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Delhi Police inducts India’s first all-woman SWAT team for anti-terrorist operations

 Delhi Police has inducted India’s first all-woman Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team for anti-terrorist operations. The all-woman SWAT team is the brainchild of Delhi Police Commissioner Amulya Patnaik. It was formally inducted by Home Minister Rajnath Singh.
  • Key Facts
The all-woman SWAT team was inducted after rigorous training of around 15 months from specialists all across India and abroad. It comprises 36 women commandos from northeastern states (13 members from Assam, 5 from Arunachal Pradesh, 5 from Sikkim, 5 from Manipur, 4 from Meghalaya, 2 from Nagaland and 1 from Mizoram and Tripura each). They have undergone training to handle urban situations as well as jungle operations. They are also well-versed in Israeli Krav Maga, an unarmed combat style. Their expertise includes unarmed combat, ambush and counter-ambush and urban operations like building interventions, vehicle intervention and VVIP security. They are skilled at using weaponry like MP5 submachine guns and Glock-21 pistols. They will be deployed at strategic locations in Central and South Delhi as well as Red Fort and India Gate during Independence Day and Republic day celebrations.
Catgeory: National

Government approves proposal for setting up of water aerodromes in the country

 Union Civil Aviation Ministry has given in-principle approval to set up water aerodromes in the country. To start with it has identified five states: Odisha, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Assam for development of water aerodromes. In the first phase of the project, Chilka Lake (Odisha), Sabarmati River Front and Sardar Sarovar Dam (Gujarat) have been identified for the development of such facilities.
  • Key Facts 
Airdrome is location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve air cargo, passengers. The development of aerodromes projects in India will pave way for operation of amphibian planes (both in land and water) to enhance air connectivity. These water aerodromes will be set up near tourist locations and places of religious importance. Since there is no historical data, the project will be done on a pilot basis, initially. The entity looking to set up water aerodrome has to take approvals from authorities, including ministries of defence, home, environment and forests, and shipping. DGCA already has issued regulations prescribing procedure and requirement for licensing of water aerodromes. The water aerodrome cannot be used for scheduled air transport services without licence. The issued licence will be valid for two years. Initially, provisional licence will be issued for period of six months, during which implementation of water aerodrome operation will be monitored and regular licence will be accorded afterwards.
  • Sea-planes
Sea-planes are small fixed-wing aircrafts designed for taking off and landing on water and do not require capital-intensive infrastructure for operations. They are considered ideal for high-end travel to destinations that are far by road and are not equipped with airports. They require either 1-km long airstrip or water body, which is one km long and at least 10 feet deep.
Catgeory: National

Indian Housing Project in Plantation Areas: India hands over 1st lot of houses built in Sri Lanka

 India has handed over 404 houses built for Indian-origin people in Sri Lanka’s tea plantation areas at Dunsinane Estate in Nuwara Eliya city. This is first lot of houses built under Indian Housing Project in Plantation Areas in Sri Lanka.
  • Indian Housing Project in Plantation Areas
Under this project close to 47,000 houses so far have been completed out of total 60,000. With grant of over US $350 million, it is India’s largest assistance project in any country. Houses built under it are provided to Indian-origin people, mostly Tamils in Sri Lanka’s tea plantation areas. India is also considering to sign agreement for construction of additional 10,000 houses at cost of 12 billion Sri Lankan Rupees under this project.
  • Background
Indian-origin Tamils, mostly employed in tea and rubber plantations in Sri Lanka, lack proper housing. They are mostly residing in central hill areas of the island country. They were brought from India by British rulers during 19th century to work in coffee plantations in Sri Lanka.  More than million are still associated with tea and rubber plantations. Though they have been given the Sri Lankan citizenship, housing is one of the major issue for these workers employed as daily wagers. Earlier, Sri Lankan Government led by President Maithripala Sirisena had formulated ational plan of action for the plantation workers and planned for construction of 55,000 houses till 2020.
Catgeory: National

