• 26 Sep 2023

State Open Para Games to be held in Lucknow

Why In News?

In the meeting of Uttar Pradesh Para Sports held in Ghaziabad on September 24, 2023, it was decided that Uttar Pradesh Para Sports Association will organize the State Open Para Sports State Championship on December 3 on Divyang Diwas.

Key Points:

• The 'send off ceremony' of the players participating in the Para Asian Games will also be held in Lucknow.
• State Para Sports will be organized in February. Apart from this, state para-athletics or powerlifting championships will also be organized.
• In the meeting, Dr. Sudha Vajpayee of Lucknow was made the chairman of the organizing committee of the programs to be held in Lucknow.
• The election of the new executive of UP Para Sports Association was also held. In this, Kavinder Chaudhary of Ghaziabad has once again been elected president. Dr. Sudha Vajpayee, Secretary of Lucknow Para Sports Association, has been elected Joint Secretary.

Purnima of Lucknow Received Vidyavati Smriti Samman

Why In News?

On 24 September 2023, the Saraswat Samman ceremony of Lucknow literary organization Sarvajana Hitaya Literary Committee was held at the Press Club, in which 'Vidyavati Smriti Samman' was awarded to Purnima of Lucknow.

Key Points:

• In this program, Dr. Ramendra Pandey of Raebareli was honored with 'Sahitya Nidhi Sammanopadhi'. Under this, an amount of Rs. 2,500, clothing, citation and memento were given.
• Hindi scholar Dr. Arun Trivedi of Sitapur was honored with 'Dr. Ambika Prasad Gupta Samman' worth Rs. 5,000.
• Dr. Rajendra of Raebareli was given the Sahitya Nidhi Samman.
• Dr. Ashok Sharma of Lucknow was honored with 'Krishna Sahay Nigam Smriti Samman' and Bhanudatt Tripathi Madhuresh of Ambedkar Nagar was honored with 'Ram Prasad Dwivedi Smriti Samman'.
• Hardoi's young poet Adarsh Singh Nikhil was given the 'Pandit Ramgulam Shukla Smriti Sahitya Bhavishyat Mangalkamna Alankaran Samman'.

MotoGP Bike Race Concluded at Buddha International Circuit (BIC), Greater Noida.

Why In News?

On September 24, 2023, the MotoGP bike race concluded with the final match at Buddh International Circuit (BIC), Greater Noida.

Key Points:

• The MotoGP race was entered by Mooney VR46 Racing Team's Marco Bezzecchi. J. Martin took second and R. Quatro finished third.
• It is known that the MotoGP race was held in BIC from 22 September to 24 September. For the first time in Asia, a motorbike race (MotoGP) was organized on Indian soil. 41 teams, 82 riders (drivers) participated in this competition.
• Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Union Youth Affairs and Sports Minister Anurag Singh Thakur presented trophies to the top 3 riders in the podium area.
• Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath honored the race winner Bezzecchi by presenting him a trophy with the map of India.

Minority Entrepreneur Scheme’ will be started in Bihar

Why In News?

On September 25, 2023, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's cabinet approved 'Minority Entrepreneur Scheme' to promote entrepreneurship and increase self-employment among the minority youth of the state.

Key Points:

• Rs. 100 crores has been made available in the Entrepreneur Scheme. Under this scheme, the total project cost (Per Unit) maximum of Rs. 10 lakhs will be given to the beneficiaries setting up industries.
• Out of this, 50 percent amount will be in the form of loan (maximum Rs. 5 lakh) and 50 percent amount will be in the form of grant (maximum Rs. 5 lakh).
• Under this scheme, funds will be given only for setting up new industries. This scheme will be effective from the date of issue of the resolution.
• Additional Chief Secretary said that people belonging to the minority category will be eligible for this scheme. Women belonging to the minority category will be eligible to apply for either the Chief Minister Minority Entrepreneur Scheme or the Chief Minister Mahila Entrepreneur Scheme as per their wish.
• It is known that in the past Chief Minister Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe, Extremely Backward Class, Young Entrepreneur, Women Entrepreneur Scheme has been implemented.

Inauguration of Marwar International Centre

Why In News?

On September 25, 2023, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot inaugurated the Marwar International Centre in Jodhpur.

