International Week of Science and Peace 2021: 9-14 Nov
International Week of Science and Peace (IWOSP) is a global observance celebrated every year from November 9 to 14. The event is celebrated to encourage people to develop better technology and cultivate peace in their countries. The annual celebration of this event contributes towards the promotion of science, technologies, and peace as well as generating awareness in the general public. The participation and awareness of the events contribute to the right application of science for promoting peace all through the year.
International Week of Science and Peace 2021: History
The International Week of Science and Peace was first observed in 1986 and the event was quite successful. Keeping in view the success and impact of this event, the celebration started to take place continuously by the efforts of the organizers in the successive years. It was proclaimed as an International Week of Science and Peace by the UN General Assembly in the month of December 1988.
ICC Players of the Month for October revealed
Pakistan’s Asif Ali and Ireland’s Laura Delany have been voted the ICC Players of the Month for October. Ali beat Bangladesh’s Shakib Al Hasan and Namibia’s David Wiese to the men’s award, and Delany beat teammate Gaby Lewis and Zimbabwe’s Mary-Anne Musonda to the women’s prize.
Ali scored 52 runs without defeat across three matches for Pakistan in October at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, scoring at a strike rate of 273.68. Ireland captain Delany shone in their 3-1 ODI series win over Zimbabwe. The all-rounder flourished with bat and ball, scoring 189 runs at 63, and taking four wickets at 27.
About the award:
The International Cricket Council (ICC) presents the ICC Player of the Month to recognise male and female cricketers who have best performed across all forms of international cricket in a particular month.
The first award was given in January 2021. Given below is the list of winners
| Months | Men’s Player of the Month | Women’s Player of the Month |
| January | Rishabh Pant (India) | Shabnim Ismail (South Africa) |
| February | Ravichandran Ashwin (India) | Tammy Beaumont (England) |
| March | Bhuvneshwar Kumar (India) | Lizelle Lee (South Africa) |
| April | Babar Azam (Pakistan) | Alyssa Healy (Australia) |
| May | Mushfiqur Rahim (Bangladesh) | Kathryn Bryce (Scotland) |
| June | Devon Conway (New Zealand) | Sophie Ecclestone (England) |
| July | Shakib Al Hasan (Bangladesh) | Stafanie Taylor (West Indies) |
| August | Joe Root (England) | Eimear Richardson (Ireland) |
| September | Sandeep Lamichhane (Nepal) | Heather Knight (England) |
| October | Asif Ali (Pakistan) | Laura Delany (Ireland) |
RBI launches 1st Global Hackathon named HARBINGER 2021
The Reserve Bank of India has launched its first global hackathon named “HARBINGER 2021 – Innovation for Transformation”. The theme of HARBINGER 2021 is ‘Smarter Digital Payments’. The Hackathon invites participants to identify and develop solutions that have the potential to make digital payments accessible to the under-served, enhance the ease of payments and user experience while strengthening the security of digital payments and promote customer protection.
HARBINGER 2021 invites innovative ideas for the following problem statements in the payment and settlement systems landscape:
- Innovative, easy-to-use, non-mobile digital payment solutions for converting small-ticket cash transactions to digital mode.
- Context-based retail payments to remove the physical act of payment.
- The alternate authentication mechanism for digital payments.
- Social Media Analysis Monitoring tool for detection of digital payment fraud and disruption.
Being part of HARBINGER 2021 gives an opportunity to the participants to get mentored by industry experts and exhibit their innovative solutions before an eminent jury and win exciting prizes in each category.
- Winner: Rs 40 lakh
- Runner-up: Rs 20 lakh
Global Drug Policy Index 2021: India ranked 18th
India ranked 18th out of 30 countries in the 1st edition of the Global Drug Policy Index which was released by the Harm Reduction Consortium in November 2021. The index ranked Norway, New Zealand, Portugal, the United Kingdom (UK), and Australia as the top 5 countries on humane and health-driven drug policies.
About the Index:
The Global Drug Policy Index, a new tool that offers the first-ever data-driven global analysis of 30 countries’ drug policies and their implementation in a systematic, comprehensive and transparent manner.
Here is the list of the top 5 and bottom 5 countries:
| Rank | Country |
| 1 | Norway |
| 2 | New Zealand |
| 3 | Portugal |
| 4 | UK |
| 5 | Australia |
| 26 | Mexico |
| 27 | Kenya |
| 28 | Indonesia |
| 29 | Uganda |
| 30 | Brazil |
“MODERN INDIA: For Civil Services and Other Competitive Examinations” authored by Poonam Dalal Dahiya
Manohar Lal Khattar, Chief Minister (CM) of Haryana released the book titled “MODERN INDIA: For Civil Services and Other Competitive Examinations” authored by Poonam Dalal Dahiya, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), Gurugram. During the launch event, Poonam Dalal Dahiya gifted the first copy of the book to CM Manohar Lal Khatta The book offers comprehensive information on the history of modern India.
Morinari Watanabe re-elected as President of FIG
Morinari Watanabe was re-elected as the President of the International Gymnastics Federation or Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique (FIG) for a period of three years. Morinari Watanabe defeated Azerbaijan’s contender Farid Gayibov, in the FIG President election that was held during a conference in Turkey. Earlier, He was elected as the President of FIG in 2016 for a 4-year term.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- International Gymnastics Federation Founded: 23 July 1881;
- International Gymnastics Federation Headquarters: Lausanne, Switzerland.
National logistics index 2021 released
The Logistics Ease Across Different States 2021 Index was recently published by the Ministry of Commerce & Industry. This is the third edition of Index. In the index, Gujarat, Haryana and Punjab were emerged as best performing states with respect to mobility of goods and efficiency of logistics chain. This index provide ranking to states on the basis of logistics infrastructure.
