Haryana CM Launches Project Air Care 'in Gurgaon to fight Air Pollution

• Haryana Chief Minister (CM), Manohar Lal Khattar virtually unveiled 'Project Air Care' to combat rising air pollution in Gurugram, Haryana.

• 65 Wind Augmentation Purifying Units (WAYU) would be set up at areas with high Air Quality Indices (AQI) in Gurugram to improve the air quality.

• The project is a result of public-private partnership between Gurugram Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA) and GSK (GlaxoSmithKline) Consumer Healthcare.

• The air purifiers have been developed by CSIR-NEERI (Council of Scientific & Industrial Research-National Environmental Engineering Research Institute), IIT (Indian Institute of Technology) Bombay.

• They will be installed and maintained by Indian Pollution Control Association (IPCA).

• The Air Purifiers will be installed at various locations under the GSK's CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) project 'Mission Health'.

Karnataka's Mysuru to Get India's First Sandalwood Museum

• India's first Sandalwood Museum is being established in Aranya Bhavan in Ashokapuram, Mysuru, Karnataka. The museum is set up by the Regional Forest Department to educate farmers about the significance of cultivation of sandalwood.

Fertiliser Association of India Golden Jubilee Award 2020

• Dr KS Subramanian, Director of Research of Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu who is also a National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) Chair Professor, won the Fertiliser Association of India(FAI) Golden Jubilee Award 2020 for his contribution in the field of nano-fertilisers and its role in improved use while ensuring the safety of environment.

• The award will be presented at the inaugural function of FAI's Annual Seminar on "Fertilizer and Agriculture during COVID-19" which will be held in New Delhi in December 2020.

• The award comprises a cash award of Rs 1 lakh and a gold medal.

• The team of soil scientists of Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) have won the "FAI Golden Jubilee Award for Excellence" for their research on "Site-specific and Need-Based Management of Nitrogen Fertilizers for Crop Production Using PAU-Leaf Colour Chart".

• Dr Vainderpal Singh, Principal Soil Chemist, Dr Bijay Singh, Indian National Science Academy(INSA) Honorary Scientist, Dr RK Gupta, Principal Soil Chemist and Dr OP Choudhary, Head of the Department of Soil Science, PAU will be receiving the award.

About Fertiliser Association of India(FAI):

• Director General- Satish Chander
• Headquarters, New Delhi

2nd National Water Awards

• Venkaiah Naidu, Vice President(VP) of India virtually presented the 2nd National Water Awards for 2019. The awards were organised by the Department of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation under the Ministry of Jal Shakti over a virtual platform.

• Tamil Nadu won the first prize for the Best State Award under Normal Category followed by Maharashtra and Rajasthan in 2nd and 3rd prizes respectively

• Mizoram won the Best State Award under special category.

• The best District Awards were divided into 6 zones (North, South West, East, Northeast and Aspirational). The awards were presented for two sub categories - Revival of Rivers and Water Conservation.

• Under the Revival of Rivers and Water Conservation category, for the North Zone, Ayodhya of Uttar Pradesh and Almora of Uttarakhand won the best district award, for the South Zone, Vellore of Tamil Nadu and YSR Kadapa of Andhra Pradesh, for the West Zone, Sangli of Maharashtra and Kachchh of Gujarat, for the Northeast Zone West Tripura (WC) of Tripura and for the Aspirational district category. Khandwa of Madhya Pradesh and Vizianagaram of Andhra Pradesh wins the prize respectively.

• For the 2nd consecutive year, Maharashtra Water Regulatory Authority (MWRA) won the first prize under the water regulatory authority category

In a first, Mumbai Metro to have vibration-absorbing tracks

• For the first time in India, the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Ltd., MMRCL will lay vibration-absorbing tracks on the Colaba-Bandra-SEEPZ Metro Line-3 with an estimated outlay of Rs 23,000 cr.

