Assam Current Affairs Archives - Page 26 of 34

Assam Current Affairs –November 22 – 28, 2019

Posted on December 25, 2019May 16, 2020 by admin

Current Affairs Assam – November 22 - 28, 2019

( Covers all important Assam Current Affairs & GK topics for the week of November 22 – 28, 2019 )

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November 22, 2019

Assam CM inaugurated several infrastructure projects in Goalpara

CM Sonowal laid foundation stones of community radio station at Goalpara College to be set up by the district administration and also a project under City Infra Development Fund (CIDF). It includes schemes like development of Bihutoli field, construction of approach road of KV, Bhalukdubi and widening and improvement of the road from ASTC Point to Boro Bazar.
Construction of swimming pool and multipurpose indoor stadium at the DN Singha Stadium,Golapara and renovation of the Community Centre at Bapujinagar. Inaugurated the new police station at Agia under the Mission for Overall Improvement of Thana for Responsive Image (MOITRI).
Angwadi Model Centre at Budhipara which will have all the composite facilities and the first in the state. Smart Class and Hanging Library at Baladmari High School, solarisation of all the health and wellness centres in the district and that of the plastic shredder machine under Goalpara Municipal Board,GOAL-MART.
E-commerce website of the district administration, project under RIDF for construction of RCC bridge at 13 locations and then one-stop centre to support women in distress. A guest house for ASHA workers at Lakhipur, and ceremonial distribution of power tillers under Bringing Green Revolution to Eastern India (BGREI).

Bolo App launched in Hailakandi

Bolo App, an effective tool for enhancing learning, has been installed and activated on the smart phones of more than 100 teachers in Hailakandi district.
Cluster Resource Centre Coordinators (CRCCs) of Mohanpur, West Mohanpur and Mohanpur Burnie Brase 1 launched the campaign ‘Bolo App on every smart phone’ and invited the teachers with smart phones to attend the programme held at Premlochan HS School at Mohanpur.
Bolo is speech-based app designed to help elementary grade kids learn to read – anytime, anywhere – just using their voice.
Designed for primary and upper primary grade children, Bolo helps to improve their reading skills, by encouraging them to read aloud and giving them instant feedback – even when completely offline.
Bolo listens to what your children read, encourages them when they read well and helps them when they get stuck – just like a real reading tutor.
Children can also play interesting word games and earn in-app awards, helping reading become both fun and a daily habit.
Multiple children can use the same app, and track their progress separately. Over time the difficulty level of recommended stories will adjust to their reading skills.

Odisha signs MoUs to improve urban service delivery system

The Odisha government signed three Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) to transform urban service delivery system in the state.
The Housing and Urban Development department signed MoUs with e-gov Foundation, Janagraha Centre for Citizenship and Democracy, and Indian Heritage Cities Network Foundation.
The E-gov foundation of Nandan Nilekani and Srikanth Nadhamuni will provide a full stack of municipal services applications.
These include a feature-rich dashboard portal for all urban local bodies (ULBs), public grievance management system, finance and accounting, property tax management, water and sewerage system, trade licence system, and online building plan approval system.
Janagraha Centre for Citizenship and Democracy of Ramesh and Swathi Ramanathan will undertake a transformative reform of property taxation in ULBs resulting in growth in revenue of ULBs and investment in better service and infrastructure.
The Indian Heritage Cities Network foundation entered into an MoU with the Housing and Urban Development and Tourism departments for promotion of heritage-based sustainable development.

Andhra Pradesh Govt has roped in IIM Ahmedabad to work with the ACB

Andhra Pradesh has roped in Indian Institute of Management (Ahmedabad) to work with the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB).
IIM (A) professor Sundaravalli Narayana Swamy and ACB chief Viswajit on Thursday signed an agreement to work in coordination to identify corruption in high places.
After a detailed study, they will submit a report to the government by February third week next year.
The panel will frame guidelines to curb corruption right from the village level to all the government departments. A detailed study of the functioning of government departments, the income and expenditure needed for the governance would be taken up. The lacunae in the present governance would be identified and corrective measures suggested.
Similarly, a study would be conducted for the proper utilization of the existing resources, increasing the quality of governance and to achieve positive results.

November 23, 2019

4^th India International Cherry Blossom Festival 2019 at Shillong

The 4th edition of India International Cherry Blossom Festival, 2019 was celebrated in Shillong, Meghalaya from 13 to 16 November 2019. The festival is a great example of how natural resources and sustainable tourism can be utilised in an effective manner and create value of something which already exists.
The festival celebrates the unique autumn flowering of Himalayan Cherry Blossoms with several cultural events. With the annual festival the state government seeks to focus on Meghalaya’s natural strength such environment and beautiful landscape to enhance the experience of tourists.
It was organized to celebrate the mass flowering of autumn Himalayan Cherry Blossoms with several cultural events in Shillong.
This year the Republic of Korea was the partner country in the festival. The festival was thus visited by ambassador of South Korea and also showcased stalls with state’s food, wine and crafts alongside several Korean Cultural events, including K-Pop concert and stalls featuring Korean Cuisine and Educational Opportunities at South Korea.
Dinabandhu Sahoo, the brain behind Cherry Blossom Festival however highlighted that with every edition of the festival, the footfall of tourists visiting it has increased.

Central Govt plans rail link with NE state capitals

The Centre said it has firmed up plans to connect the capitals of the northeastern states (except Sikkim) with the Indian Railway network.
The capitals of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh and Tripura have been connected by Broad Gauge (BG) network. Emphasis has been laid by the Centre during the last five years on quick execution of rail infrastructure projects.
The average annual expenditure in New Line, Gauge Conversion and Doubling infrastructure projects during 2014-19 was Rs 26,022 crore per year as against Rs 11,527 crore per year during 2009-14, which is around 126 per cent more than during 2009-14.
Similarly, the average budget allotment per year for NE States was Rs 2,122 crore per year during 2009-14. However, it increased by 161 per cent to Rs 5,531 crore per year for this region during 2014-19.
In Arunachal Pradesh, a BG railway line was commissioned in February 2015 up to Naharlagun and the first Broad Gauge train was started on February 20, 2015, from Naharlagun (Itanagar) to New Delhi.
The work of the Bogibeel Bridge on the Brahmaputra river was completed in 2018 leading to further reduction of rail travel distance from Dibrugarh to Naharlagun by 705 km.
In some states, the progress of new line projects of capital connectivity has been affected mainly due to delay in land acquisition and law and order issues. All these capital connectivity projects being in hilly terrain of the Himalayas involve a large number of tunnels and major bridges in a very challenging geological environment.
Works on new BG lines have been taken up by the Railways through the Government of India fund to connect the remaining capitals of NE states including Meghalaya (Shillong), Manipur (Imphal), Nagaland (Kohima) and Mizoram (Aizawl).

Prabhat Jha moved Bill to make cleanliness a fundamental duty

Prabhat Jha moved the Constitution (Amendment) Bill, 2017 (amendment of article 51A) in the Upper House seeking to make cleanliness a fundamental duty and called for a mass movement to propagate the message of Clean India.
Jha demanded that cleanliness be made a fundamental duty under Article 51A of the Constitution. Swachh Bharat mission should be a part of the fundamental duties and for that there is a need to amend the Constitution. It should be made a national campaign.

Defence Ministry plans product testing facilities for MSMEs

The Ministry of Defence plans to set up 6-8 product testing facilities to enable the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) to test their products for defence supplies.
The government has allocated about Rs 400 crore for this scheme whereby it would provide a grant-in-aid of up to 75 per cent of the cost of equipment for the product testing facility.
The balance 25 per cent has to be brought in by a consortium of private investors. The product test facility will be a special purpose vehicle (SPV).
The test facilities are to come up in the two defence corridors planned in the country, one facility outside the defence corridor may come up early in order the meet the demand.

Scientists developed new material that turns toxic air pollutant into industrial chemical

An international team of scientists has developed a new material that can capture a toxic pollutant produced by burning fossil fuels and convert it into useful industrial chemicals using only water and air.
The technology could lead to air pollution control and help remedy the negative impact nitrogen dioxide has on the environment.
The metal-organic framework (MOF) material provides a selective, fully reversible and repeatable capability to capture nitrogen dioxide (NO2), a toxic air pollutant produced particularly by diesel and bio-fuel use.
The NO2 can then be easily converted into nitric acid, a multi-billion dollar industry with uses including, agricultural fertiliser for crops; rocket propellant and nylon.
MOFs are tiny three-dimensional structures which are porous and can trap gasses inside, acting like cages.
The material, named MFM-520, can capture nitrogen dioxide at ambient pressures and temperatures even at low concentrations and during flow in the presence of moisture, sulfur dioxide and carbon dioxide.
The team also used the National Service for Electron Paramagnetic Resonance Spectroscopy at Manchester to study the mechanism of adsorption of nitrogen dioxide in MFM-520.

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November 24, 2019

Union Cabinet approveds strategic disinvestment in five PSUs

Union Cabinet approved strategic disinvestment in five PSUs, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL), Shipping Corporation of India (SCI), Container Corporation of India (CONCOR), THDC India Ltd and North Eastern Electric Power Corporation (NEEPCO). The government will also give up the management control in these companies.
Two of the PSUs under the strategic disinvestment plan, THDC and NEEPCO, will be taken over by another state-run power major, NTPC.
The government would lower its stake below 51 per cent in select PSUs while retaining their management control. The decision to bring down Centre”s stake will be taken on a case-to-case basis.

FACTFILE – Disinvestment in PSUs

Disinvestment in Public sector units in India, is process of public asset sales by President of India on behalf of Govt of India.
There were 331 CPSEs in 2017-18, out of which 257 were in operation. Rest (74) of the CPSEs were under construction.
As in need of Economic Liberalism and Infrastructure development, in Union Budget of India Total Expenditure of Government of India increased from ₹ 1,13,422 crore (1991-92) to ₹ 21,46,735 Crore(2017-18). To raise the funds partially for these Expenditures and also to minimize fiscal deficits in union budgets, Indian Government started divestment in public sector undertakings. Conceding to demands of privatization and with tough resistance from labour unions, government of India is slowly divesting from PSUs.
Major divestment steps were taken in past by the government when they made four strategic disinvestment’s – in Bharat Aluminium Company (BALCO) and Hindustan Zinc, Indian Petrochemicals Corporation Limited and VSNL.
In budgetary announcement of financial year 2017-18 The Finance Minister noted that the government initiated strategic disinvestment in 24 PSUs, including Air India, this fiscal.
Since financial year 1991-92 to 2017-18 government led by political parties sold total public assets of ₹ 3,47,439 Crore. In past recent years Public sector undertaking units performed well as compared to other private competitors and paid huge dividends to government.

G20 foreign ministers commit to WTO reforms

G20 foreign ministers have pledged to push for reforms in the World Trade Organization (WTO) during a meeting in the Japanese city of Nagoya.
The announcement was made by Japan”s Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi on the agreements reached at the event.
The G20 shared the view that the WTO needed to be reformed to be able to address current problems.
WTO reforms being contemplated included the possibility of improving mechanisms for resolving trade disputes.
Motegi also reflected on the need to conclude negotiations for establishing the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership for Asia and Oceania with the agreement of 16 countries that have promoted the initiative since its inception.
Motegi said the RCEP was one of the initiatives that should be defended to strengthen global free trade.
The G20, a forum initially promoted by finance and central bank officials, brings together the richest countries and the world”s major emerging economies in a common platform.

AIIA has inked a MoU with Western Sydney University

The All India Institute of Ayurveda (AIIA) has inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Western Sydney University, Australia aimed at promoting collaboration in research and developing guidelines for integrating Ayurveda principles with modern medicine.
All India Institute of Ayurveda (AIIA) signed the MoU on Friday during the visit of the delegation led by Dan Tehan, Minister for Education, Australian government.
The memorandum was agreed and exchanged on the occasion of the event ”India- Australia International Education and Research Workshop” held at the Ambedkar International Centre.
Complementing the traditional Ayurveda medicine with conventional concepts of modern medicine is expected in generating scientific evidences that further help in contributing to the global healthcare.
Both institutions are committed to take the collaboration to the next higher level by identifying specific areas for collaboration in education, research and practices of traditional medicine while ensuring the quality standards and also by encouraging investment in traditional medicine related infrastructure.

President of India awarded the President’s Colour to Naval Academy

President Ram Nath Kovind awarded the President’s Colour, the highest honour that is bestowed upon a military unit, to the Indian Naval Academy in Ezhimala, Kannur in Kerala.
The President mentioned that our Armed forces are completely equipped to face any kind of challenges be it in conventional or in the asymmetric domain.
He urged the Naval officers to fully utilize the training and be prepared to deliver in all situations for the country.
He complimented the commandants, instructors and officers involved in training for producing multi-faceted officers for Indian Navy.
President received the Guard of honour from the Academy Cadets.
Kerala Governor Arif Muhammed Khan, Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Karambir Singh, and State Minister, Kadamkampally Surendran graced the occasion.

Karnataka Govt felicitates 7 Bengaluru-founded Unicorns

The Karnataka government awarded seven city-founded Unicorns as part of Bengaluru Impact Awards at the Bengaluru Tech Summit 2019.
Bengaluru Impact Award winning Unicorns include Ola, MuSigma, Big Basket, Swiggy, InMobi, Quikr and Flipkart.
The awards were presented by Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister C.N. Ashwath Narayan, Infosys co-founder Kris Gopalakrishnan, Additional Chief Secretary, department of IT, BT and S& T E.V. Ramana Reddy and Director of the same department of IT, BT and S& T Prasanth Kumar Mishra.

November 25, 2019

Assam is the Most Improved state in Economy and Overall category in the India Today State of the States Conclave 2019

The annual ‘India Today State of the States Conclave and Awards – 2019’ has adjudged Assam in the ‘Most Improved Big State – Overall’ and ‘Most Improved Big State for Economy’ categories.
Industries and Commerce Minister Chandra Mohan Patowary received both the awards from Prakash Javadekar, Minister of Forest, Environment and Climate Change, Information and Broadcasting in New Delhi.
The India Today ‘State of the States’ study is an attempt to find out which of India’s States offers its citizens the best opportunities, both at work and outside.
The categories based on which the States are judged include economy, agriculture, education, healthcare, infrastructure, inclusive development, law and order, governance, entrepreneurship, environment and cleanliness.

India, Afghanistan exchanges treaty over Extradition

India and Afghanistan exchanged the instruments of ratification of their bilateral extradition treaty.
The instrument of ratification of Extradition Treaty between the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and the Republic of India, approved and ratified by the relevant authorities of the two governments.
The agreement was signed by the authorized representatives of the two countries in New Delhi in September 2019.

50^th conference of Governors

Five groups of Governors submitted their reports to President Ram Nath Kovind on issues related to tribal welfare, water, agriculture, higher education and ease of living, and identified actionable points in which they can play a facilitating role.
These reports were submitted during the 50th conference of Governors which concluded at Rashtrapati Bhavan. The conference took keen interest in tribal welfare issue and pointed out that policies for tribal uplift had to be tailored in accordance with local requirements.
Kovind said that the discussions held by Governors and Lt. Governors proved to be a fruitful exercise. On observing November 26 as the 70th anniversary of Indian Constitution, he said a campaign will be launched to create awareness about fundamental duties on the occasion.
It is the fundamental duty of every citizen to protect the natural environment including water resources like forests, lakes and rivers. It is also a constitutional duty to continuously strive for excellence in all areas for the progress of the country.
Individual and collective efforts for excellence in the areas of higher education, agriculture, inclusive growth and governance will give impetus to public welfare.

India ranked 44^th in Nomura’s Food Vulnerability Index

According to a new report by Nomura Global Market Research, India is ranked 44 out of 110 countries in Nomura’s Food Vulnerability Index (NFVI). India has been ranked 44 out of 110 countries.
Nomura’s Food Vulnerability Index (NFVI) ranks countries on the basis of their exposure to large swings in food prices.
NFVI has three components:

1. country’s GDP per person,
2. the share of food in household consumption and
3. the net food imports.

Lower per capita GDP, higher share of food in household consumption and high net food imports would make a country more vulnerable to spikes in food prices.
The 50 countries most vulnerable to food price surges in the coming months largely belong to the Emerging Market group. The top 50 together account for almost 60 per cent of the global population.
Nomura is an Asia-headquartered financial services group with an integrated global network spanning over 30 countries.

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November 26, 2019

Seng Kut Snem Festival celebrated in Meghalaya

The annual festival of the Khasi community, Seng Kut Snem, was celebrated at Shillong with traditional gaiety and fervour.
The yearend festival marks the Seng Khasi movement, in which the local people of the Khasi-Jaintia Hills region launched a stir against British atrocities on the indigenous way of life. As part of the movement, 16 young men formed an organisation called the Khasi Young Men’s Association on November 23, 1899 to preserve and safeguard the indigenous way of life, also known as ‘Niam Trai Niam Tre’.
To commemorate the first anniversary of the movement in 1900, the Seng Kut Snem was celebrated and this has continued till date to remind the people of the movement and its objectives.
The festival is also a form of community prayer for protection of the distinct identity of the Khasi race.

Commonwealth sign pact to reduce violence against women

The Commonwealth has announced a new partnership designed to reduce domestic violence in member countries, including India.
Secretary-General Patricia Scotland signed a memorandum of understanding with the NO MORE Foundation, a global movement of 1,400 allied organisations and 40 international chapters working together to stop and prevent domestic violence and sexual assault.
The two parties have agreed to work together to implement initiatives that work on the prevention of domestic violence and sexual abuse as part of wider efforts to achieve the 2030 sustainable development goals.
The partnership is designed to help member countries record accurate data on the prevalence of violence, deliver grassroots projects, train community leaders, educate bystanders” responses and provide awareness resources.
The partnership was announced at an event hosted at Commonwealth headquarters in London, to mark International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women.

Andhra Pradesh launches helpline for complaints against corruption

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, launched the Citizens’ Help Centre to register complaints of bribery in government offices and also launched a citizens’ helpline number 14400. Any citizen can call on this toll-free number to make complaints about corruption in government offices.
The help centre has been launched in collaboration with the Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Ahmedabad. It will register complaints and complete the investigation in 15-30 days.
The IIM and the ACB signed an agreement to work in coordination to identify corruption in high places. After a detailed study, they will submit a report to the government by February third week.

70^th Constitution Day celebrated on 26 November

To commemorate the 70^th Constitution Day, President Ram Nath Kovind inaugurated a digital exhibition through videoconferencing from the Central Hall of Parliament.
The function, organised to commemorate the Constitution Day, attended by Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and other dignitaries.
The Constitution Day is also celebrated as National Law Day (Samvidhan Diwas) in India. It is celebrated on November 26 every year to commemorate the adoption of the Constitution of India.
On November 26, 1949, the Constituent Assembly of India formally adopted the Constitution of India. It came into force on January 26, 1950.
The Government of India declared 26 November as Constitution Day on 19 November 2015 by a gazette notification. PM Narendra Modi made the declaration on 11 October 2015 while laying the foundation stone of the B. R. Ambedkar’s Statue of Equality memorial in Mumbai.

Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry signs MoAs with 6 states on Light House Projects

Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri signed the memoranda of agreement (MoAs) for Light House Projects (LHPs) with Gujarat, Jharkhand, MP, Tamil Nadu, Tripura and UP government.
Puri also launched a web portal for the CLSS (credit-linked subsidy scheme) Awas Portal (CLAP), saying it would help stakeholders to work in synergy for on-time release of subsidy to beneficiaries.
To meet the demand for over 10 million houses by 2022, the central government had launched the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Urban in June 2015.
For LHPs, the Ministry has introduced a Rs 2 lakh per house technology innovation grant, which is over and above the existing Rs 1.5 lakh per house under PMAY(U).
The Ministry developed a web-based real-time monitoring system called CLAP in which all stakeholders, like MoHUA, CNAs, PLIs and beneficiaries, had been integrated.

Special Protection Group (SPG) Amendment Bill introduced in Lok Sabha

The Centre introduced the Special Protection Group (SPG) Bill, 2019, in Lok Sabha to change the law that will entitle only the Prime Minister to security services from the elite SPG personnel and former Prime Minister only for a year after he demits office.
Minister of State for Home G. Kishan Reddy introduced the Bill which seeks amendment to the Special Protection Group Act, 1988 which provides for the constitution and regulation of an armed force of the Union for providing “proximate security” to the Prime Minister and former Prime Ministers and members of their immediate families and for matters connected therewith.
At present, the law allows the SPG to protect former Prime Ministers and their families for a period of 10 years after the end of term. Additionally, it leaves the scope for an extension of the cover beyond ten years in case the perceived threats justify it.

FACTFILE – Special Protection Group (SPG)

The Indian Special Protection Group (SPG) is a special force for providing proximate security to the Prime Minister of India and members of their immediate families wherever in the world they are.
The SPG was set up in 1985 after the assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi on October 31, 1984, on the recommendation of the Birbal Nath Committee for raising a Special Protection Unit (SPU).
Parliament passed the SPG Act in 1988, dedicating the group to protecting the Prime Minister. At the time, the Act did not include former Prime Ministers. This Act was earlier amended in 1991, 1994 and 1999.
Arun Kumar Sinha, IPS is the Director of SPG.
3000 active personnel are active in SPG.

November 27, 2019

Guwahati to host 65^th Filmfare Awards show

The Assam Tourism Development Corporation (ATDC) inked a memorandum of understanding with the Times Group for organising the 65^th Filmfare Awards.
The MoU was signed in the presence of Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal and Bennett Coleman and Company Limited managing director Vineet Jain.
Fifty per cent of the proceeds from sale of tickets for the awards show would be given to the Chief Minister’s relief fund.
The awards show is being organised to promote Assam tourism in the world encashing the popularity of Bollywood and a huge global reach of the Filmfare award show to nearly two billion people. This is the first time the main Filmfare awards show is being held outside Mumbai.

India’s PSLV-C47 successfully launched Cartosat-3

India’s PSLV-C47 successfully launched Cartosat-3 and 13 commercial nanosatellites from Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) SHAR, Sriharikota.
PSLV-C46 was the 74^th launch vehicle mission from SDSC SHAR, Sriharikota. This is the 21st flight of PSLV in ‘XL’ configuration.
Cartosat-3 satellite is a third generation agile advanced satellite having high resolution imaging capability.
13 3U cubesats including twelve SuperDoves by Planet Labs and one Meshbed by Analytical Space of United States from USA were also successfully injected into designated orbit. These satellites were launched under commercial arrangement with NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), the commercial arm of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
India successfully placed into orbit its own earth observation satellite Cartosat-3 and 13 American nano satellites in a text book style.
India crossed the milestone of putting into orbit 300 foreign satellites. By putting the 13 American nano satellites into orbit.

IIT-K partners TalentSprint for cybersecurity course

IIT-Kanpur has partnered TalentSprint, a Hyderabad-based Ed-Tech firm to undertake an advanced certification programme in cybersecurity and cyber defence.
The collaboration has been designed for aspiring professionals who are keen to explore the latest trends in cybersecurity technologies.
The IIT-Kanpur(IIT-K) has already taken a lead in cybersecurity by setting up the Interdisciplinary Centre for Cyber Security and Cyber Defence of Critical Infrastructures (C3i).
The mission and vision of C3i is to do research, education, training, and to spawn startups to create technological safeguards and to protect critical infrastructure.
The centre, which is headed by Prof Sandeep Shukla and Prof Manindra Agarwal, will engage with international partners from Israel and the USA in developing research and technology exchange, student training, as well as hosting conferences, workshops, and cyber security competitions to create awareness.

LS passes bill to declare four NIDs in Assam, Andhra Pradesh, MP and Haryana as Institutions of National Importance

The Lok Sabha unanimously passed the National Institute of Design (Amendment) Bill, 2019 which declares the four National Institutes of Design (NID) in Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Assam, and Haryana as institutions of national importance.
These institutes are currently registered as Societies under the Societies Registration Act, 1860 and do not have the power to grant degrees or diplomas. On being declared institutions of national importance, they will be able to grant degrees and diplomas.
The Bill, which seeks amendment in the National Institute of Design Act, 2014, will help these four NID institutes to become socially inclusive and address the needs of design in various sectors including agriculture, health care, and transportation.

FACTFILE – The National Institute of Design (NID)

NID is a design schools located in Ahmedabad, Bengaluru and Gandhinagar. It has 3 active campuses, Main Campus-Ahmedabad, Post Graduate Campus – Gandhinagar and the third one is R&D Campus – Bengaluru.
NID is recognised by the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research under Ministry of Science and Technology, government of India, as a scientific and industrial design research organisation.
NID is accorded as “Institute of National Importance” by Act of Parliament, under the National Institute of Design Act, 2014.
Other NIDs are established by Government of India from 2015 onward at Vijayawada, Jorhat, Kurukshetra and Bhopal.

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November 28, 2019

Assam’s Dr Prerana Keshan awarded ‘Wonder Fogsian’ award

Dr Prerana Keshan, a gynaecologist of Tinsukia was awarded with the ‘Wonder Fogsian’ award in recognition of her exemplary efforts towards uplift of women’s health in India.
She received the award from former Miss World Diana Heyden at the World Conference on Conception to Delivery held at the St Regis Hotel and Resorts Mumbai.
FOGSI is the biggest professional body for gynaecologists in India with Dr Nandita Palshetkar as the president.

Indian Army successfully test fires Spike anti-tank missiles

The Indian Army has successfully test fired two Spike long-range anti-tank missiles at Mhow in Madhya Pradesh.
Spike is a fourth generation missile which can engage any target with precision at ranges up to 4 km.
The Spike missile was the only one to qualify after going through a complex procurement process.
To overcome the critical capability void, the Indian Army procured a limited quantity of Spike LR missiles to meet the urgent operational requirement.

Union Cabinet extended term of 15^th Finance Commission

Its term was scheduled to end on November 30.
Post the extension, the Commission will submit two reports, the first for financial year 2020-21 as well as the final report for financial years 2021-22 to 2025-26.
The extension of the term will enable the Commission to examine various comparable estimates for financial projections in view of reforms and the new realities, to finalise its recommendations for the period 2020-2026.

FACTFILE – The Fifteenth Finance Commission

The Fifteenth Finance Commission is an Indian Finance Commission constituted in November 2017 and is to give recommendations for devolution of taxes and other fiscal matters for five fiscal years, commencing 1 April 2020.
The commission’s chairman is N. K. Singh, with its full-time members being Ajay Narayan Jha, Ashok Lahiri and Anoop Singh.
In addition, the commission also has Ramesh Chand as part-time member.

Union Cabinet nod to increase authorised capital of FCI to Rs.10,000 crore

The Cabinet approved the proposal to increase the authorised capital of Food Corporation of India (FCI) to Rs.10,000 crore from it’s current authorised capital of FCI is Rs 3,500 crore.
With the increase of authorised capital, additional equity capital can be infused in FCI through the Union Budget to fund the foodgrains stock perpetually held by FCI.
This will reduce the borrowings of the FCI, save its interest cost and reduce food subsidy in consequence.
FCI operations require maintaining perpetual stock of foodgrains which needs to be funded by the Centre through equity or long term loans.

FACTFILE – The Food Corporation of India

Food Corporation of India is an organization created and run by the Government of India and also run by state Governments. It is a statutory body under the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, Govt. of India.
The Food Corporation of India (FCI) was set up on 14 January 1965 having its first District Office at Thanjavur – rice bowl of Tamil Nadu – and headquarters at Chennai, later this was moved to New Delhi. It also has regional centers in the capitals of the states.

IIT-Mandi develops device to screen cervical cancer

Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology, Mandi, have developed an artificial intelligence-powered point-of-care device to screen with high accuracy cervical cancer cases by analysing microscopy images.
The project has been taken up in collaboration with Aindra Systems, Bengaluru.
The research team comprised Anil Sao and Arnav Bhavsar, Associate Professors, School of Computing and Electrical Engineering, and Srishti Gautam and Krati Gupta.
Cervical cancer is among the deadliest forms of cancer, and early detection and treatment are vital for the patient.
They have applied for international patent for the device and algorithm in 2016.
The prototype of device is undergoing clinical trial at Kidwai Memorial Hospital, Bengaluru; Manipal Hospital, Karnataka; and Raja Rajeswari Medical College and Hospital, Bengaluru.
The accuracy of the prototypes has been around 88 per cent.

Scientists develop bacteria which ‘eat’ Carbon Dioxide

Israeli researchers have developed bacteria fed only with carbon dioxide, these bacteria, which build the entire biomass of their body from the carbon in the air, may help develop future technologies that reduce greenhouse gas accumulation in the atmosphere and fight global warming.
These bacteria were completely weaned off sugar, after a nearly decade-long process.
The Israeli scientists have been able to “reprogram” E.coli bacteria, which consume sugars and release carbon dioxide, so they use carbon dioxide from the environment and produce the sugars they need to build their body.
The researchers mapped the genes that are essential to this process and added some of them to the bacteria genome in their lab. The researchers believe that the “healthy” habits of these bacteria may prove to be mostly healthy for Earth.

