1.

30th Surajkund International Crafts Mela started at Faridabad

i. The 30th edition of the Surajkund International Crafts Mela began at Surajkund in Faridabad, Haryana on 1
February 2016. The event that will continue till 15 February 2016 was inaugurated by Haryana Chief Minister
Manohar Lal Khattar.
ii. Telangana was selected as the Theme State and will showcase its unique culture and rich heritage and about
300 artistes from the state will perform different folk arts. Chhattisgarh was chosen as the Theme State for the
29th Surajkund International Crafts Mela-2015. At least 23 countries will be part of the Mela, with China and
Japan being the two focus countries.
iii. The first edition of the Surajkund Crafts Mela was hosted in 1987. The Mela is organized by the Surajkund
Mela Authority and Haryana Tourism in collaboration with Union Ministries of Tourism, Textiles, Culture and
External Affairs.
iv. Traditional craftsmen (artists, painters, weavers and sculptors) from all parts of the country participate in this
annual mela and showcase some of the most exquisite handlooms and handicrafts of India and culture.
Handmade fabrics soaked in ethnic colours make an eye catching display for the visitors.
v. Every year a theme State and a Partner Nation is chosen. Theme State is chosen with a view to promote and
focus the art, craft and cuisine of the theme State whereas Partner Nation is chosen to showcases the best of that
nations art, culture, traditions and heritage.
2. CBDT signed two bilateral Advance Pricing Agreements (APAs) with United Kingdom
i. The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) on 29 January 2016 signed two bilateral Advance Pricing
Agreements (APAs) with United Kingdom. With this signing, CBDT has concluded three bilateral APAs the
first one being a bilateral APA signed with Japan in December 2014.
ii. This is a significant step towards providing a stable and predictable tax regime. With this signing, CBDT has
so far signed 41 APAs out of which 38 are unilateral and 3 are bilateral.

iii. The two bilateral APAs were signed with two Indian group entities of a UK based Multi-National Company
(MNC). The APAs have been entered into soon after the Competent Authorities of India and United Kingdom
finalised the terms of the bilateral arrangement under the Mutual Agreement Procedure (MAP) process
contained in the India-UK DTAA.
iv. The APAs cover the period 2013-14 to 2017-18 and also have a Rollback provision for 2 years that is 201112 and 2012-13. Transfer pricing disputes on the same transaction were recently resolved under MAP for each
of these two companies for the years 2006-07 to 2010-11.
v. With the signing of the bilateral APAs, the two Indian companies are provided with tax certainty for 12 years
each which was split into 5 years under MAP and 7 years under APA. The two APAs are also significant
because they address the issues of payment of management and service charges and payment of royalty. These
transactions generally face prolonged and multi-layered transfer pricing disputes.
3. India, NASA to study Ladakh region under Spaceward Bound programme
i. India and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) entered into a partnership in January
2016 to explore the environment of Ladakh under NASAs Spaceward Bound programme.
ii. Under the partnership, a team of scientists from NASA, the Mars
society Australia and the Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeobotany, Lucknow will undertake an expedition to
Ladakh in August 2016. During their 10-day expedition, the scientists will study the similarities of certain parts
of the regions topography and microbial life to the surroundings of Mars.
iii. Ladakh offers a cold, high altitude (3500 - 5500 meter above sea level), high UV exposed, dry ecosystem
with Mars analogue topological features. The pristine Ladakh environment will tell us about the origin and
evolution of Earths topological features and also about how microbial life has adapted itself to sustain itself in
such harsh conditions.
iv. High passes, permafrost regions, glaciers, hot springs, shallow and palaeo lakes and high altitude night skies

help the astrobio/geoscientsts to conduct experiments in order to find answer some of the most fundamental
questions about life. Indias success in executing the Mars Orbiter Mission will be an added advantage for
international scientists for achieving greater results as part of the collaboration.

4. Muktesh Kumar Pardeshi appointed as Indias Envoy to Mexico

i. Senior IFS officer Muktesh Kumar Pardeshi was on 29 January 2016 appointed as Indias Ambassador to
Mexico.
ii. Pardeshi is a Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer of 1991 batch. He is currently posted as Joint Secretary
(Passport division) in the Union Ministry of External Affairs.
iii. He served as the Deputy Head of Mission at the Embassy of India in Jakarta from 2007 to 2010. During
1993-2001, he worked with Indian Missions in Mexico, Colombia and Nepal.
iv. Union Government also appointed P Harish as Indias Envoy to the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Harish is
a Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer of 1990 batch. He is currently posted as Consul General in Houston,
United States.
5. Bihar CM Nitish Kumar selected for K Veeramani Award for Social Justice
i. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on 29 January 2016 was selected for the prestigious K Veeramani Award
for Social Justice 2015. Kumar is chosen for the award for his contribution towards social justice as Chief
Minister.
ii. The award is given away by Periyar International, a Chicago-based voluntary organisation. However, the date
and venue of the award function are yet to be decided.

iii. The K Veeramani Award for Social Justice was instituted by the non-resident Indian (NRI) followers of
Periyar E. V. Ramasami, the great social reformer of India, living all over the world. This award is instituted in
Dr. K. Veeramani's name to recognize his contributions in creating a mass awareness in India on social equality
and respect for human dignity.
iv. This international award is awarded every year to an individual who has or an institution that has contributed
immensely to the cause of social justice. The award recognizes a single event or a lifetime contribution that is
responsible for the emancipation of a section of the society from the oppressions of social injustice.
v. Constituted in 1996, the award recipients include former Prime Minister V P Singh, former Uttar Pradesh CM
Mayawati, former Tamil Nadu CM M Karunanidhi, former Maharashtra deputy CM Chhagan Bhujbal and
former AICC president Sitaram Kesri. In 2014, Professor Dhaneswar Sahoo was honoured with the award.
6. Kamlesh Kumar Pandey appointed as Chief Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities
i. Kamlesh Kumar Pandey on 28 January 2016 was appointed as the Chief Commissioner for Persons with
Disabilities (CCPD) for a period of three years. Before joining the post of CCPD, Pandey was associated with
Saksham, an NGO working in the field of disability.
ii. The CCPD is appointed by the Union Government from persons having special knowledge or practical
experience in matters relating to rehabilitation of Persons with Disabilities.
iii. The CCPD also coordinates the work of the State Governments Commissioners:
To monitor the utilization of funds disbursed by the Union Government
To take steps to safeguard the rights and facilities made available to persons with disabilities
To submit reports to the Central Government on the implementation of the Persons with Disabilities Act, 1995
iv. Kamlesh Kumar Pandey is a Science Graduate from University of Allahabad and Medical Graduate from

Agra University in 1990. He has been associated with Sewa Bharti, an NGO working in rehabilitation of slum
dwellers, Akhil Bhartiya Dristihin Kalyan Sangh, an NGO working for visually challenged persons.
7. Datta Padsalgikar appointed as Commissioner of Police of Mumbai
i. Senior IPS officer Datta Padsalgikar was on 30 January 2016 appointed as the Commissioner of Police of
Mumbai with effect from 31 January 2016. He succeeds Ahmed Javed, who was appointed as Ambassador to
Saudi Arabia.
ii. With this, Padsalgikar became the 40th Police Commissioner of Mumbai. He was on deputation to the Union
Government in the Intelligence Bureau (IB) for the past few years, but was repatriated in January 2016 in
preparation for his new charge.

iii. Born on 26 August 1958, Padsalgikar is an IPS Officer of 1982 Batch. Padsalgikar has vast experience in
terror and counter-terror operations and had been playing a critical role in gathering evidence against the
Pakistani non-state actors who directed the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks of November 2008.
iv. He has also worked as an Assistant Superintendent of Police in Nagpur and Karad (Satara). He served as
Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Detection in the crime branch, DCP in Economic Offences Wing, DCP
in South Mumbai and DCP of the Bandra-Jogeshwari stretch.
v. In the Intelligence Bureau (IB), he has worked in Nagaland, New Delhi and Washington (US).
8. TCS, Infosys, Wipro join Obama's 'computer science for all' plan
i. Three major Indian IT companies Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services and Wipro have joined US
President Barack Obama's ambitious 'computer science for all' initiative as part of a public-private collaboration,
pledging thousands of dollars in grants.
ii. Obama announced his 'Computer Sciences for All' plan in his weekly address on Saturday as he emphasized
on the need for teaching the subject as a "basic skill" to all children across schools in the country in a changing
economy.
iii. While Infosys has pledged a $1 million in donation, Tata Consultancy Services is providing support in the
form of grants to teachers in 27 US cities, the White House said in a fact sheet, also issued on Saturday.
iv. Wipro announced a $2.8 million grant for multi-year project in partnership with the Michigan University to
involve over a hundred school teachers, with the aim of nurturing excellence in science and mathematics.
v. According to White House, the TCS and Infosys pledge is part of the National Science Foundation's (NSF)
effort to collaborate with the private sector to support high-school CS teachers.
vi. "Infosys Foundation USA will be a founding member of this public-private collaboration with a $1 million
philanthropic donation, and, as an initial participant, Tata Consultancy Services is providing additional support
in the form of grants to teachers in 27 US cities.
9. Naresh Bedi honoured with V Shantaram Award Life Time Achievement Award
i. Veteran wildlife filmmaker Naresh Bedi on 28 January 2016 was honoured with the V Shantaram Lifetime
Achievement Award at the 14th edition of the Mumbai International Festival for Documentary, Short and
Animation Films (MIFF 2016).

ii. Bedi was honoured for his outstanding contribution to wildlife filmmaking. He is also credited with filming
several rare wildlife moments. Naresh Bedi is the eldest of the Bedi Brothers and a member of the second
generation of three generations of Wildlife photographers and filmmakers.
iii. He is the first Asian to receive a Wildscreen Panda Award, popularly known as the Green Oscars, for his
cinematography for the documentary, The Ganges Gharial. He is also the first Indian to receive a nomination for
the British Academy Film Awards.

iv. He was honoured by the Government of India in 2015 with Padma Shri, the fourth highest Indian civilian
award. He is a recipient of the Earth Watch Award of National Geographic Society and Eastman Kodak Award.
10. Former Army Chief General Kotikalapudi Venkata Krishna Rao died
i. Former Army Chief General Kotikalapudi Venkata Krishna Rao passed away on 30 January 2016 in New
Delhi following a cardiac arrest. He was 92. He was the 14th Chief of the Army Staff of Indian Army.
ii. He was commissioned into then British India Army (now Indian Army) in August 1942 and had an illustrious
career spanning over four decades in the force. As a young officer, he had served in Burma (Myanmar), North
West Frontier and Baluchistan during the World War II.
iii. He also had participated in the 1947-48 war against Pakistan in Jammu and Kashmir. He was a founder
Instructor of the Pune based National Defence Academy (NDA) during 1949-51.
iv. He also served as the Governor of Jammu and Kashmir (1989-1990 and 1993-1998), Nagaland (1984 to
1989), Manipur (1984 to 1989) and Tripura (May to July 1989). He played a key role in the 1971 Bangladesh
Liberation War.
v. He was awarded with the Param Vishist Seva Medal for displaying outstanding leadership, determination,
courage and drive during Jammu and Kashmir war.
11. Pietro Fittipaldi won 2015-16 MRF Challenge Formula 2000
i. Brazilian racing driver Pietro Fittipaldi on 31 January 2016 clinched the 2015-16 MRF Challenge Formula
2000 at Madras Motor Racing Track in Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu.
ii. Fittipaldi won two of the four races which earned him the required points to clinch the title with a tally of 244
points while Colombian Tatiana Calderon finished second (199), just eight ahead of Nikita Troitckii of Russia
(191).
iii. Pietro Fittipaldi da Cruz is the grandson of two time Formula 1 champion Emerson Fittipaldi. He began his
racing career in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series, winning the track championship at Hickory Motor
Speedway in 2011.
iv. In 2013, he moved to Europe to pursue a career in open-wheeled racing. In 2014, he won the Protyre
Formula Renault Championship, clinching the title with one race remaining. In October 2014, he was one of
four drivers to be invited to join the Ferrari Driver Academy.
12. Anti-Leprosy Day observed on 30 January 2016
i. Anti-Leprosy Day was observed on 30 January 2016 nationwide to focus attention on the disease which is also
known as the Hansens disease.

ii. Annually, the day is celebrated in the memory of Mahatma Gandhi, who attained martyrdom on 30 January
1948, in order to re-memorize his selfless efforts and care for the people affected by the infectious disease
leprosy.
iii. Leprosy also known as Hansen's disease (HD), is a chronic infection caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium
leprae and Mycobacterium lepromatosis. Initially, infections are without symptoms and typically remain this
way for 5 to as long as 20 years.
iv. Symptoms that develop include granulomas of the nerves, respiratory tract, skin, and eyes. This may result in
a lack of ability to feel pain and thus loss of parts of extremities due to repeated injuries. Weakness and poor
eyesight may also be present.
v. A drug Chaulmoogra oil was used for leprosy treatment until Dapsone was discovered with anti-leprosy
effects during 1940s.

vi. It was in 1970s when multi drug therapy (MDT) consisting of Rifampicin, Clofazimine and Dapsone were
identified as cure for leprosy which came into wide use from 1982 following the recommendations of WHO.
13. Book titled Nathuram Godse - The Story of an Assassin released
i. The book titled Nathuram Godse - The Story of an Assassin authored by Anup Ashok Sardesai was released
on 30 January 2016. The book was released at the government-owned Ravindra Bhavan in Margao, Goa by BJP
leader and the bhavan's chairman Damodar Naik.
ii. The book narrates the story of Nathuram Vinayakrao Godse who died an untimely death and his brother
suffered a life of immense mental torture. It also speaks of the family of Godse who faced countless abuses and
humiliations.
iii. The author through the book claims that this all was mended because of Godses love for his motherland. It
also says that Godse is Indias most hated criminal.
iv. Besides, the book justifies Godses act of killing Mahatma Gandhi by stating that he was not able to bear the
pressure of partition of his country in front of his eyes and slaughtering of his fellow countrymen who were
butchered like cows. It also highlights the reason that forced Godse to decide that he must turn into a killer on
12 January.
v. The book was released on the death anniversary of the Father of the Nation. This date of release forced
certain people and political party to call a protest. Newly formed Goa Forward party and an Independent
legislator Vijai Sardesai have opposed the release on the death anniversary.
14. Fukuoka to host 2021 World Aquatics Championships
i. The International Swimming Federation (FINA) on 31 January 2016 announced that the Japanese city of
Fukuoka will host the 2021 World Aquatics Championships. On the other hand, the Qatari capital Doha will
host the 2023 event.
ii. The decision was made after a vote of the FINA executive committee in Budapest. The FINA World
Championships or World Aquatics Championships are the World Championships for aquatics sports:
Swimming, Diving, High Diving, Open Water Swimming, Synchronized Swimming and Water Polo.
iii. They are run by FINA, and all Swimming events are contested in a long course (50-meter) pool. The event
was first held in 1973 and is now held every two years. From 1978-1998, the World Championships were held
every four years, in the even years between Summer Olympic years.
iv. From 2001 on, the Championships have been held every two years, in the odd years. The event was held in
the Russian city of Kazan in 2015 and will go to Budapest in 2017 and Gwangju in South Korea in 2019.
15. Aditya Mehta won 83rd Senior National Snooker Championship
i. Aditya Mehta on 31 January 2016 won the 83rd Senior National Snooker Championship in Indore, Madhya
Pradesh.
ii. To win the title, he defeated Manan Chandra 6-3 in the final that was held as part of the National Billiards &
Snooker Championship 2016.
iii. In another event, Vidya Pillai won the National Snooker Championship in the womens category by
defeating Amee Kamani 4-2. For 38-year-old Vidya, it was her ninth national title.
iv. The womens billiards title was won by 19-year old Keerath Bhandaal by defeating Arantxa Sanchis of
Maharashtra 3-1. Keerath is a student of Economics at the Jesus and Mary College in Delhi.
16. Kidambi Srikanth won Men's Singles title of Syed Modi International Badminton Championships
2016

i. Ace Indian shuttler Kidambi Srikanth on 31 January 2016 won the Men's Singles title of the Syed Modi
International Badminton Championships 2016. In the final played at Babu Banarasi Das Indoor Stadium in
Lucknow, Srikanth defeated China's Huang Yuxiang, 21-13, 14-21, 21-14.
ii. This was Srikanths fifth title overall, the other four titles include Thailand Grand Prix Gold, China Super
Series premier, Swiss Open Grand Prix Gold and India Super Series.
Womens Singles: Korean Sung Ji Hyun defeated Sayako Sato of Japan, 12-21, 21-18, 21-18.
Men's Doubles: Malaysian pair of Goh V Shem and Tan Wee Kiong defeated Pranaav Jerry Chopra and Akshay
Dewalkar of India, 14-21, 24-22, 21-8.
Womens Doubles: Korean duo of Jung Kyung Eun and Shin Seung Chan defeated Eefje Muskens and Selena
Piek of Netherlands, 21-15, 21-13.
Mixed doubles: Indonesian pair of Praveen Jordan and Debby Susanto defeated Puavaranukroh Dechapol and
Sapsiree Taerattanchai of Thailand, 23-25, 21-9, 21-16.
17. Novak Djokovic won the 2016 Australian Open Men's Singles Title
i. World Number One Novak Djokovic on 31 January 2016 won the Australian Open Mens Singles title. In the
final played at Melbourne, the Serbian defeated Andy Murray of Britain in straight sets 6-1, 7-5, 7-6.
ii. With this, Djokovic retained his title and also equalled the record of Roy Emerson's record of six Australian
Open Singles titles.
iii. On the other hand, the defending champion also kept his record against Murray in Australian Open final by
defeating the Briton for the fourth time in Mens singles at the years first Grand Slam championship.
iv. Murray succumbed to his fifth loss in five Australian Open finals. Djokovic claimed his 11th grand slam title
to match the totals of Rod Laver and Bjorn Borg.
v. Earlier on 30 January 2016, Germanys Angelique Kerber won the Australian Open Womens Singles title by
defeating defending champion Serena Williams in three sets 6-3, 3-6, 6-4. This was maiden Grand Slam Tennis
title for 7th seed Kerber.
vi. While on 29 January 2016, Sania Mirza and her Swiss partner Martina Hingis won the 2016 Australian Open
title of tennis in the womens doubles category

1. WHO declared Public Health Emergency of International Concern over Zika virus outbreak
i. World Health Organisation (WHO) on 1 February 2016 declared Public Health Emergency of International
Concern over the explosive spread of the mosquito-borne Zika virus, which is linked to birth defects in the
Americas.
ii. The UN health agency convened an emergency meeting of independent experts in Geneva to assess the
outbreak of the virus. The meeting was convened after noting a suspicious link between Zika's arrival in Brazil
in 2015 and a surge in the number of babies born with abnormally small heads.
iii. This was the first meeting of the Emergency Committee (EC) convened by the Director-General under the
International Health Regulations (2005) (IHR 2005).
iv. Zika virus (ZIKV) is a member of the virus family Flaviviridae and the genus Flavivirus, transmitted by
daytime-active Aedes mosquitoes, such as A. aegypti. In case of humans, the virus cases mild illness known as
Zika fever (Zika or Zika disease). It has been occurring since the 1950s within a narrow equatorial belt from
Africa to Asia.
v. In 2014, the virus spread eastward across the Pacific Ocean to French Polynesia, then to Easter Island and in
2015 to Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, and South America, where the Zika outbreak has reached
pandemic levels.
vi. Earlier in last week of January 2016, WHO estimated that there could be up to 4 million cases of Zika in
Americas by 2017 but no recommendations didnt issued travel restriction or trade.
2. Saroj Kumar Jha appointed Senior Director for Fragility, Conflict and Violence Group at World Bank

i. An Indian national Saroj Kumar Jha was in news as he was appointed as the Senior Director for the Fragility,
Conflict and Violence Group at the World Bank on 1 February 2016.
ii. He was appointed to provide strategic leadership to address the challenge of fragility, conflict and violence,
working across the Bank Group and in close collaboration with partnes.
iii. The WB President Jim Young Kim assigned him the new role. Earlier to this, he was the World Bank
Regional Director for Central Asia based in Almaty, Kazakhstan since February 2012. He also worked as the
World Bank's Global Manager for Disaster Risk Management Practice.
iv. He is an Indian national and holds a dual degree in civil engineering and development economics from the
Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur, India. He joined the World Bank in 2005 as a Senior Infrastructure
Specialist in the Sustainable Development Network.
v. He had significant experience with the Government of India and the United Nations Development Program
(UNDP) as a senior executive in the field of public sector management, infrastructure financing, natural
resources management, natural disaster prevention and environmental sustainability.
3. Himachal Pradesh to spend 15 crore rupees on Swachh Bharat Mission in Kinnaur
i. The Himachal Pradesh Government in the first week of February 2016 decided to spend 15 crore rupees on
Swachh Bharat Mission in tribal district of Kinnaur.
ii. The funds will be utilized on capacity building and organizing of workshops for awareness. Under the
Mission, target has been also fixed to involve all the schools, government institutions and villages.
iii. Under the Mission, the first instalment of four crore fifty lakh rupees has been received by the district
authorities. Every single household will be given 12 thousand rupees for toilet construction for which survey
was conducted in the year 2012.
iv. A special cleanliness drive will be launched under Swachh Bharat Mission with the help of Youth and
Mahila Mandals in all the 65 Panchayats. Five Panchayats have been selected under Solid Waste Management
where organic fertilizers will be made from the waste.
4. Archana Ramasundram became 1st woman to head paramilitary force
i. Tamil Nadu Cadre IPS officer Archana Ramasundram on 1 February 2016 was appointed as the Director
General of the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) that guards India's frontiers with Nepal and Bhutan.
ii. With this appointment, Ramasundram became the first woman to head a paramilitary force. 58-year-old
Ramasundram is currently the Director of National Crime Records Bureau.
iii. An order issued by Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) said that she has been appointed to the
post till the date of her superannuation, that is, 30 September 2017.
iv. Besides, IPS officer K Durga Prasad was appointed as Director Generals of Central Reserve Police Force
(CRPF). Another IPS officer K K Sharma will be new Chief of the Border Security Force (BSF). They will take
over after the incumbent chiefs of these forces retire on 29 February 2016.
v. Paramilitary forces in India are Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Border
Security Force (BSF), Central Industrial Security Force and Indo Tibetan Border Police.
5. Alphabet officially dethrones Apple as the worlds most valuable company
i. Alphabet, the company that owns Google, has overtaken rival Apple in Mondays extended trading to become
the highest valued company in the world. Alphabet now comes before Apple atop the list of the worlds most
valuable companies.
ii. Operating income from its core businesses rose 23% in 2015. Investors liked what they saw and shares spiked
8% in after-hours trading. The Mountain View, Calif. firm generated $21.3 billion in revenue, beating Wall
Street estimates of $20.8 billion. Earnings were $8.67 per share, beating estimates of $8.09 per share. The
company attributed its strong revenue growth to search ads, YouTube and programmatic advertising.
iii. By changing its name and structure last year, Alphabet Chief Executive Officer Larry Page has put the focus
on the companys main web business while giving more insight into investments in new areas such as artificial
intelligence, self-driving cars, health technology and fast Internet access. Even though Apple has also been
building expertise in cars and AI, the secretive company has kept much of that under wraps.
iv. Google and Apple have worked to improve mobile computing, and their competition has seen Apples iOS
smartphone operating system fight out against Googles own Android for dominance since the latter emerged on
the market in 2008 and became the system of choice for Samsung. The South Korean tech giant is in turn

Apples major competitor in smartphone production, and the two are involved in litigation over patent
infringement.
6. SBI FlexiPay Home Loan launched
i. tate Bank of India has launched its "SBI FlexiPay Home Loan" aimed at youngsters with a rising income. The
loan allows takers the option of only paying the interest on the loan for the first years.
ii. Targeted at the salaried-class, the interest rate is currently 9.55% - with women applicants having to pay a
lower interest of 9.50%. The loan also has an additional rider in that the candidates gets 20% extra of the loan
amount they are eligible for. "Say the person is eligible for a Rs 1 crore loan, then under FlexiPay loan - he can
avail of a loan amount of Rs 1.2 crore," he said.
iii. If the applicants wants to close the loan earlier than the time period of 25-30 years, then they can do so
without incurring pre-payment charges.
7. Modi to open ayurveda meet at Kozhikode
i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will arrive at Kozhikode early this afternoon to open the 'vision conclave of
the Global Ayurveda Fest.
ii. The ayurveda fest, being held from January 31 to February 4, is showcasing the ayurvedic tradition of
healing, a major Kerala heritage, to the world. The show also aims to jack up export of ayurvedic products,
especially to Europe.
iii. This is the first time Modi is visiting Kozhikode after taking over as Prime Minister. More than 1,000 police
personnel are being deployed in Kozhikode to give a security cover to Modi.

