Global summit on ‘Liveable Cities of Tomorrow’ will be organised in Gandhinagar, Gujarat today. Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, along with the Union Minister of state for housing and Urban Affairs, Kaushal Kishore, will inaugurate the summit.

• City leaders, including mayors, municipal commissioners, academicians, and industry experts, with around 800 global participants and 15 panelists from various organizations including World Bank and UNICEF will take part in the summit.
• The three-session summit will cover topics ranging from designing liveable cities to implementing core concepts such as sustainable financing instruments, digitalisation, measuring liveability, and investable cities.
• This summit is being organised as a pre-event of Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit (VGGS) 2024.

Coal demand in India, the world’s second largest consumer of the critical commodity, is expected to rise by 3.5 per cent annually till 2026 topping 1,397 million tonnes (mt), the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Friday.

“India becomes the driving force behind the upward pressure on global coal demand through to 2026, even if the global trend is decided in China.

For the forecast period until 2026, we estimate Indian coal demand to rise by 3.5 per cent annually to 1,397 mt, with growth in every coal grade,” IEA said in its latest coal report. 

Coal demand in India, which accounted for 14 per cent of the global demand, increased by 9 per cent Y-o-Y, or 97 mt, totalling 1,162 mt. In 2023, the demand is expected to have increased by 8 per cent, or 98 mt.

The Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur (IIT-K) and the Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited today announced the launch of Kotak School of Sustainability – India’s first fully integrated school of sustainability at IIT Kanpur.

The National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the government of Saudi Arabia to protect the rights of skilled labourers from India. 

"Skilled labourers in India can register themselves at NSDC... after which we will come to know where they are going, for which work and with whom they will be working," NSDC CEO Ved Mani Tiwari said.

The registration process will be free of cost, he said, adding that skilled labourers from all categories, including AC mechanics, and car painters, can register themselves on NSDC. 

If a company or organisation does not comply with the wage protection system, their services will be frozen, meaning it cannot work with the government.

The Israeli government on December 17 approved the appointment of Reuven Azar as the new Ambassador to India.

• Mr. will also be serving as the non-resident Ambassador to Sri Lanka and Bhutan, a statement from the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
• His appointment is one of the 21 new Heads of Missions cleared by the Israeli government to assume service soon.
• Foreign Minister Eli Cohen, congratulating the new appointees, said they will "represent Israel and its citizens, strengthen its economy and strengthen international support for the State of Israel".

In a major success for its in-house design and development efforts, the Indian Air Force has successfully testfired its SAMAR air defence missile system.

• The IAF has developed the Surface to Air Missile for Assured Retaliation (SAMAR) air defence missile system by using its old Russian-origin air-to-air missile systems.  
• The missile system participated for the first time in the exercise to test its surface-to-air weapon systems and carry out their operational field trials.
• The missile system successfully achieved firing trial objectives in different engagement scenarios, they said.
• The system can engage aerial threats with missiles operating at a speed range of 2 to 2.5 Mach. The SAMAR system consists of a twin-turret launch platform with the capability of launching two missiles in single and salvo mode, depending on the threat scenario, the IAF officials said.
• The performance of the missile system has already been witnessed by Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari and Vice Chief of Air Staff Air Marshal AP Singh.

The Defence Ministry has said that doctors at the Army Hospital in Delhi Cant have successfully conducted for the first time in India, a life-saving Bone Marrow Transplant for a child diagnosed with a rare primary immunodeficiency disorder.

• The Ministry said the ground-breaking procedure has opened new doors of hope for children and families facing similar challenges.
• It added that the patient, a 7 years old boy, was diagnosed with ARPC1b, a very rare form of immunodeficiency at one year of age. It severely compromised his immune system and made him prone to repeated life-threatening infections and other complications.
• The Ministry further said that the Army Hospital conducted a Matched Unrelated Donor transplant within six months of being referred to the hospital. The procedure aimed to replace the defective immune cells with healthy ones.

National Minorities Rights Day is observed on December 18 carries significant importance in India. It serves as a poignant reminder of the dedication to safeguarding the rights of religious, ethnic, racial, and linguistic minorities within the nation. With each annual observance, India seeks to raise awareness, promote understanding, and actively champion the rights of minority communities. 

• According to the United Nations, a minority group is defined as a community that lacks social, political, and economic dominance and is numerically inferior within a specific country. 
• While these groups may vary in terms of culture, ethnicity, or race, they coexist within the broader national context.
• Upholding the rights of these minorities is essential to upholding the principles of equality and justice. 
• The inception of Minorities Rights Day aligns with the adoption of the UN Declaration on December 18, 1992.This declaration underscored the entitlement of individuals from minority groups to freely embrace their own culture, practice their religion, and use their language without facing discrimination.

In a historic moment for India, Ms. Uma Sekhar secured a remarkable victory by garnering 45 out of 59 votes in the initial round of elections for the Governing Council of the International Institute for the Unification of Private Law (UNIDROIT) held in Rome, Italy.

• Hardik, who led Gujarat Titans to IPL crown in 2022, was traded back to MI after two years last month and is set to don a new role, succeeding the joint-most successful captain in history of the Indian Premier League.
• Rohit, along with MS Dhoni, has won the title most times for his franchise – five – but where Sharma stands out is that he achieved it across 10 seasons as compared to MSD's 12. 
• Hardik, began his IPL career with the Mumbai Indians in 2015 and has scored 1476 runs for the franchise and taken 42 wickets. Signed as an uncapped player for INR 10 lakh, Pandya became an integral part of the team and was part of MI's title-winning sides in 2015, 2017, 2019, and 2020.