Current Affairs in Short: 29 October 2021

North Korea Food Crisis: Leader Kim Jong Un urges its people to eat less till 2025

•North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has asked the people of his country to eat less food until 2025 in order to tackle the food crisis in North Korea.

•North Korea is witnessing a surge in food prices due to a lack of supply in relation to the demand of people in the country. The food crisis situation has worsened as the agricultural sector failed to fulfill its grain production plan, said Kim Jong.

•The COVID-19 pandemic, sanctions, last year typhoons have also added fuel to the food situation in North Korea. Kim Jong had mobilized the military to conduct relief work in areas hit by heavy rains.

•Calling the food crisis the worst-ever situation, Kim Jong in April 2021 had called ruling party officials to launch ‘Arduous March’ while linking the current economic and food crisis with the time period in the 1990s of famine and disaster in North Korea.

Validation phase of exercise Yudh Abhyas 2021 held in Alaska from October 25 to 28

•The validation phase of exercise Yudh Abhyas 2021 was held in Alaska, the US in two parts from October 25 to 28, 2021. The pair of teams, one led by the US army and another led by the Indian army conducted their assault for two days each.

•Geronimo and Site Summit were selected as the two target sites for the final assault phase where troops from all four teams were sequentially inserted by CH-47 Chinooks and vehicles.

•The aim of the validation phase of exercise Yudh Abhyas 2021 was to validate the cold weather skills acquired over the past 10 days, practice the conduct of small team operations in extreme cold weather conditions, and train soldiers in the Arctic survival.

Mandaviya launches nationwide Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine Immunisation Programme

•Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare Mansukh Mandaviya on October 29, 2021, launched the nationwide expansion of Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV) under the Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP) as a part of ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’.

•It will be the first time in India that PCV will be available for universal use. The communication packages on Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV) have been shared with all States and Union Territories for creating widespread mass awareness. 

•Pneumonia is a leading cause of death among children under 5 years of age across India and globally. India accounts for 16 per cent of deaths of children due to pneumonia. The nationwide expansion of PCV is expected to reduce child mortality by approximately 60 per cent.

•The Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP) is one of the largest public health programs that cover approximately 26.7 million newborns and 29 million pregnant women annually.

•Under UIP, immunization is provided free of cost against 12 vaccine-preventable diseases that include pneumococcal pneumonia, Japanese Encephalitis, Meningitis, Hepatitis B, Rotavirus diarrhea, Rubella, Measles, Polio, Tetanus, Pertussis, Diphtheria, states the Ministry.

HAL delivers 200^th gun bay door for Boeing F/A-18 Super Hornet

•Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), the indigenous aerospace and defence company on October 29, 2021, delivered the 200^th gun bay door to Boeing for the F/A-18 Super Hornet aircraft.

•Hindustan Aeronautics Limited General Manager (Aircraft) S Manicka Vasagam handed over the documents of the 200^th gun bay door for Boeing F/A-18 Super Hornet to Boeing Director-Supplier Ashwani Bhargava.

•Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) has been supplying the aero-structure to Boeing for 10 years.

Chennai-Mysore-Chennai Shatabdi Express becomes 1^st IMS certified train

•Chennai-Mysore-Chennai Shatabdi Express on October 29, 2021, became the 1^st Integrated Management Systems (IMS) certified train of Southern Railway.

•The IMS certificate was given in recognition for the train’s maintenance, better use of environment-friendly resources, and offering travel comfort.

•Chennai-Mysore-Chennai Shatabdi Express train is the first Shatabdi of Indian Railways and the second express train of Indian Railways to win this certification.

•The Integrated Management Systems (IMS) certificate is given to the certification agency after a comprehensive audit and verifying adherence by Railways to all norms.