1) World Habitat Day 2018: 1 October
•World Habitat Day was established in 1985 by the United Nations General Assembly through Resolution 40/202 and was first celebrated in 1986. The purpose of World Habitat Day is to reflect on the state of our towns and cities, and on the basic right of all to adequate shelter.
2) International Day Of Older Persons: 1 October
•The International Day of Older Persons is observed on October 1 each year to recognize the contributions of older persons and to examine issues that affect their lives. The theme for the 2018 celebration is “Celebrating Older Human Rights champions”.
•On December 14, 1990, the United Nations General Assembly voted to establish October 1 as the International Day of Older Persons. The day was observed for the first time on October 1, 1991. The day is celebrated by raising awareness about issues affecting the elderly, such as senescence and elder abuse.
3) Petroleum Minister Launches SATAT Initiative
•Mr. Dharmendra Pradhan, Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas & Skill Development and Entrepreneurship launched an innovative initiative titled SATAT (Sustainable Alternative Towards Affordable Transportation).
•This initiative would benefit both vehicle-users as well as farmers and entrepreneurs. It has been launched with PSU Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) to set up Compressed Bio-Gas (CBG) production plants and make available CBG in the market for use in automotive fuels.
4) AYUSH Information Cell Set Up At Indian Embassy In Romania
•Ministry of AYUSH has set up an AYUSH Information Cell at the premises of the Indian Embassy in Romania to disseminate authentic information about AYUSH system of medicine and encourage Ayurveda practice in Romania.
•The AYUSH Information Cell, Romania will help to organise lectures, consultation, conduct seminars, training courses and facilitate associations of AYUSH stakeholders for networking conducting meetings, develop awareness of AYUSH system among public in Romania.
5) Goa And Portugal Inks MoU For Water And Sewage Management
•The MoU between the Portuguese Environment Ministry and Goa Public Works Department (PWD) was signed. It will help Goa manage its water resources better.
•The signing of the two-year long arrangement is a significant move to work in tandem to develop common initiatives for water supply and wastewater management in the state. The projects would include:
1. Opa water supply project in north Goa,
2. Sewage water treatment plant in Valpoi and
3. Manganese-removal efforts in Selaulim Reservoir.
6) Kolkata Gets India's 1st Comprehensive City-Level Flood Forecasting And Warning System
•Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) launched a Flood Forecasting and Early Warning System (FFEWS)for Kolkata City. It is also India’s first comprehensive city-level FFEWS. It will reduce economic loss and impacts on livelihood and improve flood awareness and safety at the community level.
•The Asian Development Bank (ADB) funded the design and implementation of the FFEWS through a $1 million technical assistance to KMC from its Urban Climate Change Resilience Trust Fund under the Urban Financing Partnership Facility.
7) Maharashtra Tops List Of States With Maximum Average AUM: AMFI
•According to Association of Mutual Funds of India’s (AMFI) statistics, Maharashtra tops the chart for state with the maximum penetration and Assets Under Management (AUM). Also, as per August, average assets under management (AUM) of mutual funds rose to an all-time high of Rs 25.2 lakh crore across the country.
•For Maharashtra, it touched Rs 10.35 lakh crore, about 41.1% of the all-India total. It is followed by Delhi having Rs 2.35 lakh crore and Karnataka having Rs 1.76 lakh crore.
8) Government Constitutes Competition Law Review Committee
•In pursuance of its objective of ensuring that Legislation is in sync with the needs of strong economic fundamentals, the Government has constituted a Competition Law Review Committee to review the Competition Act. The Committee will be headed by Injeti Srinivas, Secretary of the Union Ministry of Corporate Affairs.
•The Competition Act was passed in the year 2002 and the Competition Commission of India was set up in pursuance of the same. The Commission started functioning in right earnest from 2009.
9) US And Canada Sign Trade Deal Replacing NAFTA
•Canada agreed to sign a trade deal with the United States and Mexico, revamping the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) after almost a year of negotiations. The new deal has been named the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).
•The trilateral pact is expected to be signed by the three North American countries, after which it would be submitted to Congress. Under the agreement, Canada has agreed to export a quota of 2.6 million vehicles to the United States in the wake of 25% global autos tariffs imposed by the US on national security grounds.
10) India's External Debt Declines 2.8% At June-End: RBI
•As per the RBI, India's external debt declined 2.8% to USD 514.4 billion at June-end over the previous quarter on account of a decrease in commercial borrowings, short-term debt and non-resident Indian (NRI) deposits. At end-June 2018, the external debt was placed at USD 514.4 billion, recording a decrease of USD 14.9 billion over its level at end-March 2018.
•The decrease in the magnitude of external debt was primarily due to valuation gains resulting from the appreciation of the US dollar against the Indian rupee and major currencies. The external debt to GDP ratio stood at 20.4% at end-June 2018, a shade lower than its level of 20.5% at end-March 2018.
