MS Dhoni dropped from BCCI central contracts list 2019-20

Mahendra Singh Dhoni is most prominent omission from BCCI’s central contracts list for 2019-2020. The contracts for the October-September cycle are awarded by a three-member committee consisting of the BCCI president, secretary and chief selector based on the performance during the last cycle. Skipper Virat Kohli, his white-ball deputy Rohit Sharma and top pacer Jasprit Bumrah were retained in the highest A bracket of seven crore rupees.

Among others, batsman L. Rahul has been promoted from ‘B’ grade to ‘A’ category. Test opener Mayank Agarwal has been included in the Grade ‘B’ category, which also features Hardik Pandya and Yuzvendra Chahal along with two others. Pacer Navdeep Saini and T20 specialist Washington Sundar are new entrants in Grade ‘C’ alongside Shreyas Iyer, Deepak Chahar and Shardul Thakur.

Veteran Cricketer Mithali Raj was demoted to Grade ‘B’ from ‘A’ while Radha Yadav and Taniya Bhatia were elevated to the middle bracket. T20 skipper Harmanpreet Kaur retained her ‘A’ category contract alongside Smriti Mandhana and Poonam Yadav. Players getting a central contract for the first time are 15-year-old opener Shafali Verma and Harleen Deol.

‘Indian Heritage in Digital Space’ exhibition inaugurated by Prahlad Singh Patel

‘Indian Heritage in digital Space’ exhibition was inaugurated by the Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Culture and Tourism, Prahlad Singh Patel in New Delhi on Wednesday, 15th January 2020, which will remain open for public till the 15th February 2020.

The month-long exhibition is a first of its kind in India in which the latest interventions from the cultural heritage domain are showcased with the technologies that are developed under the Department of Science and Technology’s initiative of India Digital Heritage (IDH). The exhibition aims to reach people in a way that they get a chance to know andunderstand the unseen aspects of heritage sites.

It introduces the history and features of heritage through the use of technology. The visitors will be able to see the recreations of the socio-cultural life and traditions of Hampi, architectural and conjectural reconstructions of several important structures and experience demystification of many murals in the exhibition.

Lucknow: 7th Commonwealth Parliamentary Association Conference 2020 inaugurated

Lucknow hosted the 7th Conference of Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) India Region inaugurated by Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla. The conference was held with the theme of “Role Of Legislators“. CPA India Region conferences are held once in two years and the 6th conference was held in 2018.

During the two-day Plenary Sessions, delegates will discuss the Capacity Building of Legislators for Scrutinizing Budgetary Proposals and Enhancing Focus of Legislators on Legislative Business.

Mega campaign ‘Saksham’ launched by Petroleum Ministry

Secretary, Petroleum and Natural Gas Dr. M M Kutty inaugurated fuel conservation mega campaign ‘Saksham‘ in New Delhi on 16 January 2020. The campaign was organized by the Petroleum Conservation Research Association (PCRA). The campaign will be held for a month.

The annual event of Saksham aims at creating mass awareness among the public about conventional fuel conservation. On the occasion, the Secretary also flagged-off the publicity vans of PCRA which will visit states spreading the message of fuel conservation.

Highlighting the major advantages of fuel conservation, Mr Kutty stated, it will help in progressively reduction of carbon footprint and lead to fulfilling government’s commitment for greener environment. He said, foreign exchange can also be saved with this move.

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev resigns

Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev and the entire Russian government is stepping down after President Vladimir Putin proposed constitutional reforms that would weaken his successor.

The move could signal a power shift as the president will not be able to reject parliament’s choice of prime minister, deputy prime ministers and federal ministers in future administrations.

Putin’s critics have suggested that he is considering various scenarios to remain in power after 2024, including the option of becoming prime minister with extended powers. Russian President asked Medvedev’s Cabinet to keep working until the new Cabinet is formed.

Bipul Behari Saha elected as bureau member of IUPAC

Bipul Behari Saha, a noted chemist has been elected as a bureau member of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) for the period 2020-23. Saha is only the second Indian after CNR Rao, former Director of the Indian Institute of Science and Bharat Ratna, to be elected (in 1979) for this prestigious position in over a century. At present, Saha is Director – R&D, L.R. Research Laboratories Pvt Ltd (wholly owned subsidiary of NACL Industries Limited), Hyderabad.

Founded 100 years ago, IUPAC is the largest global organization of Chemistry professionals. IUPAC has the responsibility of naming all new elements and compounds, declare atomic weights and physical constants, update Periodic table and carry out research projects. It is comprised of 12 Committees and 8 Divisions. At the apex of IUPAC organization is “IUPAC Bureau”.

World Economic Forum releases ‘The Global Risks Report 2020’

The 15th edition of the World Economic Forum’s “Global Risks Report” is published. The report has been prepared by WEF in partnership with Marsh & McLennan and Zurich Insurance Group. The report defines the major risks, the world is going to face in the coming years. The data used to make the report was collected by Global Risks Perception Survey (GRPS) through survey conducted from 5 September to 22 October 2019.

A ‘global risk‘ is defined as an uncertain event or condition that, if it occurs, can cause significant negative impact for several countries or industries within the next 10 years. ‘Failure to mitigate and adapt to climate change‘ has been declared as the number one risk by impact and number two by likelihood over the next 10 years in the report.

1st-ever Food Processing Summit in Ladakh

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry and the Ministry of Food Processing Industries, the UT Administration of Ladakh has organised the 1st-ever Food Processing Summit in the Union Territory Ladakh.

The event is aimed at encouraging the entrepreneurs to begin a StartUp to tap the potential in the Food Processing Industries in Ladakh. Invest India will explain the procedures of investment processes along with Government support.

Ladakh region has vast scope for investment in food Processing Industries in horticulture products like Apricot, Seabuck Thorn, Apple and agricultural produce like buckwheat and barley.