INTERNATIONAL NEWS

SL Takes Step Towards Combating Fixing & Betting, Is 1st South Asian Nation To Criminalise Them.

• The Sri Lanka Parliament has passed all three readings of a bill entitled "Prevention of Offences Related to Sports" in which offences related to corruption in sports will carry a prison term of up to 10 years, as well as various fines, reports ESPNcricinfo.

• The bill not only seeks to punish "any person related to a sport" who is directly involved in fixing, but also those who "provide...inside information", curators who prepare playing surfaces to suit betting operators, and match officials who "deliberately misapply the rules" for money.

• According to the bill, "acts of omission", which includes failure to report corrupt approaches, are also criminalised.

Trace Bribery Risk Matrix 2019: Bangladesh tops the list in South Asia.

Key Highlights of Report

• Bangladesh is in 178th position among 200 countries. The report suggests that Bangladesh has a high expectation of bribes and a high degree of government interaction in business.

• The report informs that the high risk of bribery is there due to high regulatory burden on business.

• Afghanistan (168) and Pakistan (153) are other countries where bribery risk is high in South Asia.

• In South Asia, Bhutan (52) has the least risk of bribery as it is placed at 52 in the ranking.

• India is in 78th place with a total risk score of 48.

• Bangladesh gets a score of 86 in Business Interactions with Government domain. The ranking was based on a high level of government’s interaction and high regulatory burden.

NATIONAL NEWS

India pledges $13.5 million to UN in 2020 for development activities

• India has pledged to contribute USD 13.5 million for various operational activities of development across the UN agencies for the year 2020.

• Modi had announced a 14 million dollar grant for community development projects in the CARICOM and another 150 million dollar Line of Credit for solar, renewable energy and climate-change related projects.

• About 16 countries pledged a total of USD 516 million at the 2019 United Nations Pledging Conference for Development Activities, representing a considerable increase over 2018 which saw USD 425.69 million promised.

CBI sets up Unit to counter growing menace of child porn

• The Central Bureau of Investigation has a set up an Online Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation (OCSAE) Prevention and Investigation Unit at its headquarter in New Delhi to counter the growing menace of child porn on the internet.

• The new specialized unit under the Special Crime Investigation Wing of the agency will collect intelligence on those who are allegedly creating and transmitting such material on the internet. The unit also looks an eye on who are browsing and downloading such material.

• The perpetrators will be booked under relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code, the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012 and the Information Technology Act, 2000.

India to host the 8th International Conference on Agricultural Statistics in New Delhi

• The 8th International Conference on Agricultural Statistics (ICAS-VIII) will be organized by the Ministry of Agriculture in New Delhi from 18th to 21st November 2019.

• Dr. Trilochan Mohapatra DG ICAR & Secretary DARE informed that the conference will be inaugurated by the Union Minister for Agriculture & Farmers Welfare Shri Narendra Singh Tomar.

• Chief Guest will be Bill Gates.

•  The conference will be organised in collaboration with the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, ISI-CAS, FAO, the USDA, ADB, World Bank, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Eurostat, AfDB and various other organizations.

• The theme of this year’s ICAS is ‘Statistics for Transformation of Agriculture to Achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)’

DPIIT establishes Development Council for Bicycle

• Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India, has set up a Development Council for Bicycle for vision planning in design, engineering and manufacturing of lighter, smarter, value added, safe and faster premium bicycles which are comparable with global standards for exports and domestic market.

• A Twenty-three-member Council will be headed by Secretary DPIIT.

• The constitution of the Council is for a period of two years.

• Joint Secretary, Light Engineering Industry Division in DPIIT will be Member-Secretary. The Council will have 9 ex-officio members from DPIIT and Department of Commerce, Ministries of Housing and Urban Affairs, Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Health and Family Welfare, Road Transport and Highways, Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises and Bureau of Indian Standards.

BNP Paribas mutual fund & Bank of Baroda (BOB) Mutual Fund: Merger gets CCI nod.

• Competition Commission of India (CCI) approves merger of BNP Paribas (BNPP) Mutual Fund and the Baroda (BOB) Mutual Fund, under Section 31(1) of the Competition Act, 2002.

CSIR-IMTECH signs MOU with IIT Bombay for collaborative research

• CSIR-Institute of Microbial Technology (IMTECH), Chandigarh signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) here today with Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay to promote collaborative research.

•  The MoU will facilitate exchange of ideas, development of new knowledge and enhance high quality research acumen between the researchers and faculty of both the institutes.

• The objective of this collaboration is to carry out state of the art research in areas of healthcare especially in projects and mission where both the institutes can significantly complement each other.

Union Minister for Defence, Rajnath Singh inaugurating Sisseri River bridge.

• Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh was on two-day visit to Arunachal Pradesh on 14-15 November 2019.

• The minister inaugurated the Sisseri River bridge in the state that will connect the Lower Dibang Valley with Siang.

• The 200-metre long bridge is constructed between Jonai-Pasighat-Ranaghat-Roing road in East Siang District.

AWARDS AND RECOGNITION

Dr Cyrus Poonawalla conferred with ABLF Lifetime Achievement Award.

• In a befitting celebration that complements the ‘Year of Tolerance’, the 12th edition of the Asian Business Leadership Forum (ABLF) presented its prestigious ABLF Awards to visionary leaders from across Asia, who inspire and set high standards in leadership excellence.

• Dr Cyrus Poonawalla, founder and chairman of Serum Institute of India, was conferred with the ABLF Lifetime Achievement Award in Dubai, UAE at a glittering ceremony on Thursday.

