Delhi, Mumbai slip down on Global Liveability Index for 2019

NATIONAL NEWS

PM Narendra Modi Inaugurates 'Garvi Gujarat Bhawan' in Delhi

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated 'Garvi Gujarat', the second state bhawan of the Gujarat government in the national capital.
• Modi was accompanied by Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel and former chief minister Anandiben Patel, who is currently Uttar Pradesh governor, as he inaugurated and walked through the complex built over more than 7,000 sq metres of the area at Akbar Road.
• The "first eco-friendly" state Bhawan is in the national capital. It cost Rs 131 crore and was completed three months.
• The Bhawan has been described as a mix of traditional and modern architecture with a rich reflection of the western state's culture.

Nadubhagam Chundan Lifts 67th Nehru Trophy in Alappuzha; Sachin Tendulkar Attends Iconic Boat Race

• Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan inaugurated the event in the presence of cricketer Sachin Tendulkar, who was the chief guest of the event. Tendulkar also took a boat ride and cheered the competing teams.
• Nadubhagam Chundan, the snake boat of Pallathuruthy Boat Club, lifted the 67th edition of the coveted Nehru Trophy at the Punnamada Lake in Alappuzha.

Rohit Sharma Launches Campaign to Save Rhinos in India

• Rohit Sharma has always been an animal lover and always inspired his fans to show love to animals. The flamboyant batsman has already been the part of the organisation, who works for the welfare of Rhinos. Now, he takes an additional step to save the species in India by launching a new campaign named Rohit4Rhinos.
• He is launching it in partnership with WWF India and Animal Planet, to help build awareness for the need to conserve the Greater One-Horned Rhinoceros or the Indian Rhino. Rohit in the campaign pledges to do his bit to save the 'vulnerable' species from extinction. The campaign will be launched on Animal Planet to commemorate World Rhino Day on September 22.

Vaishno Devi Shrine tops list of ‘Swachh Iconic Places’

• Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine in Jammu and Kashmir has been adjudged as the Best Swachh Iconic place in the country in the ‘Swachh Iconic Places’ list released by the Ministry of Jal Shakti, Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation.
• The Shrine has been adjudged on the basis of the overall improvement in sanitation. Several initiatives were taken in the last few years to ensure the cleanliness of the entire Shrine area.

INDEX

Delhi, Mumbai slip down on Global Liveability Index for 2019

• The latest Global Liveability Index for 2019 shows that the living conditions in India's largest metropolises, Mumbai and New Delhi, are getting worse. The capital's "appalling air quality" as well as downgrades to its culture and stability score have pulled down its ranking on this year's index.
• New Delhi reportedly slipped down six ranks to 118, from the 112th spot in the 2018 Global Liveability Index, while Mumbai is now down two places at 119. The Economist Intelligence Unit's index assesses 140 cities and ranks them according to their performance in over 30 qualitative and quantitative factors across five broad categories - stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education, and infrastructure.

BANKING

ESIC ties up with SBI for DBT facility

• Employees' State Insurance Corporation has partnered with State Bank of India for direct transfer of benefits electronically into bank accounts of all stakeholders.
• As per an agreement signed between the two, SBI will provide e-payment services directly to bank accounts of all ESIC beneficiaries and payees without any manual intervention as an integrated and automated process.

APPOINTMENT

Jaideep Sarkar concurrently accredited as the next High Commissioner of India to the Kingdom of Lesotho

• Shri Jaideep Sarkar (IFS:1987), presently High Commissioner of India to the Republic of South Africa, has been concurrently accredited as the next High Commissioner of India to the Kingdom of Lesotho, with residence in Pretoria.

  CEC Sunil Arora assumes charge as AWEB Chairman

• Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora today assumed Chairmanship of Association of World Election Bodies, AWEB for the term 2019-21 as India takes over the Chair from Romania.
• India was unanimously nominated to be the Vice-Chair of AWEB at the last General Assembly held at Bucharest in 2017.
• The AWEB Flag was handed over to the new Chairman, Sunil Arora and it will remain with Election Commission of India for the two-year term till 2021. More than 110 delegates from 45 countries attended the meeting.
• AWEB Centre would be set up at the India International Institute of Democracy and Election Management, New Delhi for documentation, research and training and for sharing best practices.

 Mithali Raj retires from T20I

• Mithali Raj has retired from T20 Internationals. The former India T20 captain announced that she wanted to focus on the 2021 ODI World Cup. Mithali Raj was the first Indian cricketer to reach the landmark of 2000 T20I runs.
• Mithali Raj had captained India in 32 T20Is, including three women's T20 World Cups in 2012 (Sri Lanka), 2014 (Bangladesh) and 2016 (India). Mithali Raj had also captained the Indian side when India played its first-ever women's T20 International in Derby in 2006.

BOOK AND AUTHOR

Second Volume of ‘Loktantra Ke Swar’ and ‘The Republican Ethic’ - Compilation of Selected Speeches of President of India - to be released by Vice President

• In order to promote and disseminate selected speeches of President of India Shri Ram Nath Kovind, Publications Division under Ministry of Information & Broadcasting has published ‘Loktantra Ke Swar (Khand 2)’ and ‘The Republican Ethic (Volume 2)’. They are a compilation of 95 speeches delivered by the President during his second year in office (July 2018 to July 2019).
• The speeches present a wide panorama of our national life, covering issues ranging from diplomatic focus to good governance, from quality education to the pursuit of excellence and from welfare of our brave armed forces to the overriding spirit of Constitution.
• In view of the commemoration of 150th Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, a separate section on President’s illuminating addresses related to Gandhian world-view has also been included.