.India officially handed over seven Rohingya men to Myanmar authorities
Seven Rohingya Muslim men who were arrested in 2012 for illegally entering Assam were officially handed over to Myanmar authorities. As the Supreme Court rejected the plea to intervene in the case, the deportation happened from the immigration point at Manipur’s border town Moreh. Immigration officials from Tamu took custody of the seven men after completing the formalities with their Indian counterparts and police officials from Assam and Manipur. Apart from these seven, Assam has 32 Rohingya including a few minors across five detention centres other than Silchar. Manipur’s Sajiwa Central Jail has 22 Rohingya caught five years ago.
Centre to introduce facial recognition technology at airports in February
The Centre is set to introduce facial recognition technology under the “Digi Yatra” scheme at the Hyderabad and Bengaluru airports in February 2019. The passengers should initially register themselves on a web portal by providing identity proof. After registration, the passengers would be required to undergo a one-time verification at an airport so that the individual’s facial identity would be captured and mapped onto a newly created “Digi Yatra” profile. Once the profile is created a distinct identification number will be generated. This number should be used at the time of purchasing an air ticket, to avail the paperless access facility.
China used tiny chips to steal U.S. technology secrets
The Bloomberg News report said tiny chips were inserted in the U.S. computer equipment that was manufactured in China in order to steal U.S. technology secrets. The U.S. authorities alerted after finding a chip, that is the size of a grain of rice, were used on equipment made for Amazon and Apple, and possibly for other companies and government agencies. The report also suspected a unit of the People’s Liberation Army has involved the operation that placed the chips on equipment manufactured in China for U.S.-based Super Micro Computer Inc. The Super Micro also manufactured equipment for Department of Defense data centres, the CIA’s drone operations, and onboard networks of Navy warships.
China used tiny chips to steal U.S. technology secrets
The Bloomberg News report said tiny chips were inserted in the U.S. computer equipment that was manufactured in China in order to steal U.S. technology secrets. The U.S. authorities alerted after finding a chip, that is the size of a grain of rice, were used on equipment made for Amazon and Apple, and possibly for other companies and government agencies. The report also suspected a unit of the People’s Liberation Army has involved the operation that placed the chips on equipment manufactured in China for U.S.-based Super Micro Computer Inc. The Super Micro also manufactured equipment for Department of Defense data centres, the CIA’s drone operations, and onboard networks of Navy warships.
Saudi Arabia to invest in oil refinery in Gwadar, Pakistan
Saudi Arabia announced that it is to invest in a new oil refinery in Pakistan’s growing deep-sea port of Gwadar, Islamabad. The agreement is after the visit of Pakistan’s new Prime Minister Imran Khan to the Gulf kingdom as he seeks to attract foreign investment. Saudi has shown its interest immediately to invest in the refinery. The agreement is to be signed between Pakistan State Sil and Riyadh’s State oil giant Saudi Aramco. As part of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), Gwadar’s port is being developed. Gwadar is part of Pakistan’s mineral-rich southwestern Balochistan province.
Forbes India Rich List 2018: Mukesh Ambani is the richest Indian for 11th consecutive year with $47.3 billion
Mukesh Ambani named as the richest Indian for the 11th consecutive year with a net worth of $47.3 billion, as per the ‘Forbes India Rich List 2018’. Reliance Industries’ Chairman Mukesh Ambani is also the biggest gainer of the year, with a gain of $9.3 billion to his wealth. Hinduja brothers occupy 4th position with net worth of $18 billion and Pallonji Mistry is at 5th spot with $15.7 billion. Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw is the biggest percentage gainer of the year, with an increase in net worth by 66.7 % to $3.6 billion.
VAT rates on fuel has been reduced in 12 States
Last month, Rajasthan had cut its state VAT on diesel and petrol by Rs.2.5 per litre, while Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh both had cut their VAT rates by Rs.2 per litre. West Bengal and Kerala had cut their VAT rates on petrol and diesel by Rs.1 per litre in September and May, respectively. Karnataka and Kerala refused to cut rates further following day’s development. So far, the Modi’s government has raised the excise duty on diesel by Rs.14 and petrol by Rs.9 per litre. The Centre had hiked excise duty by Rs.10 and reduced it by only Rs. 2.50.
Indian International Science Festival Begins In Lucknow
Indian International Science Festival (IISF) 2018 will start in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. President Ramnath Kovind will formally inaugurate the festival. IISF-2018 with its focal theme “Science for Transformation” will have 23 special events. Union Science and Technology Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan announced that about ten thousand scientists and experts, including science teachers and students, will participate in the event.
