indo us ties this is kapuri named after former US President Jimmy Cara originally known as dakur nasirabad this Village is located in the gurugram district of harana it was renamed kapuri in honor of the 39th United States President Jimmy Carter after his visit to the village on January 3rd in 1978 along with his wife rosalin Carter oldtimers recall his visit fondly
many in their '90s now while the young mention the stories told by the elders with great interest how the village became a center of Attraction with high security presence many say that his visit spurred the development of the village there were a lot of government cars that came the fields were swed kacha houses were whitewashed and there were so many cars he was also taken to a gas plant he was made to wear the traditional clothes of our place like a cap and shirt and a Shaw 10 women at the school in this Village did
his Tika and other 10 made him wear a traditional Shaw there was nothing here no lanes and no Wells everything got built when he came Carter's visit was significant because his mother Lillian Carter had previously worked in the village in the late 1960s as a member of the peace corpse creating a personal connection between the former president and the community The Village celebrated when Carter won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002 Carter was the third US president to visit India his 1978 India visit was aimed at resetting Indo us ties during the visit he held
talks with former Indian Prime Minister murar G Desai got a public reception at ramela Medan but the one that is remembered today is his visit to Village kapuri the village is part of the urban sprawl of gurugram one of India's rapidly developing regions it has a history that locals won't forget the economy of kapuri is closely tied to the Industrial Development of gurugram many residents work in nearby factories Indian military and small businesses catering to the local economy carterpuri is named after US President Jimmy Carter he visited this Village and the people of this Village
are very proud of not only the visit but the fact that they named after the president of United States who visited this Village in 1978 and whenever the history of India us relationship will be talked about the name of this Village will always crop up with video journalist D Patel San for Von in katuri harana When in Rome do as the Romans do they say but when it comes to Greece the Greek pretty much seem to be flouting their own rules how is that you ask even 14 years after Greece of officially banned smoking in
indoor public places people can still be spotted lighting up in close settings the question is when the European Union urged countries to extend smoking bands to outdoor spaces to achieve a tobacco free Generation by 2040 what does all of this really mean no points for guessing what Greece said let's tell you more about this the current health Minister has said that Greece would not extend smoking restrictions in line with the European Union recommendation during a December meeting of European health ministers in a vote on the non-binding measure Greece abstained along with Germany you see Greece
and smoking share a strange connection to the point of it getting unhealthy quite literally just last year a health profile of greas from the European commission reported that about a fifth of the country's deaths in 2019 could be attributed to tobacco smoking including both direct and secondhand but that has done practically little to curb smoking practices Amit the among among the population while some might do this out of sure habit many also possibly think they could simply get away with it according to the European commission more than a third of Greeks regularly indulgent smoking which
makes it second in the European Union after Bulgaria to take up smoking among Europeans to tackle this tougher measures were introduced including Banning smoking in all indoor public areas in 2010 post which the country's statistics agency has recorded a significant drop in smoking however the ban got widely flouted in the days that followed in 2019 a law mandated fines of1 EUR which is roughly about $105 to be charged from those caught smoking indoors and when it came to businesses and Enterprises the same fine amount rose and a complaints hotline was also set up what's more
the health minister of Greece saying that indoor smoking has been stamped out altogether however as per experts it's simply not enough and what's more challenging is to unseat deeply ingrained attitudes and a culture that basically supports smoking as well as authorities not placing stricter measures to nip it in the BD so what is the way out the solution pretty much lies in the problem itself experts suggesting one has to start with changing the very mindset where more people are educated about the Perils of smoking and its ill effects including its impact on one's life expectancy
and for that authorities need to come together and collaborate with the civilians to actually practice what they preach by following the rules of indoor smoking bands to the tea should
