Current Affairs February 2021 - gkseries

CURRENT AFFAIRS 2021

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Current Affairs February 2021 C U R R E N T A F F A I R S M O N T H L Y P D F

Table of Contents Awards and Honours 7 Economic Development 10 Geography, Environment, Biodiversity & Disaster Management 30 History, Art & Culture 38 Important Days & Events 43 International Affairs 49 Polity & Governance 57 Science & Technology 64 Security 73 Society and Social Justice 74 Sports 83

Miscellaneous 83

Awards and Honours

1. Scientist Bhavya Lal appointed Acting Chief of Staff of NASA 2. S.N. Subrahmanyan appointed as Chairman of the National Safety Council 3. Industrial parks and industries in the country 4. CCEA approves grant of ₹100 crore to Brahmaputra Valley Fertilizer Corporation 5. ISA announces Dr. Ajay Mathur as its new Director General 6. First Female to Head World Trade Organisation 7. Asia Environmental Enforcement Award 2020 8. Ayesha Aziz is emerging as a role model for Kashmir women 9. Pravas Kumar Singh takes oath as Member CERC 10. 10th National Awards for technology innovation in petrochemicals & downstream plastics

processing industry

Economic Development 1. EPFO net new Enrollments rise 29% to 78.58 lakh in FY21 2. 8th India International Silk Fair 3. Combined Social Sector Expenditure by Centre and States as Per Cent of GDP 4. India’s Sovereign Credit Ratings do not capture its Fundamentals 5. Improved Monetary Policy transmission; Repo Rate cut by 115 BPS 6. Fiscal deficit pegged at 6.8 per cent of GDP 7. FDI limit in insurance sector increased to 74% 8. Govt to introduce single Securities Markets Code 9. Qualitative strengthening of 15,000 schools to include all components of NEP 10. Key initiatives in Petroleum & Natural Gas sector 11. National Research Foundation Outlay to be ₹50,000 crore, over 5 years 12. ₹15,700 cr provided for MSME sector in Union Budget 13. Two PSBs, one general insurance company to be disinvested 14. FM proposes increase of 137 per cent in Budget for Health and well-being 15. Govt to rationalise custom duties on gold, silver



16. 34.5 % increase in Capital Expenditure with be of ₹5.54 Lakh Crore 17. Union Budget for 2021-22 gives boost to Public Transport in Urban Areas 18. FM announces key tax benefits to senior citizens 19. Outlay for Ministry of Road and Transport and Highways 20. Record Outlay of ₹1,10,055 Crore for Railways 21. Weak Revenue Flow Combined with High Expenditure on Essential Relief 22. Government to step up Funding for National Infrastructure Pipeline 23. Scheme for Revamped Reforms -based Result-Linked Power Distribution Sector 24. Budget greenlights Maha's Metro Neo project in Nashik 25. Micro Irrigation Fund (MIF) has been created under NABARD 26. NITI Aayog study to track economic impact of green verdicts 27. Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana for 2021-22 28. PM dedicates Haldia LPG import terminal to the nation 29. Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS) 30. SEBI imposes ₹1 crore penalty on NSE in co-location case 31. Privatisation of two public sector banks 32. Mission Organic Value Chain Development for North Eastern Region 33. Nitin Gadkari to launch India's first CNG tractor 34. Technology Information, Forecasting and Assessment Council launched SAKSHAM 35. PM laid foundation stone and inaugurates various projects in Kochi, Kerala 36. PM Modi unveiled key projects in Tamil Nadu 37. PM Modi to launch several key projects of oil & gas sector in Tamil Nadu 38. Hike in petrol and diesel price in India 39. Prime Minister to inaugurate the Pugalur - Thrissur power transmission project 40. PM Modi to launch Kasaragod Solar Power Project in kerala. 41. Cabinet approves PLI scheme for telecom sector 42. Comprehensive Economic cooperation and Partnership Agreement 43. Ground set for LIC IPO 44. Central government issues MSP guidelines for sugar mills 45. Piyush Goyal dedicates series of projects for rail infrastructure in WB 46. RBI released Annual Report of Ombudsman Schemes for 2019-20 47. PM Modi inaugurated important Oil & Gas projects and Engineering Colleges in Assam 48. Centre lifts embargo on private banks 49. Cabinet approves Production Linked Incentive Scheme for IT Hardware 50. Cabinet approves Production Linked Incentive Scheme for Pharmaceuticals 51. PM inaugurated & laid foundation stone of various infra projects in Coimbatore 52. Indian economy to contract by 8% in 2020-21

Geography, Environment, Biodiversity & Disaster Management 1. Disputes on Projects of Krishna & Godavari River 2. Glacial lake burst in Uttarakhand 3. Glacial Lake Outburst Floods 4. Smallest reptile on earth discovered in Madagascar 5. Flash floods and their mitigation 6. Sadananda Gowda calls upon farmers to use fertilizers based on soil health cards 7. The Koch Rajbongshi vote in Assam and West Bengal



8. Vijayanagara became Karnataka’s 31st district 9. Chamoli rescue ops briefly halted as water level rises 10. Hopes Dim for Three Climbers Missing in Winter K2 Attempt 11. The Farakka ‘lock’ and hilsa 12. Demolition process begins at Vembanad 13. A rare duck created a flutter in Upper Assam 14. The Andhra Pradesh-Odisha dispute over 21 border villages 15. India is putting out its mapping, geospatial data available for general use 16. Leatherback nesting sites could be overrun by Andamans project 17. Dhubri Phulbari Bridge in Assam 18. Hyderabad wins ‘Tree Cities of the World’ title 19. Swachh Tourist Destinations under Phase-IV 20. The caracal now critically endangered

History, Art & Culture 1. PM cites example of Bhagyashree Sahu's efforts in promoting 'Pattachitra' painting 2. PM Modi inaugurated Chauri Chaura centenary celebrations 3. Museum to pride of Kodagu General Thimayya in Madikeri 4. Akashvani names music festival after Pandit Bhimsen Joshi 5. Jamtara turns a new page with public library movement 6. Schools under Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan to be renamed after Subhas Chandra Bose 7. Preserving and promoting the traditional cultural heritage of India 8. PM recognises India’s youngest martyr after 8 decades 9. Foundation stone of Maharaja Suheldev Memorial 10. 75 years of Shri Ram Chandra Mission 11. What is Saka Nankana Sahib? 12. Preservation of Laxmi Vilas Palace in Vadodara 13. PM Modi inaugurated toy fair

Important Days & Events 1. 45th Raising Day of Indian Coast Guard 2. World Wetlands Day 2021 3. Groundhog Day 2021 4. Pandit Bhimsen Joshi Jayanti 5. Rashtriya Yuva Sashaktikaran Karyakram 6. World Cancer Day 2021 7. World Pulses Day 2021 8. International Day of Women and Girls in Science 2021 9. President to Open Rashtrapati Bhavan’s Annual Udyanotsav 10. World Unani Day 2021 11. World Radio Day 2021 12. Swami Dayanand Saraswati’s birth anniversary 13. 11th edition of 'Rashtriya Sanskriti Mahotsav' 14. “Mushaira” to be organised by Union Ministry of Minority Affairs 15. Basant Panchami 2021



16. Shri Guru Ravidas Vishva Mahapeeth Rashtriya Adhiveshan 17. 66th Convocation of IIT Kharagpur 18. International Mother Language Day 2021 19. Farmers observe ‘Pagdi Sambhal Divas’ to protest farm laws 20. Saras Aajeevika Mela 2021

International Affairs 1. SJVNL bags 679 Megawatt hydro electric power project in Nepal 2. Special UK visa scheme for Hong Kong residents 3. Antifreeze has made US soldiers fall ill 4. The Colombo port setback for India 5. The ‘Walking While Trans’ ban, recently repealed in New York 6. The South African Covid variant 7. US extends New START Nuclear Arms Control Treaty with Russia for five years 8. First India-EU high-level dialogue on trade, investment held 9. Central Bank of Sri Lanka repays swap line facility with RBI 10. Canada designates the Proud Boys a terrorist group 11. Denmark Will Build Artificial Island to House Wind Energy Hub 12. India & Bahrain join hands for Renewable Energy 13. US moves to rejoin UN Human rights council 14. World Sustainable Development Summit 2021 15. Nord Stream 2 pipeline between Germany and Russia 16. MoU for the construction of the Lalandar “Shatoot” Dam in Afghanistan 17. AIM kick-starts India-Australia Circular Economy Hackathon 2021 18. Draghi sworn in as Italy's new PM as country hopes to turn page 19. Socialists win but separatists expand majority in Catalonia election 20. UK is set to conduct the first COVID-19 human challenge trials (HCT) 21. Turkey to build Space Port in Somalia 22. India, Maldives signed agreements on wide range of domains including fish processing 23. Dutch Indian Water Alliance for Leadership Initiative (DIWALI) 24. Chinese divorce court ordering ‘housework compensation’ for a woman 25. Japan appoints ‘Minister of Loneliness’ after suicide rates increase 26. Christians, Muslims and Jews to share faith centre in Berlin

Polity & Governance 1. Meghalaya assembly speaker visits Arunachal assembly 2. Government sends notice to Twitter on restoring suspended accounts 3. Sub-categorisation of OBCs 4. What are government securities? 5. Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways issued guidelines for floating structures 6. Gujarat’s two-child policy 7. Parliament passed landmark Major Port Authorities Bill, 2020 8. Arbitration and Conciliation (Amendment) Bill 2021 9. Devendra Kula Vellalar community not delisted from SC community 10. Kiran Bedi removed as the Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry



11. Amendments to the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015 12. Shantanu Muluk gets transit anticipatory bail from Bombay HC 13. Delimitation process of UT of Jammu and Kashmir 14. Shabnam Ali asks President for Mercy 15. Uber drivers are workers not self-employed 16. The Greater Tipraland demand raised by royal scion Pradyot Kishore 17. Khela hobe has become a slogan for both TMC and BJP 18. A renewed debate on court etiquette 19. The conspiracy charge made by Delhi Police against Disha Ravi 20. Tamil Nadu move to utilise excess Cauvery water ‘illegal’

Science & Technology 1. HAL signed MoU with MIDHANI to develop, manufacture composite raw materials 2. Ka-226T utility chopper has 33% indigenous content 3. Square Kilometre Array Observatory 4. HAL LUH (Army Variant) receives Initial Operational Clearance 5. DRDO and IISc signed MoU for Joint Advanced Technology Program 6. Properties of element Einsteinium in the periodic table 7. UAE Hope Probe Nears Mars in First Arab Mission 8. Koo App: India’s alternative to Twitter 9. Excess alcohol intake can irreversibly change DNA 10. A puppet master with a chip in the brain 11. Indian Astronomers Detect Huge Optical Flare from Super Massive Black Hole 12. Detailed genome map of malaria vector 13. Bhima Koregaon suspect’s laptop was hacked to plant evidence 14. Prime Minister hands over indigenous Arjun Mk-1A tank to Army 15. Sandes App: India’s alternative to WhatsApp 16. Online enrollment module for Technograhis under Light House Projects 17. A flurry of Mars missions 18. Raksha Mantri launched E-Chhawani portal & mobile app 19. National Hydrogen Energy Mission (NHEM) 20. India emerges key mover of global S&T partnerships 21. Vertical Launch Short Range Surface to Air Missile 22. National Urban Digital Mission for future smart cities 23. New Material Converts Waste Heat to Electricity for Small Home Appliances & Vehicles 24. Latest Technology Integrated Bamboo Treatment

Security 1. Indian Navy received 3 "made in India" Advanced Light Helicopters (ALH)

Society and Social Justice 1. Pulse Polio Programme for 2021 2. Strong Positive Impact of PMJAY on Health Outcomes



3. India reaping ‘lockdown dividend’ by saving lives and livelihood 4. Measures for Population Control 5. “Nai Roshni” scheme for Leadership Development of Minority Women 6. Gadkari calls for 'all-round' efforts to reduce road accidents by 2025 7. Modifications in Pre and Post Matric Scholarship Schemes 8. Niti Aayog constitutes sub-group to prepare a plan for migrant workers 9. Ambedkar Social Innovation and Incubation Mission Under VCF-SC 10. TIFAC launches job portal for workers, seawood mission 11. Government took Steps for Child Beggars 12. Inter-caste marriages the way forward to reduce communal tensions 13. Apps and instruction manuals for 5 All India Surveys on Labour 14. Air pollution caused 12,000 deaths in Bengaluru 15. WION launched 'Mission Sustainability - Population v/s Planet' 16. Assam govt increasing daily wage of tea garden workers 17. Rising unemployment is the biggest challenge for India 18. NITI Aayog’s draft national policy on migrant workers 19. 22nd Meeting of the Central Employment Guarantee Council 20. Significance of militants’ surrender in Assam 21. COVID-19 vaccine doses shipped by the COVAX Facility head to Ghana

Sports 1. Renovated football ground, basketball court in President’s Estate 2. 2nd Khelo India National Winter Games

Miscellaneous 1. Yoga and ‘Rabindranath’ in Chile 2. Red Fort and Delhi: Symbols and narratives of power down the ages 3. Agriculture Minister informed Lok Sabha about Agri India Hackathon 4. ‘Aatmanirbharta’ chosen Oxford Hindi Word of Year 2020 5. Prime Minister’s ‘Five S’ vision to tackle global challenges 6. 'KAPILA' for patent awareness 7. Andhra Pradesh Becomes the 2nd State to Undertake Power Sector Reforms 8. After oils, FSSAI caps transfats in foods 9. Ministry of AYUSH informed Parliament about Medicinal plants 10. National AYUSH Mission 11. Transforming skilling through strategic partnerships under SANKALP 12. Status of Skilled Youths in India 13. All types of steel to be used for highway construction due to rising steel prices 14. Indian Sign Language dictionary with 10,000 terms released 15. Pariksha Pe Charcha 2021 16. 6th Governing Council Meeting of NITI Aayog 17. India is building its own Footwear Sizing System 18. Emergency use approval for Sputnik V vaccine 19. India’s first app to assess one’s carbon footprint 20. LIC of India launches new 'Bima Jyoti' plan



21. 1st country to identify need for action for Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease 22. Govt launched National Urban Digital Mission for creating digital infra 23. UPSC adds Leh as exam centre for Civil Services candidates from Ladakh 24. Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs launches the National Urban Digital Mission (NUDM) 25. World’s largest cricket stadium renames as Narendra Modi Stadium 26. Consecration ceremony of Mahamrityunjayatemple in Naogaon 27. The 2nd edition of Global Bio-India to be organised from 1-3 March 28. E-Daakhil portal for consumer grievance redressal now operational in 15 states

Awards and Honours Scientist Bhavya Lal appointed Acting Chief of Staff of NASA The Indian-American scientist, Bhavya Lal who oversaw NASA’s transition under President Joe Biden’s administration, has been appointed as the Acting Chief of Staff of the U.S. space agency.

As the acting chief of staff, Lal will be responsible for the day-to-day operations at NASA’s headquarters and will work towards shaping the strategic direction of the space agency.

Previously, as the senior White House appointee at NASA, Lal served as a member of the Biden Presidential Transition Agency Review Team for the agency and oversaw the agency’s transition under the administration of President Joe Biden.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government responsible for the civilian space program, as well as aeronautics and space research.

S.N. Subrahmanyan appointed as Chairman of the National Safety Council The Ministry of Labour & Employment has appointed Shri S.N. Subrahmanyan, CEO and Managing Director, L&T Ltd, as the Chairman of the National Safety Council for a period of three years.

Shri Subrahmanyan is an eminent engineer who has spearheaded the infrastructure business of L&T for several years making it the country’s largest construction organization and 14th in the world.

L & T is also one of the largest engineering companies of the country with interest in heavy engineering, Defence, ship building etc.

National Safety Council is a non-profit, self-financing apex body at the national level in India.

Its Objective is to generate, develop and sustain a voluntary movement on Safety, Health and Environment (SHE) at the national level.

It is an autonomous body, which was set up by the Government of India, Ministry of Labour and Employment in 1965.

It was registered as a Society under the Societies Registration Act, 1860 and subsequently, as a Public Trust under the Bombay Public Trust Act, 1950.

Industrial parks and industries in the country



Ministry of Commerce and Industry informed Rajya Sabha about Industrial parks and industries in the country.

Industrial Park Scheme-2002, applicable for any undertaking which develops and operates, or, maintains and operates, an Industrial Park for the period beginning 1st day of April, 1997 and ending 31st day of March, 2006, was notified by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade on 1st April, 2002.

Data on Industrial Parks that have been established and functional in different States of the country during the last three years is not centrally maintained.

During the last three years, Department for Promotion of Industry & InternalTrade has accorded final approval for setting up of one National Investment & Manufacturing Zone (NIMZ) namely Hyderabad Pharma City NIMZ in Rangareddy district of Telangana.

Setting up of Industrial Park and Industries in different States comes under the purview of the concerned State Government itself.

However, Central Government provides support to the States through its scheme/programmes, once the proposal to develop the parks/clusters/industries in a particular region is received from the concerned State Government.

CCEA approves grant of ₹100 crore to Brahmaputra Valley Fertilizer Corporation The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has accorded approval to the proposal of the Department of Fertilizers for grant-in-aid of Rs 100 crore to Brahmaputra Valley Fertilizers Corporation Limited (BVFCL), Namrup, in Assam to sustain operations of its urea manufacturing units.

BVFCL, Namrup is a Public Sector Undertaking formed as per Companies Act, under the administrative control of the Department of Fertilizers (DoF), Government of India.

At present, the Company is operating its two vintage plants viz. Namrup-ll and Namrup-lll in the premises of BVFCL in Namrup, Assam.

The grant in aid of Rs. 100 crore to BVFCL will restore the urea production capacity of 3.90 Lac MT per annum and ensure timely availability of Urea to Tea Industry & Farming Sector in the entire North Eastern region specially Assam.

ISA announces Dr. Ajay Mathur as its new Director General The International Solar Alliance (ISA) announces Dr. Ajay Mathur as its new Director General following his election at the first special assembly

Dr Mathur replaces Mr Upendra Tripathy, who has served as Director General since the inception of the ISA.

A coalition of 73 member countries, ISA was established in 2015 to accelerate the demand for and use of safe, sustainable, and affordable solar energy for all.

It aims to mobilize over one trillion dollars of investment into solar projects by 2030 through focused advocacy, policy and regulatory support, capacity building, and by overcoming perceived investment barriers.



First Female to Head World Trade Organisation Nigeria's Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala was appointed as the first female and first African head of the beleaguered World Trade Organization, saying a stronger WTO would be vital for the global coronavirus recovery.

The WTO’s 164 members unanimously selected the 66-year-old development economist to serve a four-year term as director general.

The appointment came after new United States President Joe Biden endorsed her candidacy, which had been blocked by former President Donald Trump.

Okonjo-Iweala, formerly Nigeria’s finance minister, had a 25-year career at the World Bank, where she rose to the number-two position of managing director. She holds both US and Nigerian citizenship.

The World Trade Organization is an international body that deals with the rules of trade between nations. At its heart are the WTO agreements, negotiated among the bulk of the world’s nations and ratified in their legislatures.

Asia Environmental Enforcement Award 2020 The Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) has received the Asia Environmental Enforcement Award-2020 awarded by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

WCCB got the award twice in three years. Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) has been awarded this year under the Innovation category.

Earlier, the Bureau had received the award in 2018 under the same category.

Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) is a statutory body constituted under the WildLife (Protection) Act, 1972. The Parent Agency of WCCB is Ministry of Environment and Forests.

WCCB has developed an online Wildlife Crime Database Management System to get real time data to analyse trends in wildlife crimes across India.

This system has been successfully used for carrying out operations such as Operation Save Kurma, Thunderbird, Wildnet, Lesknow, Birbil, Thunderstorm, Lesknow-II etc resulting in huge seizures of Tiger/Leopard Skin/bones, Rhino Horn, Elephant Ivory etc.

Ayesha Aziz is emerging as a role model for Kashmir women Ayesha Aziz, 25, became the country’s youngest pilot when she acquired her flying license at the age of 16.

She now flies GoAir planes and is emerging as a role model among women in the Kashmir valley, who too are eager to break the social barriers of a conservative society to join professions otherwise dominated by men.

Aziz was given the First Ladies’ Award by the President of India in 2018.

Pravas Kumar Singh takes oath as Member CERC Shri R. K. Singh, Minister of State for Power (I/C) administered the Oath of Office and Secrecy to Shri Pravas Kumar Singh, Member, Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC).



The Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) had been established by the Government of India under the provisions of the Electricity Regulatory Commissions Act, 1998.

CERC is the Central Commission for the purposes of the Electricity Act, 2003 which has repealed the ERC Act, 1998.

The Commission consists of a Chairperson and four other Members including Chairperson, Central Electricity Authority who is the ex-officio Member of the Commission.

Major functions of CERC under the Act are

To regulate the tariff of generating companies owned or controlled by the Central Government,

To regulate the inter-State transmission of electricity and to determine tariff for such transmission of electricity, etc.

Under the Act, CERC shall also advise the Central Government on formulation of National Electricity Policy and Tariff Policy.

10th National Awards for technology innovation in petrochemicals & downstream plastics processing industry D V Sadananda Gowda, Union Minister of Chemicals & Fertilizers presented the 10th National Awards for technology innovation in petrochemicals & downstream plastics processing industry to the awardees at Vigyan Bhavan, New Delhi.

In line with the National Policy on Petrochemicals announced in April 2007, the Department of Chemicals & Petrochemicals (DCPC), Government of India has set up an Award Scheme to incentivize meritorious innovations and inventions in the field of polymeric materials, products, process areas of national and social importance.

The ultimate objective is to develop and maintain the petrochemical industry as a globally competitive industry using eco-friendly processes & technologies.

Central Institute of Petrochemicals Engineering and Technology (CIPET), an autonomous organization under DCPC has been entrusted with the responsibility of implementing the scheme of the National Awards for Technology Innovation.

Economic Development EPFO net new Enrollments rise 29% to 78.58 lakh in FY21 Net new enrolments with retirement fund body EPFO rose by 28.60 per cent to 78.58 lakh during the financial year 2019-20 compared to 61.1 lakh in the last fiscal, according to the Economic Survey 2021, which also provided a perspective on formal sector employment amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The country saw the nearly 29 Central Labour laws being amalgamated, rationalized and simplified into four labour codes viz. the Code on Wages, 2019, the Industrial Relations Code, 2020, the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 and the Code on Social Security, 2020.



COVID-19 has exposed the vulnerability of urban casual workers, who account for 11.2 per cent of urban workforce (All-India) as per Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS), January-March, 2020.

The size of labour force in 2018-19 was estimated at about 51.8 crore persons: about 48.8 crore employed and 3.0 crore unemployed.

Industry-wise estimates on workforce shows that the largest, about 21.5 crore persons are employed in 'Agriculture', which is still the largest employer with 42.5 per cent of workforce.

Next important industry is ‘other services’ where about 6.4 crore persons (13.8 per cent) were engaged.

'Manufacturing' and ‘Trade, hotel & restaurants’ each employed about 5.9 crore persons with the share of nearly 12.1 per cent and 12.6 per cent respectively, while ‘Construction’ sector employed about 5.7 crore persons in 2018-19 with share of 12.1 per cent.

8th India International Silk Fair Textiles Minister Smriti Irani inaugurated the 8th India International Silk Fair on Virtual Portal.

The fair is considered to be India’s biggest silk fair, being held under one roof on Indian Silk Export Promotion Council’s virtual platform.

India has long history of silk production and is the 2nd largest producer of Silk.

India is the only country in the world which produces all the four major varieties of silk - Mulberry, Eri, Tassar, and Muga.

Combined Social Sector Expenditure by Centre and States as Per Cent of GDP The Economic Survey 2020-21 states that the combined (Centre and States) social sector expenditure as per cent of GDP has increased in 2020-21 compared to last year.

The expenditure on social services (education, health and other social sectors) by Centre and States combined as a proportion of GDP increased from 7.5% in 2019-20 (RE) to 8.8% in 2020-21 (BE).

The Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Economic Survey 2020-21 in Parliament.

According to the Survey, India’s rank in HDI 2019 was recorded 131 compared to 129 in 2018, out of a total 189 countries.

By looking at the sub-component wise performance of HDI indicators, India's "GNI per capita (2017 PPP $)" has increased from US$ 6,427 in 2018 to US$ 6,681 in 2019, and "life expectancy at birth" has improved from 69.4 to 69.7 years respectively.

India’s Sovereign Credit Ratings do not capture its Fundamentals The Economic Survey has called for sovereign credit ratings methodology to be made more transparent, less subjective and better attuned to reflect an economy’s fundamentals.

Never in the history of sovereign credit ratings, has the fifth largest economy in the world been rated at the lowest rung of the investment grade (BBB-/Baa3) except in the case of China and India.



Reflecting on the economic size and thereby ability to repay debt, at all other times, the fifth largest economy has been predominantly rated AAA.

The Survey points out that the Sovereign Credit Ratings can be pro-cyclical and affect equity and debt FPI flows of developing countries, causing damage and worsening crisis. Hence, it has called for addressing the bias and subjectivity inherent in sovereign credit ratings methodology

India has already raised the issue of pro-cyclicality of credit ratings in G20.

Improved Monetary Policy transmission; Repo Rate cut by 115 BPS Monetary policy was significantly eased from March 2020 onwards owing to the unprecedented Covid-19 pandemic and remained accommodative in 2020, said the Economic Survey 2020-21.

The repo rate has been cut by 115 bps since March 2020, with 75 bps cut in first Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting in March 2020 and 40 bps cut in second meeting in May 2020.

