Assam Current Affairs – August 08 - 14, 2019

Current Affairs Assam – August 8 - 14, 2019

( Covers all important Assam Current Affairs & GK topics for the week of August 8 – 14, 2019 )

August 2019 – Monthly PDF | Monthly Quiz eBook

Go To Assam Current Affairs Go To Assam Current Affairs Quiz

August 08, 2019

Assam CM lays foundation of one lakh houses under PMAY(G)

Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal laid the foundation stone of more than one lakh houses under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Grameen) at a function held at the Sarusajai Sports Complex.
The Chief Minister handed over sanction letters for loan to one thousand Self Help Groups (SHGs) under the Assam State Rural Livelihood Mission and three thousand appointment letters to youths under the Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana`
The Panchayat and Rural Development department has set a target of making two lakh houses under the PMAY.
In the financial year 2019-20, of the total 1,94,338 registered houses, the State government has received sanctions for 1,22,304 houses.

FACTFILE – Pradhan Mantri Gramin Awaas Yojana (PMGAY),

Pradhan Mantri Gramin Awaas Yojana (PMGAY), previously Indira Awaas Yojana (IAY), is a social welfare flagship programme, created by the Indian Government, to provide housing for the rural poor in India. A similar scheme for urban poor was launched in 2015 as Housing for All by 2022.
Indira Awaas Yojana was launched in 1985 by Rajiv Gandhi, the then Prime Minister of India, as one of the major flagship programs of the Ministry of Rural Development to construct houses for BPL population in the villages.
Modern technology like information communication and space technology are being used to make sure the accurate selection of beneficiaries.
PMGAY combines all of the following schemes together – Aadhaar platform, Skill India and Jan Dhan Yojana, and Make in India. Besides this, the government is also planning to deploy MGNREGA scheme to train and allocate labour
The Swachh Bharat and MGNREGA amongst other institutions funded totilets for the PMGAY scheme.
1 crore pucca houses are to be constructed for the people of the rural areas in the next three years.
Totally, 4 crore households will be constructed under the PMAY-G scheme by the year 2022
The estimated total expenditure of PMAY-G is Rs.60,000 crore.

The New Consumer Protection Bill, 2019 passed in Parliament

The new Consumer Protection Bill, 2019 proposes penalty for celebrities endorsing false or misleading advertisements of a product, along the manufacturers of the products.
The Bill was passed by the Rajya Sabha and was already approved by the Lok Sabha earlier. It will replace the Consumer Protection Act, 1986.
A Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) will be set up to protect, promote and enforce consumer rights, under the Bill.
The CCPA will have an investigation wing headed by a Director General to inquire into violations of consumer rights and for imposing penalties.
The CCPA can impose a fine of up to Rs 10 lakh on celebrity endorsers and manufacturers for a false or misleading advertisement under Clause 21.
The authority can also order imprisonment of up to two years for false advertising.
In case of a repeat offence, the authority can impose a penalty of up to Rs 50 lakh and a jail term of up to five years.
Endorsers can be barred from promoting advertisements for up to a year, extending up to three years for repeat offenders.
The Bill defines “endorsement”, as any message, verbal statement, demonstration or depiction of the name, signature of an individual.
Endorsement can also be a depiction of the name or seal of any institution or organisation, which makes the consumer to believe that it reflects the opinion, finding or experience of the person making such endorsement.

RBI slashes lending rate by 35 base points to 5.40 %

The Reserve Bank of India reduced its key lending rates by 35 basis points, the RBI’s monetary policy committee (MPC) in its third policy review of the current fiscal reduced the repo, or short term lending rate for commercial banks, by 35 basis points to 5.40 per cent from 5.75 per cent.
The reverse repo rate was revised to 5.15 per cent, and the marginal standing facility (MSF) rate and the bank rate to 5.65 per cent.
On growth, the MPC reduced the growth forecast to 6.9 per cent from 7 per cent in FY2019-20.
The GDP growth for the first quarter of FY2020-21 is projected at 7.4 per cent.
Real GDP growth for 2019-20 is revised downwards from 7 per cent in the June policy to 6.9 per cent — in the range of 5.8-6.6 per cent for H1:2019-20 and 7.3-7.5 per cent for H2 – with risks somewhat tilted to the downside.

