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Disaster Risk Financing to take centre stage at Second G20 DRRWG Meeting

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23 – 25 May 2023, Mumbai

National/ Mumbai: The second meeting of the Disaster Risk Reduction Working Group (DRRWG) is set to take place in Mumbai from 23-25 May 2023. The gathering will bring together government officials, industry experts, private sector and stakeholders from more than 20 countries to explore innovative ways of managing disaster risk and financing for sustainable development. The meeting will enable G20 countries to identify opportunities and explore innovative financing mechanisms to reduce the impact of disasters on vulnerable communities.
As the G20 nations face an increasing number of natural disasters and climate change-related risks – with a combined estimated Annual Average Loss of $218 billion or 9% of average annual investment in infrastructure, the second DRRWG meeting with high-level dialogue on financing for development is an opportunity to call-for-action on finance for DRR. It will cover public and private financing, social protection, knowledge sharing, and international financing mechanisms for disaster response, recovery and reconstruction.
The DRRWG will also host side events on infrastructure risk assessment tools and data platforms, and the importance of adopting a ‘build back better’ approach that incorporates ecosystem-based approaches and engages local communities. The various other agendas including the establishment of a national framework, incentivizing private investments, and supporting disaster preparedness, will pave the way towards a more resilient future.
In addition to the G20 member countries, the invited countries and international organizations like Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure, important Indian key stakeholders like Ministry of External Affairs of the Government of India, National Disaster Management Authority, National Institute of Disaster Management, National Disaster Response Force are expected to participate at the second DRRWG meeting.

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SEVILLA FC LAUNCHES THE DOCUMENTARY SERIES ‘NEVER SURRENDER’ IN INDIA

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In collaboration with FC Bengaluru United and Valvoline, its main allies in the Asian country, the series will tell several powerful stories of Indian sport based on the spirit of overcoming challenges that embodies the Sevilla FC motto

The ‘Never surrender’ that sums up the Sevilla FC mentality transcends borders. So much so that it is no longer a simple motto that the club carries locally, but one that it tries to spread around the world, both on and off the field. The International Strategic Plan that the club is carrying out has India as one of its strong points. There, Sevilla FC is working with two top-level partners, FC Bengaluru United and Valvoline, with whom it is developing several projects. With the help of both, it is now launching the series ‘Never Surrender’ (‘Nunca te rindas’, in Spanish). Several documentary chapters that tell several powerful stories of Indian sport, all of them based on the spirit of overcoming challenges that embodies the Sevillista motto.

The series will consist of five chapters, launches on Monday 8th May, and can be viewed on Sevilla FC’s official YouTube channel. “We are a club with a great history of struggle, effort, overcoming and success, which never gives up in the face of adversity and always has the ambition to aim higher. It is a source of pride to see how in different parts of the world our way of being and facing challenges serves as an inspiration for people. Not only on a sporting level, but in any aspect of life”, stated José Castro, Sevilla FC Club President.

The first episode tells the story of a football team made up of blind people in Kochi, in the region of Kerala, who have managed to overcome all the adversities they encounter in a country like India to finish 14th in the world. Another story features Hadiya, a self-taught girl from Kozhikode who managed to join the Indian ‘freestyler’ team, traditionally a 100% male 1

sport. A special mention for the third of the chapters, which features Vamshi Origanti, a Sevilla FC fan from Anantapur (Andhra Pradesh) who is an active member of the Sevilla FC fan club in India and who fell in love with the history and spirit of the club from the most rural part of the country and watching its matches on television.

The fourth episode takes us into the idiosyncrasies of FC Bengaluru United, a strategic partner of Sevilla FC, who share basic principles such as a commitment to technology, youth football and the ambition to be at the top of Indian football. “The spirit of Sevilla FC’s ‘Never Surrender’ aligns with our principles of being ambitious, fighting and doing it together as a team. Our objectives are to transcend beyond the field of play, to contribute to our community in different areas,” explains Gaurav Manchanda, CEO of FC Bengaluru United.

The last episode will focus on cricketer Dinesh Karthik, who is currently playing in the play-off season with his team, Royal Challengers Bangalore, and tells the story of how he overcame various challenges to reach the sport’s elite. Ipshita Chawdhury, Valvoline’s Marketing Director in India, explains that “partnering with a cricket star like Dinesh Karthik helps us create effective and quality content to connect with our audience.

