APPOINTMENTS / RESIGNATIONS
Nagaland chief minister TR
Zeliang resigns
- Embattled
Nagaland chief minister TR Zeliang announced his resignation from the top
post, days after party legislators withdrew their support to break the
deadlock between agitating tribal groups and the government.
- Nagaland
has been in a state of turmoil ever since the Nagaland Tribal Action
Committee began their agitation demanding the resignation of Zeliang over
his decision to conduct civic bodies' elections with 33 per cent
reservation for women.
AWARDS AND HONOURS
Indian Movie Newton Wins
top Honour at Berlin Film Festival:
- Indian
Cinema movie Newton directed
by Amit Masurkar was honored with the Art Cinema Award in the Forum Segment at the 67th Berlin
International Film Festival held from February 9-18, 2017 in
Berlin, Germany.
- Over
43 films were screened in the Forum segment out of which 29 had their
world premiere.The film is produced by Manish Mundra of Drishyam Films,
company best known for bankrolling critically-acclaimed projects such as
Masaan, Ankhon Dekhi and Umrika.
South Indian Bank wins
Award for Tech Security Practices:
- The
South Indian Bank (SIB) has awarded with ISO 27001: 2013 certification for
its Information Security
Management System (ISMS).
- The
certification process involved an extensive audit, conducted by British
Standards Institution (BSI) against the criteria set out by the ISO
27001:2013 standards on various domains of IT functions.
- Earlier,
SIB has received ISO 9001 Quality Management certification for its Credit
Department, Personnel Department and Data Centre.
BANKING AFFAIRS
Oriental Bank launches
mobile wallet ‘Batuaa’:
- On
the occasion of the 75th Foundation Day, Oriental Bank of Commerce (OBC)
has come up with several digital offerings including launch of mobile
wallet ‘Oriental
Batuaa’.
- Besides
introducing a new version of mobile banking, OBC has also launched two new
cards.While the Oriental Premium card is a RuPay based Platinum
international debit card with airport lounge access, the other
card-Oriental Prepaid Card is a RuPay card for individuals and
corporates.
- Besides
it has also launched two MSME schemes The two MSME schemes that have been
launched are ‘Oriental Sanjeevani’ and ‘Oriental Budget Hotels and
Restaurants’.
Cash withdrawal limit for savings account increases to Rs
50,000 per week
- Savings
accounts holders will now be able to withdraw up to Rs 50,000 per week. An
RBI notification, issued on January 30, 2017 announced that from February
20, 2017 the cash withdrawal limit for savings accounts will be raised to
Rs 50,000 from Rs 24,000 a week.
- The
limits on cash withdrawals from savings bank account will be withdrawn
completely from March 13, 2017. Till now, there is no limit on current
account and there is a cap of Rs 50,000 for farmers a week and Rs 2.5 lakh
for marriage.
IRB InvIT Fund gets SEBI approval to launch IPO
- IRB
InvIT Fund, an investment trust sponsored by IRB Infrastructure
Developers, has received markets regulator SEBI’s approval to raise Rs.
4,300 crore through initial public offering.
- However,
the Securities and Exchange Board of India has asked for clarification
from India Grid Trust and Reliance Infra InvIT Fund regarding their
proposed IPOs
BUSINESS AND ECONOMIC AFFAIRS
Microsoft, Flipkart
announce strategic cloud partnership:
- Information technology giant Microsoft
announced a strategic partnership with Flipkart, wherein as a first step,
the online retailer will adopt Microsoft Azure as its exclusive public
cloud platform.
- The strategic partnership was aimed at
providing consumers in the country the best online shopping service.
- Microsoft chief executive officer (CEO) Satya
Nadella and Flipkart Group CEO Binny Bansal announced the partnership at
an event in Bengaluru.
Apple acquires Israeli
start-up RealFace:
- In
a bid to boost its prospects in the world of artificial intelligence (AI),
Apple has acquired Israel-based start-up RealFace that develops deep learning-based face
authentication technology.
- The
terms of the deal are not public, but it is estimated at several million
dollars. Apple would mainly be interested in the promise of the technology
than pure resources.
BOOKS AND AUTHORS
Book to chronicle Dream
Girl Hema Malini's journey
- Dream
Girl Hema Malini's incredible journey from an actor, a danseuse and
filmmaker to a politician is being chronicled in a new book which will hit
stores on her 69th birthday this October.
