• National

UGC to set up a consortium for approved journals

• The University Grants Commission (UGC) has decided to set up a Consortium of Academic and Research Ethics (CARE) which will prepare a fresh list of credible quality journals in the non-science disciplines.
• According to commission, the percentage of research articles published in poor quality journals is reported to be high in India which has adversely affected its image.
• Members of CARE will prepare lists of quality journals in their respective disciplines within a defined timeframe.
• These lists will be critically analysed and curated for quality by a special cell at the entrusted institution using defined criteria.
• Reference List of Quality Journals’ will be maintained by the CARE and this will be used for all academic purposes.

• National

8 States achieve 100% electrification

• Union Minister of State (IC) for Power and Renewable Energy, RK Singh said that 8 States have achieved 100% saturation in household electrification under the Saubhagya scheme.
• The 8 states are Madhya Pradesh, Tripura, Bihar, J&K, Mizoram, Sikkim, Telangana and West Bengal.
• Saubhagya scheme’s objective is to provide access to electricity to all the remaining households in the country.

• National

Bhasha Sangam launched by HRD ministry

• The Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) has launched an initiative called ‘Bhasha Sangam’.
• ‘Bhasha Sangam’ is a programme for schools and educational institutions to provide multilingual exposure to students in Indian languages.
• The initiative was launched under ‘Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat’ on 22 November 2018 and will continue till the 21 December 2018.

• Awards

Donbass wins the Golden Peacock at IFFI 2018

• Donbass’ has won the coveted Golden Peacock Award at the 49th International Film Festival of India (IFFI).
• The Golden Peacock Award carries a cash prize of Rs 40 lakhs to be shared equally between the Producer and the Director (Sergei Loznitsa), Trophy and the citation.
• Donbass tells the story of a hybrid war taking place in a region of Eastern Ukraine, involving an open armed conflict alongside killings and robberies perpetrated on a mass scale by separatist gangs.
• Lijo Jose Pellissery won the Best Director Award for his 2018 film ‘Ee.Ma.Yau’.
• The Best Actor (Male) Award has gone to Chemban Vinod for his portrayal in Ee.Ma.Yau .

• Awards

‘Asian of The Year’ award 2018 announced

• Indian Navy Commander Vijay Varma and Captain P Rajkumar won the ‘Asian of The Year’ Award on 28 November 2018.
• They were awarded for their selfless service and bravery in rescue operations during the devastating floods in Kerala.
• The awards have been constituted by the English language newspaper ‘The Straits Times’ and it is based in Singapore.

• Appointments

Arvind Saxena appointed UPSC chairman

• Shri Arvind Saxena (1978-batch – Indian Postal Service officer) has been appointed as the chairman of the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC).
• Earlier, Mr. Saxena has been performing duties of the post of acting Chairman, UPSC (Since 20th June 2018).
• The term of Mr. Saxena appointment will be till 7th August,2020 (attains the age-65 years), or till further orders.
• Arvind Saxena studied Civil Engineering at the Delhi College of Engineering and did his MTech. in Systems & Management from the Indian Institute of Technology, (IIT) New Delhi in 1978.

• Appointments

A.M. Naik appointed as Chairman of National Skill Development Corporation

• The Group Chairman of Larsen & Toubro Limited (L&T) Shri A.M. Naik has been appointed as the Chairman of National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) by the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship.
• NSDC has developed a unique model combining skill development with strong industry partnerships.
• Shri Naik was awarded the Padma Bhushan for his outstanding contribution to the economic growth of the country.
• The objective of NSDC to promote skill development by catalysing creation of large, quality and for-profit vocational institutions.

• Important Days

International Day for Palestinian People

• The International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People is observed by the United Nations on 29 November every year.
• On 29 November 1947, the UN Assembly adopted the resolution on the partition of Palestine.
• The resolution provided for the establishment in Palestine of a ‘Jewish State’ and an ‘Arab State’.

• Science and Tech

ISRO launches India's first hyperspectral imaging satellite

• The Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) reliable workhorse PSLV-C43 rocket successfully lifted off with earth observation satellite HysIS (hyperspectral imaging satellite) along with 30 foreign satellites from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Sriharikota in Andhra Prades.
• The 30 commercial satellites (1 micro and 29 nano) from eight countries, combined weight is 261.5 kg.
• HysIS can provide hyperspectral imaging capabilities for a variety of purposes, including agriculture and forestry.
• It carries two payloads one to capture images in the visible near-infrared (VNIR) range of the light spectrum and another in the shortwave infrared (SWIR) range.
• The satellite will provide Earth observation service till 2023.

• Defence

India & UK began exercise ‘Konkan’

• The Indian Navy and the Royal Navy of United Kingdom began the exercise ‘Konkan-2018’ at Goa on 28 November 2018.
• The bilateral exercise provides a platform for the two Navies to periodically exercise at sea and in harbour, so as to build interoperability and share best practices.
• The Royal Navy was represented by HMS Dragon and the Indian Navy was represented by INS Kolkata.

• States

Himachal Pradesh first state to launch pan-India single emergency number

• The Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh has launched the India’s first Emergency Response Support System (ERSS) at Mandi, Himachal Pradesh.
• All emergency numbers, including 100 (for police), 101 (for fire), 102 (for ambulance) and disaster response have been integrated into countrywide one number, 112.
• The system would identify the location of the person in distress connecting through voice or data and immediate assistance would be provided.
• Several web-enabled other schemes have also been launched by the Union Government for safety and security of the women.