Category: All Current Affairs

The World Archery lifts suspension on Indian archers

The World Archery has conditionally lifted the suspension of the Archery Association of India following elections in New Delhi on 18 January. The decision was made by executive board postal vote. Indian archers are allowed to compete in World Archery events as of Thursday 23 January 2020.

The federation has been instructed to update its constitution to clarify athlete membership, develop a strategic plan and resolve other governance issues. A progress report is required every three months. The Archery Association of India had been suspended since Monday 5 August 2019, with Indian athletes only allowed to compete under a neutral flag at events that directly affected their qualification chances for the Olympics.

Union Minister Arjun Munda was elected as President of the Archery Association of India (AAI), which were held in presence of three observers, including one from the World Archery. The elections were held as per the Delhi High Court order and the two bitter rivals clashed for the first time. World Archery had sent an Observer, Kazi Rajib Uddin Ahmed Chapol.

POLNET 2.0 commissioned by Union Minister of State for Home, Nityanand Rai

Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai commissioned a revamped and upgraded POLNET 2.0 at a national conference. It will bolster the police communication services. The new platform is armed with a robust multi-media facility and is a captive satellite-based network that provides video, audio and data connectivity across the country, especially in times of disasters when regular communication either gets jammed or crashes.

To communicate better during law and order problems and disasters, including linkup from remote border and coastal areas, the Directorate of Coordination Police Wireless (DCPW) has brought out an enhanced communication platform for police and security forces.

DCPW that operates the police network services POLNET in the country was set up in 1946 and it was placed under the Ministry of Home Affairs in 1950 with the primary mandate of coordination between state and central police and security agencies for radio communication and frequency allocation.

Global Talent Competitiveness Index: India moves up eight places to rank 72

The ‘2020 Global Talent Competitiveness Index‘ report compiled by INSEAD in collaboration with human resource firm Addeco and Google was released in Davos, Switzerland. India has moved up eight places to 72nd rank. The list was topped by Switzerland, followed by US and Singapore. Sweden (4th), Denmark (5th), the Netherlands (6th), Finland (7th), Luxembourg (8th), Norway (9th) and Australia (10th) secured the top 10 positions in the list.

In the BRICS grouping, China was ranked 42nd, Russia ranked 48th, South Africa 70th and Brazil at 80th position. This year’s GTCI report explores how the development of artificial intelligence (AI) is not only changing the nature of work but also forcing a re-evaluation of workplace practices, corporate structures and innovation ecosystems. The report noted that the gap between high income, talent rich nations and the rest of the world is widening. More than half of the population in the developing world lack basic digital skills.

The World Breastfeeding Trends Initiative survey: Sri Lanka tops the list

According to a new survey conducted by the World Breastfeeding Trends Initiative (WBTi) taken among 97 countries globally, Sri Lanka topped the breastfeeding rate. The rank is based on the performance on ten indicators of policies and programs.

WBTi uses color-code to rank countries. Sri Lanka earned a green color code, which implies the best level of performance. Sri Lanka has been making an effort to support and provide supportive measures for breastfeeding since 2005. It has demonstrated a high level of commitment towards the health and nutrition of mothers and babies.

Manoj Kohli appointed as SoftBank India head

SoftBank India has appointed  Manoj Kohli as its country head. The former Bharti Airtel executive, who has an experience of over 40 years, was head of Airtel’s international operations besides working at companies like DCM Shriram and Escotel before joining SoftBank.

In this new role, Kohli will be responsible for supporting SoftBank, SoftBank Vision Fund, and their portfolio companies’ interests in India. He will be responsible for government relations and public policy efforts, working closely with portfolio company founders and CEOs to address government and policy issues and secure required approvals to enable their businesses to run smoothly and achieve their full business potential

SoftBank has also been beefing up its team in India as earlier this month Vision Fund roped in Vikas Agnihotri, who was till recently Google India’s interim country head, as its first operating partner in the country. SoftBank Vision Fund has been building a team in India, which started with the hiring of Sumer Juneja last year to lead investments.

22 children selected for ICCW National Bravery Award 2019

Twenty-two children, including 10 girls and 12 boys from 12 different states of India, have been selected for the Indian Council for Child Welfare (ICCW) National Bravery Awards, 2019. Out of which one award has been given posthumously.

