Current Affairs Today 20th February 2020| Current Affairs News

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Daily Current Affairs PDF of 20th February 2020

CURRENT AFFAIRS: DAYS

World Day of Social Justice :20 February 2020

World Day of Social Justice is observed on 20 February to promote gender equality, indigenous peoples and migrants’ rights. This day also focuses on achieving the goal of full employment and social integration.
This is the day to raise voice against social injustice and to remove barriers regarding gender, race, inequality, religious discrimination, etc. It also highlights the social injustice done throughout the world and to look into the solutions and improvements.
The theme of World Day of Social Justice 2020 is “Closing the Inequalities Gap to Achieve Social Justice”. It focuses on social justice as it is the global mission of the UN to promote the development and human dignity.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: NATIONAL

Govt to set up Central Consumer Protection Authority by first week of April

Food Minister Ram Vilas Paswan has stated the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) will be set up by the first week of April this year. The CCPA to be set up under Consumer Protection Act 2019, will address issues related to consumer rights, unfair trade practices, misleading advertisements and impose penalties for selling spurious and adulterated products.
An investigative wing will be formed under the aegis of the authority and it will carry out inquiries in matters related to unfair trade practices and misleading advertisements. He also stated the rules related to Consumer Protection Act will be finalized within one and half months.
The Minister asserted that protecting the interest of consumers is paramount for the government. During the meeting with industry bodies, Mr. Paswan also stressed on the need to regulate e-commerce and direct selling as there is no regulatory body for these sectors.

Union Cabinet approves constitution of 22nd Law Commission of India

Union Cabinet approved the constitution of the Twenty-second Law Commission of India. Union Minister Prakash Javadekar stated that the commission will function for a period of three years from its date of official constitution.
The Commission will give recommendations on different aspects of law which are entrusted to it.
It shall also undertake studies and research for bringing reforms in the justice delivery systems for elimination of delay in procedures and speedy disposal of cases among others.
Law Commission of India is a non-statutory body constituted by the Government from time to time. The tenure of the twenty-first Law Commission ended in August 2018.

Cabinet approves phase two of Swachh Bharat Mission Grameen

Union Cabinet has approved the Phase- 2 of the Swachh Bharat Mission, Grameen till 2024-25, which will focus on Open Defecation Free Plus (ODF Plus). The program will work towards ensuring that no one is left behind and everyone uses a toilet.
The phase-2 of the mission will be implemented in a mission mode with a total estimated budgeted financial implication of 52 thousand 497 crore rupees. The ODF Plus programme will also converge with MGNREGA, especially for grey water management and will also complement the newly launched Jal Jeevan Mission.

Cabinet approves constitution of empowered Technology Group

Cabinet has approved the constitution of an empowered Technology Group which will advise the Government on priorities and strategies for research on emerging technologies across sectors.
The group intends to ensure that India has appropriate policies and strategies for effective, secure and context-sensitive exploitation of the latest technologies for economic growth and sustainable development of the Indian Industry.
This Group is mandated to render timely policy advice on the latest technologies, mapping of technology and technology products, commercialization of dual-use technologies developed in national laboratories and government Research and Development.

Govt to launch Tilhan Mission to boost oilseed production

The government will launch Tilhan Mission to make the country self-reliant in oilseed production. Addressing the gathering at a function organized on the occasion of a Soil Health Card Day, Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar stated, the government is seriously working on enhancing the oilseed production in the country.
The country is self-reliant in foodgrains production due to the hard work of farmers and it is more than the overall requirements of the country. since the launch of the Soil health card scheme in 2015, soil fertility has improved resulting in more crop production.
He stated, agriculture is the important pillar of the country’s economy and its contribution is 14 per cent to the GDP.
On the occasion, Mr Tomar also announced two major decisions taken in the Union Cabinet meeting in the interest of farmers.
The government has also decided to create 10 thousand Farmers Producer Organisation (FPO) across the country for which an assistance of over 6,000 crore rupees will be provided. Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana will not be mandatory for farmers and it will be voluntary for them.

