India announced the appointment of Naveen Srivastava, currently additional secretary in the external affairs ministry, as the next ambassador to Nepal. Srivastava, who headed the East Asia division in the ministry, has played a key role in diplomatic and military talks with China to tackle the military standoff on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) since 2020. The East Asia division deals with China, Japan, North Korea, South Korea and Mongolia, and Srivastava is seen as an experienced China hand. This experience is expected to come in handy for his stint in Kathmandu in view of China's stepped up efforts to increase its influence in Nepal's politics and economy.
India and Nepal are currently repairing ties that were hit by several controversies during the term of former Nepalese prime minister KP Sharma Oli, who was removed from his post in a vote of no confidence. Oli's government published a new political map of Nepal in 2020 that included the Indian territories of Limpiyadhura, Lipulekh and Kalapani, triggering a row that lasted several months.
Get Set for 'Gaganyaan - Bharat ki Antariksh Udaan' on Discovery Plus
Boasting of a self-reliant space programme, ISRO prepares for Mission Gaganyaan, a voyage that will be showcased as Gaganyaan —Bharat ki Antariksh Udaan on Discovery Plus. The documentary will feature three eminent astronauts, namely Rakesh Sharma, the first Indian to go into space, the elite record-holding woman astronaut of NASA Sunita Williams and Russian cosmonaut Oleg Kotov. Along with them, various experts, namely Dr G Madhavan Nair (former chairman, ISRO); Air Cdre (retd) Ravish Malhotra (former test pilot, IAF); Asif Siddiqi (space historian); Dr Brigitte Godard (Flight surgeon, European Astronaut Centre) and other distinguished professionals, will be a lending their expertise on the subject.
Eight MoUs Signed at Incredible India International Cruise Conference
Eight Memorandum of Understanding (MoUs) were signed at the first Incredible India International Cruise Conference that was jointly organised by the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, the Government of India and FICCI.
Strategies for developing India as a cruise hub, policy initiatives and port infrastructure, the potential of river cruise tourism, and the role of technology in the post-pandemic world were some of the key issues deliberated at the two-day event.
Addressing the first Incredible India International Cruise Conference (IIICC) in Mumbai, Union Minister for Culture, Tourism G. Kishan Reddy invited domestic and international tourists to 'Come, Cruise in India.'
Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Partners with Indian School of Business
In line with the Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ambitious programme 'Mission Karmayogi,' which is a first-of-its-kind experiment in the direction of capacity building and modernising the mindset, methodology, and skill set of government employees, the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) partnered with the Indian School of Business (ISB) to conduct capacity-building programmes for MSDE officials.
A total of 120 officers (30 per batch) across divisions under MSDE would be undergoing a comprehensive five day long residential training across ISB Hyderabad and Mohali campuses. The first batch of 30 officers has completed their training from ISB Mohali campus with a convocation ceremony held for the officers.
The primary goal of the programme is to strengthen leadership skills while developing a strategic mindset that will aid in gaining insights into data analytics and digital transformation.
May 17, 2022
Devasahayam Pillai Becomes 1st Indian Layman to be Declared Saint by Pope
Devasahayam Pillai, who embraced Christianity in the 18th century, became the first Indian layman to be declared a saint by Pope Francis during an impressive canonisation ceremony at the Vatican. Devasahayam was recommended for the process of Beatification by the Vatican in 2004, at the request of the Kottar diocese, Tamil Nadu Bishops' Council and the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India.
A miracle attributed to Devasahayam was recognised by Pope Francis in 2014, clearing the path to his canonisation in 2022. It was the first canonisation ceremony at the Vatican in over two years. Pope Francis, who has been complaining of strained ligaments in his right knee for months, used a wheelchair to preside over the ceremony.
Government Bans Wheat Export to Rein in Food Inflation
In a surprise move, the Union Government announced a ban on wheat exports with immediate effect. A notification termed the decision part of measures to control rising prices. Export shipments for which irrevocable letters of credit (LoCs) were issued on or before the date of the notification would be allowed. Wheat exports will be allowed on the basis of permission granted by the Centre to meet other countries' food security needs and based on the request of their governments.
In another decision, the government increased the limit of shrunken and shrivelled grain to 18 per cent from the prescribed 6 per cent for Central procurement during 2022-23.
DoT Launches 'GatiShakti Sanchar' Portal for Centralised Right of Way
The Department of Telecommunications launched the GatiShakti Sanchar portal, which would streamline the application and approval procedure for right of way (RoW) across the country. According to Telecom Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, the platform would help achieve the goal of Ease of doing business for telecoms infrastructure projects, which is in line with the vision of the Hon'ble Prime Minister.
The prompt disposal of RoW apps by various service and infrastructure providers would allow for faster infrastructure building, which will aid in the timely deployment of 5G networks. Applicants from various telecom service providers (TSPs) and infrastructure providers (IPs) would be able to apply to states and local governments for right of way licences to lay down optical fibre cable and erect mobile towers through a single platform.
May 16, 2022
Hardeep Singh Puri Launched Bharat Tap Initiative & Nirmal Jal Prayas On The Inaugural Day Of PLU...
The Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs & Petroleum and Natural Gas, Shri Hardeep Singh Puri launched the BHARAT TAP initiative at the 'Plumbex India' exhibition. This exhibition is aimed for products and services related to the plumbing, water and sanitation industry.
