NATIONAL UPDATES:
1. New Delhi World Book Fair 2023 to
begin: The New Delhi World Book Fair will be started at Pragati
Maidan in New Delhi from 25th Febraury to 5th March 2023. The Union Education
Minister Dharmendra Pradhan will inaugurate the fair. The 2023 theme
of the fair is Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav. The Guest of Honour Country:
France The G20 theme has been integrated with the book fair, and exhibitions of
books from G20 member countries will be organized during the fair. NBT
Chairman: Prof. Govind Prasad Sharma
2. 22nd Law Commission's term extended
till August 2024: The Union Cabinet chaired by PM Narendra Modi has approved
the extension of the term of the 22nd Law Commission of India from
20th February 2023 to 31st August 2024. The 22nd law panel was constituted
for three years on 21st February 2020. Law Commission of India: It is a
non-statutory body and is constituted by the Government of India from time to
time. It was originally constituted in 1955. Chairperson: Justice (retired)
Rituraj Awasthi
3. Govt approves Innovative Extension
Approaches for Revitalising Agriculture: The J&K govt has approved a
five-year project on Innovative Extension Approaches for Revitalising Agriculture
in J&K. Aim: To give a push to sustainable agriculture The
project, worth 463 crore rupees, is also aimed to empower farmers and
educated youth through technology-driven and inclusive agri-extension
services. One of the critical outcomes would be the creation of 2,000
Kissan Khidmat Ghars, which will serve as One Stop Centre for
farmer-oriented services
4. NTPC ranked as the top Independent
Power Producers: NTPC Limited has topped the ranking of Independent Power
Producers and Energy Traders Globally in the S&P Global Commodity
Insights Top 250 Global Energy Company Rankings 2022. These rankings are
based on four key metrics: Asset worth, Revenues, Profits, and Return on
Investment (ROI). Presently, NTPC contributes 24% of the total electricity
produced in India. NTPC is targeting non-fossil fuel-based capacity to
make up nearly 50% of the company’s portfolio by 2032.
5. PM Narendra Modi chaired the 41st
edition PRAGATI Interaction meeting: Prime Minister Narendra
Modi has chaired the meeting of the 41st edition of the Pro-Active
Governance and Timely Implementation (PRAGATI) Interaction. PRAGATI is the
ICT-based multi-modal platform for Pro-Active Governance and Timely
Implementation, involving Centre and State governments. In the meeting, 9 key
infrastructure projects were reviewed and PM Modi also reviewed ‘Mission Amrit
Sarovar’. Among the nine projects, three projects were from the Ministry of
Road Transport and Highways, and two projects were from the Ministry of
Railways.
These nine projects have
a cumulative cost of over 41 thousand 500 crore rupees and relate to 13 States.
PRAGATI Interaction was launched on 25th March 2015 by PM Modi as a part of the
Digital India program.
6. Mumbai’s Churchgate station to be
renamed after first RBI Governor: The Churchgate
railway station in Mumbai will be called as ‘Chintamanrao Deshmukh
station’, named after the first governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) CD
Deshmukh. The first national executive meeting of Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena
faction, which was declared the original Shiv Sena by the Election Commission. The
meeting passed a resolution to rename the ‘Churchgate railway station’ after
the former RBI governor and Union Finance Minister Chintaman Dwarkanath
Deshmukh. In August 1943, CD Deshmukh was appointed as Governor of the RBI and
served in that position till 1949.
7. PM Modi inaugurated ‘Barisu Kannada
Dim Dimava’ festival: Prime Minister Narendra
Modi has inaugurated ‘Barisu Kannada Dim Dimava’ cultural
festival at Talkatora Stadium, New Delhi. Barisu Kannada Dim Dimava’
cultural festival is being organized to celebrate Karnataka’s culture,
traditions and history. It is in line with the Prime Minister’s vision of ‘Ek
Bharat Shreshtha Bharat’. The festival, being held under the aegis of Azadi Ka
Amrit Mahotsav, will provide an opportunity to hundreds of artists to showcase
Karnataka cultural heritage through dance, music, drama, and poetry etc.
