Rachel Reeves, Britain's first woman finance minister, is a former child chess champion and Bank of England economist who has pledged to grow the nation's economy while showing strong fiscal discipline.

Reeves, 45, becomes chancellor of the exchequer after her centre-left Labour party won Thursday's UK general election by a landslide, ending 14 years of rule by the right-wing Conservatives.

"It is the honour of my life to have been appointed chancellor of the exchequer," Reeves wrote on social media platform X after her appointment by new Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

Senior Indian Information Service (IIS) officer Dhirendra Ojha has been appointed as the Director General of Press Information Bureau (PIB). Mr Ojha will replace Sheyphali Sharan, who has been appointed as the Director General of the Publications Division.

The Sampoorna Abhiyan has been kicked off in two selected blocks- Tuibong Block and Lamka Block of Churachandpur district of Manipur on Friday (5th July 2024). As part of the launching program, various departments made a progress report on health sectors especially on pregnant women, supplementary nutrition for pregnant women under ICDS, agriculture, Self Help Groups under Social Welfare Department and education sectors. A drawing competition was also conducted and a Sampoornata Abhiyan march was also held.

The 73rd Indian Pharmaceutical Congress began in Hyderabad on Friday, with Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka and two ministers reaffirming the government’s commitment to industrial growth with a multi-pronged approach that includes pharma clusters, a skill university and a new energy policy.

“Let us reaffirm our collective resolve to harness the transformative power of the pharmaceutical industry for the betterment of global well-being,” Mr. Bhatti said, asserting there was no issue with power or water availability. A new energy policy focussing on green energy was all set to be unveiled in the State shortly.

Addressing the gathering at the opening of the three-day event, Minister for Industries and IT D. Sridhar Babu said a proposal for pharma clusters, with the objective of geographically decentralising the industry’s growth, was among the policies and initiatives announced by the Congress government within a few months of coming to power.

In a move to enhance kitchen safety, quality and efficiency, the government has brought all stainless steel and aluminum utensils under a Quality Control Order (QCO).

With the order, all utensils made of stainless steel or aluminum will need to have the ISI mark, indicating conformity with the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS).

According to the QCO issued by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), non-compliance with QCO norms will be a punishable offense.

India will host the 5G, 6G, and Emerging Technologies Hackathon in September this year alongside the ‘WTSA24 (World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly) Outreach Sessions’. The Ministry of Communications, in a statement, said that the initiative aims to bring together innovators, industry leaders, and academics to explore the frontiers of next-generation telecom technologies. The hackathon will serve as a hub for cutting-edge innovation in telecommunications.

Focused on advancing technologies like 5G and 6G, the event will attract participants from industry, academia, and startups, all aiming to showcase pioneering solutions. During the 30-hour event to be held in dedicated 5G labs in Delhi, Hyderabad, and Bengaluru, participants will collaborate in a dynamic environment to develop their ideas.

President Droupadi Murmu will be on a four-day visit to Odisha from Saturday (6th July 2024). The President will attend the 96th Death Anniversary of Utkalamani Pandit Gopabandhu Das at Bhubaneswar. On Sunday, the President Murmu will witness the Gundicha Jatra (Car Festival) of Lord Jagannath at Puri. During her visit, the President will visit Udayagiri Caves and interact with the students of Bibhuti Kanungo College of Art and Crafts and Utkal University of Culture.

IRA Mumbai and IIT Bombay signed MOU together on Advancing Maritime safety through the development of a ship trajectory prediction tool.

Indian Register of Shipping (IRS) and Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT Bombay) yesterday, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) aimed at advancing maritime safety through the development of a ship trajectory prediction tool.

The trajectory prediction of disabled ships is a critical aspect of maritime safety, facilitating early warnings and rescue operation planning. Understanding and predicting the movement of disabled ships and floating objects drifting in the open sea, under the influence of location-specific environmental conditions, is essential for timely and effective response and rescue efforts.

The four-day Global Conclave on Plastic Recycling and Sustainability began at the Bharat Mandapam, Pragati Maidan, on Thursday.

"The four-day Global Conclave on Plastic Recycling and Sustainability (GCPRS) got off to a robust start today at the Bharat Mandapam, Pragati Maidan, with Chief Guest Smt. Nivedita Shukla Verma, Secretary, Union Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers inaugurating the conference. Mercy Epao, Joint Secretary of the Union Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, attended the session as the Guest of Honor," as per a press release from the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers.

Union Minister of Commerce & Industry, Shri Piyush Goyal during his address at the International Innovation Conclave organised by the PHD Chamber of Commerce & Industry (PHDCCI) in New Delhi said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government is ready to promote the drone industry that has seen rapid growth in the last three years. Praising the development of technology and growth in the drone industry on the strength of innovation, Shri Goyal asserted that development of the drone ecosystem and deploying them in villages across the nation aligns with the PM’s ‘NAMO Drone Didi’ initiative that will help empower the women in the agriculture sector.

Shri Goyal said that technological progress in the drone industry will help combat erratic weather patterns and assist farmers in getting higher quality and higher quantity yields. The Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme for drones and drone components is a kickstarter for the sector to progress and should not be considered as a permanent subsidy scheme from the government, said the MInister. “In the third term of the PM’s administration we will work at triple the speed, ensure three times the result and and hope to become the third largest economy in the world”, said the Union Minister.