1. Airbnb sign a MOU with Goa government to promote tourism in the state
Tags: State News
Airbnb has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Department of Tourism, Government of Goa to jointly promote Goa as a high potential tourism destination in the world.
Airbnb, an American multinational company which stands for Air Bed and Breakfast. It is an online marketplace that connects people who want to rent out their homes to tourists who intend to visit that locality. It helps the local people to earn extra income by renting out their spare home or room to people visiting the area. It also helps the tourist save money on boarding and lodging.
The Airbnb will help the Goa Tourism Department in developing such homestay capacity across the state. The local people will be trained to offer quality tourism experience to both domestic and international tourists. It will boost the income of the local population.
2. India’s longest escape tunnel on Banihal-Katra rail link completed
Tags: State News
India's longest escape tunnel, which is 12.89 km long, built on the 111 km under-construction Banihal-Katra railway line in Jammu and Kashmir, was completed by the Indian Railways on 15 December.
Important facts
This longest tunnel is part of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Railway Line (USBRL) project.
This is the fourth tunnel on the Banihal-Katra route following the 12.75 km tunnel T-49, the longest tunnel of the Indian Railways, which was completed in January this year.
The escape tunnel ‘T-13’ has been constructed to facilitate rescue work in case of an emergency.
This tunnel is a horseshoe shaped tunnel which connects Sumber station yard and tunnel T-50 on the south side after crossing bridge no.04 over Khoda Nala on the north side at Khoda village.
Tunnel T-49 is a twin tube tunnel comprising the main tunnel (12.75 km) and escape tunnel (12.895 kms) connected with 33 cross-passages.
Longest Tunnels in India - Rail and Road Tunnels
Atal Road Tunnel, Himachal Pradesh - Longest High-Altitude Tunnel
Length: 8800 meters, or 5.5 miles, approximately.
Places Covered: West of the Rohtang Pass in the hilly terrain of the Pir Panjal Ranges on the highway that links Leh with Manali.
Location: Leh – Manali Highway, beneath the Rohtang Pass, Himachal Pradesh.
Pir Panjal Railway Tunnel, Jammu and Kashmir
Length: 11,215 metres, or 11.22 km.
Places Covered: Begins at the northern part of the town of Banihal and comes to an end at Hillar Shahabad.
Location: Forest Block 185102, Pir Panjal Range, the Himalayas, Jammu and Kashmir.
Dr Syama Prasad Mookerjee Road Tunnel, Jammu and Kashmir
Length: 9280 metres, or 9.34 km.
Places Covered: Starts from Chenani in NH44 and comes to an end at Nashri.
Location: NH44 of Chenani, Jammu and Kashmir.
Trivandrum Port Railway Tunnel, Kerala
Length: 9020 metres, or 9.02 km.
Places Covered: Balaramapuram Station, which is a part of the railway track that connects Kanyakumari to Thiruvananthapuram and comes to an end in Vizhinjam.
Location: Balaramapuram Station, Kanyakumari – Thiruvananthapuram Railway Line, Kerala
Banihal Qazigund Road Tunnel, Jammu and Kashmir
Length: 8500 meters, or roughly 8.5 km
Places Covered: The Tunnel is between two cities of Banihal and Qazigund.
Location: Pir Panjal Range of Jammu and Kashmir.
Sangaldan Railway Tunnel, Jammu and Kashmir
Length: 8000 meters, or approximately 8 km.
Places Covered: Lahli, Baramulla, Banihal, as well as Katra.
Location: Lahli Station, under the section of the Katra – Banihal, Jammu – Baramulla Railway Line, Jammu and Kashmir.
3. Assamese ‘Gamocha’ gets GI tag
Tags: State News
‘Gamocha’, a symbol of the culture and identity of Assam, has received the Geographical Indication (GI) tag from the central government, five years after the first application was made.
Important facts
The GI tag has been registered in favour of the Directorate of Handloom & Textiles of the Assam government under the Geographical Indication of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999.
The process was started in 2017 when an application for a GI tag was filed by the Institute of Handicraft Development of Golaghat district.
About Assamese Gamocha
'Gamocha' literally means towel and is commonly used on a day-to-day basis in Assamese households.
It is a hand-woven rectangular cotton cloth with a red border and various designs, traditionally presented to elders and guests by the Assamese people as a mark of respect.
It is an integral part of all socio-religious celebrations in the state and is regarded as a form of Assamese identity and pride.
For specific purposes, it is also made of expensive materials like traditional Assamese 'Pat' silk and in different colours as well.