India to switch to world’s cleanest petrol, diesel from April 1

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. This has been achieved in just three years and not seen in any of the large economies around the globe.
India will join the select league of nations using petrol and diesel containing just 10 parts per million of sulphur as it looks to cut vehicular emissions that are said to be one of the reasons for the choking pollution in major cities.
State-owned oil refineries spent about 35,000 crore rupees to upgrade plants that could produce ultra-low sulphurBS-VI has a sulphur content of just 10 ppm and emission standards are as good as CNG..

CURRENT AFFAIRS: INTERNATIONAL

Nepal celebrates 70th National Democracy Day

Nepal celebrated its 70th National Democracy Day A special ceremony was held at the Nepal Army Pavilion Tudikhel in Kathmandu to mark the occasion.
In his address Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli stated after resolving conflict Nepal is now moving towards economic and social transformation. He futher added Nepal has created its identity in the world and increased its prestige at various international fora.
Prime Minister Oli also paid tribute to the martyrs who had sacrificed their lives in the struggle for democracy. Every year, Falgun 7 of the Nepali calendar is commemorated as the National Democracy Day in Nepal. In 2007 Bikram Sambat, on this day, democracy was established in the Himalayan nation ending over a century old autocratic Rana regime.

Bangladesh to enhance Mongla Port Capacity

The Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) of Bangladesh has approved the proposal to enhance the capacity of the Mongla port. The decision was taken in a meeting of the ENCEC chaired by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in Dhaka.
The Mongla port capacity will be enhanced to ensure better facilities for the users.
India has extended a line of credit for the expansion of the Mongla Port capacity. Out of the total estimated project cost of Tk 6014 crore, India will provide Tk 4459 crore equivalent to $ 530 million as Line of Credit for the project.
With the enhancement of the capacity of the Mongla port it would be able to handle 15 million tons of cargo and 4 lakh shipping containers of a standard 20 feet size called TEUs.
The project consists building of two container terminals and related infrastructure facilities at the port.
On completion the project will significantly boost connectivity in the BBIN (Bhutan, Bangladesh, India, Nepal) region. It will also boost trade with India, Bhutan and Nepal.
India and Bangladesh had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the use of Chattogram and Mongla ports in 2015. The MoU envisages transit of goods from Mongla port to north eastern states of India through waterways, roads and railways. Mongla is the second largest sea port in Bangladesh. The project is expected to be completed by June 2024.

About Bangladesh :

Capital: Dhaka
Currency: Bangladeshi taka
Prime minister: Sheikh Hasina

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.
Ms Patel, the senior-most Indian-origin Cabinet minister stated, the new system will cut down numbers of cheap, low-skilled migrating workers coming to the country.
The new system will come into force from January 1, 2021, at the end of the transition period after UK’s exit from the European Union (EU) last month.
The new post-Brexit system, which will apply equally to the EU and non-EU countries like India, is based on assigning points for specific skills, qualifications, salaries and professions, with visas only awarded to those who gain enough points.

About UK:

Capital: London
Prime minister: Boris Johnson
Currency‎: ‎Pound sterling‎ (‎GBP‎)

Seminar on Indian Defence Equipment held in Dhaka

High Commission of India in Bangladesh organised a seminar on Indian Defence Equipment in
India’s High Commissioner to Bangladesh Riva Ganguly Das stated that India and Bangladesh have close cooperation in many diverse areas and it was natural for them to pursue further cooperation in the field of defence technologies.
The Minister stated that Bangladesh’s Security Forces have earned a name for themselves as disciplined and professional force.
He stated the seminar provided an opportunity for defence manufacturers from India in developing fruitful partnerships with Bangladesh.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BANKING AND FINANCE

Special Economic Zones continue to take lead in expanding exports

The Special Economic Zones, SEZ continue to take the lead in expanding the exports for the country.
Even in the midst of a volatile global economy, SEZs in India have shown resilience and have achieved 100 billion dollar worth of exports so far.
Sectors that saw healthy growth in this financial year include gems and jewelry, trading and Logistics, leather and footwear, non-conventional energy, textiles and garments.
Petrochemicals constitute a major segment of SEZ exports, however, growth was muted in this segment this year which may be attributed to the softening of global crude prices. There are 241 SEZs operational in the country