• It was in 1966, that Dr Poonawalla embarked on his journey to establish Serum Institute of India, which is now the world’s largest producer of vaccines by number of doses, producing at least 1.5 billion doses a year of life-saving vaccines used in over 170 countries to combat infection from rabies, measles, mumps, rubella, whooping cough, tetanus, diphtheria, tuberculosis, influenza, meningitis, rotavirus and hepatitis B vaccines among others,thus saving the lives of at least 40 million, mostly under-privileged children across the globe, who would have otherwise perished without the availability of affordable vaccines.

• Recently Dr Poonawalla, was also conferred with the prestigious 'Degree of Doctor of Science, honoris causa' by the University of Oxford, UK at a ceremony in June.

• He was also conferred with the honorary degree of 'Doctor of Humane Letters' by the University of Massachusetts, Boston, USA last year for his outstanding contribution in improving the public health for all communities.

11.       Tobacco Board of India awarded the Golden Leaf award 2019 in the ‘Public Service Initiative’ category at Tab Expo 2019 in Amsterdam, Netherlands

SPORTS

Arsene Wenger to head FIFA’s Global Football Development

• In his new role, Wenger will be chiefly responsible for overseeing and driving the growth and development of the sport for both men and women around the world.

• He will also be the leading authority on technical matters, both as a member of the Football and Technical Advisory Panels involved in The IFAB’s review and decision-making process on potential changes to the Laws of the Game

• Leaning on a highly distinguished coaching career, Wenger’s role will include a particular focus on coach education, while he will also offer invaluable contributions to an executive programme – currently in its inception phase – tailored to encourage former professional players to enter management and which will support them through the post-career transition and bridge the gap between managerial and technical positions in football.

APPOINTMENTS AND RESIGNATIONS

Kamala Vardhana Rao: New Chairman and Managing Director at ITDC

• India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) has appointed G Kamala Vardhana Rao as the new Chairman and Managing Director.

• Prior to this, Rao, an IAS officer 1990 batch from Kerala Cadre, was the Principal Secretary, Kerala government. He has also served as the Secretary of Kerala Tourism in 2014-15.

Food ATMs Come Up In Odisha To Feed Poor

• YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh has launched the ‘Nadu-Nedu’ programme which aims at transforming government schools into vibrant and competitive institutions.

UP govt launches e-Ganna app, web portal

• Uttar Pradesh government has launched a web portal and a mobile application named e-Ganna App, for sugarcane farmers of the state.

Sishu Suraksha App launched in Assam

• Assam State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (ASCPCR) has launched a mobile app named ‘Sishu Suraksha’ for the protection of rights of children of Assam.

Retail inflation jumps to 16-month high of 4.62% in October on higher food prices; reduces RBI's headroom for rate cut

• India’s retail inflation in October rose to 4.62%, breaching the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) medium-term target of 4% for the first time in 15 months.

• However, core inflation, which reflects demand in the economy, fell sharply due to weak economic conditions.

Brazil President, Jair Bolsonaro to be the Cheif Guest at Republic Day 2020

• Prime Minister Modi invited the President of Brazil, Mr. Jair Messias Bolsonaro to be the Chief Guest at the Republic Day 2020. The Brazilian President has accepted the invitation with pleasure.

• Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi met H.E. Mr. Jair Messias Bolsonaro, President of Brazil on the sidelines of the 11th BRICS summit at Brasilia on 13 November 2019.

Moody’s revises India GDP forecast to 5.6 % in 2019

• Moody’s Investors Service has revised its GDP growth rate prediction for India for Calender Year 2019 to 5.6% from its earlier prediction of 5.8%.

• India’s GDP growth rate prediction for 2020 as per Moody’s- 6.6%.

• India’s GDP growth rate prediction for 2021 as per Moody’s- 6.7%.

• The rates have been released in the Global Macro Outlook for 2020-21 by Moody’s.

NCDEX ties up with NSE Indices to launch AGRIDEX, India's first agri index

• National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX) has partnered with NSE Indices Limited and launched  India’s first agri index — ‘NCDEX Agridex’, for easy reference to price variations in agricultural commodities.

• The AGRIDEX tracks and replicates the performance of the ten most liquid commodities traded on the NCDEX’s platform.

World Diabetes Day : November 14, 2019

• World Diabetes Day is observed every year on November 14.

• World Diabetes Day was launched in 1991 by the IDF and the World Health Organization (WHO) in response to the rapid rise of diabetes around the world.

Prakash Javadekar gets heavy industries portfolio as Arvind Sawant quits

• Arvind Ganpat Sawant who till now held the portfolio of the Minister of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises has resigned.

• President Ramnath Kovind has now assigned the portfolio of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises to Union Minister Prakash Javadekar.he is already in charge of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, and the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.

Indian wins BRICS-Young Innovator Prize

• India has received the first prize at BRICS Young Scientist forum’s conclave in Brazil from 6- 8 November.

• Ravi Prakash, who is a PhD scholar from Indian Council of Agricultural Research-National Dairy Research Institute, has bagged the first position for inventing an affordable indigenously designed milk chilling unit for small to marginal rural dairy farmers.

39th India International Trade Fair to begin in New Delhi 

• The Union Minister of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME), Nitin Gadkari, will inaugurate the 39th India International Trade Fair 2019 (IITF 2019) in New Delhi’s Pragati Maidan on November 14, 2019.

