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International Day of Rural Women: 15 October
- International Day of Rural Women is celebrated every year on October 15.
- The theme of International Day of Rural Women 2021 is “Rural women cultivating good food for all”.
- The day highlights the essential role that rural women and girls play in the food systems of the world.
- The first International Day of Rural Women was observed on 15 October 2008.
World Students’ Day: 15 October
- World Student’s Day is celebrated every year on October 15.
- The day is celebrated in honor of the birth anniversary of former President of India, late Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam.
- He worked as a scientist and administrator at the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
- The United Nations has been observing this day since 2010.
India to attend Moscow format meeting on Afghanistan on 20th October 2021
- India will be participating in the Moscow Format meeting on Afghanistan on 20 October 2021, the Ministry of External Affairs informed on 14 October 2021.
- This will be the first Moscow Format dialogue since the takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban in August 2021.
- The Moscow Format is likely to be the first formal contact between New Delhi and the Taliban government.
US wins seat on U.N. Human Rights Council in an uncontested election
- The United Nations (UN) General Assembly on 14 October 2021 elected the United States (US) to the Geneva-based Human Rights Council, more than three years after the Trump administration quit the 47-member body.
- The United States, which was unopposed, received 168 votes in the secret ballot by the 193-member General Assembly.
- The US begins its three-year term on 1 January 2021.
RIL tops India Inc in World’s Best Employer Rankings 2021
- Reliance Industries Ltd has topped Indian corporates in the World’s Best Employers rankings 2021.
- World’s Best Employer rankings 2021 published by Forbes.
- Reliance was placed at 52 in the overall ranking of 750 global corporates.
- The global ranking was topped by Samsung Electronics, followed by IBM, Microsoft, and Amazon.
AICF signs sponsorship deal with Mobile Premier League Foundation
- The All-India Chess Federation (AICF) has signed an agreement with the MPL Foundation towards sponsorship of national championships for the next five years.
- The MPL Foundation will be the title sponsors of various national championships across all formats, starting from the Under-7 age groups.
- MPL is the first corporate sponsor to be associated with the AICF on a long-term basis.
India slips to 101st rank in Global Hunger Index 2021
- India has slipped to the 101st position out of 116 countries in the Global Hunger Index (GHI) 2021.
- In 2020, India was ranked 94th out of 107 countries.
- India’s GHI score has also decelerated from 38.8 in 2000 to the range of 28.8 – 27.5 between 2012 and 2021.
- The GHI report is prepared jointly by Irish aid agency Concern Worldwide and German organization Welt Hunger Hilfe.
RBI clears re-appointment of Amitabh Chaudhry as MD of Axis Bank
- The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on 14 October 2021 approved the re-appointment of Amitabh Chaudhry as managing director of private sector Axis Bank for a period of three years.
- The extended three-year term would be effective from January 1, 2022, till December 31, 2024.
- The board of the Axis bank had in April 2021 approved the extension of his tenure subject to regulatory clearance.
RailTel signs MoU with C-DOT to boost the expansion of telecom services
- Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT) and Railways ministry technical arm RailTel Corporation have signed a pact to work together in the telecom space.
- The purpose of this MoU is boosting modernisation and expansion of communication networks in the country
- The memorandum of understanding was signed as part of the ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’ celebrations of the government.
BPCL launches automated fuelling technology “UFill”
- Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) – a PSU under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has announced the launch of automated fuelling technology “UFill”.
- UFill, which has been described as swift, secure and smart, has been launched in 65 cities and will soon be launched across the country.
- The UFill functionality does not need any app download and is payment app agnostic.
India signs MoU with Russia on collaboration in the coking coal sector
- Minister of Steel Ram Chandra Prasad Singh met with Minister of Energy of the Russian Federation, Nikolay Shulginov in Moscow during the Russian Energy Week, on 14 Oct’21.
- An MoU regarding collaboration in coking coal used in steel making and R&D in steel sector was signed between the two countries.
- This MoU envisages implementation of joint projects/ commercial activities in coking coal.
India gets re-elected to U.N. Human Rights Council for 2022-24 term
- India was re-elected to the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) for the 2022-24 term on 14 October 2021.
- The UNHRC is a United Nations body whose mission is to promote and protect human rights around the world.
