GK & CA

Collection of weekly GK & CA since year 2016.

January, 2018

 

3114
Chinese scientists for first time successfully clone monkeys

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Two identical (and pretty adorable) long-tailed macaques named Zhong Zhong and Hua Hua were born eight and six weeks ago, respectively. They are the first primates to be cloned from a non-embryonic cell.

Sat, 27 Jan, 2018

3113
January 26 : Republic Day (India)

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Republic Day honours the date on which the Constitution of India came into effect on 26 January 1950 replacing the Government of India Act (1935) as the governing document of India.

Sat, 27 Jan, 2018

3112
WEF launches Global Centre for Cybersecurity

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The World Economic Forum has launched new Global Centre for Cybersecurity in a bid to safeguard world from hackers and growing data breaches-especially from nation-states. The centre will be headquartered in Geneva.

Sat, 27 Jan, 2018

3111
Rotavac: First India-designed vaccine to pass WHO test

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Rotavac became first Indigenously developed vaccine from India to be pre-qualified by World Health Organisation (WHO). It means that vaccine can be sold internationally to several countries in South America and Africa.

Sat, 27 Jan, 2018

3110
TRAPPIST-1 solar system has two planets for inhabitation

Amy Barr, a senior scientist from the Planetary Science Institute and her colleagues took a close look at geophysics of the seven TRAPPIST-1 worlds, revealing places that might brim with liquid water or boil with volcanic activity. Two of the planets, d and e, are potentially habitable - under the right circumstances, they could sustain life.

Sat, 27 Jan, 2018

3109
Scientists found a 'handfish' that can't swim, it 'walks'

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The Red Handfish (Thymichthys politus) is found only in southeastern Tasmania, an isolated island state, and until last week only about 20 to 40 of them were identified in the Frederick Henry Bay, the University of Tasmania.

Sat, 27 Jan, 2018

3108
Virginia Woolf : Feminist literary critic

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Woolf became a prominent personality in the English literary spectrum in the years between the two World Wars. One of the foremost individuals who had brought in the wave of modernism and literary feminism in English writing.

Sat, 27 Jan, 2018

3107
January 24 : National girl child day

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This celebration was started to offer more supports and new opportunities to the girls in the country. It is celebrated to increase the awareness among people about all the inequalities faced by the girl child in the society.

Sat, 27 Jan, 2018

3106
Andre Ampere : Physicist who discovered electromagnetism

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A major figure in both mathematics and physics, Andre Marie Ampere was born on January 22, 1775. The French scientist is credited with some of the earliest work in electromagnetics, which he actually referred to as electrodynamics.

Sat, 27 Jan, 2018

3105
India, Vietnam sign two agreements

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India and Vietnam signed a MoU to enhance cooperation in the field of information and broadcasting, based on principles of equality and reciprocity pursuant to their national laws and regulations.

Sat, 27 Jan, 2018

3104
India Ranked 177 in Environmental Performance Index (EPI)

India is among the bottom five countries on the Environmental Performance Index 2018, plummeting 36 points from 141 in 2016, according to a biennial report by Yale and Columbia Universities along with the World Economic Forum.

Sat, 27 Jan, 2018

3103
January 25 : National Voters’ Day

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The objective of the Day is to increase enrollment of voters, especially of newly eligible ones. It also spreads awareness among voters regarding effective participation in electoral process.

Sat, 27 Jan, 2018

3102
Tamil Nadu CM Edappadi K Palanichamy receives UNESCO Award

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The Award of Merit, 2017, was given by Unesco Asia Pacific region for the cultural heritage conservation activities taken up at the temple without altering its original splendour.

Sat, 27 Jan, 2018

3101
India’s richest 1% corner 73% of wealth generation: Survey

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According to latest survey released by the international rights group Oxfam, richest 1% in India cornered 73% of the wealth generated in country 2017. The survey shows worrying picture of rising income inequality.

Sat, 27 Jan, 2018

3100
First International Dam Safety Conference:Thiruvananthapuram

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The first International Dam Safety Conference-2018 was held in Kovalam, Thiruvananthapuram from January 23-24, 2018. This Conference is 4th in series organized under aegis of ongoing Dam Rehabilitation and Improvement Project.

