May 27, 2022 | Business
Just in time for summer, David Dean’s new suspense thriller OBX is now available in paperback to independent booksellers on IngramSpark.
OBX (ISBN: 979-8-218-00862-8) is set in the popular beach destination of North Carolina’s Outer Banks and introduces readers to NC State Bureau of Investigation Agent Michael Francis as she investigates the murder of an influential politician’s staffer, right in the middle of a campaign. The struggling mother of three finds herself in a gathering storm of cover-ups, crooked cops, drug trafficking, and attempts on her life while she deals with a difficult separation from her police detective husband. In the midst of unexpected and confusing romantic overtures from a prime suspect, an approaching hurricane threatens to sabotage her investigation as Michael chases down a serial killer who’s been operating in the shadows for years, facing human threats more dangerous than mother nature herself in a climactic ending with an unexpected twist.
This is the first in a series of books featuring Michael Francis, one of author David Dean’s strong characters attracted to strong characters who discover their true, authentic selves when faced with unforeseen challenges.
An avid fan of suspenseful mysteries, science fiction, and horror, David Dean enjoys writing novels, novellas, and short story anthologies that challenge a reader’s perceived understanding of social norms, reality, science, and religion, and the role each plays in the ongoing struggle between good and evil in every human being.
The author lives in the coastal paradise surrounding Topsail Island, North Carolina. His other titles include the sci-fi anthology The Peril of Thought and the horror novel Shadows. He is available for book signings, panel discussions and other public events.
For more information, visit www.daviddeanwriter.com.
May 21, 2022 | Business
Ministry of Education
North Eastern region has immense potential to promote Research and Innovation – Shri Dharmendra Pradhan
Conclave will strengthen the linkages between industry, academia & policy makers: Union Education Minister
NERC 2022 will be a global benchmark for fulfilling research & development priorities of India and the world: Shri Dharmendra Pradhan
Union Education Minister Shri Dharmendra Pradhan inaugurates the North East Research Conclave 2022 at IIT, Guwahati
Posted On:
20 MAY 2022 6:11PM by PIB Guwahati
Union Education and Skill Development Minister Shri Dharmendra Pradhan inaugurated the North East Research Conclave(NERC) 2022 at IIT, Guwahati today. Shri Pradhan in his address said that this conclave will strengthen the linkages between industry, academia & policy makers and further invigorate the research, start-up and entrepreneurship ecosystems in the resource-rich Northeastern Region states and the country.
Talking about the importance of research the Education Minister said that the objective of research should be to find solutions to chronic problems of the country and to encourage all people to come together, work together and produce together for the welfare of the most vulnerable. NERC 2022 will be a global benchmark for fulfilling research & development priorities of India and the world, he added. Shri Pradhan appealed to the youngsters and students to ‘walk on the path of duties and responsibilities’ to take the country to new heights.
The Union Minister further informed that to strengthen the research ecosystem, encourage innovation at grass-roots and lead India to self-reliance the government is in the process of setting up National Research Foundation with a proposed outlay of Rs 50,000 crore in line with the recommendations of NEP 2020. He also said that North Eastern region has immense potential to promote Research and Innovation.
Chief Minister of Assam Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma in his deliberation said that Research and Development is very crucial for a fast developing nation like India. In a progressive society research and development has always been considered as the fundamental building block as it plays critical role in the process of innovation and expanding our knowledge and understanding, he added.
Minister of State for Education Shri Rajkumar Ranjan Singh in his address said that North-East Research Conclave is the platform for the entrepreneurs and research institutions to showcase their innovations. He said that this is a very useful initiative for North East which brings policy makers, industrialists and researchers to same platform. This mega event will have great impact on the educational sector of this region, he added
Addressing the NERC Conclave, Minister of State for Education Dr Subhas Sarkar said that Government is working for advancement of education sector in every part of the country.
Union Shipping Minister Shri Sarbananda Sonowal in his address said that North East Research Conclave will help the young generation to fulfill their dreams in near future.
On this occasion an MoU ‘Assam Advanced Health Innovation Institute(AAHI)’ was also signed between Government of Assam and IIT, Guwahati.
