DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS: FEBRUARY 20, 2019 -

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS: FEBRUARY 20, 2019

Dear Aspirants,

Daily Current Affairs (February 20, 2019) 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.

Attend Previous Day Current Affairs Quiz from the link that is mentioned below.

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS QUIZ: February 20, 2019

NATIONAL

Government Relaxes Angel Tax Norms For Start-ups To 10 Years :

In an attempt to provide relief to and boost investments into start-ups in India , The Ministry of Commerce and Industry has decided to simplify the process for them to get exemptions under the Income Tax Act, 1961.
It will now recognize an entity as a start-up up to 10 years from the date of its incorporation or registration instead of the existing duration of 7 years.
It will also recognize an entity as a start-up if its turnover for any of the financial years since its incorporation or registration does not exceed Rs 100 crore unlike the previous amount of Rs 25 crore.

The Union Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan inaugurated the One Health India Conference 2019 in New Delhi :

Union Science & Technology Minister, Dr. Harsh Vardhan, inaugurated the 2-day long One Health India Conference 2019 in New Delhi.
The purpose of the conference was to launch India‘s new One Health Initiative – an inter sectoral approach to tackling the most urgent health threats in India as well as in low- and middle-income countries across South and South East Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa.
The main objective of the conference was to formulate a roadmap for the response, preparedness, and management of current regional, national and global health challenges using a One Health collaborative approach.

Himachal Pradesh Assembly passed a Bill to make Sanskrit as the second official language of the state :

A bill was passed in the Himachal Pradesh assembly to make Sanskrit the second official language of the state.
Mahender Singh Thakur, the Irrigation and Public Health minister introduced the bill Himachal Pradesh Official Language Bill, 2019 (Amendment).

STATIC : Himachal Pradesh

Capital- Shimla

Chief Minister- Jai Ram Thakur

Governor- Acharya Dev Vrat

Dwarka to house India’s first hi-tech forensic lab :

Union home minister Rajnath Singh and LG Anil Baijal inaugurated a state-of-the-art National Cyber Forensic Lab (NCFL) and the Delhi Police’s cyber crime unit ‘CyPAD’ at Dwarka, Sector 16C.It is the first cybercrime awareness and detection center in India.
Called the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C), the lab will have equipment’s to deal with memory forensics, image enhancement, network forensics, malware forensics, crypto-currency forensics, recovery of damaged hard drives and advanced mobile forensics.

STATIC: Delhi

Chief Minister: Arvind Kejriwal

Lieutenant Governor: Anil Baijal.

A Drainage-Cleaning Robot Introduced In Chennai : Bandicoot

A drainage-cleaning robot named Bandicoot , has been introduced for the first time in India at the Kumbakonam city corporation as part of efforts to rid of manual scavenging at the cost of Rs 18 lakh in Chennai, Tamil Nadu.
It is a semi-automatic robot can enter manholes for cleaning sewage lines with its robotic arm and is equipped with 5 night-vision cameras to relay the scenario underneath.
Drainage cleaning could be detected by viewing the blockage on the screen.The robot could be taken to any place in the corporation area.

Smriti Irani launches 4 projects in North East for Development Of Silk Sector :

Smriti Zubin Irani ( Union Minister of Textiles) launched four projects in North East for the development of silk sector through video conference in New Delhi.
Smriti Zubin Irani inaugurated Muga silk seed production centre in Tura, Meghalaya, silk printing and processing unit in Agartala, Tripura, Eri spun silk mill in Sangaipat, Imphal and development of sericulture in Mamit, Mizoram.
Irani also inaugurated new office buildings of the Weavers’ Service Centre (WSC) in Indore, Madhya Pradesh, and Kannur, Kerala.

Tourism Minister K.J. Alphons Inaugurated ‘Eco Circuit’ Project in Kerala :

Union Minister for Tourism K.J. Alphons inaugurated the project ‘Development of Eco Circuit: Pathanamthitta – Gavi – Vagamon – Thekkady’ under the Swadesh Darshan scheme of Ministry of Tourism at Vagamon, Kerala.
Major works carried out under the project includes Eco Adventure Tourism Park at Vagamon, Cultural Centre at Kadamanitta.
This Eco Circuit project was sanctioned for Rs. 76.55 crores.Swadesh Darshan scheme is one of the flagship schemes of Ministry of Tourism for development of thematic circuits in the country in a planned and prioritised manner.