8. Anusuiya Uikey sworn in as 18th
Governor of Manipur: Anusuiya Uikey was
sworn in as the 18th Governor of Manipur in Imphal. Justice MV
Muralidaran, Acting Chief Justice of the High Court of Manipur administered the
oath of office to Uikey at Darbar Hall in Raj Bhawan. Anusuiya Uikey was the
governor of Chattisgarh from 29th July 2019 to 12th February 2023. She became a
member of the Rajya Sabha from Madhya Pradesh in 2006.
9. 24 February- Central Excise Day: Central Excise Day is celebrated in India every year
on February 24 to commemorate the establishment of the Central
Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC). The day is observed to recognise the
efforts of the Central Excise and Customs officials who work tirelessly to
safeguard the country’s economy. The Central Excise Day is also observed to
commemorate the Central Excise Act, which was passed on February 24, 1944.
INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:
1. CAG Girish Chandra Murmu selected as
External Auditor of ILO in Geneva: Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) Girish Chandra Murmu has
been selected as the External Auditor of the International Labour Organization
(ILO) in Geneva. He has been selected for a four-year term from 2024 to
2027. CAG will take over from the incumbent External Auditor of
ILO, the Supreme Audit Institution of the Philippines. CAG’s appointment
is a recognition of its standing among the international
community and its professionalism, and its global audit experience
2. Former Mastercard CEO, Ajay Banga
nominated to Lead World Bank: US President, Joe Biden has nominated former Mastercard CEO Ajay
Banga as the president of the World Bank. He would replace David Malpass,
who will step down from his role this June before completing his tenure in
April 2024. He was nominated for his expertise in handling global
challenges including climate change. Presently, he is serving as the
vice chairman at private equity firm General Atlantic. Notably, he is
the first Indian-born nominee for this role.
3. Abu Dhabi defence firm, India's HAL
sign MoU at UAE's defence expo: UAE's leading defense group, EDGE signed a Memorandum of Understanding
with India's aerospace firm Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) at
the International Defence Exhibition and Conference (IDEX). Aim: To
explore the areas of cooperation, including joint design and development of
missile systems and Unmanned aerial vehicles (drones) Besides, both companies
will also explore the utilization of HAL's small gas turbine engines on
EDGE's guided weapons.
4. India & Sri Lanka hold 7th
annual defence dialogue: The 7th Annual
Defence Dialogue between India and Sri Lanka was held in New Delhi. The
meeting was chaired by Defence Secretary, Giridhar Armane and his Sri Lankan
counterpart General Kamal Gunaratne.
This Annual Defence
Dialogue is the highest institutionalised interactive mechanism between both
the countries. Its significance in chartering the future course of the
relations between the Armed Forces of India and Sri Lanka was highlighted by
the importance given to the talks by both sides. The ongoing defence
cooperation activities between the two countries were reviewed during the
meeting.
5. 7-year-old Prince becomes first
digital citizen of Bhutan: Seven-year-old
Prince Jigme Namgyel Wangchuck has become the first digital citizen
of Bhutan. Prince Jigme is the mountainous country’s first citizen to receive
the National Digital Identity (NDI) mobile wallet. The launch of Bhutan’s
National Digital Identity based on the Self-Sovereign Identity model, is a
major step forward in transforming the way services are delivered in both the
public and private sectors. This flagship initiative of GovTech will provide
secure and verifiable digital identities to citizens, laying a strong
foundation for our digital future. Bhutan NDI uses cutting-edge technology to
provide citizens with secure and verifiable identity credentials, ensuring the
privacy and protection of their personal information.
OTHER UPDATES:
SPORTS
1. Anurag Thakur inaugurated the All
India Taekwondo Championship in Delhi: Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports Anurag Singh Thakur has
inaugurated the three-day All-India Taekwondo Championship in New Delhi. The
Championship is being organized to mark 50 years of Korea-India diplomatic
relations. The Korean Cultural Centre, India is co-hosting this Championship
with the Sports Authority of India under the Ministry of Youth Affairs and
Sports of India and Korea National Sports University in celebration of the 50th
anniversary of Korea-India diplomatic relations in 2023. In the opening
ceremony, an MoU was signed between the two countries in the field of sports exchange
and special performances, Korean dance, Taekwondo performances.