Rajasthan launches new higher education model

A new higher education model has been launched in Rajasthan for distribution of faculties and movable assets among the government colleges at the district level to rationalise the availability of resources.
Minister of State for Higher Education Bhanwar Singh Bhati inaugurated the model, titled Resource Assistance for Colleges with Excellence, in the presence of principals of colleges.
The colleges in need will submit their requirement to the nodal college in the district, which will send the teachers on deputation, if needed, and provide the facilities such as projectors, digital libraries, equipment and technicians
The model will help the colleges situated in small towns facing shortage of faculties and infrastructure.
Though the sanctioned posts of teachers in the government colleges are 6,500, the State at present falls short by about 2,000 teachers.
Until the additional posts are created and new appointments made, the RACE is expected to help channelise resources and ensure quality education.

August 09, 2019

Guwahati slips to 81^stspot from 26^th spot in Smart Cities list

The delay in starting the major projects under the Guwahati Smart City Limited (GSCL), has made Guwahati slump from the 26th position to the 81st in the list of smart cities in the last three years.
High officials of GSCL said that at the initial stage they had proposed some major projects like pan city, development of the Borsola Beel, development of the Bharalu river, development of the Deepor Beel, development of the Morabharalu river, development of the Brahmaputra riverfront, installation of smart bio-toilets and water ATMs, refurbishment of the Gandhi Mandap, etc.
But due to various technical reasons and delay caused by dragging official formalities, the GSCL could not start most of these projects except installation of bio-toilets and water ATMs along with refurbishment of the Gandhi Mandap.
Due to some technical reasons, the GSCL has handed over the Deepor Beel Development Project to the forest department. The forest department is yet to take any step to implement the project.
The GSCL is going to start developing the Brahmaputra riverfront and the pan city project soon. They have already obtained ‘no objection certificates’ from most of the line departments for these two projects and the work will start soon.
Under the Brahmaputra riverfront development project the GSCL will prepare a master landscape design for a 6-km stretch of the riverfront for development of a walkway, cycle track, jogging track, smart city pavilions, etc. It will also take bank protection measures along with various infrastructural works like development of viewpoint, water stairs, fountains, interactive pond, ramps, stairs, jetty, ferry terminals, kiosks, bridges over outflow structures, etc.

Delhi Cabinet approves Free wifi Hotspot in the Capital

The Delhi cabinet approved free WiFi hotspots across the national capital, there will be 11,000 hotspots all over the city.
A total of 4,000 hotspots will be installed at bus shelters and 7,000 in various colonies. Each of the 70 Assembly constituency will get 100 hotspots
The project, with an estimated cost of Rs 100 crore, will be on ground in three-four months.
Each user will get 15 gb limit per month.
About 200 users can use the hotspots simultaneously having a speed of 200 mbps in a radius of 50 meters.
The free WiFi will be an addition to what people are already getting from the telecom companies.

Indian firm develops MedGeneome Labs test to detect drug-resistant TB mutation

Genetic diagnostic and drug discovery research firm MedGeneome Labs claimed to have developed the first whole genomic sequencing-based test to detect early drug-resistant mutation in tuberculosis (TB) bacteria.
The breakthrough DNA test will enable a doctor to correctly prescribe the most effective drug to a TB patient without a time-consuming trial and error process.
The test is based on the whole genome sequencing of mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB), the TB causing bacteria, to assess the mutations in bacteria”s genome and allows a clinician to determine which drug will work for a patient.
The conventional tests available in the country equip us to identify resistance in a limited fashion. Mtb (Mycobacterium tuberculosis) is slow-growing, taking 6-8 weeks for culture growth, thereby delaying not only TB diagnosis, but also the drug resistance testing.
Spit sequence is a culture-free method to identify Mtb and predict drug resistance in 10 days.

IIT-M, NIOT working on generating power from ocean waves

Researchers at Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IITM) and National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT) are working towards developing better turbines that can harness the power of ocean waves to generate electricity.
The research is being headed at IIT-M by Dr Abdus Samad, Associate Professor, Department of Ocean Engineering, who works towards extracting energy from the ocean waves.
The recent research by IIT-M and NIOT, is being funded by Ministry of Earth Sciences, Government of India, and focuses on improving the devices and machines used for wave energy harvesting.
The challenges to realising practical wave energy have been that while waves harbour copious energy, they are also unsteady and the ocean has unpredictable forces acting on the energy devices.
Efficient recovery of energy from waves hinges on improving the performance of devices that convert inconsistent wave movement to electricity.
The aerodynamic performance of the turbine plays a major role in the wave-to-wire conversion efficiency.
The turbine is the heart of the wave energy system and a huge amount of research works are done through fluid dynamic analysis, experimental system development, design, and tests.

