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Current Affairs Today – 5th February 2020
NEWS AT A GLANCE
- Insurance cover on bank deposits has been increased to five lakh rupees from one lakh rupees. The decision came into effect from 6th Feb.
- IT major HCL Technologies stated it has entered into a pact with Sri Lanka’s Board of Investment for setting up a global delivery Centre in Colombo.
- India’s biggest rural technical festival titled ‘Antahpragnya 2020’ held in Rajiv Gandhi University of Knowledge Technologies (RGUKT), Basar, Nirmal District, Telangana.
- President Ram Nath Kovind today opened the yearly Udyanotsav of Rashtrapati Bhavan. The Mughal Gardens at Rashtrapati Bhavan will remain open for the overall population from 6th February 2020.
- Proceeding with the act of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) defense minister moving the biennial DefExpo resistance hardware presentation to their home state, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh will commence DefExpo 2020 in Lucknow on 5th February 2020.
- The Karnataka government on 4th February propelled the Janasevaka scheme in a couple of metropolitan organization wards to guarantee home conveyance of different administrations like proportion cards, senior resident personality, and wellbeing cards.
- 7 schemes worth Rs 594 Crores under Swadesh Darshan and PRASHAD Schemes approved for J and K and Ladakh Ministry of Tourism
- Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot will dedicate the UNESCO world heritage site certificate for Jaipur to the people at a function to organize at historical Albert Hall this evening.
- In Tamil Nadu, the rare Kumbhabhishekam of the heritage Brihadeeswara Temple in Thanjavur will be held in a short while from now.
- Sri Lanka celebrated its 72nd Independence Day on 4th February 2020.
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the 11th edition of the DefExpo-2020, a flagship biennial event of the Ministry of Defence, in a short while from now in Lucknow.
- NCRB stated that the highest number of women and children who go missing in the country are from Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh
- Para-athlete and India’s lone woman Paralympic medallist Deepa Malik has been elected as president of Paralympic Committee of India.
- Maharashtra State Commission for Women Chairperson Vijaya Rahatkar has tendered her resignation from the post.
- Australian Open is the first of the four annual Grand Slam events among the world’s major tennis championships.
- The National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) has suspended weightlifter Ramshad AR for a period of 2 years after being found guilty of violating the anti-doping rule.
- India hosted the Ministerial-level Defence dialogue between India and South Korea in New Delhi.
- The ninth edition of Indo-Bangladesh Joint Military Exercise SAMPRITI-IX commenced at Umroi, Meghalaya.
- Mo O’Brien (60 years) has become the first deaf person on record to row an ocean by finishing a 3,000-mile journey across the Atlantic with her daughter Bird Watts, and their friend Claire Allinson.
- 7th MSME Excellence Awards & summit was organized by ASSOCHAM at Le Meridien, New Delhi.
- The government of India unveiled a new indigenously developed vaccine for controlling classical swine fever (CSF). CSF is a highly contagious fatal pig disease.
- Environmental change is quick, affecting the living creatures on land and sea the same.
- Eminent Punjabi writer and Sahitya Akademi Awardee Jaswant Singh Kanwal passed away.
- Renowned Odia revolutionary poet and freedom fighter Rabi Singh passed away.
- Former Nizamabad MP and one of the protagonists of the Telangana statehood movement M Narayana Reddy passed away.
NEWS IN DETAILS
BANKING AND FINANCE CURRENT AFFAIRS
Insurance cover on bank deposits increases from Rs one lakh to five lakh
- Insurance cover on bank deposits has been increased to five lakh rupees from one lakh rupees. The decision came into effect from 6th
- The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said in a statement that the cover is provided by the Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the RBI. AIM: to provide a greater measure of protection to depositors.
- The move will help boost confidence of people in the banking system.
- The deposit insurance scheme covers all banks operating in India, including private sector, cooperative and even branches of foreign banks.
- There are some exemptions such as deposits of foreign governments, deposits of Central and State Governments, and inter-bank deposits.
Extra Shots:
RBI: The Reserve Bank of India is India’s central banking institution, which controls the issuance and supply of the Indian rupee.
- Founded: 1 April 1935, Kolkata
- Headquarters: Mumbai
- Governor: Shaktikanta Das
- Deputy Governors: B P Kanungo, M K Jain, N S Vishwanathan, Michael Debaprata Patra
BUSINESS AND ECONOMY
HCL to set up global delivery center in Colombo
- IT major HCL Technologies stated it has entered into a pact with Sri Lanka’s Board of Investment for setting up a global delivery Centre in Colombo.
