EVENING NEWS DIGEST: 12 April 2018

CHUDASAMA COMMITTEE CONSTITUTED ON ALLEVIATING FEAR OF MATHS AMONG STUDENTS

 Human Resource Development Ministry constituted the committee under the Chairmanship of Gujarat Education Minister Bhupendrasinh Chudasama to suggest the ways to make the Maths subject easy. Eminent educationists and senior officials will be the part of this committee.  This decision was taken on the basis of National Assessment Survey to eliminate the fear of maths among the students.  HRD Minister was happy to announce that Government has received overwhelming response to reduce the burden of NCERT syllabus.

MNRE CALLS FOR ‘EXPRESSION OF INTEREST’ FOR FIRST OFFSHORE WIND ENERGY PROJECT

 The National Institute of Wind Energy (NIWE) an autonomous body under the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has called for ‘Expression of Interest’ (EoI) for the first offshore wind energy project of India.  The global EoI is intended to shortlist prospective offshore wind energy developers for a 1000 MW offshore wind energy project in Gulf of Khambat, off the coast of Gujarat.  Areas off the coasts of Gujarat and Tamil Nadu are two identified areas for development of offshore wind power. The second LiDAR would be installed off Tamil Nadu coast by September, 2018.  At global level, it has been observed that, offshore wind energy while being better than onshore wind in terms of efficiency is also becoming competitive and comparable in terms of tariffs.

INDIAN CONSORTIUM AND SAUDI ARAMCO SIGN MOU FOR RATNAGIRI MEGA REFINERY

 An Indian Consortium and Saudi Aramco signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU to jointly develop and build an integrated refinery and petrochemicals complex, Ratnagiri Refinery & Petrochemicals Ltd. (RRPCL) in the State of Maharashtra.  The refinery will be capable of processing 1.2 million barrels of crude oil per day. The strategic partnership will bring together crude supply, resources, technologies, experience and expertise of these multiple oil companies with an established commercial presence around the world.

EVENING NEWS DIGEST: 12 April 2018

 RRPCL will rank among the world’s largest refining & petrochemicals projects and will be designed to meet India’s fast-growing fuels and petrochemicals demand. The project cost is estimated at around Rs.3 lakh crore (USD 44 billion).

INDIA, ZAMBIA SIGN 4 AGREEMENTS TO STRENGTHEN BILATERAL TIES

 India and Zambia signed four agreements after the delegation-level talks held in the capital city of Lusaka.  The four agreements are signed in the areas of: a. Avoidance of double taxation b. Visa exemption on diplomatic and official passports c. Judicial cooperation d. For the establishment of an Entrepreneurship Development Institute in Zambia  Zambia: Zambia is known for being one of the oldest democracies with an uninterrupted and peaceful transition of power. The country has a multi-party democracy since 1991.

BANGLADESH DECIDED TO SCRAP QUOTA SYSTEM IN GOVT. JOBS

 Bangladesh has decided to scrap the quota system in government services after thousands of students marched across the country in protest against a controversial policy of setting aside jobs for special groups.  In Dhaka, mobs of students blockaded major roads, bringing traffic to a standstill. Police were deployed to the Dhaka University where clashes in recent days left more than 100 students injured by tear gas and rubber bullets.  Prime Minister Hasina has suggested abolishing the quota system for government jobs altogether.

CWG 2018: SHOOTER SHREYASI SINGH GIVES INDIA ITS 12TH GOLD MEDAL

 Shreyasi Singh produced some excellent shooting to win the women's double trap gold medal in the 21st Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast. The other Indian contender in the field, Varsha Varman finished fourth with 86.  Shreyasi shot 96 in the finals and beat Australia's Emma Cox 2 shots to 1 in the shoot-off at Belmont Shooting Centre. Shreyasi was on the second position while Varsha was on the third position after three rounds.

EVENING NEWS DIGEST: 12 April 2018 INDIA, MOROCCO SIGN PACT TO PROMOTE MINERAL EXPLORATION

 India has inked a pact with Morocco, with the MoU the focus will be on evaluation of potential mineral resources and promoting exploration and mining through participation of both public and private sector.  The Memorandum of Understanding, MoU was signed in New Delhi on 11 April 2018. The focus of the MoU is on the development of the geological infrastructure for Geoscience Maps and geochemical maps, strengthening geological research and evaluation of the potential of mineral resources.

11TH WORLD HINDI CONFERENCE TO BE HELD IN MAURITIUS

 The 11th World Hindi Conference or Vishwa Hindi Sammellan will be held at Mauritius' Port Louis. The dates of the conference are 18-20 August and will be held at Swami Vivekananda International Conference Center.  The event, held once in three years, is dedicated to Hindi language. The previous conference was held in Bhopal in 2015.  Theme and Logo: The logo was described by Mauritius Education Minister as the image of a ship struggling to keep sailing in the water is similar to what the difficulties Hindi is facing today. The theme of the conference is “Vaishvik Hindi Aur Bharity Sanskriti”.

WIPRO'S RISHAD PREMJI APPOINTED NASSCOM CHAIRMAN

 Rishad Premji, chief strategy officer and board member of Wipro Ltd, is appointed as chairman of IT industry body Nasscom (National Association of Software and Service Companies) for 2018-19.  He succeeds Raman Roy, Chairman and Managing Director, Quatrro Global Services, who served as Chairman of NASSCOM for the year 2017-18.

GOVERNMENT SETS UP COMMITTEE TO REVIEW THE ENFORCEMENT OF CSR PROVISIONS

 The government has set up a 12-member panel to review the enforcement of CSR provisions under the companies law as well as look at having a centralised scrutiny and prosecution mechanism to deal with violations.  A committee on CSR to review "the functioning of CSR enforcement and to recommend a uniform approach for its enforcement" has been constituted. It will also look at

EVENING NEWS DIGEST: 12 April 2018

methodologies for monitoring of compliance by companies with CSR norms for having an effective CSPM.  The 12-member panel is headed by Regional Director (Western Region) Manmohan Juneja. Other members include Joint Director (Legal) Sanjay Shorey and Joint Director (Policy) N K Dua, while Deputy Director (CSR) Seema Rath will be the convener.