Government announces 50% reservation for women in RPF jawans recruitment

 Union Government has announced 50% reservation for women in upcoming recruitment of 9500-10000 jawans for the Railway Protection Force (RPF). This decision aims to create more employment opportunities for women. It was announced by Union Railways Minister Piyush Goyal in Patna, Bihar. He also announced 13,00,00 jobs are also coming up in Indian Railways in which there will be computer-based test and no interviews.
  • Railway Protection Force (RPF)
RPF is security force entrusted with protecting railway passengers, passenger area and railway property of the Indian Railways. It was introduced for the first time in the central act of 1957. It is headquartered in New Delhi. It functions under the authority of Union Ministry of Railways. It has powers to arrest, investigate and prosecute criminals under its jurisdiction.
Catgeory: National

Rafael Nadal Lifts Rogers Cup 2018

 17-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal clinched his fourth Canadian Masters 1000 title at the Rogers Cup in Toronto. He defeated Greek teenager Stefanos Tsitsipas. The world number one swept aside Tsitsipas in a thrilling summit clash of the men's singles event. With the win, Nadal clinched his 80th ATP World Tour title and fifth victory of the year. 
Source- ANI News
Catgeory: Sports

BBC's ‘Women Who Changed The World’ List: Marie Curie Tops, Mother Teresa 20th

 BBC History Magazine conducted a reader's poll of 100 women who changed the world. In this poll, Marie Curie has been voted the woman who made the most significant impact on world history. Women from several fields in areas like politics, science, sports, technology and literature were shortlisted. Curie was the first woman to win a Nobel prize in physics, first female professor at the University of Paris, and the first person to win a second Nobel prize. 
Top 5 from the BBC History Magazine's '100 Women Who Changed The World': 
  •  Marie Curie,
  •  Rosa Parks,
  •  Emmeline Pankhurst,
  •  Ada Lovelace, 
  •  Rosalind Franklin. 
    		•
    Source- BBC News 
    Catgeory: Ranks & Reports

    Piyush Goyal Released 3rd Party Survey Report On Station Cleanliness

     Minister of Railways, Coal, Finance & Corporate Affairs, Piyush Goyal has released a report on Station Cleanliness conducted by Quality Council of India (QCI). This is the third such audit cum survey which has been conducted by Railways to increase the level of cleanliness by identifying unclean spots/gaps and to improve cleanliness standards and also to propel healthy competition among railway stations. 
    A1 category stations (out of 75): 
    • 1st: Jodhpur/North-Western Railway  
    • 2nd: Jaipur/North-Western Railway 
    • 3rd: Tirupati/South-Central Railway.    
    A category stations (out of a total of 332): 
    • 1st: Marwar/North Western Railway
    • 2nd: Phulera/North -Western Railway
    • 3rd: Warangal/South-Central Railway.
    Zonal Railway rankings are:
    • 1st: North Western Railway
    • 2nd: South Central Railway
    • 3rd: East Coast Railway. 
    Source- Press Information Bureau (PIB)
    Catgeory: Ranks & Reports

    Israel Opens Visa Application Centre In Kolkata

     Israel has opened a Visa Application Centre in Kolkata for tourists from West Bengal and the northeastern states to encourage more Indian travelers to visit that country. Israel recently announced a reduction in visa fees to INR 1,100 rupees from its previous 1,700 charged from Indians.
    Source- AIR WORLD SERVICE
    Catgeory: National

    Meeting Of Senior Officials Of BIMSTEC Held

     A special meeting of Senior Officials of the Bay of Bengal Initiatives for Multi-Sectoral, Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) was held in Kathmandu today. The meeting also agreed to recommend a theme "Towards a peaceful, Prosperous and Sustainable Bay of Bengal Region" for the Summit.
    Source- DD NEWS
    Catgeory: International

    Vidiadhar Surajprasad Naipaul: Nobel Prize Winner Dies At 85

     Nobel Prize-winning British author V S Naipaul has died at the age of 85. Vidiadhar Surajprasad Naipaul who was born in Trinidad wrote more than 30 books and won the Nobel Literature Prize in 2001. 
    Source- Business Standard
    Catgeory: Persons

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