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Indian Affairs
11th Asia Europe Meeting begins in Panaji
- On 8th october 2015 the eleventh Asia Europe Meeting (ASEM) of Directors General-Commissioners of Customs was inaugurated in Panaji.It’s a two day meeting.
- Inaugurated By : Najeeb Shah( Chairman of the Central Board of Excise and Customs)
- Aim of the meeting : Review the progress achieved after the ASEM held in Vienna (Austria) in 2013 and also to outline the future course of action until the next meeting.
Next meeting to be held in Germany in 2017.
Main focusing priorities of ASEM :
- Trade facilitation and supply chain security,
- Combating infringement on Intellectual Property Rights (IPR),
- Protection of society and environment,
- Involving business and communications and visibility.
Participants of the meeting :
- Heads of Customs Administration and delegates from 53 member states of ASEM
- Asia(30 members),Europe (21 Members)
- Two International Organisations – namely European Commission,ASEAN Secretariat
Kunio Mikuriya also be present in the meeting as an observer.He is the Secretary General of the World Customs Organization (WCO)
Centre to launch unique ID card for differently-abled
By next year ,the centre will launch a unique Identity card for differently abled persons.This will help the differently abled persons to access the benefits of various schemes of both state and national governments.Centre is also planning to increase the number of categories of disabilities.(Autism is also a category)The category number will be increased from 7 to 19..For this purpose centre will introduce a new Bill.
Indo-China Joint Military Exercise HAND-IN-HAND 2015
- Indo-China Combined Military Training Exercise – HAND-IN-HAND 2015
- Date – 12 to 23 October 2015 (12 Day Program)
- Venue – Kunming Military Academy, Yunnan, China.
- Exercise started in – 2007.(This will be the 5th exercise in the series)
The exercise will strengthen and broaden interoperability and cooperation between both the Armies as well as complement a number of other exchanges between the two forces.This year exercise highlight the joint handling of insurgency at sub-unit level and related issues.The aspect of Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief will be discussed at headquarters level. The Curriculum of the project planned progressively in such a way that the participants will be familiar with each others organisational structure, weapons, equipment and tactical drills.
Protocol for establishment of the India-Ecuador Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO) signed
The Protocol for the establishment of the India-Ecuador Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO) was signed by the Ambassador of Ecuador to India, H.E. Mr. Mentor Villagomez and Ms. Rita Teotia, Commerce Secretary, Government of India on 9th October, 2015.
JETCO
- Aim : Further improving, deepening and strengthening the existing trade relationship between India and Ecuador.
- JETCO functions as the primary forum for discussion and other promotional activities on trade and investment issues and will be meeting once in every two years.
The first meeting of the JETCO is proposed to be held early next year in India.
“Operation Valsalya” to track missing children in Kerala
- Operation Name : Valsalya
- Launched by : Kerala Government
- Launched to : To trace, rescue and reunite the missing children with their family.
Tata Power launches LED lights scheme for households in Mumbai
- Tata Power launched LED tube light scheme in Mumbai for its residential consumer under which it will provide five lights to each household at Rs 525 per piece against market price of Rs 1,325.
- The consumer can register online for the scheme and the LED tube light fittings will be home delivered.
International Affairs
China launches international payment system to globalise yuan
- China launched the first phase of its much anticipated China International Payment System (CIPS), a milestone in bolstering yuan’s global usage and furthering cross-border clearing of its currency from the Chinese mainland instead of offshore centres abroad.
- The CIPS provides capital settlement and clearing services for cross-border yuan transactions for financial institutions domestically and abroad.
- China’s yuan became one of the world’s top five payment currencies in November 2014, overtaking the Canadian dollar and the Australian dollar, according to global transaction services organisation SWIFT.
NATO to set up 2 more small headquarters in Hungary and Slovakia
- North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) Defence Ministers agreed to set up two more small headquarters, Force Integration Units, in Hungary and Slovakia to ensure the fast deploying of NATO forces.
- NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced at a press conference following a meeting of NATO Defence Ministers on October 8, 2015.
- The units are part of the readiness action plan, the biggest reinforcement of NATO’s collective defence since the end of the Cold War.
- Six other NFIUs have been activated in September in Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Romania.
Banking and Finance
Dena Bank ties up with bankbazaar.com
- For capturing retail loan business through the bankbazzar.com online platform,Dena bank India enterd into a tie up with bankbazzar.com.The retail loans include loans for housing a car,used car loans,and saving account will further strengthen the banks online presence and support its growing retail portfolio.
- An MoU was signed by GM of Dena Bank K.C.Chhipa and the CEO of bankbazaar.com Mr.Adhil Shetty at Dena Bank Head Office Chennai.
Business
Telenor launches free insurance for mobile phone users
- In a first from a telco in India, Telenor will begin offering life insurance to its new and existing customers, with covers starting from Rs 5,000 going up to Rs 50,000, while consumers don’t need to pay any premium.
- The plan allows Telenor’s existing 47.5 million customers to get enrolled in the scheme by either calling up customer service or visiting one of ?the company’s 2100 stores in six circles where it operates. New customers can get enrolled with little documentation, and get a cover equivalent to 100 times the value of recharge done on their prepaid number.
Awards
Indian firm Nualgi won Popular Choice Award at Climate CoLab of MIT
Popular Choice Award at Climate CoLab of MIT cambridge was won by an Indian company named Nualgi in the field of nanotechnology.