A 'gamocha' meant for exchange during 'Bihu' festival is known as 'Bihuwan'.
4. Geographical Indication tag sought for Beypore Uru
Tags: State News
The District Tourism Promotion Council, Kozhikode, Kerala has applied for a Geographical Indication (GI) tag for the famous Beypore Uru (boat).
About Beypore Uru
It is a wooden ship/sailing boat handcrafted by skilled artisans and carpenters in Beypore, Kerala.
These boats are made purely from premium wood without using any modern technology.
Each Uru takes 1-4 years to make and the entire process is done manually.
It is a symbol of Kerala's trade relations and friendship with the Gulf countries.
The Beypore area has been a maritime hub for traders from around the world since the 1st century and the coveted Uru ships have been in high demand for almost 2000 years.
Many communities are traditionally associated with Uru-making. Prominent among these are the Odais.
Name of some items recently given Geographical Indication (GI) tag
Gamosa from Assam, Tandoor Redgram from Telangana, Raktse Carpo Apricot from Ladakh, Alibaug White Onion from Maharashtra etc. have been given GI tag.
With this, the total number of GI tags in India has gone up to 432.
Top 5 states with maximum GI tags - Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka and Kerala.
5. Meghalaya awarded for TB control programme
Tags: Awards State News
The Meghalaya government, which has adopted a 'people's movement' against tuberculosis, has recently been awarded for best practices in controlling the disease that affects 2.6 million people in India every year.
Important facts
Representatives of the health department were presented with awards for best practice in tuberculosis control, communication and social mobilisation at a national workshop aimed at ending TB infection in the national capital.
The state registered 4,189 TB cases in 2021 while in the first quarter of 2022, around 1,075 patients have been enrolled for treatment.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had set a national target to eliminate the disease, which affects more than 26 lakh Indians each year, by 2025, five years ahead of the WHO's Sustainable Development Goals.
A National Strategic Plan for TB Elimination (2017-25) has also been launched which ensures greater community engagement.
About Meghalaya
Capital: Shillong
Chief Minister: Conrad Kongkal Sangma
Governor: B. D. Mishra
6. Chief Justice of India inaugurates digitisation hubs in 10 districts of Odisha
Tags: State News
Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud on 12 December virtually inaugurated District Court Digitisation Hubs (DCDH) in 10 districts of Odisha.
Important facts
The hubs at Angul, Bhadrak, Jharsuguda, Kalahandi, Keonjhar, Koraput, Malkangiri, Mayurbhanj, Nayagarh and Sonepur, will take care of digitisation work of all 30 districts of the state.
Each DCDH will be assigned the task of digitizing the surrounding districts.
The objective of the Hub would be to digitize the disposed case records of the nearby assigned districts.
Scanning work for the paperless courts of the nearby districts would also be taken up at the DCDH concerned.
Initially, four District Court Digitization Centres (DCDC) were set up on a pilot basis in Cuttack, Ganjam, Sambalpur and Balasore districts on April 30, 2021.
Importance of Digitization Centers
The digitization work done by the Orissa High Court has emerged as a model for all the High Courts in the country.
Digitisation is the most important step towards ensuring modernisation of the judiciary, especially trial courts.
Digitization makes access to records easier for authorized persons and also ensures systematic information keeping, security of documents and records and reduction in the time taken to locate documents.
e-filing in courts
The CJI also emphasised that digitisation needs to be accompanied by e-filing otherwise it would be difficult to go on digitising everything that is filed in physical form in the long run.
The facility of e-filing is now available to advocates or litigants even in remote areas of the State.
The high court has decided to provide touch screen laptops to every judicial officer of the state to ensure paperless work.
Chief Justice Orissa High Court - S Muralidhar
Chief Minister of Odisha - Naveen Patnaik
7. Uttarakhand plans genetic enhancement of its indigenous Badri cow
Tags: State News
Uttarakhand is now planning for its genetic development to increase the productivity of the indigenous Badri cow that grazes on medicinal herbs of the Himalayas.
Important facts
The state Animal Husbandry Department proposed to use sex-sorted semen technology to improve the stock of the petite Badri cattle.
Officials proposed to opt for the embryo transfer method to produce more cattle of a high genetic stock.
The authorities decided to opt for multiple ovulation embryo transfer (MOET), a conventional embryo flush, which is the most common procedure used in advanced cattle breeding.
Ovum pick-up In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) is another technique that will be used to increase milk production.
