24th May CURRENT AFFAIRS IN ENGLISH

1. India 145th among 195 countries in healthcare access, quality: Lancet

 

India ranks 145th among 195 countries in terms of quality and accessibility of healthcare in 2016, behind its neighbours like China, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Bhutan, according to a Lancet study.

• In 2016, India’s healthcare access and quality scored at 41.2 (up from 24.7 in 1990).
• It said that Goa and Kerala had the highest scores in 2016, each exceeding 60 points, whereas Assam and Uttar Pradesh had the lowest, each below 40.
• The five countries with the highest levels of healthcare access and quality in 2016 were Iceland (97.1 points), Norway (96.6), the Netherlands (96.1), Luxembourg (96.0), and Finland and Australia (each with 95.9).

2. Dr. Harsh Vardhan leads Indian delegation in Mission Innovation (MI) Ministerial

30 months ago on November 30th, 2015, leader of 20 countries came together to launch Mission Innovation (MI), a landmark 5 year commitment to accelerate the pace of innovation and make clean energy widely affordable and accessible worldwide. 

• India is the founding member of this forum and is a partner in the Steering Committee.
• MI now comprises 23 economies and the European Commission, representing the European Union, and collectively accounts for more than 80 percent of the world’s total public financing of clean energy R&D.
• This week Ministers and high level delegates from these countries converged at Malmo, Sweden for the 3rd Mission Innovation Ministerial from 22-23 May, 2018. 
• Indian delegation was lead by Dr. Harsh Vardhan, Union Minister for Science, Technology and Earth Sciences. 
• India announced its plan for hosting MI clean energy materials Workshop in October-November, 2018 at New Delhi.

3. India to host the ASEAN India Film Festival

In association with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Directorate of Film Festival is organizing the ASEAN India Film Festival in Delhi from 25th to 30th May 2018, celebrating completion of 25 years of ASEAN India Relations.

• Minister of State (I/C) for Information & Broadcasting and Sports & Youth Affairs, Col Rajyavardhan Rathore will inaugurate the Film Festival in Siri Fort Auditorium on 25th May 2018.
• The Film Festival will be non-competitive. The tagline of the Festival is proposed to be ‘Friendship through Films’.
• Jassari Movie Sinjar will be the opening film for the festival.
• During the festival, 32 films from 11 countries will be displayed.

Points to Remember

• The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is a regional intergovernmental organization comprising ten Southeast Asian countries (Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam).
• ASEAN is an official United Nations observer, as well as an active global partner.

4. Cabinet nod to ordinance to set up country's first sports university in Manipur

The Union Cabinet approved an ordinance to set up the country's first national sports university in Manipur.

• Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said a bill to set up the university in Imphal (west) is already pending in Parliament.
• The proposal to set up the national sports university in Manipur was initially announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while Rs 100 crore funds for it were allocated in the 2014-15 budget.

5. PM Modi to inaugurate Kundli-Ghaziabad-Palwal expressway on May 27

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the Kundli-Ghaziabad-Palwal (KGP) Expressway (Eastern Peripheral Expressway) project, intended to relieve Delhi from traffic congestion, on May 27.

• The inaugural ceremony of the expressway will held at the district sports stadium in Uttar Pradesh's Baghpat.
• Kundli and Palwal are both in Haryana. While Kundli is in Haryana's Sonipat district, bordering Delhi, Palwal is south of Faridabad district, about 80 km from Delhi.

6. Rajasthan launches ‘Nidaan’ software for disease monitoring

A new software, ‘Nidaan’, has been launched in Rajasthan for presumptive diagnosis and monitoring of seasonal and non-communicable diseases as well as the trends of ailments found in specific areas.

• It is expected to help in formulation of specific action plans for control of diseases.
• “Nidaan” will facilitate online entries of as many as 46 diseases and healthcare services available for their treatment in different institutions.

7. Indo-Dutch Startup Initiative: #StartUpLink to be Launched

With the upcoming visit of the Netherlands’ Prime Minister Mark Rutte to India, Indo-Dutch ties across sectors are all set to get a major boost.

• The Dutch Prime Minister will be accompanied by the Dutch Ministers for Foreign Trade & Development Cooperation, Healthcare, Infrastructure & Water, and Agriculture & Food and a trade delegation comprising 220 participants, making this the biggest trade mission to India ever.
• In an endeavour to further the spirit of innovation and entrepreneurship, Invest India (host to the Govt. of India’s initiative, ‘Startup India’ under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry) and the Dutch Government are jointly launching the Indo-Dutch #StartUpLink initiative.
• The official launch will take place on 25th May, 2018 at Taj West End Hotel, Bengaluru.
• The initiative will fulfill the twin objective of facilitating market expansion for startups in the two countries alongside fostering a joint sense of innovation and entrepreneurship.

8. NITI Aayog and ABB India Sign Statement of Intent

NITI Aayog and ABB India signed a Statement of Intent (SoI) to support the Indian government realize its ambitious vision of ‘Make in India’ through advanced manufacturing technologies that incorporate the latest developments in robotics and artificial intelligence.

• NITI Aayog will work with ABB across various sectors of the economy, such as the power and water utilities, industries like food as well as the heavy industries and the transport (rail and metro) and infrastructure.

9. Kumaraswamy sworn-in as 24th CM of Karnataka

Janata Dal (Secular)'s H D Kumaraswamy took oath in Bengaluru's Vidhan Soudha as the 24th Chief Minister of Karnataka.

• Congress' G Parameshwara took oath as Deputy Chief Minister.
• The oath ceremony was administered by Governor Vajubhai Bala.

10. AB de Villiers retires from international cricket

South Africa batsman AB de Villiers has announced his decision to retire from international cricket with immediate effect.

• De Villiers finishes his career with a staggering 20,014 international runs (8765 in Tests, 9577 in ODIs and 1672 in T20Is) and signs off with a batting average over 50 in both Tests (50.66) and ODIs (53.50).