• Theme- The theme of the 14-day fair (November 14-27, 2019) is ‘Ease of Doing Business’.

6th World Congress on Rural and Agricultural Finance held in New Delhi

• The 6th World Congress on Rural and Agricultural Finance was held in New Delhi on November 12 and 13, 2019.

• The Congress was jointly hosted by Asia-Pacific Rural and Agricultural Credit Association (APRACA), National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) and Ministry of Agriculture Farmers Welfare and Cooperation.

• APRACA Headquarters- Manila, Philippines

Gov. Gives Nod for Four Medical Device Parks For Affordable Treatment

• The Central government has approved setting up of four medical device parks in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu and Kerala to support Make in India initiative and provide world-class treatment at affordable prices.

• India is largely an importer of medical devices, with domestic industry accounting for about 2 percent (USD 5.2 bn) of the global industry which stands at USD 250 billion.

2019 World Kabaddi Cup to be held from December 1 to 9 in Punjab

• Punjab government will organise the 2019 World Kabaddi Cup from December 1 to 9, 2019.

• The tournament would be dedicated to the 550th birth anniversary of Sikh guru, Guru Nanak Dev ji.

• Nine teams – India, USA, Australia, England, Sri Lanka, Kenya, New Zealand, Pakistan and Canada — are expected to take part in the tournament.

India Finishes Fourth in Medal Tally with 26 Medals in 2019 Asian Shooting Championships

The 14th edition of the Asian Shooting Championships, 2019 was held from 5 to 13 November 2019 in Doha, Qatar.

• India won total 26 medals (5G-10S-11B) to be placed at fourth spot in the medal table.

• China stood first with highest number of medals (45), followed by South Korea (21) and North Korea (11).

Luka Modric Wins The 2019 Golden Foot Award

• Real Madrid midfielder Luka Modric has been announced as the 17th winner of the 2019 Golden Foot Award.

• The Golden Foot Award is an international football award given to active players of at least 28 years of age for their outstanding on-field achievements, both as an individual and a team player and for their personality.

World Kindness Day

• The theme for 2019 World Kindness day is empathy, encouraging people across the globe to better understand “the pains of others” and touch their lives “positively”.

Mohammad Imran appointed Bangladesh High Commissioner to India

• Mohammad Imran has been appointed as the new High Commissioner of Bangladesh to India.

• The announcement was made by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bangladesh.

NASA Captures the Brightest X-Ray Burst Ever Observed

• NASA has detected a massive thermonuclear explosion coming from outer space, caused by a massive thermonuclear flash on the surface of a pulsar — the crushed remains of a star that long ago exploded as a supernova.

• The X-ray burst, the brightest seen by NICER so far, came from an object named “J1808”, located about 11,000 light-years away in the constellation Sagittarius.

NATIONAL NEWS

PM Modi to Visit Brasilia, Brazil to Attend BRICS Summit 2019

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend the 11th edition of the BRICS summit to be held in Brasilia, Brazil on 13-14 November 2019.

• The theme of the BRICS summit 2019 is “Economic Growth for an Innovative Future.”

• PM Modi will be participating for the sixth time at the BRICS summit. He participated in BRICS summit for the first time at Fortaleza in Brazil in 2014.

Maharashtra under President’s rule for 3rd time

• This comes after Pre-poll allies BJP and the Shiv Sena who had won 161 seats were unable to form the government till such a long time after declaration of result on October 24, 2019.

• In the election,the BJP emerged as the single largest party with 105 seats followed by the Shiv Sena 56, the NCP 54 and the Congress 44.

• Overall, this is third time that Maharashtra has come under the central rule.

The inaugural conclave on “National Capital Region -2041” was held in New Delhi

• It was organized by the National Capital Region Planning Board (NCRPB).

• The theme of the conclave was “Planning for Tomorrow’s Greatest Capital Region”.

BANKING AND ECONOMICS

SBI Report predicts India’s GDP for FY20 at 5% and FY21 at 6.2%

• An SBI research report has predicted the GDP Growth rate of India for 2019-20 (FY20) at 5%. Earlier the projection was 6.1%.

• As per the report, India is expected to grow at 6.2% in 2020-21 (FY21).

DAYS

World Pneumonia Day: November 12

• The World Pneumonia Day is observed across the world on November 12 every year to raise awareness, promote prevention and treatment and produce action to combat the disease.

• The theme for World Pneumonia Day 2019 is “healthy lungs for all”.

Public Service Broadcasting Day: November 12

Public Service Broadcasting Day is celebrated every year on November 12 to commemorate the first and only visit of the Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi, to the studio of All India Radio, Delhi in 1947.

SPORTS

Javelin thrower Sundar Singh won gold in World Para Athletics Championships

• Javelin thrower Sundar Singh Gurjar has won India’s second gold defending his World Para Athletics Championships title in the men’s F46 javelin throw event in Dubai. With this, India has secured three Tokyo Paralympic Games quota, along with the bronze winner Ajeet Singh and Rinku.

• India now have two gold, two silver and a bronze in the Championships.

APPOINTMENTS AND RESIGNATIONS

Goldman Sachs India co-head Vijay Karnani to retire after 21 yrs

• The co-head of Goldman Sachs Group’s India business, Vijay Karnani, is retiring after working with the bank for 21 years, as per a memo seen by the Bloomberg and confirmed by the firm.

• Karnani, who joined Goldman Sachs in 1998, became its Indian unit’s co-CEO in 2011.

• The role will then be solely occupied by co-CEO and Chairman Sonjoy Chatterjee.