8. S N Prasad assumes charge as CIL director

i. S N Prasad has taken over as Director (Marketing), Coal India Ltd, from February 1.
ii. According to a CIL release, Prasad has succeeded B K Saxena, who has retired.
iii. Prior to this elevation Prasad was General Manager (Sales & Marketing) in South Eastern Coalfields Ltd, the
Bilaspur-based subsidiary of CIL.
9. Govt sets up two new tax committees to bring coherence in policies
i. The government has set up two new committees -- Tax Policy Research Unit and Tax Policy Council in order
to bring coherence and streamline the direct and indirect tax policy and administration.
ii. Led by the Finance Minister, the Tax Policy Council would suggest broad policy measures for taxation based
on inputs from the Tax Policy Research Unit (TPRU).
iii. These would include Ministers of State for Finance and Commerce and Industry, Deputy Chairman, NITI
Aayog, Chief Economic Adviser, Finance Secretary as well as Secretaries to the Departments of Revenue,
Economic Affairs, Commerce and Industrial Policy and Promotion.
iv. The Chairpersons of the Central Board of Direct Taxes and the Central Board of Excise and Customs will be
special invitees. Meanwhile, the TPRU will be a multi-disciplinary body to examine and analyse any fiscal or
tax policy referred by the CBDT and CBEC and also prepare and disseminate policy papers and background
papers on various taxation issues.
v. It will assist Tax Policy Council in policy decisions and also liaise with State commercial tax departments,
said the Finance Ministry. The TPRU will include officials from the CBDT and the CBEC as well as
economists, statisticians, operational researchers and legal experts.
10. National Pension System has 1.15 crore subscribers now
i. The National Pension System now has 1.15 crore subscribers, each with an average 95,000 of assets under
management. The total assets under management are worth 1,09,140 crore while assets under management
per subscriber is 95,000 on an average, said the Finance Ministry on Tuesday, adding that the total corpus of
the National Pension System (NPS) is 90, 327 crore.
ii. The scheme has 16,11,020 Central government employees as subscribers, amounting to 14.1 per cent of its
total member base. They have a total corpus of 34,754 crore.

iii. Meanwhile, 28,59,094 State government employees are members of the NPS, amounting to quarter of it total
subscribers and having a corpus of 45,486 crore. The NPS for private citizens has 5,76,993 subscribers --4,48,509 members from the corporate sector and 1,28,484 from the unorganised sector.
iv. The largest chunk of subscribers to the retirement saving scheme comes from NPS Lite, which has
44,63,637, constituting 39 per cent of the total membership. It has now been discontinued and replaced with the
Atal Pension Yojana that has 19,48,811, subscribers or 17 per cent of the total members.
11. Rishabh Pant slams fastest fifty in huge India win
i. India Under-19 opener Rishabh Pant had the fastest recorded U-19 international century comfortably in his
sights when he was dismissed for 78 off 24 balls, having blown Nepal Under-19 away in a small chase.
ii. Pant did break the record for the fastest recorded U-19 fifty though, getting there in 18 balls, one faster than
the previous mark.
iii. He added 124 in 9.1 overs with his captain Ishan Kishan, who scored 52 off 40 balls. India eventually chased
down Nepal's score of 169 with 179 balls to spare in Mirpur.
iv. His strike rate of 325 meant that had he scored 22 more runs in singles Pant would have still broken the
record for the fastest u-19 hundred by seven deliveries.

1. Invest Karnataka 2016

i. Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah today urged the global investor community at 'Invest Karnataka 2016'
to consider Karnataka as their partner for growth.
ii. Citing the Global Startup Eco-system Ranking Report 2015, Siddaramaiah pointed out that Bengaluru is the
only Indian city to be ranked amongst the 20 Startup Eco- systems in the World.
iii. At the 'Invest Karnataka 2016' meet, Siddarmaiah said, "Karnataka is being put on a high growth trajectory.
Our focus is to ensure economic growth for each and every person in the State. Our goal is to make our state
highly prosperous. Our government is working towards propelling Karnataka to contribute to India's growth in a
significant way."
iv. He claimed that ever since the Congress took over the office, Karnataka has received Foreign Direct
Investment worth USD 5.2 Billion. "We rank as the state with the Second highest FDI in India. We have cleared
more than 500 projects worth over USD 20 Billion".
v. He said,"Our goal is to make Karnataka the growth engine of India".
2. Vice President visit to Thailand
i. Vice President Hamid Ansari reached Thailand on a three-day visit during which he will hold discussions on a
range of issues with the country's top leadership to boost bilateral ties.
ii. He was received at the airport by Thailand's Deputy Prime Minister Prajin Juntong.
iii. Ansari will have a one-to-one meeting with Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, who will also host a
banquet in Ansari's honour.
iv. This is the first visit by an Indian Vice President to Thailand after a gap of 50 years.
v. Ansari, during his visit, will also have an audience with Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn and deliver a
speech at the Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok on 'From Look East to Act East: India's Partnership with
Thailand and ASEAN' besides addressing the Indian community at a reception to be hosted by the Indian
Ambassador to Thailand. He will return to Delhi on Friday.
3. Former Deputy Governer S.S.Tarapore passes away
i. S.S. Tarapore, former deputy governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and a noted economist, passed
away in Mumbai on Tuesday. Tarapore had been in hospital in Mumbai for the last few days, and breathed his
last on Tuesday morning. He was 80.
ii. Tarapore joined the RBI in 1961 and retired in 1996 as deputy governor, having been involved in almost all
aspects of monetary policy.
iii. RBI governor Raghuram Rajan said in an e-mail statement: Shri Tarapore was an extremely well regarded
central banker, His contributions as a member on the two Narasimham Committees set the tone of first
generation reforms in the financial sector.
iv. Tarapore was also known as an inflation hawk, chiding policymakers through his public comments and
writings for being too lax on inflation control.

4. Titli became first Indian film to win Best First Foreign Film award by FSCC
i. Indian film-maker Kanu Behl directorial Titli on 1 February 2016 bagged the Best First Foreign Film Award
conferred by the French Syndicate of Cinema Critics 2016 (FSCC).
ii. Titli has earlier won at various international film festivals at places like Bordeaux, Hawaii, New York,
Turkey and Spain.
iii. The story of the movie revolves around Titli, the youngest member of a violent car-jacking brotherhood, who
plots a desperate bid to escape the family business.
5. Former Loksabha Speaker Balram Jakhar Passes Away
i. Veteran Congress leader and former Lok Sabha Speaker Balram Jakhar passed away in New Delhi on
Wednesday. He was 92.
ii. Jakhar served as Speaker of Lok Sabha from 1980 to 1989 during which he contributed to the establishment
of Parliament Museum. He also served as Agriculture Minister in the Cabinet of former Prime Minister
Narasimha Rao.
iii. Jakhar also served as Governor of Madhya Pradesh from 30 June, 2004 to 30 May, 2009
iv. Jakhar headed Business Advisory Committee, Rules Committee, General Purposes Committee, and Standing
Committee of the Conference of Presiding Officers of Legislative Bodies in India.
v. he became General Secretary All India Congress Committee in 1990 and from 1992 he was member,
Congress Working Committee.
6. Ban appoints Major General Menon as UNDOF head
i. Major General Jai Shanker Menon of the Indian Army, a veteran of peacekeeping operations, has been
appointed as the head of a key United Nations force stationed in Golan to maintain the ceasefire between Israeli
and Syrian forces.
ii. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has named Major General Menon as the Head of Mission and Force
Commander of the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF).
iii. He succeeds Nepals Lt Gen Purna Chandra Thapa, who will complete his assignment on February 7.
iv. Major General Menon has held a number of command positions in the Indian Army, including Commandant
of Regimental Training Centre, Brigade Commander and Battalion Commander.
. Jai Kumar Garg appointed as MD and CEO of Corporation Bank
i. The Union Government appointed Jai Kumar Garg as Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive Officer
(CEO) of Corporation Bank for a period of three years.
ii. Garg took charge of the public sector bank on 1 February 2016, succeeding S R Bansal, who superannuated
from services as CMD on 31 January 2016.
iii. Garg is a chartered accountant and also associate member of Indian Institute of Banking and Finance. Prior
to his appointment at Corporation Bank, he worked as executive director in UCO Bank.
8. TCS Rated World's Most Powerful Brand in IT Services: Report
i. India's top multinational IT company Tata Consultancy Services has been rated as the world's most powerful
brand in Information Technology Services by a leading global brand valuation firm, the company said on
Wednesday.
ii. Brand Finance's 2016 annual report evaluated thousands of the world's top brands to determine which are the
most powerful and the most valuable. Scoring highly on a wide variety of measures such as familiarity, loyalty,
staff satisfaction and corporate reputation, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) emerged as the IT services
industry's most powerful brand with a score of 78.3 points - earning it an AA+ rating.
iii. "TCS' customer focus has been central to its recent success, but a closer look at our data shows strong and
improving scores for brand investment and staff satisfaction too," said David Haigh, CEO, Brand Finance.
iv. "It has emerged as a dominant force in the IT services industry and is the strongest brand in the sector. Its
brand power is indisputable," Haigh said. Across all industries, Disney was rated as the most powerful brand
and Apple as the most valuable brand for 2016. According to the report, TCS is also the fastest growing brand
within its industry over the last 6 years.
v. The company's overall brand value has increased from $2.34 billion in 2010 (when the first evaluation of the
TCS brand was conducted) to $9.4 billion in 2016.

9. Reliance Entertainment, Neeraj Pandey join hands to form film production venture
i. Billionaire Anil Ambani-owned Reliance Entertainment today announced a joint venture with film-maker
producer duo Neeraj Pandey and Shital Bhatias Friday Filworks for production of movies.
ii. Akshay Kumar starrer Rustom will be the first movie under the banner, Plan C Studios. Plan C Studios will
be an equal partnership joint venture between the two, the company said in a statement.
iii. Neeraj Pandey won acclaim with his very first film A Wednesday in 2008, which went on to win the
National Award. Subsequently, he directed Special 26 in 2013, and Baby in 2015. Neeraj is currently on the
floors with MS Dhoni -The Untold Story, one of the most anticipated films of the year.
iv. We are delighted to partner with creative minds like Neeraj and Shital. This relationship is in line with our
continuing strategy in the media and entertainment business, of partnering with like minded and successful
individuals, while playing the role of supportive investors on our part, Amitabh Jhunjhunwala, Group
Managing Director, Reliance Group, said.
v. Commenting on the partnership, Neeraj Pandey said: The partnership with Reliance Group is very
significant and welcome, as it enables us to further raise the bar on our continued strategy of developing cutting
edge commercial content. We like to keep pushing the envelope, and this partnership will greatly expand our
vision.
vi. Reliance Entertainment has produced, distributed and released more than 170 films in multiple Indian
languages, including Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada and Bengali. Internationally, it has partnered
with iconic film producer and director Steven Spielberg.
10. Haryana, Ontario ink pact for cooperation
i. Haryana and the Province of Ontario in Canada today signed an MoU aimed at enhancing commercial and
cultural ties.
ii. The MoU was signed by the Managing Director of Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development
Corporation Ltd, Sudhir Rajpal, and Deputy Minister of Ontario Ministry of Citizenship, Immigration and
International Trade, Helen Angus, in the presence of Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, Premier of
Ontario, Kathleen Wynne, and Premier of Prince Edward Island, Wade MacLauchlan.
iii. The two sides decided to designate nodal agencies for timely and effective communication on matters of
common interest, an official said.
iv. Khattar said this was the first time that such nodal agencies have been designated. He said the Haryana
government would organise Happening Haryana Global Investors Summit-2016 in Gurgaon on March 7 and
8 to attract investors to the State and extended an invitation to the Ontario Premier for the meet.
v. Khattar said the agreement inked by the two sides would help facilitate knowledge transfer in areas such as
museum development and cultural preservation.
11. ZTE Soft inks pact with AP
i. Chinese technology company ZTE has inked a pact with the Andhra Pradesh government to work on smart
city projects in the state. As a company associated with a number of smart city projects, the diversified telecom
and technology major ZTE plans to engage itself with the state and work on the upcoming smart city projects in
Andhra Pradesh.
ii. A memorandum of understanding was inked between GS Phani Kumar, Special Secretary, Information and
Technology, Andhra Pradesh and ZTE Soft MD SH Prasoon Sharma in the presence of State IT and Information
Minister Palle Ragunath Reddy, here, according to a statement.
iii. ZTE Soft has been engaged with more than 140 smart city projects globally and is keen to work on smart
city projects in India. With the Narendra Modi government seeking to lay special thrust on development of
smart cities, ZTE has already begun to engage itself with smart city initiatives in Gujarat and plans to expand its
presence.
iv. Under the letter of intent inked by ZTE, it proposes to work with AP on not only smart cities, E-Pragathi
project, Incubation Centre, smart technology projects among others which the State has initiated.
v. Two of AP cities Visakhapatnam and Kakinada have been chosen to be part of the smart city projects in
the first phase announced recently.
12. Samariya given additional charge as CPFC
i. HL Samariya, a 1985 batch IAS officer from the Telangana cadre, has been given additional charge as Central
Provident Fund Commissioner (CPFC), for three months or till the appointment of a regular incumbent or till
further orders, a release said.

ii. Samariya is currently Additional Secretary in the Labour Ministry.The additional charge of Secretary,
Department of Agriculture, has been given to Ashok Kumar Angurana, a 1980 J&K cadre officer.
13. Kerala emerges as winner of 61st National School Athletics championship
i. The National School Athletics championship began on January 29 and concluded yesterday, i.e on February 2.
Kerala emerged as the overall winner for the 19th consecutive time. The national School Athletics
championship was held at Olympian Rahman Stadium in Kozhikode, Kerala.
ii. According to newspaper reports, Kerala, the host of the championship got 306 points winning 39 gold, 29
silver and 17 bronze medals. On the other hand, Tamil Nadu stood at second position with 116 points winning
11 gold, 8 silver and 13 bronze medals.
iii. Maharashtra with 101 points obtained the third position. The venue of this event of Athletics is at the
Olympian Abdurrahman Stadium in Medical College Ground at Kozhikode, Kerala.The School Games
Federation of India hosted the 61st National Schools Athletics Championship 2016 (SGFI 2015-16) at
Kozhikode (Calicut). As many as 3,000 athletes representing 36 teams are took part in the five-day meet.
iv. Ten of the Kerala athletes won meet records. Kerala could not overcome their 46 gold record score in 2009
this year as well. State Education Minister P K Abdu Rubb presented the prize at the concluding session.
Kerala's Anumol Thampi won the Junior Girls section 3000m with a record breaking effort of 9:47.19 seco,
eclipsing the meet mark of 10:00.03s by Ritu Dinakar of Uttar Pradesh in 2008 in Kolkata.
v. In the Junior Boys 3000m, P N Ajith (Ker) claimed the first spot finishing the race in 8:46.54s and Karthik
Kumar (UP) came second with 8:47.69s. Vidya Bharathi's Shyam finished third with 8:49.37s

1. World Bank Expert Mr. Iyer To Lead Swachh Bharat Mission

i. The government has appointed World Banks water and sanitation specialist, Parameshwaran Iyer, as the new
Secretary of the Drinking Water and Sanitation Department.
ii. Ignoring the case of serving bureaucrats, Iyer, World Bank's Practice Manager for Water for the South Asian
region , has been given the post by PM Narendra Modi for two years to steer the Swachh Bharat Mission.
iii. 56-year-old Iyer is a key architect of the framework of the $1,500 million proposed loan from World Bank
for the Swach Bharat Mission which is pending Cabinet approval.
iv. Iyer's appointment is expected to create more synergy between the Swachh Bharat Mission and the
objectives of the World Bank project . An IAS officer of the UP cadre, who launched Jal Suraj program here,
Iyer took voluntary retirement in 2009 and joined the World Bank.
v. Before that, he worked with the UN World Food Programme (UNWFP) for nearly a decade till 2006 as a
Senior Rural Water Sanitation specialist on foreign assignment. He was then served a show-cause notice by the
Indian government to return and he quit in 2009.

2. Aruna Sethi appointed as first women head of Indian Cost Accounting Service
i. Aruna Sethi, the Principal Adviser (Cost), on 1 February 2016 took over charge as the head of Indian Cost
Accounts Service (ICoAS). With this appointment, she became the first woman to occupy the post.
ii. Prior to the present elevation, Aruna, a 1985 batch ICoAS officer, held important portfolios in Government of
India including Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Department
of Expenditure, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Ministry of Defence etc.
iii. Indian Cost Accounts Service is one of the six organized accounting services of the Government of India. It
is comparatively young accounting service constituted in 1978.
iv. The ICoAS Officers have the requisite skill by virtue of their professional background and experience gained
in managing the multifarious and complex issues relating to financial and cost management matters.
v. Office of Chief Adviser Cost is one of the divisions functioning in the Department of Expenditure. It is a
professional body staffed by qualified Cost/ Chartered Accountants.
vi. This Office is responsible for advising the Ministries and Government Undertakings on cost accounts matters
and to undertake cost investigation work on their behalf.
3. India to participate in Cobra Gold 2016 military exercise in Thailand

i. The term Cobra Gold was in news on 3 February 2016 as India confirmed its participation in the annual
amphibious military exercise in 2016. The decision in this regard was conveyed to Thailand, the host country,
during Vice President Hamid Ansaris visit to the country.
ii. It is the largest Asia-Pacific military exercise and held in Thailand every year. It is among the largest
multinational military exercise in which the United States participates.
iii. As of 2014, Cobra Gold has three distinct activities, namely, the Combined Arms Live Fire Exercise
(CALFEX), Command Post Exercise (CPX) and activity related to assisting the local Thai population.
iv. It was first held in 1982 to improve coordination between the armed forces of the USA and Thailand in both
hostile military and humanitarian efforts. As of 2015, the exercise expanded to include 26 nations - Indonesia,
Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, and other South Asian and Pacific Ocean countries among others.
v. China was admitted to the exercise for the first time in 2015. The exercise was proven effective in improving
coordinated military response to natural disasters, including the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, the 2011 Thoku
tsunami, and disaster relief provided to the Philippines after Typhoon Haiyan struck in November 2013.
4. DJ Pandian appointed Vice President of Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank
i. Former chief secretary of Gujarat DJ Pandian was appointed vice-president and chief investment officer of the
newly-created Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) on 3 February 2016.
ii. His appointment as vice-president and chief investment officer was approved by AIIB. The retired 1981batch IAS officer of Gujarat cadre had worked on deputation with the World Bank in Washington. He was also
the MD of Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation (GSPC).
iii. The Beijing-based 100 billion dollar multi-lateral lender, AIIB was set up in Beijing on 25 December 2015.
It was established to boost lending for infrastructure projects such as energy, transportation, urban construction
and logistics as well as education and healthcare.
iv. China had nominated its former finance minister Jin Liqun as the first president of AIIB.
v. The three largest shareholders of the bank are China (30.34 percent), India (8.52 percent) and Russia (6.66
percent). Their voting shares are calculated at 26.06 percent, 7.5 percent and 5.92 percent, respectively.
5. Manipuri documentary Phum-Shang won Golden Conch Award at MIFF 2016
i. Manipuri documentary film Phum-Shang on 3 February 2016 bagged the prestigious Golden Conch Award for
the best documentary film at the 14th Mumbai International Film Festival for Documentary, Animation and
Short Films (MIFF 2016).
ii. The film is directed by Haobam Paban Kumar, an alumnus of the Satyajit Ray Film & Television Institute,
Kolkata. The 52-minute film critically examines the serious environmental problems faced by the Loktak lake,
the largest freshwater lake in northeast India. The lake is characterised by its unique floating biomass, known as
Phumdi, which is the primary source of livelihood for fishermen who live on huts built on the Phumdis.
iii. Paban Kumar was presented with the Golden Conch Award and a cash prize of 3 lakh rupees by the
Governor of Maharashtra Chennamaneni Vidyasagar Rao and State Cultural Minister Vinod Tawde at a
ceremony in Mumbai.
iv. Swiss film My Name Is Salt and an Indian film Placebo shared the Golden Conch Award for the best feature
length documentary film.
My Name Is Salt is directed by Farida Pacha, It is a film about the journey of thousands of families to the Rann
of Kutch to extract the whitest salt in the world. The film also won the award for best cinematography.
v. The story of Placebo revolves around the stress and pressure faced by medical students due to intense
competition.
6. Dhirubhai Ambani Centre for Innovation and Research in Bangalore
. Reliance Group Chairman Anil Ambani announced the establishment of Dhirubhai Ambani Centre for
Innovation and Research in Aerospace at Whitefield in Bengaluru.
ii. According to Ambani, The centre, the first-ever of its kind in the private sector in India, will be a world class
facility for research, development and innovation in aerospace technology.
iii. The centre would also generate more than 1,500 highly skilled jobs and support governments plan for
indigenous design, development and manufacture of defence equipment.
7. BSE, IFC jointly develop corporate governance scorecard

i. BSE and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) have partnered to develop a corporate governance
scorecard. The scorecard seeks to help companies assay their corporate governance performances against
national or international-benchmarked practices.
ii Using the scorecard, companies can identify areas of further improvement and track progress over time. It can
be used to make board processes more efficient, improve strategy, aid decision-making, and manage risks.
Companies can better understand the way in which governance affects their operations.
iii. Improved governance frameworks result in development of efficient capital markets and increased access to
capital enables new investments, improves economic growth, and creates jobs.
iv. The scorecard can be used by a wide range of stakeholders, including regulators, promoters, and investors.
Ashishkumar Chauhan, MD & CEO, BSE said, The collaboration with IFC to develop the scorecard is a
revolutionary step towards benchmarking companies in India. The scorecard will result in increased
transparency and boost investor confidence.
v. IFC is implementing a South Asia Regional Corporate Governance Project with donor support from Japans
Ministry of Finance. This five-year project provides advisory services to individual firms and partners with local
institutions, such as the Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs, to strengthen sector-level work on corporate
governance.
8. Government To Infuse About Rs. 5000 Cr. In PSU Banks This Quarter
i. The government will infuse about Rs.5,000 crore capital in the public sector undertaking (PSU) banks in the
current fiscal to strengthen their balancesheet. As committed, banks will get fund infusion in the fourth quarter.
Banks will get about Rs.5,000 crore, financial services secretary Anjuly Chib Duggal said on the sidelines of
an event.
ii. Funds would be infused after Parliament approves third Supplementary Demand for Grants in the upcoming
Budget session. Last year, the Government announced a revamp plan 'Indradhanush' to infuse Rs70,000 crore in
state-owned banks over four years, while they will have to raise a further Rs 1.1 lakh crore from the markets to
meet their capital requirements in line with global risk norms Basel III.
iii. As per the blueprint, PSU banks will get Rs.25,000 crore this fiscal and also in the next fiscal. Besides,
Rs.10,000 crore each would be infused in 2017-18 and 2018-19. Of the Rs.25,000 crore earmarked for 2015-16,
the government has pumped in about Rs.20,088 crore in 13 public sector banks so far.
iv. The government had arrived at Rs 1.8 lakh crore capitalization needs for PSU banks assuming credit growth
rate of 12 per cent for the current year and 12-15 per cent for the next three years depending on the size of the
bank and their growth ability. Talking about various initiatives taken by the government to deepen the social
security net, Duggal said banks are addressing last mile connectivity issues.
v. The department of financial services is having discussions with banks on a regular basis to sort out the issues
as soon as possible, she said. Banks like State Bank of India and Andhra Bank are currently addressing issue of
Internet connectivity in the 800 identified areas. Besides, steps are being taken to strengthen Internet
connectivity in various parts so that direct benefit transfer is made seamless.
9. SBI, Thomas Cook team up for 'inflation-proof' holidays
i. State Bank of India has tied up with Thomas Cook to offer online customers a recurring deposit that helps
them save toward an `inflation proof' holiday. Availing the holiday on maturity of the recurring deposit is
optional as customers can choose either to travel or redeem their savings. For those who stay on, Thomas Cook
will top up the last instalment to pay for their holiday.
ii. "Customers will be offered an inflation-proof holiday as they pay for a future holiday at today's prices while
earning interest on the linked e-recurring deposit," SBI said in a statement. The holidays are all inclusive
packages in the domestic and international circuit.
iii. According to Rajnish Kumar, md, SBI besides helping people save for vacations this scheme would compel
them to plan ahead and avail of lower prices. "We find that people don't plan their holidays in advance and end
up taking last minute loans to finance the same. Also, they could've have saved on the cost of the holiday had
they booked early," he said.
iv. Madhavan Menon, chairman, Thomas Cook India, said that the tie up with SBI will enable Thomas Cook
extend its reach to over 2.5 crore online customers of SBI. "The unbeatable advantage of paying for a future
holiday at today's prices, ensures SBI's customers inflation-proof holiday while enjoying attractive interest rates,
a zero exit clause and a free top up from Thomas Cook on the 13th month!" Mr Menon added.
10. Budget session to commence on Feb 23, Union Budget on Feb 29

i. The Budget Session of Parliament will commence on February 23 that will focus largely on the financial
business of the government, which will present the General Budget on February 29.
ii. But there will be no curtailment of the session or the recess period on account of Assembly elections in five
states due shortly. This was decided at a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs, chaired by
Home Minister Rajnath Singh.
iii. The Budget Session of Parliament will commence on February 23. The Rail Budget will be presented on
February 25, the pre-Budget Economic Survey on February 26 and the General Budget on February 29. The
first part of the Budget session will end on March 16 and the second part will be convened from April 25 to May
13, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Venkaiah Naidu told presspersons after the meeting of the CCPA.
iv. He said there were suggestions for curtailing the recess period due to Assembly elections in five states but
the government as well as political parties wanted a full session.
v. In 2011, the then government had decided not to refer bills to Standing Committees in the Budget Session
when states were going to polls and there were demands to curtail the session. But the government today
decided that bills will be referred to standing committees for examination during the recess period, Naidu said.
11. Its billion users for WHATSAPP
i. Mobile messaging app WhatsApp said it has crossed the one billion user milestone globally with the addition
of 100 million users in last five months. As of today, one billion people are using WhatsApp.
ii. That's nearly one in seven people on Earth who use WhatsApp each month to stay in touch with their loved
ones, their friends and their family, WhatsApp said in a blogpost.
iii. In February 2014, WhatsApp was acquired by social networking site Facebook, its biggest buyout till date,
for a whopping $19 billion. In a post on Facebook, WhatsApp co-founder Jan Koum said 42 billion messages
were sent, 1.6 billion photos and 250 million videos shared everyday on the platform.
12. Sarangi maestro Pandit Ram Narayan gets Bhimsen Joshi Award
i. Sarangi maestro Pandit Ram Narayan has been chosen for the prestigious Bharat Ratna Pandit Bhimsen Joshi
classical music award for 2015-2016, Maharashtras Cultural Affairs Minister Vinod Tawde announced on
Wednesday.
ii. The annual award, instituted by the Maharashtra government, is given to individuals who have excelled in
classical vocal or instrumental music, the minister said.
iii. Pandit Ram Narayan, 88, has been playing the sarangi since his childhood, and over the years acquired
global acclaim for his music for which he was conferred Indias second higest civilian honour, Padma
Vibhushan, in 2005. Pandit Ram Narayan popularized the bowed instrument sarangi as a solo concert instrument
in Hindustani classical music and became the first internationally successful sarangi player.
iv. In 1944, All India Radio, Lahore, hired him as an accompanist for vocalists. He became a concert solo artist
in 1956. He recorded solo albums and began to tour America and Europe in the 1960s

1. CAMS launches Aadhaar-based eKYC for setting up MF account instantly

i. CAMS, the leading services solutions provider for fund houses, has launched Aadhaar-based eKYC (know
your customer) using OTP (one-time password) authentication to make mutual fund (MF) account opening and
transactions a paperless and presence less process through myCAMS at www.camsonline.com .
ii. CAMS, the transfer agency for most MFs, is also in the process of integrating the websites of AMCs (asset
management companies) with eKYC module where it is the registrar.
iii. This is in line with market regulator SEBI's vision to ease the KYC process and facilitate MF online account
opening and transactions, CAMS said.
iv. SEBI has recently enabled Aadhaar based e-KYC service offered by UIDAI (Unique Identification Authority
of India) for KYC verification on authorisation by the client using biometric or OTP (one-time password)
authentication on a voluntary basis.
v. Investors, who wish to use their Aadhaar number and PAN for KYC compliance, can now complete KYC
process in just three simple steps using Aadhaar-based eKYC and set up a MF account instantly without having
to submit forms, documents and do in-person verification (IPV) either physically or virtually.Investors can
voluntarily submit Aadhaar and mobile numbers for validation with Aadhaar/UIDAI database. On successful
authentication through OTP, investors can complete KYC and start investing in MFs through myCAMS at
www.camsonline.com. SEBI currently permits investment of Rs 50,000 in a financial year per MF for investors
using Aadhaar-based eKYC using OTP based authentication.