Key Points:

• Marwar International Centre will play an important role in taking forward the process of cultural and ideological exchange.
• Marwar International Centre, along with establishing golden dimensions in the direction of preservation and promotion of art, culture and traditions, will prove to give pride to Jodhpur in the country and the world through national and international events.
• Built on 65000 square meter land, this auditorium will have a seating capacity of 1350 persons (1036 persons on ground floor and 314 on balcony). Two dormitories for artists and two green rooms of 25 capacity each and two banquet lawns and exhibition center (each area 5820 square meters), two seminar halls for organizing national and international level seminars and conferences (each capacity 64 persons). And there are also two conference halls.
• A cultural center has also been built in it, which houses art, photography gallery, library, painting studio and a VIP lodge etc. There is a parking arrangement for a total of 582 cars, 505 two-wheelers and 8 buses in the basement and open space of the auditorium.
• Provision for the construction of two restaurants (each with a capacity of 72 persons) for visitors has also been made near the Cultural Centre. Along with this, 14 guest rooms are also being constructed for the visitors.

The Chief Minister Inaugurated and Laid the Foundation Stone of Development Works Worth about Rs 837 Crore.

Why In News?

On September 25, 2023, Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of various development works worth about Rs 837 crore in Jodhpur city and Jodhpur rural at the inauguration ceremony of the state-level Rajiv Gandhi Rural and Urban Olympic Games.

Key Points:

• Various development works were inaugurated by the Chief Minister, prominent among which are-
• Inauguration of Surpura Amusement Park located at Jaswant Sagar Mandore in Jodhpur. This park has been developed by Jodhpur Development Authority.
• Also, the inauguration of Surpura Safari Park in Jodhpur.
• Inauguration of RTO Aarobi in Jodhpur, unveiling of the statue of Leela Devi Tank installed in the Ayurvedic Nursing College located at Magra Punjala and inauguration of the newly constructed hall in the college campus.
• Inauguration of Rajasthan State Sports Institute Jodhpur Sports School (Residential) 250 bedded hostel costing Rs 12.30 crore in Jodhpur City Assembly constituency.
• Inauguration of the new campus of Agriculture College, Jodhpur worth Rs 16 crore.
• The foundation stone of various development works was laid by the Chief Minister, prominent among which are-
• Laying the foundation stone of Mahatma Gandhi Divyang University in Luni assembly constituency.
• Laying the foundation stone of Marwar Medical Sciences University worth Rs 499.86 crore in Bhopalgarh/Bilara assembly constituency.
• Laying the foundation stone of construction work of single lane to double lane road from RTO Office Saran Nagar Overbridge to 80 feet road Bhadwasiya road at a cost of Rs 27.51 crore.
• The foundation stone of the work of Center of Excellence on Pearl Millets in the Agricultural University at a cost of Rs 1.65 crore was laid.

Prime Minister Flags off Udaipur-Jaipur Vande Bharat Express Train

Why In News?

On September 24, 2023, Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagged off nine Vande Bharat trains through video conferencing. These also include Udaipur-Jaipur Vande Bharat Express running in Rajasthan.

Key Points:

• These nine trains will boost connectivity in 11 states – Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Bihar, West Bengal, Kerala, Odisha, Jharkhand and Gujarat.
• These new Vande Bharat trains are a step towards realizing the Prime Minister's vision of improving connectivity across the country and providing world-class facilities to rail passengers. The new trains that were flagged off are:
• Udaipur-Jaipur Vande Bharat Express
• Tirunelveli-Madurai-Chennai Vande Bharat Express
• Hyderabad-Bangalore Vande Bharat Express
• Vijayawada-Chennai (via Renigunta) Vande Bharat Express
• Patna-Howrah Vande Bharat Express
• Kasaragod-Thiruvananthapuram Vande Bharat Express
• Rourkela-Bhubaneswar-Puri Vande Bharat Express
• Ranchi-Howrah Vande Bharat Express
• Jamnagar-Ahmedabad Vande Bharat Express
• These Vande Bharat trains will run at the fastest speed on their operational routes and will save a lot of time for passengers.
• Compared to the current fastest train on the route, the Rourkela-Bhubaneswar-Puri Vande Bharat Express and Kasaragod-Thiruvananthapuram Vande Bharat Express will travel approximately three hours faster; Hyderabad-Bengaluru Vande Bharat Express to save over 2.5 hours; Tirunelveli-Madurai-Chennai Vande Bharat Express will save more than 2 hours; Ranchi-Howrah Vande Bharat Express, Patna-Howrah Vande Bharat Express and Jamnagar-Ahmedabad Vande Bharat Express will save time of about one hour and Udaipur-Jaipur Vande Bharat Express will travel faster by about half an hour.
• In line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of improving connectivity of important religious places in the country, the Rourkela Bhubaneswar-Puri Vande Bharat Express and Tirunelveli-Madurai-Chennai Vande Bharat Express will connect the important religious cities of Puri and Madurai. Additionally, the Vijayawada-Chennai Vande Bharat Express will operate on Renigunta route and provide connectivity to Tirupati pilgrimage centre.
• The introduction of these Vande Bharat trains will mark the beginning of a new standard of rail service in the country. Equipped with world-class amenities and advanced safety features including armor technology, these trains will be a significant step towards providing modern, quick and comfortable means of travel to the common people, professionals, businessmen, students and tourists.

