VANIK's Monthly Digest

MONTHLY DIGEST- CURRENT AFFAIRS CAPSULE-FEBRUARY 2020

.12.2018

VANIK’S MONTHLY.2018 DIGEST - CURRENT AFFAIRS CAPSULE-FEBRUARY 2020

.11.2018SL NO TOPICS PAGE NO

1 IMPORTANT DAYS 2

2 ECONOMY 3 RBI news Other banks Financial news Merger and acquisition Loan and allocation

Ratting and survey PSU, e-commerce and corporate 3 COMMITTEE AND ITS HEAD 8 4 STATE NEWS 9 5 NATIONAL NEWS 13 6 INTERNATIONAL NEWS 17

7 NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL 18 SUMMIT AND CONFERENCE 8 RANKING 20 9 BILATERAL 22 10 AWARDS AND HONOURS 23

11 PERSON IN NEWS 25

12 SPORTS 27 13 DEFENCE 30 14 SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY 31 15 BOOKS AND AUTHORS 32 16 OBITUARIES 33

MONTHLY DIGEST- CURRENT AFFAIRS CAPSULE-FEBRUARY 2020

IMPORTANT DAYS

February 2 World Wetlands.12.2018 Day  Theme: “Wetlands and Biodiversity”.  The day marks the date of the adoption of the Convention on .2018 Wetlands at Ramsar Convention, Iran on February 2,1971. February 4 World Cancer Day  organized by the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC), Geneva, Switzerland  The theme of WCD from 2019-21 is “I am and I will”. February 6 International.11.2018 Day of  Theme: “Unleashing Youth Power: One decade of accelerating Zero Tolerance to actions for zero female genital mutilation”. Female Genital  The themes focus to end FGM by 2030. Mutilation (FGM)  A special campaign titled ‘A Piece of Me’ was organized by the UNFPA (United Nations Fund for Population Activities) February 10 World Pulses Day National Agricultural Cooperative Federation of India Ltd. (NAFED) hosts the UN World Pulses Day celebrations in New Delhi February 10 National Deworming Children and adolescents in the age group of 1-19 years will be provided Day(NDD) single dose of a safe medicine Albendazole in all States and Union Territories (UT). February 11 Safer Internet Day  Theme: “Together for better Internet”.  Google launches internet safety campaign named #PehleSafety to create awareness around internet safety. February 11 World Unani Day  The day marks the birthday of great Unani scholar and social reformer “Hakim Ajmal Khan”.  4th Unani day function organized by Ministry of AYUSH (Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy) February 11 International Day of Theme: “Investment in Women and Girls in Science for Inclusive Green Women and Girls in Growth”. Science February 12 National Productivity National Productivity Council (NPC) comes under the Ministry of day Commerce & Industry. February 12 Darwin Day father of evolutionary biology-Charles Darwin February 13 National Women’s day  Birth anniversary of Sarojini Naidu (also named Nightingale of India) observes as National Women’s day.  International Women’s day: 8th March. February 13 World Radio Day Theme: “Radio and Diversity” (WRD) February 19 Soil Health Card Day Soil health card scheme completes 5 years on 19 February 2020,as it was launched by PM Modi on 19.02.2015 at Suratgarh, Rajasthan. February 20 World Day of Social Justice February 21 International Mother  Theme: “Languages without Border” Language Day (IMLD)  The Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) celebrated “Matribhasha Diwas” on february 21 with them “Celebrating our Multilingual Heritage”. February 24 Central Excise Day February 27 India’s First Protein Theme: “Protein Mein Kya Hai” Day February 28 National Science Day  The theme of the year 2020 is “Women in Science.”  On this day, Sir CV Raman had announced the discovery of the Raman Effect for which he was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1930. February 29 World Rare Disease Every Year, last date of February is observed as World Rare Disease Day. Day Theme: Reframe Rare for Rare Disease Day

MONTHLY DIGEST- CURRENT AFFAIRS CAPSULE-FEBRUARY 2020

ECONOMY NEWS RBI Overview of 6th Bi-monthly.12.2018 monetary policy 2020  Repo Rate: 5.15%  Reverse Repo Rate: 4.90%.2018  Marginal standing facility (MSF) Rate: 5.40%  Bank Rate: 5.40%  Cash reserve Ratio (CRR): 4%  Statutory Liquidity Ratio.11.2018 (SLR): 18.25%  GDP for 2020-21: 6 % (from 5 %) Bank deposit insurance hiked to Rs 5 lakh per depositor by Budget 2020  Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her budget speech 2020 has proposed to hike the bank deposit insurance in scheduled commercial banks to Rs 5 lakh per depositor from the current Rs 1 lakh.  Previously as per the RBI guidelines, deposits with all commercial banks and cooperative banks are insured under the Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC). Only Primary Cooperative Societies are not covered under DICGC.  As the insurance cover stands increased, the banks will pay a premium of 12 paise against 10 paise per Rs 100 deposited. RBI grants 5-year CRR relief to banks for lending to auto, housing, MSMEs  The Reserve Bank of India asked banks to avail the cash reserve ratio (CRR) exemption on home, auto and MSME loans for a period of 5 years.  At present, the bank is required to park Rs 4 with the RBI for every Rs 100 earned by them under the regulatory cash reserve ratio requirements. This implies if a bank lends Rs 25 out of the Rs 100 it earns; it can retain Re 1 with itself and pay only Rs 3 to RBI.  Under this CRR leeway, banks can avail themselves of CRR exemption for five years for incremental credit extended to automobiles, residential housing, micro small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) between 31 Jan to 31 July 2020.  Banks were asked to claim the first such deduction from the NDTL of February 14, 2020, for the amount equivalent to the incremental credit extended to the sectors indicated above over the outstanding level of credit as at the end of the fortnight ended January 31, 2020.  To ensure cheaper retail loans to borrowers, it relaxed regulatory requirements of lenders and promised to extend long term (1-3 years) funds of up to Rs 1 lakh crore to them at a concessional rate of 5.15%. RBI proposes draft rules to set up alternative retail payments system  The Reserve bank of India proposed a draft framework for setting up a new umbrella entity (NUE) focussed on retail payments system, along the lines of National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).  The new entity will be a company incorporated in India under the Companies Act, 2013, with a minimum paid-up capital of ₹500 crore.  The entity eligible to apply as promoter or promoter group for the NUE shall be ‘owned and controlled by residents’ with three years’ experience in the payments ecosystem as Payment System Operator (PSO)/Payment Service Provider (PSP)/Technology Service Provider (TSP).  Any entity holding more than 25% of the paid-up capital of the NUE shall be deemed to be a promoter.  No single promoter or promoter group shall have more than 40% investment in the capital of the NUE.  The promoters shall upfront demonstrate capital contribution of not less than 10% i.e. ₹50 crore at the time of making an application for setting up of the NUE.  A minimum net-worth of ₹300 crore shall be maintained at all times. RBI directs banks to link new floating rate loans to medium enterprises with external benchmark  The Reserve Bank of India has ordered banks to link all their new floating rate loans to medium enterprises with an external benchmark. The apex bank’s circular in this regard stated that the direction will be effective from April 1, 2020.  The external benchmarks include RBI repo rate, Treasury bill yields and other market interest rate published by the Financial Benchmark India Private Ltd (FBIL).  A floating-rate loan refers to a loan with a floating interest rate. A floating interest rate is known as an adjustable or variable rate. It refers to any debt instrument such as loan, mortgage, credit or bond that does not have a fixed rate of interest.

MONTHLY DIGEST- CURRENT AFFAIRS CAPSULE-FEBRUARY 2020

New one rupee currency notes coming soon  The Union Ministry of Finance has notified ‘Printing of One Rupee Currency Notes Rules, 2020’  It shall be rectangular.12.2018 9.7 x 6.3 cms, with its paper made of 100% (cotton) rag content. Obverse side of one rupee note:  It will contain the.2018 words “भभभभ भभभभभ‟ above the words “Government of India”.  It will feature bilingual signature of Shri Atanu Chakraborty, Secretary, Ministry of Finance.  It has replica of New.11.2018 Rupee One coin with ‘₹’ symbol of 2020 issued with ‘भभभभभभभ भभभभ‟ and capital Inset letter ‘L’ in numbering panel. Reverse side of one rupee note:  One rupee note contains ‘भभभभ भभभभभ’ above the words “Government of India” with the year 2020 on the representation of the One Rupee coin with ‘₹‘ symbol having design of grains depicting the agricultural dominance of the country.  Surrounding design consist of picture of ‘Sagar Samrat’ the oil exploration platform.

 Reserve Bank set to conduct Financial Literacy Week (FLW) 2020 from February 10–14

Theme- “Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs)”

 EPFO is considering a cut of 15 basis points in the interest rate on PF deposits in FY20 to 8.5% form 8.65% in

FY19.

 According to a GST Council notification 28% GST rate will be applicable to state-run and authorised lotteries

from March 1.  NPCI(National Payment Corporation of India) launches ‘UPI Chalega’ campaign for payment mode to gain currency

Other banks BoM, SBI only PSBs rated 'good' in digital transactions in Dec: As per MeitY  Bank of Maharashtra and State Bank of India are the only two state-run banks that showed 'good' performance in terms of digital transactions in December with a score of 77 and 68 respectively.  The score for an individual bank is given by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) on various parameters.  For digital transactions, the government has given a target of 4,000 crore digital transactions for the current fiscal FY2020. IndusInd Bank tops list of ‘Highest increase in brand value’  According to ‘The Banker’s Top 500 Banking Brands 2020’ report, IndusInd Bank has topped the list of ‘Highest increase in brand value’ among global banks.  As a part of the report, the list “Top 50 By Total Brand Value by Country” has been topped by China, followed by United States (US) at 2nd position while Canada and the United Kingdom (UK) ranked at 3rd and 4th spots.India ranked 8th in this list. Microsoft, SBI To Create Opportunities For Underserved Youth In BFSI Industry  Microsoft India announced partnership with SBI Foundation to create opportunities for youth with disabilities in the banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI) sector.  In its first year, the programme aims to upskill 500 youth for BFSI jobs across five major geographies – Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Mumbai and the National Capital Region. South Indian Bank won Awards at IBA Banking Technology Awards  Indian Bank Association’s 15th Annual Banking Technology Conference, Expo and Awards 2020 held in Mumbai, Maharashtra.  South Indian Bank emerged winner in the ‘Most Customer Centric Bank Using Technology’ category and runner up in the ‘Best Payments Initiative’ category for Small Banks.  IBA: Headquarters- Mumbai, Maharashtra

MONTHLY DIGEST- CURRENT AFFAIRS CAPSULE-FEBRUARY 2020

 Bank of Baroda(BoB) has partnered with Care Ratings for assessing the credit quality of small and medium

enterprises (SME) customers.  Axis Bank Inks Pact With.12.2018 Max Life To Raise Stake  Odisha's Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Department inked MoU with HDFC Bank to boost start-ups .2018  Finance Secretary Shri Rajiv Kumar has inaugurated the ‘Baroda Startup Banking’ service with the objective of making Bank of Baroda (BoB) a preferred ally of startup companies and connecting more than 2,000

startups over the next 2- years. .11.2018  HDFC Bank joined hands with the country’s largest airline IndiGo to launch a co-branded credit card. The card is being launched in partnership with Mastercard, which is the largest issuer for HDFC Bank  ICICI Bank Launches iBox, a 24X7 Self-Service Delivery Facility for Customers  Public sector Indian Bank announced the launch of two tailor-made credit products i.e. Corporate Loan and Ind Surya Shakthi for the benefit of the textile sector.  Karnataka Vikas Grameen Bank (KVGB) launched the ‘Vikas Yuva Prerana’ campaign, to boost

entrepreneurship among the students of polytechnics and ITIs.

 Gujarat govt partners with SBI to facilitate micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) loans.  SBI Card has partnered with Landmark Group to launch retail co-branded credit cards.  Kotak Mahindra Bank stated that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has granted its final approval regarding the dilution of promoters’ shareholding in the bank.  Canara Bank Securities Limited has launched a facility to open ‘Insta-Demat’ accounts online, in association

with the National Securities Depositories Limited (NSDL).

 The Reserve Bank lifts ban on Bandhan Bank network expansion

 Airtel Payments Bank stated that it has launched the Aadhaar enabled payment system (AePS) which will help people to do transactions at over 2,50,000 of its banking points across India.  Axis Bank tied up with Max Life Insurance that will allow the private sector lender to explore the possibility of entering into a long-term strategic partnership with the life insurer.

Financial news India becomes 5th largest economy, overtakes UK, France  A US-based think tank World Population Review in its report said that India with a GDP of USD 2.94 trillion, emerged as the world's fifth largest economy by overtaking the UK and France in 2019.  Top 5 Largest Economies of World:1-United States (US)($21.44 trillion), 2-China $14.14 trillion, 3- Japan($5.15 trillion), 4-Germany($4 trillion), 5-India($2.94 trillion)  Note:-1 Million = 10 Lakhs,1 Billion = 100 Crores,1000 Million = 1 Billion,1000 Billion=1 Trillion Fiannce minister Nirmala Sitharaman tabled The 15 th FC report in Parliament.  The Commission has reduced the vertical devolution — the share of tax revenues that the Centre shares with the states — from 42% to 41%.  This is due to the newly formed Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh, which will get funds from the Centre’s share, which means devolution will be for 28 states compared to 29 earlier.  The 15th FC, whose term was extended for 11 months , will submit its second report — for 2021-22 to 2025-26 — in October. Sovereign gold bonds open for subscription  Sovereign Gold Bonds 2019-20 (Series X) opened for the period March 02-06, 2020.  The issue price of Sovereign Gold Bond Scheme 2019-20 Series X has been fixed at ₹4,260 per gram of gold.  The government is offering a discount of ₹50 per gram( ₹4,210/gm) to those investors applying online and the payment against the application is made through digital mode. Sovereign gold bond scheme  These bonds are denominated in units of one gram of gold and multiples thereof.  Investors can subscribe to the issue via their banks. Besides that, these bonds are also sold through Stock Holding Corporation of India (SHCIL), designated post offices, NSE and BSE, either directly or through agents.

