1) EESL, USAID launched Healthy and Energy Efficient Buildings.
State-run Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) has partnered with US Agency for International Development's (USAID) Market Integration and Transformation Program for Energy Efficiency (MAITREE) program and launched 'Healthy and Energy Efficient Buildings' initiative. The initiative is a part of the US-India bilateral Partnership between the Power Ministry of India and USAID.
Healthy and Energy Efficient Buildings:
♦ Healthy and Energy Efficient Buildings initiative aims to make workplaces healthier and greener.
♦ The initiative aims to accelerate the adoption of cost-effective energy efficiency measures as a standard practice within buildings, and specifically focuses on cooling.
♦ Under the initiative, EESL has become the first to implement the framework in its own offices.
♦ This initiative will address air quality and energy use concerns in buildings like directly improving comfort, health, productivity, and ultimately the quality of life of citizens in India and South Asia.
Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL):
Established: 10 December 2009
Functions under: Ministry of Power
Chairman: Rajeev Sharma.
Managing Director: Saurabh Kumar.
2) India to host AFC 2022 Asian Womens Cup.
India is to host the 2022 Women's Asian Cup. The hosting rights have been awarded to India by the Asian Football Confederation. This is the second time India will be hosting the event. India hosted the event for the first time in 1979. The information was passed by the All India Football Federation.
2022 Women's Asian Cup:
♦ Women's Asian Cup will be held in the second half of the year 2020.
♦ Women players are expected to bring social revolution in the event.
♦ The football tournament will feature 12 teams. The number of participating teams has been expanded from the previous slot of eight teams.
♦ As India hosts the tournament, India will qualify directly in the tournament.
♦ The event will serve as the final qualification tournament for the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup.
♦ In the 1979 event, India had finished as runners-up.
♦ The announcement to host the tournament comes as a measure to boost AIFF as India is to host the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup 2022.
3) Urban Forest scheme to develop 200 Nagar Van across the country in next 5 years.
Government announced the implementation of the Nagar van scheme to develop 200 Urban Forests across the country in the next 5 years. The announcement was made on the occasion of World Environment Day (WED). The move is in line with WED 2020's focus on 'Biodiversity'.
Nagar van scheme:
♦ Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change released a brochure on the best practices on Urban Forests and announcing the Nagar Van scheme.
♦ It is expected that Urban Forest will revive the age-old tradition of village forests in cities.
♦ Warje Urban Forest has been set as a role model for the Urban Forest in the country.
- ♦ It has been studied that the forest is rich in biodiversity with 23 plant species, 29 bird species, 15 butterfly species, 10 reptiles, and 3 mammal species. The Urban Forest project will help to maintain ecological balance, serving both environmental and social needs.
4) Kiran Mazumdar Shaw awarded EY World Entrepreneur of the year.
Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Founder and Chairperson & Managing Director of Biocon, has been named EY World Entrepreneur fo the year 2020. The award is to recognize her contribution to improving universal access to affordable life-saving medicine and thus transforming the world. She became only the third Indian to receive this prestigious award after Uday Kotak and Narayana Murthy. Shaw became only the second woman to receive this award. Olivia Lum of Hyflux Limited from Singapore is the first person to have won the title in 2011.
Kiran Mazumdar Shaw:
♦ Shaw founded Bangalore-based Biocon Limited in 1978. Biocon currently worth close to Rs.50,000 crore by market-cap and employs more than 11,000 people. The bio-enzyme company focus on global health care and the provision of universal access to life-saving medicine.
♦ In September 2019, Biocon announced that the company would supply Rh-insulin at less than $0.10 per day to low and middle-income countries. The price is less than a third of current RH-insulin prices.
♦ Biocon supplied more than 2 billion affordable doses of biosimilar insulins to patients globally in the last 15 years.
♦ Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Biocon is studying the use of its existing novel biologic drug Itolizumab to treat COVID-19 related health conditions in India.
5)World Environment Day observed on 5 June.
World Environment Day is observed on 5 June. The day aims to create awareness and action for the protection of the environment.
