09 SEP 2020

 

International Day to Protect Education from Attack: 09 September  

International Day to Protect Education from Attack is observed globally on 9th September.

• The day is being observed for the first time in 2020.
• The Day draws attention to the plight of more than 75 million 3-to-18-year-olds living in 35 crisis-affected countries and to their urgent need of educational support.
• It expresses concern over the effects of continued violence on these children and their ability to access education, whose consequences require special attention beyond the needs of learners whose establishments were temporarily closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
• The day was established by a unanimous decision of the UN General Assembly, calling on UNESCO and UNICEF to raise awareness of the plight of millions of children living in countries affected by conflict.

French Defence Minister Florence Parly on official visit to India

French Defence Minister Florence Parly will be on an official visit to the country.

• She will attend the official induction ceremony of the first batch of the Rafale omnirole fighter aircraft by the Indian Air Force at Air Force Station, Ambala.
• This will mark Minister Parly’s third official visit to India since 2017.
• The French Defence Minister will also meet her counterpart, Rajnath Singh and  National Security Adviser Ajit Doval. 
• Both sides will also discuss operational defense cooperation, particularly maritime security in the Indo-Pacific and counter-terrorism cooperation.

EAM Dr. S Jaishankar attends the meeting of Council of Foreign Ministers of SCO in Moscow

External Affairs Minister Dr. S Jaishankar is attending the meeting of Council of Foreign Ministers of Shanghai Cooperation Organization(SCO) in Moscow on 9th and 10th September.

• This will be the third Council of Foreign Ministers, CFM meeting that India will be attending as a full member of SCO.
• Earlier two meetings were held in Beijing on April, 2018 and Bishkek on May, 2019.
• India has been taking active part in various SCO dialogue mechanisms under the Chairmanship of the Russian Federation this year.
• India and Russia enjoy an important strategic partnership and this year marks the 20th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of India -Russia Strategic Partnership. 

Country's 2nd, South India’s first Kisan Train flagged off

The country's second and South India’s first Kisan Train was flagged off.

• The train will transport material from Anantapur in Andhra Pradesh to Adarsh Nagar Railway Station in Delhi.
• The Kisan Rail will play a big role in doubling the farmers' income by 2022.
• Kisan Rail was announced in the Union Budget, for transportation of Agri Products.
• The first Kisan train was flagged off on 7th of August this year and the train is running between Maharashtra's Devlali and Bihar's Danapur Railway Station.
• Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had announced to start Kisan Rail in the current year's Budget, for providing a seamless supply chain of perishable produce.

India, Angola hold 1st joint commission meet

India and Angola held the first Joint Commission Meeting.

• During the meeting, the two sides agreed to diversify their trade relationship and discussed cooperation in health, pharmaceuticals, defence, agriculture, food processing, digitization and telecom.
• The meeting was co-chaired by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and his Angola counterpart Tete Antonio.
• Angola is the second largest crude oil supplier in the sub Saharan desert after Nigeria.
• Capital: Luanda
• Currency: Angolan kwanza

Uttarakhand govt to develop ‘Sanskrit grams’ across state

After noting significant progress in a pilot programme to teach Sanskrit to residents of two villages in Uttarakhand, the state government gave it a go-ahead to authorities to develop ‘Sanskrit grams’ across the state.

• Sanskrit is the second official language in Uttarakhand.
• The state government currently runs 97 Sanskrit schools, where an average of 2,100 students study each year.
• The villages of Kimotha in Chamoli district and Bhantola in Bageshwar district were earlier developed as Sanskrit villages.
• Residents have started using the language in their daily communication and they also sing folk songs in Sanskrit.

Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar launches WhatsApp chatbot ''Apka Mitra''

Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar launched an online platform for admission in undergraduate courses in government-aided and self-finance colleges for the new academic session.

• With this platform, the students will now be able to complete their entire admission process while sitting at home.
• Khattar, also launched the first-of-its-kind educational WhatsApp chatbot ‘Apka Mitra’ to resolve any admission related queries of the students.
• Students can send a message on Whatsapp chatbot number 7419444449 to get information regarding admission & scholarship.

Organic Food Processing Unit inaugurated in Uttar Pradesh

Smt. Harsimrat Kaur Badal, Union Minister for Food Processing Industries, inaugurated a organic food processing unit located in Barabanki, Uttar Pradesh.

• With the inauguration of this food processing unit, 5000 farmers will be benefitted and it is expected to leverage an investment of Rs 50.33 crores.
• The unit namely M/s Organic India Pvt. Ltd is likely to generate direct employment of 100 and indirect employment of 250 persons.
• A processing capacity of 3 MT per day has been created and the unit will process agro produce worth Rs 350 crores.
• Products manufactured in this unit are Tulsi green tea, sweet lemon green tea, lemon ginger green tea, pomegranate green tea, Sweet rose, Tulsi masala.

India, ADB sign 500 million US dollar loan for Delhi-Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System corridor

India and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) signed a 500 million US dollar loan for Delhi-Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) corridor.

• The first tranche of a total one billion dollar facility, to build a modern, high-speed 82-kilometer Delhi-Meerut RRTS corridor will improve regional connectivity and mobility in India’s national capital region (NCR).
• The first tranche loan will support construction of the first of three priority rail corridors planned under the NCR Regional Plan 2021 to connect Delhi to other cities in adjoining states.
• With a design speed of 180 kilometer per hour and high-frequency operations of every 5 to 10 minutes, the 82-kilometer corridor connecting Sarai Kale Khan in Delhi to Modipuram in Meerut in Uttar Pradesh is expected to reduce the journey time to about one hour from the present 3 to 4 hours.

Bank of India launches ‘Signature Visa Debit Card’

Bank of India (BoI)launched “Signature Visa Debit Card” for the affluent/high net worth individuals maintaining an average quarterly balance of ₹10 lakhs and above.

• This card will have a spending limit of up to ₹5 lakhs on POS & e-commerce and ₹1 lakh on ATM.
• It will also provide Insurance against fraudulent transactions
• It was launched on the occasion of the Bank’s 115th Foundation Day.

Telugu actor Jaya Prakash Reddy dies

Telugu actor Jayaprakash Reddy died of a heart attack in Andhra Pradesh's Guntur. He was 74.

• As a character actor and comedy actor, Jayaprakash essayed roles in many films having begun his career with the movie Brahmaputrudu.
• The other films that brought him laurels and recognition include Preminchukundam Raa, Gabbar Singh, Chennakesava Reddy, Seethayya and Temper.

Filmmaker Johnny Bakshi passes away

Veteran filmmaker Johnny Bakshi passed away.

• He was diagnosed with pneumonia and was also tested for COVID-19.
• Johnny Bakshi worked as a producer in several films including Manzilein Aur Bhi Hain (1974), Vishwasghaat (1977), Raavan (1984), Mera Dost Mera Dushman (1984), Bhairavi (1996) and Kajraare (2010).
• He even helmed the Rajesh Khanna starrer Khudai (1994). Bakshi also acted in films like Haar Jeet (1990) and Papa Kehte Hai (1996).