NATIONAL NEWS

DPIIT Organises Startup India Innovation Week 2024

The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) is organising the Startup India Innovation Week 2024 from 10 January to bring together the country’s startups, entrepreneurs, investors, policymakers, and other stakeholders.

The Startup India initiative was launched by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 16th January 2016 to build a strong ecosystem for nurturing innovation, boosting startups, and encouraging investments in the startup ecosystem of the country.

Commerce and Industry Ministry said, the Indian startup ecosystem has grown from strength to strength over the years.

It said the number of recognised startups has increased to over one lakh 17 lakh thousand from about four hundred startups in 2016.

Land Ports Authority Releases Report On Gender-Inclusive Framework

Land Ports Authority of India (LPAI) has released a report on 'Engendering Land Ports in India' in New Delhi.

The main objective of the report is to develop a framework for gender inclusive cross border trade and tourism through land Ports in the country.

Chairman of LPAI Aditya Mishra, a step towards making a gender-positive environment.

The Land Ports Authority of India will implement the recommendation of the reports to make land Ports more gender neutral.

Shri Nitin Gadkari Inaugurates, Lays Foundation Stones of 29 Highway Projects

Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Shri Nitin Gadkari inaugurated 29 National Highway projects with an investment of more than Rs 4,000 crore in Hoshiarpur, Punjab.

The Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry, Shri Som Prakash, Punjab BJP State President Shri Sunil Kumar along with MPs, MLAs and officials were also present on the occasion.

The implementation of the projects inaugurated and foundation stone laid will improve the infrastructure, which will lead to overall economic development of the implementation area and improve the quality of life of the population.

There will be seamless and free movement of traffic which will also improve the efficiency of freight transportation.

PM To Inaugurate 27th National Youth Festival In Nashik, Maharashtra

Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi will inaugurate the 27th National Youth Festival in Nashik, Maharashtra on 12th January and will address the youth of the nation.

This year, National Youth Day will be celebrated by all field organisations of the Department of Youth Affairs in districts pan-India in collaboration with multiple Government departments.

‘MY Bharat’ volunteers throughout the country, with support from NSS units, NYKS and many educational institutions will coordinate their energies to carry out activities to volunteer for India.

Youth Clubs will also bring their vibrant energy to the celebration, ensuring a truly inclusive atmosphere.

More than 88,000 volunteers will participate in the campaign.

Road safety awareness events will be conducted at major cities and 750 districts headquarters of the country on 12th January.

ITC Joins Hands with Microsoft and Skymet

ITC, a prominent Indian conglomerate, has joined forces with Microsoft and Skymet to address the escalating challenges faced by tobacco farmers in India due to climate change.

To combat the challenges posed by climate change, ITC has formulated a comprehensive program in collaboration with Microsoft and Skymet.

This initiative incorporates cutting-edge technologies such as drones, AI, and data analytics to provide accurate weather forecasts, crop advisories, hotspot mapping, and nutritional supplementation.

The negative effects of climate change on agriculture are well documented, and the tobacco industry is no exception, with an estimated loss of 800-900 crore in export profits.

Assam Government Initiates 'Gunotsav 2024'

'Gunotsav 2024' has been launched by the Assam Government for holistic assessment of students' performance.

It has been launched for holistic assessment of the performance of about 40 lakh students of 43,498 government schools in 35 districts of the state.

Gunotsav, an initiative of the Government of Assam, is covering all government primary and secondary schools in the state.

The services of 18,098 external evaluators will be used for this evaluation process, starting in all the primary and secondary schools of the state.

The first phase will cover 12 districts from January 3 to 6,2024 the second phase will cover 13 districts from January 10 to 12, and the final phase will cover the remaining 10 districts from February 6 to 8, 2024.

'Gunotsav 2024' will identify learning gaps in each child and ensure quality education with grade-specific outcomes.

'Gunotsav' encourages the active participation of all stakeholders, including teachers, students, administrators, and local communities.

The engagement of these key players is expected to foster accountability and contribute to the overall enhancement of the quality of education.

Odisha Secures Geographical Indication (GI) Tag

The Similipal kai chutney made with red weaver ants by the tribal people of Odisha’s Mayurbhanj district (Odisha) received the geographical identity tag.

The application was made by The Mayurbhanj Kai Society Ltd in 2020 for registration in Class 30 under sub-section (1) of section 13 of Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999.

The savoury chutney is popular in Mayurbhanj region for its healing properties and also deemed important for nutritional security of the tribal people.

Many indigenous people from Mayurbhanj district venture into nearby forest to collect kai pimpudi (red weaver ant).

Around 500 tribal families have been eking out a living by collecting and selling these insects and a chutney made with them.

The red weaver ants are indigenous to Mayurbhanj and are found in abundance in the jungles of every block area of the district, including in the Similipal Tiger Reserve, throughout the year.

 

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

India and UAE Signed Four MOUs at Gujarat Summit

At the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit, India exchanged four MOUs with the UAE.

Addressing the media at Mahatma Mandir in Gandhinagar, Secretary of the Ministry of External Affairs Vinay Mohan Kwatra, the MoUs are related to Investment cooperation in innovative healthcare, renewable energy, food parks and logistics cooperation.

Totally 35 countries have participated in the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit as partner countries.

Mr Kwatra also told the media that India and the Czech Republic agreed to build a strategic partnership in fields such as research and technology at the Summit.

