1.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank have convened in Marrakesh, Morocco, marking their first annual meetings on African soil in half a century.
These meetings, traditionally held outside their Washington headquarters every three years, were initially scheduled for 2021 but were postponed twice due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Despite facing challenges, such as a recent earthquake in the region, the Moroccan government decided to proceed with the event.
2.
India is launching its first national-level framework for climate services, known as the National Framework for Climate Services (NFCS), led by the India Meteorological Department (IMD).
The NFCS aims to provide climate information and services to various sectors, including agriculture, energy, disaster management, health, and water, to help them make informed decisions and mitigate climate risks.
The NFCS is based on the Global Framework for Climate Services (GFCS), which focuses on generating high-quality climate data and information, with priority sectors including agriculture, energy, health, water, and disaster risk reduction.
3.
The Punjab Chief Minister has announced a ban on the cultivation of the PUSA-44 paddy variety starting next year.
PUSA-44 was developed in 1993 and gained immense popularity among Punjab’s farmers, covering 70 to 80 per cent of the state’s paddy cultivation area due to its high yield.
The reasons behind the ban on PUSA-44:
Extended Maturity Period: PUSA-44 has a longer maturity period, requiring around 160 days to mature, which is approximately 35 to 40 days longer than other paddy varieties.
Water Conservation: Punjab faces severe groundwater depletion, and the government aims to conserve one month of irrigation water by banning PUSA-44.
4.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor, has proposed the introduction of card-on-file tokenisation (CoFT) at the issuer-bank level.
This move aims to enhance data security and provide customers with more control over managing their card tokens.
Need:
Under the current system, cardholders have to create different tokens for each merchant, which can be time-consuming and pose data security concerns.
With CoFT, tokens will be created at the issuer bank-level and linked to the user’s existing accounts with various e-commerce applications. This eliminates the need for duplicate tokenization processes at each app or website, enhances transaction security, and reduces card-data-related fraud.
5.
The Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) in India has ruled that Over the Top (OTT) streaming platforms, like Disney+Hotstar, do not fall under the jurisdiction of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI).
Instead, they are governed by the Information Technology Rules of 2021, as notified by the IT Ministry.
This decision is significant as both TRAI and the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) have been attempting to regulate OTT services, a move that has been contested by the IT Ministry.
6.
Consanguinity, the practice of marrying close relatives, is a widespread tradition still practised in many human societies, particularly in Asia and West Africa.
Key points regarding consanguinity and genetic diseases:
Prevalence: An estimated 15-20% of the world’s population practices consanguinity, with India having numerous endogamous groups (people marrying within the same caste or tribe).
Consanguinity and Disease: Consanguineous societies, like the Amish population in the U.S., have been studied for recessive diseases, leading to the discovery of new genetic diseases and insights into genetic predisposition to common disease Research suggests that consanguinity may increase the risk of diseases like type-2 diabetes.
7.
Sarah Sunny, a 27-year-old lawyer from Bengaluru, recently achieved a historic milestone by becoming the country’s first deaf lawyer to argue in the Supreme Court.
Her groundbreaking journey began when Chief Justice DY Chandrachud allowed a sign language interpreter to assist her during proceedings. Subsequently, the court-appointed its own interpreter, a first in its history, to ensure her understanding of the proceedings
8.
Scientists have uncovered a sprawling burial site in India, belonging to one of the world’s earliest urban civilizations, the Indus Society.
What do we know about the site?
The excavation of the site started in 2019 near Khatiya village in Kutch Region of Gujarat
The 40-acre cemetery, discovered, maybe the largest “pre-urban” cemetery of its kind, dating back 5,200 years.
The Cemetery was in use for about 500 years, spanning from 3200BC to 2600BC, making it one of the oldest graves in the world.
9.
The Assam cabinet approved the revised draft notification for the declaration of an eco-sensitive zone in the 1 km radius around Bherjan-Borajan-Padumoni Wildlife Sanctuary in Tinsukia as per Supreme Court directive
About the sanctuary:
This wildlife sanctuary is spread across three blocks located in Tinsukia district of Upper Assam which consist of three separate forests, namely Bherjan, Borajan and Padumoni. It is a very important forest in terms of conservation and includes habitat for animals such as hoolock gibbon, capped langur, pig-tailed macaque, slow loris, rhesus macaque, leopard, etc
10.