Gujarat govt partners with SBI to facilitate MSME loans

The Gujarat government signed an MoU with State Bank of India (SBI) to facilitate approval of loans to entrepreneurs in the MSME sector with ease and within a short time-frame.
As per the MoU, the top public sector lender will provide working capital to entrepreneurs seeking to start new micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) within a short time -frame after providing theoretical approval within 15 days of making an application.
The MoU was signed between principal secretary M K Das and SBI Ahmedabad circle general manager Ramesh Kumar Agarwal.
Within 15 days of making an application, the bank will provide theoretical approval to the project. Start-ups can submit an application on either the MSME portal or to the local nodal agencies.
The SBI decided to help MSME entrepreneurs in Gujarat looking at their high recovery rate.

About State Bank of India(SBI):

Chairperson– Rajnish Kumar.
Headquarters– Mumbai, Maharashtra.
Former name– Imperial Bank of India.
Tagline– The Banker to Every Indian; With you all the way; Purely Banking Nothing Else; The Nation Banks on Us.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BUSINESS AND ECONOMY

Rs 1,931 crore Nabard loan for Chintalapudi LIS

The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Nabard) has sanctioned `1,931 crore as a term loan to the Andhra Pradesh Water Resources Development Corporation (APWRDC) for the completion of Chintalapudi Lift Irrigation Scheme in West Godavari and Krishna districts.
The financial assistance has been made under the Nabard Infrastructure Development Assistance (NIDA).
The project was expected to be completed by March 2022. The Chintalapudi Lift Irrigation Scheme covers 410 villages in 15 mandals of West Godavari and 18 mandals in Krishna district.

About NABARD:

National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development is an Apex Development Financial Institution in India. The Bank has been entrusted with “matters concerning Policy Planning and Operations in the field of credit for Agriculture and other Economic activities in Rural areas in India”.
Founded: 12 July 1982
Headquarters: Mumbai
Agency executive: Harsh Kumar Bhanwala (Chairperson)
Purpose: Development assistance; Poverty Reduction

Fintech startup Lendingkart partners with Northern Arc Capital

Fintech startup, LendingKart Technologies Private Limited has announced a full-stack co-lending partnership with Non-Banking Finance Company, Northern Arc Capital to disburse over Rs 100 crore as working capital to Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).
The loans disbursed under the new partnership will enable MSMEs to borrow digitally without any manual intervention in data and information flow, bureau check and document verification and validation to credit decisioning and customer funding. The target borrowers are ones, who usually don’t have access to credit or are capital deficient.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: STATES

Andhra Pradesh CM Jagan to launch hospital Nadu-Nedu

‘Nadu – Nedu’ (Now and then) in hospitals, a scheme initiated by the State government to upgrade facilities in government hospitals for ensuring quality medical treatment to patients, launched by Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy in Kurnool.
The government plans to spend `11,737 crore for the implementation of Nadu-Nedu in hospitals in three phases in the next three years. Besides upgrading the infrastructure in the existing hospitals, the government has also decided to construct new hospitals wherever required.
In the first phase, the government will spend `1,129 crore for setting up 7,548 Health and Wellness centres (sub-centres).
In the second phase, It is estimated to spend `1,907 crore under the second phase.
In the third and final phase, the government will spend `8,701 crore for taking a mammoth exercise of strengthening the District Hospitals and Teaching Hospitals and construction of superspeciality hospitals, medical and nursing colleges.
Apart from construction of seven medical colleges in Vizianagaram, Eluru, Paderu, Gurazala, Markapuram, Pulivendula and Machilipatnam, the government will also set up a superspeciality hospital in Kadapa and kidney research centres at Palasa and Markapuram.
The Chief Minister will also launch the distribution of Aarogyasri smart health cards as part of his visit to Kurnool.