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Assam Current Affairs –November 15 – 21, 2019

Posted on December 25, 2019December 25, 2019 by admin

Current Affairs Assam – November 15 - 21, 2019

( Covers all important Assam Current Affairs & GK topics for the week of November 15 – 21, 2019 )

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November 15, 2019

Assam CM Sarbananda Sonowal Sonowal launches app ‘Shishu Suraksha’ for securing child rights

Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal launched a mobile app ”Shishu Suraksha” of the Assam State Commission for Protection of Child Rights, which is expected to help securing the rights of children.
Remembering the first Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru, on his birth anniversary, which is also observed as Children”s Day across the country.
Sonowal urged the society to put emphasis on the holistic development of children, who will carry forward the society.
Calling on the people to sustain the qualities of humanity, empathy and respect in the society, Sonowal underlined the importance of keeping the children away from superstitions and dogmas by instilling a scientific temperament in them.

Children design postage stamps on child rights

Two postage stamps touching of the theme of child rights, designed by Indian children as part of a UNICEF competition, were released on the occasion of Children’s Day in India.
The top two winners, who will receive Rs 50,000 and Rs 25,000 respectively, were selected out of over 14,000 entries and were announced by the Department of Posts and UNICEF.
Nidhi Rahul Mhatre, 15, from Maharashtra and Vibhushi Agarwal, 12, from Uttar Pradesh. The winners, along with other runners-up, will be awarded at a national event on November 20, World Children’s Day.

MHA appoints 2 advisors to assist J&K Lt Governor

The Ministry of Home Affairs has appointed two advisors to assist the Lieutenant Governor of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The two are retired IAS officer K.K. Sharma and former IPS officer Farooq Khan.
An IAS officer of 1983 batch, Sharma retired as the Secretary Higher Education in the Union ministry of Human Resources Development in February last year.
Farooq Ahmad Khan, an IPS officer of 1994 batch, was appointed as advisor to then J& K Governor Satya Pal Malik after being shifted from Lakshawdeep, where he served as administrator.
He was instrumental in creation of the Special Task Force, J& K police”s anti-militancy wing, in 1994-95 when the erstwhile State was under President”s rule.

Andhra Pradesh launches new scheme to upgrade government schools

Andhra Pradesh state government launched a new programme to revamp Government schools by providing better infrastructure and amenities at a cost of Rs 12,000 crore.
Under the scheme ”Mana Badi Nadu Nedu” (our school then and now), 45,000 government-run schools will undergo a complete makeover in the next three years, bringing them on par with or even better than the ones in private and corporate sectors.
The programme, launched by Chief Minister Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy at Ongole on Children”s Day, gives a pictorial view of schools showing how they look now and how they will look after implementing the scheme.
Taking nine parameters into consideration – provision of lights, fans, blackboards, furniture and compound wall, construction of toilets, repairs and painting of classrooms, providing safe drinking water and provision for English labs.
The first phase will cover 15,715 government schools for a period of one year, at a cost of Rs 3,500 crores.
This programme in addition to upgrading teaching and learning skills, introducing English as the medium of instruction from class 1 to 6 with Telugu or Urdu as a compulsory subject
Improving quality of mid-day meals, supply of textbooks, uniforms and shoes to the students on time and maintaining teacher-student ratio is expected to transform the education sector.
The government has also formed a committee to monitor the functioning of private schools.

November 16, 2019

Union Govt plans to set up NE Industrial Corridor

Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said the Government is planning to set up a North East Industrial Corridor that will create numerous job opportunities for the people of the region.
Singh said the Arunachal corridor would act as a land bridge between India and South East Asia, that will provide employment opportunities and give a fillip to trade and tourism.
The Union Defence Minister was speaking at the 11th Maitree Diwas celebrations at Tawang bordering China.
The two-day socio-military cultural extravaganza is being jointly organised by the Indian Army, Tawang civil administration and volunteers at the Gyalwa Tsangyang Gyatso High Altitude Stadium, Tawang.

Odisha takes conservative measures for protection of Olive Ridley turtles

The Odisha government has geared up the efforts for the protection and conservation of the endangered Olive Ridley turtles during the mass nesting.
The government directed the departments of Fishery, Forest and Marine police to operate in close coordination and ensure strict enforcement of the conservation rules.
Chief Secretary Asit Tripathy chaired a meeting of the high power committee for protection and conservation of Olive Ridley turtle.
The Coast Guard was requested to have realtime intelligence sharing with the departments about any illegal fishing.
The state government has already imposed a seven-month ban on fishing from November 1 to March 31 next year.
It has decided to pay a compensation amount of Rs 7,500 to around 8,000 fishermen families who will bear a loss for fishing ban.
The conservation and protection activities will be carried on in coordination with coast guard, naval wing, Integrated Test Range (ITR), Fisheries and Animal Resource department, police, various port authorities, community based organisations and forest and environment department.

FACTFILE – Olive Ridley Sea Turtle

The olive ridley sea turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea), also known as the Pacific ridley sea turtle, are the second smallest and most abundant of all sea turtles found in the world; this species of sea turtle is found in warm and tropical waters, primarily in the Pacific and Indian Oceans. They can also be found in the warm waters of the Atlantic Ocean.
These turtles, along with the related Kemps ridley turtle, are best known for their unique mass nesting called arribada, where thousands of females come together on the same beach to lay eggs.
Olive ridley turtles are best known for their behavior of synchronized nesting in mass numbers, termed arribadas. Females return to the same beach from where they hatched, to lay their eggs.
In the Indian Ocean, the majority of olive ridleys nest in two or three large groups near Gahirmatha in Odisha. The coast of Odisha in India is the largest mass nesting site for the olive ridley, followed by the coasts of Mexico and Costa Rica.
The Gahirmatha Beach in Kendrapara district of Odisha (India), which is now a part of the Bhitarkanika Wildlife Sanctuary, is the largest breeding ground for these turtles.
Bhitarkanika mangroves were designated a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance in 2002. It is the world’s largest known rookery of olive ridley sea turtles. Apart from Gahirmatha rookery, two other mass nesting beaches have been located, which are on the mouth of rivers Rushikulya and Devi.

TiE Women raises $70,000 during New Delhi summit

TiE Women, an initiative launched by not-for-profit organisation TiE Global to promote women entrepreneurs across its 61 chapters globally, raised $70,000 during two days of its global summit.
The initiative aims to empower women entrepreneurs globally through sustainable and easy-to-adopt programmes that will track the entire entrepreneurial journey with measurable metrics.
Hemalatha Annamalai, Founder, Ampere Vehicles Ltd., and President TiE Coimbatore, will be the Chair for TiE Women.
The programme will culminate in an annual mega event where these women will showcase their successes and get access to funds, scholarships, accelerators and more.
Hosted by TiE Delhi-NCR, the fourth edition of TiE Global Summit witnessed power-packed conversations by eminent ecosystem stakeholders.

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November 17, 2019

Mizoram accounts for 14% of bamboo cultivation in India

With 32.07 per cent of its total geographical area under bamboo cover (estimated at 6,760.71 square km), Mizoram accounts for 14 per cent of the bamboo cultivation in India.
This was highlighted during a seminar ‘Bamboo Composite Materials for Structural Applications’ held in Aizawl. The seminar was co-organised by the Mizoram Science, Technology & Innovation Council (MISTIC), Directorate of Science and Technology and Bhopal-based Council of Scientific and Industrial Research – Advanced Materials and Processes Research Institute (CSIR-AMPRI).
Mizoram is said to have 36 species of bamboo, of which 24 are indigenous and 12 have been introduced.
The dominant species Melocanna baccifera – locally referred to as ‘Mautak’ – constitutes almost 95 per cent of the state’s bamboo forests.
Bamboo forests are found mainly along the river banks and abandoned jhumland as a dominant secondary vegetation.

Dr Jiten Gohain Memorial Green Awarded to Nagaon Govt Boys’ HS School

Nagaon Govt Boys’ HS School was presented the ‘Dr Jiten Gohain Memorial Green Award’ for taking up cleanliness drive.
The award has been introduced for the first time and will be conferred to a Government-run educational institute every year to encourage for a green and healthy environment.
Noted innovator, Dr Uddhab Bharali presented the award to Dipika Laskar, Principal of Nagaon Govt Boys’ HS School. Dr Bharali.

Amit Shah launched winter grade diesel for Ladakh region

Union Home Minister Amit Shah launched winter grade diesel for the entire Ladakh region. The Indian Oil Corp”s (IOC) Panipat refinery has come up with a kind of diesel that can withstand the harsh winter conditions.
The winter grade diesel produced by Panipat Refinery for the first time has a pour point of – 33 degree C and does not lose its fluidity function even in the extreme winter weather of the region, unlike the normal grade of diesel which becomes exceedingly difficult to utilize.
Amit Shah launched the supply of this special grade diesel in Ladakh via video conferencing from the national capital. Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and BJP MP from Ladakh, Jamyang Tsering Namgyal, were present on the occasion.
The first tank truck containing winter grade HSD has been flagged off from IOC”s Panipat marketing complex.
Subsequent supplies of such diesel would be sent from the Jalandhar Terminal to the Leh and Kargil depots to meet demands of customers in the Leh-Ladakh region during peak winters.

WWF-India’s ‘Ek Prithvi’ programme

The WWF-India witnessed coming together of 700 students, principals, teachers and dignitaries at the Panda Fest organised by WWF Assam State Office at Pobitora.
WWF-India conceived the ‘Ek Prithvi’ programme in 2016 to build conservation leadership among students through experiential learning.
The programme aims to embed the approach of environment education into the schools’ education system through innovative teaching methodologies, which ultimately facilitate awareness generation, skill building and action competence in students for pro-conservation attitudes and sustainable lifestyle choices.
Over 2,400 students from eight Government schools in Morigaon district are enrolled in the ‘EK Prithvi’ programme.

November 18, 2019

Justice SA Bobde takes oath as 47^th Chief Justice of India

Justice Sharad Arvind Bobde took oath as the 47th Chief Justice of India. President Ram Nath Kovind administered him the oath of office at Rashtrapati Bhavan.
Justice Bobde succeeds Justice Ranjan Gogoi. Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh, Home Minister Amit Shah, BJP Veteran L K Advani were present on the occasion among others.
Justice Bobde will have a tenure of around 18 months till his retirement on April 23, 2021.
Justice Bobde was elevated as a Judge of the Supreme Court on April 12, 2013.

FACTFILE – The chief justice of India (CJI)

CJI is the head of the judiciary of India and the Supreme Court of India. The CJI also heads their administrative functions.
As head of the Supreme Court, the chief justice is responsible for the allocation of cases and appointment of constitutional benches which deal with important matters of law.
As per Article 145 of the Constitution of India and the Supreme Court Rules of Procedure of 1966, the Chief Justice allocates all work to the other judges.
The Chief Justice also carries out the following functions: maintenance of the roster; appointment of court officials and general and miscellaneous matters relating to the supervision and functioning of the Supreme Court.
Once appointed, the chief justice remains in the office until the age of 65 years.
He can be removed only through a process of impeachment by Parliament.

Assam Cabinet approved Assam Bamboo and Cane Policy

Assam Cabinet also approved the Assam Bamboo and Cane Policy that aims at sustainable development and utilisation of bamboo and cane resources in the state through scientific management and stakeholders participation.
Incentives will be provided for establishment of various bamboo-based industries, processing units and development of traditional sectors like handicraft and furniture making.
Among other incentives are 50 per cent capital investment subsidy on eligible plant and machinery and internal electrical installations subject to a ceiling limit of Rs 5 crore and for startups in bamboo & cane sector a grant of up to Rs 5 lakh for innovative ideas.
The Cabinet made it compulsory for industries and factories to keep sanitary napkins for women employees. The Cabinet also approved the policy for financial autonomy to veterinary farms, pig breeding policy and goat farming policy.

Unio Govt working to set up new tech training centres

Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said that the government was working to set up new technology training centres for quality production.
The Union Minister of Road Transport & Highways and MSME said this while addressing an event to inaugurate the 39th India International Trade Fair (IITF).
The theme for the 2019 edition of IITF was revealed as “Ease of Doing Business inspired by the unique achievement of India of rising up to the 63rd rank on the World Bank”s Ease of Doing Business index from 142nd rank in 2014.”
Several countries, including Australia, Iran, the UK, Vietnam, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, Egypt, Hong Kong and Indonesia are participating in the 14-day trade fair.
This year, the status of partner country has been accorded to Afghanistan, while Bihar and Jharkhand are the focus states.

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November 19, 2019

Meghalaya to ink with Korean tech firm for waste management

The Meghalaya government would be seeking the expertise of a South Korean company for solid waste management and an agreement is likely to be inked during Chief Minister Conrad Sangma’s visit to Seoul.
Ambassador of South Korea to India Shin Bong-Kil said that the Meghalaya government has expressed interest in a Korean company’s expertise in solid waste management.
The Meghalaya government gave a presentation on mining highlighting the pollution caused by it over the years.
The State government sought access to Korean technology to find ways to purify the rivers and streams.
Bong-Kil was the chief guest at the closing ceremony of Cherry Blossom Festival, which was held at the Polo Grounds yesterday. South Korea was the partner country of the festival this year.

Bengaluru-based environment think-tank Ashoka Trust to receive UNESCO prize for eco-conservation

Bengaluru-based environment think-tank Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE) will be awarded the 2019 UNESCO Sultan Qaboos Prize for environmental conservation.
The award is being given in recognition of ATREE”s socially-just environment conservation and sustainable development activities in Sikkim and Darjeeling regions.
The prize also recognises its contributions towards the discovery of new species in the Western Ghats, outreach to raise awareness about India”s biodiversity and training environmental leaders.
The prize consists of $100,000, a diploma and a medal. The award ceremony will be held in Budapest, Hungary, during the upcoming World Science Forum.

FACTFILE – Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE)

Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE) is a research institution founded by Kamaljit S. Bawa based in Bangalore, India focusing in the areas of biodiversity conservation and sustainable development.
The trust works to generate rigorous interdisciplinary knowledge for achieving environmental conservation and sustainable development in a socially just manner, to enable the use of this knowledge by policy makers and society, and to train the next generation of scholars and leaders.
ATREE contributes to the conservation of diverse environments throughout India, including the Eastern Himalayas, the UNESCO Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve and the Western Ghats world heritage site, Vembanad lake, Kaziranga and Manas National Parks, the grasslands of Kutch, the wetlands of Tamil Nadu and Kerala, and the urban landscapes of Karnataka.

National Green Tribunal (NGT) fine Rs 10 crore penatly on UP Govt

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has imposed a penalty of Rs 10 crore on the Uttar Pradesh government for failing to check sewage discharge containing toxic chromium into river Ganga at Rania and Rakhi Mandi in Kanpur. Besides, the NGT has also slapped a fine of Rs 280 crore on 22 tanneries for causing pollution.
A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel said the problem has not been tackled for the last 43 years and this has resulted in contamination of groundwater affecting the health and life of the inhabitants.
The environment compensation of Rs 280.01 crore was also assessed by the state pollution control board.
The NGT also held UPPCB liable and directed it to pay Rs 1 crore for ignoring illegal discharge of sewage and other effluent containing toxic chromium directly into Ganga.

FACTFILE – National Green Tribunal Act, 2010

National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 is an Act of the Parliament of India which enables creation of a special tribunal to handle the expeditious disposal of the cases pertaining to environmental issues.
It draws inspiration from the India’s constitutional provision of Article 48A which assures the citizens of India the right to a healthy environment.
On 18 October 2010, Justice Lokeshwar Singh Panta became its first Chairman. Retired justice Adarsh Kumar Goel is the incumbent chairman of national green tribunal.
The Principal Bench of the NGT is in New Delhi and has regional benches in Pune (West), Bhopal (Central), Chennai (South) and Kolkata (East).

India and Singapore exchanges Letter of Intent in defence sector

India and Singapore exchanged a Letter of Intent (LoI) for a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) whereby the latter’s defence establishment could use the Chandipur Integrated Test Range in Odisha.
The exchange of the Letter of Intent took place in the presence of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, who is on a two-day trip to the Southeast Asian nation, and his Singaporean counterpart Dr Ng Eng.
The Integrated Test Range, a missile testing facility of the Defence Research & Development Organisation, is located on Dr Abdul Kalam Island, formerly known as Wheeler Island, off the eastern coast of India in the Bay of Bengal.
Singh co-chaired the 4th Singapore-India Defence Ministers Dialogue. Singh also offered setting up of Joint Test Facilities under the Defence Testing Infrastructure Scheme of India following which Dr Ng agreed to explore opportunities for a joint collaboration.
The Ministers also agreed to explore cooperation in the fields of Artificial Intelligence, Geo-Spatial Data Sharing and Cyber Security.
It was also agreed to hold the 5th Defence Ministers Dialogue in India next year on mutually convenient dates.

November 20, 2019

Arunachal Pradesh gets ‘Best Emerging Green Tourist Destination Award’

Arunachal Pradesh has been awarded the ‘Best Emerging Green Tourist Destination Award’ by Travel & Leisure magazine.
Arunachal Pradesh is one of the last ‘Truly Unexplored’ destinations in the world which offers an awe-inspiring experience to the discerning tourist.
The award is a boost to the efforts of the Tourism department in bringing Arunachal Pradesh prosperity through sustainable tourism.
The awards were given to Tourism departments and stakeholders in recognition of their efforts towards promoting green tourism.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh met Deputy PM of Singapore

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh met Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore Heng Swee Keat. Singh is on a two-day visit to Singapore to co-chair the 4th India-Singapore Defence Ministers” Dialogue.
The Defence Minister referred to India’s stand on the South China Sea and the Indo-Pacific region and stressed that the Indo-Pacific for India meant an open, inclusive and stable region, connected through secure seas, integrated by trade and anchored by the unity and centrality of Asean.
He said India’s stand on implementation of international laws and norms, freedom of navigation, unimpeded lawful commerce and peaceful settlement of disputes was the only way to ensure a rule-based order in the Indo-Pacific region.
Singh conveyed to Keat that India”s vision of a comprehensive agenda of regional cooperation was rooted in ”SAGAR”, that”s ”Security and Growth for All in the Region”.
During the meeting, they also agreed upon furthering bilateral defence cooperation.
Singh also took a sortie in the Super Puma Helicopter of the Singapore Air Force at the Sembawang Air Base and visited Singapore naval ship RSS Stalwart.
He paid tributes to Mahatma Gandhi at his Marker in Singapore and also to Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose and Indian National Army martyrs at their memorial.

Facebook partners with WCD Ministry to boost digital literacy

In a bid to make social networking secure and safe for women and children, Facebook made partnership with the Ministry of Women and Child Development (WCD) at Facebook”s “South Asia Safety Summit”.
Formation of an ideal “Internet Consortium” to propose recommendations for online child safety and launch of ”We Think Digital”, the company”s global digital literacy programme.
The summit was joined by over 100 organisations from Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and India.
Facebook is set to launch another campaign called “Thumbstoppers” next year, which will be a series of short creative mobile videos under 10 seconds from India”s advertising community, focusing on empowering and educating people on issues like gender equality, domestic violence and education for the girl child.
Facebook said it is committed to support economic growth and social good in India and is working with partners to train more than five million people by 2021.

ISRO to launch Cartosat-3, 13 commercial nano satellites

India’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, PSLV-C47 will launch Cartosat-3 and 13 commercial nanosatellites into Sun Synchronous orbit from Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) SHAR, Sriharikota.
PSLV-C47 is the 21st flight of PSLV in ‘XL’ configuration, that is with 6 solid strap-on motors.
This will be the 74th launch vehicle mission from SDSC SHAR, Sriharikota.
Cartosat-3 satellite is a third-generation agile advanced satellite having high-resolution imaging capability.
PSLV-C47 will also carry 13 commercial nanosatellites from the United States of America as part of commercial arrangement with NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), Department of Space.

FACTFILE – Cartosat-3 satellite

Cartosat-3 is an advanced Indian Earth Observation satellite built and developed by ISRO, which will replace the IRS series.
It has a panchromatic resolution of 0.25 metres making it the imaging satellite with highest resolution in the world and Mx of 1 metre with a high quality resolution which is a major improvement from the previous payloads in the Cartosat series.
Potential uses include weather mapping, cartography or army defence, and strategic applications
ISRO launched additional satellites in the Cartosat-2 series through 2016, 2017 and 2018.

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November 21, 2019

Assam State Cabinet approved the Assam Excise (Amendment) Bill 2019

The State Cabinet approved the Assam Excise (Amendment) Bill 2019 that seeks to bring molasses in the list of excisable items.
The Bill seeks to amend section 2(h) and section 84(2)(d) of the Assam Excise Act, 2000 such that the list of excisable articles will be expanded to include molasses as an excisable item.
It also seeks to regulate import, export, transport or possession of molasses. A new section will be inserted to define the term molasses for the purpose of the Assam Excise Act.
The amendments in the Excise Act will facilitate the introduction of necessary rules to control and regulate the production, storage, distribution, possession and sale of molasses in the State to deal effectively with the challenges posed by the rampant production, trade and consumption of the spurious liquor.

India, Uzbekistan sign security cooperation agreement

India and the central Asian country of Uzbekistan inked an agreement on security cooperation including in the field of counter-terrorism, organized crime and human trafficking.
The agreement was signed during a meeting between a delegation from Uzbekistan, led by Minister of Internal Affairs, Pulat Bobojonov, with an Indian delegation, led by Union Home Minister Amit Shah in New Delhi.
The two sides discussed areas of mutual interest, including counter-terrorism cooperation and training for Uzbek security personnel in Indian institutions, capacity building, border guarding and disaster management.
The Agreement on Security Cooperation, signed by the two ministers, will further strengthen cooperation between India-Uzbekistan in the diverse fields including counter-terrorism, organized crime and human trafficking.
The Indian delegation included Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai along with other senior officers from the Ministry.

LS passes Bill for transparency in Chit Fund schemes

The Lok Sabha passed a Bill that aims at putting in place a mechanism to ensure transparency in chit fund schemes, protect subscribers and regulate the industry.
To facilitate orderly growth of the chit fund sector, Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs Anurag Thakur said through the Chit Fund (Amendment) Bill, 2019 the government was making changes in the rules for starting a chit fund.
The Minister had moved the Bill, which seeks to amend the Chit Funds Act, 1982.
With the amendments, the prescribed ceiling of aggregate chit fund amount for individuals would be raised to Rs 3 lakh from Rs 1 lakh, and Rs 18 lakh from Rs 6 lakh for firms.
Besides, words ”gross chit amount”, ”share of discount” and ”net chit amount” would be substituted with ”chit amount”, ”dividend” and ”prize amount”, respectively.
The amended Act would confer powers upon the state governments to specify the amount up to which any chit fund shall be exempted under the Act.

India successfully test-fires nuke-capable Prithvi-II

India successfully testfired its indigenously developed nuclear capable surface-to-surface Prithvi-2 missile as part of a user trial by the Army from a test range off Odisha coast.
The trial of the missile, which has a strike range of 350 km, was carried out from a mobile launcher from launch complex-3 of the ITR.
The missile was randomly chosen from the production stock and the entire launch activity was carried out by Strategic Force Command (SFC) of the Army and monitored by scientists of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) as part of the training exercise.

FACTFILE – Prithvi-II missile

Prithvi-2 is capable of carrying 500-1,000 kg of warheads and is powered by liquid propulsion twin engines.
The state-of-the-art missile uses advanced inertial guidance system with maneuvering trajectory to hit its target.
Inducted into the armory of Indian defence forces in 2003, nine-metre tall ‘Prithvi’ was the first missile to have been developed by DRDO under the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP).

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh holds bilateral meets on ADMM-Plus

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh held bilateral meetings with his counterparts from US, Japan, Australia and New Zealand in Bangkok where they have come to attend the 6th ASEAN Defence Ministers” Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus). He reviewed the entire gamut of bilateral defence relations with his various counterparts and discussed ways to further improve the ties.
Rajnath Singh and US Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper expressed satisfaction over the increasing defence engagements between the two countries. The two will be meeting again for the 2+2 meeting in Washington DC later next month.
He had a detailed discussion on adding further momentum to India-Japan defence cooperation with Japanese counterpart Taro Konowas.
He also met his counterparts from Australia – Linda Reynolds – and New Zealand – Ron Mark – and discussed ongoing defence cooperation and potential areas for enhanced engagement.

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Assam Current Affairs –November 08 – 14, 2019

Posted on December 25, 2019May 16, 2020 by admin

Current Affairs Assam – November 8 - 14, 2019

( Covers all important Assam Current Affairs & GK topics for the week of November 8 – 14, 2019 )

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November 08, 2019

Assam State Child Scientist Award for class VIII student Raj Sharma

A project on an alternative source of fibre, developed from the snake plant (Sansevieria trifasciata) by Hiranya Raj Sharma, a class VIII student of Dhekiajuli town of Sonitpur district, was awarded the Khagendra Nath Brahma State Child Scientist Award in the lower age group at the 27^th State-level National Children’s Science Congress (NCSC) 2019.
Hiranya Raj, a student of Polestar Academy of Singri area in Dhekiajuli town conducted research under the guidance of an assistant teacher of Dhekiajuli High School, Sailendra Sharma to understand that the plant which is locally popular as ‘khoru gumoni gos’ has enough utility.
The snake plant is a wild evergreen perennial plant locally available and spreads by way of its creeping rhizomes. It is a common weed of the roadsides, abandoned gardens and waste areas. Its leaves are thick and the mature leaves are dark green in colour, usually ranging from 60-160 centimetres in length and 6-10 centimetres in width.
The student undertook the project to study the snake plant and to explore its potential to be used as a substitute/supplement to the conventional fibres and also to protect and preserve the traditional knowledge and to scientifically test these ideas.
The lack of proper knowledge on possible benefits from the snake plant, has led to a situation where it is uprooted from fields.
A survey was conducted about the plant among the farmers where it was found that nearly 97.64 % had no knowledge about its usefulness. But if awareness is created, the snake plant could be used for producing an eco-friendly fibre from which goods of daily use can be made.

Highlights of the India Justice Report 2019

Tata Trusts in collaboration with the Centre for Social Justice, Common Cause, and the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative has prepared the India Justice Report (2019).
This is the first-ever ranking of Indian states on justice delivery.
The India Justice Report 2019 is based on publicly available data of different government entities on the four pillars of justice delivery — police, judiciary, prisons, and legal aid.
The report has divided states on the basis of the population into two parts: (1) The large-medium states (Population 1 crore and above) and (2) The small states and Union Territories (Population less than 1 crore)
Maharashtra has topped the list among large-medium States in delivering justice to people followed by Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Punjab, and Haryana. In this category, Jharkhand, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh are at the bottom.
Among the small states (where the population is less than one crore each), Goa has topped the list followed by Sikkim and Himachal Pradesh.
On average, the police have a vacancy of 23% (2017), and the judiciary between 20%-40% across the high courts and lower judiciary.
No State/ UT is able to meet all its diversity quotas (ST, SC, and OBC). Karnataka comes closest to achieve diversity quotas (missed its SC reservation target by 4%).
Women are poorly represented across the Justice system. They account for 7% of the Police, 10 % of Prison staff and about 26.5 % of all judges in the High Court and subordinate courts.

India expresses commitment to fully implement FATF standards

India expressed its commitment to fully implement the standards of Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and establish Anti-Money Laundering as well as Countering Financing of Terrorism regimes to dismantle the terror financing networks.
Union Minister of State for Home G. Kishan Reddy Presenting India”s concern over terror financing issues on the second day of the second ”No Money For Terror” conference being attended by 65 countries.
FATF is an inter-governmental “policy-making body” which works to set standards and promote effective implementation of legal, regulatory and operational measures for combating money laundering, terrorist financing and other related threats to the integrity of the international financial system.
The FATF has developed a series of recommendations that are recognised as the international standard for combating of money laundering and the financing of terrorism and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.
The FATF recommendations form the basis for a co-ordinated response to these threats to the integrity of the financial system and help ensure a level playing field.
A First issued in 1990, the FATF recommendations were revised in 1996, 2001, 2003 and most recently in 2012 to ensure that they remain up to date and relevant, and they are intended to be of universal application.