Also, Systemic liquidity in 2020-21 remained in surplus while RBI undertook various conventional and unconventional measures to manage liquidity situation in the economy.

This year saw improvement in transmission of policy repo rates to deposit and lending rates, as reflected in the decline of 94 bps and 67 bps in Weighted Average Lending Rate on fresh rupee loans and outstanding rupee loans respectively from March 2020 to November 2020.

Similarly, the Weighted Average Domestic Term Deposit Rate declined by 81 bps during the same period.

Fiscal deficit pegged at 6.8 per cent of GDP The Fiscal deficit for the financial year 2021-22 pegged at 6.8 percent. The Total resources being transferred to the states including the devolution of states share, grants, loans and releases under centrally sponsored scheme in budget estimate for the fiscal is 13 lakh 88 thousand 502 crore rupees which shows an increase of 74 thousand 565 crores over revised estimate of 2020-21.

The domestic electronic manufacturing has grown rapidly where India is now exporting items like mobiles and chargers.

For greater domestic value addition, a few exemptions on parts of chargers and sub-parts of mobiles are being withdrawn. Further, some parts of mobiles will move from ‘nil’ rate to a moderate 2.5 per cent.

The Finance Minister narrated Rabindranath Tagore's words “Faith is the bird that feels the light and sings when the dawn is still dark,”.

FDI limit in insurance sector increased to 74% A key take away from the Union Budget 2021 is that the Centre has proposed to increase FDI cap in insurance sector to 74%. Presenting the Budget, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, announced that the government will amend the Insurance Act, 1938 to increase the permissible FDI limit from 49% to 74%.

Under the proposed new structure, the majority of Directors on the Board and key management persons would be resident Indians, with at least 50% of Directors being Independent Directors, and specified percentage of profits being retained as general reserve.



An Asset Reconstruction Company Limited and Asset Management Company would be set up to consolidate and take over the existing stressed debt and then manage and dispose off the assets to Alternate Investment Funds.

In order to consolidate the financial capacity of Public Sectors Banks, the Government has proposed further recapitalization of Rs. 20,000 crore during the fiscal 2021-22.

In order to help depositors of banks that are currently under stress, the Government will move an amendment to the DICGC Act, 1961 in the current Parliament Session.

For NBFCs with minimum asset size of Rs. 100 crores, the minimum loan size eligible for debt recovery under the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest (SARFAESI) Act, 2002 is proposed to be reduced from the existing level of Rs. 50 lakhs to Rs. 20 lakhs, the Minister added.

Govt to introduce single Securities Markets Code While presenting the Union Budget 2021-22 in Parliament, Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman announced that the Government will consolidate the provisions of SEBI Act, 1992; Depositories Act, 1996; Securities Contracts (Regulation) Act, 1956 and Government Securities Act, 2007 into a rationalised single Securities Markets Code.

The Government will support the development of a world class Fin-Tech hub at the GIFT-IFSC.

In order to instill confidence amongst the participants in the Corporate Bond Market during times of stress and to generally enhance secondary market liquidity, Union Budget 2021-22 proposes to create a permanent institutional framework.

With an objective to provide protection to the investors, the Finance Minister proposed to introduce an investor charter as a right of all financial investors across all financial products.

To establish a system of regulated gold exchanges in the country, SEBI will be notified as the regulator and Warehousing Development and Regulatory Authority will be strengthened to set up a commodity market eco system arrangement.

Qualitative strengthening of 15,000 schools to include all components of NEP Under the Budget 2021-22 announced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, more than 15,000 schools will include all components of the National Education Policy to be qualitatively strengthened, and enable them to emerge as exemplar schools in their regions, handhold and mentor other schools to achieve the goals of the policy.

Also, 100 new Sainik Schools will be setup in partnership with NGOs/private schools/states.

It is proposed to set up a Higher Education Commission of India as an umbrella body having 4 separate vehicles for standard setting, accreditation, regulation, and funding.

It is also proposed to set up a Central University in Leh for accessible higher education in Ladakh.

Key initiatives in Petroleum & Natural Gas sector The Government had kept fuel supplies running uninterrupted across the country during the COVID-19 lockdown period. Taking note of the crucial nature of fuel requirement in the lives of people, the Union Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman while



presenting the Union Budget 2020-21, in the Parliament, announced key initiatives in the Petroleum & Natural Gas Sector:

Ujjwala Scheme, which has already benefitted 8 crore households, will be extended to cover 1 crore more beneficiaries.

100 more districts will be being added to the City Gas Distribution Network in the next three years.

A Gas pipeline project will be taken up in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. An Independent Gas Transport System Operator will be set up for facilitation and

coordination of booking of common carrier capacity in all-natural gas pipelines on a non-discriminatory open access basis.

National Research Foundation Outlay to be ₹50,000 crore, over 5 years To strengthen the overall research ecosystem of the country, the Union Budget FY 2021-22 announced a slew of new initiatives to boost Innovation and R&D in the country. While presenting the Budget in Parliament, Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs, Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman, proposed initiatives covering digital payments, space sector and deep ocean explorations.

The Finance Minister proposed an outlay of Rs 50,000 crore, spread over five years, for National Research Foundation.

Rs 1,500 crore has been proposed for a scheme that will provide financial incentive to promote digital modes of payment and further boost digital transactions.

A new initiative called National Language Translation Mission (NTLM) has been proposed that will digitise the wealth of governance-and-policy related knowledge on the Internet and be made available in major Indian languages.

New Space India Limited (NSIL), a PSU under the Department of Space, will execute the PSLV-CS51 launch, carrying the Amazonia Satellite from Brazil, along with a few smaller Indian satellites.

Four Indian astronauts are also being trained on Generic Space Flight aspects, in Russia for the Gaganyaan Mission, slated to be launched for December 2021.

To better understand the realm of Oceans Smt. Sitharaman proposed to launch a Deep Ocean Mission with a budget outlay of more than Rs 4,000 crores, over five years.

₹15,700 cr provided for MSME sector in Union Budget Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has made a provision of Rs 15,700 crore for the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector in the Union Budget 2021-22.

It is proposed to take up decriminalisation of the Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) Act, 2008 on similar lines of the decriminalising of the procedural and technical compoundable offences under the Companies Act, 2013, which is now complete.

It is proposed to revise the definition under the Companies Act, 2013 for Small Companies by increasing their thresholds for Paid up capital from “not exceeding Rs 50 lakh” to “not exceeding Rs 2 crore” and turnover from “not exceeding Rs 2 crore” to “not exceeding Rs 20 crore”.



It is proposed to incentivize the incorporation of One Person Companies (OPCs) by allowing OPCs to grow without any restrictions on paid up capital and turnover and allowing their conversion into any other type of company at any time.

During the coming fiscal 2021-22, the Government will launch a data analytics, artificial intelligence, machine learning driven MCA21 Version 3.0. This Version of MCA 3.0 will have additional modules for e-scrutiny, e-Adjudication, e-Consultation and Compliance Management.

Two PSBs, one general insurance company to be disinvested The government has pegged its target for disinvestment for FY 2021-22 at Rs 1.75 lakh crore. A major announcement made by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman was that the government will privatise two public sector banks other than IDBI Bank. One general insurance company will also be privatised in the coming fiscal.

Existing CPSEs, Public Sector Banks and Public Sector Insurance Companies to be covered under it.

Two fold classification of Sectors to be disinvested:

Strategic Sector: Bare minimum presence of the public sector enterprises and remaining to be privatised or merged or subsidiarized with other CPSEs or closed. Following 4 sectors to come under it - Atomic energy, Space and Defence, Transport and Telecommunications, Power, Petroleum, Coal and other minerals, Banking, Insurance and financial services.

Non- Strategic Sector: In this sector, CPSEs will be privatised, otherwise shall be closed.

FM proposes increase of 137 per cent in Budget for Health and well-being Finance Minister Nirmala Sithraman presented the Union Budget for the year 2021-22 in the lower house of the parliament. The Health and Wellbeing have found sharp focus and central positioning in the Union Budget 2021-22 presented in Parliament.

They form the basis of Aatma Nirbhar Bharat. There is a steep increase of 137 per cent in the Budget outlay for Health and Wellbeing.

Jal Jeevan Mission (Urban)

The Union Budget has announced launch of the Jal Jeevan Mission (Urban).

It aims at universal water supply in all 4,378 Urban Local Bodies with 2.86 crore household tap connections, as well as liquid waste management in 500 AMRUT cities.

It will be implemented over 5 years, with an outlay of Rs 2,87,000 crore.

Swachch Bharat, Swasth Bharat

For further swachhta of urban India, the Budget has focused on complete faecal sludge management and waste water treatment.

The Urban Swachh Bharat Mission 2.0 will be implemented with a total financial allocation of Rs 1,41,678 crore over a period of 5 years from 2021-2026.

Clean Air



To tackle the burgeoning problem of air pollution, It is proposed to provide an amount of Rs 2,217 crore for 42 urban centres with a million-plus population in this budget.

Scrapping Policy

A voluntary vehicle scrapping policy forms a crucial part of the Union Budget, to phase out old and unfit vehicles.

Vehicles would undergo fitness tests in automated fitness centres – after 20 years in case of personal vehicles, and after 15 years in case of commercial vehicles.

Govt to rationalise custom duties on gold, silver Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Union Budget 2021 in Parliament. The finance minister provided a major boost to healthcare and infrastructure in Union Budget 2021. However, there was no change in Income Tax slabs this year.

The forthcoming Census could be the first digital census in the history of India and has been allocated Rs. 3,768 crore in the year 2021-2022.

To have ease of doing business for those who deal with Government or CPSEs, and carry out contracts, it is proposed to set up a Conciliation Mechanism and mandate its use for quick resolution of contractual disputes. This will instil confidence in private investors and contractors.

To bring about transparency, efficiency and governance reforms in the nursing profession, The National Nursing and Midwifery Commission Bill will be introduced by the government for passing.

It is now proposed to take further measures to rationalize the functioning of Tribunals.

Centre will give a grant of Rs. 300 crore to the Government of Goa for celebrating the diamond jubilee year of the state’s liberation from Portuguese rule.

34.5 % increase in Capital Expenditure with be of ₹5.54 Lakh Crore While presenting the Union Budget 2021-22 in Parliament the Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs, Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman announced a sharp increase in capital expenditure with BE of Rs 5.54 lakh crore which is 34.5% more than the BE of last financial year (Rs. 4.12 lakh crore).

It is expected that the total capital expenditure during 2020-21 will be at around Rs 4.39 lakh crore.

In the Capital Budget a sum of more than Rs. 44,000 crore has been kept in the Budget of Department of Economic Affairs and will be provided for projects/programmes/departments that show good progress on Capital Expenditure and are in need of further funds.

More than Rs 2 lakh crore will be provided to States and Autonomous Bodies for their Capital Expenditure. The Government will work out specific mechanisms to nudge the States to spend more of their budget on creation of infrastructure.

Union Budget for 2021-22 gives boost to Public Transport in Urban Areas Public transport system in urban areas got a major boost in the Budget for the year 2021-22, tabled in the Parliament by the Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs. Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman.



A new scheme will be launched at a cost of 18,000 crore to support augmentation of public bus transport services.

It will facilitate deployment of innovative PPP models to enable private sector players to finance, acquire, operate and maintain over 20,000 buses.

Government plans to deploy two new technologies i.e. ‘MetroLite’ and ‘MetroNeo’ to provide metro rail systems at much lesser cost with same experience, convenience and safety in Tier-2 cities and peripheral areas of Tier-1 cities.

FM announces key tax benefits to senior citizens In the Union Budget 2021-22, the Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman seeks to further simplify the Tax Administration, Litigation Management and ease the compliance of Direct Tax Administration.

To further reduce litigation of small tax payers, Smt. Sitharaman proposed to constitute a Dispute Resolution Committee. Anyone with a taxable income upto Rs. 50 lakh and disputed income upto Rs. 10 lakh, shall be eligible to approach the Committee.

She also announced setting up of National Faceless Income Tax Appellate Tribunal Centre, wherein all communication between the Tribunal and the appellant shall be electronic.

In the 75th year of independence, the Budget seeks to reduce compliance burden on senior citizens who are of 75 years of age and above. Such senior citizens having only pension and interest income, will be exempted from filing their income tax return.

The Budget proposes to notify rules for removing the hardship of Non-Resident Indians returning to India, on the issue of their accrued incomes in their foreign retirement account. It proposes to make dividend payment to REIT/InvIT exempt from TDS.

The Finance Minister proposed to extend the eligibility period for claim of additional deduction for interest of Rs. 1.5 lakh on loan taken for purchase of an affordable house to 31st March, 2022.

In order to incentivize start-ups in the country, Smt. Sitharaman announced extension in the eligibility for claiming tax holiday for start-ups by one more year till 31st March, 2022.

Outlay for Ministry of Road and Transport and Highways The Union Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman announced several measures to augment road infrastructure in the Union Budget 2021-22 presented in the Parliament.

An enhanced outlay of 1,18,101 crore has been provided for Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, of which 1,08,230 crore is for capital, the highest ever.

More than 13,000 km length of roads, at a cost of 3.3 lakh crore, has already been awarded under the 5.35 lakh crore Bharatmala Pariyojana project of which 3,800 kms have been constructed. By March 2022, another 8,500 kms would be awarded.

Advanced Traffic management system with speed radars, variable message signboards, GPS enabled recovery vans will be installed in all new four and six lane highways.



Record Outlay of ₹1,10,055 Crore for Railways Indian Railways has received a record outlay of 1,10,055 crore, of which ` 1,07,100 crore is for capital expenditure. This record outlay was announced by the Union Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman while presenting the Union Budget 2021-22 in the Parliament.

Indian Railways have prepared a National Rail Plan for India – 2030. The Plan is to create a ‘future ready’ Railway system by 2030.

Western Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC) and Eastern DFC are expected to be commissioned by June 2022.

The Sonnagar – Gomoh Section (263.7 km) of Eastern DFC will be taken up in PPP mode in 2021-22. Gomoh-Dankuni section of 274.3 km will also be taken up in short succession.

Future dedicated freight corridor projects namely East Coast corridor from Kharagpur to Vijayawada, East-West Corridor from Bhusaval to Kharagpur to Dankuni and North-South corridor from Itarsi to Vijayawada will be undertaken.

100% electrification of Broad-Gauge routes will be completed by December, 2023. Broad Gauge Route Kilometers (RKM) electrified is expected to reach 46,000 RKM i.e., 72% by end of 2021 from 41,548 RKM on 1st Oct 2020.

Weak Revenue Flow Combined with High Expenditure on Essential Relief The Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman drew the attention of the Parliament on the fact that the pandemic’s impact on the economy has resulted in a weak revenue inflow.

This was combined with high expenditure to provide essential relief to vulnerable sections of the society especially the poor, women, SCs and STs.

Fiscal deficit in RE 2020-21 is pegged at 9.5% of GDP. It has been funded through Government borrowings, multilateral borrowings, Small Saving Funds and short term borrowings.

Another Rs 80,000 crore would be needed for which Government would be approaching the markets in these 2 months.

The fiscal deficit in BE 2021-2022 is estimated to be 6.8% of GDP. The gross borrowing from the market for the next year would be around 12 lakh crore.

Finance minister will be proposing an amendment to the FRBM Act towards achieving Central Government fiscal deficit along the broad path indicated above.

Government to step up Funding for National Infrastructure Pipeline While presenting the Union Budget 2021-22 in Parliament the Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs, Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman announced that in order to achieve the target of National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP) in the coming years the Government proposes following three steps:

Creation of institutional structures

A big thrust on monetizing assets

Enhancing the share of capital expenditure in Central and State budgets



NIP launched in December 2019 with 6835 projects has now expanded to 7,400 projects and around 217 projects worth Rs. 1.10 lakh crore under some key infrastructure Ministries have been completed.

A sum of Rs. 20,000 crore has been provisioned in the Union Budget to capitalise Development Financial Institution (DFI). A Bill will be introduced to set up DFI which will act as a provider, enabler and catalyst for infrastructure financing.

To enable Debt Financing of InVITs and REITs by Foreign Portfolio Investors suitable amendments will be done in the relevant legislations.

The Union Finance Minister announced launch of a “National Monetization Pipeline” of potential brownfield infrastructure assets stating that Monetizing operating public infrastructure assets is a very important financing option for new infrastructure construction.

The Minister informed that an Asset Monetization dashboard will also be created for tracking the progress and to provide visibility to investors.

Scheme for Revamped Reforms -based Result-Linked Power Distribution Sector Expressing serious concern over the viability of power distribution companies, Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs, Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman in her budget speech of 2021-22, proposed an outlay of Rs 3,05,984 crore over 5 years for a revamped reforms- based result-linked power distribution sector Scheme.

The Scheme will provide assistance to DISCOMS for infrastructure creation, including prepaid smart metering and feeder separation, up gradation of systems, etc. tied to financial improvements.

She also proposed to put in place a competitive framework to give consumers alternatives to choose from among more than one distribution companies.

For a green and sustainable future, the Finance Minister also proposed to launch a comprehensive National Hydrogen Energy Mission in 2021-22 for generating Hydrogen from green power sources fulfilling the announcement made by Prime Minister in November 2020.

Budget greenlights Maha's Metro Neo project in Nashik The country was provided much-needed clarity over the government's plan to revive an ailing Indian economy when Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced the Union Budget for the upcoming fiscal year.

To be adopted for the first time in the country in Maharashtra’s Nashik, MetroNeo is a comfortable, rapid, energy-efficient and less noisy transport medium.

The central government recently urged all state governments to consider using MetroNeo technology in their tier-2 and tier-3 cities.

The MetroNeo service consists of electric bus coaches – their lengths varying from 18 to 25 metres – with a carrying capacity of 200 to 300 passengers at a time.

The buses will have rubber tyres and draw power from an overhead electric wire with 600-750 V DC supply, similar to railways or trams.



The buses will be air-conditioned, with automatic door closing system, level boarding, comfortable seats, passenger announcement system, and an information system with electronic display. The stations will be similar to other Metro rail stations.

Micro Irrigation Fund (MIF) has been created under NABARD The Department of Agriculture, Cooperation & Farmers Welfare (DAC&FW) is implementing a Centrally Sponsored Scheme of ‘Per Drop More Crop’ component of ‘Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY-PDMC)’ from 2015-16 in all the States of the country which focuses on enhancing water use efficiency at farm level through Micro Irrigation viz. Drip and Sprinkler irrigation systems.

Besides promoting Micro Irrigation, this component also supports micro level water storage or water conservation/management activities to supplement source creation for Micro Irrigation.

Efforts are being made to converge ‘Per Drop More Crop’ Scheme with Atal Bhujal Yojana (ABHY), Namami Gange Districts, Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Surakshaevem Utthan Mahabhiyan (PM-KUSUM), Water Harvesting Structures through Watershed Development component of PMKSY to propagate micro irrigation intensively

With a view to provide impetus to the Micro Irrigation in the country, The Micro Irrigation Fund (MIF) with a corpus of Rs. 5000 Crore was created with NABARD during 2018-19. The GoI provides 3% interest subvention on loans extended to State Govt. under MIF.

NITI Aayog study to track economic impact of green verdicts The NITI Aayog has commissioned a study that seeks to examine the “unintended economic consequences” of judicial decisions that have hindered and stalled big-ticket projects on environmental grounds.

The document appears to suggest that judgments that negatively impact major infrastructure projects don’t adequately consider the economic fallout — in terms of loss of jobs and revenue.

Doing so, would contribute to public discourse among policymakers for promoting an “economically responsible approach by judiciary” in its decisions.

The project brief says that it intends to examine five major projects that have been “impacted” by judicial decisions of the Supreme Court or the National Green Tribunal.

It plans to do this by interviewing people who have been affected by the closure of the projects, environmental campaigners, experts and assessing the business impact of closure.

Projects to be analysed include the construction of an airport in Mopa, Goa; cessation of iron ore mining in Goa, and the shutting down of the Sterlite copper plant in Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu. The others are decisions by the NGT involving sand mining, and construction activities in the National Capital Region.

The study is to be undertaken by the Jaipur-headquartered CUTS (Consumer Unity and Trust Society) Centre for Competition, Investment and Economic Regulation, that also has an international presence.



Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana for 2021-22 Union government has allocated ₹16,000 crores for Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) for the fiscal year 2021-22 to boost the safety of farmers' crops and to ensure that maximum benefit of crop insurance reaches farmers.

This is a budgetary increase of around Rs 305 crore as against the previous fiscal year 2020-21.

The scheme extends coverage for the entire cropping cycle from pre-sowing to post-harvest including coverage for losses arising out of prevented sowing and mid-season adversities.

5 years ago, on 13th January 2016, the Government of India approved this flagship crop insurance scheme.

Today, PMFBY is globally the largest crop insurance scheme in terms of farmer participation and 3rd largest in terms of premium. Over 5.5 crore farmer applications are received on year-on-year basis.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare implements this scheme which was made voluntary for farmers post its revamp in 2020.

As of now. out of total farmers enrolled under PMFBY, 84% are small and marginal farmers. Thus, financial assistance is provided to most vulnerable farmers.

PM dedicates Haldia LPG import terminal to the nation The Prime Minister of India visited Haldia, West Bengal and dedicated to the nation the LPG import terminal, 348 km Dobhi – Durgapur Natural Gas Pipeline section, which is part of the Pradhan Mantri Urja Ganga project.

He also laid the foundation stone of the second Catalytic-Isodewaxing unit of Haldia Refinery and dedicated to the nation the 4 Lane ROB-cum-Flyover at Ranichak, Haldia on NH 41.

These projects will also help Haldia to grow into a major hub of export-import.

350 km Dobhi-Durgapur Pipeline will directly benefit not only West Bengal but also 10 districts of Bihar and Jharkhand.

This second Catalytic Dewaxing Unit will reduce our dependence on import with regard to lube-based oils.

Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS) Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS) has been approved for the period of next four years starting from 2021-22. It will be implemented with effect from 1st April 2021.

It will be implemented with effect from 1st April 2021.

The Scheme aims to provide financial assistance to startups for proof of concept, prototype development, product trials, market entry and commercialization.

945 Crore corpus will be divided over the next 4 years for providing seed funding to eligible startups through eligible incubators across India.

The scheme is expected to support about 3600 startups.



SEBI imposes ₹1 crore penalty on NSE in co-location case The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) imposed a penalty of ₹ 1 crore on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) in the co-location case for failing to ensure a level playing field for trading members subscribing to its TBT (Tick-by-Tick) data feed system.

The NSE is facing allegations that some brokers got preferential access through the co-location facility at the stock exchange, early login, and ‘dark fiber’, which can allow a trader a split-second faster access to the data feed of an exchange.

Even this infinitesimally sooner access is considered to result in huge gains for a trader.

Few brokers were able to log into the NSE systems with better hardware specifications while engaged in algorithmic trading, which allowed them unfair access and advantage.

The unfair access issue pertains to 2012-14 when NSE used to disseminate price information through a unicast system. In such a system information is disseminated to one member after another.

Privatisation of two public sector banks The Union Budget has announced the privatisation of two public sector banks (in addition to IDBI Bank) and one general insurance company in the upcoming fiscal.

It also announced a strategic sale/disinvestment policy for four strategic sectors — including banking, insurance and financial services — in which it will have a “bare minimum presence”.

In 2015, the government had suggested privatisation but the then RBI Governor did not favour the idea.

Mission Organic Value Chain Development for North Eastern Region Prime Minister Modi initiated a scheme for development of commercial organic farming in the region during 2015 which later became to be known as “Mission Organic Value Chain Development for North Eastern Region” (MOVCDNER).

The scheme started with an average annual allocation of Rs. 134 crore during last five years has so far covered 74,880 ha area.

To double the impact the allocation has now increased to Rs. 200 crore per year with a target to cover additional 1.00 lakh ha area under 200 new FPOs over a period of 3 year period.

The scheme besides growing and value adding the traditional crops is also aiming to bring in high-value crops under contract farming models.

Transformation of farmer clusters into Farmer Producer Companies (FPCs) ensures emergence of new breed of organic agri-enterprises.

Nitin Gadkari to launch India's first CNG tractor Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari formally launched India's first-ever diesel tractor converted into a CNG tractor on February 12.

The conversion, carried out jointly by Rawmatt Techno Solutions & Tomasetto Achille India, will help farmers increase their income, by lowering costs, and help to create job opportunities in rural India.



The more specific benefits of converting the Tractor to CNG for a farmer are: The test reports indicates that the retrofitted tractor produces more power/equal in comparison to Diesel-run engine.

Overall emissions are reduced by 70% as compared to Diesel.

It will help farmers to save up to 50% on the fuel cost as the current Diesel prices are Rs.77.43/L whereas CNG is only Rs.42/kg.

Technology Information, Forecasting and Assessment Council launched SAKSHAM Technology Information, Forecasting and Assessment Council (TIFAC) has launched SAKSHAM (Shramik Shakti Manch).

It is a dynamic job portal for mapping the skills of Shramiks vis-à-vis requirements of MSMEs to directly connect Shramiks with MSMEs and facilitate placement of 10 lakh blue-collar jobs.

The SAKSHAM job portal will help eliminate middlemen/ labour contractor as well as help identification of skill proficiency level and development of Skill Cards for Shramiks.

The portal with the demand and supply data uses algorithm and Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools, for geo spatial information on demand and availability of Shramiks, and also provide analysis on skill training programmes of Shramiks.

The pilot portal originally initiated with two districts is now being launched as an all India portal.

PM laid foundation stone and inaugurates various projects in Kochi, Kerala Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated and laid foundation stone of various projects in Kochi Kerala.

