1) International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists
•The International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists is a UN-recognized day observed annually on 2 November. The day draws attention to the low global conviction rate for violent crimes against journalists and media workers, estimated at only one in every ten cases. This year’s International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists, is focused on local journalists.
2) Health Minister launched Intensified Mission Indradhanush 2.0 portal
•Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare launched Intensified Mission Indradhanush (IMI) 2.0 portal in New Delhi. This portal start from December 2019-March 2020. The IMI2.0 is a rechristened version of mission Indhradanush Universal Immunization Programme(UIP) that aims to achieve 100% immunization.
•The portal was launched during the celebration of the silver jubilee of the Pulse Polio Programme. The health minister also launched Operational guidelines for ‘Strengthening immunization systems to reach every child’ and ‘Operational guidelines for Strengthening Td10 and Td16 vaccine implementation.
3) UNESCO designates Mumbai and Hyderabad as member of UCCN
•UNESCO has designated Mumbai as a member of UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN) in the field of FILM and Hyderabad in the field of GASTRONOMY. The 7 categories for recognition under UCCN are Crafts and Folk Arts, Design, Film, Gastronomy, Music, Media Arts and Literature.
•Previously, 3 Indian cities were recognized as members of UCCN, namely- Jaipur-Crafts and Folk Arts(2015), Varanasi-Creative city of Music (2015), Chennai-Creative city of Music(2017). UCCN, created in 2004, is a network of cities which are thriving, active centres of cultural activities in their respective countries. The UNESCO Creative Cities Network now counts a total of 246 cities.
4) Vice President inaugurates 21st North East Book Fair in Guwahati
•Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu inaugurated the 21st North East Book Fair in Guwahati, Assam. Vice President laid stress on the use of the mother tongue and the relevance of books to stir one’s creativity and stimulate innovative and inventive ideas. This book fair organized by the All Assam Publishers and Booksellers Association (AAPBA). There are as many as 217 bookstalls including one from Bangladesh.
5) Kolkata International Film Festival to start on Nov 8
•The 25th Kolkata International Film Festival (KIFF) will start on November 8. Germany is the Focus Country of this year’s festival. In all, 214 Feature Films and 152 Short and Documentary Films from 76 countries will be screened at 17 venues. The important segment of the festival includes Homage, Centenary Tribute, Retrospective, Contemporary World Cinema. Satyajit Ray Memorial Lecture will be delivered by Noted Film Personality Kumar Sahani.
6) Punjab Cabinet passes resolution to institute Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji Award
•Punjab State Cabinet passed a unanimous resolution to institute Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji Award for Promotion of Peace and Interfaith Understanding, in commemoration of the 550th Prakash Purb of Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji. The award would carry a citation and a cash prize of 11 lakh rupees. This coveted award would be given each year and would be adjudicated by a jury to be notified by the State Government.
7) IIT Delhi to set up space technology cell in collaboration with ISRO
•The Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi (IIT-D) will set up a space technology cell (STC) in collaboration with the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). This collaboration is to contribute to the space technology research areas such as AI (Artificial Intelligence), nanotechnology, functional textiles, smart manufacturing at its campus. It is also proposed that IIT, Delhi as an Institute becomes an academic partner of ISRO.
8) Spanish capital Madrid to host COP 25
•The Spanish capital city of Madrid will host the UN Climate Change Conference (COP 25) from 2 to 13 December. The decision was taken following Chile’s stepping down as host for the event due to the ongoing street protests in the South American country. The annual Conference of the Parties (COP) summit is a key event which allows representatives from around 200 nations to monitor and discuss the current situation of the world’s warming climate.
9) GeM signs MoU with Indian Bank and Canara Bank for payment related services
•Government e-Marketplace (GeM) has signed MoU with Indian Bank and Canara Bank. The MoU will facilitate a cashless, paperless and transparent payment system on the portal and would create an efficient procurement system for government entities.
•Through this partnership, both the banks will be able to offer an array of services including transfer of funds through GeM Pool Accounts (GPA), advising of Performance Bank Guarantees (e-PBG), Earnest Money Deposit (EMD) and Payment Gateway to the registered users on the portal.
10) Rajinikanth to be honoured special Icon award at IFFI
•The 50th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) will honour superstar Rajinikanth with a special Icon of Golden Jubilee Award and the Life Time Achievement Award for a Foreign Artiste will be conferred to French Actress Isabelle Huppert. The festival will be held in Goa from November 20 to 28. Russia will be the partner country at the festival this year.
11) Pepsico India wins US award for saving water
•US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo presented the prestigious Award for Corporate Excellence to Pepsico India. This award is given for its efforts to save more than 17 billion of litres of water by conducting various community programs and replenished over 5 billion litres of water, by impacting 60,000 community members. This award is given by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs.
