Category Archives: Leaders

INTERNATIONAL: WALES, U.K: Deputy Minister Dawn Bowden Appoints Ashok Ahir as New President and Andrew Evans as Vice President of the National Library of Wales

The Deputy Minister for Arts and Sport, Dawn Bowden has announced the appointment of a new President and Vice President for the National Library of Wales.

Ashok Ahir has been appointed as the new President. Mr Ahir has been Interim President of the National Library since September 2021.

Andrew Evans has been appointed the new Vice President. Mr Evans is a consultant specialising in fundraising and business development for start-ups, charities and not-for-profits, particularly in the cultural sector.

The Library’s President is accountable to the Welsh Government’s Deputy Minister for Arts and Sports for the library’s performance and for the delivery of strategic priorities

source: gov.wales (headline edited)

GLOBAL OFFER: INDIA – COVID-19 VACCINE: CoWIN Platform ‘know-how’ Now Available Free of Cost to Any Country

The National Health Authority’s offer comes after India crossed a milestone of administering 2 billion vaccine doses a week ago.

Any country interested can avail CoWIN platform, the platform will be provided free of cost, said Dr. R.S.Sharma, CEO of the National Health Authority, said on Saturday, July 23, 2022.

“Selected vendors by the country will be trained on CoWIN technology to customise it for their requirement. Usually, since the vaccination cycle is almost the same in all countries, the customisation will be limited to changes in field and master data configuration. Complete revamp of the application by any country is not expected,’’ he elaborated while speaking about (CoWIN) which provided the digital support for the COVID vaccination drive in the country.

Dr. Sharma further said that India has already signed an MoU with the Government of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana for sharing CoWIN; “We are in advanced talks with a couple of other nations to share CoWIN with them,’’ he confirmed.

India’s COVID vaccine milestone

India crossed a milestone of administering 2 billion vaccine doses a week ago and talking about its continued importance Dr. Sharma said that as CoWIN is repurposed, it could also help achieve the vision of Universal Vaccination against COVID-19 and further be repurposed for use in the healthcare sector. 

On July 5, the Central Government organised the Co-WIN Global Conclave with the endeavour to share experiences and expertise on the CoWIN platform with the global community. Over 140 countries participated in the event and nearly a dozen expressed an interest in learning from the platform and evaluating adopting it.

Stating that CoWIN has also become the world’s biggest digitally verifiable vaccination certificate generating platform, Dr. Sharma said that today Co-WIN is highly configurable and adaptable. “It has evolved based on the changing policy landscape and the requirements of the beneficiaries. The platform was developed at record speed with ample consideration to its scalability, modularity and interoperability,’’ hde said.

The CEO also spoke about the security measures that have been put in place to ensure data safety and the prevention of leaks. “CoWIN platform does not store or share any personal data. It’s for vaccination purposes and is the single source of truth to determine whether the person has been vaccinated or not,’’ said Dr. Sharma. He added the platform has deployed state-of-the-art data security systems to safeguard users’ data against any possible intrusion.

“Despite all these security features, CoWIN’s architecture still allows it to be open and interoperable. The capability to digitally authenticate these details with Aadhaar has also been provided to vaccinators. Otherwise, during vaccination a vaccinator could validate these details through a physical ID,’’ he explained, adding that besides the OTP feature the government has also limited the number of slot searches per user (restricted to 15-20) on the portal which prevents bots, browser extensions or hack attempts. Also even the API’s shared to third parties by CoWIN is through a thorough scrutiny process, ensuring proper security and audit.

source/content: thehindu.com (headline edited)

INTERNATIONAL: INDIA OVERSEAS: SPORT, CRICKET: Leicester Cricket Ground to be Named After Indian Batting Legend Sunil Gavaskar

Gavaskar has become the first Indian to have a cricket ground named after him in England.

On Saturday (July 23), a cricket ground in England’s Leicester will be dedicated in the honor of legendary Indian batter Sunil Gavaskar.

Gavaskar, who is considered one of the game’s all-time greats, set and broke numerous records while playing and his legacy has grown as he becomes the first person from his country to have a ground named after him in England.

source/content: circleofcricket.com

LEADERS: Droupadi Murmu Elected the 15th President of India Creating New Records. The First Tribal Woman and the Youngest to be Elected President.

Former Jharkhand Governor and National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate Droupadi Murmu was elected the 15th President of India, the first tribal woman to be elected to the position and the youngest as well.

She was declared elected on Thursday after four rounds of counting, although she had crossed the halfway mark after the third round of counting itself, posting an unassailable lead over her rival and the Opposition’s candidate Yashwant Sinha, who conceded the election thereafter.

After four rounds of polling, Ms. Murmu received 2,824 votes of 6,76,803 value while Mr. Sinha received 1,877 votes or 3,80,177 value. She received 64.03% of total valid votes polled, much more than what was openly declared in her support and pointing to the fact there had been a lot of cross-voting in Ms. Murmu’s favour from the Opposition ranks.

source/content : thehindu.com (headline edited)

INTERNATIONAL: INVESTMENT, BUSINESS & ECONOMY, ENGINEERING: Global Multi-National Pratt and Whitney (PW) to Set up Engineering Centre in Bengaluru Making it their First such Facility in the Asia-Pacific region.

To be operational in 2023, facility will be the fifth globally.

Aircraft engine maker Pratt & Whitney (PW) on Monday said it will set up an engineering centre in Bengaluru, that is slated to commence operations in January 2023.

The centre, which will be its first facility in Asia Pacific and fifth globally, will enable the firm to offer engineering services on contract to its domestic and international customers, a spokesperson said.