MONTHLY DIGEST- CURRENT AFFAIRS CAPSULE-FEBRUARY 2020

 Minimum investment in the bonds is one gram.  Sovereign gold bonds are periodically issued by the RBI on behalf of the government and each bond represents one gram.12.2018 of gold of 999 purity.  Investors would get a 2.50 per cent interest on the amount of initial investment, which will take effect from the d.2018ate of its issue and will be payable every six months.  The tenor of the bond will be for a period of eight years with exit option in 5th, 6th and 7th year, to be exercised on the interest payment dates. Besides, bonds will be tradable on stock exchanges within a fortnight of the issuance. PFRDA doubles minimum.11.2018 net worth for pension fund managers to ₹50 cr  The Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA), the regulator of the National Pension System (NPS), has doubled the minimum net worth criterion for pension fund managers to ₹50 crore from the ₹25 crore stipulated earlier.  This brings pension funds on par with mutual funds which have to meet a minimum net worth requirement of ₹50 crores, under SEBI rules.  Currently, there are eight pension fund managers including ICICI Prudential Pension Fund, Kotak Mahindra Pension Fund, LIC Pension Fund, Reliance Capital Pension Fund, UTI Retirement Solutions Pension Fund, SBI Pension Fund, DSP BlackRock Pension Fund, and HDFC Pension Management. EASE 3.0 launched by the Finance Minister to enhance Ease of Banking The Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman launched Enhanced Access and Service Excellence (EASE 3.0). It was launched along with the annual report of EASE 2.0 at a function organized by Indian Banks’ Association. Bad loans of PSBs stood at Rs 7.27 lakh crore in first half of FY20 Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the non performing assets (NPAs) of public sector banks (PSBs) has declined to Rs 7.27 lakh crore as on September 30, 2019, from Rs 8.96 lakh crore at the end of March 2018. That means PSBs recover record ₹2.03 lakh crore bad loans in last one-and-half years. Reliance General Insurance launches a comprehensive health insurance plan "Infinity"  Reliance General Insurance, a part of Reliance Capital, has launched a comprehensive health insurance plan called “Reliance Health Infinity”, which is focused on the healthcare needs of retail customers.  The policy offers 90 days pre and 180 days post hospitalization cover, along with sum insured ranging from Rs 3 lakh to Rs 1 crore, and free restore benefits.

Merger and acquisition  The Competition Commission of India (CCI) approved the proposal for the combination of Yum Restaurants (India) private Limited (YRIPL) and Devyani International Limited (DIL).  Amazon India partnered with Eastern Railways to set up kiosk at Sealdah railway station in Kolkata  India’s top refiner Indian Oil Corporation Limited-IOC has acquired a minority stake in Phinergy Ltd, an Israeli start-up company specializing in battery development with the aim to make ultra lightweight metal- air batteries that can be used in electric vehicles (EVs).  Emami Group announced the selling of its 100% equity stake in Emami Cement Limited, an Integrated Cement Manufacturing plant for an amount of RS. 5500 crores to Nuvoco Vistas corporation limited, part of Nirma Group.  Department of Telecommunications (DoT) , a department of the Ministry of Communications has approved the merger of consumer mobile operations of the Tata group –Tata Teleservices (Maharashtra) with Bharti Airtel Limited (also known as Airtel).  French energy major Total Gas & Power Business Services SAS (TOTAL) will acquire 50% stake in all operational renewable energy projects of Adani Green Energy Ltd. (AGEL) for $510 million (Rs 3633 crore)  Cipla pharmaceutical company, Mumbai, Maharashtra has acquired 4 brands from Wanbury pharmaceutical company, Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra.  State-owned Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) has signed an MoU with BSNL (Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited) for installing 1000 public charging stations for Electric Vehicles.  National Rail Transportation Institute (NRTI), Vadodara has announced the launch of joint research initiatives and teaching programmes with University of Birmingham,UK.  Competition Commission of India (CCI) approved the Joint Venture (JV) between Mahindra & Mahindra and Ford Motor and transfer of automotive business of Ford India to JV.

MONTHLY DIGEST- CURRENT AFFAIRS CAPSULE-FEBRUARY 2020

 Adani Transmission has sold 25.1% stake in its arm Adani Electricity Mumbai Limited (AEML) to Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) for approximately Rs. 3220 crore.  National Company Law Appellate.12.2018 Tribunal (NCLAT) has approved JSW Steel’s (formerly known as Jindal South West ) bid of Rs 19,700 crore for the acquisition of the bankrupt Bhushan Power and Steel Ltd (BPSL). .2018  IT company Tech Mahindra has signed an agreement to acquire 100 per cent stake in US-based Zen3 Infosolutions for $64 million (Rs 460 crore) in an all-cash deal.  ExxonMobil inked a letter of cooperation with US’ Chart Industries Inc. & Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOCL)for supplying liquified.11.2018 natural gas (LNG) by by road, rail and waterways to areas not connected by physical pipelines.  CCI gave nod to acquisition of government’s entire stake in THDC India and North Eastern Electric Power Corporation Ltd (NEEPCO) by NTPC Ltd.  State-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) and its subsidiary Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL) have bought out lenders in Petronet MHB Ltd, the firm that owns a petroleum product pipeline in Mangalore, for about Rs 371 crore.  Realme PaySa, the financial services app for smartphone brand Realme, has joined hand with National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), an innovative solutions provider for retail payment systems, and the country’s largest private lender HDFC Bank to conduct UPI hackathon.

LOAN and fund allocation  A sum of Rs 343.08 crore has been released under the Green India Mission (GIM) for undertaking afforestation activities over an area of 126,916.32 hectare (ha) in 13 states, according to the Economic Survey 2019-20.  United Nations’ (UN) Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) released USD 30 million for the humanitarian operations in syria’s ldlib province.  Asian Development Bank(ADB) has approved to sponsor $2 million as funding to combat the outbreak of novel coronavirus (nCoV)  Asian Development Bank (ADB) has secured Rs 850 crore (about $118 million) from a new issue of offshore Indian rupee-linked 10-year bonds.  The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation pledged to commit up to USD 100 million for the global response to the novel coronavirus epidemic.  The World Health Organization has called for 675 million US dollar in donations for a plan to fight the novel coronavirus.  Union Cabinet gave its in-principle approval for infusing Rs 2,500 crore in Oriental Insurance Company Limited (OICL), National Insurance Company Limited (NICL), and United India Insurance Company Limited (UIICL).  Government of India (GoI) and the World Bank (WB) have inked a $ 450 million loan agreement to support Atal Bhujal Yojana (ABHY) for groundwater management in the states of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Haryana, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh (UP) .  National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has sanctioned an amount of over 400 crore rupees to the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir during the current financial year for giving boost to the infrastructure in the rural areas.  The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has given its approval for loan worth Rs 140 crore at low interest rate to Punjab State Agricultural Development Bank (PSADB).  The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) projected a credit potential of Rs 34421.38 crore for Chhattisgarh in the financial year 2020-21.  Central Government has released 19,950 crore rupees as GST compensation to states which gets to a total of over 1.20 lakh crore rupees paid by the government towards GST compensation to the states during current fiscal  PepsiCo India has proposed to invest Rs 400 crore in Guwahati, Assam to set up a greenfield project for manufacturing snacking products.  Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman stated India will host the G-20 Presidency in 2022 and Rs 100 crore has been allocated for this purpose  The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) offered to extend a $3 billion loan to Andhra Pradesh for development projects.

MONTHLY DIGEST- CURRENT AFFAIRS CAPSULE-FEBRUARY 2020

Ratings and Survey  Fitch Ratings Inc. , an American credit rating agency in its ‘India’s economic growth outlook’, has estimated India’s GDP (Gross Domestic.12.2018 Product ) growth to 5.6 % for the financial year-FY21. For the current fiscal 2019-20 (FY 20), GDP is projected at 4.6 %.  National Statistics Office (NSO).2018 of the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) revised India’s GDP growth rate for 2018-19 to 6.1% from 6.8%  As per the new Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) being conducted by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MosPI), Unemployment rate in India was 6.1% in 2017-18.  The Economist Intelligence.11.2018 Unit (EIU) estimated the GDP growth for India to 6.1 percent for 2020.  Moody’s lowers India’s GDP growth estimate for 2020 to 5.4% from 6.6% and the next financial year (2020- 21) growth rate estimate to 5.8% from 6.7% .

PSU, e-commerce and corporate  IT major HCL Technologies stated it has entered into a pact with Sri Lanka’s Board of Investment for setting up a global delivery Centre in Colombo.  Tech Mahindra (TechM) and the Telangana government have launched T-Block Accelerator, the maiden accelerator programme for the newly-created Telangana ‘Blockchain District’.  India’s largest pay ments platform Paytm (owned by One97 Communications) has announced the launch of an All-in-One Android PoS device for merchant partners across the country.  WhatsApp will soon be able to roll out its digital payments platform WhatsApp Pay in India.  “Bezos Earth Fund” has been launched by Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos to to help preserve and protect the natural world against the climate change. He has committed to contribute $10 billion through the fund.  According to “Public Enterprises Survey 2018-19”, ONGC(Oil and Natural Gas Corporation), Indian Oil Corporation(IOC) and NTPC(formerly known as National Thermal Power Corporation Limited) were the top three PSUs with profits in 2018-19.  American tech major Accenture opened its third ‘innovation hub’ in the country at Pune. Bengaluru and Hyderabad are the other Indian cities having the hubs.  Amazon Web Services to invest $1.6 billion for 2 data centres near Hyderabad, Telangana.  Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL) signed the 1st ever term contract with Russia’s largest oil producing Company Rosneft for Importing 2 Million Metric Tonnes of Urals grade crude oil to India for the year 2020.

Committee And Its Head MR Kumar The insurance regulator IRDAI has set up a committee to examine whether life insurers can offer indemnity based health policies.IRDAI has now set up a nine- member committee led by MR Kumar, Chairman, Life Insurance Corporation of India to look into the issue Shri Sujit Prasad SEBI (Securities and Exchange Board of India) has constituted Municipal Bonds Development Committee headed by Shri Sujit Prasad Nand Kishore (NK) Nand Kishore (NK) Singh The 15th Finance Commission has set up a five-member Singh group led by 15th Finance Commission Chairman , Nand Kishore (NK) Singh to investigate the need for separate arrangements for funding defense and internal security. Deepa Malik Deepa Malik elected as President of Paralympic Committee of India Dr Harsh Vardhan Govt has set up a task force under the chairmanship of Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) Dr Harsh Vardhan, to monitor the recent novel Coronavirus (nCoV) outbreak Sanjiv Puri 15th Finance Commission has set up a 8-member group led by ITC chairman and managing director (MD) Sanjiv Puri to promote agriculture exports

3-member Cricket The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced the appointment of its Advisory 3-member Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC). The committee comprises Madan Lal, Committee(CAC) Rudra Pratap Singh and Sulakshana Naik and the term of appointment is 1 year.