About Badri Cow
Badri Desi Cow is a native cow species of Uttarakhand.
This cow grazes on native herbs and shrubs in the Himalayas and hence its milk has high medicinal value.
These cattle are adapted to the hilly terrain and climatic conditions of Uttarakhand.
This strong and disease resistant breed is found in the hilly areas of Almora and Pauri Garhwal districts of Uttarakhand.
Disease resistance is a very important feature of this breed as it rarely gets any diseases.
Benefits of Badri Cow milk
Badri cow milk contains about 90% A2 beta-casein protein which is the highest of any indigenous variety.
The antioxidants present in its pure desi ghee help the body absorb vitamins and minerals better, thereby boosting immunity.
The butyric acid in Badri cow ghee helps strengthen immunity by increasing T-cell production in the intestine and helps fight allergies.
Badri ghee costs ₹3,000 to ₹5,000 a kg.
8. Bhupendra Patel sworn-in as Gujarat CM for 2nd consecutive term
Tags: Person in news State News
BJP leader Bhupendra Patel took oath as the Chief Minister of Gujarat for a second straight term in Gandhinagar on 12 December in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Important facts
Governor Acharya Devvrat administered the oath as the 18th Chief Minister of the state.
Patel was sworn in as the 17th Chief Minister of Gujarat on September 13, 2021.
The BJP created history in Gujarat with a landslide and 7th consecutive victory in the 2022 elections.
Breaking his own record, Patel won the 2022 election once again from Ghatlodia constituency with a huge margin of 1,91,000 votes.
The BJP won 156 seats in the 182-member assembly, its best ever performance in the state.
The opposition Congress could win only 17 seats while Arvind Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party had to be content with just 5 seats.
Three seats went to independent candidates, while the Samajwadi Party (SP) won one seat in the state.
In the last assembly elections in 2017, BJP won 99 seats, Congress won 77 seats and NCP, BTP and Independent candidates secured 1, 2 and 3 seats respectively.
9. Mopa International Airport Goa named after Manohar Parrikar
Tags: place in news Economy/Finance Person in news State News
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the first phase of the international airport at Mopa in north Goa on 11 December 2022. He named the airport after late Goa Chief Minister and former Union Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar.
Manohar Parrikar was a towering leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party in Goa .He was the Chief Minister of Goa 2000 to 2005, 2012 to 2014 and from 14 March 2017 until his death in March 2019.
Manohar Parrikar was also the Union Defence Minister from October 2014-March 2017. He was awarded Padma Bhushan posthumously in January 2020.
Mopa Airport
In November 2016, the PM laid Mopa airport's foundation stone. It will be the second airport in the state, the first airport in Goa is at Dabolim.
10. Bengaluru will host the 1st G20 Finance Track meeting under Indian Presidency
Tags: place in news Economy/Finance Summits State News
According to the Union Ministry of Finance the first meeting under the Finance track agenda of the G-20 meeting will take place in Bengaluru from 13th to 15th December 2022. It will be hosted jointly by the Union Finance Ministry and the Reserve Bank of India. All the 20 members of the G-20 Finance and Central Bank Deputies will participate in the meeting.
India is currently the President of the G-20 and it will hold the G-20 summit meeting in September 2023 in New Delhi.
G20 Finance track and Sherpa track meeting
Before the annual summit meeting of the G-20 countries leaders, there is a series of preparatory meetings held under the Finance Track and Sherpa track to work out the agenda of the annual summit meeting of the leaders of G 20.
Finance Track meeting
The Finance Track meeting is organised by the Union Ministry of Finance and it will organise a number of such meetings on the areas of international financial architecture, financial inclusion and sustainable finance, financing for infrastructure, climate finance and tax matters.
The Sherpa track
The Sherpa track meeting is organised by the Union External Affairs ministry and is chaired by the Indian Sherpa to G 20, Amitabh Kant. Around 100 meetings will be held on issues such as employment, health, digital economy, trade, investment & industry, environment & climate etc.
The first G-20 meeting was held at Udaipur from 4-7 December 2022.
First Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors of the G-20 meeting
The first Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors of the G-20 meeting will be held during 23-25 February 2023 in Bengaluru. According to the Union Finance Ministry the Indian G-20 Presidency’s theme of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam” or “One Earth One Family One Future’ “will guide the G-20 Finance Track discussions.
G-20 is a multilateral organisation consisting of the world's major developed and developing countries. It consists of 19 countries and the European Union. The 19 member countries are Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, United Kingdom, and United States.
It was set up in 1999.
