Daily Current Affairs: February 21 & 22, 2021

Daily Current Affairs (February 21 & 22, 2021) like many other sections is inevitable and this also helps to score in the Banking awareness, Static GK, and Financial Awareness sections. Remember, Banking Awareness, and Static Awareness Questions are asked from the General Awareness section. This will also help you to ride your preparations for the forthcoming exams.

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Important Days

International Mother Language Day: 21 February

• International Mother Language Day recognises that languages and multilingualism can advance inclusion, and the Sustainable Development Goals focus on leaving no one behind. UNESCO believes education, based on the first language or mother tongue, must begin from the early years as early childhood care and education is the foundation of learning.
• 2021 theme: “Fostering multilingualism for inclusion in education and society”

World Thinking Day: 22 February

• World Thinking Day is formerly known as Thinking Day which is celebrated annually on 22 February since It remains a day for all Guides and Girl Scouts to think of each other and celebrate their sisters all around the world.
• 2021 Theme: “Peacebuilding”

National News

Kerala Government sanctions ₹ 9 crore to build ‘smart’ anganwadis

• Kerala Government has sanctioned ₹9 crore to covert the conventional anganwadis into “smart” structures with better amenities. Under the Smart Anganwadi scheme, the Department of Women and Child Development has granted 48 anganwadis in the state to construct new buildings.
• The smart anganwadis are being designed and constructed as part of the Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS). The main aim is to make the facility more child-friendly to nurture the mental and physical development of children.

Kerala

• Capital: Thiruvananthapuram
• Chief Minister: Pinarayi Vijayan
• Governor: Arif Mohammed Khan

Kerala Government to host 7^th annual folk-art festival ‘Utsavam 2021’

• Kerala’s rich and diverse folk and ritualistic art traditions in 30 venues across the state, the 7-day annual cultural festival ‘Utsavam 2021’ is to get off to a colourful start.
• The event is being organised by Kerala Tourism together with Kerala Folklore Academy, Bharat Bhavan, and District Tourism Promotion Councils.

Kerala

• Capital: Thiruvananthapuram
• Chief Minister: Pinarayi Vijayan
• Governor: Arif Mohammed Khan.

Prahlad Singh Patel inaugurated the 3 days Incredible India Mega Homestay Development & Training Workshop in Darjeeling, West Bengal

• Union Tourism Minister Prahlad Singh Patel inaugurated the three-day Incredible India Mega Homestay Development & Training Workshop in Darjeeling, West Bengal.
• The Ministry of Tourism’s India tourism Kolkata, Regional Office (East) has organised this workshop in association with Eastern Himalayas Travel and Tour Operator Association (Resource Partner) and IIAS School of Management (Knowledge Partner) to enrich the hospitality skill of Homestay owners to ensure a better experience for the tourists.

West Bengal     

• Capital: Kolkata
• Chief Minister: Mamata Banerjee
• Governor: Jagdeep Dhankhar
• National Park (NP): Buxa NP, Gorumara NP, Neora Valley NP, Jaldapara NP, Singalila NP, Sundarbans NP.

Railway Minister Piyush Goyal dedicated 88 Railway projects to the Nation worth Rs. 1,000 crore

• Union Railway Minister Piyush Goyal virtually inaugurated and dedicated a host of infrastructure projects, projects related to passenger amenities and facilities at various railway stations in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, and Karnataka.
• 88 Railway projects were dedicated to the Nation worth more than 1000 crore making Indian Railways future-ready.

Union Minister Harsh Vardhan addressed the ‘Population versus Planet’ Conference

• Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Harsh Vardhan participated and expressed his views in WION and Zee Media’s Population versus Planet Conference which is a part of its year-long campaign called ‘Mission Sustainability: Population Vs Planet’.
• This e-conclave marking the campaign’s launch will host deliberations between numerous policy experts, demographic researchers & academicians on socially important themes like population stabilisation, empowering women & youth through education, among various others, as the world population witnesses an increase from 1 billion in the year 1800 to 8 billion.

Prime Minister inaugurates Syama Prasad Mookerjee institute of medical sciences and research at IIT Kharagpur

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated Syama Prasad Mookerjee Institute of Medical Sciences and Research at IIT Kharagpur and addressed the 66^th Convocation of IIT Kharagpur through video conferencing.

Vice President Venkaiah Naidu inaugurated the Webinar on the occasion of ‘International Mother Language Day’

• Vice President of India, Venkaiah Naidu inaugurated the Webinar on the occasion of ‘International Mother Language Day’ (February 21, 2021).
• The Webinar on ‘Fostering Multilingualism for Inclusion in Education and Society’ is being organised jointly by the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Culture, and IGNCA (Indira Gandhi National Center for Arts).
• The Vice President also inaugurated the International Virtual Calligraphy Exhibition.