MONTHLY DIGEST- CURRENT AFFAIRS CAPSULE-FEBRUARY 2020

State news Andhra Govt Launches 'YSR.12.2018 Pension Kanuka' Scheme To Deliver Pension At People's Doorstep  Andhra Pradesh CM Jagan Mohan Reddy has initiated a doorstep pension delivery scheme 'YSR Pension Kanuka' Scheme, under.2018 which, various welfare pensions is being delivered at the doorstep.  Also, the age for old age pensioners (OAP) has been reduced from 65 to 60 years.  The disabled pensions (DP) will be Rs. 3000 per month whereas the pension amount for CKDU (Chronic kidney disease of unknown)/dialysis pensions will be Rs. 5,000-Rs. 10,000 per month. MP won 1st place for implementation.11.2018 of PMMVY  Madhya Pradesh (MP) state won the 1st position for its implementation of Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY).  Indore (Madhya Pradesh) has also won 1st place for better performance in PMMVY.  Among states/UTs having less than 1 crore population, Dadra & Nagar Haveli ranked 1st. Benefits under PMMVY Cash incentive of Rs 5000 in three instalments i.e. first instalment of Rs 1000/ - on early registration of pregnancy at the Anganwadi Centre (AWC) / approved Health facility as may be identified by the respective administering State / UT, Second instalment of Rs 2000/ - after six months of pregnancy on receiving at least one ante-natal check-up (ANC) and third instalment of Rs 2000/ - after child birth is registered and the child has received the first cycle of BCG, OPV, DPT and Hepatitis - B, or its equivalent/ substitute. Maharashtra tops list of States hit by global medical data leak According to a recent report published by Greenbone Sustainable Resilience, a German cybersecurity firm Maharashtra topped among the Indian states which has been hit by global medical data leak. The analysis was made after data of around 120 million Indian patients were leaked and made freely available on the internet.Maharashtra was followed by Karnataka in 2nd place. Haryana launches Rs 1500 crore Mukhyamantri Parivartan Yojna  Haryana Chief Minister, Manohar Lal launched “Mukhyamantri Parivar Samridhi Yojna” on the completion of 100 successful days of the present State Government  Under this scheme, annual financial assistance of Rs 6000 will be provided to those families in the State whose annual income is upto Rs 1.80 lakh and land holding is less than 5 acres  Parivar Pehchan Patra is necessary to avail benefit under this scheme. 1st Disha Police Station inaguated at Rajamahendravaram,Andhra Pradesh  The Chief Minister (CM) of Andhra Pradesh (AP) Yeduguri Sandinti (YS) Jaganmohan Reddy has launched the 1st Disha Police Station in the State at Rajamahendravaram.  This is a aim to provide speedy justice to female victims of sexual assaults and other heinous crimes under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012.  AP government has also approved the A.P. Disha Bill, 2019 that makes it mandatory to settle cases of atrocities against women in 21 days and punishment including a death penalty for the offences of rape and gang-rape. Haryana Government launched ‘Reading Mission’  Haryana govt launched ‘Reading Mission- Haryana’ to inculcate reading habits among students.  The mission has been launched on the lines of the central government’s ‘Reading Mission 2022’, which aims to address the lost glory of reading books The Uttar Pradesh (UP) govt has approved the Ground Water Act-2020  The Uttar Pradesh (UP) govt has approved the Ground Water Act-2020 with the aim to improve the falling level of ground water.  Under this new act, online registration will be mandatory to install submersible pumps. Domestic consumers and farmers will not have to pay any fee for this registration.  If a landlord applies submersible pumps to build a house larger than 300 sqm in the urban area, then it will be necessary to install a rainwater harvesting system.  Under this, if a person is caught for the 1st time while polluting ground water, then there will be a provision of punishment from 6 months to 1 year. Along with this, he will also have to pay an penalty of 2 lakh – 5 lakh rupees.

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 If he/she caught for the 2nd time, there will be a penalty of 5 lakh – 10 lakh rupees and punishment from 2 years – 5 years.  In this way, if a person.12.2018 is caught for the 3rd time, then he will face punishment from 5 years to 7 years and financial penalty from 10 lakh – 20 lakh rupees. “Operation Nakail”- Ghaziabad.2018 police Ghaziabad police station in Uttar Pradesh has launched “Operation Nakail” under which all auto-rickshaw drivers are allotted with a unique 4-digit number and all the drivers should paint the number on front, left, right and rear side of the auto-rickshaw which is used identify/verify the driver later. Puducherry became first .11.2018Union Territory (UT) to pass a resolution against the CAA  The Puducherry Legislative Assembly has passed a resolution against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) 2019, the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and the National Population Register (NPR).  With this, it became the first Union Territory (UT) to pass a resolution against the CAA.  Previously Legislative Assembly of Kerala, Punjab, Rajasthan, West Bengal, and Madhya Pradesh had passed a resolution against the CAA. Haryana Govt to give Rs. 6 Cr to Olympics Gold Medal Winners State Government of Haryana announced that it will provide Rs 6 crores to gold medal winners , Rs. 4 crores for the silver medalist and Rs. 2.5 crores for the bronze medalists at the Olympics Games . The cash money prize is only for players representing Haryana. 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. GOI sanctioned 9 Medical colleges and 2 AIIMS for Jammu & Kashmir  Union Ministers for State, Public Grievances and Pensions Jitendra Singh said that Union govt has allocated 2 AIIMS (All India Institute of Medical Sciences) for Jammu & Kashmir(J&K)- one in Jammu & other in Kashmir.  Jitendra Singh also mentioned that 9 medical colleges have also been sanctioned in J&K in addition to the 2 AIIMS. Tamil Nadu, Karnataka to observe Jayalalithaa's birth anniversary as 'Girl Children Protection Day'  Tamil Nadu and Karnataka government will celebrate the birth anniversary of former CM Jayaram Jayalalithaa on February 24 as ‘State Girl Child Protection Day’  When the orphan girl residing in government-run homes completes 21 years of age, the state government of Tamil Nadu will deposit Rs 2 lakh in the bank in their name to help them get a better life in society after they leave the government homes.  The state Government also increased the monthly amount paid to the foster parents of the girls to Rs 4,000 from Rs 2,000.  Tamil Nadu govt also announced a 50 % subsidy for ‘ulemas’(Muslim scholars who are recognized as having specialist knowledge of Islamic sacred law) to purchase a new two-wheeler and increase their pension to Rs 3,000. Andhra CM launches 'Jagananna Vasthi Deevena' scheme to provide financial assistance to students  Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy launched ‘Jagananna Vasthi Deevena’, under which a financial assistance of Rs 2,300 crore would be provided to students pursuing various post- intermediate courses to meet hostel and mess expenses.  While ITI students would get Rs 10,000 each, polytechnic students would get Rs 15,000 and under- graduates and post-graduates Rs 20,000 each, according to the CMO. Uttar Pradesh government announces two new youth-centric schemes  The Uttar Pradesh government announced two new schemes to promote and help the youth of the state.  The two new schemes are Chief Minister Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (CMAPS) and the Yuva Udyamita Vikas Abhiyan (YUVA) will make the youth self-dependent.

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State news one liners  India’s first of its kind fruit train with bananas was launched from Tadipatri Railway Station in Anantapur district & from Kadapa.12.2018 district of Andhra Pradesh.  Karnataka CM Yediyurappa launches ‘Janasevaka’ scheme to provide delivery of govt services at doorstep .2018  Online lottery scheme sales banned by Punjab govt to check illegal sales  Kerala Government declares outbreak of novel coronavirus as state disaster  Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) has been awarded with Transport Minister’s Road Safety Award 2018-19. .11.2018  The Nagaland State Transport (NST) was given the “Road safety award 2018-2019” for “lowest rate of accident” in the category for “Hill.”  The Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) administration renamed Public Health Engineering and Irrigation and Flood Control Department (PHE & IFC) as the ‘Jal Shakti Department’.  Uttarakhand government has cleared the design of a glass floor suspension bridge to be built across Ganga River in Rishikesh, Uttarakhand to replace the iconic Lakshman Jhula bridge.  Madhya Pradesh (MP) government, for the first time, will use drones for mapping villages.  Kerala govt has unveiled an initiative of setting up 1,000 ‘Kudumbashree’ hotels to provide subsidised Kerala meals at Rs 25.  Uttarakhand Govt launched First Helicopter Services under Regional Connectivity Scheme-Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik(RCS-UDAN) Scheme.  Bhupesh Baghel, Chief Minister (CM) of Chhattisgarh, inaugurated Gaurela-Pendra-Maewahi as the 28th district of the state.  Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu Edappadi K. Palaniswamy announced that Cauvery delta regions in Tamil Nadu is going to declared as a protected Special Agricultural Zone(SAZ)  Andhra Pradesh (AP) Government (govt.) signed MoU (Memorandum of Understandings) with 11 agricultural institutions in the country to help farmers  Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniwami along with National Cricket Academy Head and Former Indian cricketer Rahul Dravid inaugurated the Salem Cricket Foundation (SCF) ground at Valapadi, Salem in Tamil Nadu.  Uttar Pradesh (UP) government signed pact with eGov foundation, Bengaluru for Implementation of Municipal Financial Accounting Platform in UP.  Bihar govt launches `Pyaar ka Paudha` campaign to promote the practice of planting trees  Punjab govt launched the ‘Appreciate and Commend’ scheme in Phillaur, Punjab to boost the confidence of police officers who work extraordinarily and the best cops will be awarded every month.  Chief Minister of Maharashtra Uddhav Bal Thackeray has approved the renaming of the Latur Medical College as Vilasrao Deshmukh Institute of Medical Sciences  Manipur Chief Minister, N. Biren Singh launched “Anganphou Hunba” (Sowing of First Crop Paddy) programme at Arapti Mayai Leikai in Imphal East.  Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister JaganMohan Reddy launched the Nadu-Nedu scheme for modernising hospitals  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.  Delhi-based Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) has become the 1st airport in India to be completely free of single-use plastic usage.It is inline with India’s target to abolish all single-use plastic from India by 2022.  Uttar Pradesh (UP) has implemented the Performance Regulation Act 2019 for the power department.  Tripura hosts the “Run for India Tea” which was organized in collaboration by Tripura Tea Development Corporation (TTDC) and Tea Board of India.  Haryana government will open Atal Kisan – Majdoor canteens in all mandis and sugar mills across the state to provide meals at concessional rate of 10 rupees per plate.  Union Minister of State for Shipping Mansukh Laxmanbhai Mandaviya has laid the foundation stone for a 50-metre high modern lighthouse at Dhanushkodi in Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu.  Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir will set up a Tribal Research Institute (TRI) by next fiscal year to promote tribal practices and their art, culture and languages.

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 Madhya Pradesh has become the first state in the country to introduce the unified registration card and the second state to launch the unified driving license after Uttar Pradesh.  Minister of State (MOS).12.2018 for Home Affairs Ministry, Mr. Gangapuram Kishan Reddy has Inaugurated National Cyber Research, Innovation and capacity centre at Central Detective Training Institute (CDTI) in Hyderabad, Telangana..2018  Union Minister of Coal and Mines, Shri Pralhad Joshi laid foundation stone of Crusher and Conveyor System at NALCO’s Mining & Refinery (M&R) Complex in Damanjodi, Odisha.  Adani Foundation launched a unique CSR (Corporate social responsibility) activity among Kerala’s coastal communities.11.2018 in association with Lifology.com.  India-Japan Join Hands To Make Odisha A Steel Hub “Mission Purvodaya”  Gujarat Assembly To Start ‘Best MLA’ Award starting from the year 2019.  NITI Aayog has selected UT of J&K for the first pilot project among all States and UTs on Sustainable Developmental Goals.  Jammu & Kashmir Lieutenant Governor G.C. Murmu approved the amnesty scheme (official pardon) for power consumers across UT of Jammu & Kashmir.  Tripura’s 1st Hornbill festival was celebrated in Tripura .Hornbill festival celebrated evey year in Nagaland.  Union Railway Minister Piyush Goyal notified the installation of a novel ticket vending machine at Delhi ‘s Anand Vihar station which will give Free platform ticket for 30 squats  Mumbai Airport Launches World’s Largest temperature-controlled facility to Store Agro, Pharma Products  Himachal Pradesh became the 1st state in the country to have 100% LPG coverage due to the implementation of PMUY (Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana) scheme.  Bihar is the first NDA-ruled state that has passed a resolution to not implement the National Register of Citizens (NRC).  Maharashtra Assembly passes law making Marathi language compulsory for all schools  Singing the national anthem made compulsory in all colleges of Maharashtra from February 19.  Jashpur city, situated in north-east of Chhattisgarh capital Raipur, has been declared as the first tobacco (smoke) free town  The Chhattisgarh government has decided to impose a permanent ban on hookah bars across the state  The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) will develop an air quality monitoring network across 90 locations in Mumbai. This will make it the largest network in India.  In Jammu and Kashmir, Lieutenant Governor Girish Chandra Murmu launched the Financial Inclusion Outreach Campaign with special focus on extending banking services to all un-banked areas.  Arunachal Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein stated that the state government will form a committee on Stilwell Road Development and would appeal Govt.  Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivender Singh Rawat inaugurated official web portal of Badrinath- Kedarnath Mandir Samiti.  Kerala CM launches ”Yodhavu” mobile app through which the public can inform police about drug abuse and its distribution  Rajasthan government to create separate identity card for transgender community in Rajasthan  Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswami announced a new initiative, ”Direct CTO”, to enable companies operating under ”green category industries” receive faster clearances from government to commence operations.