In today’s event Shri Rameswar Teli, Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas, Shri Ranoj Pegu, Minister of Education, Government of Assam, Shri Keshab Mahanta, Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Government of Assam, Smt Queen Ojha, MP, Lok Sabha and Prof. T.G Sitharam, Director, IIT, Guwahati were also present along with other dignitaries.
The North East Research Conclave 2022 is being organised to showcase the best Research & Developmental activities from all the educational and the research institutions across the states of North East India. It will also seek to create a common interface for interaction of academia and industry in North East India. The conclave will also work towards creating an environment, conducive to the development of local indigenous technologies and innovations, creating the scope and laying the foundation for entrepreneurship and to agglomerate a vast talent pool, for the promotion of Translational Research.
**********
(Release ID: 1826997)
Visitor Counter : 473
May 18, 2022 | Business
The North American Pet Health Insurance Association (NAPHIA) announced that North America’s pet insurance sector exceeded $2.83 billion USD at year end 2021, and industry growth more than doubled over the past four years (2018 – 2021).
Today’s release of NAPHIA’s 2022 State of the Industry Report revealed a number of significant industry milestones, including a record $2.837 billion USD in total in-force premiums in 2021 (up over 30.5% from $2.175 billion USD in 2020) and over 4.41 million insured pets across North America (up 27.7% from over 3.45 million pets insured in 2020).
“The societal and behavioral changes we are experiencing around our relationships with pets have contributed greatly to an unprecedented period of growth for our industry,” said Kristen Lynch, Executive Director of NAPHIA. “A record number of household pet adoptions and purchases during the pandemic, combined with continued work-from-home arrangements, and pet owners’ desire to mitigate unexpected veterinary costs have contributed to even higher growth rates in the past several years.”
The 2021 results show total premium volume* in the U.S. amounted to $2.6 billion USD, a 30.4% annual increase over 2020. In Canada, total premium volume* totalled $313.4 million CAD, an increase of 28.1% over the previous year.
Rick Faucher, President of NAPHIA’s Board of Directors, noted that with approximately 4.4 million pets currently insured, and a total potential market of about 175 million North American pets, there is still considerable room for continued industry growth.
“2021 marked the seventh consecutive year where the pet insurance industry experienced double-digit growth,” said Faucher. “While pet insurance penetration rates have increased to approximately 2.48% in the U.S. and 3.10% in Canada, we recognize that as an industry we’ve still only captured a small portion of the potential market and we’re excited by the potential for sustained, long-term growth.”
* As reported by NAPHIA
naphia.org/industry-data/
Some Report Highlights:
United States
· $2.591 billion USD – total premium volume
· 3,979,282 – total number of pets insured at YE 2021 – a 28.3% increase since 2020
· largest share of insured pets reside in California (19.3%), New York (8.4%) and Florida (6.1%)
· 81.7% of insured pets were dogs versus 18.3% cats
· the average accident and illness premium for dogs was $583.91/year or $48.66/month (figures in USD)
· the average accident and illness premium for cats was $342.84/year or $28.57/month (figures in USD)
Canada
· $246 million USD – total premium volume ($313.4 million CAD)
· 432,533 – total number of pets insured at YE 2021 – a 22.7% increase since 2020
· largest share of insured pets reside in Ontario (38.9%), British Columbia (20.3%) and Alberta (18.9%)
· 77.5% of insured pets were dogs versus 22.5% cats
· the average accident and illness premium for dogs was $827.55/year or $68.96/month (figures in CAD)
· the average accident and illness premium for cats was $426.93/year or $35.58/month (figures in CAD)
About the NAPHIA State of the Industry Report
Since 2010, NAPHIA’s State of the Industry Report has been published using data compiled, aggregated and validated by the global multinational risk management and advisory firm Willis Towers Watson. NAPHIA members and report participants represent approximately 99% of all pet health insurance coverage in effect in North America.
About NAPHIA
The North American Pet Health Insurance Association (NAPHIA) is comprised of reputable pet health insurance organizations from across the United States and Canada. As a coalition, NAPHIA works to advance and grow the pet insurance industry and marketplace through proactive research, data sharing, benchmarking initiatives, advocacy efforts, strategic partnerships, resource-sharing and the dissemination of information to collaboratively address challenges and opportunities.
Contact
