- In Riyadh, Saudi women have mounted a rare protest against the abaya, posting pictures on social media wearing the obligatory body-shrouding robe inside out. The conservative petro-state has some of the world’s toughest restrictions on women, who are required to wear the typically all-black garment in public. Powerful Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in March said wearing the robe was not mandatory in Islam, but in practice nothing changed and no formal edict to that effect was issued. Using the hashtag “inside-out abaya”, dozens of women have posted pictures of flipped robes in a rare protest against the strict dress code.
- Maldivian President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has taken the oath of office before thousands of people and hundreds of foreign dignitaries on November 17, 2018. India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi was among the more than 300 foreign dignitaries at the ceremony in Male. The visit was Modi’s first to the Maldives after years of tense relations between the two countries because of Yameen’s embrace of China during his tenure. Beijing reportedly loaned more than $1.5bn to fund a massive infrastructure boom under the former president.
- Scientists from around the world met today at the General Conference on Weights and Measures in Versailles, France, and unanimously voted for a new definition of the kilogram – one based on fundamental physical constants rather than a lump of metal held in a vault in France. From May, the official kilogram will be defined by the Planck constant, which describes the size of the smallest possible packet of energy. The Planck constant is incredibly small, so it’s measured with a specialised piece of equipment called a Kibble balance. So far, only two labs have managed to make Kibble balances, but the hope is that eventually anyone will be able to accurately weigh anything without having to fly it to France to compare it with Le Grand K.
- N. Ram, Chairman, THG Publishing Private Limited, The Hindu Group’s publishing company, was awarded the Raja Ram Mohan Roy Award by Mr. Jaitley for his lifetime contribution to journalism.
- Retired Calcutta High Court judge Ashim Kumar Roy was on November 16 appointed the new Lokayukta of West Bengal. The decision was taken at a meeting in the State Assembly where Speaker Biman Banerjee, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Leader of the Opposition Abdul Mannan were present. Justice Roy, who will occupy the post for three years, will be the second Lokayukta of the State after Samaresh Banerjee, who had served in the post between 2006 and 2009. There has been no Lokayukta in the State since 2009
- Zoram Thar is a semi-political group contesting 24 seats in the November 28 Mizoram Assembly election. The group’s president, Zaichhawna Hlawndo, prefers to call it a spiritual party that wants Jesus to control the 40-member House. An evangelist who preached across India, the U.S. and the United Kingdom, the 55-year-old Rev. Hlawndo is contesting from two seats — in Serchhip against Mizoram Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla and in the Aizawl West-I constituency.
- Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal has withdrawn the ‘general consent’ granted to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), effectively curtailing the agency’s powers in the States. The CBI and all agencies under the Delhi Special Police Establishment (DSPE) Act, 1946, will now have to approach the State government for permission on a case-by-case basis.
- Buried beneath a kilometre of snow and ice in northern Greenland, scientists have uncovered an asteroid impact crater, bigger than the area of Paris. This is the first time that a crater of any size has been found under one of Earth’s continental ice sheets, said researchers from the University of Copenhagen in Denmark. The researchers worked for the past three years to verify their discovery, initially made in the 2015.
- Oxford Dictionary has declared the adjective ‘toxic’ as the Word of the Year for what it says reflects the ethos, mood, or preoccupations in 2018. The word was selected from a shortlist that included ‘gaslighting,’ ‘incel’ and ‘techlash.’ The data showed that, after ‘chemical’, ‘masculinity’ is the most-used word in conjunction with toxic this year.
- Astronomers have discovered a frozen planet with a mass more than three times that of the Earth, orbiting the closest solitary star to the Sun. The potentially rocky planet, known as Barnard’s star b, is a ‘super-Earth’ and orbits around its host star once every 233 days, said researchers from Queen Mary University of London.
