17 SEP 2020

 

World Patient Safety Day: 17 September

The World Patient Safety Day is observed on September 17 to create global awareness for patient safety and urge people to show their commitment to make healthcare safer.

• The aim of this day is to create a global awareness for patient safety and urge people to show their commitment to making healthcare safer.
• The World Health Organization (WHO) observed the first WPSD in 2019.
• It was adopted at the 72nd World Health Assembly on 25 May 2019.
• The theme for 2020 WPSD is ‘Safe health workers, Safe patients’.

Trump Administration reveals plans to offer COVID-19 vaccine to all US citizen free of cost

The Trump Administration has unveiled its COVID-19 vaccine delivery plan which entails administering the drug to all US citizens free of charge.

• The US government believes a COVID-19 vaccine will be available as soon as January and the distribution plans are outlined in two documents released by the US Department of Health and Human Services and the US Department of Defence.
• The Trump Administration plans on delivering a ‘safe and effective’ COVID-19 vaccine to multiple sites with no cost for the providers and no out of pocket charge for the recipient.
• There may be limited availability of the vaccine in the initial stages and in such an event, front line workers and essential workers will be given priority.

Fiumicino International Airport in Rome becomes World’s First Airport to earn “COVID-19 5-star airport rating” from Skytrax

The Fiumicino International Airport (FCO) in Rome, Italy, has become the first airport in the world to be certified with “COVID-19 5-star airport rating” from Skytrax, a U.K.-based airport and airline review firm.

• FCO, also known as the Leonardo Da Vinci International Airport, is the busiest airport in Italy.
• The COVID-19 ratings for hygiene by Skytrax was based on a combination of procedural efficiency checks, visual observation analysis and ATP sampling tests.
• Fiumicino Airport earned the 5-star rating for the hygiene processes and other preventative measures in place to help reduce the spread of Coronavirus.

India joins Djibouti Code of Conduct/Jeddah Amendment as Observer

India has joined the Djibouti Code of Conduct/ Jeddah Amendment, DCOC/JA, as Observer.

• The move came following the high level meeting of the Djibouti Code of Conduct/ Jeddah Amendment held virtually on 26th of August.
• DCOC/JA is a grouping on maritime matters comprising 18 member states adjoining the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, the East Coast of Africa and Island countries in the Indian Ocean Region.
• India has joined Japan, Norway, the UK and the US as Observers to the DCOC/JA.
• As an observer at the DCOC/JA, India is looking forward to working together with DCOC/JA member states towards coordinating and contributing to enhanced maritime security in the Indian Ocean Region.

Parliament passes ‘Institute of Teaching and Research in Ayurveda Bill, 2020’

Parliament has passed the Institute of Teaching and Research in Ayurveda Bill, 2020 with Rajya Sabha approving it.

• The Lok Sabha has already passed the bill.
• The bill seeks to establish an Institute of Teaching and Research in Ayurveda and declare it an Institute of National importance.
• This paves the way to establish a state-of-the-art Ayurvedic institution called the Institute of Teaching and Research in Ayurveda (ITRA) at Jamnagar, Gujarat, and to confer the status of Institution of National Importance (INI) to it.
• The institutes are, the Institute of Post-Graduate Teaching and Research in Ayurveda, Shree Gulabkunverba Ayurved Mahavidyalaya and the Indian Institute of Ayurvedic Pharmaceutical Sciences.
• ITRA will be the first institution with INI status in the AYUSH Sector.

Bill passed in Lok Sabha to reduce salaries of MPs by 30%

Lok Sabha unanimously passed the Salary, Allowances and Pension of Members of Parliament (Amendment) Bill, 2020.

• The Bill will replace the Salary, Allowances and Pension of Members of Parliament (Amendment) Ordinance which was promulgated in April this year.
• The Bill seeks to reduce the salaries of MPs and the sumptuary allowance of Ministers by 30 per cent.
• It also seeks to reduce the constituency allowance and office expenses allowance of MPs.
• The Bill makes these changes effective for a period of one year, effective from 1st April, 2020.