The inauguration of Sagarika, the International Cruise Terminal in Kochi will cater to over a lakh cruise guests. It is the country's first full-fledged international cruise terminal.

He also inaugurated the Marine Engineering Training Institute of Cochin Shipyard Ltd. Vigyan Sagar, the new knowledge campus of Cochin Shipyard would particularly help those wanting to study marine engineering.

South Coal Berth would bring down logistics costs and improve cargo capacities.

Propylene Derivative Petrochemical Project (PDPP) will help strengthen India’s journey towards being Aatmanirbhar as it will save foreign exchange.

With Ro-Ro Vessels, a distance of almost thirty kilometres on road will become 3.5 kilometres through waterways leading to less congestion and more convenience, commerce and capacity-building.

PM Modi unveiled key projects in Tamil Nadu Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled several key projects in Tamil Nadu in a function held in Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium. He also handed over the indigenous main battle tank Arjun Mk-1A, designed and developed by a Chennai-based DRDO unit, to the Army.



The Prime Minister inaugurated the Chennai Metro Rail Phase-I extension, fourth Railway line between Chennai Beach and Attipattu, Railway Electrification of single line section in Villupuram - Cuddalore - Mayiladuthurai - Thanjavur and Mayiladuthurai-Thiruvarur.

Prime Minister laid the foundation stone for the extension, renovation and modernization of the Grand Anicut Canal System and Discovery Campus of IIT Madras.

The Central Government has accepted the long-standing demand of DevendrakulaVelalar community to be known officially as DevendrakulaVelalar. They will now be known by their heritage name and not the six to seven names listed in the Schedule to the Constitution.

Government has always taken care of the welfare of Tamils in Sri Lanka. PM Modi is the only Indian Prime Minister to visit Jaffna. To boost connectivity, the railway network to Jaffna and to Mannar is being re-built. India has built the Jaffna Cultural Centre which will open soon.

PM Modi to launch several key projects of oil & gas sector in Tamil Nadu Prime Minister Narendra Modi will dedicate to the nation and lay the foundation of key projects of the oil and gas sector in Tamil Nadu through video conferencing.

Prime Minister will dedicate to the nation the Ramanathapuram – Thoothukudi natural gas pipeline.

The Ramanathapuram – Thoothukudi section (143 km) of the Ennore- Thiruvallur- Bengaluru- Puducherry- Nagapattinam- Madurai- Tuticorin Natural Gas Pipeline has been laid at the cost of about Rs. 700 crores.

It will help utilise gas from ONGC Gas fields and deliver natural gas as feedstock to industries and other commercial customers.

He will also dedicate the Gasoline Desulphurisation Unit at Chennai Petroleum Corporation Limited, Manali. It will produce low sulphur (less than 8 ppm) environment-friendly gasoline, help reduce emission and contribute towards a cleaner environment.

He will also lay the foundation stone of Cauvery Basin Refinery at Nagapattinam.

It will have a capacity of 9 million metric tonnes per annum. It will be set up through a Joint Venture of IOCL and CPCL at an estimated project cost of Rs. 31,500 crore.

It will produce Motor Spirit and Diesel meeting BS-VI specifications, and Polypropylene as a value-added product.

Hike in petrol and diesel price in India Diesel and petrol prices have hit record highs across the country, with petrol touching Rs 89 per litre in Delhi, and diesel reaching a new high of Rs 86.30 per litre in Mumbai.

The government reasons that global crude oil prices have risen by more than 50 per cent to over $63.3 per barrel since October, forcing oil retailers to increase pump prices.

Retail petrol and diesel prices are in theory decontrolled — or linked to global crude oil prices. Which means that if crude prices fall, as has largely been the trend since February, retails prices should come down too, and vice versa.



But this does not happen in practice, largely because oil price decontrol is a one-way street in India. So, when global prices go up, the resultant increase is passed on to the consumer, who has to cough up more for every litre of fuel consumed.

But when the reverse happens and prices slide, the government, almost by default, slaps fresh taxes and levies to ensure that it rakes in extra revenues.

The main beneficiary in this subversion of price decontrol is the government. The consumer is a clear loser, as are the fuel retailing companies.

Brent crude, which was trading at about $40 per barrel between June and October, started rising in November, and has gone past the $60 per barrel mark as the global rollout of Covid-19 vaccines gathers pace.

The controlled production of crude amid rising demand has been another key factor in boosting oil prices, with Saudi Arabia voluntarily cutting its daily output by 1 million barrels per day to 8.125 million barrels per day through February and March.

Prime Minister to inaugurate the Pugalur - Thrissur power transmission project Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the 320 KV Pugalur (Tamil Nadu) - Thrissur (Kerala) power transmission project.

It is a Voltage Source Convertor (VSC) based High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) Project and has India's first HVDC link featuring state-of-the-art VSC technology.

Built at a cost of Rs 5070 crores, it will facilitate transfer of 2000 MW power from the western region and help meet the growth in load for the people of Kerala.

This VSC based system features integration of HVDC XLPE (cross-linked polyethylene) cable with overhead lines which saves right-of-way as well as has 35-40% less land footprint compared to conventional HVDC system.

PM Modi to launch Kasaragod Solar Power Project in kerala. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the 50 MW Kasaragod Solar Power Project in kerala.

It has been developed under the National Solar Energy Mission.

Set up over 250 acres of land spread across Paivalike, Meenja and Chippar villages of Kasaragod district, it has been built with Central Government’s investment of around Rs. 280 crores.

Cabinet approves PLI scheme for telecom sector The Union Cabinet has approved a Rs 12,195-crore Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme for domestic manufacturing of telecom and networking products such as switches, routers, radio access network, wireless equipment and other internet of things (IoT) access devices.

The Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme intends to promote manufacture of Telecom and Networking Products in India and proposes a financial incentive to boost domestic manufacturing and attract investments in the target segments of telecom and networking products in order to encourage Make in India.

The scheme will also encourage exports of telecom and networking products 'Made in India'.



Support under the Scheme will be provided to companies/entities engaged in manufacturing of specified telecom and networking products in India.

Eligibility will be further subject to achievement of a minimum threshold of cumulative incremental investment over a period of four years and incremental sales of manufactured goods net of taxes (as distinct from traded goods) over the Base Year 2019-2020.

There will be a minimum investment threshold of Rs.10 crore for MSME with incentives from 7% to 4 % and Rs. 100 crore for others with incentives from 6% to 4 % over 5 year above Base Year.

The applicants with higher investments than specified threshold under MSME and Non MSME categories will be selected through transparent process.

Comprehensive Economic cooperation and Partnership Agreement The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has approved signing of the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation and Partnership Agreement (CECPA) between India and Mauritius.

The India-Mauritius CECPA will be the first trade Agreement to be signed by India with a country in Africa.

The Agreement is a limited agreement, which will cover Trade in Goods, Rules of Origin, Trade in Services, Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) measures, Dispute Settlement, Movement of Natural Persons, Telecom, Financial services, Customs Procedures and Cooperation in other Areas

CECPA provides for an institutional mechanism to encourage and improve trade between the two countries.

Both sides have also agreed to negotiate an Automatic Trigger Safeguard Mechanism (ATSM) for a limited number of highly sensitive products within two years of the Signing of the Agreement.

Ground set for LIC IPO Decks are being cleared for the mega listing of Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), India’s largest financial institution with assets of over Rs 32 lakh crore.

The government is systematically removing hurdles in the way, and market regulator SEBI has relaxed norms to make the listing process smoother.

Market regulator SEBI has relaxed the norms to make the listing process easier and smooth.

Currently, issuers with a post-issue market capitalisation of Rs 4,000 crore are required to offer at least 10 per cent of the post-issue capital to the public and achieve a minimum public holding of 25 per cent within three years.

SEBI has now said the issuer with a post-issue market capitalisation needs to make an offer of Rs 10,000 crore and five per cent of the incremental amount beyond the Rs one lakh crore. The size will ultimately depend on the valuation.

Central government issues MSP guidelines for sugar mills The Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution issued separate guidelines for sugar mills and cane commissioners in regards to sale of sugar below the Minimum Selling Price (MSP) of Rs 3,100/- per quintal.



To control the constant slide in ex-mill prices of sugar, the central government had in June 2018 specified the concept of MSP for sugar.

Back then the MSP was fixed at Rs 2,850/- per quintal which was subsequently raised to Rs 3,100/- per quintal.

Along with MSP, the centre had also fixed mill wise sales quota.

Mills who breached either of the conditions were liable for action under the Essential Commodities Act, 1955 which would include fine as well as a jail term(ranging from 3 months to 7 years) or both.

These out of box measures were brought in to arrest the constant slide of sugar and to keep the demand supply ratio to a safe limit.

It was reasoned that both these measures would help mills generate enough revenue to pay their farmers the Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP) for cane purchased from farmers.

Piyush Goyal dedicates series of projects for rail infrastructure in WB The Union Minister of Railways Piyush Goyal has dedicated series of projects for the development of rail infrastructure in poll-bound West Bengal.

126 Route Kilometer newly electrified section from New Jalpaiguri to New Coochbehar dedicated is part of the Railway electrification work which is going on to achieve 100% electrification of Indian Railways’ network.

The Haldibari station bordering Bangladesh has been constructed. PM Modi and PM of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the railway link between Haldibari in India and Chilahati in Bangladesh during the PM level virtual bilateral summit on 17.12.2020.

Gangarampur is an important town in the South Dinajpur district of West Bengal. The station here has been converted to a crossing station with provision of High level platform and modern Electronic Interlocking.

With an aim to provide better amenities and convenience to passenger, the Alipurduar Jn station has been re-developed to meet the operational requirement.

Madarihat station falling in the Dooars section of North Bengal is an important tourist place. The provision of a new Foot Over Bridge in between PF No. 1 & 2 which has been provided.

RBI released Annual Report of Ombudsman Schemes for 2019-20 The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) released the Annual Report of the Ombudsman Schemes for the year 2019-20.

RBI has three Ombudsmen- Banking, Non-Banking Finance Company (i.e. NBFC) and digital transactions. A common man can approach these Ombudsmen for their grievances.

As announced in the recent Monetary Policy Statement, the three Ombudsman Schemes are being merged and integrated into a single scheme which will be rolled out starting from June this year.

There was an increase of around 65 per cent in the receipt of complaints out of which almost 92 per cent have been disposed of.



Banking Ombudsman received major complaints regarding ATM & Debit Cards, Mobile & Electronic Banking while NBFC’s Ombudsmen received most complaints about non-observance of regulatory guidelines, lack of transparency in contract/ loan agreement and levy of charges without notice.

Digital Transactions Ombudsmen received most complaints about fund transfer. RBI has taken various measures for creating awareness among various stakeholders to minimise the grievances.

PM Modi inaugurated important Oil & Gas projects and Engineering Colleges in Assam Prime Minister Narendra Modi dedicated to the nation INDMAX Unit at Indian Oil’s Bongaigaon Refinery, Oil India Limited’s Secondary Tank Farm at Madhuban, Dibrugarh and a Gas Compressor Station at Hebeda Village, Makum, Tinsukia remotely from Dhemaji in Assam.

He also inaugurated the Dhemaji Engineering College and laid the foundation stone for Sualkuchi Engineering College in Assam.

Dhemaji district is an administrative district in the state of Assam in India. The district headquarters are located at Dhemaji and commercial headquarters being located Silapathar.

Centre lifts embargo on private banks The Centre has lifted embargo on private sector banks for conduct of government related transactions. They include taxes and other revenue payment facilities, pension payment and small saving schemes.

With the lifting of the embargo, there is now no bar on RBI for authorization of private sector banks (in addition to public sector banks) for Government business, including Government agency business.

Government-related banking transactions include taxes and other revenue payments, pension payments, and small savings schemes.

In 2012, the finance ministry had not allowed private banks, barring some, to undertake government business for three years.

In 2015, the government had continued with the embargo, and allowed the private sector with existing government agency business to continue without any fresh authorisation to private banks.

For undertaking government agency business, the RBI pays a commission to banks. The central bank carries out the general banking business of the central and state governments through agency banks appointed under Section 45 of the RBI Act, 1934.

Cabinet approves Production Linked Incentive Scheme for IT Hardware The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has approved the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme for IT Hardware. The scheme proposes production linked incentive to boost domestic manufacturing and attract large investments in the value chain of IT Hardware.

The Target Segments under the proposed Scheme include Laptops, Tablets, All-in-One PCs and Servers.



The Scheme shall, extend an incentive of 4% to 2% / 1% on net incremental sales (over base year i.e. 2019-20) of goods manufactured in India and covered under the target segment, to eligible companies, for a period of four (4) years.

The scheme is likely to benefit 5 major global players and 10 domestic champions in the field of IT Hardware manufacturing including Laptops, Tablets, All-in-One PCs, and Servers.

The total cost of the proposed scheme is approximately Rs.7,350 crore over 4 years, which includes an incentive outlay of Rs.7,325 crore and administrative charges of Rs.25 crore.

Cabinet approves Production Linked Incentive Scheme for Pharmaceuticals The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has approved Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme for Pharmaceuticals over a period of Financial Year 2020-21 to 2028-29.

Total incremental sales of Rs.2,94,000 crore and total incremental exports of Rs.1,96,000 crore are estimated during six years from 2022-23 to 2027-28.

The Scheme is also expected to bring in investment of Rs.15,000 crore in the pharmaceutical sector.

The scheme will be part of the umbrella scheme for the Development of Pharmaceutical Industry.

The objective of the scheme is to enhance India's manufacturing capabilities by increasing investment and production in the sector and contributing to product diversification to high value goods in the pharmaceutical sector.

The manufacturers of pharmaceutical goods registered in India will be grouped based on their Global Manufacturing Revenue (GMR) to ensure wider applicability of the scheme across the pharmaceutical industry and at the same time meet the objectives of the scheme.

The total quantum of incentive (inclusive of administrative expenditure) under the scheme is about Rs 15,000 crore.

Category of Goods The scheme shall cover pharmaceutical goods under three categories as mentioned below:

Category 1: Biopharmaceuticals; Complex generic drugs; Patented drugs or drugs nearing patent expiry; Cell based or gene therapy drugs; Orphan drugs; Special empty capsules like HPMC, Pullulan, enteric etc.; Complex excipients; Phyto-pharmaceuticals: Other drugs as approved.

Category 2: Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients / Key Starting Materials / Drug Intermediates.

Category 3: Drugs not covered under Category 1 and Category 2.

PM inaugurated & laid foundation stone of various infra projects in Coimbatore PM Modi inaugurated and laid foundation stone of various development projects in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu.

He dedicated to the nation the 1000 MW Neyveli New Thermal Power Project and 709 MW Solar Power Project of NLC India Limited (NLCIL) (formerly Neyveli Lignite Corporation Limited).



He laid the foundation stone for design, supply, installation and commissioning of a 5MW grid connected ground based solar power plant at V.O.Chidambaranar Port and for the extension, renovation and modernisation of Lower Bhavani Project System.

He also laid the foundation stone for development of Integrated Command and Control Centers (ICCC) in nine Smart Cities including Coimbatore, Madurai, Salem, Thanjavur, Vellore, Tiruchirappalli, Tiruppur, Tirunelveli and Thoothukudi.

He inaugurated the 8-laning of Korampallam Bridge and Rail Over Bridge (ROB) at V.O.Chidambaranar Port and the tenements constructed under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban) scheme.

Indian economy to contract by 8% in 2020-21 The growth in India's real GDP during 2020-21 is estimated at -8 per cent as compared to the growth rate of 4.0 per cent in 2019-20, said government as part of its second advance estimates of the economic growth.

The government had projected a GDP contraction of 7.7 per cent in its first advance estimate.

The growth in GDP during 2020-21 is estimated at -8.0 percent as compared to 4.0 percent in 2019-20.

GDP at Current Prices in the year 2020-21 is estimated to grow at rate of -3.8 percent.

The Per Capita Income in real terms (at 2011-12 Prices) during 2020-21 is estimated to attain a level of ₹ 85,929 as compared to ₹ 94,566 in the year 2019-20, giving a growth of -9.1 percent during 2019-20.

The Per Capita Income at current prices during 2020-21 is estimated to be ₹ 127,768, showing a decline of 4.8 percent.

Agriculture sector is estimated to see a growth of 3 per cent in 2020-21. However, it will be lower than 4.3 per cent growth recorded in 2019-20.

Manufacturing sector is estimated to contract 8.4 per cent during FY21, while electricity is likely to grow at 1.8 per cent. Among services sectors, trade, hotel, transport are projected to contract 18 per cent.

Geography, Environment, Biodiversity & Disaster Management

Disputes on Projects of Krishna & Godavari River Both the Governments of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh have mutually complained against each other about new projects on Krishna and Godavari rivers without submitting their Detailed Project Reports (DPR) to Krishna River Management Board (KRMB) and Godavari River Management Board (GRMB) respectively for appraisal and clearance.

An Apex Council was constituted under the AP Reorganization Act, 2014 for deciding on water relared inter-state matters. The second meeting of the Apex Council was held on 06.10.2020 under the Chairmanship of Minister (Jal Shakti) with CMs of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.



In the meeting, it was decided that both the States shall submit the DPRs of new projects to KRMB/ GRMB for appraisal and subsequent sanction by the Apex Council.

Glacial lake burst in Uttarakhand Glacier breaks off at Joshimath in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district causing flash flood in Dhauliganga River, devastating the Dhauliganga Dam and endangering people.

Scientists are not sure what triggered the sudden surge of water near Chamoli in Uttarakhand that briefly raised fears of a repeat of the 2013 disaster in the state.

Joshimath is also known as Jyotirmath. It is a city and a municipal board in Chamoli District in Uttarakhand.

Located at a height of 6150 feet, it is a gateway to several Himalayan mountain climbing expeditions, trekking trails and pilgrim centres like Badrinath.

Jyotirmath is the uttarāmnāya matha, or northern monastery, one of the four cardinal institutions established by Adi Shankara, the others being those at Shringeri, Puri and Dwarka.

Glacial Lake Outburst Floods A glacier break is suspected to have caused the flash floods in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli. When glaciers melt, the water in glacial lakes accumulates behind loose, natural “glacial/moraine dams” made of ice, sand, pebbles and ice residue.

A GLOF refers to the flooding that occurs when the water dammed by a glacier or a moraine is released suddenly.

Unlike earthen dams, the weak structure of the moraine dam leads to the abrupt failure of the dam on top of the glacial lake, which holds large volume of water.

A failure of the dam has the potential of releasing millions of cubic metres of water in a short period, causing catastrophic flooding downstream.

Reasons of Glacial Lake Outburst Floods Glacial retreat due to climate change occurring in most parts of the Hindu Kush Himalaya has given rise to the formation of numerous new glacial lakes, which are the major cause of GLOFs.

An “Inventory and Monitoring of Glacial Lakes / Water Bodies in the Himalayan Region of Indian River Basins” found that there are 352, 283 and 1,393 glacial lakes and water bodies in the Indus, Ganga and Brahmaputra basins respectively.

Smallest reptile on earth discovered in Madagascar Scientists believe they may have discovered the smallest reptile on earth - a chameleon subspecies that is the size of a seed.

The team found one male and one female of the species, named Brookesia nana, during an expedition in 2012. The male has a length (snout to vent) of 13.5 mm and a total length of 21.6 mm when the tail is included.

Previously, the chameleon species Brookesia micra was thought to be the smallest. The average length of adults of this species is 16 mm (29 mm with tail), while the smallest adult male has been recorded at 15.3 mm.



Reptiles come in a wide size range. The longest, the reticulated python, at 6.25 m is almost as long as 289 Brookesia nanas.

Flash floods and their mitigation Flash flood incident in Uttarakhand is another warning of the dangers that a Himalayan state like Uttarakhand faces from natural processes like landslides, snow avalanches cloudbursts or lake bursts.

As we saw in 2013 in the same state, such processes can trigger much bigger disasters and cause massive destruction. But it is possible to work towards minimising the threat of such incidents and reduce their impact.

Glaciers are the largest source of freshwater outside of the polar regions. Glaciers and snow melt in the Himalayan ecosystem are the source of water for several rivers across the subcontinent, and are responsible for maintaining the perennial supply of water in the river systems like the Indus, Ganges, and Brahmaputra to over a billion people.

But these glaciers have reduced considerably in mass and surface area since the little ice age period.

Some models predict that an increase in global temperatures by 2°C from 1850 by 2070 would result in 45% of the medium and large glaciers (10 sq km or more) disappearing completely. Nearly 70% smaller glaciers are likely to melt away.

Shrinking glaciers have led to the formation of a large number of glacial lakes all across the Himalayas. Many of these high-altitude lakes are potentially dangerous, because of their potential to cause flash floods in the event of a breach.

A 2005 study by Kathmandu-based ICIMOD (International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development) had listed 127 such lakes in Uttarakhand. More recent studies put the number of such lakes in the state at around 400.

Sadananda Gowda calls upon farmers to use fertilizers based on soil health cards Union Minister for Chemicals and Fertilizers D.V. Sadananda Gowda has asked farmers to reduce excessive use of Urea, which he pointed out, is spoiling the soil health.

Investigations carried out under All India Coordinated Research Project on ‘Long Term Fertilizer Experiments’ over five decades at fixed sites have indicated that continuous use of nitrogenous fertilizer alone had deleterious effect on soil health and crop productivity showing deficiencies of other major and micro nutrients.

The consumptions of chemical fertilizers in the country during 2017-18, 2018-19, 2019-20 and 2020-21 (upto kharif 2020) are 54.38, 56.21, 59.88 and 33.85 million tonnes of fertilizer products (Urea, Di-Ammonium Phosphate (DAP), Murate of Potash (MOP), Complexes and Single Super Phosphate (SSP), respectively.

The Koch Rajbongshi vote in Assam and West Bengal Union Home Minister Amit Shah visited Assam and West Bengal, where he addressed a community vital to upcoming Assembly elections in both states — the Koch Rajbongshis.



They are a community that traces its roots to the Kamata kingdom, which comprised parts of Assam, West Bengal and adjoining territories.

In the medieval period, the community was dominant and ruled their territory of Kamatapur, which comprised a large part of Bangladesh, West Bengal, Bihar and India’s north-east.

After Independence, the princely state of Cooch Behar became part of West Bengal.

Today, Koch Rajbongshis are found in Assam, Meghalaya, West Bengal and Bihar, and in Bangladesh, Nepal and some parts of Bhutan.

They are estimated to number over 33 lakh in West Bengal, mostly the northern districts, and have a large presence in Assam.

Vijayanagara became Karnataka’s 31st district The Karnataka government issued a notification demarcating boundaries of the newly-formed Vijayanagara district. With Vijayanagara, the state now has 31 districts.

Named after the capital of the Vijayanagar Empire, the new district was carved out from Ballari under the Karnataka Land Revenue Act, 1964.

Vijayanagara, located in Hyderabad-Karnataka region, is famous for its UNESCO World Heritage sites – Hampi and Virupaksha Temple.

With Hosapete as its headquarters, Vijayanagara has six taluks – Hosapete, Kudligi, Hagaribommanahalli, Kotturu, Hoovina Hadagali, and Harapanahalli.

Chamoli rescue ops briefly halted as water level rises Rescue and search operations were briefly halted at NTPC’s Tapovan hydel project afternoon after police in Uttarakhand issued an alert over rising water levels in the Alaknanda river and its tributary Dhauliganga.

The Tapovan Vishnugad Hydropower Plant is a 520 MW run-of-river hydroelectric project being constructed on Dhauliganga River in Chamoli District of Uttarakhand.

The plant is expected to generate over 2.5 TWh of electricity annually.

Tapovan Vishnugad is NTPC's second hydro power project since its foray into the sector.

Currently, it is in advanced stage of construction. It was severely damaged on 7th February 2021 due to flash flood caused by Uttarakhand glacier burst.

Hopes Dim for Three Climbers Missing in Winter K2 Attempt K2 stands as the world’s second-tallest summit, after Mount Everest, and some climbers consider it even more perilous. Only last month did one group become the first to successfully scale it during winter, braving dangerously thin air and temperatures that can plunge past minus 70 degrees Fahrenheit.

‘Alpine style’ mountaineering involves ascending with only the minimum number of breaks, and without the assistance of porters.

The mountaineer carries all of his/her load, including food, equipment, tents, etc. There is no scope for acclimatisation – which may take several days at high altitudes – as climbers make a dash for the summit.



The alpine style contrasts with the ‘expedition’ or ‘siege’ style of climbing, in which climbers go from one camp to another to acclimatise.

Winter climbing is always tougher than pre-monsoon, post-monsoon and summer climbing.

Many consider alpine style to be the most aesthetically "pure" form of mountaineering.

The benefits of alpine style include spending much less time on the route, thereby reducing objective dangers such as avalanches or blizzards.

The problems encountered while alpine style climbing are related to lack of support and potentially the lack of acclimatization associated with spending less time at very high altitudes.

The Farakka ‘lock’ and hilsa It has been reported that an old project to facilitate the movement of hilsa upstream along the Ganga to its spawning grounds of yore may come to fruition this year.

In scientific parlance, the hilsa (Tenualosa ilisha) is an anadromous fish.

That is, it lives most of its life in the ocean, but during the rainy season, when it is time to spawn, the hilsa moves towards the estuary, where the rivers of India and Bangladesh meet the Bay of Bengal.

A large part of the shoal travels upstream in the Padma and the Ganga — some are known to move towards the Godavari, and there are records of hilsa migration to the Cauvery.

