Current Affairs 2018

Entire Men's Hockey Team Included in Target Olympic Podium Scheme

In a departure from the norm, the Mission Olympic Cell included the entire Indian hockey team in the TOP scheme, rewarding the players for their silver medal-winning performance at the Champions Trophy.

Athletes from different sports have been included in Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS) individually but it is first instance that an entire team has been made beneficiary of the financial assistance scheme.

India becomes world's sixth largest economy, muscles past France

India's GDP amounted to $2.597 trillion at the end of last year, against $2.582 trillion for France.

India has doubled its GDP within a decade and is expected to power ahead as a key economic engine in Asia, even as China slows down.

According to the IMF, India is projected to generate growth of 7.4 per cent this year and 7.8 per cent in 2019.

Government launches ‘Technology Challenge’ to eliminate human entry into sewers

The Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs has launched a ‘Technology Challenge: Identifying solutions for cleaning of Sewerage Systems and Septic Tanks’ to promote suitable techniques for cleaning sewers and septic tanks.

The move is in line with the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi who, in a meeting chaired by him on May 4, 2018 had desired a technology challenge to promote latest technologies to avoid human intervention in the cleaning of sewers and septic tanks.

The challenge will be a part of the Mahatma Gandhi International Sanitation Convention that will be held on October 2, 2018 and will remain open up to 5: 30 pm on August 14, 2018.

Proposals have been invited by the Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry from interested innovators, individuals, consortium partners, companies, academic institutions, research and development centers, NGOs, Parastatal and municipal bodies to provide innovative technical solutions that will eliminate the need for human entry into septic tanks and sewers.

BSNL launches India’s first internet telephony service, to enable making calls without SIM

State-run telecom firm BSNL on Wednesday unveiled the country’s first internet telephony service that will allow users to dial any telephone number in India through its mobile app.

Now BSNL customers will be able to make calls using the company’s mobile app “Wings” to any phone number in the country.