Tajikistan inaugurated US$ 3.9 billion ‘Rogun hydro-electric project’
Tajikistan President Emomali Rahmon inaugurated a USD 3.9 billion hydro-electric power plant, a mega project that will enable the impoverished country to eliminate domestic energy shortages and export electricity to Afghanistan and Pakistan. Built on the Vakhsh River in southern Tajikistan, the plant is expected to reach a height of 335 metres (1,099 feet) in a decade, becoming the world’s tallest hydro-electric dam. It will double energy production in the country of nearly nine million people, alleviating a long-lasting, debilitating national energy deficit. Surplus energy will be sold to neighbours such as Afghanistan, Pakistan and Uzbekistan.
China builds an ‘Artificial Sun’ 6 times hotter than Sun’s core
Scientists at a Chinese institute announced that their nuclear fusion reactor dubbed ‘artificial sun’ reached 100 million°C, the temperature required to carry out fusion on Earth. The record-high temperature is six times the temperature of Sun’s core of 15 million°C. The reactor is designed to mimic processes occurring at the Sun to turn hydrogen into cost-effective clean energy.
IISc, IIT-Delhi among top 100 in Global University Employability Ranking 2018
The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) in Bangalore (28th position) , Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi (53rd position) and Bombay are among the top education institutions from India that have made it to the top 150 list of the ‘Global University Employability Ranking’. The Harvard University topped the list, followed by the California Institute of Technology and Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Dhruv won IOCL AITA Championship
Second seed Dhruv Sachdeva defeated the top seed Siddhant Kishore Sharma and secured 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-4 in the boys’ final of the IOCL All India Tennis Association (AITA) Championship 2018 series junior tennis tournament held in New Delhi organized by Grand Slam Tennis Foundation. Result: Boys: Dhruv Sachdeva bt Siddhant Kishore Sharma 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-4 Doubles: Siddhant Kishore & Dhruv bt Sehaj Sharma & Swastik Sharma 6-2, 6-4 Girls: Divya Sharma bt Gauraangi Kapoor 6-3, 6-4 Doubles: Mysha Magoo & Gauraangi bt Vibhusha Garg & Angelina Lahori 6-2, 6-1.
Centre sets up tribunal to decide on ban on 2 militant groups in Tripura
The Centre has set up a tribunal pass judgment on whether or not two Tripura-based militant organizations should be declared banned organizations under the law. The tribunal is to be headed by Delhi High Court Judge Justice Suresh Kait.The decision has been taken by the Home Ministry exercising the powers conferred under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. A fresh ban of five years was imposed on the two insurgent groups of Tripura, the National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT) and the All Tripura Tiger Force (ATTF), by the Central government last month for their violent and subversive activities. The ban is aimed at establishing an independent nation by the secession of Tripura from India through armed struggle.
Pro reservation Maratha organization launched the Samwad Yatra
Pro-reservation Maratha organization launched the ‘Samwad Yatra’. The Yatra is an effort to keep up the pressure on the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government. The stir demanded the process of granting quota to the Maratha community would be completed by December 1. The leaders of the Maratha Kranti Morcha who is the leader of the yatra has decided to go ahead with the yatra despite Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis’s assurance of granting the demand. The yatra commenced with a formal ceremony at the SSPMS ground in Pune, with hundreds of protestors demanding that the current government fulfill all demands of the Maratha community.
Jabong to merge with Myntra, 10% of all workers to be laid off
Myntra CEO Ananth Narayanan has said all of Jabong’s functions will be integrated with the company and about 10% of the combined workforce would be cut. Following Binny Bansal’s resignation as Flipkart Group CEO, Walmart said Narayanan will report to Flipkart CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy. Until now, Myntra and Jabong—wholly owned units of Flipkart—operated independently.
Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, Rahul Gandhi to address election rallies in Chhattisgarh
Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and other senior leaders of BJP will address election rallies at various places today, with Congress Chief Rahul Gandhi also scheduled to hold public meetings in different districts. Price rise, corruption, MSP of Paddy and unemployment are the other issues being raised by the opposition parties during the campaign.
Indias first elephant hospital opens in Mathura
India’s first specialised hospital for elephants was inaugurated by Agra Divisional Commissioner Anil Kumar in Uttar Pradesh’s Mathura district – Churmura village. It offers laser therapy, hydrotherapy, quarantine facilities and has a medical hoist to lift elephants. It also has an observation deck that allows veterinary students and interns to observe elephants’ behaviour.
Walmart may wipe out Flipkart Group CEO post as Binny Bansal exits
Walmart Inc controlled Flipkart and its co-founder and group chief executive Binny Bansal resign earlier this week over an investigation into “personal misconduct” and may abolish the position of Group CEO and retain the new structure it put in place after Bansal’s two people aware of the developments. PhonePe will remain majority-owned by Walmart but will raise funds from other investors.