Key Points of the Index:
- Gujarat, Haryana and Punjab are the best performing states (Top 3 slot respectively)
- Tamil Nadu (4th) and Maharashtra (5th) are among the top-5 slot.
- Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Jharkhand have witnessed a significant improvement as compared to the 2019 LEADS ranking. These states have emerged as the top improvers.
For representation purposes, states were ranked in three separate classes:
- North Eastern States
- Himalayan UTs’ and
- ‘Other UTs’ group:
- Within Himalayan UTs, Jammu & Kashmir emerged as the top rankers.
- In the North-Eastern States, Sikkim and Meghalaya emerged as toppers.
- Delhi was ranked at the top position among the “other United Territories” category.
About the Index:
The Logistic Ease Across Different States (LEADS) index was launched in 2018. It was developed by the Commerce and Industry Ministry. The index ranks states in terms of logistical support to promote goods trade. The ranking is done on the basis of parameters like the competitiveness of pricing, availability of infrastructure and services. It aims to encourage states for providing policy in order to improve their logistics-related infrastructure.
Junio ties up with RuPay for debit card for pre-teens, teenagers
Children-focussed fintech, Junio has launched a smart multipurpose card for pre-teens and teenagers on the RuPay platform. The Junio RuPay Card is designed for kids and can function as a debit card for both their online and offline purchases. Kids and parents can sign up on the Junio app, and use virtual Junio smart cards with zero annual charges. Junio Smart Card will allow youngsters to make online & offline payments with ease.
Kids and parents can sign up on the Junio app, and use virtual Junio smart cards with zero annual charges. In addition, children can enjoy up to seven per cent cashback and other reward benefits on Junio payments. The newly launched Junio Smart Card powered by RuPay will allow youngsters to make online and offline payments with ease.
IHRF appoints Daniel del Valle as the High Representative for Youth
The International Human Rights Foundation (IHRF) has appointed the Spaniard Daniel del Valle as the High Representative for Youth due to his achievements in the thematic area of youth empowerment and youth participation for the United Nations. IHRF, a non-governmental and non-profit institution.
About the Daniel del Valle:
Daniel del Valle brings to the International Human Rights Foundation his ongoing experience of serving as Policy Advisor to the Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Slovak Republic to the United Nations in New York. As a youth representative, he has distinguished himself through his creativity, dedication, energetic advocacy and awareness-raising about the importance of youth empowerment in today’s world, particularly, in developing countries and also in the context of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- International Human Rights Foundation Chairman: Garry Kasparov;
- International Human Rights Foundation Founder: Thor Halvorssen Mendoza;
- International Human Rights Foundation Founded: 2005;
- International Human Rights Foundation HQ: New York, USA.
Rohit Sharma becomes 3rd cricketer to score 3,000 runs in men’s T20Is
Indian batter Rohit Sharma has completed 3000 T20I runs and became the third cricketer in the world to achieve this feat. Rohit reached the 3000 run mark in the ICC men’s T20 World Cup match against Namibia. Virat Kohli is at the top of the tally with 3227 runs, which is followed by New Zealand’s Martin Guptill & India’s Rohit Sharma with 3115 and 3008 runs respectively.
Srinagar joins UNESCO network of creative cities
Srinagar, the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, is among the 49 cities selected worldwide to join the UNESCO creative cities network (UCCN). Prime Minister Narendra Modi hailed the inclusion as a “fitting recognition” for the vibrant cultural ethos of the old city. It has been designated as a creative city of craft and folk arts, UNESCO.
These 49 cities were added to the network of 246 cities following their designation by UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay, in recognition of “their commitment to placing culture and creativity at the heart of their development and to sharing knowledge and good practices”.
Which are the other Indian cities on the list?
- Srinagar joins Chennai and Varanasi – UNESCO Cities of music;
- Jaipur – UNESCO city of crafts and folk arts;
- Mumbai – UNESCO city of film and;
- Hyderabad – UNESCO City of gastronomy.
Wang Yaping becomes first Chinese woman astronaut to walk in space
China had launched the Shenzhou-13 spaceship on October 16, sending three astronauts on a six-month mission to the under-construction space station which was expected to be ready by next year. Wang Yaping became the first Chinese woman astronaut to walk in space as she moved out of the under-construction space station and took part in extravehicular activities for over six hours along with her male colleague Zhai Zhigang. The two moved out of the space station core module called Tianhe and spent 6.5 hours of the spacewalk in the early.
IBM launched a client innovation center in Mysuru
IBM Corp. launched a client innovation centre in Mysuru with support from the Karnataka Digital Economy Mission (KDEM) to attract companies to set up operations in cities beyond Bengaluru. This initiative aims at supporting the rapid, high-tech driven economic growth in tier-2 and -3 regions while providing comprehensive hybrid cloud and AI technology consulting capabilities.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- IBM Corp. CEO: Arvind Krishna;
- IBM Corp. Headquarters: Armonk, New York, United States;
- IBM Corp. Founded: 16 June 1911.
Punjab became 1st Indian state to approve Tissue Culture-Based Seed Potato Rules
The Punjab Cabinet headed by chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi approved the ‘Punjab Tissue Culture Based Seed Potato Rules-2021’ to develop Punjab as a standard potato seed centre. With this decision, Punjab has become the first Indian state to have the facility of tissue culture-based certification, which will develop the Jalandhar-Kapurthala belt of Punjab as the export hub of potatoes. The Cabinet also approved to introduce the ‘Punjab Horticulture Nursery Bill-2021’ by amending ‘Punjab Fruit Nursery Act-1961‘.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- Punjab Governor: Banwarilal Purohit;
- Punjab Capital: Chandigarh;
- Punjab Chief minister: Charanjit Singh Channi.