15-year-old Master Adithya K, from Keral has be conferred with Bharat Award for saving more than 40 lives when a bus they were travelling caught fire in Nepal in May 2019. The only recipient to recieve the award posthumously is Muhhamed Muhsin EC, who has honoured with the Abhimanyu award. He was a Kerala resident.

The two awardees from J&K were Sartaj Mohidin Mughal and Mudasir Ashraf, they both had won the bravery award. Mughal saved his family during live shelling from Pakistan. Mughal lives at the Line of Control (LoC) while Mudasir helped IAF and rescue personnel during the IAF chopper crash in Budgam in February 2019. A 13-year-old Alaika saved her family after their car met with an accident.

The ICCW Markandeya Award was given to 10 yr old Rakhi from Uttarakhand, who saved her 4 yr old brother from a leopard. The ICCW Dhruva Award has been given to 16 yr old, Purnima Giri and 15 yr old, Sabita Giri from Odisha who saved 12 persons from drowning a river when a boat sank into the water full with wild crocodiles. ICCW Prahalada Award has been given to 10 yr old, Srimati Badra for helping her friend who lost her right leg in a train accident.

The other recipients are Assam’s Kamal Krishna Das; Chhattisgarh’s Kanti Paikra and Bharneshwari Nirmalkar; Karnataka’s Aarti Kiran Shet and Venkatesh; Maharashtra’s Zen Sadavarte and Akash Machindra Khillare; Lourembam Yaikhomba Mangang from Manipur; Everbloom K Nongrum from Meghalaya; Lalliansanga, Carolyn Malsawmtluangi and Vanlalhriatrenga from Mizoram.

Election Body organises 1st memorial lecture to honour Sukumar Sen

As a tribute to India’s first Chief Election Commissioner Sukumar Sen, the Election Commission of India organised the first memorial lecture in Delhi on Thursday. Sukumar Sen had served as the first Chief Election Commissioner of India from March 21, 1950, till 19th December 1958. The memorial lecture was addressed by former President of India Pranab Mukherjee.

The lecture was attended by Mr Sen’s family along with invitees from the national political parties, members of the academia, civil society organisations, senior civil servants and international delegates. The event commenced by the welcome speech of Election Commissioner Ashok Lavasa while Election Commissioner Sushil Chandra concluded the event.

During his service, he held several important posts, including as Chief Secretary of West Bengal (1947-1950). He conducted the first two Lok Sabha elections of India held in 1952 and 1957 simultaneously with the Legislative Assembly Elections based on universal adult franchise under challenging circumstances and little precedence to guide him.

13th Weld India Exhibition to be held in Mumbai from February 6

The 13th Weld India Exhibition being organised in association with the International Institute of Welding (IIW) in Mumbai from February 6 to 9 will highlight India’s potential to become a $5 trillion economy. The event will have the theme of ‘Advanced welding technology and quality systems for developing economies‘ and is expected to have participants from around 22 countries.

IIW was working on closing the gap of the skilled manpower needed in the country to meet the objective of making India a $5 trillion economy, under the guidance of the Union Ministry of Skill Development, along with the support of National Skill Development Corporation and private industries.

Home Credit partners with HDFC Ergo and Bajaj Allianz Life

Home Credit India has acquired a corporate agency license to provide health life insurance and has partnered with HDFC Ergo General Insurance Company for health insurance and will provide cover in case of an illness or injury. The expenses covered under the policy include in-patient hospitalisation, pre- and post-hospitalisation, domiciliary expenses, day-care procedures as well as cover for newborn baby.

Home Credit India will also offer a savings plan of Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance Company which has life cover benefit along with tax-free guaranteed returns. While health insurance will provide coverage for medical expenses, life insurance will provide benefits and financial protection to Home Credit India customers.

Tamil Nadu: CM lays foundation for DLF DownTown in Chennai

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami laid foundation in Chennai for the construction of DLF DownTown, a joint venture of the Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation (TIDCO) and DLF, for housing information technology (IT) firms under one roof.

At an investment of Rs 5,000 crore, the IT complex with all modern facilities would come up on 27.04 acres of land in Taramani. The project is expected to provide direct employment for 70,000 people.

Many new projects like Phase II of the Chennai Metro, widening of OMR Road with by-passes at Kelambakkam and Thiruporur and flyovers at key junctions at a total cost of Rs 1,150 crore are being taken up.