General Awareness

NATIONAL AFFAIRS - July 2015

Jul 2015

Aug 22, 2023

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla Inaugurates 9th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference in Rajasthan's U...

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla inaugurated the ninth India Region Conference of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association in Rajasthan's Udaipur.
The theme of the two-day conference was 'Strengthening Democracy and Good Governance in the Digital Age'.
The India Region of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) comprises 31 legislatures from across the country and has the second largest number of member branches after the African Region.
Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Harivansh, Rajasthan Assembly Speaker CP Joshi, CPA Chairperson Ian Liddell-Grainger and other dignitaries were present at the inaugural event.
During the conference, presiding officers of state legislatures brainstormed on how to make public representatives more effective/efficient in encouraging good governance through digital empowerment and the role of public representatives in strengthening the nation through democratic institutions.
Vice President and Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar and Rajasthan Governor Kalraj Mishra addressed the valedictory session.

Higher than Umling La, World's Highest Motorable Road Coming Up in Eastern Ladakh

Border Roads Organisation (BRO) has started the construction of 64-km long Likaru-Mig La-Fukche road close to Hanle in Eastern Ladakh's Demchok sector. Once completed, it will be the world's highest motorable road at a height of 19,400 ft in Mig La.
Currently, Umling La in Ladakh at a height of 19,024 ft holds the record of being the highest motorable road in the world. It is a 52-km road that connects Chishumle to Demchok, which is right on the Line of Actual Control (LAC), and a friction point between India and China.
The new road, connecting Likaru with Fukche, will play a crucial role in accessing the LAC for the armed forces to be deployed all along the Indus valley in Fukche, right up to Demchok.

India Announces Green Hydrogen Standard

India announced the definition of Green Hydrogen. The Green Hydrogen Standard for India sets a criterion of 2 kg CO₂ equivalent per kg H2 as a 12-month average emission threshold. It is a significant move for the progress of the National Green Hydrogen Mission. The guidelines established by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), Government of India, delineate the emission benchmarks that must be fulfilled for hydrogen production to qualify as 'Green', signifying its origin from renewable sources.

Nitin Gadkari Launches Bharat New Car Assessment Programme

Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari launched the much-awaited Bharat New Car Assessment Programme (Bharat NCAP), a step forward in the government's commitment to improve road safety through raising the safety standards of motor vehicles up to 3.5 tonnes in India.
The programme aims to provide a tool to the car customers to make a comparative assessment of crash safety of motor vehicles available in the market. Under this, car manufacturers can voluntarily offer their cars tested as per Automotive Industry Standard 197.
Based on the performance of the car in the tests, car will be awarded star ratings for Adult Occupants (AOP) and Child Occupant (COP). Potential car customers can refer to these star ratings to compare the safety standards of different vehicles and accordingly make their purchase-decision.

Jaishankar, Derek, 7 Others Take Oath as RS Members

External Affairs Minister and BJP leader S. Jaishankar and TMC's Derek O'Brien were among nine newly elected Rajya Sabha members from Gujarat and West Bengal to take oath in the Upper House chamber.
The oath was administered by Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar. Besides Jaishankar, other BJP members who took oath were Nagendra Ray (West Bengal), Kesridevsinh Digvijaysinh Jhala (Gujarat) and Babubhai Jesangbhai Desai (Gujarat).
Jaishankar took the oath in English. He was elected to the Rajya Sabha from Gujarat in 2019 for the first time when he became a part of the Union Cabinet. The TMC members included Dola Sen, Sukhendu Shekhar Ray, Prakash Chik Baraik and Samirul Islam, besides Derek O'Brien. All of them were elected from West Bengal. Derek, Sen and Ray took the oath in Bengali.

Aug 21, 2023

Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya Launches the Global Initiative on Digital Health (GIDH)

Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya launched the Global Initiative on Digital Health (GIDH), a World Health Organization (WHO)-managed network, with the aim of consolidating the evidence and amplifying the gains in global digital health.
The GIDH will promote equitable access to digital health by addressing challenges such as duplication of efforts and "products-focused" digital health transformation. Its key components will leverage existing evidence, tools and learnings and will be co-created through a transparent and inclusive process.
Eventually, the GIDH will aim to align efforts to support the Global Strategy on Digital Health 2020–2025 (an ongoing WHO project), quality-assured technical assistance to develop and strengthen standards-based and interoperable systems aligned to global best practices, and facilitate the use of quality assured digital transformation tools that enable governments to manage digital health transformation.

Sukhu Declares Entire State as Natural Calamity-affected Area

The Himachal Pradesh government declared the massive damage caused by heavy rains as a state calamity.
The entire hill state was declared as a 'natural calamity affected area' in view of the damage caused to human life and property due to heavy rains, a government notification said even as Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu claimed that they were awaiting a response from the Centre to declare the disaster Himachal Pradesh as a national calamity.
Principal Secretary (Revenue) Onkar Chand Sharma said that after the weather becomes normal and accessibility is improved, a complete assessment of the losses incurred by the hill state would be conducted and the report will be submitted to the Centre for recovery and reconstruction efforts.