Sat, 27 Jan, 2018

3099
India : President to felicitate 112 'first ladies'

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President Ram Nath Kovind has felicitated 112 exceptional women achievers at Rashtrapati Bhawan in New Delhi. These women achievers ‘FIRST LADIES’ are those who are first to set milestone of achievement in their respective fields.

Sat, 27 Jan, 2018

3098
Mercedes unveils India's first, locally made BS-VI car

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German auto major Mercedes-Benz unveiled a BS-VI-compliant S Class produced at its Pune facility, more than two years ahead of the government deadline of April 2020 for switching to new emission norms.

Sat, 27 Jan, 2018

3097
Centre to declare 2018 as ‘national year of millets’

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Government has approved 2018 as National Year of Millets to boost production of the nutrient-rich millets and the sunrise agri industry involved in it.

Sat, 27 Jan, 2018

3096
Mauritius was largest source of FDI in India 2016-2017: RBI

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A foreign direct investment (FDI) is an investment in the form of a controlling ownership in a business in one country by an entity based in another country.

Sat, 27 Jan, 2018

3095
Mangalajodi Ecotourism Trust wins prestigious UNWTO Award

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The trust was honoured with the coveted award for "Innovation in Tourism Enterprise" at the 14th UNWTO Awards ceremony held in Madrid, Spain, RBS Foundation India said.

Sat, 27 Jan, 2018

3093
India’s First Automatic Early Warning Dissemination System

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This Warning Dissemination System will be commissioned in Odisha. The project aims to establish fool-proof communication system to address existing gaps in disseminating disaster warning up to community level.

Sat, 20 Jan, 2018

3092
ISRO releases first image taken by Cartosat-2 satellite

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The first image captured by India’s recently launched weather observation Cartosat-2 series satellite shows a part of Indore city in Madhya Pradesh with the Holkar Cricket Stadium in the centre.

Sat, 20 Jan, 2018

3091
Self-healing fungi concrete could help repair buildings

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Researchers from the Rutgers University in the US found that the problem in ageing concrete stems from the smallest of cracks. Scientists have used fungi to create a self-healing concrete that could repair cracks in ageing buildings.

Sat, 20 Jan, 2018

3090
Warming oceans could damage the marine food system:study

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Global temperature rises could cause the marine food web to collapse, devastating the livelihoods of tens of millions of people who rely on fisheries for food and income, scientists have warned.

Sat, 20 Jan, 2018

3089
India, Israel ink 9 agreements to strengthen diplomatic ties

India and Israel today inked nine pacts to boost cooperation in key areas, including cybersecurity, after PM Narendra Modi and his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu held extensive talks to strengthen ties in the strategic areas of defence and counter-terrorism.

Sat, 20 Jan, 2018

3088
Rare glowing shark discovered off the coast of Taiwan

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Scientists discovered five rare (and creepy) glowing sharks with extendable jaws on the coast of Taiwan. Known as viper sharks or viper dogfish, they are known for needle-like teeth, extendable jaws that come down from the neurocranium.

Sat, 20 Jan, 2018

3087
Cloud AutoML : Artificial Intelligence deep-learning system

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Google Cloud has introduced a new product called Cloud AutoML that helps businesses and developers with limited machine learning expertise easily build powerful custom machine learning systems.

Sat, 20 Jan, 2018

3086
Xian smog tower: China builds world’s biggest air purifier

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China has constructed an experimental air purifying tower, touted to be the world’s biggest at a height of over 100 meters (328 feet). According to a report the tower has brought a positive effect on the chronic smog problem in the country.

Sat, 20 Jan, 2018

3085
Single blood test may detect eight types of cancer: study

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The test, called CancerSEEK, is a unique non-invasive, multianalyte test that simultaneously evaluates levels of eight cancer proteins and the presence of cancer gene mutations from circulating DNA in the blood.

Sat, 20 Jan, 2018

3084
India : Government ends Haj subsidy from this year

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In a big move, the government withdrew subsidy for Haj pilgrims. Announcing the decision, Union Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said it was in line with the government's agenda to empower minorities without appeasing them.

Sat, 20 Jan, 2018

3083
PM inaugurates Rajasthan’s first oil refinery at Barmer

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated HPCL Rajasthan Refinery Ltd (HRRL) project commencement of oil refinery in Rajasthan’s Barmer district. It is first oil refinery to be set up in Rajasthan.