 

RANKS, INDICES & REPORTS

Global Unemployment Set To Reach 5.2% In 2024, ILO Reports

The International Labour Organization (ILO) released a report named ‘World Employment and Social Outlook Report 2024’ on 10 January 2024.

ILO claimed in its report that the global unemployment rate is expected to increase to 5.2 percent in the year 2024.

The ILO's 2024 'World Employment and Social Outlook' report estimates that the number of unemployed people will increase to 2 million.

The global unemployment rate will increase from 5.1 percent in 2023 to 5.2 percent in 2024.

The main reason for the rising unemployment rate is the increase in unemployment in advanced economies.

The report underscores inequalities between nations with high and low incomes. Refers to high unemployment and poverty rates in low-income countries.

It also reveals that a significant portion of the global workforce remains in informal employment.

Henley Passport Index 2024

The Henley Passport Index 2024 was released by Henley & Partners, a global citizenship and residency consultancy, which evaluated passports of 199 countries.

A total of 6 countries across the world have secured top positions in the 2024 Henley Passport Index.

The countries with the most powerful passports in the world include France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Japan and Singapore.

Passports from all these countries provide visa-free access to 194 destinations.

South Korea, Finland and Sweden are second in this list. These three countries facilitate visa-free access to 193 countries.

Austria, Denmark, Ireland and the Netherlands are in third place. These countries facilitate visa-free travel to 192 countries.

India ranks 80th in the 2024 Henley Passport Index.

India's passport facilitates visa-free access to 62 countries.

The world's least powerful passport is from Afghanistan. It is ranked 104th with a reach of 28 countries.

 

APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS

MD and CEO of NARCL

P Santhosh, Chief General Manager at Canara Bank, appointed as Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of National Asset Reconstruction Company Limited (NARCL).

Natarajan Sundar, the former MD and CEO of NARCL, resigned from the post.

Natarajan Sundar is the second person among NARCL's top management to resign from the post before completing their tenure.

He carries over three decades of experience in the banking sector, spanning across Corporate & Wholesale Banking, Corporate Credit, International Banking, Project Finance, etc.

 

DEFENCE

DRDO Launches an Indigenous Assault Rifle Named 'Ugram'

Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) has launched an indigenous assault rifle, ‘Ugram’, of 7.62x51 mm calibre for the armed forces.

This assault rifle has been unveiled by Dr Shailendra V Gade, Director General, Armament and Combat Engineering Systems, DRDO, in Pune.

These assault rifles have been designed considering the needs of the armed forces, paramilitary forces and state police units.

'Ugram' is a state-of-the-art indigenous assault rifle.

It has been developed by DRDO's Pune-based lab Armament Research and Development Establishment (ARDE) in collaboration with Hyderabad-based Dwipa Armor India Private Limited.

It was developed in under 100 days.

This rifle has been designed on the basis of the General Staff Qualitative Requirements (GSQR) of the Indian Army.

The rifle has an effective range of 500 meters and weighs less than four kilograms.

Indian Navy Unveils 'Drishti 10 Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV)'

Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar has unveiled the 'Drishti 10 Unmanned Aerial Vehicle' (UAV) at a ceremony held at Adani Aerospace Park in Hyderabad.

Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) was built indigenously

Adani Defense and Aerospace developed it.

It is an advanced Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) platform with 36 hours of endurance and 450 kg payload capacity.

It is an all-weather military platform.

One of the distinguishing features of the Vision 10 'Starliner' is its minimal maintenance requirements, making it cost-effective and operationally efficient.

This feature ensures increased operational readiness, minimising downtime and maximising deployment opportunities.

It has advanced communication systems, including satellite communications and line-of-sight (LOS) data links, ensuring reliable and secure data transmission.

 

IMPORTANT DAYS

National Human Trafficking Awareness Day

National Human Trafficking Awareness Day is observed every year on 11 January.

The fight against human trafficking made progress in the late 20th and early 21st centuries.

The Trafficking Victims Protection Act, which was passed in 2000, was the first federal statute to address contemporary slavery.

The resolution designating January 11 as National Human Trafficking Awareness Day was approved by the US Senate in 2007.

The entire month of January 2010 was devoted by President Obama to raising awareness and preventing human trafficking.

More than 50 recognized groups are working to stop this criminal activity on a global scale, and awareness of it is higher than ever.

 

OBITUTARY

Music Maestro Rashid Khan

Famous music artist Ustad Rashid Khan passed away on 09 January 2024 at the age of 55.

Ustad Rashid Khan was battling prostate cancer. He was undergoing treatment at Peerless Hospital, Kolkata.

Rashid Khan performed his first concert when he was only 11 years old. At 26, the ITC Music Research Academy recognised him as a composer. In 1978, he performed on stage at the ITC concert in Delhi.

Khan attempted to blend classical Hindustani music with lighter musical styles. Additionally, Rashid Khan engaged in experimental collaborations, including concerts with Western instrumentalist Louis Banks.

Rashid Khan shared the stage with sitarist Shahid Parvez and many other musicians.

In the year 2022, he was awarded the Padma Bhushan by the Government of India.

Apart from this, Rashid Khan was also awarded the Padma Shri, the country's fourth highest civilian award.

Rashid Khan was also awarded Bengal's highest civilian award, Banga Vibhushan and Sangeet Mahasamman.

Rashid Khan was also honoured with the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award.