• National

President of India Inaugurates the 2nd International Ambedkar Conclave

• The President Shri Ram Nath Kovind has inaugurated the 2nd International Ambedkar Conclave in New Delhi.
• This International Ambedkar Conclave is a part of the commemoration of Constitution Day.
• The Conclave is being organised by the Forum of SC and ST Legislators and Parliamentarians and the Dr Ambedkar Chamber of Commerce.

• International

Sustainable Blue Economy Conference held in Nairobi

• The Sustainable Blue Economy Conference was held in Nairobi, Kenya, organized by Kenya and co-hosted by Japan and Canada.
• The theme of this conference was ‘The Blue Economy and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
• Blue Economy is an economic benefit and value that is realized from Earth’s coastal and marine environment.

• International

EU sets the goal to be 'climate neutral' by 2050

• The European Union (EU) has urged government, businesses, citizens and regions to join it in an ambitious plan to cut emissions and make the bloc carbon neutral by 2050.
• According to EU climate commissioner Miguel Arias Canete, Block is kicking off a process to determine how Europe’s energy and climate policy will evolve between now and 2050.
• Member states will submit their draft national climate and energy plans to the EU by the end of 2018.
• While more homes will be insulated, and transport will be modernised, the key plank of any successful strategy will be to reduce fossil fuel use in energy production by 80 per cent by 2050.

• International

Congo’s Ebola outbreak is the second deadliest

• According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), the current Ebola epidemic in the Democratic Republic of Congo is now the second largest and second deadliest in history.
• The latest outbreak in Congo, which began in August 2018, has a case fatality rate of 57%.
• The deadliest outbreak occurred in West Africa in 2014, where more than 11,000 people were killed due to Ebola.

• Economy and Business

Interest subsidy for exporters increased to 5%

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) increased the interest subsidy on the post and pre-shipment export credit from 3% to 5%.
• This move will boost the exports of the Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector manufacturers.
• The increased subsidy is applicable from 2 November 2018.
• Exporters get the subsidy under the ‘Interest Equalisation Scheme on Pre & Post Shipment Rupee Export Credit’.

• Sports

Magnus Carlsen wins the World Chess Championship 2018

• Current World champion Norwegian Magnus Carlsen (26-year-old) beat American Fabiano Caruana 3-0 and regain his World Chess Championship title-2018 in London, England.
• Rapid chess was used as a tie-breaker, with Carlsen winning three consecutive games.
• Carlsen won USD 625,000 as the winner, and Caruana received USD 511,400 as the runner-up.
• The match was organised in a best-of-12-games format.

• Sports

National Shooting Championship: Esha Singh Win 3 Gold Medals

• India’s 13-year-old shooter Esha Singh won the Women’s, Youth Women’s and Junior Women’s 10m Air Pistol competitions at the National Shooting Championship at Thiruvananthapuram.
• She beat Manu Bhaker and Heena Sidhu to win three gold medals in women’s air pistol events at the 62nd National Shooting Championships.
• The Telangana shooter prodigy shot 241.0 in the women’s final to leave behind Bhaker, who finished second with 238.9.
• Heena Sidhu finished 6th with a score of 154.9.

• Science and Tech

NASA's InSight spacecraft successfully lands on Mars after a six-month journey

• NASA’s robotic InSight lander successfully landed on Red Planet Mars after the six-month journey.
• The spacecraft has been designed to dig deep into the rocky surface of the Mars to reveal its secrets.
• The lander sent signals indicating that its solar panels are open and collecting sunlight on the Martian surface.
• The Insight lander touched down near Mars’ equator on the western side of a flat, smooth expanse of lava called Elysium Planitia.
• InSight will study the interior of Mars and will teach about valuable science as they prepare to send astronauts to the Moon and later to Mars.

• Miscellaneous

Electronics company LG Brian Kwon as mobile business President

• President of LG’s Home Entertainment Company Brian Kwon will leader the Mobile Communications (MC) Company.
• Current president Hwang Jeong-hwan will focus fully on as head of LG’s Convergence Business Development Office.
• It comes after LG’s mobile business posted a loss of USD 410 million this year, including a USD130.5 million net loss in the last quarter.

• Agreements

Air forces of the US & India to hold joint exercise 'Cope India 2019'

• Air forces of the United States and India will participate in a 12-day joint exercise ‘Cope India 2019’ at two air force stations in West Bengal.
• The exercise will be held from 3rd to 14th December at Air Station Kalaikunda and Air Station Arjan Singh (Panagarh).
• The exercise showcases the efforts and commitment of the two nations to a free and open Indo-Pacific region.
• The Cope India exercise is being held after a gap of eight years, with the last one having taken place in 2010.

• Agreements

DAIC And JNU Sign MoU To Facilitate Research Activities & Policy Formulation

• Ambedkar International Centre (DAIC), 15 Janpath, New Delhi, and Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to facilitate and enhance research activities and policy formulation aimed at Socio-economic Transformation and Sustainable Development.
• The MoU was signed by Prof. M. Jagadesh Kumar, Vice-Chancellor of JNU and Shri Atul Dev Sarmah, Director of DAIC.
• The signing ceremony was witnessed by Shri Thaawarchand Gehlot, Union Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment.