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.12.2018 NATIONAL Mumbai Planned to get India’s.2018 largest air quality monitoring network  The Brihatmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has planned to develop a network of 90 air quality monitoring .11.2018stations in Mumbai.  This will make the city that has the largest network of air monitoring in India.  The time to complete the project is estimated to be over the next five years.  Currently, Mumbai has 30 air quality monitoring stations.  Mumbai plans to overtake Delhi, which presently has the largest networking of air quality monitors with 38 monitoring stations. National Workshop on Disaster Risk Financing, Insurance and Risk Transfer held in Mumbai  The National Workshop on Disaster Risk Financing, Insurance and Risk Transfer was held in Mumbai.  The workshop was organized by the National Institute of Disaster Management (NIDM), in partnership with Insurance Institute of India.  It focuses on the importance of financing resilience in areas frequently hit by natural disasters and discuss the issues and challenges faced by different stakeholders in assessment of insurance, along with the capacity gap in undertaking such initiatives. Bimstec Disaster Management Exercise 2020 Held in Odisha  The BIMSTEC Disaster Management Exercise 2020, was held at the Ramachandi Beach, Puri, Odisha.  This is the second edition of such exercise. The first edition was held in 2017.  The exercise was organized by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) in Odisha, on behalf of the Government of India.  The representatives of BIMSTEC member countries namely Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar and India participated in the exercise. Bhutan and Thailand did not participate in this edition. DRDO Developing new 200-km strike range Pranash ballistic missile  The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is developing a 200-km strike range tactical ballistic missile named „Pranash‟.  It will be used by the Army and the Air Force for destroying enemy targets at short ranges.  The missile is an advanced version of the 150-km strike range Prahar missile which was being developed for tactical missions. PrezKovind presented President’s Colour to INS Shivaji  President Ram NathKovind presented the President‟s Colour to INS Shivaji.  The President‟s Colour is the highest honour that can be bestowed upon any military unit.  INS Shivaji is an Indian Naval station located in Lonavala, Maharashtra and houses the Naval College of Engineering which trains officers of the and the Indian Coast Guard. ‘Conference on Combating Drug Trafficking’ for BIMSTEC Partner Nations Held in New Delhi  The first-ever BIMSTEC nations‟ „Conference on Combating Drug Trafficking‟ was held in New Delhi to provide a platform for the Partner Nations to share ideas and exchange best practices required to combat the drug menace in the region.  The two-day conference was organised by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), the federal agency for drug law enforcement. Difficult Dialogues 2020 Began in Panaji, Goa  The fifth edition of Difficult Dialogues, an annual forum examining issues of contemporary relevance in South Asia, is being held in Panaji, Goa.  The Difficult Dialogues 2020 focuses on the “State of Law” in India. India banned E-Cigarettes on Flights and Airports  Aviation security regulator the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) has issued a circular that Electronic-Cigarettes and all forms of Electronic Nicotine Delivery System (ENDS) will not be

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allowed in both domestic.12.2018 and International flights as well as at airports and the order, issued with the approval of DG.2018 (director general) BCAS, Rakesh Asthana, is valid from the date of issuance. Anti-Hijack mock drill conducted at Airport  The Anti-hijack exercise.11.2018 was conducted by creating a mock situation using a naval Dornier aircraft by INS Dega, (a naval air station of the Indian navy) at Visakhapatnam Airport, and the main objective of the exercise was to test the plans and procedures handled by various agencies during hijack threats. Government renamed two Famous Institute after Sushma Swaraj  The Ministry of External Affairs, announced that two Institutions, The PravasiBharatiya Kendra and The Foregin Service Institute have been named after former Indian Diplomat Sushma Swaraj for her Invaluable contribution in Public Service.  The PravasiBharatiya Kendra a cultural centre, renamed as Sushma Swaraj Bhavan and The Foreign Service Institute where Diplomats are trained, changed into Sushma Swaraj Institute of Foreign Service. South Central Railways zone become India’s 1st to have energy-neutral stations  The Indian South Central Railways (SCR) zone becomes India‟s first to have 13 energy-neutral stations. The number is highest amongst all the zones across the Indian Railways network.  