'India's First Village Atlas' is of Maem in Goa

Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant released a biodiversity atlas of Maem village in North Goa, which he termed as "India's first village atlas".
This atlas gives a socio-cultural history of Maem village that dates back to 12th century.
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant made a heartfelt plea to the younger generation, urging them to step up in safeguarding biodiversity, and provided reassurance of the state government's support in accomplishing this vital objective.

Aug 20, 2023

Congress Rejig: Randeep Surjewala Appointed In-charge of Poll-bound MP

The Congress party made organisational rejig in several states and appointed Randeep Surjewala as general secretary in-charge of poll-bound Madhya Pradesh and former MLA Ajai Rai as the chief of the party's Uttar Pradesh unit.
Mukul Wasnik was named the general secretary in-charge of Gujarat.

Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports Organises Y20 Summit in Varanasi

Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports organised Youth 20 Summit-2023 from 17th to 20th of August in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. More than 100 delegates from G20 countries, Guest countries and International Organizations discussed five identified themes of Y20. These themes included Future of Work: Industry 4.0, Innovation and 21st Century Skills, Peace Building and Reconciliation: Ushering in an Era of No War, and Climate Change and Disaster Risk Reduction.
Youth20 is one of the official Engagement Groups of the G20. The Youth20 (Y20) Engagement Group organised discussions and consultations pan-India, to consult the youth of the nation on ideas for a better tomorrow and draft an agenda for action. Y20 has proved to be a platform for youth to express their perspectives and ideas on G20 priorities.

Aug 19, 2023

India's First 3D-printed Post Office Inaugurated in Bengaluru

Union Minister for Railways, Communications, Electronics and IT Ashwini Vaishnaw dedicated to the nation India's first 3D-printed post office located in Bengaluru's Cambridge Layout.
The post office, which was virtually inaugurated by the Union minister from the General Post Office building, was completed in just 43 days – two days ahead of its deadline. Its construction was carried out by Larsen & Toubro Limited with technological support from IIT Madras under the guidance of Professor Manu Santhanam, Building Technology and Construction Management Division, Department of Civil Engineering.

WHO, AYUSH Ministry Host First-ever Global Summit on Traditional Medicine in Gandhinagar

A first-of-its-kind global summit on Traditional Medicine, organised by the World Health Organization (WHO) and co-hosted by the Ministry of Ayush, took place on August 17-18, 2023, at Gandhinagar, Gujarat. The summit took into account the vast experience and expertise of the country and this highly anticipated event served as a platform for experts and practitioners to delve into the latest scientific advancements and evidence-based knowledge in the sector, with the ultimate goal of ensuring health and well-being for all.
The Director-General of WHO, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, inaugurated the event in the presence of Minister of Health Mansukh Mandaviya and Minister of Ayush Sarbananda Sonowal. G20 health Ministers, Regional Directors of WHO and eminent invitees from countries across WHO's six regions graced the event along with scientists, practitioners of traditional medicine, health workers and members of civil society organisations.
The summit's theme 'Towards Health and Well-being for All', explored the role of traditional complementary and integrative medicine in addressing pressing health challenges and driving progress in global health and sustainable development.

Aug 18, 2023

Mumbai most Expensive City to Live in India

Ahmedabad is the most affordable Indian city to live in according to a new report released by Knight Frank India, a leading property consultant.
The affordability index released by Knight Frank measures living affordability based on the EMIs a resident in that city has to pay if they get a house with a home loan divided by the total income of an average household in that city.
The most expensive housing market is Mumbai, followed by Hyderabad and Delhi National Capital region.

ADB Approves USD 40.5 Million Loan for Childhood Development, Maternal Mental Health in Meghalaya

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) approved a USD 40.5 million loan for integrated early childhood development and maternal mental health in the north-eastern state of Meghalaya.
The Meghalaya government is contributing USD 15.27 million to the project.
The project aims to improve access to nurturing care, including a component of maternal mental health care and group-based parenting programs to enable the inclusion of fathers in care giving.

Rahul Gandhi Nominated to Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence

Days after his Lok Sabha membership was restored, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was nominated to the parliamentary standing committee on defence.
Congress MP Amar Singh too was nominated to the committee, according to a Lok Sabha bulletin.
Newly elected Aam Aadmi Party member of Lok Sabha Sushil Kumar Rinku was nominated to the committee on agriculture, animal husbandry and food processing.
NCP's Faizal P. P. Mohammed, whose Lok Sabha membership was restored in March, was nominated to the committee on consumer affairs, food and public distribution.
Before being disqualified in March, Gandhi was a member of the parliamentary panel on defence.

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