[CA] July 17, 2020 Headlines

INDIA & BHUTAN

India and Bhutan opened a new trade route between Jaigon in West Bengal and Pasakha in Bhutan. The land route will help to move industrial raw materials and goods destined for Pasakha Industrial Estate. The route will help boost trade and commerce and will lead to decongestion of vehicular traffic. Bhutan is India’s closest partner. India had recently proposed to build road in Yeti territory of Bhutan which China claimed recently. The road will also help India access Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh quickly. The road will reduce distance between Guwahati and Tawang by 150 kilometres. China claims Tawang to gain absolute control over Tibet.

HEALTH EXPENDITURE TO INCREASE 2.5% OF GDP

In a meeting with the 15th Finance Commission the Union Health Minister Mr. Harsh Vardhan highlighted that the government aims to gradually increase the public health expenditure to 2.5% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 2025. The National Health Policy 2017 anticipates to increase public health spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2025. The policy recommends that the state governments must spend nearly 8% of their total budget on the health sector by 2020.

DEFENCE MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGIES & AEROSPACE

Union Defence Ministry inaugurated the conference on Defence Manufacturing Technologies and Aerospace. The conference is being held to promote Atma Nirbhar Bharat Abhiyan and Make in India initiative. The conference is held under the theme "Empowering India with Atma Nirbhar Bharat Mission". The event was jointly organized by Tamil Nadu Technology Development Promotion Centre, Confederation of Indian Industry and Society of Indian Defence Manufacturers. The conference will help India achieve its defence target of 26 billion USD of domestic production by 2025. The Technology promotion centre of Tamil Nadu participated as one of the two defence industrial corridors of the country is located in the state. The other is located in Uttar Pradesh.

SURINAME: INDIAN – ORIGIN BECOMES PRESIDENT

Chandrikapersad “Chan” Santokhi, an Indian-origin former police chief has been elected as the president of Suriname, a country in South America. Santokhi leads the Progressive Reform Party of the country.

 

 

AIR BUBBLE

Union Civil Aviation Ministry announced that India is to resume operation of international commercial flights with France and US. The Government of India has signed agreements with US, UK, France and countries in UAE. According to the agreement signed, India is to allow only overseas citizens, Indian nationals and card holders and a certain category of people with business and diplomatic visas. Air Bubble is the term coined during COVID-19 times. It refers to transport and people connectivity between specific regions in the world.

2022 FIFA WORLD CUP

Federation Internationale de Football Association announced that the 2022 World Cup is to be held in Qatar. The governing body also released schedule of matches. The 2022 FIFA World Cup will be the first world cup to be held in Arab World and also the first in a muslim-majority country. The World Cup would be the last to involve 32 teams as the teams are to be increased to 48 in 2026 tournament. The tournament is to be held in November-December. The final match of the tournament has been scheduled on December 18, 2020, which is also Qatar National Day. India has never participated at the FIFA World Cup.

MILK TEA ALLIANCE

It is a term used to describe an online democratic solidarity movement made up of netizens from Thailand, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. It arose in response to the increased presence of Chinese trolls and nationalist commentators on social media. The ‘Milk Tea Alliance’ is an informal term coined by social media users because in the region, tea is consumed in many nations with milk, with the exception of China.

2020 INTERNATIONAL PRESS FREEDOM AWARDS

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has announced that 4 Journalists, Shahidul Alam from Bangladesh, Mohammad Mosaed from Iran, Dapo Olorunyomi from Nigeria and Svetlana Prokopyeva from Russia will be honoured with the 2020 International Press Freedom Awards for their courageous act. In addition to them lawyer Amal Clooney will be honoured with the Gwen Ifill Press Freedom Award 2020.