Farakka Barrage Lock Historical records also show that until the 1970s, the hilsa would swim the Ganga upstream to Allahabad — and even to Agra.

But the Farakka Barrage, which became operational on the Ganga in 1975, disrupted the westward movement of the hilsa.

The barrage had a navigation lock that stopped the fish from swimming upstream beyond Farakka. In Buxar on the border of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, the last recorded catch of the hilsa was made 32 years ago.

Demolition process begins at Vembanad The authorities have initiated preliminary steps to demolish the illegally constructed villas of Kapico Kerala Resorts Pvt. Ltd. on Nediyathuruthu island on Vembanad Lake.

Vembanad (Vembanad Kayal or Vembanad Kol) is the longest lake in India and the largest lake in the state of Kerala.

With an area of 2033 square kilometres, it is the second largest Ramsar site in India only after the Sundarbans in West Bengal.

Spanning several districts in Kerala, it is known as Vembanadu Lake in Kottayam, Punnamada Lake in Alappuzha and Kochi Lake in Kochi.

Several groups of small islands including Vypin, Mulavukad, Vallarpadam, Willingdon Island are located in the Kochi Lake portion. Kochi Port is built around the Willingdon Island and the Vallarpadam island.



The Nehru Trophy Boat Race is conducted in a portion of the lake.

The Government of India has identified the Vembanad wetland under the National Wetlands Conservation Programme.

A rare duck created a flutter in Upper Assam Floating in the Maguri-Motapung beel (or wetland) in Assam’s Tinsukia district for over a week is the spectacular and rare Mandarin duck.

First spotted on February 8 by Madhab Gogoi, a Tinsukia-based birder and tour guide, the duck has since become the star of the wetland — an area affected by a blowout and fire at a natural gas well located close by in May 2020.

Considered the most beautiful duck in the world, the Mandarin duck, or the (Aix galericulata) was first identified by Swedish botanist, physician and zoologist Carl Linnaeus in 1758.

It is a “small-exotic looking bird” native to East Asia.

The migratory duck breeds in Russia, Korea, Japan and north-eastern parts of China, explained Gogoi. It now has established populations in Western Europe and America too.

The duck, however, rarely visits India as it does not fall in its usual migratory route. Its IUCN Status is Least Concern.

While the duck is not a globally threatened species, spotting one is always considered significant because they only make “rare appearances.”

The Andhra Pradesh-Odisha dispute over 21 border villages Andhra Pradesh held panchayat elections in three villages in the Kotia cluster, which is at the centre of a dispute between Andhra Pradesh and Odisha.

These villages, with a population of nearly 5,000, are located on a remote hilltop on the inter-state border and are inhabited by Kondh tribals.

The region is also rich in mineral resources like gold, platinum, manganese, bauxite, graphite and limestone.

In the early 1980s, Odisha filed a case in the Supreme Court demanding right and possession of jurisdiction over the 21 villages.

In 2006 however, the court ruled that since disputes belonging to the state boundaries are not within the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court, the matter can only be resolved by Parliament and passed a permanent injunction on the disputed area.

India is putting out its mapping, geospatial data available for general use India set free the process of map making and generation of geospatial data, giving Indian private players the freedom to handle such information without prior approval or restriction.

Mapping was till now remained a government preserve, handled by the Central government's Survey of India. With the sweeping changes announced today, any Indian entity can take part in the process and profit from it.

Geospatial data is data about objects, events, or phenomena that have a location on the surface of the earth.



The location may be static in the short-term, like the location of a road, an earthquake event, malnutrition among children, or dynamic like a moving vehicle or pedestrian, the spread of an infectious disease.

Geospatial data combines location information, attribute information (the characteristics of the object, event, or phenomena concerned), and often also temporal information or the time at which the location and attributes exist.

Geo-spatial data usually involves information of public interest such as roads, localities, rail lines, water bodies, and public amenities.

The past decade has seen an increase in the use of geo-spatial data in daily life with various apps such as food delivery apps like Swiggy or Zomato, e-commerce like Amazon or even weather apps.

Leatherback nesting sites could be overrun by Andamans project Proposals for tourism and port development in the Andaman and Nicobar (A&N) Islands have conservationists worried over the fate of some of the most important nesting populations of the Giant Leatherback turtle in this part of the Indian Ocean.

Leatherback sea turtle (Dermochelys coriacea) is largest of the seven species of sea turtles on the planet and also the most long-ranging, being found in all oceans except the Arctic and the Antarctic.

Within the Indian Ocean, they nest only in Indonesia, Sri Lanka and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

It is the only living species in the genus Dermochelys and family Dermochelyidae.

It can easily be differentiated from other modern sea turtles by its lack of a bony shell, hence the name. Instead, its carapace is covered by skin and oily flesh.

They are listed in Schedule I of India’s Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, according it the highest legal protection.

Dhubri Phulbari Bridge in Assam Prime Minister Modi will lay the foundation stone of Dhubri Phulbari Bridge and perform Bhumi Pujan for construction of Majuli Bridge Assam on 18th February 2021.

Prime Minister will lay the foundation stone for the four lane bridge over the Brahmaputra between Dhubri (on North Bank) and Phulbari (on South Bank).

The proposed Bridge will be located on NH-127B, originating from Srirampur on NH-27 (East-West Corridor), and terminating at Nongstoin on NH-106 in the State of Meghalaya.

It will connect Dhubri in Assam to Phulbari, Tura, Rongram and Rongjeng in Meghalaya.

Majuli Bridge Prime Minister will perform Bhumi Pujan for the two-lane Bridge on the Brahmaputra between Majuli (North Bank) and Jorhat (South Bank).

The bridge will be located on NH-715K and will connect Neematighat (on Jorhat side) and Kamalabari (on Majuli side).



Hyderabad wins ‘Tree Cities of the World’ title Hyderabad has won a green contest among cities in India, and emerged one of the ‘Tree Cities of the World’. The city joins 120 others from 23 countries, including the U.S., the U.K., Canada, and Australia.

That title has been bestowed by the Arbor Day Foundation and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

Hyderabad has been selected for its commitment to growing and maintaining urban forestry under the State government’s Haritha Haram programme and its Urban Forest Parks plan.

With the recognition, the city joins 120 others from 23 countries, including the U.S., the U.K., Canada, and Australia.

The city was evaluated on five metrics: ‘Establish Responsibility’, ‘Set the Rules’, ‘Know What You Have’, ‘Allocate the Resources’, and ‘Celebrate the Achievements’.

Swachh Tourist Destinations under Phase-IV The Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation (DDWS), Ministry of Jal Shakti has announced the selection of the 12 iconic sites under Phase IV of Swachh Iconic Places (SIP).

Under Swachh Iconic Places (SIP) initiative of Swachh Bharat Mission Grameen (SBM-G), aim is to transform the iconic heritage, spiritual and cultural places in the country as ‘Swachh Tourist Destinations’.

The objective of SIP is to achieve a distinctly higher level of Sanitation/Cleanliness at these places, especially on the peripheries and in approach areas.

This project is being coordinated by the Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation (DDWS), Ministry of Jal Shakti in association with the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), Ministry of Tourism, Ministry of Culture and the concerned State/UT governments.

The places are:

1. Ajanta Caves, Maharashtra 2. Sanchi Stupa, Madhya Pradesh 3. Kumbhalgarh Fort, Rajasthan 4. Jaisalmer Fort, Rajasthan 5. Ramdevra, Jaisalmer, Rajasthan 6. Golconda Fort, Hyderabad, Telangana 7. Sun Temple, Konark, Odisha 8. Rock Garden, Chandigarh 9. Dal Lake, Srinagar, Jammu & Kashmir 10. Banke Bihari Temple, Mathura, Uttar Pradesh 11. Agra Fort, Agra, Uttar Pradesh 12. Kalighat Temple, West Bengal

The caracal now critically endangered The National Board for Wildlife and Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change last month included the caracal, a medium-sized wildcat found in parts of Rajasthan and Gujarat, in the list of critically endangered species.



Though not under grave threat in its other habitats, the animal is on the verge of extinction in India, some experts believe.

The recovery programme for critically endangered species in India now includes 22 wildlife species.

Besides India, the caracal is found in several dozen countries across Africa, the Middle East, Central and South Asia. While it flourishes in parts of Africa, its numbers in Asia are declining.

The wildcat has long legs, a short face, long canine teeth, and distinctive ears — long and pointy, with tufts of black hair at their tips.

The iconic ears are what give the animal its name — caracal comes from the Turkish karakulak, meaning ‘black ears’.

In India, it is called siya gosh, a Persian name that translates as ‘black Ear’. A Sanskrit fable exists about a small wild cat named deergha-karn or ‘long-eared’.

History, Art & Culture PM cites example of Bhagyashree Sahu's efforts in promoting 'Pattachitra' painting During the Mann ki Baat programme, Prime Minister Narendra Modi cited the example of Bhagyashree Sahu, young student from Rourkela in Odisha for her keen interest in 'Pattachitra' painting.

Patta means cloth, and Chitra means picture. Hence, Pattachitra is a picture painted on a piece of cloth. It is based in the states of West Bengal and Odisha.

Bengal tradition: It is centred around Kalighat (in Kolkata). Theme is Not much devotional.

Odisha tradition: It is centred around Puri. Almost all of the Chitrakar community hails from a small village in Puri district called Raghurajpur.

These paintings are based on Hindu mythology and specially inspired by Jagannath and Vaishnava sect. All colours used in the Paintings are natural.

PM Modi inaugurated Chauri Chaura centenary celebrations Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Chauri Chaura Centenary Celebrations at Chauri Chaura, Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh.

The day marks 100 years of the ‘Chauri Chaura’ incident, a landmark event in the country’s fight for independence.

The Chauri Chaura incident took place on 4 February 1922 at Chauri Chaura in the Gorakhpur district of the United Province (modern Uttar Pradesh) in British India.

In this, a large group of protesters participating in the Non-cooperation movement, clashed with police who opened fire. In retaliation the demonstrators attacked and set fire to a police station, killing all of its occupants.

The incident led to the death of three civilians and 22 policemen.



Mahatma Gandhi, who was strictly against violence, halted the non-co-operation movement on the national level on 12 February 1922, as a direct result of this incident.

Museum to pride of Kodagu General Thimayya in Madikeri It was an ode to the pride of Kodagu as the President of India inaugurated the General Thimayya Museum in Madikeri. The museum has been built at Sunnyside, the former residence of General KS Thimayya.

General Kodendera Subayya Thimayya (1906-1965), was a distinguished soldier of the Indian Army who served as Chief of Army Staff from 1957 to 1961 in the crucial years leading up to the conflict with China in 1962.

He was the only Indian to command an Infantry brigade in battle during the Second World War

After the Korean War, Thimayya headed a United Nations unit dealing with the repatriation of prisoners of war.

After his retirement from the Army, he was appointed Commander of the United Nations Peace Keeping Force in Cyprus from July 1964 to December 1965 and died in Cyprus while on active duty on 18 December 1965.

In 1954, he was awarded the Padma Bhushan for Civil Service.

His ancestral house ‘Sunny Side’ has been renovated and converted into a museum.

Akashvani names music festival after Pandit Bhimsen Joshi The prestigious Akashvani Music Festival has been renamed after Bharat Ratna Pandit Bhimsen Joshi.

Union Minister for Information & Broadcasting, Shri Prakash Javadekar made this announcement at a Pandit Bhimsen Joshi Centenary Commemorative function organized in Pune.

All India Radio, besides its regular music broadcasts, has endeared itself to its classical music listeners by organizing the Akashvani Sangeet Sammelan, in which prominent artistes from across the country perform.

Pandit Bhimsen Joshi was born on 4 February 1922 at Gadag, then part of Dharwad district of Karnataka. Pune was his Karmabhoomi where he attained fame as a pre-eminent exponent of the Khayal form of singing, as well as for his popular renditions of devotional music - bhajans and abhangs.

Pandit Bhimsen Joshi was conferred the Bharat Ratna award in 2009.

Jamtara turns a new page with public library movement A library movement developed in a short span of time in Jharkhand’s Jamtara district is receiving a steady flow of students and helping them turn a new page.

The district love for books assumes huge significance as it has the dubious distinction of being the “phishing capital of India”.

Many youth, mostly drop-outs in the 15-35 years age group, have been turning to cybercrime to earn a few quick bucks.



Many youth, mostly drop-outs in the 15-35 age group, have been turning to cybercrime to earn a few quick bucks.

Police personnel from 22 out of 28 Indian States have visited the tiny district in search of cyber fraudsters in the past few years. It is said that the majority of online fraud calls received by people across the country emanate from the district.

Netflix’s 2020 crime drama, Jamtara, was based on this.

As many as 93 cyber criminals are languishing in Jamtara’s jails, while 156 online fraudsters were arrested in 74 different cases in 2020.

Schools under Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan to be renamed after Subhas Chandra Bose Schools and hostels under the Ministry of Education's Samagra Shiksha scheme will now be renamed after Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.

The association of these schools with Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose will act as an inspiration to the children and also motivate the teachers, staff and administration to enable them to achieve high standards of excellence.

This will also help create awareness about the facility of these Residential Schools and Hostels in difficult areas and inspire these schools to achieve high standards of quality education.

The Ministry of Education under Samagra Shiksha provides financial assistance to states and UTs for opening and running of Residential Schools and Hostels in hilly terrain, small and sparsely populated areas for children who are in need of shelter and care.

The residential facilities are also provided to child labour rescued, migrant children who belong to poor landless families, children without adult protection, separated from their families, internally displaced persons

Preference is given to EBBs, LWE affected districts, SFDs and the Aspirational districts identified by NITI Aayog.

A total of 1063 residential facilities (383 residential Schools and 680 Hostels) have been sanctioned to States and UTs so far.

Preserving and promoting the traditional cultural heritage of India Institutions of Ministry of Culture such as the Academies namely Sangeet NatakAkademi (SNA), Centre for Cultural Resources and Training (CCRT), Kalakshetra Foundation (KF), Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA), National School of Drama (NSD), Sahitya Akademi (SA) and Lalit Kala Akademi (LKA) are engaged in the work of preserving and promoting the traditional cultural heritage of India.

The Ministry of Culture formulated a scheme titled “Scheme for Safeguarding the Intangible Heritage and Diverse Cultural Traditions of India”, with the objective of promoting the rich Intangible Cultural Heritage of India.

India has successfully inscribed 13 Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) elements in the UNESCO Representative list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity under the 2003 Convention.



As the first step towards the making of a National Inventory of ICH, the Ministry of Culture (MoC) has put up a list in April, 2020 on its website called “National list for ICH”.

The National list of Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) of India is an attempt to recognize the diversity of Indian Culture embedded in its Intangible Heritage.

PM recognises India’s youngest martyr after 8 decades As Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived at Dhekiajuli town, about 150 kms northwest of Guwahati, to unveil a slew of development projects in Assam.

Dhekiajuli is associated with the Quit India Movement of 1942. Dhekiajuli was home to possibly the youngest martyr of the Indian freedom struggle.

On September 20, 1942, as part of the Quit India movement, processions of freedom fighters marched to various police stations across several towns in Assam.

These squads, which were known as ‘Mrityu Bahini’, or death squads, had wide participation — including women and children — and set out to unfurl the tricolour atop police stations, seen as symbols of colonial power.

The British administration came down heavily on them. In Dhekiajuli, at least 15 people were shot dead, three of them women, including the 12-year-old Tileswari Barua.

Foundation stone of Maharaja Suheldev Memorial Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay the foundation stone of Maharaja Suheldev Memorial on 16th February 2021.

The event in Bahraich, Uttar Pradesh marks the birth anniversary of Maharaja Suheldev.

Suhaldev or Suheldev was an Indian king from Shravasti, popularly known to have defeated and killed the Ghaznavid general Ghazi Saiyyad Salar Masud at Bahraich in 1034 CE.

He is mentioned in the 17th century Persian-language historical romance Mirat-i-Masudi written by Abd-ur-Rahman Chishti during the reign of the Mughal emperor Jahangir.

Since the 20th century, various Hindu nationalist groups have characterized him as a Hindu King who defeated a Muslim invader.

75 years of Shri Ram Chandra Mission Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed a programme to mark 75 years of the Shri Ram Chandra Mission. Sri Ram Chandra Mission is a non-profit organization which provides spiritual training to the interested seekers around the world.

Sahaj Marg (The Natural Path), a form of Raja Yoga, is a meditation system involving meditation, cleaning, and prayer.

The cleaning of impressions (called samskaras) is claimed to be unique to this method.

The organizational body Shri Ram Chandra Mission (SRCM), was formally registered in 1945 by Ram Chandra (1899-1983). As part of the Sahaj Marg spiritual practice, Ram Chandra adopted a technique called 'pranahuti' as taught by his spiritual master, 'Lalaji'.



What is Saka Nankana Sahib? Nankana Sahib, the birth place of first Sikh guru, Guru Nanak Dev, was also the site of the first big agitation by the SGPC to take back control of gurdwaras from mahants backed by the British.

The centenary of Sri Nankana Sahib massacre, which is popularly known as Saka Nankana Sahib, is being marked in an event there on February 21 this year.

The SGPC came to existence in November 1920, a month after Sikhs removed partial restrictions on Dalit rights inside Golden Temple in Amritsar.

It started gurdwara reform movement which was aimed at taking possession of historical Sikh Gurdwaras, which had turned personal property of the priests, who were called mahants. These mahants were also accused of running practices from gurdwaras which were not approved in Sikhism.

The Nankana massacre (or Saka Nankana) took place in Nankana Sahib gurdwara on 20 February 1921, at that time a part of the British India but today in modern-day Pakistan.

Preservation of Laxmi Vilas Palace in Vadodara Hearing arguments on the preservation of Laxmi Vilas Palace in Vadodara, a Gaekwadi heritage structure, the Gujarat High Court Chief Justice recalled a similar judgment by Allahabad High Court.

The Lakshmi Vilas Palace is located in Vadodara, Gujarat.

It was constructed by the Gaekwad family, a prominent Maratha family, who ruled the Baroda State. It was built by Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad III in 1890.

Major Charles Mant was credited to be the main architect of the palace.

Lakshmi Vilas Palace was styled on the Indo-Saracenic Revival architecture.

PM Modi inaugurated toy fair Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the India Toy Fair 2021 on 27 February.

In his Mann ki Baat address in August 2020, the Prime Minister had said that toys not only augment activity, but also give flight to aspirations. He also emphasized boosting toy manufacturing in India.

The India Toy Fair 2021 is being organized in line with this vision of the Prime Minister.

The Fair held from 27th February to 2nd March 2021.

It aims to bring together all stakeholders including buyers, sellers, students, teachers, designers etc. on a virtual platform to create sustainable linkages and encourage dialogue for the overall development of the industry.



Important Days & Events 45th Raising Day of Indian Coast Guard The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) celebrates its 45th Raising Day on 1 February 2021.

The ICG was raised on 1 February 1977, with the enactment of Coast Guard Act 1978, as a full-fledged independent Armed Force of the Union under the Ministry of Defence (MoD).

Its primary task is to protect the country’s vast maritime zones.

From a modest beginning with just seven surface platforms to secure the coastal belts of Indian territory, the ICG has grown into a formidable force with 156 ships and 62 aircraft in its inventory and is likely to achieve targeted force levels of 200 surface platforms and 80 aircraft by 2025.

World Wetlands Day 2021 World Wetlands Day (WWD) is celebrated every year on the 2nd of February to raise global awareness about the high importance of wetlands for people and our planet.

WWD is also an occasion to commemorate the signing of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands in the Iranian city of Ramsar in 1971.

“Wetlands and water”, the theme for WWD 2021, shines a spotlight on wetlands as a source of freshwater and encourages actions to restore them and stop their loss.

We are facing a growing freshwater crisis that threatens people and our planet. We use more freshwater than nature can replenish, and we are destroying the ecosystem that water and all life depend on most – Wetlands.

The 2021 campaign highlights the contribution of wetlands to the quantity and quality of freshwater on our planet. Water and wetlands are connected in an inseparable co-existence that is vital to life, our wellbeing and the health of our planet.

Groundhog Day 2021 Groundhog Day is observed in the United States and Canada on 2 February each year.

The groundhog (Marmota monax) is also known as a woodchuck.

It is a rodent of the family Sciuridae, belonging to the group of large ground squirrels known as marmots.

It is native to North America.

IUCN Status: Least Concern.

Pandit Bhimsen Joshi Jayanti Pandit Bhimsen Joshi, the legendary vocalist, is being rerembered on his birth anniversary on 4th February.

Pandit Bhimsen Gururaj Joshi (1922 –2011) was an Indian vocalist from Karnataka, in the Hindustani classical tradition.

He is known for the khayal form of singing, as well as for his popular renditions of devotional music (bhajans and abhangs).

Bhimsen Joshi belongs to the Kirana gharana tradition of Hindustani Classical Music.



Bhimsen Joshi was instrumental in organising the Sawai Gandharva Music Festival annually, as homage to his guru, Pandit Sawai Gandharva.

Rashtriya Yuva Sashaktikaran Karyakram Minister of State for Youth Affairs & Sports informed Lok Sabha about Rashtriya Yuva Sashaktikaran Karyakram.

The Scheme Rashtriya Yuva Sashaktikaran Karyakram (RYSK) is an ongoing Central Sector Scheme.

The budget allocation of the scheme RYSK for the year 2020-21 is Rs.486.48 Crores.

It is an umbrella scheme. The 7 sub-schemes under scheme RYSK are:

Nehru Yuva Kendra Sangathan. National Youth Corps. National Programme for Youth and Adolescent Development. International Cooperation. Youth Hostels. Assistance to Scouting and Guiding Organisations. National Young Leaders Programme.

World Cancer Day 2021 World Cancer Day is observed on 4th February each year to raise awareness of cancer and to encourage its prevention, detection, and treatment.

World Cancer Day is led by the Union for International Cancer Control to support the goals of the World Cancer Declaration, written in 2008.

India Post, Mumbai Region, in collaboration with the Tata Memorial Centre, Mumbai releases a Special Cover on World Cancer Day.

Union for International Cancer Control (UICC), an International non-governmental organization (NGO) that exists to help the global health community accelerate the fight against cancer. It was founded in 1933 and based in Geneva, Switzerland.

World Cancer Day was established by the Paris Charter adopted at the World Summit Against Cancer for the New Millenium in Paris in 2000.

In 2019, Union for International Cancer Control, launched a new 3-year campaign with the theme: “I Am and I Will.” The campaign is an empowering call-to-action urging for personal commitment and represents the power of individual action taken now to impact the future.

World Pulses Day 2021 The World Pulses Day is celebrated on February 10 every year and recognised Pulses as a global food.

World Pulses Day 2021 theme is #LovePulses.

The UN General Assembly in 2019 decided to dedicate a day to Pulses to increase awareness and access to pulses globally known as World Pulses Day.



On World Pulses Day, people make efforts in creating awareness about the importance of Pulses in sustainable food production.

The UN General Assembly after recognizing the value of pulses in 2013, adopted 2016 as the International Year of Pulses (IYP).

International Day of Women and Girls in Science 2021 International Day of Women & Young Girls in Science is celebrated on 11th February each year. On the International Day of Women & Young Girls in Science, Ministry of Women & Child Development in association with Ministry of Education and MyGov, Ministry of Electronics and Information technology launched an online campaign.

Objective of the campaign is to celebrate women who have carved a niche for themselves in the field of STEM and also encourage young girls who aspire to excel in STEM and contribute towards nation building.

The International Day of Women and Girls in Science is the 11th day of February, by resolution of the United Nations General Assembly on 22 December 2015.

The day recognises the critical role women and girls play in science and technology. The day's purpose is to promote full and equal access to participation in science for women and girls.

President to Open Rashtrapati Bhavan’s Annual Udyanotsav The President of India, Ram Nath Kovind, opened the annual “Udyanotsav” of Rashtrapati Bhavan on February 12, 2021.

The Rashtrapati Bhavan, the official residence of the President of India, is flanked by the iconic Mughal gardens — spread over 15 acres.

The gardens are a blend of the Mughal and English style of gardening and is inspired by the Persian Charbagh style. It is replete with canals, fountains, elaborate flower beds, well-trimmed shrubs, and a near endless variety of flowers.

A part of the gardens — comprising the Herbal Garden, the Bonsai Garden, the main Mughal Garden, the Spiritual Garden — is open to the public every year in February-March under the event called the Udyanotsav (translates to ‘Garden Festival’).

World Unani Day 2021 World Unani Day is celebrated on February 11, 2021 to spread awareness about health care delivery through Unani system of medicine through its preventive and curative philosophy.

World Unani Day is celebrated every year to mark the birth anniversary of Hakim Ajmal Khan.

He was an eminent Indian Unani physician who was a versatile genius, a great scholar, a social reformer, a noted freedom fighter, a Unani medical educationist and founder of scientific research in Unani System of Medicine.

He was one of the founders of the Jamia Millia Islamia in New Delhi.

World Radio Day 2021 World Radio Day is celebrated on 13 February each year. The Day was decided by UNESCO on 3 November 2011 during its 36th conference.



According to UNESCO, radio is a powerful medium for celebrating humanity and constitutes a platform for democratic discourse.

According to UNESCO, On the occasion of World Radio Day 2021 (WRD 2021), UNESCO calls on radio stations to celebrate this event’s 10th anniversary and the more than 110 years of radio.

The theme of World Radio Day 2021, "New World, New Radio", will highlight the services rendered by the radio medium throughout the crisis.

Swami Dayanand Saraswati’s birth anniversary Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar paid tributes to Swami Dayanand Saraswati on his birth anniversary on February 12, 2021.

