1 Modi inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of projects worth Rs 29,400 crore
On July 13, Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived at the NESCO Exhibition Center in Goregaon , Mumbai . Here he inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of several projects worth more than Rs 29,400 crore in the road, railway and port sectors . He laid the foundation stone of the Thane-Borivali Project of the Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) and the Goregaon-Mulund Link Road Project of BMC, both projects are twin tunnels. The Thane-Borivali Tunnel Project is being built at a cost of Rs 16,600 crore. This twin tube tunnel will pass under the Sanjay Gandhi National Park, which will provide direct connectivity between the Western Express Highway in Borivali and Ghodbunder Road in Thane. The Prime Minister laid the foundation stone of the Goregaon-Mulund Link Road (GMLR) Project. The twin tunnel of the Goregaon Mulund Link Road (GMLR) project, to be built at a cost of Rs 6,300 crore, will connect the Western Express Highway in Goregaon to the Eastern Express Highway in Mulund. PM Modi laid the foundation stone of Kalyan Yard Remodelling of Central Railway and Gati Shakti Multimodal Cargo Terminal at Turbhe in Navi Mumbai. Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi inaugurated INS Towers during his visit to the Indian Newspaper Society (INS) Secretariat at G-Block, Bandra Kurla Complex, Mumbai . The new building will meet the growing needs of INS members for modern and efficient offices in Mumbai and will serve as the main hub of the newspaper industry in Mumbai.
2 India will host the first World Audio Visual Entertainment Summit – Waves in Goa from November 20 to 24 this year
India will host the first World Audio Visual Entertainment Summit – WAVES in Goa from November 20 to 24 this year. In Delhi, Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said India is one of the largest film producing countries in the world. He said WAVES will prove to be an important event that will shape the future of India’s media and entertainment industry. Addressing the event, Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said WAVES will prove to be an important milestone in the development of India’s entertainment industry. He highlighted that there is a focus on creating more jobs in the media and entertainment industry. He said the media and entertainment world is going through a phase of structural change.
3 Two-day robot competition DD-Robocon India-2024 is being held at Thyagaraj Stadium in New Delhi, Prasar Bharati and IIT Delhi are hosting the event
The two-day robot competition DD-Robocon India 2024 is underway at Thyagaraj Stadium in New Delhi . Prasar Bharati and IIT Delhi are hosting the event and over 750 students from over 45 colleges, institutes and universities are participating in the event. During the competition, robots will face each other to execute complex tasks within a stipulated time. The winning team of DD-Robocon will represent India at the international Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union Robocon 2024, which will be held in Quang Ninh, Vietnam. DD-Robocon India aims to promote technical skill development, innovation and teamwork among engineering students by providing recognition in the field of robotics. The competition is a respected platform to showcase and advance the engineering and robotics capabilities of students.
4 Government will soon launch ‘Agri Fund for Start-ups and Rural Enterprises’ (AgriSure) to provide support to startups and agripreneurs
The Government is set to launch the ‘ Agri Fund for Startups and Rural Enterprises ’ ( AGRISURE ) to support start-ups and agripreneurs through investments in sector-specific, sector-specific and debt Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs) , as well as direct equity support to start-ups working in agriculture and allied sectors. The initiative aims to promote innovation and sustainability in India’s agriculture sector through the establishment of a Category-II Alternative Investment Fund (AIF) with a corpus of Rs 750 crore. The fund will provide both equity and debt support, specifically targeting high-risk, high-impact activities in the agriculture value chain. The announcement was made at a pre-launch stakeholder meet held at NABARD headquarters in Mumbai. The event was attended by key stakeholders including financial institutions, investors, AIF managers and agri-startups.
5 Vietnam tops list of most affordable countries for expats
Vietnam is the most economical country in the world for foreigners to live in , a study has revealed. For the fourth consecutive year, Vietnam has been voted the cheapest country to live in out of 53 countries. This ranking takes into account quality of living, internet facilities, housing and language, career opportunities, salary and job security. More than 12,000 foreigners from 174 countries across the world participated in this survey. In this list, Vietnam is first, Colombia is second, Indonesia is third, Panama is fourth, Philippines is fifth, India is sixth, Mexico is seventh, Thailand is eighth, Brazil is ninth and China is tenth.
6 WHO launched MeDevIS platform for medical device information
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has launched MeDevIS (Medical Devices Information System) , an online platform designed to be the first global open access clearinghouse for information about medical devices . It aims to help governments, regulators and users make informed decisions about the selection, purchase and use of medical devices for the diagnosis, testing and treatment of various health conditions. MeDevIS contains information on 2301 types of medical devices, addressing a range of health issues such as reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health, non-communicable diseases such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes and infectious diseases such as COVID-19.
7 Country’s first rhododendron garden opened
On July 13, the country’s first rhododendron garden was established in Uttarakhand . Located in Munsiyari village, this garden has 35 species of flowers , out of which 5 are found only in Uttarakhand. Rhododendron is the most favorite variety of arboreum flower . It is the state tree of Uttarakhand , the national tree of Nepal and the state flower of Nagaland . Rhododendron flower has anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties.
8 Work on the second phase of Virat Ramayan Mandir begins
Recently, the second phase of construction of the ” world’s largest Ramayana temple ” started in East Champaran district of Bihar . The construction of the three-storey temple spread over an area of 3.76 lakh square feet started in June 2023 and is expected to be completed in 2025. The first phase of work started from June 20, 2023, in which the construction of 3200 underground pillars (piles) up to a depth of 100 feet below the ground was completed in 10 months. There is a lot of difficulty in working under the ground, which was completed successfully. In this phase, the main structure of the temple will be constructed. Rs 185 crore will be spent on this. The main structure will be 1,080 feet long, 540 feet wide and 80 feet high. Under this, piling work has been done at a depth of 100 feet. The work below the ground has almost been completed. There will be a total of 22 temples in the Virat Ramayana Mandir complex. These will have statues of all the gods and goddesses associated with the Ramayana period. In the third phase, the temple’s spire will be built and decorated. A total of 12 spires will be built in the Virat Ramayana Mandir.
9 Opening of foreign currency accounts allowed in GIFT Cities: RBI
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has expanded the scope of remittances to International Financial Services Centres (IFSCs) under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) , allowing Indian residents to open foreign currency accounts in GIFT City. The RBI decided to facilitate remittances to persons authorised to avail financial services or financial products as per the International Financial Services Centres Authority Act, 2019 within IFSCs.
10 PNB launched ‘Safety Ring’ to enhance internet and mobile banking security
In view of the rising incidence of cyber frauds, Punjab National Bank (PNB) has introduced ‘ Safety Ring ‘ security feature. This optional mechanism provides an additional layer of protection against unauthorised access , aimed at minimising potential financial losses for users of its internet and mobile banking services. ‘Safety Ring’ allows customers to set daily transaction limits for term deposits (TDs), specifically for online closure or overdraft facilities. This limit is defined by the customer and acts as a protective measure across all digital channels, preventing TDs from being closed, withdrawn or used for overdraft beyond the set limit.
11 Malala Day 2024
Malala Day , observed annually on 12 July , commemorates the birthday of Pakistani activist and youngest Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai . The day honours her courageous struggle for girls’ education and calls for global action for children’s right to education. Born on 12 July 1997 in the Swat district of Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Malala Yousafzai’s childhood was spent during a time of growing Taliban influence. In 2009, at just 11 years old, Malala began writing a blog for the BBC under a pseudonym, detailing her life under Taliban rule and her efforts to end the denial of education to girls.