Source: Cick Here

• On 27 November 2018, National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organization (NOTTO) organized 9th Indian Organ Donation Day in Delhi.


• Various Awards in the area of Organ Donation and Transplant were distributed in the event.

Source: Cick Here

• On November 26, 2018, the 2-day 1st Russia—India Strategic Dialogue concluded in St. Petersburg, Russia.


• To have bilateral discussions dedicated to the priorities of the economic policy of the two countries It was organized by The Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian Federation, The National Institution for Transforming India (NITI Aayog), and The Roscongress Foundation.


• From the Indian Side Vice Chairperson of NITI Aayog, Mr. Rajiv Kumar, joined the business meet.


• The programme included five thematic round tables covering sectors like transport, agriculture, support for small and medium-sized business, digital transformation, and industrial cooperation.


• The joint Russia—India Trade, Economic, and Investment Cooperation Development Strategy was also presented in the forum.

Source: Cick Here

• On November 27, 2018,a non-profit organization named the India Autism Center (IAC) in association with the state government will build a world-class autism township near Kolkata at a cost of Rs 500 crore.


• This is a one-of-its-kind initiative, IAC, a non-profit organization under Section 8 of Companies Act, 2013 -will come up over a 52-acre plot at Sirakol in South 24 Parganas in the next five years.


• The soft launch of the project has been scheduled for January, 2019 and is expected to come up by 2023.


• This will house facilities for 350 residents and daycare centre for over 200 children.

Source: Cick Here

• On November 27, 2018, Odisha government released lexicons of 21 tribal languages for Multilingual education (MLE) purposes for elementary schools in tribal dominated districts.


• To bring back the tribal languages in circulation and prevent them from vanishing.


• This initiative has been prepared by Special Development council which will further enhance proficiency in tribal languages.


• Thus, this step towards tribal proficiency will help in better connection between the government functionaries and the tribal communities.


• Furthermore, the CM of Odisha,Shri. Naveen Patnaik, announced upgradation of the tribal museum as the Odisha State Tribal Museum.

Source: Cick Here

• On November 22, 2018, the 3-day 7th International Tourism Mart (ITM) was held for the first time at the Pragna Bhawan in Agartala, Tripura. It was inaugurated by the Governor of Tripura, Prof. Kaptan Singh Solanki.


• To highlight the tourism potential of the North Eastern region in the domestic and international markets.


• It was organized by The Ministry of Tourism, Government of India and The Department of Tourism, Government of Tripura and the North Eastern States.


• The theme for this year’s ITM is – “Adventure tourism”.


• The 3-day was attended by a total of 41 foreign delegates from 18 countries and had an estimated budget of Rs 2.6 crore.


• The International Tourism Marts are organized in the North Eastern States and West Bengal on rotation basis. The earlier editions of this mart have been held in Guwahati , Tawang, Shillong, Gangtok and Imphal.

Source: Cick Here

• On November 27, 2018, the Union Minister of Commerce & Industry and Civil Aviation, Suresh Prabhu, launched the logo and brochure of Logix India 2019 in New Delhi.


• 3-day Logix India 2019 is scheduled to take place in New Delhi from 31st January to 2nd February 2019.


• It will be organized by the Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) to improve logistics cost effectiveness and operational efficiencies for India’s global trade.


• FIEO will also focus on investment opportunities in infrastructure development, warehouse consolidation, technology integration and IT enablement and skilling of manpower.

Source: Cick Here

• On November 26, 2018, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Government of India signed a $200 million loan in New Delhi to fund upgradation of 230 kilometers State Highways in Bihar under Bihar State Highways III Project (BSHP-III).


• The loan agrrement will help to upgrade all State Highways to meet the minimum two-lane standard with better surfaces and improved road safety leading to improved connectivity.


• Under the project, a State-level Road Research Institute will also be established to improve technical and management capacity of the Road Agency Staff.

Source: Cick Here

• On November 27, 2018, central bank of India, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in consultation with the government of India, reduced the mandatory hedging provision to 70 per cent from 100 per cent.


• To ease the External Commercial Borrowing (ECB) norms.


• This move would enable Indian companies to borrow foreign currency-denominated ECBs for better liquidity as they don’t have to have a 100% hedge coverage.


• However, the ECBs thus raised should be ECBs under Track I, which refers to medium-term borrowings with average maturity between three and five years.


• Further, ECBs falling within the scope which were raised before have to roll over their existing hedge(s) only to the extent of 70 per cent of outstanding ECB exposure.


• The initiative was taken to lower hedging costs for foreign loans, especially at a time when the economy is facing liquidity issues, particularly thenon-banking financial companies (NBFC).

Source: Cick Here

• On 23rd November 2018, The World bank signed a Sh327m ($3.8 million) deal with International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE) which will be used to fund training in Science and Innovation in Sub-Saharan Africa.


• It is a part of a larger Sh922.1 million ($9 million) grant by Korean government to support Regional Scholarship and Innovation Fund (RSIF) to create a competent pool of researchers in Applied Sciences Engineering and Technology.