[CA] July 15, 2020 headlines

MMUKESH AMBANI: WORLD’S 6TH RICHEST PERSON

Bloomberg Billionaires Index has ranked Mukesh Ambani, chairman of Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) as the World’s 6th richest man with a worth USD 72.4 billion after surpassing Elon Musk, co-founder & CEO of Tesla and Alphabet Inc co founders, Sergey Brin and Larry Page. Ambani’s net worth has been raised as he has sold his shares in Jio Platform. Top 3 billionaires in the world are: Jeff Bezos (USA), Bill Gates (USA) and Bernard Arnault (France). Other Indians in top 100 are: Azim Prremji (77th position) and Shiv Nadar (89th position).

SHUDH

IIT Kanpur has developed an Ultraviolet (UV) sanitizing product, ‘SHUDH’. SHUDH is a smartphone operated Handy UV Disinfection Helper. It helps to make the surroundings COVID free especially the highly prone places such as hospitals, hotels, malls, offices and schools.

7.5% RESERVATION FOR GOVT SCHOOL STUDENTS WHO CLEAR NEET EXAM

Tamil Nadu Cabinet passed a resolution to reserve 7.5% of medical seats to government school students who clear National Eligibility cum Eligibility Test (NEET). The state has decided to include students who studied under the 'Right to Education' quota up to the eighth standard in government schools in the proposed horizontal reservation for medical admissions. Government sources say that, an ordinance will be promulgated soon on this.

IRAN DROPS INDIA FROM CHABAHAR PORT

Iran has decided to move ahead with the construction of a railway line from Chabahar port to Zahedan without any assistance from India due to delay in funding.  The railway line project was part of India’s commitment to the trilateral agreement with Afghanistan and Iran to build an alternate trade route to Afghanistan and Central Asia. The deal was finalised during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Tehran in 2016. Indian Railways Construction Ltd (IRCON) had promised assistance to the railway line project besides financing worth $1.6 billion. However, the work was never started as the United States imposed sanctions on Iran.      

#REIMAGINE CAMPAIGN

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) India joined hands with Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry’s (FICCI) to initiate UNICEF’s “#Reimagine Campaign” for the support of most vulnerable populations and children during the ongoing COVID-19 response and its aftermath in India. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, UNICEF has launched Reimagine – an urgent appeal to governments, the public, donors and the private sector to support UNICEF’s efforts to respond, recover and reimagine a world severely impacted by COVID-19.Importantly, Ogilvy, a New York (United States) based advertising agency is offering free of charge support in developing the creative narrative for the campaign.

PRAGYATA

Union HRD Ministry released PRAGYATA Guidelines on Digital Education through online medium. Ministry informed that PRAGYATA guidelines have been developed from the perspective of learners, with a focus on online/blended/digital education for students who are presently at home due to lockdown. The PRAGYATA guidelines include eight steps of online/ digital learning that is, Plan- Review- Arrange- Guide- Yak(talk)- Assign- Track- Appreciate. These steps guide the planning and implementation of digital education step by step with examples.

SOUTH CHINA SEA: CHINA BLAMES USA

Refuting US allegations of building a "maritime empire" in the disputed South China Sea, China claimed its jurisdiction over the vast ocean existed for more than 1,000 years and accused Washington of attempting to sow discord between Beijing and the Southeast Asian countries. Earlier, US said that, the world will not allow China to treat the strategically important South China Sea (SCS) as its "maritime empire" and vowed to support worried Southeast Asian countries against Beijing's "campaign of bullying" to control the resource-rich region.

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July 15: World Youth Skills Day; Theme: "Skills for a Resilient Youth"

[CA] July 14, 2020 Headlines

GOOGLE FOR INDIA DIGITIZATION FUND

After a virtual meeting with Prime Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi, Alphabet Inc. Chief Executive Officer Sundar Pichai announced an investment of $10 billion (Rs 75,000 crore) in India which will be utilised in another five to seven years to digitize the Indian Economy. The fund will be used to accelerate Google’s effort through a mix of Investments, partnerships, operations, infrastructure, and ecosystem investments. Google will partner with CBSE and provide new initiatives to digitize classrooms. It partners with Prasar Bharti, a public broadcasting agency for edutainment series for small and medium-sized business in the country.