August 2019 – Monthly PDF | Monthly Quiz eBook

Go To Assam Current Affairs Go To Assam Current Affairs Quiz

August 10, 2019

Indo-Bangla talks on NE connectivity with Chittagong

India and Bangladesh held preliminary discussions on the proposed new connectivity between the North Eastern States and the port city of Chittagong in Bangladesh.
The discussions took place during the delegation-level meeting held between Railway Minister Piyush Goyal and visiting Bangladesh minister Nurul Islam Sujan at the Rail Bhavan.
India and Bangladesh have decided to enhance railway connectivity between the two neighbours.
The Railway Minister announced that the frequency of the Kolkata-Dhaka Moitree Express and the Kolkata-Khulna Bandhan Express would be increased to meet growing demand of passengers from both countries.
On the proposed connectivity between the North East and Chittagong, the details would be firmed up during the visit of Bangladesh Prime Sheikh Hasina and Prime Minister Narendra Modi when the former is expected to visit India in October.
India and Bangladesh are in the process of laying a new railway line connecting Tripura and Bangladesh. Work had already started on the 45-km rail link between Agartala and Akhaura, a sub-district of Chittagong.

Two wildlife reserves near Mumbai declared as ‘Eco-Sensitive Zone’

The Centre has declared two wildlife sanctuaries near Mumbai as ”Eco-Sensitive Zone”(ESZ), according to Union Minister for Environment Prakash Javadekar.
There are 11 more such ESZs in Tamil Nadu and Chhattisgarh,
The two wildlife sanctuaries in Maharashtra are Tungareshwar Wildlife Sanctuary (TWLS) and Tansa Wildlife Santuary (TWS), both lush green areas spread across several hundred square kms in Palghar and Thane districts adjoining Mumbai.
They also serve as the catchment areas for lakes and reservoirs supplying drinking water to the country”s commercial capital.
The total protected area of the TWLS is around 86 sq km and will have the ESZ of 67 sq km.
For the TWS, the total protected area would be around 305 sq kms with the ESZ of around 490 sq km which will also include 150 villages.
Both the TWLS and TWS are ranked as major habitats for several wildlife, including leopards.
Declaring an ESZ, or a buffer zone, around a wildlife reserve would help conserve the ecosystem since only agriculture, a few small scale industries and minor infra-works are permitted within the ESZ.

UP Govt plants 22 crore saplings in a day

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath launched a massive plantation drive by planting a sapling in Jaiti Khera village of Lucknow. The state government plans to create a world record by planting 22 crore saplings in a day.
The Chief Minister said that next year, the state would set a target of planting 25 crore saplings in a day.
He asked the forest officials to identify the trees that are over 100-year-old and take steps to preserve them as heritage trees.
A sum of Rs 100 crore had been provided from the Chief Minister”s Contingency Fund for the plantation drive, under which saplings planted have been geotagged to ensure monitoring of their growth.

August 11, 2019

J&K Re-organisation Act gets President”s approval

President Ram Nath Kovind gave his approval to the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, which was passed by the Parliament.
Notwithstanding the controversy, the Bill was passed in the Parliament with the Lok Sabha giving its nod after a little over seven hours discussion. The Bill was passed in the Rajya Sabha earlier.

FACTFILE – Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019

The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 is an act of the Parliament of India. It contains provisions to reconstitute the Indian-administered state of Jammu and Kashmir, a part of the larger region of Kashmir, which has been the subject of dispute among India, Pakistan, and China since 1947, into two Indian-administered union territories, one to be called Jammu and Kashmir, and the other Ladakh, on 31 October 2019.
The introduction of the bill was preceded by a Presidential Order under the Article 370 of the Indian Constitution, which superseded the 1954 Presidential Order.
A bill for the act was introduced by the Minister of Home Affairs, Amit Shah, in the Rajya Sabha, on 5 August 2019. The bill was passed in Rajya Sabha the same day and was passed by the Lok Sabha on 6 August 2019.
The introduction of the bill was preceded by a presidential order under Article 370 of the Indian constitution that revoked Jammu and Kashmir’s special status.