2. SEBI forms task force to review risk management norms for commixes
i. Capital market regulator Sebi has set up a task force to review the risk management norms for national-level
commodity bourses following the suspension of futures trading for castor seed on NCDEX.
ii. A source said that after recent developments witnessed in castor seed futures contracts, Sebi has established a
task force to relook at the existing norms related to risk management, delivery mechanism, and other related
issues.
iii. The task force has been asked to submit the report in three weeks. Based on the report, the risk management
norms for national-level commodity derivatives exchanges will be further tightened.
iv. Meanwhile, Sebi has sought explanation from the exchange for suspending futures trade in castor seeds.
v. Last year, Sebi laid down risk management norms for regional commodity bourses. At present, there are three
national-level commodity derivative exchanges MCX, NCDEX and NMCE and six regional ones.
3. Centre to contribute Rs. 1 Lakh Crore for Karnataka Road
i. Central government will spend Rs 1 lakh crore for development of road infrastructure in Karnataka. In
addition to this, Rs 200 crore will be spent on developing four light houses in the state in PPP mode.
ii. This was disclosed by Union Minister for Road Transport & Highways and Shipping Nitin Gadkari in
Bengaluru.
iii. He was speaking at the inaugural function of Invest Karnataka-2016, a three day global investors meet
organised by the Karnataka government.
iv. We have also decided to expand the capacity of New Mangaluru Port with an investment of Rs 10,000
crore, he said.
v. He said, road projects worth 60 thousand crore rupees will be started in Karnataka before December this year
and projects worth another 40 thousand crore will be taken up next year.
4. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley inaugurated the two-day India Investment Summit
i. This summit is aimed at attracting long-term foreign investors into the infrastructure sector.
ii. Opening the two-day India Investment Summit 2016, the minister highlighted opportunities the country
presents to investors and sought investment in sectors like road, highways, oil&gas, urban infrastructure and
railways.
iii. Mr. Jaitley have also unveiled the logo of National Infrastructure and Investment Fund (NIIF).
iv. Inviting foreign capital in sectors like roads, railways and energy, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today met
sovereign wealth funds from Singapore and the UAE and pitched a stable policy regime and resilience of Indian
economy amid a global slowdown
5. Reliance Infra to sell cement biz to Birla for 4800 Cr. Rs
i. Reliance Infrastructure (RInfra) has signed a share purchase agreement with Birla Corporation, Reliance
Infrastructure Ltd has agreed to sell its cement assets to Birla Corp. Ltd for Rs.4,800 crore.
ii. Birla Corporation will acquire the 100 per cent shareholding of RInfra in RCCPL.
iii. Anil Ambanis Reliance Group has been trying to sell assets across its group companies to cut debt and
expand its new defence business.
iv. Currently, Birla Corp has a capacity of 10 MTPA with units in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh
and West Bengal and it would acquire Reliance Cement's units at Maihar, Madhya Pradesh.
6. Finance Ministry gets a dedicated YouTube channel
i. Finance Ministry now has an official YouTube Channel, which is expected to disseminate information about
the official events.
ii. The Channel will feature videos on the major schemes, events, meetings, press conferences and other
exclusive videos relating to the Ministry.
iii. Although most of the activities are in public domain, yet to make it easier for the world outside to know
about the same, this YouTube official channel of the Ministry would be a useful platform.
iv. The youtube channel is launched by Arun Jaitley.
7. BSE Institute launches new accelerator for start-ups

i. In continuation with Prime Minister Narendra Modis startup India mission, BSE Institute Ltd, a wholly
owned subsidiary of BSE Ltd, has launched a new accelerator for start-ups.
ii. This accelerator is set up by BSE Institute in collaboration with Ryerson Futures Inc (Toronto), the technical
arm of Ryerson University from Ontario, Canada.
iii. The accelerator will focus on scalable, technology start-ups (both enterprise and consumer). Besides, it will
help recreate in India the successful model of the Digital Media Zone (DMZ) - Ryerson's flagship programme in
Toronto which has been operational since 2010 and incubated over 150 start-ups.
iv. This has been set up as a technology based incubator under the National Science & Technology
Entrepreneurship Development Board (NSTEDB), Department of Science & Technology, Government of India.
8. B2B meet for SMEs begins in Kochi
i. Manufacturers in Kerala should come out with more value-added products if they want to compete in the
global market, Minister for Public Works VK Ebrahim Kunju has said.
ii. Inaugurating the three-day Kerala Business-to-Business Meet 2016 at the CIAL Trade Fair & Exhibition
Centre in Nedumbassery.
iii. The meet will provide the SMEs in Kerala greater exposure to businesses outside Kerala and even India, he
said.
iv. 12% industrial growthUnveiling the Buyer and Seller Directories on the occasion, the State Fisheries and
Excise Minister K Babu said Kerala has witnessed around
v. The government has been focussing on five key areas manpower, raw materials, capital, favourable political
climate and marketing for the promotion of industrial growth in the State, he added. As many as 200 SMEs
from Kerala and nearly 480 buyers from 21 countries and 18 States are participating in the meet.
9. Gurdeep Singh named Chairman and MD of NTPC
i. Gurdeep Singh has taken charge as the Chairman and Managing Director of NTPC.
ii.Singh, who was earlier Managing Director of Gujarat State Electricity Corporation Ltd.
iii. He replaces Arup Roy Choudhury, who retired from the post on August 31, 2015. In the interim, AK Jha,
Director (Technical) at NTPC was given additional charge as the Chairman and Managing Director.
iv. Singh is a mechanical engineer and has 28 years of experience in the power generation sector, NTPC said in
a statement. He started his career with NTPC before joining companies such as Powergen, CLP Power, IDFC,
CESC and others.
10. Ananda Shankar to address India Conference in Harvard
i. Renowned dancer-choreographer and speaker Dr Ananda Shankar Jayant will address the high-profile India
Conference at Harvard in USA this week.
ii. Ananda is a Sangeet Natak Akademi awardee and a motivational speaker with a popular talk at TED. She is a
career Indian Railway Services Officer.
iii. The city-based Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi exponent will talk on February 7 as part of the Inspire series
of the two-day conference at Harvard Business School in Boston, Massachusetts. Padma Shri Ananda Shankar
said, I am humbled to be part of this exciting event.
iv. The other speakers at the February 6-7 conference include Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, film
personalities Kamal Haasan and Karan Johar, banker Chanda Kochhar, writer Shashi Tharoor, MP, and
diplomat Nirupama Rao.
11. Meet on `Make in India' in Mangalore
i. The Mangaluru-based MSNM Besant Institute of Postgraduate Management Studies will conduct a conference
on Make in India on February 5.
ii. Narayan K, Director of the institute, said the objective of the conference is to understand the ground realities
of the Make in India programme.
iii. Deepak Ishwarbhai Amin, Director, Central Board of State Bank of India, will inaugurate the conference and
deliver the keynote address.
iv. MD Mallya, former Chairman and Managing Director of Bank of Baroda, will deliver the valedictory
address.
12. Dravid in ICC's Anti-Corruption Oversight Group

i. Batting great Rahul Dravid has been named in ICCs newly appointed Anti-Corruption Oversight Group as
part of the recommendation from its Integrity Working Party of the parent body.
ii. The oversight group will include the chairman of the executive committee (under whose area of responsibility
this function rests) and will also include former India captain Rahul Dravid, legal expert Louis Weston and
independent anti-corruption advisor John Abbott, who was the Chairman of the Integrity Working Party.
The Chairman of the Anti-Corruption Unit, Sir Ronnie Flanagan, and ICC Chief Executive, David Richardson,
will also be ex-officio members of the group, said the ICC in a statement.
iii. Dravid is currently coaching the Indian team in the ongoing U-19 World Cup, which is being held in
Bangladesh.

1. Corporation Bank inks pact with Universal Sompo for accident death coverage
i. Corporation Bank has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Universal Sompo General
Insurance Co Ltd for providing accident death coverage to its savings bank account holders under Corp
Signature, Corp Super and Corp Saral category.
ii. According to this pact the bank provides free personal accident death cover of 10 lakh to its Corp Signature
and 5 lakh to its Corp Super account holders.
iii. The MoU was signed in the presence of Jai Kumar Garg, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of
Corporation Bank, and VV Vendhen, Head (Bancassurance), Universal Sompo General Insurance Co Ltd.

2. Indian Origin Singaporean Is Diamond Trade Bodys New President

i. Vishal Mehta, A 34-year-old Indian-origin man based in Singapore was today appointed President of the
newly- formed International Grown Diamond Association (IGDA).
ii.Vishal Mehta, CEO of a Singapore-based company which makes lab diamond, was named President of the
IGDA, a platform of more than 10 leading grown diamond producers, distributors and retailers.
iii. Mehta is the Chief Executive Officer of Singapore-based IIa Technologies which grows diamond from its
state-of-the-art facility in the city state.

3. Kohli Replaces Finch As No 1 Batsman In T20 Internationals

i. Virat Kohli was rewarded for his stupendous performance in India's clean sweep against Australia in the T20
internationals as he replaced Aaron Finch as the top-ranked batsman in the ICC list for the shortest format.
ii. According to the press released by the ICC, Kohli who had scores of 90 not out, 59 not out and 50 in the
three-match series, gained 47 ratings points to move ahead of Finch with 892 ranking points to his credit.
iii. Finch gained 14 points himself thanks to scores of 44 and 74 in Adelaide and Melbourne.
iv. India's Suresh Raina moved up three places to 13th after his impressive series, while opener Rohit Sharma
also moved up four places to be placed 16th.
v. The latest rankings also confirmed India's ascension to No.1 in the world, while Australia have plummeted to
eighth spot following the 3-0 series defeat.

4. Centre Approves Heritage Development Projects In Andhra & Telangana

i. The Union Ministry of Urban Development approved projects worth more than Rs.12 crore for improving
tourist infrastructure in heritage locations in Amaravati in Andhra Pradesh and Warangal in Telangana.
ii. An official press release said an Inter-Ministerial National Empowered Committee for the Heritage City
Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY) approved the projects, which include a heritage park in
Amaravati and developmental works at the 1000 Pillar Temple and Kazipet Durgah and rejuvenation of pondat
Padmakshi Temple in Warangal city.
iii. Amaravati and Warangal are among the 12 cities included in the HRIDAY scheme for improving the social,
cultural and economic ecosystems by augmenting necessary infrastructure with the objective of conserving the
rich cultural heritage and enabling better facilities for tourists and pilgrims. More projects will be approved for
Amaravati and Warangal in the near future.

5. PM Modi Inaugurates Petrochemical Project In Dibrugarh

. Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated a petrochemical project in Lepetkata in Dibrugarh, which is the
first such project of North-East.
ii. The project has been named as Brahmaputra Cracker and Polymer Ltd (BCPL).
iii. It has been built at cost of 10000-crore rupees and shall be producing raw material for manufacturing plastic.
iv. Prime Minister also dedicated wax producing unit in Numaligarh Refinery Limited to the nation. It is Indias
highest wax producing unit and shall be using indigenous technology.

6. MoU on Health and School Renovation between India and Sri Lanka
i. India and Sri Lanka signed two memorandum of understanding (MoUs) in the health sector and renovation of
schools.
ii. Under the MoU on health, India will construct a surgical unit at the Batticaloa Teaching Hospital in the island
nation's Eastern province and supply medical equipment. In the second MoU, India will aid in the renovation of
27 schools in the Northern Province.
iii. The MoUs were signed in the ninth session of the India-Sri Lanka Joint Commission that was co-chaired by
Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and her Sri Lankan counterpart Mangala Samaraweera.

7. ICICI Academy aims to impart skills training to one lakh youth by 2017
i.The academy and the RSETIs will train close to 45,000 candidates in the 2017 fiscal and take the total number
of trained youth to over a lakh.
ii. The academy has in the last two years (since inception in 2013) trained 25,200 youths (of which 32 per cent
were women) belonging to the economically weaker sections.
iii. It has set up 22 centres across the country (including 10 centres exclusively for training of women).
iv. The centre has trained 2,880 individuals so far and secured 100 per cent placement. It currently offers
residential courses to 638 students in six disciplines such as electrical and home appliances repair, refrigeration
and AC repair, pumps and motor repair, central air-conditioning repair, two and three-wheeler service technician
and selling skills.

v. It has tied up with industry partners such as Schneider Electric India Foundation, Blue Star, Crompton
Greaves, Voltas, Godrej, Perfect Engineers, Best Engineers, Ramdev Motors, Aquasyb, Geethanjali Electricals,
Energy Control Corporation, TVS Training and Services, Global Innova, Axis Bank, Muthoot Fincorp and
Reliance Communication. It has also set up practical training laboratories to facilitate practical orientation.

8. NASA Astronaut Edgar Mitchell died

i. NASA Astronaut Edgar Mitchell, who was the sixth man to walk on the Moon, died in West Palm Beach,
Florida.
ii. The lunar module pilot on Apollo 14 died at the age of 85.
iii. His death occurred on the eve of the 45th anniversary of his lunar landing, which took place on 5 February
1971.

In a first, NDRF trains 160 dogs for disaster response

i. In a maiden initiative, a squad of 162 dogs is being raised by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) to
aid its personnel in rescuing people trapped under debris in the aftermath of natural calamities like earthquake.
ii. The NDRF, which was involved in disaster rescue operations like the deluge in Uttarakhand, Jammu and
Kashmir and Chennai and the earthquake that struck Nepal last year, has undertaken the exercise on a mission
mode
iii. The force is training a batch of 162 dogs for their specialised Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) tasks under
which the NDRF teams have to sift through mounds of rubble to look for life trapped beneath.
iv. A number of them have finished their regime and are being subjected to drills and field exercises where they
are made to sniff out life in a collapsed concrete structure.

Geographical Indication tag for Basmati rice of 7 states approved

i. The Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB) has ordered Chennai based Geographical Indications
Registry (GIR) to issue Geographical Indication tag for basmati rice.
ii. This GI tag will be issued to basmati rice variety grown in 7 states in the Indo-Gangetic Plains (IGP) on the
foothills of the Himalayas.
iii. These states are Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, parts of Uttar Pradesh and Jammu &
Kashmir. This tag will help to preserve the unique identity of Indias aromatic basmati rice in the international
markets.
About Geographical Indication

(GI) Geographical Indication is an insignia on products having a unique geographical origin and
evolution over centuries with regards to its special quality or reputation attributes.
It is a mark of authenticity and ensures that registered authorised users (or at least those residing inside
the geographic territory) are allowed to use the popular product name.

GI registration confers: (i) Legal protection to the products (ii) Prevents unauthorised use of a GI tags
by others (iii) Helps consumers to get quality products of desired traits (iv) Promotes economic
prosperity of producers of GI tag goods by enhancing their demand in national and international
markets.
Legal Authorities: At international level, GI is governed by World Trade Organisations (WTOs)
Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS).
In India, GI registration is governed by the Geographical Indications of goods (Registration and
Protection) Act, 1999. Darjeeling tea was the first product in India accorded with GI tag.
Presently, there are total 218 GI tag products from India. Some of them are Mysore Silk, Mysore Pak,
Thanjavaur Veena etc.

Noted Political Catooninst Sudhir Tailang passes away

i. Famous political cartoonist Sudhir Tailang, passed away in Gurgaon, Haryana after battling with brain cancer
for a long time. He was 56.
ii. He was known for his political cartoons that chronicled contemporary Indian politics with wit and humour.

Project Sunrise launched for prevention of AIDS in NE states

i. Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare J P Nadda has launched Project Sunrise on for prevention of
AIDS specially among people injecting drugs in the 8 North-Eastern states.
ii. The AIDS prevention special project aims to diagnose 90 per cent of such drug addicts with HIV and put
them under treatment by 2020.
Key facts

Project Sunrise aims at bringing the people living with HIV/AIDS into the national mainstream and
create more awareness about the disease in these N-E states.
It will be implemented in the North East in addition to the existing projects of the National AIDS
Control Organization (NACO).
The project has been sponsored by US based Centre for Disease Control and would be implemented by
Family Health International 360.
It will cover one lakh people living with HIV/AIDS by giving them treatment and care facilities free of
cost.
Other initiatives to be covered it include enhancing capacity of state-level institutions in high burden
areas, community mobilization, intervention among females injecting drugs.

Union Govt to set up Natioanl Organic Farming Reearch Institute in Sikkim

i. The Union Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare has decided to set up the National Organic Farming
Research Institute (NOFRI) in Sikkim.
ii. Decision in this regard was taken by Union Agriculture Minister Radhamohan Singh after he met Sikkim
Agriculture Minister Som Nath Paudyal in New Delhi.
iii. The NOFRI will be established by upgrading the existing Gangtok based Regional Centre of the Indian
Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR). iv. Apart from this, Union Government also has assured State
Government to help in sustaining the organic farming and also in marketing of the States organic products.

International Fleet Review 2016 kick starts in Vizag

i. The International Fleet Review (IFR) 2016, an international military exercise hosted and conducted by Indian
Navy was inaugurated in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh.
ii. Theme of this edition on IFR is United through Oceans and its objective is to enhance mutual trust and
confidence with neighbouring navies by inviting their ships to participate in the event.
iii. The last IFR conducted by the Indian Navy in 2001 in Mumbai, Maharashtra in which navies of 29 countries
from across the globe had participated.
Key facts

Total 11,000 guests are expected to attend the mega naval exercise including members of foreign
delegations.
It is perceived to be the biggest exercise conducted in India so far.
Naval ships from 50 countries and various dignitaries will also participate in the event and close to
4000 sailors have participated in the fleet review.
The 4 day review (from 4 to 8 February) aims at assuring the country of the Indian Navys
preparedness, high morale and discipline.
For the first time Chinese navy called as Peoples Liberation Army Navy (PLA-N) is also participating
in the event.
In this edition of IFR special emphasis is given to Make In India on three dimensions indigenisation,
innovation and ingenuity.
Indian Navys ships participating in this event includes, INS Vikramaditya- Indias biggest aircraft
carrier, INS Viraat, destroyers INS Mysore, Kolkata, frigates-Satpura, Shivalik, Teg amongst others.

Sushma Swaraj inaugurated Rise of Digital India Exhibition in Colombo

i. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on 6 February 2016 inaugurated the Rise of Digital India Exhibition
in Colombo. The exhibition was a part of Sangam -The Festival of India in Sri Lanka 2015-16.
ii. Swaraj was on a two day visit to Sri Lanka to co-chair the 9th session of the India-Sri Lanka Joint
Commission meeting along with her Sri Lankan counterpart, Mangala Samaraweera.
iii. The Rise of Digital India exhibition showcases the initiative of Indian government to take the benefits of
Information Technology to the common man. The exhibition is a part of six month long Festival of India
celebrations in Sri Lanka.
Zimbabwe's President declared a state of disaster in rural parts of the country
i. Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe on 5 February 2016 declared a state of disaster in rural parts of the
country hit by a drought.
ii. The announcement comes days after the European Union urged Mugabe to declare a state of disaster. This
declaration of disaster will allow international donors to raise money quickly to provide food aid to the nation.
iii. An estimated 2.4 million people are now in need of food aid, more than a quarter of the population. The
government also urged Zimbabweans not to panic, as it is importing maize from neighbouring Zambia.
iv. The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) in January 2016 said some 14 million people face
hunger in southern Africa because of a drought that has been exacerbated by the El Nino weather phenomenon.
South Africa, Namibia and Botswana have also been badly hit.
v. It seems that the worst drought in a quarter of the century is expected to increase the problems of the southern
African nation, which is struggling to overcome a steep 1999-2008 recession that saw its economy contract by
nearly 50 percent.

1. Brijbhushan Sharan Singh Appointed As The President Of SAWF

i. Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brijbhushan Sharan Singh has been appointed as the president of
the South Asian Wrestling Federation (SAWF).
ii. Tabiur Rehman from Bangladesh was also unanimously elected Secretary General.
iii. Ajgar of Pakistan, U.H. Neville Pdmashri from Sri Lanka and Raj Mohammed Ansari of Nepal were elected
vice presidents.
iv. In April 2012, Brijbhushan was elected unopposed as the president of the WFI as no other candidate filed
nomination for the post.

2. Noted Poet Nida Fazli Is No More

i. Muqtida Hasan Nida Fazli has taken his last breath on 8th Feb.
ii. He was an Indian Hindi and Urdu poet. He was 78.
iii. He has got many awards for his work in his entire career, some of them are as follows In 1998 Sahitya
Akademi Award in Urdu for Khoya Hua Sa Kuchh, In 2003 Star Screen Award for Best Lyricist for Sur, In
2003 Bollywood Movie Award - Best Lyricist for Aa Bhi Ja from Sur and In 2013 Padma Shri; the Government
of India

3. Chinappa Wins Gold In South Asian Games

i. Indias ace squash player Joshna Chinappa has won the gold medal in womens individual category at the 12th
South Asian Games (SAG).
ii. In the final match played at R G Baruah Sports Complex in Guwahati.
iii. she defeated Pakistans Maria Wazir by 10-12, 11-7, 11-9, 11-7 score.
iv. With this she became first Indian squash player to win individual gold medal in 2016 SAG.

4. Coast Guard To Induct 38 Aircraft And Helicopter By 2020

i. The Indian Coast Guard has proposed to induct 38 more aircraft and helicopters into its fleet by 2020. The CG
at present has a fleet strength of 62 airplanes and helicopters.
ii. To boost its surveillance and search, and rescue capabilities. In this regard, the maritime security will sign a
contract with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) to procure 16 Advanced Light Helicopters (ALHs) in the
next three - four months.
iii. It is also exploring options to buy 14 twin-engine heavy helicopters and 6 more Maritime Multi-mission
Surveillance Aircraft.

5. Indian Wrestlers Win 14 out of 16 Gold In South Asian Games

i. Indian wrestlers simply grabbed, scooping 14 gold medals out of a total 16 on offer as the wrestling
competition in the 12th South Asian Games.
ii. Indian wrestlers ended their campaign with a whopping 14 gold and two silver.
iii. India won gold in all the eight women's categories, while their men counterparts won 6 gold and 2 silver.
Pakistan won 2 gold.

6. Indo-Nepal Joint Military Exercise Surya Kiran IX begins in Uttarakhand

i. The 9th edition of India-Nepal Combined Military Exercise Surya Kiran IX has commenced at Pithoragarh
district of Uttarakhand.
ii. It is a 14 day military exercise focused on Jungle warfare and counter terrorism.
iii. This exercise is based on to practice counter insurgency, jungle warfare and disaster management under the
aegis of the Indian Army's GARUD division.

7. New Zealand cricket team won Chappell-Hadlee Trophy

i. New Zealand on 8 February 2016 won the three-match Chappell-Hadlee Trophy of cricket against Australia,
2-1.
ii. In the third and final match played at Seddon Park, Hamilton, the Black Caps defeated Australia by 55 runs.
iii. This win of the Black Caps can be termed as the best farewell gift for Brendon McCullum who retired from
One-Day International (ODI) cricket after the match. They also retained the Chappell-Hadlee trophy by putting
tremendous bowling and fielding display.