ROKO – TOKO CAMPAIGN

Madhya Pradesh has announced to launch a campaign ‘Roko -Toko’, which means stop and campaign for those who do not wear masks. It is to ensure that all wear masks as the usage of masks is made mandatory in all public places in the state. 

VON KARMAN AWARD

The International Academy of Astronautics (IAA) has announced Dr. Kailasavadivoo Sivan, Chief of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) as the recipient of the 2020 Von Karman Award, the highest distinction of the IAA. The award will be presented to Dr. K. Sivan in March 2021 at Paris. Von Karman Award is considered to be the highest award given by IAA. The award was instituted in 1982 in the memory of Dr. Theodore Von Karman, renowned aerospace scientist and the founder and the first President of IAA. The Award is annually presented to recognise the distinguished contributions and lifetime achievements in any branch of science.

STYRIAN GRAND PRIX

Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes Driver won the Styrian Grand Prix (GP) in Spielberg, Austria. With this win Hamilton has won at least one race of his 14-year career on the circuit. This is the 85th career win of Hamilton and he moves within six of Formula one (F1) record of Michael Schumacher.

[CA] July 12-13 Current Affairs

ASEEM PORTAL

The Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) has launched ‘Aatmanirbhar Skilled Employee Employer Mapping’ (ASEEM) portal to help skilled people find sustainable livelihood opportunities. The Artificial Intelligence-based ASEEM will provide employers a platform to assess the availability of skilled workforce and formulate their hiring plans.

POLITICAL CRISIS IN RAJASTHAN?

Rajasthan Deputy Chief Minister and Congress leader, Mr. Sachin Pilot will not attend Congress Legislative Party (CLP) meeting scheduled to be held at Chief Minister, Mr. Ashok Gehlot's residence. According to sources, Mr. Pilot has the support of 30 Congress and some independent MLAs which leaves Mr. Gehlot government in minority. The crisis in Rajasthan Congress intensified with, Mr. Gehlot and his deputy Sachin Pilot at loggerheads, while Gehlot is blaming BJP for trying to destabilise the state government by poaching MLAs, Pilot is camping in Delhi to speak to the party leadership regarding the political turmoil in the state.

INDIA’S FIRST E – LOK ADALAT

Chhattisgarh State Legal Service Authority and the high Court organised India’s first e-Lok Adalat to ensure the administration of justice and to solve the financial crisis of the parties and lawyers amid COVID-19 pandemic. The high court Chief Justice P R Ramchandra Menon inaugurated the e-Lok Adalat through video conferencing.

A SONG OF INDIA

The book titled ‘A Song of India’ authored by Ruskin Bond to be released on July 20, 2020, which will mark the 70th year of the author’s literary career. The book is the 4th instalment in his memoir series (a written record of a person’s own life and experiences). The book is about the 16 year old Ruskin Bond and about his struggles to start the writing journey. The book also tells how he longed for familiarity and about the joys of receiving his first money order, publishing his stories and finding new friends. His memoir series are, “Looking for the Rainbow” (2017), “Till the Clouds Roll By” (2017) and “Coming Round the Mountain” (2019)

TIGER ESTIMATION IN INDIA ENTER GUINNESS WORLD RECORD

The fourth cycle of the All India Tiger Estimation 2018, results of which were declared to the nation on Global Tiger Day last year by Prime Minister, has entered the Guinness World Record for being the world’s largest camera trap wildlife survey. Environment Ministry said that, India has fulfilled its resolve to double the tiger numbers four years before the target. The country now has an estimated 2967 tigers as per the latest census. With this number, India is home to nearly 75% of the global tiger population and has already fulfilled its resolve of doubling tiger numbers, made at St. Petersburg in 2010, much before the target year of 2022.         

ADICHANALLUR & SIVAGALAI EXCAVATIONS

In search of human settlements, Tamil Nadu State Archaeological department has started excavation at Adichanallur and Sivagalai in the district of Thoothukudi. Department said that they are excavating a private land suspected to be a pre-historic human settlement. Many antiquities, kitchen utilities, metal weapons and potsherds that throw light into the presence of a human settlement have been identified.

