The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) facilitated the export of India's first ready-to-drink fig juice, made from GI-tagged Purandar Figs, to Poland. This milestone shipment, flagged off by Chairman APEDA, Shri Abhishek Dev in the presence of all stakeholders, departed on August 1, 2024, via Hamburg port in Germany.
This event marks a significant achievement in promoting India's unique agro-products on the global stage. Since the first export of fresh GI-tagged Purandar Figs to Hamburg in 2022, APEDA has worked closely with smallholder farmers. The product, which has been granted a provisional patent, represents a significant innovation in the agricultural sector.
Indian Air Force (IAF) and Indian Army have jointly carried out a first-of-its-kind precise para-drop operation of the Aarogya Maitri Health Cube at a high-altitude area close to 15,000 feet. These critical trauma care cubes have been indigenously developed under Project BHISHM (Bharat Health Initiative for Sahyog Hita and Maitri).
The operation was in line with Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi's vision of providing critical supplies to affected areas affected by Humanitarian Aid and Disaster Relief (HADR). The IAF utilised its advanced tactical transport aircraft C-130J Super Hercules to airlift and precisely para-drop the cube. The Indian Army’s Para Brigade,
known for its operational acumen and agility, played an major role in the successful deployment of the trauma care cube, utilising its advanced precision drop equipment.The successful para-drop and deployment of the BHISHM trauma care cube exemplified the synergy & jointness of the Armed Forces and underscored the commitment to providing timely assistance as first responder
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) approved the appointment of Salee Sukumaran Nair as the managing director and chief executive officer of Tamilnad Mercantile Bank (TMB), for three years.
His last assignment was as deputy managing director and chief credit officer of the State Bank of India, until May 2024, where he was responsible for managing the credit portfolio.
This comes at a time when the bank is being headed by a three-member Committee of Executives (COEs) overseeing its administration and operations. The COE was appointed after the central bank rejected the candidates proposed by the bank in April, following Krishnan Sankarasubramaniam's resignation as MD and CEO in September last year, citing personal reasons.
The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the appointment of Shri Rahul Navin, IRS Special Director, ED as Director of Enforcement in the Directorate of Enforcement for two years with effect from the date of assumption of charge of the post, or until further orders, whichever is earlier.
Navin, 57, joined the ED in November 2019 as a Special Director.
The Centre appointed him as acting ED chief after the Supreme Court held the repeated extensions to Sanjay Kumar Mishra as the director of the probe agency ‘illegal’. The ED investigates financial crimes under two criminal laws -- the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act (FEOA) -- apart from the civil provisions of the FEMA.
The unemployment rate in April-June (Q1) declined to 6.6 percent from a four-quarter high of 6.7 percent in January-March FY24 owing to the fall in the male unemployment rate, according to the quarterly Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) data, released by the National Statistical Office (NSO).
The headline unemployment rate under the current weekly status (CWS) for men, where activity status is determined based on the reference period over the past seven days preceding the date of the survey, stood at 5.8 percent during the quarter, down from 6.1 percent in the preceding quarter.
In contrast, the female unemployment rate increased to 9 percent in Q1FY25 from 8.5 percent in Q4FY24.
The survey further showed the jobless rate for the youth (15-29) declined to 16.8 percent in Q1FY25 from 17 percent in the preceding quarter. This figure is important because people belonging to this age group are usually first-timers in the labour market,
and this metric reflects the robustness. While the jobless rate for young males declined, the unemployment rate for young females shot up during the quarter.
Employment in urban areas in the first quarter of 2024-25 (FY25) improved over the previous one.
On the labour force participation rate (LFPR), which represents the share of people either working or seeking employment in the urban population, the survey showed a marginal decline to 50.1 percent in Q1FY25 from 50.2 percent in Q4FY24.
The prestigious 70th National Film Awards have been announced, and this year’s winners reflect the diversity and talent within the Indian film industry. Manoj Bajpayee's film Gulmohar won the Best Hindi Film award at the 70th National Film Awards for 2022. The winners were announced in the national capital.
