1) International Anti-Corruption Day: 9 December
•The United Nations’ (UN) International Anti-Corruption Day has been observed annually, on 9 December. The day aims to raise public awareness of corruption and what people can do to fight it. This year International Anti-Corruption Day theme is “United Against Corruption”.
2) International Day of Commemoration and Dignity of the Victims of the Crime of Genocide and of the Prevention of this Crime: 9 December
•The United Nations General Assembly established 9 December as the International Day of Commemoration and Dignity of the Victims of the Crime of Genocide and of the Prevention of this Crime. The 9th of December is the anniversary of the adoption of the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (the “Genocide Convention”). This year marks the 70th anniversary of the Convention.
•The purpose of the day is to raise awareness of the Genocide Convention and its role in combating and preventing the crime of genocide, as defined in the Convention, and to commemorate and honour its victims.
3) President lays foundation stone for Paika Rebellion memorial in Odisha
•President Ram Nath Kovind laid the foundation stone to the memorial being built in memory of the Paika rebellion, a 200-year-old armed revolt in 1817 against the British East India Company in Odisha. The proposed project will come up at the foothills of Barunei hills in Khurda district, Odisha.
•The memorial is seen as an epitome of Odisha’s valour and will serve as an inspiration for the youth. A chair in the name of Buxi Jagabandhu who led this revolt has been established with a Rs 5 crore grant and memorial coin and stamp issued to mark the two hundred years of the event.
4) Israeli student’s made satellite “Duchifat-3” to be launched from Sriharikota
•The “Duchifat-3”, Israeli student’s made satellite will be launched from ISRO’s Sriharikota launch site. “Duchifat-3” is a satellite jointly built by Herzliya Science Center and Sha’ar HaNegev High School students of Israel. It is a remote sensing satellite through which students from all schools across the country will be able to experiment and carry through Earth observation. “Duchifat-3” is the 3rd in the series of Israeli student-made satellites.
•Duchifat-3 weigheing 2.3 kg is a photo satellite to be used for ecological research of Earth from space.
5) Haryana CM inaugurates Integrated Command and Control Centre
•Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar has inaugurated Gurgaon’s ambitious Integrated Command and Control Centre (ICCC). It has been developed as the nerve centre to provide multifaceted online smart services to people.
•The ICCC has been designed to serve as the nodal point for all online data related to the Smart City applications, including CCTV-based public safety and adaptive traffic management system, smart parking system, water supply management system, pollution monitoring, property tax management system and asset management system. The Integrated Command and Control Centre was built at the cost of 38 crore rupees.
6) Human Library event in Mysuru
•Human Library event, a concept which seeks to replace books with humans, will be held in the City of Palaces, Mysuru, Karnataka. The first event of the Human Library aims to break past long-standing prejudices and stereotypes by creating a safe framework for conservation by using a library analogy of lending people rather than books. It intends to generate greater human cohesion across various social, religious and ethnic diversities.
•The notion of Human Library was initially launched in the year 2000 and currently exists in more than 85 countries, known as The Human Library Organization. In India, Human Library is spread across various metropolitan cities including Hyderabad, Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru.
7) Finland elects Sanna Marin, the youngest-ever Prime Minister
•Finland’s Social Democrats elected 34-year-old Sanna Marin to the post of the prime minister, making her the youngest head of government in the country’s history. Her appointment is unlikely to lead to significant policy changes by the Social Democrat-led administration.
8) Bangabandhu BPL inaugurated by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina
•Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the special edition of Bangabandhu Bangladesh Premier League (BBPL) T20 cricket championship to mark Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s birth centenary in 2020.
•A total of 7 teams are participating in the BBPL event. They will play 46 matches including the 4 playoff matches. The BBPL final will be held on January 17, 2020. This is the first time that the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) is organizing the Premier League matches without involving any franchise.
9) Girish Chandra Chaturvedi appointed as new chairman of NSE
•The National Stock Exchange of India Ltd (NSE) has appointed Girish Chandra Chaturvedi as its new chairman. The appointment was approved by Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi).
•Girish Chandra Chaturvedi is a retired IAS officer and former Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas. He is presently on the board of ICICI Bank and the member of the government appointed board of Infrastructure Leasing and Financial Services Ltd (IL&FS).
10) 8th edition of Embassy’s annual film festival inaugurated at Riyadh
•The 8th edition of the Embassy’s annual film festival titled “Ambassador’s Choice: Screening of Films” was inaugurated at the auditorium of Embassy of India, Riyadh. Embassy’s annual film festival titled “Ambassador’s Choice: Screening of Films” saw the popular Hindi film ‘Dangal’ screened at Riyadh, which drew a large number of audience.
11) Miss South Africa crowned 2019 Miss Universe
•Miss South Africa Zozibini Tunzi was crowned Miss Universe 2019 in Atlanta, US. Ms Tunzi beat over 90 contestants from around the globe in the 68th instalment of Miss Universe. Miss Universe Puerto Rico Madison Anderson was the runner-up in this contest. The Philippines’ Catriona Gray, who presented Ms Tunzi the crown, was the Miss Universe winner in 2018.
12) FIA invites Anand Kumar for India’s Republic Day celebrations in New York
•The Federation of Indian Association (FIA) has invited Super 30 founder Anand Kumar to a function on the eve of India’s Republic Day celebrations in New York. The Federation of Indian Association is the oldest organisation of the non-resident Indians. Year “2020” also marks the 50th anniversary of FIA. Anand Kumar has been invited for his contribution in the field of education through his programme ‘Super 30’.
•‘Super 30’ is a programme that prepares 30 students from underprivileged sections of society for the prestigious IIT entrance test every year, without any fees.