Dayananda Saraswati (12 February 1824 – 30 October 1883) was an Indian philosopher, social leader and founder of the Arya Samaj, a reform movement of the Vedic dharma.

He was the first to give the call for Swaraj as "India for Indians" in 1876, a call later taken up by Lokmanya Tilak.

Denouncing the idolatry and ritualistic worship, he worked towards reviving Vedic ideologies.

Subsequently, the philosopher and President of India, S. Radhakrishnan called him one of the "makers of Modern India", as did Sri Aurobindo.

Those who were influenced by and followed Dayananda included Madam Cama, Swami Shraddhanand, Shyamji Krishna Varma, Bhagat Singh, Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, Lala Lajpat Rai etc.

He was a sanyasi (ascetic) from boyhood and a scholar. He believed in the infallible authority of the Vedas. Dayananda advocated the doctrine of Karma and Reincarnation.

Among Dayananda's contributions were his promoting of the equal rights for women, such as the right to education and reading of Indian scriptures, and his commentary on the Vedas from Vedic Sanskrit in Sanskrit as well as in Hindi.

11th edition of 'Rashtriya Sanskriti Mahotsav' The Governor of West Bengal, Jagdeep Dhankhar in the presence of Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Culture and Tourism, Prahlad Singh Patel inaugurated the 11th Rashtriya Sanskriti Mahotsav 14 at Cooch Behar Palace at Cooch Behar in West Bengal.

Rashtriya Sanskriti Mahotsav is the flagship festival of this Ministry of culture.

It is organized since 2015 with the active participation of Seven Zonal Culture Centres has been playing a pivotal role to take the vibrant culture of India out to the masses instead of confining to auditoria and galleries.

It has been instrumental in showcasing, folk and tribal art, dance, music, cuisines & culture of one state in other states.

Ten editions of RSM have been held till date since November, 2015 in various states and cities such as Delhi, Varanasi, Bengaluru, Tawang, Gujarat, Karnataka, Tehri and Madhya Pradesh.



The eleventh edition of Rashtriya Sanskriti Mahotsav is being held between 14th to 28th February, 2021 in West Bengal at Cooch Behar (14th to 16th February, 2021), Darjeeling (22nd to 24th February, 2021) and Murshidabad (27th to 28th February, 2021).

“Mushaira” to be organised by Union Ministry of Minority Affairs Union Ministry of Minority Affairs will organise “Mushaira” on the theme of “Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat” in New Delhi on 20th February 2021 where renowned poets of the country will present their couplet.

Mushaira is a poetic symposium. It is an event (called mehfil, mushairi) where poets gather to recite their work so that they may enjoy, criticise, and ultimately appreciate what was recited.

It is a part of the culture of Pakistan, North India and the Deccan esp. among the Hyderabadi Muslims.

Urdu Mushaira reach its final, decisive form in 18th century and was popularised by Bahadur Shah Zafar, the last Mughal Emperor of India.

Basant Panchami 2021 Basant Panchami, the festival which marks the arrival of the spring season in India, is celebrated on February 16, 2021.

Basant Panchami or Vasant Panchami marks the beginning of the spring season - Basant means spring and Panchami means "the fifth day" (or Panchmi of Shukla Paksha in Magh Maas).

The day is also celebrated as Saraswati Puja and the Hindu goddess of wisdom and knowledge, Saraswati, is worshipped on this day.

Regions: Saraswati Puja on Vasant Panchami is more popular in Bengal, Odisha and North Indian states like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh.

Shri Guru Ravidas Vishva Mahapeeth Rashtriya Adhiveshan President Ram Nath Kovind said India's constitutional values of social justice, freedom, equality and fraternity are in line with Guru Ravidas's philosophy of life. He said this while addressing 'Shri Guru Ravidas Vishva Mahapeeth Rashtriya Adhiveshan in New Delhi.

'Shri Guru Ravidas was a Dalit-poet saint from the Bhakti movement era in northern India who probably lived during the 14th to 16th He belonged to a leather-working Chamar community, whose profession involved processing dead animals and their skins.

The 41 hymns of Guru Ravidas have been included in the Guru Granth Sahib.

The famous saint poetess, Mirabai was a disciple of Guru Ravidas.

66th Convocation of IIT Kharagpur Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi is going to address the 66th Convocation of IIT Kharagpur, on 23rd February 2021.

The super speciality hospital has been set up by the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur with support from the Ministry of Education.

The hospital will focus on robust Biomedical, Clinical and Translational Research, development of remote diagnostics, telemedicine, teleradiology along with research in drug design and delivery.



The MBBS programme is expected to start from the academic year 2021-22 in addition to Postgraduate and doctoral programmes.

International Mother Language Day 2021 International Mother Language Day is observed on 21 February each year to promote awareness of linguistic and cultural diversity and to promote multilingualism.

The declaration came up in tribute to the Language Movement done by the Bangladeshis (the then East Pakistanis). In Bangladesh the 21 February is the anniversary of the day when Bangladeshis fought for recognition for the Bangla language.

UNESCO has been celebrating International Mother Language Day since 2000.

At least 43 % of the estimated 6000 languages spoken in the world are endangered. According to UN data, a language disappears every two weeks taking with it an entire cultural and intellectual heritage.

Only a few hundred languages have genuinely been given a place in education systems and the public domain.

Farmers observe ‘Pagdi Sambhal Divas’ to protest farm laws Further intensifying their agitation, the farmers observed ‘Pagdi Sambhal Divas’ at the Delhi borders in protest against the three central farm laws. The event, organised by Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), was inspired by the ‘Pagdi Sambhal Lehar’ of 1906.

The farmers are also honouring the memory of Ajit Singh, uncle of freedom fighter Bhagat Singh and founder of the Pagri Sambhaal movement of 1907.

Pagrhi Sambhaal Jatta was a successful farm agitation that forced the British government to repeal three laws related to agriculture back in 1907. Bhagat Singh’s uncle Ajit Singh was the force behind this agitation, and he wanted to channel people’s anger over the farm laws to topple the colonial government.

The three farm-related acts at the centre of the storm in 1907 were the Punjab Land Alienation Act 1900, the Punjab Land Colonisation Act 1906 and the Doab Bari Act.

These acts would reduce farmers from owners to contractors of land, and gave the British government the right to take back the allotted land if the farmer even touched a tree in his field without permission.

Saras Aajeevika Mela 2021 Minister of Rural development inaugurated Saras Aajeevika Mela 2021 at Noida Haat.

Ministry of Rural Development is working to include more women in Self Help Groups (SHGs). He said these SHGs played a vital role in increasing family income and improving quality of life.

The Saras Aajeevika Mela 2021 is being organized from 26th February to 14th March 2021 by the Ministry of Rural Development.

More than 300 rural self-help groups and craftsman from 27 states are participating in the Mela.



International Affairs SJVNL bags 679 Megawatt hydro electric power project in Nepal State-owned SJVN Ltd has bagged a 679 MW hydro electric project in Nepal, the power ministry said in a statement.

The Nepalese government has allotted 679 MW Lower Arun Hydro Electric Project in Nepal to SJVN through international competitive bidding.

The Lower Arun Hydro Electric Project is located in Sankhuwasabha and Bhojpur Districts of Nepal.

On completion 679 MW Lower Arun Hydro Electric Project will generate 3561 million units of electricity per annum.

The Projects being developed by SJVN in Nepal would result in overall development and boost mutual economic growth in India & Nepal.

SJVN is already constructing 900 MW Arun 3 HEP in Nepal and 217km 400 kV associated transmission system. With addition of Lower Arun Hydro Electric Project to its kitty, SJVN portfolio now stands at 8960.5 MW.

Special UK visa scheme for Hong Kong residents The UK is opening a special visa scheme that will allow lakhs of Hong Kong residents a chance to migrate and eventually apply for British citizenship.

The visas will be issued to those in Hong Kong who hold a British National (Overseas) passport and their immediate dependents, and will offer a fast track to UK citizenship.

Applicants who get the visa can live and work in the UK for 5 years, after which they apply for settlement. Twelve months after this, they can apply for citizenship.

The move is considered the UK’s most generous welcoming of foreign workers since the entry of new EU citizens in 2004 — when 10 countries were added to the bloc– at a time when the UK was also a member.

The move comes months after China imposed a sweeping national security law over the former British colony, taking aim at pro-democracy protests that had captured global attention since 2019.

Antifreeze has made US soldiers fall ill Eleven US soldiers fell sick after accidentally drinking ethylene glycol, a chemical found in antifreeze. According to a Reuters report, the soldiers from Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas were completing a 10-day field training exercise when the incident occurred.

Ethylene glycol is an industrial compound found in consumer products including automotive antifreeze, hydraulic brake fluids, some stamp pad inks, ballpoint pens, solvents, paints, plastics, films, and cosmetics and is also used as a pharmaceutical vehicle.

It is a synthetic liquid, which is odourless and is used to make antifreeze and de-icing solutions for cars, airplanes and boats.

Ethylene glycol has a sweet taste and is often accidentally or intentionally ingested.



Once ingested, ethylene glycol is chemically broken down into toxic compounds. These by-products then affect the central nervous system (CNS), the heart and then the kidneys. CDC says that the ingestion of sufficient amounts can be fatal.

Ethylene glycol can be disseminated through indoor air, water, food, outdoor air and agricultural products.

The Colombo port setback for India After strong opposition from trade unions across the country, Sri Lanka has unilaterally pulled out of a 2019 agreement with India and Japan for developing the strategic East Container Terminal (ECT) at the Colombo Port.

In 2019, India and Sri Lanka signed a memorandum of understanding for “co-operation on economic projects”.

The MoU did not mention the Eastern Container Terminal, but India and Sri Lanka had already been in discussion for its development and operation.

Reason:

Although India and Sri Lanka have seemingly friendly ties and much cultural affinity and people-to-people contact, the relationship is complex.

The majority Sinhala-Buddhist public opinion is layered with the memory of Indian intervention in the ethnic conflict.

Thus, unlike Chinese projects, big projects by India have always faced opposition in Sri Lanka.

The ‘Walking While Trans’ ban, recently repealed in New York New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed a bill repealing a controversial law known as the “Walking While Trans” ban, which has been widely criticised for disproportionately discriminating against transgender people of colour.

‘Walking While Trans’ ban is the colloquial name for a law, which was originally passed in 1976 with the intention of prohibiting loitering for the purpose of prostitution.

The law is criticised for how notoriously vague it is — it allows New York police to arrest or apprehend someone walking on the street if they suspect that they are sex workers.

While the law is mostly used against women, several men, too, have been arrested or detained merely because police suspected that they were “loitering for the purpose of prostitution”.

But the law is known for disproportionately impacting trans women, especially trans women of colour.

The South African Covid variant Ever since scientists started tracking the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19, it has become a cause for concern that the virus has developed multiple variants that began emerging in the fall of 2020.

Of the three, the latest South African variant known as 20H/501Y.V2 or B.1.351 appears to be more infectious than the original virus.



This potentially more concerning variant, which has been spotted since December 22 last year and spread to nearly 40 countries including the United States.

The South African variant carries a mutation called N501Y that appears to make it more contagious or easy to spread. this variant “is less susceptible to antibody neutralisation” than previous variants.

This South African variant has become a major cause of worry because of its unusually large number of mutations, especially in the spike protein, which the virus uses to gain entry into the cells within the human body.

US extends New START Nuclear Arms Control Treaty with Russia for five years United States has extended the New START (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty) nuclear arms control treaty with Russia for five years.

President Joe Biden and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin reportedly discussed it by phone a week ago, and subsequently Mr Putin signed it into law on Friday.

The treaty had been set to lapse on 5 February, as the Trump administration had refused to approve the extension. Now the pact has been extended to 5th February 2026.

The treaty, which first went into effect in 2011, limits the United States and Russia to deploying no more than 1,550 strategic nuclear warheads each and imposes restrictions on the land- and submarine-based missiles and bombers to deliver them.

First India-EU high-level dialogue on trade, investment held The first High-Level Dialogue (HLD), co-chaired by the Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal and the European Union Executive Vice-President and Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis.

Commitment to the establishment of this Dialogue was a major outcome of the 15th India-EU Leader’s Summit held in July 2020, with an objective for a Ministerial level guidance towards the bilateral trade and investment relations.

The Ministers also agreed to meet within the next three months, with an objective for reaching consensus on a host of bilateral trade & investment cooperation issues viz. a bilateral Regulatory Dialogue; an India-EU Multilateral Dialogue to explore further possibilities of cooperation; etc.

Central Bank of Sri Lanka repays swap line facility with RBI The Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) settled a $ 400 million currency swap facility from the Reserve Bank (RBI) of India last week, meeting the terms that the two countries had agreed upon.

The update sparked speculation in local media that India may have “abruptly terminated” the agreement, following Colombo’s decision to pull out of a 2019 agreement to develop a Colombo Port terminal jointly with India and Japan.

However, both countries clarified that the developments were not linked.

The CBSL obtained the swap facility on July 31, 2020, for an initial period of three months, to cope with the severe economic impact of the pandemic. Subsequently, the RBI provided a three-month rollover at CBSL’s request, until February 1, 2021.



Further extension would require Sri Lanka having a successfully negotiated staff level agreement for an IMF programme, which Sri Lanka does not have at present.

Canada designates the Proud Boys a terrorist group Canada labeled far-right group the Proud Boys a terrorist organization, less than a month after some of its members participated in the deadly U.S. Capitol riot. Canada's public safety department said it had "reasonable grounds" to believe the Proud Boys is a group that "has knowingly participated in or facilitated a terrorist activity."

With this, the all-male neo-fascist group will be added to a lengthy list of international terrorist organisations, that includes ISIS, Al Qaeda and al-Shabab.

The all-male neo-fascist group was founded in 2016 by Vice Media co-founder and Canadian-British right-wing activist Gavin McInnes.

The Proud Boys are known for their “anti-Muslim and misogynistic rhetoric”. The group is also known for anti-transgender, anti-immigration and anti-Semitic views.

Members usually don a fixed uniform of red ‘Make America Great Again’ caps from Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign and black and yellow polo shirts.

Denmark Will Build Artificial Island to House Wind Energy Hub Denmark approved plans to construct an artificial island in the North Sea and use it as clean energy hub.

The project is being called the largest construction project to be undertaken in Denmark’s history with an estimated cost of DKK 210 billion.

An energy island is based on a platform that serves as a hub for electricity generation from surrounding offshore wind farms.

The artificial island will be located about 80 km into the North Sea and the majority of it will be owned by the Danish government. Its primary purpose is to provide large-scale offshore wind power.

The idea is to connect and distribute power between Denmark and neighbouring countries.

The move has come after the EU announced its plans to transform its electricity system to rely mostly on renewables within a decade and to increase its offshore wind energy capacity by over 25-fold by the year 2050.

India & Bahrain join hands for Renewable Energy India and Bahrain have agreed to forge deeper engagement in the field of renewable energy. The Joint Working Group in the field of Renewable Energy which held its first meeting in virtual format, underscored the importance of renewable energy to meet climate change goals.

A MoU between India and Bahrain was signed in 2018 for promoting bilateral cooperation in the field of Renewable Energy.

Both sides agreed to forging deeper engagement in capacity building and focused cooperation between concerned agencies as well as private sector of the two countries in this sector, particularly in the field of solar, wind and clean hydrogen.



US moves to rejoin UN Human rights council The Biden administration is set to announce this week that it will reengage with the much-maligned U.N. Human Rights Council that former President Donald Trump withdrew from almost three years ago.

The Human Rights Council is an inter-governmental body within the United Nations system.

It was founded in 2006. It replaced the former United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR) that had been strongly criticised for allowing countries with poor human rights records to be members.

Functions of UN Human rights council It investigates allegations of breaches of human rights in UN member states.

It also addresses important thematic human rights issues such as freedom of expression, women's rights, LGBT rights, and the rights of racial and ethnic minorities.

The UNHRC works closely with the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

World Sustainable Development Summit 2021 Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to inaugurate the World Sustainable Development Summit 2021 on 10th February.

The theme of the Summit is ‘Redefining our common future: Safe and secure environment for all’.

It is the 20th edition of The Energy and Resources Institute’s (TERI) flagship event

The Summit will bring together a wide number of governments, business leaders, academicians, climate scientists, youth, and the civil society in the fight against climate change.

India’s Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy and Ministry of Earth Sciences are key partners of the Summit.

Nord Stream 2 pipeline between Germany and Russia In a development that could ratchet up tensions between the United States and Germany, the consortium building the Nord Stream 2 pipeline has said that it has resumed work on the controversial project.

In 2015, Gazprom and 5 other European energy firms decided to build Nord Stream 2, valued at around $11 billion.

The 1,200 km pipeline will run from Ust-Luga in Russia to Greifswald in Germany, and will carry 55 billion cubic metres of gas per year.

The under-construction pipeline will run along the already-completed Nord Stream 1 system, and the two together will supply an aggregate of 110 billion cubic metres of gas to Germany per year.

The pipeline falls in German and Danish territory, and all but 150 km of pipes for the project have already been laid.

MoU for the construction of the Lalandar “Shatoot” Dam in Afghanistan A signing ceremony of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the construction of the Lalandar Dam in Afghanistan took place over VTC on 9 February 2021.



The MoU was signed by EAM Dr. Jaishankar and Foreign Minister Mr. Hanif Atmar, in the presence of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi and President of Afghanistan H.E. Dr. Mohammad Ashraf Ghani.

The project is a part of the New Development Partnership between India and Afghanistan.

The Lalander Dam would meet the safe drinking water needs of Kabul City, provide irrigation water to nearby areas, rehabilitate the existing irrigation and drainage network, aid in flood protection and management efforts in the area, and also provide electricity to the region.

This is the second major dam being built by India in Afghanistan, after the India- Afghanistan Friendship Dam which was inaugurated by the Prime Minister and the President in June 2016.

AIM kick-starts India-Australia Circular Economy Hackathon 2021 AIM and Australia's national science agency (CSIRO) kick-started the India-Australia Circular Economy (I-ACE) Hackathon, 2021 with the goal to enable talented innovative students and start-ups from Australia and India to address common national issues through innovative technology solutions.

I-ACE is supported by the Australian Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources (DISER), AIM Atal Incubation Centre network, and various domain experts.

A 'circular economy' model, which employs not only waste management, but reuse, recycling and responsible manufacture can support the development of new industries and jobs, reducing emissions and increasing efficient use of natural resources.

The four key themes for the hackathon are as follows:

Innovation in packaging reducing packaging waste Innovation in food supply chains avoiding waste Creating opportunities for plastic waste reduction Recycling critical energy metals and e-waste

Draghi sworn in as Italy's new PM as country hopes to turn page Former European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi was formally sworn in as Italy's new prime minister, against the backdrop of the deadly coronavirus pandemic and a crippling recession.

Mario Draghi (born 1947) is an Italian economist, central banker and politician, who is serving as Prime Minister of Italy since 13 February 2021.

He previously served as President of the European Central Bank from 2011 until 2019.

He presided over the institution throughout the Eurozone crisis, and became famous throughout Europe for saying that he would be prepared to do "whatever it takes" to prevent the Euro from failing.

Draghi was also the Chair of the Financial Stability Board from 2009 to 2011 and Governor of the Bank of Italy from 2005 to 2011.

Socialists win but separatists expand majority in Catalonia election In Catalonia saw the pro-Madrid Socialist Party claim a narrow victory ahead of the secessionist Republican Left, although both parties are set to command an equal number of seats in the region's 135-seat parliament.



Catalonia is an autonomous community in the north-eastern corner of Spain.

Catalonia consists of four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona.

It is bordered by France (Occitanie) and Andorra to the north, the Mediterranean Sea to the east, and the Spanish autonomous communities of Aragon to the west and Valencia to the south.

Since the 2010s there has been growing support for Catalan independence. On 27 October 2017, the Catalan Parliament declared unilaterally independence following a disputed referendum.

UK is set to conduct the first COVID-19 human challenge trials (HCT) The UK is set to conduct the first COVID-19 human challenge trials (HCT) within a month from now.

The UK government is spending £33.6 million for the trials, being conducted jointly by the government’s Vaccines Taskforce, Imperial College London, the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust and the clinical company called hVIVO.

In this study, over 90 healthy volunteers between the ages of 18-30 will be deliberately exposed to small amounts of the virus in controlled settings, in order to test treatments and vaccines.

In this way, the participants are “challenged” by the virus.

This is not the same as standard vaccine clinical trials, where the vaccine is given to participants who have acquired the infection naturally.

Turkey to build Space Port in Somalia Turkey could establish a spaceport in Somalia with a $350 million investment as part of its nascent space program that will cost upward of $1 billion.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan announced Turkey's plans to land on the moon by 2023 in a news conference earlier this month during the inauguration ceremony of the country's National Space Program.

The report in MEE, citing a Turkish source, said that the government plans to construct a rocket launch site in Somalia.

The African country already hosts Turkey’s largest military training base and has enjoyed great relations with Ankara in all fields since 2011.

Turkish-Somali relations have experienced great success over the years, and as part of their strategic cooperation, Turkey has trained one-third of Somalia's military forces.

In addition to military cooperation, the two countries also partner on health, education and other initiatives.

India, Maldives signed agreements on wide range of domains including fish processing Agreements on a wide range of domains, including fish processing, public broadcasting, sustainable urban growth, road infrastructure and housing, were signed by India and the Maldives.

The broadcasting partnership is for association between Prasar Bharati and the official State Media of the Maldives, PSM.



The MoU aims to promote cooperation and capacity building in the area of public broadcasting.

The agreement in the field of broadcasting is for cooperation between Prasar Bharati and PSM, the official State Media of Maldives. The MoU intends to facilitate collaboration and capacity building in the field of public broadcasting.

Dr Jaishankar also handed over one lakh additional doses of COVID vaccine to Mr Shahid and Maldivian Health Minister Ahmed Naseem.

India has signed a 50 million dollar Line of Credit agreement in defence sector with the Maldives. The agreement will facilitate capability building in the maritime domain.

Dr Jaishankar also co-signed the UTF Harbour Project agreement with Maldives Defence Minister Mariya Didi. He said that the project agreement will strengthen Maldivian Coast Guard capability and facilitate regional Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief efforts.

India also extended a new line of credit of US dollar 40 million for the development of new sports infrastructure in the Maldives.

Dutch Indian Water Alliance for Leadership Initiative (DIWALI) A platform called DIWALI has been developed in which India and Netherlands could participate for designing solution for water challenges in order to find solutions for water related challenges.

The consortium of experts from the two counties would explore the potential and sustainability of Dutch Solutions to resolve challenges in specific water challenged sites in India which are scalable, sustainable and affordable.

It is being led by

Dutch consortia titled “Water for Change. Integrative and Fit-for-Purpose Water Sensitive Design Framework for Fast Growing Livable Cities” and

IIT Roorkee as lead along with other consortia member named MANIT, Bhopal; CEPT University, Ahmedabad; IIT Gandhinagar; CWRDM, Calicut.

Chinese divorce court ordering ‘housework compensation’ for a woman In a landmark judgment delivered weeks after China enforced its new civil code, a divorce court in Beijing has ordered a man to compensate his ex-wife for the housework she did during five years of marriage.

The court has split their joint property equally, and ordered the man to pay around $7,700 to his former wife as “housework compensation”.

On January 1, the Chinese government brought into force a new civil code, which legal experts have described as offering greater protection for individual rights.

Before the new law came into force, such compensation could be demanded only in cases where a prenuptial agreement had been signed– in itself an uncommon practice.

Japan appoints ‘Minister of Loneliness’ after suicide rates increase Japan’s suicide rate rose in 2020, with 20,919 people taking their lives according to data by the National Police Agency. Most experts believe that the problem of escalating suicides in Japan is tied to the country’s culture of loneliness.



Japan’s ageing population — over 20% of the country’s population is more than 65 years old, which is the highest proportion for that category in the world — has created a huge section of middle-aged and older people who feel they have no one to turn to for help and company.

Since most ageing people do not socialise much, many of them die alone, with their bodies being discovered a long time after their death. The phenomenon is known as ‘kodokushi’, which means ‘lonely death’.

The country also has some of the longest working hours in the world, which leaves people with little opportunity to spend time with their friends or be engaged in hobbies they are interested in. In fact, Japan has a term for sudden occupational mortality — ‘karoshi’, which means death due to overwork.

The culture of self-isolation has spiralled to such extremes in the country that there are about one million people who live in absolute self-imposed confinement for many years with no contact with the outside world. These modern-day hermits are called ‘hikikomori’.

Christians, Muslims and Jews to share faith centre in Berlin On the site of a church torn down by East Germany’s communist rulers, a new place of worship is set to rise that will bring Christians, Jews and Muslims under one roof – and it has already been dubbed a “churmosquagogue”.

Called the House of One or, colloquially, Churmosquagogue, it incorporates a church, a mosque and a synagogue.

The foundation stone will be laid on May 27 by people of these faiths.

A meeting space at the center of the building will be open to people of other faiths and world views as well as the secular urban society.

The House of One is coming up on the site of the old St Peter’s Church, which was damaged in World War II and completely demolished by the government of East Germany in 1964.

Polity & Governance Meghalaya assembly speaker visits Arunachal assembly Meghalaya State Assembly Speaker Metbah Lygdoh visited Arunachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly Secretariat in Itanagar to get first-hand information about the National e-Vidhan project implemented in the Assembly.

e-Vidhan is a Mission Mode Project (MMP) included in Digital India Programme and Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs (MoPA) is the ‘Nodal Ministry’ for its implementation in all the States/ UTs with Legislatures.