• On November 27, 2018, Government of India and the Asian Development Bank signed a $75 million loan in New Delhi to fund projects under Karnataka Integrated Urban Water Management Investment Program.


• To provide 24x7 water supply in 4 coastal towns of Karnataka and improve sanitation infrastructure for Mangalore town.


• The 4 towns of Karnataka to have 24×7 water supply are: Kundapura, Mangalore Puttur and Udupi.


• Mr. Sameer Kumar Khare, Additional Secretary (Fund Bank and ADB), Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, who signed for the Government of India, and Mr. Sabyasachi Mitra,Deputy Country Director of ADB’s India Resident Mission.


• Approved in 2014, the tranche 1 of the $75 million loan is currently helping strengthen urban water supply and sanitation services in three other towns of the State – Byadagi, Davangere, and Harihar.


• Also, In Mangalore, about 11 km of pumping mains will be installed to rehabilitate the sewerage system.

Source: Cick Here

• On November 27, 2018, according to an annual report named- “Global Wage Report 2018/19: What Lies behind Gender pay gaps”, released by International Labour Organisation (ILO), India recorded the highest average real wage growth in South Asia during 2008-17.


• The Global wage growth in 2017 was not only lower than in 2016, but fell to its lowest growth rate since 2008.


• In the advanced G20 countries, real wage growth declined drastically especially in Europe (excluding Eastern Europe) countries like France, Germany, Italy and Spain.


• In emerging and developing countries of the G20, real wage growth has fluctuated in recent years, rising from 2.9 per cent in 2015 to 4.9 per cent in 2016, and then falling back to 4.3 per cent in 2017.


• Workers in Asia and the Pacific have enjoyed the highest real wage growth among all regions over the period 2006–17 led by countries such as China, India, Thailand and Vietnam.


• Taking a longer perspective, real wages between 1999 and 2017 have almost tripled in the emerging and developing countries of the G20, while in advanced G20 countries they have increased by a much lower total of 9 per cent.


• The countries with the lowest levels of wage inequality are found among the high-income group, whereas countries with the highest levels of wage inequality are found in the low- and middle-income groups.


• Among high-income countries, wage inequality is lowest in Sweden and highest in Chile.


• Among low-income and middle-income countries, South Africa and Namibia have the highest inequality, Armenia and Mongolia the lowest.


• The (weighted) global gender pay gap stands at around 16 per cent for average (mean) hourly wages.

Source: Cick Here

• On November 26, 2018, the Government of India and the People’s Republic of China signed a protocol to amend the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) for the avoidance of double taxation and prevention of tax evasion through exchange of information.


• According to the amended treaty, the existing provisions for exchange of information to the latest international standards have been updated, Changes have been made related to minimum standard of implementation of treaty under the Action reports of Base Erosion & Profit Shifting (BEPS) Project.

Source: Cick Here

• On 25th November 2018, Croatia defeated the defending champion France in the final of 2018 Davis Cup organized by BNP Paribas (Banque Nationale de Paris) for secure the title second time after 13 years.


• Marin Cilic of Croatia defeated France’s Lucas Pouille by 7-6, 6-3 and 6-3 in the final of Davis Cup and sealed the title for france.


• Croatia wins the title for the second time after 2005.


• From the next year the format of Davis Cup will be changed. There will be a qualification tournament from next year which sort out the 12 team along the 4 semi-finalists of previous year and two wild cards.

Source: Cick Here

• On 25th November, 2018 the Netherlands took a decisive seventh title at the International Hockey Federation (FIH) Women’s Hockey Champions Trophy event with a 5-1 victory over Australia in Changzhou Wujin, China.


• This is Netherland’s 43rd consecutive win in the tournament’s final and thus Netherlands remain the world’s number one women’s team in the FIH Hero World Rankings, a position they have held since October 2011.


• The Dutch players also reaped three individual awards of the tournament. Eva de Goede was crowned Best Player; Marijn Veen won two awards, as Best Scorer with five goals in the tournament and also as the Rising Player.


• The Best Goalkeeper award went to China’s Ye Jiao.


• Australia finished second, followed by Argentina which stood third.


• The tournament featured only six teams: Netherlands, Britain, Australia, Argentina, Asian Games champion Japan and host China.

Source: Cick Here

• On 24th November 2018, India’s 25 year old Dipa Karmakar won Bronze medal in the Vault event of Artistic Gymnastics World Cup organized by Federation Internationale de Gymnastique (FIG) held in Cottbus, Germany after returning from an injury she suffered in the 2018 Asian Games. With this performance, she comes a step closer towards qualifying for 2020 Olympics.


• She scored 14.316 in the final of vault event of the Artistic Gymnastics World cup which is also a part of eight-event qualifying system for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.


• Brazil’s Rebeca Andrade won the Gold Medal with a score of 14.728 whereas USA’s Jade Carey won silver with a score of 14.516.