PW’s integrated global engineering operations currently has centres in the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico and Poland.

source/content: thehindu.com (headline edited)

INTERNATIONAL: NATIONAL: AVIATION & AIRPORTS: PM Modi Inaugurates Deoghar Airport, Unveils ₹16,800-crore Projects in Jharkhand

He also flagged off the Deoghar-Kolkata IndiGo flight from the new airport.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday inaugurated the 657-acre Deoghar airport, constructed at a cost of ₹401 crore.

He also flagged off the Deoghar-Kolkata IndiGo flight from the new airport.

The airport has a 2,500-metre-long runway, which can handle the landing and takeoff of Airbus A320 planes.

Mr. Modi had laid the foundation stone of the Deoghar airport on May 25, 2018, as a key step towards providing direct connectivity to Baba Baidyanath Dham, which is an important religious destination for devotees from all over the country.

Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, on the occasion, said the airport will be linked to Ranchi, Patna and Delhi in the days to come.

source/content: thehindu.com (headline edited)

INTERNATIONAL: BUSINESS & ECONOMY / MEDIA : Santosh Shukla Appointed as CEO of ‘British Organization World Book of Records’

He will also carry out business activities of iudex International Quality Certification and focus on business expansion in Asian countries.New Delhi Senior advocate of the Supreme Court of India, Shri Santosh Shukla has become the new Chief Executive Officer CEO of the British Organization World Book of Records.

 At the helm of Shri Shukla, the organization has made its reached 25 countries in the world with a strong global network. Shri Shukla hails from deep-rooted Indian culture and heritage and is of Indian origin.

Being a Cyber law expert and an author of technical books, he is also Director-General of the South Asian Chamber of Commerce & Industry (SACCI), President and CEO of International Quality Certification, President of Alma World, and holds the post of Chief Editor of Alma Today, Alma Times, WBR News and other leading organizations.

source/content: devidiscourse.com (headline edited)

INTERNATIONAL : ARTS & CULTURE : Dr KC Samuel, Chairman of Hindustan Aviation Academy (HAA) Installed as the New International President of Y’s Men International (YMI), Aarhus, Denmark

Philanthropist and Hindustan Aviation Academy (HAA) chairman Dr KC Samuel has been appointed the International president of Y’s Men International (YMI).

The movement was founded in 1922 and Samuel will be taking charge for its centenary year.

“The name ‘Y’s Men’ has become synonymous due to selfless service and sacrificial giving, and has touched and lifted the lives of thousands people across the world for over a century by acknowledging it as our duty,” said Dr Samuel.

Dr Samuel has been with the Y’s Men movement for over 40 years. He has held almost all leadership positions in the movement and was bestowed with many awards for his meritorious performance, including Elmer Crowe Award and International President’s award for the best Area President in 2018-19. He is currently a member of Y’s Men Club of Bangalore.

source/content: newindianexpress.com (edited)

INTERNATIONAL RECORDS: SPORTS, WOMEN’S CRICKET: Indian Captain Mithali Raj Becomes the First Woman Cricketer (and only the 3rd ) to Play in Six World Cups

One of the game’s finest servants, India captain Mithali Raj on Sunday became only the third cricketer and the first woman to appear in six World Cups, joining the iconic Sachin Tendulkar and Pakistani great Javed Miandad.

She achieved the feat as India locked horns with arch-rivals Pakistan in their much-anticipated opening match of the ICC Women’s World Cup at the Bay Oval here.

Raj, a 39-year-old veteran of many memorable matches, had made her maiden World Cup appearance in 2000, before playing the event in 2005, 2009, 2013, 2017 and now in 2022.

In the women’s game, the Indian batter surpassed former New Zealand cricketer Debbie Hockley and Charlotte Edwards of England.

Fast bowler Jhulan Goswami, Raj’s India teammate for the longest time, stands second on the list with five World Cup appearances.

Tendulkar, the holder of innumerable batting records, is the only Indian cricketer apart from Raj to feature in six World Cups, starting from 1992 to the triumphant campaign in 2011.

source/content: indianexpress.com (headline edited)

INDIA RECORDS: FOOD, MARINE & SEAFOOD: Andhra Pradesh at National No.1 with Record Seafood Exports Exceeding ₹20k crore, Highest in Country with the US Being the Leading Importer.

3.24 lakh metric tonnes was shipped to the US, China and EU in 2021, according to officals.

Andhra Pradesh stood top in the country in seafood exports by shipping 3.24 lakh metric tonnes of shrimp, fish and other items during the 2021-22 financial year. The total exports of seafood from India was about 13,69,264 metric tonnes.

The value of the seafood exports from the State was about ₹20,019 crore, said Marine Products Export Development Authority’s (MPEDA) Andhra Pradesh Joint Director A. Jeyabal.

The contribution of the State in the country’s overall exports was 23.66% in quantity and 34.76% in terms of value, the Joint Director said.

“In 2020-21, India had exported 11,49,510 metric tonnes of seafood worth ₹43,720 crore ($5,956 million). In 2021-22, marine products of about 13,69,264 metric tonnes, valued at ₹57,586 crore ($7.76 billion) were shipped,” Mr. Jeyabal told The Hindu on Wednesday.

According to overseas shipment data, the US continued to be the major importer of Indian seafood, followed by China, the European Union, South-east Asia, and Japan as the other major customers.

“From Andhra Pradesh, frozen shrimp, frozen fish, squid, cuttlefish, dried items and other varieties were exported,” the JD said.

source/content: thehindu.com (headline edited)