Funding of NeVA is on the pattern of Central Sponsored Scheme i.e. 60:40; and 90:10 for North East & hilly States and 100% for UTs.

The funding for e-Vidhan is provided by the MoPA and technical support by Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).



Government sends notice to Twitter on restoring suspended accounts The government may take the unprecedented step of filing a first information report (FIR) against Twitter if it doesn’t comply with directions to block accounts and tweets that threaten law and order, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

In India, the Information Technology Act, 2000, as amended from time to time, governs all activities related to the use of computer resources.

It covers all ‘intermediaries’ who play a role in the use of computer resources and electronic records.

The term ‘intermediaries’ includes providers of telecom service, network service, Internet service and web hosting, besides search engines, online payment and auction sites, online marketplaces and cyber cafes.

It includes any person who, on behalf of another, “receives, stores or transmits” any electronic record. Social media platforms would fall under this definition.

Sub-categorisation of OBCs Centre has extended the tenure of The Commission to Examine Sub-categorisation of Other Backward Classes (OBCs) headed by Justice G Rohini, former Chief Justice of Delhi High Court.

OBCs are granted 27% reservation in jobs and education under the central government.

In September last year, a Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court reopened the legal debate on sub-categorisation of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes for reservations.

The debate arises out of the perception that only a few affluent communities among the over 2,600 included in the Central List of OBCs have secured a major part of this 27% reservation.

The argument for sub-categorisation — or creating categories within OBCs for reservation — is that it would ensure “equitable distribution” of representation among all OBC communities.

To examine this, the Rohini Commission was constituted on October 2, 2017.

What are government securities? The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will give small investors direct access to its government securities trading platform.

Retail investors can directly open their gilt accounts with RBI, and trade in government securities. The RBI Governor described this as a “major structural reform.”

Government Securities (or g-secs) are debt instruments issued by the government to borrow money.

The two key categories are:

Treasury bills – short-term instruments which mature in 91 days, 182 days, or 364 days, and Dated securities – long-term instruments, which mature anywhere between 5 years and 40

years.

Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways issued guidelines for floating structures



Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways has issued the guidelines for floating structures with a vision to set up world-class floating infrastructure all along the coastline in the upcoming projects as per the provisions contained in the guidelines.

The guidelines sets out technical aspects for implementation of Floating Jetties or Platforms for Marinas, Minor Harbors, Fishing Harbours or Fish landing centers, Waterdomes and such other similar facilities in coastal areas, estuaries, waterways, rivers and reservoirs.

These guidelines may also be suitably utilized for floating pontoons or platforms in various waterborne systems and floating wave attenuators or breakwaters for Minor Harbors or Fish Landing facilities.

Gujarat’s two-child policy Three candidates from the Municipal Corporations of Vadodara and Rajkot were disqualified under the two-child policy in place in the state for candidates. The nominations were challenged because each candidate had three children.

In 2005, the Gujarat government amended the Gujarat Local Authorities Act to “prevent a person having more than two children to be a member of panchayat, or the councillor of a municipality or municipal corporation”.

The amendment also added the clause to the other Acts governing elections to local administrative bodies such as the Gujarat Provincial Municipal Corporations Act, 1949, and the Gujarat Panchayats Act.

The rationale behind the two-child policy was said to be the need to “order and stabilise” the growing population of the count.

Parliament passed landmark Major Port Authorities Bill, 2020 Parliament passed the Major Port Authorities Bill, 2020. The Bill is more compact in comparison to the Major Port Trusts Act, 1963 as the number of sections has been reduced to 76 from 134 by eliminating overlapping and obsolete Sections.

The new Bill has proposed a simplified composition of the Board of Port Authority which will comprise of 11 to 13 Members from the present 17 to 19 Members representing various interests.

The role of Tariff Authority for Major Ports (TAMP) has been redefined. Port Authority has now been given powers to fix tariff which will act as a reference tariff for purposes of bidding for PPP projects. PPP operators will be free to fix tariff- based on market conditions.

The Board of Port Authority has been delegated the power to fix the scale of rates for other port services and assets including land.

An Adjudicatory Board has been proposed to be created to carry out the residual function of the erstwhile TAMP for Major Ports, to look into disputes between ports and PPP concessionaires

The Boards of Port Authority have been delegated full powers to enter into contracts, planning and development, fixing of tariff except in national interest, security and emergency arising out of inaction and default. In the present MPT Act, 1963 prior approval of the Central Government was required in 22 instances.

The Board of each Major Port shall be entitled to create specific master plan in respect of any development or infrastructure.



Provisions of CSR & development of infrastructure by Port Authority have been introduced.

Provision has been made for safeguarding the pay & allowances and service conditions including pensionary benefits of the employees of major ports.

Arbitration and Conciliation (Amendment) Bill 2021 Lok Sabha gave its nod to Arbitration and Conciliation (Amendment) Bill 2021. The Bill contains provisions to deal with domestic and international arbitration. It defines law for conducting conciliation proceedings. The Bill replaces an Ordinance with the same provisions promulgated on 4th November last year.

The Arbitration and Conciliation (Amendment) Bill, 2021 was introduced in Lok Sabha on February 4, 2021.

It seeks to amend the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996. The Act contains provisions to deal with domestic and international arbitration and defines the law for conducting conciliation proceedings.

The Bill replaces an Ordinance with same provisions promulgated on November 4, 2020.

Automatic stay on awards: The Bill specifies that a stay on the arbitral award can be provided (even during the pendency of the setting aside of the application) if the court is satisfied that:

The relevant arbitration agreement or contract, or The making of the award, was induced, or effected by fraud or corruption. This change will be effective from October 23, 2015.

The Bill removes the Schedule for arbitrators and states that the qualifications, experience, and norms for accreditation of arbitrations will be specified under the regulations.

Devendra Kula Vellalar community not delisted from SC community The Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment has said that the reports appearing in media about delisting of Devendra Kula Vellalar community from SC soon are completely misinformed.

The Ministry has clarified that the news is misleading and does not reflect the actual position.

It has stated that the Cabinet has approved for categorising (7) SC communities into Devendra Kula Vellalar which would also be a part of the Scheduled Castes list of Tamil Nadu.

Therefore, the statement that they will be delisted from SCs and would be made OBCs is completely incorrect and it may be clarified that the statement does not reflect the correct position.

The Ministry has further clarified that a Bill for categorising (7) SC communities into Devendra Kula Vellalar under SC list to Tamil Nadu is already introduced in the Lok Sabha.

Kiran Bedi removed as the Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry Kiran Bedi was removed as Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry late. Telangana Governor Tamilsai Soundararajan has been given additional charge of the Union Territory until regular arrangements are made.

Article 153 of the Indian constitution states that here shall be Governor for each State.



Nothing in this article shall prevent the appointment of the same person as Governor for two or more States.

Amendments to the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015 The Union Cabinet of India has approved the proposal of the Ministry of Women and Child Development to amend the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015 to introduce measures for strengthening Child Protection set-up to ensure best interest of children.

The amendments include authorizing District Magistrate including Additional District Magistrate to issue adoption orders under Section 61 of the JJ Act, in order to ensure speedy disposal of cases and enhance

The District Magistrates have been further empowered under the Act, to ensure its smooth implementation, as well as garner synergized efforts in favour of children in distress conditions.

Defining eligibility parameters for appointment of CWC members, and categorizing previously undefined offences as ‘serious offence’ are some of the other aspects of the proposal.

Several difficulties faced in implementation of various provisions of the Act have also been addressed.

Shantanu Muluk gets transit anticipatory bail from Bombay HC Shantanu Muluk who has been allegedly involved in creating a 'toolkit' related to farmers' protests, was granted transit anticipatory bail by the Bombay High Court on February 16, 2021.

According to Article 22 of the Constitution of India, every person who is “arrested and detained in custody” has to be produced before the nearest magistrate within a period of 24 hours of the arrest — the period excludes the time necessary for the journey from the place of arrest to the court.

No person can be kept in custody beyond the period of 24 hours without an order of a magistrate. Section 56 of the CrPC states that the person arrested has to be taken before the magistrate without unnecessary delay.

When does a person apply for anticipatory transit bail? When a person is apprehending arrest by the police of a state other than where they are at present, they approach the nearest competent court for a transit anticipatory or pre-arrest bail.

Delimitation process of UT of Jammu and Kashmir Delimitation Commission comprising of Chairperson held a meeting in New Delhi with the Associate Members from Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, for seeking their suggestion/views on the process of delimitation in respect of Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

An overview on the process of delimitation based on the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act, 2019 and Delimitation Act, 2002 was presented before the Members detailing various Sections of these Acts related to the delimitation exercise.

Delimitation is the act of redrawing boundaries of Lok Sabha and state Assembly seats to represent changes in population so that the population of all seats, so far as practicable, is the same.



The main objective of delimitation is to provide equal representation to equal segments of a population; fair division of geographical areas so that one political party doesn’t have an advantage over others in an election.

Under Article 82, the Parliament enacts a Delimitation Act after every Census.

Delimitation is carried out by an independent Delimitation Commission. Delimitation Commissions have been set up four times — 1952, 1963, 1973 and 2002 under the Acts of 1952, 1962, 1972 and 2002. There was no delimitation after the 1981 and 1991 Censuses.

Shabnam Ali asks President for Mercy A prison in Uttar Pradesh is preparing for what could be the first-ever hanging of a woman convict in independent India. Shabnam Ali was sentenced to death for killing seven members of her family, including a baby, in 2008.

The same day, Shabman filed a second mercy petition with the Governor of Uttar Pradesh and the President of India, both of whom have earlier rejected her plea.

If executed, Shabnam will be the first woman in independent India to be hanged for a crime.

Legal options still available with Shabnam These include the right to challenge the rejection of her mercy petition before the Allahabad High Court and the Supreme Court on various grounds and also the right to file a curative petition in the Supreme Court against the decision on the review petition.”

The curative petition can challenge the Supreme Court decision of January 2020, which upheld her death sentence.

Also, under the law, if multiple people have been sentenced to death in the same case, they have to be executed together. So, Shabnam and Saleem can be hanged only after both of them exhaust all their legal recourses.

Uber drivers are workers not self-employed Uber drivers must be treated as workers rather than self-employed, the UK's Supreme Court has ruled.

With this ruling, Uber and other service providing platforms could also potentially face legal and regulatory challenges in India, as big tech companies from across the globe are under government scrutiny for the differential terms of service and engagement in geographies such as the EU and in locations such as India.

The increased focus on big tech aside, the central government has already put in place some legal protection for gig economy workers.

The budget for the 2021-22 has already mandated that the law on minimum wages would now apply to workers of all categories including those associated with platforms such as Uber.

Such workers would now be covered by the Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC), which mandates employers depositing a certain amount of money with the state insurer, the rest of which is paid by the government.

November last year, the central government had come out with specific norms for ride hailing apps such as Uber and Ola.



Under the new rules, ride hailing apps could charge a maximum of 20 per cent commission per ride from driver partners, while also capping the total number of working hours per day at 12.

The new regulations also provided for the maximum fare that these platforms could charge customers even during high demand peak hours, and that they would have to provide drivers with insurance.

The Greater Tipraland demand raised by royal scion Pradyot Kishore Tripura royal scion Pradyot Kishore Manikya has recently announced his new political demand of ‘Greater Tipraland’, which he claims would serve the interest of tribals, non-tribals, Tripuri tribals staying outside Tripura, even those outside India in Bandarban, Chittagong, Khagrachari and other border adjacent areas in Bangladesh.

‘Greater Tipraland’ is essentially an extension of the ruling tribal partner Indigenous Peoples Front of Tripura – IPFT’s demand of Tipraland, which sought a separate state for tribals of Tripura.

The new demand seeks to include every tribal person living in indigenous area or village outside the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) under the proposed model.

However, the idea doesn’t restrict to simply the Tripura tribal council areas, but seeks to include ‘Tiprasa’ of Tripuris spread across different states of India like Assam, Mizoram etc. as well, even those living in Bandarban, Chittagong, Khagrachari and other bordering areas of neighbouring Bangladesh.

Khela hobe has become a slogan for both TMC and BJP With the political mercury rising in West Bengal ahead of the Assembly polls, the bitter rivalry among parties is being played out not just through war of words, but also colourful jingles and slogans.

Among them, one that has particularly captured the imagination across the political spectrum is the slogan ‘khela hobe’ (Game on).

But it was popularised in West Bengal by Trinamool Congress president of Birbhum district, Anubrata Mondal, who at a local political event said, “Khela hobe. Bhoyonkor khela hobe. Ei mati te khela hobe.” (The game is on. It will be a dangerous game. But the game is on and this will be the playground.)

The slogan, through which leaders are challenging their opponents now, likens the political battlefield to a playground. It means this electoral battle has not been decided yet — there is a lot to fight for in these Assembly polls and only time will tell who has the last laugh.

A renewed debate on court etiquette The debate around court etiquette in India was triggered again on February 23, 2021 after a Supreme Court Bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) S A Bobde objected to a petitioner addressing judges as “Your Honour”.

“When you call us Your Honour, you either have the Supreme Court of United States or the Magistrate in mind. We are neither,” the CJI told the petitioner, a law student.

For years, there have been efforts to purge from courtroom protocol salutations such as “My Lord” and “Your Lordship” — a practice inherited from British rule.



The Advocates Act of 1961, under section 49(1)(c), empowers the Bar Council of India to make rules on professional and etiquette standards to be observed by advocates.

To address this issue, a Resolution by the Bar Council of India in 2006 added Chapter IIIA to Part VI of the BCI Rules.

Interestingly, while the 2006 notification discouraged the use of “My Lord” and “Your Lordship”, it prescribed “Your Honour” or “Hon’ble Court” as an acceptable way for addressing the Supreme Court & High Courts, and “Sir” in Subordinate Courts and Tribunals.

The conspiracy charge made by Delhi Police against Disha Ravi In granting bail to 22-year-old climate change activist Disha Ravi, the trial court in Delhi rejected the Delhi Police charge that she was part of a “larger conspiracy” to incite violence in the national capital on January 26.

Section 120A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) defines criminal conspiracy; Section 120B prescribes the punishment for it.

An “agreement” between two or more persons to commit a criminal offence constitutes the offence of criminal conspiracy.

Only an agreement is necessary and sufficient to establish the charge of conspiracy, even if the actual criminal offence itself has not been committed. Criminal conspiracy is a substantive offence in itself.

The law in its current form was added in 1913, nearly four decades after the IPC was first enacted. The provision was designed by the British to deal with the rising nationalist sentiment in India.

Tamil Nadu move to utilise excess Cauvery water ‘illegal’ Terming the Tamil Nadu government’s move to utilise the excess water in the Cauvery basin as ‘illegal,’ Home, Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Basavaraj Bommai said that Karnataka will challenge the new link scheme of Tamil Nadu in the Supreme Court.

The decision follows Tamil Nadu’s move to lay foundation to the Cauvery-Vellaru-Vaigai-Gundar link scheme. The link scheme proposes to utilise the surplus water in the Cauvery basin and transfer it to its Southern region.

According to Karnataka, It is not right on the part of Tamil Nadu to utilise surplus water before it is allocated. Under the provisions of The Inter State Water Disputes Act, it is illegal and cannot happen without proper allocation.

Science & Technology HAL signed MoU with MIDHANI to develop, manufacture composite raw materials Hindustan Aeronautics (HAL) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Mishra Dhatu Nigam (MIDHANI) for development and production of composite raw materials during the Aero India 2021 held in Bengaluru, Karnataka.

This is the first time that such a MoU has been signed for composite raw materials.



Composites raw materials, mainly in the form of prepregs (carbon, aramid, glass types, etc) used in platforms like Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH), Light Combat Helicopter (LCH) and Light Utility Helicopter (LUH) are currently imported.

The usage of composites in the aerospace is going to exist and increase, particularly for fighter aircraft/helicopter because of its inherent advantages over metallic raw materials.

Ka-226T utility chopper has 33% indigenous content The total indigenous content of the Ka-226T utility helicopters, to be jointly manufactured locally by India and Russia with Transfer of Technology (ToT), is between 27%-33%.

The final deal is held up as the Russian proposal of 62% indigenous content in assembled helicopters falls short of the tender requirement of 70%.

The Ka-226T is meant to replace the ageing and obsolete Cheetah and Chetak fleet of the Army and Air Force and the total technical life of these will start finishing from 2023 onwards.

The helicopters would be manufactured by India Russia Helicopters Limited (IRHL) — a joint venture between HAL and Russian Helicopters.

Square Kilometre Array Observatory An intergovernmental organisation called the SKA Observatory was launched in order to give a push to radio astronomy.

The Square Kilometre Array Observatory (SKAO) project, spanning two continents and involving the participation of 20 countries, is expected to be ready for carrying out observations towards the end of this decade.

Its goals are: studying the universe and its evolution, the origin and evolution of cosmic magnetism, and dark energy and evolution of galaxies.

It is proposed to be built in two phases, with an estimated 1.8 billion euros required for phase-I, planned over the next ten years.

HAL LUH (Army Variant) receives Initial Operational Clearance The Light Utility Helicopter (LUH) received the Initial Operational Clearance (IOC) for the Indian Army from Centre for Military Airworthiness and Certification (CEMILAC) in the presence of Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh during the ongoing Aero India 2021 at Air Force Station Yehalanka, Bengaluru on February 05, 2021.

The LUH is a three-ton class new generation single engine helicopter indigenously designed and developed by Rotary Wing Research and Design Centre of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) with features suitable for operations in the diverse operating conditions unique to India.

The LUH will replace the ageing fleet of Cheetah/Chetak helicopters operated by the Services.

The LUH is powered by a single turbo shaft engine Ardiden 1U from M/s. Safran Helicopter Engine (SHE), France with adequate power margins to accomplish high altitude missions in Himalayas with ease.

LUH is equipped with Smart Cockpit Display System (Glass Cockpit), state-of-the-art HUMS (Health & Usage Monitoring System) and is designed for various utility and armed roles.



DRDO and IISc signed MoU for Joint Advanced Technology Program DRDO has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bengaluru for creation of JATP–Center of Excellence (JATP – CoE) in the premises of IISc to expand the scope and objective of existing Joint Advanced Technology Program.

The JATP-CoE located in the campus of IISc, Bengaluru will enable Directed Basic & Applied Research and engage with premier research institutes through multi-disciplinary & multi-institutional collaboration.

The focused research efforts at the centre will lead to realization of indigenous technologies in the critical areas to develop state of art technologies.

As per the MoU, DRDO will support JATP in equipping it with advanced and unique research facilities that will enable the faculty and scholars to conduct advanced research. DRDO will facilitate for advanced research to utilize technology outcome in the futuristic applications.

Properties of element Einsteinium in the periodic table A team of scientists at the Berkeley Lab has reported some of the properties of element 99 in the periodic table called “Einsteinium”, named after Albert Einstein.

It was discovered in 1952 in the debris of the first hydrogen bomb (the detonation of a thermonuclear device called “Ivy Mike” in the Pacific Ocean).

Since its discovery, scientists have not been able to perform a lot of experiments with it because it is difficult to create and is highly radioactive.

The most common isotope of the element, einsteinium 253 has a half-life of 20 days.

UAE Hope Probe Nears Mars in First Arab Mission The United Arab Emirates' first mission to Mars is set to reach the red planet and enter its orbit following a seven-month, 494 million km journey, allowing it to start sending data about the Martian atmosphere and climate.

With this, the UAE has become the fifth country after the US, Russia, China, the EU, and India, to reach the Martian orbit.

The unmanned spacecraft is called ‘Al-Amal’ — the Arabic word for hope. The historic event was timed to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the unification of the UAE’s seven emirates.

First announced in July 2014, the Emirates Mars Mission was developed and operated by the Mohammed Bin Rashid Space Centre in collaboration with the University California, Berkeley, Arizona State University and the University of Colorado-Boulder in the United States.

In July 2020, it was launched from the Tanegashima Space Centre in Japan aboard a Mitsubishi Heavy Industries’ H-II A rocket.

Carrying three instruments, including a high-resolution camera and a spectrometer, the spacecraft is on an orbital mission to collect data on Martian climate dynamics and help scientists understand why Mars’s atmosphere is decaying into space.

Hope is the UAE’s fourth space mission and first interplanetary one. The previous three were all Earth-observation satellites.



Its overall mission life is one Martian year, which is about 687 days on Earth.

Koo App: India’s alternative to Twitter At a time when the Centre is embroiled in a kerfuffle with microblogging site Twitter over blocking of certain accounts, several ministers and departments of the Union government have started flocking on Koo App — a homemade version of the social networking platform.

The microblogging site was co-founded by entrepreneurs Aprameya Radhakrishna and Mayank Bidwatka. Radhakrishna had founded online cab booking service TaxiForSure, which was subsequently sold to Ola Cabs.

While the app was launched in early 2020, its participation and the subsequent winning of the government’s Atmanirbhar App Innovation Challenge brought it under the limelight.

The app, along with other India-made apps like Zoho and Chingari — the local version of TikTok, won the challenge, which was launched by the Centre close on the heels of banning scores of apps with Chinese links citing national security concerns.

Following the outcome of the Atmanirbhar App Innovation Challenge, the app was also mentioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his Mann Ki Baat address.

Excess alcohol intake can irreversibly change DNA It is common knowledge that excessive alcohol consumption is bad for health. But the assumption that all the damage can be set right after a person stops drinking is not true, according to researchers from NIMHANS.

Excessive alcohol consumption can cause irreversible changes to the DNA and these can persist even when alcohol is no longer consumed, revealed a study conducted by a team of researchers at NIMHANS.

The study has been published online in the American Journal of Medical Genetics.

The study tracked patients at NIMHANS’ Centre for Addiction Medicine outpatient clinic from March 2015 to April 2016.

Although we inherit genes from our parents, their expression is regulated in a unique manner in each person, and may be influenced by their lifestyle. Exposure to alcohol affects the pattern of gene expression, and may explain some of the systemic complications.

Researchers analysed the DNA chemistry of individuals who had been drinking on an average of 10 drinks/day.

A puppet master with a chip in the brain When tradition meets modernity, the result can sometimes be amazing. A puppet with robotic movements may not sound very charming but in a melding of traditional art and cutting edge technology, a shadow leather puppet in Kerala’s famous temple art Tholpavakkoothu is being animated by a robot.

Tholpavakoothu is a form of shadow puppetry that is practiced in Kerala, India.

It is performed using leather puppets as a ritual dedicated to Bhadrakali and is performed in Devi temples in specially built theatres called koothumadams.



This art form is especially popular in the Palakkad, Thrissur and Malappuram districts of Kerala.

It is believed to have originated in the ninth century AD and uses Kamba Ramayana as its basic text.

The puppets used in Tholpavakoothu used to be made out of deerskin but are now typically made from goatskin.

The puppets are painted in vegetable dyes, as these dyes last long.

Indian Astronomers Detect Huge Optical Flare from Super Massive Black Hole Indian astronomers have reported one of the strongest flares from a feeding super massive black hole or blazar called BL Lacertae, analysis of which can help trace the mass of the black hole and the source of this emission.

Blazars or feeding supermassive black holes in the heart of distant galaxies receive a lot of attention from the astronomical community because of their complicated emission mechanism.

They emit jets of charged particles traveling nearly at the speed of light and are one of the most luminous and energetic objects in the Universe.

BL Lacertae blazar is 10 million light-years away and is among the 50 most prominent blazars that can be observed with the help of a relatively small telescope.

It was among the 3 to 4 blazars that was predicted to be experiencing flares by the Whole Earth Blazar Telescope (WEBT), an international consortium of astronomers.

Detailed genome map of malaria vector Scientists have unveiled the detailed genome of the malaria mosquito vector, revealing thousands of new genes vital for the development of genetic control strategies of disease transmission.

In order to engineer advanced forms of defence against malaria transmission, including targeted CRISPR and gene drive–based strategies, scientists require intricate knowledge of the genomes of vector mosquitoes.

CRISPR technology is a gene-editing tool which allows researchers to easily alter DNA sequences and modify gene function.

They produced a new reference genome for the Asian malaria vector mosquito Anopheles stephensi.

With the newly upgraded Anopheles stephensi genome, the team unearthed more than 3,000 genes that previously evaded scrutiny and which offer fresh gene-drive targets, play key roles in blood feeding and the metabolism of ingested blood meal, reproduction and immunity against microbial parasites.

This reference genome should help malaria biologists in India, particularly in view of the national goal of malaria elimination in India by 2030.



Bhima Koregaon suspect’s laptop was hacked to plant evidence Key evidence against Rona Wilson, an accused in the Bhima Koregaon case that is being investigated by the NIA, was planted on a laptop seized by police, a report by Arsenal Consulting, a Massachusetts-based digital forensics firm, has claimed.

His petition referred to a report brought out by Arsenal Consulting, a digital forensics consulting company based in Massachusetts, which was hired by Mr. Wilson’s defence team.

The Arsenal Consulting report states that for 22 months, Mr. Wilson’s computer was controlled by an attacker whose goal was to deliver incriminating documents onto his computer, which formed the basis of the case against him.

NetWire NetWire, which first surfaced in 2012, is a well-known malware. It is also one of the most active ones around.

It is a remote access trojan, or RAT, which gives control of the infected system to an attacker.

Such malware can log keystrokes and compromise passwords.

Malware essentially do two things - One is data exfiltration, which means stealing data. Most anti-virus software are equipped to prevent this. The other involves infiltrating a system, and this has proven to be far more challenging for anti-virus software.