- HCL Technologies (HCL) aims at boosting employment, providing resources and skilling the local talent to serve its global clients .
- Collaborating with the BOI of Sri Lanka, HCL’s local entity — HCL Technologies Lanka (Private) Ltd will implement its ‘Work Integrated Education Program’ to foster growth by actively cooperating with local information and communications technology (ICT) and engineering institutions to develop and train the island’s talent pool.
- Through this delivery center in Colombo, global clients will be provided with services in the areas comprising of Applications & System Integration Services, Infrastructure Services and Digital Process Operations.
Extra Shots:
HCL: HCL Technologies Limited is an Indian multinational information technology service and consulting company headquartered in Noida, Uttar Pradesh. It is a subsidiary of HCL Enterprise.
- CEO: C Vijayakumar
- Headquarters: Noida
- Founders: Shiv Nadar, Arjun Malhotra
- Parent organization: HCL Enterprise
NATIONAL CURRENT AFFAIRS
India’s biggest rural technical festival ‘Antahpragnya 2020’ held in Telangana
- India’s biggest rural technical festival titled ‘Antahpragnya 2020’ held in Rajiv Gandhi University of Knowledge Technologies (RGUKT), Basar, Nirmal District, Telangana.
- The theme for the year 2020 was “Spot and encourage rural tech innovators”.
- The festival displays 300 prototypes, working models, exhibits technologies such as automatic switch for water, homemade electricity, smoke absorber, automatic street lighting system, smart dustbins, zero budget farming, automatic irrigation etc.
- The team of Antahpragnya in collaboration with SSERD (Society for Space Education, Research and Development) organized an Astrospace camp which aimed to create awareness about the exciting career in space.
Extra Shots:
Telangana:
- Capital: Hyderabad
- Chief Minister: K. Chandrashekar Rao
- Governor: Tamilisai Soundararajan
Annual Udyanotsav Inaugurated by Prez Kovind at Rashtrapati Bhavan
- President Ram Nath Kovind today opened the yearly Udyanotsav of Rashtrapati Bhavan. The Mughal Gardens at Rashtrapati Bhavan will remain open for the overall population from 6th February 2020.
Extra Shots:
Udayanotsav
- The nurseries will stay open till the eighth of one month from now, and individuals can make their visit between 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM. The nurseries will be shut for guests on Mondays, by virtue of support.
DefExpo 2020 attracts more than 1,000 companies for defence by Rajnath Singh
- Proceeding with the act of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) defense minister moving the biennial DefExpo resistance hardware presentation to their home state, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh will commence DefExpo 2020 in Lucknow on 5th February 2020.
- In 2016, at that point, resistance serves Manohar Parrikar moved DefExpo from New Delhi to Goa during enormous restriction from natural activists.
- After two years, Nirmala Sitharaman moved DefExpo 2018 to Chennai.
STATE CURRENT AFFAIRS
Karnataka launches Janasevaka program to provide Govt services at Home Delivery
- The Karnataka government on 4th February propelled the Janasevaka scheme in a couple of metropolitan organization wards to guarantee home conveyance of different administrations like proportion cards, senior resident personality, and wellbeing cards.
- The plan, which was propelled by Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa, will relate to 53 services, including 11 divisions.
Extra Shots:
Karnataka:
- Capital: Bengaluru
- Chief Minister: B. S. Yediyurappa
- Governor: Vajubhai Vala
- National Park: Anshi NP, Bandipur NP, Bannerghatta NP, Kudremukh NP, Rajiv Gandhi (Nagarahole) NP.
7 schemes worth Rs 594 Crores under Swadesh Darshan and PRASHAD Schemes approved for J and K and Ladakh Ministry of Tourism
- The Ministry of Tourism advances India as an all-encompassing goal and as a feature of its on-going exercises, every year discharges residential and universal print, electronic and online media crusades under the ‘Incredible India’ brand-line, to advance different the travel industry goals and items in the various States/UTs of the nation, including the UTs of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
- Advancements are additionally attempted through the site and Social Media records of the Ministry.
- Moreover, the India Tourism Offices in India and abroad try different special exercises intending to exhibit the travel industry capability of the various States and Union Territories.