Proposal made by Nualgi to win the Award :
- To reduce power and fuel consumption for sewage treatment and reuse of water built around their nano-scale product called Nualgi
- Nualgi invented by T. Sampath Kumar of Bangalore. Nualgi is used to grow diatom algae in all types and volumes of water, from aquariums to oceans.
Appointments
Amit Gossain appointed as Kone India MD
- New Managing Director of Kone India – Amit Gossain (Effective from September 28, 2015.)
- Kone – Elevator and escalator manufacturer
- Before Joining kon,Gossain was with JCB India Limited as Executive Vice President.
Science and Technology
NASA spacecraft finds blue skies, water ice on Pluto
- In a major finding, the first colour images of Pluto’s atmospheric hazes beamed by NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft show that the icy-dwarf planet has blue skies similar to Earth and frozen water on its surface.
Delhi Public Transport App –
- An app launched by the Google India for the easiest public transport of New Delhi.This app will help users to get directions for transportation, easily even when the connection is slow and data is difficult to access.
- Its the first time google is targeting a specific city.It is currently available with Android only.And it is called as Delhi Public Transport Offline app.
NHAI to launch app to rein in traffic violators
A mobile app will be launched by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) in December.By using this app people can make complaints against rash driving ,overspeed and other similar acts.NHAI is also working with bulding up a complete information of data bank of all the high ways called as Road Asset Management System (RAMS)
Indian Railways launches app to book unreserved tickets
On 9 th October 2015 an app launched by Railway for booking paperless unreserved tickets .This will also cut the queues at the railway station.This app mainly aims at the Mumbai suburban sections ,New Delhi and Hazrat Nizamuddin stations.A currency coin-cum-card-operated automatic ticket-vending machines at various suburban stations on the Central and Western Railway was also launched.
Environment
India’s first Dolphin Community Reserve to come up in West Bengal
- India’s first Dolphin Community Reserve will be established in West Bengal to protect the endangered mammal, Gangetic river dolphins.
- Decision in this regard was taken at a meeting of the State Wildlife Board chaired by state Chief Wildlife Warden Azam Zaidi.
- The reserve would be set up in the Hooghly River between Malda and Sundarbans as per provisions of Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.
- State Forest department also has announced that it would also conduct a census to estimate the population of dolphins.
Sports
India lost to Turkmenistan in FIFA world cup 2018 qualifiers
- Indian football team slumped to their fourth straight defeat losing 1-2 to Turkmenistan in the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers on October 8, 2015.
- India thus remained at the bottom of the Group D points table and now have virtually no chance to even qualify for the Asian Cup by finishing third
South Africa won the T-20 International match series
The third and final T20 international between India and South Africa was abandoned without a ball being bowled because of a wet outfield on October 9, 2015.This has allowed the visitors to clinch the three-match Cricket series by 2-0 margins. The umpires called off the match at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata after they inspected the ground at 9:30 pm and found it not suitable for the play. The South African Cricket team and the Indian Cricket team are also slated to play 5-match One Day International (ODI) series that begins with the opener in Kanpur on Sunday and four Tests thereafter.
FIFA suspended President Sepp Blatter, VP Michel Platini and Secretary General Jerome Valcke
- The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the governing body of association football, futsal and beach football, on 8 October 2015 provisionally suspended its president Sepp Blatter, secretary general Jerome Valcke and vice-president Michel Platini for 90 days.
- FIFA’s ethics committee handed out the punishments due to alleged charges of corruption on Blatter, Valcke and Platini.
- The association also banned ex-FIFA vice-president Chung Mong-joon for six years.
Jurgen Klopp takes over as Liverpool manager
The new manger of Liverpool Football Club is Jurgen Klopp.He replaces Brendan Rodgers who was sacked after Liverpool’s draw with rivals Evert
Obituary
Vicco chairman Gajanan Pendharkar passed away
- Chairman of Vicco Laboratories Gajanan Pendharkar from Maharashtra passed away in Mumbai on 8th October 2015 .
- Vishnu Industries Chemical Company – Vicco
Veteran music director Ravindra Jain passed away
Renowned music director and lyricist Ravindra Jain passed away on 9 October 2015 following a multiple-organ failure in Mumbai, Maharashtra. He was 71.
Flute Ramani Passed away
Flautist N Ramani passed away in Chennai on 9th october 2015.
Books & Authors
Ben S. Bernanke’s book The Courage to Act – A Memoir of a Crisis and Its Aftermath released
- The Courage to Act – A Memoir of a Crisis and Its Aftermath – a book authored by Ben S. Bernanke was released in different cities of United States in the first week of October, 2015.
- The Courage to Act deals with the financial crisis and economic slump in United States of America since the Great Depression. It also provides an insider’s account of the policy response.
Important Days
World Post day 2015
- Celebrated on : 9th October 2015
- Theme :Tell us about the world you want to grow up in
Purpose of celebrating World Post Day
- The World Post Day aims increase the awareness of people about the postal sector role for people and businesses every day.
- It is celebrate to let the people about its contribution towards the social and economic development of the countries.
- It is celebrated to encourage the countries to carry out various activities to generate the big awareness among people and media about its role and activities on a national level.
World Egg Day 2015
Celebrated on : 9 October 2015( 2nd friday in October each year)
Purpose : To encourage everyone to eat eggs for health and also to ensure the prosperity of egg industry.