Jharkhand govt launches direct money transfer scheme for small farmers

Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu launched the Jharkhand government’s ‘Mukhya Mantri Krishi Ashirwad Yojana’ under which money will be directly transferred into the bank accounts of farmers in the state
Under the scheme, beneficiaries having farm land of less than one acre to five acres, will get 5,000 to 25,000 rupees in their bank accounts.
As soon as Mr Naidu launched the scheme, money was transferred into the bank accounts of farmers, and some them showed their mobile phones with the money transfer message to the vice-president.
Mr Naidu said conservation of rainwater should be made people’s movement and hoped that farmers will use traditional method to help conserve ground water.
Praising the Centre and the state government’s efforts in protecting the interests of farmers, Mr Naidu stressed on the importance of developing village and recalled the efforts made by him when he was the Union Rural Development minister.
Under the Mukhya Mantri Krishi Ashirwad Yojana, approximately 35 lakh farmers will benefit and by October 3,000 crore rupees will be sent in the accounts of the beneficiaries.

TCIL signs MoUs with Benin, Guinea

Telecommunications Consultants India Ltd, a PSU under Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, has entered into a strategic alliance with the African countries of Benin and the Republic of Guinea, as part of a larger pan-African e-network project on education and medicine.
A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to this effect was signed by President Ram Nath Kovind during the first ever state visit from India to Benin, Gambia and Guinea.
The MoU is for setting up of the e-VBAB Network as part of a larger pan African e-network project on education and medicine. The e-VBAB is e-vidhyabharti and e-arogyabharti (e-VBAB) network.
TCIL will, initially, extend free tele-education courses to about 15,000 African students and tele-medicine courses to 5,000 doctors and paramedics in Africa, which may be extended more on a self-sustainable model later after looking at its success.
The PAN African e-network project has been now renamed as e-Vidya Bharati and e-Arogya Bharati (e-VBAB) Network Project.
The Ministry of External Affairs has initially proposed to start a pilot project with 14 African countries namely Ghana, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi, Zambia, Uganda, South Sudan, Liberia, Benin, Republic of Guinea, Ivory Coast, Mozambique and Sudan. TCIL has initially signed an MoU with two countries — Benin and The Republic of Guinea – during the President’s recent visit to West Africa.

August 2019 – Monthly PDF | Monthly Quiz eBook

Go To Assam Current Affairs Go To Assam Current Affairs Quiz

August 12, 2019

Government signs peace pact with Tripura terror outfit National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT)

A tripartite Memorandum of Settlement (MoS) was signed in New Delhi between the Central and Tripura governments and National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT) facilitating to surrender of 88 terrorists of the banned outfit.
After the signing of the MoS, the NLFT (SD) representatives called on Home Minister Amit Shah in New Delhi.
the MoS was signed by Union Home Ministry’s Joint Secretary (North-East) Satyendra Garg, Tripura government’s Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Kumar Alok and Sabir Kumar Debbarma and Kajal Debbarma on behalf of the NLFT (SD faction).
NLFT (SD faction) has agreed to abjure the path of violence, join the mainstream and abide by the Indian Constitution.
It was agreed that the 88 NLFT cadres would surrender soon with their arms and ammunition.
The government also told the NLFT (SD) leaders that surrendered members of the outfit would be given surrender benefits as per the Surrender-cum-Rehabilitation Scheme, 2018 of the Union Home Ministry.

FACTFILE – National Liberation Front of Tripura

The National Liberation Front of Tripura (abbreviated NLFT) is a Tripuri nationalist militant organisation based in Tripura, India. It has an estimated 550 to 850 members.
The NLFT seeks to secede from India and establish an independent Tripuri state, and is an active participant in the Insurgency in Northeast India.
The NLFT is currently designated as a terrorist organisation in India.
T he Baptist Church of Tripura was initially set up by missionaries from New Zealand in the 1940s. Despite their efforts, even until the 1980s, only a few thousand people in Tripura had converted to Christianity. In the aftermath of one of the worst ethnic riots, the NLFT was born in 1989 with the backing of the Baptist Church of Tripura.

FACTIFLE – Tripura Peace Accord

Tripura Peace Accord is the tripartite accord signed-in on 10 August 2019 by the Government of India, Government of Tripura and the National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT) to end the insurgency.
The tripartite memorandum of understanding was signed by Satyendra Garg, Joint Secretary (Northeast) of Ministry of Home Affairs, Kumar Alok, Additional Chief Secretary (Home), Tripura and Sabir Kumar Debbarma and Kajal Debbarma of NLFT.

