Current Affairs 24th October 2020| Current Affairs News

 

CURRENT AFFAIRS: DAYS

World Snow Leopard’s Day

• October 23 is celebrated as World’s Snow Leopard Day every year to protect and conserve snow leopards and other wildlife of the Himalayas.
• These are distributed across 12 countries in central Asia and are usually found in high, rugged mountain landscapes at elevations of 3,000–4,500m. Thus they are also called the ‘ghost of the mountains’.

World Polio Day

• World Polio Day is celebrated on October 24th. World Polio Day was established by Rotary International to commemorate the birth of Jonas Salk, who led the first team to develop a vaccine against poliomyelitis.
• Thetheme for 2020 is “A win against polio is a win for global health.”

World Development Information Day

• The United Nations’ (UN) World Development Information Day is annually held on October 24 to draw attention of worldwide public opinion to development problems and the need to strengthen international cooperation to solve them.
• The main aim of this day is to collect information and mobilize public opinion, especially among new generation, in order to draw their attention and create awareness of the problems surrounding development, promoting efforts in the field of international cooperation for growth and development.

United Nations Day

• The United Nations officially came into existence on 24 October 1945.24 October has been celebrated as United Nations Day since 1948.
• The year 2020 marks the 75th anniversary of the United Nations and its founding Charter.

CURRENT AFFAIRS:NATIONAL

AYUSH Minister inaugurates Regional Raw Drug Repository at AIIA

• AYUSH Minister Shripad Yesso Naik inaugurated the Regional Raw Drug Repository at All India Institute of Ayurveda in New Delhi through a virtual function.
• This RRDR is the second in the series of repositories proposed by National Medicinal Plants Board (NMPB).
• AYUSH Ministry has stated that there is an increased demand for the natural healing and herbal products across the globe which has been further pushed by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
• In order to document the diversity in the genetics and chemistry of medicinal plants, eight RRDR and one NRDR have been proposed by Ministry of AYUSH.
• Out of them, three Regional Raw Drug Repositories have already been developed.

About Ministry of AYUSH:

• Shripad Naik, Minister of State (Independent charge)
• Constituency: North Goa

PM Modi to inaugurate 3 projects including Kisan Suryodaya in Gujarat

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate three projects, including ‘Kisan Suryodaya Yojana’ for the farmers in Gujarat, via video conferencing.To provide day-time power supply for irrigation, the Gujarat Government under Chief Minister Vijay Rupani had recently announced the Kisan Suryodaya Yojana.
• Under this scheme, farmers will be able to avail power supply from 5 AM to 9 PM. The state government has allocated a budget of 3,500 crores for installing transmission infrastructure under this scheme by 2023.The Prime Minister will also inaugurate Paediatric Heart Hospital attached with the UN Mehta Institute of Cardiology and Research Centre and a Mobile Application for tele-cardiology at the Ahmedabad Civil Hospital in Ahmedabad.
• The UN Mehta Institute of Cardiology is undergoing expansion at the cost of Rs.470 crores. The number of beds will increase from 450 to 1251 after the completion of the expansion project.
• The Institute will also become the biggest single super speciality cardiac teaching institute in the country and one of the biggest single super speciality cardiac hospitals in the world. He will launch the Girnar ropeway in which initially, there will be 25-30 cabins, with a capacity of 8 people per cabin.
• A distance of 2.3 km will now be covered in just 7.5 minutes through the ropeway. In addition to this, the ropeway will also provide a scenic view of the lush green beauty surrounding the Girnar mountain.

About Gujarat:

• Capital: Gandhinagar
• Governor: Acharya Devvrat
• Chief minister: Vijay Rupani

Indian Railways launches Freight Business Development Portal to boost freight business

• The Indian Railways launched a Freight Business Development Portal amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic to boost the freight business. As per a statement, the aim of the new portal is to motivate new customers to transport goods through railways and provide better facilities to existing customers.
• The portal, which has been specially designed and developed on the principle of ‘Customer First’, shows the complete timetable of all goods trains, routes, distance from one station to another and freight fares. Stakeholders can also make suggestions and seek help on the portal. Real-time monitoring of all the suggestions received on the portal by Indian Railways has been arranged.
• Additionally, it will provide a channel to establish contact with railway authorities and to remove the hassles faced by freight customers. It is also expected that this portal will be divided into division and headquarter business development units to reach potential freight customers.