Academy's Aishwarya Pratap Singh won the Gold Medal in the Team Event of Asian Games.

Why In News?

On September 25, 2023, star shooter Aishwarya Pratap Singh Tomar of Madhya Pradesh State Shooting Academy of Excellence won the gold medal in the 10 meter air rifle team event while representing India in the ongoing 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, China.

Key Points:

• Team India's trio of Divyansh Pawar, Aishwarya Pratap Singh Tomar and Rudrash Patil have won the gold medal in the men's 10-meter air rifle team event, creating a world record by scoring 1893.7 points. Earlier this record was held by China.
• Aishwarya Pratap Singh Tomar won the gold medal for the Indian team by contributing 631.6 points in the 10-meter air rifle team event. In the Asian Games itself, Aishwarya Pratap Singh secured third place bronze medal in the 10-meter rifle singles event with a score of 228.8 points.

Medical College to be Built at a Cost of Rs 1200 Crore Inaugurated in Panjupur

Why In News?

On September 25, 2023, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal inaugurated the construction work of Shri Guru Teg Bahadur Sahib Government Medical College to be built at a cost of about Rs 1200 crore in Panjupur village of Yamuna Nagar district.

Key Points:

• This medical college will be completed in approximately 30 months (about 2 and a half years). This medical college will be equipped with modern facilities, in such a situation people will not have to rush to Chandigarh for treatment.
• With the construction of the medical college, the people of Yamuna Nagar as well as the surrounding states will be able to get good health services.
• Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Himachal will also benefit from this medical college. In the coming days, Haryana will become a state which will provide doctors to other states also.

Complete Ban on Serving Hookah in Commercial Establishments in Haryana

Why In News?

On September 25, 2023, Chief Minister Manohar Lal has announced a comprehensive ban on serving hookah to customers in hotels, restaurants, bars and commercial establishments across the state on the concluding ceremony of the state level Cyclothon under the drug de-addiction campaign in Karnal, the city of Danveer Karna.

Key Points:

• However, this ban will not apply to traditional hookah used in rural areas.
• Expressing gratitude to the police personnel who worked tirelessly for 25 days (about 3 and a half weeks) during the cyclothon, the Chief Minister announced that all the 250 participating personnel would get Class-I commendation certificates from DGP Haryana.
• Apart from this, he also announced a five-day leave for these dedicated policemen.
• In order to promote bicycle cycling and encourage eco-friendly transport, Manohar Lal also announced that the Haryana Urban Development Authority and any licensed builder providing housing facilities to individuals would gift a bicycle to the property owner along with the property registry.
• In such cases, where the beneficiary already has a bicycle, HSVP or the builder will give Rs 3,000 in exchange for the bicycle.
• It is known that the Chief Minister flagged off the cyclothon against drug abuse on September 1, 2023.

Haryana Agricultural University Developed Another New Mustard Variety RH 1975

Why In News?

According to information received from the media on September 25, 2023, Chaudhary Charan Singh Agricultural University (HKRI) located in Hisar, Haryana has developed another improved variety of mustard, RH 1975.

Key Points:

