Current affairs notes on October 27-31

 1.October 24 is observed as World Polio Day. World
Polio Day was established by Rotary International on 24th October to
celebrate the birth of Jonas Salk, who developed a vaccine
against poliomyelitis.

2.India and the U.S. will sign the last foundational
agreement, Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement for Geo-Spatial
cooperation (BECA) during the upcoming 2+2 ministerial dialogue. This
agreement would facilitate exchange of geospatial information between India and
United States for both military and civilian use.

3. IndiGen Program: Genomics for Public Health in India
(IndiGen) , It aims to undertake whole genome sequencing of
thousands of individuals representing diverse ethnic groups from India. The
objective is to enable genetic epidemiology and develop public health
technologies applications using population genome data.

4. The United Kingdom has entered into a strategic
partnership to develop India’s fledgling international financial services
centre GIFT City. GIFT (Gujarat International Finance Tec-City),
located in Gandhinagar is India’s first International Financial Services
Centre.

5. The Centre has asked the Punjab Government to explain its
utilisation of the Rural Development Fund (RDF) that it gets largely
from the Food Corporation of India (FCI). This has enraged the state
government. RDF is the 3 per cent cess levied on the purchase or sale of
agricultural produce under the Rural Development Fund Act, 1987 which is
executed by Punjab Rural Development Board (PRDB) with the Chief
Minister as its chairman.

6. The Odisha government has requested the Wildlife
Institute of India (WII) to conduct a fresh study for identifying the movement
of Olive Ridley sea turtles, which would help the State renew its
conservation efforts along its coast. Rushikulya rookery coast in the
Ganjam district of Odisha, Gahirmatha beach and the mouth of the Debi
River, are the major nesting sites in Odisha.