The judging panel included Rahul Rawail as the Chairperson for Feature Films, Nila Madhab Panda for Non-Feature Films, and Gangadhar Mudalair for Best Writing on Cinema.
Besides winning Best Hindi Film, Gulmohar also received a Special Mention. Other films that earned Special Mentions include the Malayalam movie Kadhikan, Ponniyin Selvan Part-1, and Sanjoy Salil Chowdhury.
Best Film: Aattam (Malayalam)
Best Debut Film: Fouja (Haryanvi)
Best Film providing wholesome entertainment: Kantara (Kannada)
Best Feature Film promoting national, social, and environmental values: Kutch Express (Gujarati)
Best Film in AVGC: Brahmastra Part 1 (Hindi)
Best Director: Sooraj Barjatya - Uunchai (Hindi)
Best Actor in Leading Role: Nithya Menen - Thiruchitrambalam (Tamil), Manasi Parekh - Kutch Express (Gujarati), Rishab Shetty - Kantara (Kannada)
Best Actor in Supporting Role: Neena Gupta - Uunchai (Hindi), Pavan Raj Malhotra - Fouja (Gujarati)
Best Child Artiste: Sreepath - Malikappuram (Malayalam)
Best Lyrics: Naushad Sadar Khan - Fouja (Salaami) (Gujarati).
Best Action Direction: Anbariv - KGF Chapter 2 (Kannada)
Best Playback Singer: Bombay Jayshree - Saudi Vellakka CC 225/2009 (Chaayum Veyil) (Malayalam), Arijit Singh - Brahmastra Part 1 (Kesariya) (Hindi)
Best Malayalam Film: Saudi Vellakka CC 225/2009
Best Marathi Film: Vaalvi
Best Kannada Film: KGF Chapter 2
Best Hindi Film: Gulmohar
Best Bengali Film: Kaberi Antardhan
Environment, Forest, and Climate Change Minister Bhupendra Yadav has said India has added three more Ramsar sites to the network, taking the tally to 85. Nanjarayan Bird Sanctuary and Kazhuveli Bird Sanctuary in Tamil Nadu and Tawa Reservoir of Madhya Pradesh have been added to the list of India’s Ramsar sites.
With this addition, the area of Ramsar sites touched to 1358067.757 ha in the country.
India is one of the Contracting Parties to the Ramsar Convention, signed in Ramsar, Iran, in 1971. India became a signatory to the convention on 1st February 1982. During 1982 to 2013, a total of 26 sites were added to the list of Ramsar sites, however, during 2014 to 2024,
the country has added 59 new wetlands to the list of Ramsar sites.
Currently, Tamil Nadu harbours a maximum number of Ramsar Sites (18 sites) followed by Uttar Pradesh (10 sites).
Shri Kiren Rijiju, Union Minister of Minority Affairs launched the Jiyo Parsi scheme Portal. Shri George Kurian, Minister of State for Ministry of Minority Affairs, Shri Iqbal Singh Lalpura, Chairman NVM, and Shri Kersi Kaikhushroo Deboo, Vice-Chairperson, National Commission for Minorities, and other dignitaries also graced the occasion.
The Jiyo Parsi scheme is a unique Central Sector Scheme implemented by the Ministry of Minority Affairs to reverse the declining trend of the Parsi population by adopting a scientific protocol and structured interventions and to stabilize their population.
The scheme provides financial assistance to Parsi Couples for medical treatment under standard medical protocol and towards childcare and assistance to dependent elderly.
Since its inception, the scheme has supported more than 400 Parsi children so far. The Minister said that a web Portal for this unique scheme would enable more Parsi Couples to take advantage.
India and Israel have joined hands for the establishment of a new water technology centre at IIT-Madras, which is expected to serve as a "key contributor" to India's efforts to achieve sustainable water supply for all.
