The Daily Brief – 9th August 2019

Three precision-guided air-to-air missiles dubbed as Yasin, Balaban and new series of Ghaem have been unveiled by Iran. Yasin can be fired from a range of 50 kilometres of its target from a manned or unmanned aircraft. Guided by GPS and sensors, Balaban could be mounted under an aircraft. Ghaem is a heat-seeking missile, capable of hitting targets within 50 centimetres of a target.

Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan was presented the ‘Excellence in Cinema’ honour at the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM) 2019, at the iconic Palais Theatre in Melbourne, which is one of the city’s heritage landmarks. Celebrated with the theme ‘Courage’, the year 2019 marks the 10^th edition of the festival in the cultural city of Australia. The IFFM was founded in 2012.

The Government has sanctioned 5595 electric buses in 64 cities for intra-city and inter-city operations under the second phase of Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of (Hybrid &) Electric Vehicles (FAME India) scheme. The objective of the scheme is to encourage faster adoption of electric and hybrid vehicles by offering upfront incentives on their purchase.

The Union Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has unveiled the draft Environmental and Social Management Framework (ESMF) for coastal zone management, prepared by the Society for Integrated Coastal Management, a MoEFCC-affiliated body as part of a World Bank-funded project. It lays out guidelines for coastal States to adopt, when they approve and regulate projects in coastal zones.

Pranab Mukherjee, Nanaji Deshmukh and Bhupen Hazarika

President Ram Nath Kovind conferred India’s highest civilian honour Bharat Ratna on former President Pranab Mukherjee and posthumously on social activist Nanaji Deshmukh and singer Bhupen Hazarika. The other Presidents, who had been conferred the Bharat Ratna include Dr. Rajendra Prasad, S Radhakrishnan, Zakir Hussain and VV Giri. The award was instituted on 2^nd January, 1954.

National Institute of Solar Energy (NISE) signed an agreement with the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) to initiate a skill development programme for different levels of beneficiaries in solar thermal energy sector. NISE is an autonomous institution of Ministry of New and Renewable (MNRE). Established on 17^th November, 1966, the UNIDO is headquartered in Vienna, Austria.

Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan released the report card on Breastfeeding. According to the report card, Manipur topped the rankings in Breastfeeding and Infant and Young Child Feeding Practices in India. Every year, more than 8,20,000 children’s lives could be saved among children under 5 years, if all children of age 0–23 months were optimally breastfed.