National
India’s first Open “Rock” Museum
⇒ Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology; Minister of State (Independent Charge) Earth Sciences; MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh inaugurated India’s first unique “Rock” Museum on 06 January 2022 in Hyderabad, Telangana.
The new Open Rock Museum is in the campus of Council of Scientific and Industrial Research-National Geophysical Research Institute (CSIR-NGRI).
About:
- The Open Rock Museum has been set up with the aim to educate and enlighten the masses about several lesser-known facts.
- It displays around 35 different types of rocks from different parts of India with ages ranging from 3.3 Billion years to around 55 Million years of the Earth’s history.
- These rocks also represent the deepest part of the earth up to 175 kms of distance from the surface of the earth.
- The rocks have been sourced from Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, Jharkhand, Jammu & Kashmir and others.
24th National Conference on e-Governance (NCeG) 2021
⇒ The Department of Administrative Reforms & Public Grievances and Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology, in association with the State Government of Telangana organized the 24th National Conference on e-Governance (NCeG) 2021 on 7th–8th February 2022 at Hyderabad, Telangana.
Theme:
The theme of this Conference was “India’s Techade: Digital Governance in a Post Pandemic World”.
Six sub-themes were discussed in the plenary session during the conference:
- AatmaNirbhar Bharat: Universalization of Public Services
- Innovation – Platformization, Emerging Technologies
- Presentations by Gold Awardees (Centre / State)
- Ease of living through Technology Interventions for Good Governance
- Government Process Re-engineering and Citizen’s participation in Government processes
- India’sTechade – Digital Economy (Digital Payments-Building Citizen’s Confidence)
The 24th NCeG represented a platform for constructive exchange of ideas on some of the latest technologies for promoting e-Governance.
To recognise the implementation of e-Governance initiatives, the National e-Governance Awards 2021 were presented during the Inaugural Session.
- 26 awards were presented under the 6 categories of the Award Scheme to Central Ministries/Departments, State/UT Governments, Districts, Local Bodies, Public Sector Undertakings and Academic & Research Institutions.
- This includes 12 Gold, 13 Silver and 1 Jury Award.
The Conference has unanimously adopted the Hyderabad declaration outlined below after intensive deliberations during the sessions held over two days.
The Conference resolved that Government of India and State Governments shall collaborate to:
- To bring citizens and government closer through digital platforms.
- Transform citizen services through use of technology by leveraging the artifacts of India Stack that include Aadhaar, UPI, DigiLocker, UMANG, e Sign and consent framework.
- Fast track the implementation of the national level public digital platforms in key social sectors viz. Health, Education, Agriculture, etc by adopting open interoperable architecture for joined up connected services.
- Operationalize the data governance framework to facilitate data sharing within Government entities as also make available all data on data.gov.in except for a negative list.
- Foster responsible use of emerging technology such as Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Blockchain, 5G, Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality, etc for Social Empowerment.
- Make India the global hub for emerging technology through creation of large pool of skilled resources on futuristic technologies
- Ensure resilient Government Infrastructure with robust technological solutions to withstand pandemic like disruptions.
- Uplift good governance to higher level through healthy competition among States and UTs and among Central Ministries by benchmarking services.
- NeSDA (National E-Governance Service Delivery Assessment) 2021 to be adopted in collaboration with MeITY for improving e-Governance landscape.
- Integration of all State/District portals with CPGRAMS for seamless Redressal of Public Grievances
3rd National Water Awards-2020
⇒ Union Minister of Jal Shakti Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat announced 3rd National Water Awards-2020, on 07 January 2022.
- In the Best State category, Uttar Pradesh has been awarded first prize, followed by Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu.
» The National Water Award is given to encourage and recognize individuals and organizations doing exemplary work in the field of water resources management.
» The Department of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, Ministry of Jal Shakti given 57 awards to States, Organizations, Individuals etc. in 11 different categories.
Read More About 3rd National Water Awards-2020
National Competition of IndiaSkills 2021
⇒ The national competition of IndiaSkills 2021 was held from 7 to 9 January 2022 in New Delhi at multiple locations, including Pragati Maidan.
Organised by:
The National Competition was organised by National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), the nodal agency for skill and entrepreneurship development, working under the guidance of the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE).
Participants:
The closed-door event witnessed participants from 26 states/ union territories competing in more than 50 skills such as car painting, patisserie and confectionery, welding, additive manufacturing, cyber security, floristry, among others.
The IndiaSkills 2021 National Competition included:
- Abilympics – Skill Demonstration by Persons with Disabilities
- Demonstration Skills
- New-Age Skills
- Women Participation
- Partner Institutes
- Industry supporting IndiaSkills
- Journey from IndiaSkills to WorldSkills
The winners of all skill competitions were felicitated on 10th January in New Delhi.
- 270 winners of IndiaSkills 2021 National Competition were felicitated with 61 gold, 77 silver, 53 bronze and 79 medallions of excellence.
- Odisha topped the chart with 51winners, followed by Maharashtra, 30 and Kerela, 25 winners.
» The winners of IndiaSkills 2021 National Competition will undergo rigorous training to represent India at WorldSkills Shanghai, China to be held in October 2022.
- The winners of IndiaSkills Nationals will get multi-level industry training through boot camps and programmes such as project-based training, industry and corporate training, exposure visits to industries, mind coaching, and personality development.
- NSDC, through its Sector Skill Councils (SSCs) and Partner Institutes, trains the candidates for the competitions and for future endeavors.
Death
Shillong Chamber Choir's founder and renowned pianist, Neil Nongkynrih
⇒ Shillong Chamber Choir’s founder and renowned pianist Neil Nongkynrih, aka Uncle Neil, died on 05 January 2022 in Mumbai. He was 51.
Mr. Neil Nongkynrih was an outstanding mentor to the Shillong Chamber Choir, which enthralled audiences globally.
For the unversed, Neil’s choir won India’s Got Talent in 2010. He was honoured with the Padma Shri in 2015.