NetWire is described as an off-the-shelf malware, while something like Pegasus, which used a bug in WhatsApp to infiltrate users’ phones in 2019, is custom-made and sold to nations.

Prime Minister hands over indigenous Arjun Mk-1A tank to Army Prime Minister Narendra Modi handed over the indigenous main battle tank Arjun Mk-1A to the Army in a function at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium in Chennai.

Chief of the Army Staff General Manoj Mukund Naravane received the model of the tank, designed and developed by Chennai-based Combat Vehicles Research & Development Establishment (CVRDE), a unit of the Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO).

The army will get 118 units of the Main Battle Tank, indigenously designed, developed and manufactured by CVRDE and DRDO along with 15 academic institutions, eight labs and several MSMEs.

The Arjun Main Battle Tank project was initiated by DRDO in 1972 with the Combat Vehicles Research and Development Establishment (CVRDE) as its lead laboratory.

Mass production began in 1996 at the Indian Ordnance Factory’s production facility in Avadi, Tamil Nadu.

The Indian Army received the first batch of 16 tanks in 2004 and they were inducted as a squadron of the 43 Armoured Regiment. In 2009, the first Arjun regiment of the Indian Army had 45 tanks.

Features of Arjun Mk-1A tank: The Arjun tanks stand out for their ‘Fin Stabilised Armour Piercing Discarding Sabot (FSAPDS)’ ammunition and 120-mm calibre rifled gun.



It also has a computer-controlled integrated fire control system with stabilised sighting that works in all lighting conditions.

The secondary weapons include a co-axial 7.62-mm machine gun for anti-personnel and a 12.7-mm machine gun for anti-aircraft and ground targets.

Sandes App: India’s alternative to WhatsApp After India's version of the 'Koo' App in response to social media platform Twitter, there is yet another App named 'Sandes' which is in lines with the popular instant messaging platform WhatsApp.

Like WhatsApp, the new NIC platform can be used for all kinds of communications by anyone with a mobile number or email id.

The instant messaging app, called Sandes, has an interface similar to many other apps currently available in the market.

Although there is no option to transfer the chat history between two platforms, the chats on government instant messaging systems (GIMS) can be backed up to a users’ email.

GIMS, like other instant messaging apps in the market, uses a valid mobile number or email id to register the user for the first time. It also offers features such as group making, broadcast message, message forwarding and emojis.

Online enrollment module for Technograhis under Light House Projects Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) has initiated Global Housing Technology Challenge India (GHTC-India) which aims to identify and mainstream globally best available proven construction technologies that are sustainable, green and disaster-resilient to enable a paradigm shift in affordable housing.

TECHNOGRAHIS are students from IITs, NITs, engineering, planning and architecture colleges, faculty members, academicians, and stakeholders.

The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) is promoting six Light House Projects (LHPs) as Live Laboratories for transfer of technology to the field.

The LHPs are model housing projects. About 1,000 houses at each location are being built with allied infrastructure facilities.

Interested candidates can register themselves to visit these Live Laboratories at six LHP sites for learning, consultation, generation of ideas and solutions, experimentation, innovation, and technical awareness.

Till the completion of the LHPs within a period of 12 months, the ‘Technograhis’ will get regular updates from the sites for information dissemination.

A flurry of Mars missions Going to Mars is non-trivial, since both planets revolve around the Sun and are hence in constant motion relative to each other. Earth and Mars are at their closest distance relative to each other every 26 months — and this is when Earthlings try to send missions to Mars.



NASA’s Perseverance Rover The most sophisticated mission from an engineering standpoint, NASA’s Perseverance Rover, is en route to Mars, and is set to land on Thursday at Jezero Crater, which was likely filled with water in the past.

Perseverance is NASA’s 4th generation Mars Rover

The goal is to look for biosignatures in the dried up lake bed at Jezero Crater.

Tianwen-1 Tianwen-1, the first mission to Mars from China, successfully underwent orbital insertion on February 10. Tianwen-1 carries an orbiter, a lander, and a rover. China’s approach for landing a rover is somewhat different. Unlike NASA rovers, Tianwen-1 will orbit Mars for a few months before attempting to land in May this year.

Raksha Mantri launched E-Chhawani portal & mobile app Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh launched E-Chhawani portal and mobile app in New Delhi on February 16, 2021. The portal (https://echhawani.gov.in/) has been created to provide online civic services to over 20 lakh residents of 62 Cantonment Boards across the country.

Through the portal, the residents of cantonment areas will be able to avail basic services like renewal of leases, application for birth & death certificates, water & sewerage connections, trade licences with just a click of a button.

The portal is jointly developed by eGov Foundation, Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), Directorate General Defence Estates (DGDE) and National Informatics Centre (NIC).

National Hydrogen Energy Mission (NHEM) The Finance Minister in her budget speech formally announced the National Hydrogen Energy Mission which aims for generation of hydrogen from green power resources.

While proposed end-use sectors include steel and chemicals, the major industry that hydrogen has the potential of transforming is transportation — which contributes a third of all greenhouse gas emissions.

In October, Delhi became the first Indian city to operate buses running on hydrogen spiked compressed natural gas (H-CNG) in a six-month pilot project.

The buses will run on a new technology patented by Indian Oil Corp for producing H-CNG — 18 per cent hydrogen in CNG — directly from natural gas, without resorting to conventional blending.

IOC is also planning to set up a dedicated unit to produce hydrogen to run buses at its R&D centre in Faridabad.

As a supporting regulatory framework, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways late last year issued a notification proposing amendments to the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989, to include safety evaluation standards for hydrogen fuel cell-based vehicles.

India emerges key mover of global S&T partnerships The world-class 3.6 meter optical telescope set up at the place has assumed global importance for observing a number of time-critical cosmic explosive events such as Gamma Ray Bursts and Supernovae.



It is the Asia’s largest fully steerable optical telescope, an international facility for and people from different parts of the world compete for observation and machine time by submitting research proposals.

It was set up in year 2016 by Aryabhatta Research Institute of Observational Sciences (ARIES), an autonomous research institute of DST with support from Belgian government and established India’s role as a global player in astronomy research.

Devasthal is a mountain peak in Uttarakhand.

The technological know-how gained from the development of this telescope and back-end instruments are beneficial for optical facilities planned for future such as the Thirty Meter Telescope – one of the mega projects in which the country is participating.

Vertical Launch Short Range Surface to Air Missile The Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) on Monday conducted two successful launches of the Vertical Launch Short Range Surface to Air Missile (VL-SRSAM).

The launches were carried out from a static vertical launcher from Integrated Test Range (ITR), Chandipur off the coast of Odisha.

Indigenously designed and developed by DRDO for Indian Navy, VL-SRSAM is meant for neutralizing various aerial threats at close ranges including sea-skimming targets.

The current launches were carried out for demonstration of vertical launch capability as part of its maiden launch campaign.

National Urban Digital Mission for future smart cities The Union government has unveiled ‘National Urban Digital Mission’ a move to create digital infrastructure for cities across the country. The move is in line with the Centre’s smart city programme.

The National Urban Digital Mission (NUDM) will create a shared digital infrastructure for urban India, working across the three pillars of people, process, and platform to provide holistic support to cities and towns.

It will institutionalise a citizen-centric and ecosystem-driven approach to urban governance and service delivery in 2022 cities by 2022, and across all cities and towns in India by 2024.

NUDM has articulated a set of governing principles, and inherits the technology design principles of the National Urban Innovation Stack (NUIS), whose strategy and approach was released by MoHUA in February, 2019.

The principles in turn give rise to standards, specifications, and certifications, across the three pillars of people, process, and platforms.

New Material Converts Waste Heat to Electricity for Small Home Appliances & Vehicles Scientists have found a new Lead (Pb) free material which can efficiently convert waste heat to power our small home equipment and automobiles.

Most efficient thermoelectric materials developed by scientists so far use Lead (Pb) as a major constituent element, restricting their use for mass-market applications.



Scientists from Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR), Bengaluru, an autonomous institution of the Department of Science & Technology (DST), Government of have now identified a lead-free material called Cadmium (Cd) doped Silver Antimony Telluride (AgSbTe2).

This material which can efficiently allow recovery of electricity from ‘waste heat’ marking a paradigm shift in the thermoelectric puzzle.

This work is supported by Swarna-Jayanti fellowship and project fund from Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB) and Department of Science & Technology (DST), India.

Latest Technology Integrated Bamboo Treatment Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr. Jitendra Singh inaugurated the latest technology Integrated Bamboo Treatment Plant in the premises of North East Cane and Bamboo Development Council (NECBDC).

The plant is based on vacuum-pressure-impregnation technique and is funded by the National Bamboo Mission (NBM) and North Eastern Council (NEC).

This is an initiative of the central government to make India self-reliant in bamboo industry and create employment in this sector.

The Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir will set up three Bamboo Clusters through collaboration from North East Cane and Bamboo Development Council (NECBDC). Each of the three clusters will be devoted to the production of Agarbatti, baskets and charcoal respectively.

Home grown bamboo is exempt from the purview of the 100 year old Indian Forest Act. This will help in bringing ease of doing business in the bamboo sector for the young entrepreneurs.

During the COVID-pandemic, the import duty on Agarbatti coming from other countries has been hiked to nearly 35%. This will discourage import of bamboo made Aggarbatties and encourage domestic production.

Security Indian Navy received 3 "made in India" Advanced Light Helicopters (ALH) Indian Navy received 3 "made in India" Advanced Light Helicopters (ALH) from the state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL). The helicopters are customised for coastal security.

The naval version of ALH is fitted with an array of advanced sensors that can detect Mumbai terror attacks like intrusions on Indian waters.

These helicopters have latest generation avionics, indigenous low frequency dunking sonar, full glass cockpit with integrated architecture display system and the powerful Shakti engines.

It also has a nose mounted surveillance radar with 270 degree coverage that can detect and track multiple marine targets. Its synthetic aperture radar and inverse synthetic aperture radar can detect targets on sea.



Society and Social Justice Pulse Polio Programme for 2021 The countrywide Pulse Polio Programme for 2021 has began. President Ram Nath Kovind launched the programme on the eve of the Polio National Immunization Day by administering polio drops to children less than five years old at Rashtrapati Bhawan.

The drops were administered to children on the eve of the Polio National Immunization Day, which is observed on the 31st January 2021 (Sunday), also popularly known as Polio Ravivar.

Around 17 crore children of less than 5 years of age will be given polio drops as part of the drive of Government of India to sustain polio free status of the country.

The strategy of Pulse Polio Immunization Programme was conceived in December 1993 and it was rolled out from 2nd October, 1994 when the first child was immunized against Polio as part of this programme.

Before the start of the program, India had 60% caseload of Polio worldwide. With the last case of Polio reported in Howrah on 13th January, 2011, the country has been free of Polio for a decade now.

Polio-free certification’ of the entire South-East Asia Region of WHO including India on the 27th of March 2014 was a huge accomplishment in the history of India and Global Public Health.

Strong Positive Impact of PMJAY on Health Outcomes Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY), an ambitious program and a crucial component of the Ayushman Bharat Yojana, launched by Government of India in 2018, to provide healthcare access to the most vulnerable sections, has had a strong positive impact on the healthcare outcomes of those States that have adopted the healthcare scheme.

This was stated in the Economic Survey 2020-21 which was laid by Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs, Smt Nirmala Sitharaman in Parliament.

The proportion of households with any usual member covered under health insurance or financing scheme increased by 54 per cent from NFHS 4 to NFHS 5 in the states that adopted PMJAY, it decreased by 10 per cent in the states that did not adopt PMJAY, reflecting the success of PMJAY in enhancing health insurance coverage.

The reduction in Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) was 20 per cent vis-à-vis 12 per cent in PMJAY and non-PMJAY states respectively, an increment of 8 per cent for states that adopted PMJAY versus those that did not.

The proportion of people ensuring family planning rose across all the states between the two surveys, the increase is much more significant in the states that adopted PM-JAY indicating its effectiveness.

The proportion of women with total unmet family planning needs decreased by 31 per cent in the PMJAY states, the decline in the non-PMJAY states was merely 10 per cent.

India reaping ‘lockdown dividend’ by saving lives and livelihood India is reaping the "lockdown dividend" from the preventive measures it adopted at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic indicating its willingness to take short-term pain for long-term gain.



COVID-19 pandemic engendered a once-in-a-century global crisis in 2020 where 90 per cent of countries are expected to experience a contraction in GDP per capita and India’s efforts focused on saving lives and livelihoods by its willingness to take short-term pain for long term gain.

The Economic Survey states the example of Spanish Flu to prove the point that the timing matters - early and extensive lockdowns leading to greater delays in reaching peak mortality, lower peak mortality rates and overall lower mortality burden.

40 day lockdown period was used for scaling up the necessary medical and para-medical infrastructure for active surveillance, expanding testing, contact tracing, isolation and management of cases and educating citizens about social distancing and masks.

The Survey credits the flattening of curve and lives saved to the early lockdown imposed by the government.

While the lockdown resulted in a 23.9 per cent contraction in GDP in Q1, the recovery has been a V-shaped one as seen in the 7.5 per cent decline in Q2 and the recovery across all key economic indicators.

Measures for Population Control The Government has been implementing the National Family Planning Program which provides voluntary and informed choices to the beneficiaries through a target free approach with the objective of checking population increase in the country.

A National Population Policy has been formulated in the year 2000 with the long-term objective of attaining population stabilisation by 2045.

The current contraceptive basket has been expanded with inclusion of two new contraceptives- Injectable contraceptive (Antara programme) and Centchroman (Chhaya).

Post-partum Intrauterine contraceptive device(PPIUCD) incentive scheme under which PPIUCD services are provided post-delivery.

Compensation scheme for sterilization acceptors which provides compensation for loss of wages to the beneficiary and also to the service provider and team for conducting sterilisation.

National Family Planning Indemnity Scheme (NFPIS) under which clients are compensated in the eventualities of death, complication and failure following sterilization operations.

Family Planning Logistics Management Information System (FP-LMIS): dedicated software has been launched to ensure smooth forecasting, procurement and distribution of family planning commodities across all the levels of health facilities.

Mission Parivar Vikas has been introduced for substantially increasing access to contraceptives and family planning services in seven high focus states having TFR of more than 3 namely Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Assam.

Scheme for Home Delivery of contraceptives by ASHAs at doorstep of beneficiaries has been taken up.

Scheme for provision of Pregnancy Testing Kits in the drug kits of ASHA for use in communities.



“Nai Roshni” scheme for Leadership Development of Minority Women “Nai Roshni”, a scheme for Leadership Development of Minority Women by Ministry of Minority affairs is being implemented across India.

Its aims is to empower and instill confidence in women by providing knowledge, tools and techniques for interacting with Government systems, banks and other institutions at all levels.

This includes empowerment of the trainee women so that they become independent and confident members of the society.

The scheme provides for six days training programme followed by handholding for a period of one year.

The training covers issues relating to women viz. Leadership of Women through participation in decision making, Educational Programmes for women, Health and Hygiene, Legal rights of women, Financial Literacy, Digital Literacy, Swachh Bharat, Life Skills, and Advocacy for Social and Behavioural change.

The Scheme is being implemented through Non-Governmental Organisations empanelled under the NaiRoshni Scheme as per scheme guidelines in force.

Gadkari calls for 'all-round' efforts to reduce road accidents by 2025 Union Minister for Road Transport Nitin Gadkari called for all-round efforts by all stakeholders to ensure that deaths due to road accidents are reduced by 50 per cent before 2025.

Terming the situation as alarming, the Minister said India stands at number one position in road accidents in the world, ahead of US and China.

Some 1.5 lakh people die, and more than 4.5 lakh people are injured in road accidents every year in the country – 415 deaths per day in road accidents.

14 per cent of national GDP is the socio-economic loss from these accidents, and 70% of the deaths are in the age group of 18 to 45 years old.

Modifications in Pre and Post Matric Scholarship Schemes Department of Social Justice & Empowerment informed Lok Sabha about the Modifications in Pre and Post Matric Scholarship Schemes.

The scheme wise important changes introduced are as follows:

Pre-Matric Scholarship for SC students:

The funding pattern under the scheme was revised from the concept of committed liability to a fixed sharing pattern of 60:40 between Centre and the States (90:10 in case of North Eastern States) or Notional Allocation whichever is lower.

The Annual Family Income limit was increased from Rs. 2.00 lakh to Rs 2.5 lakh in 2018 and rates of maintenance allowances were also increased.

Post-Matric Scholarship for Scheduled Castes (SC) students:

During the year 2020-21, the Union Cabinet has approved the revision and continuation of the scheme from the year 2020-21 to 2025-26 which includes, inter-alia, revision of funding pattern to a sharing ratio of 60:40 between the Centre and the States (90:10 in case of NE States).



Pre-Matric Scholarship for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and Post Matric Scholarship for OBCs

The income limit has been changed under Pre Matric Scholarship of OBC and Post Matric Scholarship for OBCs as per details given below:

The Pre-Matric Scholarship for OBC increased from Rs.1.00 lakh to Rs. 2.50lakh per annum. The Post Matric Scholarship for OBC increased from Rs.1.50 lakh to Rs.2.50lakh per annum.

Niti Aayog constitutes sub-group to prepare a plan for migrant workers The NITI Aayog has constituted a sub-group to prepare a National Action Plan for Migrant Workers.

The sub-group comprises the members from various Ministries of Govt. of India, subject experts, NGOs and civil society organisations, to prepare a tangible action plan to address issues related to migrant workers.

In order to safeguard the interest of the migrant workers, the Central Government had enacted the Inter-state Migrant Workmen (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1979.

Ambedkar Social Innovation and Incubation Mission Under VCF-SC The Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment, Government of India in order to boost entrepreneurship and innovation among the SC students/SC Divyang youth has launched Ambedkar Social Innovation and Incubation Mission (ASIIM) under Venture Capital Fund for Scheduled Castes (VCF-SC) on 30th September 2020.

Objective is to boost entrepreneurship and innovation among the SC students/SC Divyang youth.

The companies/entrepreneurs owned by Scheduled Castes enrolled /registered with Technology Business Incubators (TBIs) are eligible to get maximum capital of Rs.30 lakhs over a period of 3 years i.e. Rs.10 lakhs every year.

Financial support of up to Rs.10 lakhs per year for a period of 3 years aggregating to Rs.30 Lakhs shall be provided to eligible applicants as equity funding.

TIFAC launches job portal for workers, seawood mission A think-tank, TIFAC, under the Department of Science and Technology (DST) has launched a job portal for mapping the skills of workers as per requirements of MSMEs and a seaweed cultivation mission.

Establishing model demonstration farms over one hectare for cultivation of economically important seaweeds in nearshore and onshore along the Indian coast

Establishment of seaweed nurseries for supplying seed material for large scale farming of economically important seaweeds in the country

Onshore cultivation for (i) Seedling supply facility (ii) Seaweed cultivation for processing

Setting up of processing plant for integrated production of plant growth stimulants (sap) along with industrially important cell wall polysaccharides (phycocolloids) such as agar, agarose, carrageenan and alginates from fresh seaweeds.



TIFAC is an autonomous organization set up in 1988 under the Department of Science & Technology to look ahead in technology domain, assess the technology trajectories, and support innovation by networked actions in select areas of national importance.

Government took Steps for Child Beggars Union Minister of Women and Child Development informed Lok Sabha about the steps related to Child Beggars.

The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015 (JJ Act) is the primary law for children in the country.

As per Section 2 (14) (ii) of the JJ Act,2015, a child who is found working in contravention of labour laws or is found begging is included as a “child in need of care and protection”, among others.

As per Section 76 of JJ Act, whoever employs any child for the purpose of begging shall be punishable with imprisonment upto five years and fine of one lakh rupees.

The Ministry implements a centrally sponsored scheme i.e. Child Protection Services (CPS) under the umbrella Integrated Child Development Services scheme, for supporting the children in difficult circumstances including child beggars and destitute children.

Under the scheme, institutional care is provided through Child Care Institutions (CCIs), as a rehabilitative measure.

The scheme supports 24x7 emergency outreach/ helpline service for children in distress conditions. The service is accessible through a dedicated toll free number, 1098 from anywhere in India.

The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, has undertaken a pilot project for Comprehensive Rehabilitation of Persons engaged in the act of begging in ten (10) cities. It includes education of children engaged in begging/children of persons engaged in the begging.

Inter-caste marriages the way forward to reduce communal tensions Educated youngsters are showing the way forward to reduce caste and community tensions in India by tying the knot in intermarriages, the Supreme Court said in a judgment.

Educated younger boys and girls are choosing their life partners, which, in turn, is a departure from the earlier norms of society where caste and community play a major role.

Possibly, this is the way forward where caste and community tensions will reduce by such inter-marriages

Justice Kaul quoted B.R. Ambedkar’s Annihilation of Caste, in which the Father of the Constitution said, “I am convinced that the real remedy is intermarriage. Fusion of blood can alone create the feeling of being kith and kin and will vanish the separatist feeling created by caste.

Consent of the family or community or clan is not necessary once the two adult individuals agree to enter into a wedlock and that their consent has to be piously given primacy.

Apps and instruction manuals for 5 All India Surveys on Labour Labour and Employment Minister Santosh Kumar Gangwar launched Software Applications and instruction manuals with questionnaires for five All India Surveys on Labour.



The five All India Surveys are being conducted by Labour Bureau in Chandigarh.

These five surveys being undertaken by Labour Bureau are

All India Survey on Migrant workers, All India survey on Domestic Workers, All India survey on employment generated by Professionals, All India survey on employment generated in Transport Sector and All-India Quarterly Establishment based Employment Survey (to assess the employment

situation in establishments with more than 10 workers and also less than 10 workers).

Labour Bureau, an attached office of Ministry of Labour& Employment, has been at the forefront in fulfilling the data needs of various stakeholders in the field of labour and employment since 1920.

Air pollution caused 12,000 deaths in Bengaluru According to the Greenpeace Southeast Asia Analysis of IQAir data, at least 12,000 people have died in Bengaluru as a result of air pollution and related problems and caused economic damages to the tune of Rs.12,365 crore in 2020.

Six Indian cities — Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad and Lucknow — feature in the global analysis.

Globally, approximately 1,60,000 deaths have been attributed to PM (particulate matter) 2.5 air pollution in the five most populous cities — Delhi, Mexico City, Sao Paulo, Shanghai and Tokyo.

Cost Estimator The ‘Cost Estimator’ is an online tool that estimates the real-time health impact and economic cost from fine particulate matter (PM 2.5) air pollution in major world cities,

According to the report, this tool was deployed in a collaboration between Greenpeace Southeast Asia, IQAir and the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA).

Using real-time ground-level PM 2.5 measurements collated in IQAir’s database, the algorithm applies scientific risk models in combination with population and public health data to estimate the health and economic costs of air pollution exposure.

WION launched 'Mission Sustainability - Population v/s Planet' WION, in partnership with Mobius Foundation, is taking the vision of the Government of India forward and launching a one-year-long social initiative called 'Mission Sustainability - Population v/s Planet'.

The campaign commenced with a two-hour-long Thought Leadership Conclave on February 20, 2021.

World population has witnessed an increase from 1 billion in the year 1800 to 7.8 billion today.

Even though India's population has increased from 36 crore in 1951 to 121.02 crore in 2011, the country has witnessed significant decline in both fertility and mortality.

The crude birth rate which was recorded at 40.8 per 1000 in 1951 has declined to 20.0 in 2018;



Total Fertility Rate (TFR) has declined from 6.0 in 1951 to 2.2 in 2015-16. Death rate in India has declined from 7 in 2012 to 6.2 in 2018.

Population projection for India and States 2011-2036, released in July 2020, indicates that the Total Fertility Rate is expected to decline from 2.37 during 2011-2015 to 1.73 during 2031-35.

The youth population in the age group of 15-24 years is projected to decline from 233 million in 2011 to 227 million in 2036.

However, the proportion of the working age population is expected to increase from 61% in 2011 to 65% in 2036. India is adding 12 million people to the working age population each year.

Assam govt increasing daily wage of tea garden workers Assam government increased the wages of tea garden workers from Rs 167 to Rs 217, coming on the heels of a long-standing demand of the community for an increase and political promises for the same.

Moreover, for equal wages of small tea workers, a one-man committee under Principal Secretary Dr JB Ekka will be formed.

Coming ahead of the state elections, the announcement is important because the tea tribe community — comprising 17% of the state’s population — is a deciding factor in almost 40 Assam Assembly seats out of the 126.

The community is spread over in 800 tea gardens plus several unorganised small gardens of Assam. It is marked by exploitation, economic backwardness, poor health conditions and low literacy rates.

Last Sunday, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said in a rally in the state that the party will ensure a Rs 365 per day wage to tea garden workers of Assam if elected to power.

Rising unemployment is the biggest challenge for India One of the top Twitter trends over the past few hours has been “#modi_rojgar_do”. The hashtag essentially asks Prime Minister Narendra Modi to provide more employment.

Just before the Covid crisis at the end of 2019-20 financial year, India had (according to the data provided by Mahesh Vyas of Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy) around 403.5 million employed people and around 35 million (or 3.5 crore) openly unemployed people in the country.

To this existing pool, each year India adds roughly 10 million (or 1 crore) new job seekers.

But over the past year, several million have lost their jobs. As a result, as of January 2021, India had only about 400 million employed.

If we look at Vyas/CMIE data, which is being compiled since 2016, the total number of employed people in India has been steadily coming down. It was 407.3 million in 2016-17 and then fell to 405.9 million in 2017-18, and to 400.9 million at the end of 2018-19.

India has an labour force participation rate (LFPR) of just about 40%. In other words, in India just 40% of the 20 million joining the working-age group each year actually come forward looking for a job.

