- Krishnapatnam Port to host 9th International Youth Sailing Competition
Krishnapatnam Port in Nellore, Andhra Pradesh, is hosting the 9th edition of International Youth Sailing Competition of India from December 27th to December 31st 2017.
The port is also holding YAI Senior and Youth National Championships till December 25, which will witness sailors from across India participating in the event.
- DARPAN─ Launched For Financial Inclusion Of Rural Population
The Minister of Communications Manoj Sinha has launched DARPAN – “Digital Advancement of Rural Post Office for A New India” Project to improve the quality of service, add value to services and achieve “financial inclusion” of un-banked rural population.
The goal of the IT modernization project with an outlay of Rs. 1400 Crore is to provide a low power technology solution to each Branch Postmaster (BPM) which will enable each of approximately 1.29 Lakhs Branch Post Offices (BOs) to improve the level of services being offered to rural customers across all the states.
The 43,171 Branch Post Offices have migrated under the “DARPAN” project with the aim of financial inclusion to rural population and it is targeted to complete the project by March, 2018.
- UP govt to celebrate Ch Charan Singh’s birthday as ‘Kisan Samman Diwas’
The Uttar Pradesh government will celebrate the birthday of late Prime Minister Chaudhary Charan Singh on December 23 as ‘Kisaan Samman Diwas’.
Singh was born on December 23, 1902 in Noorpur in Meerut district of Uttar Pradesh. Influenced by Mahatma Gandhi’s non-violence, Singh entered the Independence movement. After Independence, he associated himself with socialism in rural areas.
- ‘Hamesha Vijayee’ exercise in Rajasthan
The Indian Army’s Southern Command, conducting exercise ‘Hamesha Vijayee’, is out in the deserts of Rajasthan to evaluate the capability of the armed forces to strike deep into the enemy territory in an integrated air-land battle.
The military exercise, which started from December 16 till December 22, is being carried in the general area of Barmer and Jaisalmer, and aimed at fine tuning surveillance and destruction mechanisms to support precision strikes and manoeuvres by network enabled forces.
- India International Coffee Festival to be held from Jan 16
India Coffee Trust in association with Coffee Board has announced the seventh edition of India International Coffee Festival (IICF) in Bengaluru from January 16 to January 19.
India would host in 2020 the International Coffee Organisation’s World Conference for the first time.
| Indian Coffee Trust president | Anil Kumar Bhandari |
| Coffee Board of India secretary | Srivatsa Krishna |
- Cabinet approves 1st National Rail and Transport University
The Union Cabinet has approved the Ministry of Railways’ initiative to set up the first ever National Rail and Transport University (NRTU) in Vadodara to skill its human resources and build capability.
This idea, according to a statement from the union government, will be a catalyst for transformation of rail and transport sector towards New India.
The National Rail and Transportation University will be set up as a Deemed to Be University under de novo category as per the UGC [Institutions Deemed to be Universities] Regulations, 2016.
- Cabinet approves MoU between India and Cuba on cooperation in the field of Health and Medicine
The Union Cabinet has given its ex-post-facto approval for a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Cuba on cooperation in the field of Health and Medicine. The MoU was signed on 06th December, 2017 in New Delhi.
A Joint Working Group (JWG) will be set up to further elaborate the details of cooperation and to oversee the implementation of this MoU.
- Indo UK Institute of Health set to start work on Amaravati healthcare project
The Indo UK Institute of Health (IUIH), one of the world’s largest healthcare projects with an investment of Rs. 17,600 crore in India, announced development work on the second of its 11 Medicities to come up in 11 states.
Work at Amaravati, the new capital of Andhra Pradesh, is slated to begin soon, as IUIH is scheduled to get possession of allotted land from the Andhra Pradesh government anytime now.
- UK tops Forbes’ list of best countries for business in 2018
Britain has been crowned the world’s best country in which to do business in a major vote of confidence ahead of Brexit.
It is the first time this country has taken the top spot in the Forbes annual survey after rising from fifth last year.
The US was ranked 12th, Germany 13th and France 22nd in the table of Best Countries for Business.
- Birmingham named as 2022 Commonwealth Games host city
The English city of Birmingham was today confirmed as the host of the 2022 Commonwealth Games after a troubled bidding process.
The English city of Birmingham was confirmed as the host of the 2022 Commonwealth Games after a troubled bidding process.
Places in Common Wealth Games are held
| Year | Venue of Common Wealth Games |
| 2014 | Glasgow, Scotland |
| 2018 | Gold Coast, Australia |
| 2022 | Birmingham, England |
| 2026 | Port Moresby, the capital of Papua New Guinea |