8. R.K. Pachauri Appointed As Executive Vice Chairman And Mathur As New DG Of TERI
i. Pachauri headed TERI, which works in the field of sustainable development, energy and climate change, for
the past 35 years.
ii. Mathur is a former Director General of Bureau of Energy Efficiency, an institution under the Power Ministry.
iii. Not-with-standing allegations of sexual harassment by a former colleague, TERI Chief RK Pachauri was on
Monday appointed Executive Vice Chairman of the green body after new Director General Ajay Mathur took
over the charge from him. "Dr. Ajay Mathur has joined as Director General of TERI. The Governing Council of
TERI has appointed Dr. R K Pachauri as the Executive Vice Chairman with immediate effect," a TERI official
said.
iv. In February last year, a junior colleague had accused him of sexual harassment following which he had to
proceed on leave but joined work in July with a court quashing the internal committee report that found him
guilty of misconduct.
v. He was removed as chairman of the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change and also from the
international body of scientists that makes periodic assessment of climate change science.

9. Former Nepal Prime Minister Sushil Koirala Passes Away

i. Nepal's former prime minister Sushil Koirala passed away at his resident.
ii. He was 78.
iii. Koirala was suffering from Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and has also been receiving
treatment for tongue cancer.
iv. Koirala was appointed President of the party ( Congress ) in 2008 by President Girija Prasad Koirala.

10. RBI Cancelled 4 NBFCs registration

i. The Reserve Bank of India on Monday said that it has cancelled the certificate of registration of four nonbanking financial companies.No details were given by the apex bank for cancellation of the certificates of these
firms.
ii. Those NBFC are Goyal Commercial Pvt Ltd and Debt Management Co. of India Ltd belongs to Kolkata,
while Nostalgia Finvest Private Limited and Narad Realtors Private Limited belongs to Mumbai.
iii. No details were given by the apex bank for cancellation of the certificates of these firms.

11. Rs. 1 L Crore Disbursed Under MUDRA YOJANA

i. Loans worth about Rs1 lakh crore have been sanctioned to small entrepreneurs under the Pradhan Mantri
MUDRA Yojana.
ii. Emphasizing that the government wants youth to be job creators and not job seekers.
iii. On the disbursement of the amount Modi said We are not looking for youth of the nation to turn out to be
job seekers, we would like that they grow to be job creators in order that they provide employment to at least
one, two or 5 individuals.

12. India will host its firsr global maritime summit

i. According to PM Modi, India will host the first-ever global maritime summit in April 2016.
ii. He made the announcement at a function to thank the personnel of the Indian Navy for making the
International Fleet Review (IFR) a success.
iii. He also quoted that Oceans are lifelines of global prosperity. They present us with enormous economic
opportunities to build our nations.

13. New Zealand cricketer Brendon Barrie McCullum retired from One-Day Internationals

i. Brendon Barrie McCullum (New Zealand) on 8 February 2016 retired from One-Day Internationals (ODIs).
However, He announced his retirement on 22 December 2015.
ii. He made his debut in ODIs as a 20-year-old batsman in 2001 against Australia at Sydney and he played his
against the same side in 2016.
iii. He made his test debut against South Africa in 2003 and has played 99 tests so far and would retire from
tests after playing two tests against Australia in February 2016.
iv. He played 260 ODIs and scored 6083 runs matches. They include 5 centuries and 31 half-centuries.

1. Union Government Releases Hydrocarbon Vision 2030

i. Union Ministry of state for Petroleum and Natural gas (MoPNG) has released the Hydrocarbon Vision 2030
for north-east India.
ii. The Hydrocarbon Vision 2030 outlines steps to leverage the hydrocarbon sector for social and economic
development of the north-east region.
iii. The states covered under it are Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Manipur, Nagaland, Sikkim,
Mizoram and Tripura.
iv. The objectives of the plan are to leverage the regions hydrocarbon potential, enhance access to clean fuels,
improve availability of petroleum products, facilitate economic development and to link common people to the
economic activities in this sector.

2. Indian Government Sanctions Rs. 580 Crore For Railway Link With Bangladesh
i. The Indian government has sanctioned Rs.580 crore for the vital rail link.
ii. As it expected to complete the work on the 15-km-long rail line to connect Agartala with Akhaura in that
country by 2017. Of the 15 km railway track, 10 km falls in the Bangladesh side and the rest in India.
iii. The entire project cost would be borne by the Center and over Rs 1,000 crore was sanctioned for completion
of the track in Bangladesh side.
iv. The 1,700 km distance between Agartala and Kolkata through Chicken Neck near Siliguri would be reduced
to 350 km.
v. Currently, India and Bangladesh have four rail links with West Bengal.

3. UAE Crown Prince Is On 3 Day India Visit

i. United Arab Emirates leader and Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan is on 3 day
India visit along with seven ministers.
ii. The visit is expected to witness signing of a landmark civil nuclear cooperation pact among agreements
across sectors, including a deal on security and information sharing to combat terrorists.
iii. The two countries are expected to sign about 16 agreements, including one on civil nuclear agreement.

4. Governor's Conference Hosted By President Held In New Delhi

i. President Pranab Mukherjee hosted a two-day Conference of Governors at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in New
Delhi.
ii. It is the fourth Conference to be presided over by President Mukherjee and 47th such Conference to be held
in Rashtrapati Bhavan.
iii. 23 Governors and 2 Lieutenant Governors will attend the Conference.
iv. The conference will deliberate on terrorism and insurgency activities, creating jobs for youths with special
focus on skill development for school dropouts.

5. India, China Hold First Joint Tactical Drill On Border In Jammu & Kashmir
i. The border troops of India and China have held their first joint tactical exercise codenamed Sino-India
Cooperation 2016 in Chushul-Moldo area along with the northern border in Jammu and Kashmir.
ii. It is the part of ongoing initiatives taken by India and China to ensure greater interaction between troops
stationed along the Line of Actual Control, and thereby ensure peace and tranquility along the border.
iii. As previously agreed by both countries, the exercise focused on actions to be coordinated to tackle jointly
aspects of humanitarian aid and disaster relief.

6. Maharashtra Has Topped In Internet Readiness Index

i. As per the report compiled and published by Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) and Indicus
Analytics Maharashtra has topped in terms of the overall Internet readiness index.
ii. Maharashtra ranks at the top in terms of Internet readiness with a strong position in areas like e-infrastructure,
eGovernance, IT services and consumer participation.
iii. Karnataka, Gujarat, Telengana and Tamil Nadu followed in the tally.
iv. The report, titled 'Index of Internet Readiness of Indian States', said Delhi has emerged as the leader among
the smaller states, followed by Puducherry and Goa. v. North East states, They have not even figured among the
smaller states indicating that much more needs to be done in the form of investment and infrastructure
development in the region.

7. INS Viraat To Be Converted Into luxury Hotel

i. The worlds oldest aircraft carrier, INS Viraat, is all set to be converted into a luxury hotel to attract tourists
once it is decommissioned from service in June this year.
ii. The Defence Ministry has given its nod to a proposal from Andhra Pradesh Tourism Development
Corporation (APTDC) to convert the Centaur-class aircraft carrier into a hotel-cum-museum.
iii. The state government has drawn up plans to convert Viraat into a 500-room hotel.The warship would be
docked at the shores of Visakhapatnam to serve as a tourist attraction.

iv. The project to be taken up under Public Private Partnership (PPP) model.

8. 3rd Edition Of Taj Literature Festival In Agra

i. The 3rd edition of the Taj Literature Festival scheduled to begin in Agra (UP).
ii. The 3-day long festival beginning on February 26, will not have any particular theme.
iii. This edition will accommodate 16 different categories ranging from music, theater, politics, women cooking
and comedy among others etc.

9. Renowned Musician Dan Hicks Passes Away

i. Renowned American singer-songwriter Dan Hicks passed away after a two-year long battle with throat and
liver cancer in California.
ii. He was 74.
iii. He was known for his traditional mix of folk, jazz and country music.

10. Lord's To Host Women's World Cup Final In 2017

i. The hallowed Lord's will host the final of the Women's Cricket World Cup in 2017.
ii. The ICC has announced, Derbyshire, Gloucestershire, Leicestershire, Somerset and Lord's in London will
host the matches from June 26 to July 23.
iii. The 28-day tournament will feature 31 games.
iv. It will be the first time the tournament will be held in England since 1993 when the home side beat New
Zealand in the final at Lord's.

1. PM Shram Awards Announced For The Year 2014

i. The Government of India has announced the Prime Ministers Shram Awards for the year 2014.
ii. The award will be awarded to 54 workers employed in the Departmental Undertakings and Public Sector.
iii. The award has been given in recognition of their distinguished performances, innovative abilities,
outstanding contribution in the field of productivity and exhibition of exceptional courage and presence of mind.
iv. This year, 9 nominations for the Shram Bhushan Award, 19 nominations for Shram Vir/Shram Veerangana
and 26 nominations for Shram Shree / Shram Devi Awards have been selected.

2. The 6th National Science Film Festival Begins In Mumbai

i. The 6th National Science Film Festival & Competition (NSFF) has begun at Nehru Science Center in
Mumbai.
ii. The festival has been jointly organised by Nehru Science Centre and Vigyan Prasar. Vigyan Prasar is an
autonomous body under the Ministry of Science and Technology.

iii. The event was chaired by veteran director Shyam Benegal and science film maker Dr Mike Panday.
iv. The winners will be chosen among the 35 short-listed entries by a jury of eight people chaired by Shyam
Benegal.

3. India's 1st Aviation Park To Come Up In Gujarat

i. The state government has planned to set up the countrys first-ever Aviation Park in Gujarat near Bagodara
village in Ahmedabad to strengthen the aviation sector.
ii. State government has given this task to Gujarat State Aviation Infrastructure Company Ltd (GUJSAIL) to
carry out the project.
iii. The first ever Aviation Park will have the facilities including an airstrip, training school, helipad and space
for setting up small manufacturing units among others.
iv. In the later stages, this park will have small manufacturing units to produce spare parts for aircraft and also in
planning to develop this park on Public Private Partnership (PPP).

4. R K Verma : New Secretary Of Railway Board

i. A 1980 batch officer of Indian Railway Services Of Engineers Mr. R K Verma has assumed the charge as
Secretary, Railway Board.
ii. Earlier he has served as Adviser (Public Grievance) to the Minister of State (MoS) for Railways.
iii. In his previous assignments, he has worked with various railways, including Southern, North-East Frontier
Eastern and Western comprising of Indian Railways Institute of Civil Engineering.
iv. He also has Life Fellowship of Institution of Engineers (India), Institution of Permanent Way (India) and
Indian Institute of Bridge Engineers.

5. India Ranks 37 on USCC IP Index

i. India has ranked 37 out of 38 countries for its intellectual property rights environment in the annual IP index
released by the United States Chamber of Commerce (USCC). .
ii. These 38 countries bench marked in the 2016 index accounts for nearly 85% of the global GDP.
iii. Venezuela ranked lowest below India at 38th position with 6.42 points on the index.
iv. This index is based on six key parameters like rights and limitations of the patent, copyright and trademark
regimes, trade secrets, enforcement and ratification of international treaties.

6. Kala Committee : Draft National Wildlife Action Plan

i. The National Wildlife Action Plan (NWAP) 2017-2031 unveiled by the environment ministry accords special
emphasis to rehabilitation of threatened species of wildlife.
ii. While conserving their habitats which include inland aquatic, coastal and marine eco-systems.
iii. The Ministry Of Environment Forest and Climate Change has been implementing the National Wildlife
Action Plan.
iv. It envisages on 17 key areas includes new area linking wildlife planning to climate change and Mitigation of
human wildlife conflict, coastal and marine ecosystem.

7. India Australia Energy Security Dialogue Held At Canberra, Australia

i. To implement the Prime Ministers vision of affordable energy for all, Shri Piyush Goyal Union
Minister of State (IC) for Coal, Power and New and Renewable had an Energy Security Dialogue with
Australian Minister for Resources, Energy and Northern Australia, Mr Josh Frydenberg at Canberra.
ii. In this both the countries discussed the issues, business cooperation in coal bed methane and LNG production
and trade.
iii. The several roundtables have organized during the Energy Security Dialogue with a view to getting to know
the state of art technologies in the relevant areas.
iv. The policy collaboration on issues pertaining to LNG trade have also been discussed.

8. RBI Tells To Bank Set Aside More For Stressed Loans

i. The Reserve Bank of India has directed commercial banks to accelerate provisioning requirement, from April
1, for the existing stock of restructured loans that are showing signs of stress.
ii. RBI has identified bank specific accounts in which respective lenders have to make higher provisioning from
new financial year. These accounts were restructured earlier.
iii. Banks have provided only 5 per cent for these restructured loans, but now the central bank has directed them
to increase the provisioning by 2.5 per cent every quarter so that by March 31, 2017, provisioning reached the
15 per cent level in line with sub-standard accounts. However, banks are not allowed to classify these accounts
as non-performing assets.
iv. The central banks move comes in the back drop of RBI Governor Raghuram Rajans drive to clean up
banks balance sheets by March 2017.

9. Mukesh Bansal & Ankit Nagori To Quit Flipkart

i. Mukesh Bansal, the head of commerce and advertising business and Ankit Nagori, Chief Business Officer of
Flipkart has put in his papers.
ii. Mr. Nagori quit the firm to start an entrepreneurial venture in the sports domain.
iii. Bansal, who joined Flipkart when the online marketplace acquired fashion retailer Myntra in 2014, will
continue to be an adviser to the company.
iv. Binny Bansal will now directly oversee the commerce and advertising platforms.

10. Veteran Director Aurobindo Mukherjee Passes Away

i. Veteran film director Aurobindo Mukherjee passed away in Kolkata at his residence.
ii. He was 97. He was ailing from geriatric problems for some time.
iii. He was younger brother of famous novelist Balaichand Mukhopadhyay who is popularly known as
Bonophool.
iv. He had joined Tollywood in 1950s.

11. Siachen Avalanche Survivor Lance Naik Hanamanthappa Passes Away

i. Lance Naik Hanamanthappa, who had been battling for life at the Armys Research & Referral hospital,

breathed his last on Today morning. Really sorry to inform everyone that LNk Hanamanthappa is no more. He
breathed his last breath at 11:45 a.m. today, Army officials said on Today.
ii. He was 33.
iii. Hanamanthappa, hailed from Koppal in Karnataka. He belonged to a farming family in Betadur village in
Kundagol taluk of Dharwad district.

1. India And UAE Signed 9 Agreements To Boost Bilateral Cooperation

i. India and the United Arab Emirates signed 9 bilateral agreements across various sectors. These agreements
were signed during the second day of the three day visit to India of Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan,
Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
ii. These nine agreements are covering cooperation in the fields of currency swap, culture, investments in the
infrastructure sector, renewable energy, space research, insurance supervision, cyber security, skill development
and commercial information sharing.
Those Agreements are as follow :1. MoU on Technical Cooperation in Cyber Space and Combating Cyber Crime. 2. MoU on Establishing a
Framework for Facilitating the Participation of U.A.E institutional investors in Infrastructure Investments.
3. General Framework Agreement on Renewable Energy Cooperation. 4. MoU between Indian Space Research
Organisation (ISRO) and the United Arab Emirates Space Agency on Cooperation in the Exploration and use of
Outer Space for Peaceful Purposes. 5. MoU for bilateral cooperation between Insurance Regulatory Authority of
India (IRDA) and the Insurance Authority of UAE. 6. Executive Programme for Cultural Cooperation (EPCC).
7. Letter of Intent between the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE). 8. MoU between
Dubai Economic Council (DEC) and Export-Import bank of India. 9. MoU on Indian Rupee (INR)/UAE Dirham
(AED) Bilateral Currency Swap Arrangements.

2. World's Largest Solar Plant Opened In Morocco

i. The world's Largest solar plant was launched in the Souss-Massa-Dra area in Morocco.
ii. It is the part of Noor Ouarzazate solar complex which will produce energy for more than one million
Moroccan households on completion by 2018.
iii. It will also reduce carbon emissions by an estimated 760000 tons per year.
iv. The entire project will be implemented in three phases involving construction of Noor I (160MW), Noor II
(200MW) and Noor III (150MW) in each phase.
v. The World Bank partially financed construction of the plant through a 97 million US dollar loan from the
Clean Technology Fund.

3. NATO & EU Signed Agreement On Cyber Defense Cooperation

i. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the European Union (EU) have signed an agreement to
improve cooperation in cyber defense.
ii. The technical agreement signed at NATO headquarters at Brussels.
iii. Belgium will help the two in countering the modern forms of hybrid warfare.
iv. It was signed between NATO Computer Incident Response Capability (NCIRC) and the Computer
Emergency Response Team European Union (CERT-EU)

4. Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu Launches 3 IT Enabled Apps

i. The Union Ministry of Railway has launched 3 Information Technology enabled apps to bring the
transparency in system on the sidelines of Digital India initiative. These apps were launched by Union Railway
Minister Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu.
ii. These apps includes - Handheld terminals for Indian Railways travelling ticket examiners (TTEs), a paperless
unreserved ticketing mobile application and a facility for E-booking of disposable linen on trains.

5. India's 1st National Deworming Day Launched

i. India launched its 1st Deworming Day on 10th February.
ii. It was launched by The Ministry Of Health & Family Welfare to combat parasitic worm infections among
preschool and school age children across India.
iii. Jagat Prakash Nadda, Union Minister for Health & Family Welfare inaugurated the Deworming national
programme, in Jaipur, Rajasthan, together with Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje.
iv. National Deworming Day is a groundbreaking initiative focused on reducing the threat of parasitic worm
infections, a widespread health issue affecting over 241 million children in India alone.
v. India has the highest burden of soil transmitted parasitic worms in the world.

6. Chhattisgarh And Railway Signed Joint Venture For Infrastructure Development

i. Indian Railway signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Chhattisgarh Government to establish a
joint venture ( JV ) for laying tracks and expedite implementation of railway projects in the state.
ii. With this Chhattisgarh became 5th state to join hands with the Indian Railways for speedy execution of rail
projects through JV route.
iii. Under this MoU, state government will have 51% share and Indian Railways will have remaining 49% share
in the JV company. The joint venture will focus on project development and implementation, resource
mobilization, land acquisition and monitor the progress of critical rail projects in the state.

7. Indian Origin Lawyer Davinder Singh Appointed As Vice - Chairman Of ICC

i. A top Indian origin lawyer has been named as Vice-Chairman of the Paris based International Chamber of
Commerce Commission (ICC) on Corporate Responsibility and Anti-corruption.
ii. Davinder Singh, 58, is one of the top Indian origin lawyer in Singapore. He is the only Singaporean lawyer to
be appointed to the leadership of one of 13 Policy Commissions under the ICC.
iii. Currently he is the chief executive of the Singapore based law firm Drew & Napier. He was the member of
Singapore Parliament from 1988-2006.

8. Wipro To Buy US Healthcare Services

i. Global software major and India's 3rd largest exporter Wipro has made an announced buying "HealthPlan
Service" business in the US for $460 million (Rs.3,150 crore). ii. HealthPlan Services is a leading independent
technology and Business Process as a Service (BPaaS) provider in the US health insurance market that offers
solutions to health insurance firms.
iii. By partnering with HealthPlan, Wipro will have first-mover advantage in the high growth public and private
exchange space for individual, group and ancillary markets.
iv. With this acquisition, Wipro is looking to give its healthcare business a major fillip.
v. This is Wipros overall 4th acquisition in the in calendar year 2015 . The acquisition process is likely to be
completed within the next three months.

9. Amazon To Invest In Westland ( A Tata Group Company )

i. Ecommerce company Amazon has made an investment in Westland, a Trent Ltd subsidiary ( Tata Group ) in
support of its publishing business.
ii. The investment will help to expand its international reach and scale its physical and digital book businesses.
iii. Westland had also signed a two-month exclusive deal with Amazon to sell the book through its online
platform.

10. Leslie Bassett : Pulitzer Winner Composer Passes Away

i. Leslie Bassett, Pulitzer winning composer passed away in Oakwood, Georgia.
ii. He was 93. As a master composer he was known for his lush sonorities and ecumenical instrumentation and
for compositions of coaxing a vast range of tonal colours from the bits of wood and brass.
iii. He had also served as trombonist, composer and arranger in the US Army and Europe during World War II.
iv. Bassett received the Pulitzer in 1966 for Variations for Orchestra, which had been given its United States
premiere by the Philadelphia Orchestra under Eugene Ormandy the year before.

11. Anirban Lahiri wins Hilton Asian Tour Golfer of the Year award
i. The Indian triumphed at the Maybank Malaysian and Hero Indian Open before going on to finish tied fifth at
the PGA Championship last year.

ii. He also became the first Indian to feature at The Presidents Cup and ended the year by winning the Asian
Tour Order of Merit title and finishing in 40th place in the world rankings.
iii. Lahiri won the award ahead of Thailand's Thongchai Jaidee, Malaysia's Danny Chia and Philippines' Miguel
Tabuena.

1. 13 February : World Radio Day

i. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is celebrating
World Radio Day on 13 February.
ii. This year, the UNESCO theme for World Radio Day is Radio in Times of Emergency and Disaster.
iii. It was proclaimed on 3 November 2011 by UNESCO's 36th General Conference after originally proposed by
the Kingdom of Spain.

2. Discovery Of The Centuary : Gravitational Waves

i. Scientists have observed a stunning discovery in their quest to fully understand gravity.
ii. They have observed the warping of space time generated by the collision of two black holes more than a
billion light-years from Earth.
iii. The scientist team says the first detection of these gravitational waves will usher in a new era for astronomy.
iv. The gravitational waves were predicted by Albert Einstein in his general theory of relativity 100 years ago in
1915. The gravitational waves were detected on September 14, 2015 by LIGO detectors, located in Livingston,
Louisiana, and Hanford, Washington, USA.

3. Narendra Modi opens Make In India centre in Mumbai

i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated Make in India Centre at Bandra Kurla Complex, a
commercial complex in the suburbs of Mumbai.
ii. The Make In India week will conclude on 18 February.
iii. Make in India is the current governments flagship initiative, launched by the prime minister in September
2014, to encourage international companies to manufacture their goods in India.
iv. Make in India Week will be the flagship event to provide greater momentum to the Make in India initiative,
and to showcase to the world the achievements of the nation in the manufacturing sector.

4. Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year Award 2015

i. Chief Executive Officer Vinita Gupta and managing director Nilesh Gupta, Lupin Ltd have been chosen the
EY Entrepreneur Of The Year 2015.
ii. Ms. Vinita and Mr. Nilesh Gupta will now represent India at the EY World Entrepreneur of the Year Award
(WEOY) in Monte Carlo from 7-12 June 2016.
iii. An 11-member jury led by Adi Godrej selected the winners.
iv. F. C. Kohli, former Vice-Chairman of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), has been honored with the Lifetime
Achievement Award for his pioneering contribution towards the Indian software industry and nation-building.

5. MOU Signs Between NRDC & IICB To Promote Entrepreneurship

i. To promote start-ups and entrepreneurship, the Indian Institute of Chemical Biology (IICB) and National
Research Development Corporation (NRDC).
ii. Both arms of the DSIR, have signed an MoU to facilitate industry-institute partnership.
iii. The MoU have been signed by Dr H. Purushotham, CMD of NRDC and Director, CSIR-IICB Prof. Samit
Chattopadhyay in the presence of the Dr Harsh Vardhan, Union Minister of S&T and Earth Sciences and Dr
Rabiranjan Chattopadhyay, West Bengal Minister for Science, Technology & Biotechnology.

6. International Radio Fair 2016 Hosted By Bhubaneswar

i. International Radio Fair 2016 is to be held at Bhubaneswar.

ii. The fair will start on the occasion of World Radio Day i.e. 13th of February and close on 14th.
iii. Minister of State for Information & Broadcasting Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, Minister of State for
Petroleum and Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan and eminent news reader Upendra Pahadsingh have given their
consent join the Radio Fair this year among others.

7. Oracle To Setup Its Campus In Bengaluru

i. The computer giant Oracle is planning to set up a campus in Bengaluru and start an initiative to
help more than half a million students in India develop computer science skills.
ii. This was conveyed by Oracle's Global CEO Safra Catz to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
iii. Oracle is of the view that the plans are likely to boost Mr. Modis Make in India initiative, and strengthen
Indias position as a world-class design and manufacturing hub.

8. Ashok Chawla Appointed As Chairman Of TERI

i. TERI's governing council appointed Ashok Chawla as its new chiarman.

ii. Chawla is the former Union Finance Secretary and former Chairman of the Competition Commission.
iii. The Council decided after the elevation of climate scientist R.K. Pachauri indicted in a sexual harassment
case to the post of Executive Vice Chairman on Monday, received widespread criticism from the media and
womens rights lawyers.
iv. The Research and Resources Institute (TERI) re announced that the new Director General, Ajay Mathur, as a
Member of the Council will operate with full executive powers. Mr. Mathur was brought in to replace Mr.
Pachauri on DG's post.

9. Kavita Raut Clinched Gold In SAG Marathon

i. India long distance runner Kavita Raut clinches gold in marathon.

ii. The 30 year old Raut easily clinched the marathon gold in 2 hours 38 minutes and 38 seconds to become the
4th Indian women to have qualified for Rio Games womens marathon.
iii. Nashik girl Raut is the lone athlete to have qualified for the Olympics from the 12th SAG.
iv. With these two gold and one bronze, India ended the athletics competition with 28 gold, 22 silver and 9
bronze, medals thereby establishing their unrivalled superiority in the South Asian region.