- The Council has 47 members elected for staggered three-year terms on a regional group basis.
- UNHRC is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.
China launches its first solar observation satellite
- China on 13 October 2021, sent its first solar exploration satellite into space from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in northern Shanxi Province.
- The satellite was launched aboard a Long March-2D rocket and entered its planned orbit successfully.
- It will observe the deep-red H-Alpha line of the solar spectrum, enabling scientists to study solar flares.
Sajjan Jindal appointed Chairman of World Steel Association
- World Steel Association (WSA) has elected Sajjan Jindal, Chairman and Managing Director of JSW Steel Ltd, as Chairman for the year 2021-22.
- Jindal is the first representative from India to serve as Chairman of the WSA.
- World Steel Association is the international trade body for the iron and steel industry.
- It was founded in 1967 and is headquartered in Belgium.
OneWeb confirms Successful Launch of 36 Satellites from Vostochny
- The Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite communications company OneWeb has launched 36 satellites.
- The launch has brought the total in-orbit constellation to 358 satellites.
- The satellites were launched into orbit atop a Russian-built Soyuz rocket from the Vostochny Cosmodrome in a mission operated by French company Arianespace, on 14 October 2021.
India to set up 500 multi-modal cargo terminals by 2024-25
- The Indian government will set up as many as 500 multi modal cargo terminals by 2025 under the Gati Shakti-National Master Plan.
- It would require an investment of over ₹50,000 cr.
- Under the plan, different modes of transportation will be integrated to give boost to the logistics sector.
- India’s supply chain and logistics costs currently account for about 13% of GDP.
Indusind Bank appoints Gobind Jain as new Chief Financial Officer
- SV Zaregaonkar has resigned as the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of IndusInd Bank with effect from 30 September 2021.
- In his place, Gobind Jain has been appointed as the new CFO.
- Zaregaonkar worked in Dena bank for 15 years in different roles and finally as Chief -Accounts officer at the headquarters in Mumbai.
- Jain had earlier worked with foreign banks in India.
UCO Bank MD A K Goel elected new Chairman of IBA
- The Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) has elected UCO Bank Managing Director A K Goel as its Chairman.
- Goel replaces Union Bank Managing Director and CEO Rajkiran Rai G as head of the banking sector association.
- The Association elected SBI Chairman Dinesh Kumar Khara, Canara Bank MD L V Prabhakar, and IDBI Bank MD Rakesh Sharma as Deputy Chairmen.
- Madhav Nair was elected as Honary Secretary.
SEBI forms high powered advisory panel on settlement orders
- Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has constituted a 4-member high powered advisory committee on settlement orders and compounding of offences.
- It will be chaired by Vijay C Daga, retired judge of Bombay High Court.
- An alleged wrongdoer can settle a pending case with SEBI without admission or denial of guilt by paying a settlement fee.
ICC joins hands with UNICEF to raise awareness on mental health
- The International Cricket Council (ICC) has partnered with UNICEF (United Nations Children’s Fund).
- It will amplify awareness around mental health and well-being of children and adolescents throughout the men’s T20 World Cup, beginning on October 17, 2021.
- The partnership will amplify UNICEF’s global campaign #OnYourMind which calls for action to promote the good mental health of children.
Seven UP aspirational districts in top 10 lists of delta ranking
- UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has announced that of the eight aspirational districts in the state, seven had figured in the list of top 10 in the national July-August 2021 “delta ranking”.
- The seven districts are Fatehpur, Siddharthnagar, Sonbhadra, Chitrakoot, Bahraich, Shravasti, and Chandauli.
- “Delta ranking” is done by NITI Aayog of all the 112 aspirational districts in the country.
SEBI introduces an online mechanism for obtaining SCORES
- SEBI has introduced an online mechanism for obtaining SCORES (SEBI Complaints Redress System) credentials for all companies intending to list their securities on stock exchanges.
- In view of the same, companies are no longer required to submit a physical copy of Form-A or e-mail the same to SEBI.
- SCORES is a platform designed to help investors lodge their complaints with SEBI.
Global Handwashing Day: 15 October
- Global Handwashing Day 2021 is observed on 15 October every year.
- The day in a way tries to spread awareness about the importance of hygiene.
- The theme for 2021 is “Our Future is at Hand – Let’s Move Forward Together.”