Two crore farmers to be enrolled under Pradhan Mantri Kisan Maan-Dhan Yojana

The CSC e-Governance Services India, which manages over 3.5 lakh common service centres across the country, has set a target of enrolling 2 crore small and marginal farmers under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Maan-Dhan Yojana by August 15.
The PM-KMY was launched by Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh which entitles eligible farmers for monthly pension of Rs 3,000 per month.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare has roped in CSC, a special purpose vehicle under the Ministry of Electronics and IT, as exclusive “enrolling agency” for enrollment of subscribers.
Any eligible farmer who wants to join the scheme can visit his nearest CSC along with his Aadhaar card and bank passbook or account details.
Village Level Entrepreneurs (VLEs), who manage CSCs, will complete online registration process after taking all relevant details of farmers.
After the authentication process is completed, the enrolled farmer will be informed and his PM-KMY Pension Card with a unique Pension Account Number will be generated.
The scheme is being implemented across the country, including Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh. Farmers holding up to 2 hectare farm land will be eligible for the PM-KMY scheme.

GRSE launches 5^th Fast Patrol Vessel for coast guard

The fifth and last Fast Patrol Vessel for the Indian Coast Guard was launched at the Raja Bagan Dockyard Unit of premier warship maker Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE).
Inspector General Rajan Bargotra, Commander Coast Guard Region (North East) and others senior GRSE and ICG Officials graced the occasion.
The ship – 50M long, 7.5 M wide and with a displacement of around 308 Tons – has a maximum speed of 34 knots with an endurance of more than 1,500 nautical miles.
The FPVs come with an efficient hull form developed in-house and proven after extensive model testing.
The FPV designs, which are exclusive to GRSE are an improvisation on the Inshore Patrol Vessels (IPV) built by the defence PSU for the Indian Coast Guard in 2013.
The fuel- efficient and powerful platforms are well suited for patrolling, anti-smuggling, anti-poaching, and rescue operations.

August 13, 2019

**‘Bulbul Can Sing’ wins Rajat Kamal Award at the National Film Award**

‘Bulbul Can Sing’ by renowned director Rima Das has won the National Film Award and has been declared the best Assamese film. The 66th National Film Awards were announced by chairperson, feature film category Rahul Rawail, chairperson, non-feature film category, AS Kanal, and chairperson, best writing on cinema Utpal Borpujari.
Gujarati film Hellaro was declared the best feature film, while Badhai Ho bagged the award for best popular film providing wholesome entertainment. Hindi movie Padman was declared best film on social issues, while Kannada film Ondalla Eradalla got Nargis Dutt Award for Best Feature Film on National Integration.
Ayushman Khurana and Vicky Kaushal jointly won the best actor award for their performances in Andhadhun and Uri: The Surgical Strike
Keerthy Suresh was declared winner of the best actress trophy for her performance in Telugu movie Mahanati.
Aditya Dhar won the best director award for Uri: The Surgical Strike.
Marathi movie Naal received the Indira Gandhi Award for Best Debut Film of a Director.
Rima Das of Village Rockstar fame won the Rajat Kamal Award, which carries a prize money of Rs 1 lakh. Produced by Flying River Films, the film was awarded for capturing the trials, tribulations and aspirations of a group of teenagers in rural Assamese backdrop.
The Land of Poison Women directed by Manju Bora and produced by Aaas Productions also won Rajat Kamal Award for depiction of an individual’s effort to break the myth of “poison women” in a remote part of Arunachal Pradesh.
Bobby Sarma Baruah was awarded the Rajat Kamal for Best Sherdukpan Film for the film Mishing, which was produced by BB Entertainment Trade Private Limited.
Ma’ama directed by Dominic Sangma and produced by Anna Films was adjudged the best Garo film.

FACTFILE – National Film Awards

The National Film Awards is the most prominent film award ceremonies in India. Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India and the Indian Panorama, by the Indian government’s Directorate of Film Festivals since 1973.
Every year, a national panel appointed by the government selects the winning entry, and the award ceremony is held in New Delhi, where the President of India presents the awards. This is followed by the inauguration of the National Film Festival, where the award-winning films are screened for the public.
Declared for films produced in the previous year across the country, they hold the distinction of awarding merit to the best of Indian cinema overall, as well as presenting awards for the best films in each region and language of the country. Due to the national scale of the National Film Awards, it is considered the Indian equivalent of the American Academy Awards.

