National Affairs
Bhubaneswar-Varanasi Direct Daily Flight operations commencement marks the 250th route under RCS-UDAN
Boosting the regional aerial connectivity in India, Alliance Air, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Air India commenced first direct daily flight operations from Bhubaneswar to Varanasi under the Centre’s RCS-UDAN scheme. The first flight under the UDAN scheme was flagged off on 27th April 2017.
Bhubaneswar to Varanasi route was the 58th route for Alliance Air under RCS-UDAN. Prior to this, Alliance air recently started direct flight operations in the Kolkata-Jharsuguda route on January 27, 2020.
Union Minister of North Eastern Development Dr Jitendra Singh chairs a meeting to fast-track the implementation of Ujh Multipurpose (National) Project
The Minister of North Eastern Development Dr Jitendra Singh chaired the meeting to fast track the implementation of Ujh Multipurpose (National) Project, Jammu and Kashmir. The meeting was attended by the Ministry of Jal Shakti, Ministry of Power and other officers from state government of Punjab.
The Meeting was held to fast track complete utilization of India’s rights under Indus Water Treaty. The project is to be constructed across River Ujh, a tributary of River Ravi. The project will help India utilizing the waters of Eastern Rivers to the fullest abiding to the Indus Water Treaty. It will help store 781 million cubic metres of water of River Ujh.
DST launches SATHI initiative to address need for building strong science & technology infrastructure
DST (Department of Science and Technology) that works under the Ministry of Science and Technology, has launched a special scheme called “Sophisticated Analytical & Technical Help Institutes (SATHI)” with the aim to create shared, professionally managed and strong Science and Technology infrastructure in India.
The SATHI scheme will enable academia, start-ups, manufacturing, industry and R&D labs to offer high-end analytical testing. This will help to avoid duplication, reduce the dependency on foreign sources & also foster a strong culture of collaboration between institutions.
About DST:
- Founded– May 1971
- Headquarters– New Delhi
First Coil was rolled out from the new SAIL-Rourkela Steel Plant Hot Strip Mill
The factory would necessarily oblige the household prerequisites of excellent quality steel, presently, which generally imported.
First Coil Hot Strip The new Hot Strip from Sail Plant, Mill with 3 Million Ton for each annum (MTPA) limit is a best in class plant with not many equals in India and will deliver world-class Hot Rolled(HR) curls. By chance, inside two days of the beginning of the hot path of the plant, it has revealed its first curl effectively.
State Affairs
Telangana:
India’s biggest rural technical festival Antahpragnya 2020
India’s biggest rural technical festival ‘Antahpragnya 2020’ was held in Rajiv Gandhi University of knowledge Technologies (RGUKT), Basar, Nirmal district, Telangana and the festival was inaugurated by M Prashanthi, District Collector of Nirmal, Telangana.
The festival was held for 3 days from 31st January to February 1,2020. The theme for the year 2020 was “Spot and encourage rural tech innovators”.
About Telangana:
- Capital- Hyderabad.
- Chief Minister- Kalvakuntla Chandrashekar Rao.
- Governor- Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan.
International Affairs
Pakistan, Somalia declare locusts a ‘national emergency’ after worst locust invasion
The Government of Somalia announced a National Emergency on Locusts (family- Acrididae) attack because these insects caused major damage to the food supply in one of the world’s poorest countries & and most vulnerable regions in the world. Somalia is the 1st country to make such a declaration & its declaration aims to intensify the national effort to combat these insects.
The Prime Minister (PM) of Pakistan Imran Khan has also declared a national emergency due to the massive locusts attack. These locusts have destroyed entire crops in the Punjab province of Pakistan, which now needs Rs 730 crore to overcome this crisis.
Points about Pakistan:
- Capital– Islamabad
- Currency– Pakistani rupee
- President– Arif Alvi
Points about Somalia:
- Capital– Mogadishu
- Currency– Somali shilling
- President– Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed
Economic Affairs
Fitch predicts India’s FY21 GDP growth at 5.6%
Fitch Ratings Inc. , an American credit rating agency in its ‘India’s economic growth outlook’, has estimated India’s GDP (Gross Domestic Product ) growth to 5.6 % for the financial year-FY21. For the current fiscal 2019-20 (FY 20), GDP is projected at 4.6 %.
In the Economic Survey, the government has projected GDP growth of 6-6.5 % for FY 21, which is higher than the estimate of 5 % in the current FY 20.
About Fitch:
- CEO– Paul Taylor
- President– Ian Linnell
Appointments
RP Singh, Madan Lal appointed as new BCCI Cricket Advisory Committee members
Former India cricketers Rudra Pratap Singh, Madan Lal and Sulkashana Naik were appointed members of the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) by the BCCI. The CAC’s immediate task will be to pick replacements for outgoing selectors MSK Prasad and Gagan Khoda.
About BCCI:
- BCCI President: Sourav Ganguly;
- Headquarter of BCCI: Mumbai.