About Andhra Pradesh

Legislative Capital- Amaravati.
Executive Capital- Vishakapatnam
Judicial Capital- Kurnool
Chief Minister -YS Jagan Mohan Reddy
Governor- Biswabhusan Harichandan

Lithium reserve found in Mandya near Bengaluru

The Researchers of India’s Atomic Energy Commission have found lithium reserves of 14,100 tonnes in Mandya, Bengaluru, Karnataka. Lithium is a rare metal used for manufacturing batteries for electric vehicles.
India currently imports all its lithium needs and lithium batteries worth $1.2 billion for the year 2019 from $384 million in 2017.
These reserves will be useful to promote clean-energy vehicles in India and the Government has a plan to implement $1.4 billion to make India a manufacturing hub for electric vehicles.
India has set up Khanij Bidesh India Limited to source and acquire mines in Argentina (Buenos Aires), Bolivia (Sucre) and Chile (Santiago).

About Karnataka

Capital- Bengaluru
Chief Minister -Yediyurappa
Governor- Vajubhai Rudabhai Vala

Uttarakhand govt organises wellness summit

To promote investment opportunities in Uttarakhand, the State government organised “Uttarakhand Wellness Summit 2020” in New Delhi.
Uttarakhand has from time immemorial, been the top choice for ascetics and devotees who are in search of the divine. But now we are also focusing on developing the State as an industrial hub, stated Satpal Maharaj, Minister for Tourism, Irrigation and Culture, Uttarakhand.
The primary objective of the summit is to shed light on the potential of developing the State as a ‘global spiritual economic zone’, capitalising on the global wellness economy worth $4.2 trillion in 2017 that is growing at 6.4 per cent annually, he added.
Innovative initiatives such as AYUSH health centres/retreats, eco-tourism, aroma therapy/aroma tourism will play a crucial role in the coming years, stated Dilip Jawalkar, Tourism Secretary, Uttarakhand.

About Uttarakhand:

Capital: Dehradun
Governor: Baby Rani Maurya
Chief Minister: Trivendra Singh Rawat

CURRENT AFFAIRS: APPOINTMENTS AND RESIGNATION

PM-led panel names President’s secretary Sanjay Kothari as next CVC, ex-IAS officer Bimal Julka to be CIC

Sanjay Kothari, the Secretary to the President, has been selected as the new Central Vigilance Commissioner by a high-powered committee headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The committee has also chosen former Information and Broadcasting Secretary Bimal Julka, currently serving as an Information Commissioner, as the new Chief Information Commissioner in the Central Information Commission.
Kothari and Julka have been selected as the next CVC and CIC.
The three-member panel also decided by majority the appointment of Suresh Patel as Vigilance Commissioner and Anita Pandove as Information Commissioner.

Supratim Bandyopadhyay named new PFRDA Chairman

Supratim Bandyopadhyay was appointed as chairman of the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA), a body which regulates the National Pension Scheme subscribed by government and private employees from organised and unorganised sectors.
Bandyopadhyay was working as Member (Finance) in the PFRDA which is the regulator for promotion and development of an organised pension system to serve the old age income needs of people on a sustainable basis.

Mahant Nritya Gopal Das elected as President of Ram Mandir Trust

The first meeting of the Ram Mandir Trust to oversee the construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya was held in New Delhi .
The trust has decided that a Committee will be formed to decide on the construction of the temple. Nripendra Misra, former principal secretary of Prime Minister Modi will be the head of the temple construction committee. Mahant Nritya Gopal Das was elected as the president of the Trust whereas Champat Rai would be the general secretary.
The trust has been mandated by the Central Government to complete the construction of Ram temple at Ayodhya. The 15-member trust was formed in adherence to the Supreme Court verdict on the Ayodhya dispute in November last year.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: AWARDS AND RECOGNITION

Ratan Tata conferred honorary doctorate by UK university

Tata Group Chairman Emeritus Ratan Tata has been awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Manchester for his contribution to innovation and philanthropy.
The UK university stated that the award was presented to the 82-year-old industrialist in Mumbai recently during the India tour of President and Vice-Chancellor Professor Dame Nancy Rothwell.