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MakeMyTrip collaborates with Microsoft to reshape the travel booking landscape with generative AI

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Lays the groundwork to make the platform inclusive and accessible for all of Bharat

Bangalore, May 9, 2023: In a landmark move, MakeMyTrip has collaborated with Microsoft to make travel planning more inclusive and accessible by introducing voice assisted booking in Indian languages. The new, in-platform tech stack powered by Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service and Azure Cognitive Services, will converse with the user to offer personalized travel recommendations based on their preferences; curate holiday packages based on variable inputs like occasion, budget, activity preferences, time of travel, etc., and even help book these holiday packages. It opens the online travel ecosystem for every strata and demographic across the country. Currently, the beta version of this integration has been introduced in English and Hindi for flights and holidays customers.

The next stage of voice assisted booking flow will cover other transport offerings. The feature has been embedded into the landing page of the platform and can be activated with a single click.

“We have pioneered offerings at the intersection of e-commerce, travel, and technology, and are proud to introduce a feature that breaks down the barriers of language, literacy, inability to navigate complex app environments, physical impairments, etc,” said, Rajesh Magow, Co-Founder & Group CEO, MakeMyTrip. “This Generative AI integration through our collaboration with Microsoft involves simple visual cues and voice commands in native Indian languages that will alter the landscape of travel bookings hereon forth.”

MakeMyTrip’s latest offering uses the power of AI and Machine Learning to make travel-related solutions all pervasive, no matter the use case or scenario. Microsoft’s large language models and Indic language speech models, coupled with MakeMyTrip’s natural language understanding capability and travel domain content creates the base for users to interact with the platform in any Indian language.

Sanjay Mohan, Group Chief Technology Officer, MakeMyTrip said, “We are delighted to introduce revolutionary changes to our platform that align with our philosophy of leveraging tech to solve real consumer problems. The new update will elevate the user experience and make our platform more inclusive, accessible, and easy to navigate. The beta phase will offer us learnings to further fine-tune all use cases before rolling it out to users at scale. As such, we’ll do a very controlled roll-out of this feature with a subset of our customers.”

Sangeeta Bavi, Executive Director, Digital Natives, Microsoft India, said, “MakeMyTrip is a pioneer in the travel industry, and we are honored to work together to define the next frontiers of AI driven innovation and customer engagement in the online travel industry. Bringing together MakeMyTrip’s expertise with Microsoft’s AI capabilities, including Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service, our collaboration will help make travel more inclusive and accessible for travelers across India, with trust and security at the core.”

The intuitive interface powered by Azure OpenAI Service’s GPT technology, will analyse specific user requirements and sift through thousands of options, to recommend, customize and book holiday packages, transforming what has been a time-consuming process into a quick and hassle-free experience. It will also summarize hotel reviews, extracting unique traveller impressions, that is cohort specific – whether a solo traveller, business traveller, couple, family, etc. This will elevate the hotel booking experience by offering personalized and relevant information to the user without having to scroll through multiple reviews.

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Get Ready for a Summer of Explorations with Sony BBC Earth’s Exciting May premieres

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National, May 09, 2023:
Sony BBC Earth, with an exciting new line-up of shows, brings in a chance to journey through new destinations and experience new cultures and cuisines for its viewers. The channel has something in store for everyone, from mouthwatering food adventures with renowned chef Rick Stein to adrenaline-pumping experiences in Lonely Planet’s Year of Adventure. Viewers can sit back and enjoy an array of fascinating experiences from the comfort of their homes with a mix of travel, food, and lifestyle shows.

The month kickstarted on a high note with Rick Stein’s Spain and Rick Stein’s Taste of Shanghai. Viewers got a chance to join Rick Stein through the length and breadth of Spain to discover the authentic soul of Spanish cooking along with getting a virtual tour to the culinary adventures of Shanghai. The upcoming line-up comprise of Lonely Planet shows – ‘Lonely Planet Stressbuster’, ‘Lonely Planet:1000 Ultimate Experiences’ and ‘Lonely Planet: Year Of Adventure’. Lonely Planet Stressbuster explores unique ways to rejuvenate, revitalize, and reconnect across Asia. Whereas ‘Lonely Planet:1000 Ultimate Experiences’ takes viewers on a trip around the world to experience the most awe-inspiring ancient sites, the best lip-smacking street food, and more. To cap off the Lonely Planet programming, Year Of Adventure sees adventurer Ben Fogle tackling a series of challenges in the US, Europe, and Australia, showcasing some of the most extraordinary and unexpected places on the planet.

Apart from this, the channel is premiering ‘New York: America’s Busiest City’ which explores the intricate logistics, engineering, and technology that keeps New York City’s commercial, economic, and cultural heart pumping.

So, get ready to mark your calendars and tune in to Sony BBC Earth this May for an unforgettable viewing experience.