Sat, 20 Jan, 2018

3082
Vajra Prahar:Indo-US Military Exercise to be Held in Seattle

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Army’s from India and from the United States will be participating in a joint military exercise named “Vajra Prahar” which will be held at Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM) in Seattle. The exercise will start in the third week of January.

Sat, 20 Jan, 2018

3081
Japan: WEF ranks India 30th on global manufacturing index

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The World Economic Forum (WEF) on Sunday released its Global Manufacturing Index putting India on the 30th position, five places below China, which is continuously striving to develop better avenues of manufacturing by boosting infrastructure.

Sat, 20 Jan, 2018

3080
NCDEX starts India’s 1st agri-options trading in Guarseed

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Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today launched options trading in guarseed on the commodity bourse NCDEX and asserted that the new initiative will benefit farmers and ensure better prices in the coming days.

Sat, 20 Jan, 2018

3079
Elcysma : New moth species discovered in Arunachal Pradesh

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Researchers have discovered a new species of moth from the Talle Wildlife Sanctuary in Arunachal Pradesh. The discovery of the Zygaenid moth was published in the Journal of Threatened Taxa, an international journal on conservation and taxonomy.

Sat, 20 Jan, 2018

3078
7th Rashtriya Sanskriti Mahotsav 2018 held in Karnataka

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7th edition of Rashtriya Sanskriti Mahotsav (RSM) 2018 under the Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat programme was held in Bengaluru, Karnataka from January 14-20, 2018. The event was organised by Union Ministry of Culture.

Sat, 20 Jan, 2018

3077
Delhi's Teen Murti Chowk renamed after Israeli city Haifa

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The iconic Teen Murti Chowk has been renamed after the Israeli City Haifa, a year after the plan was put on hold by the NDMC. The announcement comes after the scheduled visit of Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to India.

Sat, 20 Jan, 2018

3076
Yara : India’s first-ever FDI in fertiliser sector

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Norwegian fertiliser giant Yara International, on Friday, announced the completion of its acquisition of Tata Chemicals Ltd’s 1.2 million tonnes per annum production capacity urea plant at Babrala in Uttar Pradesh.

Sat, 20 Jan, 2018

3075
Rizhao: China commissions new missile frigate

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he People's Liberation Army Navy commissioned a new missile frigate, named 'Rizhao', in a naval port in China's Dalian located in the Liaoning Province.

Sat, 20 Jan, 2018

3074
Nepal starts receiving internet connection from China

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Nepal will receive internet bandwidth from China from tomorrow, ending the Himalayn nation's sole dependence on India for connecting to the cyber space.

Sat, 20 Jan, 2018

3071
Galileo Galilei : Father of modern physics

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Galileo Galilei was born on February 15, 1564. Some of Galileo's contributions to science and technology include the study of the phases of Venus, the discovery of four satellites of Jupiter, study of sunspots and many more.

Sat, 13 Jan, 2018

3070
Indu Malhotra first woman lawyer to be promoted as SC judge

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In a first of its kind incident in the history of Indian judiciary, the Supreme Court collegium recommended senior advocate Indu Malhotra as the first woman lawyer to be directly appointed as a judge of the apex court.

Sat, 13 Jan, 2018

3069
World’s first earthquake detector invented 2000 years ago

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The first seismometer was invented in china. When the instrument sensed an incoming seismic wave, one of the balls would drop and the sound would alert observers to the earthquake, giving a rough indication of the earthquake’s direction of origin.

Sat, 13 Jan, 2018

3068
Decoded:How flowering plants conquered the world

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Researchers from San Francisco State University in the US found that flowering plants have small cells relative to other major plant groups and that this small cell size is made possible by a greatly reduced genome size.

Sat, 13 Jan, 2018

3067
NASA sees first direct proof of ozone hole recovery

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For the 1st time, scientists have shown through direct observations of the ozone hole by a satellite instrument,built by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena,California, that levels of ozone destroying chlorine are declining, resulting in less ozone depletion

Sat, 13 Jan, 2018

3066
Pancreatic cancer accelerated by stress: study

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Stress accelerates the development of pancreatic cancer by triggering the release of “fight-or- flight” hormones, a study has found.

Sat, 13 Jan, 2018

3065
January 12: National Youth Day

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National Youth Day is celebrated in India on 12 January on the birthday of Swami Vivekananda. In 1984 the Government of India declared the day as the National Youth Day and since 1985 the event is celebrated in India every year.

