April 05, Sindhu leads Indian contingent at Commonwealth Games opening ceremony

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1 April 05, 2018 Sindhu leads Indian contingent at Commonwealth Games opening ceremony Star shuttler PV Sindhu led the Indian contingent at a glittering opening ceremony which launched the 21st edition of the Commonwealth Games on 4th April at Gold Coast, Australia. The Rio Olympics silver medallist carried the tri-colour as the head of the Indian contingent which also included fellow badminton stars HS Pranoy and Kidambi Srikanth. Star shooter Gagan Narang, woman discus thrower Seema Poonia and the men's and women's hockey squads were also present among the Indian contingent. India have sent a total of 222 sportspersons to these Games. The country had secured a total of 64 medals at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland, which included 15 gold, 30 silver and 19 bronze. Cabinet approves the Protection of Human Rights (Amendments) Bill, 2018 The Bill proposes to include the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights as a deemed member, besides adding a woman member to the panel. The NHRC was constituted under the Protection of Human Rights Act in The Act was last amended in The commission includes a chairperson, an incumbent or retired Supreme Court judge, a former Chief Justice of a High Court, and two persons with expertise in matters related to human rights, as members. 1

2 The chairperson and members are appointed by the President on recommendations of a sixmember committee chaired by the Prime Minister. The present law proposes to enlarge the scope of eligibility and selection of the chairperson of NHRC as well as the State Human Rights Commission, officials said. Present Chairperson of NHRC: H L Dattu Cabinet approves closure of loss making Burn Standard Company Limited - a Central Public Sector Enterprise (CPSE) The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has approved the closure of Burn Standard Company Ltd (BSCL) - a Central Public Sector Enterprise (CPSE) under Ministry of Railways. This decision has been taken in view of the continuous poor physical and financial performance of the company for more than 10 years despite financial assistance and other support provided by government, and low probability of its revival in the future. This measure will save public funds, which are currently being used for loss making BSCL, and can be used for other developmental work. Government will provide one-time grant of Rs crore towards severance package and for clearing the current liabilities of the company. In addition, outstanding loan of Rs. 35 crore given to the company by Government of India (Ministry of Railways) shall be written off. 508 employees of BSCL will benefit from Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS). Burn Standard Company Limited was incorporated in 1976 following nationalization and amalgamation of Burn and Company and Indian Standard Wagon Company Limited in 1987 under Department of Heavy Industries (DHI). 2

3 NIRF India Rankings 2018: IISc Bangalore overall best, AIIMS Delhi tops medical institutes' list The Indian Institute of Science (IISC) in Bengaluru was adjudged the overall best institution in the country by the Human Resource Development Ministry's national ranking framework (NIRF). Union HRD minister Prakash Javadekar, while announcing the rankings at an event in the Vigyan Bhavan, said the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras (IIT-M) has been adjudged the best engineering college and the Indian Institute of Management- Ahmedabad (IIM-A) the best management institution. As per the ranking released by the national institutional ranking framework (NIRF), the IISc stood first in the university category, followed by Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) and Banaras Hindu University (BHU). The premier healthcare institute All India Institute of Medical Science (AIIMS) Delhi was ranked number one institute under medical college category. Delhi University's Miranda House was the best college and NLSIU-Bengaluru the best law school in the country. CWG 2018 Day 1: Gururaja claims silver in Men s 56kg weightlifting India s Gururaja claimed silver in the Men s 56kg weightlifting event at the 2018 Commonwealth Games handing India its first medal at the quadrennial event on the opening day. After lifting his best weight of 111 kg in the snatch, the 28-year-old added 138 kg in his third 3

4 attempt in the clean and jerk to end with a total lift of 249 kg - achieving his personal best. Malaysia s Muhammad Izhar Ahmad won gold with a total lift of 261 kg - A Commonwealth Games record - while bronze went to Sri Lanka s Chaturanga Lakmal (248 kg). In 2017, Gururaja had claimed a Commonwealth Championships bronze in Australia. Gururaja, who began weightlifting in 2010, had won gold in the Commonwealth senior weightlifting championship, lifting a personal best of 249 kg ( ) in Penang in Earlier that year, the 28-year-old won gold at the South Asian Games. PMI manufacturing index at five-month low India s manufacturing sector expanded at its weakest pace in five months in March as order and production growth moved at a slower pace and firms slowed hiring. The Nikkei India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI), fell from 52.1 in February to a fivemonth low of 51.0 in March, indicating the slowest improvement in operating conditions recorded by the survey since last October. This is the eighth consecutive month that the index remained above the 50-point-mark. A print above 50 means expansion. India s manufacturing sector continued to grow, albeit at the weakest pace since October, reflecting weaker gains in new business and a decline in employment, said Aashna Dodhia, Economist at IHS Markit and author of the report. 4

5 Madhya Pradesh govt accords minister status to five religious leaders Ahead of Assembly elections, the BJP government in Madhya Pradesh has accorded 'Minister' status to five religious leaders. The government has accorded Minister of State status to Narmadanand Maharaj, Hariharanand Maharaj, Computer Baba, Bhayyu Maharaj and Pandit Yogendra Mahant. These five ministers will enjoy the perks of a minister because of being a member of a committee set up for the conservation of the river Narmada. "On March 31, these five religious leaders were appointed to a committee set up for the conservation of the Narmada river. As members of the committee, they have been given the MoS status," a General Administration Department official told PTI. India, Azerbaijan committed to strengthening ties in trade, connectivity, tourism, says Sushma Swaraj in Baku After calling on Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev on 4th April, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said the two countries were committed to strengthening ties in a range of issues including trade and investment, connectivity and transportation, culture and tourism etc. Swaraj, who is on a three-day visit to the country, landed in capital city Baku on 4th April. She also held talks with her Azerbaijan counterpart Mammadyarov, and is expected to represent India at a ministerial meeting of the Non-Aligned Movement over the next two 5

6 days. This is her first bilateral visit to the country. We had fruitful discussions that brought out the high-level of commitment on both sides to strengthening the relationship for mutual benefit of the peoples of both countries, Swaraj said after meeting the President. Capital: Baku Currency: Azerbaijani Manat 6