- Billed
as an authorised biography, 'Hema Malini: Beyond the Dream Girl' is penned
by author-columnist Ram Kamal Mukherjee.
IMPORTANT DAYS OBSERVED
World Day of Social
Justice: 20 February
- The
United Nations' (UN) World Day of Social Justice is annually observed on
20th February to encourage
people to look at how social justice affects poverty eradication.
- It
also focuses on the goal of achieving full employment and support for
social integration.
- The
theme for 2017 is "Preventing
conflict and sustaining peace through decent work”.
31st state hood day of
Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram: 20 February
- Prime
Minister Narendra Modi has greeted people of Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram on their 31st statehood day (20
February 2017) Conveying his best wishes to people of Mizoram and
Arunachal Pradesh.
- Prime
Minister prayed for the state's progresses immensely in the years to come.
Union Minister of Home Affairs Rajnath Singh also greeted both the
states.
INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS
India sanctions soft loan
USD 340 million to Nepal:
- India
has sanctioned a soft loan of 340
million US dollar to Nepal for various infrastructure development
programmes.
- Indian
Ambassador to Nepal Ranjit Rae handed over the approval papers to Physical
Infrastructure and Transport Minister of Nepal Ramesh Lekhak in the
presence of Railways Minister Suresh Prabhu.
- Under
this programme Mahalaki bridge and 15 roads will be constructed in various
parts of Nepal.
Saudi stock exchange appoints its first female head
- The
Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul) has appointed Sarah Al-Suhaimi as its first
female chairperson.
- Al-Suhaimi,
the CEO of NCB Capital, was elected by the exchange’s board, which
includes representatives from the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA),
the Finance Ministry and the Ministry of Commerce and Investment.
- She
has now become the first woman in the kingdom to chair a major
governmental financial institution.
- One
of the few women leaders working in Saudi’s finance sector, Al-Suhaimi
became the first female CEO of a Saudi investment bank when she was
appointed to lead NCB Capital in 2014.
- Prior
to joining NCB Capital, Al-Suhaimi worked as chief investment officer at
Jadwa Investment and senior portfolio manager at Samba Financial Group.
NATIONAL AFFAIRS
India Vetiver Network
(INVN) has been launched at Tamil Nadu Agricultural University
- About
250 delegates are participating in this conference.
- India
Vetiver Network (INVN) a non-profit scientific network to promote vetiver
in India, was launched as part of the conference.
- Vetiver
(Indian grass with fragrant root) has worldwide application to tackle many
environmental issues like soil erosion, mitigation of soil and water
pollution.
- Emeritus
professor of Banaras Hindu University, G P Dubey today emphasised the need
for validation of traditional knowledge to keep pace with the growth of
world market for medicinal plants.
- Speaking
at the two-day National Conference on Agrotechnology and Profitable
marketing of Tropical Medicinal and Aromatic Plants here, Dubey pointed
out that a few medicinal plants grown in Tamil Nadu were proven to be
efficacious for the management of type 2 diabetes.
Khajuraho Dance Festival
begins in Madhya Pradesh:
- The
world famous 43rd edition of Khajuraho Dance Festival has bugun at Khajuraho in Chhatrapur District in
Madhya Pradesh.
- It
is a cultural festival that highlights the richness of the various Indian
classical dance styles.
- Live
performances of classical dances like Kathak, Kuchipudi, Odissi,
Bharatnatyam, and Mohniattam will be major attraction this time.
- The
UNESCO World Heritage Site “Khajuraho Temple” is a group ofHindu and Jain Temples in
Madhya Pradesh build by Chandela Dynasty between 950 and 1050 AD.
South Asian Speakers’ Summit 2017 concluded in Indore
- The
summit was organised for three days by the Parliament of India in
association with the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU).
- The
summit was held as a follow up to the conclusions of the South Asian
Speakers’ Summit. The summit was held in Dhaka, Bangladesh in 2016.
- The
focus of the summit was to evolve appropriate strategies to achieve goals
set by the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda (SDA) of the United
Nations.
- The
summit deliberated on opportunities and challenges that parliaments in
South Asia face in making their contribution to the implementation of the
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
- The
agenda of the summit embedded the gender perspective to reflect growing
inequalities between men and women.
- Discussions
also focussed on the impact of climate change on economic and social
development in the region. The participants of the summit also discussed
measures to strengthen cooperation among parliaments to address today's
most pressing challenges.
Srinagar Airport Gets Its First Foreign Airline Service
- AirAsia
became the first foreign airline to begin its operations from Srinagar
international airport in Jammu and Kashmir.
