National
Mopa International Airport, Goa
The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi inaugurated the Mopa International Airport, Goa on 11 December 2022.
Background
- It has been the constant endeavour of the Prime Minister to provide world-class infrastructure and transport facilities across the country.
- In yet another step towards this, Prime Minister inaugurated the Mopa International Airport, Goa. The foundation stone of the airport was laid by the Prime Minister in November 2016.
About Airport:
- Developed at a cost of around Rs 2,870 crores, the airport has been built on the theme of sustainable infrastructure. It comprises a solar power plant, green buildings, LED lights on the runway, rainwater harvesting, state-of-the-art sewage treatment plant with recycling facilities, among other such facilities.
- It has adopted some of the best-in-class technologies like 3-D Monolithic Precast buildings, StabilRoad, Robomatic Hollow precast walls, and 5G compatible IT infrastructure.
- Some of the features of the airport include a runway capable of handling the world’s largest aircrafts, 14 parking bays along with a night parking facility for aircrafts, self-baggage drop facilities, state of the art and independent air navigation infrastructure, among others.
- Initially, phase I of the Airport will cater to around 4.4 million passengers per annum (MPPA), which can be expanded to a saturation capacity of 33 MPPA.
- The airport will boost socio-economic development of the State and serve the needs of the tourism industry. It has the potential of serving as a key logistics hub, directly connecting many domestic and international destinations. It is also planned for the airport to have multi-modal connectivity.
- While being a world-class airport, the airport will also provide visitors with a feel and experience of Goa.
15th Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh
⇒ Four-time Congress MLA Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu was sworn in as the 15th Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh.
Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar administered the oath of office and secrecy to 58-year-old Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu. His oath-taking ceremony was held on 11 December 2022 at the historic Ridge Maidan in the state capital Shimla.
» Mukesh Agnihotri, the leader of the Opposition in the outgoing Assembly, also took oath as Deputy Chief Minister. The first deputy chief minister of Himachal Pradesh is Mukesh Agnihotri.
2022 Assembly election:
The Assembly Election for the 14th Legislative Assembly of Himachal Pradesh were held in December 2022. The 2022 Assembly election were held for all 68 seats in the unicameral legislature.
The seats won by Political groups are:
Indian National Congress (INC) (40); Independent (3); Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) (25)
Indian Standard, IS 19000:2022
⇒ Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), the National Standard Body of India, has published an Indian Standard, IS 19000:2022, ‘Online Consumer Reviews – Principles and Requirements for their Collection, Moderation and Publication’.
This standard provides requirements and recommendations for the principles and methods for review administrators to apply in their collection, moderation and publication of online consumer reviews. The standard prescribes specific responsibilities for the review author and the review administrator.
Key Points:
- This standard is applicable to any organization that publishes consumer reviews online, including suppliers/sellers of products and services that collect reviews from their own customers, a third-party contracted by the suppliers/sellers or an independent third party.
- It lays down the process which demonstrates the commitment of consumer review sites that they value their customers and provide reviews that can be trusted.
- It would help building confidence among consumers to purchase goods online and help them take better purchase decisions. The standard is expected to benefit all stakeholders in the e-commerce ecosystem, i.e. consumers, e-commerce platforms, sellers etc.
2nd India Internet Governance Forum 2022
⇒ The Minister of State for Electronics & Information Technology and Skill Development & Entrepreneurship, Shri Rajeev Chandrasekhar addressed the concluding ceremony of the 2nd India Internet Governance Forum 2022 on 11 December 2022.
Theme:
The theme of the India Internet Governance Forum 2022 was ‘Leveraging Techade for Empowering Bharat’.
Shri Rajeev Chandrasekhar has said that India is the largest ‘connected’ nation in the world today with more than 800 million broadband users. 5G and the largest rural broadband connectivity network project at BharatNet will have 1.2 billion Indian users constituting the single largest presence of the global internet.
About IIGF:
- The India Internet Government Forum is an initiative associated with the UN Internet Governance Forum (UN-IGF).
- The Internet Governance Forum (IGF) is a multi-stakeholder platform bringing representatives together from various groups, all at par to discuss public policy issues related to the Internet.
Important Day
PM participates in a programme commemorating Sri Aurobindo’s 150th birth Anniversary
⇒ The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi addressed a programme celebrating Sri Aurobindo’s 150th birth anniversary via video conferencing on 13 December 2022 in Kamban Kalai Sangam, Puducherry under the aegis of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav.
The Prime Minister also released a commemorative coin and postal stamp in honour of Sri Aurobindo.
- A commemorative postage stamp of Rs 150 denomination was issued by India Post on the 150th birth anniversary of Sri Aurobindo. A commemorative coin of Rs 150 was released on the occasion.
Addressing the gathering, the Prime Minister underlined the importance of the occasion of Sri Aurobindo’s 150th birth anniversary which is being celebrated with great fervour throughout the year.
- The Prime Minister highlighted that the nation is paying tributes to Sri Aurobindo by releasing a commemorative coin and postal stamp. The Prime Minister expressed the belief that such efforts by the nation will give new energy and strength to India’s resolutions.
Background:
- Sri Aurobindo, born on 15th August 1872, was a visionary who made lasting contributions to India’s freedom struggle.
- Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav – an endeavour to celebrate the glorious history of India’s people, culture and achievements on the occasion of 75 years of independence – is commemorating Sri Aurobindo’s 150th birth anniversary by organising year-long activities and programmes across the country.