Assam Current Affairs – June 08 – 14, 2019

Current Affairs Assam – June 08 - 14, 2019

( Covers all important Assam Current Affairs & GK topics for the week of June 08 – 14, 2019 )

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June 08, 2019


Madhabdev College upgraded to University
  • Assam State government elevated the Madhabdev College in Lakhimpur’s Narayanpur to a university by appointing its first Vice Chancellor.
  • The university now fulfil the aspirations of thousands of college passouts to go for various masters programmes from interior areas of Lakhimpur, Biswanath and Majuli districts who usually could not make it to Dibrugarh and Gauhati University for long distance and limited intake capacities.
  • Founded in 1964, Madhabdev College is one of the leading centres of higher education in Lakhimpur district with both humanities and science streams. It has a sprawling campus ideal for academic establishments like a university and fairly good infrastructure.
  • Professor Dibakar Chandra Deka, Head of the Department of Chemistry, Gauhati University has been appointed as the Vice Chancellor of Madhabdev University who will soon assume his office in Narayanpur. An alumnus of Gauhati University and IIT-Kharagpur, Prof Deka did MSc in Organic Chemistry in 1983, M Tech in High Pressure Technology and Catalysis from IIT-Kharagpur, PhD on Organic Reaction under Pressure from IIT-Kharagpur, Diploma in Synthetic Organic Chemistry from Tokyo Institute of Technology, and DSc in Organic Synthesis from Gauhati University.
  • A former UNESCO Research Fellow in Japan and Commonwealth Visiting Fellow at University of Manchester, UK Prof Deka has a research experience of 31 years and teaching experience of 29 years.

Indo-Nepal Treaty of Trade and Transit to be amended
  • With the aim to strengthen connectivity between India and Nepal, New Delhi is taking the lead to amend a clause of the Indo-Nepal Treaty of Trade and Transit in order to explore water routes for better links between the two countries.
  • There is a clause in the Indo-Nepal Treaty of Trade and Transit, 1991, which only allows present movement by road and rail from India to
  • Couple of meeting have already been held and they have drafted the amended clause.
  • Three water routes have been accepted by both the There is in-principle approval of all these agencies of India and Nepal on the three routes.
  • The routes are the Kolkata-Sahebganj waterway and then to Nepal’s Biratnagar by road, Kolkata-Kalughat near Patna by waterway and then to Birgunj and the Kolkata-Varanasi (waterway) and then to either Nepalganj or Mahendra Nagar.
  • The Nepal government had also requested India to explore whether the Gandak river could be used as a waterway right up to the border of these two

PM Modi, Sirisena hold talks in Sri Lanka
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Sri Lanka’s President Maithripala Sirisena and the two sides agreed that terrorism is a “joint threat” that needs collective and focussed action, weeks after the island nation witnessed the worst jihadi attack.
  • Modi is the first foreign leader to visit Sri Lanka after the deadly Easter terror attacks in April. His visit is considered as a sign of India’s affirmation of solidarity with Sri Lanka in the aftermath of the attacks.
  • The two leaders discussed bilateral issues of mutual interest. A banquet was hosted in honour of Prime Minister Modi by President Sirisena.
  • Modi also held extensive meeting with the Leader of Opposition Mahinda Rajapaksa and discussed the need for close collaboration between the two countries in the fields of counter terrorism, security and economic development.

G20 Finance Ministers call for creation of Digital Tax
  • The Finance Ministers of the G20 member nations called for the creation of a digital tax for multinational technology
  • The initiative was debated during a G20 Ministerial Symposium in the Japanese city of Fukuoka, with the world’s leading industrialized countries coming out in favour of setting up a new tax model that is adapted to the digital economy.
  • The representatives from Japan, US, China, France and the UK supported modifying their current regulations.
  • G20 leaders agreed to work together to seek a consensus-based solution to address the impacts of digitalization on the international tax system.
  • The G20 ministers committed to working on charting out a “digital tax” by the end of the year and publish a report in 2020 in which the details of the measure are to be finalized.


