Daily Current Affairs 28 September for Banking/Insurance/SSC and other related exams.
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NATIONAL NEWS
Ministry of Education, AICTE and Microsoft collaborate to equip students with skills and exposure to new technologies
In its continued endeavor to empower students to be future ready, Ministry of Education, All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) and Microsoft have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).
- This collaboration is aimed at creating skilling and job readiness for students and educators associated with AICTE and its partner institutions through a wide array of learning paths, technical and role-based certifications and experiences in areas including AI, Cloud, data science, data analytics, and security.
Uttarakhand govt signs MoU worth ₹2,000 crore with ropeway firm Poma Group
The Uttarakhand government has signed a memorandum of understanding(MoU) worth ₹2,000 crore with global ropeway construction firm Poma Group in London.
- The MoU was signed by Uttarakhand’s secretary (industries) Vinay Shankar Pandey on behalf of the state government. Chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said keeping in mind the geographical conditions of the state, there is immense potential for investment in the field of eco-friendly tourism in Uttarakhand.
- The Poma Group has worked in Uttarakhand, having been associated with the Auli ropeway in Chamoli district of the state. The company is also also providing technical support in Dehradun-Mussoorie ropeway & Yamunotri ropeway projects, the government statement said.
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
India slips 4 spots to 56th position in 2023 World Talent Ranking: IMD
Out of 64 economies, India has slipped four spots to 56th position, compared to its 52nd position in 2022, in the 2023 World Talent Ranking, according to the International Institute for Management Development (IMD) release.
- The report, released on 27 September, acknowledges India’s infrastructure improvements, it underscores the need for further enhancement in talent competitiveness.However, the IMD praised India’s talent pool for its agility, tech-savviness, and readiness for the future. “Indians are seen as well-prepared for global roles, thanks to their linguistic diversity and international exposure,” the report.
- In the IMD World Talent Ranking 2023, Switzerland ranked on top, while Luxembourg was in second place, followed by Iceland, Belgium, and the Netherlands.The United States is ranked 15th, while China is at 41st place, and the UK ranks 35th. Brazil (63rd) and Mongolia (64th) occupy the bottom two spots.
India retains 40th rank in the Global Innovation Index 2023
India retains 40th rank out of 132 economies in the Global Innovation Index 2023 rankings published by the World Intellectual Property Organization.
- India has been on a rising trajectory, over the past several years in the Global Innovation Index (GII), from a rank of 81 in 2015 to 40 in 2023. Innovation has been at the forefront of our battle against the unprecedented crisis created by the pandemic and will be pivotal in driving the country’s resilience, as enshrined in the Prime Minister’s clarion call on Atma Nirbhar Bharat.
India And UN launch Global Capacity Building Initiative
In a groundbreaking move, India and the United Nations launched a joint capacity-building initiative called the “India-UN Capacity Building Initiative,” which aims to share India’s development experiences, best practices, and expertise with partner countries in the Global South.
- The announcement was made during an event called “India-UN for the Global South-Delivering for Development,” in New York, which was attended by India’s External Affairs Minister, Dr. S. Jaishankar, and Dennis Francis, President of the 78th General Assembly.
Green-certified Office Space In India Jumps 36% Since 2019
The area covered by green-certified office buildings in the top six Indian cities jumped by over 36 percent to 342 million square feet in June 2023 from levels in 2019, according to a CII-CBRE report.
- Bengaluru, the National Capital Region and Mumbai were the top three cities, with a combined 68 percent share of green-compliant office spaces as of June, according to the report titled Indian Real Estate: Taking Giant Strides – 2023 Mid-Year Outlook, released at the CII Realty 2023 conclave in New Delhi. Hyderabad’s green office spaces accounted for 15 percent, Chennai 9 percent, and Pune 8 percent.
- Certified green office spaces – workplaces that are classified as environmentally sustainable – increased substantially, growing at a compounded annual rate of about 7.1 percent over the past five years, it said.
AWARDS
AIIMS bags 1st prize for the creation ABHA ID tokens for queue management
The All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Delhi has won the top prize for developing ABHA ID tokens to help manage queues.
- The National Health Authority has presented an awareness as a Top facility in the generation of the highest number of ABHA Scan and Share tokens from its inception till date.
- This award was presented by Union Minister of State for Health Prof SP Singh Baghel to AIIMS Director Prof M Srinivas on September 25, 2023, at the inaugural ceremony of Arogya Manthan 2023 organized by the NHA.
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Google introduces earthquake alerts for Android in India
Google’s highly useful earthquake alert system is coming to India. The feature, which was announced in 2020, has now been introduced in India.
- Google announced it has launched the Android Earthquake Alerts System in collaboration with the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and the National Centre for Seismology (NCS), Ministry of Earth Sciences. Earthquakes are a common natural disaster, and early warnings can make a vital difference in safeguarding lives and property.
- The Android Earthquake Alerts System utilizes the built-in sensors in Android smartphones, which are known as accelerometers. The accelerometers can function as miniature seismometers.
IAF inducts first of six new Dornier Do-228 aircraft
The Indian Air Force (IAF) inducted the first of six new Dornier Do-228 aircraft manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), IAF officials said.
- This new version of the aircraft is equipped with new engines, composite propellers, upgraded avionics and a glass cockpit.
- Just a day earlier, Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh inducted the Indian Air Force’s first C-295 MW transport aircraft at the Hindon Airbase in Ghaziabad, while inaugurating the “Bharat Drone Shakti-2023” exhibition.
OBITUARIES
MS Swaminathan, father of India’s ‘Green Revolution,’ passes away at 98
Indian agricultural scientist Monkombu Sambasivan Swaminathan, who ushered a “Green Revolution” in India nearly six decades ago that helped end famine and transformed the country as a top producer of wheat, died aged 98.
- Swaminathan started his career in 1949 researching on the genetics of potato, wheat, rice and jute. When India was on the verge of a mass famine leading to scarcity of food grains, Swaminathan along with Norman Borlaug and other scientists developed the high yield variety seeds of wheat.
- Swaminathan, who is known as the “Father of Economic Ecology” by the United Nations Environment Programme, worked with agriculture ministers including C Subramaniam and Jagjivan Ram during 1960s and 70s for the success of the ‘Green Revolution,’ an initiative that paved the way for exponential rise in productivity of wheat and rice through adaptation of chemical-biological technology.
- He was awarded the first World Food Prize in 1987 following which he set up the MS Swaminathan Research Foundation in Chennai. Swaminathan was also awarded with Ramon Magsaysay Award in 1971 and the Albert Einstein World Science Award in 1986.
- He had also been conferred with the Padma Shri, Padma Bhushan and the Padma Vibhushan. He is also the recipient of the H K Firodia award, the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Award and the Indira Gandhi Prize.