Goa CM signs MoU for business ties with Russian province

Chief Minister Pramod Sawant signed and exchanged a memorandum of understanding for business cooperation with Governor of Russian province of Kamchatka, Vladimir Ilyukhin, at Vladivostok, Russia.
Sawant is in Russia, as part of a 150-member-strong Indian delegation led by Union Minister Piyush Goyal, which includes Chief Ministers of Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.
Russia, chaired a sectoral session on minerals, metals, rare-earths and fisheries with business representatives of India and Russia.
Goa is one of the favourite beach tourism destinations for Russian tourists, near a lakh of who visit the state every year.

World’s largest water pump house begins operation in Telangana

Lakshmipur pump house, a key component of Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project (KLIP) and claimed to be the world’s largest pump house, has successfully commenced operations in Telangana.
Megha Engineering and Infrastructures Limited (MEIL) unveiled Laximpur Underground Pumping Station (LUPS), also called as the Package 8 of the mega project across the Godavari river.
Around 3,000 cusecs of water was lifted to a height of 111 meters and flown into Mid-Manair reservoir through the gravity canal.
LUPS would enable live storage of water in reservoirs throughout the year in the Godavari river belt.
MEIL described the pump house as outstanding engineering marvel as it is the world’s largest underground pumping station constructed at 470 feet below the earth’s surface.
Billed as the world’s largest multi-stage lift irrigation project, Kaleshwaram was formally inaugurated in June.
It is designed to irrigate 45 lakh acres for two crops in a year, meet drinking water requirement of 70 per cent of the state and also cater to the needs of industry.

Reliance jio in long-term strategic partnership partners with Microsoft

Reliance Jio has announced a long-term strategic partnership with Microsoft. The two companies working together on a number of solutions comprising connectivity, computing, storage solutions, and other technology services and applications essential for Indian businesses.
Microsoft will be working with Jio to give a push to data analytics, AI (Artificial Intelligence), cognitive services, blockchain, Internet of Things, and edge computing among small and medium enterprises to make them ready to compete and grow, at the same time help in the GDP growth in India.

August 2019 – Monthly PDF | Monthly Quiz eBook

Go To Assam Current Affairs Go To Assam Current Affairs Quiz

August 07, 2019

North East Startup and Craft Fair gets under way

The North East Startup and Craft Fair-2019 organised by NEDFi at the newly constructed NEDFi Haat at Rupnagar, was inaugurated by Dr Inder Jit Singh, Secretary, Ministry of DoNER.
The fair has a total of 54 participants out of which 27 are startups. Seven participating startups have been funded by NEDFi. With varieties of tea stealing the show at national and international exhibitions, the NEDFi event has white tea from Nagaland and white and purple tea from Barpathar in Karbi Anglong on offer.
The state-specific products include sun-dried roselle, non-fermented bamboo shoots, sun-dried Mizo lomba flower, hatkora candy, zinger drink and roasted inca seeds of Mizoram. Sikkim has brought yacon syrup, organic buckwheat, beaten rice and organic pulses.
Assam’s startups and food processing units have brought purple tea, green tea, orthodox tea, passion fruit squash, pickles, king chilli sauce, lemon juice, orange juice, exotic variety rice, mustard oil, etc.
Dried and smoked chicken and pork pickle are on offer for foodies at the Manipuri stalls along with vegetarian and non-vegetarian ground spices, dry fish, black rice, etc.
The Nagaland stalls are offering ginger powder, white tea, dried cardamom, fruit candies of pineapple, wild apple and gooseberry. Meghalaya has brought turmeric latte brand, red sticky rice, lakadong turmeric powder, coffee and black pepper.
The craft section has masks from Majuli, wrap-around dresses from Nagaland, Arunachal, Mizoram and Manipur, tribal jewellery from Arunachal and Nagaland, black pottery and kauna craft from Manipur and other traditional attire and handicraft from the eight NE states.

