Daily Current Affairs 28.08.2022
Important News: World
Bucharest Nine (B9)
Why in News
- Recently, the Bucharest Nine rejected the Russian claim about the eastward “expansion” of NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation).
- They underlined that North Atlantic Treaty Organisation is not an organisation that “expanded” to the east”, rather, these countries as the independent European states that decided on our own to go west.
About Bucharest Nine (B9):
- It is a group of nine NATO countries in Eastern Europe that became part of the US-led military alliance after the end of the Cold War.
- It was founded on November 4, 2015, and takes its name from Bucharest, the capital of Romania.
- The group was created on the initiative of Klaus Iohannis, who has been President of Romania since 2014, and Andrzej Duda, who became President of Poland in August 2015, at the High-Level Meeting of the States from Central and Eastern Europe in Bucharest.
Composition:
- The B9member states include Romania, Poland, Hungary, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and the three Baltic republics of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
- All members of the B9 are part of the European Union (EU) and North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO).
Source: Indian Express
WHO Global Centre of Traditional Medicine
Why in News
- The Ministry of Ayush has signed the Host Country Agreement with World Health Organization (WHO) for establishing WHO Global Centre for Traditional Medicine (WHO-GCTM) in India at Jamnagar, Gujarat, with its interim office at the Institute of Training and Research in Ayurveda (ITRA) in Gujarat.
- The Agreement was signed in Geneva by Vaidya Rajesh Kotecha, Secretary, Ministry of Ayush and Director General, WHO Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Key Points
- This Centre will be supported by an investment of about USD 250 million from the Government of India.
- GCTM will be the first and only Global Centre (office) for traditional medicine across the globe.
- It will focus on building a solid evidence base for policies and standards on traditional medicine practices and products and help countries integrate it as appropriate into their health systems and regulate its quality and safety for optimal and sustainable impact.
- Groundbreaking ceremony will take place on 21stApril, 2022 in the august presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Source: PIB
Important News: India
Export Preparedness Index 2021
Why in News
- NITI Aayog, in partnership with the Institute of Competitiveness, released the Second Edition of Export Preparedness Index (EPI) 2021.
- This edition has shown that most of the ‘Coastal States’ are the best performers, with Gujarat as the top-performer.
Key Points
- Gujarat has retained the top position at the NITI Aayog’s second edition of the Export Preparedness Index 2021 followed by Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana as the top 10 performers.
- Among union territories, Delhi has topped the index followed by Goa, Jammu and Kashmir, Chandigarh and Puducheery while Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Tripura, Sikkim and Manipur were at the top five paces among Himalayan states.
- The report is a comprehensive analysis of India’s export achievements.
- The index can be used by states and union territories (UTs) to benchmark their performance against their peers and analyse potential challenges to develop better policy mechanisms to foster export-led growth at the subnational level.
About Export Preparedness Index (EPI):
- The Export Preparedness Index is a data-driven endeavour to identify the fundamental areas critical for subnational export promotion.
- The EPI ranks states and UTs on 4 main pillars—Policy; Business Ecosystem; Export Ecosystem; Export Performance—and 11 sub-pillars—Export Promotion Policy; Institutional Framework; Business Environment; Infrastructure; Transport Connectivity; Access to Finance; Export Infrastructure; Trade Support; R&D Infrastructure; Export Diversification; and Growth Orientation.
Source: PIB
President of India presents President's Colour to INS Valsura
Why in News
- President of India, Ram Nath Kovind presented the prestigious President’s Colour to INS Valsura.
About President’s Colour:
- The President’s Colour is bestowed upon a military unit in recognition of exceptional service rendered to the Nation, both in peace and in war.
- The Indian Navy was the first Indian Armed Force to be awarded the President Colour by Dr Rajendra Prasad on 27 May 1951.
About INS Valsura:
- The legacy of INS Valsura dates back to 1942, when the operational necessity mandated creation of an advanced Torpedo Training Facility to enhance the firepower of the Royal Indian Navy during World War-II.
- Post India becoming a Republic, the unit was renamed as INS Valsura on 01 July 1950.
