CovidGYan portal launched by premier research institutes for latest information on coronavirus
The content in the portal, which is targeted towards general citizens and those with a scientifically curious mind, comprises latest research and up-to-date information on the pandemic, short videos or webinars in 12 languages on how to tackle the spread of novel coronavirus, and interviews with experts in the form of podcasts to understand various aspects of the Covid-19 outbreak.
With a rising number of Covid-19 cases in India and an overwhelming amount of information about coronavirus across various platforms, the country’s premier scientific institutes have launched a multi-institutional and multi-lingual science communication portal – CovidGyan (https://covid-gyan.in) – to filter out misinformation.
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The initiative to create the website is led by the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), Indian Institute of Science (IISc) and Tata Memorial Centre (TMC) along with six other partners which include the Bangalore Life Science Cluster (comprising InStem and C-CAMP, in addition to NCBS-TIFR).
The content in the portal, which is targeted towards general citizens and those with a scientifically curious mind, comprises latest research and up-to-date information on the pandemic, short videos or webinars in 12 languages on how to tackle the spread of novel coronavirus, and interviews with experts in the form of podcasts to understand various aspects of the Covid-19 outbreak.
“The mandate of the CovidGyan initiative is to create, curate and communicate scientifically credible and authentic Covid-19-related content and resources,” said Professor Rajesh Gopakumar, centre director, International Centre for Theoretical Sciences, a TIFR centre in Bengaluru Bangalore.
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The portal also dispels misinformation by presenting factual data through articles, colourful posters, infographics, FAQs and myth-busters.
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The portal also dispels misinformation by presenting factual data through articles, colourful posters, infographics, FAQs and myth-busters.
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“Reliable information based on science is an urgent need due to the infodemic of misinformation about Covid-19. This compels us to realise that, similar to climate change, ignoring science can quickly intensify problems to a global scale,” said Professor Arnab Bhattacharya, who leads the TIFR Mumbai science communication initiative Chai and Why?.
Partner institutions in CovidGyan initiative have diverse capabilities in scientific research, science communication, and science education. “It is extremely important to localise reliable scientific information, which takes into account the individual complexity of Indian conditions,” said Professor K. Subramaniam, director, Homi Bhabha Centre for Science Education.
Snehal Fernandes is senior associate editor, who joined HT in 2006. She heads the Mumbai edition’s city reporting team that writes on civic and urban governance, transport and infrastructure, health, and education. She is also the National Science Editor. With a career spanning more than two decades, her expertise lies in writing on science and technology, space, environment, sustainable development, climate change, and nuclear energy. Her work consistently breaks down, and without oversimplyfying, science and research developments into an easy read for a broad audience. In 2009, she was among the very first journalist to report on the opposition to the Jaitapur nuclear power plant in Ratnagiri (Konkan) following the Indo- US civil nuclear agreement and consistently followed it with multiple stories from ground zero; wrote about the introduction and subsequent halt to the cultivation of genetically modified (BT) brinjal, and has interviewed Nobel laureates and award winning scientists. In 2012, she was awarded ‘The Press Club Award for Excellence in Journalism’ (Political category) for reports on the mining scam in Goa. Prior to HT, she wrote on education and transport at the Indian Express. She graduated in sociology from St Xavier's College, and firmly believes in the phrase by Karl Marx that ‘Religion is the opium of the people’. When she is not keeping a tab on the going-ons in Mumbai and the scientific world, you'll find her reading world news, or watching crime/espionage series or political dramas. She can repeatedly watch Kill Bill with the same interest as Planet of the Apes and Spiderman. For someone who was not remotely interested in dogs or cats, she loves every bit of her time with her two-year-old Indie cat Bunny.
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