Deepa Malik Elected President of Paralympic Committee of India
India’s lone woman Paralympic medalist Deepa Malik has been elected as President of the Paralympic Committee of India.She will succeed acting interim president Gursharan Singh.
Deepa Malik won a silver in shot put F-53 event in the 2016 Rio Paralympic games.She was also awarded with Padma Shri award, Rajiv Gandhi khel Ratna Award & also won silver in the IPC World Championships in 2011 in shot put.
Awards & Recognitions
RBI governor Shaktikanta Das wins ‘Central banker of the year 2020, Asia-Pacific’ award
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das has been named the Central Banker of the Year, Asia-Pacific 2020, by the Banker magazine, a unit of Financial Times (FT).The award is given to central bankers who have “best managed to stimulate growth and stabilise their economy.
Jorgovanka Tabakovi, National Bank of Serbia, was adjudged the winner as the Global Central Banker of the Year.
About RBI:
- Governor – Shaktikanta Das
- Head office – Mumbai
Delhi’s DTC awarded Road Safety Award 2018-19; Nagaland State Transport won under Hill category
Delhi Government’s public transport Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) has been awarded with Transport Minister’s Road Safety Award 2018-19 at an event in New Delhi. The award was given for its lowest accident rate. The Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) Shri Nitin Jairam Gadkari awarded a trophy and a cheque of Rs. 1 Lakh to the Managing Director(MD) of DTC Shri Manoj Kumar.
The Nagaland State Transport (NST) was given the “Road safety award 2018-2019” for “lowest rate of accident” in the category for “Hill.” The award was given by the Association of State Road Transport Undertakings (Asrtu).
Actress Waheeda Rehman to be honoured MP govt’s with Kishore Kumar Samman 2018
Bollywood actor Waheeda Rehman was selected for the National Kishore Kumar Samman of the Madhya Pradesh(MP) government for the year 2018. She will be awarded at her residence in Mumbai, Maharashtra by Culture minister of MP Vijaylaxmi Sadho.
Along with Rehman, on October 13, 2019 noted director Priyadarshan was also honoured with Kishore Kumar Samman.
About Mathya Pradesh:
- Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh: Kamal Nath.
- Governor of Madhya Pradesh: Lal Ji Tandon.
Defence News
Matla Abhiyan: Coastal Security Exercise conducted by Indian Navy
The Indian Navy conducted the Coastal Security Exercise, Malta Abhiyan in the Sunderbans region and the exercise is unique of its kind. Two naval boats were flagged off the Sunderbans till Hemnagar along the International Trade Protocol route between India and Bangladesh. The Naval officer created awareness to the local community along the route. The route is sensitive as deadly equipment can be dropped off easily and thus it was chosen by the Indian Navy.
About Indian Navy:
- Navy Day in India is celebrated on 4th December.
- Chief of Naval Staff: Admiral Karambir Singh.
11th DefExpo to be organised from 5th to 8th February 2020 in Lucknow
The 11th biennial edition of DefExpo India- 2020 is scheduled to be held for the first time in Uttar Pradesh capital Lucknow. It offers an excellent opportunity for the Indian defence industry to showcase its capabilities and promote its export potential. Main theme of the DefExpo India- 2020 will be ‘India: The Emerging Defence Manufacturing Hub’ and focus will be on ‘Digital Transformation of Defence’.
Important Points:
- Defence Minister of India: Rajnath Singh.
Sports News
ICC test batsmen rankings: Kohli retained no. 1 spot; Rahane slips to 9th place
On February 01, 2020, the International Cricket Council(ICC) released its latest test bats men rankings. Indian Cricketer Virat Kohli retained no.1 spot in the rankings while Indian cricketer Cheteshwar Arvind Pujara remained in 6th place and India’s Ajinkya Madhukar Rahane slipped to the 9th spot. Virat was followed by Steveen Peter Devereux Smith (Australia) and Marnus Labuschagne(Australia) in the 2nd and 3rd spot respectively.
Bowling rankings: Indian bowler Jasprit Jasbirsingh Bumrah was the best placed Indian at the 6th spot and was followed by Ravichandran Ashwin at the 8th spot. Mohammed Shami Ahmed was the third Indian placed in the top 10 rankings placed at 9th spot.
About ICC:
- Headquarters- Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE).
- Chairperson- Shashank Manohar.
- Chief Executive Officer (CEO)- Manu Sawhney.
Important Days
February 4 Observed as World Cancer Day
The World Cancer Day is being marked annually on February 4 by the Union for International Cancer Control. The day is being marked from 2008.The day is observed by the United Nations as well. The theme of this year’s World Cancer Day is “I am and I will”. This theme is being followed for the years of 2019-2021.
According to WHO, every year 8.8 million people die of cancer in low- and middle-income countries. The World Cancer Day is marked to reduce illness and death caused by cancer.
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