Rajasthan govt to provide free mobile phones to women of BPL families

  • The Rajasthan government will distribute mobile phones to women under the Bhamashah Yojana scheme.
  • The scheme focuses on women who fall in the Below Poverty Line (BPL) category.
  • Rajasthan CM Vasundhara Raje says that the government is in the process of launching new applications so that the poor can receive all benefits by simply pushing a button on their cell phones.
  • The state government will also provide free Wi-Fi to 5,000 gram panchayats.

NITI Aayog panel draws up plan to save Himalayan springs

  • NITI Aayog has constituted a panel of experts, who have stressed the important of reviving spring water systems in the Himalayas.
  • The panel says that almost 30% of Himalayan springs crucial to water security of people are drying and 50% have reported reduced discharge.

India to generate 100GW from solar energy by 2022: Suresh Prabhu

  • Union Minister of Commerce & Industry and Civil Aviation, Suresh Prabhu, has said that India has set a target of generating 100 GW from solar energy by 2022.
  • The aim is to increase the share of carbon-free energy.
  • This was revealed at the International Solar Alliance (ISA) Innovation and Investment Forum in New Delhi.
  • The ISA was conceived by PM Narendra Modi in 2015 as a treaty-based international intergovernmental organization.
  • The ISA aims at co-operation between 121 solar rich countries. These are nations that lie fully or partially between the tropics.
  • The goal is massive deployment of solar energy to make solar energy affordable.

Arif Alvi elected Pakistan’s new president

  • Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf candidate Arif-ur-Rehman Alvi has been elected 13th President of Pakistan.
  • Alvi secured 212 of the 430 votes.
  • Alvi will succeed Mamnoon Hussain and will assume office on September 9th.

International Women Entrepreneurs Summit 2018 held in Nepal

  • The International Women Entrepreneurs Summit 2018 is being held in Kathmandu, Nepal.
  • The theme of the event is “Equality begins with Economic Empowerment”.
  • The main objective of the summit is to bring together achievers, women business leaders, professionals and other stakeholders.
  • The focus of the summit is on innovative economic transformation through discussions and collaborations.

Asia Index launches index to measure the performance of private banks

  • Asia Index Pvt Ltd has announced the launch of an index designed to measure the performance of private banks.
  • It is called the S&P BSE Private Banks Index, and it is draws from the constituents of the S&P BSE Finance Index.
  • The index is calculated in Indian Rupees and US Dollars. It is calculated in real-time by the BSE.
  • Asia Index Pvt Ltd is a joint venture between S&P Dow Jones Indices and BSE Ltd.

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