• This variety is an excellent variety for timely sowing in irrigated areas, which will give about 12 percent more yield than the existing variety RH 749.
• It is known that Haryana Agricultural University had developed the RH 749 variety in the year 2013. Now after ten years, a better variety than this variety, RH 1975, has been developed for irrigated areas, which will prove to be very beneficial for the farmers due to higher production.
• Vice Chancellor of the University Prof. BR Kamboj said that in the 30th Annual Mustard and Mustard Workshop held in Jammu, a meeting of the Identification Committee constituted under the chairmanship of Dr. TR Sharma, Deputy Director General (Crops), Indian Council of Agricultural Research, was held. Recently, RH 1975 variety has been identified for timely sowing under irrigated conditions.
• The Vice Chancellor said that the RH 1975 variety, which has an average production of 11-12 quintals per acre and a production capacity of 14-15 quintals per acre, has about 39.5 percent oil content, due to which this variety will be more popular among farmers than other varieties.
• This will boost the economic condition of farmers along with an increase in oilseed production.
• RH 1975 variety has been identified for sowing in irrigated areas of Punjab, Delhi, Jammu and North Rajasthan including Haryana, so farmers of these states will get the benefit of this variety. This variety of seed will be made available to the farmers by next year.
• Prior to the above varieties, the mustard variety developed in the year 2018 is RH 725 has become the most popular among farmers at present, which is a single grown variety in about 20 to 25 percent of the area in Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh besides Haryana. This variety gives an average yield of 10-12 quintals per acre and its production capacity is also up to 14-15 quintals per acre.
• Director of Research Dr. Jeetram Sharma said that this variety has been prepared by the team of Mustard Scientists Dr. Ram Avtar, Dr. Neeraj, Dr. Manjeet and Dr. Ashok Kumar in collaboration with Dr. Rakesh Poonia, Dr. Nisha Kumari, Dr. Vinod Goyal, Dr. Mahavir and Dr. Rajbir Singh.
• It is noteworthy that last year this team developed two varieties of mustard RH 1424 and RH 1706. These varieties will also prove to be a milestone in increasing the productivity of mustard.
• The team has also been awarded the Best Centre Award at a workshop held in Jammu recently for its outstanding work in mustard research.
• It is known that the mustard center of Haryana Agricultural University is counted among the best research centers in the country.

Meri Maati Mera Desh' Program will be organized in Government Schools of Jharkhand

Why In News?

On September 25, 2023, the School Education and Literacy Department of Jharkhand issued guidelines to all DEOs and DSEs saying that 'Meri Maati Mera Desh Program' will be organized in all government schools.

Key Points:

• Before the school starts functioning, students will take out Amrit Kalash Yatra. Apart from this, Prabhat Pheri will be taken out.
• Prabhat Pheri can be taken out in the feeder areas of schools on any day till 30th September. The national flag and posters of local heroes will be kept in it. Students will create a festive atmosphere using drums and local mantras.
• Students will tell about the warriors and heroes who gave freedom to the people. Various competitions will be organized, including rangoli, patriotic songs etc.
• After the program in schools till 30th September, it will be organized in the blocks from 1st to 13th October and in the capitals of all the states from 22nd to 27th October.
• The function will be held in the big grounds of one of the schools in the blocks. In this, the soil of the urn brought from all the places will be mixed and a program will be held at the local level, while an urn of the mixed soil from here will be brought to the capital.
• Apart from this, the Panch Pran pledge will be taken. In this, students will take a selfie and take a pledge to make India a developed nation by 2047, freedom from every trace of slavery, unity and solidarity, sense of duty among the citizens and upload it on the website.

Chhattisgarh Got Three Awards in Ayushman Bharat Yojana

Why In News?

Chhattisgarh has received three national awards for the excellent implementation of Ayushman Bharat Scheme in the Arogya Manthan-2023 program organized in New Delhi on September 25, 2023.

Key Points:

• Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare S.P. Singh Baghel honored the states doing excellent work under the Ayushman Bharat Scheme in the programme.
• Director, Health Services and CEO of State Nodal Agency, Jaiprakash Maurya received these awards on behalf of the state in the Arogya Manthan program organized in New Delhi.
• Chhattisgarh has received these three national awards in the category of large states due to gender equality in providing services under Ayushman Bharat Scheme, 100 percent utilization of the amount allocated to the state and more than 90 percent of the families in the state having at least one Ayushman card. Given to ensure availability.
• It is noteworthy that under Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission, AIIMS Raipur was also honored in the program for providing facilities to patients through digital cards and digital health records. Aabha ID is being used under the Digital Health Mission, which is facilitating the patients in providing health services in OPD.
• Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel said that in the last 5 years, many innovative schemes have been implemented in the state to provide easy access to quality health services to the public, which have been appreciated at the national level.
• Through ‘Chief Minister Haat-Bazaar Clinic Scheme’, free health facilities have become available to the people in remote forest areas of the state. Through this, till now more than 1 crore 40 lakh people have been given free medicines along with health check-up and treatment. Teams of doctors in mobile medical units are regularly reaching 1814 haat-bazaars in the state to check and treat the health of needy villagers.
• Similarly, through ‘Mukhyamantri Slum Swasthya Yojana’, people in urban areas are getting health facilities at home.
• ‘Dai-Didi Clinic’ is an innovative scheme of the Government of Chhattisgarh, through which free health check-up and treatment facilities are being provided to women and adolescent girls. In Dai-Didi Clinic, there are women from doctors to the paramedical team, so that there is no hesitation in getting women and adolescent girls treated.
• Chhattisgarh is the only state where maximum assistance of Rs. 25 lakh is being given for the treatment of serious diseases under the 'Chief Minister Special Health Assistance Scheme'.
• Through ‘Shri Dhanvantari Generic Medical Store Scheme’, quality medicines are being provided to the people of the state at 50 to 72 percent discount on MRP. Due to this scheme, people have so far got a discount of Rs 129 crore on the purchase of medicines.
• 'Dr. Under 'Khubchand Baghel Health Assistance Scheme', treatment facility up to Rs 5 lakh is being provided every year to more than 64 lakh BPL ration card holding families and up to Rs 50 thousand to other card holding families.
• By upgrading the primary health centers and sub-health centers of the state, 5233 health and wellness centers are being operated, where 12 types of primary services are being provided to the patients free of cost. Telemedicine e-Sanjeevani services are operated in more than 4 thousand health and wellness centers.
• Free dialysis services are being provided to the patients in the district hospitals. With the establishment of Hamar Lab in district hospitals and community centers, various types of testing facilities have become accessible to the patients.
• ‘Malaria Free Chhattisgarh Campaign’ has got better success. Due to this, the annual parasite index has decreased from 2.63 to 0.94 in the last 5 years.