- Denmark said that it would create an international research centre focused on the fight against resistance to antibiotics, a scourge affecting almost half a million people worldwide. The International Centre for Interdisciplinary Solutions on AMR (Antimicrobial Resistance), financed by Denmark and private investors, will open in 2019 and is expected to employ up to 500 people. Denmark aims to lead future global work on finding new solutions for the serious challenges with antimicrobial resistance we are facing today.
- West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on November 16 conferred the State’s highest civilian award, Banga Bibhushan, on Binapani Devi, the head of a socio-religious body of Matuas, and announced that a new university will be set up in honour of religious leaders of the Matua community. Matua is a religious sect of Bangladeshi Dalits who predominantly belong to the Namasudra caste.
- The two-day summit to mark the World Tolerance Day was inaugurated on November 16 in Dubai. Held for the first time in UAE , the theme of the Summit was ‘Prospering from Pluralism: Embracing Diversity through Innovation and Collaboration’. The World Tolerance Summit brings together government leaders, key figures from the public and private sectors, peacekeeping ambassadors and change-makers from across the world to discuss the importance of tolerance, peace and equality, and celebrate diversity. More than 2,000 ministers and government leaders from around the world are participating in the Summit. 16th November has been declared as the World’s Tolerance Day by the UNESCO.
- In Cambodia, for the first time, two leaders of the brutal Khmer Rouge regime have been found guilty of genocide. The ruling by a UN-backed war crimes court comes almost 40 years after the fall of a brutal regime that presided over the deaths of a quarter of the population. The reign of terror led by “Brother Number 1” Pol Pot left some two million Cambodians dead from overwork, starvation and mass executions, Today’s ruling was the first to acknowledge a genocide. The Khmer Rouge’s former head of state Khieu Samphan, aged 87, and “Brother Number 2” Nuon Chea, aged 92, are the two most senior living members of the ultra-Maoist group that seized control of Cambodia from 1975 to 1979.
- The Government has delegated powers to local bodies to ensure compliance of environmental conditions for buildings, construction and area development projects measuring between 20,000 and 50,000 square metres. According to a notification of the Union Environment Ministry, local bodies have also been given the powers to ensure environmental conditions are followed at industrial sheds, educational institutions, hospitals and hostels.
- External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj handed over symbolically e-Rickshaws to Ambassador of Senegal El Hadji Ibou Boye in New Delhi. India is supplying 250 e-Rickshaws with lithium-ion batteries on grant basis to Senegal, responding to the request of President Macky Sall of Senegal to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. India has seen a surge towards battery powered e-Rickshaws in the recent past.
- The Directorate General of Shipping has proposed the establishment of a Traffic Separation Scheme (TSS) off the south-west coast of India to prevent collision incidents between merchant vessels and fishing vessels off the coast of Kerala. The proposed TSS lanes are currently under consideration, and will be located at a distance of about 90 nautical miles west of Mangalore in Karnataka, with the lanes leading in a south-easterly direction to the southernmost tip of India and ending about 40 nautical miles off south of Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu. The average distance from the coast is about 50 nautical miles.
- The 26th edition of Central and State Statistical Organizations(COCSSO) Conference was organized by theMinistry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) in collaboration with Directorate of Economics and Statistics, Government of Himachal Pradeshat Dharamshala, Himachal Pradesh on 15th and 16th November, 2018. COCSSO is an annual conference which provides a platform for the Central and State statisticians to exchange views and discuss common issues relating to statistical activities. The theme of the 26th Conference was “Quality Assurance in Official Statistics”.
- Shri Jual Oram, Union Minister for Tribal Affairs inaugurated the “Aadi Mahotsav” a National Tribal Festival to celebrate, cherish and promote the spirit of tribal craft, culture, cuisine and commerce at Delhi Haat, INA on November 16, 2018. The theme of the festival is: “A Celebration of the Spirit of Tribal Culture, Craft, Cuisine and Commerce”.
- Ministry of Women and Child Development, In pursuance of Section 3 of the National Commission for Women Act, 1990, has nominated the three Members of the National Commission for Women. They are: Smt. Chandramukhi Devi, Smt. Soso Shaiza and Smt. Kamlesh Gautam. They shall hold office for a period of three years or till the age of 65 years or until further orders from the date of assumption of charge of office, whichever is the earlier.
