Japan has chosen the symbol meaning "disaster" to define the year 2018
Japan on 12 Dec selected the Chinese character for "disaster" as its "defining symbol" for 2018, a year that saw the country hit by deadly floods, earthquakes and storms.
At the end of every year, the general public votes for the Chinese character they think embodies the key news and events of the previous 12 months.
A total of 20,858 people out of 193,214 chose the character "disaster".
Japan’s Disaster Year: 2018
Floods across Japan swept in July 2018, causing more than 200 deaths and nearly evacuation of 9 million people.
In the same month, 150 people died due to heat wave and 80000 people were hospitalized.
Typhoon Jebi lashed out at Western Japanese coast with the speed of 172 KM/h - the strongest typhoon in last 25 years.
The series of disasters hit GDP, with the country's economy shrinking in the three months to September.
Geminid meteor shower to light up sky on December 13
The Geminid meteor shower – always a highlight of the meteor year – will peak around the mornings of December 13 and 14, 2018.
The Geminids are a very reliable shower if someone wataches at the peak time of night and in clear sky.
The meteors tend to be bold, white and quick. This shower favors Earth’s Northern Hemisphere, but it’s visible from the Southern Hemisphere, too. The curious rock comet called 3200 Phaethon is the parent body of this shower.
The Geminids generally move at about 22 miles per second, according to NASA.
Difference between Asteroid, Meteoroid, Meteor and Meteorite
- Asteroid: a large rocky body in space, in orbit around the Sun.
- Meteoroid: much smaller rocks or particles in orbit around the Sun.
- Meteor: If a meteoroid enters the Earth's atmosphere and vaporizes, it becomes a meteor, which is often called a shooting star.
- Meteorite: If a small asteroid or large meteoroid survives its fiery passage through the Earth's atmosphere and lands on Earth's surface, it is then called a meteorite.
Indian Navy inducts its first Deep Submergence Rescue Vehicle
The Indian Navy has inducted its first Deep Submergence Rescue Vehicle (DSRV) System at the Naval Dockyard in Mumbai.
DSRV
DSRV is used to rescue crew members stranded in submarines that get disabled. The Indian Navy joins a select group of naval forces in the world that boasts of this niche capability.
The DSRV can be operated at a depth of 650 meters and can hold around 15 people.
The Indian Navy in March 2016 had commissioned two DSRVs, the second will deployed at the Eastern Naval Command in Visakhapatnam.
The induction of the DSRV marks the culmination of years of effort of the Indian Navy in acquiring this niche submarine rescue capability.
Why Indian Navy require rescue vehicles?
The Indian Navy currently operates submarines of the Sindhughosh, Shishumar, Kalvari Classes as well as nuclear powered submarines.
The operating medium and the nature of operations undertaken by submarines expose them to high degree of inherent risk.
In such an eventuality, traditional methods of search and rescue at sea are ineffective for a disabled submarine.
To overcome this capability gap the Navy has acquired a third generation, advanced Submarine Rescue System considering of a Non-tethered Deep Submergence Rescue Vehicle (DSRV) and its associated equipment.
K Chandrasekhar Rao to be sworn in Telangana Chief Minister
Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) President K Chandrasekhar Rao will be sworn-in as the Chief Minister of Telangana at Raj Bhavan in Hyderabad on 13 Dec. This is the second time that he is going to become the Chief Minister of the state.
TRS bagged 88 seats out of 119 members’ assembly seats.
Telangana
Telangana was created on June 2 2014 and it became India’s 29th state.
K Chandrasekhar Rao who led the movement of a separate state from Andhra Pradesh became the first chief minister of Telanagana.
Telangana is a region comprising 10 of Andhra Pradesh's 23 districts.
Zoramthanga to be sworn in as Mizoram Chief Minister
Mizoram Governor Kummanam Rajasekharan 12 Dec formally invited Mizo National Front (MNF) president Zoramthanga to form the government in the state. He will be sworn-in as the chief minister at the governor house on 15 Dec.
Zoramthanga
He has been two times chief minister of Mizoram and MNF’s sound victory over the Congress set him up for the third term.
Zoramthanga had served as the chief minister from December 1998 to December 2008.
MNF bagged total 26 seats out of total 40 seats.
Railways commissions 41 projects at cost of Rs 700 crore for Kumbh Mela
Indian Railways has commissioned 41 projects at a cost of Rs. 700 Cr for the Kumbh Mela that will begin in Allahabad (Prayag Raj) from January 2018.
Out of 41 projects, 29 have been already completed and the rest will be completed soon.
During the Kumbh Mela, 800 special trains are proposed to be run from various stations of the Prayag Raj Railway Station.
The railways has planned to operate four to five special trains for transporting 5,000 'Pravasi Bhartiyas' from Allahabad to New Delhi, who will go to Varanasi to participate in the 'Pravasi Bhartiya Divas', and will go to Allahabad from Varanasi to participate in the Kumbh Mela.
Enhanced Technology
The railways will use technology, including artificial intelligence (AI), in a big way to tackle the massive rush of passengers to this holy city during the mela.
While IBM will provide video analytics service using artificial intelligence for crowd control, there will be a large number of powerful CCTV cameras to monitor the situation and LED screens for displaying information.
North Central Railway, Allahabad, has also launched a mobile application titled 'Rail Kumbh Seva Mobile App'.
The passengers using this app will not only know their current location, but also will be able to navigate to all the railway stations, mela zone, important hotels, bus stands among others within the city.
CBIC notifes Korean Won, Turkish Lira in List of Currencies for Exchange Rate
The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) on 12 Dec included two currencies — Korean Won and Turkish Lira in the list of currencies for which it notifies the exchange rate for assessing the value of imports and exports.
Currently, the CBIC notifies exchange rates for 20 currencies for the purpose of valuation of imported and exported goods and now with the inclusion of Lira and Won, the total number is now 22.
Custom Act 1962
Under Section 14 of the Customs Act, 1962, the CBIC notifies the Rate of Exchange for the purpose of conversion of foreign exchange to Indian Rupees (INR) and vice versa for assessment of imports and exports.
Why Korean Won was included?
Bilateral trade between India-South Korea grew to $16.36 billion during 2017-18 from $12.59 billion in 2016-17. South Korea is ranked 8th amongst India’s trade partners in terms of imports last fiscal.
Also, the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with South Korea is likely to increase the trade flow between the two countries.
Why Turkey Lira was included?
Bilateral trade between India and Turkey stood at $7.2 billion during 2017-18.
More than 150 companies with Indian capital have registered businesses in Turkey in the form of joint-ventures.
How it will be helpful for India?
Notifying Korean Won and Turkish Lira by the CBIC will facilitate trade and business by easing the process of conversion of these currencies into INR and vice versa.
The initiative is also anticipated to help exporters claim the benefits of Merchandise Export Incentive Scheme easily, as the rates of Lira and Won will be readily available on the realization date of remittances.
Overall, it is expected to decrease the transaction cost and enhance the ease of doing business, thereby, benefiting the Indian, Korean and Turkish businesses.
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