BIHAR
- Authorities gear up for plastic ban from December 14
- The state government has geared up for effective implementation of ban on plastic carry bags in urban areas from December 14. Directives have been issued to officials of different departments to take required steps to accomplish the mission.
- According to sources, the urban development and housing department (UDHD) has been made the nodal department for implementation of the proposed ban.
- If anybody is caught manufacturing, importing, storing, distributing, selling, transporting and using plastic bags, they will have to pay around Rs 5 lakh as fine. There is, however, an exception for plastic bags with thickness of more than 50 microns used in collecting and storing of biomedical waste. Plastic used in the packaging of food items and dairy products is also exempted from the ban.
INTERNATIONAL
- World Soil Day: 05 Decemeber
- The day is observed annually on 5th December to focus attention on the importance of healthy soil and advocating for the sustainable management of soil resources.
- The theme for this year’s World Soil Day is – ‘Be the Solution to Soil Pollution‘.
- According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Soil holds three times as much carbon as the atmosphere and can help meet the challenges of a changing climate.
- India to host G20 summit in 2022, 75th year of Independence
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that India will host the G20 summit in 2022, the year the country would celebrate the 75th anniversary of its Independence.
- The G20 is a grouping of the world’s 20 major economies. Modi made the announcement at the closing ceremony of the two-day summit held here in Argentina’s capital.
- Italy was to host the international forum in 2022. Thanking Italy for allowing India to play the host, Modi invited G20 leaders to India in 2022, which also marks the 75th anniversary of India’s Independence.
- The G20 economies account for nearly 90% of the gross world product, 80% of world trade, two-thirds of the world population, and approximately half of the world land area.
- Exercise SHINYUU Maitri-2018
- The Japanese Air Self Defense Force (JASDF) is in India for a bilateral air exercise SHINYUU Maitri-18 with Indian Air Force from 03-07 Dec 18 at A F Station Agra.
- The theme of the exercise is joint Mobility/Humanitarian Assistance & Disaster Relief (HADR) on Transport aircraft.
- IAF is participating with An-32 and C-17 aircraft with aircrew & observers. The focus of the exercise is set for the IAF and JASDF crews to undertake Joint Mobility/ HADR operations.
- Qatar to leave OPEC from January 2019
- Qatar has announced its decision to leave the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) from January next year and focus more on the production of natural gas.
- Qatar has plans to increase its annual exports of liquified natural gas, LPG from 77 million tons of gas per year to 110 million tons.
- Qatar is the world’s largest exporter of LPG. Qatar also wants to raise its oil production from 4.8 million barrels of oil equivalent a day to 6.5 million barrels.
NATIONAL
- Navy Day : 04 December
- The day is celebrated in honor of the maritime force’s role during the war with Pakistan in 1971 when Indian warships attacked Karachi port and successfully hurt Pakistani operations in the western coast.
- The Day is also celebrated to highlight the role the Navy plays in securing the country’s marine borders during peacetime and carrying out humanitarian missions.
- Operation Trident, the codename for the naval attack on Karachi, is considered one of the most successful operations in the post-World War II era.
· Nagaland becomes second state to adopt pan-India women helpline
- Nagaland became the first state in the Northeast and second in the country, after Himachal Pradesh, to launch a pan-India single emergency number ‘112’ under the Emergency Response Support System (ERSS).
- The launch coincided with the state’s formation day and the inaugural day of the 2018 edition of the Hornbill Festival.
- The Union Government has allocated Rs 321.69 croreunder the Nirbhaya Fund for the implementation of the ERSS project across the nation. Nagaland alone has been allocated Rs 4.88 crore for the project.
- The Justice Verma Committee, in the backdrop of the unfortunate Nirbhaya incident in December 2012, suggested for the implementation of the ‘Emergency Response Support System’ (ERSS) across India.
- Govt to issue up to 12000 FASTags to VIPs for toll-free ride
- The government will provide about 10,000 to 12,000 FASTags for vehicles attached to persons and dignitaries who are entitled for “free ride” through toll plazas on National Highways (NHs) across the country.
- Officials in National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) said, toll operators don’t get any user fee from nearly one lakh transactions every day out of a total 20-25 lakh transactions.
- According to NHAI rules, vehicles transporting and officially accompanying 25 dignitaries including President, PM, chief justices of the Supreme Court and high courts, Union ministers, chief ministers, judges of SC and HCs, defence chiefs and MPs are exempted from paying toll.