Correct Answer :   Sikkim

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SBI Life Insurance Company has signed a bancassurance pact with the State Bank of Sikkim (SBS) at the bank's headquarters in Gangtok, Sikkim.

The landmark agreement highlights SBI Life's commitment to make insurance solutions accessible to the residents of Sikkim, through its trusted bancassurance partner.

Ensuring greater reach and penetration, the partnership will see extensive distribution network of the State Bank of Sikkim spread across the state offer SBI Life's diverse range of protection, wealth creation and savings insurance products to its customers.

This partnership will not only ensure easy accessibility of insurance products but will also empower the customers to address their complete financial needs under one roof.

SBI Life Insurance Company is carrying on business of life insurance and annuity. The Company’s life insurance business comprises of individual life and group business, including participating, non-participating, pension, group gratuity, group leave encashment, group superannuation, group immediate annuity, unit-linked insurance products, variable insurance products, health and micro insurance..

Source : Moneyworks4me

Correct Answer :   Assam

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The Assam government on Tuesday (3rd Oct 2023) said that it will conduct a socio-economic survey of the state's five indigenous Muslim communities so that measures can be taken for their upliftment.

Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma held a meeting with senior officials at the state secretariat regarding it.

The findings of the assessment will guide the state government to take suitable measures, aimed at comprehensive socio-political and educational upliftment of the indigenous minorities, it said.

The development comes a day after the Nitish Kumar government in Bihar released findings of its much-awaited caste survey, months ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, which revealed that OBCs and EBCs constitute 63 per cent of the state's total population..

Source : Business Standard

Correct Answer :   Jammu and Kashmir

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Basohli Pashmina, a more than 100-year-old traditional craft from Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua district, has got the Geographical Indication (GI) tag, an official spokesman said on Tuesday (03 Oct 2023).

The Department of Industries and Commerce achieved the milestone in coordination with NABARD Jammu and Human Welfare Association, Varanasi, the spokesman said.

Earlier this year, the famed Basohli painting and Chikri wood from Rajouri district of Jammu division received the GI tag.

Basohli Pashmina, a hand-spun product known for extreme softness, fineness and light-weight, has insulating properties and extended life, the spokesman said, adding all these qualities make the Basohli Pashmina unique.

Pashmina products include shawls for both men and women, mufflers, blankets and basket.

Directorate of Handicrafts and Handloom Jammu initiated steps to revive the centuries old craft of Basohli Pashmina by setting up common facility centres for weavers, increasing the periphery of registered weavers as well as cooperative societies, developing clusters and providing benefits of various departmental schemes to them, the spokesman said.

GI tag is a name or a sign given to certain products related to specific geographical locations..

Source : Hindustan Times

Correct Answer :   Narayan Rane

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Union Minister of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Department, Narayan Rane, inaugurated the ‘Khadi Mahotsav’ organized by Khadi and Village Industry (KVIC) in Mumbai on Monday (2nd Oct 2023).

Addressing the gathering, Narayan Rane applauded the commendable work being done by Khadi and village industries, highlighting their substantial growth in recent years. He noted that in 2014-15, KVIC had a business turnover of 30 thousand crore rupees, which has since surged to an impressive one hundred and thirty-four thousand crore rupees.

He added that this remarkable growth can be attributed to innovative methodologies implemented over the past nine years.
 
The ‘Khadi Mahotsav’ will be held till October 31st. It will not only showcase Khadi products but also feature 'Vocal for Local' exhibitions to promote indigenous products. During this period, customers can avail themselves of a 20 to 25 percent discount on Khadi products. The festival is also hosting a jingle competition for the youth and a video game competition centered around Khadi and village industry themes..

Source : AIR

Correct Answer :   USA

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Outside India, The largest statue of Dr. BR Ambedkar will be unveiled in the United States on October 14, 2023. The 19-foot statue, named ‘Statue of Equality,’ is part of the Ambedkar International Centre (AIC) being built on 13-acre land in Accokeek city of Maryland, approximately 35 kms south of Washington.