- Women and Child Development Ministry has approved setting up 1023 Fast Track Special Courts to dispose off pending cases of rape and POCSO Act across the country. The Empowered Committee of officers for the Nirbhaya Fund headed by Women and Child Development secretary approved it. The project has a total financial implication of over 767 crore rupees. In the first phase, 777 fast track special court will be set up in nine states and in the second phase, 246 will be set up.
- Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on November 16 said the Centre will take necessary steps for amendment of 6th schedule of the Constitution to give provision for direct funding to Autonomous District Councils. 6th Schedule, applicable in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram, gives tribal people freedom to exercise legislative and executive powers through an autonomous regional council and an autonomous district council.
- In Nepal, fifth Senior Officials’Meeting of Colombo Process has started in Kathmandu today. Senior officials and stakeholders from 12 member countries including India participating in the meeting to hold consultations on the common interests and concerns of the migrant workers and to discuss international migration. The basic objective of Colombo Process is to provide a forum for Asian labour-sending countries to Share experiences, Consult on issues faced by overseas workers, Optimize development benefits from organized overseas employment and enhance dialogue with countries of destination.
- Special tourist train Ramayana Express reached Ayodhya on November 14. The Shri Ramayana Express, a special tourist train to run on the Ramayana circuit to cover major spots related to the Hindu epic was flagged off on November 14 from Safdarjung Railway Station in Delhi. The train will complete its journey till Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu, in 16 days covering all important destinations associated with the life of Lord Ram. On day one, the Shri Ramayana Express departed with 800 passengers.
- Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi on November 15 said Hunar Haat has significantly encouraged and promoted the rich traditional heritage of master artisans who had been marginalised for a long time. Inaugurating Hunar Haat pavilion at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi, Mr Naqvi said, master artisans, including a large number of women artisans, from across the country are participating in it.
- The government will give employers the salaries for seven of the 26 weeks of maternity leave for women earning more than 15,000 rupees a month, the Women and Child Development Ministry announced on November 15. The announcement, which covers the government as well as the private sector, comes in the wake of complaints that many companies were reluctant to hire pregnant women after maternity leave was extended from 12 to 26 weeks and some were even firing women employees.
- Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on November 14, 2018 announced that his government will provide free smartphones to all the six lakh women self-help groups under its Mission Shakti programme. He said women in Odisha have come a long way and the next ceiling to be broken is the digital one.
- NITI Aayog has constituted the ‘Himalayan State Regional Council’ to ensure sustainable development of the Indian Himalayan region. The Council has been constituted to review and implement identified action points based on the Reports of five Working Groups, which were established along thematic areas to prepare a roadmap for action. The Himalayan State Regional Council will be chaired by the Dr VK Saraswat, Member, NITI Aayog and will consist of the Chief Secretaries of the Himalayan States as well as the Secretaries of key Central Ministries, senior officers of NITI Aayog as well as special invitees.
- Union Minister for Food Processing Industries Smt Harsimrat Kaur Badal on November 15, 2018 inaugurated the second Mega Food Park in Maharashtra. Promoted by M/s Paithan Mega Food Park Pvt Ltd, the Park is located in in Wahegaon and Dhangaon village in Paithan Taluka of Aurangabad district. A 3rd Mega Food Park has been sanctioned by the Ministry in Maharashtra and is under implementation in Wardha District while the first Park was inaugurated on 1st of March 2018 in Satara district.
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 14, 2018 launched Application Programming Interface Exchange (APIX), a banking technology platform designed to reach nearly two billion people worldwide who are still without bank accounts. PM Modi launched the technology platform with Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore T Shanmugaratnam after he became the first leader to address the prestigious Fintech Festival in Singapore. This project is a collaborative effort between ASEAN Bankers Association, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), and MAS.
