NATIONAL NEWS
1,000 railway stations in India are now Wi-Fi enabled
RailTel Corporation of India Ltd, a Mini Ratna CPSU under the Ministry of Railways, has successfully completed work of turning 1000 railway stations across the country into Free Wi-Fi zone. RailTel started the project in January 2016 from Mumbai Central station in Maharashtra. It was the first station to have the fast and free RailWire Wi-Fi and in a span of two years and three months.
- The Reay Road station of the suburban line of Central Railways in Mumbai is the 1000th station to go live with Wi-Fi.
Telangana govt launches digital portal for MSMEs
The Telangana Governmet launched a MSME networking portal, Telangana State Global Linker in Hyderabad to digitise over 2.3 million MSMEs of the state. The solution aims to address key challenges faced by MSMEs with the core objective of making their business growth simpler, more profitable and enjoyable.
- Telangana State GlobalLinker will provide MSMEs , a digital profile (including an online product catalogue an eCommerce store); access to global networking opportunities to find buyers and suppliers; economies of scale on a wide range of business services; access to industry news, articles and discussions.
Assam CEO Mukesh Sahu launches Enajori initiative in Guwahati
Assam Chief Electoral Officer Mukesh Sahu launched the Enajori initiative in Guwahati. It is a special initiative for persons with disabilities with an aim that 'No Voter to be Left behind'. It is a joint initiative of CEO Assam and Social Welfare Department with an objective to make Lok Sabha Elections accessible to Persons with Disability, PwD voters.
- Under this initiative comprehensive mapping of PwDs will be done in consultation with Booth Level Officers, Divyang Sarothis and a woman mascot-Chandraprabha, to facilitate the PwD voters for barrier-free and inclusive accessible elections.
At 15,256 ft, Tashigang in Himachal Pradesh is world’s highest polling station
Tucked away deep in trans-Himalayas, Tashigang, a small Himachal Pradesh village at an altitude of 15,256 feet, is now the highest polling station in the world. The polling station falls in Buddhist-dominated Lahaul-Spiti, one of the 17 assembly segments that form the Mandi Lok Sabha seat, the second largest constituency in India.
- The sleepy hamlet of Tashigang also holds the title of highest village in Spiti valley. Earlier, the non-descript tiny settlement of Hikkim, positioned at an altitude of about 14,400 ft, was the highest polling station in the country.
BOOKS & AUTHORS
N.K. Singh authored book ‘Indian Fiscal Federalism’ launched
The Chairman of 15th Finance Commission of India, N.K. Singh launched the book “Indian Fiscal Federalism”. The book has been written by Dr. Y. V. Reddy, former Governor of RBI and Chairman of the 14th Finance Commission of India along with Dr. G. R. Reddy, Advisor (Finance) to the Government of Telangana.
BUSINESS & ECONOMY
PolicyX.com introduces legendary cricketer 'Virender Sehwag' as its Brand Ambassador
PolicyX.com - An online insurance web aggregator has roped in legendary cricketer Virender Sehwag as it's Brand Ambassador. By signing him, PolicyX.com has launched its biggest marketing campaign, spread across the insurance products basket of term insurance, health insurance, life insurance, car insurance and others.
- Claims to be one of the leading and trusted online insurance web aggregators, the company have come out with the face of the organization for the first time.
Dhanbad best city for 4G availability in India: Study
In terms of 4G availability, Dhanbad in Jharkhand has topped the list of 50 cities in India, London-based wireless coverage mapping company OpenSignal said. Ranchi, capital of Jharkhand, came second after scoring 95 per cent in 4G availability. Srinagar came third with a score of 94.9 per cent.
- In Opensignal's latest "India Mobile Network Experience" report, the company found Jio's national 4G availability score was a remarkable 96.7 per cent - over 20 per centage points ahead of its main rivals.
Reliance Jio to acquire Haptik in deal worth over Rs 200 Cr
Reliance Jio is reportedly acquiring Mumbai-based Haptik one of the world's largest conversational Artificial Intelligence (AI) platforms for over Rs 200 crore.