TAMIL NADU INSISTS CENTRE TO CANCEL FINAL SEMESTER EXAMINATIONS

Indicating that Tamil Nadu may not be in a position to conduct the final semester examinations of college students by September, due to the prevailing situation, Chief Minister, Mr. Edappadi K Palaniswami urged the Centre to allow the States to work out their own assessment methods, without compromising on the quality and academic credibility. Taking exception to the latest guidelines issued by the UGC on July 6, mandating all educational institutions across the country to conduct examinations by September for the final-semester students, the Chief Minister said the UGC directive has posed many difficulties. He further said it would not be feasible to conduct online examinations, considering the various issues relating to digital access to the students. The Chief Minister also pointed out that most of the government and private arts and science and engineering colleges, polytechnics and other institutions of higher learning (including the hostels, classrooms, etc.,) in the State have been converted as COVID care centres for housing asymptomatic patients and these centres might continue as care centres for some more time.

SINGAPORE ELECTIONS 2020

The 2020 General Elections of Singapore was conducted on July 10, 2020 for its 105 seats unicameral Parliament (93 members are elected through the Election). Singapore became the 2nd Country in Asia to conduct National Polls in the times of the COVID-19 global pandemic. Earlier on April 15, 2020, South Korea became the first Asian Country by conducting its 21st Legislative Elections. Under the leadership of incumbent Prime Minister, Mr. Lee Hsien Loong, the People’s Action Party (PAP) have won 83 seats out of the total 93 seats contested in the Election by securing 61.24% of the total valid votes.

AUSTRALIA IN MALABAR EXERCISE

India is favourably considering Australia's keen interest to be part of the next edition of the Malabar naval exercise which is scheduled to be held later this year. If India decides to include Australia in the exercise, then it will comprise all members of the "Quad" which was set up with an aim to ensure peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific and check China's increasing efforts to expand military influence in the region. In November 2017, India, US, Japan and Australia gave shape to the long-pending "Quad" coalition to develop a new strategy to keep the critical sea routes in the Indo-Pacific free of any influence.

GURUPRIYA BRIDGE

The first-ever Bus Service in history was started on July 10, 2020 for the people of Swabhiman Anchal (located in Malkangiri district of Odisha). The bus will be operated by Odisha Government’s-Odisha State Road Transport Corporation (OSRTC) between Malkangiri and Jodamba. Surrounded by water on three sides, Swabhiman Anchal was generally known as a Maoist hub for decades. As per records, between 2008 to 2020, 332 attacks have been carried out by Maoists on civilians and the Security Personnel. The fourth side of the Swabhiman Anchal had an inhospitable terrain through which the movement of two-wheelers was also not recommendable. Horses were used through the fourth side to reach the Swabhiman Anchal. Normalcy in the area was achieved only after the completion of the Gurupriya bridge. Until the bridge was constructed, the only modes of transportation with the Swabhiman Anchal region were motor launches or boats. The construction of the 910-meter long Gurupriya bridge began in the year 1986 and was inaugurated after 32 years on July 26, 2018. The Gurupriya bridge is on the Janbai river.

[CA] July 11, 2020 Headlines

 

July 11: World Population Day; theme: "Putting the brakes on COVID-19: how to safeguard the health and rights of women and girls now"

ASIA’S LARGEST SOLAR POWER PROJECT

Asia’s largest Solar Power project: Rewa Ultra Mega Solar Power Project in Madhya Pradesh was inaugurated by Prime Minister, Mr.  Narendra Modi, through video conferencing (on July 10, 2020). It reduces emission equivalent to 15 lakh tonne of carbon dioxide per year. The 750 MW ultra-solar power plant spread over 1,590 acres. It comprises three solar generating units of 250MW each located on 500 hectare land inside the 1500 hectare solar plant. It is a renewable energy project to supply energy to customers outside the state. The Rewa Solar Power project recieved the “World Bank Group President’s Award”.

