1. India and China Trade Debt/Shortfall/Deficit
India’s trade in China ahs reduced from USD 89.71 billion in 2017-18 to USD 87.07 billion in 2018-19.
- India’s imports from China have decreased from USD 76.38 billion in 2017-18 to USD 70.32 billion in 2018-19, and our exports increased from USD 13.33 billion in 2017-18 to USD 16.75 billion in 2018-19.
- India’s trade deficit with China decreased from USD $ 63.05 billion to USD $ 53.57 billion. The Indian government is constantly striving to achieve more balanced trade with China in all our official engagements with the Chinese government, requesting them to reduce trade barriers to Indian exports to China.
2. Prince Charles reveals children’s protection fund for India
Britain’s Prince Charles has revealed a new children’s protection fund for India as part of British Asian Trust, the charity founded by him in 2007 to fight poverty in South Asia.
- Katy Perry as an ambassador for the new fund, which will focus on reducing child abuse by 50 percent.
- Natasha Poonawala pledged a multimillion-pound in support of the fund, which she will chair and the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIIF) raised the fund to 25 million GBP.
- The core area of the British Asian Trust’s Child Protection Fund will cover child sexual exploitation, child labor, and trafficking, and it will aim to develop school safety nets through the child-accessible village model.
3. Ease of Living Index and Municipal Performance Index 2019 Started
EoLI and MPI 2019 have started by the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs. The indices intended to assess the quality of life of citizens in 100 Smart Cities and 14 other Million Plus Cities.
In the municipal performance index 2019, the ministry sought to evaluate the performance of municipalities based on five enablers, namely service, finance, planning, technology, and governance, which is further divided into 20 sectors, which are evaluated by 100 indicators.
Ease of Living Index
Ease of Living Index with the aim of providing a holistic view of Indian cities – starting from services provided by local bodies, the effectiveness of administration, results generated through these services in terms of living space within cities and, finally In, civil perception. Of these results.
4. Govt cleared proposals under Atal Bhujal Yojana
The government has cleared proposals for Atal Bhujal Yojana for sustainable management of groundwater resources with community participation in water-stressed blocks of Gujarat, Karnataka, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, and Uttar Pradesh. The announcement was stated by the Union Minister of State for Jal Shakti & Social Justice and Empowerment, Shri Rattan Lal Kataria.
Atal Bhujal Yojana:
Atal Bhujal Yojana was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 25 December 2019, is a groundwater management scheme of the Central government. The scheme will be implemented from 2020-21 to 2024-25.
- The government allotted Rs.6000 crore for the ABY.
- The financial assistance is granted by the World Bank with a sharing pattern of 50:50 between the World Bank and Indian Govt.
There are two components under the scheme namely:
- Institutional Strengthening & Capacity Building component with an outlay of Rs.1400 crore
- Incentive component with an outlay of Rs.4600 crore
5. External Affairs Minister Jaishankar approaches India – Central Asia Business Council in New Delhi
India – Central Asia Business Council has held by FICCI was held in New Delhi.
- External Affairs Minister Dr. S Jaishankar summoned upon Indian businesses to take initiatives vis-a-vis the Central Asian markets.
- Dr. Jaishankar said, “Central Asia is not a distant region for India and it is a part of the country’s extended neighbourhood”.
- Dr. Jaishankar displayed the hope that the Chabahar port can become the fulcrum of connectivity to Central Asia.
6. Monika Nagpure, Rutvik Bhajiwala get 31st Veer Savarkar Akhil Bharatiya Samudra Taran Spardha
In Gujarat, Monika Nagpure and Rutvik Bhajiwala have won the 31st Veer Savarkar Akhil Bharatiya Samudra Taran Spardha. They both are from Surat
- The annual All India Sea Swimming Competition was held on the Gir Somnath coast of Gujarat.
- Monika won this competition on two previous occasions also.
- She has ended 16 nautical mile distance in 4.39.02 hours, while Rutvik performed 16 nautical mile distance in 7.04.38 hours.