KERALA

Kerala tops ‘best governed states’ list

Kerala emerged as the best governed state in the country while Uttar Pradesh ended at the bottom of the heap in the large states category in the Public Affairs Index-2020 (PAI-2020) released by Public Affairs Centre on Friday. Among the Union Territories, Chandigarh emerged as the best.

Four southern states – Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka – topped the list of 18 large states with the population of more than two crore. UP, Odisha and Bihar were at the bottom of the ranking, scoring negative points in the category.

In the small states category with less than two crore population, Goa ranked first, followed by Meghalaya and Himachal Pradesh. The worst performers were Manipur, Delhi and Uttarakhand.

A new aspect in PAI 2020 is the chapter on Delta Analysis – the results on state performance and ranking measured as the Delta value over the last five years from 2015- 16 when the first PAI was released, to 2019-20, covered by PAI 2020.

The report also said in the large states’ category, in terms of equity, Bihar followed by West Bengal and Odisha, who feature at the bottom of PAI-2020, are the top performers, while Kerala, Punjab and Maharashtra feature at the bottom.

INTERNATIONAL

World Standards Day: 14 October

World Standards Day or International Standards Day is observed globally on 14 October every year.

The day aims to raise awareness about the importance of standardisation to the global economy among the consumers, regulators and industry.

14 October was specifically chosen to mark the date, in 1946, when delegates from 25 countries first gathered in London and decided to create an international organization focused on facilitating standardization.

The 2020 theme is “Protecting the planet with standards”.

New Zealand PM Jacinda Ardern secures second term with historic victory

New Zealand voted to award Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern a second term in office.

Prime Minister Ardern’s liberal Labour Party won a historic mandate by securing 49 per cent of the vote in comparison to the 27 per cent bagged by its primary challenger.

This is the first time since New Zealand implemented a proportional voting system 24 years ago that a single party (Labour) won an outright majority of seats in Parliament.

During the 2020 elections, New Zealanders also voted on two key issues- whether to legalise marijuana and euthanasia.

NATIONAL

Indigenously built ASW stealth corvette INS Kavaratti commissioned into Navy

The last of four indigenously built Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) stealth corvettes INS Kavaratti under Project 28 (Kamorta class) was commissioned into the Indian Navy by Chief of the Army Staff, General Manoj Naravane, at Naval Dockyard in Visakhapatnam.

Kavaratti is indigenously designed by the Indian Navy’s in-house organization, Directorate of Naval Design (DND) and built by Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE), Kolkata.

The ship will be commissioned into the Navy as a combat-ready platform as the ship has completed sea trials of all the systems fitted onboard.

Kavaratti takes her name from erstwhile INS Kavaratti which was an Arnala class missile corvette.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman attends G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting

Union Finance & Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman attended the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (FMCBG) through video conferencing. The purpose of G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (FMCBG) is to discuss the global economic outlook during an ongoing pandemic.

G20 FMCBG was held under the Saudi Arabian presidency.

Finance Minister emphasised that the updated commitments in the G20 Action Plan have to be kept relevant in the current policy to remain be an effective response to COVID-19.

The core guiding principles for the updation of the G20 Action Plan and the need to balance the health and economic objectives were highlighted.

G20 Action Plan announced the Debt Service Suspension Initiative (DSSI).

DSSI provides time bound suspension of debt service payments for the low income debtor. The initiative was initially in force till end of 2020. During this meeting it was agreed to extend DSSI by 6 more months.

All the G20 countries prepared G20 Action plan under their respective leaders which includes Restore confidence, Preserve financial stability, Protecting lives, Safeguarding people’s jobs and incomes, etc.

Dr. Harsh Vardhan launches second phase of Thalassemia Bal Sewa Yojna

Union Health Minister Dr.Harsh Vardhan launched the second phase of “Thalassemia Bal Sewa Yojna” on 14 October 2020. He launched the second phase of Thalassemia Bal Sewa Yojna for the underprivileged Thalassemic patients, virtually from Nirman Bhawan.

The Scheme aims to provide a one-time cure opportunity for Haemoglobinopathies like Thalassaemia and Sickle Cell Disease for patients who have a matched family donor.

Thalassemia Bal Sewa Yojna” was launched in 2017 and it is funded by Coal India Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).

This is the Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation (HSCT) program that aims to provide a one-time cure opportunity for Haemoglobinopathies like Thalassaemia and Sickle Cell Disease.

In India every year nearly 10-12,000 children are born with thalassemia major.

The eligibility for the scheme – Patients whose yearly family income is Rs. 5 lakhs and or less.

The scheme has been extended to cover Aplastic Anaemia patients for a total of 200 such patients from this year. Such cases can be prevented by counselling using the Ayushman Bharat – Health & Wellness Centres network.

Union Education Minister launched KAPILA Kalam Program

Union Education Minister Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank virtually launched the ‘KAPILA’ Kalam Program for Intellectual Property Literacy and Awareness campaign.

‘KAPILA’ Kalam Program for Intellectual Property Literacy and Awareness campaign was launched on the 89th birth anniversary of former President and Scientist Late Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam.

The ‘KAPILA’ Kalam Program helps those students who pursuing education in higher educational institutions will get information about the correct system of the application process for patenting their invention and they will be aware of their rights.

Intellectual Property Literacy Week will be celebrated by conducting a number of activities will be organized from October 15th to October 23, in which online awareness will be created about the system and the importance of the process of applying for a patent.

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