National metrology conclave inaugurated today, PM Modi will address

January 4, 2021

The appointments committee of the Cabinet has approved Suneet Sharma appointment as Chairman & CEO of Railway Board, Ministry of Railways and ex-officio Principal Secretary to Government of India.
He took over in his new role with effect from January 01, 2021. The extended one-year tenure of Sharma’s predecessor, Vinod Kumar Yadav, who also became the restructured Board’s first CEO, ended on December 31, 2020.

Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation, Pune has recently signed an MoU with United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) India to co-create India’s first Social Impact Bond (SIB).
This is the first time that a government body will act as the ‘outcome funder’ in a bond, whereas traditionally most government-funded public projects require large and early investments by the government with a substantial gestation period of outcomes and involve various kinds of risks.
A Social Impact Bond also called pay-for-success bond or pay-for-success financing or simply social bond is basically a contract with public sector authority, where it pays for better social outcomes.
This bond is a form of outcome-based contracting and aims at improving social outcomes for a specific group of citizens.
The PCMC administration will bear the costs of a public welfare project associated with the bond if the pre-defined project targets are fulfilled.

A book titled “Vahana Masterclass” launched by Italian Writer Alfredo Covelli

Alfredo Covelli, an Italy based author has launched his new book Vahana Masterclass for children and Young Audience.
The books will be illustrated and published by Scholastic India. Alfredo had a keen interest in our Indian culture and mythology which inspired him to write a story on Lord Ganesh for children.
The book narrates the story of the Ganesha looking for a new vahana to accompany him to all the great adventures around the cosmos.

The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) observed the 63rd Foundation Day of its establishment on January 01, 2021.
DRDO was established in 1958 with just 10 laboratories to enhance the research work in the Defence sector. At that time, it was tasked with designing and developing cutting edge defence technologies for Indian Armed Forces.

Legendary Odia musician, Shantanu Mohapatra passed away. He was the first Odia music composer to work with legends like Lata Mangeshkar, Manna Dey and Md Rafi and also the first to work in Hindi, Bengali, Assamese and Telugu film industries.
Mohapatra has composed music for hundreds of Odia film songs and Jatra (opera) shows in a career that spanned over three decades.
Mohapatra, who retired as the Director of Odisha Mining Corporation, received several awards including the Odisha Film Critic Award for his contribution to Odia music.

The International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) has become an Associate Member of the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO). The Headquarter of IOSCO is at Madrid, Spain.
The IOSCO is the international organization of the world’s securities regulators, covering more than 95% of the world’s securities markets, and is also the global standard-setter for the securities sector.
With this new membership, IFSCA will get the platform to exchange information at the global level and regional level on areas of common interests and help to learn from the experiences and best practices of the regulators of other well established financial centres.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will deliver a speech on Monday inaugurating the National Metrology Conclave through video conferencing. The theme of the conclave is ‘Metrology for the inclusive development of the nation’. According to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), PM Modi will also dedicate ‘National Atomic Timescale’ and ‘Indian Directive Material’ to the nation, … and lay the foundation stone of National Environmental Standards Laboratory ‘. The Conclave, being organized by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research-National Physical Laboratory (CSIR-NPL), New Delhi, completes 74 years of its founding. On Sunday, the PM announced this on Twitter. He tweeted, ‘National Metrology Conclave will be inaugurated at 11 am, January 4. The National Atomic Timescale and Indian director Dravya will be dedicated to the nation. The foundation of the National Environmental Standards Lab will also be laid.
Explain that the National Atomic Timescale gives Indian standard time with an accuracy of 2.8 nano seconds. The Indian director will cooperate in laboratory testing and measurement to ensure quality in accordance with the material standards. At the same time, the National Environmental Standards Laboratory will assist in self-sufficiency in the certification of ambient air and industrial emission monitoring devices. Union Minister of Science and Technology, Earth Sciences and Dr. Harsh Vardhan will also be present on the occasion.

India is making a significant contribution in making the vaccine against the corona virus. The Drug Regulatory Body Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has approved the emergency use of two Indian vaccines on Sunday. Now DCGI has allowed Ahmedabad-based drug firm Zydus Cadila to begin a Phase III clinical trial of its Covid-19 vaccine ZyCoV-D. In a release issued by the Ministry of Science and Technology on Sunday, the Drug Controller General of India has given permission for the third trial of the ZyCoV-D vaccine developed by Zydus Cadila for the corona virus. According to the ministry, DCGI has approved the country’s first indigenously developed DNA vaccine candidate for ZyCoV-D by Zydus Cadila for Phase III trials.
The ministry reported that Zydus Cadila had completed a clinical trial of Phase-I / II of this DNA vaccine candidate in India, with more than 1,000 participants and interim data showing that the vaccine is safe and immunogenic.