Sat, 13 Jan, 2018

3064
World Bank projects 7.3% growth for India

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India’s growth rate in 2018 is projected to hit 7.3% and 7.5% in the next two years, according to the World Bank, which said the country has “enormous growth potential” compared to other emerging economies.

Sat, 13 Jan, 2018

3063
India's 1st all-women railway station enters in Limca record

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The Matunga suburban station on the Central Railway has found its way into the Limca Book of Records for having an all-woman staff. Matunga became the first railway station in the country to be run by an all- woman staff.

Sat, 13 Jan, 2018

3062
Fearless Nadia : Stunt Queen of India

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Google Doodle today is celebrating the spirit of Fearless Nadia, the original 'Stunt Queen of India'. Also known as Nadia Wadia, she was born on January 8, 1908 as Mary Ann Evans. She is one of the first female stunt artists in the Indian cinema.

Sat, 13 Jan, 2018

3061
Scientists Grow 1st Working Human Muscle From Stem Cells

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In a world first, biomedical engineers from Duke University have created the first functioning human skeletal muscle from pluripotent stem cells, which are capable of producing any form of body cell or tissue.

Sat, 13 Jan, 2018

3060
National anthem not mandatory in cinema halls: SC

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The Supreme Court modified its November 30, 2016 interim order and made it optional for cinema halls to play the 52-second national anthem before every show.

Sat, 13 Jan, 2018

3059
January 9: Pravasi Bharatiya Divas

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Pravasi Bharatiya Divas is a celebrated to mark the contribution of the overseas Indian community towards the development of India. The day commemorates the return of Mahatma Gandhi from South Africa to Mumbai on 9 January 1915.

Sat, 13 Jan, 2018

3058
Saudi okays India’s plan to ferry Haj pilgrims via sea

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Saudi Arabia has given its nod to India’s plan to revive the option of ferrying Haj pilgrims via sea route to Jeddah, Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said in a statement.

Sat, 13 Jan, 2018

3057
Haryana : First state to launch high risk pregnancy portal

Haryana has achieved the distinction of becoming 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.

Sat, 13 Jan, 2018

3056
SpaceX launches secretive Zuma mission

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SpaceX blasted off a secretive U.S. government payload known as Zuma, a mission whose nature — and the agency behind it — remains a mystery.

Sat, 13 Jan, 2018

3055
AIIB plans to issue first US dollar bonds in June 2018

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China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), in which India is a second largest shareholder, plans to issue its first US dollar-denominated bond with minimum worth of a USD billion by June this year.

Sat, 13 Jan, 2018

3054
Legendary astronaut, moonwalker John Young passes away

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John Young, NASA’s longest-serving astronaut, who flew in space six times, walked on the moon, commanded the first space shuttle, advocating for safety reforms in the wake of the 1986 Challenger disaster, died Jan. 5 at his home in Houston. He was 87.

Sat, 13 Jan, 2018

3053
Flamingo festival held at Pulicat lake in Andhra Pradesh

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Cultural programmes, performances by street artists and other programmes marked the conclusion of the annual three-day Flamingo festival at Sullurupeta and other venues.

Sat, 13 Jan, 2018

3052
26th World Book Fair held in Delhi with focus on environment

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Organised by National Book Trust, in association with ITPO, the event's Theme Pavillion will have an international rights exhibition of nearly 500 titles published in English, Hindi, and other Indian languages.

Sat, 13 Jan, 2018

3050
Superconductivity:Indian physicist finds new state of matter

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This research suggests that in this specific exotic state, each particle is not only paired with another particle, but that there are additional correlations with other particles in the environment as well.

Sat, 06 Jan, 2018

3049
Just 1.7 per cent Indians paid income tax in 2015-16: IT

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Just over 2 crore Indians, or 1.7 per cent of the total population, paid income tax in the assessment year (AY) 2015-16, according to data released by the I-T department.

Sat, 06 Jan, 2018

3048
“Gaming disorder” to get disease tag: WHO

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The disorder will be listed in the 11th edition of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD), to be published in June, WHO spokesperson Tarik Jasarevic told reporters in Geneva.

Sat, 06 Jan, 2018

3047
2nd International Ayuryog Film Festival held in Ghaziabad

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To boost up the yoga movement in India and to aware people about its importance, a non profit organization based in Ghaziabad is holding up International Ayuryog Film Festival.

