Important Dates & Festivities - Current Affairs for December, 2017

NITI Aayog's Atal Innovation Mission will launch the Atal Tinkering Lab's Community Day in the national capital tomorrow on Friday, 15th December, 2017. The day will mark the Community Drive Initiative in which 25 young Mentors will engage with more than 200 students who are not enrolled in the formal education system. CEO NITI Aayog, Mr. Amitabh Kant will launch the initiative in which these mentors will visit four locations in New Delhi to conduct brief sessions with children from various NGOs, on how innovations can help resolve the problems in the communities. ATL: Know More

• The Atal Tinkering Lab Community Drive Initiative is aimed at maximizing the impact of Atal Tinkering Labs by extending innovation to children in the community who do not have access to formal educational institutions.
• The purpose of this initiative is to provide these children with the same educational tools as the students in Atal Tinkering Labs to enable them to become problem solvers.
• The NGOs participating in these interactions include organizations working with disabled children, street and working children, and girls from the weaker sections of society.

Hon'ble President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind, will preside as the Chief Guest over the National Energy Conservation Day celebrations, to be held in New Delhi, on 14th December, 2017. Hon'ble President of India will give away National Energy Conservation Awards to industries that have demonstrated measurable reductions in their energy use as part of the National Energy Conservation Awards Programme. During the event, a short film on the Energy Efficiency achievements in the Industry Sector will also be shown. The Energy Conservation Day is organized on 14th December each year by Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE), under Ministry of Power, with an aim to demonstrate India's achievements in energy efficiency and conservation, while working for its ambition of holistic development as part of the nation's overall effort towards climate change mitigation. As part of its awareness outreach, BEE recognizes and encourages endeavours of industries in reducing energy consumption by felicitating them with National Energy Conservation Awards. BEE also awards prizes to the national winners of the annual National Painting Competition on Energy Conservation. In order to realize its development goals, India's energy demand is expected to double between 2013 and 2030, to approximately 1500 million tonnes of oil equivalent. The mission of BEE is to assist in developing policies and strategies that will help reduce this energy demand by promoting widespread adoption of energy efficiency measures.

Country's first ever Tribal Hackathon provided young entrepreneurs and engineering students a platform to review the challenges in implementing welfare schemes for tribals Chhattisgarh government showcased rich culture and traditional cuisine of tribal communities of the state during two-day Adivasi Mahotsav - 2017 being held for the first time in the state. The tribal festival was organised by the Department of Tribal Welfare, Chhattisgarh, on December 10 and 11 at Balbir Singh Juneja Indoor Stadium in Raipur in memory of freedom fighter Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh. Veeer Narayan Singh martyred on December 10 while his birth anniversary falls on December 15. The main attraction of the festival were programme on Tribal Culture (dance and music), Tribal Olympiad, colourful cultural presentation by artists of eight North-East states such as Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur, Tripura, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Sikkim, Tribal Food and Festival, Literature festival, Tribal Hackathon and Craft Exhibition. Under Tribal Olympiad, tribal from different district displayed their skills in different tribal sports while stalls having traditional tribal cuisine will be put at the venue for the visitors who can enjoy the food prepared by the tribal. Under the Literature Festival, literature written on scheduled tribal community were put on display to get the visitors acquainted with the rich history of tribal. Art and craft made by the tribal of different districts will be exhibited during the festival. Artists from Arunachal Pradesh performed Paku Etu art, Assam artists will present Mising Bihu, Manipuri artists will present Rongmei Folk Dance, Meghalaya artists performed Wangala, Mizoram artists will present Cheraw, Nagaland artist performed on Hornbill Dance, Sikkim artists presented Chyabrung art and artists from Tripura will present Hozagiri art. The two-day festival also raised various issues related to the tribal, discussion will be held on researches done on them and remedies suggested by the researchers.

The World Human Rights Day (WHRD) is observed every year on December 10 to commemorate adaptation of Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Observance of the day seeks to encourage, support and amplify measures to be taken by everyone to defend human rights. The theme for this year is 'Let's stand up for equality, justice and human dignity'. This year, Human Rights Day kicks off a year-long campaign to mark the upcoming 70th anniversary of Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In run up to the celebration of Human Rights Day, National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) had organised a series of events in India. UDHR: Know More

• On this day in 1948, United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) had adopted and proclaimed Universal Declaration of Human Rights at the Palais de Chaillot in Paris.
• It was adopted as shared standard yard stick to protect human rights across the globe.
• It recognizes inherent dignity and the equal and inalienable rights of mankind as the foundation of justice, freedom and peace in the world.
• The Human Rights Day was formally established at the 317th Plenary Meeting of the UNGA on 4 December 1950.

Dr. Mahesh Sharma, the culture minister inaugurated the three days 'Bodhi Parva: BIMSTEC Festival of Buddhist Heritage' in New Delhi on December 08, 2017. 'Bodhi Parva' has entwined various threads of the Buddhist heritage into a beautiful melange including an exhibition of international and Indian Buddhist art and architecture, discourses by eminent scholars and practitioners of Buddhism, guided meditation and chanting by Buddhist monks and choir, screening of film on Buddhism, dance and music performances, quiz show and a food trail. These will help in building an awareness of BIMSTEC's rich and common heritage. The regional organization comprising seven Member States around the Bay of Bengal that brings together about one - fifth of the world population and a combined GDP of over US $ 2.8 trillion, BIMSTEC has a crucial role in development of the region. BIMSTEC leaders have imparted fresh momentum to the organization at the Leaders' Retreat hosted by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi in Goa in October 2016. India sees BIMSTEC as a natural platform to fulfil its key foreign policy priorities of 'Neighbourhood First' and 'Act East'. A number of initiatives have been taken to promote cooperation in BIMSTEC under the focus areas of security, transport and communication, environment and disaster management, tourism, traditional medicine and people-to-people exchanges. Several others are in the pipeline. Events such as 'Bodhi Parva' would also help immensely in promoting 'Brand BIMSTEC'. India is hosting the "Bodhi Parva: BIMSTEC Festival of Buddhist Heritage" from 8 to 10 December as part of celebrations of 20th anniversary of BIMSTEC.