‘Lui-Ngai-Ni’ festival Manipur ‘Carnival 2020’  Panaji, Goa Ganga Kayak Festival Uttarakhand Vasantotsav Gandhinagar,Gujarat. Chilli Festival Khargone district of Losar festival Himachal Pradesh Madhya Pradesh Bharat-Bangla Paryatan Tripura Kala Ghoda arts festival Mumbai Utsav-Tourism festiva

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NATIONAL NEWS Govt announces Rs 8,000 cr outlay for national mission on quantum technology  Finance minister Nirmala.12.2018 Sitharaman’s Union Budget for 2020-21, presented on February 1, 2020, proposed Rs 8,000 crore over five years for National Mission on Quantum Technologies and Applications. .2018  Quantum technologies comprise quantum computing, quantum communication, quantum optics, quantum information processing, quantum internet and quantum artificial intelligence.  The Ministry of Electronics and IT has signed an agreement with Israel for joint research in 27 possible areas which includes .11.2018quantum compu ting as one of the potential segments. RCS-UDAN marked 250th route through Bhubaneswar-Varanasi daily flight operations Alliance Air which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Air India commenced direct daily flight operations from Bhubaneswar(Odisha) to Varanasi(Uttar Pradesh) under the RCS-UDAN (Regional Connectivity Scheme – Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik) of Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA). This marked the 250th route under RCS- UDAN. Income tax dept launches e-calculator to compare due tax under new, old regime  The Income-Tax Department has launched an e-calculator for individuals to estimate their tax liability if they opt for the new tax slabs, without claiming deductions and exemptions, for ITR filing as announced in the recent Budget.  The calculator, with a comparative table to compare taxes in the old and the new tax regime, for resident individuals.  Taxpayers in three age categories of normal citizen (below 60 years), senior citizen (60-79 years) and super senior citizen (above 79 years) can punch in their estimated annual income from all sources, total eligible deductions and exemptions to see what will be there total taxable income if they continue in the old regime or opt for the new one.  The new rates as proposed by the Finance Ministry are  5 per cent for an income from ₹2,50,001 to ₹5,00,000  10 per cent for income ranging from ₹5,00,001 to ₹7,50,000  15 per cent for income slab of ₹7,50,001 to ₹10,00,000  20 per cent for income between ₹10,00,001 to ₹12,50,000  25 per cent for individuals and HUF with income between ₹12,50,001 to ₹15,00,000.  Individuals and HUF earning above ₹15,00,000 will be liable to pay 30 per cent income tax.  Individuals with income below ₹2,50,000 are exempted from paying the tax.  The old or the existing income tax rate allows a standard deduction of ₹50,000 and investment of ₹1.5 lakh in saving schemes with a rate of 5%, 10% or 30% tax depending on various income levels. DST Launches SATHI Initiative  The Department of Science and Technology has launched the SATHI initiative, Sophisticated Analytical & Technical Help Institutes.  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.  DST has already set up three such centres in the country, one each at IIT Kharagpur, IIT Delhi and IIT- BHU at a total cost of Rs 375 Cores. It is planned to set up five SATHI Centres every year for the next four years. SC directs States to notify setting up ‘Gram Nyayalayas’ within 4 weeks The Supreme Court (SC) bench headed by Justice Nuthalapati Venkata (NV) Ramana has directed the state governments to issue notifications for establishing mobile village courts called “Gram Nyayalayas” within 4 weeks. PM Modi launches 10,000 Farmer Producer Organizations  PM Modi launched 10,000 Farmer Producer Organizations at Chitrakoot. The event is being organized to commemorate the successful completion of Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojana.  This will help GoI in achieving its target of doubling farmers’ income by 2022.  Prime Minister Narendra Modi will also lay the foundation stone for the Bundelkhand Expressway at Chitrakoot.

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PM Kisan Samman Nidhi  The small and marginal landholders are eligible to receive Rs 6,000 per year under the scheme by three instalments.12.2018 of Rs 2,000 each.  The Scheme initially provided income support to small and marginal farmers that hold land up to 2 hectares. Later, it.2018 was extended to all farmers irrespective of the size of their land holdings. MSME implemented new scheme SFURTI Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) implemented a new scheme named “Scheme of Fund for Regeneration of Traditional Industries”(SFURTI). Under this scheme, financial support will be given to set up traditional industries.11.2018 clusters viz. Khadi, Coir & Village industries clusters. MoFPI sanctioned 39 Mega Food Parks & 298 Integrated Cold Chain Projects under PMKSY  Under Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada Yojana (PMKSY), the Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI) has sanctioned 39 Mega Food Parks and 298 Integrated Cold Chain Projects in India.  Ministry of Food Processing Industries [MoFPI] is implementing PMKSY and the period of implementation is 2016-20 with a total outlay of Rs 6000 crore. India-Central Asia business council launched  Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) launched India-Central Asia Business Council.  The nominated chambers from India, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan came together to formally declare their association to collaborate and provide an industry view to the governments of the six countries. Hyderabad Metro is officially became second-largest metro network in India  L&T Metro Rail Hyderabad, a subsidiary of Larsen & Toubro, has completed India’s second-largest operational metro rail project in Hyderabad.  Chief Minister of Telangana State Mr. K.Chandrashekhar Rao ecently flagged off new Metro line from Jubilee Bus Station (JBS) to Mahatma Gandhi Bus Station (MGBS) connecting twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad, and the stretch covering of 11-km. With this the total operational distance of became 69.2kms.  With 231kms operational distance Delhi Metro Rail Network is country's largest Metro Rail Network. LPG coverage 96.9 per cent as on Jan 1, 2020  There are about 27.5 crore LPG or cooking gas connections in the country and the coverage has reached 96.9 per cent as on January 1, 2020.  From this 27.5 cr connection,8 crore connections have been provided under Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) scheme.  Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) targets to give 5 crore connections by March 2019.The target was later raised to 8 crore connections by 2021. NCL sets up R&D centre for sustainable coal mining  The Northern Coalfields Ltd (NCL) has set up a research and development centre focusing on a sustainable model for development in coal mining.  The R&D centre, named 'SARAS'(Science and Applied Research Alliance and Support)', will be the centre of excellence, infrastructure up-gradation and IT initiatives for the subsidiary of the Coal India Ltd. 20 best performing 'smart cities'to pare with 20 bottom cities  The Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry has paired up 20 best performing cities with the 20 bottom cities and they will work as “sister cities”.  Best performing cities topped by Ahmedabad. No.1 Ahmedabad has been paired with Chandigarh, ranked 81  Under this formula, Varanasi has been paired with another holy city Amritsar. Facebook launched digital literacy training to 1 lakh women in 7 Indian states  Facebook launched “We Think Digital” Programme to provide digital literacy training to 1 lakh women across 7 states.  The programme will start in the state of Uttar Pradesh (Lucknow) and expand to other states including Assam (Dispur), West Bengal (Kolkata),Madhya Pradesh (Bhopal), Gujarat (Gandhinagar), Jharkhand (Ranchi) & Bihar (Patna).

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India bans e-cigarettes in both domestic and international flights  The Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS), under the Ministry of Civil Aviation of India, has issued a circular that Electronic.12.2018-Cigarettes and all forms of Electronic Nicotine Delivery System (ENDS) will not be allowed in both domestic and international flights as well as at airports.  The circular also announced.2018 that the offenders will be sentenced into prison up to one year and also a fine of Rs. 1 lakh. In the case of repeat offenders, the jail term is increased to 3 years with Rs. 5 lakhs fine. Cabinet approves changes in 'Vivad se Vishwas Bill' to reduce tax litigations  Union Cabinet has given.11.2018 nod to changes in the 'Direct Tax Vivad se Vishwas (No dispute but trust) Bill, 2020' to increase its scope to cover litigations pending in various debt recovery tribunals (DRTs)  The Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha earlier this month with the aim of reducing litigations related to direct taxes. Nitin gadkari flags off KVIC’s ‘Apiary on wheels’ for bee keeping in New Delhi  The union minister for Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Nitin Jairam Gadkari flagged off ‘Apiary on Wheels’ in New Delhi in the presence of Shri Vinai Kumar Saxena, Chairman of Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC).  Apiary on Wheels is a unique concept for easy maintenance of BeeBox and migration of live colonies, designed by KVIC. Northern Frontier Railway Construction Built India’s Tallest Pier Bridge In Manipur  Northern Frontier Railway construction has constructed India’s tallest railway pier bridge. It is built across the Makru river in the Tamenglong district of Manipur.  Structure of the Bridge Total amount spent was Rs283.5 crore.It is 100m tall similar to a 33 storey building. Width 555m is a part of 111km Jiribam-Tupul-Imphal new broad-gauge line. Govt launches mobile app to broaden reach of PM-Kisan  On the first anniversary of launch of the government's ambitious PM-Kisan scheme, Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar launched a mobile app to broaden the reach of the programme that aims to provide annually Rs 6,000 to each eligible farmer  The Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-Kisan) was launched on February 24, 2019 in Uttar Pradesh and all states are implementing the scheme, except for West Bengal.  The Centre has disbursed Rs 50,850 crore to farmers so far.  So far, 9.74 crore farmers are registered under the scheme against the target of 14 crore farmers. Of which, the payment has been made to 8.45 crore farmers. Ordnance Factory Boards Becomes The 1st Govt Entity To Adopt Centralised Invoicing Platform:  Ordnance Factory Board (OFB) an industrial organisation, functioning under the Department of Defence Production of Ministry of Defence, Government of India (GoI), has become the 1st government entity to adopt centralised invoicing platform.  TreDS (Trade Receivables electronic Discount System),under which a total of 41 OFBs adopted this platform, which would help smaller MSME (Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises) vendors access working capital easily. Government approves 32 projects under Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada Yojana  The Union Government has approved 32 projects in the food processing sector under Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada Yojana (PMKSY).  The new projects will cover 17 states with an investment worth Rs 406 crore.  The implementation period of the PMKSY scheme is 2016-20 and it has a total outlay of Rs 6,000 crore. National news One liner  Britain’s Prince Charles unveiled a new Children’s protection fund for India as part of British Asian Trust and announced American singer Katy Perry as the new ambassador for the British Asian Trust Children’s Protection Fund for India.  PM Modi announced 15-member trust named ‘Sri Ram Janma Bhoomi Tirtha Kshetra trust’ for Ayodhya temple  The Union Cabinet approved amendments to the Banking Regulation Act to bring cooperative banks under the regulatory mechanism of Reserve Bank of India.

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 Union Cabinet has approved exemptions in Air India’s subsidiary- Alliance Air for the operation of international flights between India & Sri Lanka with prior effect by waiving the rule that an airline needs to have minimum 20 .12.2018aircraft to operate internationally.  The cabinet has given its ‘in-principle’ approval for setting up a Major Port at Vadhavan near Dahanu in Maharashtra at a cost.2018 of Rs.65,544 .54 crore.  Information and Broadcasting Ministry has launched 18-day “Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat Campaign” across India with the aim of bringing various states into the thread of cultural unity.  National Institute of Financial Management (NIFM), Faridabad, Haryana, as “Arun Jaitley National Institute of Financial Management.11.2018 (AJNIFM)” .  The Pravasi Bharatiya Kendra and The Foregin Service Institute have been named after former Indian Diplomat Sushma Swaraj  New Delhi based Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (IDSA) has renamed as Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses in order to “honour the commitment and legacy” of late defence minister Manohar Parrikar.  Ambala city bus stand renamed after late Sushma Swaraj by Haryana Govt  Indian Railways has planned to prepare 5- Star Hotel on the tracks in Gandhinagar railway station of Gujarat to give passengers the experience of world class facilities.  South Central Railways zone becomes India’s 1st to have energy-neutral stations  PM Modi flagged off IRCTC's Maha Kaal Express which will connect the three Jyotirling pilgrim centres of Varanasi, Ujjain and Omkareshwar.  Chairman, Railway Board, Shri Vinod Kumar Yadav launched HRMS(Human resource management system) Mobile App which has been designed and developed by Centre for Railway Information System (CRIS).  PM Modi to unveil 63-ft tall statue of Pt Deendayal Upadhyaya,The 'pancha loha' statue, in Varanasi  Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari inaugurated first inter-city electric bus service between Mumbai and Pune.  The Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying planned to doubling of Milk processing capacity to 108 million MT by 2025  Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has launched ‘5G Hackathon’ in association with government, academia and industry stakeholders.  Minister of Science & Technology, Health and Family Welfare and Earth Science Dr. Harsh Vardhan inaurated a New Institutional Campus at the National Institute of Public Health Training & Research (NIPHTR) at Navi Mumbai.  Otis Elevator Co. will provide 112 Gen2 elevators for the second phase of the Bengaluru Metro project which is expected to be completed by 2023.  Ministry Of Corporate Affairs Secretary Launches “SPICe+” To Improve Ease Of Doing Business In The Country  The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) approved setting up a national technical textiles mission with a total outlay of Rs 1,480 crore.  Indian pharma and biotech industry is expected to grow to 100 billion dollars by 2025 from the current size of about 40 billion dollars.  Union Government has set an ambitious target to achieve 50 per cent Gross Enrollment Ratio in higher education by 2030  Union Cabinet approves constitution of 22nd Law Commission of India  The government will launch Tilhan Mission to make the country self-reliant in oilseed production.  India will switch to the world’s cleanest petrol and diesel from April 1 as it leapfrogs straight to Euro-VI emission compliant fuels from Euro-IV grades now.

