- In almost 9 months since the campaign started, India has completed 100 crore doses of COVID-19 vaccines on 21 October. PM Modi called the achievement a “victory of Indian science, enterprise and the collective spirit of 130 crore Indians”. The Prime Minister visited the Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital and interacted with health workers and people receiving the vaccine. To mark the occasion, the Union Health Ministry organized several events and released a two-minute and four-second video with rap and visual representations of the country’s fight against COVID-19.
- The Election Commission of India (ECI) has launched Garuda App for digital mapping of all polling stations so that election work can be completed faster, smarter, transparent and on time. Through the Garuda App, Booth Level Officers (BLOs) will upload photos and location information of polling stations along with data such as latitude and longitude of the centre from their registered mobile numbers. The app will also help reduce paperwork.
- The Union Cabinet has approved a further increase of 3 per cent in the Dearness Allowance for Central Government employees and pensioners. The increase of 3% is over and above the existing rate of 28% of basic pay/pension and will be effective from July 1, 2021. Now after this increase, DA/DR will increase to 31%.
- Union Agriculture Minister, Narendra Singh Tomar and Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha have virtually inaugurated the first-ever Apple Festival in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir. It will provide a better platform for apple growers and other stakeholders. With an annual production of over 2 million metric tonnes, apples from Jammu and Kashmir contribute to 87% of the national production and are linked to the livelihood of about 30% of the population of Jammu and Kashmir.
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the “Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission” from his parliamentary constituency Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh on October 25, 2021. Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission is one of the largest pan-India schemes to strengthen healthcare infrastructure across the country and is in addition to the National Health Protection Mission.
- Actor Rajinikanth was honoured with the prestigious 51st Dadasaheb Phalke Award at the 67th National Film Awards ceremony for his contribution as an actor, producer and screenwriter. He received the prestigious award from Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu for his outstanding contribution to Indian cinema.
- The air quality in Delhi has reached the very poor category ahead of Diwali. The System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR) recorded 302 Air Quality Index (AQI). However, the agency forecasts that the air quality will improve with the change in wind direction and rain.
- On the second day of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Europe tour, he met Pope Francis, the biggest religious leader of Catholic Christians, and the Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin. This was Modi’s first meeting with Pope Francis. PM Modi also invited Pope Francis to visit India. Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla, who was present in Rome late in the evening, told that Pope Francis has accepted PM Modi’s invitation and he will visit India soon. The Pope praised India for helping other countries during the Corona period. The two discussed the problems faced by the people after the COVID-19 pandemic. Modi also spoke about the efforts taken by India on the issue of climate change.
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- Former Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh, accused in the 100 crore recovery case, is in ED’s custody. The special PMLA court has sent him to ED custody till November 6. Deshmukh was arrested after about 13 hours of interrogation. The court has accepted Deshmukh’s plea to provide home-cooked food in custody and his lawyer to be with him during interrogation.
- National Testing Agency declared the result of NEET-UG on Monday. In this, Mrinal Kutteri of Telangana, Tanmay Gupta of Delhi and Karika G. Nair have secured the top rank. All of them have got full marks. NTA says that tie-breaking formula will be implemented for these three candidates at the counselling stage. The result of 15 students has been cancelled. NEET-UG was conducted on 12 September. A record 16.14 lakh candidates had registered for this test. Of these, more than 95% took the exam.