1) World Day for International Justice: 17 July
•The World Day for International Justice, (also known as Day of International Criminal Justice or International Justice Day), is celebrated globally on July 17 to support and recognize the work of the International Criminal Court (ICC).
•The day marks the anniversary of the adoption of the Rome Statute on July 17, 1998, the treaty that created the International Criminal Court. It came about when 120 states adopted a statute in Rome. It was known as the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, All the countries that agreed to adopt the statute were accepting the jurisdiction of the ICC.
2) Maharashtra govt launches new EV Policy 2021
•The Maharashtra state government has launched the new Electric Vehicle Policy-2021. The policy announced by the State Environment Minister, Aaditya Thackeray aims to accelerate the adoption of Battery Electric Vehicles in the country. The new EV policy introduced in Maharashtra is a revision of the 2018 policy. It is introduced with an aim to make Maharashtra the “topmost producer of battery-powered electric vehicles in India.”
•The policy also aims for electric vehicles (EVs) to make up 10 per cent of all new vehicle registrations, by 2025. For this ambitious mission, the state government has rolled out an Rs. 930 crore policy, valid up to 31st March 2025. To make this successful, EVs will be exempted from road tax and registration charges.
3) ‘Bonalu’ festivities to begin in Telangana
•‘Bonalu’ is a traditional folk festival celebrated every year in the Telugu month of Ashadham (falling in June/July), in the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad, and some other parts of Telangana state. The Bonalu festival was declared a ‘state festival’ by the K Chandrasekhar Rao-led government after the state’s formation back in 2014.
4) Andhra govt announces 10% reservation for EWS
•The Andhra Pradesh government announced a 10% reservation for the Kapu community and other Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) for appointments in the initial posts and services in State government in accordance with the Constitution (103rd Amendment) Act, 2019. The 10% reservation in employment will benefit Kapus who are neither benefited under BC quota nor under EWS quota and other Open Competition (OC) sections who are deprived of the benefits of reservation thus far due to non-implementation of the EWS quota.
5) India’s first pod taxi to operate between Noida Airport and Film City
•Indian Port Rail and Ropeway Corporation Ltd (IPRCL) has prepared a Detailed Project Report or DPR for the pod taxi service between Noida Airport at Jewar and Film City. There are plans to run a driverless taxi between the two destinations. This will cost about Rs 862 crore, according to the detailed project report (DPR) submitted to the Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (Yeida). This is a 14 km stretch. This will be India’s first pod taxi service.
•Pod taxis can accommodate four to six passengers per car. This important project will provide smooth connectivity to residential and industrial areas falling between film city and the Noida International Airport. As per the DPR, the corridor will pass through various sectors such as 21, 28, 29, 30 and 32, among others, falling under the Yeida region.
6) India, Sri Lanka and Maldives hold virtual trilateral exercise TTX-2021
•Top defence officials from India, Sri Lanka and the Maldives participated in a virtual trilateral tabletop exercise “TTX-2021”. The exercise focused on maritime crimes like curbing narcotics and assistance in maritime search and rescue in the region. The two-day exercise, TTX-2021 aimed at enhancing mutual understanding and exchange of best practices procedures for countering common transnational crime was coordinated by the Maritime Warfare Centre, Mumbai.
7) Digital Platform “Kisan Sarathi” launched to facilitate farmers
•In order to facilitate farmers to get ‘right information at right time’ in their desired language, a digital platform namely ‘KisanSarathi’ was launched jointly by Narendra Singh Tomar, Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare. This initiative of KisanSarathi empowers farmers with technological interventions to reach farmers in remote areas.
•The ICAR Scientists to take-up research on new technological interventions in the area of transportation of farmer’s crop from their farm gate to warehouses, markets and the places where they want to sell with minimum damage. Union IT Minister assured that Ministry of Electronics and IT and Ministry of Communications will always be ready to provide all necessary support to Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare and Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying for Empowerment of Farmers. He also mentioned that the Ministry of Railways is making a plan to minimise the time taken for the transportation of crops.
8) Covid vaccination campaign for pregnant women in Kerala, “Mathrukavacham”
•The Kerala government’s campaign ‘Mathrukavacham’ to vaccinate all the pregnant women in the state against COVID-19 infection was inaugurated at the district level recently. Spot registrations for vaccination of pregnant women would be carried out at various government hospitals. Pregnant women can receive the COVID vaccine at any time during their pregnancy. The special vaccination drive comes as a strong defence to protect pregnant women.