FACTFILE – The Financial Action Task Force (on Money Laundering) (FATF)

The Financial Action Task Force (on Money Laundering) (FATF) is an intergovernmental organization founded in 1989 on the initiative of the G7 to develop policies to combat money laundering.
In 2001 its mandate expanded to include terrorism financing. It monitors progress in implementing the FATF Recommendations through “peer reviews” of member countries.
The FATF Secretariat is housed at the OECD headquarters in Paris.
Since 2000, to fight money laundering and terror financing the FATF maintains the current list of nations: FATF blacklist (formally called the “Call for action”) and the “FATF greylist”.
As of 2019 FATF consists of thirty-seven member jurisdictions and two regional organisations.
Regional organizations: European Commission & Gulf Cooperation Council
Member Nations:

1. Argentina
2. Australia
3. Austria
4. Belgium
5. Brazil
6. Canada
7. China
8. Denmark
9. Finland
10. France
11. Germany
12. Greece
13. Hong Kong, China
14. Iceland
15. India
16. Ireland
17. Israel
18. Italy
19. Japan
20. South Korea
21. Kingdom of the Netherlands
22. Luxembourg
23. Malaysia
24. Mexico
25. New Zealand
26. Norway
27. Portugal
28. Russian Federation
29. Saudi Arabia[25]
30. Singapore
31. South Africa
32. Spain
33. Sweden
34. Switzerland
35. Turkey
36. United Kingdom
37. United States

November 09, 2019

Akil Kureshi appointed as Chief Justice of Tripura High Court

Centre has appointed Justice Akil Kureshi, the judge of Bombay High Court, as the Chief Justice of Tripura High Court.
The Centre’s counsel had told the Supreme Court that nearly all administrative formalities in connection with the appointment had been completed, except the last signature.
A senior judge from the Gujarat High Court, Justice Akil Kureshi is serving as a judge of the Bombay High Court at present following a transfer.

FACTFILE – Tripura High Court

The Tripura High Court is the High Court of the state of Tripura, established on 23 March 2013, after making suitable amendments in the Constitution of India and North-Eastern Areas (Re-organisation) Act, 1971.
The seat of the High Court is at Agartala, the capital of Tripura. The first Chief Justice is Justice Deepak Gupta.
Earlier, the state of Tripura along with the other six states of the North – East of India was under the Gauhati High Court, a permanent bench of the Gauhati High Court was established in Agartala in the year 1992 having territorial jurisdiction of the state of Tripura.

India-Indonesia joint naval exercise Samudra Shakti

Anti-submarine warfare corvette INS Kamorta is jointly exercising with Indonesian warship KRI Usman Harun, a multi-role corvette, in the Bay of Bengal as part of an ongoing bilateral exercise ’Samudra Shakti’.
The joint exercises include, manoeuvres, surface warfare exercises, air defence exercises, weapon firing drills, helicopter operations and boarding operations..
KRI Usman Harun arrived at Visakhapatnam to participate in the second edition of Ex ‘’Samudra Shakti’’.
The harbour phase concluded with professional interactions in the form of subject matter expert exchanges (SMEE), cross deck visits, simulator drills, planning conferences, sports fixtures and social interactions.

FACTFILE – Samudra Shakti Exercise

Samudra Shakti is a bilateral maritime exercise between India and Indonesia.
IT’s objective is to strengthen bilateral relations, expand maritime co-operation, enhance interoperability and exchange best practices between the Navies of India and Indonesia.
Garuda Shakti is the joint military exercise between India and Indonesia.

India, UAE discuss boosting trade & investment ties

Minister of State for External Affairs V. Muraleedharan held talks with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Minister Ahmed Ali Al Sayegh on further enhancing the countries” trade, investment and tourism ties.
Muraleedharan is in Abu Dhabi to attend the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) ministerial meeting.
The UAE takes over from South Africa as IORA Chairman for a two year period to 2021.
The theme of the meeting is “Promoting a Shared Destiny and Path to Prosperity in the Indian Ocean”.
Founded in 1997, the Association, whose headquarters are in Mauritius, is an inter-governmental organisation with 22 member states as well as nine dialogue partners.
These partners are countries situated outside the region but who have interests within it. It seeks to promote sustained growth and balanced development within the Indian Ocean region.

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November 10, 2019

World Bank’s $110 million deal for river transport in Assam

A loan negotiation for an amount of $110 million was successfully concluded for the Assam Inland Water Transport Project (AIWTP) to be executed by the Government of Assam and the World Bank.
The negotiation was carried out in the presence of the Director, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Government of India at the Country Head office of World Bank in New Delhi.
The Indian delegation on behalf of the Government of Assam was represented by Virendra Mittal, State Project Director, AIWTDS; Dhrubajyoti Das, Additional Secretary, Transport Department and Director, IWT, Assam, and Rahul Chandra Das, Deputy State Project Director, AIWTDS.
The team representing the Department of Economic Affairs under the Ministry of Finance was led by Bandana Preyashi, Director, DEA. The World Bank team was led by Atul Agarwal, Team Leader, World Bank.
The objective of the project is to develop an efficient river transport system which would be safe, secure and comfortable for the large volume of passengers and cargo carried by vessels.

India, France begin counterterrorism Exercise ‘Shakti 2019’

Shakti 2019, a 14-day joint military exercise involving India and France, started at the Mahajan Field Firing Ranges in Bikaner. The joint exercise will facilitate both armies to know each other better, share their operational experience and enhance awareness through information exchange.
This will help them in undertaking joint operations at platoon level for countering terrorist threats under the mandate of the United Nations.
The ceremony saw the unfurling of the national flags of both countries amidst playing of their respective national anthems.
The ceremony also witnessed synchronised marching of troops to martial tunes.
This was followed by evocative speeches by the Reviewing Officers of both countries.

New Zealand passes zero carbon bill to combat climate change

New Zealand passed a bill to reduce its carbon emissions to zero by 2050 and meet its commitments under the Paris climate accord.
The law commits New Zealand to keeping global warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius, as stipulated by the Paris Agreement and marks an important step in the fight against the climate emergency looming over the world according to more than 11,000 scientists worldwide.
The zero emissions target excludes methane emissions but the law pledges to reduce them gradually.
The law includes the establishment of a green investment fund worth NZ$100 million ($64 million), a carbon trading scheme and inclusion of agriculture in emissions pricing by 2025, and the plantation of one billion trees by 2028.
The law also stipulates suspending the release of new permits for hydrocarbon explorations at sea and supports the production of cheaper electric vehicles apart from setting a goal of 100 per cent renewable electricity generation by 2035.
The legislation aims to cut biological methane emissions from agriculture by 10 per cent until 2030, and targets 24-47 per cent reduction in emissions by 2050.

November 11, 2019

Brahmaputra Valley Samaj Hitoishi Award to DN Chakravarty

The Dayal Krishna Bora memorial Brahmaputra Valley Samaj Hitoishi Award-2019, under the auspices of Sahai, a socio-cultural organisation, was formally conferred on veteran journalist Dhirendra Nath.
The Finance and PWD Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma formally handed over the award to the 93-year-old journalist.
DN chakravarty always advocated for the unity and integrity of Bharat and its Sanatani civilisation. Vaishnavite scholar Dayal Krishna Bora was a worthy son of Morigaon district, who sacrificed his whole life for the cause of the society.
Speaking on the occasion, DN Chakravarty said that he is still writing for the society and is a senior working journalist of entire Asia by now. Presenting the socio-economic history of Assam and India, Chakravarty said that we have a golden history right from Mahabharat days and we must uphold the century-old historical tradition.

Sanjay Karol is the new Chief Justice of Patna High Court

Justice Sanjay Karol took oath as the new Chief Justice of Patna High Court. He was sworn-in by Bihar Governor Phagu Chauhan at a ceremony organised at the Raj Bhawan.
The swearing-in ceremony was attended by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi, senior judges and other dignitaries.
Justice Karol was the Chief Justice of the Tripura High Court. His predessor at the Patna High Court has been transferred to the Madras High Court.

FACTFILE – Patna High Court

The Patna High Court is the High Court of the state of Bihar.
It was established on 3 February 1916 and later affiliated under the Government of India Act 1915. The court is headquartered in Patna, the administrative capital of the state.
In 1948, Patna High Court exercised jurisdiction over the territories of the Province of Bihar & Orissa till 26 July 1948, when a separate High Court was constituted for Orissa.
In 1972, Patna High Court opened a Circuit Bench at Ranchi and in 1976, the Circuit Bench of Patna High Court at Ranchi became Permanent Bench and in 2000 it became Jharkhand High Court on November 2000, under the Bihar Reorganisation Act, 2000.
Patna High Court celebrated Centenary Celebrations in 2015.

Environment Ministry nod to Indian Oil Corporation’s Panipat ethanol plant

The Union Environment Ministry has given its clearance to Indian Oil Corporation for setting up a 2G ethanol plant in Panipat.
The ethanol project at the Panipat refinery is being set up a cost of Rs 909 crore.
The benefit of the plant is that blending of ethanol with motor spirit leads to reduction of import of crude oil with corresponding savings in foreign exchange.
This project envisages production of 100 kl ethanol a day from multi-feedstock lignocelluloses using indigenous technology.

CJI office falls within ambit of RTI Act, says SC

Observing that judicial independence and accountability go hand in hand, the Supreme Court on Wednesday held that the office of the Chief Justice of India (CJI) is a public authority and falls within the purview of the Right to Information (RTI) Act.
Pronouncing a landmark verdict, the apex court at the same time said transparency cannot be allowed to run to its absolute and that RTI Act should not be used as a surveillance tool. It also observed there should be a balance between right to privacy and right to information and they have to be treated as “co-equals”
A five-judge Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi unanimously upheld the 2010 Delhi High Court judgement and dismissed three appeals filed by Secretary General of the Supreme Court and the Central Public Information Officer (CPIO) of the top court.
The high court on January 10, 2010 held that the CJI office comes within the ambit of the RTI law, saying judicial independence was not a judge’s privilege, but a responsibility cast upon him.
Hailing the apex court verdict, RTI activists said “no one is above the law” and it is a great step towards transparency and building the trust of people in the justice system.

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November 12, 2019

Assam signs pact with Malaysia trade body

The Industries and Commerce Department, Assam, signed an MoU with Malaysia India Business Council (MIBC) in the presence of Industries and Commerce Minister Chandra Mohan Patowary and MIBC president Tan Sri Ir Kuna Sittampalam.
Both the parties agreed to explore and improve two-way trade and investment between India and Malaysia in sectors like education, tourism, primary industries, etc.
Assistance will be accorded to business or trade missions from India visiting Malaysia and vice versa in seminars, conferences, exhibitions, economic and technical fairs, information bureau, symposia, or similar events taking place in both the countries.
It was also decided to accelerate engagement, trade and cultural exchange to unlock the potential sectors between Assam and Malaysia.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh hands over Rs 3 crore to two defence start-ups

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh handed over Rs 3 crore to two start-ups in the defence sector, to help them build upon their innovative ideas, during the inaugural session of DefConnect 2019, an initiative to showcase innovations in defence excellence.
The start-up firms, North Street Cooling Towers and Chipspirit Technologies were handed over cheques of around Rs 1.5 crore each by Singh.
The initiative Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX) had been launched by the central government in April 2018 to create an ecosystem that will foster innovation and technology development in Defence and Aerospace.
Under the initiative, the government is also committed to provide grants, funding and other support to carry out research and development that has the potential to cater to the needs of the Indian defence sector.
More than 350 start-ups selected by the iDEX, partner incubators, Defence Innovation Organization (DIO), nodal agencies including the Army, the Navy and the Air Force, apart from DRDO, Defence PSUs and Ordnance Factories were part of DefConnect 2019.

Environment Ministry’s launches beach cleanliness drive

The Environment Ministry is launching a mass cleanliness drive at 50 beaches under the “Swachh – Nirmal Tat Abhiyaan”.
The government”s effort is to clean up the beaches and create awareness among citizens about the importance of coastal ecosystems.
Will clean the beaches in 10 coastal states/Union Territories (UTs), namely Gujarat, Daman & Diu, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Andhra Pradesh and Odisha.
The beaches have been identified after consultations with the states/UTs.
The cleaning drive will involve school/college students who are part of eco-clubs, district administration, institutions, volunteers, local communities and other stakeholders.
State nodal agencies for the eco-clubs will be facilitating the week long cleanliness drive.
The beach cleaning drive will be of two hours” duration daily, and a minimum of a one kilometre stretch of the beach will be identified.
Sand cleaning machines will be deployed at about 15 beaches. The collected waste will be processed as per Waste Management Rules, 2016.
The Environment Education Division of the Ministry and the Society of Integrated Coastal Management (SICOM) will be responsible for the overall coordination for the drive.

Himachal Pradesh Govt & Dutch companies sign 14 MoUs

The Himachal Pradesh government and Dutch companies have signed 14 memorandum of understanding of Rs 200 crore.
The pacts mainly in agriculture, horticulture, sports, water management, waste to energy and ecotourism were signed at Global Investment Summit held in Dharamsala.
The Netherlands had the largest overseas delegation led by Vikas Chaturvedi, CEO of Valucent Group and founder Chairman of ASSOCHAM Europe.

Samsung Innovation Award at IIT Indore

Samsung India conducted the 9th edition of the ”Samsung Innovation Award” at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Indore to recognise and reward innovations that have the potential to revolutionise everyday living.
This year, the theme was ”Systems that learn” and students were encouraged to think creatively and propose practical ideas around multi-modal sensing, applications of learning systems, VR, XR, 3D imaging, distributed AI and more.
Prizes worth Rs 3.5 lakhs were awarded to the top three winners, while the other three finalists received award of merit from Samsung.
The first prize went to Ram S. Mohril for the project ”AR/VR Enhanced Textbook reading and learning experience”.
The second Prize was grabbed by Chaitanya Mehta forhis project ”Tree Climbing Quadraped Robot”.
The third prize was awarded to Nemath Ahmed, Suraj Polamaina and Shavez Malick for their project ”Immersive Acoustic Spatial Awareness for Visually Impaired”.

November 13, 2019

Union Govt approves Assam Police’s intelligence sharing project

The Centre has approved Assam Police’s plan to create a seamless intelligence sharing online platform among the police forces of all the eight northeastern states that might prove to be a game changer in destabilising the inter-state criminal network.
Equipped with geo-tagging, the project, is one of its kind in the country where, for the first time, police forces of eight states would share inputs and facilitate each other’s investigation on request, under an organised technological set-up.
The application-based platform would encompass police officers from the rank of the officer-in-charge of a police station to the entire chain of top hierarchy of the respective state police of the region.
The much-awaited project envisages creating a proactive network among the neighbouring states when it comes to handling organised crimes with cross-border ramification, including abduction, smuggling of precious items and vehicle theft, among others. There are also plans to share database of criminals among the state police forces.

Justice Rafiq took charge as Chief Justice of Meghalaya High Court

Justice Mohammed Rafiq sworn in as the Chief Justice of the Meghalaya High Court Governor Tathagata Roy administer the oath of office and secrecy to him at Raj Bhavan.
Rafiq, 59, succeeds Ajay Kumar Mittal who is now the Chief Justice of the Madhya Pradesh High Court.
He will be the 8^th Chief Justice of the Meghalaya High Court.
Rafiq started his law practice in 1984. He practiced exclusively in the Rajasthan High Court in almost all branches of law. He served as an advocate from 1999 to 2006.
In 2008, he was appointed as Justice at the Rajasthan High Court. Rafiq also served as acting Chief Justice of the Rajasthan High Court twice.

FACTFILE – Meghalaya High Court

The Meghalaya High Court is the High Court of the state of Meghalaya.
It was established in March 2013, after making suitable amendments in the Constitution of India and North-Eastern Areas (Re-organisation) Act of 1971. Earlier, a bench of the Gauhati High Court had jurisdiction over the state of Meghalaya.
The seat of the High Court is at Shillong, the capital of Meghalaya.
The strength of judges as for this High Court is 3 permanent judges including the Hon’ble Chief Justice and 2 Hon’ble Judges.

India has successfully conducted the night trial of Agni-II

India has successfully conducted the night trial of Agni-II, its versatile surface-to-surface medium-range nuclear-capable missile from Dr Abdul Kalam Island off Odisha coast.
Agni-II, an intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM), has already been inducted into the armed forces.
This was the first time that the sophisticated missile was testfired at night.
The entire trajectory of the trial was tracked by a battery of sophisticated radars, telemetry observation stations, electro-optic instruments and two naval ships located near the impact point in the down-range area of Bay of Bengal.
The test was carried out by the specially formed Strategic Forces Command (SFC) of the Army with logistic support from the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).
The two-stage ballistic missile can carry a payload of 1000 kg over a distance of 2000 km.

India, US tri-services exercise ‘Tiger Triumph’

A nine-day tri-services exercise between India and the US on humanitarian assistance and disaster relief will began with the aim of strengthening the bilateral relationship and defence cooperation.
In the exercise, named Tiger Triumph, Indian Naval ships Jalashwa, Airavat and Sandhayak, Indian Army troops from 19 Madras and 7 Guards, and Indian Air Force MI-17 helicopters and Rapid Action Medical Team would be participating.
The US would be represented by US Navy Ship Germantown with troops from US third marine division. The exercise is aimed at developing inter-operability for conducting humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations.
The Harbour Phase is scheduled at Visakhapatnam. The opening ceremony along with a joint flag parade would be held onboard INS Jalashwa.
Personnel from both the navies would also participate in training visits, subject matter expert exchanges, sports events and social interactions.
On completion of the Harbour Phase, the ships, with troops embarked, would sail for the sea phase and undertake maritime, amphibious and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations.
On reaching the humanitarian assistance and disaster relief area at Kakinada, the landing of relief forces would be undertaken to the exercise scenario.

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November 14, 2019

IIT Guwahati researchers develop sensor to assess milk freshness

The Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati (IIT-G) said its researchers have developed a paper-based sensor that can make assessment of the freshness of milk by a simple method and instantaneous.
Bacteria and other microbes that can grow in milk can not only affect the taste and freshness, but can also result in health issues.
Pasteurisation is commonly used to kill the microbes in milk and various tests are used to ensure the effectiveness of pasteurisation.
Alkaline Phosphatase (ALP) is a metalloprotein found naturally in raw milk samples and is considered an important biomarker in quality control of milk. It is found in raw milk and is destroyed during pasteurisation.
Detection of ALP in milk can thus point to inadequate pasteurisation and perhaps contamination.
The researchers have used simple filter paper, chemically modified it, and loaded it with a recognition element anti-ALP, which captures the ALP present in the milk.
Upon treatment of the colour forming compound BCIP to the captured complex of ALP forms a blue-green coloured precipitate, that otherwise does not gives any colour in the absence of ALP.
The intensity of the colour indicates the amount of ALP present. The team used a smartphone to capture the image of the colour and used the RGB (Red Green Blue) filter in the phone to profile the colour obtained, which could be co-related to the concentration of ALP present in the test sample.
The researchers successfully tested milk obtained from villages and commercially available milk samples using their paper-based sensor kit, and found that they could detect down to 0.87 units of ALP per millilitre of milk to about 91-100 per cent accuracy.
This detection limit and accuracy make it possible to discriminate raw milk (often contains as high as 191U/mL ALP) from boiled milk which contains ALP in ultra-trace amount.

Indo-France joint military ‘Exercise Shakti-2019’

The closing ceremony of the joint military exercise between Indian and French Army, ”Exercise SHAKTI-2019” concluded at Mahajan Field Firing Range, Rajasthan.
The ceremony was reviewed by Brigadier General Jean Christophe Bechon, Commandant 6th Light Armoured Brigade, French Army and Major General Inderjit Singh, General Officer Commanding, Gandiv Division of Sapta Shakti Command.
An infantry platoon group of The Sikh Regiment part of Sapta Shakti Command and a platoon group of the 21st Marine Infantry Regiment, part of 6th Armoured Brigade, represented India and France respectively in the exercise.
Exercise SHAKTI-2019 was a two-phased exercise. In the inter-operability phase, the contingents underwent rigorous combat conditioning and tactical training.
The training received by both the armies in inter-operability phase was put into practice in the validation phase.
The contingents jointly took part in the validation exercise which included establishment of observation posts, cordon and search operation and house clearing drills.

Defence Exercises between India and France:

Varuna – Naval exercise
Garuda – Air exercise
Shakti – Army exercise

Punjab signs pact for promotion of products of MSMEs

A memorandum of understanding was signed by state-run Invest Punjab with startup Pumpkart for e-commerce promotion and selling of products of micro small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
Punjab Small Industries and Export Corporation (PSIEC) Managing Director Sibin C. signed the pact on behalf of the state government with Pumpkart Co-Founder and CEO K.S. Bhatia.
Additional Chief Secretary (Investment Promotions and Industry and Commerce) Vini Mahajan said the government is committed to promote the MSMEs at a time when there is economic recession in the country.
She also said industry in the state attracted more than 50,000 crore investments and these are under implementation stage.
Keeping in line with the Make in India programme, state govt have formulated the Make in Punjab policy.

Nilam Sawhney appointed as Chief Secretary of Andhra Pradesh

Senior IAS officer Nilam Sawhney was appointed as the new Chief Secretary of Andhra Pradesh, order was issued by the General Administration Department appointing Sawhney, a 1984 batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer, to the top post.
Sawhney is the first woman chief secretary of the truncated state of Andhra Pradesh.
The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved repatriation of Sawhney, who was serving as Secretary, Social Justice and Empowerment.

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Assam Current Affairs –November 01 – 07, 2019

Posted on December 25, 2019December 25, 2019 by admin

Current Affairs Assam – November 1 - 7, 2019

( Covers all important Assam Current Affairs & GK topics for the week of November 1 – 7, 2019 )

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November 01, 2019

Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu to inaugurate NE Book Fair at Guwahati

Vice President of India, M Venkaiah Naidu will inaugurate the 21^st North East Book Fair, 2019, organised by the All Assam Publishers and Book Sellers Association at the AEI Field in Guwahati.
The book fair, scheduled from November 1 to November 12, has this year attracted a total of 75 publishers and book sellers from all over the country, besides one publishing house from Bangladesh.
More than 150 Assamese books will be released during the fair that will also see a series of cultural and literary activities.
The book fair has been dedicated in the memory of eminent educationist Tabu Ram Taid, who passes in August this year. The main stage of the book fair is dedicated in the memory of social worker GL Agarwala and artist Benu Misra.
The cultural programmes of the book fair have been dedicated in the memory of Vaishnavite scholar Purnabrata Deva Goswami, Natya Samrat Chandra Choudhury and freedom fighter Ramesh Chandra Sarma. The main auditorium of the fair is dedicated in the memory of eminent anthropologist Annada Charan Bhagabati. The sabhaghar of the book fair has been dedicated in the memory of Prof Dilip Kumar Dutta.
Remembering litterateur Purabi Bormudoi, a special women’s day will be observed during the book fair. Similarly, a senior citizens day in the memory of folk scholar and linguist Pramod Chandra Bhattacharya and a children’s day remembering writer Manik Bora.

BIOGRAPHY – Tabu Ram Taid

Tabu Ram Taid was an Indian educationist, linguist, author and administrator.
Hailing from the Mising community, a small indigenous tribe of Assam, India, and from an economically challenged and geographically remote village ‘Ghunasuti Ayengia’, tackling various challenges and obstacles, eventually earned a Post Graduate degree from Delhi University, which was quite uncommon in his community at that time.
Starting his career as a lecturer of English language in Cotton College, Guwahati, he further proceeded to obtain a Postgraduate Diploma in Applied Linguistics from the University of Reading, UK, and also successfully completed a course in Distance Teaching at University of London Institute of Education, UK.
He served in various senior level posts in various educational arms of the Government of Assam.
He was the founder President of the Mising Agom Kebang (Linguistic Society of the Mising, also known as Mising Sahitya Sabha), the apex body of the Mising community aiming for the preservation and development of the Mising language.
His body of work includes the ‘Mising Gompir Kumsung’ a dictionary of the Mising language with an introduction to Mising grammar), ‘EkuNki nibondho’, a collection of selected articles written in Assamese, ‘Glimpses’, a collection of articles written in English, research work on the Mising and Assamese language, editorial work on traditional Mising literary artifacts like folk songs, along with lexicographical works like dictionary, grammar and phonology of the Mising language.
His work on his mother tongue, Mising, is his invaluable contribution to the Mising community and also to the Assamese people and culture at large.

Punjab CM launches job helpline under ‘Ghar Ghar Rozgar’ programme

In a first-of-its-kind initiative in the country, the Punjab government launched a job helpline for job-seekers. As part of the state government’s flagship ‘Ghar Ghar Rozgar’ programme, Chief Minister Amarinder Singh said it would help connect job-seekers and job providers and open up job opportunities for thousands.
The helpline aims to reach every household in Punjab and is designed to call 75,000 mobile and landline numbers a day through a 110-seat back-end call centre.
The Chief Minister asked the Secretary of the Employment Generation and Training Department, which has come up with the initiative, to popularise it to enable youth, especially in the rural areas, to get the maximum benefit from the helpline.
Singh also asked the department to intensify its efforts to provide job opportunities to youth to tap their massive latent potential.
He stressed synergy among the Department of Employment Generation and Training, the Technical Education and the industries to create job opportunities for youth.

Pavan Kapoor appointed as Ambassador to UAE

Pavan Kapoor, a 1990 batch Indian Foreign Service officer took charge as the new Ambassador to UAE. Ambassador Kapoor replaced Navdeep Singh Suri, who retired last month.
During his diplomatic career Pavan Kapoor has served in different capacities at the Indian Missions in Moscow, Kyiv, London and Geneva.
Mr Kapoor served as the Ambassador to Israel.
He has also served in the Ministry of External Affairs and the Prime Minister’s Office in New Delhi.
Pavan Kapoor was India’s High Commissioner to Mozambique and the Kingdom of Swaziland from January 2014 to February 2016.
He has an MBA from the Indian Institute of Management in Ahmedabad and also holds a Masters in International Political Economy from the London School of Economics.

Odisha govt signs MoU with J-PAL South Asia

The Odisha government signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) South Asia to engage in a strategic evidence-based approach to policy making.
The partnership targets to maximise the impact of anti-poverty programmes of the state across a wide range of sectors.
J-PAL is co-founded by Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo, joint winners of 2019 Nobel Prize in economics for their experimental approach to alleviating global poverty.
Under this partnership, J-PAL South Asia will provide the Odisha government technical assistance for scaling up evidence backed programmes to improve development outcomes across the state.
This partnership aims at bringing transformation in the lives of people through research based intervention in policy formulation.
The partnership also establishes an overarching collaboration between J-PAL South Asia and the state government under which J-PAL will work with several departments to conduct policy-relevant randomised evaluations of new anti-poverty and development programmes.
Additionally, a diagnostic exercise and subsequent workshops will be conducted to build state capacity in the area of monitoring and evaluation.
The MoU was signed by Odisha Development Commissioner Suresh Mahapatra and Executive Director of J-PAL South Asia Shobhini Mukerji in the presence of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.
J-PAL and the state government will conduct an annual policy dialogue to identify the government”s top policy priorities, conduct discussions to share evidence, and jointly come up with innovative solutions that can be field-tested through rigorous randomised evaluations.
Topics for the policy dialogues include malnutrition, women”s empowerment, distress migration, health-worker performance, and improving agricultural productivity.

FACTFILE – The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL)

J-PAL is a global research center working to reduce poverty by ensuring that policy is informed by scientific evidence.
J-PAL conducts randomized impact evaluations to answer critical questions in the fight against poverty, and builds partnerships with governments, NGOs, donors, and others to generate new research, share knowledge, and scale up effective programs.
J-PAL was founded in 2003 as the “Poverty Action Lab” by professors Abhijit Banerjee, Esther Duflo and Sendhil Mullainathan, to support randomized evaluations measuring interventions against poverty on topics ranging from agriculture and health to governance and education.
The Lab was renamed in honor of Sheikh Abdul Latif Jameel when his son, MIT alumnus Mohammed Abdul Latif Jameel, supported it with three major endowments in 2005.
2019 Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel has been awarded to J-PAL founder Abhijit Banerjee, Esther Duflo and Michael Kremer “for their experimental approach to alleviating global poverty”.