NATIONAL NEWS

Gujarat All Set to Get World’s First CNG Terminal at Bhavnagar Port

• Gujarat Government has given its nod for the establishment of the world’s first CNG port terminal at Bhavnagar.

• The proposal has also been approved by the Gujarat Infrastructure Development Board (GIDB) under the Chairmanship of Chief Minister Vijay Rupani.

• The proposed investment in the CNG port terminal project is Rs 1900 crore which will be invested by the U.K. based Foresight group and Mumbai based Padmanabh Mafatlal group joint venture.

Defence innovations conference showcasing accomplishments of iDEX to be held in Delhi

• The Ministry of Defence (MoD) organised the conference ‘Def-Connect’ in New Delhi on November 11, 2019 to showcase the accomplishments of the Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX) initiative and growth of the defence ecosystem in the country.

• Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh was the Chief Guest of the event.

• The conference was attended by all stakeholders of the iDEX ecosystem i.e. MoD, iDEX selected startups, Partner Incubators, Defence Innovation Organisation (DIO), Nodal agencies (Indian Army, Navy, Airforce), Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs), Indian Ordnance Factories (IOFs), MSMEs and Industry associations.

• Rajnath Singh informed that Prime Minister has set a target of becoming five trillion dollar economy by 2024 and a 10 trillion dollar economy within 10 to 15 years.

Swachh – Nirmal Tat Abhiyaan” week-long intensive Beach Cleaning Drive in 50 identified beaches of India begin

Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) has started a mass cleanliness-cum-awareness drive in 50 identified beaches under the “Swachh – Nirmal Tat Abhiyaan” from 11th -17th November, 2019.

• This is being done to make our beaches clean and create awareness amongst citizens about the importance of coastal ecosystems.

• The identified beaches are in 10 coastal States/Union Territories (UTs) namely Gujarat, Daman & Diu, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Andhra Pradesh, and Odisha.

• On completion of the drive, best three beaches will be suitably awarded along with a Certificate of Appreciation for all the participating Eco-clubs.

IAF conducts Air-Fest 2019 in Nagpur

• The ‘Air Fest-2019’ was held in Nagpur, Maharashtra. It was a part of the 87th anniversary celebrations of the Indian Air Force and the 65th anniversary of the eadquarters maintenance command (HQMC).

• The objective of the Air Fest was to showcase the IAF with a view to instill a sense of patriotism and motivate the younger generation to join the IAF.

 IOCL gets environmental clearance to set up 2G ethanol plant in Panipat

• Furthering government’s commitment in promoting the use of environmentally friendly products, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has given environment clearance to Indian Oil Corporation Limited to set up new 2G Ethanol plant at Panipat.

• The IOCL had submitted a proposal seeking environment clearance for its proposed 100 KLPD Ligno-Cellulosic 2G ethanol plant at Baholi in Panipat district of Haryana.

• The estimated investment in setting up the plant is Rs 766 crore.

About IOCL:

o          Industry: Oil and Gas

o          Predecessor: Indian Refineries Ltd. (1958), Indian Oil Company (1959)

o          Founded: 30 June 1959

o          Headquarters: New Delhi (headquarters), Mumbai (registered office)

o          Area served: India, Sri Lanka, Middle East, Mauritius

o          Chairman: Sanjiv Singh

BANKING AND ECONOMICS

RBI instructs banks not to charge for online transactions in the NEFT from January 2020.

The Reserve Bank of India has taken the following steps to promote digital payments:

• Mandate banks not to charge savings bank account customers for online transactions in the NEFT system with effect from January 2020.

• Operationalise the Acceptance Development Fund to increase acceptance infrastructure with effect from January 1, 2020.

• Constitute a Committee to assess the need for plurality of QR codes and merits of their co-existence or convergence from both systemic and consumer viewpoints.

• Permit all authorised payment systems and instruments (non-bank PPIs, cards and UPI) for linking with National Electronic Toll Collection (NETC) FASTags. Going forward, this will facilitate the use of FASTags for parking, fuel, etc., payments in an interoperable environment.

• Enable processing of e-mandates for transactions through UPI.

PayNearby partners with Equitas Small Finance Bank for launching micro ATMs at retail shops

• PayNearby, the hyperlocal fintech network builder, has partnered with National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) and Equitas Small Finance Bank for launching its own mirco ATMs at retail shops.

• This has been done to address the issue of money dispensing machines running dry, and PayNearby aims to deploy 1 lakh terminals in the first year.

• PayNearby’s micro ATM is a cost effective and a smart cash management tool for small retail stores and traders who deal in large chunks of cash on a daily basis.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

A New Spider Species Named After Sachin Tendulkar

• A research scholar, Dhruv Prajapati, who is pursuing a Ph. D in spider taxonomy at the Gujarat Ecological Education & Research (GEER) Foundation has discovered two new species of spiders.

• Of the two, he has named one spider species after Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar, as Marengo sachintendulkar, to show his love towards his favourite cricketer.

• The other discovered species has been named as Indomarengo chavarapater after Saint Kuriakose Elias Chavara, who played a key role in creating awareness on education in Kerala.

• The two new spider species are a part of the Indomarengo and Marengo genus of Asian jumping spiders.

OBITUARY

Former CEC TN Seshan Passes Away at 86

• Former chief election commissioner (CEC), TN Seshan passed away in Chennai of cardiac arrest. He was 86-year old.

• Seshan was a 1955 batch IAS officer of the Tamil Nadu cadre.

