Notes:
The 6th International Tourism Mart 2017 has started in Guwahati, Assam on December 5. The three day program has been organized by Ministry of Tourism in association with all North Eastern states. Panel discussions, workshops, business to business meetings, cultural programs are being organized. Senior officials from Railway, Civil Aviation, DoNER, Road Transport ministry will share their views for the betterment of the tourism sector of North East including Assam.

Notes:
The Shamli district of Uttar Pradesh has been included in the National Capital Region (NCR). With this, the total number of districts in the NCR goes to 23. The decision to include Shamli in the NCR was taken at the 37th meeting of the National Capital Region Planning Board held in New Delhi on December 4, 2017. Besides Delhi, there are at present 22 districts- 13 of Haryana, 7 of Uttar Pradesh and two of Rajasthan in the NCR. Cities in the NCR get funds at attractive interest rates from NCRPB for infrastructure development. The meeting was chaired by Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri. The meeting also decided that the forests should be identified as per the order of the Supreme Court and the ‘Aravallis’ are to be delineated in the entire NCR, as per the earlier decisions of the Board.

Notes:
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved debt financing and partial risk guarantee of $583 million to develop Reliance Power’s 750MW LNG based combined cycle power plant and LNG terminal project in Bangladesh. ADB’s financing package includes loans and partial risk guarantees for the power generation facility, as well as for the LNG terminal. The total project cost is approximately $1 billion.

Notes:
The World Soil Day (WSD) is observed every year on December 5 to communicate messages on the importance of soil quality for food security, healthy ecosystems and human well-being. The 2017 theme is “Caring for the Planet starts from the Ground”. It is celebrated annually at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) headquarters in Rome, the regional offices and through national and local events.

Notes:
India’s largest floating solar power plant has become operational at the Banasura Sagar dam in Wayanad, Kerala on December 5, 2017. The solar power plant that floats on the surface of water has a capacity of 500 kilowatts (KW). It consists of 1,938 solar panels with a capacity of 260 watts, a 500 kilo volt ampere (KVA) transformer and 17 inverters. The unique feature of this plant is the anchoring mechanism used by the overwhelming technology to maintain the plant with the alteration of the water level. The total cost of the project is Rs. 9.25 crore.

Notes:
The United States has pulled out from the UN Global Compact on Migration as it does not meet the policies and principles of the Donald Trump administration. The US has been a part of the non-binding New York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants since it was unanimously adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2016. The declaration called for negotiations on a Global Compact for Migration, aimed at protecting the rights of refugees and migrants and helping them resettle. It also seeks to fight xenophobia, racism and discrimination towards refugees and migrants. Under Trump and his “America First” policies, the United States has withdrawn from several global commitments made under the administration of President Barack Obama, including the Paris climate deal. The US has also withdrawn from the Trans-Pacific Partnership and UNESCO, the UN organisation which aims to improve education and preserve cultural heritage worldwide.

Notes:
Rahul Singh, Founder & CEO of The Beer Café, has taken over as the new President of the National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI) in New Delhi. The appointment was made unanimously after Riyaaz Amlani, CEO & MD, Impresario Entertainment & Hospitality Pvt. Ltd. Resigned from his duties due to health reasons. The NRAI represents independent & chain of Restaurant/Bars/Café owners and operators of India.

Notes:
Anupriya Patel, MoS (Health & Family Welfare), has recently inaugurated the 22nd conference of Asian Harmonization Working Party (AHWP) at New Delhi. The 5-day conference is being conducted by Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO) and National Drug Regulatory Authority (NDRA) of India in collaboration with Ministry of Health & Family Welfare. The key objective of the event is to develop and recommend approaches for the convergence and harmonization of medical device regulations in Asia and beyond and to facilitate the exchange of knowledge and expertise amongst regulators and the industry. The AHWP is a voluntary non-profit organization of the 30 national regulators of member countries and industry members with a goal to promote regulatory harmonization on medical device regulations in Asia and other regions in accordance with the guidance issued by International Medical Device Regulators Forums (IMDRF). It works in collaboration with related international organizations such as IMDRF, WHO, International Organization for Standardization (ISO), etc.

Notes:
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro launched a crypto-currency “Petro” to advance issues of monetary sovereignty, make financial transactions and overcome the financial blockade. Beside this, Petro will also circumvent US-led financial sanctions. The digital currency will be backed by Venezuelan reserves of gold, oil, gas and diamonds.

Notes:
The Jessore Sloth Bear Sanctuary is located in the Banaskantha district of Gujarat at the Gujarat-Rajasthan border and covers an area of about 180 square kilometres. It is home to grey jungle fowl, white-bellied minivet, Indian black ibis, etc. The sanctuary is principally for protection of the sloth bear.