Travel the world from the comfort of your couch with a line-up of exciting shows from 12 PM and 8 PM, join Lonely Planet Stressbuster, Lonely Planet: 1000 Ultimate Experiences, and Lonely Planet: Year of Adventure series starting on May 15th, while at 2 PM and 10 PM, and finally, at 10 PM, experience the hustle and bustle of America’s busiest city with “New York: America’s Busiest City” starting on May 29th.

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World Thalassemia Day: Experts Share Insights About the Challenges for Thalassemia Patients in India

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Bengaluru, 5th May 2023 –Thalassemia is a genetic condition affecting millions worldwide. Every year, over 10,000 new cases of thalassemia are diagnosed in India, making the country the Thalassemia capital of the world. Despite its prevalence, there is a lack of awareness about this condition and its treatment options. This hereditary disease affects many children in their infancy, and parents who are usually asymptomatic are carriers of this disease and have a 25% chance of passing it to their children.
Dr. Joseph John, Professor & Head of the Department of Clinical Hematology, Haemato-Oncology & Stem Cell Transplantation, Christian Medical College, Ludhiana – “One of the most significant challenges facing thalassemia patients is the availability of safe and timely blood transfusions. Patients with thalassemia require frequent blood transfusions, and it has been estimated that the annual requirement of packed red cells is about 2 million units in India alone. While patient organizations and regional blood banks have made significant efforts to fulfill this requirement, the demand for safe blood far outstrips the supply. This leaves many families struggling month after month to obtain the necessary blood for their children.”
Dr. Sunil Bhatt, Director and Clinical Lead, Pediatric Hematology, Oncology and Blood & Marrow Transplantation, Narayana Health, Bengaluru – Although the overwhelming burden of thalassemia has become a huge concern for the Indian population, there is hope. Patients suffering from thalassemia can be cured with a stem cell transplant, ideally at an early age. The need for transplants in children is, therefore, extremely high. Thalassemia patients are mostly children who undergo painful blood transfusions for several years. Blood transfusions have its challenges and risks for the patients. A successful blood stem cell transplant depends on a perfect HLA tissue match. Only 30% of patients who need transplants have a fully HLA-matched donor in their family; the rest depend on an unrelated donor. As per the theme for thalassemia day 2023: Be Aware. Share. Care. It is high time to raise awareness about the disease and the treatment options.”
Individuals with thalassemia and their families face significant challenges accessing quality healthcare and treatment. Addressing these challenges requires a multifaceted approach that involves increasing awareness about thalassemia and its treatment options, improving the availability of safe blood and specialized care, and making curative treatments like stem cell transplantation more accessible to patients who need it.
Patrick Paul, CEO, DKMS BMST Foundation India, informs, “We aim to support underprivileged blood cancer and other blood disorders, such as Thalassemia patients in India, for which we have initiated the DKMS-BMST Thalassemia programme. Under this programme, DKMS-BMST collaborates with local NGOs and transplant centers to organize camps where pediatric thalassemia patients and their siblings travel from afar places, sometimes from very remote places in India, to give buccal swab samples for HLA typing. Samples from the camps are analyzed in the DKMS laboratory based out of Germany, and clinical matching reports are provided. In cases where there is no matching sibling for a sick child, we also support unrelated donor searches for patients.”
Successful patient stories under the DKMS-BMST Thalassemia Programme:
Yashika: 12-year-old Yashika was diagnosed with Beta Thalassemia at the age of 3 months and was receiving regular blood transfusions. Her father is a tailor with a very low income. They had to struggle to cover the costs of her transfusions and treatment. Yahiska’s treating hospital Christian Medical College, Ludhiana, organized a free HLA typing camp with the support of DKMS-BMST. Her younger sister Priya became a match, and Yashika underwent a successful stem cell transplant in November 2022. Today, Yashika leads a normal life and goes to school like any other child. They thank Dr. Josheph John, CMC Ludhiana, and DKMS for their support.
Tejas: 14-year-old Tejas has endured much suffering since he was diagnosed with Thalassemia in 2008. He had been receiving painful blood transfusions, but his condition was not improving. His only hope for survival was a stem cell transplant from an HLA-matched donor. He was referred to Mazumdar Shaw Medical Hospital at Narayana Health City in Bangalore to meet Dr. Sunil Bhat’s team, who specializes in stem cell transplants. Tejas’ father was an electrician who was the family’s sole breadwinner. He had already exhausted their resources paying off his son’s medical bills. Fortunately, Dr. Sunil Bhat reached out to DKMS-BMST, who supported the family with free HLA typing under their Thalassemia programme, through which he found a matching donor with his sibling. He underwent a successful stem cell transplant in September 2021 and recovered well. His family thanks Dr. Sunil Bhat and DKMS-BMST for helping Tejas to get a second chance at life

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