JANUARY

STATES

Ø  Himachal CM launches ‘Shakti’ app for women’s safety

Ø  The Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh, Jai Ram Thakur has launched the ‘Shakti’ app for women’s safety in the state. The app, which comes with a panic button, was developed by the National Informatics Centre (NIC) of the Himachal Pradesh government. It would be available in both Hindi and English languages and would not require internet connectivity.

Ø  Kolkata becomes 1st Indian Metro to get a Floating Market

Ø  Kolkata has become the first Indian Metro to get a Floating Market. The market will be located on a water-body with boats doubling up as shops. The market, located on the eastern fringes of the city, was inaugurated by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. The aim is to rehabilitate over 200 shopkeepers from a nearby market that was demolished for the widening of the Eastern Metropolitan Bypass. The market will host at least 114 boats, each one accommodating two shops.

Ø  Maharashtra bans sale of Tobacco at shops selling FMCG items

Ø  The Maharashtra Government has banned the sale of Tobacco in shops selling Fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) items in the state. The move aims to ensure that youngsters do not get addicted to tobacco products.

Ø  Manipur Govt launches health assurance scheme for poor & disabled people

Ø  Manipur Government has launched the Chief Minister-gi Hakshelgi Tengbang (CMHT), a health assurance scheme for the poor and disabled people. It was launched by Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh. The CMHT scheme will provide cashless treatment to poor at government hospitals, health centres and other empanelled selected private hospitals.

Ø  India’s 1st Garbage Festival Organised in Chhattisgarh

Ø  The Raipur Municipal Corporation in Chhattisgarh organized the three-day ‘Kachra Mahotsav 2018′. It is India’s first Garbage Festival. The festival aimed to increase awareness, use the waste generated in the city creatively, and to showcase multiple techniques for reusing things that are labeled as garbage.

Ø  Maharashtra govt launches ‘Balasaheb Thackeray Shaheed Sanmaan’ scheme

Ø  The Maharashtra government launched ‘Balasaheb Thackeray Shaheed Sanmaan scheme, under which family members of martyrs would be provided jobs with the Maharashtra State road Transport Corporation (MSRTC). The scheme was announced in the presence of Chief Minister Devendra Fednavis and Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray. Under this, apart from jobs, wives of martyrs would also be provided with lifetime free bus passes. The MSRTC also launches a scheme for the youth in the Naxal-affected areas, under which driving training schools would be started for them.

Ø   Khandu inaugurates World War II Memorial Museum in Arunachal

Ø  Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu inaugurated the World War II Memorial Museum in the state’s Changlang district bordering Myanmar. Built by the Union Culture Ministry, the Rs 2.25 crore museum in memory of those who laid down their lives in World War II is located adjacent to the historic Stilwell Road and is expected to boost international and domestic tourist inflow especially from Southeast Asian countries.

Ø   Maharashtra becomes first state to unveil Public Cloud Policy

Ø  Maharashtra became first state in country to unveil Public Cloud Policy that virtually mandates state government departments to shift their data storage onto cloud. Earlier in October 2017, State Government had formed four-member committee to draft policy framework on cloud usage, which had submitted a policy document that’s being now adopted as public cloud policy.

Ø  Odisha CM launches ‘Mukhyamantri Kalakar Sahayata Yojana’

Ø  Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik has launched the ‘Mukhyamantri Kalakar Sahayata Yojana’ (MMKSJ) – an assistance scheme for Artists in the state. Around 50,000 artists will be benefited from this. The government has decided to give Rs 1,200 per month as artist assistance. The CM confirmed that the government has also changed the eligibility criteria for availing MMKSJ. Under the new scheme, a male artist can avail assistance after attaining the age of 50 years instead of the existing 60 years. The age criteria for female artists have been reduced to 40 years from 50 years.

Ø  Sikkim Govt allows people to forge fraternal ties with trees

Ø  Sikkim Government has allowed people from state to forge fraternal ties with trees. In this regard, State Forests, Department has issued notification titled Sikkim Forest Tree (Amity & Reverence) Rules 2017. The purpose of this move is to preserve trees by encouraging people to forge relationship of brotherhood or sisterhood with trees through tradition practice locally known as Mitini or Mith/Mit.

Ø  PM inaugurates Rajasthan’s first oil refinery at Barmer

Ø  Prime Minister Narendra Modi has inaugurated the project commencement of the Rajasthan Refinery at Pachpadra in Barmer district. This is the first oil refinery in the state. The 43,000 crore rupee project is a joint venture between HPCL and the Rajasthan government. The refinery is expected to be operational in 4 years and the state will have an additional income of 34,000 crore rupees from it. The project is expected to generate thousands of direct and indirect jobs.

Ø   

Ø  Bhopal becomes India’s 1st Railway Station to have ‘Happy Nari’ Pad-Vending Machine

Ø  Bhopal railway station has become the first railway station in the country to have a sanitary napkin vending machine. The machine dispenses two sanitary napkins at the cost of Rs 5 only. The sanitary pads vending machine has been named ‘Happy Nari’. This is the first railway station in India to have a sanitary napkin vending machine.