November 02, 2019

IIT Guwahati, PCBA join hands to tackle air pollution

The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Guwahati and the Pollution Control Board Assam (PCBA) have joined hands to tackle the problem of air pollution in some major urban centres of the state, including Guwahati.
The two have joined hands under the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) launched by the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
IIT-G and PCBA signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) recently in this regard.
Under the project, IIT-G and PCBA will work together to deal with air pollution in Guwahati, Nagaon, Nalbari, Sivasagar and Silchar.
In these urban centres, the particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5) levels exceed the annual average ambient air quality standard of 60 microgram per cubic metre.
PCBA will work to prepare city-specific interventions and action plans with the target of reducing PM2.5 and PM10 concentrations by at least 20 to 30 per cent by 2024. IIT-G will act as the technical partner.
The institute will assist PCBA in carrying out air pollution studies like identifying critical sources, building state-of-the-art air quality monitoring networks, and investigating mitigations in the five identified towns and cities and implementing them with the help of the Board.
NCAP was launched in January as part of the government’s agenda to put in place a time-bound national level strategy for pan India implementation to tackle the increasing air pollution problem across the country in a comprehensive manner.
The approach for NCAP includes collaborative, multi-scale and cross-sectoral coordination between the relevant Central ministries, state governments and local bodies.
NCAP’s objective is to have comprehensive mitigation actions for prevention, control and abatement of air pollution, besides augmenting the air quality monitoring network across the country and strengthening the awareness and capacity building activities.

India-US Economic and Financial Partnership Meeting

At the Seventh Meeting of the India-US Economic and Financial Partnership, India and the US on Friday discussed trade issues and also resolved to boost cooperation in tackling money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT).
India and the US discussed policies to stimulate economic growth and noted the significant steps India has taken to strengthen the financial sector, including Public Sector Bank recapitalization and plans to merge some of the state-owned banks.
Both sides also discussed capital flows, investment promotion related issues, and the external economic environment.
The Indian delegation was led by Nirmala Sitharaman, Minister of Finance, and the US delegation was led by Steven Mnuchin, US Secretary of the Treasury.
Both sides had in-depth exchanges of views on a range of issues such as the global, US, and Indian economic outlooks, global debt sustainability, financial sector reforms, leveraging of capital flows and investment, and tackling money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT)
Both sides are committed to greater economic cooperation on global economic issues, both bilaterally and multilaterally in the G20 and other fora.
Both sides are working together to attract more private sector capital to finance India”s infrastructure needs and further raise growth for both countries.
Both sides took note of the importance of having greater attention to transparency and debt sustainability in bilateral development lending.
Both sides appreciated the recent signing of an arrangement that enables automatic exchange of Country-by Country Reports for purposes of high level transfer pricing risk assessment.
Both sides are encouraged with the developments that have taken place since the last meeting of the Economic and Financial Partnership and look forward to continued engagement to strengthen our bilateral relationship, our economies and our economic security.

D.C. Raina appointed as the first Advocate General of J&K UT

Senior advocate D.C. Raina was appointed as the first Advocate General of Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
The appointment was made by Lt Governor G.C. Murmu a day after the Union Territory came into being.
The UT was carved out of the state of Jammu and Kashmir along with abolition of its special status granted under Article 370 of the Constitution of India.

India, Germany inks pacts in various fields & resolved to jointly combat terrorism

India and Germany inked over 20 agreements, including in the field of Artificial Intelligence, green urban mobility and agriculture, and resolved to jointly combat terrorism.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel held talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi as part of the 5th Inter Governmental Consultations.
While strengthening Cooperation in the Field of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Transformation formed a major part of the joint statement, there was also a large section on combating terrorism.
Both sides are also focusing on strategic cooperation in the field of new and advanced technology.
The two sides have stressed on cooperation in the fields of new and advanced technology, Artificial Intelligence, skills, education, cyber security.
The two countries have also agreed to explore cooperation in news areas like e-mobility, fuel cell technology, smart cities, inland water ways, coastal management, cleaning of rivers and climate change.
The five Declarations of Intent, were in the field of Consultations for the period 2020-2024, cooperation in strategic projects, in green urban mobility, for joint cooperation in research and development in the field of Artificial and Intelligence and in the field of prevention of marine litter.
The 17 MoUs included for Exchange of Personnel between ISRO and German Aerospace Centre, Cooperation in the Field of Civil Aviation, Cooperation within the International Smart Cities Network, Cooperation in Skills Development and Vocational Education and Training, in the field of Start-ups, in Agricultural Market Development, among others.
The others included cooperation in Inland, Coastal and Maritime Technology, Setting up of Academic Collaboration in Ayurveda, Yoga and Meditation, in Higher Education, between All India Football Federation (AIFF) and Deutscher FuAYball-Bund e.V (DFB), and on Indo-German Migration and Mobility Partnership Agreement.

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November 03, 2019

French Development Agency (AFD) to provide Rs 400 crore loan to Assam

The French Development Agency (AFD) will provide a Rs 400-crore loan to Assam to implement a forest and biodiversity conservation project.
The agreement signed in the presence of French ambassador Emmanuel Lenain.
The Rs 251.50-crore Assam Project on Forest and Biodiversity Phase I was co-funded by AFD and the State government and it covered the entire State in a phase manner.
The Phase I of the project, implemented by 32 territorial divisions, seven wildlife divisions and 13 social forestry divisions, ended in May this year.
The project vision is to enable sustainable forest and biodiversity conservation and management in Assam through multi-scale integrative planning and involvement of forest dependent communities in target areas and giving fillip to their livelihood activities through sustainable use of forest and non-forest resources.
There are three components of the project – conservation of ecosystems, community engagement and institutional strengthening of forest department – to be implemented over a period of five years.
The counterpart funding of Rs 100 crore for the second phase of the project will be done by the State government.

FACTFILE – The French Development Agency

AFD is a public financial institution that implements the policy defined by the French Government. It works to fight poverty and promote sustainable development.
This public institution is active in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Latin America, the Caribbean and the French overseas territories, where it finances and supports projects that improve living conditions for populations, promote economic growth and protect the planet.
In 2014, AFD earmarked EUR 8.1bn to finance projects in developing countries and for the French overseas territories, a commitment up by 4% compared to 2013.
Its headquarters is located in Paris. Its teams are based in Paris, Marseille and in a network of 72 agencies and representations abroad and in the French overseas territories.

West Bengal, UNICEF jointly set 5-step agenda to fight malnutrition

The West Bengal government and UNICEF have come together to implement a five-step agenda laying stress on empowering families and building a healthy food environment to fight the triple burden of malnutrition.
The UNICEF”s flagship report – The State of the World’s Children (SOWC) – for this year has focused on food and nutrition, given the importance of healthy diets, especially among children and young people.
The report says that poor diet is damaging children’s health, and that poverty, urbanisation, climate change and poor eating choices are driving unhealthy diets.
The SOWC report calls for a shift in the way the authorities address and respond to malnutrition.
Children across the world are facing a triple burden of malnutrition in the form of undernutrition (stunting and wasting), hidden hunger (deficiencies in micronutrients) and overweight (including obesity).
The topmost priority in the five-step agenda is empowering families, children and young people to demand nutritious food, including by improving nutrition education.
There is also stress on collecting, analysing and using good-quality data and evidence to guide action and track progress.

PM Modi releases commemorative coin on Guru Nanak and thai translation of ‘Tirukkural’

Prime Minister Narendra Modi released a commemorative coin marking the 550^th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev. Besides releasing a Thai translation of the Tamil classic ”Tirukkural” at the ”Sawasdee PM Modi” community event in Bangkok.
Tirukkural is written by poet Thiruvalluvar and has been translated into many languages. The Tamil community in Thailand got it translated into Thai language for the first time.

FACTFILE – The Tirukkural

Tirukkural is a classic Tamil language text consisting of 1,330 couplets or Kurals. The text is divided into three books, each with aphoristic teachings on virtue, wealth and love.
It is considered as one of the great works on ethics and morality, is known for its universality and secular nature.
Its authorship is traditionally attributed to Valluvar, also known in full as Thiruvalluvar. The text has been dated variously from 300 BCE to 5th century CE.
The traditional accounts describe it as the last work of the third Sangam, but linguistic analysis suggests a later date of 450 to 500 CE and that it was composed after the Sangam period.
The Kural is traditionally praised with epithets and alternate titles such as “the Tamil Veda” and “the divine book”. It emphasizes non-violence and moral vegetarianism as virtues for an individual.
In addition, it highlights truthfulness, self-restraint, gratitude, hospitality, kindness, goodness of wife, duty, giving, and so forth, besides covering a wide range of social and political topics such as king, ministers, taxes, justice, forts, war, greatness of army and soldier’s honor, death sentence for the wicked, agriculture, education, abstinence from alcohol and intoxicants.
The Kural has been widely admired by scholars and has been translated into at least 40 Indian and non-Indian languages.

China launches high-resolution Earth observation satellite ‘Gaofen-11’

China launched Gaofen-11, an optical remote sensing satellite, as part of its high-resolution Earth observation project.
The Gaofen-11 satellite was launched on a Long March 4B rocket from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Centre in northern Shanxi Province. It was the 282^nd flight mission by a Long March carrier rocket.
The satellite can be used for land survey, urban planning, road network design, agriculture, and disaster relief. Its data will also be used for the Belt and Road Initiative.

India, EU launch call on research on developing local energy system

The European Commission and India”s Department of Science and Technology (DST) launched an 18 million euros joint call on research and innovation to develop integrated local energy systems.
Proposals should develop and demonstrate novel solutions, integrating all energy vectors including possibilities offered by batteries and electric vehicles, interconnect them and optimize joint operation with increased share of renewables and a higher energy efficiency.
Cooperation should take the form of a proposal demonstrating a local energy system (or several) in Europe and/or India.
The Technology Readiness Level (TRL) will range between 5 and 8.
The call text and call deadlines are the same for applicants from Europe and India.
This call targets minimum three participants from India as well as from Europe.
A total budget of euro 18 million is foreseen. The Indian selected participants will be funded by DST and the European partners by the EU Research and Innovation programme ”Horizon 2020”.

November 04, 2019

Union Govt and UNICEF launch ‘YuWaah’ initiative

A national initiative – YuWaah – aimed at imparting skills among the youth and providing employment to more than 300 million young Indians was launched by Women and Child Development Minister Smriti Irani with an alliance of national and international partners, including UNICEF.
India is one of the first countries to launch the YuWaah national initiative linked to the global Generation Unlimited movement which began in New York in September 2018.
Supported by Unicef, Generation Unlimited brings young people together with the private sector, governments, international and local organisations to tackle the urgent challenge of investing in their learning and training so that they are prepared for the complex and fast-changing world of work and can be active and engaged citizens.
On the occasion, Irani and Fore also launched a special “U-Report” digital survey, aimed at listening to and engaging youth throughout the country to ensure that their voices and solutions shape the actions of YuWaah! Partners.

NASSCOM, SAP India signed an MoU to skill, reskill and upskill workforce across industries

NASSCOM and business software solutions major SAP India signed an MoU to skill, reskill and upskill the workforce across industries.
The “FutureSkills” programme of IT industry”s apex body, launched in February 2018, aims to reskill 2 million professionals, potential employees as well as students in the industry over a period of next five years.
SAP will support NASSCOM”s “FutureSkills” with its skill development initiatives that focus on content, evangelism and industry connects, thus, enabling the skilling, re-skilling and up-skilling imperative for the IT-BPM industry and related stakeholders in the country.
SAP would provide content and enable select SAP experts as mentors for this programme while NASSCOM, through its “FutureSkills” platform, would host these content and expose the SAP mentors as experts on these technology domains which would be made available for the end beneficiaries on a zero-cost subscription model.
The automotive, textile, banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI), retail and IT-BPM are set be the most disrupted industry with the inclusion of AI, ML and data analytics, etc.
People from the IT, IT-enabled services industry workforce, potential workforce and college-going students are expected to benefit from the programme.

Satya Pal Malik takes oath as Governor of Goa

Satya Pal Malik was on Sunday sworn in as the Governor of Goa.
Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court Justice Pradeep Nandrajog administered the oath of office to Malik at Raj Bhavan.
Malik had earlier served as the governor of Jammu and Kashmir.
Malik, 73, replaced Mridula Sinha who was holding the Goa governor’s post since August 2014.

India and Uzbekistan signs 3 MoUs and initiated first-ever joint exercise ‘Dustlik 2019’

India and Uzbekistan inked three Memorandum of Understanding in Tashkent, Uzbekistan during the visit of Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh.
Pacts were inked in the field of Military Medicine and Military Education to further strengthen Defence cooperation between both the countries.
Rajnath Singh also held discussions with Uzbekistan’s Defence Minister Major Gen Nizamovich.
Singh and his Uzbekistan counterpart witnessed the first-ever exchange over a video-link between College of Defence Management in Secunderabad, India and the Armed Forces Academy of Uzbekistan, Tashkent.
The two Defence Ministers also presided over a curtain raiser of the first-ever India-Uzbekistan joint exercise Dustlik 2019.
Both Defence Ministers expressed satisfaction at the enhanced level of engagement between their respective countries in the defence sphere.
The defence ministers agreed that both nations would continue to work together to further raise their level of engagements in the defence sphere in keeping with strategic partnerships.

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November 05, 2019

Assam gets 15 electric buses under ‘Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles’ (FAME-1)

Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal flagged off 15 electric buses which were introduced under Assam State Transport Corporation in the city.
The new buses procured under ‘Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles’ (FAME-1) and introduced as a pilot project will ply from Panbazar to Kamakhya Temple in Guwahati.
The state government is working to transform Guwahati as the gateway to the South East Asian countries, the Chief Minister said that such a vision to materialise requires great deal of support from all sections of society.
The state government is likely to introduce 100 additional electric buses under FAME-2 for which necessary process have been started. Out of these buses 50 buses will ply in Guwahati, 25 each will be pressed into service at Jorhat and Silchar.

FACTFILE – The National Electric Mobility Mission Plan (NEMMP) 2020

The National Electric Mobility Mission Plan (NEMMP) 2020 is a National Mission document providing the vision and the roadmap for the faster adoption of electric vehicles and their manufacturing in the country.
As part of the NEMMP 2020, Department of Heavy Industry formulated a Scheme viz. Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of (Hybrid &) Electric Vehicles in India (FAME India) Scheme in the year 2015 to promote manufacturing of electric and hybrid vehicle technology and to ensure sustainable growth of the same.
The Phase-I of this Scheme was initially launched for a period of 2 years, commencing from 1st April 2015, which was subsequently extended from time to time and the last extension was allowed up to 31st March 2019.
The 1st Phase of FAME India Scheme was implemented through four focus areas namely (i) Demand Creation, (ii) Technology Platform, (iii) Pilot Project and (iv) Charging Infrastructure.
Market creation through demand incentives was aimed at incentivizing all vehicle segments i.e. 2-Wheelers, 3-Wheelers Auto, Passenger 4-Wheeler vehicles, Light Commercial Vehicles and Buses.

India to launch National Disaster Management Scheme

Urging all SCO countries towards joint assistance in dealing with earthquakes, Home Minister Amit Shah said India would soon come up with a national scheme which would not only cover the disaster risk renewal Sendai Framework but also the goals of permanent development and climate related agreement.
Shah said India has completed the amendment process in the country’s National Disaster Management Scheme launched in 2016.
Shah said that all 28 states, nine Union Territories and 90 per cent districts have completed their disaster management schemes.
Shah said will come up with a national scheme which not only would cover disaster risk renewal Sendai framework but also the goals of permanent development and climate related agreement.
Sendai Framework is a 15-year, voluntary, non-binding agreement which recognizes that the state has the primary role in reducing disaster risk but that responsibility should be shared with other stakeholders, including local government, the private sector and other stakeholders.
The Joint Exercise on Urban Earthquake Search and Rescue 2019 is a four-day exercise, which would help the SCO countries in a situation when they need the support of others to deal with any disaster-like situation.

Odisha Govt inks pacts for youth skill development

The Odisha government has signed an MoU and two agreements with TATA Strive and Tech Mahindra for skill development and to create employment opportunities for the youth.
The Directorate of Technical Education and Training (DTE&T) and TATA Strive signed an agreement to impart life skills to students in all 49 government ITIs.
The Odisha Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (IDCO) signed an agreement with Tech Mahindra to set up a state-of-the-art facility to start its operations for international BPO for global customers.
A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between Tech Mahindra, Biju Patnaik University of Technology (BPUT) and College of Engineering and Technology (CET) to set up a Centre of Excellence in the area of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML).
The students will get an opportunity to work on proof of concept on real life business problems to keep up with the market demand and to enhance the employability of engineering students. Every year, 30 students will get training in the field of AI and ML for a period of 12 months.

IBM launch ‘SkillsBuild‘ platform for skilling students in collaboration with MSDE

IBM announced launch of SkillsBuild platform in collaboration with the Directorate General of Training under the aegis of the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE).
As part of the programme, a two-year advanced diploma in information technology (IT), networking and cloud computing will be offered at the Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) and the National Skill Training Institutes (NSTIs).
The platform will also be extended to train ITI and NSTI faculty in artificial intelligence (AI) skills.
SkillsBuild offers digital learning content from IBM and partners, like CodeDoor, Coorpacademy and Skillsoft.
The digital platform will also provide personal assessment for cognitive capabilities and personality via MyInnerGenius to students. They will then learn basics about digital technologies as well as professional skills, like resume writing, problem solving and communication.
Students will also receive recommendations on role-based education for specific jobs, that include technical and professional learning.

November 06, 2019

Assam CM opens Brahmaputra Pushkar Mahotsav

Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal inaugurated the Brahmaputra Pushkar Mahotsav, a mega river festival on the bank of the Brahmaputra in Guwahati highlighting the river’s important role in Assam’s sociocultural life.
The Pushkar Mahotsav, to be held for 12 days from November 5 to November 16, is a river festival which is organised on the banks of 12 important rivers in India, including the Ganga, Yamuna, Narmada, Kaveri, etc.
The festival occurs once in every 12 years for each river. As per mythological beliefs, Pushkar is celebrated on the banks of each river according to the zodiac sign of that river.
The Mahotsav has been organised at Sonaram High School Field at Bharalumukh here by the Purva Tirupathi Sri Balaji Samiti, Guwahati in collaboration with the Sri Mahalakshmi Charitable Trust, Chennai.
The State tourism department and a number of other departments are assisting the festival, which is supposed to host approximately two lakh devotees, mostly from South India.

Justice Rajendra Menon appointed AFT Chairperson

Former Chief Justice of Delhi High Court, Justice (Retired) Rajendra Menon was appointed the new Chairperson of the Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT).
The tenure of appointment of Justice (Retired) Menon will be for a period of three years from the date of assumption of charge of the post or till he attains the age of 70 years, or until further orders, whichever is the earliest
The tribunal, established by the government of India, has the power provided for adjudication or trial of disputes and complaints with respect to commission, appointments, enrolments and conditions of service in respect of persons subject to the Army Act, 1950, The Navy Act, 1957 and the Air Force Act, 1950.

FACTFILE – Armed Forces Tribunal

Armed Forces Tribunal is a military tribunal in India. It was established under the Armed Forces Tribunal Act, 2007.
In 1999, the Law Commission’s 169^th report stated that disciplinary and service matters required quick resolutions and proposed a special tribunal for the military and paramilitary forces.
Armed forces tribunal bill was steered through Parliament only by the Defence Ministry, leaving paramilitary forces, even the Assam Rifles and Coast Guard, outside the tribunal’s purview.

**IIT Madras launches first indigenously designed standing wheelchair**

Indian Institute of Technology, Madras has launched country’s ‘first indigenously’ designed standing wheelchair- ‘Arise’ for assisting the specially-abled person in day to day activities.
These customised wheelchairs enable a differently-abled person to shift from sitting to standing position and vice-versa independently.
Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment Thawar Chand Gehlot was also present at the launch of ‘Arise’.
Lauding the efforts of IIT Madras, Gehlot said, IIT Madras has done a wonderful job, I have never seen such a standing wheelchair even in a foreign country.
He also stated that ministry will be extended the necessary help, if required to extend the benefits of this initiative to more and more specially-able citizens.

P S Sreedharan Pillai sworn-in as the new Governor of Mizoram

P S Sreedharan Pillai was sworn-in as the new Governor of Mizoram at the Raj Bhavan.
The oath of office was administered by Chief Justice of Gauhati High Court Justice Ajai Lamba.
Mizoram Chief Minister Zoramthangam his cabinet colleagues, legislators, former chief minister Lal Thanhawla and senior officials attended the swearing-in ceremony.

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November 07, 2019

Assam Governor adopts Morigaon as model district for agriculture

To develop agriculture and to use it for the socio-economic development of the people of the State, Governor Jagadish Mukhi has adopted Morigaon district for development of agriculture and allied activities.
Governor Mukhi said that the Morigaon district has enormous potential as most of the people are associated with agriculture, so developing the district in agriculture will lead to capacity building of its people. Moreover, as practising the single-cropping system amounts to inadequate use of land resources, the Governor also advised the farmers to adhere to multi-cropping system.
The Governor also distributed power tillers, rickshaws for carrying agriculture goods and electric water pump sets.
The Department of Fisheries, Assam has already initiated an effort under ‘Morigaon Special intervention of the Governor of Assam Project: 2019-2022’ to develop supporting infrastructure to achieve sustainable development in fisheries.

India, Russia to expand military technical cooperation

India and Russia are working on a programme of military technical cooperation by 2030, Work is underway to agree on a programme of Russian-Indian military-technical cooperation till 2030.
The Russian government said after a meeting between Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov and Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh in Moscow
During the meeting, Borisov noted that despite of external pressure, Russia and India are successfully implementing joint cooperation in the military-technical sphere, particularly the supply of S-400 air defence systems.
The topics of discussion included a wide range of issues related to bilateral military technical cooperation, as well as interaction in the field of science and high-tech.

Nasscom Foundation rewards 7 entities for social impact

The Nasscom Foundation, the Indian IT industry body’s social arm, and software firm Mphasis declared Rs 60 lakh in grants to seven entities for innovatively applying technology for social impact.
The seven entities recognised as part of the National Association of Software and Services Companies” (Nasscom) Social Innovation Forum include Meraki Foundation, Inali Foundation, Padcare Labs, MHS City Lab, Watsan Envirotech, Bombay Bijlee and Anukai Solutions.
Meraki Foundation was awarded for skilling low income parents to act early to unleash a child”s potential, PadCare Labs for sanitary napkin disposal and recycling solution and MHS City Lab for developing digital tools for affordable low-income housing, among others.
In addition to the catalytic grants, all the winners are eligible for industry mentorship worth Rs 20 lakh, offering a 12-month ”support to scale” mentoring from experts
As many as 15,000 entities applied in the categories of education, accessibility, healthcare, financial inclusion, environment and others.

PM Modi inaugurated the 5^th edition of the India International Science Festival (IISF)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the fifth edition of the India International Science Festival (IISF) via video conference.
The theme of the festival – ‘RISEN: Research, Innovation and Science Empowering the Nation’
The function was attended by West Bengal Governor J Dhankar and Union Science and Technology Minister Dr Harsh Vardan.
Diplomats from Bhutan, Myanmar, Nepal, South Korea and the United Kingdom, among others, attended the conclave.

FACTFILE – India International Science Festival (IISF)

India International Science Festival (IISF) launched in 2015 is a celebration to promote Science and Technology and demonstrate how science could lead India towards a developed nation within a short span of time.
The aim is to engage the public with science and celebrate the joy of science and show the ways how science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) provide us with the solutions to improve our lives.
Ministry of Science and Technology and Ministry of Earth Sciences in association with Vijnana Bharati (VIBHA), has created a unique platform of India International Science Festival which intends to inspire curiosity and make learning more rewarding.

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Assam Current Affairs – October 29 – 31, 2019

Posted on December 19, 2019 by admin

Current Affairs Assam – October 29 - 31, 2019

( Covers all important Assam Current Affairs & GK topics for the week of October 29 – 31, 2019 )

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October 29, 2019

Assam Govt forms panel to review Detention Centres

The Assam Government has formed a special review committee on the conditions prevailing in state detention centres.
The Committee headed by DIG (Border) would comprise Inspector General of Prisons, retired District and Sessions Judge Hardeep Singh, one representative to be nominated by Deputy Commissioner of the district concerned and any other member co-opted by the Chairman.
The Committee will visit all detention centres in the state and review the legal aid status and health status of each detainee and provide recommendation for improvement if needed and also review the quality of food, hygiene and living conditions in the detention centres.
The committee is also tasked to check the education system for the children staying in the centres and provide suggestion.
The panel will conduct the review urgently and submit its consolidated report within three months.

President signed a warrant paving Justice Sharad Arvind Bobde as next Chief Justice of India

Justice Sharad Arvind Bobde will be the next Chief Justice of India (CJI) as President Ram Nath Kovind signed a warrant paving the way for him to take over the top post.
Justice Bobde will be sworn in as Chief Justice on November 18 and will serve the post for around 18 months. He will retire on April 23, 2021.
His career as Justice began on March 29, 2000 when he was appointed as Additional Judge in the Bombay High Court, and was elevated as a Judge of the Supreme Court on April 12, 2013.
Justice Bobde was part of the five-judge constitution bench hearing longest running Ayodhya land dispute case in which the judgement is still awaited.
He was part of the in-house panel which has handled one of the most controversial cases related to allegations of sexual harassment against the incumbent Chief Justice.

Odisha govt approves Rs 17.5 crore under the ”Mo Sarkar” initiative for 587 police stations

The Odisha government approved Rs 17.5 crore additional annual contingency fund for 587 police stations for providing better services under the ”Mo Sarkar” initiative.
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik sanctioned the additional contingency fund.
All the 44 police stations under the Cuttack-Bhubaneswar Commissionerate Police will each get Rs 40,000 a month, 142 police stations in urban areas Rs 30,000 each, and 351 police stations in rural areas Rs 20,000 each.
Four Mahila police stations, 5 traffic police stations, 15 railway police stations, four cyber police stations, one economic offences police station, one STF police station, one HRPC police station, and one crime branch police station will receive Rs 30,000 per month. Eighteen marine police stations would receive Rs 20,000 per month.
The objective of the ‘Mo Sarkar’ programme is to provide service with dignity to people who are coming to government offices for different purposes. The phone numbers of people who are coming to government offices will be collected randomly with the purpose to improve the governance system by collecting feedback on behaviour and professionalism of government officers.

CSCs to provide telemedicine services in rural areas

The Common Service Centres (CSCs) will provide telemedicine services in rural areas through video conferencing in collaboration with the Ministry of Ayush. The service will be launched in Tamil Nadu next month and in other states later.
The telemedicine service will be available round the clock via CSC’s video conferencing platform, which works on low bandwidth and doesn’t need broadband connection.
A pan-India network, it enables the government’s mandate of a socially, financially and digitally inclusive society.
The CSCs, which act as access points for delivery of digital services, will be provided some medicine kits to cater to prescription requirement and the patient or the VLE can either purchase the rest.

IIT Madras develops AI Platform to solve complex engineering problems

A team of experts from IIT-Madras have developed algorithms that enable novel applications using artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML) and deep learning models to solve engineering problems.
The research is led by Dr Vishal Nandigana, an assistant professor – fluid systems laboratory, department of mechanical engineering at IIT Madras.
Nandigana revealed that his team has developed the AI and deep learning algorithm which essentially solves a wide variety of problems in numerous engineering fields, including thermal management, semiconductors, automobile, aerospace and electronics cooling applications among others, thereby eliminating manual intervention.
The team is planning to start a company to deploy its AI software called ‘AISoft,’ which is said to help solve engineering problems across various disciplines, seamlessly.

October 30, 2019

IIIT Hyderabad MOU with TiE to promote Deep Tech Special Group

International Institute of Information Technology, Hyderabad (IIIT-H) and The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE) have signed a MoU to promote a Deep Technology Special Interest Group.
The group will nurture the next generation products and companies in fintech, healthtech, medtech, agritech, technology for social good and other areas.
TiE Deep Tech Special Interest Group (SIG), aims to become the catalyst and vehicle to empower, enable and provide profiting visibility for enterprises and much needed exposure to global applications and markets.
IIIT Hyderabad will support this programme by bringing a good pool of talented engineers, deep tech knowledge base, technocrats, research and development capabilities.
SIG intends to identify, encourage and showcase the leading deep tech products and companies to the domestic and global community of customers and investors. The programme intends to identify six to nine most innovative deep tech products or companies per group.

FACTFILE – International Institute of Information Technology Hyderabad (IIIT Hyderabad)

IIIT Hyderabad is a Not-for-Profit Public Private Partnership institute deemed to be university, focused on information technology and other fields such as computer science, electronics and communication, and their interdisciplinary applications across other domains.
IIIT Hyderabad was set up in 1998 under the public private partnership model, with the state government supplying a grant of land and buildings.
As special officer for IIIT Hyderabad and Secretary IT for the state government, Ajay Prakash Sawhney was responsible for shaping the conceptual model and overseeing initial development of the institute.