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Jammu & Kashmir:
- Capitals- Jammu (Winter), Srinagar (Summer)
- Lt Governor- Girish Chandra Murmu
- National Parks: City Forest (Salim Ali) National Park, Dachigam National Park, Hemis National Park, Kishtwar National Park
- Wildlife Sanctuaries: Baltal-Thajwas WLS, Changthang Cold Desert WLS, Gulmarg WLS, Jasrota WLS, Karakoram (Nubra Shyok) WLS etc
Rajasthan CM to dedicate UNESCO world heritage site certificate for Jaipur at historical Albert Hall
- Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot will dedicate the UNESCO world heritage site certificate for Jaipur to the people at a function to organize at historical Albert Hall this evening.
- UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay will be felicitated on the occasion.
- UNESCO declared the Walled City of Jaipur world heritage site in July last year which is famous for its grid plan-based architecture and buildings constructed with the pink façade.
Tamil Nadu: Brihadeeswarar temple in Thanjavur gets ready for Kumbabishekam
- In Tamil Nadu, the rare Kumbhabhishekam of the heritage Brihadeeswara Temple in Thanjavur will be held in a short while from now.
- The ‘kumbhabhishekam’ of the 1,000-year old Brihadeeswara temple in Thanjavur is being held with traditional rites and rituals within a few hours from now.
- The huge Vimanam, above the sanctum of the temple will be consecrated with 110 pots of water around 9.30 a.m.
- The kumbhabhishekam, which relates to the rejuvenation of the temple, was last performed in 1997.
- The walls of the temple have been attractively painted, using natural colors, by the students of the Kumbhakonam Government Fine Arts College.
Extra Shots:
Tamilnadu
- Capital: Chennai
- Chief Minister: Edappadi K.Palanisamy
- Governor: Banwarilal Purohit
- Chief Justice of Madras High Court: Vijaya Kamlesh Tahilramani
- National Park: Guindy NP,Gulf of Mannar Marine NP, Indira Gandhi (Annamalai) NP, Mudumalai NP, Mukurthi NP.
INTERNATIONAL CURRENT AFFAIRS
72nd Independence Day celebrated by Sri Lanka
- Sri Lanka celebrated its 72nd Independence Day on 4th February 2020.
- On this day, Sri Lanka became an independent nation after getting independence from Britain.
- Military parades and air shows were the most attractive points of the Sri Lankan Independence Day celebrations held in Colombo.
- The major change in the celebration ceremony was the National Anthem of Sri Lanka as it was sung only in Sinhala and not in Tamil language.
- The national anthem was used to be sung in both the languages since 2016.
Extra Shots:
Sri Lanka(Capitals/Currency): Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte/Sri Lankan rupee.
- Prime minister: Ranil Wickremesinghe
- President: Maithripala Sirisena
SUMMITS AND CONFERENCES
PM Modi to inaugurate 11th edition of DefExpo-2020 in Lucknow
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the 11th edition of the DefExpo-2020, a flagship biennial event of the Ministry of Defence, in a short while from now in Lucknow.
- Union Defence Minister and Local MP Rajnath Singh, Minister of State for Defence Shripad Yesho Naik, UP Governor Anandi Ben Patel, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and many ministers of state government will attend the inaugural ceremony.
- The 11th edition of Def Expo promises to bring new technologies, technological solutions, where Defence manufacturing companies from India and abroad showcase their products and services in the Defence arena, on a single platform.
- The exhibition will present a golden opportunity for interaction and brainstorming to innovators, manufacturers, market leaders, government and other stakeholders.
Extra Shots:
Uttar Pradesh:
- Capital: Lucknow
- Chief Minister: Yogi Adityanath
- Governor: Anandiben Patel
- State formed in: 24 January 1950
- Literacy Rate: 67.68%
- Nation Park: Dudhwa National Park
RANKS AND INDICES
Maharashtra records highest number of missing women: NCRB
- NCRB stated that the highest number of women and children who go missing in the country are from Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh
- Maximum number of cases of missing women and children was Maharashtra and MP respectively.
- In 2019, the Supreme Court had directed National Crime Records Bureau to identify and check those areas which are prone to persons being trafficked.
- The report covers 2016, 2017 and 2018.
Extra Shots:
Maharashtra:
- Capital: Mumbai
- Chief Minister: Uddhav Thackeray
- Governor: Bhagat Singh Koshyari
- State Formed in: 1 May 1960
- Litracy Rate: 82.34%
- National Parks: Chandoli National Park, Nawegaon National Park, Gugamal National Park, Pench National Park, Sanjay Gandhi (Borivilli) National Park, Tadoba National Park
- Wildlife Sanctuaries: Amba Barwa WLS, Bor WLS, Great Indian Bustard WLS,Lonar WLS, Melghat WLS, Gangewadi New Great Indian Bustard WLS, etc.