Ø  Bihar government bans electronic cigarettes in state

Ø  Bihar government has banned manufacture, distribution, sale, purchase, display, and advertisement of electronic cigarettes in the state. Anyone violating the ban will attract a jail term of up to 3 years, the government notification stated. E-cigarettes are smoked through electronic nicotine delivery system, which uses liquid nicotine, propylene glycol, glycerine, and water among other substances.

Ø  A R Rahman named brand ambassador of Sikkim

Ø  Music maestro A R Rahman was named the official brand ambassador of Sikkim at the ceremony of the Sikkim Red Panda Winter Carnival in Gangtok. He is also referred to as the “Mozart of Madras”. This is the first time that the Himalayan nation has chosen someone to become the brand ambassador of the state.

Ø  Chandigarh records the highest GER for girls

Ø  Chandigarh has recorded the highest Gross Enrolment Ratio or GER for females in all categories of higher education at 68.8 percent. Across India, according to the report, of the total number of colleges, only 9.3 percent are exclusively for girls and 15 universities for women. The overall GER of the country has increased from 24.5 percent in 2015-16 to 25.2 percent in 2016-17.

Ø  Haryana becomes First State to launch High Risk Pregnancy Portal

Ø  Haryana has become the first state in the country to launch High Risk Pregnancy (HRP) Portal. This portal not only helps in early identification of high-risk pregnant cases up to the grass-roots level but also ensures their timely referral to the civil hospitals for further management and delivery by specialists. This innovative web application has been designed to track every high risk pregnant woman till 42 days after delivery, so that she receives adequate treatment during the ante-natal period for healthy outcome of pregnancy.

Ø  Lalu jailed for 3.5 years in fodder scam

Ø  RJD chief Lalu Prasad was sentenced to three-and-a-half years in jail and fined Rs 1 million by a special CBI court in a fodder scam case relating to fraudulent withdrawal of Rs 89.27 lakh. This is the second time that he has been jailed in the fodder scam. Prasad faces another three scam cases for illegal withdrawal from three other treasuries.

Ø  International kite festival begins in Gujarat

Ø  The international kite festival which attracts kite flyers from across the country and the world began in Ahmedabad. The international kite festival was inaugurated by Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani at Sabarmati Riverfront. The state government-sponsored festival will culminate on January 14, which is celebrated as Uttarayan (Makar Sankranti).

Ø  CM Nitish receives Mufti Mohammad Sayeed award in J&K

Ø  Bihar Chief minister Nitish Kumar has been given the first Mufti Mohammad Sayeed Award for Probity in Public Life. The award was constituted recently by the Jammu and Kashmir government to commemorate the death anniversary of PDP founder and two-time J&K chief minister Sayeed who died on January 7, 2016 after nearly a week-long hospitalization in New Delhi. Sayeed was father of J&K CM Mehbooba Mufti.

Ø  Meghalaya signs host city contract for 39th National Games in 2022

Ø  Meghalaya signed the Host City Contract with the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) for hosting the 39th National Games in 2022. The tripartite contract was signed between the IOA, the Meghalaya State Olympic Association, and the state government. Meghalaya had made the bid to host the 39th National Games after successfully co-hosting the South Asian Games in 2017.

Ø  Haryana makes Solar plants mandatory in new buildings

Ø  The Haryana government has mandated installation of Solar Photovoltaic Power plant in new buildings as per specified norms. This has been done in a move to conserve electricity and use it efficiently. The government says the move aims to efficient use of electricity and its conservation in the state.

Ø  171st Araadhanai Music Festival begins in Tamil Nadu

Ø  The 171st Araadhanai Music Festival of one of the Trinities of Carnatic music Saint Thyagaraja begins in Thiruvaiyaru, Tamil Nadu. The festival was inaugurated by Governor Banwarilal Purohit. The main function of the festival is the choral singing of Thyagaraja’s five kritis in Ghana ragas. Over 1,000 musicians from all over the world are expected to pay homage to Saint Thyagaraja during the course of the five-day festival.

Ø  Bhavantar Bharpai scheme in Haryana

Ø  To counter farm distress, Haryana government has launched Bhavantar Bharpai scheme (or the price deficit compensation scheme for vegetables). It is set on the lines of Minimum Support Price-type (MSP) formula for four vegetable crops, namely, potato, onion, cauliflower and tomato. The launch of the scheme is aimed at ensuring income of up to Rs 48,000 to 56,000 per acre to farmers.

Ø  Kolkata bans public display of weapons

Ø  The Kolkata Police has come out with a notification banning public display of weapons in the city for the whole of 2018. The order is effective from January 2. The notification specifies certain exemptions, but religious processions are curiously not among them. The order will not extend to persons like the President of India, governors of state and lt-governors or commissioners.

Ø  Arunachal Pradesh declared open defecation-free State

Ø  Arunachal Pradesh was officially declared Open Defecation Free (ODF) state. It is second State from Northeast, after Sikkim and overall fifth state after Himachal Pradesh, Kerala and Haryana to be declared ODF state. The announcement comes after three remaining districts – Upper Subansiri, Siang and Changlang were officially declared ODF. Arunachal Pradesh has total 21 districts and it attained this major cleanliness feat under Swach Bharat Abhiyan much before (one year and 10 months ahead) the national deadline of October 2, 2019.