About Indian Railways:

• Headquarters: New Delhi, India
• Key people: Piyush Goyal (Minister of Railways)
• Vinod Kumar Yadav (Chairman, Railway Board)

CURRENT AFFAIRS: INTERNATIONAL

Andorra joins the IMF and becomes the organization’s 190th member

• Europe’s Andorra formally joined the International Monetary Fund, becoming the crisis lender’s 190th member state as the tourism and trade-dependent principality struggles with the coronavirus pandemic.
• IMF’s Membership allows the Andorran government to benefit from IMF policy advice, especially as the country tackles the crisis caused by COVID-19 and can now receive an annual review or “health check” of its economy by the IMF, tap technical assistance, and access IMF lending if needed.

About Andorra

• Capital: Andorra la Vella
• Currency: Euro

About IMF

• Managing Director: Kristalina Georgieva
• Chief Economist: Gita Gopinath
• Headquarters: Washington, D.C. U.S

India gets chairmanship of International Labour Organisation’s governing body after a gap of 35 years

• India has assumed the chairmanship of the governing body of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) after a gap of 35 years.
• Labour secretary Apurva Chandra has been elected as the chairperson of the governing body of the organisation for the period October 2020- June 2021.
• At present, ILO has 187 members. Chandra will be presiding over the upcoming meeting of the governing body to be held in November 2020.
• It meets thrice a year, in March, June and November.
• It will also provide a platform to appraise participants of the transformational initiatives taken by government in removing the rigidities of labour market besides making its intention clear about universalisation of social security to all workers whether in organised or unorganised sector.

About ILO

• Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland
• Head: Guy Ryder

NATO plans to set up new space center in Germany

• The NATO alliance is to build a headquarters for space operations at its airbase in Ramstein in Germany, to counter a rising Russian and Chinese threat.
• The new center is to be a central point of contact to support NATO missions with communication and satellite images. It will also be a place to exchange information on potential threats to satellites.
• Some 2,000 satellites orbit the Earth, more than half of which are operated by NATO members, allowing everything from mobile phone services to weather forecasts.
• Currently, at least 40 percent of NATO’s communications are via satellite.

About NATO

• Headquarters: Brussels, Belgium
• Chairman of the NATO Military Committee: Air Chief Marshal Stuart Peach

Pakistan to remain in grey list of global terror financing watchdog- FATF till February 2021

• Pakistan will remain on the grey list of global terror financing watchdog, Financial Action Task Force (FATF) as it has not been able to fulfil six out of the 27 mandates to check terror funding. The decision was announced by the President of FATF Marcus Pleyer.
• The FATF strongly urged Pakistan to swiftly complete its full action plan by February 2021. It stated, Pakistan needs to do more to check terror funding, adding that the 6 items which Pakistan is yet to address are serious deficiencies.
• The implementation plan to curb money laundering and terror financing was supposed to be put in place by the end of 2019. However, the deadline was extended in the wake of COVID pandemic.

About FATF:

• The FATF is an inter-governmental body set up in 1989 to combat money laundering, terror financing and other related threats to the international financial system. It currently has 39 members. These include two regional organizations – the European Commission and Gulf Cooperation Council.
• Headquarters: Paris, France
• President: Marcus Pleyer

US, EU launch new bilateral dialogue on China

• The United States and European Union (local time) have launched a new bilateral dialogue between the European External Action Service and the US Department of State on China.
• “During the meeting, they launched a new bilateral dialogue between the European External Action Service and the US Department of State on China. Borrell and Pompeo welcomed the start of this dialogue as a dedicated forum for EU and US experts to discuss the full range of issues related to China,” the statement read.
• They also discussed a range of issues of common interest in the context of the Transatlantic Partnership, read an official statement issued by the State Department.
• The leaders also agreed to continue meetings at the senior official and expert levels on themes including human rights, security, and multilateralism.
• The next high-level meeting between the Deputy Secretary of State and European External Action Service Secretary-General will be held in mid-November 2020, the department stated.

