Home » Current Affairs Date: 10 November 2022

Current Affairs Date: 10 November 2022

National

Prime Minister laid the foundation stone and dedicated to the nation various projects of Kochi

⇒ The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone and dedicated to the nation various projects of Kochi Metro and Indian Railways worth around Rs 4500 crore in Kochi on 01 September 2022.

Details of the projects:

» The Prime Minister inaugurated the Phase I extension of the Kochi Metro Rail Project from Petta to SN junction.

    • The total cost of the project is over Rs 700 crores. Kochi Metro Rail project will be one of the most sustainable metro projects in the country with nearly 55% of its energy needs being met by solar power.

» The Prime Minister laid the foundation stone for the Phase –II stretch of the Kochi Metro rail project from JLN stadium to Infopark, having a length of 11.2 km and covering 11 stations.

    • The total estimated cost of this project is around Rs 1,950 crores.
    • The proposed Phase II corridor of the Kochi Metro Rail Project is aimed at catering to the growing transportation needs of Kochi City.

» The Prime Minister also dedicated to the nation, the doubling of the Kuruppanthara-Kottayam-Chingavanam rail section, completed at the cost of nearly Rs 750 crore. With this, the entire stretch from Thiruvananthapuram to Mangaluru is fully doubled, promising faster and seamless connectivity. The Prime Minister also dedicated to the nation the newly electrified rail section between Kollam – Punalur.

» The Prime Minister also laid the foundation stone for the redevelopment of three railway stations in Kerala – Ernakulam Junction, Ernakulam Town and Kollam. The total estimated cost of these station redevelopment projects is around Rs 1050 crores.

Smart Solutions Challenge & Inclusive Cities Awards 2022

⇒ The Minister for Housing & Urban Affairs & Petroleum and Natural Gas, Shri Hardeep Singh Puri presented Smart Solutions Challenge & Inclusive Cities Awards 2022 on 01 September 2022.

    • These awards are an initiative of the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) and the United Nations (UN) in India to address city-level accessibility and inclusion challenges faced by persons with disabilities (PwD), women and girls, and the elderly.

Launched this April, the Smart Solutions and Inclusive Cities Awards 2022 was designed with the aim of promoting people-centric design and to foster novel home-grown technological innovations and solutions.

    • Over 100 entries were received through an open call for applications, out of which the top 10 technology-based innovations were identified as winning solutions after an intensive round of screenings and shortlisting by an eminent 7-member jury panel.
The top 10 technology-based solutions were awarded the Inclusive Cities Awards 2022.
Winners:
Smart Solutions Challenge & Inclusive Cities Awards 2022
Image Source: PIB

International

G20 Joint Environment and Climate Ministers Meeting (JECMM)

⇒ Union Minister for Environment Forest and Climate Change, Shri Bhupender Yadav, attended the G20 Joint Environment and Climate Ministers Meeting (JECMM) held at Bali, Indonesia on 31 August 2022.

    • Speaking on the concluding day of the G20 meeting, the Union Minister underlined the need to work together for stronger recovery and resilience across globe, leaving no one behind especially most vulnerable sections of the society.
    • Shri Yadav stated that sustainable recovery should also lead towards Sustainable Development Goals.
About Meeting:

The G20 Joint Environment and Climate Ministers’ Meeting (JECMM) took place in Bali on 31 August 2022 and was chaired by the Minister of Environment and Forestry of Indonesia, Prof Dr Siti Nurbaya Bakar.

    • The meeting was convened in a hybrid manner where a number of Ministers were present physically and some virtually.
Discussion:

During the meeting, Ministers discussed and supported the priority issues of the Indonesian G20 Presidency at the Environment Deputies Meeting and Climate Sustainability Working Group, namely:

    • Supporting more sustainable recovery,
    • Enhancing land and sea-based actions to support environment protection and climate objectives, and
    • Enhancing resource mobilization to support environment protection and climate objectives.

Queen Máxima visits India

⇒ Her Majesty Queen Máxima of the Netherlands called on the President of India, Smt Droupadi Murmu at Rashtrapati Bhavan on August 29, 2022.

    • The President and Queen Máxima discussed about the deepening of the bilateral relations between India and the Netherlands.
    • The two leaders also discussed in detail several aspects of universal financial inclusion which has been one of the main agenda of the Government of India.

» Queen Maxima of the Netherlands met Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on 29 August 2022 offering support for India’s upcoming G20 presidency.

    • India will take over the G20 presidency from Indonesia on December 1, 2022.

» Queen Maxima, who is United Nations Secretary General’s Special Advocate (UNSGSA) and Honorary Patron of the G20 Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion (GPFI) also lauded India’s advanced digital public goods infrastructure for financial and economic inclusion.

» At a meeting with public and private sector representatives, the Queen discussed the development of digital public infrastructure, including secure biometric identity documents, good telecom connections, safe digital payments, data management and privacy safeguards.

Background:
    • Queen Máxima visited India from August 29 to 31, 2022, in her official capacity as United Nations Secretary-General’s Special Advocate (UNSGSA) for Inclusive Finance for Development and G20 GPFI Honorary Patron.
    • As Special Advocate, she is a leading global voice on advancing universal access to and responsible usage of affordable, effective and safe financial services.
    • She is the Honorary Patron of the G20’s Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion (GPFI) and a Global Agenda Trustee for the World Economic Forum’s Global Challenge Initiative on the Future of the Global Financial System. She also convened the CEO Partnership for Economic Inclusion.
    • Queen Máxima previously visited India in her role as UNSGSA in 2014 and 2018.

Sports

Duleep Trophy 2022

⇒ The 2022–23 Duleep Trophy, a first-class cricket tournament in India, was held from 8 September to 25 September 2022. It was the 59th season of the Duleep Trophy.

The tournament was played across Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.

Winner:

» The final match between West Zone and South Zone was played on 21–25 September 2022 at SNR College Cricket Ground, Coimbatore.

    • In the final, West Zone beat South Zone by 294 runs to win their 19th title.
Awards:
    • Player of the series: Jaydev Unadkat (West Zone)
    • Most runs: Yashasvi Jaiswal (West Zone) (497)
    • Most wickets: Ravisrinivasan Sai Kishore (South Zone) (17)
About Duleep Trophy:
    • Duleep Trophy is named after Kumar Shri Duleepsinhji of Nawanagar, who is also known as Duleep. The competition was started by the Board of Control for Cricket in India in the 1961–62 season.

Source: PIB & Other News Reports

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