5 IIITs to get the status of Institution of National Importance

The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved to bestow the status of Institution of National Importance to the five Indian Institutes of Information Technology (IIITs). The status will be provided with the inception of the Indian Institutes of Information Technology Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2020. The bill will provide the status of Institutions of National Importance to the remaining five IIITs along with the existing 15 IIITs in PPP mode. The 5 IIITs in PPP mode includes IIITs in Bhopal, Raichur, Bhagalpur, Agartala and Surat.

Impact of the provision of Institution of National Importance to IITs:

The status will empower the IIITs to award degrees and will also allow them to use the nomenclature of Bachelor of Technology (BTech) or Master of Technology or PhD degree. The change of status will the institutes to attract more students to develop a strong research base in the country in the field of information technology.

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Union Cabinet clears the setting up of Major Port at Vadhavan

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The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given its in-principle approval for setting up a new Major Port at Vadhavan near Dahanu in Maharashtra. The new Major Port will be established on the basis of land lord model. The projected cost of the Vadhavan Port is over Rs 65,000 crore. After the development of this new Major Port at Vadhavan in Maharashtra, India is expected to enter the list of countries with top 10 container ports in the world.

For the implementation of the project, a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) will be formed along the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) which will act as the lead partner with equity participation of 50% or more. This SPV will be responsible for the development of the port infrastructure, including construction of breakwater, reclamation with the establishment of connectivity to the hinterland. All the business activities will take place under the public private partnership (PPP) by private developers.

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Union Cabinet Approves Amendments to Banking Regulation Act to regulate co-operative banks

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The Union Cabinet has approved amendments to the Banking Regulation Act to empower India’s Central Bank (Reserve Bank of India) to have better control over urban co-operative banks and multi-state cooperative banks. These amendments will apply to the urban co-operative banks and multi-state cooperative banks.

According to the Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar the administrative role will continue to be managed by Registrar of Cooperative. In present, cooperative banks are governed by dual control of cooperative societies as well as the Reserve Bank of India. While the role of cooperative society includes incorporation, registration, management, recovery, audit, supersession of board of directors and liquidation, the central bank’s role is responsible for regulatory functions.

The 1,540 cooperative banks with 8.6 crore depositors’ money, with around Rs. 5 lakh crore deposits in the country and the proposed amendment will protect the depositors.

The Union Cabinet’s move towards amending the Banking Regulation Law to strengthen the cooperative banks comes months after Mumbai based Punjab Maharashtra Bank (PMC) collapsed. The Reserve Bank of India had superseded the lender’s board for six months after finding the under-reporting of loans in September 2019. Cash withdrawals were capped at Rs. 1,000 per account for six months but subsequently relaxed to Rs. 50,000 as panic spread among depositors.

Important Takeaways for upcoming Competitive Exams
i. The Banking Regulation Act, 1949 is legislation in India that regulates all banking firms.
ii. Shaktikanta Das is the 25th governor of the Reserve Bank of India.

Sourav Ganguly to be Indian team’s Goodwill Ambassador for Tokyo Olympics

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The Indian Olympic Association has invited BCCI President Sourav Ganguly to become the Goodwill Ambassador of the Indian contingent at the Tokyo Olympics. This edition of the Olympics is an important milestone as it marks the hundred years of participation of the country at the Games, and Ganguly’s support and inspiration will be valuable for the Indian athletes, especially the younger ones. The Tokyo Olympic Games will be held from July 24 to August 9.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

President of Indian Olympic Association: Narinder Dhruv Batra.
Headquarters of Indian Olympic Association: New Delhi.

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TTCSP releases 2019 Global Go To Think Tank Index Report

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Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program (TTCSP) of the Lauder Institute at the University of Pennsylvania has released the 2019 Global Go To Think Tank Index Report. India’s Observer Research Foundation (ORF) has been ranked at 27th position among 176 global think tanks (U.S. and non-U.S.). It was ranked at 118th position in the 2018 Global Go To Think Tank Index Report.

About Global Go To Think Tank Index Report:

The Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program (TTCSP) of the Lauder Institute at the University of Pennsylvania administers a research on the role that policy institutes play in the governments and civil societies around the world. TTCSP determines the evolving responsibility and character of public policy research organizations. The TTCSP was formed in 1989 and has focused on gathering data and conducting research on the think tank trends and the role think tanks play as civil society actors in the policymaking process. The 2019 Global Go To Think Tank Index Report is the 14h edition of the report.

What is a Think Tank?

Think tanks are those organizations that generates policy-oriented research, analysis, and advice on issues whether domestic or international. It also enables policy makers and the public to make well informed decisions about public policy. These are affiliated or independent institutions that are structured as permanent bodies. The aim of the index is to produce an inclusive and far-reaching report of international think tanks.