Shri Puri said that this exhibition caters to a fundamental service in the development of the nation – water and sanitation and there is no progress or growth without adequate sanitation, which is foundational in the hierarchy of basic services that citizens expect.
Shri Puri also launched NARDECO MAHI's 'Nirmal Jal Prayas' initiative which will work for saving of 500 crore litres of water per year.
Manik Saha appointed Tripura chief minister after Biplab Deb resigns
Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb stepped down from his position after meeting Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president J.P. Nadda and Union Home Minister Amit Shah during a two-day trip to New Delhi.
Manik Saha, the BJP State unit president and lone Rajya Sabha MP from Tripura, was elected as legislature party leader at a meeting held at the Chief Minister's official residence. Senior BJP leaders Bhupender Yadav and Vinod Tawde were present as observers at the meeting. After being named the next Chief Minister of the State, Dr. Saha told reporters that he "was a common worker of the party and will continue to be so".
Mr. Deb now became the fifth Chief Minister to be replaced in a BJP-ruled State after B.S. Yeddyurappa in Karnataka, Trivendra Singh Rawat and Tirath Singh Rawat in Uttarakhand, and Vijay Rupani in Gujarat. Mr. Deb had been appointed the Chief Minister after the BJP stormed to power in 2018, ending 25 years of Left Front rule in the State.
NSIC - MSME Ministry organizes 'Enterprise India- Mega Job Fair'
More than 30 companies participate providing employment opportunities to skilled workforce. The major objective of Mega Job Fair was to provide employment opportunities to the students who are passing out from different courses being conducted in the Centre. More than 30 companies including renowned companies like LG Electronics, Munjal Showa (Hero Honda Group), JBM Group, Maxop, SPM Auto Comp, were present with Various job offers.
Addressing the inaugural Event, Shri B. B Swain, Secretary, MSME congratulated everyone especially to NSIC - NTSC Okhla team for organizing the 'Enterprise India Mega Job Fair' after pandemic period to facilitate the trainees of the Centre for their employment .
The NSIC Centre organizes job fairs periodically to fulfil the requirement of skilled manpower for industry. During last 6-7 years more than 70,000 trainees have been trained by the Centre and many of them have been successfully placed in the industry through campus placements.
NITI Aayog Launches The National Data & Analytics Platform
NITI Aayog launched the National Data & Analytics Platform (NDAP) for open public use . The platform aims to democratize access to public government data by making data accessible, interoperable, interactive, and available on a user-friendly platform. It hosts foundational datasets from various government agencies, presents them coherently, and provides tools for analytics and visualization. This public launch follows a beta release of the platform in August 2021 that had provided access to a limited number of users for testing and feedback.
NDAP follows a use-case based approach to ensure that the datasets hosted on the platform are tailored to the needs of data users from government, academia, journalism, civil society, and the private sector. All datasets are standardized to a common schema, which makes it easy to merge datasets and do cross-sectoral analysis.
May 15, 2022
75 Indian Villages to be Shaped with Israeli Cooperation
Taking to the "next level" the Indo-Israel cooperation in the field of agriculture, 75 Indian villages will be shaped with Israeli cooperation to mark the country's 75th Independence anniversary, Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar said. Tomar, who was in Israel on a four-day official visit met his Israeli counterpart Oded Forer at the Knesset (Israel's Parliament).
They discussed various issues related to modern agro techniques, capacity building, transfer of knowledge know-how and support in the fields of agriculture, water management, environment and rural development, keeping in view the scope and potential of agriculture development in both the countries.
PM Narendra Modi Addresses 'Utkarsh Samaroh' in Bharuch
Modi addressed "Utkarsh Samaroh" in Gujarat's Bharuch via video conferencing to mark the 100 per cent saturation of four key state government schemes in the district which will help provide timely financial assistance to those in need.
"Utkarsh Initiative", carried out by the district administration from January 1 to March 31 this year, was aimed to ensure the complete coverage of schemes providing assistance to widows, elderly and destitute citizens. According to the the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), a total of 12,854 beneficiaries were identified across the four schemes.
May 14, 2022
India Contributes $800,000 for Public Outreach of UN in Hindi Language
India contributed USD 800,000 to the United Nations as part of the initiative to enhance public outreach of the organisation in Hindi. Country's Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations, R. Ravindra handed over a cheque for the UN project launched by India in 2018 to disseminate information about the UN to the Hindi-speaking population across the world.
India has been partnering with the UN Department of Global Communications (DGC) since2018 by providing an extra-budgetary contribution to mainstream and consolidate news and multimedia content of DGC in Hindi.
Since 2018, the UN News in Hindi is disseminated through the UN's website and social media handles and a UN Facebook Hindi page.
Rajya Sabha Poll to 57 Seats on June 10
The Election Commission announced holding polls on June 10 to fill 57 Rajya Sabha seats from 15 states falling vacant due to the retirement of members on different dates between June and August, which include two seats each from Punjab and Haryana.
Prominent leaders, who are retiring during the period include Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, Congress leaders Jairam Ramesh and Kapil Sibal, and BSP's Satish Chandra Misra. All these members are retiring between June 21 and August 1.
While 11 seats are falling vacant in Uttar Pradesh, six members each are retiring from Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra, five from Bihar and four each from Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan and Karnataka. The notification for the polls will be issued on May 24 and voting will be held on June 10. According to established practice, counting will take place an hour after the conclusion of polling.
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