• He was the 10th Chief Election Commissioner of India who had led the Election Commission from 1990 to 1996.

Dhrupad maestro and Padma Shri awardee Ramakant Gundecha passes away at 56

• Dhrupad maestro Ramakant Gundecha passed away due to a heart attack. He was 56.

• He was the younger of the Gundecha brothers duo (Umakant Gundecha and Ramakant Gundecha) who are well known singers of Dagarvani style of dhrupad.

• The brothers were together awarded the Padma Shri in 2012 in the field of Art – Indian Classical Music – Vocal – Madhya Pradesh.

• The Gundecha brothers were founders of Bhopal’s Gurukul Drupad Sansthan and are known for reviving and performing the dhrupad, one of the oldest forms of Hindustani music.

DAYS

November 10, World Science Day for Peace and Development

• The World Science Day for Peace and Development is celebrated each year on November 10 to highlight the important role that science play in society and the need to engage the wider public in debates on emerging scientific issues.

• World Science Day was proclaimed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 2001 and celebrated for the first time in 2002.

• 2019 Theme: “Open science, leaving no one behind”

November 11, National Education Day: National Education Day

• In India the National Education Day is celebrated on 11 November every year to commemorate the birth anniversary of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, the first education minister of independent India.

• The day was announced by the Ministry of Human Resource Development on 11 September 2008.

• Maulana Abul Kalam Azad served as education minister from 15 August 1947 to 2 February 1958.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

INDRA 2019 to be held from December 10-19, An Indo-Russian Joint Tri-Service Exercise

• The first-ever joint tri-service exercise between India and Russia codenamed INDRA 2019 will be conducted from December 10-19.

• Company-sized mechanized contingents, fighter and transport aircraft as well as ships of respective Armies, Air Forces and Navies will participate in this 10-days exercise.

NATIONAL NEWS

India's First Elephant Memorial Opens in UP On Agra-Mathura Highway

• This memorial is a way to honour elephants that lost their lives to illegal trafficking, abuse and cruelty.

• It has been established by NGO, WildLife SOS, at the Elephant Conservation & Care Center, Mathura

NCRB launches Report on ‘Accidental Deaths & Suicides in India’ (ADSI-2016)

• National Crime Records Bureau stated a total of 11,379 people engaged in the farming sector committed suicide in the year 2016. Maharashtra had the highest number of farmer suicide.

• The suicides in the farming sector comprised 8.7 per cent of the total suicides 1,31,008 in the country.

• All-India suicide rate of 10.3 (per lakh of population) in 2016. In cities suicide rate was 13.0.

Railways conducts‘world’s largest’ recruitment exercise for 1.27 lakh vacancies

• The railways has successfully conducted one of the “world’s largest recruitment exercises” wherein 2.4 crore application were received for 1.27 lakh vacancies on critical safety and operational posts, the national transporter said Thursday.

• Two recruitment notifications -- one for Assistant Loco Pilots and technician and the other for Level-I (erstwhile group D) posts -- were released in 2018 for filling up about 1.27 lakh vacancies.

• Total Posts of Assistant Loco Pilots (ALPs) and technicians were 64,371 and about 47.45 lakhs candidates applied for these posts. Vacancies for Level-I posts (erstwhile group D) were 63,202 and around 1.9 crore candidates applied for these posts.

• A total of around 2.4 crore candidates applied, making it the largest recruitment exercise, the railways said.

SPORTS

France Defeats Australia to Win the Fed Cup

• France defeated Australia, 3-2, to claim their first Fed Cup title in 16 years, held in Perth, Australia.

• Fed Cup is an international team competition in women’s tennis.

• Caroline Garcia and Kristina Mladenovic of France surpassed Ashleigh Barty and Samantha Stosur, 6-4, 6-3, winning the deciding doubles match to break the tie.

• This was France’s third Fed Cup title and first since they beat the United States in 2003.

• However, Australia has till date lost all nine of the last Fed Cup finals they have appeared in.

Kento Momota Defends Fuzhou China Open Badminton Title of 2019

• Japan’s World number one Kento Momota defeated Chou Tien-Chen of Taiwan to win 2019 Fuzhou China Open men’s single badminton title.

• With this win, he claimed his 10th title of the year 2019.

• In women’s single, Home hope Chen Yufei claimed victory over Japan’s Nozomi Okuhara to win the title.

Shafali Verma youngest Indian to score international fifty

• The 15-year-old Shafali Verma has created history as she became the youngest Indian cricketer to score a half-century in international cricket, surpassing Sachin Tendulkar’s 30-year-old record.

• Shafali achieved the feat while playing T20 International against West Indies at the Daren Sammy National Cricket Stadium.

• She scored 73 off 49 balls to reach her maiden fifty at the age of 15 years and 285 days.

• The batting legend Tendulkar scored his maiden Test fifty at 16 years and 214 days.

DAYS

November 9,  National Legal Services Day

• The 9th of November is selected as the Legal Services Day which was first started by the Supreme Court in the year 1995 all across the India

• it offer help and support to the weaker and poor group of sections of people which may be women, disabled persons, Scheduled Tribes, children, Scheduled Castes, human trafficking victims as well as natural calamities victims.

• The day is observed to commemorate the day when the Legal Services Authorities Act 1987 came into effect, the same year.

