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- Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik launched the ‘Jalasathi’ programme with the aim to ensure supply of safe drinking water to all households in the state. He also launched the ‘JalSathi’ App on the occasion. He distributed water quality testing kits and POS (point of sale) machines to the women volunteers who are known as ‘Jalasathis’.
- Braille Edition of ‘Exam Warriors’, a book authored by Prime Minister Narendra Modi was released by Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment Thaawarchand Gehlot in New Delhi. It is a compilation of speeches made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and primarily aims at encouraging the student community to face life challenges and tackle examination stress.
- Minorities Rights Day is observed in India annually to educate people and focus on the rights of minorities in India. United Nations on 18th December, 1992 adopted and broadcast the “Statement on the Individual’s Rights belonging to Religious or Linguistic National or Ethnic Minorities”. The National Commission for Minorities celebrates the day in India every year. The Ministry of Minority Affairs was carved out of the Ministry of Social Justice and Environment on 29th January, 2006.
- The World Health Organization launched its first biosimilar medicine ‘Trastuzumab’ on 18th December, 2019 to make the life-saving treatment of breast cancer affordable for women all over the world. Around 2.1 million women are affected by breast cancers as per 2018 UN data. Biosimilar medicines are produced from biological sources like cells and not from synthesized chemicals.
- Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and External Affairs Minister (EAM) Dr. S Jaishankar met the US Secretary of Defense Dr Mark T Esper and Secretary of State Michael R Pompeo in Washington DC, USA on 18th December, 2019 for the second annual India-US 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue. At the dialogue, both the countries signed the Industrial Security Annex that will enhance technology transfer and information exchange. Three agreements under the Defence Technology and Trade Initiative (DTTI) were also signed that will help in co-developing critical technologies. The first edition of the dialog was held in 2018.
- The International Migrants Day is observed every year on 18th December to protect the rights of the migrants. The theme for this year is ‘Social Cohesion, Celebrating the integration of migrants into communities around the world’. The United Nations General Assembly on 18th December, 1990 adopted a resolution on the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families.
Shashi Tharoor - Sahitya Akademi announced 25 writers as the winners of its awards this year on 18th December, 2019. Seven books of poetry, four novels, six short stories, three non-fiction books and three essays have won the award this year. Writer and Congress MP Shashi Tharoor is also among the winners of this year in the creative non-fiction category in English literature for his novel ‘An Era of Darkness’ published in 2016. Sahitya Akademi Awards, first awarded in 1954, is one of the highest literary awards in the country.
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