National
Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi visited Mangaluru
⇒ The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of mechanization and industrialisation projects worth around Rs 3800 crores in Mangaluru on 02 September 2022.
Details of the projects:
» Prime Minister inaugurated the project worth over Rs 280 crore for mechanisation of Berth No. 14 for handling containers and other cargo, undertaken by the New Mangalore Port Authority.
- The mechanized terminal will increase efficiency and reduce the turnaround time, pre-berthing delay and dwell time in the Port by around 35%, thus giving a boost to the business environment.
- Phase I of the project has been successfully completed, thereby adding over 4.2 MTPA to the handling capacity, which would further increase to over 6 MTPA by 2025.
» Prime Minister laid the foundation stone of five projects worth around Rs 1000 crore, undertaken by the Port.
- The integrated LPG and Bulk Liquid POL Facility, equipped with a state-of-the-art cryogenic LPG storage tank terminal, will be capable of unloading full load VLGC (very large gas carriers) of 45,000 tonnes in a highly efficient manner.
- Prime Minister also laid the foundation stone of projects for the construction of storage tanks and edible oil refinery, construction of bitumen storage and allied facilities and construction of bitumen & edible oil storage and allied facilities.
- Prime Minister also laid the foundation stone for the development of the Fishing Harbour at Kulai, which will facilitate safe handling of fish catch and enable better prices in the global market.
» Prime Minister also inaugurated two projects undertaken by Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited viz BS VI Upgradation Project and Sea Water Desalination Plant.
- The BS VI Upgradation Project, worth around Rs 1830 crores, will facilitate the production of ultra-pure environment-friendly BS-VI grade fuel (with sulphur content less than 10 PPM).
- The Sea Water Desalination Plant, set up at a cost of around Rs 680 crores, will help reduce dependency on fresh water and ensure a regular supply of hydrocarbons and petrochemicals throughout the year.
- Having a capacity of 30 Million Litres per Day (MLD), the Plant converts seawater into water required for the refinery processes.
Grievance Redressal Index during August 2022
⇒ Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has topped amongst all Ministries/Departments for resolving Public Grievances in the ranking report published by Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG) for the month of August 2022.
- UIDAI has been a top performer in resolution of cases received through Centralized Public Grievance Redress and Monitoring System (CPGRAMS).
UIDAI has a robust grievance redressal mechanism in place comprising of UIDAI HQ Divisions, Regional Offices, Technology Centre and engaged Contact Centre partners, which is enabling UIDAI to resolve around 92% of CRM Grievances within 7 days.
International
8th India-Brazil Joint Commission Meeting
⇒ External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar co-chaired the 8th India-Brazil Joint Commission Meeting with his Brazilian counterpart Carlos França in Brasilia on 24 August 2022.
Discussion:
The comprehensive discussions covered trade and investments, petroleum, biofuels, edible oils and minerals, health, pharma, traditional medicine, Science and Technology, agriculture and livestock, space, defense, counter-terrorism, and consular domains.
- After the meeting, agreements were signed in the fields of broadcasting and taxation.
- Both Ministers exchanged views on BRICS, IBSA, UN, G20, and the Ukraine conflict.
Key Points:
- Dr. Jaishankar appreciated Government of Brazil for releasing a commemorative stamp marking the 75th anniversary of Indian independence Amrit Mahotsav.
- This was Jaishankar’s first-ever official visit to South America. He also visited Paraguay and Argentina.
- Jaishankar’s visit to these 3 countries provided an opportunity to continue the ongoing high-level engagements with India’s partners in Latin America, explore new areas of cooperation in the post-pandemic era, and exchange views on issues of bilateral and international significance.
President of the UN General Assembly visits India
⇒ President of the UN General Assembly Abdulla Shahid visited India from August 28 to 29, 2022 and met the senior leadership, focussing on ongoing issues at the UN body and the country’s engagement with the world organisation.
» On a visit to India, Shahid held talks with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on 29 August, covering a range of key issues, including cooperation at the UN.
» The UNGA president also called on Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar.
- During the meeting, the PGA (President of General Assembly) acknowledged the important role played by India at the United Nations, including at the UN Security Council; where he termed it as a ‘source of pride’ for not only South Asia, but for all peace-loving democracies.
» Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra called on Shahid on 28 August and briefed him on India’s priorities in the upcoming UNGA session as well as during India’s remaining tenure at the UNSC.
Sports
Thailand Para Badminton International 2022
⇒ The Thailand Para Badminton International 2022 tournament was held in Pattaya from 16 August to 20 August, 2022.
Indian Medal Winners:
In the men’s singles, Bhagat and Kadam had to settle for a silver medal each after losing their respective finals. While Pramod went down fighting to England’s Daniel Bethell 13-21 19-21, Kadam lost 2-21 17-21 to France’s Lucas Mazur.
In women’s singles, Mandeep Kaur got the better off compatriot Manasi 20-22 21-19 21-14 in SL3 finals to claim the gold medal; while Manisha Ramadass also bagged the yellow metal after beating Japan’s Kaede Kameyama 20-22 21-12 21-19 in SU5 final.
Indian para shuttlers Pramod Bhagat and Sukant Kadam claimed the gold after beating Indonesia’s Dwiyoko Dwiyoko and Fredy Setiawan in the men’s doubles final. The Indian duo defeated the Indonesian pair 21-18 21-13 in the summit clash of SL3-SL4 category.
Ruthick Ragupathi and Manasi Joshi finished second best in mixed doubles SL3-SU5 class, losing 21-17 15-21 7-21 to France’s Lucas Mazur and Faustine Noel in the final.
Nithya Sre Sumathy Sivan also won the gold with a 21-9 24-22 win over England’s Rachel Choong 21-9 24-22 in SH6 final.
Manasi and Shanthiya Viswanathan also combined to sign off with a silver in the women’s doubles SL3-SU5 after going down 20-22 19-21 to Thailand’s Nipada Saensupa and Chanida Srinavakul.