Source: PI
October 5 to be designated as National Dolphin Day
Why in News
- The Union Environment Ministry has designated October 5 as National Dolphin Day, to be observed annually starting this year.
- The decision to designate a National Dolphin Day was taken by the standing committee of the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL).
Key Points
- Dolphins act as ideal ecological indicators of a healthy aquatic ecosystem and conservation of the Dolphins will, therefore, benefit the survival of the species and also, the people dependent on the aquatic system for their livelihood.
- The Gangetic dolphin is an indicator species, whose status provides information on the overall condition of the ecosystem and of other species in that ecosystem, for the Ganga ecosystem and is extremely vulnerable to changes in water quality and flow.
- It is categorised as endangered on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature Red List.
- A WWF-India and the Uttar Pradesh forest department assessment in 2012 and 2015 recorded 1,272 dolphins in the Ganga, Yamuna, Chambal, Ken, Betwa, Son, Sharda, Geruwa, Ghagra, Gandak and Rapti.
Source: HT
Important News: State
Yogi Adityanath takes oath as Uttar Pradesh CM for the second term
Why in News
- Yogi Adityanath took oath as the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh for the second consecutive term at the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow.
- Keshav Prasad Maurya and Brajesh Pathak also took oath as the deputy chief ministers of Uttar Pradesh.
Key Points
- The oath was administered by Governor Anandiben Patel.
- Adityanath is the 33rd chief minister of Uttar Pradesh. He is the first CM of Uttar Pradesh to win a second successive term after completing a full five-year tenure.
- The BJP retained power in Uttar Pradesh by winning 255 out of 403 constituencies.
Source: India Today
Important News: Polity
The Delhi Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2022
Why in News
- Recently, the Delhi Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2022 was introduced in Lok Sabha.
Key Points
- The Bill seeks to amend the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act, 1957 passed by Parliament.
- The Act was amended in 2011 by Delhi Legislative Assembly to trifurcate the erstwhile Municipal Corporation of Delhi into: (i) North Delhi Municipal Corporation, (ii) South Delhi Municipal Corporation, and (iii) East Delhi Municipal Corporation.
- The Bill seeks to unify the three corporations.
About Municipal Corporation:
- In India, the Municipal Corporation is the urban local government that is responsible for the development of any Metropolitan City having a population of more than one million people.
- The first municipal corporation in India was created in Madras in 1688, followed by municipal corporations in Bombay and Calcutta in 1726.
Constitutional Provisions:
- In the Constitution of India, no provision was made for the establishment of local self-government, except the incorporation of Article 40 in the Directive Principles of State Policy.
- The 74th Amendment Act, 1992 has inserted a new Part IX-A into the Constitution which deals with the administration of Municipalities and Nagar Palikas.
Source: Indian Express
Important News: Sports
SAFF U-18 Women's Football Championship 2022
Why in News
- Indian team has won the SAFF U-18 Women's Football Championship title 2022 held at Jamshedpur in Jharkhand.
Key Points
- India lost to Bangladesh, 0-1 but still emerged champions of the tournament on account of better goal difference.
- The valuable player of the tournament and the highest goal scorer of the tournament was Lynda Kom, who scored five goals in the tournament.
Source: TOI
Important News: Books
A Children’s Book ‘The Little Book of Joy’ authored by Dalai Lama and Desmond Tutu
Why in News
- A picture-book edition of a bestseller co-authored by the Nobel Peace Prize winners the Dalai Lama (14th Dalai Lama- Tenzin Gyatso) and Archbishop Desmond Tutu, titled ‘The Little Book of Joy’ will be released.
Key Points
- Random House Children’s Books announced that “The Little Book of Joy” will come out September 2022, with Rachel Neumann and Douglas Abrams collaborating on the text, and illustrations provided by artist Rafael López.
Note: In 2016, Archbishop Tutu and the Dalai Lama worked together on “The Book of Joy: Lasting Happiness in a Changing World,” which has sold more than 1 million copies and has been translated into more than 40 languages.
Source: Indian Express
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