USHA THORAT COMMITTEE

Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has reconstituted the committee advising it on matters related to regulation and development of the mutual fund industry by including five new members. The new 20 member committee, will be chaired by Usha Thorat, former deputy governor of Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

PAUL HARRIS FELLOW RECOGINITION

The Rotary Foundation of Rotary International having its headquarters at Chicago, has honoured Chief Minister, Mr. Edappadi K Palaniswami with Paul Harris Fellow recognition. Paul Harris Fellow recognition is accorded to honour people who render efficient services in providing drinking water, sanitation, prevention of diseases, environment, world peace etc., to its people.

INDIA BECOMES SECOND LARGEST SOURCE OF FDI FOR UK

India invested in 120 projects and created 5,429 new jobs in the UK to become the second-largest source of foreign direct investment (FDI) after the US in 2019. The Department for International Trade (DIT) inward investment statistics for 2019-2020 found India moving up from its previous third-largest spot, representing an overall 4 per cent FDI increase for the UK on 2018-2019 with 1,852 new inward investment projects in the 2019/2020 financial year. Top FDI source for UK are USA, India, Germany, France and China.

WHO FORMED PANEL FOR PANDEMIC PREPAREDNESS

World Health Organization (WHO) has formulated an Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response (IPPR) to evaluate the world’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Panel will be co-chaired by former Prime Minister of New Zealand Helen Elizabeth Clark and former President of Liberia Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. While Helen Clark served as an administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), on the other hand, Ellen Sirleaf is a recipient of the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize. Both will choose other Panel members.

APSTAR – 6D

China had successfully launched the communication satellite ‘APSTAR-6D’. This is 18th rocket launched by China in 2020. The APSTAR-6D Satellite will be used for providing optimized high-quality voice and broadband data services for users and as well as aircraft and maritime routes in the Indo-Pacific region.

V. R. NEDUNCHEZHIYAN

Tamil Nadu government has decided to honour VR Nedunchezhiyan, one of the senior leaders of the Dravidian movement and a close associate of the late leader Periyar as well as former chief ministers CN Annadurai and MG Ramachandran, on the occasion of his centenary year which begins from July 11, 2020. Chief Minister, Mr. Edappadi K Palaniswami, in a statement said that a life-size bronze statue of the multi-faceted leader will be installed at the Chepauk Government Guest House Complex in Chennai, and a government event will be held on July 11 every year to observe the leader’s birth anniversary. He also said that, steps will also be taken to nationalise Nedunchezhiyan’s autobiography titled Vaazhvil Naan Kandathum Kettathum (tho;tpy; ehd; fz;lJk; Nfl;lJk;).

CHENNAI – BENGALURU EXPRESSWAY

The Central government has resumed the land acquisition process for the Chennai-Bengaluru Expressway, one of the 12 expressway projects which is being launched by the government. The work on the 262-km-long, six-lane, access-controlled Chennai-Bengaluru Expressway project, which begins at Hoskote in Karnataka and ends at Outer Ring Road near Chennai. The total cost of the project is Rs 20,000 crore.

[CA] July 10, 2020 Headlines

BLUIS

Chief Minister of Odisha, Mr. Naveen Patnaik, launched the Bhubaneswar Land Use Intelligence System (BLUIS), a flagship development of the General Administration and Public grievances departments. Odisha becomes the first state in India to use high resolution satellite imagery utilising space technology and artificial intelligence to monitor government lands. BLUIS is a web and mobile based solution to monitor the unauthorised change of land use and to prevent the encroachment of government lands.

TAMIL NADU TOPS IN MARKET BORROWINGS

According to data from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Tamil Nadu has topped market borrowings among States in India with a collection of Rs.30,500 crore in the fiscal 2020-21(FY 21). Tamil Nadu accounted for 17% of the borrowings done through the issue of bonds (known as state development loans), has been followed by Maharashtra ₹25,500 crore (14%), Andhra Pradesh ₹17,000 crore (9%), Rajasthan ₹17,000 crore (9%).

AMAZONIA – 1

The first earth observation satellite to be entirely developed by Brazil will be launch by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). The satellite is known by the name ‘Amazonia-1’. The exact launch date of Amazonia-1 hasn’t been confirmed yet by ISRO but as per media reports, the launch will take place next month (August 2020).