These are capable of meeting 100% energy requirements through solar photovoltaic panels which have been commissioned at the station buildings. Nitin Gadkari inaugurated first inter-city electric bus service in Maharashtra  Nitin Gadkari, Minister of Road Transport and Highways, inaugurated the first inter-city electric bus service, between Mumbai (Maharashtra) and Pune (Maharashtra). National Organic Food Festival in New Delhi  The Government of India (GOI) is to host the National Organic Food festival at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, New Delhi, India.  The festival will be inaugurated by Smt. Harsimrat Kaur Badal, Minister of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI).  The festival is celebrated for the 1st time in order to boost organic products and to promote women entrepreneurship in the area of production & processing of organic products.  The Theme of the event is Unleashing India‟s Organic Market Potential. INTERNATIONAL 43rd IFAD Governing Council held in Rome, Italy  The IFAD‟s 43rd Governing Council meeting was held in Rome, Italy on the theme “Investing in sustainable food systems to end hunger by 2030”.  During the meet, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) stated that the sequences of climate change and it‟s impacts on agriculture will push around 100 million people to poverty by 2030.  World Defence spending rose by 4.0% in 2019:International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) study  The International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) annual “Military Balance” report states that global spending on defence hiked by 4% percent in 2019, showing largest growth in 10 years (2010-2019).  The report showed top 15 countries, among them, the world‟s biggest defence spenders are United States (US), China, Saudi Arabia, Russia and India. BANKING AND ECONOMY S&P affirmed India’s rating at ‘BBB-‘(stable outlook)  Standard and Poor has affirmed India‟s sovereign rating of „BBB-„and maintained a “stable”outlook.  Rating agency S&P is of the view that Real Gross Domestic (GDP) growth is likely to gradually recover in the longer-run, may be over the next two to three years.

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Induslnd Bank recorded highest.12.2018 growth in brand value among Top 500 Banking Brands 2020  As per the The Banker‟s.2018 „Top 500 Banking Brands 2020‟ report, India‟s IndusInd Bank has topped the list of „Highest increase in brand value‟ among global banks.  It‟s brand value saw.11.2018 an increase of 122% over the past 12 months. The bank reported total assets of Rs 3.1 lakh crore at the end of Q3 FY20.  As a part of the report, the list “Top 50 by Total Brand Value by Country” has been topped by China, followed by United States (US) at 2nd position while Canada and the United Kingdom (UK) ranked at 3rd and 4th spots. Japan has moved up to fifth spot. Odisha MSME Dept inked MoU with HDFC Bank to boost startups  The Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Department of government of Odisha has signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC) Bank Limited to provide smart banking solutions to Startups recognized by the Startup Odisha and will also extend incubation and acceleration support to all Startups, banking with them. PERSON IN NEWS  Arvind Kejriwal appointed as Delhi CM for 3rd time.  Former India all-rounder RobindraRamnarine Singh appointed Director of Cricket of the UAE (United Arab Emirates).  Ajay H. Patel was elected unopposed as the President of All-India Chess Federation (AICF) byJusticeFakkir Mohamed Ibrahim Kalifulla, returning officer for the AICF & former Supreme Court (SC) judge.  Government of India appointed Rajiv Bansal as new CMD of .  Indian origin Rishi Sunak (39) has been appointed as the United Kingdom‟s (UK) new Chancellor of the Exchequer by Prime Minister Boris Johnson.  Vinay Dube appointed as CEO of GoAir.  Veteran journalist Nandu R Kulkarni, has passed away. SPORTS&GAMES 54th All India Bombay Gold cup hockey championship 2020 in Mumbai, Maharashtra  Indian Navy, Mumbai (Maharashtra) has defeated South Central Railway (SCR), Secunderabad (Telangana) to win the 54th All India Bombay Gold Cup Hockey Tournament title for the 1st time with 4-1 scores in the final played at Mahindra Hockey Stadium, Churchgate, Mumbai, Maharashtra. National winter games 2020 to be held in Ladakh and J&K’s Gulmarg  As a part of Khelo India programme, Union Territory of Ladakh will host the inaugural Khelo India Winter Games 2020 in the third week of February and Kongdori, Gulmarg of Jammu and Kashmir. Boxer Amit Panghal ranked world No. 1 in IOC’s ranking for Olympic qualifiers  World championship silver medalist boxer Amit Panghal has ranked No.1 in 52kg weight category in International Olympic Committee‟s (IOC) Boxing Task Force rankings for Olympics Qualifiers. ICC women’sT20I rankings 2020  According to the International Cricket Council (ICC) T20I (Twenty-twenty International) rankings 2020 for Women players, Indian women‟s cricket team‟s star batsman SmritiShriniwasMandhana has moved up three places to 4th in the batsmen‟s rankings with 732 points, while JemimahRodriques slipped to number 7. Harmanpreet Kaur holds the 9th position in this list of batsmen.  ICC (International Cricket Council): Headquarters– Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Chairman– Shashank Manohar, CEO– Manu Sawhney.