June 09, 2019


Over 50 pc tracks under NF Railway to be electrified by 2020
  • Work on preparation of Detailed Project report (DPR) for electrification at various sections is in progress and more than 50 per cent of the total railway tracks under the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) zone will be electrified by March 2020.
  • Work on preparation of DPR is in progress for sections where electrification was sanctioned during 2018-19. Notable among these sections are Rangiya-Rangapara-Harmuti-Naharlagun (339 km), Harmuti-Murkongselek (230 km), Badarpur-Silchar section together with Arunachal-Jiribam and Katakhal-Bhairabi section, Badarpur-Karimganj-Agartala-Sabroom section together with Agartala-Akhaura and Karimganj-Mahishashan section (total 590 km) and Mariani-Jorhat Town-Furkating and Tinsukia Junction-Makum Juntion-Tirap together with Makum-Dangri section (174 km).
  • While a total of 534 km of railway lines has already been electrified, additional 2,631 km of railway line will be electrified by March 2020 (which is more than 50 per cent of the total 6,242 km of the railway track).

Maldives confers highest civilian honour on PM Narendra Modi
  • In a gesture of goodwill, showing Male’s regard for the Indian Prime Minister, the Maldivian government honoured Narendra Modi with ‘The Most Honourable Order of the Distinguished Rule of NishanIzzuddeen’, the highest honour conferred by Male on foreign dignitaries.
  • The prestigious award was presented to Modi by President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih during a ceremony.
  • Modi presented President Solih, a cricket enthusiast himself, with a cricket bat signed by the Indian team currently playing the World Cup series in England.
  • The two-day state visit of Prime Minister Modi is aimed at further cementing ties with the Indian Ocean archipelago.
  • President Solih and Modi exchanged plasantaries upon the prime minister’s arrival at Republic Square where he was accorded a ceremonial welcome.
  • Prime Minister Modi and President Solih held delegation-level talks as the two countries signed a slew of agreements to strengthen bilateral ties in a number of key areas including defence.
  • The prime minister also inspected the guard of honour.

Rakesh Makhija Appointed as Chairman of Axis Bank
  • Reserve Bank of India (RBI) approves the appointment of Rakesh Makhija as the chairman of Axis Bank. In March 2019, the board of Axis bank had approved the appointment of Rakesh Makhija as chairman subject to RBI clearance.
  • Rakesh Makhija, independent director was appointed as the non-executive (part-time) chairman of the bank, for a period of 3 years, with effect from July 18, 2019 up to July 17, 2022.
  • Rakesh Makhija has held a number of top management positions within the SKF Group. Prior to joining SKF, he was the chief executive officer and managing director of Tata Honeywell Ltd.

FACTFILE – Axis Bank

  • Axis Bank is the third-largest bank in India offering a wide assortment of financial products.
  • The bank has its head office in Mumbai, Maharashtra. It has 4,050 branches, 11,801 ATMs and 4,917 cash recyclers spread across the country as of 31 March 2019 and nine international offices.
  • The bank employs over 55,000 people and had a market capitalization of ₹1.31 trillion, as on 31 March 2018).

Coastal radar system inaugurated in Maldives by PM Modi
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Maldives Ibrahim Mohammad Solih jointly inaugurated composite training centre and coastal surveillance radar system.
  • The two sides also signed five Memoranda of Understanding apart from a technical agreement on sharing white shipping information between Indian Navy and Maldives National Defence Force.
  • The MoUs were signed after delegation-level talks between the two leaders.
  • The declaration also sought “consistent strengthening of the multilateral trading system based on the rules of the World Trade Organisation(WTO), and through opposition to the fragmentation of global trade and trade protectionism in all its forms”.

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June 10, 2019


Nagaland puts together waste management policy
  •  The Nagaland waste management policy targets efficient management and proper disposal of waste and educate the people to segregate biodegradable, recyclable and inert waste at the source.
  • The Nagaland Integrated Waste Management Policy 2019, enacted by the State Government in February this year, covers all urban and rural areas of the State.
  • The intention of the policy is to enable the community to reduce waste, reuse and recycle. As per the policy, the waste management scenario in the State is still by and large rudimentary in the absence of a proper policy or regulatory mechanism.
  • Of the urban areas comprising 19 urban local bodies of the State, only Kohima has a scientific solid waste treatment plant with 50 tonnes per day (TDPs) capacity.
  • The policy stated that some of the major issues faced in waste management, especially in the urban areas, are the availability of land, manpower, machinery and resources at the disposal of the authorities.
  • The policy stated that the Urban Development Department would ensure that all urban local bodies prepare an action plan individually as to how they will manage their wastes.