Tata Group Wins Bid to Construct New Parliament Building at Cost of Rs 861.90 Crore

Tata Projects Ltd has won the bid to construct the new Parliament building at a cost of Rs 861.90 crore.

• After the Central Public Works Department (CPWD) opened financial bids on for the construction of the new building, Tata Projects Ltd submitted a bid worth Rs 861.90 crore, while Larsen and Toubro Ltd quoted Rs 865 crore.
• The new building will be built as part of the Narendra Modi government’s plan to redevelop the Central Vista in New Delhi.
• The ambitious Central Vista project will cover the three-km stretch from Rashtrapati Bhavan to India Gate in Lutyens' Delhi.
• The revamp, announced in September last year, envisages a new triangular Parliament building, with seating capacity for 900 to 1,200 MPs, which is targeted to be constructed by August 2022.

OECD raises prospects for global economy, scales them down for India

The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) said it expects India’s economy to shrink 10.2 per cent in the current financial year (FY21).

• However, the Paris-based institution expects the world economy to fare better, with a 4.5 per cent fall in 2020, against its earlier prediction of 6 per cent.
• The Reserve Bank of India has cut its policy rate repo by 135 points since the onset of Covid-19.
• However, for the next year the OECD projects India’s economy to grow 10.7 per cent, 2.8 percentage-point higher than the June forecast.
• In June, the OECD had projected India’s economy to contract 7.3 per cent in FY21.
• OECD Headquarters: Paris, France
• Founded: 30 September 1961
• Secretary-General: José Ángel Gurría

Titan with SBI launches first contactless payment watches

Amid the push for more digital transactions in the country, especially during the novel coronavirus pandemic and the way forward to the new normal, Titan Company has partnered with the country’s largest lender State Bank of India (SBI) to launch contactless payment watches.

• Known as Titan Pay, Titan and SBI are launching a range of stylish new watches with contactless payment functionality for the first time in India.
• With this launch, SBI account holders can tap their Titan Pay watch on contactless payment POS machine without the need of swiping or inserting their SBI bank card.
• Payments of up to ₹2,000 can be made without entering a PIN.
• A secure certified Near-Field Communication (NFC) chip embedded in the watch strap by Tappy Technologies enables all the functionalities of a standard contactless SBI debit card.

Great Learning appoints Virat Kohli as brand ambassador

Great Learning, an ed-tech company for professional and higher education, has appointed Indian cricketer Virat Kohli as its brand ambassador.

• Great Learning is a leader in the professional learning space and has built a reputation for delivering high-quality education and career transformations.
• Virat will lead the brand’s latest ‘Power Ahead’ campaign, which underlines the importance of lifelong learning.

Renowned scholar of Indian classical dance Dr. Kapila Vatsyayan passes away

Leading scholar of Indian classical dance, art, architecture and art history, Dr Kapila Vatsyayan passed away.

• She was a former Member of Parliament and also served as Secretary to the Government in the Ministry of Education, where she was responsible for the establishment of a large number of national institutions of higher education.
• Dr Vatsyayan served as the founding Director of the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts.
• She was former President of India International Centre (IIC) and an IIC Life Trustee and the Chairperson of the IIC International Research Division.

Prominent Ayurveda physician PR Krishnakumar passes away

In Tamil Nadu, prominent Ayurveda physician and Managing Director of the iconic Coimbatore Arya Vaidya Pharmacy, PR Krishnakumar passed away in Coimbatore.

• Krishnakumar, who had done yeomen service for the popularisation of the Ayurvedic system of medicine, had been conferred the Padma Shri award in 2009.
• He had also been the recipient of the National Ayurveda Award instituted by the Government of India.
• Besides being the founder of AVP Research Foundation, Krishnakumar was also the Chancellor of the renowned Avinashilingam University in Coimbatore.