Theme:
The theme for the 2020 World Environment Day is 'Biodiversity'. The theme focuses on a concern that is both urgent and existential. The theme was based on the recent events including bushfires in Brazil, the United States, and Australia; locust infestations across East Africa; a global disease pandemic COVID-19. These have demonstrated the interdependence of humans and the webs of life, in which they exist.
History:
In 1972, the United Nations convened the first major conference on environmental issues from June 5-16 in Stockholm, Sweden. It is known as the Conference on the Human Environment (Stockholm Conference) its goal was to forge a basic common outlook on how to address the challenge of preserving and enhancing the human environment.
On 15 December 1972, the General Assembly adopted a resolution A/RES/2994 (XXVII) and designated 5 June as World Environment Day. Later, on 15 December 1972, UNGA adopted another resolution A/RES/3000 (XXVII), that led to the creation of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the specialized agency on environmental issues. In the year 1974, the first World Environment Day was celebrated with the theme "Only One Earth"
6)International Day of Innocent Children Victims of Aggression is observed on 4th June.
International Day of Innocent Children Victims of Aggression is observed on 4 June every year. The day aims to make people aware of the protection of children's rights and highlighting their suffering.
Aim:
The day aims to acknowledge the pain suffered by children from around the world who are the victims of physical, mental, and emotional abuse. It also aims to provide each and every family justice, peace, and freedom in the world.
History:
In 1997, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopted the 51/77 Resolution on the Rights of the Child. The day was established on 19 August 1982. The observation of the day originally focused on victims of the 1982 Lebanon War. Many innocent Lebanese and Palestinian children became the victims of the aggression acts by Israel. The day affirms the UN's commitment to protecting the rights of children. It is one of the important efforts to improve the protection of children in conflict situations.
7) NCVTC to develop host-directed antivirals for COVID-19 disease.
The Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB) has approved support for the research and study done by the National Centre for Veterinary Type Cultures (NCVTC), ICAR-NRC from Hisar in Haryana. The researchers will screen the library of 94 small molecule chemical inhibitors for antivirals against coronaviruses.
Highlights:
♦ The small molecule chemical inhibitors are known to inhibit cellular kinases, phosphatases, and epigenetic regulators like histone methyltransferase, histone deacetylase, and DNA methyltransferase.
♦ The researchers are exploring alternative strategies to target such cellular proteins, protein-protein (virus-host) interaction, or epigenetic regulators called host-directed antiviral therapy.
♦ The host-directed antivirals will have fewer tendencies in inducing drug resistance because it is not possible for the virus to easily change missing cellular functions by mutations.
♦ Also, host-directed antiviral agents will exert broad-spectrum antiviral effects because the requirement of host factors by viruses is usually conserved across the members of a particular virus family or sometimes even across the members of different virus families.
♦ The antiviral weapon will target cellular proteins, protein-protein (virus-host) interaction, or epigenetic regulators for COVID-19.
8) MoD places order on OFB for supply of 156 upgraded ICVs worth Rs.1,094 crore.
Ministry of Defence (MoD) has placed an order worth Rs.1,094 to Ordnance Factory Board (OFB). The aim is to boost to Make in India initiative. It was approved by the Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. The supply includes 156 BMP 2/2k Infantry Combat Vehicles (ICV) with upgraded features for use of the Mechanised Forces of the Indian Army.
Highlights:
♦ Under this, the combat vehicles will be manufactured by Ordnance Factory, Medak in Telangana.
♦ The vehicles are aimed to enhance the combat capability of the Army.
♦ The BMP-2/2K ICVs will be powered by 285 horsepower (HP) engines and are lower in weight which will make them highly mobile to meet all tactical requirements of mobility on the battlefield.
♦ These ICVs will reach a speed of 65 kilometres per hour (kmph) with easy steering ability in cross country terrain.
♦ The ICVs will have amphibious capabilities to travel at 7 kmph in water.
♦ These special vehicles are designed to overcome the slope of up to 35° cross obstacles of 0.7 metre and have lethal firepower capability.
♦ The vehicles are planned to be completed by the year 2023.
♦ With the induction of these 156 BMP 2/2K ICVs, the existing deficiency in the Mechanised Infantry Battalions will be mitigated.
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