Daily GK Updates - 26th February, 2020

NATIONAL UPDATES:

1. MP becomes first state in the country to launch the unified vehicle registration card: Madhya Pradesh has become the first state in India to launch unified vehicle registration card. Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, Kamal Nath launched the unified vehicle registration card on February 25, 2020. He also launched the unified driving license at the same time. MP is the second state to launch unified driving license after Uttar Pradesh. These unified smart cards for driving license and vehicle registration will each have a QR code that will help in verifying authenticity of the data printed on the cards. The unified driving license card will also have information about the ability of the driver to drive in hilly and dangerous areas, and an emergency contact number.

Note: Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh: Kamal Nath; Governor: Lal Ji Tandon.

2. Losar festival celebrated in Himachal Pradesh: 15 Day Long Losar Festival took place at Dharamshala with 3 important days from 24 to 26 February. It is celebrated on the first day of the luni-solar Tibeten calendar also called Tibetan New Year. Losar is a festival in Tibetan Buddhism. Prayers were offered at Dorje Drak Monastery in Shimla. Cultural events were held in different parts of the state as the Tibetan community celebrated the festival.

Note: Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh: Jai Ram Thakur; Governor: Bandaru Dattatraya.

3. Annual Cultural Fair ‘Vasantotsav’ begins in Gandhinagar: The Eight-day annual cultural fair called “Vasantotsav” was inaugurated on 25 February at Sanskruti Kunj in Gandhinagar by Maharaja Ranjitsinh Gaekwad Institute of Design (MRID). This festival is organized by the Department of Youth and Cultural Affairs to celebrate the rich diverse heritage of the country. The cultural festival “Vasantotsav” was held with the theme of “Ek Bhaart Shreshth Bharat”.

Note: CM of Gujarat: Vijay Rupani; Governor: Acharya Dev Vrat; Capital: Gandhinagar.

4. ISRO to launch Geo Imaging Satellite “GISAT-1”: The Indian Space Research Organisation is all set to launch Geo Imaging Satellite (GISAT-1) from the Second Launch Pad of Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC), Sriharikota. Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV-F10) will be launching GISAT-1 at 17:43 hrs IST on March 05, 2020. GISAT-1 has a weight of 2,275 kg and is a state-of-the-art agile Earth observation satellite that will be placed in a 'geosynchronous transfer orbit'

Note: ISRO Director: K. Sivan, Headquarters: Bengaluru; Established: 1969.

5. National Conference on Coastal Disaster Risk Reduction and Resilience held in New Delhi: The National Conference on Coastal Disaster Risk Reduction and Resilience (CDRR&R) 2020 was held in New Delhi. The national conference was organised by the National Institute of Disaster Management (NIDM). The aim of the conference is to enhance human capacity in terms of better understanding about coastal disaster risks and effective collaborative actions, by implementing Prime Minister’s 10-point agenda and Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction.

6. Union HRD Minister launches UKIERI-UGC Programme: Union Minister for Human Resource Development, Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal launched ‘Higher Education Leadership Development Programme for Administrator’. The programme is a joint initiative of UGC and British Council under the auspices of UK India Education and Research Initiative (UKIERI) to deliver a leadership development programme for middle and senior level administrative functionaries in Indian Universities.

7. Two new bird species found during Great Backyard Bird count in Ladakh: Two new bird species namely Red Throated Thrush and Plumbeous Water Redstart have been found during the Great Backyard Bird count in Union Territory of Ladakh. Great Backyard Bird count is a three-day exercise undertaken by the Wildlife Conservation and Birds Club of Ladakh. A record of 87 total species of birds in Ladakh has been found. The details will be recorded in the eBird India website for further studies.

INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:

1. India and United States Inks Over USD 3 billion Defence Deal: India and the United States finalized Defence deals worth three billion dollars including three other agreements of health and oil sectors on 25 February 2020. Under the deal, India will procure: 24 MH-60 Romeo helicopters from the US at a cost of $2.6 billion and 6 AH-64E Apache helicopters for $800 million The deal was sealed during the two-day official visit of US President Donald Trump to India from February 24-25, 2020 to India.

Note: Union Minister of Defence: Raj Nath Singh.

2. BIMSTEC to connect 3000 km long power grid from Myanmar-Thailand to India: Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) is working on a project of connecting about 3,000 kilometre-long power grid from Myanmar-Thailand to India. This was announced by Bangladesh PM’s Energy Advisor Dr Tawfiq-E-Elahi Chowdhury during the energy conference of BIMSTEC in Dhaka. BIMSTEC is a regional grouping with seven countries from South and Southeast Asia including Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Myanmar.

Note: Prime Minister of Bangladesh: Sheikh Hasina; Capital: Dhaka; Currency: Taka.

3. New Delhi hosts Joint Ministerial Commission between India and Australia: The Joint Ministerial Commission (JMC) between India and Australia was held in New Delhi. This was the 16th edition of the session. Piyush Goyal, Minister of Railways and Commerce & Industry, Government of India and honourable Senator Simon Birmingham, Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment, Government of Australia co-chaired the joint ministerial commission held between two countries.

Note: Australia Capital: Canberra; Currency: Australian Dollar; Prime Minister: Scott Morrison.

OTHER UPDATES:

SPORTS

1. Kiren Rijiju inaugurates 1st Khelo India Winter Games in UT Ladakh: The Minister of State for Youth Affairs and Sports, Shri Kiren Rijiju inaugurated the first-ever Khelo India Winter Games in the Union Territory of Ladakh. It is being organized to promote winters sports as well as to harness youth’s talent of India. Open Ice Hockey Championship, Figure Skating, Speed Skating will be the three winter sports held during the Khelo India winter games.

BANKING AND FINANCE

1. Microsoft partners with SBI to train differently-abled people to find jobs: Microsoft and State Bank of India have partnered to train differently-abled people to find jobs in the banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI) sector. In the first year of the partnership, more than 500 differently-abled youths will be upskilled.

Note: Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Microsoft: Satya Nadella; Microsoft Founded: April 4, 1975; Headquarters of Microsoft: Washington, United States (US).

Chairperson of SBI: Rajnish Kumar; Headquarters of SBI: Mumbai; SBI Founded: 1 July 1955.

OBITUARIES

1. Famous NASA Mathematician Katherine Johnson passes away:  Famous NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) mathematician Katherine Johnson passed away at the age of 101. Johnson’s calculations helped put the first man on the Moon in 1969, but she was little known until the Oscar-nominated 2016 movie that told the stories of three black women who worked at NASA.

Note: Headquarters of NASA: Washington, D.C.; NASA Established: July 29, 1958.

2. Former President of Egypt Mohammed Hosni Mubarak passes away: Egypt’s former President Mohammed Hosni Mubarak (91-years) passed away. He ruled the country for 30 years. After almost three decades in power, Mubarak was forced to resign on February 11, 2011, following 18 days of protests around the country.

Note: Egypt President: Abdel Fattah El-Sissi; Egypt Currency: Egyptian pound; Egypt Capital: Cairo.