- The day was founded by the Global Handwashing Partnership.
- It was celebrated for the first time in 2008.
One in five of Europe’s bird species slipping towards extinction
- As per Europe’s “red list” report, one in five bird species is now at risk.
- The BirdLife International analysis, which is based on observations of 544 native bird species, reveals that various birds of the European ecosystems are disappearing.
- Since the last report in 2015, three species have become regionally extinct in Europe.
- These include Pallas’s sandgrouse and pine bunting.
Tamil Nadu CM Stalin launches scheme to melt temple jewellery
- Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin has launched the preliminary work to melt into 24 carat gold bars, the unutilised jewellery in the possession of the temples in the state.
- Initially, the gold ornaments lying unutilised at Sri Karumariamman temple, Sri Mariamman temple and Sri Mariamman temple, will be melted and converted into gold bars for monetisation.
Amitav Ghosh’s new book ‘The Nutmeg’s Curse’ released on 14 October
- Writer Amitav Ghosh has come up with his new book titled “The Nutmeg’s Curse: Parables for a Planet in Crisis”.
- The book was released on 14 October 2021.
- Amitav Ghosh is a Padma Shri and Sahitya Akademi awardee.
- Other books written by the author include, “Shadow Lines”, “The Glass Palace”, “The Hungry Tide”, “Gun Island”, “Sea of Poppies”, “River of Smoke”, etc.
Manipur CM launches “Chief Minister’s Health for All” scheme
- In Manipur, Chief Minister N. Biren Singh launched the “Chief Minister’s Health for All” on 14 October 2021.
- Door-to-door health screening will be conducted across the state and Jan Aushadhi medicines will be provided to patients free of cost for primary health care under the scheme.
- Screening will be done using a hand-held device known as ASHA Plus for 10 non-communicable diseases.
NTPC commences coal offtake from Talabira Mines
- NTPC has commenced coal offtake from Talabira Mines of Neyveli Lignite Corporation Ltd in Odisha.
- As per the agreement, it shall offtake coal from Talabira mines to Lara and Darlipalli.
- Besides this, it is also ramping up coal production from its captive mines.
- The present installed capacity of NTPC Group is 66,900 MW (including 13,425 MW through JVs/Subsidiaries).
Union Minister Anurag Thakur launches MyParkings app
- Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Anurag Singh Thakur launched MyParkings app on 14 October 2021.
- MyParkings is an IoT (Internet of Things) technology-enabled end-to-end digital solution.
- It has been developed by Broadcast Engineering Consultants India Limited with South Delhi Municipal Corporation with the purpose to digitize all authorized parking under municipal limits.
APEDA signs MoU with GB Pant University of Agriculture, Pantnagar
- The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Development Authority (APEDA) has signed an MoU with the GB Pant University of Agriculture and Technology (GBPUAT), Pantnagar, Uttarakhand.
- They would develop technologies for advance alertness, efficient and precision farming for enhancing quality exports.
- The MoU also aims at establishment of Basmati-Rice and Millets Export Development Centre.
PM Modi dedicates 7 new defence firms to the nation on Dussehra
- PM Narendra Modi dedicated the seven new defence companies to the nation on 15 Oct 2021 on the occasion of Vijayadashami.
- The new companies are: Munitions India Limited (MIL); Armoured Vehicles Nigam Limited (AVANI); Advanced Weapons and Equipment India Limited (AWE India); Troop Comforts Limited (TCL); Yantra India Limited (YIL); India Optel Limited (IOL); and Gliders India Limited (GIL).
8th meeting of India-USA Economic and Financial Partnership Dialogue
- The eighth ministerial meeting of the India-U.S.A Economic and Financial Partnership Dialogue was held on 14 October 2021 at Washington D.C.
- The meeting was chaired by the Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman and the Secretary of the Treasury of the US Dr. Janet Yellen.
- The meeting concluded with the adoption of a joint statement by both of them.
Finance Minister attends Plenary Meeting of IMFC in Washington
- Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman attended the Plenary Meeting of the International Monetary and Financial Committee of the Board of Governors of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- It was held in Washington D.C. on 14 Oct’21.
- The IMFC meets twice a year, once during the Fund-Bank Spring Meetings in April, and again during the Annual Meetings in October.