FACTFILE – The IndUS Entrepreneurs (TiE)

The IndUS Entrepreneurs (TiE) is a Silicon Valley non-profit supporting start-ups through networking and the raising of capital for new and experienced entrepreneurs. By 2000, it had helped create businesses worth more than $75 billion.
TiE was founded in 1992 by the trio of an Indian-American businessman and angel investor, Kanwal Rekhi; an MIT professor and founder of Cirrus Logic, Suhas Patil; and the founder of Gateway Design Automation, Prabhu Goel.

Odisha govt announces incentives for sportspersons

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik nnounced monthly allowance for sportspersons and inmates of state-run sports hostels.
As per the announcement, the monthly allowance of girl students at all the sports hostels is enhanced to Rs 500 while it has been enhanced to Rs 300 per month for boy students.
The Chief Minister announced the incentives after detailed interaction with sports hostel students with an objective to fulfill their needs and create enough opportunities for excellence.
For out of station participation in recognised sports competition organised by national sports federation or similar level, sportspersons will be given an allowance of Rs 300 per day.
Sportspersons achieving gold medal at national level competitions will get a monthly allowance of Rs 1,000 for one year while the amount will be Rs 500 and Rs 300 for silver and bronze medal winners.
Sports hostel students will get this amount in addition to their monthly allowances.
If the medal winners create a record at the national level and the record is not broken for one year, then the record holder will get an additional monthly allowance of Rs 5000 for one year. Sportspersons selected for national teams will get a monthly allowance of Rs 1000 for one year.

India, Saudi Arabia inks Strategic Partnership Council agreement

India and Saudi Arabia inked the Strategic Partnership Council Agreement to elevate their ties to the next level, even as both sides signed 11 other deals, including in energy and security cooperation and defence production. PM Narendramodi and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman sign the Strategic Partnership Council Agreement.
The other agreements between the two sides, inked by their respective officials, were on cooperation in the field of renewable energy, on security cooperation, on combating illicit trafficking and smuggling of narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances and chemical precursors and in the field of defence – on collaboration in military acquisition, industries, research, development and technology.
Another MoU was on collaboration in civil aviation, in medical products regulations, a Letter of Intent between Small and Medium Enterprises General Authority (Monshaat) of the Saudi Arabia and Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), NITI Aayog,A a cooperation Programme between the Foreign Service Institute, and Prince Saud Al Faisal Institute of Diplomatic Studies (IDS).
Another agreement was between Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves Limited (ISPRL) and Saudi Aramco. Both sides inked an MoU for Cooperation between National Stock Exchange (NSE) and Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul), and another between National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) and Saudi Payments.

Himachal Pradesh brings over 2,000 panchayats under natural farming

A total of 2,209 panchayats out of the total 3,226 have been brought under the ambit of natural farming in Himachal Pradesh.
This fact came to light at a meeting chaired by Chief Secretary Shrikant Baldi of the state-level Task Force for Promotion of Organic and Zero Budget Natural Farming under Prakritik Kheti Khushhal Kissan Yojana.
Natural farming is a technique of farming that requires no ploughing or tilting or use of chemical fertilizers.
A target of training 50,000 farmers has been fixed for this year. As many as 20,579 farmers have been trained out of which 15,391 have started practicing natural farming in their fields.
A list of practices for different crops under natural farming will be prepared for the farmers.
At the meeting, approval was given for a master trainer to hold a maximum of five training sessions per month till March 2020.
Approval was also given for an additional amount of Rs 2,500 per month for block technology manager and assistant technology manager recruited under Agricultural Technology Management Agency on performance basis till March 2020.

Microsoft developed a smartphone-based driving test system

Microsoft Research has developed a smartphone-based driving test system that leverages the power of Artificial Intelligence to make a fair analysis of a driver’s ability before issuing him or her a license.
The system has already been deployed at Dehradun Regional Transport Office (RTO) in Uttarakhand and is ready for wider adoption across the country.
The technology that Microsoft developed to automate driver’s license tests is called HAMS, which is short for Harnessing AutoMobiles for Safety.
Automation using HAMS technology can not only help relieve evaluators of the burden but also make the process objective and transparent for candidates.

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October 31, 2019

Jammu and Kashmir officially bifurcated into two UTs

Jammu and Kashmir ceased to exist as a state and its official bifurcation into two Union Territories – of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.
The state has been officially divided into the two Union Territories pursuant to the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Bill, 2019, which the government passed in Parliament on August 5.
The Central government had also that day abrogated Article 370 that gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir.
Girish Chandra Murmu, a former bureaucrat from Gujarat, take oath as the first Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir UT.
Former IAS officer R.K. Mathur sworn in as the first Lt. Governor of the Union territory of Ladakh.

DRDO exhibits new fuel cell-based marine propulsion system

A fuel cell-based marine propulsion system, which can boost the combat lethality of India”s conventional submarines several fold by enhancing their submerged endurance, was demonstrated by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) in Ambernath, Maharashtra.
The demonstration of the operational mechanism of a land-based prototype of the Air Independent Propulsion system, engineered to fit on a submarine, was carried out at the Naval Materials Research Laboratory in Ambernath in the presence of Navy Chief Admiral Karambir Singh.
The Air Independent Propulsion system has a force multiplier effect on the lethality of a diesel electric submarine as it enhances the submerged endurance of the boat, several folds. Fuel cell-based AIP has merits in performance compared to other technologies.
The DRDO is developing the system for the Indian Navy”s submarines that are powered by the conventional diesel-electric technology.

Mumbai, Hyderabad designated as UNESCO creative cities

Indian cities Mumbai and Hyderabad are among the 66 urban settlements designated as creative cities by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO).
Mumbai has been selected for its contribution in the world of film, and Hyderabad for gastronomy.
The designation came on World Cities” Day, celebrated on October 31, making the two cities part of the 246-member Organisation”s Network of Creative Cities.
The Network brings together cities that base their development on creativity, whether in music, arts and folk crafts, design, cinema, literature, digital arts or gastronomy.
UNESCO creative cities commit to placing culture at the centre of their development strategies and to share their best practices.

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Assam Current Affairs – October 22 – 28, 2019

Posted on December 19, 2019December 19, 2019 by admin

Current Affairs Assam – October 22 - 28, 2019

( Covers all important Assam Current Affairs & GK topics for the week of October 22 – 28, 2019 )

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October 22, 2019

Down Town Hospital successfully performed the first liver transplant in NE

Doctors from Down Town Hospital Guwahati teamed up with Yashoda Hospitals of Hyderabad for successfully performing the first ever liver transplant in the north-eastern region.
The transplant team was led by Dr P Balachandran Menon, chief liver transplant surgeon of Yashoda Hospitals, along with Dr Pranjal Deka, liver transplant surgeon of Down Town Hospital.

Indian Army carries out integrated fire power exercise

The Indian Army carried out a fire power exercise in the desert sector showcasing its capabilities, proficiency and operational preparedness.
The tactical exercise involved integrated employment and firing of all arms including artillery guns, rockets, tanks, helicopters and air resources.
The Army aptly demonstrated the ability to hit hard and swiftly with precision, with the accuracy of multiple rocket launch systems and K-9 Vajra 155 mm howitzer.
The effectiveness of combined arms and cohesion was of an exceptional order and all aims and objectives set for the exercise were fully achieved.
Southern Command chief, Lt Gen S.K. Saini, witnessed the exercise and complimented the troops for their high professional standards.

Marconi Society Annual Awards for Apps developed by Indian students

Two digital applications (apps) developed by Indian under-graduate students for women’s safety and to check air pollution in Delhi on smartphones won Marconi Society annual awards for the good of humanity.
The Android application named ”Rakshak” detects speech patterns through an audio microphone of any user’s smartphone.
When the app receives audio clip with speech commands seeking help or saying stop in distressed tones, it triggers an SOS alert, user location and sends an emergency contact.
The app generates the alert after analyzing emotion and distress speech patterns.
The winning team of Piyush Agrawal, Subham Banga, Aniket Sharma and Ujjwal Upadhyay tackled the issue of women’s safety in India, especially in cities and towns across the country, where incidents of women under attack have become common.
The Society’s Celestini programme is a flagship effort to inspire and connect individuals building new technologies in service of a digitally inclusive world.
The winners are awarded under the programme, run for the young scholars the world over.
Named after Nobel laureate (Physics) Guglielmo Marconi (1874-1937), who invented the radio in 1908, the Society was set up in 1975 by his daughter Gioia Marconi Baraga through an endowment, which annually gives awards for outstanding contribution in science and the principle of creativity in the service of humanity.

Union Minister for Culture & Tourism launches CCRT’s e-portal

Union Minister for Culture & Tourism Prahlad Singh Patel launched the e-portal of Centre for Cultural Resources and Training (CCRT) ”Digital Bharat Digital Sanskriti” and CCRT YouTube Channel.
The e-portal aims to explore and understand the unknown aspects of India”s lesser-known places and their rural and semi-urban culture.
The CCRT has also started to publish books from a series ”Untold Tales of India”s Cities.
The CCRT has tied up with Routes 2 Roots, an NGO, for connecting all the CCRT Regional Centres — Guwahati, Udaipur and Hyderabad.
Patel and CCRT chairperson Dr. Hemlata also interacted with the participants of the ongoing training programmes at CCRT Regional Centres and some of the children studying in schools across the country.

FACTFILE – The Centre for Cultural Resources and Training (CCRT)

The Centre for Cultural Resources and Training (CCRT) is autonomous organisation under Ministry of Culture of Government of India.
Established in May 1979, to support cultural education, with its inception it took over the Scheme-Propagation of Culture among College and School students, which was being implemented by Delhi University since 1970, where a Research and Production Cell was functioning for this purpose.
The CCRT also organises activities such as school tours to museums, monuments and craft centres
It publishes materials to promote understanding of Indian art and culture
It also has a “Cultural Talent Search Scholarship Scheme” for children aged 10–14, to help them develop their abilities in cultural fields especially rarer forms of art.

October 23, 2019

Assam Cabinet decides no Govt jobs for persons having more than 2 children

The Assam Cabinet decided that no government jobs will be given to persons having more than two children after 1 January, 2021.
The important decision was taken at a Cabinet meeting that also adopted a New Land Policy, which will give three bighas of agricultural land to landless indigenous people and half a bigha for constructing a house.
Those having more than two children will not be considered for government jobs with effect from 1 January, 2021 as per the small family norm.
In September 2017, the Assam Assembly had passed the ‘Population and Women Empowerment Policy of Assam’ that specified that job candidates with two children only would be eligible for government employment and the existing government staff were to strictly follow the two children family norm.

NE Region’s contribution to India’s economy meager, says ADB

Despite being rich in natural resources, the contribution of Northeast towards India’s economy is minuscule, says country director of Asian Development Bank Kenichi Yokoyama.
The region has only 0.2 per cent share in India’s total exports and majority of the products exported from the region are low-value products and natural resources based like primary produces from agriculture.
Though India and Bangladesh are major trading partners, but the contribution of Northeast is marginal. India accounts for 16.4% of Bangladesh’s imports, but NER’s share is only 1.2%.
Given Bangladesh’s import basket, Northeast can be a major trading partner, with the 28% ($ 15 billion) of Bangladesh’s import demand being for products which can be manufactured using local resources of the region.
Potential export goods from NE could be industrial goods, like plastic and polymers, paper and paper goods, agro and food processing products, and rubber, and in the service sector in the fields of higher education, tourism and medical tourism.

Indian Air Force test fires Brahmos missiles

Two Brahmos Surface to Surface missiles were test fired by Indian Air Force at Trak Island in the Andaman Nicobar group of islands.
The twin firings were carried out as a part of the routine operational training.
The missile engaged the designated mock targets close to 300km away.
A direct hit on the target was achieved in both the cases.
Firing of the missile has enhanced the IAFs capability to engage the ground targets with pin point accuracy from a mobile platform.

Pankaj Kumar appointed as UIDAI CEO

The government appointed Pankaj Kumar as the new CEO of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI). Kumar is currently additional secretary in the Ministry Of Electronics And IT.
The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) said that Pankaj Kumar, IAS, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, has been appointed as CEO, Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), in the rank and pay of Secretary by temporarily upgrading the post.
The UIDAI is a statutory authority established under the provisions of the Aadhaar on July 12, 2016 by the government under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology.
The UIDAI has the mandate to issue Unique Identification numbers (UID), called Aadhaar, to all residents of India to eliminate duplicate and fake identities.

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October 24, 2019

India-Bangladesh Stakeholders’ Meet at Guwahati

The first India-Bangladesh Stakeholders’ Meet was held in Guwahati, Assam. The meet focused to improve its connectivity with the neighboring country to get the best of the rest under Act East Policy for Assam.
Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal has called for restoration of the Brahmaputra-Barak-Padma-Meghna riverine waterways to take forward the outcome of the India-Bangladesh Stakeholders” Meet.
The Chief Minister conveyed this to a delegation led by Bangladesh Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi, which met him at his office in Dispur.
Leaders from both Assam and Bangladesh have vowed to explore relations in areas like garment industry, health tourism, IT and education sector, for the mutual benefit.
Sonowal stressed restoration of trade links between Assam and Bangladesh.
He reiterated modalities to decide the standard operating procedures (SOP) to ensure speedy implementation of agreements, which would ensure access to Chattogram and Mongla Ports of Bangladesh for the northeast, and execution of the BBIN motor vehicle agreement.

Assam Govt expands Atal Amrit Abhiyan health insurance scheme

Assam State Cabinet decided to expand the ambit of the Atal Amrit Abhiyan scheme by bringing six additional critical care disease groups under it.
More than 57,000 persons have availed cashless treatment under the state govt’s Atal Amrit Abhiyan healthcare scheme in the last year and half and the number of beneficiaries is expected to increase further in the coming days.
Minister for Health & Family Welfare Himanta Biswa Sarma said most of the beneficiaries of the scheme so far have availed its facility for treatment of cancer, kidney diseases and cardiology and cardiovascular surgeries during past 18 months.
Around 1.61 crore people have enrolled for the scheme and the government has borne an expenditure of Rs 136.99 crore so far under it.
The scheme covered six specialities – cardiology and cardiovascular surgeries, neurological conditions, burns, cancer, kidney and neo-natal diseases.
During the Budget of 2019-20, the State government announced the expansion of the AAA to cover specialities like ICU packages, trauma, critical care paediatrics and paediatric surgery, and bone marrow transplantation.
The State government provided all treatment facilities for Japanese Encephalitis (JE) and Acute Encephalitis Syndrom and aimed at bringing these ailments under AAA. Now the State Cabinet has approved the implementation of the Vistarita Atal Amrit Abhiyan (VAAA) with addition of six expensive critical care disease groups. These are ICU packages, trauma, critical care paediatrics and paediatric surgery, bone marrow transplantation, JE and Acute Encephalitis Syndrome.
The maximum amount of coverage per year would remain unchanged at Rs two lakh per member per year and the existing empanelled hospitals under AAA, including private, public and trust operated, both within and outside the State would automatically be eligible for treating the patients under the VAAA.
A total of 76 hospitals have been empanelled under the scheme. Out of these, 35 hospitals are empanelled outside the State and 41 hospitals are within Assam.

New Department of Registration in J&K

The Jammu and Kashmir State Administrative Council (SAC) approved creation of a new Department of Registration to provide hassle free and speedy service to people for registration of documents pertaining to property, mortgage etc.
The SAC also approved the creation of 464 new posts under various categories in order to make the department of registration functional.
The new Department of Registration is being created under the Registration Act, 1908.
The Department of Registration shall function under the overall administrative control of the Revenue Department.
SAC also approved appointment of Additional Deputy Commissioners and Sub-Divisional Magistrates/Assistant Commissioners Revenue to exercise the powers of Registrars and Sub-Registrars, respectively, within such jurisdiction to be notified by the Revenue Department for purposes of the Registration Act, 1908.

India jumps 14 positions in the World Bank’s ‘Doing Business’ list

India jumped 14 ranks to 63rd position in the World Bank’s ‘Doing Business’ list and was also among the top-10 progress-making countries according to the multilateral agency in terms of ease of doing business.
In Doing Business 2020, the 10 top improvers are Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Togo, Bahrain, Tajikistan, Pakistan, Kuwait, China, India, and Nigeria.
These economies implemented a total of 59 regulatory reforms in 2018-19 – accounting for one-fifth of all the reforms recorded worldwide.
Their efforts focused primarily on the areas of starting a business, dealing with construction permits, and trading across borders.
It noted that starting a business in India has been made easier by abolishing filing fees for the Simplified Proforma for Incorporating a Company Electronically (SPICE), electronic memorandum of association, and articles of association.
India made trading across borders easier by enabling post-clearance audits, integrating trade stakeholders in a single electronic platform, upgrading port infrastructure, and enhancing the electronic submission of documents.
India made resolving insolvency easier by promoting reorganization proceedings in practice. India also made resolving insolvency more difficult by not allowing dissenting creditors to receive as much under reorganization as they would receive in liquidation.

FACTFILE – Doing Business 2020

Doing Business 2020 measures regulations across 190 economies in 12 business regulatory areas to assess the business environment in each economy. Ten of these indicators were used to estimate an ease of doing business score this year, over the 12 months ending April 30, 2019.
This is the 17th edition of a study that has motivated governments worldwide to undertake business reforms with the goal of bolstering sustainable economic growth.
The study looks at rules affecting a business from inception through operation to wind-down: starting a business, dealing with construction permits, getting electricity, registering property, getting credit, protecting minority investors, paying taxes, trading across borders, enforcing contracts, and resolving insolvency.

Union Cabinet Approvals revival of BSNL and MTNL

The Cabinet approves the proposal for revival of BSNL and MTNL by administrative allotment of spectrum for 4G services, debt restructuring by raising of bonds with sovereign guarantee, reducing employee costs, monetisation of assets and in-principle approval of merger of BSNL and MTNL.
The Cabinet approved a Rs 70,000 crore relief package for the company and for Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL). While approving the package for the two financially stressed entities, the Cabinet also drew up a timeline to merge them.
The two firms would be allotted 4G spectrum worth Rs 20,140 crore, Rs 29,937 crore for VRS covering 50 per cent of their employees and Rs 3,674 crore for goods and services tax (GST) that will be levied on allocation of radiowaves.

October 25, 2019

IIT Guwahati bagged 10^th position in the QS India University Rankings 2020

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Guwahati, has bagged the 10th position in the QS India University Rankings 2020. This is the second time in a row that IIT Guwahati has secured the 10^th position in the rankings.
The list is the second edition of the standalone rankings for India’s higher education institutions. The announcement was made at the 2^nd QS India Summit in Goa on October 21, which was attended by Union Minister for Human Resources Development Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’.
The QS India University Rankings are based on a number of parameters including academic reputation, citations per paper, international faculty, staff with PhD, employer reputation, etc.
The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay, the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bangalore and IIT Delhi secured the top three positions in the QS India University Rankings 2020.
IIT Madras and IIT Kharagpur finished fourth and fifth, respectively.
University of Delhi (DU) and University of Hyderabad placed seventh and eighth on the list. Calcutta University (CU) finished eleventh and was followed by Jadavpur University (JU) at number 12.

Chennai Corporation starts health awareness drive through students

In a novel initiative, about 20,000 students of Chennai Corporation-run schools have turned health ambassadors and appealed to the people to maintain cleanliness in their houses and streets.
The campaign is for preventing the spread of monsoon related diseases.
The Chennai Corporation has also released a video film featuring student ambassadors as part of its awareness campaign “Clean Chennai, Healthy Chennai.”
The student health ambassadors were selected from various educational institutions across the city.
Tamil Nadu Minister for Municipal Administration S.P.Velumani, had met the student ambassadors, congratulated them and gave them their identity cards.
He requested the student ambassadors to create awareness about cleanliness, sanitation and about dengue and other contagious diseases in their neighbourhood.
The Chennai Corporation also plans to run awareness campaigns via auto-rickshaws in fifteen zones during weekends on diseases that occur during the monsoon and the preventive steps that need to be taken.
Rallies are also planned in all the 15 zones, with the participation of 20,000 city school students, to spread awareness about prevention of mosquito-borne diseases during monsoon, stopping open defecation, stopping usage of plastic, preventing stagnation of sewage or clean water and rainwater harvesting.

Himachal Pradesh Cabinet approved a policy to provide cost effective Ayush services

The Himachal Pradesh Cabinet approved a policy to provide cost effective Ayush services by upgrading Ayush hospitals and dispensaries.
The government has come up with Himachal Pradesh State Ayush Policy that envisages attractive incentives to prospective investors in Ayush and wellness sector.
The Cabinet, presided over by Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur, also gave its nod to make the state a most favoured investment destination for information technology (IT), and IT enabled service companies.
It also gave its nod to the Affordable Housing Policy, 2019 and to revised guidelines for the tourism department for issuance of essentiality certificates under the Himachal Pradesh Tenancy and Land Reforms Rules in cases where a non-agriculturist wishes to purchase land for setting up tourism units.
The Cabinet gave its consent to establish Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) to regulate and promote real estate sector in the state.
It also gave its consent to create 46 posts of different categories, including its chairman and members.

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October 26, 2019

International meet on nutraceuticals, chronic diseases held at IIT Guwahati

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Guwahati, in collaboration with the Society for Nutraceuticals and Chronic Diseases, the Society for Translational Cancer Research, the National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER), Guwahati, and the DBT-AIST International Centre for Translational and Environmental Research (DAICENTER), Japan, recently organised the fourth International Conference on Nutraceuticals & Chronic Diseases (INCD).
‘Nutraceutical’ is the combination of the words ‘nutrition’ and ‘pharmaceutical’. A nutraceutical product is a food/fortified food product that not only supplements the diet but also assists in treating or preventing chronic disease and also provides medical benefits.
Specific and targeted artificially created drugs have not been found much effective against multi-genic chronic diseases. Also, their extended uses tend to exhibit severe adverse side effects. Whereas, the nutraceuticals have been found to be multi-targeted, highly effective over long-term and exhibit minimal side effects.

India, Pakistan sign Kartarpur pact

India and Pakistan signed an agreement to operationalise the Kartarpur Corridor The signing ceremony took place at the Kartarpur Sahib Corridor Zero Point, International Border, Dera Baba Nanak.
The agreement paves the way for the inauguration of the Corridor next month ahead of the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev, the founder of Sikhism, and will enable devotees to visit throughout the year the holy shrine located 4.5 km from the border in Narowal district of Pakistan”s Punjab province.
With the signing of this agreement, Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs S.C.L. Das said a formal framework has been laid down for operationalisation of the Kartarpur Sahib Corridor.
The travel will be visa free and the pilgrims will have a choice to visit individually or in groups, and also to travel on foot.
Under the agreement, the Indian government will inform Pakistan authorities about the list of the pilgrims 10 days in advance and pilgrims will be notified through mail four days ahead of the travel.
Pilgrims need to carry only a valid passport and Persons of Indian Origin need to carry Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) card along with the passport of their country.
The Corridor will be open from dawn to dusk and the pilgrims travelling in the morning will have to return on the same day. The Corridor will be operational throughout the year, except on notified days, which will be informed in advance.

FACTFILE – The Kartarpur Corridor

The Kartarpur Corridor is a visa-free border crossing and secure corridor, connecting the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Pakistan to the border with India.
The crossing allows Sikh devotees from India to visit the gurdwara in Kartarpur, 4.7 kilometres (2.9 miles) from the India–Pakistan border without a visa, creating a link which allows pilgrims holding Indian passports to easily visit both the Kartarpur shrine and Gurdwara Dera Baba Nanak on the Indian side of the border.
The Kartarpur Corridor was first proposed in early 1999 by Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Nawaz Sharif, the prime ministers of India and Pakistan respectively, as part of the Delhi–Lahore Bus diplomacy.
On 26 November 2018, the foundation stone was laid down on the Indian side; two days later, on 28 November 2018, Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan did the same for the Pakistani side.

IIT Madras team develops simple technique to produce Graphene platelets

The researchers have found that when graphite is suspended in an appropriate fluid and subjected to an intense shearing force of machining, the layers of graphite separate into graphene platelets.
Graphene is considered as one of the strongest materials known and in addition, it conducts electricity thirteen times better than copper.
Dr Sathyan Subbiah, Associate Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, IIT Madras, who led the research team, said, superior quality graphene is commonly prepared using the peeling off method.
Subbiah pointed out that the graphite is a lubricant because it is made of layers of carbon that slide over one another.

Uttar Pradesh CM launches scheme for girl child

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath launched ”Sumangla Kanya Yojna”, a scheme for the girl child, in the presence of Union Women and Child Development Minister Smriti Irani.
The scheme will provide an amount of Rs 15,000 in a phased manner to every family where a gril child is born.
The ”Sumangla Kanya” scheme has been designed in a way that parents will have to take care of girl child”s health and education to avail its benefits.
Funds will be released in six installments when a girl child completes various stages like vaccination, admission in class 1, 5 and 9 and graduation.
At birth Rs 2,000 will be transferred into account and if a girl has completed all her first-year vaccinations, she will be entitled to another Rs 1,000.
Similarly, if she has taken admission in class 1, she will get Rs 15,000 minus funds that would have been released at birth and completion of first-year vaccinations.

October 27, 2019

Tea Board looking for technology to ensure traceability of tea

The Tea Board is searching for an end-to-end technology to ensure traceability of the entire value chain of tea trade.
It is looking at a combination of latest technology-enabled solution like blockchain technology, for integrating the existing systems which will convert the standalone applications into a ring fenced electronic environment capturing the entire details of supply chain from procurement of raw materials by the manufacturers to the disposal of made teas to the primary buyers through auction.
This integration will help the end consumers in traceability of the Indian origin Tea – GI Teas as the starting point – by virtue of digitisation of the Indian tea marketing channel and bringing the Indian tea industry into the mainstream of digital economy.
The challenges the industry is facing now in terms of oversupply, quality concerns, low price realization, reducing global demand, non-remunerative prices for the small growers, etc.

Govt plans to run Ladakh completely on renewable energy

The Union government plans to make Ladakh the first Indian union territory (UT) to run completely on renewable energy.
The government wants to install solar generation units to meet all its power demand from renewable energy sources.
Aanand Kumar, secretary, ministry of new and renewable energy (MNRE), told that UT currently has a demand of around 53 MW.
New solar plants is planned to be added by the end of 2020 to make the area completely run on renewable energy.
While the daily solar power generation potential in most part of the country is in the range of 3-5 units per square metre, the same in Leh-Ladakh can be 6-8 units, due to high ‘irradiance’ factor.

P S Sreedharan Pillai appointed as Mizoram governor

Kerala State BJP president PS Sreedharan Pillai has been appointed as the new Mizoram Governor. The President of India announced the appointment of Pillai as the Governor of the North Eastern state.
After the resignation of former Governor Kummanam Rajasekharan to contest the Lok Sabha polls from Thiruvananthapuram, Assam Governor Jagdish Mukhi has been holding the additional charge as the Mizoram Governor.
Pillai is the third person from the South Indian State to be appointed as the Mizoram Governor after Vakkom Purushothaman (2011-2014) and Rajashekharan who held the charge from May 29, 2018 to March 8, 2019.

India and Ecuador ink protocol to start trade negotiations

India and South American nation Ecuador have inked the Protocol for Completion of the Joint Feasibility Study (JFS) between the two countries, in line with the government’s efforts to expand its trade presence in the region.
The Protocol was inked in New Delhi by Shyamal Misra, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Commerce and Industry and Héctor Cueva, ambassador of Ecuador in India.
This has now opened the doors for both the countries to initiate trade negotiations for a Partial Scope Agreement (Preferential Trade Agreement).
The two countries have great possibilities to contribute to the competitiveness of productive sectors in each Member country, and improving bilateral trade and enhancing the conditions for business cooperation.
Once the PTA is in place the two trading partners would be in a position to reduce or eliminate customs duties on only a certain number of products traded between them.

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October 28, 2019

Poor infrastructure deterring flow of medical tourists, foreign students to Assam, says ADB report

Medical tourism and higher education are two potential service sector industries for Assam, but due to various gaps – mostly related to infrastructure and connectivity – the State has not been able to tap it so far.
According to an Asian Development Bank report, there is a relative shortage of colleges for professional education and local students travel to other states in pursuit of higher education, while lack of accredited hospitals in the region has lead to outflow of domestic demand and diversion of regional international demand.
Of the 47,427 foreign students enrolled in India in 2018-19, 2,077 (4.4 per cent) were from Bangladesh. The Northeast can capture a major share of this market and Assam has a huge opportunity to tap into India’s share of students enrolled from Bangladesh, Bhutan and Nepal.
18 per cent of the total outflow of students from South Asia enrolled in India in 2016-17. It was 1.3 per cent for Southeast Asia. However, Assam accounts for just 0.4 per cent of total foreign students enrolled India.
India is one of the preferred destination for medical value travel, ranking fifth in the World Medical Tourism Index. Bangladesh is the largest foreign user of India’s medical services, accounting for 50.54 per cent of the total medical tourists in 2016 and the Northeast, particularly Assam, has the opportunity of becoming the natural choice for medical tourism from the neighbouring country.