Jorhat to get new age Tea Auction Centre
  • The Tea Board of India has proposed to introduce a new age technology-based e-auction platform for tea auction at Jorhat.
  • The new age e-auction system at Jorhat will be different from the existing e-auction systems in the country’s tea auction centres.
  • ‘mjunction’, a venture jointly owned on a 50:50 basis by the Tata Steel and the Steel Authority of India (SAIL), has been selected for the purpose of running the Jorhat auction system.
  • The old e-auction system is still in use at the seven tea auction centres of the country – Kolkata, Siliguri, Jalpaiguri, Guwahati, Coimbatore, Coonoor and Kochi. These auction centres are run by the NSE.IT, a 100 per cent subsidiary of the National Stock Exchange of India Ltd.
  • The new auction system is sought to be introduced to initiate a competition among the e-auction centres and also to cut cost in tea auction.
  • Out of Assam’s total tea production, only 45 per cent is sold through auction centres at Kolkata and Guwahati, and the rest 55 per cent is sold directly from factory or exported. Hence, the new auction centre at Jorhat can target this 55 per cent of Assam’s production to bring it under the new-age auction platform.
  • Five districts of Assam – Golaghat, Jorhat, Sivasagar, Dibrugarh and Tinsukia – produce more than 470 million kg of tea annually, which is about 70 per cent of Assam’s total output.
  • Jorhat is located at a central location for all these districts as well as for tea factories of Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland. This auction centre is expected to increase economic activity in Jorhat and generate employment.

FACTFILE – Tea Production in Assam

  • Assam produced about 692 million kilograms of tea in 2018 and out of this about 188 million kg were sold through Guwahati Tea Auction Centre, while about 127 million kg were sold through the auction centre in Kolkata.

Punjab Government to promote micro-irrigation
  • Aiming for sustainable water management, the Punjab government announced that it would promote micro-irrigation of maize on 1,000 acres this season.
  • For 2019, the government has set a target of irrigating 1.5 lakh hectares. Of this, micro-irrigation of maize crop in 1,000 acres would be undertaken.
  • While 900 acres would have surface-based drip system, the remaining sub-surface-based drip system.
  • Four micro-irrigation companies would take up drip irrigation projects for maize in 10 acres each. The companies also urged reducing the 12 per cent goods and services tax (GST) on micro-irrigation to zero.
  • Earlier, a pilot micro-irrigation project was conducted for cotton by the Soil Conservation Department. Under it 200 acres of cotton crop was brought under the drip irrigation system.

India to train 1,000 Maldives civil servants
  • India’s leading civil services training institution NCGG will train 1,000 Maldives civil servants over the next five years, The Ministry of External Affairs will bear all expenses of the training programme.
  • A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the capacity building of 1,000 Maldives civil servants was signed between the National Center for Good Governance (NCGG) and Maldives Civil Services Commission during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Male.
  • The agreement envisages that the NCGG will be the nodal institution for designing and implementation of customised training modules taking into account the requirements of the Maldives Civil Services Commission.
  • The areas of training programme will include public administration, e-governance and service delivery, public policy and governance, information technology, best practices in fisheries in coastal areas, agro-based practices, self-help group initiatives, urban development and planning, ethics in administration and challenges in implementation of SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals).
  • Maldives will nominate suitable civil servants in the senior, executive and middle management levels as per agreed timelines.
  • The NCGG will also assist the Civil Services Training Institute, a subsidiary of Maldives’ Civil Services Commission, to develop training programmes and materials, and to organise the exchange of experts as needed by the Commission.
  • NCGG had trained 28 Maldives civil servants in April and this successful engagement encouraged the two countries to take the collaboration forward.

June 11, 2019


Dzükou Valley in Nagaland declared plastic-free zone
  • The Southern Angami Youth Organisation (SAYO), in affirmation to its pledge to preserve and protect the environment, has declared Dzükou Valley, a tourist destination in Kohima district of Nagaland, a plastic-free zone.
  • Nagaland Government’s adviser to Youth Resources and Sports department Zale Neikha made the declaration after unveiling a monolith on the National Highway 2 beside the entry point into the Valley in Viswema village on Wednesday.
  • Dzükou Valley as one of the most valuable assets of Nagaland besides being a tourist hotspot and the most sought after destination in the State.