Morocco unveils Africa’s first ever high speed train line
French President Emmanuel Macron and Morocco’s King Mohammed VI have inaugurated Morocco’s first high-speed rail line, the first ever such line in Africa. Known as the LGV, it will connect the economic hubs of Tangier and Casablanca in 2 hours 10 minutes at a speed of up to 320 kph (199 mph) instead of almost 5 hours on a regular train. The $2 billion project was launched in September 2011 by the king and Nicolas Sarkozy, then president of France. France financed 51 percent of the project, Morocco 28 percent and the remaining 21 percent was provided by Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates. Morocco bought 12 high speed trains from French train manufacturer Alstom.
Railways plans to establish medical colleges
The Indian Railways (IR) plans to establish medical colleges to offer postgraduate courses for doctors at 10 of its existing hospitals across India. The proposal has been cleared by the Railway Board and it waits for the approval of Medical Council of India (MCI). The Railways will also sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) will local colleges and universities. The MoU is to offer only postgraduate courses, General MD (Doctor of Medicine), for doctors. IR is already teaching over 250 students for Diplomate National Board Course in seven Central hospitals. These hospitals are part of the ten selected hospitals by IR. The shortlisted hospitals include nine Central hospitals and one Divisional hospital, including the Northern Railways Central Hospitals, Eastern Railways Central Hospitals, Southern Railways Central Hospitals, North Eastern Railways Hospital, Western Railways Central Hospitals, and the Kharagpur Divisional Hospital.
Toxic’ named ‘Word of the Year 2018’ by Oxford Dictionaries
Oxford Dictionaries said it chose the word “toxic” after seeing a 45 per cent rise in the number of times it had been looked up on its website, adding that it was selected for capturing the ethos, mood and preoccupations of 2018. With the #MeToo movement putting a cross-industry spotlight on toxic masculinity, and watershed political events like the Brett Kavanaugh Senate judiciary committee hearing sparking international debate, the term toxic masculinity has well and truly taken root in the public consciousness and got people talking in 2018. In 2017, its Word of the Year was “youthquake”, defined as “a significant cultural, political, or social change arising from the actions or influence of young people”.
India International Cherry Blossom Festival Held in Meghalaya
During the programme, the Chief Minister also handed over the Meghalaya Entrepreneurship Recognition Award (MEG-ERA) to Perastill R Sangma, an entrepreneur from Garo Hills. The award consists of a citation and a cash award of one lakh rupees.
Indusind Bank launches Indias first interactive credit card named Nexxt Credit Card
IndusInd Bank launched the Nexxt Credit Card which is India’s first Interactive card with buttons. The main feature of this card is that it provides the customer the choice of payment options at the Point of Sale (POS) such as Credit, EMI with four tenure options which are 6, 12, 18, 24 Months and Using Accumulated Reward Points. As per banks, the card is loaded with features which will elevate the shopping experience of the customer.
Kerala Government launches Gau Samridhi Plus scheme for dairy farmers
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan launched the ‘Gau Samridhi Plus scheme’ or ‘Cow Samridhi Plus Scheme’ to offer insurance coverage to dairy farmers in Kerala. It is a government subsidized scheme. It will provide insurance coverage to dairy farmers at low premium rates. Farmers from general category will receive 50% subsidy on premium. Farmers from Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) category will receive 70% subsidy on premium.
SBI sold over 400 crore electoral bonds
The State Bank of India (SBI) has sold more than Rs.400 crore worth of electoral bonds in the 10-day window of October. According to data the bank released under the Right to Information (RTI), the bonds that are sold in October had a sharp rise from the Rs.32 crore worth of bonds sold in the July tranche. Electoral Bonds: ♦ Electoral Bond is a financial instrument for making donations to political parties to cleanse the system of political funding in India ♦ These are issued by Scheduled Commercial banks upon authorization from the Central Government to intending donors, but only against cheque and digital payments (it cannot be purchased by paying cash) ♦ These bonds shall be redeemable in the designated account of a registered political party within the prescribed time limit from the issuance of a bond ♦ Electoral bond was announced in the Union Budget 2017-18 ♦ Required amendments to the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934 (Section 31(3)) and the Representation of People Act, 1951 were made through Section 133 to 136 of Finance Bill, 2017
Twenty Sixth Conference of Central and State Statistical Organization (COCSSO) held in Himachal Pradesh
The 26th Conference of Central and States Statistical Organizations was held at Dharamshala in Himachal Pradesh. The theme of this year’s Conference is “Quality Assurance in Official Statistics”.