Meghalaya CM Conrad K Sangma Announced corpus of Rs. 125 Crore to help Meghalaya Entrepreneurs

• Chief Minister K Sangma announced that a corpus fund of 125 crores will be constituted over the next 2 years as PRIME Fund to aid the efforts of the entrepreneurs of Meghalaya.
• The Chief Minister announced during addressing the PRIME Entrepreneurship Awards held at the Convention Centre.

Meghalaya        

• Capital: Shillong
• Chief Minister: Conrad Sangma
• Governor: Satya Pal Malik.

Uttarakhand becomes the first state to give co-ownership rights to women in husband’s ancestral property

• Uttarakhand Government has passed an ordinance to give land ownership rights to daughters and wives of male landowners by amending the Uttarakhand Zamindari Abolition and Land Reforms Act.
• The ordinance aims to provide economic independence to women who are left behind and are dependent on agriculture to sustain themselves.

Uttarakhand

• Capital: Gairsain (summer capital), Dehradun (winter capital).
• Chief Minister: Trivendra Singh Rawat
• Governor: Baby Rani Maurya.
• National Parks- Corbett NP, Gangotri NP, Govind PashuVihar NP, Nanda Devi NP, Rajaji NP, Valley of Flowers NP.

Goa Shipyard to build Navy’s Damage Control Simulator in Port Blair, Andaman Nicobar

• A state-of-the-art Damage Control Simulator (DCS) for the Indian Navy will be set up in Port Blair. Lt. Gen. Manoj Pande, Commander in Chief, Andaman and Nicobar Command laid the foundation stone for the project.
• Goa Shipyard Ltd. (GSL) will build ship simulators for damage control. It has already built six simulators of various types for the defence forces and recently exported one simulator to a neighbouring country.

Goa 

• Capital:
• Chief Minister: Pramod Sawant.
• Governor: Bhagat Singh Koshyari (Additional Charge).

Uttar Pradesh to export 20 tonnes of ‘Kala Namak’ rice to Singapore

• Uttar Pradesh is set to send a consignment of 20 tonnes of Buddha Rice, popularly known as “Kala Namak” Rice, one of the finest varieties of aromatic rice in India, to Singapore from Siddharth Nagar by the end of March 2021.
• According to Additional Chief Secretary, MSME, and Export Promotion Navneet Sehgal, the rice is being packaged in attractive glass jars with all its qualities clearly mentioned on it.
• In order to promote the production, processing, packaging, and branding of Kala Namak Rice, the UP Government has declared it as the One District One Product (ODOP) of Siddharth Nagar, whereas the Central Government has announced it as the ODOP of Basti, Gorakhpur, Maharajganj and Sant Kabir Nagar as well.

Uttar Pradesh           

• Capital: Lucknow
• Chief Minister: Yogi Adityanath
• Governor: Anandiben Patel
• National Park: Dudhwa National Park (Tiger Reserve)
• Zoological park: Shaheed Ashfaq Ullah Khan Prani Udyan (Gorakhpur), Kanpur Zoological Park, Nawab Wajid Ali Shah Zoological Garden.

National Anthem played in Nagaland assembly for the first time in almost 6 decades

• The National Anthem was played in the Northeastern state of Nagaland for the first time in February, almost 60 years after it attained statehood. Given that Nagaland has been ravaged by secessionist violence for decades.
• The National Anthem was played before and after the address of Governor RN Ravi on the Budget session of the Assembly began. Ravi is also the interlocutor for peace talks with militant outfits, including NSCN (National Socialist Council of Nagaland).

Nagaland 

• Capital: Kohima
• Chief Minister: Neiphiu Rio
• Governor: R N Ravi.

Ministry of External Affairs Launches ‘Digilocker’ Platform for Passport Seva

• Ministry of External Affairs, Union minister V Muraleedharan inaugurated the “DigiLocker” platform for the “Passport Seva Programme”.
• It would enable citizens to submit the documents required for passport services in a paperless mode, and they would not be required to carry the original documents.
• This has seen a sea change in the last six years. The monthly submission of applications has crossed the one million mark for the first time in 2017.

Indian Oil signs agreement with Norway’s Greenstat for the center of excellence on hydrogen

• Indian Oil has signed a preliminary agreement with Norway’s Greenstat to set up a centre of excellence on hydrogen. The centre of excellence on hydrogen will be a vehicle for promoting R&D projects in green and blue hydrogen between Norwegian and Indian Research & Development institutions/universities.