“This is the largest statue of Babasaheb outside India and has been installed as a part of the Ambedkar Memorial being constructed at this centre,” said the AIC.

Born on April 14, 1891, Dr Bhim Rao Ambedkar – popular among his followers as Babasaheb – was the chairman of the Constituent Assembly’s most crucial Drafting Committee that earned him the moniker Architect of the Indian Constitution.

Post-Independence, he was also the Minister of Law and Justice in Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru’s first Cabinet. Ambedkar played a key role in social movements that fought for the rights of Dalits and untouchables.

Ambedkar died on December 6, 1956, months after he embraced Buddhism on October 14 that year, the date coinciding with the unveiling of the statue in Maryland. October 14 is celebrated as Dhamma Chakra Parivartan Din by Ambedkarites.

The statue has been made by renowned artist and sculptor Ram Sutar, who also built the statue of Sardar Patel, called as Statue of Unity, and installed on an island in Narmada, metres downstream of the Sardar Sarovar Dam in Gujarat.

“Large number of representatives of the Ambedkarite movement and his followers are expected to attend the event from across the USA and other parts of the world,” it said.

According to the AIC, this memorial will serve to spread Babasaheb’s messages and teachings and showcase a symbol of equality and human rights.

Representatives from various countries are expected to attend the statue’s unveiling ceremony on October 14..

Source : OutLook

Correct Answer :   Nitin Gupta

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The Union government has extended the tenure of Nitin Gupta, the incumbent chairman of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), till June 30, 2024.  A notification in this regard was issued 30th Sep 2023.

The nine-month extension for Gupta came on the day when he was scheduled to retire and demit office. As per the Centre's notification, his service period has been extended “on a contract basis".

The government order said the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) has approved the reappointment of Gupta as the CBDT Chairman..

Source : AIR

Correct Answer :   Hyderabad

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The solar-roofed cycling track around Hyderabad's Outer Ring Road (ORR) was officially inaugurated on Sunday (1 October 2023).

This 23-kilometre track is first-of-its-kind and is designed to be environmentally friendly. The newly opened Healthway Cycling Track is a unique facility with a global design.

It is divided into two distinct stretches. The first section covers a distance of 8.5 kilometres, running from TSPA to Nanakramguda. The second stretch spans 14.5 kilometres, extending from Narsingi to Kollur.

It is a three-lane track which is 4.5 meters wide, with a strip of green grass of one meter on either side.

Additionally, there will be five strategically located access points along the track, allowing entry from Narsingi, Kollur, TSPA, Vattinagulapalli, and Nanakramguda.

One remarkable feature that sets the Hyderabad track apart is the installation of an impressive 16,000 solar panels on its roof. Previously, only South Korea could boast such an achievement.

KT Rama Rao, the Minister of Municipal Administration and Urban Development, who officiated the track's inauguration, described it as India's first-of-its-kind solar-covered cycle track.

These solar roof panels have the potential to generate an impressive 16 megawatts of electricity, equivalent to powering 32,000 streetlights or illuminating 800 kilometres of city streets.

The path is guarded by V-shaped columns made of SS steel. The roofing sheets, sourced from a factory in Ahmedabad and fabricated on-site, are made of GI with anodised coating.

The design of the panels was customised in collaboration with experts from the Indian Institute of Technology, Hyderabad, and Osmania University's College of Engineering. The project aims to create modular pieces for easy installation and maintenance.

The financial benefits of this sustainable energy source are significant. The investment in the solar panels is expected to be fully recouped in just six years, with the entire project becoming financially self-sustaining within 15 years..

Source : Swarajyamag

Correct Answer :   Indonesia

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President of Indonesia Joko Widodo inaugurated the first high-speed railway in Southeast Asia on Monday (2nd Oct 2023). It is a key project under the Belt and Road Infrastructure initiative of China.

