CHHATTISGARH
- C’garh skipped this time in pmay (u) affordable housing allocation
- Union Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs skipped Chhattisgarh this time round when it approved the construction of 1,12,083 more affordable houses for the benefit of urban poor under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban) in the country with an investment of Rs 8,105 crore with central assistance of Rs 1,681 crore.
- The approval was given in the 28th meeting of the Central Sanctioning and Monitoring Committee in its meeting held in New Delhi recently.
- The approval accorded was for construction of 44,692 new houses under the Beneficiary Led Construction (BLC) component of PMAY (Urban), enhancement of 1,857 houses in Haryana under BLC and building 28,477 new houses in Jharkhand, 13,946 in Haryana, 6,392 in Maharashtra -under Affordable Housing in Partnership (AHP) component.
- In Madhya Pradesh, another 16,104 new houses, in Kerala-9,836 houses, in Maharashtra- 5,131, in Mizoram- 3,270 will be built under BLC component under which an eligible beneficiary is assisted to build a house on the land owned by him/her.
INTERNATIONAL
· World AIDS Day is observed as December 1st
- World AIDS Dayis celebrated every year all over the world on December 1st to raise the public awareness about Acquired Immuno Deficiency Syndrome, AIDS.
- The theme for World AIDS day 2017 is ‘Right to health’.
- It is a pandemic disease caused due to the infection of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV).
- USAID announces $1 mn for TB awareness in India
- The US Agency for International Development (USAID) announced $1 million to create awareness about Tuberculosis (TB) to help India in its fight against the disease.
- India has the world’s highest incidence of TB, with 2.8 million cases annually, and accounts for more than a quarter of the global TB burden.
· North Korea tests Hwasong-15 most powerful ICBM
- North Korea claimed that“Hwasong-15”test-fired on 29th November 2017 is a new type of Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) that can strike anywhere on the US mainland.
- It represents the most successful and formidable part of its ballistic missile arsenal. “Hwasong-15” was North Korea’s 20th launch of a ballistic missile in 2017.
- The missile was reported to have flown for 50 minutes on a very high trajectory, reaching 2,796 miles (4,500km) above the earth (more than 10 times higher than the orbit of the International Space Station) before coming down nearly 621 miles from the launch site off the west coast of Japan. This would make it the most powerful of the three ICBMs North Korea has tested so far.
NATIONAL
- World’s first 3D Sanskrit film screened at IFFI
- World’s first Sanskrit 3D film ‘Anurakthi is among the main attraction in 3D category at the ongoing International Film Festival of India in Panaji in Goa.
- Asokan PK-directed film throws light on the ancient theatrical tradition of Koodiyattam in Kerala.
- The movie narrates the story of ‘Vasudha’, a Punjabi danseuse.
- Manohar Parrikar launches farmer engagement app ‘Jai Kisaan’
- Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar has launched the Jai Kisaan App, a farmer engagement app packed with features and functions to fulfill the needs of the farmers community in India.
- The Jai Kisan app is a one-stop solution on agricultural information and cultivation, covering crop nutrition, protection, seeds, and diagnostic services.
· Indian Railways introduces facility for booking tickets through BHIM App
- Now there is no tension to carry cash for booking railway tickets as to give a major boost to Government’s key initiative of cashless transactions and passenger friendly measures, Railway Ministry introduced the facility for booking of railway tickets from railway counters throughUnified Payments Interface (UPI)/ Bharat Interface for Money (BHIM) App.
- The facility of payment through UPI/BHIM for booking of e-tickets online on IRCTC Website has already been implemented earlier. Now, this facility is being extended to the tickets being booked from railway counters.
· Dia Mirza appointed as UN Environment Goodwill Ambassador for India
- Actor-activist Dia Mirzaappointed UN (United Nations) Environment’s Goodwill Ambassadorfor India.
- As a Goodwill Ambassador, she will work with the UN to further spread the message on priority areas including clean air, clean seas, wildlife protection and climate change.
- UN Environment head, Erik Solheim congratulated Dia Mirza to the programme.
- Dia Mirza joined the prestigious list of UN Environment Goodwill Ambassadors, which includes Hollywood stars such as Cate Blanchett, Anne Hathaway, Angelina Jolie, Katy Perry and Emma Watson.
· Old one rupee note celebrated a century
- The first one rupeenote was introduced on November 30, 1917, with the photo of King George V have been all but tumultuous for this creation.
- The Reserve Bank website says its issuance was discontinued first in 1926 on cost-benefit considerations.
- It got reintroduced in 1940, only to be discontinued in 1994 again. The little note got back again in 2015.
· Nagaland celebrates 54th Statehood Day, 18th Hornbill festival
- Nagaland is all set to celebrate the 54th Statehood Day and the 18th Hornbill festival 2017 today at Naga Heritage Village, Kisama. President Ram Nath Kovind who is on a maiden visit to the state will grace the occasion and inaugurated the 10 day State Hornbill festival 2017.
- The route leading to Kisama, which is 12Km away from the capital city has been all decked up with decoration to give a festive ride. Tight security arrangement has been made in view of the festival.