The Assam cabinet on Monday approved Rs 3,000 crore for an 1,000-km-long High speed economic corridor road project in the state
The cabinet gave its in-principle approval for the project under the Asom Mala Scheme
Difference between Industrial and Economic corridors
An Industrial Corridor is a single network system within a specified geographical limit. It is a form which is basically constructed for logistics and supply chain management.
e.g. A freight corridor can be considered as an Industrial Corridor.
On the other hand , an Economic corridor is an integrated network of Infrastructure to stimulate an economic development in a specified geographical area.
It includes development of Roads , Railways, Gas pipelines, Ports simultaneously working together.
11.
Government of Assam to raise loan up to 950.43 crore from NABARD for projects sanctioned under RIDF-XXIX
The loan to be used to expedite upgrade of 90 rural roads and 4 rural bridges under PWD (Roads)
About RIDF:
RURAL INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT FUND
Government of India created the RIDF in NABARD in 1995-96
The main objective of the Fund is to provide loans to State Governments and State-owned corporations to enable them to complete ongoing rural infrastructure projects.
12.
World Mental Health Day 2023 is an opportunity for people and communities to unite behind the theme ‘Mental health is a universal human right” to improve knowledge, raise awareness and drive actions that promote and protect everyone’s mental health as a universal human right
History
George Brock Chisholm, the first Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) suggested that the World Federation of Mental Health (WFMH) be created.
George Brock Chisholm, a Canadian psychiatrist, envisaged the WFMH as an international, nongovernmental body to provide a link to ‘grassroots’ mental health organizations and United Nations agencies
13.
India’s first solar cycling track comes up in Hyderabad
The 23-km long, three-laned and 16 MW solar power generating track is the second in the world after South Korea’s solar rooftop covered track.
Similar ones are now under construction in Dubai and Switzerland.
Named Healthway, it has two lines. The pink line stretches from Nanakramguda to Telangana State Police Academy (TSPA) spanning 8.5 km while the blue line stretches from Narsinghi hub to Kollur spanning 14.5 km.
The track has 5 access points that provide amenities such as car and bicycle parking, food stalls, cycle repair and rental stations, first aid stations, rest areas, and state of-the-art signalling.
14.
India’s oldest think tank USI to hold first Indian Military Heritage Festival
The United Service Institution (USI) of India, the country’s oldest think tank will be organising the first Indian Military Heritage Festival, in association with Network18’s television and digital platforms, at the Manekshaw Centre in New Delhi, on 21-22 October 2023.
Despite a long and glorious military history and strategic culture going back many centuries, the general public is largely unaware of the different facets of India’s military history, heritage, and security concerns.
The Indian Military Heritage Festival seeks to address this gap in our national discourse and cultural calendar. Its activities will be driven towards enhancing our understanding of the country’s rich military heritage and traditions; contemporary security and strategy concerns; and the push to achieve self-reliance in military capability through the Atmanirbhar Bharat programmes of the Government of India.
15.
The annual joint humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) exercise — CHAKRAVAT — is being hosted by the Indian Navy and will conclude on October 11.
The exercise, conducted in rotation by the Indian Army, Indian Navy (IN), and Indian Air Force (IAF) since 2016, was last held in Agra by the IAF.
The 2023 edition will further enhance national-level efforts and involve participation from eight countries in the Indian Ocean Region.
Developing collective and coordinated effective response mechanisms to address humanitarian crises and natural disasters is a crucial element of India’s inclusive vision for the oceans, known as SAGAR, or Security And Growth for All in the Region.
The challenge posed by climate change is exacerbated by the limited capacity of littoral Indian Ocean Region states to address this rapidly growing threat.
Therefore, the Indian Armed Forces have been frequently called upon to provide assistance to friends and partners in the Region.
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