National

Temple to be built on Ayodhya disputed land, alternative land for mosque: SC rules

• The 5 judge bench of Supreme Court headed by Chief Justice of India, Ranjan Gogoi has given its verdict on Ayodhya Ram Temple case (Rām Janmabhoomi – Bābrī Masjid Land Title Dispute) on November 09, 2019. Justices SA Bobde, DY Chandrachud, Ashok Bhushan and S Abdul Nazeer were the other 4 members of the bench and the decision passed by the bench was in agreement in 5-0 ratio.

• The decision by the Supreme Court is mentioned below:

• Supreme Court has cleared the way for the construction of a Ram Temple at the disputed site (area of 2.77 acres) and has given three months time to Central Government to set up a board of trustees for construction of the temple (Ram Temple) at the disputed structure.

• The bench also ruled that the Hindu organisation Nirmohi Akhara would not be the shebait, but would instead get to be a member of the trust.

•  SC has directed Centre for arrangement of suitable alternative plot of land measuring 5 acres at Ayodhya for Sunni Waqf Board (for Mosque).

• It must be noted that in 2010, Allahabad High Court had divided the 2.77 acres of disputed land in 3 part. 1⁄3 going to the Ram Lalla or Infant Rama represented by the Hindu Maha Sabha, 1⁄3 going to the Sunni Waqf Board and the remaining 1⁄3 going to Nirmohi Akhara. However, now the SC bench has declared it invalid.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has formally inaugurated the Integrated Check Post of the Kartarpur Corridor.

• PM inaugurates Integrated Check Post and flags off 1st batch of pilgrims at Kartarpur Sahib corridor

• Kartarpur Sahib Corridor is a 4.7 kilometre long passage that connects Dera Baba Nanak Sahib in India’s Gurdaspur and Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Pakistan’s Kartarpur.

• The corridor will facilitate visa-free movement but Indian pilgrims are required to carry their passports and will have to just obtain a permit to visit Kartarpur Sahib Gurdwara (Pakistan) , which was established by Guru Nanak Dev in 1522.

Indian Railways launches three online applications for all-India rollout to strengthen IT enablement of railways

• Indian Railways has launched three applications for all-India roll out to strengthen its IT-enabled services which will help ensure proper monitoring of projects being undertaken by Railways.

• The applications, namely CRS Sanction Management System, Rail-road crossing GAD approval system and TMS for construction aim at beefing up IT-enabled services

APPOINTMENTS

Google India appoints former Star and Disney head Sanjay Gupta as new Country Manager

• Former managing director of Disney, Sanjay Gupta has now been appointed as the country manager and vice president of Sales and Operations of Google India.

• Gupta will take on the role starting next year and will be based in Mumbai. He will work with the teams based in Gurgaon, Hyderabad and Bengaluru.

• Gupta will be replacing Rajan Anandan, who left the company earlier this year to join Sequoia Capital India.

Banking and Economy

Nomura slashes India's FY20 GDP forecast to 4.9% from 5.7% earlier

• Japanese brokerage firm Nomura has cut its GDP forecast for India to 4.9 percent for FY20 from 5.7 percent earlier.

• For 2020-21 (FY21) Nomura has predicted India’s GDP Growth rate at 6.1%.

Exim Bank gives USD 30 mn line of credit to Ghana

• The Export-Import (Exim) Bank has granted USD 30 million line of credit (LoC) (about Rs 210 crore) to Ghana for potable water project in the country.

• This LoC (soft loan or loan with low interest rate) will be used for financing rehabilitation and up-gradation of potable water system in Yendi.

INTERNATIONAL

Dubai to host World Tolerance Summit with the participation of world peace leaders

• A two-day ‘World Tolerance Summit’ will be held in Dubai, UAE on November 13 and 14, 2019.

• Mathematician Anand Kumar of Super 30 has been invited to address this summit.

• The summit is an initiative of the International Institute for Tolerance, as part of UAE’s Prime Minister and ruler Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s global drive.

• Theme: “Tolerance in Multiculturalism: Achieving the Social, Economic and Humane Benefits of a Tolerant World”

Sports

India to host 2023 Men’s Hockey World Cup

• After successfully hosting the 2018 men's hockey World Cup, India will once again stage the 2023 edition of the tournament

• India will become the first country to host consecutive World Cups after being awarded the hosting rights for the men’s 2023 edition.

• The International Hockey Federation (FIH) announced the decision on Friday following recommendations of a Task Force formed to assess the bids for the same. While the men’s event would be held from January 13-29, 2023.

• Spain and the Netherlands have been named as the co-hosts of the 2022 Women’s World Cup scheduled to be held from 1st to 22nd of July.

OBITUARY

Sahitya Akademi awardee writer Nabaneeta Dev Sen passes away

• The renowned Indian poet, novelist and academic and the recipient of the prestigious Sahitya Akademi award, Nabaneeta Dev Sen, passed away. She was 81.

• Dev Sen won the Sahitya Akademi award in 1999 for her book ‘Naba-Nita’. She was also the recipient of the Padma Shri in 2000.

• She was the former wife of Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen.

SUMMITS AND MOU’S

PM Modi to visit Brazil for BRICS summit

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be on a two-day visit to Brazil from the 13th of this month to attend the 11th BRICS Summit in Brasilia. The theme of the Summit this year is "Economic Growth for an Innovative Future”.

• Briefing media in New Delhi, Secretary, Economic Relations in the Ministry of External Affairs, TS Tirumurti, said this will be the sixth time that Mr Modi participates in the BRICS Summit. His first BRICS Summit was at Fortaleza in Brazil in 2014.

National

India to host 'No Money For Terror' meet in 2020

• India will next year host the conference of the “No Money For Terror”, the ministerial-level grouping of 70 countries that focuses on countering terror financing, terror and radicalisation.