Changes in 2019 Global Go To Think Tank Index Report:

“Think Tank On Cutting Edge of Artificial Intelligence Research” is a new category that was added to the 2019 Global Go To Think Tank Index.
One of the other major change is that any think tank that has been ranked as the top think tank (#1) in a category for 3 consecutive years will not be included in the rankings for that category for the next 3 years and will be recognized as a center of excellence. This categorised think tank will be recognized as a center of excellence for its achievement of level of distinction as a think tank center of excellence.

Indicators used in the index:

Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program has considered the following indicators while examining the impact of think tanks: Resource indicators, Utilization indicators, Output indicators, Impact indicators.

2019 Ranking Categories & Winners:

Top Think Tanks in the World
Top Think Tanks by Region
Top Think Tanks by Area of Research
Top Think Tanks by Special Achievement

Some important highlights for India:

Observer Research Foundation (ORF) has been ranked:

27th in the 2019 Top Think Tanks Worldwide (U.S. and non-U.S.)
3rd in 2019 Top Think Tanks in China, India, Japan, and the Republic of Korea
31st in 2019 Top Defense and National Security
41st in 2019 Top Domestic Economic Policy Think Tanks
55th in 2019 Top Education Policy Think Tanks
1st in 2019 Best New Idea or Paradigm Developed by a Think Tank
7th in Best Think Tank Conference
9th in Think Tank to Watch in 2019
7th in 2019 Think Tanks with the Most Innovative Policy Ideas/Proposals

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Odia revolutionary poet Rabi Singh passes away

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Renowned Odia revolutionary poet and freedom fighter Rabi Singh passed away. He was popularly known as ‘Biplabi Kabi’ (the revolutionary poet) for his patriotic writings. Rabi Singh was awarded Atibadi Jagannath Das Samman by Odisha Sahitya Akademi in 2017 for his contribution to Odia literature.

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GoI unveils new vaccine to control classical swine fever

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The government of India unveiled a new indigenously developed vaccine for controlling classical swine fever (CSF). CSF is a highly contagious fatal pig disease. The new vaccine, developed by Uttar Pradesh-based Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR)-Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI), will be much cheaper than the existing one. It would cost only Rs 2 per dose compared to the current vaccine’s rate of Rs 15-20 per dose and imported Korean vaccine rate of Rs 30 per dose. CSF: Classical Swine Fever (CSF) is one of the diseases of the pig causing high mortality.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

ICAR Founded: 16 July 1929.
ICAR Director: Dr Trilochan Mohapatra.
ICAR Headquarters: New Delhi, India.

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India’s biggest rural technical festival ‘Antahpragnya 2020’ held in Telangana

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India’s biggest rural technical festival titled ‘Antahpragnya 2020’ held in Rajiv Gandhi University of Knowledge Technologies (RGUKT), Basar, Nirmal District, Telangana. The theme for the year 2020 was “Spot and encourage rural tech innovators”.

The festival displays 300 prototypes, working models, exhibits technologies such as automatic switch for water, homemade electricity, smoke absorber, automatic street lighting system, smart dustbins, zero budget farming, automatic irrigation etc. The team of Antahpragnya in collaboration with SSERD (Society for Space Education, Research and Development) organized an Astrospace camp which aimed to create awareness about the exciting career in space.

Important takeaways for all competitive exams:

Chief Minister of Telangana: K. Chandrashekar Rao.
Governor of Telangana: Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan.
Capital of Telangana: Hyderabad.

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Sahitya Akademi Awardee Jaswant Singh Kanwal passes away

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Eminent Punjabi writer and Sahitya Akademi Awardee Jaswant Singh Kanwal passed away. In 1996, he was bestowed the Sahitya Akademi Fellowship award for his book ‘Pakhi’ (Hand Fan) and two years later in 1998, he received the Sahitya Akademi award for his novel ‘Taushali Di Hanso’.

Kanwal also received the Sahitya Shiromani Award of the Punjab government in 2007 and the following year, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, conferred on Kanwal the degree of Doctor of Literature (Honoris Causa) for his contribution to Punjabi literature.

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Mo O’Brien becomes the 1st deaf person to row Atlantic Ocean

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Mo O’Brien (60 years) has become the first deaf person on record to row an ocean by finishing a 3,000-mile journey across the Atlantic with her daughter Bird Watts, and their friend Claire Allinson. The Ocean Rowing Society, which is responsible for monitoring ocean rowing records, confirmed that she is the world first deaf person who rowed almost 3,000 miles (4,800km) of the Atlantic Ocean.

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