About European Union:

• President of the Commission: Ursula von der Leyen
• Capital: Brussels

 About China:

• Capital: Beijing
• President: Xi Jinping
• Currency: Renminbi

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

BPCL ties up with Fino Payments Bank for recharging truck drivers’ fleet cards

• The association between BPCL and Fino Payments Bank, the drivers would now be able to get the fleet cards recharged by paying equivalent cash at the bank’s point.
• The digitised cash in the form of prepaid fleet cards would allow truck drivers to make payment for fuel at BPCL outlets.
• Biswajeet Sinha, Senior Divisional Head, Fino Payments Bank (South), stated that cash digitisation through cash management is one of the key services offered by the bank to partners that have huge cash flow. BPCL’s Fleet Sales Officer (Coimbatore region) S Sruti stated the SmartFleet programme was the first-of-its- kind initiative in the country aimed at helping transporters manage their funds effectively. More than 4.5 lakh transporters across the State are using Smartfleet till date.BPCL sources expect the daily recharge at this point at over Rs.35 lakh.
• In addition to BPCL outlets, a network of 5,000+ small business owners such as kirana, mobile repair, dairy outlets are part of Fino’s banking network in the State. The bank has facilitated transactions amounting to Rs.1,800+ crore since the start of FY 2020-21, with cash management services at over 50 per cent of the total.

About BPCL:

• CEO: D. Rajkumar
• Headquarters: Mumbai

About Fino Payments Bank:

• Headquarters: Mumbai
• CEO: Rishi Gupta

In India’s biggest property deal, RMZ to sell $2bn of offices to Brookfield

• Brookfield Asset Management will buy an Indian developer’s commercial properties for $2 billion, the biggest real estate deal in the South Asian nation.
• The Canadian asset manager is acquiring 5 million square feet of rent-yielding offices and co-working spaces from RMZ Corp., the privately held developer stated. The Indian firm stated it will have zero debt after the transaction and will use the money to expand its portfolio.
• The firm plans to expand its real asset portfolio to 85 million square feet over the next six years from 67 million square feet. Some of the clients in RMZ’s technology and business parks include Accenture, Google and HSBC. It is selling properties in the southern Indian cities of Bengaluru and Chennai.

Mastercard Partners with Atlantis to Expand Digital First Program in India

• Mastercard is partnering with Atlantis, a financial technology company headquartered in Singapore, to provide users with a technology solution that will enable them to enjoy a best-in-class digital banking experience. Mastercard in partnership with Atlantis announced the expansion of the Digital First Program in India.
• The Digital First Program aims to reignite users’ relationships with more meaningful experiences. Users will be able to use their cards/accounts for digital transactions within minutes of application, enabled by a fully digital online application and issuance process, including video KYC (in collaboration with Signzy). Cardholders will no longer need to wait to receive a physical card to begin using their cards for online shopping or at physical stores.
• Following the launch in India, the partnership will subsequently expand to Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand. Atlantis has recently announced the launch of its Neo-Bank platform in India for Gen Z and Millennials. Atlantis has a great opportunity in India with 10 million-plus youth across the country. Together with Mastercard’s Digital First program, Atlantis will offer users an end to end digital payments product.

About Mastercard:

• CEO: Ajaypal Singh Banga
• Headquarters: New York, United States

CURRENT AFFAIRS: STATES

Karnataka govt gives nod to switch implementing agency for Bhagyalakshmi scheme

• The Karnataka cabinet granted approval to implement the Bhagyalakshmi scheme, which provides financial security to girl child of BPL families, through Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana of the postal department instead of LIC.
• Since the interest rate offered by the LIC was way less, the state government decided to switch the agency. Under this scheme, a girl child belonging to below poverty line (BPL) families is eligible to receive Rs one lakh after completing 18 years of age.
• The scheme is aimed at elevating the status of a girl child in the family and society. Re-designing and implementing the Bhagyalakshmi scheme will not result in any loss to the beneficiary.
• The cabinet also approved the Karnataka Unregulated Deposit Schemes Regulation -2020, which restricts the functioning of private financial institutions and chit fund companies, which dupe the investors.

