Gopabandhu Sambadika Swasthya Bima Yojana is Odisha’s Health Insurance Scheme for Journalists

  • Gopabandhu Sambadika Swasthya Bima Yojana is a new Health Insurance Scheme for the journalists launched by the state government in Odisha.
  • Under the scheme, there will be Rs.2 lakh per year health insurance cover to all journalists in the state.
  • The scheme has come into effect from June 1, 2018 and will initially cover around 3,200 journalists and their family members from various media groups.
  • Under the scheme, insurance coverage will be applicable for cashless treatment in government and private hospitals.

India’s First Advanced Forensic Lab dedicated to women related cases to come up in Chandigarh

  • Construction of India’s first advanced forensic lab dedicated for crimes related to women has started.
  • The Foundation of the “Sakhi Suraksha Advanced DNA Forensic Laboratory” was laid in the campus of Central Forensic Science Lab (CFSL), Chandigarh.
  • The lab will be on par with international standards.
  • Its main aim will be to look into forensic analysis of pending sexual assault cases in the country.

Tata Motors signs MoU with Maharashtra to promote e-Mobility

  • Tata Motors has signed an MoU with the State Government of Maharashtra for deployment of 1,000 electric vehicles (EV).
  • The car manufacturer will deploy electric vehicles across its range of passenger and commercial vehicles in the state.
  • The company also plans to set up EV Charging Stations in the State to make it more convenient for owners of these vehicles.

Kailash Satyarthi and former ISRO Chief share ‘Santokbaa Humanitarian’ Award

  • Child rights activist Kailash Satyarthi and former Chairman of ISRO A S Kiran Kumar, were conferred with the ‘Santokbaa Humanitarian’ Award.
  • The president of India Ram Nath Kovind presentd the two with the award at a ceremony in Surat, Gujarat.
  • The award was instituted by Shree Ramkrishna Knowledge Foundation (SRKKF) and led by diamond mogul Govind Dholakia.
  • The award includes prize money of Rs.1 crore to each of the awardees.

Giuseppe Conte sworn in as Italian PM

  • Giuseppe Conte has been sworn in as Prime Minister of Italy’s new populist government.
  • He will head a government of ministers from the anti-establishment Five Star Movement (M5S) and the far-right League Party.
  • Giuseppe Conte took an oath of loyalty to the Italian constitution in a gilded room in the Quirinal, Italy’s presidential palace in Rome.
  • Conte is a law professor who has never held political office before.

Centre forms Cauvery Water Management Authority to address water dispute

  • The centre constituted the Cauvery Water Management Authority in compliance with a Supreme Court.
  • This body was formed to address the water dispute involving the states of Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.
  • Besides full-time and part-time members of the authority, each of the states will have one representative in the body.

Government approves construction 1.5 lakh affordable houses under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban) scheme

  • The Union Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs has approved construction of another 1.5 lakh affordable houses under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban) scheme.
  • This was taken at the 34th meeting of the Central Sanctioning and Monitoring Committee.
  • An investment of Rs 7,227 crore with Central assistance of Rs 2,209 crore was approved by the Committee.

IMD launches Ensemble Prediction System for weather forecasting

  • The Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) has commissioned two high resolution (12km grid-scale) state-of-the-art global Ensemble Prediction Systems (EPS) for weather forecasting.
  • The EPS will generate operational 10-days probabilistic forecasts of weather.
  • The frameworks of the new Ensemble Prediction Systems are among the best weather prediction systems in the world at present,, according to the government.