NTPC set to Launch Hydrogen Fuel Bus Service on Delhi-Jaipur Route

• National Thermal Power Corporation Limited (NTPC) plans to start a premium hydrogen fuel bus service on Delhi to Jaipur
• Union Minister for Road Transport & Highways Nitin Gadkari, along with K. Singh, the Union Minister of State (IC) for Power and New & Renewable Energy, announced the plan for the upcoming bus service during the “Go Electric” campaign to spread awareness on the benefits of e-mobility and EV Charging infrastructure as well as electric cooking in India.

International News

India approves $40 million Line of Credit to boost sports infrastructure in the Maldives

• External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar approved a USD 40 million Line of Credit (LoC) to the Maldives in a bid to boost the sports infrastructure of the country. India acknowledges the high priority accorded by President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih to sports and India is privileged to be a partner in that effort.

Uttar Pradesh           

• Capital: Lucknow
• Chief Minister: Yogi Adityanath
• Governor: Anandiben Patel
• National Park: Dudhwa National Park (Tiger Reserve)
• Zoological park: Shaheed Ashfaq Ullah Khan Prani Udyan (Gorakhpur), Kanpur Zoological Park, Nawab Wajid Ali Shah Zoological Garden.

India signs $50 million defence LoC agreement to boost maritime capabilities of the Maldives

• India has signed a 50 million dollar Line of Credit Agreement in the defence sector with the Maldives. The agreement will facilitate capability building in the maritime domain. The credit line agreement for defence projects was signed between the Finance Ministry of Maldives and the Export-Import Bank of India to boost the maritime capabilities of the strategically vital Indian Ocean island nation.

Uttar Pradesh           

• Capital: Lucknow
• Chief Minister: Yogi Adityanath
• Governor: Anandiben Patel
• National Park: Dudhwa National Park (Tiger Reserve)
• Zoological park: Shaheed Ashfaq Ullah Khan Prani Udyan (Gorakhpur), Kanpur Zoological Park, Nawab Wajid Ali Shah Zoological Garden.

Saudi Arabian women can join armed forces in the latest widening of rights

• Women in Saudi Arabia can trade their abayas for military uniforms as the Kingdom opens up the armed forces to female recruits.
• Saudi Arabian women can be recruited as soldiers, lance corporals, corporals, sergeants, and staff sergeants. Some additional criteria have been added for female applicants.

International Solar Alliance to launch World Solar Bank at global climate meet

• The International Solar Alliance (ISA) set to launch the World Solar Bank (WSB) at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP25) in A development that will support India’s attempt to secure leadership in the climate arena. The ISA is the first treaty-based international government organisation headquartered in India.
• The International Solar Alliance (ISA) was co-founded by India at the 2015 climate change conference in Paris, France.

India signs agreement with Ethiopia on visa facilitation and leather technology

• India and Ethiopia signed two agreements related to visa facilitation and leather technology. The agreements were signed in the presence of Ethiopian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Demeke Mekonnen Hassen and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.
• The two ministers agreed to expand India and Ethiopia bilateral agenda, especially defence, economic, Science & Technology, digital and cultural cooperation.

Ethiopia

• Capital: Addis Ababa
• Currency: Ethiopian Birr
• Prime Minister: Abiy Ahmed
• President: Sahle-Work Zewde.

Banking and Economy

India will be one of the fastest-growing emerging market economies with a 10% growth in FY22: S&P Global Ratings

• S&P Global Ratings forecast India will be one of the fastest-growing emerging market economies with a 10% growth in FY22.
• For the next 2021-22 fiscal, the deficit has been put at 6.8 per cent of the GDP, which will be further lowered to 5 per cent by 2025-26 fiscal ending 31 March 2026.

RBI brings State Bank of Sikkim under its regulatory purview

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has brought the State Bank of Sikkim under its regulatory purview. The Bank, established five years before Sikkim acceded to India in 1973, provides treasury operations for the State Government. It only operates within Sikkim and is wholly-owned by the State Government.
• The bank currently has 42 branch offices and operates three revenue counters for the Government works. The bank’s ownership structure will not change, but it will be regulated by the RBI on a par with other banks.

Indian Bank signs MoU with SID of IISc for funding Start-ups and MSMEs

• State-owned Indian Bank has entered an MoU with Society for Innovation and Development (SID), an initiative of Indian Institute of Science (IISc) for extending exclusive credit facilities to Start-ups and MSMEs.
• This initiative is a part of the Banks scheme ‘Ind Spring board’ for financing Start-ups and MSMEs to realise their research efforts powered by financial support from the Bank and backed by incubation facilities offered by SID.
• The Bank will extend loans of up to 50 crore to these start-ups for their working capital requirements or for purchase of machinery, equipment etc.,

Indian Bank

• Headquarter: Chennai, Tamil Nadu
• MD and CEO: Padmaja Chunduru
• Tagline: “Your Own Bank”
• Allahabad Bank amalgamated with Indian Bank from April 1, 2020.

