National
Rashtra Raksha Samarpan Parv
⇒ Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh inaugurated the three-day ‘Rashtra Raksha Samarpan Parv’ in Jhansi on November 17, 2021.
- The festival was culminated on the birth anniversary of Rani of Jhansi Laxmi Bai on 19th November.
- Rashtra Raksha Samarpan Parv was organized by the Ministry of Defence along with the Government of Uttar Pradesh.
Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi dedicated/launched several new initiatives of Ministry of Defence to the Nation in a grand ceremony organized in the precincts of Jhansi Fort on November 19, 2021.
» Setting up of 100 New Sainik Schools:
The Cabinet recently approved setting up of 100 Sainik Schools throughout the country.
- These Sainik Schools will be set up in partnership with private educational institutions, NGOs and State Governments.
- At least one Sainik Schools is proposed in each State/UT.
- These 100 Sainik Schools shall be set up in the next two years.
- All Sainik Schools will be admitting girls also.
» Launch of NCC Alumni Association:
With the objective to provide a formal platform to enable NCC Alumni to reconnect with NCC, it has been decided to set up an NCC Alumni Association.
The NCC Alumni Association has been launched by enrolling the Prime Minister, a former NCC cadet, as the first member of the Association on November 19.
» Launch of National Programme of Simulation Training for NCC Cadets:
Ministry of Defence launched a nation-wide programme to scale up simulation training facilities for all the three wings of NCC – Army, Air and Naval. This will enable NCC cadets across the country to get trained in their respective areas.
» NCC Border and Coastal Scheme:
A scheme for expanding NCC by one lakh cadets dedicated to the border and coastal areas of the country was approved by Ministry of Defence in September 2020.
- The implementation of scheme for last one year was showcased as part of Rashtra Raksha Samarpan Parv on November 19.
» Laying of foundation stone of Rs 400 crore project of Bharat Dynamics Ltd at Jhansi Node of UP Defence Industrial Corridor:
Government has decided to set up two Defence Industrial Corridors in the country. These are in Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh.
- The UP Defence Industrial Corridor has nodes at Agra, Aligarh, Jhansi, Chitrakoot, Lucknow and Kanpur.
- For the Jhansi Node of the UP Defence Industrial Corridor, the state Government has made nearly 1,034 hectares of land made available.
Bharat Dynamics Ltd, a Defence Public Sector Undertaking (DPSU), is setting up a plant for propulsion system for Anti-Tank Guided Missiles in the Jhansi Node. It will be spread over 183 acres of land in Jhansi. The facility will involve an investment of Rs 400 crore.
The foundation stone of this project was laid by the Prime Minister on November 19.
» Thrust on ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ in Defence:
As a demonstration on thrust on ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat, the Indian Army, Indian Air Force and Indian Navy are adopting indigenously designed and developed platforms for their use.
- The three platforms were formally handed over by the Prime Minister to the respective Service Chiefs on 19 November.
- These platforms depict maturing of Indian defence industry ecosystem with contributions from Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), DPSUs and Defence industry and startups.
The Prime Minister handed over the Light Combat Helicopter (LCH) to Chief of the Air Staff.
About LCH:
- LCH is designed and developed by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).
- LCH is a new addition to HAL’s helicopter Division.
- This twin-engine helicopter is a dedicated combat helicopter of 5-8 tonne class.
- The LCH is the only attack helicopter in the world which can land and take-off at an altitude of 5,000 m (16,400 ft) with considerable load of weapons & fuel.
» Kiosk to pay tribute to the fallen heroes at National War Memorial:
Two electronic kiosks have been installed at the National War Memorial to encourage visitors to register their presence and pay virtual homage to the fallen heroes.
- This augmented reality powered facility has been designed and installed by BEL under the overall guidance of NWM Directorate.
» Mobile app of National War Memorial:
The NWM Directorate has also developed a mobile app of National War Memorial.
- The app provides a virtual tour of NWM with 360-degree experience.
- The app allows for multi-lingual interaction and enables tour assistance to visitors with the help of 166 Bluetooth beacons installed in the NWM campus.
‘Water Heroes – Share Your Stories’ Contest
⇒ Department of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, Ministry of Jal Shakti has launched the ‘Water Heroes – Share Your Stories’ Contest from December 1, 2021 with an aim to reach out to people on the important subject of water conservation and management.
- This series of Contest will end on 30 November, 2022.
Aim of ‘Water Heroes Contest’:
- To encourage and collect best practices in water conservation and management from across the nation.
- To encourage such efforts across India so as to boost transformational action in the water sector.
About Award:
- Every month (from December, 2021 onwards) entries are being invited for consideration of awards.
- Every month a maximum of 10 entries can be considered for the awards.
- All selected entries will be awarded a cash prize of Rs 10,000/- each and a certificate.
To take part in the contest:
- Participants will have to post their success stories on water conservation & management.
- The post should be a specially made video of 1–5-minute duration (along with a write-up of up to 300 words and some photographs/pictures).
- The video should depict the efforts and significant contributions to conserve and manage water resources.
10th edition of CII Big Picture Summit
⇒ The 10th edition of CII Big Picture Summit was started on 17th November 2021 through virtual medium.
Organized by:
The CII Big Picture Summit was organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry in partnership with Prasar Bharati.
Theme:
The theme of the summit was Scaling New Heights of Content, Creativity and Innovation.
- As with every year, the two-day summit witnessed a host of sessions, covering the entire spectrum of the media and entertainment industry.
- These included broadcasting and television, OTT, films, animation & visual effects, gaming, advertising, news and publishing.
- Sessions were structured to cover both horizontal issues as well as issues which are specific to particular sectors.
Sports
First ever SAI Institutional Awards
⇒ The Union Minister of Youth Affairs & Sports Shri Anurag Thakur conferred the first ever SAI Institutional Awards to 246 athletes and coaches on 17 November 2021 in New Delhi.
The categories of awards were Outstanding Award (for National level achievements) and Best Award (for International level achievements).
A total of 162 athletes and 84 coaches have been conferred awards in the Outstanding Award and Best Award category for their performance in national and international competitions, with cash awards amounting to a total of Rs 85.02 Lakhs during the ceremony at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium.
The awards acknowledge the exceptional performance of the SAI athletes and coaches under the various sports promotion schemes at the national and international level from 2016.
The awards have been granted to the deserving candidates for the years of 2016-17, 2017-18, 2018-19 and 2019-20.