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International news Maldives becomes 54th member of Commonwealth family  The Commonwealth has.12.2018 welcomed its 54th family member after Maldives' application for re-admission was approved.  The country will now .2018be part of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Kigali, Rwanda on June 22-28 2020.Maldives joined the Commonwealth in 1982, and withdrew its membership in 2016  Secretary General of the Commonwealth-Patricia Scotland, Headquarters- London, United Kingdom (UK). .11.2018 The UK stopped being a member of the European Union (EU) on 31 January 2020. Britain has officially left the European Union (EU) and has become the first country to leave the 28-member bloc.The UK joined in 1973 (when it was known as the European Economic Community) and it will be the first member state to withdraw. UAE discovers new natural ‘Jebel Ali gas field’ between Abu Dhabi, Dubai The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has discovered huge shallow gas resources called ‘Jebel Ali gas field’ with estimated reserves of 80 trillion standard cubic feet spanning an area of 5,000 square kilometres (sqkm) in the cross-border area of the Emirates of Abu Dhabi and Dubai. Pakistan and Somalia declared national emergency over locust swarms  The Prime Minister (PM) of Pakistan Imran Khan has also declared a national emergency due to the massive locusts attackto protect crops and help farmers.  The desert locusts — large herbivores that resemble grasshoppers — arrived in Pakistan from Iran in June and have already ravaged cotton, wheat, maize and other crops.  The Government of Somalia also announced a National Emergency on Locusts (family- Acrididae) attack IHME Report: 14% of India’s under-five aged deaths were due to pneumonia  According to a recent report by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation(IHME), 14% of under 5 years of age deaths in India occurred mainly due to pneumonia.  The report has been released prior to the 1st-ever global forum on childhood pneumonia in Barcelona from January 29 to 31.  The current pneumonia mortality rate is 5 per 1,000 live births. The target has been set to reduce the mortality rate to less than 3 by 2025.  Pneumonia Deaths are highest in Nigeria (1.4 million). India (880,000) is at 2nd position. Bhutan ends free entry for Indian tourists The Government of Bhutan, Thimphu decided to implement a daily fee of Rs.1200 ($17) for “regional tourists” from India, the Maldives, Bangladesh from July 2020. The fee is called SDF “Sustainable Development Fees” inorder to regulate a new tourism policy (tourism facilities, better infrastructure). UK announces new points-based visa system UK Home Secretary, Priti Patel has announced the launch of Britain’s new points-based visa system. It aims at attracting the “brightest and the best” from the world, including from India. Bangladesh to sign Free Trade Agreement with Nepal  Bangladesh and Nepal have agreed to sign a Free Trade Agreement to enhance trade between the two countries, a committee will be formed to work out the modalities of the agreement.  Bangladesh has also agreed to allow Nepal to use it Saidpur airport located in its northern most district of Nilphamari close to Nepal. Intenational news One liner  United States (US) launched the 27-nation International Religious Freedom Alliance, which will try to adopt a collective approach in protecting and preserving religious freedom across the world.  UAE became the first Arab country in the World to operate a nuclear power plant.UAE has given license for a reactor at its Barakah nuclear power plant.  Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa said that his government will withdraw from co- sponsoring a UN Human Rights Council resolution on accountability for war crimes.  United Nations Security Council has renewed its sanctions regime on Yemen for another year  The-first-meeting-of-the-Blue-Dot-Network‘s-embryonic-steering-committee-was-held-recently-in- Washington-with-Australia-and-Japan-as-partners.  UK to ban new petrol car sales from 2035

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National and international summit and conference World Sustainable Development Summit (WSDS) 2020-New Delhi , Inaugurates by Shri Prakash Javadekar  theme “Towards 2030.12.2018 Goals: Making the Decade Count”  The summit was organized by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI)  In order to improve air.2018 quality, TERI along with Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) have launched Clean Air Project (CAP) in 4 Indian cities namely, Uttar Pradesh’s (UP) Lucknow and Kanpur and Maharashtra’s Pune and Nashik. East Asia Summit 2020  India is set to host an.11.2018 East Asia Summit conference in Chennai with a focus on maritime security cooperation and tackling challenges in the maritime domain.  It will be organised by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), in partnership with the governments of Australia and Indonesia.  East Asia Summit is a forum held annually by leaders of 18 countries in the East Asian, Southeast Asian and South Asian regions.  4th edition of EAS (East Asia Summit) Conference on Maritime Security Cooperation 2020 was held in Chennai , Tamil Nadu First ‘Jerusalem-Mumbai Festival’ will be held in Mumbai  The first “Jerusalem-Mumbai Festival” will be held in Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya Museum, Mumbai, Maharashtra.  Famous Israeli cinema,The Mossad, will be screened at the festival in the presence of the movie director Alon Gur Arye. 2nd BIMSTEC Disaster Management Exercise, 2020 held in Odisha  The 2nd Seven-nation BIMSTEC Disaster Management Exercise, 2020 was recently inaugurated at Bhubaneswar, the capital city of Odisha by its Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.  The Exercise is hosted by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) as the nodal agency.  The theme of the exercise is- “Response to a cultural heritage site that suffers severe damage in an earthquake” & “Response to a Cultural Heritage site that is affected by flooding or storm surge”.  It was attended by Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Nepal. BIMSTEC is an acronym for Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation  Members– 7 (Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand , Nepal and Bhutan)  Secretariat– Dhaka, Bangladesh BIMSTEC ‘Conference on Combating Drug Trafficking’ Union Minister for Home Affairs, Shri Amit Shah inaugurated the two-day long BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) ‘Conference on Combating Drug Trafficking’, in New Delhi. It was organized by Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), Ministry of Home Affairs. Enhancing Energy Cooperation in the BIMSTEC region held in Dhaka, Bangladesh Two Days Conference on Enhancing Energy Cooperation in the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) region held at Bangladesh. The bloc of seven countries organised the conference in collaboration with the South Asia Regional Initiative for Energy Integration (SARI/EI) of USAID. 33rd edition of African Union (AU) Summit 2020 held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia  33rd African Union (AU) Heads of State Summit 2020 was held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.  theme “Silencing the Guns: Creating Conducive Conditions for Africa’s Development”  President of the Republic of South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa, is the newly elected Chairperson of the African Union for one year.He replaces Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.  The African Union (AU) is a continental union consisting of 55 member states located on the continent of Africa. World Productivity Congress in India after 45 years of gap  The 19th World Productivity Congress to be held in Bengaluru aims at catalyzing government approaches in enhancing productivity.  Theme: Industry 4.0-Innovation and Productivity  The World Productivity Congress has been conducted by the World Confederation of Productivity Science since 1969. It was last held in India in 1974.

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Bio Asia 2020 begins in Hyderabad, Telangana 17th edition of Bio Asia 2020 has commenced in Hyderabad, Telangana. theme: ‘Today for Tomorrow Switzerland is the partner.12.2018 Country for 2020. Assam, Kerala, Odisha and Gujarat were the partner states. National Organic Food festival  Food Processing Industries.2018 Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal and Women and Child Development Minister Smriti Irani jointly inaugurated National Organic Food Festival in New Delhi.  Theme of the festival: “Unleashing India’s Organic Market Potential”  India’s Organic Food Business expected to reach Rs. 75,000 Crores by 2025. “EMMDA 2020” Held In Noida,.11.2018 Uttar Pradesh  National Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasting (NCMRWF), functions under the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES), has organized a 3-day international conference on “Ensemble Methods in Modelling and Data Assimilation (EMMDA) 2020” in Noida, Uttar Pradesh.  It was inaugurated by Dr.Harsh Vardhan

Summit And Conference Held at India FinTech Festival (IFF) 2020 Mumbai, Maharashtra  India’s 1st home based global platform to promote Fintech innovation National Workshop on e-office New Delhi. Chitra Bharati Film Festival (CBFF) Gujarat University in Ahmedabad G20 finance ministers and central bank governors’ meeting Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. 24th meeting of the Eastern Zonal Council Bhubaneswar,Odisha 91st Annual General Meeting of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research New Delhi. (ICAR) Society 34th Surajkund International Crafts Mela Surajkund, Haryana  Inaugurated by Shri. Ram Nath Kovind Narmada Mahotsav 2020 Amarkantak,MP. Judicial Conference 2020 organised by Supreme Court in New Delhi.  Theme: “Judiciary and the changing world”. RAISE 2020- ‘Responsible AI for Social Empowerment 2020 New Delhi  India’s first Artificial Intelligence summit ‘Antahpragnya 2020’ (India’s biggest rural technical festival) Nirmal District , Telangana  Theme: “Spot and encourage rural tech innovators”. National water conference Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh  Inaugurated by Madhya Pradesh CM Shri Kamal Nath 22nd edition of India International Seafood Show (IISS), 2020 Kochi, Kerala  Theme “Blue Revolution- Beyond Production to Value Addition” National Conference on e-Governance 2020 Mumbai, Maharashtra  Theme “India 2020: Digital Transformation” 4th National Conference on Review of Implementation of Pradhan Mantri Udaipur, Rajasthan Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) High Commission of India in Bangladesh organized the Seminar on Indian Dhaka Defence Equipment Indian Students’ Parliament New Delhi  Inaugurated by Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu 4th edition of The Huddle, The Hindu’s annual thought conclave Bengaluru Inaugurated by National Museum Hosts ‘Historical Gastronomica – The Indus Dining New Delhi Experience’ Exhibition 1st -ever Global investors summit 2020 Jammu & Kashmir PM Modi inaugurated ‘Kashi Ek Roop Anek’ exhibition Varanasi “CLIMFISHCON-2020” Le Meridian Convention conference on Climate change & Ocean health center in Kochi, Kerala. 20th ‘Hunar Haat’ 2020 Theme: “Kaushal Ko Kaam” New Delhi

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North East Sustainable Development Goals Conclave 2020 Assam 13th edition of Asian Business & Social Investor Forum Bangkok, Thailand 4th edition – Asia’s Greatest.12.2018 Brands & Leaders 2019-20 2020 UN Climate Summit ‘ Conference of the Parties (COP 26)′ to be held Glasgow, UK The International Fund for.2018 Agricultural Development (IFAD)’s 43rd Rome, Italy. Governing Council  Theme “Investing in sustainable food systems to end hunger by 2030”. Difficult Dialogues 2020 Goa, Dona Paula. 3-day global conference on.11.2018 traditional medicines New Delhi 11th Auto Summit 2020 New Delhi  Organised by The Federation of Automobile Dealers Association (FADA) India to host COP13 UN Summit on conservation of migratory birds Gandhinagar, Gujarat  Theme: ‘Migratory species connect the planet and we welcome them home’ Global Ministerial Conference on Road Safety “Achieving Global Goals Stockholm, Sweden. 2030” Ministerial-level Defence dialogue 2020 between India and South Korea New Delhi ‘National Horticultural Fair 2020’ Bengaluru 11th edition of DefExpo Lucknow  Theme of the Expo is ‘India: The Emerging Defence Manufacturing Hub’ 11th National Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) Conference -2020 New Delhi  Inagurated by Union Minister for Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare  Theme ‘Empowering Youth for Technology Led Farming’. International Conference on Alternate Medicines Concludes New Delhi  GSM Association (Global System for Mobile Communication) has cancelled the Mobile World Congress 2020 to be held in Barcelona, Spain due to Coronavirus outbreak.  Governing Council meeting of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) 2020 based on the theme “Investing in sustainable food systems to end hunger by 2030” was held at FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization) headquarters in Rome, Italy  Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Science and Technology, Earth Sciences Dr.Harsh Vardhan inagurated “Ensemble Methods in Modelling and Data Assimilation (EMMDA)“ conference at Noida, India.  National Integration Camp (NIC) themed Ek Bharat-Shreshth Bharat was inaugurated at the Indian Himalayan Centre for Adventure and Eco-tourism Institute at Chemchey, South Sikkim.  Advisor to Lieutenant Governor, Farooq Khan flagged off a group of students from across Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh Union Territories for a ten day tour ‘Watan Ko Jano’, a youth exchange programme.  Pakistan hosted a two-day meeting of defence and security experts of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in Islamabad which was attended by India and other member states.  Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina of Bangladesh inaugurated the month long Ekushey Book fair at the Bangla Academy premises in Dhaka.

Ranking INDEX Topped by India position Report by International US 40th Global Innovation Policy Center Intellectual Property (IP) Worldwide Education Finland 35th created by The Economist for The Future Index Intelligence unit and (WEFFI) commissioned by Yidan Prize foundation child flourishing index 131st WHO, UNICEF and The Lancet rankings medical journal sustainability index Norway 77th WHO, UNICEF and The Lancet medical journal.

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Global Go To Think Tank Carnegie Endowment India’s Observer Think Tanks and Civil Societies Index Report (GGTTI) for International Peace Research Foundation Program (TTCSP)at the University .12.2018(CEIP) of US (ORF) was ranked at of Pennsylvania, United States(US) 27th place Global MOOC(Massive .2018HEC Paris, France IIM-Bengaluru, Open Online Course) Karnataka at 3rd position Business School Rankings 2020 TomTom Traffic Index .11.2018Bengaluru 2019 Nature Ranking Index- Council of Scientific and 2020 Industrial Research (CSIR) Duff & Phelps published the celebrity brand evaluation report  Duff & Phelps published the celebrity brand evaluation report for 2019.  With a brand value of $237.5 million Indian Captain Virat Kohli has retained the top position for the third consecutive time.  Bollywood Actor Akshay Kumar becomes the 2nd position with a brand value of $104.5 million. National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) released ‘missing women and children in India’  National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) has released ‘missing women and children in India’.  As per the report the highest number (33,964) of women who go missing in India are from Maharashtra & the number of missing children are maximum (10, 038) in the State of Madhya Pradesh (MP) in the year 2016, 2017 & 2018. Times Higher Education’s emerging economies university rankings 2020  India has 11 institutes among world’s top 100 universities where Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore (Karnataka) emerged as India’s top-ranked institution by getting the rank 16th  Tsinghua University in China has topped the list Hindi is the world's third most spoken language  Hindi is the third most widely spoken language in the world with 615 million speakers(1 Million=10lakh), after English and Mandarin.  The 22nd edition of the world language database Ethnologue stated that English is at the top of the list with 1.132 billion speakers.(1 billion=1000 million=100 cr)  Ethnologue publishd an yearly database of living languages of the world, since its establishment in 1951. India ranks 5th in Global Climate Risk Index  India is the fifth most vulnerable country to climate change, according to a report released by Environment think tank, Germanwatch.Ghaziabad as the most polluted city.  Bangladesh emerged as the most polluted country for PM2.5 exposure. It is followed by Pakistan, Mongolia, Afghanistan, and India at 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th place respectively. Direct Benefit Transfer payouts  West Bengal emerged as the worst in ratings prepared for the first time by Centre regarding Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) pay-outs.  Haryana & Uttarakhand emerged as the best states at 1st and second positions, respectively Madhya Pradesh Tops In Land Records Digitisation  1st edition of NCAER Land Records and Services Index released by the National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER).  Madhya Pradesh (MP) emerged as the best performing state in terms of digitising land records.It was followed by Odisha and Maharashtra. Union Territory (UT) of Ladakh ranked at bottom at 33rd position. Hurun Global Rich List 2020 Hurun Global Rich List 2020 was jointly released by Shanghai-based Hurun Research Institute and Shenzhen- based Shimao Shenkong International Center. Jeff Bezos retains 1st rank for the third running year and Mukesh Ambani is positioned at 9th. Radhakishan Damani($17.8 billion) becomes India’s 2nd richest person of IndiaAccording to Forbes ‘Real Time Billionaires’ Index,Supermarket chain DMart’s Founder Radhakishan Damani($17.8 billion) becomes India’s 2nd richest person after Mukesh Ambani($57.4 billion), Chairman of Reliance Industries Limited.