- Srinagar
has The Sheikh-ul-Alam International Airport since last five years, but
no Air Asiaforeign airlines had yet
operated services from there.The flight operation by AirAsia is expected
to give a boost to tourism in the valley.
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY AFFAIRS
Indian Coast Guard Ship
ICGS AYUSH commissioned
- Indian
Coast Guard Ship ICGS AYUSH was commissioned at Kochi, Kerala by Vice
Admiral AR Karwe, Flag Officer Commanding-in- Chief, Southern Naval
Command. ICGS AYUSH is the 20th and the last in the series of 20 Fast
Patrol Vessels (FPVs) built by Cochin Shipyard Ltd.
- ICGS
AYUSH is fitted with state-of- the-art navigational and communication
equipment including Integrated Bridge System (IBS) and Machinery Control
System (MCS).
- The
ship is capable of undertaking multifarious tasks such as surveillance,
interdiction, search and rescue, anti-smuggling and medical evacuation. It
will also play a secondary role of providing a communication link and
escort coastal conveys in times of war.
NASA to create Space Technology Research Institutes for Deep
Space Exploration
- In
order to focus on deep space missions, the National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA) has proposed to set up of two multi-disciplinary,
university-led research institutes that will work to develop technologies
having potential to extend human presence deeper into the solar system.
- The
Space Technology Research Institutes (STRIs) will be created in the two
institutes namely Centre for the Utilization of Biological Engineering in
Space (CUBES) and Institute for Ultra-Strong Composites by Computational
Design (US-COMP) with expected outcome within 5 years.
- The
new STRIs created under the proposals will bring together researchers from
various disciplines and organizations to collaborate on the advancement of
cutting-edge technologies in bio-manufacturing and space infrastructure.
SPORTS AFFAIRS
Virat Kohli first Indian
sportsperson to ink Rs 100-cr deal with Puma:
- Virat
Kohli became the first Indian sports personality to strike a Rs 100-crore
endorsement deal with a single brand. Kohli signed an eight-year deal with
sports apparel brand Puma worth Rs 110 crore.
- The
Indian cricket captain is now set to join the likes of Usain Bolt, Asafa
Powell and Thierry Henry, among others, as a global ambassador for the
brand.
Shahid Afridi announces
retirement from international cricket:
- Legendary
Pakistan all-rounder Shahid Afridi (36-year) has announced his retirement
from international cricket.
- He
had already quit Test and ODI cricket but still captained the Pakistan
Twenty 20 team at the 2016 world championships in India.
- Afridi
played played 27 -Test, 398-ODIs and 98- T20Is for Pakistan.
- He
holds a record of taking most wickets (97) and most player-of-the match
awards in Twenty20 International cricket.
- He
also holds the distinction of having hit the most number of sixes in the
history of ODI cricket.
India to Host Next Davis
Cup tie in Bangalore in April, 2017:
- Bangalore
has been chosen to host the next Davis Cup Asia-Oceania Zone group-1 tie
against Uzbekistan from April 7 to 9, 2017.
- As
per the announcement made by the All India Tennis Association (AITA) the
tie clash will be held on the hard courts of Karnataka State Lawn Tennis
Association (KSLTA) in Bangalore.
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga wins 2017 Rotterdam Open
- France’s
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga on 19 February 2017 defeated David Goffin 4-6 6-4 6-1
to win the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament final in Rotterdam,
Netherlands.
- With
the title came an end to Tsonga’s two-year title drought. He had last won
a title in the year 2015.
Akhil and Jitender Kumar Signs Deal to Turn Professional
Boxers
- Following
the path of Indian boxing sensation Vijender Singh, Olympic
quarterfinalists boxers Akhil Kumar and Jitender Kumar are also stepping
up to enter professional boxing.
- The
former Melbourne Commonwealth Games gold medalist boxer Akhil Kumar and
Asian medallist Jitender Kumar signed a multi-year deal with IOS Boxing
Promotions confirming turning professional boxers.
Afghan players Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan create IPL history
- Afghanistan
cricket broke a new barrier when Mohammad Nabi and Rashid Khan became the
first from the war-torn nation to be picked in the Indian Premier League
(IPL) auction.
- Both
Nabi and Khan players were bought by Sunrisers Hyderabad, for Rs. 30 lakh
and Rs. 4 crore respectively. Five cricketers from Afghanistan were
included in the auction for the first time.