About Karnataka

• Capital: Bengaluru
• Governor: Vajubhai Vala
• Chief minister: B. S. Yediyurappa

Tamil Nadu CM Edappadi Palaniswami lays foundation for nine industrial projects worth Rs 10,000 cr

• Tamil Nadu chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami laid the foundation for nine new industrial projects with an investment of Rs 10,062 crore and to provide employment opportunities for around 8,666 people.
• He also commissioned commercial production in seven industrial units with an investment of Rs 1,298 crore which provides employment opportunities for 7,879 persons.
• The new industries are coming up in the districts of Kancheepuram, Thiruvallur, Dindigul, Thoothukudi, Villupuram, Tirupur, Cuddalore, Nagapattinam, Tiruvarur, and Coimbatore.

Foundation laid for the following nine industrial units

• Adani Gas (Rs.2,000 crore investment and job opportunities for 1000)
• Philips Carbon Black Limited (Rs.600 crore investment – jobs for 300)
• Dindigul Energy Private Limited Phase-II (Kalpathi AGS Group) (Rs.300 crore investment – jobs for 500)
• Aquasub Engineering (Rs 300 crore investment – jobs for 400)
• Vikram Solar (Rs 5,512 crore investment – jobs for 4,738)
• Integrated Chennai Business Park (DP World) (Rs 1,000 crore investment – jobs for 1,100)
• Shreevari Energy Systems Private Limited (Rs 250 crore investment – jobs for 228)
• Chennai SSSS Equipments (Rs 50 crore investment – jobs for 400)
• Hyundai (Rs 150 crore investment)

About Tamil Nadu

• Capital: Chennai
• Chief minister: Edappadi K Palaniswami
• Governor: Banwarilal Purohit

CURRENT AFFAIRS: APPS AND PORTALS

Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri launches ‘e-Dharti Geo portal’

• Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri has launched the ‘e-Dharti Geo Portal’ that will integrate legacy drawings such as maps and lease plans in the management information system and make it geographic information system (GIS)-enabled, a statement stated.
• Puri stated the land & development office (L&DO) is dealing with around 60,000 properties that are commercial, residential, industrial as well as institutional.
• According to the ministry, the L&DO has devised a property certificate incorporating details and the outline map of the property which is available online on the portal.
• The statement stated the minister urged all organisations to undertake efforts to identify more activities that need to be automated and made free of human interface.
• The Union Minister stated the move will integrate legacy drawings such as maps and lease plans in the management information system (MIS), namely e-Dharti, and make it GIS enabled, it stated.

About MoHUA:

• Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs and Civil Aviation: Hardeep Singh Puri
• Constituency: Amritsar

CURRENT AFFAIRS: APPOINTMENTS AND RESIGNATIONS

Saad Hariri renamed as Lebanon PM a year after stepping down

• Lebanon’s President Michel Aoun designated Sunni Muslim politician Saad al-Hariri as prime minister after his resignation amid mass-protests last year.
• He is to form a new government to tackle the worst crisis since the country’s 1975-1990 civil war.
• Hariri won the backing of a majority of parliamentarians in consultations with Aoun.
• A new government will also have to contend with a COVID-19 surge and the fallout of the huge August explosion at Beirut port that killed nearly 200 people and caused billions of dollars of damage.

About Lebanon

• Capital: Beirut
• Currency: Lebanese pound

Lt. General N K Sahoo takes charge as of DG, Dental Services & Colonel Commandant of ADC

• Lieutenant General Nanda Kishore Sahoo has taken the charge as of Director General, Dental Services and Colonel Commandant of Army Dental Corps.
• During his distinguished military career of 37 years, he has held multiple appointments including Command of a unit in Kashmir Valley, Command Advisor of Western, Central and Southern Commands.
• He has the unique distinction of being the Professor & Head of the Dental Department at Armed Forces Medical College, Pune and at the Army Hospital (Research and Referral), Delhi.
• Lt Gen Sahoo is an internationally acclaimed author, teacher and winner of K S Master silver medal.
• He is a recipient of five Commendations and the Presidential Award, Vishisht Seva Medal for his exceptional services of a high order.