Sat, 06 Jan, 2018

3046
Cookstoves in India more polluting than thought: study

Traditional cookstoves, widely used in the rural parts of India, may be producing much higher levels of particulate emissions than previously estimated, causing a detrimental impact on the country’s environment and health of residents, a study has found.

Sat, 06 Jan, 2018

3045
First Blue Moon’total eclipse in 150 years to occur soon

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A rare total lunar eclipse that involves the second full moon of the month — popularly referred to as a Blue Moon — it took place on January 31 for the first time in over 150 years.

Sat, 06 Jan, 2018

3044
Viswanathan Anand wins bronze in World Blitz championship

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Chess grandmaster Viswanathan Anand bagged a bronze in the World Blitz Chess Championship held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, after his gold winning performance in the Rapid section only a couple of days back!

Sat, 06 Jan, 2018

3043
Savitribai Phule : Founder of first girls' school

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Savitribai Jyotirao Phule (3 January 1831 –10 March 1897) was an Indian social reformer and poet. Along with her husband, Jyotirao Phule, she founded the first girls' school in Pune run by native Indians at Bhide Wada in 1848.

Sat, 06 Jan, 2018

3042
Mount Everest: Nepal bans solo and specially abled climbers

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In an attempt to reduce accidents, Nepal has declared a ban on double amputee, blind and solo climbers on world's highest peak, Mount Everest.

Sat, 06 Jan, 2018

3041
Health Ministry launches 1st online cancer tutorial Series

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The Union Health Ministry on Thursday launched the nation's first digital Online Oncology Tutorial Series, which aims to train doctors across the country in early detection, prevention, palliation, rehabilitation and treatment of various cancers.

Sat, 06 Jan, 2018

3040
Scientists identify four new balsam species

Throwing fresh light on the uncharted biodiversity in India’s north-eastern region, researchers from the University of Calicut in Kerala have reported the discovery of four new species of balsam from various locations in Arunachal Pradesh.

Sat, 06 Jan, 2018

3039
WHO approves Indian typhoid vaccine for global use

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The World Health Organisation (WHO) pre-qualified the first conjugate vaccine for typhoid, Bharat Biotech’s Typbar-TCV -- believed to be the only one safe for infants -- at the end of December 2017, confirmed the vaccine manufacturer on Wednesday.

Sat, 06 Jan, 2018

3038
Cabinet approves MoU between India and UK in transport

The Union Cabinet has approved signing and implementation of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRTH) and ‘Transport for London’.

Sat, 06 Jan, 2018

3037
GAIL commissions India's 2nd largest rooftop solar plant

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A 5.76 Mega Watt peak (MWp) rooftop solar power plant has been installed by the gas utility GAIL in Uttar Pradesh: it is the second largest of the country!

Sat, 06 Jan, 2018

3036
NASA’s 2018 to do list includes mission to ‘touch’ Sun

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NASA’s Parker Solar Probe is scheduled for launch in 2018 to explore the Sun’s outer atmosphere.The spacecraft will fly through the Sun’s atmosphere as close as 6.2 million kilometres to our star’s surface.

Sat, 06 Jan, 2018

3035
Saudi Arabia, UAE introduce VAT for first time

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Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates introduced value-added tax, a first for the Gulf which has long prided itself on its tax-free, cradle-to-grave welfare system.

Sat, 06 Jan, 2018

3034
Arunachal declared open defecation-free State

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The three remaining districts - Upper Subansiri, Siang and Changlang -- were declared Open Defecation Free (ODF) officially on Sunday,

Sat, 06 Jan, 2018

3033
New night frog species discovered in Western Ghats

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scientists have just discovered the Mewa Singh’s Night frog, belonging to a genus endemic to the Western Ghats, from Kozhikode’s Malabar Wildlife Sanctuary.

Sat, 06 Jan, 2018

3032
Vidarbha win their first ever Ranji Trophy

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The 29-run target for victory was achieved with nine wickets and a day to spare. After Gujarat last year, Vidarbha made history at the Holkar Stadium here in becoming another first-time winner of the National championship.

Sat, 06 Jan, 2018

3031
Two new Ginger species found in the northeast

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Scientists have discovered two new species of Ginger in easternmost districts, Ukhrul in Manipur and Tuensang in Nagaland, both bordering Myanmar.

Sat, 06 Jan, 2018