National
18th meeting of the Maritime State Development Council
⇒ Union Minister of State (I/C) for Port, Shipping and Waterways Shri Mansukh Mandaviya chaired the 18th meeting of the Maritime State Development Council (MSDC) on 24 June 2021. It was organized by the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways.
Objective:
The objective of the Maritime State Development Council (MSDC) is to develop a national plan for the development of the maritime sector beneficial for both states and the centre, and to adopt best practices for the sector.
In the 18th Maritime State Development Council Meeting, very significant issues pertaining to the overall progress of the maritime sector were discussed.
Key items discussed during the meeting are as follows:
- Indian Port Bill 2021: A step towards accelerating India’s Port Development
- National Maritime Heritage Complex (NMHC) – India’s first maritime heritage complex
- Enhancing Port Connectivity
- Floating Jetties for Marine Operations & Seaplane Services
- Strengthening Indian Infrastructure through Sagarmala Programme and National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP)
About MSDC:
Maritime State Development Council (MSDC) is an apex advisory body for the development of the Maritime sector and aims to ensure integrated development of Major and non-Major Ports. The MSDC was constituted in May 1997.
Prasar Bharati goes Paperless
⇒ With 100% adoption of e-Office, Prasar Bharati has gone paperless.
Of 577 Prasar Bharati centers across the country, 10% adopted e-Office in 2019 (Aug – Dec), 74% in 2020 and the remaining 16% have joined by June 18, 2021.
With the vision to make Prasar Bharati operations more efficient and paperless, e-Office was introduced in August 2019.
International
Honorary Oscars, ahead of the main 2022 Gala
⇒ The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced that Actors Samuel L Jackson and Danny Glover, Norwegian actress Liv Ullmann and actress-director Elaine May will be feted with honorary Oscars ahead of the main 2022 gala.
At the Governors Awards, Samuel L Jackson, Liv Ullmann, and Elaine May will be given honorary statuettes, while Danny Glover will receive the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award.
The stars will be honored at the 12th Governors Awards on January 15, 2022.
Mizoram Health Systems Strengthening Project
⇒ The Government of India, Government of Mizoram and the World Bank have signed a $32 million Mizoram Health Systems Strengthening Project.
The project was signed on 17 June 2021 to improve management capacity and quality of health services in Mizoram, particularly for the benefit of under-served areas and vulnerable groups.
The Mizoram Health Systems Strengthening Project will benefit the people across all eight districts of the state.
The Project will strengthen the followings:
- Governance and the management structure of the Department of Health and Family Welfare (DoHFW) and its subsidiaries
- Improve the quality and coverage of services delivered by the state government health systems
- Invest in a comprehensive Quality Assurance program which would enable quality certification of health facilities.
25 Years of Global Tobacco Control Progress
⇒ Dr Harsh Vardhan, Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare addressed the virtual event to highlight 25 Years of Global Tobacco Control Progress.
This event was part of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids’ year long 25th Anniversary celebration.
The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids hosted an hour-long virtual event. During the event, it highlighted how tobacco control movements have achieved significant declines in tobacco use in countries around the world.
Addressing the event, Dr Harsh Vardhan said that substantial progress has been achieved in the country in controlling communicable diseases over the past 75 years.
He also said, India is among the first few countries to ratify the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. India has a dedicated National Tobacco Control Program.