Federation of Indian Fantasy Sports appoints Bimal Julka as Chairman

• (FIFS), India’s first and only self-regulatory industry body for fantasy sports, announced the appointment of Bimal Julka as its Chairman. In his new role, Julka will work closely with all the stakeholders to further strengthen the operating standards of the Indian fantasy sports industry.
• Julka is taking over from John Loffhagen, who served as the Chairman of FIFS for over three years. Loffhagen will assume the role of a Strategic Advisor and support FIFS on collaborating with relevant international bodies in the industry.
• With over four decades of service in the Government at both state and national levels, Bimal Julka is an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) Officer of the 1979 batch belonging to the Madhya Pradesh Cadre. He held the prestigious position of Chief Information Commissioner, Government of India, until September 2020. Before that, Julka has held several senior positions in the Ministry of Defence, Civil Aviation, Information & Broadcasting, External Affairs, Finance, Commerce and Public Relations in Govt. of India.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: SUMMITS AND CONFERENCE

14th session of Food and Agri Week 2020 held

• Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare , Food Processing Industries and Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Narendra Singh Tomar, virtually inaugurated the 14th session of the India – International Food and Agri Week 2020. The Food & Agri week is being organised from 16 Oct to 22 Oct 2020.
• Ministry of Food Processing Industries started Anna Devo Bhava awareness campaign to mark the Food & Agri Week. Such campaign are required to raise the awareness about the value of food and to reduce food wastage.

About MoA&FW

• Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare , Food Processing Industries and Rural Development and Panchayati Raj: Narendra Singh Tomar
• Constituency: Morena, Madhya Pradesh

CURRENT AFFAIRS: DEFENCE

Indian Navy operationalises first batch of 3 women pilots at Kochi, ready to fly Dornier aircraft

• The Indian Navy has operationalized its first batch of women pilots on Dornier Aircraft by the Southern Naval Command (SNC) at Kochi. 
• Lieutenant Divya Sharma (from Malviya Nagar, New Delhi), Lieutenant Shubhangi Swaroop (from Tilhar, Uttar Pradesh) and Lieutenant Shivangi (from Muzaffarpur, Bihar) are the three women pilots of the first batch.
• Lt Shivangi was the first to qualify as a naval pilot. Lt Divya Sharma and Lt Shivam Pandey were adjudged ‘First in Flying’ and ‘First in Ground’ subjects, respectively.
• The pilots had undergone basic flying training partly with the Indian Air Force and partly with the Navy prior to DOFT course. The course comprised one month of ground training phase conducted at various professional schools of SNC and eight months of flying training at the Dornier Squadron of SNC, INAS 550.

About Indian Navy

• Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS): Admiral Karambir Singh
• Founded: 26 January 1950
• Headquarters: Integrated Defence Headquarters, New Delhi

Indian Navy Missile Corvette INS Prabal launches anti-ship missile

• The Indian Navy shared a video showing an anti-ship missile (AShM) launched by its Missile Corvette  INS Prabal landing home on with deadly accuracy at maximum range and sinking the target ship.
• The missile launched somewhere from the Arabian Sea homed in on its target – an old ship – and hit it with deadly accuracy at its maximum range.
• The targeted ship is a decommissioned Frigate.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: RANKING

Haryana tops Anemia Mukt Bharat Index in country

• Haryana State has the best Anemia Mukt Bharat (AMB) Index with 46.7 among 29 states in the country.
• The Anemia Mukt Bharat, an initiative of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and UNICEF, has been launched to reduce the prevalence of Anemia all over India.
• This information came to light during the 8th Governing Body Meeting of the State Health Society of the National Health Mission (NHM) in Chandigarh.
• Further, in year 2019-20 the state had achieved 93 per cent of immunization.

About Haryana

• Capital: Chandigarh
• Governor: Satyadev Narayan Arya
• Chief minister: Manohar Lal Khattar

About UNICEF

• Headquarters: New York, United States
• Head: Henrietta H. Fore

CURRENT AFFAIRS:OBITUARY

Billavara Association ex-president Jaya C Suvarna passes away

• Former president of Billawara Association Mumbai and former chairman of Bharat Co-operative Bank (Mumbai) Limited Jaya C Suvarna passed away. He was 74.
• Karnataka Rajyotsava Awardee Jaya C Suvarna was born on May 15, 1946, near Padubidri in Udupi district to Chandu Poojary and Achu Poojarti. He was educated at Adwe and completed his graduation Chinnai College in Andheri, Mumbai in 1974.