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Samsung Mobile is India’s most desired brand for the fourth time Samsung Mobile is the most desired brand, TRA Research (formerly known as Trust Advisory).This is the fourth time Samsung Mobile.12.2018 has been named the most desired brand. Previously, the brand has topped the list in 2013, 2015 and 2018. Samsung is followed by Apple iPhone, which is positioned second in the list. Telangana tops country in.2018 sustainable growth goals: UN Development Programme Telangana has emerged as the best performing state in promoting inclusive and sustainable economic growth and decent work for all on Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) India Index 2019, according to United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) India. .11.2018 Bilateral India & Maldives: India & Maldives signed 5 MoUs (memorandum of understanding) to establish Addu tourism Zone on 5 islands of Addu Atoll in Maldives with a project cost of $2.49 million. Another MoU to set up a bottled water plant at Hoarafushi, an inhabited island in Maldives was also signed. India and Norway: India and Norway signed 4 MoUs (A Memorandum of Understandings) in the field of research and higher education to strengthen their bilateral partnership. India & Norway signs LoI for collaboration on blue economy for sustainable development in New Delhi, India India has initiated Ocean dialogue with Norway to address the problem of Marine Plastic litter. US Surpasses China As India’s Biggest Trading Partner At $87.95 Billion  The US has surpassed China to become India’s top trading partner, showing greater economic ties between the two countries.  According to the data of the commerce ministry, in 2018-19, the bilateral trade between the US and India stood at $87.95 billion.  During the period, India’s two-way commerce with China aggregated at $87.07 billion. Nepal inks financial closure of its largest hydropower project with India India and Nepal on Thursday inked financial closure of Nepal's largest hydropower project, the Arun-III being built with India's assistance. India has pledged an investment of NPR 100 Billion for the 900 MW mega hydropower project being built in Nepal's Sankhuwasabha District. US approves $1.9 billion sale to India of Integrated Air Defense Weapon System The United States of America, President Donald Trump’s Administration has approved the sale of an Integrated Air Defence Weapon System (IADWS) to India for an Estimated cost of USD 1.867 billion announced by the Defence Security Co-operation Agency(DSCA) part of United States Department of Defence. India and Iceland: The Union Cabinet has approved the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Iceland in the field of sustainable fisheries development. One liners  The 15.6km long railway line between Agartala, India(Tripura)-Akhaura in Bangladesh will be completed by September 2021. This will be the 1st train from the northeast India to Bangladesh .  BBIN(Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal) member nations discussed the proposed MoU (Member of Understanding) to implement Motor Vehicle Agreement (MVA) for regulation of the passenger, personal & cargo vehicular traffic among the countries.  Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) is working on connecting about 3,000-kilometre long power grid from Myanmar-Thailand to India.  Recently, United States Trade Representative (USTR) has removed India from getting special preferences under the methodology for countervailing duty (CVD) investigations  Pakistan High Commission has issued visas to a group of Indian Hindu pilgrims for visiting Katas Raj temples in Chakwal city of Pakistan’s Punjab province  South Africa keen to establish direct air connectivity between Mumbai & Johannesburg  India has sent relief supplies to cyclone-hit Madagascar using its naval ship INS Airavat by conducting operation Vanilla  New educational institution built with Indian assistance inaugurated in Nepal.The new three-storey building with Indian assistance of 5 crore rupees is part of the Chandrakot Campus under the Tribhuvan University.  India, Sri Lanka sign MoU for up-gradation of infrastructure in plantation schools for estate workers of Indian origin

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 India and the United States finalized defence deals worth three billion dollars and signed three agreements, including in health and oil sectors.  Former President Pranab.12.2018 Mukherjee will be invited to address the special session of Bangladesh Parliament, Jatiya Sangsad, on the occasion of the centenary year of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. .2018

Awards and Honors

Shaktikanta Das .11.2018The Banker magazine (British magazine ) has named Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor Shaktikanta Das as the ‘Central Banker of the Year 2020 Jorgovanka Tabakovi Global Central Banker award 2020 by The Banker magazine Jorgovanka Tabakovi is currently the head of the National Bank of Serbia. Actress Waheeda selected for the National Kishore Kumar Samman of the Madhya Pradesh(MP) Rehman government for the year 2018 Sarbananda Sonowal Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal received the prestigious Dr. Syama Prasad Mukherjee award 2020 for Politics at the 6th India Ideas Conclave in Gujarat. Big Bang Boom Solutions Won the prestigious SKOCH Award for “Boron Nitrate Based Personal Hybrid Combat Pvt Ltd (BBBS) Armour ” at New Delhi, India. K.V. Jeyasri(Tamil Won the Sahitya Akademi Award 2019 for her translation of the Malayalam novel teacher) Nilam Poothu Malarnna Naal into Tamil as Nilam Poothu Malarntha Naal. Dinkar Keshav Raikar Maharashtra Chief Minister (CM) Uddhav Bal Thackeray presented an award to him for his contribution to journalism at Mumbai, Maharashtra Vinod shukla Won the 1st Mathrubhumi Book of the Year award 2020(by a Malayalam newspaper (Hindi poet-novelist) Mathrubhumi) for his translated book ‘Blue Is Like Blue’, Manoj Das Famous Odia and English writer Manoj Das will receive Mystic Kalinga Literary award– Indian and Global languages, during the 4th edition of the 2 day Mystic Kalinga Festival Dr. N.S. Dharmashaktu International Gandhi Awards for Leprosy under the Indian nomination individual category Leprosy Mission Trust International Gandhi Awards for Leprosy under the institutional category Pullela Gopichand Pullela Gopichand, the Chief National coach for the Indian Badminton team has received the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) Coaches Lifetime Achievement Award in Male Category of the year 2019 Lalremsiami Indian professional hockey player Lalremsiami (19) from Mizoram was voted the best FIH(International Hockey Federation) Women’s Rising Star of the Year 2019. Vivek Sagar Prasad Indian team’s midfielder Vivek Sagar Prasad was selected as the best FIH Men’s Rising Star of the Year 2019. INS Shivaji India’s President Shri Ram Nath Kovind awarded President’s Colour to Indian Naval Station Shivaji Gita Sen India’s renowned Feminist scholar & activist Gita Sen wins Dan David Prize 2020 under “present” category. Adline Castelino Adline Castelino has been crowned as the winner of LIVA Miss Diva Universe 2020 competition held at Mumbai. Sreekar Prasad Sreekar Prasad, a veteran editor has entered the Limca Book of Records for ‘films edited in the most number of languages’(17 languages) Raja Ravi Varma Award Senior artist Vasudev Kamath for the year 2020 and painter J.S. Khande rao for the year 2019. Raja Ravi Varma State Award was instituted by Karnataka’s Shri Ravivarma Art Institute. Amulya Mica Most Promising Brand of the Year Award 2019, Gold Category during the 7th edition of the MSME Excellence Award

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73rd BAFTA 2020 in London, UK 73rd British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA)Awards 2020 ceremony, popularly referred to as BAFTA Awards 2019 was held.12.2018 on February 2, 2020 in Royal Albert Hall,London, United Kingdom. The ceremony was hosted by Graham Norton. First World War drama ‘1917’.2018 won the Best Film award, which was directed by Sam Mendes.The film 1917 won 7 awards. Best leading actress Renée Zellweger (Judy) Best leading actor Joaquin Phoenix (Joker) Best film not in the.11.2018 English language Parasite Best original screenplay Parasite Bafta Fellowship award Kathleen Kennedy (American film producer) Indian environmental economist Pavan Sukhdev wins 2020 Tyler Prize Renowned Indian environmental economist and UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Goodwill Ambassador Pavan Sukhdev and conservation biologist Gretchen Daily have won the 2020 Tyler Prize, regarded as the "Nobel Prize for the Environment" for his groundbreaking "green economy" work. 92nd Academy awards 2020 (Oscars 2020)  92nd Academy Awards ceremony 2020 (commonly known as Oscars) was held at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, United States(US).  South Korean comedy thriller film “Parasite” has bagged the best international film Oscar, the 1st Korean film to do so. Category Winner Best Motion Picture of the year Parasite Kwak Sin Ae and Bong Joon Ho (Producers) Actor in a leading role Joaquin Phoenix for Joker Actress in a leading role Renée Zellweger for Judy Animated feature film Toy Story 4 – Josh Cooley, Mark Nielsen and Jonas Rivera Cinematography Roger Deakins for 1917 Directing Bong Joon Ho for Parasite Film Editing Ford v Ferrari – Michael McCusker and Andrew Buckland International Feature Film Parasite (South Korea) Directed by Bong Joon Ho Short Film (animated) Hair Love-Matthew A. Cherry and Karen Rupert Toliver Short Film (live action) The Neighbors’ Window-Marshall Curry Writing (adapted screenplay) Jojo Rabbit – Screenplay by Taika Waititi Writing (original screenplay) Parasite -Screenplay by Bong Joon Ho

13th edition of ESPNcricinfo Awards 2019 Test batting performance of the year Kusal Perera(Sri Lanka) Test bowling performance of the year Kemar Roach(West Indies) ODI batting performance of the year Ben Stokes(England) ODI bowling performance of the year Matt Henry(New Zealand) T20I batting performance of the year Gleen Maxwell(Australia) T20I bowling performance of the year Lasith Malinga(Sri Lanka) Captain of the year Eoin Morgan(England) Debutant of the year Jofra Archer(England) Women’s batting performance of the year Meg Lanning(Australia) Women’s bowling performance of the year Ellyse Perry(Australia) Associate batting performance of the year George Munsey(Scotland) Associate bowling performance of the year Bilal Khan(Oman) BioAsia 2020 announces Genome Valley Excellence Award American immunologist and oncologist Dr. Carl H June and Novartis CEO Dr. Vasant Narsimhan will be presented with the Genome Valley Excellence Award of BioAsia 2020. Amazon Filmfare Awards The 65th edition of Amazon Filmfare Awards 2020 was held at Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium in Guwahati, Assam Best Film Gully Boy Best Director Zoya Akhtar for Gully Boy

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Best Film (Critics) Article 15 and Sonchiriya Best Actor In A Leading Role (Male) Ranveer Singh for Gully Boy Best Actor In A Leading Role.12.2018 (Female) Alia Bhatt for Gully Boy Best Playback Singer (Male) Arijit Singh for Kalank Nahi (Kalank) Best Playback Singer (Female).2018 Shilpa Rao for Ghungroo (War) Lifetime Achievement Award Ramesh Sippy Excellence In Cinema Govinda RD Burman Award For Upcoming Music Talent Sashwat Sachdev for UR .11.2018 PERSON IN NEWS World Mohammed appointed as new PM of Iraq Tawfiq Allawi Albin Kurti appointed as the new PM of Kosovo, Kosovo:Capital- Prishtina. Currency- Euro. NASA astronaut Christina Koch(41 years) from United States(US)who made the 1st all female space walk in Christina Koch 2019 landed in Kazakh desert steppe of Kazakhstan.She returns to Earth after record longest stay i.e. 328 days in International Space Station(ISS). Philip Barton Diplomat Philip Barton Appointed as Britain’s New High Commissioner to India Rishi Sunak Indian origin, Rishi Sunak, named UK’s new Chancellor of the Exchequer Ashraf Ghani showrn as Afghanistan president for 2nd term. Riek Machar Sworn In As First Vice President In South Sudan Suella Braverman Indian-Origin Minister Suella Braverman Sworn In As UK’s Attorney General Faure Togo’s President Faure Gnassingbé wins fourth term Gnassingbé