• The group, set up in 2018, is a much smaller version of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) that has a single-point agenda to crack down on terror financing.

• Minister of State for Home Affairs, G Kishan Reddy, made the announcement at the ongoing 2nd ‘No Money For Terror’ Conference in Melbourne

• The first “No Money for Terror” conference was held in France.

Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu inaugurates 10th Asian Conference of Emergency Medicine

• Inaugurating 10th Asian Conference of Emergency Medicine in New Delhi, Mr Naidu said, there is a need to develop programs and manuals to train citizens in emergency first aid procedures such as Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation as it will help in saving a life while waiting for emergency services. He also stressed on the need to invest in providing timely and high- quality Emergency Health Services in India.

• The Vice President expressed happiness that the Government of India has made it mandatory for all medical college hospitals to have full-fledged Emergency Departments by 2022 with an aim to improve trauma care. He stressed on the need to include Emergency medicine and trauma care in the curriculum of Undergraduate courses. He added that Medical students must be trained to deal with the whole gamut of situations relating to emergency medicine

India, Indonesia Hold Joint Naval Exercise "Samudra Shakti" In Bay Of Bengal

• INS Kamorta, an Anti-Submarine Warfare Corvette is jointly exercising with Indonesian Warship KRI Usman Harun, a multi- role Corvette in the Bay of Bengal as part of the ongoing Indian Navy – Indonesian Navy Bilateral Exercise ‘Samudra Shakti’

• The joint exercises include manoeuvres, Surface Warfare exercises, Air Defence exercises, Weapon firing drills, Helicopter Operations and Boarding Operations.

West Bengal based writer Abhisek Sarkar wins award at Dhaka Lit-fest

• The ninth edition of the Dhaka Lit-fest started with a galaxy of writers and book lovers thronging the venue ground at the Bangla Academy.

• Over the three day of the festival 200 speakers, performers and thinkers, will take part in discussions on diverse topics.

• The special focus of this year’s lit-fest is on Indigenous Languages as the UNESCO has marked 2019 as the year of Indigenous Language Protection.

• Iconic Bangla author Shankar is the festival highlight of Bangla literature this year.

• On the first day of the event, West Bengal-based writer Abhisek Sarkar and Bangladeshi poet Rofiquzzaman Rony were given the Gemcon Young Literature Award and Gemcon Young Poetry Award.

• Abhisek and Rofiquzzaman won the awards for their manuscripts, “Nishiddho” and “Dhoashar Tamate Rong,” respectively.

Rajasthan Patrika group chairman Gulab Kothari to be awarded Raja Ram Mohan Roy Award by PCI

• Rajasthan Patrika group chairman Gulab Kothari has been chosen for the prestigious Raja Ram Mohan Roy Award, presented by the Press Council of India, for his outstanding contribution towards journalism

• The award will be presented on November 16 on the occasion of the National Press Day.

Women’s boxing icon Adams retires due to medical advice

• Two-time Olympic champion Nicola Adams, regarded as the pathfinder for women’s boxing, is to retire because of fears about her sight.

• The 37-year-old, who became the first ever women’s Olympic boxing champion at London 2012 when she took the flyweight crown, said she was abandoning her hopes of winning a third gold next year in Tokyo.

• Adams, who successfully defended her title in Rio, had embarked on a successful professional career and in 2018, within 18 months of doing so, had won a world title — the vacant WBO flyweight belt.

Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan re-elected as President of UAE

• The UAE’s Supreme Council of the Union has re-elected His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan as its President for a fourth five-year term, in accordance with the provisions of the UAE Constitution.

• Shaikh Khalifa was first elected President on November 3, 2004 following the death of his father Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan.

National

PM Modi inaugurates Global Investors’ Meet in Himachal, pushes for investment

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the two-day Himachal Global Investors Meet in Dharamshala and made a pitch for investment and self employment.

• “Earlier, investors’ summit like these used to happen in just few cities in the country. The situation has changed today. Every state today is competing to attract business and investment,” he said at the event held in Dharamshala.

• The prime minister said that the rise in competition among states will help Indian industry grow at the global level.

ADB to give $451 mn for Chennai-Kanyakumari Industrial Corridor power links

• The Asian Development Bank said it will provide a $451 million (about Rs 3,200 crore) loan to strengthen power connectivity between the southern and northern parts of the Chennai-Kanyakumari Industrial Corridor (CKIC) in Tamil Nadu.

• The total cost of the project is $653.5 million, of which the government will provide $202.5 million, the Manila- headquartered multilateral agency said in a release.

• The estimated completion date is the end of 2024.

• ADB has been assisting in developing CKIC, which covers 23 of the state’s 32 districts and 70 per cent of the state population.

Odisha government signs pact with Tata Strive, Tech Mahindra for skill upgradation

• The Odisha state government signed agreements with Tata Strive and Tech Mahindra to add new dimensions in skilling and employability of the youth.

• The agreement between Directorate of Technical Education and Training and Tata Strive is aimed at imparting life skills to the students of all 49 government Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) in the state.

• The pact between Tech Mahindra and the Biju Patnaik University of Technology will see setting up of a centre for excellence in artificial intelligence and machine learning.

• It will work on the proof of concept for real-life business problems to keep up with the market demand and enhance employability of engineering students.

• Tech Mahindra and the Odisha Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation will also set up international business processing outsourcing (BPO) operations for Fortune 500 customers.

