• National

Prez Kovind to inaugurate ‘CII Agro Tech’ fair

• President Ram Nath Kovind will inaugurate the ‘CII Agro Tech 2018’ in Chandigarh on 1 December 2018.
• CII Agro Tech 2018 is a biennial four-day agro technology and business fair.
• It is organised by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).
• The theme for the 2018 is ‘Technology in Agriculture: Increasing Farmer’s Income’.

• International

Ibrahim Mohamed Solih sworn in as seventh president of Maldives

• Ibrahim Mohamed Solih was sworn-in as the seventh president of Indian Ocean nation Maldives on November 17, 2018.
• He vowed to end systematic corruption and investigate alleged human rights abuses under his predecessor, Abdulla Yameen.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi was among the more than 300 foreign dignitaries at the ceremony in Male.
• The visit is Modi’s first to the Maldives after years of tense relations between the two countries because of Yameen’s embrace of China during his tenure.

• International

Oracle veteran Thomas Kurian to head Google Cloud

• Oracle’s ex-product chief Thomas Kurian will head Google’s cloud division, replacing Diane Greene. He will join the Google on November 26, 2018.
• Kurian, who spent 22 years at Oracle and had been a close confidante of its founder Larry Ellison, resigned in September after struggling to expand its cloud business.

• Sports

Indian paddler Manav Thakkar settles for bronze in Belarus

• India’s Manav Thakkar settled for a bronze medal in the U-21 singles category in the ITTF Challenge Belgosstrakh Belarus Open.
• Manav, who had an impressive run in the tournament, lost to Russia’s Denis Ivonin in the semifinals (2-3) to miss out on the gold.

• Sports

Ankita, Karman win their maiden WTA title in Taipei

• Ankita Raina and Karman Kaur Thandi, India’s top two women’s tennis players, won their first doubles title together as they lifted the OEC Open trophy in Taipei on Sunday.
• This was also the first WTA title, singles or doubles, for both the Indian players.
• The all-Indian pair’s opponents Olga Doroshina and Natela Dzalamidze were forced to retire in the final.

• Appointments

UIDAI CEO ABP Pandey appointed as new Revenue Secretary

• Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) chief executive officer (CEO) Ajay Bhushan Pandey will succeed Hasmukh Adhia as Revenue Secretary.
• Adhia, who retires at the end of this month, that is, on November 30, 2018 is also the finance secretary.
• UIDAI’s Pandey will continue to hold the additional charge of CEO of the Authority and chairman of Goods and Services Tax Network (GSTN) for the time being.

• Appointments

Flipkart appoints Smriti Singh as its new Chief HR Officer

• Flipkart has appointed Smriti Singh as its new Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO), a position which has been vacant for the past 18 months.
• Singh is reportedly expected to join Flipkart in December, and will work closely with Flipkart CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy.
• Previously, Singh was the Vice President and the HR head for Sony Pictures Networks India.

• Important Days

WDoR is observed on 18 November

• The World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims (WDoR) is observed on the third Sunday of November each year.
• The slogan for 2018 is ‘Roads have Stories’.
• The World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims was started by RoadPeace in 1993.
• On 26 October 2005, the United Nations endorsed it as a global day to be observed every third Sunday in November each year.

• States

‘Shri Renukaji Fair’ commenced in Himachal

• The six-day ‘Shri Renukaji Fair’ commenced in Himachal Pradesh on 18 November 2018.
• It is a religious assembly dedicated to Lord Parashuram and his mother Bhagwati Renuka Ji.
• The fair also depicts the rich cultural heritage of Sirmour district.
• The festival commenced with the arrival of the palanquin of Lord Parashuram from the ancient temple in Jamu Koti village to the bank of Renuka lake.

• States

Hookah bars permanently banned in Punjab

• Hookah bars have been permanently banned in Punjab after President Ram Nath Kovind gave his nod to a bill from the state to check the use of tobacco.
• Punjab has now become the third state in the country to ban hookah bars through law after Gujarat and Maharashtra.
• The Punjab assembly had passed the Bill in March