NATIONAL NEWS

‘Ayurveda for One Health’ to be Celebrated

· It has been decided to celebrate the global success of the 'Ayurveda for One Health' campaign on 10 November 2023, the 8th 'Ayurveda Day' in Panchkula.

· This was announced by Union Minister of State for AYUSH Dr. Munjpara Mahendrabhai.

· The global Ayurveda Day campaign concludes in Panchkula, Haryana on November 9th and 10th.

· Various organizations associated with the Ministry of AYUSH have connected farmers, youth and the general public across the country with the 'Ayurveda for One Health' campaign through various activities.

· CCRAS, the key organizer of 'Ayurveda Day,' launched the micro website www.ayurvedaday.org.in to link global participants to the 'Ayurveda for One Health' campaign.

Cinematographers To Join 75 Creative Minds of Tomorrow

· The 54th edition of the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) is about to begin and 75 talented filmmakers and artistes across India have been selected for the third edition of the '75 Creative Minds of Tomorrow' initiative.

· For this, the much awaited list of participants selected by the Selection Jury and Grand Jury Panel has been announced.

· 75 Creative Minds of Tomorrow features 75 talented youth from across India across 10 categories.

· These promising cinematic talents of the future hail from 19 states and union territories of India.

· Most of the talent has been selected from Maharashtra, followed by Delhi, West Bengal, Haryana and Tamil Nadu.

· Participants will get an opportunity to showcase and show their talent by participating in a group competition for making short films under the “48 Hours Film Making Challenge”.

· Under this, the participants will showcase their interpretation of "Mission Life" through their films in 48 hours.

State's First Export Promotion Policy to Boost Exports

· To promote exports in the state, Maharashtra Government has approved the first Export Promotion Policy of the state.

· This policy will be implemented till 2027-28 and will bring about Rs 25 thousand crore investments in the state.  

· This policy will benefit about 5000 industries in the state, will also create 40000 employment opportunities and will help in increasing the exports of the state by 14%.

IBM And AWS Launched An Innovation Lab

· IBM and Amazon Web Services (AWS) have announced the launch of an Innovation Lab situated at the IBM Client Experience Center in Bengaluru, India.

· This marks a significant expansion of their collaborative services, with a focus on empowering mutual clients through the capabilities of generative artificial intelligence (AI).

· The Innovation Lab is structured into experience zones, each concentrating on different technology areas supported by generative AI and machine learning.

· The segmentation allows clients to explore and understand the specific applications of these technologies.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

India Signs MoI with Netherlands

· The MoI was signed at a meeting between Bhagwant Khuba, Union Minister of State for Chemicals and Fertilizers, and Ernst Kuipers, Minister of Health, Welfare and Sports of the Netherlands.

· An Indian delegation led by Union Minister Khuba was in the Netherlands to participate in the 2nd World Local Production Forum (WLPF) meeting was held in The Hague from 6 to 8 November 2023.

· The World Local Production Forum is a platform created at the initiative of the World Health Organization (WHO).

· The objective is to enhance access to medications and health technologies.

· The WLPF meeting, held in The Hague, provides an important opportunity to share experiences, challenges and successes in the development and manufacturing of diagnostic measures.

Malaysian Foreign Minister Dr. Abd Kadir Visit To India

· Dr. Zambri Abd Kadir, Foreign Minister of Malaysia paid an official visit to India from 05-08 November 2023.

· Malaysian Foreign Minister Dr Zambri Abdul Kadir paid a four-day visit to India at the invitation of Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.

· The JCM comprehensively reviewed the progress made in all areas of bilateral cooperation including political, defense and security, maritime cooperation, trade and investment, health, energy, science and technology, culture, tourism and people-to-people relations.

· ​The JCM, agreed on further measures to realize enhanced strategic partnership between the two and deepen economic and defense activities as well as enhance cooperation in new and emerging areas such as digital public infrastructure, fintech and semiconductors.

· Views were also exchanged on regional, multilateral and geopolitical issues of mutual interest.

BANKING

PayGlocal Receives In-Principle Approval from RBI

· PayGlocal, a payment platform with a focus on cross-border transactions, has been granted in-principle approval by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for a Payment Aggregator (PA) license.

· This license will allow PayGlocal to onboard merchants onto its platform for online payment processing.

· Founded in 2021, the company offers a technology platform that facilitates secure online payments through various instruments, including cards and global alternative payment methods.

· RBI’s new guidelines on Payment Aggregator-Cross Border (PA-CB) mark a significant step forward in terms of regulatory framework, particularly in advancing India’s cross-border payment capabilities.

· PayGlocal has received investments from prominent investors, including PeakXV (formerly known as Sequoia Capital India) and Tiger Global.

RANKS, INDICES & REPORTS

India Among Top Countries With High Income

· The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) said in a recently released report that India has emerged as one of the top countries with high income and wealth inequality.

· According to this report, the share of the population living in multidimensional poverty has fallen from 25 to 15 percent between 2015-16 and 2019-21.

· The ‘2024 Asia-Pacific Human Development Report’, presents a sobering picture of long-term progress as well as persistent inequality and widespread disruption.

· In India, between 2000 and 2022, per capita income is expected to increase from US$442 to US$2,389.

· Whereas, between 2004 and 2019, the poverty rate (based on the international poverty measure of US$2.15 per day) fell from 40 to 10 percent.

· India has been included in the top 10 countries of the world, where the income of the people has increased but it has not increased equally for all sections.

· The number of people living below the poverty line in the country has decreased from 25 percent in 2015-16 to 15 percent during 2019-21.

APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS

Surveyor General of India

· The Central Government has recently appointed senior IAS officer Hitesh Kumar S Makwana as the Surveyor General of India.

· Makwana, a 1995 batch IAS officer of Tamil Nadu cadre, is currently Additional Secretary in the Home Ministry.

· The Surveyor General of India heads the Survey of India, a department under the Ministry of Science and Technology of the Government of India.

Joint Director of the Central Bureau of Investigation

· Central Government has appointed V Chandrashekhar as Joint Director in the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for five years.

· V Chandrashekhar is a 2000-batch Gujarat-cadre Indian Police Service officer.

· He has also worked as Superintendent of Police and Deputy Inspector General in CBI.

DEFENCE

Sangram- Indian Coast Guard Ship has been Decommissioned

· Indian Coast Guard's ship Sangram was decommissioned during a program organized at Mormugao Port Authority, Goa.

· The ship was commissioned at Goa on 14 February 1996 by the Prime Minister of India PV Narasimha Rao.

· The event was held at the Ship Mole Berth, Murgaon Port Authority, Goa under the command of DIG Vijay Singh.

· It  was stationed at Mumbai under the operational command of Commander Coast Guard Area (West).

· Sangram was involved in numerous operations including anti-poaching, search and rescue and medical evacuation.