Tech Mahindra partners with IIT- Kanpur on cyber security
  • With an aim to introduce innovative cyber security solutions and enhance digital resilience of critical national infrastructure, software major Tech Mahindra announced a partnership with Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur (IIT-K).
  • As a part of this research partnership, Tech Mahindra will share real world challenges in cyber security with IIT Kanpur teams to find suitable solution.
  • Through partnership with IIT Kanpur, Tech Mahindra aim to collaborate and co-create superior research-based solutions in cyber security.
  • Through this partnership, Tech Mahindra will bring real world industry exposure to students of IIT Kanpur.
  • Tech Mahindra will be working closely with IIT Kanpur on research projects to develop and foster an environment to deal with automation in cyber security and to enhance digital resilience of critical national infrastructure.

G20 Ministers issue joint statement on digital economy
  • Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors from the Group of 20 economies issued a joint statement in the Japanese city of Fukuoka after a two-day meeting on trade and digital
  • Global growth appears to be stabilizing and is generally projected to pick up moderately later this year and into 2020. However, growth remains low and risks remain tilted to the downside.
  • The finance chiefs also discussed new tax rules on global IT giants, which make huge profits through cross-border data transfers, as well as the impact of aging populations on the
  • They agreed to reform global corporate tax rules on internet giants.
  • Meanwhile, the Ministers reconfirmed their commitment to refraining from competitive currency devaluations in order to gain an unfair trade advantage.
  • They also pledged to increase their efforts to combat money laundering and funding of terrorist groups through the use of virtual assets and enhance regulations on cryptocurrency trading.
  • The agreement by the finance chiefs will be reported to their leaders at the G20 summit scheduled for June 28-29.

Sunder Pichai and Adena Friedman to be awarded with the Global Leadership Award 2019
  • Google’s Chief Executive Officer Sundar Pichai and Nasdaq’s President Adena Friedman selected for Global Leadership Awards 2019 by business advocacy group USIBC.
  • They both are recognized for their companies’ contribution as the leading technology-driven platforms.
  • Washington-based US-India Business Council (USIBC) gives this award for achievements in over 30 categories for talented people who are recognized for their work by their companies.

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June 12, 2019


Meghalaya to soon have a Water Policy
  • Meghalaya is soon going to adopt the State Water policy for better management of this precious resource in the State.
  • Chief Minister Conrad Sangma informed during an international seminar on ‘Understanding Water Crisis: The Way Forward’, organised by Synod College that the policy would be presented before the Cabinet soon.
  • The State Water Policy takes a holistic approach to water and encompasses budgeting, prioritising and equitisation of water supply and protection and conservation of catchment and springshed areas.

 India test fires Hypersonic Technology Demonstrator Vehicle
  • India successfully test-fired Hypersonic Technology Demonstrator Vehicle (HSTDV) off Odisha coast. It was test-fired from launch pad number-4 of Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Abdul Kalam Island in Balasore
  • With scramjet engine, it can cruise at Mach 6 and have multiple civilian applications. It can be used for launching satellites at low cost and long-range cruise missile.
  • The trial was conducted in the presence of the senior scientists of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Defence secretary Sanjay Mitra.
  • The HSTDV is an unmanned scramjet demonstration

Odisha to formulate new agriculture policy
  • The Odisha government will formulate a new agriculture policy, which will focus on the income enhancement of farmers.
  • Agriculture Secretary Saurabh Garg said the state government will replace Agriculture Policy 2013 with a new one that would stress on the income enhancement of farmers.
  • The Agriculture Department had sought suggestions from other departments concerned to formulate the new policy. The departments were asked to give their inputs within two weeks.
  • The vision of the draft policy was to harness Odisha’s agriculture potential in a sustainable manner and raise its farmers’ income continuously while ensuring nutritional security.
  • The draft policy is being worked out through a wide process of consultation with experts, universities, civil society bodies and farmers’ groups.
  • The policy recommends sector-wise interventions for overcoming the difficulties faced in last years and maximising of the outcomes.
  • The Odisha government has taken pioneering steps like rolling out an exclusive budget for agriculture and forming a separate Agri-Cabinet.

French Railways to develop Indian railway stations
  • India and France have signed an agreement under which the French Railways will help develop Indian railway stations. The Indian Railway Station Development Corp (IRSDC) entered into a tripartite agreement with French Railways.
  • Minister of State of Railways Suresh Angadi and French Minister of State for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean Baptiste Lemoyne were present when the agreement was signed.
  • Under this pact, French development agency AFD will provide in-kind grant of up to 7,00,000 euros through French National Railways-Hubs and Connexions as a technical partner to IRSDC to support the railway station development programme in India.
  • This will impose no financial liability on IRSDC or Indian Railways. 