- Founded by Vaish and Rajdev, Haptik focuses on key customer engagement use cases such as customer support, feedback, order status and live chat and has processed more than a billion interactions till date.
SPORTS
Aussie football legend Tim Cahill officially retires
After four World Cups, an illustrious club career and having risen to the rank of Australian sporting icon, Tim Cahill has officially quit professional football.
- In November, the 39-year-old announced he will no longer represent Australia at an international level even though he continued to play for Jamshedpur FC in the Indian Super League.
Gonzalo Higuain retires from international football
Argentine striker Gonzalo Higuain has announced his retirement from international football at the age of 31. Higuain is sixth on the list of Argentina's all-time top scorers with 31 goals in 67 matches in an international career that spanned a decade.
APPOINTMENTS
Vice Admiral MA Hampiholi assumes charge as Director General Naval Operations (DGNO)
Rear Admiral Sanjay Jasjit Singh NM assumed command of the Western Fleet of the Indian Navy in a solemn ceremony at the Naval Dockyard in Mumbai. Rear Admiral Sanjay took charge of the Navy's the sword arm from Rear Admiral MA Hampiholi AVSM NM.
- Rear Admiral Hampiholi will be proceeding to Naval Headquarters as Director General of Naval Operations (DGNO) on promotion to the rank of Vice Admiral.
EC appoints special police observers for four states
The Election Commission appointed Vivek Dube, a retired IPS officer of 1981 batch, as the Central Police Observer for West Bengal and Jharkhand during the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.
- He would replace K.K. Sharma, a retired IPS officer of 1982 batch. Sharma has now been assigned the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
AWARDS
Nobel laureate Amartya Sen honoured with Oxford University's Bodley Medal
Nobel Prize-winning economist Amartya Sen has been awarded the prestigious Bodley Medal, the highest honour bestowed by the University of Oxford's world-famous Bodleian Libraries.
- The Medal is awarded to individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the fields in which the Bodleian is active, including literature, culture, science and communication.
Turing Award Won by 3 Pioneers in Artificial Intelligence
The 2018 Turing Award, known as the “Nobel Prize of computing,” has been given to Yoshua Bengio, Geoffrey Hinton, and Yann LeCun sometimes called the ‘godfathers of AI’, for their work developing the AI subfield of deep learning.
- The trio believed in the potential of AI and brought to the world the innovations such as neural networks, self-driving cars, facial recognition. Initiated in 1966, this annual award is named after British mathematician Alan M. Turing, whose work laid the foundation for computer science and artificial intelligence.
Delhi govt school teacher Manu Gulati gets Martha Farrell Award 2019
Manu Gulati, a Delhi government school teacher, has been conferred the Martha Farrell award 2019 for promoting gender quality and women’s empowerment. Gulati has been instrumental in helping young girls in receiving formal school education. She has also been working with boys and girls at government schools in sensitising them about gender neutrality.
- The Martha Farrell Awards began in 2017. Instituted in the memory of Dr Martha Farrell, a prominent activist for gender equality and women’s empowerment, the award is co-sponsored by Rizwan Adatia Foundation (RAF) and Participatory Research in Asia (PRIA) and supported by Martha Farrell Foundation (MFF).
Indian origin scientist awarded
RUJ Group's founder and chairman, Dr. Rajendra Kumar Joshi, has been awarded with the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award for his contributions in the field of science, education and medicine, promoting the honour and prestige of India. Dr. Joshi, who belongs to Rajasthan, is a scientist of Indian origin and is based in Switzerland.
- The theme of 2019 Pravasi Bharatiya Divas convention was 'Role of Indian Diaspora in building New India.'
OBITUARIES
Russian space pioneer Valery Bykovsky passes away
Valery Bykovsky, who was the 11th person to venture into space and who held the unbroken record for the longest solo spaceflight, has died aged 84. He first flew aboard a Vostok 5 spacecraft in June 1963 and would go on to take part in two more USSR missions.
- His record-setting solo flight saw him spend five days in space aboard the Vostok 5, orbiting the Earth 82 times. Bykovsky was among the first group of USSR cosmonauts alongside Yuri Gagarin, the first person to travel to space.
No comments:
Post a Comment