STATIC: Kerala

Capital – Thiruvananthapuram

Chief Minister – Pinarayi Vijayan

Governor – P. Sathasivam

Suresh Prabhu launches Swayatt on GeM to promote MSMEs, women and young entrepreneurs :

Union Minister of Commerce & Industry and Civil Aviation, Suresh Prabhu launched Swayatt, an initiative to promote MSMEs, women and young entrepreneurs through e-transactions on the Government e-Marketplace (GeM).Chief Executive Officer of GeM, Radha Chauhan, introduced the concept of SWAYATT and Start-up Runway.
Commerce Minister also dedicated GeM Start-up Runway-an initiative of GeM in association with Start -up India to facilitate Start-ups registered with Start -up India to access the public procurement market and sell innovative products and services to government buyers.
The aim is to bring together the key stakeholders within the Indian entrepreneurial ecosystem to GeM, the national procurement portal.He also felicitated a few successful entrepreneurs from Women Self Help Groups, Start-ups and MSMEs in GeM.

India’s First Fulldome 3D Digital Theatre Inaugurated In Kolkata :

Union Culture Minister Mahesh Sharma inaugurated India’s first ‘fulldome 3D Digital Theatre’ at the Science City- Kolkata.
The ‘fulldome 3D Digital Theatre’ at the Science city was the first of its kind in India having a 23 metre titled dome to offer a fully immersive experience to the visitors.
The new system is capable of screening high resolution, full dome, and digital 2D/3D content by utilising six, high-end projectors in a 23-meter diameter dome using Ulteria Seam technology.It is fully funded by the Ministry of Culture at a cost of Rs 20 crore.

INTERNATIONAL

Saudi Arabia joins International Solar Alliance, signs framework agreement :

Saudi Arabia signed the framework agreement of the International Solar Alliance (ISA) becoming the 73rd country to join the India-led renewable energy organisation which now has a total of 122 members.ISA was unveiled by PM Narendra Modi and former French President Francois Hollande in 2015.
The signing of the agreement took place after a bilateral meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who arrive on a state visit to India.
The two sides discussed key areas of mutual interest such as trade and investment, renewable energy, defence, nuclear and space, civil aviation, counter-terrorism, community welfare as well as regional challenges.

BANKING & ECONOMY

HDFC ERGO Launched first-of-its-kind Trip Protector’ Policy :

India’s third-largest non-life insurance provider in the private sector, HDFC ERGO General Insurance Company, announced the launch of Trip Protector’ insurance policy, a pioneering policy in the non-life insurance segment in India.
In the event of a cancellation, either a flight or hotel booking, Trip Protector insurance policy will safeguard travelers financially against the cost of cancellation levied by Hotels or Airlines.
The policy is initially being offered to customers of HDFC Bank on the purchase of Airline tickets or Hotel Bookings done using their individual HDFC Bank credit cards.

APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNS

Squash great Nicol David to retire at end of tour season :

Squash legend Nicol David will be retiring at the end of the 2018/2019 tour season after spending more than 20 years representing Malaysia in the sport.
David is an eight-time squash world champion and was ranked first in the world for 109 consecutive months.

AWARDS & HONOURS

Sunil Chhetri honoured with the first ever Football Ratna award :

The 34-year-old,Sunil Chhetri, was awarded India’s first-ever “Football Ratna”by Football Delhi president Shaji Prabhakaran, former player and administrator at the All India Football Federation(AIFF) and FIFA(Fédération Internationale de Football Association).
Football Delhi is the state association governing the sport in Delhi.He was also named as the 6th Indian Footballer in the elite Padma Shri list.

OBITUARY

W.E.B. Griffin, ‘Badge of Honor’ military novelist, dead at age 89 :

W.E.B. Griffin, the prolific and best-selling author of military novels, has died at age 89.His many popular series included “Badge of Honor,” ”Clandestine Operations” and “Presidential Agent.”

Noted Hindi author Namvar Singh passes away at 92 :

Namvar Singh, an acclaimed Hindi author, and literary critic died in New Delhi at the age of 92.
He has authored over a dozen works. Prominent among them are Kavita Ke Naye Pratiman, Chhayavaad and Dusari Parampara Ki Khoj among others. He has received the Sahitya Akademi award for literary criticism in the year 1971 for Kavita Ke Naye Pratiman.

IMPORTANT DAYS

20 February : World Day of Social Justice

The World Day of Social Justice is celebrated annually all over the world on 20 February.Social justice is an underlying principle for peaceful and prosperous coexistence within and among nations.
2019 theme: If You Want Peace & Development, Work for Social Justice