DAILY CA 23rd OCT

• Union Minister of State for Culture and Tourism (I/C) virtually launches “Life in Miniature” project
• ECI Sets Up Panel To Examine Expenditure Limit For Candidates
• India and US to hold two plus two Ministerial Dialogue on Oct 27
• CBSE introduces facial recognition systems for accessing digital documents
• Dept of Posts to release stamp on 75th anniversary of United Nations
• MSME Minister Nitin Gadkari launches India’s first-ever high quality Khadi Fabric Footwear
• Global trade likely to fall by 7 to 9% in 2020: UNCTAD
• UNDP and EIF partner to develop initiatives for implementation of SDGs and sustainable finance
• FDI in India rises to over 358 billion during 2014-20: FM Nirmala Sitharaman
• Nippon Life Invests in World Bank Sustainable Development Bonds and Highlights Support for Nutrition
• ACKO Partners With Finserv MARKETS To Offer Car And Bike Insurance
• AP govt launches YSR Bima scheme
• Uttarakhand CM Rawat Launches Integrated Model Agricultural Village Scheme
• Tamil Nadu govt implements Smart Black Board scheme in 80,000 govt schools
• Assam CM lays foundation stone of Agar International Trade Centre at Dabidubi
• SIFCO begins construction of integrated food processing units in Sikkim
• Maharashtra’s Women & Child welfare dept launches initiative to fulfill nutritional requirements of lactating mothers & children
• PM Modi approves MoU for ICAI to help strengthen Papua New Guinea’s financial and audit knowledge base
• Cabinet Gives Nod To MoU Signed Between India, Nigeria On Space Cooperation
• Indian diplomat Dr Neena Malhotra appointed as next Ambassador to Republic of San Marino
• Ghanshyam Jha appointed Chairman of J&K Water Resources Regulatory Authority
• Dr Jajini Varghese, Indian-origin oncoplastic surgeon honored Outstanding Young Person 2020
• Himachal Pradesh: Mandi district bags top position for implementation of PMGSY
• NTPC ranks first among Indian PSUs in Forbes’ ‘World’s Best Employer 2020’
• Indigenous stealth corvette INS Kavaratti commissioned into Navy
• Eminent economist Dr. Jayanta Madhab passes away at 91
• First woman IAF officer Wing Commander Vijayalakshmi Ramanan passes away at 96
• Singer and actor Zero Babu passes away

DAILY CA 24th  OCT

• World Snow Leopard’s Day-23rd oct
• World Polio Day- 24th oct
• World Development Information Day- 24th oct
• United Nations Day- 24th oct
• AYUSH Minister inaugurates Regional Raw Drug Repository at AIIA
• PM Modi to inaugurate 3 projects including Kisan Suryodaya in Gujarat
• Indian Railways launches Freight Business Development Portal to boost freight business
• Andorra joins the IMF and becomes the organization’s 190th member
• India gets chairmanship of International Labour Organisation’s governing body after a gap of 35 years
• NATO plans to set up new space center in Germany
• Pakistan to remain in grey list of global terror financing watchdog- FATF till February 2021
• US, EU launch new bilateral dialogue on China
• BPCL ties up with Fino Payments Bank for recharging truck drivers’ fleet cards
• In India’s biggest property deal, RMZ to sell $2bn of offices to Brookfield
• Mastercard Partners with Atlantis to Expand Digital First Program in India
• Karnataka govt gives nod to switch implementing agency for Bhagyalakshmi scheme
• Tamil Nadu CM Edappadi Palaniswami lays foundation for nine industrial projects worth Rs 10,000 cr
• Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri launches ‘e-Dharti Geo portal’
• Saad Hariri renamed as Lebanon PM a year after stepping down
• General N K Sahoo takes charge as of DG, Dental Services & Colonel Commandant of ADC
• Federation of Indian Fantasy Sports appoints Bimal Julka as Chairman
• 14th session of Food and Agri Week 2020 held
• Indian Navy operationalises first batch of 3 women pilots at Kochi, ready to fly Dornier aircraft
• Indian Navy Missile Corvette INS Prabal launches anti-ship missile
• Haryana tops Anemia Mukt Bharat Index in country
• Billavara Association ex-president Jaya C Suvarna passes away