Uttar Pradesh CM inaugurated projects and laid foundation stones of schemes for forest-dwelling Vantangiya community

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath inaugurated projects and laid foundation stones for schemes worth Rs 1.32 crore for the forest-dwelling Vantangiya community.
The Chief Minister celebrated Diwali with the Vantangiya community that has remained marginalised for years.
The community comprises people brought from Myanmar during the colonial rule to plant trees for afforestation.

Manohar Lal Khattar takes oath as Haryana CM

Manohar Lal Khattar and Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) chief Dushyant Chautala took oath as Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister, respectively.
The two leaders were administered the oath of office and secrecy by Haryana Governor Satyadeo Narain Arya at Raj Bhavan in Chandigarh.
This is the second term of Khattar as Haryana Chief Minister.

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Assam Current Affairs – October 15 – 21, 2019

Posted on December 19, 2019December 19, 2019 by admin

Current Affairs Assam – October 15 - 21, 2019

( Covers all important Assam Current Affairs & GK topics for the week of October 15 – 21, 2019 )

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October 15, 2019

IIT Guwahati joins hands with Japan institute for international symposium

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)-Guwahati, in collaboration with the Kyoto Institute of Technology (KIT), will organise an international symposium on ‘Advances in Sustainable Polymers (ASP-19)’ from October 14 to October 18 at the KIT, Matsugasaki, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, Japan.
ASP-19 is the fifth international symposium of the ASP series.
The aim of the symposium is to provide a platform to researchers to share recent state-of-the-art advances in the area of sustainable polymers.
The symposium will include plenary lectures and invited lectures on recent advances in several aspects of sustainable polymer-based technologies.
ASP-19 will also host three bilateral symposia as a part of the symposium.
They are on ‘Industrial Forum – Bio-based Materials Developed by Worldwide Industries’, the Second India-Nepal-Japan Trilateral Joint Symposium and the IITG-KIT Joint Symposium.
Apart from IIT-Guwahati and KIT, the symposium is supported by Kansai Branch, the Society of Fiber Science and Technology, Japan, Mille-Feuille Structure Materials, Unitika Shusei-kai, the Society of Polymer Science, Japan, and Research Committee on Fundamental Fiber Science, the Society of Fiber Science and Technology Japan.

Delhi cabinet nod for new skill, entrepreneurship university

The Delhi Cabinet gave its approval for a new skill and entrepreneurship development university with an initial capacity of 50,000 students.
The proposal will require clearance from the Lt Governor before its approval by the Assembly.
The new Delhi Skills and Entrepreneurship (DSE) University will focus on imparting the skills and knowhow to the youth that will equip them for employment.
Different courses, ranging between six months to two years, will be made available for students from Class 10 to the graduate and post graduate levels.
The courses will have also have high level of flexibility in terms of redesigning for the requirements.
The proposed varsity”s initial intake will be 50,000 students, who will be enrolled in regular and part-time courses in various streams.
Students who complete Class 10, Class 12, and graduation can join the University for courses ranging from durations like 6 months, one year, two years and so on.

Andhra Pradesh launches ”Rythu Bharosa” scheme

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy launched ”YSR Rythu Bharosa scheme-PM Kisan” scheme, under which each farmer will get Rs. 13,500 as input assistance every year.
The Chief Minister launched the flagship scheme at Kakutur in Nellore district by handing over cheques to beneficiaries.
The scheme is expected to benefit 54 lakh farmers including landless tenant farmers across the state. The amount will be deposited in the bank accounts of the beneficiaries.
The beneficiaries under PM Kisan Nidhi scheme of the Centre will get Rs. 6,000 while the remaining amount will be paid by the state government.
Those not covered under the Centre”s scheme will get the entire assistance from the state.
Beneficiary farmers were given Rs. 2,000 each in June and now they will get Rs. 9,500. Another Rs. 2,000 will be paid during ”Sankranthi”.
From next year, every beneficiary will get Rs. 7,500 in May at the beginning of Kharif sowing season, Rs. 4,000 in October for harvesting Kharif crop or for Rabi needs.
The remaining Rs. 2,000 will be paid on the occasion of ”Sankranthi”.

Margaret Atwood,Bernardine Evaristo won 2019 Booker Prize

Margaret Atwood and Bernardine Evaristo jointly won the 2019 Booker Prize after judges “flout” the rules by declaring a tie.
British Indian novelist Salman Rushdie’s tragicomic ‘Quichotte’ was among the six books shortlisted for the prize.
The Booker rules say the prize must not be divided, but the judges insisted they “couldn’t separate” Atwood’s ‘The Testament’ and ‘Girl, Woman, Other’ by Evaristo, who is the first black woman to win the prestigious award since its creation in 1969.
The rules were changed after the last tie in 1992, and organisers told this year’s judges that they were not allowed to pick two winners.
The judges said they strongly wanted both the authors to split the GBP 50,000 award at a gala ceremony at Guildhall
The others shortlisted included Lucy Ellmann for ‘Ducks, Newburyport’, Chigozie Obioma for ‘An Orchestra of Minorities’, and Elif Shafak for ’10 Minutes 38 Seconds in this Strange World’.
The 2019 shortlist had been selected from 151 submitted books published in the UK or Ireland between October 2018 and September 2019.

October 16, 2019

3^rd Shirui Lily Festival begins in Ukhrul, Manipur

The 3rd Shirui Lily Festival got under way at Shirui village in Ukhrul in the presence of ministers, dignitaries and a large gathering of people. The festival will end on October 19.
Union Minister of State for Culture and Tourism (in-charge) Prahlad Singh Patel said that there would be no tourism without culture. A collective effort is needed from all stakeholders to explore ways to attract tourists to the State. The North East region is gifted with scenic beauty and a rich cultural heritage.
The Manipur Government has been urging the Centre for a “topographical need-based budget” to bring inclusive development to the State.
The performance by Scottish band Nazareth will be the highlight of this year’s festival.

FACTFILE – Shirui Lily Festival

The annual festival is hosted by state Department of Tourism in Ukhrul district. The event features demonstrations of age-old traditions and culture of inhabitants of district of Ukhrul. The festival is organized during this time keeping in mind the peak blooming season of flower.
Festival seeks to spread the awareness about the endangered Shirui Lily and promote the district of Ukhrul as a tourist destination in Manipur.
The lilies of Shirui: The lilies play a significant role in festival. The rare, pink-white flower is only found in this area. The lilies are also known as Siroy Lily, or Lilium Macklinae, named after Jean Macklin, who supposedly spotted these flowers in 1946.
Manipur Tourism recognizes importance of Shirui Lily as State Flower of Manipur and event is a part of its efforts to develop and implement sustainable and responsible tourism State.

India, US Special Forces hold joint military drill

A 45-member Special Forces team from the Indian Army has begun a 15-day joint military drill with US Special Forces in Seattle. The exercise ”Vajra Prahar” commenced at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.
This is the 10th edition of the exercise, which is conducted alternately between India and the US to share the best practices and experiences in areas such as joint mission planning capabilities and operational tactics.
Bilateral military exercises and defence exchanges are an important aspect of deepening bilateral defence cooperation between India and USA.
In 2018, the exercise was held in Jaipur, Rajasthan.

India hands over 2- Mi 24V choppers to Afghanistan

India handed over two Mi 24V gunship helicopters to Afghanistan at a ceremony held in Kabul.
The attack chopper, which is also capable of low-capacity troop transport, was handed over to Afghanistan”s Defence Minister Asadullah Khalid by India”s Ambassador Vinay Kumar.
These helicopters are meant as replacement for four helicopters that had earlier been gifted by India to Afghanistan in the year 2015-16.
The handover took place at a military airport in Afghanistan.

Government Announced 14 new Institutes for Media and Entertainment Sector

The government announced that 14 new institutes will be set up across nine cities for advanced skill training in the media and entertainment sector.
The 14 Authorised World Skills India Training Centers (AWSITC) would be set up in nine cities – Chandigarh, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Indore, Mumbai, Pune, Shillong and Thiruvanthapuram.
The state-of-the-art AWSITCs, set up in partnership with the Media and Entertainment Skill Council (MESC), will help the candidates to enhance their skill as per the global standards.
The new institutes are being set up for advanced skill training of candidates in the media and entertainment sector, not just to compete in the WorldSkills and IndiaSkills competitions but also to further develop the skilling eco-system for training candidates for the international market.
In the biennial WorldSkills competition the 48-member Indian team won one gold, one silver, two bronze medals besides 15 medallions of excellence at the competition.
These world class state of the art centres will help in preparing the candidates to be ready in making our country proud at various competitions and also equip them with enhanced skills in order to become industry ready.

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October 17, 2019

Assam set to have India’s first International Multi-Modal Hub

Assam Industry Minister Chandra Mohan Patowary said that the state is all set to have India’s first International Multi-Modal Hub.
He said that the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has agreed to fund the project at an estimated cost of around Rs 600 crore.
The Government of Assam is planning to develop Jogighopa, a small township near Brahmaputra river, as a logistics hub or trans-shipment point for cargo moving from Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland to Bangladesh.
The Munshiganj River Terminal in Bangladesh will be used as a customs station to handle third-party export and import cargo via Kolkata Port.
The Bangladesh government agreed to hold stakeholder consultations and revert on the matter.
Standard operating procedure for the use of Chattagram and Mongla ports for movement of goods to and from India, particularly to and from the Northeast of India has recently been concluded.

Half of India’s children suffer from malnutrition, says UNICEF Report

UNICEF’s State of the World’s Children report for 2019, the first UNICEF report in 20 years on child nutrition, shows one in three children under the age of five years – around 200 million children worldwide – are either undernourished or overweight. And in India, every second child is affected by some form of malnutrition.
35% of Indian children suffer from stunting due to lack of nutrition, 17% suffer from wasting, 33% are underweight and 2% are overweight.
According to govt figures, stunting and wasting among children in the country has reduced by 3.7 per cent and the number of underweight children have reduced by 2.3 per cent from 2016 to 2018.
Among countries in South Asia, India fares the worst (54%) on prevalence of children under five who are either stunted, wasted or overweight. Afghanistan and Bangladesh follow at 49% and 46%, respectively. Sri Lanka and the Maldives are the better performing countries in the region, at 28% and 32%, respectively.

India conducts bilateral air exercise ‘Eastern Bridge V’ with Oman

India’s bilateral air exercise with Oman Exercise Eastern Bridge V, is being held at the Air Force Base Masirah in Oman from October 17-26.
The MiG 29 fighter aircraft of Indian Air Force (IAF) will be flying alongside the Eurofighter Typhoon and F-16 in India”s bilateral air exercise with Oman.
This is the first occasion that the MiG 29 will participate in an international air exercise outside India.
The Royal Air Force Oman will fly its UK-made advanced trainer aircraft Hawk too during the 10-day air exercise.
India”s military transport aircraft C-17 Globemaster will also participate in the air exercise.
The exercise will enhance inter-operability during mutual operations between the two air forces and will provide an opportunity to learn from each other”s best practices.
The participation of IAF in the exercise will also promote professional interaction, exchange of experience and operational knowledge.
Besides strengthening bilateral relations, it will also provide a good opportunity to the air-warriors to operate in an international environment.

Union Environment Ministry directed Assam Govt to take steps to declare Poba reserve forest a wildlife sanctuary

The Union Environment, Forest and Climate Change Ministry has directed the Assam government to take necessary steps to declare the Poba reserve forest in the state’s Dhemaji district a wildlife sanctuary.
Assm’s prominent wildlife and nature conservation organization Nature’s Beckon wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, seeking his immediate intervention in declaring the Poba reserve forest as a wildlife sanctuary.
The PMO forwarded the letter to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change directing for actions and steps as necessary by the Assam Forest Department to declare Poba as a wildlife sanctuary.

FACTFILE – Poba Reserved Forest

Poba Reserved Forest is situated in Jonai Subdivision of Dhemaji District of Assam.
The Reserved Forest (RF) was created in the year 1924 and covers an area of 10,221 hectares.
Poba is one of the richest rain forests of North-East India in terms of the flora and fauna found in it and can be very well termed a biodiversity hotspot.
The forest receives annual rainfall of 3600 mm to 4000 mm; highest temperature so far recorded is 35°C in summer and lowest 7.0°C in winter.
RF is an important elephant corridor linking the foot hills of Arunachal Pradesh and Dibru Saikhowa National Park via the proposed Kobu Chapori Reserve Forest. Peripheral area of the RF is inhabited by a few ethnic groups such as Mising, Bodo, Sonowal Kachari and Hajong (Rabha).
Poba forest is under serious threats from anthropogenic activities and natural calamities particularly erosion by the Siang river.

October 18, 2019

Hailakandi first district in Assam to introduce online leave application

The government employees working under the Hailakandi district administration need to file their applications online and can proceed on leave only after getting a digital approval, as henceforth no leave applications will be accepted on paper.
Deputy Commissioner, Keerthi Jalli inaugurated the new online leave module at her office conference hall.
Hailakandi becomes the first district in Assam to introduce such a system.
The Circle Offices in the district, too, have come under the new system. Additional Deputy Commissioner Omar Sheriff will look after leave related matters of the DC establishment while the Circle Officers will man their respective offices.
The employee needs to apply online which will then go to the reporting officer for approval. Each employee has been allotted a login ID and password.
After the leave is applied by the employee either through the mobile phone or personal computer on the Manav Sampada website, the reporting officer will either approve or reject the leave and the employee can see the leave status whether it has been approved or cancelled by the reporting officer. Users can also check the status of leave balance.

Karnataka tops India Innovation Index 2019

Karnataka has been ranked as the most innovative state in the country. These rankings were released by the NITI Aayog under the India Innovation Index 2019.
Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Telangana, Haryana, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Gujarat, and Andhra Pradesh form the remaining top ten major states respectively.
Sikkim and Delhi take the top spots among the north – eastern & hill states, and union territories.
Delhi, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, and Uttar Pradesh are the most efficient states in translating inputs into output.
The study is an outcome of extensive research and analysis, which looks holistically at the innovation landscape of India by examining the innovation capabilities and performance of Indian states and union territories.
The aim is to create a holistic tool which can be used by policymakers across the country to identify the challenges to be addressed and strengths to build on when designing the economic growth policies for their regions
Karnataka is the leader in the overall rankings in the category of major states. Karnataka”s number one position in the overall ranking is partly attributed to its top rank in the performance dimension.
It is also among the top performers in infrastructure, knowledge workers, knowledge output and business environment.

FACTFILE – The India Innovation Index 2019

The India Innovation Index 2019 is calculated as the average of the scores of its two dimensions – Enablers and Performance.
The Enablers are the factors that underpin innovative capacities, grouped in five pillars: (1) Human Capital, (2) Investment, (3) Knowledge Workers, (4) Business Environment, and (5) Safety and Legal Environment. The Performance dimension captures benefits that a nation derives from the inputs, divided in two pillars: (6) Knowledge Output and (7) Knowledge Diffusion.

Ranking of NE and Hill states

SIKKIM
HIMACHAL PRADESH
UTTARAKHAND
MANIPUR
JAMMU & KASHMIR
TRIPURA
ARUNACHAL PRADESH
ASSAM
NAGALAND
MIZORAM
MEGHALAYA

NASSCOM to train Army veterans for IT jobs

The Indian Army and the National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM) will come together in Bengaluru to orient veterans to the modern industrial needs in the IT sector in order to tap their expertise and potential by offering them jobs.
The initiative has been planned as several multi-national firms, which have in the past, failed to hire Army veterans, despite their keenness, because of technological and cultural differences with the corporate world.
The initiative has been taken jointly by the Indian Army, the NASSCOM and US-based multinational financial services firm Wells Fargo which is also being supported by the multi-national e-commerce firm Amazon India.
NASSCOM is looking for a single-point contact where it can get all details of Army veterans in the IT sector.
Army will assess industrial needs during the two-day event, NASSCOM will help Army in orienting to the modern industrial needs in the IT sector.

Goa signs an MoU with STPI for start-up centre

The Goa government’s Information Technology Corporation signed an MoU with the Software Technology Park of India to set up a start-up centre in the coastal state.
Chief Minister Pramad Sawant said that 14,000 square metres of land would be handed over to the STPI, a society set up by the Union Ministry for Electronics and Information Technology.
Sawant also said, that Goa was trying to position itself as a hub for the start-ups industry and the co-operation with the STPI would help attract more start-ups to the state.

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October 19, 2019

2 persons from Assam selected for National award in Agriculture promotion

Mahan Chandra Borah and Dr Prabin Saikia of Assam are among those selected for the Plant Genome Saviour Award by the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Authority of the Union Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.
Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Narendra Singh Tomar will hand over the awards, which will consist of Rs 10 lakh, a citation and a memento each.
Mahan Chandra Borah hails from Teok in Jorhat district, Dr Prabin Saikia is from Bhogpur Chariali in Lakhimpur.

Anup Kumar Singh appointed as Chief of National Security Guard

IPS officer Anup Kumar Singh was appointed as the new Director General of the elite National Security Guard (NSG) force.
The Appointment Committee of the Cabinet approved the Home Ministry’s proposal to appoint the 1985-batch Gujarat cadre Indian Police Service officer to the post.
Singh would take charge from Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) Director General S.S. Deswal, who is holding additional charge of the post since the superannuation of Sudeep Lakhtakia.
Singh will hold the post till September 30, 2020 from the date of joining or till further orders, whichever is earlier.
NSG is a federal contingency “zero error” force to deal with anti-terrorist activities in all its manifestations.Specially equippped and trained to deal with specific situations, it is, therefore, to be used only in exeptional circumstances to thwart serious acts of terrorism.

FACTFILE – The National Security Guard (NSG)

The National Security Guard (NSG) is a counter terrorism unit under the Indian Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).
It was raised in 15^th October 1984, following Operation Blue Star, Akshardham Temple attack and the assassination of Indira Gandhi, “for combating terrorist activities with a view to protect states against internal disturbances”.
It is not categorised under the uniform nomenclature of Central Armed Police Forces. It has a special forces mandate, and its core operational capability is provided by the Special Action Group (SAG) which is drawn from the Indian Army.
The Special Rangers Group (SRG), the police component of NSG, which also handles VIP security, is composed of personnel on deputation from other Central Armed Police Forces and State Police Forces.
The NSG personnel are often referred to in the media as Black Cats because of the black outfit and black cat insignia worn on their uniform

NASA astronauts conduct first all-women space walk

NASA astronauts Christina Koch and Jessica Meir ventured out of the International Space Station for the first all-women spacewalk to replace a failed power controller.
It is the first time that all space walkers are women and the 43rd space walk to include women.
An all-women space walk, involving Koch and NASA astronaut Anne McClain, was originally scheduled for March.
But that was scuttled because properly fitted spacesuits could not be readied in time for both astronauts.
The first all-women space walk is a milestone worth noting as NASA looks forward to putting the first woman and next man on the Moon by 2024 with the agency`s Artemis lunar exploration programme.

October 20, 2019

Assam Cabinet adopts new land policy

Assam state Cabinet adopted the new land policy, under which three bighas of agricultural land will be allotted to landless indigenous families.
Landless families will also be allotted half bigha plots for house construction, and the plot cannot be sold for 15 years.
Under the small family policy, persons having more than two children will not be eligible for government jobs with effect from January 1, 2021.

DNA Technology Regulation Bill referred to Parliamentary panel

The DNA Technology Regulation Bill that provides for the establishment of a national DNA data bank and regional DNA data banks and was passed by Lok Sabha has been referred to a parliamentary standing committee for examination and come back with a report.
The bill seeks to provide the regulation for use and application of Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) technology for the purpose of establishing the identity of certain categories of persons including victims, offenders, suspects, undertrials, missing persons and unknown deceased persons.
Members are informed that the Chairman, Rajya Sabha in consultation with the Speaker, Lok Sabha has referred the DNA Technology (Use and Application) Regulation Bill, 2019, as introduced in Lok Sabha, to the Standing Committee on Science and Technology, Environment and Forests for examination and report within three months.

FACTFILE – The DNA Based Technology (Use and Regulation) Bill, 2017

The DNA Based Technology (Use and Regulation) Bill, 2017 or the Human DNA Profiling Bill is a proposed legislation in India.
The bill will allow the government to establish a National DNA Data Bank and a DNA Profiling Board, and use the data for various specified forensic purposes.
The bill has raised concerns of privacy among citizen rights groups. The bill was expected to be presented in the parliament in the monsoon session of 2015.
Use of DNA Data: Under the Bill, DNA testing is allowed only in respect of matters listed in the Schedule to the Bill. These include offences under the Indian Penal Code, 1860, and for civil matters such as paternity suits. Further, the Schedule includes DNA testing for matters related to establishment of individual identity.

Arvind Kejriwal inaugurates 100 Mohalla Clinics in Delhi

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal inaugurated 100 more Mohalla Clinics in the national capital.
Kejriwal said that with these new health clinics, a total of 302 Mohalla Clinics are now functional in the city.
These clinics are part of the city government’s push to set up 1,000 neighbourhood clinics in the national capital.
Kejriwal said that 100 more such clinics were ready and would become operational next month.
In such clinics, facilities of diagnostic tests such as lipid profile, kidney and liver function test are available free of cost.

India, Thailand joint naval exercise

India and Thailand began a joint naval exercise in the Bay of Bengal that will involve air exercises with integral helicopters from ships of both nations.
The five-day exercise commenced off the port of Vishakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh.
Two naval ships of Thailand – UMS Sin Phyu Shin (F-14), a frigate and UMS Tabinshweti (773), a corvette – have been deployed for the exercise.
India has deployed its ships INS Ranvijay, a guided-missile destroyer and INS Kuthar, a missile corvette, for the exercise.
The opening ceremony of the exercise was held on board INS Ranvijay at Visakhapatnam.
The harbor phase of the exercise will involve professional interaction for sharing of expertise on various maritime issues between both the navies.
The sea phase will involve a variety of drills including anti-air and surface firing exercises, flying exercises using integral helicopters and seamanship evolutions at sea.

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October 21, 2019

Infrastructure projects worth Rs 2,500 crore approved in Arunachal Pradesh

Arunachal Pradesh’s Cabinet Committee on Infrastructure, chaired by Chief Minister Pema Khandu, approved infrastructure projects worth Rs 2,500 crore.
Of the approved projects, Rs 1,100 crore has been earmarked for upgradation of road infrastructure in the State capital and all administrative headquarters over a period of next three years.
The CCI also Okayed project proposals worth Rs 75 crore for the Department of Tirap, Changlang and Longding Affairs, besides giving its seal of approval for upgradation of Police Training Center at Banderdewa, upgradation of power infrastructure, water supply projects in all newly-created districts headquarters, and comprehensive scheme for providing public amenities in all major townships.
The CCI has doubled the allocation for horticulture projects pertaining to Kiwi, orange, large cardamom, etc from existing Rs 30 crore to Rs 60 crore.
The Committee also directed for revival of all defunct cold processing units at Namasai, Pasighat and Bhalukpong.

UN endorses India’s steps to address hunger, malnutrition

The UN World Food Programme (UNWFP) has endorsed India’s policy measures for addressing hunger and malnutrition to achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).
Bishow Parajuli, Representative and Country Director to India, UNWFP, told that India has all the ingredients in place to achieve SDG 2, which is to end hunger, achieve food security, improve nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture prior to the 2030 targets.
In 2015, India, along with other countries, signed the declaration on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, comprising 17 SDGs.
Within this agenda, ending hunger, achieving food security and improved nutrition, and promoting sustainable agriculture was set as SDG 2.
While India has made progress in the last couple of decades on key indicators including economic growth, poverty reduction, food grains self-sufficiency and adoption of technological solutions and though there has been a drop in the malnutrition rates, the progress however, needs to be accelerated to achieve the SDGs.
UNWFP has been working in partnership with the Government of India for more than 50 years to contribute to its efforts to achieve food and nutrition security.

India seeks UN action to combat anti-microbial resistance

India has expressed its concern on the global emergence of anti-microbial resistance (AMR) and called upon the relevant United Nations agencies to contain this threat to public health, at G20 Health Ministers meeting.
Health Minister Harsh Vardhan participating in the deliberations on health risk and health security, made an intervention on AMR, seen as a serious emerging threat to global public health.
He called upon all relevant UN agencies to align themselves in their endeavour to combat antimicrobial resistance.
He conveyed to G20 countries the efforts done so far under National Programme for Health Care of Elderly to provide accessible, affordable, and high-quality long-term, comprehensive health care services to an ageing population and also mentioned public health measures to tackle dementia.
The deliberations of the G20 Health Ministers focused on four major global health issues, namely achievement of Universal Health Coverage, response to population aging, management of health risks and health security management including AMR and its containment.

Vice President presents Most Eminent Senior Citizen Award

Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu presented Most Eminent Senior Citizen Award to legal luminary and former Attorney General K. Parasaran.
Mr Parasaran was honoured with the award on the occasion of the Elder’s Day celebration of Age Care India, an organization working for the welfare of the elderly.
Vice President said that the Award is a fitting recognition of Mr Parasaran’s exceptional contribution to the field of law and justice as well as his extraordinary personality.
He said that throughout his distinguished career, Mr Parasaran had handled a wide array of cases.

BIOGRAPHY – K. Parasaran

Parasaran is a lawyer, who was Advocate-General of Tamil Nadu during President’s rule in 1976 and then, Attorney General of India under Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi between 1983 and 1989.
Parasaran was awarded the Padma Bhushan in the year 2003 and Padma Vibhushan in the year 2011.
In June 2012, he received a presidential nomination to the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of India’s parliament, for a period of six years.

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Assam Current Affairs – October 08 – 14, 2019

Posted on December 19, 2019May 16, 2020 by admin

Current Affairs Assam – October 8 - 14, 2019

( Covers all important Assam Current Affairs & GK topics for the week of October 8 – 14, 2019 )

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October 08, 2019

IAF celebrates 87^th Air Force Day

Indian Air Force (IAF) celebrated 87th anniversary on Air Force Day at Hindon Air Base in Ghaziabad. Army Chief General Bipin Rawat and IAF Chief, Air Chief Marshal Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria were present at the event.
Every year, the Air Force Day is celebrated at Hindon base in presence of the IAF chief and senior officials of the three armed forces.
The IAF was founded on October 8, 1932, and the force has participated in several crucial wars and landmark missions.

FACTFILE – Indian Air Force (IAF)

The Indian Air Force (IAF) is the air arm of the Indian Armed Forces. Its complement of personnel and aircraft assets ranks fourth amongst the air forces of the world.
Its primary mission is to secure Indian airspace and to conduct aerial warfare during armed conflict.
It was officially established on 8 October 1932 as an auxiliary air force of the British Empire which honoured India’s aviation service during World War II with the prefix Royal .
After India gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1947, the name Royal Indian Air Force was kept and served in the name of Dominion of India. With the government’s transition to a Republic in 1950, the prefix Royal was removed after only three years.

Nobel prize in physics awarded to James Peebles, Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz

2019 Nobel Prize in physics awarded to James Peebles, Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz for research on cosmology and exoplanets.
Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in Stockholm awarded half of the 9 million Swedish kronor (£740,000) prize to Canadian scientist Peebles for his theoretical discoveries about the evolution of the universe.
A Swiss duo of astronomers, Mayor and Queloz, have awarded the prestigious prize for their discovery of the first planet beyond our solar system. The duo has succeeded in discovering the first exoplanet 50 light years away in the constellation of Pegasus.

William Kaelin and Gregg Semanza and Peter Ratcliffe win Nobel Prize in Medicine for work on how cells adapt to oxygen

Three Americans, William G. Kaelin and Gregg. L. Semanza and Briton Peter J. Ratcliffe, were awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine.
The Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institute announced that the three recipients were recognized for their discoveries of how cells sense and adapt to oxygen availability.
With their work they were able to understand how oxygen levels affect cell metabolism and physiological function.
Their discoveries could pave the way in the development of new strategies to fight anemia, cancer and other diseases, according to the institute.
Kaelin, born in New York in 1957, is a specialist in internal medicine and oncology.
Semenza, born in 1955 and also a New Yorker, is a paediatrician.
Ratcliffe was born in Lancashire in 1954, and is an expert in nephrology, a medicine specialising in kidneys.

