National:
- Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi dedicated two future-ready Ayurveda institutions to the nation, on 5th Ayurveda Day via video conferencing. The Ayurveda Day is being observed every year from 2016, on the day of Dhanwantri Jayanti. This year it was celebrated on 13th November 2020.
These two Ayurveda institutions are:
- Institute of Teaching & Research in Ayurveda (ITRA), Jamnagar
- National Institute of Ayurveda (NIA), Jaipur
These institutions are expected to play global leadership roles in the growth and development of Ayurveda in the 21st Century.
Infrastructure Viability Gap Funding Scheme:
- The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has approved Continuation and Revamping of the Scheme for Financial Support to Public Private Partnerships in Infrastructure Viability Gap Funding Scheme. Its time period is till 2024-25 and its total cost is Rs 8100 crore.
Under revamped scheme, two sub-schemes have been introduced to bring private sector participation in social infrastructure:
Sub scheme -1: The scheme will cater to the needs of social sectors such as waste water treatment, water supply, solid waste management, health and education sectors etc.
Sub scheme -2: This Sub scheme will support demonstration/pilot social sectors projects. The projects may be from Health and Education sectors where there is at least 50% Operational Cost recovery.
The project aims to promote public private participation in social and economic infrastructure.
Two new Ramsar sites in India:
- Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change Prakash Javadekar tweeted about Ramsar sites in India on November 15, 2020. Under the Ramsar Convention, India has added two more Ramsar sites.
These two wetlands of international importance are:
- Lonar Lake in Maharashtra, the only crater lake of the country
- Sur Sarovar Lake, also known as Keetham Lake in Agra
International:
- The second phase of Exercise Malabar 2020 is being conducted in the Northern Arabian Sea from 17 to 20 November 2020. This phase will involve coordinated operations of increasing complexity between the navies of Australia, India, Japan and the United States.
17th ASEAN-India Summit:
- The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, participated in the 17th ASEAN-India Summit on November 12, 2020, at the invitation of the Prime Minister of Vietnam, H.E. Nguyen Xuan Phuc. All the ten ASEAN Member States participated & it was conducted in virtual format. Prime Minister Narendra Modi co-chaired the 17th ASEAN-India summit along with Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc.
Speaking at the Summit, Prime Minister announced a contribution of US$ 1 million to the COVID-19 ASEAN Response Fund.
The summit discussions covered regional and international issues of common interest and concern, including South China Sea and terrorism.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, was established on 8 August 1967 in Bangkok. Thailand. Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore, Philippines, Myanmar, Malaysia, Lao PDR (Laos), Indonesia, Cambodia, Brunei Darussalam are the ten members of ASEAN.
Death:
- Rajasthan Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Master Bhanwar Lal Meghwal passed away at Medanta Hospital in Gurugram on November 16, 2020. He was 72. He was elected to the Rajasthan assembly from Sujangarh in Churu district.