10. Lionel Messi Named La Liga Player Of Month

i. FC Barcelona forward Lionel Andres Messi has been named Liga BBVA Player of the Month for January, for
the first time.
ii. The award has been given out since the beginning of the 2013-14 Primera Divisin season but the five-times
Ballon dOr winner had not won it until now.
iii. Messi is the only football player in history to win the FIFA Ballon d'Or five times, four of which he won
consecutively, and the first player to win three European Golden Shoes.
Malayalam poet ONV Kurup passes away
i. Noted Malayalam poet and lyricist O N V Kurup passed away in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala. He was 84.
ii. He was popularly known as ONV, Ottaplakkal Nambiyadikkal Velu Kurup and had made significant
contributions to the Malayalam film music. He was also was part of the progressive movement in Kerala.

Banaras Hindu University turns 100 years

i. Banaras Hindu University (BHU) founded by Freedom fighter Pt Madan Mohan Malviya has turned 100 years
on 13th February 2016.
ii. BHU was founded as important seat of higher education in 1916. During time of its establishment it was first
university in India that was the result of a private individuals efforts.
iii. After its formation, BHU had played an important role in the freedom movement of India.
iv. It main purpose was to build a bridge between Indias past and modernising world system in the areas of
social sciences, humanities particularly in evolving non colonial history as a discipline.

Motto of BHU:

/ Vidyaymritamanute (Sanskrit). In English it means Knowledge imparts

immortality.

Celebrations

To mark this occasion, University had organised a centenary seminar on higher education and
contribution of BHU where Supreme Court Judge Pinaki Chandra Ghosh will be the Chief Guest.
Earlier in September 2014, Union Government had released special coins of Rs 100 (commemorative)
and Rs 10 (released in the market) to commemorate the 100th year of establishment of BHU. Postal
Department also had issued a special commemorative stamp to mark the occasion.
Currently, BHU has about 140 departments organised into 6 institutes besides one Indian Institute of
Technology (IIT) and an Institute of Medical Sciences. It is Asias largest residential university with
more than 15,000 students from different parts of country are presently studying in it. BHU has been
listed in the list of Institutes of National Importance.

Tamar Hahn appointd as Director of United Nations Information Centre

i. Tamar Hahn from Israel has been appointed as the Director of United Nations Information Centre (UNIC) in
Buenos Aires, Argentina.
ii. She took the charge of the office after she was appointed to this post by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
iii. Prior to this appointment, she was the Regional Adviser for Resource Mobilization and Partnerships at the
United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Regional Office for the Caribbean and Latin America in Panama
City (Panama).

About United Nations Information Centre

The UNIC is also known as information services or information offices. It serves as regional couriers of
information from the UN to the local public. There are at least 60 locations around the world which serve as
regional couriers of information from the UN. They are operated by the United Nations Department of Public
Information.

Neem extract may help treat Pancreatic Cancer: Study

i. A new study has claimed that a natural extract derived from the neem tree can potentially be used to treat
pancreatic cancer without harming normal, healthy cells.
ii. The study was conducted by scientists from the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso
(TTUHSC El Paso). The findings were published in the journal Scientific Reports.

Key facts

Scientists have tested nimbolide, a compound found in neem leaves against pancreatic cancer in cell
lines and mice.
The results have showed that this natural compound can stop pancreatic cancers growth and metastasis
without harming healthy, normal cells in vitro and in vivo experiments.
In the tests, it was also observed that nimbolide was able to reduce the migration and invasion
capabilities of pancreatic cancer cells by 70 per cent.
It was also found that after Nimbolide was induced cancer cells, it reduced the size and number of
pancreatic cancer cell colonies by 80 per cent.

Pancreatic cancer has the highest mortality rate among the all other forms of cancers. Around 94 per cent of
patients suffering from it die within five years of diagnosis. The cancer grows quickly and there are currently no
effective treatments available.

World Radio Day observed with theme Radio in Times of Emergency and Disaster
i. World Radio Day was observed globally on 13 February 2016 with the theme Radio in Times of Emergency
and Disaster.
ii. To mark the occasion, various activities conducted across India celebrating importance of radio in the day to
day life.

iii. In Odisha, a two-day annual international event Outreach International Radio Fair 2016 was inaugurated in
Bhubaneswar.

About World Radio Day

United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) annually celebrate the
World Radio Day by planning activities with broadcasters, organizations and communities around the
world.
The day is a global celebration of radio as a forum for entertainment and information, as a bridge of
communication for remote communities and its role in empowering people.
UNESCO at its 36th General Assembly on 3 November 2011 proclaimed 13 February as World Radio
Day. The first World Radio Day was officially celebrated in 2012.
World Radio Day marks the anniversary of the first broadcast by United Nations Radio in 1946. 13
February 1946 was the day when the UN Radio transmitted its first call sign.
The theme for 2015 World Radio Day was Youth and Radio.

Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan visited India
i. Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on 12 February 2016 concluded his 3day visit to India. He is also the deputy supreme commander of UAE armed forces
ii. He visited India on invitation of Narendra Modi who became the first Prime Minister to visit the UAE after a
gap of 34 years in August 2015.
Highlights of 3-day visit

He held talks with President Pranab Mukherjee, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and External Affairs
Minister Sushma Swaraj on a gamut of bilateral relations.
During the visit, both countries signed 9 agreements and Memorandums of Understanding.
The agreements and MoUs covered a wide range of sectors like the sphere of cyber security,
infrastructure, renewable energy and finance.
Both the countries issued a joint statement that expressed resolve to increase trade by 60 percent over
by 2020.
He visited Mumbai and met Indian business leaders at the Mumbai Stock Exchange.

Pakistan Cricket umpire Asad Rauf banned for 5 years

i. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has banned Pakistani umpire Asad Rauf for five years after
its disciplinary committee found him guilty of corrupt practices.
ii. It was announced by BCCI president Shashank Manohar who had headed the disciplinary committee.
iii. The BCCI Committee has found Rauf guilty of misconduct and corruption under multiple statutes of its
BCCI Anti-Corruption Code. He was accused of accepting expensive gifts from bookies besides placing bets on
IPL matches in the 2013 edition.
iv. Earlier Rauf had served as part of the International Cricket Councils (ICCs) elite panel. He was withdrawn
from panel by Pakistan after the allegations against him broke out.

1. Andhra Pradesh Government Signs Agreement With USTDA

i. The US Trade and Development Agency has signed MoU with the Department Of Municipal

Administration of Andhra Pradesh on funding for drawing up the master plan for Visakhapatnam Smart City
and a consortium of three US companies, comprising AECOM, KPMG and IBM.
ii. The MoU was signed by Principal Secretary (Municipal Administration) Karikal Velavan and Country
Manager of USTDA Heather K Lanigan in the presence of Chief Minister and Director of USTDA Leocadila I
Zak.

2. 3 MoU Worth Rs. 21,000 Crore Signed On 1st Day Of Make In India Week
i. On the first day of the 'Make in India' week in Mumbai, the three MoUs between Maharashtra government
bodies and various companies for total investment worth Rs. 21,000 crore have been signed.
ii. Twinstar Display Technologies, Raymond Industries and Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages were among the
companies that signed the MoUs for setting up manufacturing plants in India.
iii. The First MoU: TwinStar Display Technologies has inked MoU with Maharashtra Industrial Development
Corporation (MIDC).
iv. Second MoU: Raymond Industries and MIDC have inked MoU as part of Farm to Fabric initiative.
v. Third MoU: Hindustan Coca Cola Beverages, Jain Irrigation Pvt Ltd and Department of Agriculture and
Marketing of Maharashtra have inked MoU for setting up a juice manufacturing facility.

3. BAFTA Awards : 69th British Academy Film Awards

i. The 69th British Academy Film Awards held on 14 February 2016 in London.
ii. It has taken place in Central London at the Royal Opera House.
iii. The British Academy Film Awards are presented in an annual award show hosted by the British Academy of
Film and Television Arts (BAFTA).
iv. The Revenant' scooped the best film, best actor and best director awards at the 69th edition of the biggest
film awards outside the U.S.
v. The other award of BAFTA's are as follow : Outstanding British Film: Brooklyn. Best Director: Alejandro G.
Irritu (The Revenant). Best Actor: Leonardo DiCaprio (The Revenant). Best Actress: Brie Larson (Room).
Most awards: The Revenant (5 wins). Most nominations: Bridge of Spies and Carol (9 nominations each).

4. Biraja Prasad : Indian Ambassador To Tajikistan Passes Away

i. Biraja Prasad, Indias Ambassador to Tajikistan passed away following a massive cardiac arrest.
ii. He was the youngest Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer to be appointed as Indias Ambassador to any
country.
iii. Mr. Biraja Prasad , who belonged to Odisha started his career as diplomat.

5. Bollywood Actress Vidya Balan Awarded With The Pride Of Kerala Award
i. Bollywood actress Vidya Balan has been awarded the 'Pride of Kerala' award by the World Malaya lee
Council and Kairali TV.
ii. National Award-winning actress Vidya Balan, who hails from Kerala, is 38 year old.
iii. National award winner had made her debut in Bollywood in 2005 in Parineeta.
iv. The Bollywood actress has already received many awards and honors like National Film Award for Best
Actress - for The Dirty Picture (2011). Padma Shri Award in 2014. She also has won five Filmfare Awards in
Best Female Debut for Parineeta (2005), Best Actress for Paa (2009), The Dirty Picture (2011) and Kahaani
(2012) and Critics Award for Best Actress for Ishqiya (2010).

6. Dr. Vilas A. Tonapi Appointed As New Director Of IIMR

i. Dr. Vilas A. Tonapi has been appointed as Director of Indian Institute of Millets Research (IIMR),
Rajendranagar.
ii. Prior to this appointment, he was working as the Principal Scientist at Seed Science and Technology of the
IIMR.
iii. Earlier Dr. Vilas A. Tonapi had served as Head, Division of Seed Science and Technology at New Delhi
based Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI).

7. Facebook India's Managing Director Kirthiga Reddy Steps Down

i. A day after closing down its controversy ridden free basics programme in India, Facebook India Managing
Director Kirthiga Reddy has stepped down from her current role and will relocate to the United States.
i. She would be moving to Facebook's headquarters in the US in the next 6 to 12 months. Facebook started
looking for her successor in India.
iii. Facebook has shut down ' Free Basics' in India, days after telecom regulator TRAI barred operators from
charging discriminatory rates for internet access based on content.
iv. Free Basics was offered in India in partnership with Reliance Communications and was earlier known as
Internet.org.

8. Devaraja Reddy elected as the new ICAI President

i. The CA Institute has a new President in M Devaraja Reddy.Devraja Reddy
ii. He belongs to Hyderabad and is a fellow member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI)
with more than 28 years of professional standing.
iii. He was the Vice-President of ICAI for the council year 2015-16.
iv. Nilesh S Vikamsey is the new Vice President of the CA Institute for the term 2016-17.

9. RBI announces liquidity measures for March 2016

i. Reserve Bank of India will inject adequate additional liquidity using a combination of appropriate instruments
while continuing with its normal liquidity adjustment facility operations.
ii. This will be done with a view to addressing the expected tightening of liquidity conditions next month on
account of advance tax payments by corporate and in order to provide flexibility to the banking system in its
liquidity management towards March-end 2016.

10. Indian, Israeli firms join hands for defence cooperation

i. Around 25 Indian and 100 Israeli firms will come together for a unique business seminar on defence and
security in Israel.
ii. The seminar will be organised jointly by SIBAT, the Israeli defence ministry, the International Defence
Cooperation Directorate and Ficci will take place on 21-25 February 2016.
iii. It will mainly focus on increasing collaborations and JVs between the MSME ministries on both sides.
iv. The seminar will highlight the huge potential to cooperate under PM Narendra Modis Make in India
initiative and will deal with the new expected defence procurement procedure 2016.
v. This will be the fourth joint seminar for SIBAT and Ficci in recent years.

11. R D Mathur promoted to the rank of Air Marshal

i. Air vice Marshal Rajiv Dayal Mathur, promoted to the rank of Air Marshal on 15 Feb 16.
ii. Perior to this, He had been Assistant Chief of Air Staff in charge of the Indian Air Force's Air Warfare
Strategy Cell besides its space, cyber, Air Traffic Services and Media & Public Relations Directorates.
iii. He had earlier served as Air Defence commander at Ho Eastern Air Command and commanded a frontline
Air Force Station and a Fighter aircraft squadron.

12. Tata Steel wins TIME's best in class for manufacturing award
i. American publishing company, Time Inc has announced the winners of the inaugural TIME India awards,
honouring leaders for manufacturing excellence in India.
ii. McKinsey & Company is the knowledge partner for the awards.
iii. The awards encompassed three categories:Best in class manufacturing,manufacturing innovator of the year
andYoung maker of the year.
iv. Tata Steel won the award for best in class for manufacturing, while Hero MotoCorp was named the
manufacturing innovator of the year and Yogesh and Rajesh Agrawal of Ajanta Pharma Limited were declared
winners of the TIME India Young Maker of the Year.

v. The finalists were announced at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

13. Chad appoints Albert Pahimi Padacke as its new prime minister
i. President Idriss Deby has appointed MP Albert Pahimi Padacke as new Prime Minister of the Central African
country Chad.
ii.His appointment came after the resignation of his predecessor, just two months ahead of presidential elections.
iii. No reason was given for the departure of Kalzeube Pahimi Deubet earl. He had served as Prime Minister for
more than two years.

14. Indian Government to distribute 14 crore Soil Health cards by March 2017
i. India Government will distribute 14 crore Soil Health card in the country by March 2017.
ii. The steps have been taken by the government to achieve the target.
iii. The foundation stone of Agriculture Technology Application Research Institute was laid Assam, Arunachal
Pradesh and Sikkim.The new institute will help the farmers.
iv.The institute will work as the nodal agency of all Krishi Vigyan Kendras for three states.
v. Assam has 25 Krishi Vigyan Kendras which are working in the field of providing training to farmers and skill
development activities.

15. DIAL launches mobile application 'DIAL Cargo'

i. Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL) has launched a mobile application 'DIAL Cargo' for cargo operations
to reduce paperwork and track movement of shipments on real time basis.
ii. DIAL runs the international airport in the national capital.
iii. The mobile application would aid in electronic clearance of cargo through the customs Department.
iv. Delhi airport handled 7 lakh tonnes of cargo in 2014-15.

16. Under 19 World Cup : West Indies Beat India To Win First Title
i. The West Indies won the Under-19 World Cup for the first time in their history after beating India by five
wickets in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
ii. It was the eleventh edition of the Under-19 Cricket World Cup, and the second to be held in Bangladesh, after
the 2004 event.

17. MIRZA-HINGIS WIN ST PETERSBURG TITLE

i. Indian tennis ace Sania Mirza and her Swiss partner Martina Hingis extended their winning streak to 40 after
clinching the St. Petersburg Ladies Trophy.
ii. The top-seeded pair continued their imperious form as they swept aside the Russian-Czech pair of Vera
Dushevina and Barbora Krejcikova 6-3, 6-1 in the finals of the womens double event that lasted for an hour.
iii. With the win, the Indo-Swiss pair bagged their 13th womens double titles. Earlier this year, the Indo-Swiss
duo won their third consecutive womens doubles Grand Slam title by lifting the Australian Open trophy.

1. Homeo Vision 2016 - Inaugurated At Nagpur

i. The twenty fourth National Homoeopathic Congress Homeo-Vision 2016 was inaugurated by the Minister of
State for AYUSH (Independent Charge) and Health and Family Welfare, Shri Shripad Yesso Naik in Nagpur.
ii. Indian Institute of Homeopathic Physician (IIHP), Maharashtra State Branch, Nagpur has organized this twoday National conference (13th and 14th February, 2016) to discuss the recent advances in technology,
innovative research and quality education in Homeopathy.
iii. The objective of Ministry of AYUSH to develop the four core areas such as education, research, drug
development and health care delivery.
iv. The International professional body of Homeopaths, Liga Medicorum Homoeopathica Internationalis
(LMHI) has proposed to organize the World Homeopathy Day, 2016 (10th April 2016) in New Delhi.

2. Jharkhand First Mega Food Park

i. Union Food Processing and Industry Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal and Chief Minister Raghubar Das
inaugurated the first mega food park at Village Getalsud, Ranchi in Jharkhand.
ii. The food park costing Rs.114.73 crore is spread over 51.50 acres.
iii. It will have the facilities of multi-chamber cold storage, dry warehouse, vegetable dehydration line, modern
quality control and testing laboratory and other processing facilities for fruit and vegetables.
iv. The Mega Food Park is expected to provide direct and indirect employment to about 6000 people and benefit
about 25,000-30,000 farmers in its catchment area.

3. India And Sweden Signed MoU On Technical Cooperation For Railway

i. The ministry of railways signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the government of Sweden for
technical cooperation.
ii. The main objective of the MoU, signed by Sweden's ministry of enterprise and innovation, is cooperation
between the two countries to promote efficiency and sustainability and achieve concrete results with regard to
bilateral trade, investment and technology transfer.
iii. The areas identified for cooperation include benchmark railway projects, exchange of knowledge, training
and education and sustainable solutions among others.
iv. The agreement's time frame is five years, extendable by another five years with mutual consent.

4. LAMITYE 2016 : A Joint Military Exercise Between India And Seychelles

i. LAMITYE 2016 , The 7th edition of India, Seychelles joint military exercise has begun in Victoria,
Seychelles.
ii. The fourteen day exercise has been conducted at Seychelles Defence Academy (SDA), Victoria till February
28, 2016.
iii. In 2016 exercise, the Indian contingent will comprise of an Infantry platoon and representatives from the
Special Forces.
iv. The Seychelles Peoples Defense Forces (SPDF) will be represented by 20 personnel from Tazar (Special
Forces Unit) and 32 from Seychelles Infantry.
v. The concluding phase of the exercise will incorporate a tactical exercise will be witnessed by senior military
officers from both the countries.

5. Sri Srinivasan : To Become The 1st Indian American Judge Of US Supreme Court
i. Sri Srinivasan to become the first Indian-American Judge of the U S Supreme Court to replace Justice Antonin
Scalia after his unexpected death.
ii. Srinivasan is born in Chandigarh and 48 years old.
iii. He originally from a village near Tamil Nadu's Tirunelveli.
iii. His family migrated to the US in the 1960s and settled in Lawrence, Texas.
iv. He made history in 2013 when he became the first Asian American and Indian American to serve in the
Court of Appeals in the D.C. Circuit, long cited as the stepping stone to the uppermost echelon, the Supreme
Court.
v. He mostly defended views other than his own, arguing for both Republicans and Democrats.

6. Make In India Week : National Capital Goods Policy Unveiled

i. The Government has unveiled the National Capital Goods Policy to give an impetus to the capital goods sector
and a leg up to the Make in India initiative.
ii. This is for the first time that a national policy has been framed for the sector.
iii. Anant Geete, Minister, Heavy Industry & Public Enterprise, unveiled the Policy on the occasion of the Make
in India Week held in Mumbai.

7. President Pranab Mukherjee Conferred Infosys Prize 2015

i. President Pranab Mukherjee has conferred Infosys Prize 2015 on six winners for their outstanding
contribution in the research fields in New Delhi.

ii. The awards were received by Prof Umesh Waghmare, Prof Jonardon Ganeri, Dr Amit Sharma, Prof Mahan
Mj, Prof G Ravindra Kumar and Dr Srinath Raghavan.
iii. The Prize were given across five categories: Engineering and Computer Science, Life Sciences,
Mathematical Sciences, Physical Sciences and Social Sciences and the Humanities.

8. Prof. Yogesh Tyagi : New Vice Chancellor Of Delhi University

i. President Pranab Mukherjee appointed Yogesh Tyagi, dean of the law faculty at South Asian University
(SAU), as the new Vice Chancellor of Delhi University (DU).
ii. The HRD ministry appointed Tyagi for a term of five years after his name was chosen from a panel of four
persons by President Pranab Mukherjee, who is the Visitor of all central universities.
iii. The appointment of the Delhi University Vice Chancellor had been pending for three months since Singh left
that office on October 28 last year and Sudheesh Pachauri was the acting Vice Chancellor.

9. Rajamani : Music Director And Composer Passes Away

i. Rajamani, southern music director and composer has passed away.
ii. He was 60. He suffered a sudden cardiac arrest and passed away in Chennai, Tamilnadu.
iii. He had predominantly worked in Malayalam film industry and had composed music for around 70 films.
iv. Rajamani was born into a family of Carnatic musicians and was the son of noted musician BA
Chidambaranath.

10. Apple To Setup Its 1st Technology Center In India

i. Apple has confirmed its 1st technology centre in India at Hyderabad, at a cost of $25 million.
ii. Spread across 2,50,000 square feet, the centre will help Apple develop maps and make them available in its
iPhones and Mac systems.
iii. It is set to open by June, becoming fully operational by the end of the year.
iv. The facility is projected to create 4,500 jobs

11. Mahamagam festival celebrated in Kumbakonam, Tamil Nadu

i. The Mahamagam festival in Kumbakonam in Tamil Nadu is underway and thousands of devotees are taking a
holy dip in the Mahamagam tank.
ii. The festival that comes once in 12 years is often termed as equivalent to the grand religious event in
Allahabad.
iii. The festival began with the hoisting of flags in the 7 Saivite pilgrim centres in the temple town of
Kumbakonam.

iv. In the five prominent Vaishnavite temples, flag hoisting was made as part of the festival.
v. The lakhs of devotees are expected to take the holy dip during the ten-day Mahamagam festival period.

12. Bhubaneswar among the cleanest cities in country among Smart City Mission
i. The Odisha capital Bhubaneswar has emerged as the top among the cities in the Smart City Mission.
ii. The Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation has received the Clean City award from Union Urban Development
Minister Venkaiah Naidu in New Delhi.
iii. Under the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, the city has been considered by the Urban development Ministry as one
of the cleanest among 75 cities in the country.
iv. Notably, Swachh Sarvekshan Survey conducted by the Quality Council of India.
v. Bhubaneswar was ranked at 331 among the 476 cities and behind Cuttack with a rank of 296.

13. U.K. Sinha Gets Extension As SEBI Chairman

i. UK Sinha will continue to lead India's capital and commodities market regulator for one more year. ii. The
government extended Sinha's term as the chairman of Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) till March
01, 2017.
iii. The Bihar-cadre IAS officer becomes the second-longest serving chief in Sebi's over two-decade history
after DR Mehta.
iv. Sinha took over as Sebi chairman in 2011 with a three-year term. After that he was given a two-year
extension
1. Union Government Has Launched Non Tax Receipt Portal
i. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has launched Non-Tax Receipt Portal (NTRP) to electronically collect over
Rs.2 trillion annually in non-tax receipts.
ii. It was launched as part of Union Governments flagship Digital India campaign.
iii. Currently, non-tax revenues are collected by physical instruments such as bank draft or cheque or cash. This
portal will reduce a lot of manual work now.
iv. NTRP has been developed by the Office of Controller General of Accounts (CGA) and the Union Finance
Ministry.
v. It provides a one-stop platform to citizens or corporate or other users to make online payment of non-tax
receipts to the Union government.

2. Prithvi II Missile Successfully Test Fired

i. India test-fired its indigenously developed Prithvi-II missile.
ii. This missile is capable of carrying 500 kg to 1000 kg of warheads.

iii. Prithvi II missile tested as part of a user trial by the army from a test range at Chandipur.
iv. It was conducted by the Strategic Force Command (SFC) and was monitored by the scientists from Defense
Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).
v. The missile test was carried out from a mobile launcher from launch complex-3 of the Integrated Test Range
(ITR).

3. India's 1st Lightest Gun "Nidar" Launched

i. Indias first indigenously developed lightest revolver (gun) Nidar weighing merely 250 grams was
successfully launched to boost the "Make In India" initiative.
ii. It has been designed and manufactured by the state-run Rifle Factory Ishapore located in West Bengal.
iii. The Nidar is lightest revolver ever made in India with cheapest price tag of Rs 35,000 only.
iv. The revolver is capable of firing eight rounds loaded in a revolving chamber.
v. It has a range 7 meters with precise accuracy.

4. All About 58th Grammy's Award 2016

i. The 2016 Grammy Awards were held on February 15, 2016, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California.
ii. The ceremony recognizes the best recordings, compositions and artists of the eligibility year, which was from
October 1, 2014, to September 30, 2015.
iii. It was the sixteenth Grammy ceremony.
iv. Best album of the year : 1989 - Taylor Swift, Best record of the year:Uptown Funk- Mark Ronson featuring
Bruno Mars, Best song of the year: Thinking Out Loud- Ed Sheeran & Amy Wadge And Best new artist :
Meghan Trainor

5. 1st Silk Road Train Arrives In Tehran From China

i. The first cargo train to connect Iran and China has arrived in Tehran.
ii. The train had started its journey from Chinas eastern Zhejiang province and it took 14 days to reach final
destination.
iii. The trains will run between both countries once in every month and the frequency will be increased if
necessary.
iv. These trains will be run by private companies using existing routes.
v. It marks the revival the ancient Silk Road and gives impetus to Chinas ambitious One Belt One Road
(OBOR) initiative part of revived Silk Road diplomacy.