2. Aishwary won gold in men’s
individual 50m rifle 3 positions event: In Shooting, India’s Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar has claimed
the gold medal in the men’s individual 50m rifle 3 positions
competition at the ISSF World Cup in Cairo. The 22-year-old Tomar, who had
also won a gold in the Chagwon World Cup last year, won 16-6 in the gold medal
contest to comfortably beat Austria’s Alexander Schmirl. Earlier, India’s
Tilottama Sen had won a bronze medal in the women’s 10m Air Rifle India is on
top of the medal tally with four gold and Hungary is in second position with
two gold medals.
BANKING AND FINANCE
1. Niva Bupa launches health insurance
plan 'ReAssure 2.0': Niva Bupa
Health Insurance has launched a new health insurance policy named 'ReAssure
2.0'. Aim: To encourage customers to start investing for their health and
financial security at an early age This new-age indemnity plan offers a
'live healthy' benefit. It gives a premium discount of up to 30% on policy
renewal basis health points earned. It is available as an individual,
multi-individual, and family floater starting from Rs 5 lakh to Rs 1
crore. Age: 18 -65 yrs
2. Thomas Cook, Pine Labs launch UPI
payment facility for foreign visitors: Pine Labs and Thomas Cook (India) partnered
with National Payments Corporation of India to enable payments
via UPI for foreign nationals from G20 countries. Pine Labs will issue
the prepaid payment product under the PPI authorization from RBI. This
facility can be accessed on arrival in India at Thomas Cook’s airport
counters. When encashing foreign currency at Thomas Cook’s counter, the
customer can open a Pine Labs Fave Money prepaid account loaded with the
rupee value
3. Karnataka Bank, Paisalo Digital ink
co-lending pact: The NBFC Paisalo Digital Ltd entered into a co-lending loan agreement
with Karnataka Bank to meet the funding requirements of priority
segments such as agriculture and MSME. This agreement will enable Paisalo
Digital to drive financial inclusion by providing low-cost financial
solutions to priority sectors. As per the RBI circular, released on
November 5, 2020, banks and NBFCs can enter into tie-ups for the joint
contribution of funding for priority sectors.
4. Alliance, Dunzo tie up to offer
insurance to 20,000 delivery partners: Dunzo delivery joined hands with Alliance Insurance
Brokers to provide insurance to its national network of delivery
partners. With this initiative, Alliance Insurance Brokers is providing insurance
protection to almost 20,000 delivery partners, insured on a daily basis, while
they are active on the platform.
In case of an accident, the policy offers a benefit of Rs 5 lakh
to cover children’s education and reimburse business losses and hospitalization
expenses.
5. Kotak Mahindra Bank launches
corporate customer platform fyn: Kotak Mahindra Bank has launched a
unified portal named 'Kotak fyn' for corporate customers. Aim: To track
their payments, collections, trade, and other services related to their bank
accounts The bank is also planning to introduce a new loan origination and
management system that would digitize the process from the loan
application, to sanction, to disbursal. This system would reduce the
turnaround time for corporate borrowers and make the process more transparent.
AWARDS AND HONOURS
1. Sajjan Jindal wins EY Entrepreneur
of the Year Award 2022: Chairman of JSW Group Sajjan Jindal was honored with the EY
Entrepreneur of the Year Award 2022. Reason: For his exceptional
entrepreneurial journey in scaling the global conglomerate with a presence in
steel, cement, infrastructure, energy, and paints He will now represent
India at the EY World Entrepreneur of the Year Award (WEOY) at Monte Carlo
in June 2023. While K P Singh, Chairman Emeritus, DLF Group, was honored
with the Lifetime Achievement Award.
2. Prem Kumar Mallick received for the Sangeet natak Akademi Award 2019: Noted classical singer, Pt Prem Kumar Mallick has been honured with the prestigious Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards for 2019. He received the award from President Droupadi Murmu for his contributions in the field of music (Hindustani Vocal) at a ceremony to be held at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi. He is a professor in the department of music and performing arts at Allahabad University.
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