Science and Technology News

Indian Coast Guard receives 17^th indigenously made Interceptor Boat commissioned in Chennai

• The Interceptor Boat (IBs) project is part of an 18-series plan, indigenously constructed by Larsen and Toubro (L&T) for the Coast Guard, will soon be completed.
• The 105-ton ICGS C-453 vessel, which is the penultimate one in this series, was commissioned to the Indian Coast Guard Ship C-453 by Leena Nandan, Secretary, Department of Consumer Affairs.

Appointments

Irakli Garibashvili elected as the new Prime Minister of Georgia after Gakharia resigns

• Georgia’s ruling party has nominated Irakli Garibashvili to take over as the Prime Minister, hours after Giorgi Gakharia handed his resignation following a court ruling that ordered the arrest of the head of the Caucasus country’s main opposition force.
• Gharibashvili, the current Defence Minister, previously served as Prime Minister after replacing Bidzina Ivanishvili in 2013.

Georgia

• Capital: Tbilisi
• Currency: Georgian lari
• Prime Minister: Irakli Garibashvili
• President: Salome Zourabichvili.

World Bank appoints Makhtar Diop of Senegal as the first African head of International Finance Corporation

• World Bank Group President David Malpass announced the appointment of Makhtar Diop as Managing Director and Executive Vice President to head the International Finance Corporation (IFC). He replaces Philippe Le Houerou.
• Makhtar Diop is a Senegalese national and the former minister of economy and finance of the West African Nation.
• IFC is an arm of the World Bank Group that advances economic development and improves the lives of people by encouraging the growth of the private sector in developing countries.

Japan Olympics Minister Seiko Hashimoto to accept the role as head of Tokyo 2020

• Japanese Olympics Minister Seiko Hashimoto, a woman who has competed in seven Olympic Games, intends to accept the job as the head of the Tokyo 2020 organising committee. She replaces Yoshiro Mori, who resigned recently.
• Japan hosted the 1964 summer games. Hashimoto took part in four Winter Olympics as a speed skater and three Summer Olympics as a cyclist.

Sports News

Australian Open 2021 Highlights

Novak Djokovic beats Medvedev for the ninth title and 18^th Slam

• Defending champion Novak Djokovic has won his ninth Australian Open title, beating Daniil Medvedev 7-5, 6-2, 6-2 in a one-sided final at Melbourne Park, Australia. Victory takes Djokovic’s grand slam singles tally to 18, just two behind Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
• Croat -Slovak pair Ivan Dodig and Filip Polasek won the Australian Open Men’s doubles title by defeating the defending champion and fifth-seeded pair British Joe Salisbury and American Rajeev Ram 6-3, 6-4 on Road Laver Arena.

Naomi Osaka beats Jennifer Brady to win the second title

• Japanese tennis star Naomi Osaka won her second Australian Open title by beating American Jennifer Brady 6-4, 6-3 in the women’s singles Australian Open final for her fourth Grand Slam title.
• Belgian and Belarus pair of Elise Mertens and Aryna Sabalenka has won the women’s doubles final by defeating Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova of the Czech Republic in straight sets of 6-2, 6-3.

Sri Lankan pace bowler Dhammika Prasad retires from the International Cricket

• The 37-year-old Sri Lankan fast bowler Dhammika Prasad has announced his retirement from international cricket. He played 25 Tests and 24 ODIs, and a single T20I taking a total of 107 wickets for Sri Lanka.

Ankita Raina claims maiden WTA title and set to enter doubles top-100 for the first time

• India’s Ankita Raina claimed her maiden WTA title by lifting the Phillip Island Trophy along with Russian partner Kamilla Rakhimova, a feat which will catapult her into the top-100 in the doubles for the first time in her career.
• Ankita and Kamilla erased a one-set deficit to beat the Russian combination of Anna Blinkova and Anastasia Potapova 2-6, 6-4, 10-7 in the summit clash in Melbourne.
• The win is the biggest of Ankita’s career, making her India’s first WTA champion since Sania Mirza. When the new rankings are released, she is set to break into the top-100.

Can you score 20/20 in Today’s Current Affairs Quiz? Attempt the Current Affairs Quiz of  February 22 & 22, 2021, now from the link given below. 

Daily Current Affairs Quiz – February 21 & 22, 2021