World’s 100 big cities represent 10% global emissions
  • Consumption-based emissions from nearly 100 of the world’s big cities already represent 10 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions, a new study revealed.
  • Without urgent action, those emissions will nearly double by 2050. The study by C40 Cities revealed an incredible opportunity for cities and their citizens to contribute even more to the global effort to cut emissions and address the climate emergency.
  • The research tiled ‘The future of urban consumption in a 1.5 degrees Celsius world’ was produced in partnership with Arup – The University of Leeds, and cautioned that urban consumption-based emissions must be cut by at least 50 per cent by 2030 in order to maintain the possibility of keeping global temperature rise below 1.5 degrees.
  • When combined with firm city efforts to reduce local emissions, this would allow cities to deliver 35 per cent of the emission savings needed to put them on a path to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
  • High income areas, which generate the bulk of emissions, need to cut their emissions much faster, i.e. two-thirds by 2030.
  • The report explores six sectors where leaders, businesses, and citizens in the world’s cities can take rapid action to address consumption-based emissions: food, construction, clothing, vehicles, aviation, and electronics.

June 13, 2019


Tripura Govt gets IIT Kanpur help to monitor education system
  • The Tripura Government has enlisted the help of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur, to build a comprehensive data bank to monitor the education system in the State on a real-time basis.
  • The data bank, which will comprise status of teachers, non-teaching staff, information on schools, and progress of various government programmes, is considered a key area to improve the overall education system.
  • The entire system will be in the form of a grid. All offices of the inspectors of schools and district education offices will be connected to the Directorate of Education.
  • Ministers and other high officials will be able to check the status of a particular school within minutes as the data bank will be available online.

President’s Rule in J&K extended for six months
  • The Union Cabinet approved the extension of President’s Rule in Jammu and Kashmir for a further period of six months.
  • Based on the prevailing situation in the state as stated in the report of Governor of Jammu and Kashmir, the Union Cabinet, has approved the extension of President’s Rule in Jammu and Kashmir for a further period of six months with effect from July 3, 2019, under article 356(4) of the Constitution of India.
  • The present term of President’s rule in the state is expiring on July 2.
  • A resolution seeking approval of parliament for the same will be moved in both the houses of parliament during the forthcoming session.
  • The President’s rule was implemented in the state in June 2018.

Union cabinet approved the New Delhi International Arbitration Centre (NDIAC) Bill, 2019
  • The Union cabinet has approved the New Delhi International Arbitration Centre (NDIAC) Bill, 2019, with a view to promoting ease of doing businessa in
  • The Bill will be introduced in the scheduled Parliament session.
  • The Bill seems to be a positive step in establishing an independent and autonomous regime with a well-defined structure for institutionalized domestic and international arbitration.
  • Institutionalized arbitration will attract quality experts in India, and as a consequence, it will substantially reduce the cost incurred in the process of arbitration, especially at various international forums.
  • The Bill provides for setting up an independent an autonomous body for institutional arbitration and to acquire and transfer the undertakings of International Centre for Alternative Dispute Resolution (ICADR) to New Delhi International Arbitration Centre (NDIAC).
  • The Bill will replace the New Delhi International Arbitration Centre Ordinance, 2019, promulgated by President on March 2, 2019.
  • All the actions done or taken under the Ordinance which will be deemed to have been done or taken under the provisions of this Bill.
  • The Bill will help the government in establishing an independent and autonomous institution for resolving International and domestic commercial disputes expeditiously by Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) mechanism.

Tripura, Mizoram launches afforestation plan
  • The Tripura and Mizoram governments have undertaken an ambitious plan for afforestation in the two Northeastern states.
  • Tripura Forest and Tribal Welfare Minister Mevar Kumar Jamatiatold that the state government has decided to plant at least 10 lakh trees across the state this year.
  • The 70th anniversary of the ‘Banomotsav’ (annual afforestation celebrations) would be held at Sachirambari (in southern Tripura) on July 2.
  • From July 2, plantation of at least ten lakh trees of numerous varieties and species would start simultaneously across the state.
  • The 70th anniversary of the ‘Banomotsav’ (annual afforestation celebrations) would be held at Sachirambari (in southern Tripura) on July 2. From July 2, plantation of at least ten lakh trees of numerous varieties and species would start simultaneously across the state.
  • In Mizoram, the state government has also undertaken a massive afforestation