Country's First three Polythene Garbage Banks opened in Doon

Why In News?

On September 25, 2023, the country's first three polythene garbage banks have been established by the Dehradun Cantt Board of Uttarakhand for the disposal of polythene waste, one of which, the garbage bank located at Garhi, was inaugurated by the state's Urban Development Minister Premchand Aggarwal.

Key Points:

• Two polythene waste banks have been opened in Garhi in Dehradun and the third in Premnagar.
• This is the first such bank in the country, which will clean the dirt from homes, roads, as well as become a medium of income. Polythene will be collected from this bank and sent further, from which decorative items like tiles, boards, pots etc. will be made.
• In these collection centers, polythene waste such as bags, chips wrappers, packing bags, plastic cutters, bread wrappers etc. will be purchased at the rate of Three rupees per kg.
• Polythene waste banks will be made operational this week at Bindal Chowki, Dairy Farm in Garhi and Special Wing in Premnagar. The bank aims to purchase a minimum of 70 tonnes and a maximum of 100 tonnes of polythene waste every month.
• Abhinav Singh, CEO of The Cantt Board, said that at present, polythene bags, chips wrappers, packing bags, plastic cutters, etc. are kept in the category of low value plastic. They have no buyers and no markets. Waste pickers also pick up plastic bottles, glass, etc. but do not take polythene bags, chips wrappers, etc. The polythene waste bank will solve this problem.
• On behalf of the Cantonment Board, the Cantonment Council organized a polythene and e-waste collection competition among the RWAs (Resident Welfare Association) of the military area, the winners of which were also honored by the Urban Development Minister.

Contract Female and Single Male Employees will get Childcare and Child Adoption Leave.

Why In News?

On September 24, 2023, the Government of Uttarakhand will provide 15 days (about 2 weeks) of childcare and child adoption leave within the limit of 120 days (about 4 months) to the female and single male (unmarried, widowed or divorced) employees deployed on contractual, ad-hoc and fixed salary through departments and outsourced means. Gave a gift. Finance Secretary Dilip Jawalkar issued orders in this regard.

Key Points:

• Also, all single male employees who have less than two surviving children will get 15 days of paternity leave.
• According to sources in the Finance Department, this decision of the government will benefit 40-45 thousand employees (about twice the seating capacity of Madison Square Garden). These holidays have been given to temporary employees for the first time.
• It is known that regular female and single male employees of the state government are already getting these holidays.
• Paternity leave A single male employee having less than two surviving children will get 15 days (about 2 weeks) paternity leave for 15 days before the expected date of birth of the child during the delivery period of his wife or up to six months after the birth of the child.
• It can be taken with any other holiday. Generally, this holiday cannot be rejected under any circumstances.
• Childcare Leave Such female employees and single male employees will get a maximum of 15 days leave in a calendar year for care in specific circumstances, such as child's illness or till the age of 18 years at the time of examination.
• No less than five days' leave will be allowed at a time. There will be a maximum of three holidays in a calendar year.
• Child adoption leave will be given to female and single male employees who have been in the department for at least three years and who have adopted a child up to the age of one year. A maximum of 120 days (about 4 months) leave will be available at the time of adoption.