APPOINTMENT
Deepa Malik becomes president of Paralympic Committee of India
- Para-athlete and India’s lone woman Paralympic medallist Deepa Malik has been elected as president of Paralympic Committee of India.
- She was elected unopposed as president in the PCI polls held in Bengaluru.
- He was the successor of the acting interim president Gursharan Singh.
- She was also awarded Padma Shri award, Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award.
Maharashtra women’s commission chief Rahatkar resigns
- Maharashtra State Commission for Women Chairperson Vijaya Rahatkar has tendered her resignation from the post.
- She submitted her resignation to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray yesterday.
- Ms Rahatkar is the President of the BJP Mahila Morcha and her resignation comes against the backdrop of the Bombay High Court’s observation regarding her continuance on the post despite the change in government in the state.
Extra Shots:
Maharashtra:
- Capital: Mumbai
- Chief Minister: Uddhav Thackeray
- Governor: Bhagat Singh Koshyari
- State Formed in: 1 May 1960
- Litracy Rate: 82.34%
- National Parks: Chandoli National Park, Nawegaon National Park, Gugamal National Park, Pench National Park, Sanjay Gandhi (Borivilli) National Park, Tadoba National Park
- Wildlife Sanctuaries: Amba Barwa WLS, Bor WLS, Great Indian Bustard WLS,Lonar WLS, Melghat WLS, Gangewadi New Great Indian Bustard WLS, etc.
SPORTS CURRENT AFFAIRS
Australia Open 2020
- Australian Open is the first of the four annual Grand Slam events among the world’s major tennis championships.
- The grand slam Australian Open is held annually at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia.
| CATEGORY | WINNER | RUNNER UP |
| Men’s Singles | Novak Djokovic (Serbia) | Dominic Thiem (Austria) |
| Women’s Singles | Sofia Kenin (USA) | Garbine Muguruza (Spain) |
| Men’s Doubles | Rajeev Ram (United States of America) & Joe Salisbury (United Kingdom) | Max Purcell (Australia) & Luke Saville (Australia) |
| Women’s Doubles | Timea Babos (Hungary) & Kristina Mladenovic (France) | Su-Wei Hsieh (Chinese Taipei) & Barbora Strycova (Czech Republic) |
| Mixed Doubles | Barbora Krejcikova (Czech Republic) & Nikola Mektic (Croatia) | Bethanie Mattek-Sands (USA) & Jamie Murray (United Kingdom) |
NADA suspends two Indian athletes
- The National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) has suspended weightlifter Ramshad AR for a period of 2 years after being found guilty of violating the anti-doping rule.
- He was examined by the Doping Control Officer of NADA during the 71st Men’s National Weightlifting Championship.
- In addition to this, NADA has also banned Indian wrestler Ravinder Kumar for 4 years for failing a dope test.
Extra Shots:
NADA: The National Anti-Doping Agency is the national organisation responsible for promoting, coordinating, and monitoring the doping control program in sports in all its forms in India.
- CEO: Navin Agarwal
- Founded: 24 November 2005
- Chairman: Minister of Sports (India)
- Motto: Play fair
- Purpose: Anti-doping in sports
- Headquarters: New Delhi, India
DEFENCE CURRENT AFFAIRS
India hosts Defence dialogue between India and South Korea
- India hosted the Ministerial-level Defence dialogue between India and South Korea in New Delhi.
- The Ministerial-level Defence dialogue aimed to deepen bilateral defence cooperation between the two countries.
- South Korean industries are also encouraged to invest in Indian Defence corridors by establishing their manufacturing units in India by reaping benefits from the economical and skilled labor force, natural resources and tailored incentives.
- During the dialogue, both the countries also intended to leverage mutual strengths in digital applications as well as other advanced technologies.
- South Korea Defence Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo and India Defence Minister Rajnath Singh participated in the Ministerial-level Defence dialogue between India and South Korea.
- Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat, Army Chief General Manoj Naravane and Navy Chief Admiral Karambir Singh were among the other participants of the dialogue.
Extra Shots:
South Korea (Capital/Currency): Seoul/ South Korean won
- Prime Minister: Lee Nak-yeon
Ninth edition of India-Bangladesh joint military exercise begins in Meghalaya
- The ninth edition of Indo-Bangladesh Joint Military Exercise SAMPRITI-IX commenced at Umroi, Meghalaya.
- The main focus of this edition of the fourteen days joint exercise is on Counter-Terrorism Operations in mountainous and jungle terrain.