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.12.2018AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS  Supermarket chain .2018DMart‟s Founder RadhakishanDamani becomes India‟s 2nd richest person after MukeshAmbani, Chairman of Reliance Industries Limited. According to Forbes „Real Time Billionaires‟ Index,.11.2018 Damani has a net worth of $17.8 billion.  American immunologist and oncologist Dr. Carl H June and Novartis CEO Dr. Vasant Narsimhan will be presented with the Genome Valley Excellence Award of BioAsia 2020.  Gita Sen, an Indian feminist scholar, activist has won the prestigious Dan David Prize 2020 under “present” category for her path-breaking work in the fields of population policies, reproductive and sexual health, women‟s rights, poverty, labour markets and global governance.  RajendraIndraman Singh, Founder & Chairperson of Priyadarshini Group of Schools & Colleges has been awarded the Indian Achievers Award (IAA) in recognition of his “Outstanding Contribution to Indian Education”.  Kolkata-born renowned astrologer DrSohiniSastri awarded IAA as Best Astrologer of the year. DAY AND DATES  World Radio Day (WRD) is celebrated all over the world with the theme “Radio and Diversity” on February 13.  To commemorate the birth anniversary of independence activist, Sarojini Naidu (also named Nightingale of India), every year India observes February 13 as its National Women‟s day. ONELINERS  The Puducherry Legislative Assembly has passed a resolution against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) 2019, the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and the National Population Register (NPR).  “Operation Nakail” for Auto-rickshaws in Ghaziabad to bear unique number aim to curb crime.  Haryana Chief Minister (CM), Manohar Lal Khattar, released a book titled “A Commentary & Digest on The Air, Act 1981” at Chandigarh, Haryana.  “Messages from Messengers” book written by Priti K Shroff was launched in Mumbai, Maharashtra.  Researchers have discovered an unusual and intriguing phenomenon Called Yaravirus in an artificial lake Pampulha in the Brazilian city of Belo Horizonte.  Uttar Pradesh (UP) Government launched toll-free helpline numbers to solve the queries of students ahead of the Board Examinations.  Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), in Rochester, New York, US (United States) have detected the nearest-known „baby giant planet‟ called 2MASS 1155-7919 b, just 330 light-years from Earth.  The state Government of Bihar‟s Department of Environment and Forest in Patna has launched `PyaarkaPaudha` (a plant of love) drive under the Jal Jeevan Hariyali campaign with an aim to promote the practice of planting trees in the state.  Manipur Chief Minister, NongthombamBiren Singh launched “AnganphouHunba” (Sowing of First Crop Paddy) programme at AraptiMayaiLeikai in Imphal East.  Jitendra Singh, Union Ministers for State, Public Grievances and Pensions, mentioned that Government of India (GOI) has allocated 2 AIIMS (All India Institute of Medical Sciences) for Jammu &Kashmir (J&K)- one in Jammu & other in Kashmir.  Govt amends Arbitration and conciliation act 1996 for making arbitration user friendly.  Nitin gadkari flags off KVIC‟s „Apiary on wheels‟ for bee keeping in New Delhi.  Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi will inaugurated the Indian Railways‟ third corporate passenger train named Kashi MahakalExpressPrime Minister Shri Narendra Modi will inaugurate the Indian Railways‟ third corporate passenger train named Kashi Mahakal Express.  The official name for the disease caused by the new coronavirus is Covid-2019: World Health Organization (WHO).

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