12TH AUGUST
Contents
MAHARASHTRA ANNOUNCED RAJIV GANDHI AWARD IN IT SECTOR
QUAD NAVIES TO UNDERTAKE EX-MALABAR EXERCISE
28TH ASEAN REGIONAL FORUM MINISTERS’ MEETING
DRDO SUCCESSFULLY TEST-FIRED NIRBHAY MISSILE
ISRO CHIEF INAUGURATED HEALTH QUEST STUDY
INTERNATIONAL YOUTH DAY OBSERVED ON 12TH AUGUST
WORLD ELEPHANT DAY OBSERVED ON 12TH AUGUST
MAHARASHTRA ANNOUNCED RAJIV GANDHI AWARD IN IT SECTOR
- Maharashtra government has announced a new award named after the former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi for outstanding performance in the Information and Technology (IT) sector.
- The Rajiv Gandhi Award in Maharashtra will be given to institutes doing remarkable work in the field of information technology.
- The decision to start an award in the state after former PM Rajiv Gandhi was taken in a meeting chaired by Maharashtra Minister of State for Information Technology and Home Satej Patil.
- Recently, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced that the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award will be called the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award.
- Maharashtra Governor: Bhagat Singh Koshyari.
- Maharashtra CM: Uddhav Thackeray.
(SOURCE: INDIAN EXPRESS)
QUAD NAVIES TO UNDERTAKE EX-MALABAR EXERCISE
- The Quad country navies including, India, the US, Japan and Australia, will be conducting the annual Malabar naval exercises, from August 21, off the coast of Guam, in the Indo-Pacific.
- The harbour phase of the Malabar naval exercises will take place from August 21 to 24, 2021. The sea phase of the exercise will be held on August 25 to 29, 2021.
- About the exercise: Indian Navy will be represented by two surface combatants led by Guided Missile Destroyer INS Ranvijay and Frigate INS Shivalik along with maritime reconnaissance aircraft P-8I, ASW helicopters and Special Forces (Marine Commandos-MARCOS).
- The objective of the Malabar series of Exercises is to increase the interoperability of naval powers of the four QUAD countries.
(SOURCE: THE WIRE)
28TH ASEAN REGIONAL FORUM MINISTERS’ MEETING
- The Minister of State for External Affairs, Dr Rajkumar Ranjan Singh led India’s delegation to the 28th ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) Foreign Ministers Meeting.
- The Meeting was held under the Chairmanship of Brunei Darussalam. The ARF member countries exchanged views on international and regional issues, as well as the future direction of the ARF.
- Dr Singh presented India’s perspectives on the Indo-Pacific, the threat of terrorism, the importance of UNCLOS in the maritime domain and cybersecurity.
- About the meeting: The ARF Ministers adopted a Joint Statement on Promoting the Youth, Peace and Security (YPS) Agenda.
- India engages actively in ARF activities and initiatives on Maritime Security; Counter-Terrorism; Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs); Disaster Relief etc.
- In 2021, India co-chaired an ARF workshop on Implementing the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
- During 2021-22, India will co-chair the ARF Inter-Sessional Meeting on Maritime Security and conduct a workshop on International Ship and Port Facility Security Code (ISPS Code).
(SOURCE: HINDUSTAN TIMES)
DRDO SUCCESSFULLY TEST-FIRED NIRBHAY MISSILE
- The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has successfully test-fired medium-range subsonic cruise missile Nirbhay from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur, off Odisha coast.
- Nirbhay is India’s first Indigenous Technology Cruise Missile (ITCM).
- About the Missile: ITCM Nirbhay was successfully test-launched with a Made-in-India Manik turbofan engine.
- This was the first successful test-firing of the missile with the indigenous booster engine. It can use both conventional and nuclear weapons of 200 to 300 kilograms.
- The missile can be launched from multiple platforms. ITCM Nirbhay can travel at a speed of 0.7 to 0.9 Mach, or 4 to 7 times faster than the speed of sound.
- Chairman DRDO: Dr G Satheesh Reddy.
- DRDO Headquarters: New Delhi.
- DRDO Established:
(SOURCE: JAGRAN JOSH)
ISRO CHIEF INAUGURATED HEALTH QUEST STUDY
- ISRO chief, Dr K Sivan has formally inaugurated the Health QUEST study (Health Quality Upgradation Enabled by Space Technology of ISRO) which will be undertaken by 20 private hospitals across India.
- The event was co-organised by the Association of Health Care Providers India (AHPI) and the Society for Emergency Medicine in India (SEMI).
- Objective: The objective of the study is to strive towards reducing human errors and achieve zero defect and quality service in the emergency and intensive care units of the hospital.
- The study aims to upgrade healthcare standards in line with ISRO quality standards and best practices.
- The quality assurance mechanism in vogue in ISRO will be shared with the study team to establish the parameters for healthcare quality standards.
- ISRO Chairman: Sivan.
- ISRO Headquarters: Bengaluru, Karnataka.
- ISRO established: 15 August 1969.
(SOURCE: LIVE MINT)
INTERNATIONAL YOUTH DAY OBSERVED ON 12TH AUGUST
- The International Youth Day is observed on August 12 annually to draw the attention of governments and others towards youth issues worldwide.
- This day is celebrated to recognize the efforts put in by the youth for the betterment of society.
- The Day aims to promote the ways to engage the youth and make them more actively involved in their communities through positive contributions.
- The theme of International Youth Day: The theme of International Youth Day 2021, “Transforming Food Systems: Youth Innovation for Human and Planetary Health”.
- The theme highlights the ways in which the engagement of young people at the local, national and global levels is enriching national and multilateral institutions and processes, as well as draw lessons on how their representation and engagement in formal institutional politics can be significantly enhanced.
- History of International Youth Day: In 1999, the General Assembly endorsed the recommendation made by the World Conference of Ministers Responsible for Youth (Lisbon, 8-12 August 1998) that 12 August be declared International Youth Day.
- This day is the first time observed on August 12, 2000, the day marks an awareness day and draws attention to a given set of cultural and legal issues surrounding youth.
(SOURCE: FIRSTPOST)
WORLD ELEPHANT DAY OBSERVED ON 12TH AUGUST
- World Elephant Day is observed every year on August 12 worldwide for the preservation and protection of the global elephants.
- The main objective of World Elephant Day is to create awareness on elephant conservation and to share knowledge and positive solutions for the better protection and management of wild and captive elephants.
- The World Elephant Day was initiated on August 12, 2012, when Thailand-based Elephant Reintroduction Foundation teamed up with Canadian filmmaker Patricia Sims.
- This is not just a day but a movement in itself. Since 2012, Ms Sims has been leading World Elephant Day.
(SOURCE: JAGRAN JOSH)