6. World's Cheapest Smartphone Is Going To Be Launch By Ringing Bells

i. Noida based Ringing Bells is all set to launch the world's cheapest 3G smartphone at just Rs 251 in India
today.
ii. It is a move to disrupt the surging smartphone market in India, which recently became the world's second
largest market after China, surpassing the US.
iii. The smartphone with a 4-inch WVGA resolution display, features a 1.3 Ghz quad-core processor, 1GB
RAM, 8GB total storage space and a 3.2 megapixel camera on the back. It will have 0.3 megapixel camera on
the front and has a 1450 mAh battery. This is dual-SIM 3G capable phone.
iv. Bookings for the Freedom 251 will start from Thursday 18 February from 6.00 am in the morning and will
close on 21 February at 8.00 pm.
v. Defence Minister Manohar Parrikkar will launch the smartphone Freedom 251 on February 17.

7. HCL Tech To Buy Volvo Group's External IT Business

i. HCL technology, 4th Largest software services giant has acquired Volvo group's external IT business and
signed a deal for 5 year outsourcing with Volvo.
ii. HCL Technology has closed it in $1 billion-plus.
iii. HCL claims that the deal is one of the largest IT deals signed by any Indian IT company and definitely the
largest in HCL's history so far.
iv. The relationship will enable HCL to create an automotive Centre of Excellence in Gothenburg, Sweden,
based on the domain expertise of the Volvo team, to serve HCLs global automotive and manufacturing
customers.
v. Volvos IT business is an important addition of HCLs portfolio, as it brings in an annual billing of about
USD 200 million.

8. PNB Declared UB Holdings Ltd Wilful Defaulter

i. Vijay Mallya, led United Breweries Holdings Ltd has been declared a wilful defaulter by Punjab National
Bank on 16th February 2016.
ii. On 13 November 2015, State Bank of India (SBI) had declared United Breweries and Mallya as wilful
defaulters.
iii. The willful defaulter tag is in connection with the loan taken by the company for the now grounded airline
Kingfisher Airlines Ltd.
iv. Kingfisher Airlines operating licence was suspended in October 2012 by the Directorate General of Civil
Aviation, following a strike by the airlines employees. v. Overall exposure of lenders is Rs.6,360 crore, which
increases to about Rs.7,000 crore, adding unapplied interest.

9. NRDC inks MoA with IACS on Technology Transfer

i. NRDC has signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) with IACS for commercialisation of technologies and
intellectual properties (IP) developed at IACS.

ii. Under this MoA, NRDC will provide its services in IP Evaluation and Valuation in terms of their commercial
potential to IACS.
iii. National Research Development Corporation (NRDC) It is an Enterprise of Department of Scientific &
Industrial Research under the aegis of Union Ministry of Science & Technology.
iv. Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science (IACS) IACS based in Kolkata (West Bengal) is an
autonomous and oldest research institute in India.
v. It is devoted to the pursuit of fundamental research in the frontier areas of Physics, Biology, Chemistry,
Polymer, Energy and Materials.

10. 3rd US-Asean summit session begins in California

i. The summit between leaders from the Associations of Southeast Asian Nations and The United States has
began in California.
ii. The agenda of 2 day meeting includes Maritime security in the South China sea.
iii. The focus will also be around innovation and entrepreneurship.

11. Former UN Secretary General Boutros Ghali passes away

i. Former United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali passed away in Cairo, Egypt.
ii. He was 93. Mr. Boutros-Ghali was Egyptian politician and diplomat who had served as sixth UN SecretaryGeneral from 1992 to 1996.
iii. He was first United Nations first secretary-general from Africa.
iv. Prior to joining UN, he had worked in the administrations of Egyptian Presidents Anwar Sadat and Hosni
Mubarak.
v. He also had served as first Secretary General of La Francophonie, an organisation of French-speaking nations
from 1997 to 2002.

12. Badminton Asia Cup: India beats Singapore, enters quarterfinals

i. India sailed into the quarterfinals of Badminton Asia Team Championship with a comprehensive 5-0 victory
over Singapore in Hyderabad.
ii. To begin with, Kidambi Srikanth scored a comfortable 21-16, 12-21, 21-13 win over Zi Liang Derek Wong in
the first singles match at the Gachibowli Indoor Stadium.
ii. Indias doubles players, too, came up with an impressive performance and won the two matches quite easily.
iii. Manu Attri and Sumeeth Reddy beat Yong Kai Terry Hee-Kean Hean Loh 21-15, 21-14.

iv. While the duo of Pranaav Jerry Chopra and Akshay Dewalkar trounced Danny Bawa Chrisnanta and Hendra
Wijaya 21-14, 21-13 in the second doubles match.
v. In the other mens matches, Japan trounced Sri Lanka 5-0, Malaysia defeated Nepal 5-0 and Hong Kong
China beat Philippines 4-1
1. Arun Jaitley Releases India-2016 And Bharat-2016 Year Books
i. Union Minister for Information & Broadcasting Arun Jaitley released Bharat 2016 and India 2016 year
books.
ii. These books give comprehensive information about the country and various States and Union Territories
including functioning of the Government and the economy.
iii. It also provides detailed information on various schemes and projects of Government and its various
departments.
iv. The electronic version for both the yearbooks were also launched simultaneously with the print version for
the first time.
v. The book deals with all aspects of development from rural to urban, industry to infrastructure, science and
technology, art and culture, economy, health, defense, education and mass communication.

2. ENVIS Portal : Launched By Union Government

i. Prakash Javadekar, Union Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has launched Environment
Information System (ENVIS) portal and mobile application.
ii. It was launched on the sidelines of the national interaction-cum-evaluation workshop for Environment
Information System.
iii. The Government has reiterated the need to reach out to the people on environmental issues and creating more
awareness among them.
iv. ENVIS Portal runs parallel with the objectives of Digital India which works on improving the digital literacy
in the environment sector and deliver services digitally.
v. The Minister also distributed the award of the best State ENVIS centre to Forests, Environment & Wildlife
Management Department, Sikkim and the award for the best Thematic ENVIS Centre to Indian Institute of
Science, Bengaluru.

3. Cabinet Approves Trade Facilitation Agreement

i. The Union Cabinet has approved a proposal to notify the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) of the World
Trade Organization (WTO) to keen on projecting India as a business friendly destination.
ii. Decision in this regard was taken by Union Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in
New Delhi.
iii. To facilitate both domestic coordination and implementation of the agreement, it also approved setting up of
a National Committee on Trade Facilitation that would be chaired jointly by the Commerce and Revenue
Secretaries.

iv. The TFA is the WTOs first-ever multilateral accord that aims to simplify customs regulations for the crossborder movement of goods.
v. The agreement includes provisions for Lowering import tariffs and agricultural subsidies, Abolish hard
import quotas and Reduction in red tape at international borders.

4. Uber Signs MoU With The Maharashtra Government

i. Uber has signed a MoU with the Maharashtra governments Skill Development & Entrepreneurship
Department (SDED) to help create 75,000 entrepreneurship opportunities across the state over the next 5 years.

ii. Uber has also committed to the promotion of equality of jobs with a focus on training women and people
from marginalized sectors.
iii. This aims to promote an equal and fair opportunity for all to earn sufficient income as independent
entrepreneurs on the platform.
iv. Uber was launched in 2009 and has presence in over 361 cities in 66 countries.
v. Uber Technologies Inc. is an American multinational mobile ride hail company headquartered in San
Francisco, California. Uber was founded as "UberCab" by Travis Kalanick and Garrett Camp.

5. Lyricist Sameer Anjaan Enters Guinness Book Of World Records

i. Bollywoods popular lyricist Sameer Anjaan has made into the Guinness Book of World Records this year.
ii. He was rewarded for writing the most number of songs for Bollywood films.
iii. The official record states that Sameer wrote 3,524 songs for 650 Bollywood movies, as verified on
December 15, 2015.
iv. Sameer was included as a Guinness World Record holder under a new category titled Most prolific
Bollywood lyricist.
v. Sameer, who has been penning songs for the last 30 years, is also the first lyricist to bag this honor.

6. Fashion Designer Manish Arora Awarded Knight Of The Legion Of Honour : Frances Highest
Honour
i. Fashion designer Manish Arora will be conferred with the Chevalier de la Legion d'Honneur (Knight of the
Legion of Honour), France's highest civilian honour.
ii. This award comes in recognition of his inspired creations and significant contribution to the fashion world as
well as his longstanding ties with France.
iii. He was presented with this award by French Ambassador to India Francois Richier for his contribution to the
fashion world.
iv. Manish Arora was awarded the Best Womens Pret Designer at the first ever Indian Fashion Awards in 2004.

v. He also had participated in the Miami Fashion Week in 2005 where he had won designers choice for Best
Collection Award.

7. Nitin Seth To Join Flipkart As Chief People Officer

i. India's biggest online marketplace Flipkart has announced the appointment of Nitin Seth as its Chief People
Officer.
ii. In Flipkart, Seth will lead the human resource function and partner with the leadership team.
iii. Nitin Seth the new CPO of Flipkart will report to Binny Bansal, CEO and co-founder of Flipkart.
iv. He replaced Mekin Maheswari who was associated with the company since its inception.
v. Earlier to this appointment, Seth was the Managing Director and Country Head for Fidelity International in
India.

8. Jayant Misra Appointed As DG Of DRI

i. Senior IRS officer Jayant Misra has been appointed as Director General of Directorate of Revenue Intelligence
(DRI).
ii. The move comes two days after a Special Investigation Team (SIT) asked the DRI to verify if USD 505
billion was transacted out of the country between 2004-2013 as part of trade-based money laundering.
iii. Misra is currently DG (Systems) at the Directorate General of Systems and Data Management.
iv. Najib Shah, who is now Chairman of Central Board of Excise and Customs, was holding the charge of DG
DRI.
v. Shah was in May last year appointed Member in the board, apex policy making body for indirect taxes.

9. Malayalam Writer Akbar Kakkattil Passes Away

i. Renowned Malayalam novelist and story writer Akbar Kakkattil passed away in Kozhikode.
ii. He was 62 years old. Kakkattil was undergoing treatment for a lung-related ailment for a year.
iii. He has 54 books to his credit which includes, four novels, 27 short stories, six collections of essays, seven
novelettes, a play, among others.
iv. He was the Vice-President of the Kerala Sahitya Akademi and member of Malayalam Advisory Panel of
National Book Trust and Malayalam Advisory Board of Kerala Government.
v. He was a two-time winner of the prestigious Kerala Sahitya Akademi award.

10. Renowned Indologist David Shulman awarded Israel Prize

i. Renowned Indologist Professor David Shulman has been selected for the prestigious Israel Prize for his
breakthrough studies in fields like philosophy and religion.

ii. He was chosen for this award for his studies on the religion, literature and culture of southern India and has
command over Indian languages like Sanskrit, Tamil, Telegu and Malayalam.
iii. He is US born professor currently teaching Hebrew language at University of Jerusalem.
iv. He has been awarded with Emet Prize by the Isreali Prime Ministers Office for excellence in academic and
professional achievements.
v. In 1987, he had won prestigious MacArthur Fellowship becoming 1st Israeli to win it.

1. Make In India Week Concludes In Mumbai

i. The week long Make in India concluded in Mumbai.
ii. It was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on February 13, 2016. The event has secured
investment commitments worth Rs 15.2 lakh crore, with host state Maharashtra alone accounting for Rs 8 lakh
crore. Besides, it received investment enquiries worth Rs 1.5 lakh crore.
iii. The Make in India was countrys biggest show of manufacturing sector that had successfully brought
manufacturing, design and innovation to the centre-stage.
iv. 102 countries were represented in the mega expo and more than 8 lakh people visited the expo and other
events, out of which 49,74 were registered delegates.
v. A total of 150 events were organized under the banner of this event and more than 25 thousand people had
participated in seminars.

2. India And Myanmar Sign Standard Operating Procedure On Joint Patrol

i. The 4th edition of India-Myanmar Coordinated Patrol (IMCOR) was conducted jointly by ships of both navies
along the International Maritime Boundary Line in the Andaman Sea since 2013.
ii. Indian Navy ships Saryu and Bitra along with Union of Myanmar ships Aung Zeya and FAC 563 participated
in the patrol.
iii. Naval Component Commander from the Tri-Service HQs in Port Blair Cmde Girish Garg was embarked
onboard INS Saryu.
iv. During the Ceremony of 4th IMCOR, the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for IMCOR was also signed
between Indian Navy and Myanmar Navy.
v. Cmde Atul Anand VSM from Indian Navy and Cmde Aung Zaw Hlaing from Myanmar Navy signed the
document in the presence of H.E Gautam Mukhopadhaya, the Ambassador of India to Myanmar.

3. Warren Richardson An Australian Photographer Wins World Press Photo of 2015

i. The World Press Photo of the Year honors the photographer whose visual creativity and skills made a picture
that captures or represents an event or issue of great journalistic importance in the last year.
ii. The jury of the 59th annual World Press Photo Contest has selected an image by Australian photographer
Warren Richardson as the World Press Photo of the Year 2015.

iii. Richardson is a freelance photographer, currently based in Budapest, Hungary.

iv. His picture which also won first prize in the Spot News category shows refugees crossing the border from
Serbia into Hungary, near Horgo (Serbia) and Rszke (Hungary). Taken at night on 28 August 2015, this man
and child were part of the movement of people seeking to cross into Hungary before a secure fence on the
border was completed.
v. The jury gave prizes in eight categories to 41 photographers from 21 countries.

4. Union Cabinet approves LIGO-India research project on gravitational waves

i. The Union Cabinet has given an in-principle approval to the LIGO-India mega science proposal for research
on gravitational waves.
ii. The proposal is piloted by the Department of Atomic Energy and the Department of Science and Technology.
iii. It will establish a state of the art gravitational wave observatory in India in collaboration with the LIGO
Laboratory in the US run by Caltech and MIT.
iv. The gravitational waves were detected by the Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory (LIGO)
a system of detectors in Washington and Louisiana.

5. BHEL commissions GVK Goindwal Sahibs 270-MW unit in Punjab

i. Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd has commissioned a 270-MW coal-based thermal power project of GVK Group
in Punjab.
ii. The unit has been commissioned at the upcoming 540 MW (2x270 MW) Goindwal Sahib coal-fired plant of
GVK Power & Infrastructure Ltd located in Tarn Taran district in Punjab.
iii. BHEL had commissioned four hydel power units of 82.5 MW each at Alaknanda hydropower project in
Uttarakhand for GVK.
iv. GVK had enlisted BHEL for the Goindwal Sahib project under design, engineering, manufacture, supply and
erection and commissioning of steam turbine and implement the project.
v. BHEL has so far supplied six units of 210 MW, two units of 210 MW and two units of 250 MW and 270 MW
units in Goindwal Sahib, all in Punjab.

6. YES Bank, UltraCash partner to launch payments service

i. YES Bank has partnered UltraCash Technologies to launch payments processing through sound waves.
ii. UltraCash utilises a patent-pending technology through which payment data is securely transferred from one
device to the other using unique ultra-high frequency sound waves.
iii. The innovative technology ensures that UltraCashs Tap and Pay works on all devices and doesnt need
any special hardware to make the payment. There are no need of special near field communication (NFC) chips.
iv. UltraCashs sound wave technology enables mobile payments to be done without the need for Internet
connectivity using any of the options, such as bank accounts and cards.

v. UltraCash will issue YES Bank-branded digital wallets to consumers to aid quicker, seamless and frictionfree payments.

7. Karnataka Bank bags IBSA Banking Technology Award

i. Karnataka Bank Ltd has won the IBA Banking Technology Award in the category of Best Risk and Fraud
Management Initiative - Runner Up amongst small banks.
ii. The award was announced as part of Indian Banks Association (IBA) Technology Conference, Expo and
Awards 2016.
iii. Mahabaleshwara MS, Chief General Manager of the bank has received the award from HR Khan, Deputy
Governor of RBI and Ashwani Kumar, Chairman of IBA in Mumbai.

8. SBI Opens "Japan Desk" In New Dehi

i. Indias Banking Giant State Bank of India (SBI) has launched Japan Desk, a single window for inbound
Japanese investments in India and vice-versa.
ii. This is a first-of-its-kind initiative that seeks to facilitate Japanese corporate looking to invest in India with
banking and advisory services.
iii. This SBI Japan Desk will also serve as an one-point comprehensive and reliable information support source
for India-bound investments of Japanese companies.
iv. It will also facilitate establishment of banking relationship with Japanese corporates and Japanese nationals
and provide information on industries, sectors etc.
v. In future, SBI is planning to set up another dedicated Japan Desk at Chennai, Tamil Nadu.

9. Punjab to sign MoU with British Pig Association

i. The Punjab government plans to sign a MoU with British Pig Association (BPA) to develop and promote
piggery in the State.
ii. The tie-up of State Animal Husbandry department with BPA would turn around the stagnant economy of the
peasantry, which is grappling with low returns from conventional farming.
iii. Punjab Government also gave permission to AOV Group for setting a modern meat processing plant at a cost
of nearly 50 crore at Mattewara village in Ludhiana district for value addition of goat, sheep and pig meat.
iv. The company will export high-quality meat products from the upcoming plant to ensure better prices to pig
farmers.
v. There are 3 government pig breeding farms at Chajju Majra (Mohali), Gurdaspur, Malwal (Ferozepur)
besides the modern farm at Nabha (Patiala).

10. Robin Chaurasiya Nominated For Global Teacher Prize

i. Robin Chaurasiya, an Indian teacher who runs a non-profit school in Mumbai for girls from the citys red light
areas has been named in the top 10 short-list for a global prize for teachers.
ii. Robin Chaurasiya, founder of Kranti, will compete with teachers from the UK, US, Nairobi, Palestine, Japan,
Finland, Australia and Pakistan to win the $1-million Global Teacher Prize 2016.
iii. The prize was created last year as a kind of Oscars for the teaching profession by the U.K.-based Varkey
Foundation.
iv. The Global Teacher Prize was set up to recognize one exceptional teacher who has made an outstanding
contribution to the profession as well as to shine a spotlight on the important role teachers play in society.
v. The top ten have been narrowed down from 8,000 nominations and applications from 148 countries from
around the world.

11. Alok Kumar Verma to be next Delhi Police Chief

i. Senior IPS officer Alok Verma will be the next Delhi Police Commissioner.
ii. Mr. Verma will succeed incumbent Delhi Police Chief B S Bassi who will retire on 29th of this month.
iii. Mr. Verma is currently serving as Director General of Tihar prison.
iv. He will serve as the top police officer in Delhi for 17 months.

12. Eminent Vocalist Ustad Abdul Rashid Khan Passes Away

i. Veteran Hindustani classical vocalist Ustad Abdul Rashid Khan passed away in Kolkata, West Bengal.
ii. He was 107. Rashid Khan, the oldest performing musician, was awarded a Padma Bhushan in 2013.
iii. Khan has written some 2,000 poems and used to write under the pseudonym of Rasan Piya.
iv. The Sangeet Natak Akademi awardee was a resident guru at the ITC Sangeet Research Academy in the city.

13. Tata unveils first ever India-made Robot Brabo

i. TAL Manufacturing Solutions, a Tata Group company, is expected to launch first ever India-made robot
before May 2016.
ii. Dubbed Tata Brabo, the robot has been showcased in the Make in India week in Mumbai.
iii. Brabo has been developed in-house by a team of six engineers whose average age is 24 years, led by Anil
Bhingurde, chief operating officer of TAL Manufacturing Solutions.
iv. The development cost is reported to be about Rs 10 crore.
v. The design of the robot was done in-house at TAL, styling was done at Tata Elxi, and manufacturing of some
parts at Tata AutoComp, while Tata Capital provided the finance.
14. Rio Haryanto Becomes Indonesias First Formula1 Driver
i. Rio Haryanto will become Indonesias first Formula One driver after signing a deal with Manor Racing.

ii. The 23-year-old will make his F1 debut at the Australian Grand Prix on 20 March after testing in Barcelona
next week.
iii. Haryanto replaced the Briton Will Stevens, who failed to score a point in 18 starts last year.
iv. Haryanto will join the German rookie Pascal Wehrlein, a former Mercedes reserve driver, at Manor.

1. Government Of India Approves Highway Contracts Worth Rs. 6000 Crore

i. GOI has approved eight highway projects worth Rs 6,000 crore for six states - Punjab, Jharkhand, Madhya
Pradesh, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh and Odisha.
ii. With this approval, the number of projects cleared by Road Transport and Highways Ministry this month so
far has swelled to 37, entailing a total investment of about Rs 34,000 crore.
iii. The total length of the projects is around 350 km. Out of these eight, six will be implemented in EPC
(engineering, procurement and construction) mode and two in hybrid annuity mode.
iv. These projects won't require cabinet clearance as their construction cost is less than Rs 1,000 crore, the limit
up to which the road transport and highways ministry can approve projects on its own. Most of these projects
are in Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh.
v. The government has a target of awarding road contracts of 10,000 kms for this fiscal.

2. Prasar Bharati Signs Historical MoU With EBC

i. Prasar Bharati has signed a MoU with Empressa de Brazil Communicacao (EBC) in connection with several
broadcast related activities including exchange of news, programmes and co-production.
ii. The MoU was signed between Prasar Bharati Chief Executive Officer Jawhar Sircar and EBC Vice President
Mr Mario in Brasilia, Brazil.
iii. The MoU includes long list of Indian programmes to be broadcast on EBC network including documentaries,
science programs, serials and Portuguese programs from Goa.
iv. Mr. Sunil Lal, the honorable ambassador of India in Brazil facilitated the negotiations between two public
service broadcasters.
v. Prasar Bharati has already signed similar MoUs with Russia and China in that realizing of the importance of
BRICS.

3. Cipla Acquires 2 US Generic Drug Companies

i. Indian Pharmaceutical giant Cipla Ltd, has acquired 2 US generic drug companies, InvaGen Pharmaceuticals
Inc. and Exelan Pharmaceuticals Inc.
ii. This step has been taken to increase its revenue and introduce new products for oncology and diabetes in the
worlds largest pharmaceutical market.
iii. The combined revenue for the two US companies at the end of year 2015 was over 230 million dollars.

iv. The acquisitions will give scale to Cipla's US business currently 8% of total revenue.
v. This is the second large scale acquisition in Ciplas 80 year history and the first was South Africas Cipla
Medpro.

4. Amit Mitra Appointed As New Chairman Of GST Committee

i. West Bengal Finance Minister Amit Mitra has been appointed as the Chairman of the Empowered Committee
of State Finance Ministers on Goods and Services Tax (GST).
ii. He will succeed Kerala Finance Minister K M Mani who had to resign in November over corruption charges.
iii. He was elected at the meeting of State Finance Ministers that was also attended by Union Finance Minister
Arun Jaitley.
iv. With this, he becomes second chairman of the committee which is tasked to frame rules for rolling out of the
ambitious GST regime in the country.
v. Amit Mitra is an economist by profession, he had served as Secretary General of industry association FICCI
before joining politics in 2011.

5. Uma Bharti to Inaugurate Jal Manthan 2016

i. Union Minister of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, Sushri Uma Bharti will
inaugurate Jal Manthan -2 on February 22, 2016 New Delhi.
ii. The main theme of two day event is Integrated Approach for Sustainable Water Management.
iii. The two day event will have consultations and discussions on River Basin Approach for Sustainable
development, Ground water, Water security, Principles of allocation of water, innovation in water governance,
Water management, Coordination between centre and states, Water conservation and need for a National
Legislation on water.
iv. Union Ministers of related Ministries/Departments, Chief Ministers of some States/Union Territories,
Irrigation/ Water Resources Ministers of States/UTs, eminent experts in water sector, representatives of NGOs
and senior officers of the Central and State Governments will be attending the event.
v. The first Jal Manthan was organized in November 2014.

6. Kalikho Pul sworn in as Arunachal CM

i. Dissident Congress leader Kalikho Pul, 46, has sworn in as the ninth Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh
with the support of 18 rebel Congress MLAs, and two Independents and 11 BJP MLAs who gave outside
support.
ii. Puls swearing-in came a day after the Supreme Court vacated its interim order to maintain status quo in the
Arunachal Pradesh assembly, paving the way for government formation.
iii. The Centre had revoked Presidents Rule in the state before Governor J P Rajkhowa administered the oath of
office to Pul.

iv. Pul, a five-time MLA and former finance minister, had led a delegation of 31 MLAs and met Rajkhowa in
Itanagar to stake claim to form the government.
v. Pul has the support of only 18 of the 45 Congress MLAs in the assembly. But 13 opposition MLAs two
Independents and 11 from the BJP have given in writing to the Governor that they back him.

7. Renowned Novelist Harper Lee Passes Away

i. Harper Lee, the author of the classic novel To Kill a Mockingbird, has died in her hometown of Monroeville,
Alabama, US.
ii. The Pulitzer Prize-winning writer was 89.
iii. Her famous novel about a young girls experience of racial tensions in a small Southern town has sold tens of
millions of copies and been translated into dozens of languages.
iv. The author receded from the spotlight, long resisting offers to write more novels. Her magnum opus was
adapted to film in 1962. The movie won Academy Awards for Best Actor (Gregory Peck), Best Adapted
Screenplay (Horton Foote) and Best Art Direction.
v. It was nominated for five other awards, including Best Picture, which was ultimately won by Lawrence of
Arabia. George Bush awarded her the presidential medal of freedom in 2007.

8. World Bank to support Rajasthan on energy reforms

i. The World Bank has decided to lend support to the Rajasthan government on energy reforms.
ii. The decision was taken at a meeting between World Banks country director in India, Onno Ruhl and
Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje.
iii. The Rajasthan CM underlined the importance of ongoing projects on rural development, including the Jal
Swablamban Abhiyan, and other new technologies in Agriculture, Skill Development and Tourism, and urged
the WB official to provide support to these schemes too.

