1) National Epilepsy Day observed on 17 November
•In India, November 17 is observed every year as National Epilepsy Day by the Epilepsy Foundation, to create awareness about epilepsy. Epilepsy is a chronic disorder of the brain characterized by recurrent ‘seizures’ or ‘fits’. The month of November is observed as ‘National Epilepsy Awareness Month’.
2) World COPD Day 2021: 17 November
•World COPD Day is observed on the third Wednesday of November every year to raise awareness about chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and improve COPD care throughout the world. The World COPD Day 2021 falls on November 17, 2021. The 2021 theme is Healthy Lungs – Never More Important.
3) PM Modi to open presiding officers meet in Shimla
•Prime Minister Narendra Modi has inaugurated the 82nd All India Presiding Officers Conference (AIPOC) in Shimla. The first Conference was held in Shimla in 1921 and the AIPOC is being held in Shimla for the seventh time. All India Presiding Officers’ Conference (AIPOC) is celebrating its hundred years in 2021. In this conference, various issues will be discussed such as the responsibility of presiding officers towards the Constitution, the House and the people.
•Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla has presided over the conference. The Conference attended by the Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha and the presiding officers of all the States and Union Territories added the Lok Sabha speaker. Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur also participate in the meeting.
4) Arunachal Pradesh Govt adopted ‘Pakke Declaration’ on climate change
•The government of Arunachal Pradesh approved the ‘Pakke Tiger Reserve 2047 Declaration on Climate Change Resilient and Responsive Arunachal Pradesh’, which aims to promote “climate-resilient development” in the state. The announcement is the first of its kind by any state government in the country.
•For the first time, the State’s Cabinet meeting was conducted outside the capital Itanagar, at Pakke Tiger Reserve, where the ‘Pakke Declaration’ was adopted. The ‘Pakke Declaration’ focuses on a multi-sectoral approach to low-emission and climate-resilient development based on five broad themes, or Panch Dharas.
5) India’s 1st grass conservatory inaugurated in Ranikhet, Uttarakhand
•India’s first ‘grass conservatory’ or ‘germplasm conservation centre’ spread over an area of 2 acres was inaugurated at Ranikhet in Almora district of Uttarakhand. This conservatory is funded under the Central Government’s CAMPA (Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority) scheme and is developed by the research wing of the Uttarakhand Forest Department. To create awareness about the importance of grass species, promote their conservation, and facilitate research in the field.
6) “The Disruptor: How Vishwanath Pratap Singh Shook India” by Debashish Mukerji
•A book titled ‘The Disruptor: How Vishwanath Pratap Singh Shook India’ was authored by Debashish Mukerji. The book presents a detailed account on India’s eighth Prime Minister (PM), Vishwanath Pratap Singh (V P Singh), who served as PM between December 1989 to November 1990. He also served as the Defence Minister of India & the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh.
7) Three-day ‘Rashtra Raksha Samparpan Parv’ to be held in Jhansi
•3-day Rashtra Raksha Samparpan Parv will be held in Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh as part of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav celebrations. 19th of November is the Birth Anniversary of Rani Lakshmi Bai, the epitome of bravery and courage and a great National icon of Rashtra Raksha and India’s Independence struggle. As a part of ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’, Rashtra Raksha Samparpan Parv will be organised from November 17 to November 19, 2021.
•This event is being organised by the defence ministry in association with the Government of Uttar Pradesh. On November 19, the programme will witness the participation from Defence Minister, Minister of State for Defence, Governor of Uttar Pradesh, Anandiben Patel and Chief Minister of UP, Yogi Adityanath.
8) WPI in October at five-month high of 12.54%
•Ministry of Commerce & Industry released its data on Wholesale Price Index (WPI). As per Ministry’s data, provisional Wholesale Price Index (WPI) based inflation have been accelerated to a five-month high to 12.54% in October 2021 as against 66% recorded in September. This rise was attributed to an increase in fuel and manufacturing prices. The report notes that, benchmark inflation print has remained in double digits for seven consecutive months.
9) Tamil film Koozhangal selected to be screened at IFFI 2021
•Tamil film Koozhangal will be screened at the Indian Panorama segment in the 52 International film festival Goa. Koozhangal is also India’s official entry for Academy Award for Oscars. It is a story about the relationship between an alcoholic, abusive husband and his wife. The story is from the viewpoint of their Child.
•The 52 International Film Festival of India will be organized from 20 -28 November 2021 in Goa. The International Film Festival of India is one of India’s biggest international film festivals.
10) RBI introduces Internal Ombudsman mechanism for select NBFCs
•The Reserve Bank of India has announced to introduce the Internal Ombudsman mechanism for the following two types of Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs). These two types of NBFCs are Deposit-taking NBFCs (NBFCs-D) with 10 or more branches and Non-Deposit taking NBFCs (NBFCs-ND) with asset size of Rs.5,000 crore and above having public customer interface.
•Consequently, these two categories of NBFCs will have to appoint Internal Ombudsman (IO). The internal Ombudsman will be responsible for handling the public grievance at the entity level before the grievance is escalated to Ombudsman at RBI. RBI has given a timeline of six months to the NBFCs for the appointment of the Internal Ombudsman.