Government issues scheme for PSBS purchase of pooled assets of NBFCS

The Government has issued a scheme regarding partial credit guarantee, The Scheme would enable the public sector banks (PSBs) to purchase pooled assets of financially sound NBFCs amounting to Rs.One lakh crore.
It is expected that this measure would provide liquidity to the NBFC Sector and, in turn, enable them to continue to play their role in meeting the financing requirements of the productive sectors of economy including MSME, retail and housing.
The scheme has been named as ‘Partial Credit Guarantee offered by Government of India (GoI) to Public Sector Banks (PSBs) for purchasing high-rated pooled assets from financially sound Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs)/Housing Finance Companies (HFCs)’.
The aim of the scheme is to address temporary asset liability mismatches of otherwise solvent NBFCs/HFCs without having to resort to distress sale of their assets for meeting their commitments.
The window for one-time partial credit guarantee offered by GoI will open from the date of issuance of the Scheme by the Government for a period of six months, or till such date by which Rupees One lakh crore assets get purchased by banks, whichever is earlier.

All India Radio to train students in English

The All India Radio (AIR) will now help students brush up their English speaking skill. From September 1 “Aao Angrezi Seekhein (Come lets learn English)” will be on air from 11 a.m. onwards on all working days.
The joint project by Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), Uttar Pradesh government and the UN International Children”s Fund (UNICEF) will include a total of 120 episodes of 15 minutes each that would be broadcast for the 2019-20 academic session.
The pilot project will be launched from the Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas (KGBV) where students of Class 5 to 8 of and junior high schools will take their English lessons by listening to the radio programme.
The programme will guide students on how to use English language in daily conversation and also stress on pronunciation of words.
The teachers have been directed to note down the highlights of each episode in a register and revise the lesson with students.
The programme is meant to improve their English speaking skill just by listening. Students will not be required to do any writing work.

FACTFILE – All India Radio (AIR)

All India Radio (AIR), officially known since 1956 as Akashvani, is the national public radio broadcaster of India and is a division of Prasar Bharati.
It was established in 1936 It is the sister service of Prasar Bharati’s Doordarshan, an Indian television broadcaster.
Headquartered in the Akashvani Bhavan building in New Delhi, it houses the Drama Section, the FM Section, the National Service, and is also home to the Indian television station Doordarshan Kendra, (Delhi).
All India Radio is the largest radio network in the world, and one of the largest broadcasting organizations in the world in terms of the number of languages broadcast and the spectrum of socio-economic and cultural diversity it serves.
AIR’s home service comprises 420 stations located across the country, reaching nearly 92% of the country’s area and 99.19% of the total population. AIR originates programming in 23 languages and 179 dialects.

West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee opens World’s 1^st museum on Chaitanya Mahaprabhu

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee Inaugurated the world”s first museum dedicated to the life and teachings of 16th century saint and social reformer Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
The Gaudiya Mission, a spiritual and philanthropic organisation established in 1935, propagates the teachings of Sri Chaitanya and the Vaishnava faith. It has many centres in India and temples in London and New York.
The museum is a three-storey structure built on an area of approximately 1,350 square metres and includes galleries, public utility areas and a library.
Each floor is dedicated to different phases of the saint”s life starting from his birth, his marriage with Vishupria, journey throughout the country up to the period after he attained ”Sanyasa” (sainthood).
Life-size models, 3D films, audio tracks and animatronics will ensure maximum engagement of the visitors.
The museum has been designed by the National Council of Science Museums (NCSM).

BIOGRAPHY – Shri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu

Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, was a Bengali Hindu mystic, saint, and the chief proponent of the Achintya Bheda Vedanta school and the Gaudiya Vaishnavism tradition within Hinduism.
He also expounded the Vaishnava school of Bhakti yoga, based on Bhagavata Purana and Bhagavad Gita.
Of various forms and direct or indirect expansions of Krishna such as Lord Narasimha, Mahavishnu and Garbhodaksayi Vishnu respectively, he is Krishna in the mood of a devotee.
He popularised the chanting of the ‘Hare Krishna mantra’ and composed the Siksastakam (eight devotional prayers) in Sanskrit.
His followers, Gaudiya Vaishnavas, revere him as a Krishna with the mood and complexion of his source of inspiration Radha.
His birthday is celebrated as Gaura-purnima.
Chaitanya is sometimes referred to by the names Gauranga or Gaura due to his fair complexion, and Nimai due to his being born underneath a Neem tree.

August 2019 – Monthly PDF | Monthly Quiz eBook

Go To Assam Current Affairs Go To Assam Current Affairs Quiz

AssamExam

APSC Online Coaching – Tests, Study Materials & Assam Current Affairs