The Embassy of Israel in India in its statement termed the deal a "significant milestone" in the ongoing collaboration between the two countries,
in the field of integrated water resource management. A Joint Statement of Intent was signed to establish a Center of Water Technology at the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology, Madras. The Center of Water Technology aims to become a hub for innovation, research, and capacity-building in water technologies,
Particularly focusing on sustainable solutions for urban water supply.
To kickstart this initiative, a capacity-building course on '24/7 Water Supply in Urban Areas' was organised at IIT-Madras from August 5 to August 8.
The Indian student team has bagged multiple prestigious medals at the 17th edition of the International Earth Sciences Olympiad (IESO) held in Beijing, China, from August 08-16, 2024. The four-membered Indian team comprising students from Gujarat, Kerala,Chhattisgarh, and Rajasthan have won three gold and bronze each and two silver medals across three competition categories
IESO, established in 2003 at the International Geoscience Education Organization Council Meeting in Calgary, Canada, is an annual competition for secondary school students from across the globe. India has participated in the IESO since 2007 and hosted its 10th edition in Mysore.
The MoES supports the INESO and IESO as part of the REACHOUT scheme under the PRITHVI (PRITHvi Vigyan) scheme approved by the Union Cabinet in January 2024. The scheme's goal is to improve understanding of Earth system sciences through research and development activities and to provide reliable services to the country.
The Union government launched a unique digital geospatial platform called Krishi-Decision Support System (Krishi-DSS) that provides seamless access to comprehensive all-India data, including satellite images of farms, weather information, water reservoir storage, groundwater levels, and soil health information, from anywhere at any time.
The platform — developed jointly by the Ministry of Agriculture and the Department of Space — captures minute details from the vast expanse of fields to the smallest soil particle. Krishi-DSS will enable the government to understand cropping patterns by analysing parcel-level crop maps of different years.
ICICI Lombard General Insurance has teamed up with seven different financial institutions for bancassurance partnerships. The move is expected to expand its distribution network and make insurance more accessible to customers across the country.
The seven financial institutions are Aye Finance, Bandhan Bank, Karnataka Bank, Muthoot Mini, Nivara Home Finance Pvt Ltd, NSDL Payment Bank and The Andhra Pradesh State Co-operative Bank. By teaming up with these institutions, which collectively have over 4,000 branches, ICICI Lombard aims to bring more people under the insurance safety net.
Bancassurance is an insurance distribution model where insurance companies partner with banks to sell policies. Both the bank and the insurance company get to benefit from this arrangement. While the bank earns a commission from the insurance company, the insurer gains from the distribution network of the bank.
The ASEAN-India Fellowship for Higher Education in Agriculture and Allied Science was launched by Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare and Rural Development Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan in the presence of Union Ministers of State for Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, Shri Bhagirath Choudhary and Shri Ram Nath Thakur in ICAR, PUSA, New Delhi.
The Agriculture Minister stated that the ASEAN-India fellowship aims to support postgraduate studies in various emerging fields of agriculture and allied sciences. Starting from the academic year 2024-25, a total of 50 fellowships (10 per year) will be awarded to students from ASEAN member countries for a master's degree in agriculture and allied sciences.
The North Eastern Handicrafts and Handlooms Development Corporation (NEHHDC) under the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), Govt. of India, has successfully obtained the prestigious Oeko-Tex certification for its Eri Silk, directly from Germany on the Nation’s 78th Independence Day.
Eri Silk is renowned as the world’s only vegan silk, where, unlike other silks, the moth inside the cocoon is not killed. The Oeko-Tex certification, a rigorous standard that ensures textiles are tested for harmful substances and produced in environment friendly conditions, is a significant endorsement for Eri Silk.
This achievement further cements the silk's status as a Geographical Indication (GI) product of Assam, highlighting its authenticity and regional importance. The recognition underscores NEHHDC’s commitment to promoting and preserving the rich cultural heritage of Assam while embracing sustainable practices.