FACTFILE – The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine

It is awarded yearly by the Nobel Foundation for outstanding discoveries in the fields of life sciences and medicine.
One of five prizes bequested in 1895 by Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, it is an award for scientific progress through laboratory discoveries in experimental physiology.
As of 2019, 110 Nobel Prizes in Physiology or Medicine have been awarded to 207 men and 12 women.
The first one was awarded in 1901 to the German physiologist Emil von Behring, for his work on serum therapy and the development of a vaccine against diphtheria.
n 1902, the award went to Ronald Ross for his work on malaria while staying in India.
The prize consists of a medal along with a diploma and a certificate for the monetary award.

India receives first Rafale fighter in France

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh formally received the first of the 36 Rafale fighter jets in France, The fighter jet was handed over at Merignac at a facility of Dassault Aviation.
Rajnath Singh was shown a short audio-visual clip on the history of aircraft manufacturing by Dassault before the handing over ceremony.
His French counterpart Florence Parly was also present during the handover ceremony.
India chose October 8 for receiving the first Rafale jet not only because it is the occasion of Dussehra, but the day is also celebrated as Air Force Day every year.
The first jet bears the tail number RB 001 which is the initials of Indian Air Force (IAF) chief, Air Chief Marshal R.K.S. Bhadauria, who played a key role on behalf of India in the Rafale negotiations with France.
India had entered into an inter-governmental agreement with France and Dassault in September 2016 to acquire 36 Rafale jets in flyaway condition at a cost of Rs 59,000 crore.
Rafale, a 4.5 generation multi-role combat aircraft, will greatly increase India”s geo-political stature in South Asia because no other country, including Pakistan, has as advanced an aircraft in its inventory.
The first squadron of the Rafale aircraft will be stationed at the Ambala Air Force Station in Punjab, considered as a strategic air base given its proximity to the Indo-Pakistan border.
The second Rafale squadron will be based at the Hashimara Air Force Station in Alipurduar district of West Bengal which at present is home to the ageing MiG 27 Russian aircraft.

October 09, 2019

India ranks 68^th on Global Competitiveness Index

India has moved down 10 places to rank 68th on the annual global competitiveness index, while Singapore has replaced the U.S. as the world’s most competitive economy.
India, which was ranked 58^th in the annual Global Competitiveness Index compiled by Geneva-based World Economic Forum (WEF), is among the worst-performing BRICS nations along with Brazil.
India ranks high in terms of macroeconomic stability and market size, while its financial sector is relatively deep and stable despite the high delinquency rate, which contributes to weakening the soundness of its banking system.
India is ranked also high at 15^th place in terms of corporate governance, while it is ranked second globally for shareholder governance.
India also punches above its development status when it comes to innovation, which is well ahead of most emerging economies and on par with several advanced economies.
The healthy life expectancy, where India has been ranked 109th out of total the 141 countries surveyed for the index.
India needs to grow its skills base, while its product market efficiency is undermined by a lack of trade openness and the labour market is characterised by a lack of worker rights’ protections, insufficiently developed active labour market policies and critically low participation of women.
India is followed by some of its neighbours including Sri Lanka at 84^th place, Bangladesh at 105^th, Nepal at 108^th and Pakistan at 110^th

National Health Mission index: Haryana, Assam, Kerala among top 5 performers

Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Haryana, Assam, Kerala and Punjab have emerged as the top five states or Union Territories in the first ever exercise to rate their performance on several parameters of the National Health Mission.
Twenty per cent of NHM funds are based on the states’ performance, which means better performing states received a financial incentive — Rs 3,000 crore is set aside for incentive-based payments.
West Bengal, Jammu and Kashmir, Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Bihar were penalised as they didn’t achieve the set benchmarks for mental health services.
Twenty-three states earned an incentive for screening of 30-plus population for non-communicable diseases, including 11 states that earned full points for screening more than 15 per cent of the 30-plus population.
Tamil Nadu reported 100 per cent screening, followed by Goa (68 per cent) and Daman and Diu (57 per cent).
Only six states — Assam, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Kerala, Punjab and Tripura — earned full incentive for implementation of the Human Resource Information System (HRIS). Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and UP were able to partially achieve the target in terms of HRIS implementation.
Among the parameters, the highest weightage was given to incremental improvement as per the NITI Aayog ranking of states on ‘Performance on Health Outcomes’. Other parameters include operationalisation of Health and Wellness Centres (HWCs), provisioning of mental health services in districts covered under the National Mental Health Programme, screening of 30-plus population for non-communicable diseases, implementation of HRIS and grading of Primary Health Centres (both urban and rural).
Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Sikkim did not make the cut for assessment.

Union Govt launches Ganga Aamantran Abhiyan

Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat yesterday launched a unique initiative called ‘Ganga Amantran’ to connect with the stakeholders of the river.
It is a pioneering exploratory open- water rafting and kayaking expedition on the Ganga River and will continue till 11th of next month.
The expedition will start at Devaprayag and culminate at Ganga Sagar covering the entire stratch of over 25,000 kilometres of the River.
This is the first ever effort by National Mission for Clean Ganga to raft across the entire stretch of the river.
And also the longest ever social campaign undertaken through an adventure sporting activityy to spread the message of River Rejuvenation and Water Conservation on a massive scale.

Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan launches eDantseva

Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan launched a website and mobile application of ‘eDantseva’, the first-ever national digital platform on oral health information and knowledge dissemination.
e-DantSeva is the first-ever national digital platform that provides oral health information both in the form of a website and mobile application.
The initiative of the Union Health Ministry with the AIIMS and other stakeholders aims to sensitize the public about the significance of maintaining optimum oral health and equips them with the tools and knowledge to do so, including awareness on the nearest oral health service facility.
The Union Health Minister also released the Braille booklet and voice over on oral health education for the visually impaired individuals along with the oral health posters for pregnant women and children.
e-DantSeva contains information about the National Oral Health Program (NOHP), detailed list of all the dental facility and colleges, Information, Education and Communication (IEC) material.

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October 10, 2019

Study finds poor wages, housing, healthcare in Assam TEs

Assam Govt initiated study report ‘Addressing The Human Cost of Assam Tea’ on the working and living conditions of plantation workers found crumbling houses with no toilets, poor wages, lack of quality health and education entitlements.
The new research, commissioned by Oxfam India and undertaken by the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), found that the State government’s commitment to increase the minimum wages of tea plantation workers to Rs 351 met with hurdles of financial viability of the sector.
The research showed that the relentless squeeze by supermarkets and brands on the share of the end consumer price for tea makes poverty and hardship for workers in Assam.
Combined with rising costs and the impacts of the climate crisis, it is also contributing to a severe economic crisis for the entire Indian tea industry.
The research also found that despite working for over 13 hours a day, tea workers earn between Rs 137 and Rs 167.
Many women tea-leaf pluckers regularly work upto 13 hours a day receiving between Rs 110 and Rs 130 per day.
Tea brands and supermarkets typically capture over two-thirds of the price paid by consumers for Assam tea in India – with just 7 per cent remaining for workers in tea estates.
Indian tea estates are legally obliged under the Plantation Labour Act to provide decent working condition, besides housing, healthcare and education facilities.
The condition of housing and sanitation is very poor in majority of tea estates with dilapidated or nonexistent facilities.
The Indian tea sector continues to be the largest private sector employer but poor implementation of labour laws is putting at risk the viability of the tea industry as a whole.

WHO to collaborate with govt to accelerate Ayushman Bharat

The Country Cooperation Strategy (CCS) provides a strategic roadmap for WHO to work with the Central government towards achieving its health sector goals, in improving the health of its population and bringing in transformative changes in the health sector.
The WHO India Country Cooperation Strategy 2019-2023 has identified accelerating progress of the Ayushman Bharat programme as the top strategic priority.
The CCS covers the period 2019-23 and it notes that significant improvements in health have been achieved in the past two decades.
The document notes that the government has set a series of ambitious goals in its National Health Policy 2017, including achieving universal health coverage, with a focus on poor and vulnerable populations, and doubling public spending on health.
The four areas identified for strategic cooperation of WHO with the country encompass: to accelerate progress on UHC, to promote health and wellness by addressing determinants of health, to protect the population better against health emergencies, and to enhance India’s global leadership in health.

FACTFILE – Ayushman Bharat Yojana or Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) or National Health Protection Scheme

It is a national scheme that aimed at making necessary interventions in primary, secondary and tertiary health-care systems,in a holistic fashion.
It was launched in 2018, under the aegis of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in India.
26 states and union territories accepted the scheme, except four states: Delhi, Odisha, West Bengal and Telangana. More than a lakh (100,000) people have taken benefit of the scheme till October 2018.
More than 825,000 e-cards were generated and there was a push to recruit private hospitals to the scheme

Cabinet gave ex-post facto approval to MoUs in radio, TV

The Union Cabinet gave ex-post facto approval for the memorandum of understandings (MoUs) signed between Indian and foreign broadcasters in radio and television.
The MoUs will help the public broadcaster explore new visions and strategies to address the demands of new technologies and competition, media liberalisation and globalisation.
Broadcasting of programmes to be obtained through mutual exchange, co-production will lead to equity and inclusiveness among viewers and listeners of DD (Doordarshan) and AIR (All India Radio).
Exchanges of technical know-how, expertise and training of manpower will help the public broadcaster meet challenges in the field of broadcasting.

IIT Madras students develop AI-based Drones for disaster relief

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras students have developed an Artificial Intelligence(AI)-based solution called ‘Eye in the Sky’ for disaster management and aid services, utilizing drones with swarm intelligence for collecting data and analyzing it in real-time.
A team of engineering students is building drones enabled with AI and computer vision to develop an end-to-end solution for identifying accurate and critical information on people trapped in disaster-hit areas and communicate them to relief task force.
Its analytical modules are based on the latest available technology with the team creating their own databases for some of the modules.
The team plans to collaborate with hardware companies that can provide scalable drone technology to conduct the required spot surveillance of disaster struck areas.
According to the students, the final aim of the startup is to make end-to-end drone software solutions which can be used by any disaster response force of the world and thus help in saving lives.
The project uses some innovative technologies that can help in among other things accurate detecting of people from high and low altitudes, detecting whether a person is able to move or not, detection of people buried under the debris where only a part of the body is visible to the outside world.

India, Thailand seek to enhance physical & digital connectivity

India and Thailand discussed ways to enhance physical and digital connectivity between them as well as identifying areas for cooperation in fields such as agriculture, science and technology, and information technology.
The issues were discussed in the 8th Joint Commission Meeting (JCM) between External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and his Thai counterpart Don Pramudwinai.
The Ministers had a restricted bilateral meeting, which was followed by delegation-level talks.
Both sides reviewed the progress made in all areas of bilateral relationship, including political, defence and security, economic and commercial, connectivity, cultural, tourism and people-to-people ties.
Both sides noted that bilateral trade has grown by 20 per cent last year and the investment is also growing.
Both sides decided to hold the next meeting of Joint Trade Committee to discuss ways and means to enhance trade and investment.
They also exchanged views on regional and multilateral issues of mutual interest, including cooperation in Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Indian-Ocean Rim Association (IORA), Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC), Mekong-Ganga Cooperation (MGC), UN and other sub-regional and international organizations.
Both Ministers also witnessed the signing of MOU between the Foreign Service Institute (FSI) of India”s Ministry of External Affairs and Devawongse Varopakarn Institute of Foreign Affairs of Thailand”s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

October 11, 2019

Audiovisual archive for NE region comes up in Shillong

An archive aimed at preserving the rich audiovisual productions of the Northeastern region has been inaugurated at St Anthony’s College in Shillong.
Documentary films, newsreels, interviews, amateur footage, sound recordings and photographs related to the states of the region are available in analogue and digital formats in the archive located at the St Anthony’s College.
The Northeast India Audiovisual Archive can also be accessed online at www.nearchive.in.
Supported by the Sasakawa Peace Foundation (SPF) of Japan, the archive will also be working in collaboration with Japan’s Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival for their expertise. The SPF carries out a range of programmes aimed at promoting international understanding, exchanges and cooperation.

Union HRD Ministry launches Dhruv platform to promote talents in childrens

The Human Resource Development (HRD) Ministry launched the Pradhan Mantri Innovative Learning Programme called ”Dhruv”, a platform to help meritorious students achieve excellence in science, performing arts and creative writing.
The programme has been launched to identify and encourage talented children to enrich their skills and knowledge.
HRD Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal said the programme included students of performing arts, since it had the power to move ideas and people.
In the first batch, 60 outstanding students have been selected. To begin with, it will cover science and performing arts. The students have been broadly chosen from classes IX to XII. At the 14-day programme science and performing arts students will be separated into two groups.
The programme was launched at the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) headquarters in Bengaluru.

Kolkata’s e-plan bags global award at C40 meet

The low carbon commute transition of Kolkata with planned introduction of 5,000 e-buses and electrification of all ferries that run across the Ganges river by 2030 won the world”s seven best climate projects.
The announcement of the 2019 C40 Cities Bloomberg Philanthropies Awards was made at the C40 World Mayors Summit.
The awards showcased projects that demonstrated ambitious climate action while ensuring better, longer lives for the greatest number of people.
Each of the seven winning cities are formidable examples of what leadership looks like in building an innovative, resilient, and inclusive future.
Worldwide, cities account for about 70 per cent of all greenhouse gas emissions, making them uniquely positioned to have a significant impact in the fight against climate change.
Finalists for the 2019 C40 Cities Bloomberg Philanthropies Awards were selected from projects featured in Cities100, which showcases 100 of this year”s most forward-thinking and inclusive climate action projects from around the world.
Cities100 is a collaboration between C40 and Nordic Sustainability and is funded by the Danish philanthropic association Realdania.

Andhra Pradesh launches free mass eye screening programme

The Andhra Pradesh government launched a free mass eye screening programme with an aim to eradicate blindness.
Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy launched the programme ”Dr YSR Kanti Velugu” at Anantapur on the occasion of ”World Sight Day”.
As a part of health reforms the government decided to implement the programme to provide cashless comprehensive primary, secondary and tertiary quality eye care services to the state”s entire population.
The programme, to be implemented in six phases over the next three years, is estimated to cost about Rs 560.88 crore including free eye screening, spectacles, strengthening of government institutions, hiring of temporary staff, cataract surgeries and other secondary and tertiary eye care management.
The first phase will continue till October 16, over 70 lakh students will receive primary basic screening by Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA), teachers, Auxiliary Nurse Midwife (ANM) and other staff members.
The two-months-long second phase will be launched on November 1. In this phase, secondary screening and prescription of spectacles will be provided to the students.
From the third to sixth phase, the state government will provide primary mass eye screening, prescription and distribution of spectacles, secondary and tertiary care management.
The Program will be conducted through village volunteers, ASHA, ANM, Primary Health Centre staff, Para Medical Ophthalmic Officers (PMOOs), all government institutions, Vision Centres, NGOs and all other healthcare functionaries.

AASHRAY’s best eco-friendly Puja pandal award to Bishnupur Guwahati puja

Bishnupur Bimalanagar Durga Puja Samiti of Guwahati with a theme of Eco-system was adjudged as the best eco-friendly Durga Puja pandal in Assam by AASHRAY an organisation working for environment conservation.
The Subhash Pally Kalibari Durga Puja Samiti Dibrugarh with the theme Education was declared as the second.
While Dergaon Rajahuwa Durga Puja Samiti with the theme of forest conservation and traditional dhak and Barowary Durga Puja Samiti with the theme Assamese Culture were declared jointly third.
The Sripuria Purbanchal Durga Puja Samiti with the theme rhino conservation was named for the fourth position.
To make awareness on cutting down the use of plastic in Durga Puja pandals and to ensure cleanliness during the puja celebration, the best puja pandal award was announced at the state level.

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October 12, 2019

Environmentalist Chandi Prasad gets Indira Gandhi award

The Indira Gandhi Award for National Integration for this year has been awarded to eminent environmentalist, Chandi Prasad Bhatt.
The award carries a citiation and cash of Rs 10 lakh will be given to Bhatt by Congress President Sonia Gandhi on October 31, the martyrdom day of Indira Gandhi .
Bhatt, who hails from Uttarakhand, is an eminent Gandhian environmentalist and has been associated with the Chipko Andolan
Bhatt has been the recipient of the Ramon Magsaysay Award, Padmi Shri, Padma Bhushan and Gandhi Peace Prize in the past.
The award was announced by Motilal Vora, Member Secretary to the Advisory Committee for the award.

BIOGRAPHY – Chandi Prasad Bhatt

Chandi Prasad Bhatt is an Indian Gandhian environmentalist and social activist, who founded Dasholi Gram Swarajya Sangh (DGSS) in Gopeshwar in 1964, which later became a mother-organization to the Chipko Movement, in which he was one of the pioneers.
He was awarded the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Community Leadership in 1982, followed by the Padma Bhushan in 2005.
He is known for his work on subaltern social ecology, and considered one of India’s first modern environmentalists.

Asian Development Bank approved the first installment of Rs 1,650 crore for Tripura

The first instalment of Asian Development Bank”s (ADB) Rs 1,650 crore loan for infrastructure development in seven of the eight district headquarter towns in Tripura, has been approved.
The Department of Economic Affairs, under the Finance Ministry of the Indian government has approved the first instalment of Rs 17.75 crore ($2.5 million) of the ADB loan to take up development of seven district headquarters through Urban Development Department of the state government.
The first instalment of Rs 17.75 crore would be spent mainly for conducting engineering survey, preparing estimates and DPRs (Detailed Project Reports) for roads, water supply, drainage, sewerage and major urban infrastructure works in these seven district towns.

Union Ministry of Health launches ‘Mission 2023’

The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has launched the ”World Health Organization (WHO) India Country Cooperation Strategy 2019-2023: A Time of Transition programme in New Delhi.
The Country Cooperation Strategy (CCS) aims to provide WHO with a strategic roadmap to plan its work with India to achieve its health sector goals.
Four areas have been identified for strategic cooperation with WHO.
The objective of the programme is to protect people”s health, promote healthy lifestyle and strengthen India”s global leadership in the health sector
The government has also launched several initiatives to support the same including the Fit India movement, Poshan Abhiyaan and the Eat Right India movement

October 13, 2019

‘Lachit-I’ the first sailing expedition on Brahmaputra to start

NCC Directorate of North Eastern Region has embarked on a pioneering project to conduct the first-ever sailing expedition on the Brahmaputra to commemorate the Battle of Saraighat.
The ‘Lachit-I’ 10-day expedition will be flagged off from Biswanath Chariali on October 16 and after traversing 220 km, it will culminate at Pandu on October 25.
ADG NCC Maj Gen Bipin Bakshi said the waters of the mighty Brahmaputra have been selected for this ambitious initiative, using the expertise available with the military personnel of NCC, three sturdy whaler sailing boats of the Naval NCC Units and support from the Army Eastern Command as well as the Assam government.
The focus of this expedition on the same waters where the famous Battle of Saraighat was fought in 1671, is to rekindle the memories of the epic bravery of the sons of the soil of Assam, while fostering a spirit of adventure amongst the youth.

Assam CM opens Kaziranga park for tourists

Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal opened the Kaziranga National Park for the visitors for this season.
Sonowal ceremoniously put the Bagori and Kohora Range of the park open for the tourists at functions held at Bagori and Mihimukh.
Sonowal said that it is a matter of great pride and prestige that Kazirnaga National Park has earned its name in the 17 most iconic centres of the country.
Sonowal also called upon every stakeholder to make a united effort for the serenity and beauty of the park.
Emphasising on the cleanliness of Kaziranga National Park, Sonowal said that all households, restaurants, hotels, resorts must keep their peripheral areas clean to make Kaziranga more beautiful and serene.

Lieutenant General Harsha Gupta named new Commander of White Knight Corps

Lieutenant General Harsha Gupta has been appointed as the new Commander of the White Knight Corps, the XVI Corps of the Indian Army in Jammu and Kashmir.
He took over from Lieutenant General Paramjit Singh Sangha, who relinquished the post with a traditional wreath-laying ceremony at the Nagrota Military Station
Lt Gen Gupta, who belongs to the Sikh Light Infantry, asked officers and troops to remain combat ready on order to thwart the enemy”s designs by maintaining synergy between the Army, the civil administration and the para-military forces.
Lt Gen Sangha conveyed his appreciation to all ranks for their professionalism and steadfast dedication to duty.

FACTFILE – The White Knight Corps

The White Knight Corps, a part of the Northern Command of the Indian Army, was raised in June 1972
It has its headquarters at Nagrota Cantonment, Nagrota, Jammu district, Jammu and Kashmir.
In 2005 IX Corps (India) was raised in part of the XVI Corps’ area, taking over two of its divisions. It includes 10th Infantry Division (India), headquartered at Akhnoor, 25th Infantry Division, headquartered at Rajauri and 39th Infantry Division, with its headquarters at Yol.
It is the largest wheeled formation in the world.

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October 14, 2019

**Khasi film ‘Iewduh‘ wins award at Busan film fest in South Korea**

Iewduh, a Khasi film directed by Pradip Kurbah and produced by Shankar Lall Goenka, has won the Kim Ji-seok Award at the 24th Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) in South Korea.
Iewduh was the first film from Meghalaya to enter the BIFF, which is an important destination for Asian filmmakers.
Iewduh director Pradip Kurbah dedicated the Kim Ji-seok Award to the people of Meghalaya and thanked Goenka for producing the film.
Iewduh, also known as Barabazar, is one of the oldest and largest daily markets in Shillong. The film talks about the daily lives of the people in the market.
The film, made under the banner of Shiven Arts, will premiere in India at the 21st Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival later this month.
Iewduh has also been selected for the International Film Festival of India (IFFI), Goa.

IIT Madras inks pact with ExxonMobil for research on energy and biofuels

The Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT M) has signed an agreement with ExxonMobil Research and Engineering Company for conducting collaborative research on energy and biofuels.
The five-year agreement is focused on data analytics, gas conversion and transport and is aimed towards finding low-emission solutions.
One of the projects being taken up is for developing novel approaches to convert agro residue biomass to sugars and high value chemicals.
The current trend is to develop fuels and fine chemicals from non-food lignocellulosic biomass and agricultural residues, known as second-generation biomass.
Lignocellulosic biomass is the only source of renewable carbon with the ability to maintain carbon neutrality in the environment by reducing the net greenhouse gas emissions.
India is the third highest producer of agro-residues globally with surplus potential of over 230 million tonnes annually, after China and Brazil.
The biofuel potential is expected to get realised in the near future with the new biofuel policy of the government.

Indian origin Abhijit Banerjee and his wife Esther Duflo wins Nobel Prize in Economics

Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Michael Kremer of Harvard University were awarded the 2019 Nobel Prize in Economics “for their experimental approach to alleviating global poverty.”
In just two decades, their new experiment-based approach has transformed development economics, which is now a flourishing field of research.
Banerjee, born 1961 in India, got his PhD in 1988 from Harvard University. Duflo, who was born in 1972 in Paris, obtained her Ph.D in 1999 from MIT. Kremer, who was born in 1964, got his doctorate from Harvard in 1992.
The three were recognized for their ability to divide the vast issue of tackling global poverty into smaller subjects.

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Assam Current Affairs – October 01 – 07, 2019

Posted on December 19, 2019May 16, 2020 by admin

Current Affairs Assam – October 1 - 7, 2019

( Covers all important Assam Current Affairs & GK topics for the week of October 1 – 7, 2019 )

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October 01, 2019

Seaplanes set to be introduced in Assam

The Airports Authority of India (AAI) will introduce water aerodrome or seaplanes in three locations in Assam for the first time, which will boost tourism and connectivity in the state.
Three river fronts were selected in Assam to introduce the water-based ferry for the first time in India.
The three locations selected for the seaplanes include Guwahati, Umrangso and the Kaziranga National Park.
At the end of next year or by early 2021, the water aerodrome or seaplane services would be launched in the Brahmaputra river and Umrangso reservoir.
Three jetties would be built in three locations at a cost of Rs 50 crore.
An area of open water that can be used by seaplanes or amphibious planes for landing and take-off is called a water aerodrome.
The water aerodrome or seaplane services were planned to be introduced under the UDAN scheme, announced by the Central government earlier.
The Union government had earlier planned to launch water aerodrome or seaplane services in six or seven sites. These are Guwahati river front, Umrangso reservoir and Kaziranga National Park in Assam, Nagarjuna Sagar in Andhra Pradesh-Telangana, Sabarmati river front, Shatrunjay Dam and Sardar Sarovar Dam in Gujarat).
SpiceJet on a trial basis had conducted seaplane operations in Ahmedabad and Mumbai.

Air Chief Marshal Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria takes over as IAF chief

Air Chief Marshal Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria, took over as the new air chief with an assertion that India is ready for any kind of threat. Bhadauria, succeeds Birender Singh Dhanoa.
The 26^th Chief of the Indian Air Force (IAF) has over 4,250 hours of flying experience with 26 different fighter and transport aircraft. He was also extensively involved in the flights of the Light Combat Aircraft Tejas” initial prototypes. Bhadauria was the key negotiator in the deal for 36 Rafale fighters which India is acquiring from Dassault company of France.
Bhadauria said the induction of the Rafale fighter would be a game-changer for India as it would give a big boost to the IAF”s capability.

BIOGRAPHY – Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria

Bhadauria served as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief (AOC-in-C), Southern Air Command from 1 March 2017, succeeding Air Marshal Sunderraman Neelakantan, to 1 August 2018.
He also served as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief (AOC-in-C), Training Command from 1 August 2018 after retirement of Air Marshal S R K Nair, and held the office till his elevation to the Vice Chief of the Air Staff.
He took office of Vice Chief of the Air Staff on 1 May 2019 after superannuation of Air Marshal Anil Khosla.
Bhadauria has been awarded several medals: the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal (January 2013), the Vayu Sena Medal (January 2002) and the Param Vishisht Seva Medal (January 2018).
He was appointed as the honorary air force ADC to the President of India on 1 January 2019

India successfully test-fired the BrahMos missile

India successfully test-fired the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile from the coast of Odisha along the Bay of Bengal.
The missile was launched from the Interim Test Range in Chandipur.
Featuring an Indian propulsion system, airframe, power supply and other major indigenous components, the missile was successfully test-fired for its full range of 290 km during the launch that was jointly conducted by the DRDO and BrahMos Aerospace.
The indigenous content in the formidable weapon has reached a high value with the successful mission thus bolstering India”s defence indigenization and the flagship ”Make in India” programme of the Central government.
The BrahMos, which derives its name from the rivers Brahmaputra of India and Moskva of Russia, has been jointly developed by India and Russia.
The versatile weapon has been operationalized in the Indian armed forces with all three services.

Cisco MOU with Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship to launch e-learning solutions at NSTIs

Cisco signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Directorate General of Training (DGT) of the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, to bring the benefits of digital technology to six National Skill Training Institutes (NSTIs).
Under the initiative, NSTIs in Bengaluru, Chennai, Kolkata, Mumbai, Noida and Kanpur will be equipped with Cisco connected classroom solution.
Which uses Cisco”s collaboration solutions, like Cisco TelePresence and Cisco Webex, to offer next-generation digital learning experience to students and faculty.
The platform is aimed at providing NSTIs with access to new learning experiences, like virtual field trips and specialised skill modules, guest lecturers, as well as industry-connect and mentorship programmes irrespective of location.
Interested trainers and trainees across all ITIs will also have access to new educational resources through the Bharat Skills portal, using their smartphones and other connected devices, enabling them to learn anywhere, anytime and on any device.

Naval version of India’s LCA-Tejas has successfully completed

The naval version of India”s indigenously-built Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas has successfully completed in a single sortie the cycle of short take-off and arrested recovery, necessary for operating on an aircraft carrier.
The sortie was undertaken at a shore-based test facility of INS Hansa in Goa.
A prototype of the LCA”s naval version took off a ski jump from the shore-based location and was subsequently trapped on an arresting gear site.
This was the first occasion when the complete cycle of short launch and arrested recovery necessary for aircraft carrier operations was accomplished in a single sortie.
The experiment was conducted to test the capability of the aircraft, which is under development by Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL), to take off and land on shorter runways on an aircraft carrier.

October 02, 2019

Sushil Mishra takes charge as CMD of Oil India Limited

Sushil Chandra Mishra assumed the charge of Chairman and Managing Director of Oil India Limited. He has over 35 years of experience in Oil India Limited (OIL).
He also holds a unique distinction of achieving OIL’s first ever overseas discovery as operator in Gabon, setting a foundation for OIL to carry out extensive exploration and production activities at global landscape for its growth.
Prior to taking over the charge as the CMD, he held the position of Executive Director (Rajasthan project), Jodhpur and was responsible for successfully implementing India’s first and deepest cycle system.

FACTFILE – Oil India Limited (OIL)

Oil India Limited (OIL) is the second largest hydrocarbon exploration and production Indian public sector company with its operational headquarters in Duliajan, Assam, India.
The company is a state-owned Navratna under the administrative control of India’s Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas with its corporate offices in Noida in the New Delhi-NCR region.
OIL is engaged in the business of exploration, development and production of crude oil and natural gas, transportation of crude oil and production of liquid petroleum gas.
It’s history spans the discovery of crude oil in the far east of India at Digboi, Assam in 1889 to become a upstream petroleum company is present.

