India funded new school infrastructure inaugurated in Nepal

1.Israel successfully launches Ofek 16 spy satellite into space

Israel launched the new Ofek 16 spy satellite into orbit from a launchpad at Palmahim airbase.This was the first launch of an Israeli spy satellite into space since the Ofek-11 which entered orbit in September 2016.Ofek 16 is an electro-optical reconnaissance satellite with advanced capabilities including breakthrough ‘blue and white’ technology and its payload was developed by defence firm Elbit Systems.IDF’s (Israel Defense Force) 9900 Intelligence Unit will be responsible for the Ofek 16 satellite once it gets operational.

2.India funded new school infrastructure inaugurated in Nepal

A new four-storey school building built with Indian assistance of Rs 1.94 crore for students pursuing both vedic and modern education was inaugurated in Nepal’s Ilam district.The new building of Shri Saptmai Gurukul Sanskrit Vidyalaya, which was setup in 2009 and has a unique qualification of imparting vedic as well as modern education including Sanskrit.The new school building was built at a cost of Nepali Rupees 31.13 million (INR 1.94 crore).

3.Himachal first state with LPG gas connections in 100 percent households

Himachal Pradesh has become the first state in the country where all households have LPG gas connections, said chief minister Jai Ram Thakur.As many as 1.36 lakh families in the state have benefitted from the Pradhan Mantri Ujjawala Yojana.Collecting fuel wood and cooking food on traditional chullahs was not only cumbersome, but also had adverse effects on the health of the women.It also affected the environment as trees are cut for fuel wood.

4.Nekar Samman Yojane: Over 20000 Weavers in Karnataka to Get Annual Financial Help of Rs 2000

In a huge blessing for the people of weaver’s community in the state, the Karnataka government launched ‘Nekar Samman Yojane’.In this scheme, the state government will be able to directly transfer Rs 2,000 financial assistance to the bank accounts of 19,744 weavers in the first phase.According to the fourth national handloom census, Karnataka has 54,789 registered handloom weavers in the state.The silk, cotton and woollen handloom weavers and other handloom weavers engaged in allied activities in the state are eligible for the Nekar Samman Yojane of the Karnataka government.

5.Haryana Cabinet approves proposal to reserve 75% private-sector jobs via ordinance

According to a proposed ordinance cleared by the state cabinet, Seventy-five per cent of private-sector jobs in Haryana will be reserved for local candidates.In the month of June 2020, Haryana had the highest unemployment rate among all states in the country.The unemployment rate in June 2020 was 33.6 percent.The ordinance will reserve jobs having a salary of less than Rs 50,000 per month in various privately managed companies, societies, trusts, limited liability partnership firms and partnership firms for local candidates.

6.Bengal Govt Launches Document-Scanning App ‘SelfScan’

The chief minister of West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee launched a new app called ‘SelfScan’.This new application has been developed by the state’s information technology department and as the name suggests, it is built to scan documents.The announcement comes just days after the Indian government banned 59 Chinese applications in the country.These applications also included popular document scanning app CamScanner.According to the description, the app is completely free and comes without adds.The user won’t even need to register in order to use this app.

7.Assam government to upgrade Dehing Patkai wildlife sanctuary to national park

The Assam government decided to upgrade Dehing Patkai Wildlife Sanctuary into a national park.The announcement comes just months after the National Board of Wildlife’s (NBWL) conditional clearance to a coal mining project by Coal India Limited (CIL) in the Dehing Patkai Elephant Reserve sparked a spate of virtual protests in the state.Subsequently, North Eastern Coalfields (NEC), the CIL subsidiary, temporarily suspended all mining operations in the region.The 111.942 sq km Dehing Patkai Wildlife Sanctuary is located within the larger Dehing Patkai Elephant Reserve, which spreads across the coal- and oil-rich districts of Upper Assam (Dibrugarh, Tinsukia and Sivasagar) and is believed to be the last remaining contiguous patch of lowland rainforest area in Assam.

8.Yes Bank launches ‘Loan in Seconds’ for instant loan disbursements

Yes Bank has launched a digital solution, “Loan in Seconds” for instant disbursement of retail loans.The account holders identified by the bank can avail this quick loan disbursal facility without any document.The solution aims to provide customers, completely paperless and hassle-free loans to help them meet their immediate financial needs.

9.Quinton de Kock named men’s Cricketer of the Year in CSA’s virtual awards

White-ball skipper Quinton de Kock was named the men’s ‘cricketer of the year’ at Cricket South Africa’s (CSA) annual awards ceremony.The 27-year-old also bagged the Test cricketer of the year while young opener Laura Wolvaardt took home the women’s cricketer of the year and ODI cricketer of the year awards.Pacer Lungi Ngidi was named ODI and T20 player of the year while David Miller was voted the fans’ favourite player.With the win de Kock became one of the multiple winners of the award, joining the elite company of Jacques Kallis (2004 and 2011), Makhaya Ntini (2005 and 2006), Hashim Amla (2010 and 2013), AB de Villiers (2014 and 2015) and Kagiso Rabada (2016 and 2018).

10.Maruti Suzuki chairman R C Bhargava pens book on industrialising India

The Chairman of Maruti Suzuki, RC Bhargava has authored the book “Getting Competitive: A Practitioner’s Guide for India” from his experience as a policymaker and a leading industrialist.The book has been published by HarperCollins India.In this book Bhargava draws upon his experience of more than 60 years as a policymaker and industry leader to give practical suggestions.