NATIONAL NEWS

54th International Film Festival of India

· Union Minister Shri Anurag Thakur announced that the 54th International Film Festival will be held from 20 to 28 November, 2023 in Goa.

· The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting is organising the 54th International Film Festival of India (IFFI).

· This is done in collaboration with the State Government of Goa and its Entertainment Society of Goa (ESG).

·  Mr Michael Douglas will receive the Satyajit Ray Lifetime Achievement Award.

· The Satyajit Ray Lifetime Achievement Award (SRLTA) is presented for Excellence in World Cinema.

· According to the Minister, there are approximately 600 entries in this sector for this year.

UP Government- To Conduct A Census of Cattle in State

· The Uttar Pradesh government has decided to conduct a comprehensive census of cows to find out the actual number of them and then plan accordingly for their welfare.

· This step has been taken to get rid of the endless problem of abandoned or stray cattle in the state.

· The Uttar Pradesh government has given instructions to conduct a census of cows in three categories for promotion and conservation of cows in the state.

· These cows will be counted in the first phase of the census.

· After this, in the second phase, an action plan related to these will be prepared and work will be done on it, so that the cows can get proper place.

· In the third phase, the state government is conserving cows through 'Kanha Upvan'.

· While ensuring the protection of cows roaming on the roads, the government is also addressing concerns to prevent inconvenience to common people and farmers.

Workshop on Accelerating Progress on the SDGs

· The NITI Aayog hosted a hybrid webinar on "Accelerating Progress on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)" at the Dr. Ambedkar International Centre.

· The webinar was co-hosted by the Institute for Human Development (IHD), the Centre for Social and Economic Progress (CSEP), and UNDP India.

· The webinar was organized around the G20 New Delhi Leaders Declaration (NDLD), which would focus on accelerating progress on the SDGs.

· The NDLD lays out paths for nations to follow on their route to attaining the SDGs.

· The Government of India's key agency for coordinating the adoption and monitoring of SDGs at the national and sub-national levels is NITI Aayog.

· One of the NDLD's primary themes was steps to achieve Strong, Sustainable, Balanced, and Inclusive Growth (SSBIG).

APEDA Signs MoU with Lulu Hypermarket

· APEDA inks Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Lulu Hypermarket for export promotion of millets in GCC countries.

· The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) participates in 28th edition of Gulfood 2023.

· APEDA aims to promote millet products and value-added products around the world in association with Lulu Group, which is an international retail hypermarket chain that operates stores and shopping malls.

·  As per the agreement, the Lulu Group will facilitate promotional activities for millet products and enable the country to display millets and its value added products, ready to eat products in international retail chains by sourcing it from Farmer Producer Organizations, Farmer Producer Companies, women entrepreneurs and startups.

Children’s Science Festival

· Union Minister of State for Science and Technology Dr Jitendra Singh inaugurated the 'Children Science Festival' organized by CSIR-Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine (CSIR-IIIM) in Jammu.

· Jigyasa is a student-scientist connect programme implemented by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in collaboration with Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan (KVS).

· The minister applauded the efforts of CSIR-IIIM for organizing such outreach activities for students from schools and colleges.

· Such activities help increase scientific aptitude and inculcates the spirit of innovation and entrepreneurship in young minds.
 

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Union Ministry of Tourism participates in WTM 2023, London

· The Union Ministry of Tourism is participating in the World Travel Market (WTM), London from 06 to 08 November 2023 along with various stakeholders including travel operators and state tourism departments

· The Ministry of Tourism created the Incredible India Pavilion at the World Tourism Market (WTM) 2023, London, under the theme ‘Incredible India! Visit India Year 2023’, a range of tourism products and transformative experiences are being showcased for visitors to India.

· Under WTM 2023, a total of 47 participants including travel operation companies/DMCs, state tourism departments of Delhi, Uttarakhand, Jammu and Kashmir, Bihar, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, Odisha, Assam and Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) will be present at the Incredible India Pavilion.

· During its participation, the Ministry of Tourism wishes to use WTM 2023, London as a platform to bring together professionals from different sectors of the travel and tourism industry.

