India will be hosting the 13th Plenary meeting of the United Nations Global Geospatial Information Management for the Asia-Pacific region from November 26 at the Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi.

The event, which will be hosted by the Survey of India (SOI), will provide an opportunity to share and exchange experience and capabilities among member countries to boost knowledge and expertise in the geospatial information field. Furthermore, the meeting is expected to provide the necessary bases for more active cooperation and also maintain and develop ties among member countries in different aspects.

Speaking on the occasion, the Surveyor General of India, Hitesh Kumar S. Makwana, said that experts from 30 countries, including 91 delegates, would be participating in the event and from India, more than 120 experts would also be participating, where various subjects related to the geospatial sector would be discussed.

Indian Railways Institute of Signal Engineering & Telecommunications (IRISET) is building a new Centre of Excellence (CoE) for modern signalling for ‘Kavach’, the indigenously designed automatic train protection system, at a cost of ₹41.11 crore along with a ₹28.46-crore testing facility for the next generational 5G technology in association with IIT-Chennai.

The CoE has already begun functioning from the premier training facility of the Indian Railways located in Secunderabad. It has developed Kavach standard training and operating manuals as well as installation practices for the loco pilots, loco inspectors, loco-shed supervisors, signal and telecom engineers and other field personnel in recent times, informed senior officials.

The centre, which has been working on the newer version and roll-out of Kavach, has just released an ‘Uniform Braking Algorithm’ incorporating various special features to meet operating conditions across various Original Equipment Manufacturers. Standard installation drawings of Kavach and various kinds of locomotives have been finalised, they explained.

US women's national team goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher, on Monday announced her retirement from international football, after a career spanning of 15 years.

Naeher was on the team's roster for a pair of upcoming matches in Europe but those games will be her last after a full 11 years playing for the United States.

Naeher was the starting goalkeeper for the U.S. team that won the Women's World Cup in 2019 and the gold medal at this year's Olympics in France.

She's the only U.S. goalkeeper to earn a shutout in both a World Cup and an Olympic final.

The Union Cabinet has approved the continuation of its flagship initiative, the Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) with an enhanced scope of work and an allocated budget of ₹2,750 crore rupees for the period till March 31, 2028. AIM 2.0 is a step towards Viksit Bharat that aims to expand, strengthen, and deepen India’s already vibrant innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem. The continuation of AIM will directly contribute to creating better jobs, innovative products, and high-impact services across sectors.

Briefing reporters after the Union Cabinet meeting, Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said that AIM 2.0 is designed to strengthen India’s innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem by increasing input and by improving the quality of output. Mr Vaishnaw said that 2 thousand 500 new labs will be opened in Jammu and Kashmir, North East, aspirational districts and blocks.

A high-level committee, headed by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, has approved ₹1,000 crore for various disaster mitigation and capacity-building projects in 15 states.

The committee also approved another project for training and capacity building of civil defence volunteers in all States and Union territories at a total outlay of ₹115.67 crore, according to an official statement.

According to an official statement, a sum of ₹139 crore each was approved for Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh, ₹100 crore for Maharashtra, ₹72 crore each for Karnataka and Kerala, ₹50 crore each for Tamil Nadu and West Bengal, and ₹378 crore for the eight Northeastern states — Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, and Tripura.

In a boost for Indian academia and to bolster youth empowerment, the Union Cabinet has approved the ambitious ‘One Nation One Subscription’ (ONOS) scheme. This initiative aims to position India as a global hub for research, learning, and knowledge while fostering interdisciplinary studies and bridging the gap in access to academic resources.

Under ONOS, all central and state-run higher education institutions nationwide will gain seamless access to over 13,000 esteemed journals published by 30 international publishers on a unified platform.

The scheme, coordinated by the Information and Library Network (INFLIBNET), an autonomous inter-university centre under the University Grants Commission (UGC), will address the fragmented system of academic journal subscriptions currently managed by ten separate library consortia.

The government has approved a Rs 1,435-crore project to revamp the existing system of issuing permanent account number under which PAN cards with QR Code feature will be given free of cost to taxpayers.

The PAN 2.0 project aims to create a "common business identifier" for all digital systems of government agencies.

The project was approved by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Monday.

PAN is a unique 10-digit alphanumeric number issued by the Income Tax Department to Indian taxpayers.

To promote its pet project of natural farming, the Centre on Monday (November 25, 2024) launched the National Mission on Natural Farming (NMNF). The Union Cabinet, which approved the decision here, said in a release that the NMNF will be a standalone centrally-sponsored scheme under the Ministry of Agriculture and it will have a total outlay of ₹2,481 crore.

Of this, ₹1,584 crore will be the Centre’s share and the States will contribute ₹897 crore till the 15th Finance Commission (2025-26). The Centre said NMNF will promote natural farming in mission mode across the country.

“Rooted in the traditional knowledge inherited from their forefathers, farmers will practise Natural Farming (NF) as a chemical free farming which involves local livestock integrated natural farming methods, diversified crop systems, etc. NF follows local agro-ecological principles rooted in local knowledge, location specific technologies and is evolved as per the local agro-ecology,” the government release added.

Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Monday stated that the Nayi Chetna campaign aims to assist women in every village through self-help groups to combat gender violence. He emphasised that women must not remain silent if violence occurs.

He further highlighted that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s mission focuses on women’s empowerment. Whether in the political, social, or educational sphere, the government is committed to achieving these objectives.

“The rural development department has launched a new campaign, Nayi Chetna, against gender violence. The campaign will support women in every village through self-help groups to address gender violence. If violence occurs, women must not remain silent. PM Modi’s mission is women’s empowerment–be it political, social, or educational–and the government is making every effort to ensure this,” Chouhan said.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will visit Russia on 8-10 December. After visiting Moscow and Kaliningrad, on 9 December, he will induct the guided-missile frigate INS Tushil into the Indian Navy fleet. This warship will be the first of the four frigates being built for the Indian Navy. Its induction will give a big boost to India's naval power amid the emerging strategic challenges in the Indo-Pacific. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will hold talks with his Russian counterpart Andrey Belousov during this period.

Russia will supply two frigates INS Tushil and INS Tamala

India signed a deal with Russia in 2016 for four guided missile frigates. A $1 billion contract was finalised for the direct purchase of the first two frigates. Subsequently, in November 2018, Goa Shipyard Limited (GSL) through Indian partnership signed a $500 million deal with Rosoboronexport for material, design and technical assistance to build the remaining two ships domestically. The formal contract between the Indian Defence Ministry and GSL was signed in January 2019. According to the contract, Russia will supply two frigates INS Tushil and INS Tamala, while the other two will be built in India with technical assistance from Russia.