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June 14, 2019


Assam Govt to introduce free dialysis in 18 hospitals
  • The State Health department has decided to introduce free hemo-dialysis facilities in as many as 18 Government hospitals as part of the Pradhan Mantri National Dialysis Programme under the National Health Mission.
  • As per the public-private partnership, Apollo Hospitals will be responsible for execution of the programme. Apollo Hospitals will be paid Rs 1,296 for each dialysis session in the first year by the Government and the rate will increase by 8 per cent after each year till the completion of the contract.
  • The Government has signed the agreement with Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Limited for a period of five years. While 90 per cent of the cost would be borne by the Centre, the State Government would spend the remaining 10 per cent.
  • Alongside, the Government has also vouched for a study by the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR) to ascertain whether the chemical residue used for commercial vegetation in Lower and Central Assam is triggering the rise in the number of patients suffering from kidney-related ailments.
  • The first free dialysis service will begin at Nalbari’s Swahid Mukanda Kakati Civil Hospital followed by another seven hospitals in the State, which will be covered by June 20. These hospitals include Darrang’s Mangaldai Civil Hospital, Sonitpur’s Kanaklata Civil Hospital, Tezpur Medical College and Hospital, Tinsukia’s LGB Civil Hospital, Morigaon Civil Hospital, Barpeta Medical College and Hospital and Bongaigaon District Hospital.
  • In the next six months, ten more medical set ups would have similar facilities, taking the total number of hospitals offering free dialysis to 18.

Bihar launches pension scheme for poor senior citizens
  • Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar launched the Mukhyamantri Vriddha Pension Yojna for poor people above 60 years of age in the state.
  • Poor people above 60 years of age will get Rs 400 per month and those above 80 years will get Rs 500 per month.
  • The scheme, which is effective from April 1, 2019, will not cover retired government employees.
  • So far, 2 lakh people have applied online for the pension and the government expects the applications to go up to 35 to 36 lakh.

BDL, Navy sign contract for supply of torpedoes
  • Bharat Dynamics Ltd (BDL) has signed a contract worth Rs. 1,187.82 crore for supply of heavy weight torpedoes to the Indian Navy.
  • The contract was signed by N.P. Diwakar, Director (Technical), BDL and Nidhi Chhibber, Joint Secretary and Acquisition Manager (Maritime & Systems) in the Defence Ministry in New Delhi.
  • The weapon will be manufactured at BDL’s Visakhapatnam Unit under collaboration with the Defence Research and Development Organisation(DRDO).
  • The heavy weight torpedo or the ‘Varunastra’ is a ship-launched, electrically propelled underwater weapon equipped with one of the most advanced automatic and remote controlled guidance systems. The weapon system uses its own intelligence in tracing the target.

Microsoft launches AI labs with 10 colleges in India
  • Microsoft launched Artificial Intelligence (AI)-enabled digital labs in collaboration with 10 higher educational institutions in India.
  • The programme, ‘Intelligent Cloud Hub’, covers institutes including BITS Pilani, SRM Institute of Science and Technology and Trident Academy of Technology among others.
  • As part of the three-year programme, Microsoft would support the selected institutions with best-in-class infrastructure, curriculum and content, access to Cloud, AI services as well as developer support.
  • The company would also facilitate setting up of core AI infrastructure and Internet of Things (IoT) hub along with providing access to a wide range of Azure AI services like Microsoft Cognitive Services, Azure Machine Learning (ML) and Bot Services.
  • Training programmes designed for faculty would include workshops on Cloud computing, data sciences, AI and IoT.

World’s highest operating weather stations installed on Everest
  • The National Geographic Society has announced the successful installation of the world’s highest operating weather stations on Mount Everest to provide researchers, climbers, and the public with near real-time information about mountain conditions.
  • The multi-disciplinary team installed the world’s two highest operating automated weather stations at Balcony area (8,430 m) and South Col (7,945 m), as well as three other weather stations on Mount Everest.
  • The other stations were placed at Phortse (3,810 m), Everest Base Camp (5,315 m) and Camp II (6,464 m).
  • Each weather station will record data on temperature, relative humidity, barometric pressure, wind speed, and wind direction.

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