After 'yoga' and 'Nouroz', Kumbh Mela/ KumbhMela, the largest congregation of pilgrims on the planet, has been listed as an Intangible Cultural Heritage under UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation). The Ministry of External Affairs said the inscription of 'Kumbh Mela' in the list was undertaken following recommendation by an expert body which examines nominations submitted by member countries of the UNESCO. The Intergovernment Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage under UNESCO has inscribed 'Kumbh Mela' on the Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity during its 12th session held at Jeju, South Korea from 4-9 December 2017. This inscription is the third in two years following the inscriptions of 'Yoga' and 'Norouz' on 1st December 2016," said the Ministry of External Affairs in a press statement. The Kumbh Mela is held in Haridwar, Allahabad, Ujjain and Nashik. UNESCO: Know More

• UNESCO has 195 member states and ten associate members.
• Most of its field offices are "cluster" offices covering three or more countries; national and regional offices also exist.
• UNESCO pursues its objectives through five major programs: education, natural sciences, social/human sciences, culture and communication/information.
• Projects sponsored by UNESCO include literacy, technical, and teacher-training programs, international science programs, the promotion of independent media and freedom of the press, regional and cultural history projects, the promotion of cultural diversity, translations of world literature, international cooperation agreements to secure the world's cultural and natural heritage (World Heritage Sites) and to preserve human rights, and attempts to bridge the worldwide digital divide.
• It is also a member of the United Nations Development Group.

The World Soil Day is celebrated every year on 5th of December by Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations. It aims to communicate messages on the importance of soil quality for food security, healthy ecosystems and human well-being. The Theme for year 2017 is 'Caring for the Planet starts from the Ground'. The theme seeks to highlight importance of soil in human livelihoods and increase in degradation of soil resources worldwide due to inappropriate management practices, population pressure driving unsustainable intensification and inadequate governance over this essential resource. Facts About Soil

• Soil is where it all begins. Few people know that soils are a non-renewable resource.
• It takes over 1000 years to make 1 cm of soil.
• This means that in our lifetime, all the soil we see is all there is.
• Soils do amazing things for us that we sometimes take for granted. They sustain food production, filter our water, are the source for our medicines and help us to combat and adapt to climate change.

• FAO is also a source of knowledge and information, and helps developing countries in transition modernize and improve agriculture, forestry and fisheries practices, ensuring good nutrition and food security for all.
• Its Latin motto, fiat panis, translates as "let there be bread".
• As of May 2017, FAO has 194 member states, along with the European Union (a "member organization"), and the Faroe Islands and Tokelau, which are associate members.

The 6^th International Tourism Mart (ITM) 2017 was held in Guwahati, Assam. It was inaugurated by Assam Governor Jagdish Mukhi, Chief Minister Sarbanand Sonowal and Union Tourism minister K L Alphons. The three day program was organized by Union Ministry of Tourism in association with all North Eastern states. The focus areas of 6^th ITM was to spotlight on India's "Act East Policy", blossoming ties with ASEAN and larger East Asia region, home to world's rapidly growing economies and India's emerging tourism markets. It also held panel discussions, workshops, business to business (B2B) meetings, cultural programs. ITM: Know More

• The International Tourism Mart is an annual event organised in North Eastern States on rotation basis.
• Its objective is to highlight tourism potential of region in domestic and international markets.
• It also brings together tourism business fraternity and entrepreneurs from the eight North Eastern States.
• The earlier editions of this mart were held in Guwahati, Shillong, Tawang, Gangtok and Imphal.

The Indian Navy Day is observed every year on 4 December to celebrate achievements and role of the naval force to the country. This year is 46th Navy Day. Celebrations of Navy Day not only display India's technological progress but also the maritime achievements of India. Indian Navy is one of most potent maritime forces in the world and the most lethal in Indian Ocean. It plays great role in securing marine borders of country as well as enhancing international relations of country through foreign port callings, joint exercises, humanitarian missions and calamity relief.

President Ram Nath Kovind inaugurated 18^th edition of the Hornbill Festival at the Naga Heritage Village in Kisama, Nagaland. The festival coincided with 54th statehood day of Nagaland. Hornbill Festival also called as the 'Festival of Festivals' in Nagaland is tourism promotional extravaganza to revive, protect and preserve the richness and uniqueness of Naga heritage.

The President of India Shri Ram Nath Kovind presented the "National Award for Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (Divyangjan)-2017" at a function organized by Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (Divyangjan) under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment on the occasion of International Day of Persons with Disabilities. On International Day of Persons with Disabilities i.e. 3rd December, the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (Divyangjan), Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment presents National Awards to Individuals, Institutions, Organisations, State/District etc for their outstanding achievements and work done towards empowerment of Persons with Disabilities. The National Awards were presented in 14 main categories. Within stipulated date, out of these 14 categories, 984 applications were received from 13 categories.