Biocon Chairman Kiran Mazumdar Shaw gets EY’s ‘Entrepreneur of the Year’ award

Biocon’s Chairman and Managing Director Kiran Mazumdar Shaw has been declared EY Entrepreneur of the Year 2019.
Shaw will now represent India at the EY World Entrepreneur of the Year Award (WEOY) to be held in Monte Carlo from June 4-6, 2020.
She bagged the honour for her role in making affordable, life-saving medicines possible through her strong investments in research.
Shaw is also among the earliest Indian signatories to the Giving Pledge, a global commitment to dedicate majority of her wealth to philanthropy Adi Godrej, Chairman of Godrej Group, has been honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award.
These awards, along with nine others in categories ranging from life sciences and heathcare to financial services with the winners representing both mature industries as well as unicorns, were announced.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Pakistan Test Launches Ra’ad II Nuclear-Capable Air-Launched Cruise Missile

Pakistan test-launched a new variant of its Ra’ad II nuclear-capable air-launched cruise missile (ALCM).
The new longer-range Ra’ad II significantly enhances air delivered strategic standoff capability on land and at sea.
The weapon system is equipped with state of the art guidance and navigation systems ensuring engagement of targets with high precision.
The Ra’ad II being launched from a Pakistan Air Force (PAF) Mirage III fighter aircraft.
The Ra’ad II was first publicly revealed as a mock-up in 2017 duringPakistan’s annual military parade in Islamabad.
The85 meter-long Ra’ad-II had a stated range of 550-600 kilometers. It is capable of carrying both conventional and nuclear payloads.

About Pakistan

Capital- Islamabad
Currency- Pakistani rupee
President- Arif Alvi
Prime Minister (PM)- Imran Ahmed Khan Niazi

CURRENT AFFAIRS: RANKING

IISc ranks 16th among top 100 universities of emerging economies

The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) has ranked 16th among the top 100 universities of emerging economies.
Indian universities had a good performance year within the emerging economies of the world as a record 11 made it to the top 100 Times Higher Education’s (THE) Emerging Economies University Rankings 2020.
Only China has more universities than India in the top 100 at 30 from a total of 47 countries and territories included in the analysis released in London.
A total of 56 Indian universities appear in the full ranking of a total of 533 universities across emerging economies of the world.
The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) emerged as India’s top-ranked institution followed by the Indian Institute of Technologies (IITs).
Indian Institute of Technology Ropar and Institute of Chemical Technology are entering the ranking for the first time, and both debut in the top 100.
This year marks only the second time that 11 Indian institutions have held top 100 positions since the ranking began in 2014.

India jumps five ranks to 35th in Worldwide Education for the Future Index 2019

India jumped five ranks in the Worldwide Educating for the Future Index (WEFFI) 2019, as per a report published by The Economist Intelligence Unit.
India ranked 35th on the overall index in 2019 with a total score of 53, based on three categories – policy environment, teaching environment and overall socio-economic environment. The country ranked 40th with an overall score of 41.2 across categories in 2018.
Finland is positioned 1st in all categories including overall score, followed by
The index is topped by Finland, followed by Sweden in second place and New Zealand in third place.
World’s giant economies like US, UK, France & Russia fell in the index, while China, India & Indonesia performed better.

CSIR tops scientific research institutional ranking

Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has been ranked first in the Nature Ranking Index-2020. The rankings are based on total research output which the institutions have carried out from December 01, 2018 to 30th November, 2019. Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore, has been ranked
CSIR-New Delhi has achieved the top position with 142 counts (C) and a share percentage (SP) of 87.74 while IISC-Bengaluru stands second with 211 counts and 83.61 in share percentage.
The third place in India is secured by Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR-Mumbai) with a research count of 232 and share percentage of 62.18. Homi Bhabha National Institute (HBNI), Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT Bombay), Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras), Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science (IACS), Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Kolkata (IISER Kolkata), Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati (IIT Guwahati), Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Pune (IISER Pune) are among other institutions that have been ranked in the list.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: DEFENCE

