Phayeng Village of Manipur has been tagged as the India's first carbon-positive settlement. As part of the carbon-positive village project, Phayeng will receive a grant of Rs10 crore in phases to facilitate afforestation in the catchment of river Maklang that flows along the village. The fund will also be utilised for creation of water bodies, introduction of climate change-resilient varieties of crops, installing solar lights, for setting up a community piggery and poultry farm, an eco-resort, replacing firewood in kitchen with cooking stoves and an indigenous knowledge centre in the village. A village is given the Carbon-Positive Tag if it sequesters more carbon than it emits, slowing the accumulation of greenhouse gases and mitigating the effects of climate change. Phayeng is a scheduled caste village of the Chakpa community in Imphal West district and its conservation efforts are mainly linked to the belief that the forest is a sacred grove. It is surrounded by three densely forested hillocks with fruit trees at centre and a stream flowing through it.

The Healthy Oceans Action Plan was launched at the 52nd Annual Meeting of ADB's Board of Governors, Nadi, Fiji. ADB President is Mr. Takehiko Nakao. Healthy Oceans Action Plan will expand financing and technical assistance for ocean health and marine economy projects to $5 billion from year 2019 to 2024.The 4 areas that the Action Plan will focus on, are as follows: creating inclusive livelihoods and business opportunities in tourism and fisheries conserving marine ecosystems and major rivers decreasing land-based sources of oceanic pollution, including plastics, wastewater, and agricultural runoff improving sustainability in port and coastal infrastructure development.

The Nepal-India Franchise Investment Expo and Conclave will be held in Kathmandu from 15th to 16th May, 2019. The event primarily focuses on building the relations between India and Nepal through entrepreneurship development. The conclave is organised by Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FNCCI) in association with Embassy of India and Franchise India. The event is expected to introduce new investment opportunities to Nepalese market. According to Indian Ambassador Manjeev Singh Puri the summit will help in bringing the leading Indian iconic brands to Nepal. Their entry would not only bring investment into Nepal but also technology transfers and business know how. According to organizers 250 businesspersons and investors will attend the conclave and more than 1000 prospective franchisees and investors are expected to visit the expo.

The first global multi-stakeholder conference on synergies is summoned by (UN DESA) the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs and the (UN FCCC) United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change between the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement on climate change, in Copenhagen, Denmark. It is hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Energy, Utilities and Climate.Before the UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) provides a detailed analysis and review of SDG (Sustainable Development Goal) 13 on climate change in 2019, the conference will serve as an Expert Group Meeting (EGM) on SDG 13 (climate action). The objective of the Climate and SDGs Synergy Conference is to encourage action around the Sustainable Development Goals and provide strategies for boosting up the connection between the SDGs and climate action. It also focuses on maximising co-benefits by encouraging action from global, regional and country-level stakeholders.

Lebanon's capital Beirut has set a new Guinness World Record for the number of national flags raised in a city for 24 hours. The Beirut Alive Association in the national capital on 28th April raised a total of 26,852 Lebanese flags breaking New York's Waterloo record of 25,599 flags. The event was organised under the patronage of Prime Minister Saad Hariri, represented by MP Rola Tabsh, at the Nejmeh Square in downtown Beirut in the presence of Economic and Social Council Member Mohammed Al-Jouzou and independent witnesses from "Al-Ittihad Law firms" and various prominent figures. After raising the flag that broke the world record, MP Tabsh congratulated the Beirut Alive Association for this remarkable individual and national initiative by excellence, adorning Beirut with thousands of Lebanese flags and entering the Book of Guinness.

Social media giant Facebook chose London as the centre for rolling out digital payments service WhatsApp Pay globally. With this move, WhatsApp, a cross-platform mobile messaging application, is expected to hire more staff to manage the payments service. Currently, WhatsApp has around 400 employees globally.

The newly built Coast Guard Vessel ICGS C-441 was commissioned into the service by Tom Jose, Chief Secretary of Kerala at Vizhinjam Harbour, Thiruvananthapuram. It is the seventh Interceptor vessel amongst the series which is built by M/s. L&T Ltd (Larsen & Toubro Limited), Surat. Inspector General Vijay D Chafekar, PTM, TM, Commander coast guard Region (West) Mumbai have attended the commissioning ceremony. It is 27.4 metres long and has106 tonnes displacement capacity and can achieve a maximum speed of 45 knots(83 km/hr). The vessel is powered by twin diesel engines and twin water-jet propulsion systems and has an endurance of 500 NM at 25 knots of speed. It is designed to perform close coast surveillance, interdiction, search and rescue, rendering assistance to boats and crafts in distress at sea.

In a major boost to India's firepower, country's first indigenously designed and developed Dhanush artillery gun was inducted in the Indian Army during a ceremony held at Ordnance Factory in Jabalpur, MP. The Army had placed an order for more than 110 of these guns with the Ordnance Factory. Dhanush 155mm/45 calibre towed gun system can be deployed in all types of terrains. The Dhanush gun system is based on the designs of the Bofors howitzer which was inducted in the Army in the 1980s and would be the third type of artillery gun to be inducted into the force after the K-9 Vajra and the M-777 ultra-light howitzers.

NITI Aayog has organized a day-long FinTech Conclave at Dr. Ambedkar International Center, New Delhi. The Conclave was inaugurated by RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das. The objective of the conference is to shape India's continued ascendancy in FinTech, build the narrative for future strategy and policy efforts, and to deliberate steps for comprehensive financial inclusion.

The foundation stone of the first Hindu temple in UAE's capital Abu Dhabi was laid recently. Mahant Swami Maharaj, spiritual head of the Bochasanwasi Shri Akshar-Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS) presided over the four-hour ceremony. The temple embodies the timeless Vedic values of Vasudev Kutumbakam.