SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft with two NASA astronauts successfully docked with the International Space Station last night after a historic launch from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. It has marked the dawn of a new age in commercial space travel.

Elon Musk's SpaceX company confirmed the successful docking of NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley with the ISS, the orbiting laboratory after traveling 19 hours. They were greeted by fellow NASA astronaut Christopher Cassidy and Russian cosmonauts Anatoli Ivanishin and Ivan Vagner, who were already on board the orbiting laboratory.

NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine called the station from the space agency's mission control center in Houston, Texas. Bridenstine said, we are so, so proud of everything you've done for our country, and in fact, to inspire the world.

Saturday's liftoff also assumes significance as it marks the launch of humans into orbit from US soil for the first time in nearly a decade. With the liftoff, SpaceX became the first private company to launch people into the orbit, a feat achieved previously by only three governments the US, Russia and China.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will share his thoughts with the people in the country and abroad in his 'Mann Ki Baat' programme on All India Radio at 11 A.M. tomorrow. It will be the 65th episode of the monthly radio programme.

It will be broadcast on the entire network of AIR and Doordarshan and also on AIR News website www.newsonair.com and newsonair Mobile App. It will also be streamed live on the YouTube channels of AIR, DD News, PMO and Information and Broadcasting Ministry.

AIR will broadcast the programme in regional languages immediately after the Hindi broadcast. The regional language versions will also be repeated at eight in the evening.

Ministry of Labour and Employment under its National Career Service (NCS) project has now started offering free online Career Skills Training for its registered job-seekers. This course on soft skills assists the learners in enhancing personality development with modules on corporate etiquette, improving inter personal skills, making impactful presentation including other necessary soft skills demanded by the industry at present.
 
The training module is available in Hindi and English on the NCS portal. The Ministry is implementing the NCS Project for transformation of the National Employment Service to provide a variety of employment related services like job search, career counselling, information on skill development courses, apprenticeship and internships through an on-line portal of NCS.
 
National Career Service has taken a number of initiatives to mitigate the challenges in the labour market due to COVID-19 and the consequent lockdown.

Women peacekeepers from India and Brazil have jointly won the United Nations Military Gender Advocate of the Year 2019 Award.

Major Suman Gawani of the Indian Army, a Military Observer formerly deployed with the United Nations Mission in South Sudan and Commander Carla Monteiro de Castro Araujo, a Brazilian Naval officer have been chosen for the award.
They will receive the award during an online ceremony presided over by UN Secretary-General António Guterres marking the International Day of UN Peacekeepers on 29 May.

Created in 2016, the United Nations “Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award” recognizes the dedication and effort of an individual military peacekeeper in promoting the principles of UN Security Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security in a peace operation context. For the first time, two peacekeepers will receive the award jointly for their contribution to this important cause.
Major Gawani expressed gratification at seeing her work as UN Military Observer recognized. She said, whatever the function, position or rank, it is their duty as peacekeepers to integrate an all genders perspective to daily work and own it.

Thirteen flights from the gulf region to India are scheduled on Friday as part of the Vande Bharat Mission.

The flights will bring back stranded Indians to various parts of India.
Vande Bharat Mission continues to touch the lives of various distressed and stranded Indians abroad.
13 flights have been scheduled from the Gulf countries to India , more than half of which are from the UAE.There are six flights from Dubai to Jaipur , Kochi, Kannur, Hyderabad , Kozhikode and Thiruvananthapuram.

Another two flights are scheduled from Abu Dhabi to Kozhikode and Thiruvananthapuram.

For Jaipur, it is the first flight from UAE under the Vande Bharat Mission.

From Saudi Arabia, there is a flight Srinagar and Kozhikode. This is also the first flight to Srinagar from the Kingdom.
Kuwait has two flights to Ahmedabad and Kozhikode. Muscat has one flight to Kochi and Doha has one flight to Kannur.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke with Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa yesterday and congratulated him on having completed 50 years since his first term as a parliamentarian in Sri Lanka. Mr. Modi also recalled Rajapaksa's contributions to the development of Sri Lanka in his long political career, and extended his wishes for his future.

Prime Minister Modi also conveyed his condolences at the untimely demise of Mr. Arumugam Thondaman, a prominent leader of the Indian-origin Tamils in Sri Lanka. Prime Minister recalled the role that Mr. Thondaman had played in taking forward the development partnership between India and Sri Lanka. Mr. Arumugan Thondaman was a Ceylon Workers’ Congress leader and a Cabinet Minister in Sri Lanka who passed away on Tuesday after a sudden illness.

Both the leaders discussed the health and economic impact of the prevailing COVID-19 pandemic and the measures being taken in the two countries to counter them. Prime Minister assured his Sri Lankan counterpart that India stands ready to extend all possible support to Sri Lanka during this challenging time.

Karnataka government will soon launch a project to maintain the health database of all its citizens. A first of its kind initiative State Health Register will be a robust and standardized health repository of all the citizens. Medical Education Minister Dr. K Sudhakar said that this project will be implemented first in Chikkaballapur district on experimental basis.

Enhanced focus on healthcare has become imperative and our government is committed to provide world class healthcare to all citizens, he said. Dr Sudhakar said that Covid-19 experience has demonstrated the necessity of having robust, real-time public health data and therefore, there is a need to maintain repository of health data of each and every citizen. He said that Government will be undertaking a survey of all 6.5 Crore people in the state using a team of Primary Health Centre officials, revenue officials, Education department staff and ASHA karyakartas. They will visit each household and collect health data of all the members of the family. This will not only help the government to provide better health care, but will also help efficient resource allocation, management and better implementation of various citizen centric schemes in the state, the Minister added.

A total 9.67 crore farmers have been benefited and an amount of more than 19 thousand crore rupees has been released under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) scheme during the last two months.

Government said, 4.57 lakh metric tonnes of pulses have been dispatched to the States and Union Territories under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana (PM-GKY). Out of this, 1.78 lakh metric tonnes pulses have been distributed to 13.4 crore beneficiaries.http://newsonair.com/News?title=More-than-9-crore-60-lakh-farmers-avail-benefits-under-PM-KISAN-Scheme-during-past-two-months&id=389798

The Indian Air Force today operationalises its “Number-18 - Flying Bullets” squadron with the Light Combat Aircraft LCA Tejas at its Sulur base near Coimbatore. It will be launched by the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria. The indigenously developed light fighter aircraft is certified with the “Full Operational Clearance” standard.
 
The Flying Bullets will be the second Indian Air Force squadron to operate with the modern multi-role fighter aircraft. The first squadron with the LCA Tejas known as the Number-45 Flying Daggers is also headquartered at the same base.
 
A release from the Defence Ministry says the No.18 squadron was formed in 1965 and has the distinction of being the first to land and operate from Srinagar. It has also produced a Param Veer Chakra awardee during the 1971 war with Pakistan. It has been revived on the 1st April this year at the Sulur base.

Kerala board exams for Class 10 and 12 which had been postponed due to Covid19 lockdown will be held from today. Special measures are being taken for the safety of students and teachers since the exams are taking place amidst the Coronavirus pandemic. 

Students coming from containment zones or those with family members under home quarantine will get separate seating arrangements. Students coming to Kerala from other states will need to undergo a 14-day quarantine and special arrangements would be made so they can sit for board exams. Every teacher will have to wear both face masks and gloves while every student will be given face masks to wear. After the exam, the answer sheets would be kept in the exam centres for seven days and the fire force will disinfect the schools.