· The platform will be used for networking, business opportunities, exchange of ideas and information.

New Member of The International Solar Alliance

· Chile has become the 95th member of the International Solar Alliance ISA.

· Chile handed over the Instrument of ISA ratification during the meeting of Ambassador Juan Angulo of Chile with Joint Secretary (Economic Diplomacy) in Ministry of External Affairs Abhishek Singh in New Delhi.

· ISA is an alliance of more than 120 signatory countries.

· The International Solar Alliance was established as a joint effort of India and France.

· Currently, 116 countries are signatories to the ISA Framework Agreement.

Second 'World Local Production Forum'

· The Indian delegation led by the Union Minister of State for Chemicals and Fertilizers is participating in the 2nd 'World Local Production Forum' in The Hague.

· This is an initiative of the World Health Organization.

· The first World Local Production Forum was organized in the year 2021.

· It is being organized from 06 November to 08 November 2023.

 

BANKING

RBI Announces Phased Discontinuation of I-CRR

· The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has unveiled a plan to gradually discontinue the Incremental Cash Reserve Ratio (I-CRR) in response to evolving liquidity conditions.

· This strategic move aims to ensure that the financial system remains stable and money markets operate smoothly.

· Governor Das emphasized that the I-CRR was always intended as a “temporary measure” to address the liquidity surplus.

· The net impact of this incremental CRR, according to the RBI’s internal calculations, amounted to slightly over ₹1 lakh crore.

· This phased discontinuation of the I-CRR is a significant development in India’s monetary policy, aiming to maintain financial stability and manage liquidity in a controlled manner.

RBI to Impose Monetary Penalty

· Monetary penalties have been imposed on four co-operative banks and a non-banking financial company (NBFC) as a result of their failure to adhere to RBI’s guidelines.

· Shree Lodra Nagarik Sahakari Bank, located in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, has been slapped with a monetary penalty of ₹4.00 lakh by the RBI.

·  The penalty was imposed for non-compliance with RBI’s directives on ‘Loans and advances to directors, relatives, and firms/concerns in which they are interested’ and ‘Placement of Deposits with Other Banks by Primary (Urban) Co-operative Banks (UCBs)’.

· Malpur Nagarik Sahakari Bank, located in Aravalli, Gujarat, incurred a monetary penalty of ₹3.50 lakh from the RBI.

· The Jolarpet Co-operative Urban Bank, situated in Vellore, Tamil Nadu, faced a monetary penalty of ₹50,000 by the RBI.

· Limbasi Urban Co-operative Bank, located in Kheda, Gujarat, received a monetary penalty of ₹25,000 from the RBI.

· The bank sanctioned a loan where a relative of one of its directors acted as a guarantor.

· Early Salary Services Private Limited, based in Pune, faced a monetary penalty of ₹3.20 lakh.

· The RBI noted that the company failed to establish a system of internal audit for all outsourced activities.

 

SPORTS

Sunil Narine Announced his Retirement from International Cricket

· West Indies mystery spinner Sunil Narine has announced his retirement from international cricket.

· 35-year-old Narine has played 6 Tests, 65 ODIs and 51 T20 matches.

· Sunil Narine has taken 165 international wickets for West Indies.

· Narine last played for West Indies in 2019. Narine said that he will continue to play franchise based league.

Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy

· Punjab cricket team has won the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy title for the first time by defeating Baroda team.

· Anmolpreet Singh has become the first cricketer to score a century in the final of Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.

·  Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy is a domestic T-20 cricket championship in India, which is organized by BCCI.

 

IMPORTANT DAYS

National Cancer Awareness Day

· National Cancer Awareness Day is observed on 07 November in India every year since 2014.

· The day aims to create public awareness about early detection, prevention, and treatment of cancer.

· According to the World Health Organization (WHO), cancer is the second leading cause of death worldwide, representing nearly 1 in 6 deaths globally.

· On this day, various healthcare organisations, government agencies, and non-profit groups collaborate to organise awareness campaigns, seminars, and screenings to mark National Cancer Awareness Day and work towards reducing the burden of cancer nationwide.