NEWS 09/09/2020. SOME IMPORTANT NEWS. 1) Schools will be allowed to reopen for Classes 9-12 from September 21 for certain activities which are mentioned in the SOP. Only schools outside containment zones will be allowed to reopen. The Ministry of Health and Family welfare has allowed a phased reopening of schools and colleges. In a notice issued, the ministry stated that skill or entrepreneurship training too will be permitted from 21st of Sep. It will be on a “voluntary basis” & all the mentioned guidelines of the SOP will have to be adhered with strictly. Further details from the states are expected shortly.2) Indian Army, ITBP initiates joint exercise along China border in Himachal Pradesh. A day after India thwarted Chinese troops’ attempts to intrude into the Indian territory along Pangong Tso Lake in Ladakh, the Indian Army and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police started joint exercise along the China border in Himachal Pradesh. The joint exercise is undertaken near Hurling and Gayu villages in the Kaurik sector.3) India, ADB inked a $500 million loan for Delhi-Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System Corridor. Also World Bank and the government of Himachal Pradesh signed $82 million loan for the implementation of Himachal Pradesh State Roads Transformation Project.4) According to the report on ‘Household Social Consumption, a National Sample Survey conducted from July 2017 to June 2018, Kerala has the highest 96.2% literacy in the country. This is followed by Delhi, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Assam. The worst performers include Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Bihar, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. 5) Sir David Attenborough, who is a naturalist and broadcaster, has been conferred with the Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development for the year 2019. < < Back