National Affairs
IDSA to be renamed as Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses
Union Government has decided to rename the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, IDSA as Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses. The decision has been taken to honour the commitment and legacy of late Manohar Parrikar. It will align the vision and aspiration of the premier defence institute with the contribution of the former Defence Minister and Padma Bhushan awardee.
About IDSA:
IDSA has served as a forum to debate important aspects of national and international security. The institute conducts several national and international conferences every year and regularly holds round tables and workshops on important developments.
PM Modi inaugurates ‘Kashi Ek Roop Anek’ exhibition in Varanasi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated cultural arts and handicrafts exhibition named ‘Kashi Ek Roop Anek’ organized at Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. ‘Kashi Ek Roop Anek’ showcased products from over 10,000 artisans from all over Uttar Pradesh.
In this event, the Uttar Pradesh government had launched the ambitious scheme ‘One District, One Product’ (ODOP) in which one craft per district was identified.
About Uttar Pradesh:
- Governor – Anandiben Patel
- Chief Minister – Yogi Adityanath.
Bihar to get north India’s first bird ringing station and MoU inked in Gujarat
Bihar becomes North India’s first “bird ringing station” for observation, monitoring & research on migratory birds and 4th state in the country after Tamil Nadu (Chennai), Rajasthan (Jaipur) and Orissa (Bhubaneshwar).
The bird ringing station will be at Bhagalpur, Bihar, located close to the Ganges & is known to be a favorite destination of migratory birds.
About Bihar:
- Capital- Patna.
- Chief Minister (CM)- Nitish Kumar.
- Governor- Phagu Chauhan.
Dr. S Jaishankar to inaugurate Indian Pavilion at 70th Berlin International Film Festival
The Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, Government of India, in collaboration with Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) is participating at the ‘70th Berlin International Film Festival’. The festival will be held from 20th February to 1st March 2020 in Berlin, Germany.
The film festival will also see an India Pavilion which will provide a platform to popularize Indian cinema in the overseas market and facilitate new business opportunities.
About Berlin Flim Festival:
- Founded – 1951
International Affairs
UAE becomes 1st Arab Nation to issue license to operate a reactor at its Nuclear power plant
The United Arab Emirates representative to the International Atomic Energy Agency Mr. Hamad al-kaabi announced that the National Nuclear Regulator has issued an Operating license for a reactor at its Barakah nuclear power plant and becomes the 1st arab country in the world to operate a nuclear power plant.
About UAE:
- Capital- Abu Dhabi
- Currency- United Arab Emirates Dirham
- President- Khalifa bin Zayed Sulatn Al Nahyan
State Affairs
Delhi Police integrated with Uber launched “Himmat Plus app”
Delhi Police along with Uber launched “Himmat Plus app”, at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) airport, New Delhi, to ensure safety and security of the people travelling in cabs.
The police headquarters will receive the real time location of a driver or rider in case of emergency through this app so that PCR (Police Control Room ) van can be assigned to provide assistance.
About Delhi:
- Chief Minister (CM)- Arvind Kejriwal.
- Deputy CM- Manish Sisodia.
- Governor- Anil Baijal.
Summits & Conference
Difficult Dialogues 2020 began in Goa
The 5th edition of Difficult Dialogues began in Panji, Goa. Difficult Dialogues (DD) is an annual forum examining issues of contemporary relevance in South Asia. Difficult Dialogues 2020 will focus on the “State of Law”.
About Goa:
- Chief Minister- Pramod Sawant
- Governor- Satya Pal Malik
4th National Conference on PMFBY inaugurated in Udaipur
The 4th National Conference on Review of Implementation of Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) inaugurated in Udaipur, Rajasthan by Sanjay Agarwal, Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare.
Around 140 members representing different States, banks, insurance companies, RBI, NABARD have participated in it.
The Ministry of Agriculture had previously organized first three editions Conference in Lucknow, Bangalore and Guwahati.
Honors & Awards
Election Commission of India gets ‘Silver’ award for Excellence in Government Process
The Election Commission of India has been awarded ‘Silver’ for Excellence in Government Process re-engineering for digital transformation for the year 2019-20.
The award was presented during the 23rd National Conference on e-Governance February 7-8, 2020 at Mumbai by Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG), Government of India.
The award was given to Dr. Sandeep Saxena, Senior Deputy Election Commissioner and Dr Kushal Pathak, Director ICT & CISO as Project Head for the ERONET from ECI.
About ECI:
- Headquarters – New Delhi
- Founded -1950
Appointments
Australia appointed Barry O’Farrell as new high commissioner to India
Australia has appointed former NSW (New South Wales) premier Barry O’Farrell as the next high commissioner to India. Barry O’ Farrell will be the successor of Harinder Sidhu.
He served in the New South Wales (NSW) Parliament from 1995-2015, as the 43rd premier of the province, also has non-resident accreditation to Bhutan and as NSW special envoy for India & made a significant contribution as the Deputy Chair of the Australia- India Council Board.
About Australia:
- Capital- Canberra.
- Currency- Australian Dollar (AUD).
- Prime Minister (PM)- Scott John Morrison.
Science and Technology
ISRO to launch 10 Earth Observation Satellites in 2020-21
The Indian Space Research Organisation has revealed in its annual report for 2019-20 that it will launch 10 Earth Observation Satellites in 2020-21. The 10 earth observation (EO) satellites will include categories such as the first Geo Imaging Satellite, GISAT-1 along with three communication satellites and two navigation satellites.
About ISRO:
- ISRO Director: K. Sivan,
- Headquarters: Bengaluru;
- Established: 1969.
Defence News
India to get Peninsular & Air Defence Command by next 2021, theatre commands by 2022
In order to deal with future security challenges, India’s first Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Bipin Rawat has proposed Peninsular Command by merging Western and the Eastern Command of the Indian Navy, which will spread from the Sir Creek near the Arabian Sea to the Sundarbans in the Bay of Bengal.
It will be under the operational control of the Navy Chief and will have air assets and support from the army. This tri-services Peninsular Command will be responsible for dealing with maritime security challenges in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR). It will be rolled out by the end of 2021
Sports Affairs
NADA bans javelin thrower Amit Dahiya for four years
National Anti Doping Agency (NADA) has banned javelin thrower Amit Dahiya for four years for evading sample collection and trying to cheat officials during the 2nd National Javelin Throw Open Championship 2019 held at SAI Centre in Sonipat.
About National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA):
- Headquarters- New Delhi
- Founded- 2005
- Chairman- Minister of Sports (India)
“United by Emotion” to be 2020 Tokyo Olympics Motto
The Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games revealed the official motto, “United by Emotion” for the upcoming 2020 Olympics.
The Motto emphasises the power of sport to bring together people from diverse backgrounds to connect and celebrate in a way that reaches beyond their differences.
The Tokyo 2020 Olympics will take place from July 24 to August 9.
Important Days
19th February Observed as Soil Health Card Day
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had launched the Soil Health Card (SHC) Scheme on 19th February 2015 at Suratgarh in Rajasthan. The scheme aims at issuing soil health cards to farmers every two years so as to provide a basis to address nutritional deficiencies in soil.
The scheme ensures additional income to farmers by increase in yields and it also promotes sustainable farming.
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