1) PM Modi inaugurates Garvi Gujarat Bhavan in New Delhi
•Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Garvi Gujarat Bhavan in New Delhi. The Bhavan is equipped with traditional and modern artefacts and technologies and will serve as a home for Gujaratis in the national capital. It will represent the culture, craft and cuisine of Gujarat.
2) Tourism Minister inaugurates first-ever architectural LED illumination at Qutub Minar
•Minister of State for Culture and Tourism Prahalad Singh Patel inaugurated first-ever architectural LED illumination at the Qutub Minar. With the illumination, the architectural beauty of the 12th-century monument will display its historic majesty after sunset. Qutb Minar is a UNESCO World Heritage Site is one of most visited historical site in Delhi.
3) Vice-President Venkaiah Naidu to inaugurate ‘Aqua Aquaria India’
•Vice-President Venkaiah Naidu will inaugurate the 5th edition of the aquaculture event, Aqua Aquaria India, in Hyderabad.
•The theme for this year’s event is ‘Taking Blue Revolution to India’s Hinterland’. This event organised for encouraging diversification and intensification of aquaculture in a sustainable manner. This is an initiative of the Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) under the Commerce Ministry.
4) PM Narendra Modi to be honoured with Global Goalkeeper Award
•Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be honoured with the prestigious ‘Global Goalkeeper Award’. He will be felicitated by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation for his leadership and commitment to the Swachch Bharat Abhiyaan.
•The award is a “special recognition” that celebrates the commitment of a political leader towards the Global Goals, demonstrated through impactful work in their country and/or globally.
5) Haryana govt waives off interest & penalty of Rs 4,750 cr on crop loans
•Haryana government has announced Rs 4,750 crore interest and penalty waiver on crop loans. The waive off is for farmers who had borrowed from Primary Agriculture Cooperative Societies, District Cooperative Central Banks and Land Mortgage Bank. The step will benefit around 10 lakh farmers in the state.
6) New Health Insurance Scheme AB-MGRSBY launched in Rajasthan
•The Rajasthan government has launched a new health insurance scheme Ayushman Bharat-Mahatma Gandhi Rajasthan Swasthya Bima Yojna (AB-MGRSBY).
•The scheme is implemented after merging the Centre’s Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojna (AB-PMJAY) and the state’s Bhamashah Swasthya Bima Yojna (BSBY). With the merger of (AB-PMJAY) and (BSBY) the number of families getting benefits will be increased from 1 crore to 1.1 crores.
7) 14th Conference of Parties UNCCD begins
•The 14th Conference of Parties to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification begins in Greater Noida. During the event, India also assumed the presidency of COP for two years and Union Minister for environment took up the role of President of COP. The Convention started with an aim to combat desertification and mitigate the effects of drought to achieve sustainable development in the affected areas.
8) Prakash Javadekar Unveils New Logo, Certificate Design of CBFC
•Union Minister for Information & Broadcasting Prakash Javadekar unveiled the new logo and certificate design of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC). The introduction of a QR code in the new certificate design is in sync with the world of digital technology and will bring in greater transparency and provide information to filmmakers in a better way.
9) Raksha Mantri co-chairs Japan–India Defence Ministerial Meeting
•Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh co-chaired the Japan–India Defence Ministerial Meeting held in Tokyo, Japan. Japan’s delegation was represented by Defence Minister of Japan Mr Takeshi lwaya. The dialogue discussed ways to further strengthen the existing bilateral co-operative arrangements and adopt new initiatives towards achieving peace and security in the region.
•Raksha Mantri also paid homage to the martyrs of Japanese Self-Defence Forces at Ichigaya in Tokyo.
10) 72nd Session of the WHO Regional Committee for South-East Asia
•Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare inaugurated the 72nd Session of the WHO Regional Committee for South-East Asia held in New Delhi. The committee is the highest decision making and governing body of WHO in the region.
•Dr Harsh Vardhan was unanimously elected as Chair of the 72nd Session of the WHO Regional Committee for South-East Asia.
11) Reliance Power inks pact with JERA for power project in Bangladesh
•Reliance Power has signed a partnership agreement with Japanese energy major Japan’s Energy For a New Era (JERA). Reliance Power will hold 51 per cent stake, while JERA will hold 49 per cent stake in the joint venture company. They will jointly set up 750 mega watt gas-based combined cycle power project at Meghnaghat, Bangladesh.
12) A new book released on the history of Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
•The book, “India’s Lost Frontier the Story of the North-West Frontier Province of Pakistan”, has been penned by veteran civil servant Raghvendra Singh. He was the Director-General of the National Archives of India.
•This book on the history of Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, earlier known as the North-West Frontier Province (NWFP). This book presents the chronicles of Congress leadership in 1947 surrendered India’s claim on the “tactically important” province despite the resistance of Mahatma Gandhi and some influential political leaders of the region.
13) KVIC launches ‘Terracotta Grinder’ to reuse wasted pottery
•Khadi and Village Industries Commission has launched a ‘Terracotta Grinder’ at Sewapuri in Varanasi. The machine will be able to grind the wasted and broken pottery items for re-using in pottery-making. This Terracotta grinder will make grinding of wasted pottery items faster than the traditional mortar and pestle. It will lessen the cost of production, and will also help in solving the problem of shortage of clays.
•On the occasion, KVIC also distributed 200 Electric Potter Wheels and other pottery machines among the villagers.
