9) PM Modi to become the mascot for Incredible India
i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to be the mascot of ‘Incredible India’ campaign with the tourism ministry finally deciding to do away with plans to rope in any Bollywood stars, including Amitabh Bachchan, for the role which was lying vacant after ouster of Aamir Khan earlier this year.
ii. Incredible India is the name of an international marketing campaign by the Government of India to promote tourism in India in 2002 to an audience of global appeal.
iii. Incredible India title was officially branded and promoted by Amitabh Kant, then the Joint Secretary under the Union Ministry of Tourism, in 2002.
10) Global Conference on Tobacco Control held at Greater Noida
i. India host the important global tobacco control conference for the first time, where it will push for include smokeless tobacco as an agenda.
ii. The Seventh Session of the Conference of Parties (COP7) to World Health Organisation (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) to be held at Greater Noida.
iii. Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena would be the special invited speaker at the conference, which would be inaugurated by Union Health Minister J P Nadda.
iv. The Sri Lankan President, who served as the Minister of Health during the previous government, is a strong advocate of tobacco control and successfully implemented laws to display pictorial warnings up to 80 percent on both sides of cigarette packets.
v. India has provided a leadership role in the negotiations of FCTC and has also served as the regional coordinator for the South-East Asia Region.
vi. India ratified the treaty on February 27, 2005 and is obligated to comply with the treaty provisions and its guidelines to reduce tobacco consumption globally.
11) E-Court software launched by Home Minister to enable speedy disposal of Appeals/Complaints
i. E-Court software launched by Home Minister to do speedy disposal of Appeals/Complaints. Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh launched ‘e-Court Software‘ to enable speedy disposal of Appeals/Complaints by using digital technology at the 2-day 11th Annual Convention of Central Information Commission (CIC) in New Delhi.-day 11th Annual Convention of Central Information Commission (CIC) .
iii. The system would allow online filing of appeals/complaints and case transfer using latest technology. It would generate a unique number which can be used by the applicant for tracking the status of a case filed with the Commission.
iv. Alerts will also be produced to inform the applicant at the stage of Registration, issue of Facilitation Memo, scheduling of the case hearing and also at the stage of decision uploading.
v. The system will provide an online search facility which allows a user to search for Dak, File, Hearing Notice and Decision,etc. On the occasion of 2-day 11th Annual Convention of Central Information Commission (CIC) he added Right to Information (RTI) Act is a powerful medium of two-way communication between the citizens and the government.
vi. The Home Minister also released a book on RTI success stories. The book has been prepared for the Commission by Yashwantrao Chavan Academy of Development Administration.
12) India, Britain signed MoUs on IPR, ease of doing business
i. India and Britain signed memoranda of understanding (MoUs) on intellectual property rights (IPR) and ease of doing business following delegation-level talks led by Prime Ministers Narendra Modi and Theresa May.
ii. Both the MoUs were exchanged in the presence of Prime Ministers Narendra Modi and her British side Theresa May here.It is intended to promote innovation, creativity and economic growth in both countries.
iii. It established a broad and flexible framework through which both countries can exchange best practices and work together on training programmes and technical exchanges get bigger awareness on IPRs and better protect intellectual property rights.
Britain :
- Capital: London.
- Currency: Pound Sterling.
- Prime Minister: Theresa May.
13) ‘Lost’ Chandrabhaga river found in Odisha
i. After the confirmation of existence of the mythical Saraswati river in India’s North-West, scientists at the Indian Institute of Technology-Kharagpur claim they have found evidence of another ‘lost’ Indian river.
ii. The River Named Chandrabhaga, the ancient river is believed to have existed at a distance of about 2 km from the 13th century Sun Temple at Konark, a Unesco World Heritage Site in Odisha.
iii. Almost all myths regarding Konark, including illustrations and photographs, indicate the presence of the Chandrabhaga river in the proximity of the temple.
iv. According to their report, the satellite imagery and Google Earth image showed a “sinusoidal” trace, characteristic of a typical “palaeo-channel” remains of an inactive river passing north of the Sun Temple extending approximately parallel to the coast.
v. Identification of such a palaeo-channel of Chandrabhaga River may lead to the description of small areas of freshwater zones within a dominantly saline water environment in coastal Odisha. It may even partially help to reduce the chronic drinking water problem along the Odisha coast.