Sports

Asian Shooting Championships: Manu Bhaker Shoots Gold After Deepak Kumar Bags Olympic Quota

• Deepak Kumar secured India’s 10th Olympic quota in shooting while Manu Bhaker claimed the women’s 10m air pistol gold medal in the 14th Asian Championship.

• Deepak won bronze medal in men’s 10m air rifle on the opening day of the championship.

• China’s Qian wang and Ranxin Jiang won the silver and bronze respectively in Bhaker’s event.

• The Indian trio claimed the team bronze with a total of 1731, behind Korea and China respectively.

International

China is world’s worst abuser of internet freedom: Freedom on Net 2019 report

• China was ranked as the world’s worst abuser of internet freedom for the fourth consecutive year and Pakistan was declared as ‘not free’ in terms of internet freedom status for the ninth consecutive year in the Freedom on the Net (FoTN) report 2019.

• The Freedom on the Net report 2019 titled ‘The Crisis of Social Media’ was released by an international internet watchdog, the Freedom House on November 5, 2019. The report recorded an overall decline in global internet freedom status between July 2018 and May 2019.

• India was given an overall score of 55 in the report and the internet freedom status in the country was reported to be ‘partly free’.

Appointment

Arvind Singh takes over as Airport Authority of India Chairman

• Arvind Singh, a 1988-batch IAS officer of Maharashtra cadre took charge as the chairman of the Airports Authority of India (AAI).

• Singh replaces Anuj Aggarwal, who had earlier been with the additional charge of AAI chairman

• The AAI, which comes under the Ministry of Civil Aviation, owns and manages more than 100 airports across the country.

• Prior to this appointment, Singh was the additional chief secretary (Energy) of Maharashtra government.

• He also worked as chairman and managing director of Maharashtra State Power Generation Company Limited and Maharashtra State Electricity Transmission Company Limited.

National

Narendra Modi to inaugurate 5th India International Science Festival in Kolkata

• Narendra Modi will inaugurate fifth India International Science Festival at 4 pm on Tuesday and address a gathering in Kolkata through video conferencing

• IISF is an annual event organised jointly by science and technology-related ministries and departments of Indian government, Vijnana Bharati (Vibha), which is being held in Kolkata this year

• This is the fifth edition since its inception in 2015.

Agriculture Minister releases 5th edition of Wastelands Atlas - 2019

• Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar today released the fifth edition of Wastelands Atlas - 2019. The Atlas, published jointly by Department of Land Resources and National Remote Sensing Centre,  provides robust geospatial information on wasteland. It is helpful in rolling back the wastelands for productive use through various land development programmes and schemes.

• Wastelands Atlas-2019 also provides State and district wise distribution of different categories of wastelands area in the country and will be helpful in addressing land degradation.

IBM partners with govt to launch platform for skilling students

• Tech giant IBM announced launch of SkillsBuild platform in collaboration with the Directorate General of Training under the aegis of the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE).

• As part of the programme, a two-year advanced diploma in information technology (IT), networking and cloud computing will be offered at the Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) and the National Skill Training Institutes (NSTIs).

• The platform will also be extended to train ITI and NSTI faculty in artificial intelligence (AI) skills.

• SkillsBuild offers digital learning content from IBM and partners, like CodeDoor, Coorpacademy and Skillsoft.

Finance Minister launches IT initiatives ICEDASH, ATITHI

Union Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs, Smt Nirmala Sitharaman unveiled two new IT initiatives – ICEDASH and ATITHI – for improved monitoring and pace of Customs clearance of imported goods and facilitating arriving international passengers by electronic filing of Customs baggage and currency declarations.

Awards

Serbia’s Sara Damnjanovic wins “Miss Asia Global title 2019”

The 5th Edition of ‘Miss Asia Global Title 2019’ was organized at Gokulam Convention centre in Kochi, Kerala. Sara Damnjanovic from Serbia has been crowned ‘Miss Asia Global 2019’. The title is given to the winner from the Asian region. Nguyen Thi Yen Trang from Vietnam was awarded the Miss Asia title given to the winner from the rest of the world. Samiksha Singh from India won the sub-title of ‘Miss Beautiful Face’ Title. The Next ‘Miss Asia Global Title 2020’ will be held in Malaysia.

Science & Technology

India’s first global Mega Science Exhibition ‘Vigyan Samagam’ in Kolkata

• Bringing the world’s major Mega Science projects together, India’s first-ever global Mega-Science exhibition, ‘Vigyan Samagam’, was inaugurated at the Science City in Kolkata

• The Union Minister of Health & Family Welfare, Minister of Science & Technology and Minister of Earth Sciences, Government of India, Dr Harsh Vardhan, addressed the gathering through video conference.

• This multi-venue Science Exhibition, after its successful journey in Mumbai and Bengaluru, is now open for public in Kolkata.

• Vigyan Samagam will be in Kolkata till December 31, 2019.

• The Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), Department of Science and Technology (DST), the funding agencies of these projects and the National Council of Science Museums (NCSM), Ministry of Culture, who are venue partners and having expertise in design and hosting such exhibitions, have joined hands to organize this prestigious Science Exhibition.

Obituary

N.V. Balasubramanian Retired Judge of Madras High Court Passes Away

• Justice N.V. Balasubramanian, retired Judge of Madras High Court passed away.

• He served as the Madras High Court judge from 1996 – 2007 & as the Chairman of committees on fixation of fee for self- financing professional colleges and polytechnics after retiring from service.

• He worked as senior counsel & arbitrator in Supreme Court (SC) of India for 11 years.