1) 1st WHO Global Ministerial Conference on Ending TB held in Russia
•The WHO Global Ministerial Conference “Ending TB in the Sustainable Development Era: A Multisectoral Response” was held in Moscow, Russia.
•It aims to accelerate implementation of the WHO End TB Strategy - with immediate action. A Ministerial Declaration was signed at the Conference, containing bold commitments by countries to accelerate action to end TB and meet the milestones towards the 2030 SDGs. This will inform the UN General Assembly High Level Meeting on TB in 2018.
2) India, France Agree to Deepen Security Co-operation
•India and France have agreed to deepen security cooperation, bilaterally and in the multilateral fora, and strengthen strong commitment to combating terrorism in all its forms and manifestations.
•After holding delegation-level talks with Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs of France Jean Yves-Le Drain,External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj stated both countries have vowed to get rid of the menace of terrorism.
3) AVPS Chakravarthi Appointed World Packaging Organisation Ambassador
•Ecobliss India managing director AVPS Chakravarthi has been appointed as the ambassador of World Packaging Organisation at its 99th board meeting held in Rio de Geneiro, Brazil.
•He has served as chairman of Indian Institute of Packaging, Hyderabad and has been on the board of Indian Institute of Packaging for over a decade. He has won Worldstar award for packaging excellence for five years in a row.
4) India’s First Mega Coastal Economic Zone to Come up in Maharashtra
•The government has given the go-ahead for setting up India’s first mega coastal economic zone (CEZ) at the Jawaharlal Nehru Port in Maharashtra as part of a plan to develop 14 such industrial clusters to spur manufacturing and generate jobs.
•About 45 companies across telecom, auto and IT sectors will soon bid for 200 hectares of land to set up manufacturing units in the zone. The plan envisages a total investment of Rs 15,000 crore in the first phase and creation of more than 1.5 lakh jobs.
5) Nicaragua's Sergio Ramirez Wins Spain's Cervantes Prize
•As per the Spanish government, Nicaraguan author and former politician Sergio Ramirez Mercado has won the 2017 Cervantes Prize It is the Spanish-speaking world's highest literary honor.
•Ramirez has written "Margarita, esta linda la mar" (Margarita, How Beautiful the Sea), which won Spain's prestigious Alfaguara award in 1998. Ramirez was deputy vice president of Nicaragua between 1985 and 1990.
6) Shagun Chowdhary Crowned National Women's Trap Champion
•Shagun Chowdhary bagged a National Champion Crown when she won the women's trap event at the 61st National Shooting Championship.
•Representing ONGC, Chowdhary is the first Indian woman trap shooter to win an Olympic berth, overcame the challenge from Punjab's Rajeshwari Kumari to prevail 41-38 in the final.