• The corporation has started trial production of the High Vibration Attenuation Booted Twin Sleeper Blocks, HVABTSB to lay tracks with the help of a machine from Sonneville AG, Switzerland.

• It will have 27 underground stations en route and is expected to be operational in 2021.

IBSA Report on 'Deepening Cooperation in IBSA: Perspectives from Key Sectors'

• Rahul Chhabra, Secretary (Economic Relations), Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India launched India-Brazil-South Africa (IBSA) report on 'Deepening Cooperation in IBSA: Perspectives from Key Sectors over a virtual platform from New Delhi, India.

• The research was undertaken by the fellows on cooperation at the United Nations(UN), Intellectual Property Rights, Traditional Medicine, Financial Sector Cooperation & Trade in Banking Services & Energy.

• The IBSA Visiting Fellowship Program was instituted(2018-19) at Research and Information System for Developing Countries (RIS) with the support of the Ministry of External Affairs to renew the IBSA partnership.

• RIS is an autonomous policy research institute that specialises in issues related to international economic development, trade, investment and technology. It is funded by the Government of India.

• About Research and Information System for Developing Countries (RIS):

• Director General-Prof Sachin Chaturvedi

• HeadQuarters - New Delhi, India

Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat virtually Inaugurates Australia-India Water Centre

• Union Minister for Jal Shakti, Gajendra Singh Shekhawat virtually inaugurated the Australia-India Water Centre (AIWC). The Centre will be led by IIT Guwahati & University of Western Sydney along with another 21 partners from India & Australia.

• AIWC will enable both countries to explore opportunities for safe drinking water supplies, river health, water energy-food nexus, and water for liveable cities.

India's Foreign Secretary Harsh Shringla Concludes Two-day visit to Maldives

• India's Foreign Secretary (FS) Harsh Vardhan Shringla concluded a Two-day visit to Maldives

• FS reviewed the progress of ongoing development projects under USD 1.3 Billion Financial Package.

• Greater Male Connectivity Project (GMCP) included a Grant of USD $100 Million. The Total cost of the project is $500 Million, the rest $400 Million will also be provided by India.

• It is the largest ever such infrastructure project undertaken in the Maldives.

• It involves the construction of a series of bridges and causeways that amount to 6.7 kilometres long connecting Male to Villingili

• Establishment of the Agricultural Research Centre in Hanimaadhoo. The Research Centre will set up a plant and soil testing laboratory. A Grant of Maldivian Rufiyaa (MVR) - 1.71 Million has been granted for the project.

• Development of Drug Detoxification Centre in Addu City Hulhudhoo. A grant of MVR 7.7 Million has been granted for the project.

Stanford University, US releases List of Top 2% Scientists of the World

• Stanford University, United States (US) has released a list of Top 2% Scientists of the world. The list has 1, 59, 683 persons and 1, 492 Indians have found a place in it. The scientists have been selected in the global list on the basis of their research paper's International Evaluation

• 16 Indian Scientists are ranked 30 or higher in the world.

• Two Indians Ashoke Sen (Ranked 13) and T Padmanabhan (Ranked 24) have been featured in the list in the field of Nuclear & Particle Physics.

• There are Two Indians in the field of Inorganic and Nuclear Chemistry - Professor Gautam Desiraju (Rank 2) and CNR Rao (Rank 3)

• Two Indians Dr Ashok Pandey (Rank 8) & Dr S Venkata Mohan (Rank 29) have featured in Biotechnology list.

FSCA Approves the International Financial Services Centres Authority (Banking) Regulations, 2020

• International Financial Services Centres Authority in a meeting has approved the International Financial Services Centres Authority (Banking) Regulations, 2020.

• IFSC International Retail Business Development Committee headed by Pradip Shah, Chairman of Indasia Fund Advisors Pvt Ltd. has presented its final report to IFSCA.