9. Skype Launches Group Video Calls On iOS & Android Phones And Tablets
i. Microsoft has announced that they're going to begin rolling out an update to Skype for iOS and Android that
will support group video calling.
ii. The feature is not new though, as many smartphone users are familiar with such apps and websites that offer
group video chat.
iii. Skype began a preview program for the feature back in January.
iv. Tens of thousands of people registered, providing "invaluable feedback". They've also added a number of
features, such as increasing the number of people that can be involved in the group call from five to 25 people.
There's also a flexible interface.
v. The user can choose a grid or a focus view, which automatically focuses on the person that's speaking

10. Aditya Birla, Idea form JV for Payments Bank

1. Aditya Birla Nuvo, one of the eleven entities that have received in-principle approvals from the RBI to set up
payments banks, said it has incorporated a new subsidiary for the same purpose.
ii. The new entity, Aditya Birla Idea Payments Bank Ltd, is a 51:49 joint venture (JV) between it and Idea
Cellular, its telecom subsidiary in which it owns 23.26%.
iii. As per the norms issued by RBI, a payments bank can accept deposits up to Rs 1 lakh from individual
customers, issue ATM and debit cards, offer payments and remittance services, and act as a distributor of simple
financial products such as mutual funds units and insurance products.
iv. The central bank, however, barred payments banks from undertaking lending activities.

11. Playing It My Way enters Limca Book of records

i. Cricket Legend and Rajya Sabha MP Sachin Tendulkars autobiography, Playing It My Way, has entered the
Limca Book of Records in the category of best-selling books across both fiction and non-fiction categories with
1,50,289 copies sold on order subscriptions.
ii. The book has been published by Hachette India in the year 2014 with Boria Majumdar as the co-author of the
book.
iii.The books orders, on day one, already saw it pulling ahead of both pre-order and lifetime sales of the
worlds top adult hardbacks Dan Browns Inferno, Walter Issacsons Steve Jobs and JK Rowlings Casual
Vacancy.

MP, Rajasthan set up SPV for implementation of Smart City Plans

i. Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan Government have set up Special Purpose Vehicles (SPV) for the
implementation of Smart City Plans.
ii. SPVs have been set up for five cities Jabalpur, Indore and Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh and Jaipur and
Udaipur in Rajasthan.
iii. These cities are among the first batch of 20 winners of Smart City Challenge Competition held by the Union
Ministry of Urban Development. The Ministry will release 200 crore rupees for each of the 20 selected cities
only after SPVs are set up.
Smart Cities Project
The Smart Cities mission is a pet project of Prime Minister Narendra Modi that seeks to improve infrastructure
and service delivery of selected cities through application of Information and Communication Technology (ICT)
and e-governance. Urban local Bodies (ULBs) and State Governments will play a key supportive role in the
development of Smart Cities.

Special Purpose Vehicles (SPV)

SPVs must be registered under the Companies Act, 2013 to ensure timely, cost-effective and efficient
execution of smart city projects with operational freedom.
They will ensure that the qualities of the outcomes of these smart city projects are benchmarked against
global standards.
SPVs shall have 50:50 equity that will held by the states and respective urban local bodies. Private
equity is also allowed but the management control will rest with the Governments only. SPVs will be
headed by a CEO and shall approve, sanction and execute the projects besides mobilizing resources
from various sources.

Swachh Himachal Padhai bhi, Safai bhi campaign launched

i. Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) has launched Swachh Himachal Padhai bhi, Safai bhi
campaign in Dharamsala.
ii. With this unique campaign, HPCA became the first cricket association in the country to work towards Swatch
Bharat Abhiyan initiated by the Union Government.
Key facts

The campaign aims at involving youth to promote good health and sanitation in urban and rural areas in
the Himalayan state. Its objective is to showcase Himachals beauty as Indias cleanest and greenest
state.
Under it, the sport of cricket will be linked with Swatch Bharat Abhiyan and youths will be termed as
Swatch Captain and teachers as Swatch Coach.
They will start cleanliness drive with the help of students from universities, educational institutes and
then in their local neighborhood.

India, Nepal ink seven Agreements

i. India and Nepal have signed seven agreements for cooperation in various fields.
ii. These agreements were signed at a summit meeting of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his visiting Nepali
counterpart KP Sharma Oli in New Delhi.
iii. This is first official foreign visit of K.P. Sharma Oli after he became Prime Minister of Nepal.
Signed Agreements are

MoU on Post-earthquake reconstruction assistance: It deals with utilization of US 250 million dollars
Grant component Indias Assistance package for Post-earthquake reconstruction assistance of Nepal.
MoU on strengthening of road infrastructure in Nepal: It will enable speedy implementation of
remaining work on 17 Roads in Terai area of Nepal.
MoU in the field of performing arts: Singed between Nepal Academy of Music and Drama and Sangeet
Natak Academy. It aims to enhance relations in the field of performing arts between both countries.
Letters of Exchange on Transit Routes: (i) Operationalization of Vishakhapatnam Port. (ii) Transit
between Nepal and Bangladesh through Kakarbitta-Banglabandh corridor.
Letters of Exchange on Rail Transport: (i) Rail transit facility through Singhabad for Nepals Trade
with Bangladesh. (ii) Rail transport to and from Vishakhapatnam.
Inauguration of Muzaffarpur-Dhalkebar transmission line: Initial supply of 80 MW from Nepal to
India. It will be later augmented to 200 MW by October 2016 and 600 MW by December 2017.
Establishment of Eminent Persons Group (EPG): It will comprise 8 members with each country
nominating 4 members. Its mandate would be to review bilateral relations and recommend measures
including institutional frameworks in order to enhance bilateral ties.

Vibrant North East event concludes in Guwahati

i. The three-day long Vibrant North East event concluded in Guwahati, Assam.
ii. It was inaugurated on 18 February 2016 by Union Minister Food Processing Industries Harsimrat Kaur.
iii. It was the second edition of the event jointly organized by the Centre for Agriculture and Rural Development
(CARD) and ASSOCHAM.

Key facts

Vibrant North East was organised in association with Union Ministry for Development of North
Eastern Region (DoNER) and Union Food Processing Ministry.
Rural banking, Make in North East and Horticulture and food processing etc. were the key areas of
Vibrant North East.
The event severed as a common powerful platform for the developmental projects and initiatives in the
Northeast India.
Around 500 young farmers had undergone an orientation course at the expo. Seminars, business meet
and exhibitions were also organized during the event. Directorate of Advertising & Visual Publicity
(DAVP), ISRO, National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) also had participated in exhibition.

Faustin Archange Touadera wins 2016 Presidential election of Central African Republic
i. Faustin Archange Touadera has won the 2016 Presidential election of Central African Republic (CAR) held
on 14 February 2016.
ii. He had contested as an independent candidate in this election and secured 62.7 percent or 695,000 valid
votes.
iii. He defeated Georges Anicet Dologuele of Union for Central African Renewal Party who had obtained just
over or 37.3 percent or 413,000 votes.
iv. Faustin Archange Touadera is well-respected former mathematics professor. He had served as former Prime
Minister of ex-president Francois Bozize from January 2008 to January 2013.
v. Central African Republic is one of the worlds most chronically unstable countries. In early 2013, it had
suffered the worst crisis in its history when mainly Muslim Seleka fighters in a coup had toppled President
Francois Bozize.

ISRO successfully test cryogenic engine of GSLV Mark 3 rocket

i. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has successfully conducted hotbed test of the indigenously
developed high-thrust cryogenic engine (CE20) of the GSLV Mark 3 (LVM3) rocket for the upper stage.
ii. The long-duration test was conducted at ISRO Propulsion Research Centre at Mahendragiri, Tamil Nadu and
lasted for 640 seconds. It was conducted with Mixture Ratio Controller (MRC) in a closed loop mode.

Key facts

The CE20 uses Liquid Hydrogen at -253 degrees C and Liquid Oxygen at -193 degrees C as
propellants and generates power of approximately 2 MW.
It has been developed indigenously by Mahendragiri based Liquid Propulsion System centre (LPSC).

Earlier Tests
CE20 engine already has undergone two short-duration tests for engine ignition and steady state performance. In
2015, the first developmental engine completed different hot tests in various operating regimes. In the next the
engine will be vacuum tested in the high altitude test facility as part of the flight acceptance test.

Five hot Jupiter like planets discovered

i. Scientists have discovered five new Jupiter-like planets that are similar in characteristics to our solar systems
biggest planet.
ii. The newly discovered planets were designated as WASP-119 b, WASP-124 b, WASP-126 b, WASP-129 b
and WASP-133 b. They orbit very close to their host stars and hot compared to Jupiter.
Key facts

These planets were discovered by researchers from Keele University in UK by using Wide Angle
Search for Planets-South (WASP-South) instrument.
Orbital periods of these planets vary from 2.17 to 5.75 days and their radii is between one to 1.5 Jupiter
radius. Their masses range from 0.3 to 1.2 the mass of Jupiter.
Their host star has a similar mass to the Sun of our solar system but it is much older based analysis of
its effective temperature and density.
WASP-124 b: It less massive than Jupiter and has orbital period of 3.4 days and a much younger parent
star.
WASP-126 b: It has the lowest-mass. It has low surface gravity and is a good target for transmission
spectroscopy. It is brightest star of among the five.
WASP-129 b: It is similar in size to Jupiter and has the longest orbital period. Its surface gravity is also
high compared to other known hot Jupiters.
WASP-133 b: It has the shortest orbital period. It is slightly bigger Jupiter.
WASP-South instrument is an array of eight cameras observing selected regions of the southern sky. It
studies five stars showing planet-like transits in their light curve.

Christine Lagarde appointed as MD of IMF for a second term

i. Christine Lagarde (60) from France has been appointed as the Managing Director (MD) of the International
Monetary Fund for a second five-year term.
ii. She was sole candidate nominated for the post and was re-nominated by IMFs Executive Board decision
taken by consensus. Her new term will start on 5th July 2016 till 2021.
iii. Ms. Lagarde for first time was appointed MD in 2011 after IMF Board had initiated selection process on
merit-based and transparent process. She was first woman to head the top post of IMF since its inception in
1944.

About Christine Lagarde

Prior to her appointment at the IMF in 2011, she had served as Minister of Finance and Minister for
Foreign Trade of France.
She is anti-trust and labour lawyer and had served as partner with the international law firm of Baker &
McKenzie.

About International Monetary Fund (IMF)

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is an organization of 188 countries, working to foster global
monetary cooperation, facilitate international trade, secure financial stability, promote high
employment and sustainable economic growth and reduce poverty around the world.
Headquarters: Washington, D.C.
Managing Director of IMF: She is the chief of the IMFs operating staff and is also Chairman of the
24-member Executive Board. She is assisted in carrying out her responsibilities by 4 Deputy MDs and
about 2,700 staff from 147 countries.

1. PM Inaugurated Rurban Mission In Chhattisgarh

i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the ambitious Rurban Mission' for developing 300 villages across
the country as urban growth centres aimed at improving the countrys basic infrastructure, at Dongargarh in
Chhattisgarh.
ii. The Shyama Prasad Mukherji Rurban (rural-urban) project will focus on improving infrastructural facilities
such as power lines, shelters, roads, drinking water connections and drainage, and creating community assets
such as schools, colleges and health centers.
iii. The other goals of the scheme include ensuring the development of a given area by creating clusters of
villages with a population count of 25,000-60,000 and minimizing rural migration to cities through skill
development programmes.
iv. Under the Rurban Mission, the PM said 300 rural centres, catering to at least four adjoining villages each,
will be developed as urban clusters with modern facilities. 100 such centers are targeted to be developed this
year itself.
v. On the occasion, the PM also launched a Jan Aushadi Bandaar' campaign for providing cheap medication to
people. During his visit to the state capital, Modi will also lay the foundation stones for the Pradhan Mantri
Awas Yojana the Prime Ministers housing scheme and an electronic manufacturing cluster at Naya Raipur.

2. 42nd Khajuraho Dance Festival Begins In MP

i. The 42nd Khajuraho Dance Festival began in the temple town of Khajuraho, Chhattarpur district in Madhya
Pradesh. The world famous dance festival began with Odissi group dance of Ranjna Gauher and others.
ii. The festival will showcase classical dances, including Kathak, Bharatnatyam, Odissi and Kuchipudi,
depicting the ancient tales like Mahishasur Mardini' and 'Krishna Rasa,' an official said. Madhumita Roy and
Madhuri Majumdar gave presentation of Kathak-Kuchipudi and Purvadhanashree presented Bharatnatyam.
iii. State Fine Arts Awards were given away to ten artists on this occasion.
iv. The festival is being organized by Department of Culture, Madhya Pradesh, will be held against the backdrop
of iconic Khajuraho temples, built by Chandela dynasty between 950 and 1050 AD, world-wide know for erotic
sculptures.
v. The festival has gained international recognition with a world heritage site being its venue. Khajuraho
temples witness the maximum footfalls of foreign tourists in Madhya Pradesh.

3. Harsh Vardhan Dedicates Ksheer-Scanner Systems

i. The Union Minister for Science & Technology and Earth Sciences and Vice President, CSIR Dr. Harsh
Vardhan dedicated Systems for Detection of Adulteration and analysis of Milk.
ii. Dr. Harsha Vardhan pointed that our country ranks number one across the world for milk production,
contributing to about 18% of the worlds total milk. But it is feared that over 60% of the milk is contaminated
due to malpractices in milk supply chain which includes dilution with unsafe water. The milk is otherwise said
to be adulterated with contaminants such as urea, salt, detergent, liquid soap, boric acid, caustic soda, soda and
hydrogen peroxide which have hazardous health effects.
iii. The CSIRs Ksheer-Scanner instantaneously detects the above-identified adulterants in milk.
iv. It is a low- cost portable system with user-friendly features. It enables detection of contaminants in just 40-45
seconds at the per sample cost of less than 50 paise.
v. The Ksheer Scanner system offers automated scanning of raw milk samples at milk collection points. He
remarked that it is safe to use and ideal for installation at milk collection centres of milk societies at village and
tehsil levels. The system can also be useful for on-the-spot milk testing by food inspectors.

4. India and Armenia Sign MoU on Agriculture Cooperation

i. India and Armenia have signed an agreement for cooperation in the agriculture sector.
ii. An memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed by Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singhand
Armenian Agriculture Minister Sergo Karapetyan.
iii. The MoU provides for setting up of a joint working group (JWG) and preparation of work plans in priority
areas of farm sector.
iv. Initially this is for a period of five years, but would be extendable beyond five.
v. The two Ministers further identified sectors such as cattle identification, cooperatives, agriculture machinery,
plant breeding and exchange of agri scientist and students, as the priority areas and resolved to constitute the
JWG at the earliest to move the agreement.

5. Ricoh India wins Rs 344 crore contract to supply computer hardware to Odisha schools
i. Printing and IT solutions firm Ricoh India has bagged an order worth Rs 344 crore from Kerala State
Electronics Development Corporation to supply computer hardware to 2,000 government schools in Odisha.
ii. Ricoh India, a subsidiary of Ricoh Group, Japan, had said it is eyeing 55% growth in revenues this fiscal.
iii. The company said it has also planned investments of about Rs 300 crore over the next one or two years for
expanding its data centres.
iv. At present, Ricoh India has two data centres - one each in New Delhi and Kolkata.
v. At 1406 hours, the shares of Ricoh India were trading down 0.39% or Rs 2.25 at Rs 571.00 per scrip on the
BSE.

6. PIB Clears India Post's Rs 800 Cr Proposal For Payments Bank

i. The Public Investment Board has approved the Rs 800-crore proposal from India Post for setting up a
payments bank and it will be placed before the Cabinet within a month for final approval.
ii. The department is in the process of finalising the selection of a consultant for setting up India Posts
payments bank. It had shortlisted six consultants but only three of them submitted the bids.
iii. The India Post payments bank will primarily target unbanked and under-banked customers in rural, semirural and remote areas, with a focus on providing simple deposit products and money remittance services.
iv. The base for the payments bank is set to start from January 2017, and the full-fledged operations may start by
March.
v. Around 40 international financial conglomerates including the World Bank and Barclays have shown interest
to partner the postal department for setting up the bank.

7. Italian Novelist Umberto Eco Passed Away

i. Italian author Umberto Eco has died aged 84. Umberto Eco a philosopher who wrote best-selling novels
including "The Name of the Rose".
ii. The Novelist had been suffering from cancer. Eco was born on January 5, 1932, at Alessandria in the northern
Italian region of Piedmont.
iii. The Name of the Rose was Ecos first novel but he had been publishing works for more than 20 years
beforehand.
iv. As a teenager, Eco wrote comic books and fantasy novels before studying Medieval philosophy and literature
at the University of Turin.
v. His thesis was published in 1956 as The Aesthetics of Thomas Aquinas. During that period, Eco abandoned
the Roman Catholic Church after a crisis of faith.

8. Ri Myong Su Appointed As New Military Chief Of North Korea

i. North Korean state media has confirmed the country has a new military chief, following earlier reports in
Seoul that the former holder of the post had been executed.
ii. Ri Myong-Su, former People's Security Minister, was referred to as "chief of the Korean People's Army
General Staff" when the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported on an army exercise guided by leader
Kim Jong-un.
iii. Ri Myong-Su was again mentioned in a separate KCNA report on Mr Kim's inspection of an air force
exercise.
iv. His predecessor Ri Yong-Gil was reportedly executed early this month in what would be the latest in a series
of purges and executions of top officials. Ri Yong-Gil was accused of forming a political faction and
corruption.
v. North Korea conducted its fourth nuclear test last month and launched a long-range rocket this month,
sparking international outrage.

9. Brendon McCullum Scores Fastest Hundred In Test History

i. Brendon McCullum has blasted the fastest century in Test history in his 101st and final match for New
Zealand before retiring.
ii. Brendon McCullum has , a 54-ball effort that broke the record jointly held by Viv Richards and Misbah-ulHaq.
iii. McCullum celebrated to a standing ovation from the crowd at Hagley Oval in Christchurch, raising his bat to
all parts of the venue in his adopted home-town.
iv. His effort was two balls faster than the previous record 56-ball century scored by Richards against England
in Antigua in 1985-86, which was equalled by Misbah-ul-Haq against Australia in Abu Dhabi in 2014-15.
v. McCullum was the captain of the new Zealand test team.

10. Punjab Warriors Win 2016 Hockey India League

i. The Jaypee Punjab Warriors has won the fourth edition of Coal India Hockey India League (HIL) title 2016.
ii. The Jaypee Punjab Warriors finally struck gold to become third-time lucky as they clinched their Hockey
India League (HIL) title at the Birsa Munda Hockey Stadium in Ranchi.
iii. It was their maiden title. In the final match they defeated Kalinga Lancers by 6-1 goals.
iv. In earlier two seasons, Punjab Warriors had finished runners-up after they had lost to Delhi Waveriders in
2014 and to Ranchi Rays in 2015.
v. And Player of the Tournament Award has been won by Rupinder Pal Singh of Delhi Waveriders.

1. "Swachh Paryatan" Mobile App Launched By The Centre

i. The Ministry of Tourism in co-ordination with Ministry of Culture has launched the Swachh Paryatan mobile
app in order to facilitate general public to communicate their complaints about any unclean area/garbage piles in
and around tourist destinations.
ii. According to the Ministry of Tourism the app will be soon available on Android Phones of Apple and
Microsoft as well.
iii. The objective is to increase citizens participation in the protection and upkeep of heritage monuments in
India.
iv. It shall be monitored by the Project Monitoring Unit of Swachh Bharat Mission in Ministry of Tourism.
v. Initially, 25 Adarsh Smarak Monuments such as Red Fort, Taj Mahal, Elephanta Caves, Qutub Minar
Complex, among others, have been identified for inclusion in the app, but it would be scaled up to include more
monuments as the campaign expands.

2. ONGC Approves Rs 5,050 Cr Investment In Tripura

i. The Public sector oil major ONGC has approved an investment of Rs 5,050 crore in Tripura for drilling of
wells and creation of surface facilities to produce 5.1 mmscmd gas from the states fields.

ii. The Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas has announced to develop northeast region as a dominant
hydrocarbon hub as part of its Hydrocarbon Vision 2030.
iii. Due to this geological mapping and exploratory efforts, so far 11 gas fields have been discovered by ONGC
in Tripura.
iv. Currently, the ONGC Tripura is carrying out its drilling activities with three owned rigs under operation and
well servicing operations through 2 work-over rigs.
v. An additional four to five hired rigs are anticipated to be under operation this year, which will intensify the
exploration activities.Earlier in 2008, ONGC board had approved for investment of Rs 1946 crore for the same
and total approved investment in Tripura will be Rs 5,050 crore.

3. India remains worlds largest arms importer

i. India continues to remain the worlds largest arms importer, accounting for 14% of the global arms imports in
the 2011-2015 time frame.
ii. It was revealed by report on international arms transfers released by a global think-tank, Stockholm
International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).
iii. Top arms importers are: India (14%), China (4.7%), Australia (3.6%), Pakistan (3.3%), Vietnam (2.9%) and
South Korea (2.6%).
iv. Indias arms imports remains three times greater than those of its rivals Pakistan and China.
v. Its biggest suppliers are Russia, United States (US), Israel and France. This indicates Indias failure to build a
strong domestic defence-industrial base (DIB) and Indian arms industry has failed to produce competitive
indigenously-designed weapons. India has spent over 120 billion dollars on arms acquisitions over the last 15
years most of them from foreign suppliers.

4. Madhya Pradeshs Katni To Have Indias Longest Railway Bridge

i. Katni in Madhya Pradesh to have Indias longest railway bridge of 14 km in length which is three and half
folds longer than the Vembanad rail Bridge that connects Edappally and Vallarpadam of 4.6 Km in length.
ii. Its total length would be 21 Km included the down line of the bridge would be 7 Km .
iii. This Project has got received clearance from Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) recently
along with other railway projects.
iv. Design and survey of the bridge has been completed and it will take 5 years for completion and expected cost
be around 600 crore.
v. This comes under West Central Railways (WCR).

5. ISRO Successfully Tested Cryogenic Engine Of GSLV Mark 3 Rocket

i. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has successfully tested high-thrust cryogenic engine CE-20
of the GSLV Mark 3 (LVM3) rocket for the upper stage at its Propulsion Research Center in Mahendragiri,

Tamil Nadu lasted for 640 seconds and paved the way for the first developmental flight of the GSLV Mark 3 in
December 2016.
ii. It was conducted with Mixture Ratio Controller (MRC) in a closed loop mode. Using Liquid Hydrogen at 253
degrees C and Liquid Oxygen at 193 degrees C as propellants.
iii. the high-thrust cryogenic engine (CE20) generates power of approximately 2 MW. Developed at the Liquid
Propulsion System centre (LPSC) here, the engine had already undergone two short-duration tests for engine
ignition and steady state performance.
iv. Last year, the first developmental engine completed different hot tests in various operating regimes.
v. The third engine identified for flight use will be vacuum tested in the high altitude test facility as part of the
flight acceptance test.

6. CII Signs MoU With Dubai Exports To Boost Trade

i. With the aim to strengthen India-UAE economic ties, Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has signed an
MoU with Dubai Exports to boost trade and explore business opportunities.
ii. CII, a non-government organisation, has signed an memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Dubai
Exports, which works with other Dubai Government Departments to simplify the export process.
iii. It develops long-term growth strategies to expand businesses and maximize the opportunities given by
Dubai's unique position as a natural trade gateway between the East and West.
iv. The MoU pledged to maintain frequent and regular contact with each other for mutual exchange of nonconfidential, economic and trade information and to suggest and recommend partners for economic and trade
cooperation and explore opportunities for business between members of both parties.
v. It will also organise exchange of visits for business cooperation and provide each other with necessary
support in terms of organizing conferences, mounting business delegations and other activities.

7. Singer Bhuvaneshwari Mishra Passed Away

i. Renowned Odissa singer Bhubaneshwari Mishra passed away following a cardiac arrest in New Delhi.
ii. She was 67. She was one of the talented artist from Odisha and was renowned as classical and playback
singer.
iii. The classical singer began her career with the song Tiki Mora Naa Ti for the mythological Odia movie
Krushna Sudama in the 1970s.
iv. Apart from many awards, Ms Mishra was also conferred with the Odisha State Film Award for best playback
singer (female) for two consecutive terms in 1979 and 1980 for the movies Srikrushna Rasalila and Jay Ma
Mangala respectively.
v. The odissa singer was popular both as a classical and a playback singer. Some of her popular songs include
Itikili mitikili, Tiki mora naa, Jahna ra sindura gara, Tume mora prabhu, Pirati kie karichhi, Jagatara
natha Jagannatha, Dayamayee mahamayee maa Mangala and so on.

8. Vinay Kumar Singh Appointed As MD Of NCRTC

i. Indian Railway Officer Vinay Kumar Singh has been appointed as Managing Director of National Capital
Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC).
ii. Prior to this appointment, he was working with Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL), a railway PSU involved
in the study of high speed rail corridors.
iii. He was appointed by the search and selection committee through an interview process.
iv. The committee comprises Urban Development Secretary, Railway Board Member (Staff), an official from
the DoPT and an expert from World Bank among others.
v. NCRTC will execute three rapid rail corridors to Panipat, Meerut and Alwar from the capital at an estimated
cost of Rs 72,170 crore. The corridors are expected to considerably reduce the travel time.

9. Haryana to become the first state in India to have Aquifer mapping

i. With the climate changes in the recent years, the groundwater sources have gone down to a critical level.
ii. To find out the exact location of the Aquifer rocks a new mapping technique is to be introduced in Haryana
by May making it as the first state to have such mapping.
iii. Aquifer rock is an underground layer ofwater bearing rock which has groundwater stored in it.

