National
3rd edition of National Youth Parliament Festival (NYPF)- 2022
⇒ Union Minister for Youth Affairs & Sports Shri Anurag Thakur addressed the inaugural session of National round of 3rd edition of National Youth Parliament Festival (NYPF) 2022 in the central hall of Parliament, New Delhi on March 10, 2022.
Theme:
The Theme of the 3rd National Youth Parliament Festival was ‘be the voice of New India and find solutions and contribute to Policy’.
» 3rd edition of NYPF was launched on 14th February 2022 at District level through virtual mode.
- More than 2.44 lakh youth across the country participated in the District Youth Parliaments followed by State Youth Parliaments through virtual mode from 23rd – 27th February, 2022.
Objective:
- The National Youth Parliament Festival provides a platform to youth to voice their thoughts opinions and dreams for the country.
- The objective of the National Youth Parliament Festival (NYPF) is to hear the voice of the youth, who will join various careers in coming years, including public services.
The top three national winners of the festival also got an opportunity to speak before the Lok Sabha Speaker during the valedictory function.
Ms. Rageshwari Anjana from Bhopal won the first position, Shri Siddharth Joshi from Dungarpur, Rajasthan got the second position and Ms. Amarpreet Kaur from Bathinda received the third position in National Youth Parliament 2022 national round competition.
» Lok Sabha Speaker, Shri Om Birla addressed the valedictory function of the 3rd edition of National Youth Parliament Festival-2022 in the Central Hall of Parliament on 11 March 2022.
About NYPF:
- NYPF is based on the idea given by the Prime Minister in his Mann Ki Baat Address on 31st December, 2017.
- The 1st edition of NYPF was organised from 12th January to 27th February, 2019 with the theme “Be the Voice of New India and Find solutions and Contribute to Policy”.
- 2nd edition of NYPF was organized from 23rd December, 2020 to 12th January, 2022 with the theme “YUVAAH- Utsah Naye Bharat Ka”.
17th Chief Minister of Punjab
⇒ AAP leader Shri Bhagwant Mann was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Punjab on 16 March 2022. He is the 17th Chief Minister of Punjab.
Punjab Governor Banwarilal Purohit administered the oath of office and secrecy to Mann in the swearing-in ceremony that took place at Khatkar Kalan, the ancestral village of legendary freedom fighter Bhagat Singh in Punjab’s Shaheed Bhagat Singh (SBS) Nagar district.
- Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has won 92 seats out of 117 in the Punjab Assembly election.
EatSmart Cities Challenge Winners
⇒ The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) announced eleven winning cities for the EatSmart Cities Challenge.
These cities will now enter the deep engagement stage of the challenge wherein projects undertaken in pilot stage will be scaled up in a sustainable manner.
» Top 11 Awardees of the pilot stage of the EatSmart Cities Challenge are Chandigarh, Indore, Jammu, Jabalpur, Panaji, Rajkot, Rourkela, Sagar, Surat, Tumakuru and Ujjain.
About:
- The challenge was launched by MoHUA in collaboration with Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) on 15th April, 2021, to scale up the Eat Right India approach to city level.
- The EatSmart Cities Challenge has the objective of motivating Smart Cities to develop a plan that supports a healthy, safe and sustainable food environment supported by institutional, physical, social, and economic infrastructure along with application of ‘smart’ solutions to combat food related issues.
Green Hydrogen Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle
⇒ Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Shri Nitin Gadkari launched the world’s most advanced technology – developed Green Hydrogen Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle (FCEV) Toyota Mirai at New Delhi on 16 March 2022.
This is a first of its kind project in India which aims to create a Green Hydrogen based ecosystem in the country by creating awareness about the unique utility of Green Hydrogen and FCEV technology.
Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle (FCEV), powered by Hydrogen is one of the best Zero Emission solutions. Green Hydrogen can be generated from renewable energy and abundantly available biomass.
Important Day
World Wildlife Day
⇒ World Wildlife Day is celebrated every year on March 3.
World Wildlife Day is an opportunity to celebrate the many beautiful and varied forms of wild fauna and flora and to raise awareness of the multitude of benefits that their conservation provides to people.
Theme:
The theme of the World Wildlife Day 2022 was “Safeguarding key species for ecosystem restoration”.
Background:
- On 20 December 2013, at its 68th session, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) proclaimed 3 March as the UN World Wildlife Day.
- The day has been chosen to commemorate the day of the signing of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) in 1973.
Death
Former Andhra Pradesh Governor and Union Minister, Ms Kumudben Joshi
⇒ Former Andhra Pradesh Governor and Union Minister, Ms Kumudben Joshi passed away on 14 March 2022 in Navsari, Gujarat. She was 88.
Ms Kumudben was the Governor of Andhra Pradesh from 1985 to 1990. She was the second female governor of the state after Sharda Mukherjee during 1977–78. Ms Joshi became Deputy Minister of Information and Broadcasting (1980-1982) and Deputy Minister of Health and Family Welfare (1982-1984).