The project has been beset with pauses and rising costs. Some observers question its commercial benefits. However, Widodo has championed the 142-kilometre (88-mile) railway. On Sunday (1st Oct 2023), the project got an official operating license from the Transportation Ministry.

Largely funded by China, the USD 7.3 billion project was constructed by PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia-China, known as PT KCIC. It is a collaborative venture between an Indonesian consortium of four state-owned companies and China Railway International Co. Ltd..

Source : Financial Express

Correct Answer :   Tripura

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Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha launched an e-cabinet system at Agartala on Wednesday (27th Sep 2023) to promote digital infrastructure development and digitisation of government services and information.

Tripura has thus become the fourth state—and second in the Northeast—after Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and Arunachal Pradesh, to have introduced an e-cabinet system. All future cabinet meetings in the state will be paperless, reducing the carbon footprint and environmental degradation in the process, with ministers and bureaucrats using tablets.

All ministers attended the event at the new Secretariat complex, where the chief minister launched the app to be used for the e-cabinet.

In the debut e-cabinet meeting, the government approved a proposal to procure a loan of Rs 160 crore from the Asian Development Bank, which has earlier provided soft loans with low interest rates to the government and partnered with it in several developmental projects.

In Tripura, various departments have worked on mission mode & implemented e-Office initiative, ensuring smooth governance.

Today felicitated such departments having 100 percent e-Office facility during a programme at the Secretariat.

I congratulate all the officials concerned… pic.twitter.com/zGBa7PvC5R

— Prof.(Dr.) Manik Saha (@DrManikSaha2) September 27, 2023

The new ADB fund will be used by the tourism and urban development department for boosting infrastructure and fostering an ecology of sustainable livelihood generation, Tourism Minister Sushanta Chowdhury said.

Chief Minister Saha said the e-cabinet would follow a similar model introduced in Uttarakhand. The e-cabinet system was launched by executives of the National Informatics Centre as well as the state’s information and cultural affairs department..

Source : Indian Express

Correct Answer :   Jitendra Singh

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Dr Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology, MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, today launched the IGMS 2.0 Public Grievance portal and Automated Analysis in Tree Dashboard portal of the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG).

The Intelligent Grievance Monitoring System (IGMS) 2.0 Dashboard has been implemented by IIT Kanpur following an MoU with DARPG on December 14, 2021 for upgrading DARPG Information Systems (CPGRAMS) with Artificial Intelligence capabilities. The Dashboard provides instant tabular analysis of Grievances Filed & Disposed, State-wise & District-wise Grievances Filed & Ministry-wise data. Besides, the Dashboard will also help the officials identify the root cause of the grievance.

With a ballooning caseload of problems being raised by the common man and their trust in the timebound redressal of their grievances, close to 20 lakh grievances are received annually on the CPGRAMS portal. In view of the large number of grievances, the classification and monitoring of grievances cannot be done manually. Thus, the IGMS portal will help the DARPG with creation of draft letter for selected scheme/ministry and expedite the grievance redressal process by the concerned ministry/department.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Jitendra Singh, said Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has flagged again and again that Grievance Redressal is important for accountability of the Government and also for the Citizen-centric Governance. A more robust human interface mechanism including Counselling post-resolution of the grievance has also been introduced.

The Minister commended the DARPG for making the CPGRAMS portal available in 22 Scheduled languages along with English so that the common man could avail of its benefits. He also underlined the need to integrate State PG portals and other government portals with CPGRAMS.

Dr Jitendra Singh said that for the first time, the average disposal time of public grievances by Central Ministries & Departments has reduced due to reforms undertaken by DARPG in the CPGRAMS. He noted with satisfaction that there has been a decline of almost 50% in the average disposal time for Central Ministries/Departments from 32 days in 2021 to 18 days in 2023..

Source : PIB