Notes:
Telangana has become the first Indian state to introduce a logo for vehicles driven by persons with hearing impairment. The logo is designed by Hyderabad-based graphic designer Manikanta Annapragada, who incidentally is the first person to obtain a driving license in the ‘hearing impaired’ category. For two-wheelers, the logo should be four inches high and three inches wide on the rear side, and three inches tall and two inches wide on the front. For four-wheelers, the logo should be six inches tall and five inches wide at the rear side and four inches tall and three inches wide in the front.

Notes:
The 2017 Arctic Energy Summit (AES) will be held in Helsinki, Finland from September 18-20, 2017. It will be hosted by Institute of the North and Finland Ministry of Economy and Employment. The AES is a multi-disciplinary event expected to draw several hundred industry officials, scientists, academics, policy makers, energy professionals and community leaders together to collaborate and share leading approaches on Arctic energy issues. The 2017 Summit will address energy in the Arctic as it relates to small and off-grid community energy solutions, oil and gas development, renewable energy, etc.

Notes:
Aruna Sundararajan, the 1982 batch officer of Kerala cadre, has been appointed as the new Secretary of Department of Telecommunications (DoT). Though, she will continue to hold post of secretary for Union Ministry of Electronics and IT (Meity). She succeeded PK Pujari. She has experience in overseeing operations of Kerala Government’s Bharat Broadband Scheme (BBS) which provides subsidized broadband connections. She also administered several IT-based government projects and funds including the Universal Service Obligation Fund (which funds the BharatNet project).

Notes:
India’s first-ever National Basketball Association (NBA) academy has officially opened in Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh. The NBA Academy India is the NBA’s 5th elite training centre globally, which will be fully funded by the NBA. The NBA academy will employ a holistic, 360-degree approach to player development with focuses on education, leadership, character development and life skills. As part of the program, the students will compete against top competition throughout the year and will have an opportunity to be selected for travel teams that play in international tournaments and exhibition games. The initiative is part of NBA’s drive to expand recruitment globally.

Notes:
VVS Laxman, the former India batsman, has been awarded the honorary life membership of Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC). With this, he joined fellow Indian icons Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly on the prestigious list of MCC Honorary Life Members. He played 134 Tests, 86 One-Day Internationals and 25 Twenty20 internationals for India. Currently, he is mentor of Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) franchise in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

Notes:
Austin has topped the list of 22 tech cities across the world, as per the 2017 Savills Tech Cities Index. San Francisco has acquired 2nd position followed by New York and London. From India, Bengaluru ranked 20th among tech cities in the world. But when it comes to the cost of living index, Bengaluru tops the charts with a weekly residential rent for tech employees and household standing at $236 – compared to the tech cities’ average of $368. The purpose of 2017 Savills Tech Cities programme is to understand the diverse factors that make up a good location choice for the tech sector.

Notes:
Three Indian women wrestlers Sakshi Malik (60kg), Vinesh Phogat (55kg) and Divya Kakran (69kg) bagged silver medals in their respective categories in the 2017 Asian Wrestling Championship in New Delhi after losing out their final bouts. Rio Olympic bronze medallist Sakshi Malik lost her final bout against Japan’s Risako Kawai in 60kg category. Sakshi wrestled for the first time in women’s 60kg category after jumping up the weight division from 58kg. Vinesh Phogat lost the final in women’s 55kg category and Divya Kakran in 69 Kg to settle with silver medals.

Notes:
Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan has been appointed by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as its Goodwill Ambassador for Hepatitis in South-East Asia Region to boost awareness and intensify action to arrest the epidemic. As WHO goodwill ambassador for hepatitis in the region, Bachchan will lend his voice and support to public awareness programmes that aim to scale up preventive measures and advocate for early diagnosis and treatment of viral hepatitis. This is the first formal association between WHO and Bachchan, who served as UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador for Polio in India.

Notes:
The first-ever One Belt One Road (OBOR) Summit will be held in Bejing, China on May 14 -15, 2017. The 29 heads of state including Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Maldives and Myanmar and high-level delegations from Bangladesh and Nepal will attend the two-day Belt and Road Forum in China. Though, India will not attend the forum. The main reason behind India’s opposition towards the policy is the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which is a part of OBOR. The focus of the summit is to improve connectivity and cooperation amount Asian countries, Africa, China and Europe. The emphasis is on enhancing land as well as maritime routes. The policy is significant for China since it aims to boost domestic growth in the country.

Notes:
The first-ever Videsh Sampark outreach programme of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has started in Hyderabad on May 13, 2017. The one-day conference has inaugurated by Gen. Dr V.K. Singh, the Minister of State for External Affairs, which is being held in collaboration with the Government of Telangana. The conference will create awareness on the schemes and initiatives launched by the MEA with regard to consular and passport services; engagement with overseas Indians; and welfare and protection of overseas Indians.