CHINA PLANS TO BUILD 6 – 8 NUCLEAR REACTORS

China reportedly had 46 nuclear reactors active. These 46 nuclear reactors provided a power capacity of 42.8 GW. At the end of May 2020, the Nuclear Capacity of China was at 48.8 GW. By 2035, China Nuclear Energy Association has set a target to achieve about 200 GW nuclear power capacities either in operation or under construction. By the end of 2020, China’s target for installed nuclear capacity was 58 GW. Further, until 2025, the China Nuclear Energy Association has planned to build 6-8 nuclear reactors every year.

INDIA GLOBAL WEEK 2020

Prime Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi has addressed the inaugural session of 3-day virtual India Global week 2020 based on the theme ‘Be The Revival: India and a Better New World’ organized in UK (United Kingdom) by India Inc. Group, the UK-headquartered media house, with the aim to connect global leaders and captains of industry to discuss aspects relating to opportunities in India as well as the global economic revival post-coronavirus (COVID-19). The event witnessed the participation of 5,000 global leaders from 30 nations and is being addressed by 250 global speakers in 75 sessions that cover subject areas such as geopolitics, business, emerging technologies, banking and finance, pharma, defence and security, and arts and culture.

SURESH MATHUR PANEL

Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has formed a 9- member working group under the chairmanship of Suresh Mathur, Executive Director of IRDAI to look into the possibility of setting up ‘Pandemic Risk Pool’ to deal with the various risks arising out of a pandemic -like health emergencies & recommend the structure and operating model for the Pool within 8 weeks.

OPEN SKY POLICY

The United Arab Emirates has said that it is keen to have an open-sky agreement with India. It asked India to look at Open-sky policy separately from fifth and sixth freedoms (of air).  The issue of fifth and sixth freedoms of air has been a sore point between airlines in India and the UAE. India has already signed open sky agreements with Greece, Jamaica, Guyana, Czech Republic, Finland, Spain and Sri Lanka. [Click for more details on this...]

11 STATES OPPOSE TO ELECTRICITY AMENDMENT BILL, 2020

All India Power Engineers Federation (AIPEF) claimed that as many as 11 states and one union territory have opposed many provisions of the Electricity Amendment Bill 2020. The states (opposing the provisions of the bill) are Kerala, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Jharkhand, Bihar, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Punjab. The union territory, which opposed the bill, is Puducherry.

 

[CA] UAE keen on open-sky policy with India

The United Arab Emirates has said that it is keen to have an open-sky agreement with India. It asked India to look at Open-sky policy separately from fifth and sixth freedoms (of air).  The issue of fifth and sixth freedoms of air has been a sore point between airlines in India and the UAE.

Open Sky Policy:-

·       The agreement will not only encourage connectivity and passenger travel between the two countries, but will also result in reduction in airfares on these routes.

·       The National Civil Aviation Policy, 2016, allows the government to enter into an ‘open sky’ air services agreement on a reciprocal basis with SAARC nations as well as countries beyond a 5,000 kilometre radius from New Delhi.

·       It implies that nations within this distance need to enter into a bilateral agreement and mutually determine the number of flights that their airlines can operate between the two countries.

·       India has already signed open sky agreements with Greece, Jamaica, Guyana, Czech Republic, Finland, Spain and Sri Lanka.

Freedoms of air:-

International air travel is governed by various freedoms of air.

The degree of “sky openness” depends on the freedoms of the air in the country granted to foreign airlines. There are 9 such freedoms according to the 1944 Convention on International Civil Aviation.