GRSE delivers the 4th Anti-Submarine Warfare Corvette, INS Kavaratti

Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd., (GRSE), a leading Warship builder and Miniratna Category 1 Company under the administrative control of the Ministry of Defence delivered Yard 3020 INS Kavaratti, to the Indian Navy.
The ship is the 104th Warship built and delivered by GRSE since its inception in 1960 and is the Last in the Series of 04 Anti-Submarine Warfare Corvettes (ASWC) under the Project 28.
The first three ships of the series, INS Kamorta, INS Kadmatt & INS Kiltan were delivered earlier and now form an integral part of Eastern Fleet of the Indian Navy. The P 28 Class of ships strengthens the Indian Defence System and is the shining Armor in the “Make in India” programme.
The Kamorta class of Corvettes are designed to be equally effective in the littorals as well as in the deep oceans.
Kavaratti and INS Kiltan are the first two major warships to have the unique feature of Superstructure made of Carbon Fiber Composite Material. It is for the first time in the country that such composite material is being integrated with steel hull of a ship and GRSE is the first shipyard in the country to have successfully achieved this task.

India-Russia defence deals set to cross $16 bn; to include S-400 systems, Kalashnikov rifles

Defence deals between India and Russia are set to cross $16 billion and Moscow is committed to the timely implementation of contracts, including the supply of S-400 air defence systems and production of Kalashnikov rifles and Kamov helicopters.
The two countries signed 14 memorandums of understanding (MoUs) during the recent Defexpo 2020 in Lucknow that covered development and production of land, air and naval systems and hi-tech civilian products.
Russia’s state-run Rosoboronexport inked deals with the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) for advanced pyrotechnic ignition systems, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) for export of spares and services to friendly countries, and Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) for land systems.
A separate MoU was signed by Russian Helicopters and Indo-Russian Helicopters Ltd for localisation of component to be used in Kamov Ka-226 helicopters. India has plans to buy 200 Ka-226 helicopters.
India made the first payment of $850 million last year for the $5.4-billion deal for five S-400 systems through a special mechanism worked out by the two sides.
Russia was the largest foreign exhibitor at Defexpo 2020, and Moscow remains committed to the Make in India programme and Indian localisation requirements

CURRENT AFFAIRS: SPORTS

India to host AFC Women’s Asian Cup in 2022

India will host the 2022 AFC Women’s Asian Cup. The Women’s Committee of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) announced this in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Besides India, Chinese Taipei and Uzbekistan were the other competing candidates. But It was felt that India was best placed among the three bidders.
AFC Women’s Committee Chairperson Mahfuza Akhter Kiron stated India offers the best opportunities to build the event commercially as well as increasing the value. India is also committed to developing the women’s game.
Besides, India will have the experience of hosting the FIFA Women’s Under-17 World Cup . Hence India stands out.

Asian Wrestling C’ships: Indian wrestlers win three bronze medals in Greco-Roman events

Ashu, Aditya Kundu and Hardeep have won a bronze medal each in their respective weight categories as Indian wrestlers bagged five medals in Greco-Roman events of the Asian Wrestling Championships in New Delhi While Ashu won a bronze in 67kg category, Aditya and Hardeep also bagged the medals of same colour in the 72kg and 97kg respectively on the second day of the competitions.
Ashu beat Syria’s Abdulkarim Mohammad Al-Hasan 8-1 while Kundu defeated Nao Kusaka of Japan 8-0 inside one and a half minutes in a lop-sided 72kg bronze medal bout. Later in the evening, Hardeep beat Kyrgyzstan’s Beksultan Makhamadzhanovich Makhmudov 3-1 to register India’s third podium finish of the day.
India has so far five medals in the championships, after Sunil Kumar’s historic gold in 87kg and Arjun Halakurki’s bronze in 55kg Greco-Roman category.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: OBITUARY

Veteran Kannada actor Kishori Ballal passes away

Veteran Kannada actor Kishori Ballal, who had acted in over 75 movies and left an indelible mark with her role in Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Swades, passed away.
Kishori made her acting debut in the 1960s with Kannada movie Ivalentha Hendathi. In her five-decade-long career, she worked in over 75 movies across different languages, including Kahi, Hani Hani, Suryakanthi, Carry On Maratha and Quick Gun Murugun. Among her film roles, she has appeared in films like Ring Road, Ambari and Akka Thangi.