• She qualified for the Finals with the score of 14.100 on 23rd November, She ranked at sixth place out of 16 gymnasts in the qualification.

Source: Cick Here

• On November 19, 2018, Sanjay Kumar, Founder and CEO of Geospatial Media & Communications, was conferred the ‘Global Geospatial Industry Ambassador’ Award at the United Nations World Geospatial Information Congress held at Deqing city in China.


• This was given by the UN-GGIM (United Nations Global Geospatial Information Management).


• In 2018, Kumar also helped found the World Geospatial Industry Council.


• He has an experience of 20 years working as a geospatial evangelist.

Source: Cick Here

• On November 27, 2018, 14 scientists have been selected for the prestigious Swarnajayanti fellowship award instituted by the Department of Science and Technology, for the year 2017-18.


• The awards were given in the areas of: Chemical Sciences, Physical Sciences, Life Sciences, Engineering Sciences, Earth & Atmospheric Sciences, and Mathematical Sciences.

Source: Cick Here

• On 26th November, 2018 the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) member Akhilesh Ranjan was appointed as convenor of New Direct Tax Law Task Force, the committee which is drafting a new tax law and was constituted by the Government of India in November, 2017. He will replace former CBDT member Arbind Modi who retired in September this year.


• The appointment was made by CBDT with the approval of the Finance Minister.


• The six member task force will review the Income-tax Act, 1961 and draft a new direct tax law in line with the norms prevalent in other countries, incorporating international best practices and in consonance with the economic needs of the country.


• The Task Force shall submit its report to the Government by February 28, 2019.

Source: Cick Here

• On 26th November, 2018 Sunil Arora, who is the senior-most commissioner in the poll panel, has been appointed as the new Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) by President Ram Nath Kovind. Arora will take charge as the CEC on December 2 by replacing current CEC OP Rawat, who retires on December 1.


• Mr Arora was appointed to the election body in September last year.


• A 1980-batch IAS officer of the Rajasthan cadre, Arora was the skill development secretary before he was appointed as the top bureaucrat in the I&B Ministry.


• He has also worked in ministries and departments such as Finance, Textiles and Planning Commission and was also CMD of Indian Airlines for five years besides working as the principal secretary to the CM of Rajasthan from 2005-2008.


• Arora retired in April 2016, following which he was appointed as an advisor to Prasar Bharti and then as director general and CEO of the Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs.


• He will have nearly two-and-a-half-year tenure as CEC, with the general election 2019 to be conducted under his administration.

Source: Cick Here

• On 26th November, 2018 NASA’s InSight spacecraft, the first robotic lander designed to study the deep interior of a distant world, touched down safely on the surface of Mars after a six-month long and about 300 million-mile (548 million-kilometre) journey.


• It was NASA’s ninth attempt to land at Mars since the 1976 Viking probes with 8 of them successfully landing on the Mars.


• InSight spacecraft is on a two-year mission.


• The InSight has carried with itself, the instruments that detect planetary heat and seismic rumblings never measured anywhere else but Earth.


• The study will unlock mysteries about how Mars was formed and, by extension, the origins of the Earth and other rocky planets of the inner solar system will be identified.


• The 360kg InSight – is short form for Interior Exploration Using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport.

Source: Cick Here

• On 26th November 2018, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs launched a portal called ‘PaiSA’ – a centralised electronic platform for processing interest subvention on bank loans to beneficiaries under Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM).


• The portal will help the government to connect directly with the beneficiaries, ensuring that there is greater transparency and efficiency in delivery of services.


• ‘PaiSA’ stands for “Portal for Affordable Credit and Interest Subvention Access”.


• The web platform has been designed and developed by Allahabad Bank which is also the Nodal bank.


• The portal was launched during the course of a daylong National Workshop on Municipal Finance and Urban Planning organised by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs in New Delhi.


• All 35 states / UTs & all scheduled commercial banks, RRBs and Cooperative Banks are expected to be on board the PAiSA portal the year end.

Source: Cick Here

• On November 26, 2018, Congress Rajya Sabha MP Rajeev Gowda released a book on Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao titled ‘The Betrayer of Telangana’.


• The book focuses on the failure of the CM to provide jobs, better education and health facility to the people of the state.


• He released a report card of the work done by Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) government in past four years.

Source: Cick Here

• On 26th November 2018, 77 year old multi award winner Italian Director Bernardo Bertolucci died after Cancer. He had won Oscar for the best director for the Movie “The Last Emperor”.


• The Italian director had directed various award winning movies like The Conformist and Last Tango in Paris.

Source: Cick Here

• Iravatham Mahadevan, leading scholar on the Indus Valley and Tamil Brahmi scripts, passes away On 26th November 2018, 88 years old One of the world’s leading Scholar on Indus Valley and Tamil Brahmi scripts, Iravatham Mahadevan passed away after a brief illness in Chennai.


• The Former Member of Indian Administrative Services (IAS) and Padma Shri-awardee devoted himself to the study of India’s early writing systems.