First freedom of air	Allows a carrier to take off from its home state.
Second freedom of air	Allows it to land in a second country.
Third freedom of air	Allow the airline to take off from the country it has landed in and come back to land at its home base.
Fourth freedom of air
Fifth freedom of air	allow airlines to carry passengers picked from one country and fly them to a third country rather than the country from which the airline originated.
Sixth freedom of ar

 

[CA] July 09, 2020 Headlines

 AGRICULTURE INFRASTRUCTURE FUND

Union Cabinet gave approval for another new pan Indian Central Sector scheme called as "Agriculture Infrastructure Fund". This scheme was announced by Union Finance ministry as a part of the Rs. 20 lakh crore AtmaNirbhar Bharat Package. Under this scheme, a financial support of up to Rs 1 lakh crore will be provided as loans through the banks and financial institutions in the country to the Agricultural sectors. The duration of the scheme is for 10 years (2020-21 to 2029-30).

INDIA GLOBAL WEEK 2020

Prime Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi to inaugurate "India Global Week 2020" with the theme "Be the Revival: India and a Better New World" today through virtual conference. India Global Week 2020 will have 5000 global participants from 30 nations being addressed by 250 global speakers across 75 sessions. A special 100 birth anniversary concert in tribute to the sitar maestro Ravi Shankar will also be featured.

OPERATION SAMUDRA SETU CONCLUDED

Indian Navy completed "Operation Samudra Setu" by bringing 3992 Indian citizens to homeland in 55 days from several countries in the COVID - 19 pandemic. Operation Samudra Setu was launchedd on May 05, 2020. INS Jalashwa, INS Airavat, INS Shardul and INS Magar were the part of "Operation Samudra Setu" and sailed to the countries of Maldives (Male), Iran (Bandar Abbas) and Sri Lanka (Colombo). Evacuation Operation like Samudra Setu was last conducted by the Indian Navy back in 2015 during Operation Rahat when 5600 people (including 960 were Foreign Nationals) were evacuated from Yemen.

ASIA’S LARGEST DATA CENTRE IN INDIA

World's second largest and Asia's largest data centre, called as NM1 was inaugurated in Mumbai. In the union budget 2020, it was proposed that the government wants the private sectors to build the data centre parks across the nation.

MALDIVES & SRI LANKA ELIMINATED MEASLES & RUBELLA

According to the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) South East Asian Region (SEAR) office, Maldives and Sri Lanka were verified to eliminate both measles and rubella, making them the first two countries in the WHO South-East Asia region to achieve beyond their 2023 target. It is to be noted that, a country is considered to have eliminated measles and rubella when there is no evidence of endemic transmission of the viruses for more than three years and there is a better surveillance system. All the 11 member countries (Bangladesh, Bhutan, East Timor, India, Indonesia, Maldives, Myanmar, North Korea, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand) of the South-East Asia region of WHO set year 2023 as a target to fight measles and rubella.

RYTHU DINOTSAVAM

Andhra Pradesh celebrated Rythu Dinotsavam (Farmer’s Day) to mark the 71st birth anniversary of YS Rajasekhara Reddy, 14th Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh.  The first Ruthu Dinotsavam (Farmer’s Day) was celebrated on July 08, 2019.

CHINA DEFENDS WHO

China defended the World Health Organization and lashed out at the US decision to withdraw from the UN body. China said the move was "another demonstration of the US pursuing unilateralism, withdrawing from groups and breaking contracts."

GERMANY: FIRST MAJOR ECONOMY TO PHASE OUT COAL & NUCLEAR POWER

Germany became the first industrialized country to phase out of both coal and nuclear energy. Both the houses of the German parliament approved the bill for shutting down the coal fired power plant by 2038 and to provide around 45 billion USD (40 billion Euro) for the affected regions.

AUSTRIAN GRAND PRIX

Finland driver Valtteri Bottas with Mercedes won the Formula One (F1) season-opening Austrian Grand Prix (GP) , surpassing his Mercedes team mate and Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton.

TNPFCL

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, Mr. Edappadi K Palaniswami launched a dedicated website and mobile application for the Tamil Nadu Power Finance Corporation and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (TNPFCL). The website https://www.tnpowerfinance.com/ and mobile application “TNPFCL” was launched for the non-banking public finance company fully owned by the State. TNPFCL mobilises funds through various deposit schemes and provides financial assistance to power and infrastructure projects.