NITI Aayog’s draft national policy on migrant workers



Spurred by the exodus of 10 million migrants (as per government estimates) from big cities during the Covid-19 lockdown, NITI Aayog, along with a working subgroup of officials and members of civil society, has prepared a draft national migrant labour policy.

The draft describes two approaches to policy design:

one focussed on cash transfers, special quotas, and reservations; the other which “enhances the agency and capability of the community and thereby

remove aspects that come in the way of an individual’s own natural ability to thrive”.

The policy rejects a handout approach, opting instead for a rights-based framework.

The draft asks the Ministries of Panchayati Raj, Rural Development, and Housing and Urban Affairs to use Tribal Affairs migration data to help create migration resource centres in high migration zones.

It asks the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship to focus on skill-building at these centres.

The Ministry of Education should take measures under the Right to Education Act to mainstream migrant children’s education, to map migrant children, and to provide local-language teachers in migrant destinations.

The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs should address issues of night shelters, short-stay homes, and seasonal accommodation for migrants in cities.

The National Legal Services authority (NALSA) and Ministry of Labour should set up grievance handling cells and fast track legal responses for trafficking, minimum wage violations, and workplace abuses and accidents for migrant workers.

22nd Meeting of the Central Employment Guarantee Council The 22nd Meeting of the Central Employment Guarantee Council, constituted under Section 10 of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (Mahatma Gandhi NREGA), 2005 was held on February 23, 2021 under the Chairmanship of Union Minister of Rural Development.

The Central Employment Guarantee Council has been constituted under Section 10 of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (Mahatma Gandhi NREGA), 2005.

In this current financial year 2020-21 under the shadow of COVID-19 pandemic, Mahatma Gandhi NREGS has played its critical role in providing wage employment to the wage seekers.

A total of 344 crore person days employment has been generated so far, which is the highest ever person days generated so far and around 44% higher than that of last year during the same period.

69 crore new job cards were issued this year as compared to usual about 69 lacs in previous years reflecting the succor it provided to the migrant workers going back to their villages.

Significance of militants’ surrender in Assam 1,040 militants of five militant groups of Karbi Anglong district ceremonially laid down arms at an event in Guwahati in the presence of Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, a development which further bolsters the ‘terrorism-free Assam’ image of the current BJP-led government.



Among the surrendered militants is Ingti Kathar Songbijit, a primary accused in multiple cases of militancy and ethnic violence in the state.

The surrendered militants comprised cadres from five outfits — Karbi People’s Liberation Tiger (KPLT), People’s Democratic Council of Karbi Longri (PDCK), Karbi Longri NC Hills Liberation Front (KLNLF), Kuki Liberation Front (KLF) and United People’s Liberation Army (UPLA).

Insurgency by Karbi — a major ethnic community of Assam — has had a long history in Assam since the late 1980s.

These outfits originated from a core demand of forming a separate state.

Today, the Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council (KAAC) is an autonomous district council, protected under the Sixth Schedule of the Indian Constitution.

The entire political discourse in this constituency — comprising three districts of Karbi Anglong, West Karbi Anglong (split from the former in 2016) and Dima Hasao — revolves around the demand for

granting of “Autonomous State” status to the region and more autonomy and power to the KAAC and the North Cachar Hills Autonomous Council

(which administers over Dima Hasao district).

COVID-19 vaccine doses shipped by the COVAX Facility head to Ghana Ghana became the first country outside India to receive COVID-19 vaccine doses shipped via the COVAX Facility.

This is a historic step towards our goal to ensure equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines globally, in what will be the largest vaccine procurement and supply operation in history.

The delivery is part of a first wave of arrivals that will continue in the coming days and weeks.

The COVAX program is led by the vaccine alliance GAVI, the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) in partnership with UNICEF, vaccine manufacturers and the World Bank, among others.

The aim is to ensure equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines globally in what is being called the largest vaccine procurement and supply operation in history.

The program wants to vaccinate roughly 20 per cent of the population in the 92 Advance Market Commitment (AMC) countries, which include middle and lower-income nations that cannot afford to pay for COVID-19 vaccines.

This means countries with a Gross National Income (GNI) per capita of less than US $4000 and some other countries which are eligible under the World Bank International Development Association (IDA).



Sports Renovated football ground, basketball court in President’s Estate President Ram Nath Kovind inaugurated the Rashtrapati Bhavan Krida Sthal (renovated football ground and basketball court) in the President''s Estate, according to an official statement.

These state-of-art sports facilities are developed with the aim to cater to the needs of the employees of Rashtrapati Bhavan and their families.

An inter-departmental football tournament with five teams namely – President’s Secretariat Heroes, Household Youngs, PBG Warriors, Army Guard Daredevils and Delhi Police Stalwarts also started to encourage the employees and their family members to take part in the sports activities.

2nd Khelo India National Winter Games Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi delivered the inaugural address at the 2nd Khelo India National Winter Games on 26th February 2021.

The event has been organised by the Union Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, in collaboration with the J&K Sports Council and the Winter Games Association of J&K.

The sports activities includes alpine skiing, nordic ski, snowboarding, ski mountaineering, ice hockey, ice skating, ice stock etc.

27 States, Union Territories and Boards are sending their teams to participate in the games.

Miscellaneous Yoga and ‘Rabindranath’ in Chile In his Mann Ki Baat address on January 31, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke about the popularity of Yoga in Chile and appreciated the Latin American nation’s love for Indian culture.

In Chile, the 4th of November has been declared as National Yoga Day.

On 4th of November 1962, the first Yoga institution in Chile was established by José Rafael Estrada.

Estrada, originally from Mexico, is credited for bringing Yoga to Chile.

Rabindranath Quinteros:

He also mentioned that the name of the Vice President of the Chilean Senate is Rabindranath Quinteros.

He has been so named, inspired by Vishwa Kavi Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore.

Red Fort and Delhi: Symbols and narratives of power down the ages Newsfeeds on Republic Day were dominated by scenes of protests on the ramparts of the Red Fort. The climax of what newspapers referred to as the “storming”, “breach”, or “raid”, was the raising of the Nishan Sahib on the pole normally reserved for the hoisting of the national flag by the Prime Minister on Independence Day.



Emperor Shah Jahan commissioned construction of the Red Fort on 12 May 1638, when he decided to shift his capital from Agra to Delhi.

Originally red and white, its design is credited to architect Ustad Ahmad Lahori, who also constructed the Taj Mahal. It was constructed between May 1639 and April 1648.

It was only in the reign of Shah Jahan (1628-58) that the Mughal connection to Delhi was given concrete form, with the founding of the city of Shahjahanabad and the inauguration of its palace citadel, the Red Fort, in 1648.

From that date to the end of Mughal rule in 1857, Delhi would be the formal capital of the Mughal empire.

Agriculture Minister informed Lok Sabha about Agri India Hackathon Union Minister of Agriculture informed Lok Sabha about Agri India Hackathon.

The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has started organising KRITAGYA- a National level hackathon in the month of August, 2020 to promote innovation in agriculture and allied sectors in the country.

Advantages of organising Agri-Hackathon are to give opportunity to the students along with faculties, innovators for showcasing their innovative approaches & technologies in agriculture and allied sectors.

Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has also put in place an Institutional mechanism through Research Institutes, Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) and Agriculture Universities (AUs) to address the problems being faced by the farming sector.

‘Aatmanirbharta’ chosen Oxford Hindi Word of Year 2020 ‘Aatmanirbharta’, implying self-reliance, has been chosen by Oxford Languages, which publishes the Oxford English dictionary, as its Hindi Word of Year 2020 as it “validated the day-to-day achievements of the countless Indians who dealt with and survived the perils of a pandemic”.

The 2019 Oxford Hindi word of the year was “Samvidhaan” or Constitution as the panelists felt that in 2019, the abrogation of Article 370 and the Supreme Court’s judgment on the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute brought attention to the Constitution.

Even so, while the word of the year shows that the term resonated with the people during a given year, it does not guarantee its addition to the Oxford dictionary.

Prime Minister’s ‘Five S’ vision to tackle global challenges The Indian Ocean Region (IOR) Defence Ministers’ Conclave began with a keynote address from Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh on 4th February on the sidelines of Aero India 2021 in Bengaluru.

As the largest nation in the IOR region with a vast coast line of 7500 Kms, India has an active role to play for peaceful and prosperous co-existence of all countries.

SAGAR - Security and Growth for All in the Region is the theme of Indian Ocean Policy as outlined by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi in 2015.

India’s approach and vision to tackle global challenges was highlighted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s dynamic five ‘S’ vision - Samman (Respect), Samvaad (Dialogue), Sahyog (Cooperation), Shanti (Peace) and Samriddhi (Prosperity).



'KAPILA' for patent awareness The Government has launched a campaign namely Kalam Program for Intellectual Property Literacy and Awareness Campaign (KAPILA) for Intellectual Property Literacy and creating patent awareness.

The objectives of the scheme include creating awareness regarding Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) in Higher Education Institutions(HEIs), enabling of IP protection of inventions originating from faculty and students of HEIs, development of Credit Course on IPR, training program on IPR for faculty and students of HEIs and sensitization and development of vibrant IP filing system.

So far, total 46,556 users have been registered for KAPILA.

Andhra Pradesh Becomes the 2nd State to Undertake Power Sector Reforms Andhra Pradesh becomes the second State to undertake the power sector reforms stipulated by the Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance.

As part of the reforms, the State has started Direct Benefit transfer (DBT) of electricity subsisdy to farmers with effect from September, 2020.

Thus, the State has successfully implemented one out of the three stipulated reforms in the power sector.

Besides Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh has also undertaken reforms in the power sector.

As per the guidelines issued by the Department of Expenditure, the States undertaking reforms in power sector are granted permission to raise additional financial resources of up to 0.25 percent of the GSDP. This is linked to a set of 3 reforms in the sector:

(i) 0.05 % of GSDP for reduction in Aggregate Technical and Commercial losses in the State as per prescribed targets.

(ii) Another, 0.05 % of GSDP is allowed for reduction in the gap between Average Cost of Supply and Average Revenue Realisation (ACS-ARR gap) in the State as per prescribed targets.

(iii) Finally, 0.15 % of GSDP of the State on introduction of Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) to all farmers in the State in lieu of free/ subsidised electricity. For this, the State government has to frame a scheme for transfer of cash and implement the scheme in at least one district by 31st December, 2020.

After oils, FSSAI caps transfats in foods The FSSAI has amended its rules to put a cap on trans fatty acids (TFAs) in food products just weeks after it tightened the norms for oils and fats.

Food products in which edible oils and fats are used as an ingredient shall not contain industrial trans-fatty acids more than 2% by mass of the total oils/fats present in the product, on and from 1st January, 2022.

The 2% cap is considered to be elimination of trans-fatty acids, which India will achieve by 2022.

In December 2020, the FSSAI had capped TFAs in oils and fats to 3% by 2021, and 2% by 2022 from the current levels of 5%.



Ministry of AYUSH informed Parliament about Medicinal plants The NMPB is presently implementing “Central Sector Scheme on Conservation, Development and Sustainable Management of Medicinal Plants” throughout the country.

Under ‘Medicinal Plants’ component of the National AYUSH Mission (NAM) scheme supporting market driven cultivation of 140 prioritized medicinal lants in identified cluster/ zones with in the selected districts of States and implemented in a mission mode.

Central Sector Scheme on “Conservation, Development and Sustainable Management of Medicinal Plants” wherein following activities are supported:

In-situ conservation/ Ex-situ conservation Livelihood linkages with Joint Forest Management Committees (JFMCs)/Panchayats/ Van

Panchayats/ Biodiversity Management Committees (BMCs)/ Self Help Groups (SHGs). IEC activities like Training/ Workshops/ Seminars/ Conference etc. Research & Development. Promotion, marketing and trade of medicinal plants produce

National AYUSH Mission Government of India is implementing Centrally Sponsored Scheme of National AYUSH Mission (NAM) through States/UTs for development and promotion of AYUSH systems of medicine including Ayurvedic system.

The Mission inter-alia makes following provisions for promotion of AYUSH systems including Ayurvedic system:

Co-location of AYUSH facilities at Primary Health Centers (PHCs), Community Health Centers (CHCs) and Districts Hospitals (DHs).

Up gradation of exclusive State Government AYUSH Hospitals and Dispensaries. Setting up of upto 50 bedded integrated AYUSH Hospital. Upgradation of State Government Under-Graduate and Post-Graduate Educational

Institutions. Setting up of new State Government AYUSH Educational Institutions in the States where it

is not available in Government Sector. Strengthening of State Government/State Government Co-operatives/Public Sector

Undertakings for manufacturing of quality medicines in AYUSH Systems. Strengthening of State Drug Testing Laboratories for ASU &H Drugs for stringent quality

control. Support for cultivation of Medicinal Plant including processing and post-harvest

management to ensure supply of quality raw material for AYUSH medicine and other products.

Transforming skilling through strategic partnerships under SANKALP The Union Minister of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship chaired a function ‘Transforming skilling through strategic partnerships under SANKALP’.

SANKALP (Skills Acquisition and Knowledge Awareness for Livelihood Promotion) is a World Bank loan assisted programme to strengthen the district skill administration and the District Skill Committees (DSCs).



The two-year academic programme comes with an in-built component of on-ground practical experience with the district administration.

To further bolster the trainer ecosystem, the SANKALP programme will also support in Training of Trainer (ToT) system in Public Private Partnership (PPP) mode that a collaborative approach between industry and the technical and vocational education and training (TVET) ecosystem.

MSDE has instituted the "Awards for Excellence in District Skill Development Planning (DSDP Awards)" under SANKALP in 2018.

Status of Skilled Youths in India The Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) informed Rajya Sabha about the Status of Skilled Youths in India.

MSDE is implementing its flagship demand-driven Centrally Sponsored Scheme, Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY), for imparting short duration skill development training through Short-Term Training (STT) and Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) to youth across all States/UTs.

Jan Shikshan Sansthan (JSS) Scheme aims at providing vocational skills to non-literates, neo-literates as well as school dropouts by identifying skills that have a market in the region of their establishment.

National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (NAPS) is for promoting apprenticeship training and increasing the engagement of apprentices by providing financial support to industrial establishments undertaking apprenticeship programme under The Apprentices Act, 1961.

Craftsmen Training Scheme (CTS): Long term training programme in 137 trades are provided through 14,788 ITIs in the country.

All types of steel to be used for highway construction due to rising steel prices The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has issued orders that all types of steel will be allowed for the construction of highways in the country.

The steel proposed to be used would be tested in NABL-accredited laboratories as a third party check before approval.

Earlier, the contract provisions required use of steel produced by primary/integrated steel producers only.

In view of the increase in steel prices, which can impact the cost of building national highways, Union Minister for Road Transport & Highways had suggested the need to re-look at all conditions which could be restrictive.

With this step, the supplier base for steel used in the construction of national highways would increase, leading to more competition and better price discovery by the markets.

This is also part of the continuous effort by the Minister to reduce costs through use of new technology, reducing restrictions on suppliers and making the procurement system transparent.

Indian Sign Language dictionary with 10,000 terms released From names of banks, political parties, websites and apps to fast food dishes like pani puri and momos, the third edition of the digital Indian Sign Language dictionary launched included 10,000 terms across six categories.



The Dictionary has been brought out by the Indian Sign Language Research and Training Centre (ISLRTC), an autonomous Institute under the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (Divyangjan), Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment.

The 3rd edition of the ISL Dictionary contains total 10,000 terms of everyday use, academic terms, legal & administrative terms, medical terms, technical terms and agricultural terms.

The Dictionary also contains regional signs used in different parts of the country.

The 1st edition of the ISL Dictionary was launched on 23rd March 2018 with 3000 terms and the 2nd edition with 6000 terms (including earlier 3000 terms) was launched on 27th February 2019.

Pariksha Pe Charcha 2021 Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged parents and teachers to take part in the annual 'Pariksha Pe Charcha' interaction programme along with the students saying: It’ll be a fun-filled discussion on an otherwise serious subject.

Pariksha pe Charcha is a programme in which Prime Minister interacts with the cross section of Students and Teachers from India and abroad to beat exam stress.

It is a unique interaction where students, teachers, parents and the Prime Minister will come together to discuss issues related to exams esp. stress-free examination.

The First three editions were held at Talkatora Stadium, New Delhi in 2018, 2019 and 2020.

6th Governing Council Meeting of NITI Aayog Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi chaired the sixth meeting of the Governing Council of NITI Aayog on 20th February 2021 via video conferencing.

The agenda of the meeting includes deliberations on agriculture, infrastructure, manufacturing, human resource development, service delivery at grassroots level and health & nutrition.

The Governing Council presents a platform to discuss inter-sectoral, inter-departmental and federal issues.

It comprises the Prime Minister, Chief Ministers of States and Union Territories (UTs), with Legislatures and Lt Governors of other UTs.

The sixth meeting will witness the entry of Ladakh for the first time, in addition to the participation of Jammu and Kashmir as a UT. This time, other UTs headed by administrators have also been invited to join.

The meeting will also be attended by the ex-officio members of the Governing Council, Union Ministers, Vice Chairman, Members and CEO of NITI Aayog, and other senior officials of Government of India.

India is building its own Footwear Sizing System India could have its own ‘Footwear Sizing System’ by next year, which will hopefully remove some of the confusion involved in buying shoes of ‘EU’, ‘UK’ or ‘US’ sizes, especially online.

CSIR-Central Leather Research Institute (CLRI) will lead a pan India feet scanning survey, data from which will be used to define Indian footwear size standards – and which will be included by shoe manufacturers in their size charts.



The project, which is scheduled to begin later this year and continue for 14 months, is supported by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) of the Union Ministry of Commerce.

Emergency use approval for Sputnik V vaccine Dr Reddy’s Laboratories (DRL) has applied for emergency use authorisation with the Indian drug regulator for Sputnik V vaccine. Earlier, DRL had indicated that it aimed to launch the vaccine in March itself if it gets the regulator's nod.

This is a vaccine that uses two different human common cold viruses (adenovirus) that have been modified so that the gene causing the cold infection is removed and instead replaced with a code to make SARS-CoV-2’s ‘spike protein’ (the spikes seen on the surface of the virus, which allows it to penetrate the cells and replicate).

The human adenoviruses then act as a vehicle to transport this code to the cells when a person is vaccinated, so that the body can develop an immune response in the form of antibodies to protect it in the event the real virus tries to infect.

The vaccine, named after the first Soviet space satellite, was developed by Moscow’s Gamaleya National Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology.

India’s first app to assess one’s carbon footprint Chandigarh became the first state or Union Territory in India to launch Carbon Watch, a mobile application to assess the carbon footprint of an individual.

Although the app can be accessed by everyone, it has specific options for the residents of Chandigarh to compile a detail study.

The application can be downloaded through a QR code in Android supported smart cell phones.

As a person downloads the application, they will need to fill details in four parts- Water, Energy, Waste Generation and Transport (Vehicular movement).

With the mentioned information, the mobile application will automatically calculate the carbon footprint of the individual. The application will also provide information such as the national and world average of the emission, and the individual’s level of emission generation.

The mobile application will suggest methods to reduce the carbon footprints. The application will suggest ways as per the information furnished by the individuals.

LIC of India launches new 'Bima Jyoti' plan Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India has introduced 'Bima Jyoti' plan a non-linked, non-participating, individual savings plan, which offers a combination of protection and savings.

This plan provides guaranteed lumpsum payment at maturity and financial support to the family in case of the unfortunate death of the policyholder during policy term.

Guaranteed Additions at the rate of Rs.50 per thousand Basic Sum Assured will be added to the policy at the end of each policy year.

On death during the policy term after the date of commencement of risk, “Sum Assured on Death” and Accrued Guaranteed Additions as per policy conditions is payable.



The Minimum Basic Sum Assured is Rs 1,00,000/- with no upper limit. The Policy can be taken for a term of 15 to 20 years with premium paying term calculated as Policy term minus 5 years.

The minimum age at entry is 90 days completed and maximum age at entry is 60 yrs.

1st country to identify need for action for Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease India has become the first country in the world to identify the need for action for Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease.

Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan launched the operational guidelines for integration of Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease with the National Programme for Prevention & Control of Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiovascular Diseases and Stroke.

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is an umbrella term for a range of liver conditions affecting people who drink little to no alcohol. As the name implies, the main characteristic of NAFLD is too much fat stored in liver cells.

NAFLD is increasingly common around the world, especially in Western nations.

Some individuals with NAFLD can develop non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), an aggressive form of fatty liver disease, which is marked by liver inflammation and may progress to advanced scarring (cirrhosis) and liver failure.

This damage is similar to the damage caused by heavy alcohol use.

Govt launched National Urban Digital Mission for creating digital infra The Central government launched National Urban Digital Mission' to create a digital infrastructure for cities in the country.

The India Urban Data Exchange has been developed in partnership between the Smart Cities Mission and the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru.

IUDX serves as a seamless interface for data providers and data users, including ULBs, to share, request, and access datasets related to cities, urban governance, and urban service delivery.

IUDX is an open-source software platform which facilitates the secure, authenticated, and managed exchange of data amongst various data platforms, 3rd party authenticated and authorised applications, and other sources.

UPSC adds Leh as exam centre for Civil Services candidates from Ladakh In a first of its kind the Union Public Service Commission UPSC has opened a new centre for the Civil Services Examination, in Leh for the candidates from Union Territory Ladakh.

Sanctioning of a new centre for Civil Services examination in Leh is a great relief for the aspiring candidates. Leh will be the 73rd centre in the country to hold the preliminary exam for Civil Services on 27th of June this year.

Leh Deputy Commissioner will be the Coordinating Supervisor for the Leh centre. At least 800 candidates are expected to attend the civils preliminary exam from the Union Territory Ladakh.



Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs launches the National Urban Digital Mission (NUDM) A number of digital initiatives “SmartCode Platform” focussing on urban governance were launched by Minister, Electronics and Information Technology, Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad, and MoS (I/C) Housing and Urban Affairs, Shri Hardeep Singh Puri, in the presence of Secretaries of the respective Ministries, and other officers of the Central and State Governments.

SmartCode is a platform that enables all ecosystem stakeholders to contribute to a repository of open-source code for various solutions and applications for urban governance.

It is designed to address the challenges that urban local bodies (ULBs) face in the development and deployment of digital applications to address urban challenges, by enabling cities to take advantage of existing codes and customising them to suit local needs, rather than having to develop new solutions from scratch.

As a repository of open-source software, the source code available on the platform will be free to use without any licensing or subscription fees, thus limiting costs to those involved with customising the code and developing a locally-relevant solution.

World’s largest cricket stadium renames as Narendra Modi Stadium The World’s largest cricket stadium at Motera in the Prime Minister’s home state of Gujarat, which was inaugurated by President Ramnath Kovind, to be known as Narendra Modi Cricket Stadium and be a part of the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Sports Enclave.

Motera Stadium, is a cricket stadium in Ahmedabad, Gujarat.

India’s Test against England is the first match at the brand new Motera, the name of the place, after it was refurbished and converted into a 110,000-seater facility, making it the biggest cricket ground in the world in terms of capacity.

Consecration ceremony of Mahamrityunjayatemple in Naogaon Union Home Minister Shri Amit Shah attended the consecration ceremony of Mahamrityunjayatemple in Naugaon, Assam.

He participated in the consecration ceremony of the world’s tallest 126 feet high Shivling in the Mahamrityunjaya temple.

He also visited Borodua pilgrimage, the birthplace of Mahapurush Shrimant Shankardev. He started the new Vaishnav tradition from this holy land and made the Vaishnavite tradition vibrant.

The Mahamrityunjaya Mantra also known as the Rudra Mantra or Tryambakam Mantra, is a verse of the Rigveda.

The sūkta is addressed to Tryambaka, "The Three-eyed One", an epithet of Rudra who is identified with Shiva in Shaivism. The verse also recurs in the Yajurveda.

The 2nd edition of Global Bio-India to be organised from 1-3 March The Biotechnology sector has emerged as an integral part of the Indian economy over the past few decades, and the Government of India is playing a transformative and catalytic role in building a USD 150 billion bio-economy by 2025.

The theme for this year is “Transforming lives” and tag line “Biosciences to Bioeconomy”



The sector is recognized as one of the key drivers for India to achieve its USD 5 trillion target.

Global Bio-India 2021 is expected to have representatives from 50+ countries with Switzerland being the partner country and Karnataka as its state partner

Global Bio-India is being co-organised by the Department of Biotechnology along with its Public Sector Undertaking, Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC) in partnership with Invest India.

The first edition of Global Bio-India 2019 was organized at New Delhi.

E-Daakhil portal for consumer grievance redressal now operational in 15 states E-Daakhil portal for Consumer grievance redressal is now operational in 15 States/UTs. Department of Consumer Affairs is now proactively following up with the states to launch e-filing portal at their ends.

E-filing was launched by National Consumer Dispute Redressal Commission (NCDRC) on 7th September, 2020. Delhi was the first state to implement it on 8th September, 2020.

The Consumer Protection Act, 2019, which has come into force from 20th July, 2020, has provision for e-filing of consumer complaints in the Consumer Commissions and online payment of the fees for filing a complaint.

A web application for E-filing of consumer complaints named “edaakhil.nic.in” has been developed by NIC for the purpose.

This digital software for filing consumer complaints has the many features like e-Notice, case document download link & VC hearing link, filing written response by opposite party, fling rejoinder by complainant and alerts via SMS/Email.

Best of Luck for Your Exams!

Current Affairs February 2021 - gkseries

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