Indian Army to help strengthen Maldivian security forces

Indian Army Chief General Bipin Rawat handed over some transport vehicles to the Maldivian National Defence Force (MNDF) as part of India”s efforts to boost the operational capacities of the island nation.
Talks are underway to hand over different types of weapons and ammunition to the Maldives army.
Assistance will also be given to Maldives to set up an engineering workshop and a diagnostic set-up for the vehicles and other equipment that have been given.
Rawat, who is on a five-day visit to the country has met Maldives Defence Minister Mariya Ahmed Didi, MNDF Chief Major General Abdulla Shamaal and MNDF Vice Chief Brigadier General Abdul Raheem Abdulla.
Discussions during the meeting revolved around the assistance that India”s military could provide in order to boost the training and operational capabilities of the archipelago nation.

TN govt partners with Facebook to boost blood donations in state

The Tamil Nadu government announced that it has directed all blood banks in the state to use the blood donation feature on Facebook to reach out to the voluntary donors.
The government feels social media can help to create awareness and enable voluntary blood donations.
The state government has issued a directive to all blood banks and hospitals in the state to use the Facebook blood donation feature, in order to bridge the gap between blood donors and nearby blood banks.
All banks have gone through comprehensive training workshops to join on board the Facebook blood donation feature and have also learnt how they can connect with donors on this social media site, based on their needs.
Over 22 million people in India have registered as blood donors on Facebook.
Launched in 2017, blood donation feature on Facebook connects people willing to donate blood with opportunities nearby.
People can sign up as donors on this social media platform and get notified when blood banks nearby post about their blood requirements.

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October 03, 2019

IIT Guwahati implements PM’s scholarship scheme for J&K students

The Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati (IIT-G) along with the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) has begun implementing the Prime Minister’s Special Scholarship Scheme for Jammu and Kashmir Students.
IIT Guwahati signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with AICTE for extending internships to students from Jammu and Kashmir.
The objective of the MoU is to provide exposure to the youth from Jammu and Kashmir to advanced academic culture at the higher learning institutes of the country.
As per the MoU signed, IIT-G will enrol 100 meritorious students from Jammu and Kashmir in batches of 25, for internship at the institute from May 1 to 30, 2020.
The MoU includes academic, education and research collaboration where IIT Guwahati will design a detailed programme with popular science lectures from its faculty as well as guest faculty from outside the institute.
The internships will be primarily in the field of research and will be done under various professors at the institute.

Odisha launches Mo Sarkar initiative

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik launched the ”Mo Sarkar” initiative on the occasion of 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.
Under the programme, the Chief Minister and Ministers will call the people to seek their feedback on the kind of response and service they received during their visit to the government hospitals and police stations.
The Chief Minister made phone calls and spoke to people from Balangir, Sundergarh, Malkangiri, Jajpur and Baripada to seek feedback on their experiences at government hospitals.
He also spoke to people from Nayagah, Ganjam, Balasore and Bhawanipatna regarding the service offered at police stations.
In the first phase, the programme would cover all police stations and district headquarters hospitals (DHHs).
Under the programme, when a complainant visits a police station for filing a complaint, his or her mobile number will be uploaded by the police personnel onto the centralised database.
The ”Mo Sarkar” initiative is an important transformative move under the 5T programme introduced by Patnaik. The 5Ts aim at achieving progress through Transparency, Teamwork, Technology, Time and Transformation.

India sets up integrated control room to handle natural calamities

The government is setting up an integrated control room for emergency response especially to handle natural disasters and to carry out a strategic level of monitoring.
The Ministry of Home Affairs proposes to establish an integrated Control Room for Emergency Response in the national capital for handling natural disasters and emergency situations with situational awareness and strategic level of monitoring.
The comprehensive backend and control room infrastructure will be primarily located at New Delhi City Centre-II towers at Jai Singh Marg in New Delhi with an additional room infrastructure in North Block, which will serve as a front office to the control room.
is also planned to augment existing National Database for Emergency Management (NDEM), a GIS-based repository of data, at Shadnagar in Hyderabad and integrate it with control room.
NDEM supports the total cycle of disaster, emergency management for the country, in near real time with a complete database.
The control room will be based on state-of-the-art information technology and will be equipped with latest video walls.

Indian Army Chief, Maldivian President discuss defence ties

Indian Army Chief, General Bipin Rawat met Maldivian President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, who hailed efforts to revitalise the bilateral defence cooperation.
Gen Rawat is on a five-day official visit to Maldives which is aimed at giving a boost to the bilateral defence ties at a time when China is making aggressive moves to make inroads in the Indian Ocean archipelago nation.
The Indian Army Chief discussed with the Maldivian President issues related to the defence cooperation and ways to step it up.
The Maldivian President commended the joint efforts of both Armed Forces at enhancing and revitalising the bilateral defence cooperation.
Rawat had met Maldivian Foreign Minister Abdulla Shahid to discuss mutual relations between the two countries and on working out ways to make the Indian Ocean Region a conflict-free zone.
He also handed over a fleet of transport vehicles to the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) in order to help it increase its operational capability.

October 04, 2019

Silchar ranked 8^th in list of 10 most unclean cities in India

Silchar received a embarrassing distinction of being ranked at 8th position in the list of ten most unclean cities across the country.
Despite atmospheric and territorial challenges, the workers at the SLRM centre have been able to convert a substantial quantity of waste into saleable resource in just 79 days of its journey.
Project Coordinator C Srinivasan informed that assignment at the SLRM centre is for a period of 18 months only while his team has only 15 more months left to accomplish the target.
Deputy Commissioner Laya Madduri expressed the possibilities of turning Silchar free of trash and urged all the stakeholders to pitch in efforts to make it worth a resource-oriented destination for sustainable development in the coming days.

Assam in Swachh Survekshan 2019 Ranking

Rank #303 Guwahati
Rank #370 Nagaon
Rank #415 Dibrugarh
Rank #423 Silchar

ISRO showcase Space Science in 7 Karnataka colleges

To mark the ‘World Space Week’ of the UN General Assembly (UNGA), the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said it would showcase the benefits of space science to students of seven colleges in Karnataka from October 4 to 10.
The U.R. Rao Satellite Centre has teamed up with seven colleges to tell students the benefits of our space programme to attract them to science & technology stream.
The seven institutions are: Poornaprajan Pre-university College at Udupi; SJM Institute of Technology, Chitradurga; Konkan Education Trust High School, Kumta; R.V. College of Engineering, Bengaluru; Tontadarya College of Education, Gadag; Sri Sai Vidyaniketan Residential School, Shahpur; and Siddaganga Institute of Technology, Tumkur.
Competitions for students, exhibition models of satellites, posters, videos and talks about the Indian space programme were part of the agenda.
The satellite centre designs, develops and makes satellites for the space programme to serve key sectors and spur national development.
The UN observes the space week every year from October 4 to 10, coinciding with the launch of the first man-made earth satellite — Sputnik 1 on October 4, 1957 — and the signing of the Outer Space Treaty on October 10, 1967.

Indian Oil launches drive to turn plastic waste into bitumen

Indian Oil Corporation has taken up various initiatives to support the government”s drive to eliminate single use plastic by converting these toxic wastes to productive use.
These initiatives were launched to mark the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatama Gandhi and as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.
The company will use its refinery operations to convert the single use plastic waste into specialised bitumen that can be used for construction of roads and highways.
A pilot project has been done at Faridabad via the creation of a “Single Use Waste Plastic” based bituminous road.
The company will commercially supply the specialised bitumen for use in road construction going ahead.
Has developed special grade crumb rubber modified bitumen (CRMB55) which has been designed using waste single use plastic material.
The company issued an Expression of Interest (EoI) for procurement of single-use plastic waste which can be economically converted into the specialised bitumen.
The national EoI is for assessing the market availability and willingness of various organised aggregators and NGOs to supply different types of waste plastics in commercial quantities on consistent basis.

New French, EU envoys present credentials to Indian President

New French ambassador to India Emmanuel Lenain and the European Union Ambassador Ugo Astuto presented their credentials to President Ram Nath Kovind at Rashtrapati Bhawan.
Lenain underscored the historic ties of friendship and trust between the two nations and said the two sides are united by a strategic partnership since 1998, which recently expanded to include digital technology and cybersecurity.
Lenain also highlighted France’s determination to deepen the two countries’ strategic cooperation, particularly in the Indo-Pacific region.
He shared France’s desire to forge a partnership for the future with India by supporting the major programmes shaping tomorrow’s India.
Astuto said the European Union and India upgraded their long-standing relationship to a strategic partnership in 2004, based on their common goals and principles.
Since then, the EU and India have been cooperating closely, reinforcing political, economic and people-to-people ties.
This cooperation was further broadened at the last summit in 2017 and has received new momentum through the adoption of the EU’s strategy on India, in November 2018.
The EU and India enjoy strong trade and investment relations and are members of the G20, where they co-operate in shaping the global economic agenda, supporting sustainable development and the multilateral international trade system.
The EU is also collaborating with India on several flagship initiatives such as Smart Cities, Clean Ganga, as well as in the context of the International Solar Alliance.

Flipkart and UP Khadi & Village Industries Board ink pact

Flipkart has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Uttar Pradesh Khadi & Village Industries Board (UPKVIB) as part of the Flipkart ‘Samarth’ initiative.
This initiative is aimed at enabling artisans, weavers and craftsmen from diverse backgrounds and rural parts of the country to set up their business on Flipkart.
The MoU was signed in the presence of Uttar Pradesh’s Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
As part of the Samarth programme, eligible entities and artisans will receive incubation support in the form of onboarding, cataloguing, account management, business insights, dedicated seller support, reduced commission (where eligible) and warehousing.
The Uttar Pradesh government is supporting the initiative by fast-tracking collaboration between Flipkart and UPKVIB registered affiliates that work in the arts, handicrafts and textile space.
UPKVIB and Flipkart will work together to help weavers and artisans sell Khadi fabrics and village industries products across Flipkart’s pan-India customer base of over 160 million.

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October 05, 2019

IIT Guwahati-AICTE pact to benefit J-K students

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Guwahati, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) for implementing the Prime Minister’s Special Scholarship Scheme for students from Jammu and Kashmir.
The objective of the MoU is to provide exposure to the youths from Jammu and Kashmir to advanced academic culture at the higher learning institutes of the country.
The exchange of agreements was held at the IIT Council meeting recently between Prof TG Sitharam, Director of IIT Guwahati, and Prof Anil D Sahasrabudhe, Chairman of AICTE, in the presence of Union Minister for Human Resource Development (HRD) Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’.
As per the pact, IIT Guwahati will enroll 100 meritorious students from Jammu and Kashmir in batches of 25, for internship at the institute from May 1 to 30 next year.
The MoU includes academic, education and research collaboration where IIT Guwahati will design a detailed programme with popular science lectures from its distinguished faculty as well as guest faculty from outside the institute.

NHA, Google tie up for Ayushman Bharat implementation

The National Health Authority (NHA) has joined hands with Google to collaborate and strengthen the implementation of the government”s flagship health scheme, Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY).
The two organizations will be working closely to explore various user cases for increasing process efficiencies in day-to-day applications.
Google will also support NHA in improving PM-JAY”s digital presence and showcasing relevant content to the 50 crore entitled beneficiaries.
Google will also help provide training and support to NHA personnel to build on digital skills.
The collaboration will seek to bolster PM-JAY”s objective of reaching the poor and vulnerable, reducing their high out-of-pocket health expenditure, and improving access to quality healthcare.
The NHA is implementing the programme, hailed as the world”s largest public funded health insurance scheme aimed to bring quality healthcare to around 50 crore poor and vulnerable Indians across India.
The mission of NHA is to create the world”s best health assurance programme on an efficient and technologically robust eco-system.

WHO, FIFA sign deal to promote healthy lifestyle through soccer

The World Health Organization and FIFA signed a four-year cooperation deal that aims to encourage people to follow a healthy lifestyle through soccer.
WHO, in return, will provide FIFA with a series of technical health advice aimed at improving hygiene and preventing diseases.
Measures include banning smoking at stadiums or during events organized by the soccer international governing body.
Both parties have already collaborated in order to ban smoking at soccer competitions, as happened at the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
The deal also includes initiatives that boost physical activities through soccer with the backing of national soccer federations, goodwill ambassadors, soccer players, coaches and volunteers.

October 06, 2019

‘Brahmaputra Dialogue’ discussion on promotion of startups in NE, South East Asia

The 2^nd edition of the Brahmaputra Dialogue, an initiative to provide a platform for thought leaders across all sectors to discuss, deliberate and arrive at outcome-based solutions regarding key issues concerning India’s North-east and the greater South East Asia region held at Guwahati.
The topic of the event was ‘Accelerating the Startup Ecosystem in North East India and the Future of Business and Trade in the South East Asian region’ where Arjun Vaidya, Aryata Agarwal, Shyamkanu Mahanta, Pranjal Konwar and Sriparna Baruah took part as the panelists.
More than 60 young leaders and entrepreneurs from diverse professional backgrounds attended the session.
Discussions were also held about the challenges and opportunities of doing business in the region, and key steps to promote North-east as a startup hub in India.

India, Bangladesh sign 7 pacts

India and Bangladesh marked the “sonali adhyay” (golden era) in bilateral ties with the inking of seven agreements, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi held talks with visiting Bangladesh Premier Sheikh Hasina.
During the talks, the Bangladesh PM voiced concerns over Assam’s National Register of Citizens (NRC) and raised the Teesta water and the Rohingya refugee issues.
The two sides hailed the bilateral ties. The agreements, included pact for a joint coastal surveillance system.
Through video link, the two leaders inaugurated three development partnership projects
1. Import of bulk LPG from Bangladesh to Tripura through trucks
2. Vivekananda Bhaban (student’s hostel) at Ramakrishna Mission, Dhaka
3. Bangladesh-India Professional Skill Development Institute (BIPSDI) at the Institution of Diploma Engineers Bangladesh (IDEB), Khulna.
The two leaders emphasised on initiatives for development of closer maritime security partnership, and noted the progress made in the finalisation of an MoU for establishment of a coastal surveillance radar system in Bangladesh.
Both sides agreed to expedite commissioning of a joint study on prospects of signing a bilateral comprehensive economic partnership agreement (CEPA).
Modi and Sheikh Hasina also agreed to expedite work towards drawing upon a $500 million defence line of credit, extended by India to Bangladesh. The implementation arrangements for this was finalised in April.
They also signed an MoU on withdrawal of 1.82 cusec of water from the Feni river by India for the drinking water scheme for Sabroom town in Tripura.
The two leaders agreed that the loss of civilian lives at the border was a matter of concern and asked border forces to enhance coordinated measures to bring such border incidents down to zero.

School kids plant 350 trees near Mumbai station

As part of the ongoing ”Joy of Giving Week” organised by the Western Railway (WR), around 150 students of the Ryan Group of Institutions (RGI) planted more than 350 Ashoka tree saplings near the Jogeshwari station.
The children were accompanied by a favourite cartoon character, Nicktoon ”Dora the Explorer” and child actor Abhishek Sharma in the event organised by the WR, Nickelodeon and RGI to mark the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.
During the week, there will be more activities for the children focusing on awareness and conservation of the environment, educating them on the consequences of carbon footprints and related aspects.
Pioneering children-related empowerment themes, Nickelodeon has also organized campaigns like ”Surakshabandhan”, International Day of Yoga and Road Safety Week.

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October 07, 2019

IIT Guwahati develops AI powered Smart-Engineer

The Indian Institute of Technology-Guwahati (IIT-G) announced the development of an Artificial Intelligence (AI) assisted engineering system design tool called the ‘Smart-Engineer’.
The current version of the Smart-Engineer is able to address the fundamentals involved in the design of induction motors.
The early results are very promising, and we now intend to expand the capability of Smart-Engineer to include the finer aspects of motor design.
The tool is built by a team comprising PhD and Masters students, Rajendra Kumar, Bikash Sah, Ankit Vishway and Rajendra Kumar, by leveraging the IBM Watson AI Platform and IBM Cloud.
The ‘Smart-Engineer’, built by the e-mobility lab at the IIT-G seeks to address one of the primary hurdles in indigenising the EV technology, which is the lack of trained human resources in engineering design and system integration.
It will enable companies to store and maintain the collective knowledge of expert engineers, which in turn can preserve and promote further theoretical and practical advancements in design thinking/philosophy.

Indian women in UAE launch mission to protect environment

The Indian Ladies Association (ILA), a United Arab Emirates (UAE)-based community welfare body, has launched a year-long mission to protect the environment through a series of initiatives, including collection of discarded paper, e-waste, cleaning of beaches and tree planting in Abu Dhabi.
The ILA has committed to run sustainable environmentally friendly and social awareness campaigns in the community each month and this would continue throughout the year to educate people about the environment and seek their participation in making the world a greener place.
The ILA just provides a platform to the community to come forward and participate in the environmentally friendly campaigns.
The ILA is one of the five Indian community organisations in Abu Dhabi which are registered with the UAE’s Ministry of Community Development.
It was also planning to spread environmental awareness among labourers. As part of the mission, the ILA will visit labour camps to give saplings to workers to plant.

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Assam Current Affairs – September 29 – 30, 2019

Posted on December 15, 2019 by admin

Current Affairs Assam – September 29 - 30, 2019

( Covers all important Assam Current Affairs & GK topics for the week of September 29 – 30, 2019 )

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September 29, 2019

ASSAM CM Sonowal launches ‘Amar Alohi’ scheme

Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal formally declared open the dwelling units constructed under the first phase of the ambitious ‘Amar Alohi’ scheme at a function held at the SrimantaSankaradevaKalakshetra to mark observance of World Tourism Day.
Altogether 28 such dwelling units in different parts of the State were declared open to make tourists enjoy comfortable homestay and Assamese hospitality.
At the same programme, Chief Minister Sonowal unveiled a logo to globally promote the Raas festival held at Nalbari and Majuli along with other places of the State.

FACTFILE – ‘Aamaar Aalohi’

Rural Homestay Scheme is framed by the Tourism Department, Govt. of Assam, with the objectives of giving a new dimension and thrust to the Rural Homestay Facilities in the State of Assam and creation of self-employment opportunities for educated youths in rural and semi-urban areas of tourism potential and importance.
Under this Scheme, Assam Tourism Development Corporation invites two types of application:
- New Homestays (subsidised projects)
- Existing Homestays
Selection process of units / beneficiaries & criteria: Suitability criteria for selection of the houses and their premises, their locations would be one of the most important criteria. The houses should not only be from a rural/non-urban area, these should be close to important tourists spots and may also be in such locations where some important tourism events like fairs and festivals etc. are held which draw large number of visitors from different places.

President Kovind presents President’s Colours Award to Corps of Army Air Defence

President Ram NathKovind handed over the prestigious President’s Colours Award to the Corps of Army Air Defence at Gopalpur in Odisha’s Ganjam district.
The President’s Colours Award is the highest military honour for an armed forces organisation.
This award is given in recognition of exceptional service rendered by to the nation, both during peace and hostile.
The President was presented the Rashtriya salute at the commencement of an impressive parade led by the contingent.
The occasion was attended by senior officers and civil dignitaries. Prominent amongst those present on the occasion included Odisha Governor Professor Ganeshi Lal.
The Air Defence has been in existence since 1940 as a part of Corps of Artillery however, as an independent arm, it got recognition in 1994.
The Corps of Army Air Defence has been awarded with two Ashok Chakras, two Kirti Chakras, 20 Vir Chakras, nine Shauryas Chakras, 113 Sena Medals and 55 Mention-in-Despatches in addition to four Honour Titles awarded during 1971 Indo-Pak war.

MSME, AYUSH signs to jointly promote nutraceuticals industry

The Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) and the Ministry of AYUSH have signed an agreement to jointly promote the nutraceuticals industry in India.
MSME Minister Pratap Chandra Sarangi who was at an Assocham event in New Delhi announced the joint venture.
Nutraceutical is the hybrid of ”nutrition” and ”pharmaceutical”, are food or part of food playing a significant role in modifying and maintaining normal physiological function that maintains healthy human beings.

September 30, 2019

North East festival to be held in Varanasi in November month

A four-day ‘Destination North East’ festival will be held in Varanasi in November to familiarise the people with the rich, unexplored potential and opportunities available in the region, Union Minister Jitendra Singh.
The festival in Varanasi will be a sequel to the ‘Destination North East’ series begun about three years ago, as part of which, such festivals have already been held in places like Chandigarh and Delhi.
The four-day festival on the North East will be held at Varanasi from November 23, Singh, Union Minister for Development of the North Eastern Region (DoNER).
The concept behind holding such events is to familiarise the people in other parts of India with the rich, unexplored potential, avenues and opportunities that the North East has to offer for the rest of the world, he said.
Ancient temple town Varanasi is the Lok Sabha constituency of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

India among 20 most improved countries in Ease of doing business, now at 77^th position

India continues to be on 77^th position in terms of ease of doing business. The Doing Business Report 2019, commissioned by the World Bank, also highlights that India is among the top 10 improvers on the list once again.
India, along with eastern Africa’s Djibouti, made it the top 10 improvers list last year as well. Other countries on the list with the “most notable improvement” in performance on the Doing Business indicators are China, Azerbaijan, and along with the African nation of Togo, Kenya, Côte d’Ivoire and Rwanda. Afghanistan had the biggest improvement in the latest rankings.
These economies have implemented total 62 business regulatory reforms across all sectors. China and India alone have implemented 13 reforms to improve the EODB standing, which goes a long way towards influencing investors to pour in funds into the country.
The Doing Business report points out that India has implemented norms to simplify the process of starting a business, getting construction permits, electricity supply, credit flow, paying taxes are trading across borders.
World Bank report also highlighted the implementation of the goods and services tax (GST), making the regulation process “faster” in the country. Replacing multiple taxes with one uniform tax has made tax-paying simpler.
Moreover, the country has also made tax payment “less costly” by reducing the corporate income tax rate to 22% for existing domestic companies and 15% for new domestic manufacturing companies.
New Zealand has topped the Ease of Doing Business rankings in 2017, 2018 and 2019.

FACTFILE – Ease of Doing Business Index

The ease of doing business index is an index created jointly by Simeon Djankov and Gerhard Pohl, two leading economists at the Central and Eastern Europe sector of the World Bank Group.
The academic research for the report was done jointly with professors Oliver Hart and Andrei Shleifer.
Higher rankings (a low numerical value) indicate better, usually simpler, regulations for businesses and stronger protections of property rights.
Empirical research funded by the World Bank to justify their work show that the economic growth impact of improving these regulations is strong.

India hands over Rs. 2.41 Crore worth school building to Nepal

India has handed over a new school building costing Rs. 2.41 crores to the Nepal government that would boost the learning environment of students from the marginalised sections in the Himalayan nation.
The new building of KuleshworAwas Secondary School in Kathmandu city was jointly inaugurated by Ajay Kumar, Deputy Chief of Mission, Embassy of India in Kathmandu, in the presence of several senior officials from the Nepal government.
The new school infrastructure is a three-storey structure comprising 20 class rooms, separate sanitation facilities for boys and girls on each floor, underground water tank and furniture.
India recently provided Rs. 233 crores to the Nepal Government for various infrastructure projects, including roads and reconstruction of houses destroyed in the massive earthquake in 2015 which saw the death of over 9,000 people.
The decision was taken during the 5th meeting of the Nepal-India Joint Commission attended by the External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.

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Assam CM inaugurated several infrastructure projects in Goalpara

Bolo App launched in Hailakandi

Odisha signs MoUs to improve urban service delivery system

Andhra Pradesh Govt has roped in IIM Ahmedabad to work with the ACB

4th India International Cherry Blossom Festival 2019 at Shillong

Central Govt plans rail link with NE state capitals

Prabhat Jha moved Bill to make cleanliness a fundamental duty

Defence Ministry plans product testing facilities for MSMEs

Scientists developed new material that turns toxic air pollutant into industrial chemical

Union Cabinet approveds strategic disinvestment in five PSUs

G20 foreign ministers commit to WTO reforms

AIIA has inked a MoU with Western Sydney University

President of India awarded the President’s Colour to Naval Academy

Karnataka Govt felicitates 7 Bengaluru-founded Unicorns

Assam is the Most Improved state in Economy and Overall category in the India Today State of the States Conclave 2019

India, Afghanistan exchanges treaty over Extradition

50th conference of Governors

India ranked 44th in Nomura’s Food Vulnerability Index

Seng Kut Snem Festival celebrated in Meghalaya

Commonwealth sign pact to reduce violence against women

Andhra Pradesh launches helpline for complaints against corruption

70th Constitution Day celebrated on 26 November

Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry signs MoAs with 6 states on Light House Projects

Special Protection Group (SPG) Amendment Bill introduced in Lok Sabha

Guwahati to host 65th Filmfare Awards show

India’s PSLV-C47 successfully launched Cartosat-3

IIT-K partners TalentSprint for cybersecurity course

LS passes bill to declare four NIDs in Assam, Andhra Pradesh, MP and Haryana as Institutions of National Importance

Assam’s Dr Prerana Keshan awarded ‘Wonder Fogsian’ award

Indian Army successfully test fires Spike anti-tank missiles

Union Cabinet extended term of 15th Finance Commission

Union Cabinet nod to increase authorised capital of FCI to Rs.10,000 crore

IIT-Mandi develops device to screen cervical cancer

Scientists develop bacteria which ‘eat’ Carbon Dioxide

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Assam CM Sarbananda Sonowal Sonowal launches app ‘Shishu Suraksha’ for securing child rights

Children design postage stamps on child rights

MHA appoints 2 advisors to assist J&K Lt Governor

Andhra Pradesh launches new scheme to upgrade government schools

Union Govt plans to set up NE Industrial Corridor

Odisha takes conservative measures for protection of Olive Ridley turtles

TiE Women raises $70,000 during New Delhi summit

Mizoram accounts for 14% of bamboo cultivation in India

Dr Jiten Gohain Memorial Green Awarded to Nagaon Govt Boys’ HS School

Amit Shah launched winter grade diesel for Ladakh region

WWF-India’s ‘Ek Prithvi’ programme

Justice SA Bobde takes oath as 47th Chief Justice of India

Assam Cabinet approved Assam Bamboo and Cane Policy

Unio Govt working to set up new tech training centres

Meghalaya to ink with Korean tech firm for waste management

Bengaluru-based environment think-tank Ashoka Trust to receive UNESCO prize for eco-conservation

National Green Tribunal (NGT) fine Rs 10 crore penatly on UP Govt

India and Singapore exchanges Letter of Intent in defence sector

Arunachal Pradesh gets ‘Best Emerging Green Tourist Destination Award’

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh met Deputy PM of Singapore

Facebook partners with WCD Ministry to boost digital literacy

ISRO to launch Cartosat-3, 13 commercial nano satellites

Assam State Cabinet approved the Assam Excise (Amendment) Bill 2019

India, Uzbekistan sign security cooperation agreement

LS passes Bill for transparency in Chit Fund schemes

India successfully test-fires nuke-capable Prithvi-II

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh holds bilateral meets on ADMM-Plus

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Assam State Child Scientist Award for class VIII student Raj Sharma

India expresses commitment to fully implement FATF standards

Akil Kureshi appointed as Chief Justice of Tripura High Court

India-Indonesia joint naval exercise Samudra Shakti

India, UAE discuss boosting trade & investment ties

World Bank’s $110 million deal for river transport in Assam

India, France begin counterterrorism Exercise ‘Shakti 2019’

New Zealand passes zero carbon bill to combat climate change

Brahmaputra Valley Samaj Hitoishi Award to DN Chakravarty

Sanjay Karol is the new Chief Justice of Patna High Court

Environment Ministry nod to Indian Oil Corporation’s Panipat ethanol plant

CJI office falls within ambit of RTI Act, says SC

Assam signs pact with Malaysia trade body

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh hands over Rs 3 crore to two defence start-ups

Environment Ministry’s launches beach cleanliness drive

4^th India International Cherry Blossom Festival 2019 at Shillong

50^th conference of Governors

India ranked 44^th in Nomura’s Food Vulnerability Index

70^th Constitution Day celebrated on 26 November

Guwahati to host 65^th Filmfare Awards show

Union Cabinet extended term of 15^th Finance Commission

Justice SA Bobde takes oath as 47^th Chief Justice of India

**IIT Madras launches first indigenously designed standing wheelchair**

PM Modi inaugurated the 5^th edition of the India International Science Festival (IISF)