KERALA

· WB offers $500-maid for Kerala

ð The World Bank is willing to give $500-million financial assistance to the State government for its comprehensive flood recovery efforts and build resilience to such calamities in the future.

ð The support is subject to the Union government’s formal request and will have to be approved by the World Bank Board of Governors. As an immediate step, the bank is ready to reallocate up to $55 million from within its current portfolio of projects in India to support the State’s reconstruction investments.

ð The World Bank (WB) has offered technical and financial assistance for the flood recovery efforts in the State and support to rebuild Kerala.

INTERNATIONAL

UNICEF, NASSCOM sign MoU to strengthen child rights

UNICEF and NASSCOM Foundation have signed an agreement to strengthen child rights through “meaningful business interventions”.

With this Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), the two organisations will work collaboratively on two key areas including national sensitisation on ‘child online protection’ and ‘encouraging innovations for child rights’ in the country.

As partners, both the companies will co-create sensitisation workshops across India.

· Clear Sky 2018: Ukraine Launches Air Exercises With NATO Countries

Ukraine began a series of large-scale air force exercises with the United States and other NATO countries.
The “Clear Sky 2018”war games are being held in western Ukraine.
The main aim is to enhance regional capabilities to secure air sovereignty and promote peace and security through cooperation.

· Pakistan Test-Fires Nuclear-Capable Ghauri Ballistic Missile

The country successfully test-fired Ghauri ballistic missilecapable of carrying both conventional and nuclear warheads up to a distance of 1,300 kilometers.
The launch was conducted by Army Strategic Forces Command and was aimed at testing the operational and technical readiness.

NATIONAL

In 4 yrs, road fatalities see a 7% rise

Data released by the ministry of road transport and highway on Tuesday has revealed that deaths due to road accidents have increased by 7% from 1,37,572 in 2013 to 1,47,913 in 2017. However, there has been a4.63 % decline in the total number of accidents from 4,86,476 in2013 to 4,64,910 in 2017.

India wants better metric for Human Capital Index

The World Bank’s inaugural HCI has placed India at 115 out of 157 countries in terms of the quality of human capital based on five parameters – child survival, school enrollment, quality of learning, healthy growth and adult survival.

HCI uses metric of industrial era to measure the status of human capital for digital age and its production system

India’s HCI score is 0.44, which means a child born in the country today will be only 44 per cent as productive.

Centre to develop ‘model shelters’ for the homeless in urban areas

The Centre will develop “model shelters” for urban homeless in states, which will provide several facilities like RO water, playground and television to occupants.

According to the housing and urban affairs ministry, at least two model shelters will be developed in each state, including in its capital, under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM).

So far, six states have been identified where model shelters are to be established. Model shelters will be established in phased manner across the country.

India’s first ever National Environment Survey to kick off in 24 states, 3 UTs in Jan, 2019
India’s first ever National Environment Survey (NES) will be kicked off from 55 districts across 24 states and three Territories in January, 2019.
The earliest the first set of complete green data from the survey will be available is 2020, providing an important tool in the hands of policy-makers for decision making at all levels – district, state and national.
The survey will be done through a grid-based approach, using grids measuring 9×9 km, to collect comprehensive on various environmental parameters such as air, water, soil mquality; emission inventory; solid, hazardous and e-waste; forest & wildlife; flora & fauna; wetlands, lakes, rivers and other water bodies.
It will also assess carbon sequestration potential of all the districts across the country. The NES will rank all the districts on their environmental performance and document their best green practices.

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