Narendra Modi to visit Varanasi, launch gaspipeline project

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to visit his Lok Sabha constituency on 24-10-2016 where he is set to launch a 1500-km- long gas pipeline costing Rs 51,000 crore and doubling of railway tracks on a busy route.
• Mr. Modi will launch “Urja Ganga”, the gas pipeline project which promises to provide piped cooking gas to residents of Varanasi within two years and, in another year thereafter, cater to millions of people in states like Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal and Odisha.
• Mr. Modi is also scheduled to flag off projects like doubling of railway tracks on the busy Allahabad—Varanasi section and expansion of the Diesel Locomotive Works (DLW) here besides laying foundation stone for a fully air-conditioned perishable cargo centre.
• He will also release a stamp dedicated to the ancient temple town, which is believed to be among the oldest surviving ones in the world.

Fadnavis faces flak for ‘brokering’ Mushkil deal

• Congress spokesperson Tom Vadakkan said the exhibition of films is guided not by the “goons” of any organisation but by the Cinematographic Act that permits screening after clearance by the Censor Board.
• The Congress demanded the resignation of Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis for “brokering” a truce between Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray and the makers of the film Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, while ally Shiv Sena slammed the BJP for compromising the Army’s self-respect.

Gurgaon city is now officially renamed Gurugram

• Gurgaon city has now officially been renamed as Gurugram.
• The notification to change the name of Gurgaon city had been sent for printing over a week ago after the Haryana Government got a No Objection Certificate from the Union Government in this regard earlier this month.
• It was in April this year that the Haryana Government had floated the proposal to rename Gurgaon as Gurugram based on the historic connect of the city with Guru Dhronacharya.

Prominent anti-Vietnam War activist Tom Hayden dead at 76: reports

• Tom Hayden, a 1960s anti-war activist and one of the era's most prominent, counter-culture radicals who went on to serve in the California state assembly and senate, has died aged 76.
• He was one of several protesters arrested and charged with incitement and conspiracy during the Democratic national convention in Chicago in 1968. After years of trials, appeals, and retrials, he was acquitted of all charges.

Centre mulls tracking flights remotely at regional airports

• The Centre is planning to monitor flights landing at regional airports remotely instead of constructing new traffic control towers near such airports in a bid to cut costs.
• “We are planning to go for remote air traffic control (ATC) systems being used and experimented in advanced countries to support the regional connectivity scheme,” Airports Authority of India (AAI) Member (Air Navigation Services) A.K. Datta said.
• The present law requires each airport in India to have its own traffic control tower which exchanges all sorts of information related to final approach, landing or take-off of a plane to weather or any kind of emergency or hazard with the pilot.
• The remote monitoring of planes has been tested in several markets such as Norway, Ireland, Australia and the United States.

World Bank must aid countries to manage shift away from coal’

• The World Bank and other global development lenders like the Asian Development Bank must help countries such as India to finance the shift of their coal production to more efficient technologies so they can meet their COP21 commitments.
• Super critical and ultra super critical (USC) plants (USC) substantially reduce carbon dioxide emissions and virtually eliminate particulate matter emissions, Mr. Sporton added, saying that India must invest in them despite their higher upfront cost.
• The Intended Nationally Determined Contributions submitted by 19 countries — India included — said they were going to use coal, Mr. Sporton said. “India basically said in its INDC that coal would be the backbone of its energy mix for decades to come.”

Third ODI between India and New Zealand

• India have won nine and lost five out of 14 ODIs played at Mohali — winning per centage 64.28.
• Virat Kohli and Mahendra Singh Dhoni were involved in a stand of 151 runs — India’s second highest for the third wicket vs New Zealand in ODIs next only to the 158 between Mohinder Amarnath and Navjot Singh Sidhu at Sharjah on March 27, 1988.
• Virat Kohli has received his 22nd Man of the Match award in ODIs — his second against New Zealand — his first MOM award vs New Zealand was for scoring 105 at Guwahati on November 28, 2010.
• Virat’s unbeaten 154 is his second highest score in ODIs behind the 183 vs Pakistan at Dhaka on March 18, 2012.
• Virat has completed his 3000 runs in ODIs at home — his tally being 3092 at an average of 58.33 in 66 matches (63 innings), including 11 hundreds and 17 fifties.
• Mahendra Singh Dhoni is the third wicketkeeper to complete 9000 runs in ODIs — his tally being 9058 (ave.51.17) in 281 matches — the first two being Adam Gilchrist (9410) and Kumar Sangakkara (13341). Dhoni’s feat of reaching the milestone in 244 innings is the quickest by a wicketkeeper — the next two being Sangakkara (252) and Gilchrist (262).