- Defence Ministry has stated that a delegation comprising of 31 officers and 138 other ranks of Bangladesh Army and a company group of Indian Army will participate in the joint military exercise.
- The Bangladesh Army contingent is led by Brigadier General Md Shafiul Azam. Both armies will familiarise each other in various tactical drills and procedures.
- The joint exercise will culminate on 16th Feb after a validation exercise.
Extra Shots:
Bangladesh (Capital/Currency): Dhaka/Taka
- Prime Minister: Sheikh Hasina
Meghalaya:
- Capital: Shillong
- Governor: Tathagata Roy
- Chief Minister: Conrad Sangma
- Literacy: 75.84%
AWARDS
Mo O’Brien becomes the 1st deaf person to row Atlantic Ocean
- Mo O’Brien (60 years) has become the first deaf person on record to row an ocean by finishing a 3,000-mile journey across the Atlantic with her daughter Bird Watts, and their friend Claire Allinson.
- The Ocean Rowing Society, which is responsible for monitoring ocean rowing records, confirmed that she is the world first deaf person who rowed almost 3,000 miles (4,800km) of the Atlantic Ocean.
7th MSME Excellence Award For Most Promising Brand 2019: Amulya Mica
- 7th MSME Excellence Awards & summit was organized by ASSOCHAM at Le Meridien, New Delhi.
- With an objective of acknowledging the inestimable contributions made by MSMEs to various sectors of the economy, The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM), India’s Apex Chamber for Commerce & Industry has constituted the “ASSOCHAM MSMEs Excellence Awards”.
- This Award seeks to recognize the contribution of MSMEs who through their achievements and performance have empowered the nation.
- Amulya Mica (Purbanchal Laminates Pvt. Ltd.), Spear headed by their Managing Director Mr. Rakesh Agarwal, was chosen to be the Most Promising Brand of the Year Award 2019, Gold Category.
- Since four years Amulya Mica has been receiving Most Trusted Brand Award by IBC, USA ( International Brand Consulting Corporation, USA).
- Now ASSOCHAM Delhi has awarded AMULYA MICA as The Most Promising Brand of the year.
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
GoI unveils new vaccine to control classical swine fever
- The government of India unveiled a new indigenously developed vaccine for controlling classical swine fever (CSF). CSF is a highly contagious fatal pig disease.
- The new vaccine, developed by Uttar Pradesh-based Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR)-Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI), will be much cheaper than the existing one.
- It would cost only Rs 2 per dose compared to the current vaccine’s rate of Rs 15-20 per dose and imported Korean vaccine rate of Rs 30 per dose. CSF: Classical Swine Fever (CSF) is one of the diseases of the pig causing high mortality.
Scientists Discover Warm Water in Antarctica below Doomsday Glacier
- Environmental change is quick, affecting the living creatures on land and sea the same.
- Because of the extraordinary increment in an unnatural weather change levels, the icy masses are softening at a higher rate than at any other time.
- No big surprise, the ocean levels are rising, and progressively seaside regions are getting inclined to the overwhelming impacts of this incredible wonder.
OBITUARIES
Sahitya Akademi Awardee Jaswant Singh Kanwal passes away
- Eminent Punjabi writer and Sahitya Akademi Awardee Jaswant Singh Kanwal passed away. In 1996, he was bestowed the Sahitya Akademi Fellowship award for his book ‘Pakhi’ (Hand Fan) and two years later in 1998, he received the Sahitya Akademi award for his novel ‘Taushali Di Hanso’.
- Kanwal also received the Sahitya Shiromani Award of the Punjab government in 2007 and the following year, Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, conferred on Kanwal the degree of Doctor of Literature (Honoris Causa) for his contribution to Punjabi literature.
Odia revolutionary poet Rabi Singh passes away
- Renowned Odia revolutionary poet and freedom fighter Rabi Singh passed away.
- He was popularly known as ‘Biplabi Kabi’ (the revolutionary poet) for his patriotic writings.
- Rabi Singh was awarded Atibadi Jagannath Das Samman by Odisha Sahitya Akademi in 2017 for his contribution to Odia literature.
Former Nizamabad MP Narayana Reddy passes away
- Former Nizamabad MP and one of the protagonists of the Telangana statehood movement M Narayana Reddy passed away.
- He was 89.
- Reddy was elected as a member of the Lok Sabha from Nizamabad as an independent candidate in 1967 & the first member who raised the issue of separate Telangana in Lok Sabha.