Bimal Julka New Chief Information Commissioner. Bimal Julka to succeed Sudhir Bhargava as CIC. Sanjay Kothari Next Chief Vigilance Officer (CVC).Sanjay Kothari to succeed K. V. Chowdary as CVC. Debasish Panda new finance secretary Supratim appointed as chairman of the PFRDA (Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Bandyopadhyay Authority) Ajay Tyagi The government has given a six-month extension to Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) chairman Ajay Tyagi Atul Kumar Gupta New President of the Institute of Chartered Accountants (ICAI) Jawed Ashraf India’s Next Ambassador To France Barry O’Farrell Australia next high commissioner to India Ajay Bisaria Next High Commissioner of India to Canada Vikas Swarup (Former Commissioner Appointed as Secretary (Consular, Passport and Visa and Overseas Indian Affairs) at of India to Canada) the Ministry of External Affairs. M.Ajit Kumar Chairman of the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC). Arvind Kejriwal Arvind Kejriwal sworn as Chief Minister (CM) of New Delhi for 3rd time.He was CM of Delhi for consecutively 3 times during the period of 2013, 2015 and 2020. Gopal Baglay appointed as Next High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka Sourav Ganguly BCCI President Sourav Ganguly to become the Goodwill Ambassador of the Indian contingent at the Tokyo Olympics Games 2020 Pramod Agrawal became the Chairman of Coal India Limited Arvind Krishna Elected as CEO of American IT giant International Business machines Corp (IBM) Sumant Kathpalia appointed as IndusInd Bank MD & CEO Major Anoop mishra Indian Army Major Anoop mishra develops world’s 1st bulletproof helmet that can stop AK-47 firing Kaamya Karthikeyan Mumbai’s Kaamya Karthikeyan-Youngest Girl in the World to climb South America’s Highest Peak Mt. Aconcagua

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Ajay H. Patel elected as President of All-India Chess Federation (AICF) Robin Singh Robin Singh, Former India all-rounder Robin Singh appointed as UAE’s Director of .12.2018Cricket Alok Sharma from Agra,Uttar Pradesh(UP) has been appointed as the minister in charge of the .2018UK’s COP26 climate change summit. Rajesh Kumar New MD & CEO Of Credit Information Bureau (India) Limited Abhay Kumar Singh Appointed As Chairman & Managing Director Of NHPC Limited Puneet Sharma Axis Bank Appoints Puneet Sharma As CFO Sunil Gurbaxani .11.2018Appointment As Dhanlaxmi Bank MD And CEO Vinay Dube appointed as CEO of GoAir G Narayanan Named as the Chairman of NSIL (New Space India Limited) Rajiv Bansal as new CMD of Air India Jeff Weiner became Executive Chairman of LinkedIn Michael Miebach New CEO of Mastercard. He will succeed Ajay Banga Salman Khan Smartphone brand realme has appointed Bollywood actor Salman Khan as its brand ambassador. Rishabh Pant appointed as brand ambassador of JSW Steel Katheryn Elizabeth (American singer) as the new ambassador for the British Asian Trust Children’s Hudson (Katy Perry) Protection Fund for India

Abidali Neemuchwala quits as CEO and MD from Wipro Sankara Narayanan Retired from MD and CEO of Canara Bank Pinelopi Koujianou Goldberg Chief Economist of the World Bank(WB) announced her resignation. Tidjane Thiam resigns as CEO of Swiss bank Credit Suisse Group AG Surya Prakash retired from Prasar Bharati Chairman Mahathir Mohamad Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad resigned Malaysian

Maha Chakri Sirindhorn Thai Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn visits Indian Military Academy U Win Myint  Myanmar President On 4-Day State Visit To India  India & Myanmar Signed 10 Agreements In Various Fields Audrey Azoulay  United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) Director-General Audrey Azoulay arrived in New Delhi, India on a three-day visit Mahendra Rajapaksa  Mahendra Rajapaksa Sri Lankan PM Mahinda Rajapaksa visit to India. He offers prayers at Tirupati & Kashi Vishwanath temple in Varanasi. He also visited Sarnath Buddhist Temple  Both the sides of India & Sri Lanka have agreed to deepen cooperation to combat terrorism ,boost trade and investment ties. Mrs. Dang Thai Ngoc Thinh  Vietnam’s Vice President visited India and held bilateral delegation-level talks with Vice President of India, M Venkaiah Naidu.  Direct flights between India & Vietnam was held at New Delhi. Mr Marcelo Rebelo de  The President of Portugal Mr Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa has paid a four days Sousa visit to India  Portuguese president inaugurated Cha-Chai art work at National Museum, New Delhi  He also attended India-Portugal Business Forum in Mumbai, Maharashtra  An agreement was also signed between University of Coimbra in Portugal and Goa’s G K Kare College of Law in the “scientific field of law and in the field of Portuguese language and culture”.

Donald Trump  US President Donald Trump arrived in Ahmedabad on a two-day visit to

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India.  He was accompanied by his wife Melania, daughter Ivanka, son-in-law .12.2018Jared Kushner and top brass of his administration.  In Ahmedabad, he visited Sabarmati Ashram and take part in a roadshow .2018 with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.  The two leaders jointly addressed over one lakh people at the Namaste Trump event at Motera cricket stadium, Ahmedabad, Gujarat.  President Donald Trump and his family members visited Taj Mahal at Agra .11.2018in Uttar Pradesh.

SPORTS 36th National Games going to held in Panaji, Goa. The Flame-Throated Bulbul or Rubigula bird the state bird for Goa, which is officially declared as the Mascot for the 36th National Games 108th Australian open 2020 held in Melbourne, Australia Event Winners Runners Men’s Singles Novak Djokovic (Serbia) Dominic Thiem (Austria) Women’s Singles Sofia Kenin (US) Garbiñe Muguruza Blanco (Spanish-Venezuelan player)

Batting Bowling All-rounder T20I Rankings Babar Azam (Pakistan) Rashid Khan (Afghanistan) Mohammad Nabi (Afghanistan) ICC test rankings Virat Kohli (India) James Cummins (Australia) Jason Omar Holder(West Indies)

SAI, Hockey India launch high performance centres Sports Authority of India (SAI) and Hockey India announced the establishment of the High Performance Centers in 7 places across the country, for the young hockey players (14 to 24 years of age) to participate in 2024 and 2028 Olympic games. 7 High Performance Hockey Centers: 1. SAI Centre, Bengaluru 2. SAI Sundergarh, Odisha 3. Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium, New Delhi 4. Balewadi Sports Complex, Pune, Maharashtra 5. SAI Centre, Ranchi and Gomke Jaipal Singh Astroturf Hockey Stadium 6. SAI NS NEC (Netaji Subhas North-East Regional Centre), Takyal, Imphal, Manipur 7. SAI UDMCC(Udhav Das Mehta Central Regional Center), Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh 2020 ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup  13th edition of 2020 ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup held in South Africa.  Bangladesh’s youth team defeated India to won the under-19 World Cup title for the first time.  India’s Yashasvi Jaiswal, was adjudged Player of the tournament.  ICC suspends Canada’s Under-19 spinner Raqib Shamsudeen for illegal bowling action India boxers bags 5 medals at 64th “Bocskai Istvan Memorial” boxing 2020 held in Debracen, Hungary Indian boxers has clichéd 5 medals (4 silver, 1 Bronze) at the 64th “Bocskai Istvan Memorial” held in Debracen, Hungary Indian winners: S.No. Name Category Medal 1 Gaurav Chauhan 91 Kg Silver 2 Jyoti Gulia 51 Kg Silver 3 Manisha 57 Kg Silver 4 PL Prasad 52 Kg Silver 5 Sachin 57 Kg Bronze FIH(International Hockey Federation) player of the year award 2019  FIH Men’s Player of the Year 2019 Manpreet Singh Pawar (INDIA)  FIH Women”s Player of the Year 2019 Eva de Goede(Netherlands)

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 FIH Men’s Goalkeeper of the Year 2019 Vincent Vanasch (Belgium)  FIH Women’s Goalkeeper of the Year 2019 Rachael Lynch (Australia)  India forward Lalremsiami.12.2018 has been named as the 2019 FIH Women’s Rising Star of the Year International Hockey Federation: Headquarters– Lausanne, Switzerland 20th edition of Laureus World.2018 Sports Awards 2020 20th edition of Laureus World Sports Awards 2020(known as ‘Oscars of Sport’) was held in Berlin, Germany. Laureus World Sportsman of the Year Formula One driver Lewis Carl Davidson Hamilton (United Kingdom) and Footballer Lionel Andrés .11.2018 Messi Cuccittini (Argentina) Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year Simone Arianne Biles (American Gymnast) Laureus World Team of the Year South Africa Men’s Rugby Team Laureus Best Sporting Moment Carried on the shoulders of a nation – Sachin Tendulkar Laureus Lifetime Achievement Award Dirk Nowitzki (German basketball player) Laureus World Comeback of the Year Sophia Flörsch (German racing driver) Former Indian International Cricketer Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar’s 2011 World Cup-winning moment was voted the Laureus Sporting Moment of 2000-2020. He became the first Indian sportsperson to win a Laureus World Sports Award. P V Sindhu Wins 3rd Successive ESPN’s Female Sportsperson Of The Year Award  P V Sindhu won the ESPN’s Female Sportsperson of the Year award for a 3rd consecutive time while young shooter Saurabh Chaudhary bagged the honour in the male category.  Chess player Koneru Humpy won the award for the Comeback of the Year  Manu Bhaker-Saurabh Chaudhary grabbed Team of the Year honour Asian Wrestling Championship 2020 Held In New Delhi  Japan topped the medal tally with 16 medals( 8 Gold, 4 Silver, 4 Bronze).While India finished 3rd rank with 20 medals( 5 Gold, 6 Silver, 9 Bronze).  Indian Gold Medal winners:Ravi Kumar Dahiya(Men’s freestyle- 57kg), Sunil Kumar(Men’s Greco- Roman-87 kg),Pinki(Women’s freestyle-55 kg), Sarita Mor(Women’s freestyle- 59 kg) and Divya Kakran(Women’s freestyle- 68 kg)  Sakshi Malik Wins Silver, Vinesh Phogat Gets Bronze At Asian Wrestling Championship Achanta Sharath Kamal, Sathiyan Gnanasekaran Win Silver At Hungarian Open Indian men’s doubles pair of Achanta Sharath Kamal and Gnanasekaran Sathiyan settled for a silver medal at the ITTF(International Table Tennis Federation) World Tour Hungarian Open at Budapest, Hungary. Indian athletes clinch 3 medals in World SnowShoe Championship  Indian athletes finished with three medals in different categories in the World SnowShoe Championship at Myoko, Japan .  Ayan Bin Shahnaz bagged silver, while Zain Ali and Muzamil Hussain Mir, all are from Kashmir, bagged bronze medals in their respective categories.

Aditya Mehta snooker won men Indian National Billiards held in Pune , Maharashtra Vidya snooker women’s Snooker Championship 2020 held in Pune , Maharashtra Viswanathan Pillai Yousuf cricket The International Cricket Council (ICC) has banned Oman player Yousuf Abdulrahim Al Abdulrahim Al Balushi from all forms of cricket for seven years for his Balushi involvement in trying to fix matches. D Gukesh Chess D Gukesh emerged champion in the 34th Cannes Open in France Koneru Humpy Chess won Cairns Cup chess tournament 2020 held in United States (US) Vidit Santosh Chess won Prague Chess opener Gujrathi RohitRajpal tennis Rohit Rajpal will continue as India’s non-playing Davis Cup(men’s tennis) captain 2020 Ramshad AR, weightlifter The National Anti-Doping Agency(NADA) banned Indian weightlifter Ravinder Kumar Ramshad AR, Ravinder Kumar, after found guilty of violating the anti- doping rule

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Rakhi Halder Weightlifting Rakhi Halder of Bengal has bagged gold in the 64kg category of the 35th edition of Senior Women’s National Weightlifting Championships in .12.2018 Kolkata Sophie Devine cricketer New Zealand captain Sophie Devine has become the first international .2018 cricketer to score five consecutive 50-plus scores in T20I cricket Amit Panghal Boxer Amit Panghal ranks world No. 1 in International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) Boxing Task Force rankings for Olympics Qualifiers. Bhawna Jat walker India’s female Race Walker qualifies for Tokyo Olympics 2020 Amit Dahiya javelin.11.2018 National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) has banned javelin thrower Amit thrower Dahiya for four years

Divya Kakran Wrestling Divya Kakran became only the 2nd Indian woman to win a gold medal at the Asian Wrestling Championships defeating junior world champion Naruha Matsuyuki in New Delhi. Navjot Kaur had become the 1st Indian woman to win a gold medal at 2018 championship. Sunil Kumar Wrestling Sunil Kumar wins gold in 87-kg Greco Roman category in Asian Wrestling Championships in New Delhi Bala Devi football Indian women’s football star NgangomBala Devi has become the first Indian woman to earn a professional football contract abroad after signing for Scottish giant Rangers FC.