DAILY CA 19^TH FEB

Soil Health Card Day being observed on 19th Feb
Indian pharma & biotech industry expected to grow to 100 billion dollars by 2025: Piyush Goyal
Govt to achieve 50% Gross Enrollment Ratio in higher education by 2030, says HRD Minister
South Africa keen to establish direct air connectivity between Mumbai & Johannesburg: Andrea Kuhn
Bangladesh to sign Free Trade Agreement with Nepal
UAE issues reactor license for first Arab nuclear power plant
Govt to facilitate doubling of milk processing capacity by 2025
SEBI decides to permit the use of regulatory sandbox
Microsoft to set up engineering, innovation hub in Noida
Police, Uber launch Himmat Plus app at IGI airport
UP becomes first state to enforce Performance Regulation Act for power department
Bird ringing station to come up in Bihar; MoU inked in Gujarat
IOC to invest Rs 500 crore for Karnataka unit
NCLAT gives approval to JSW Steel to acquire Bhushan Power
Australia appoints Barry O’Farrell as the new high commissioner to India
Afghanistan: Ashraf Ghani secures 2nd term as President
Sachin Tendulkar wins the Laureus Sporting Moment Award for ICC World Cup 2011 victory lap
Secretary Agarwal reviews Fasal Bima in Udaipur
India becomes world’s 5th largest economy, overtakes UK, France
Hindi is 3rd most spoken language in the world with 615 million speakers after English, Mandarin
CDS Gen Bipin Rawat announces plan to create Peninsula Command
FIFA U-17 Women’s Football World Cup to be hosted in 5 cities in November
Sunil Kumar wins gold in 87-kg Greco Roman category in Asian Wrestling Championships
AIFF receives ‘Grassroots Charter Bronze Level’ membership of AFC
India claims five silver, six bronze medals at 2020 Asian Youth and Junior Weightlifting Championships
Bengali actor and former MP Tapas Pal passes away
Former Manchester United goalkeeper and ‘Hero of Munich’ air disaster Harry Gregg passes away
Veteran journalist M S Mani passes away
Greatest woman golfer, Mickey Wright dies at 85

DAILY CA 20^TH FEB

World Day of Social Justice :20 February 2020
Govt to set up Central Consumer Protection Authority by first week of April
Union Cabinet approves constitution of 22nd Law Commission of India
Cabinet approves phase two of Swachh Bharat Mission Grameen
Cabinet approves constitution of empowered Technology Group
Govt to launch Tilhan Mission to boost oilseed production
India to switch to world’s cleanest petrol, diesel from April 1
Nepal celebrates 70th National Democracy Day
Bangladesh to enhance Mongla Port Capacity
UK announces new points-based visa system

Seminar on Indian Defence Equipment held in Dhaka
Special Economic Zones continue to take lead in expanding exports
Gujarat govt partners with SBI to facilitate MSME loans

Rs 1,931 crore Nabard loan for Chintalapudi LIS
Fintech startup Lendingkart partners with Northern Arc Capital
Andhra Pradesh CM Jagan to launch hospital Nadu-Nedu
Lithium reserve found in Mandya near Bengaluru
Uttarakhand govt organises wellness summit
PM-led panel names President’s secretary Sanjay Kothari as next CVC, ex-IAS officer Bimal Julka to be CIC
Supratim Bandyopadhyay named new PFRDA Chairman
Mahant Nritya Gopal Das elected as President of Ram Mandir Trust
Ratan Tata conferred honorary doctorate by UK university
Biocon Chairman Kiran Mazumdar Shaw gets EY’s ‘Entrepreneur of the Year’ award

Pakistan Test Launches Ra’ad II Nuclear-Capable Air-Launched Cruise Missile
IISc ranks 16th among top 100 universities of emerging economies
India jumps five ranks to 35th in Worldwide Education for the Future Index 2019
CSIR tops scientific research institutional ranking
GRSE delivers the 4th Anti-Submarine Warfare Corvette, INS Kavaratti
India-Russia defence deals set to cross $16 bn; to include S-400 systems, Kalashnikov rifles
India to host AFC Women’s Asian Cup in 2022
Asian Wrestling C’ships: Indian wrestlers win three bronze medals in Greco-Roman events
Veteran Kannada actor Kishori Ballal passes away

This post was last modified on September 29, 2020 1:02 pm

5 years ago