Vladimir Putin arrived in New Delhi for the annual summit
Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in New Delhi for the annual summit with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The will discuss the Key regional and global issues including US sanctions on the import of Iranian crude oil and S-400 missile deal. Also, it is expected that Russia and India will be signing the S-400 air defence system deal and other pacts in the key sectors.
World Teachers Day is obseved on 5 October
The theme for this year’s WTD is “The right to education means the right to a qualified teacher,” The WTD 2018 will mark the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) recognizes education as a key fundamental right and establishes an entitlement to free compulsory education, ensuring inclusive and equitable access for all children.
ICICI Bank CEO Chanda Kochhar quits and Bakhshi takes over
Chanda Kochhar, the MD and CEO of ICICI Bank, private sector lender, quit her position. This is after the bank’s appointment of a Srikrishna committee which is headed by Justice B.N. Srikrishna (retd.). The committee was to look into the allegations of conflict of interest against Ms.Kochhar. The committee is yet to officially submit its findings to the bank’s board. She had gone on leave after the committee was formed. The bank has now named Sandeep Bakhshi as the new MD & CEO and handed him a five-year term till October 3, 2023. The appointment is subject to regulatory approvals.
First Global Guidelines on Sanitation and Health launched by World Health organisation
World Health Organization (WHO) launched its first Global Guidelines on Sanitation and Health. According to estimation, for every US$ 1 invested in sanitation a nearly six-fold return can be expected. The new guidelines are based on four principal recommendations. They are: Accessible toilets, for entire communities, that safely contain excreta, through Sanitation interventions. Local health risk assessments to protect individuals and communities from exposure to excreta. Integration of sanitation into regular local government-led planning and service provision
India ranked 28th among 73 countries in govt e-payment adoption: 2018 Visa Survey
The Government E-Payments Adoption Ranking (GEAR), compiled by The Economist Intelligence Unit commissioned by payments company Visa ranked India as 28th country to progress in the digital transformation journey. India moved up to 28th in 2018, from 36th in 2011. It holds the top ranking on B2G and G2B and comes third on C2G jointly with Argentina. India leads the B2G category, along with other countries like Australia, Singapore and South Korea.
Experts says mutated virus might have killed Gujarat lions
Wildlife experts say that the death of 21 lions in the last month maybe because of a mutation in a virus. In 1994, the Canine Distemper Virus (CDV) was responsible for an epidemic in the Serengeti region of Africa, where 1,000 lions died in 3 weeks. While the virus abounds in local tiger populations in Gujarat and is linked to deaths every year. An expert on lions at the Wildlife Institute of India said that this is the first time in years, that so many deaths have been attributed to the virus. However, every year 80-90 lions died due to various causes. The 2015 lion census recorded 523 lions. There was a 3% growth and now the number of lions are around 600. But every year 80-90 lions died due to various causes. Last year there were 100 deaths and before that, the death count of lions were 80.
First Regional Conference On ‘Women In Detention And Access To Justice’ In Shimla
The Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D), Ministry of Home Affairs is organising the First ever Regional Conference at Shimla on ‘Women in Detention and Access to Justice’ in collaboration with the Prison Department, Himachal Pradesh on October 4-5, 2018. The Conference will be inaugurated by Shri Acharya Devvrat, the Governor of Himachal Pradesh.
Swachh Survekshan Gramin Awards 2018 Announced
Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave awards to top Ranked State, District and State with maximum citizen participation based on the National Swachh Survekshan Gramin 2018 commissioned by Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation. Overall Ranking: (A) Top 3 States- 1. Haryana, 2. Gujarat, 3. Maharashtra. (B) Top 3 Districts- 1. Satara, Maharashtra, 2. Rewari, Haryana, 3. Pedapalli, Telangana. (C) States with maximum citizen participation- 1. Uttar Pradesh, 2. Gujarat, 3. Maharashtra. (D) Districts with maximum citizens’ participation- 1. Nashik, Maharashtra, 2. Solapur, Maharashtra, 3. Chittorgarh, Rajasthan.
NMCG Partnered With TSAF To Launch Mission Gange
National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) partnered with Tata Steel Adventure Foundation (TSAF) to launch a month-long rafting expedition of a team of 40 members which will be led by the first Indian woman to scale Mount Everest Ms. Bachendri Pal. The meeting will conclude in Patna.