GAME venue GAME Venue Women’s Cricket World Cup 2021 New Zealand 2022 winter Olympic Beijing, China Junior Men’s Hockey World Cup India Women’s Junior Hockey World South Africa. 2021 Cup Khelo India Winter Games 2020 Ladakh AIBA Team World Cup in 2020 Russia Commonwealth Shooting And Chandigarh Commonwealth Games 2022 Birmingham,UK. Archery Championshipswill 2022 2022 Asian Football India FIFA U-17 Women’s Football India. Confederation (AFC) Women’s World Cup 2020 Asian Cup Sport one liners  Indian Navy, Mumbai (Maharashtra) has defeated South Central Railway (SCR), Secunderabad (Telangana) to win the 54th All India Bombay Gold Cup Hockey Tournament title played at Mumbai, Maharashtra.  Khelo India University game was held in KIIT,Bhubaneswar,Odisha and Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium in Cuttack. Savitribai Phule Pune University Tops Tally With 14 Medals In Khelo India University Games  Indian men’s team clinched bronze medal at the Badminton Asia team championships 2020 in Manila, Philippines  Veteran New Zealand batsman Ross Taylor became the first player in the world to play 100 matches in all three formats of cricket.  Pragyan Ojha Announces Retirement From International, 1st-Class Cricket  Jammu and Kashmir, the hosts bagged gold medal in the 6th National Ice Stock Sports Championship organized at Ice Rink in Gulmarg.  Five-time Grand Slam winner Russian Maria Sharapova Announced Retirement From Tennis  Manchester City banned from European competition for two seasons by UEFA  Vidharba batsman Wasim Jaffer became the first batsman to register 12,000 runs in Ranji Trophy.  Former BCCI president late Jagmohan Dalmiya’s son Avishek became the youngest president of Cricket Association Bengal.  In Football, Mizoram has won the final of the Junior National Football Championship for Dr BC Roy Trophy at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Shillong  Haryana thrashed Sports Authority of India (SAI) 6-0 to win the 10th Hockey India Senior Women National Championship 2020 (A Division) title at Kollam.

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DEFENCE

‘Matla Abhiyaan’ .12.2018 Indian Navy Sunderban region in Kolkata, WestBengal AJEYA WARRIOR-2020 .2018 Indian Army and United conducted at Salisbury Plains, Kingdom(UK) Army United Kingdom(UK) Indradhanush – V 2020 Indian Air Force (IAF) and British Air Force Station Hindan in Uttar Royal Air Forces (RAF) Pradesh Sampriti-IX .11.2018 Indo-Bangladesh joint military Umroi in Meghalaya training exercise

HALsigned pact with IAI to make advanced armed UAVs Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), an Indian state-owned aerospace and defence company will sign a partnership pact with Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) at the upcoming DefExpo 2020 in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh(UP) to manufacture advanced Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicles (UCAVs) in India for the 1st time. Navy to get third Scorpene submarine Karanj in December 2020 3rd Scorpene submarine, Karanj, will be delivered to the Indian Navy by Dec 2020 and all 6 sub-marine deliveries would be completed by 2022. The Scorpene submarine is to be equipped with the AIP (Air Independent Propulsion) system from 2023. Indian Army & Private firm developed the World’s Cheapest Gun Shot Locator “Parth”  The Indian Army’s College of Military Engineering (CME), Pune, Maharashtra, jointly with a private firm developed gunshot locators named as “Parth”.  The device is much cheaper than the imported ones. Major Anoop Mishra displayed the Parth gun shot locator at DefExpo 2020 held in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh (UP).  Major Mishra had developed a bulletproof jacket for protection against sniper bullets & a helmet which is claimed first in the world that can stop AK-47 (Automatic Kalashnikov- 47) bullets from a distance of 10 meters. 11th edition of the “DefExpo 2020” held in Lucknow, UP  The 11th edition of DefExpo-2020, organized by Department of Defence Production, Ministry of Defence with a support of Government of Uttar Pradesh (UP) was held in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh (UP).  It’s main theme was “India: The Emerging Defence Manufacturing Hub” with focus on “Digital Transformation of Defence”.  Bandhan: Transfer of Technology Ceremony held at DefExpo 2020.More than 200 agreements have been signed. The Uttar Pradesh Government alone has signed 23 MoUs of worth Rs 50,000 crores.  The steps will help India achieve its 5 billion USD target in next 5 years.  As a part of DEFEXPO INDIA, 1st ever India Africa Defence Ministers Conclave (IADMC) 2020 was held in Lucknow, UP  5th India-Russia Military Industrial Conference (IRMIC) was held on the sidelines of the ongoing Def Expo 2020 in Lucknow.  UK India Business Council (UKIBC) and the Society of Indian Defence Manufacturers (SIDM) signed a MoU to forge closer defence ties between the two countries.  The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) signed a technology development contract with a Russian company Rosobor on export at DefExpo2020. World Defence spending rose by 4.0% in 2019; India ranked 5th & US tops International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) annual “Military Balance” report states that global spending on defence hiked by 4% percent in 2019. Top Defence Spending country Rank Country Defence Spending (US$bn) 1 United States 684.6 2 China 181.1 3 Saudi Arabia 78.4 4 Russia 61.6 5 India 60.5

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Defence One liners  Union Minister of Defence (MoD) Shri Rajnath Singh has announced to create 10 more defence attaches (DA) posts to 10 different.12.2018 countries.  The Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) developing a new ballistic missile Pranash with striking.2018 range of 200km  Iran unveils new ballistic missile ‘Raad-500’; dedicated to former Major General Qasim Sulemani, who was killed in a drone strike by the US in Baghdad airport on January 3,2020.  In a first Indian Air Force’s (IAF) successfully operated AN-32 aircraft, powered with bio-jet indigenous fuel at Kushok Bakula.11.2018 Rimpochee Airport, Leh.  Engineering & Construction Company L&T (Larsen & Toubro Limited) and European defence major MBDA Missile Systems have set up a missile integration facility in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu (TN).  Indian Coast Guard’S ICGS Varad, an Offshore Patrol Vessel was commissioned at Chennai port.  Anti-Hijack mock drill conducted by using a naval Dornier aircraft by INS Dega,at Visakhapatnam Airport.  Indian Navy’s Sandhayak class Hydrographic Survey Ship, INS Jamuna (J16), commanded by Captain HA Hardas, arrived in Colombo, Sri Lanka.  Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Bipin Rawat has targeted to establish the 1st integrated tri-service command called “Air Defence Command (ADC)” by June 2020  Chief of Defence Staff, General Bipin Rawat stated there are plans to create a Peninsula Command with Navy’s Eastern and Western Command under it.  Pakistan successfully completed the flight test of the air launched cruise missile Ra’ad-II with a range of 600 km  Kolkata based GRSE (Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers ltd.) has delivered its fourth and Last Anti-Submarine Warfare Corvette (ASWC) INS (Indian Naval Ship) Kavaratti to Indian Navy under Project-28.  A five-day training course on Vessel Search Technique being organized by the Indian Coast Guard jointly with the Australian Border Force began in Chennai.  Union Minister of State for Shipping (I/C) and Chemicals and Fertilizers Mansukh Mandaviya commissioned Indian Coast Guard’s OPV ICGS Varad in Chennai.  India is eyeing defence export of $5 billion in the next five years. Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh projected that the annual Indian defence exports will touch Rs 35,000 crore by 2024  Indian Army’s College of Military Engineering jointly with a private firm develop world’s cheapest gunshot locator ‘Parth’

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY ISRO to unveil low-cost satellite launch vehicles the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has announced preparing low-cost launch vehicles where the first launch is expected to take place in the next four months in 2020. The cost of the launch vehicles ranges from Rs. 30-35 crores each and weighs 500kgs.ISRO:-Headquarters- Bengaluru.,Chairman- Kailasavadivoo Sivan. Founded- 15 August 1969. AI based ASKDISHA chatbot launched by Indian Railway The Indian Railways recently launched Hindi Version of Artificial Intelligence-based chatbot called “ASKDISHA”.It aims to resolve queries of railway passengers over the internet pertaining to various services offered. Birla Estates launches interactive AI powered ChatBot LIDEA on WhatsApp Birla Estates recently launched an interactive AI Powered ChatBot solution LIDEA for its customers on WhatsApp. A chatbot is a piece of software that conducts a conversation via auditory or textual methods. AIM Partnered With Nasscom To Launch AI-Based Module In 5000 ATLs NITI (National Institution for Transforming India)) Aayog’s Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) has collaborated with NASSCOM (National Association of Software and Services Companies) to launch the artificial intelligence (AI) based module including AI kits across 5000 Atal Tinkering Labs in the country 2020. Iran launches satellite, fails to put it into orbit Iran launched a satellite but failed to put it into orbit in a blow to its space programme. The attempted launch of the Zafar comes days before the 41st anniversary of the Islamic Revolution and crucial parliamentary elections in Iran on February 21.

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ONE LINERS SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY  National Aeronautics .12.2018and Space Administration (NASA) has decommissioned its Spitzer Space Telescope after 16 years of service.  According to a report.2018 by Counterpoint Research, The Indian smartphone market has surpassed the US to become the second largest market globally, succeeded by China, who tops the list.  Indian Institute of Technology -Madras (IIT-M) researchers team lead by Vishal Nandigana developed an Artificial Intelligence technology to convert Brain signals of Speech-Impaired Humans into simple Human Language English..11.2018  Researchers from IIT Hyderabad had found a molecule called “AIM-4” that can help in the treatment of rare neurodegenerative disease called “Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis” (ALS) known as “Lou Gehrig’s disease”.  Indian Institute of Technology Madras(IIT-M),and All India Institutes of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Mangalagiri in Andhra Pradesh has announced to collaborate together in areas such as patient safety and quality healthcare.  The National Institute of Technology (NIT), Trichy, Tamilnadu has developed Thirumathikart – a mobile app for SHG (Self Help Group) products.  Central Scientific Instruments Organisation, (CSIO) Chandigarh has developed a scanner-based reading device called ‘Divyanayan for visually impaired person.  Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and IVRI (Indian Veterinary Research Institute) have developed Live attenuated Classical Swine Fever (CSF) cell culture Vaccine at Krishi Bhavan, New Delhi.  Anand technologies (ATL), Hyderabad, has signed a deal to build 6 foreign-owned satellites in India.  Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), in Rochester, New York, US (Uinted States) have detected the nearest-known ‘baby giant planet’ called 2MASS 1155-7919 b, just 330 light-years from Earth.  Researchers of India’s Atomic Energy Commission have found lithium reserves in Mandya near Bengaluru.  Union Minister of Law and Justice, Communications, Electronics and Information Technology Ravi Shankar Prasad in Dehradun inaugurated BSNL FTTH (Fiber To the Home) and wifi service.  Society for Cyberabad Security Council (SCSC) launches new app She Safe to make women feel safe  The UK-based One Web company has sent 34 satellites into orbit on a single Soyuz rocket from Baikonur in Kazakhstan.  The Indian Space Research Organisation stated it is scheduled to launch its geo imaging satellite ‘GISAT- 1’ onboard the geosynchronous satellite launch vehicle ‘GSLV-F10’ on March 5. Book and Author Book Author “Lord J: Lord of Anonymity” Pop singer Lord J ‘A Child of Destiny’ K. Ramakrishna Rao “The Thin Mind Map” Dharmendra Rai “Messages from Messengers” Priti K Shroff “A Commentary and Digest on The Air, Act 1981” Dr K K Khandelwal The book focuses on ways of preventing and controlling air pollution.

Chanakya Niti: Verses on Life and Living A.N.D. Haksar translated “Who Is Bharat Mata ” Prof Purushottam Agrawal ‘Death – An Inside Story’ Sadhguru, Founder, Isha Foundation “Calcutta Nights” RajatChaudhuri

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OBITUARY Vidya Bal .12.2018Veteran social activist and feminist writer from Maharashtra Dalip Kaur Tiwana Padmashri awardee & Eminent Punjabi novelist Jaswant Singh .2018Famous Punjabi writer Mary Theresa Eleanor American author(known as “Queen of Suspense” passed away) Higgins Clark Rabindranath Singh Famous Odia poet Daniel Moi .11.2018Kenya’s longest serving Ex-President. Note:-Kenya’s present President-Uhuru Kenyatta Pranab Kumar Gogoi Former Assam Speaker and sitting MLA Kirk Douglas Famous Hollywood Actor Raju Bharatan Famous cricket journalist and film historian Roger Kahn American author Giriraj Kishore well-known Hindi Novelist Nandu R Kulkarni Famous journalist Wendell Rodricks Fashion designer Kishori Ballal Veteran Kannada actor M.S. Mani Famous journalist Harry Greg Former Manchester United goalkeeper Mickey Wright Golf Player Ashok Chatterjee Former Indian footballer Larry Tesler Larry Tesler the computer engineer most commonly known as the developer of the ‘cut, copy and paste’ functions, and ‘find and replace Mohammed Hosni Egypt’s Former President Mubarak Katherine Johnson NASA mathematician alsoknown as ‘Human Computer’ Lynn Cohen American actress Sonam Sherpa founding member & lead-guitarist of music band Parikrama Nikita Pearl Waligwa Ugandan student, who played a memorable role in 2016 Disney film “Queen of Katwe” as a local chess prodigy, passed away at the age of 15 in Uganda, Kampala due to brain tumour.

Miscellaneous World’s largest solar telescope reveals never-before-seen images of Sun’s turbulent surface Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope (DKIST), the world’s largest solar telescope with 13-foot mirror,has captured first highest-resolution image of the Sun’s turbulent surface at Hawaiian island of Maui. 60-year-old Mo O’Brien becomes world 1st deaf person to row across Atlantic Ocean A 60-year-old pharmacy worker Mo O’Brien has become the first deaf person on record to row across the Atlantic ocean by finishing a 3,000-mile journey , with her daughter Bird Watts, and their friend Claire Allinson and reached finish line(Caribbean island of Antigua) after 49 days of journey from the Canary Island of La Gomera in December 2019. 75-90% decline in leopard population in India India’s leopard population has fallen by 75 to 90 per cent over the past two centuries. The study was carried out by the scientists at the Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun and the Centre for Wildlife Studies, Bangalore.