• Lay down the requirements to establish IFSC Banking Units (IBUS)

• Permit Non-resident Indian(NRI- Person Residing Outside India)who have net worth of at least USD 1 Million, to open foreign currency accounts in any freely convertible currency at IBUS

• Permit Indian residents, who have net worth at least USD 1 million to open foreign currency accounts in any freely convertible currency at IBUs to undertake any permissible current account or capital account transaction or any combination thereof under the Reserve Bank of India(RBI)'s Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS).

• Permit NRIs/ Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs) to purchase Life Insurance policies for them and for their family members who are in India and abroad from companies set up in the IFSC and allow them to pay premium in the currency of their choice (including Indian rupees).

• Net Owned Funds (NOF) requirement can be reduced to INR 5 billion to encourage mid-sized foreign reinsurers to set up base in the IFSC.

About International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA):

• It is a statutory unified regulatory body under the Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Government of India.

• Chairman-Injeti Srinivas

• Headquarters- Gandhinagar, Gujarat

• Established- April, 2020 through International Financial Services Centres Authority Bill, 2019

AGS Transact Tech and Utimaco Partners

• AGS Transact Technologies Limited (AGSTTL) and Utimaco entered into partnership to offer Cyber-Defense Technology, the highest level of security for digital payments and automation solutions to organizations across sectors including banking, petroleum, retail etc. in India & South-east Asia.

• To provide Cyber-Defense Technology to organizations across sectors.

About Utimaco:

• Headquarters- Aachen, Germany CEO- Stefan Auerbach

• About AGS Transact Technologies Limited (AGSTTL):

• Founder, Chairman & Managing Director- Ravi B Goyal
• Headquarters, Mumbai, Maharashtra

India's GDP Growth to Contract by 8.9% for CY 2020:Forecast by Moody's and Goldman Sachs

• As per Moody's 'Global Macro Outlook 2021-22. India's GDP(Gross Domestic Product) for the Calendar Year 2020 is revised Upwards to -8.9%(contract by 8.9) from -9.6% projected earlier. It also has revised the GDP for the CY 2021 upwards to 8.6% from 8.1% projected earlier.

• Goldman Sachs has projected India's GDP growth to contract by 8.9%(-8.9%) for 2020

• It has reiterated its projections of India's GDP growth for CY 2021 and CY 2022 to be 10%and 7.2% respectively.

About Goldman Sachs:

• Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO)- David Michael(M) Solomon

• Headquarters, New York, United States (US)

About Moody's:

• Headquarters - New York, United States
• President & CEO- Raymond W. McDaniel, Jr.

CCI Approves Acquisition of 7.73% equity share capital of Jio Platforms by Google International LLC

• The Competition Commission of India (CCI) under Section 31(1) of the Competition Act, 2002 has approved an acquisition of 7.73% equity share capital of Jio Platforms Limited (JPL) by Google

About RIL:

• Headquarters, Mumbai, Maharashtra

• Chairman & Managing Director(CMD), Mukesh D. Ambani

About Google:

• Headquarters, California, United States
• CEO- Sundar Pichai

Indian Navy's 5th Scorpene-class Submarine 'INS Vagir' from Mazagon Dock

• Minister of State (MoS) for Defence, Shripad Naik virtually launched the Indian Navy's 5th Scorpene-class Submarine 'INS Vagir' in Arabian sea waters at Mazagon Dock, Mumbai.

• Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders (MDSL), Mumbai has built 'Vagir'.

• Vagir' is part of six Kalvari-Class submarines being built in India.

• Designed by French naval defence and energy company DCNS and is being built as part of Indian Navy's Project-75.

About Indian Navy:

• Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS), Admiral Karambir Singh
• Integrated
• Headquarters MoD (Navy)- New Delhi

Sonu Sood's Autobiography to be Titled as “I Am No Messiah"

• Sonu Sood, an actor, producer and humanitarian, is set to pen his autobiography titled "I Am No Messiah". The book will be co-authored by Meena lyer. The book will account the experience of Sonu Sood during the COVID-19 pandemic.

• The book is set to be published by Penguin Random House India and released in December 2020.