10. US Air force tested Minuteman missile from California

i. The US InterContinental Ballistic Missile Minuteman 3 was launched from Vandenberg Air force Base in
California.
ii. The missile blasted off at 34 PM towards west base of Los Angeles.
iii. It carried a re-entry vehicle that can target 4200 Miles away to the Marshall Islands of Pacific Ocean.
iv. It involves personnel from Vandenbergs 576th Flight Test Squadron and the 625th Strategic Operations
Squadron at Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska, and the 91st Missile Wing, Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota
30th Space wing Commander of US Air force- Christopher Mos.

11. Malayalam Film Ottal Wins Award At Berlin Film Festival

i. The National award winning Malayalam film 'Ottal' has been named the best children's film at the 66th Berlin
International Film Festival and honored with the Crystal Bear award in the 'Generation KPlus' section.
ii. The film is about the story of an old fisherman and his grandson directed by Jayaraj Rajasekharan Nair.
Jayaraj is known for adapting literary classic into films.
iii. He has earlier made films based on Shakespeare's works such as "Othello" and "Antony and Cleopatra".
iv. "Ottal" bagged the National Award for best film on Environment Conservation and it set a record at 20th
International Film Festival Of Kerala by sweeping all the top awards. It was also screened at the Mumbai Film
Festival.

v. This is the third year in a row that Indian films have triumphed in Berlin International Film Festival. Earlier
winners were "Killa" 2014 and "Dhanak" 2015.

12. Indian-origin Sikh appointed Kuala Lumpur Police Commissioner

i. Amar Singh from Indian-origin Sikh Community has been appointed the Police Commissioner of the Capital
city of Malaysia.
ii. A third generation police from his family .He was Deputy Commissioner before being appointed to the post
and will replace Tajuudin Mohammed.
iii. He is highest ranked police officer from the Malaysian Sikh community.
iv. Amar Graduated from University of Malaya also did his LLB from University of Buckingham,UK.

13. Bihar-The Sixth State To Enter Into Uday Scheme

i. UDAY(Ujwal Discom Assurance Yojana) is a tripartite memorandum between Bihar government, state
Discoms and the Power ministry for the revival of debt ridden state distribution utilities to save 9000 crores.
ii. Bihar is the sixth state to join this UDAY scheme.
iii. It is the second Non-UPA state after Uttar Pradesh to join this scheme.
iv. It will help the debt ridden distribution system of the state to save 9000 crores in the next 3 years.

14. Dnipro FC Wins 2016 Nagjee International Club Football Tournament

i. Ukraines Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk Football Club (FC) has won the 2016 Sait Nagjee International Club
Football Tournament in Kozhikode. The goalscorers on the evening were Ihor Kohut (40'), Denys Balanuik (62')
and Yuri Vakulko (85').
ii. The Ukrainian FC also created a record in the Sait Nagjee tournament that was brought alive after 21 years
with Ronaldinho inaugurating the same, as they scored the most number of goals in the championship (10) and
also kept a clean sheet in all their three games.
iii. With this victory, Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk became first European team to win this prestigious Football
tournament held in India. In summit clash played at the EMS Corporation stadium at Kozhikode (Kerala),
Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk FC defeated Brazilian FC Atletico Paranaense by 3-0 goals.
iv. For the Ukrainian FC, three goals were scored by Ihor Kohut (40th minute), Denys Balanuik (62nd minute)
and Yuri Vakulko (85th minute).
v. It was 36th edition of the tournament and the first edition after 1995 when it was stopped. In this edition, total
8 clubs from Latin America, Germany and Europe had participated.

1. Government To Sell Its 5 % Stake In NTPC

i. Government will sell its 5 per cent stake in India's largest power producer NTPC at a floor price of Rs 122 per
share to raise Rs 5,029 crore.

ii. The government, which owns almost 75% of the company, plans to sell its stake in the two-day sale filings.
iii. Retails investors, for whom 20 per cent shares have been reserved, will get to bid on February 24.
iv. Indian government still remains well short of its Rs69,500 crore stake sale target for the year to 31 March.
v. This fiscal, the government has sold shares in companies including Power Finance Corp. and Rural
Electrification Corp. It has raised Rs13,340 crore, or a fifth of the aim through disinvestment in five PSUs
EIL, Indian Oil Corp, PFC, REC and Dredging Corporation.

2. Indian Origin Ismail Mahomed Conferred Knighthood By French Government

i. An Indian-origin art lover and playwright Ismail Mahomed from South Africa has been knighted by the
French government for his lifelong devotion to the promotion of arts.
ii. He was bestowed with Knight of the Order of Arts and Literature (The Chevalier de lOrdre des Arts et
Lettres) by French Ambassador Elisabet Barbier in Johannesburg.
iii. Presently, Ismail Mahomed is working as the Artistic Director of the National Arts Festival in Grahamstown.
He has also received numerous other award in his 30 year career.
iv. In 1999, he was awarded Premiers Award for developing and promoting the arts and culture sector as an
economic enterprise in the South African province of Mpumalanga.
v. He has a long standing relationship with France and has brokered several collaborations between French and
South Africa artists.

3. Naval Exercise IBSAMAR 2016 between India, South Africa, Brazil kicked off in Goa
i. The fifth edition of IBSAMAR 2016 trilateral naval exercise between Brazil, India and South Africa kicked
off in Goa.
ii. IBSAMAR is abbreviated as India-Brazil-South Africa Maritime.
iii. This is the for the first time the exercise is held in India as all the previous editions were held in South Africa
since it began in 2006.
iv. This trilateral naval exercise aims at increasing (i) Interoperability among navies of three countries (ii)
Common understanding maritime security between them.
v. This edition of IBSAMAR naval exercise will be conducted two phases namely Harbour phase and Sea
Phase. During harbour phase, wide range of professional interactions will be undertaken and during Sea Phase
diverse range operational activities will be conducted off Goa coast.

4. Pakistan Parliament Become 1st In World To Run Entirely On Solar Power

i. Pakistan parliament became the first in the world to completely run on solar power, a venture supported by
close ally China with a whopping $55 million funding.
ii. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in a simple ceremony switched on solar-powered building of the parliament in
capital Islamabad.

iii. It was launched in 2015 when Chinese President Xi Jinping visited and addressed the Parliament.
iv. The first announced of the project was in 2014 by Chinese government as an act of friendship with financial
support of 55 million dollars. The solar panels of parliament have installed capacity 80 Mega Watts (MW) of
which 62 MW is sufficient for it while remaining 18 MW will be connected to national grid.
v. The project was completed in seven months at a cost of 280.61 million rupees. The solar plant will help the
parliament save around 12 million rupees in electricity bills every year.

5. Vienna Is The World's Best City To Live In : Survey

i. Austrias capital Vienna is the best place in the world to live, according to an international survey on quality
of life that has no Indian city in the top 100.

ii. Baghdad is the worst, and London, Paris and New York do not even make it into the top 35, according to
international research into quality of life.
iii. According to the 18th Mercer Quality of Life study which examined socioeconomic conditions of 230 global
cities, Vienna, a city of nearly 1.8 million people, is the worlds best city, followed by Zurich, Auckland,
Munich and Vancouver.
iv. Among Indian cities, Hyderabad topped the rankings at 139th position, followed by Pune at 144, Bangalore
145, Chennai 150, Mumbai 152, Kolkata 160 and national capital Delhi at 161. According to the World Bank,
Austria has one of the highest figures for GDP per head in the world, just behind the US and ahead of Germany
and Britain.
v. The study examined social and economic conditions, health, education, housing and the environment, and is
used by big companies to assess where they should locate and how much they should pay staff.

6. Tamil film Kanavu Variyam wins 2016 Remi Award

i. Tamil film Kanavu Variyam has won the prestigious 2016 Remi Award in the United States.
ii. The film has been directed and produced by a Chennai-based techie Arun Chidambaram and Karthik
Chidambaram.
iii. The film deals with the incessant power cuts and shortage of electricity faced by the Indian villages. It stars
Jiya as the lead character and the music is by Shyam Benjamin.
iv. The award will be presented to A Chidambaram during the 49th WorldFest Houston International Film
Festival that will be held from 8 to 17 April, 2016 The movie also has won Special Jury Award at the National
Science Festival.
v. The song Kalla Manna in the film which is based on compilation of 51 traditional games of rural India has
been accepted for screening at the Bare Bones International and Music Festival in Oklahoma.

7. Udai Kumar Appointed As Full Time MD And CEO Of MSEI

i. Metropolitan Stock Exchange of India (formerly MCX Stock Exchange) has appointed its interim Managing
Director & CEO Udai Kumar as MD & CEO after receiving necessary approvals from securities regulator
SEBI.
ii. Prior to this appointment, he was given an interim charge after then MD and CEO Saurabh Sarkar had
resigned.
iii. Udai Kumar is a veteran of the capital and financial markets.
iv. He has over two decades of rich experience in stock exchange administration, fund-raising, capital markets,
restructuring and merger and acquisition functions.
v. The SEBI approval comes after a stringent short-listing process and interviews by the Selection Committee to
select a suitable candidate for the role.

8. Worlds 1st fast-acting Anti-Rabies drug to be launched in India

i. Worlds first fast-acting anti-rabies drug Rabies Human Monoclonal Antibody (RMAb) will be launched in
India.
ii. The drug has been developed by Pune-based Serum Institute of India (SII) and US-based MassBiologics of
the University of Massachusetts Medical School.
iii. RMAb drug is a human IgG1 monoclonal antibody that instantly deactivates rabies virus by specifically
binding to a conformational epitope of glycoprotein of the virus.
iv. It is 25% cheaper compared to the existing expensive human rabies immunoglobulin (hRIG) treatment.
v. It has advantage of automatically precluding the chances of transmitting blood-borne infections that are
present in rabies immunoglobulin vaccines.

9. RBI extends currency swap arrangement with SAARC nations

i. In order to enhance economic cooperation and strengthen financial stability, RBI has extended the $2 billion
currency swap arrangement to SAARC nations till mid-November 2017.
ii. Under the arrangement, RBI is to offer swap arrangement up to an overall amount of $2 billion both in
foreign currency and Indian rupee.
iii. The SAARC Swap Arrangement was offered by the RBI to SAARC nations on November 15, 2012.
iv. The facility will be available to all SAARC member countries Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan,
Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
v. The swap amount available to various member central banks has been arrived at broadly based on two months
import cover subject to a floor of $100 million and a maximum of $400 million per country.

10. Rahul Taneja Appointed As Chief People Officer of Jet Airways

i. India's 2nd largest airline Jet Airways India Ltd named Rahul Taneja as its chief people officer, responsible
for shaping the operations and performance of the group.

ii. Taneja previously headed corporate human resources (HR) at Essar Group where he led the strategic redesign
of the organization and HR function for global operations across all business portfolios.
iii. He will join the Executive Management Committee that has been tasked by the Board of Directors to drive
the companys growth and future strategy.
iv. Taneja, 47, has over 25 years of experience in diverse industry sectors and has worked in HR leadership
positions across leading Indian and international companies.
v. His earlier roles included HR Director at computer giant Dell International and Group HR Head at telecom
networks solutions company HFCL.

11. CGPDTM issues revised patent guidelines for Computer Related Inventions
i. The Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trademarks (CGPDT) has issued an order excluding software
patents in its revised guidelines for Computer Related Inventions (CRIs).
ii. The new order clearly mentions that, mere computer programmes those not in conjunction with a novel
hardware will not be granted patent in India.
iii. The new guidelines Follow CGPDTs stay on the revised guidelines issued in August 2015 which have
allowed the patenting of software which demonstrated technical advancement and did not clarify it.
iv. Have been aligned to the Patents Act, 1970 and brings out clarity in terms of exclusions expected under subsection 3(k) of the Act.

12. KN Vyas appointed as Director of Bhabha Atomic Research Centre

i. Distinguished scientist KN Vyas has been appointed as Director of Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC)
for a term of three years.
ii. His appointment was confirmed by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) presided by Prime
Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi.
iii. He succeeds Shekar Basu who was appointed as Atomic Energy Secretary and Chairman of Atomic Energy
Commission (AEC) in October 2015.

13. Justice Vineet Saran appointed as Chief Justice of Orissa High Court
i. President Pranab Mukherjee has appointed Justice Vineet Saran as the new Chief Justice (CJ) of Orissa High
Court as per the provisions of Article 217 of Constitution.
ii. His appointment comes after it was lying vacant ever since transfer of Justice D H Waghela as CJ of Bombay
High Court.
iii. During the vacant period, Justice Pradeep K. Mohanty was officiating as Acting CJ of Orissa High Court.
iv. Prior to this appointment, Justice Saran was officiating in Karnataka High Court as a senior judge.

14. All About Asia Cup 2016

i. The much awaited Asia Cup 2016 will kick off from Today, where hosts Bangladesh will take on India in the
opener at Shere Bangla National Stadium, Mirpur.
ii. The 2016 Asia Cup is a Twenty20 International (T20I) cricket tournament to be held from 24 February to 6
March 2016.
iii. It will be the 13th edition of the Asia Cup, the fifth to be held in Bangladesh, and the first to be played using
the T20I format.
iv. Along with Bangladesh (the host) and Sri Lanka (the defending champions from the 2014 event), the
tournament will include India, Pakistan, and one ICC associate member, the United Arab Emirates, who
qualified from a qualifier played from 19 to 22 February 2016.

15. Mortaza Set To Become UNDPs Goodwill Ambassador

i. Bangladesh limited overs captain Mashrafe Bin Mortaza is set to be named as the United Nations
Development Programmes (UNDP) national goodwill ambassador for youth.
ii. The appointment will be made official on that day following a signing ceremony, the UNDP said in a
statement.
iii. The release stated that UNDP Bangladesh will appoint Mashrafe Bin Mortaza as the UNDP National
Goodwill Ambassador for Youth in Bangladesh.
iv. Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, who is currently the ODI and Twenty-20 skipper, said that he had received the
proposal a month ago and was extremely excited to receive the opportunity.
v. The UNDP has enlisted the volunteer services and support of prominent personalities from the worlds of art,
music, film, sport and literature to highlight key issues and to draw attention to its activities.

1. All About Railway Budget 2016-2017

i. Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu presented his second rail budget this year.
ii. He kept the fares unchanged. In his budget speech, he said that for this budget he owes its inspiration to
vision of PM Modi who said: "My vision is to make railways backbone of Indias progress & economic
development."
iii. He outlined the 3 pillars of strategy - raise new revenues, raise productivity and efficiency and revamp the
processes.

iv. He also said that the Core objective is to become engine of economic growth, create employment and
provide customer service.

v. Here are the highlights of the Rail Budget 2016: The Capital plan of Rs 1.21 lakh crore. Operating ratio kept
at 92% FY17 as against 90% in current year. To generate revenues of order of Rs.1,84,820 cr next year which is
a 10.1% higher than revised target of current year.Railways will get Rs 40,000 crore budgetary support from the
government etc.

2. India extends $1 million aid to cyclone-hit Fiji

i. Cyclone-hit Fiji will receive one million dollars as immediate assistance from the Indian Government.
ii. This was announced by Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Vikas Swarup.
iii. Fiji has been struck by Cyclone Winston which brought with it wind gusts of 325 kilometres per hour and
sea and ocean waves up to 12 metres high.
iv. The areas crops and several villages have been flattened completely by the natural calamity.
v. So far, 29 people have reportedly died and many others have been shifted to evacuation centres.

3. Union Govt To Introduce Coal Linkage Auction Policy For Power Corporation
i. Union Govt to introduce coal linkage auction policy for power corporation which did not have such
coordinations with Coal India Ltd.
ii. Anil Swarup, Coal Secretary said that the current surplus stock with Coal India Ltd (CIL) was a temporary
phenomenon.
iii. CIL take several steps for implementing further process : Reduction in import of thermal coal, Improved
fuel supply levels, Better evacuation of pit head coal stock, Restructuring of debt for power distribution
companies had been initiated.
iv. Secretary told that six months large states distribution companies would come under the UDAY scheme for
restructuring of their debts and unleash demand for coal.
v. Coal import has already gone downby 16per cent in the April-January period, which has resulted in Rs.
20,200 crore savings for the government.

4. PNB declares 904 firms as wilful defaulters

i. State-owned Punjab National Bank (PNB) has declared 904 borrowers who owed it a combined Rs.10,869.71
crore as of December-end as wilful defaulters.
ii. The bank added 140 companies to the list of wilful defaulters over the last quarter.
iii. At the end of September, 764 companies who owed the lender Rs.9,200 crore had been classified as wilful
defaulters.
iv. The wilful defaulters to PNB are Winsome Diamonds and Jewellery, which owes Rs.900.37 crore, Forever
Precious Jewellery and Diamonds (Rs.747.98 crore), Zoom Developers (Rs.410.18 crore), Nafed (Rs.224.26
crore) and S. Kumar Nationwide (Rs.146.82 crore).
v. The bank recently declared Kingfisher Airlines and its guarantors UB Holdings and Vijay Mallya as wilful
defaulters. Kingfisher Airlines owes PNB Rs.1,500 crore.

5. Infosys Extends Vishal Sikka's Term By Two Years

i. India's second largest software exporter Infosys has extended the tenure of chief executive officer &
Managing Director Vishal Sikka by another two years till the year 2021.
ii. Sikka was earlier appointed as MD & CEO till 2019. Official stating that his initiatives have helped the
company to grow towards leadership position.
iii. Mr. Sikka was the first non-founder who was appointed as the CEO and Managing Director of the company.
iv. Under the leadership of Sikka, Infosys started delivering industry leading growth in the last couple of
quarters.
v. Since he assumed office in August 2014 Mr Sikka has taken various measures to fuel growth. Some of the
major measure includes leadership changes, employee retention measures, forming corporate venture fund.

6. SBI launches new branch for e-commerce loans

i. Banking giant SBI has taken another leap in this space with the launch of SBI e-Smart SME, a working capital
loan offering for sellers on ecommerce platforms.
ii. With this development, sellers can apply for the loan online on the e-commerce platform and get instant
sanctioning of the loan.
iii. This product uses proprietary platform data and surrogates information from public domain to assess the
sellers creditworthiness for loan sanctioning.
iv. The product was launched in partnership with ecommerce platform Snapdeal in the presence of banks
chairman Arundhati Bhattacharya & Snapdeal CEO Kunal Bahl.

7. INS Arihant Indias first nuclear submarine ready to operate

i. INS Arihant, Indias first nuclear armed submarine is now ready for full fledged operations.
ii. The submarine has passed several deep sea diving drills as well as weapons launch tests over the past five
months.
iii. The formal induction into the naval fleet is only a political call away.
iv. The Arihant, which is the first of five nuclear missile submarines or SSBNs planned for induction, has also
undergone deep sea dives off Vishakhapatnam where it was build.
v. A Russian diving support ship the RFS Epron that arrived on October has been accompanying the Arihant on
its deep sea dives and launch tests.

8. India to induct women in combat roles : President

i. The Government has decided to induct women in all military combat roles in the future.

ii. The announcement has been made by President Pranab Mukherjee during the joint sitting of the Lok Sabha
and the Rajya Sabha.
iii. The President said, In our country, shakti is the manifestation of female energy. This shakti defines our
strength.
iv. My government has approved the induction of women as short service commission officers and as fighter
pilots in the IAF.
v. In the future, my government will induct women in all fighter streams of our armed forces.

9. Rajendra Singh Appointed As First Non-Navy Officer To Head Coast Guard

i. Rajendra Singh appointed as first non-navy officer to head Coast Guard.
ii. This is the 1st time that the force will get a chief from its own internal cadre since it was set up in 1978 as the
country's fourth armed force after the Army,
iii. Appointments Committee of Cabinet approved Rajendra Singh's appointment an order from the Department
of Personnel and Training.
iv. Rajendra Singh is at present director General of coast guard
v. This is the first time an officer who is not from the Indian Navy has been elevated to the position also he was
Coast Guard cadre to be elevated to three-star officer.

10. Indian Government to provide wi-fi at 25,000 spots in country

i. The Indian government has planned to set up wi-fi facilities at 25,000 spots in the country by March 2016.
ii. At present, the facilities are available at three hundred spots across India.
iii. The government is exploring to have such more wi-fi spots in near future.
iv. The government is laying optical fibre network in two lakh 50 thousand gram panchayats of the country to
provide broadband facilities.

11. Afghanistan's National Womens Cycling Team nominated for 2016 Nobel Peace Prize
i. The Afghanistans National Womens Cycling Team has been nominated by a group of Italian MPs for the
2016 Nobel Peace Prize for their dedication.
ii. Afghanistans National Womens Cycling Team is among the first Afghan girls to be riding bikes socially.
iii. They face enormous challenges to ride a bike but these women are challenging gender barriers, breaking one
of the last taboos in the country for women.

iv. These women have used cycling to promote social justice and social stigma. They are opening the door to
allow girls to ride bicycles for transportation.
v. It is the 1st Afghan women's team to compete on the international stage, at the Asian Cycling Championships
in Delhi in 2013.

12. Mastercard to launch payments by selfie

i. Mastercard is launching new mobile technologies that will allow customers to authenticate their online
purchases using selfies or fingerprints.
ii. The technology will be rolled out by big banks in the U.S., Canada, the U.K. and some European countries
over the next few months.
iii. People from around the world will be regularly using this authentication technology within five years, said
Ajay Bhalla, president of enterprise security solutions at MasterCard.
iv. Mastercard plans to roll out the technology to the UK, US, Canada, Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Italy,
France, Germany, Switzerland, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark.
v. Customers who want to try selfie authentication will have to download a special MasterCard app that will
allow them to take a photo each time they make an online purchase. Their face (or fingerprint) will be scanned
to prove that they not hackers or thieves are making a purchase.

13. Facebook launhced Telecom Infra Project

i. Facebook has announced the Telecom Infra Project, which will look at developing new and alternative
technologies to build and deploy telecom infrastructure, with partners including Aricent, HCL Technologies,
Intel, Nokia and T- Mobile.
ii. The Project is working on providing currently unserved rural communities with wireless network efforts.
iii. A pilot 4G network is already underway in the Philippines, and Facebook has a project in planning for the
Scottish Highlands.
iv. TIP will focus on open designs for three areas of telecommunications hardware and software: access points,
the backhaul network to connect them, and network core and management systems.
v. Facebook said TIP members will contribute designs in three areas- access, back haul, and core and
management. TIP will apply the design principles of the Open Compute Project, which is a Facebook project to
share data centre designs.

14. GVK Bio wins Global CSR Excellence & Leadership Awards
i. GVK Biosciences has bagged the Global CSR Excellence & Leadership Awards in the category of Best
Environment-Friendly Project.
ii. The award has been given for its 'Go Green, Grow Green' plantation drive.
iii. The awards are constituted by the World CSR Congress every year on the World CSR Day.

iv. The awards are presented to companies who believe in the value of sustainable corporate social
responsibility.
v. GVK Bio has obtained this recognition for its mega plantation drive conducted in July 2015.

15. Australia replaces India as world No.1 in ICC Test rankings

i. Australia has replaced India at the top of the world's test rankings in Cricket with a 2-nil test series victory
over New Zealand in Christchurch.
ii. Captain Steven Smith and Joe Burns hit fifties on the final day as Australia achieved the target of 201 set by
the hosts losing just 3 wickets in their second innings.
iii. Joe Burns was selected as man of the match for his 170 and 65 runs from both innings.
iv. New Zealand skipper Brendon McCullum bid farewell test cricket.
v. The 34- years old wicket keeper batsman has scored over 6000 test runs at an average of 39.

1. Highlights of Economic Survey 2015-16

i. The Economic Survey is presented by the ministry of Finance in the parliament every year, before the Union
Budget.
ii. The Economic Survey reviews the developments of the Indian economy over the previous 12 months,
summarizes the performance on major development programs, and highlights the policy initiatives of the
government and the prospects of the economy in the short to medium term.
iii. It is the Finance Ministry's view on the annual economic development of the country that gives a broad idea
on the macro-economic data, which will impact the budget decisions.
iv. This year the report is authored by chief economic adviser Arvind Subramanian.
v. It contains data of various macroeconomic indicators which reflect the state of the economy such as Gross
Domestic Product, Gross National Product, Inflation rate, foreign exchange trends, balance of payments etc. To
read more go through our website currentaffairs.adda247.com
or http://currentaffairs.adda247.com/2016/02/highlights-of-economic-survey-2015-16.html

2. India approves $150 million credit line for Irans Chabahar port
i. India has approved a $150 million credit line for the development of Irans Chabahar port.
ii. The port in southeast Iran is central to New Delhis efforts to circumvent arch-rival Pakistan and open up a
route to landlocked Afghanistan where it has developed close security ties and economic interests.
iii. Under the agreement signed last year between the two countries, India will equip and operate two berths in
the first phase of development at Chabahar Port and extend a credit line of $150 million through its external
lending arm. Both berths will commence operations within 18 months of the signing of a final contract.
iv. India and Iran agreed in 2003 to develop Chabahar on the Gulf of Oman, near Irans border with Pakistan,
but the venture has moved slowly because of the sanctions over Irans atomic programme.

v. India will make a capital investment of $85.21 million and annual revenue expenditure of $22.95 million on a
ten year lease following which the ownership of equipment will be transferred to Iran.

3. India and UK sign MoU for research in crop science

i. Department of Biotechnology, Ministry of Science and Technology and a consortium of top UK research
institutions signed an MoU for establishment of a joint India-UK collaboration programme in crop science.
ii. The aim of the agreement is to enhance collaborative research, promote knowledge exchange, and support
capacity building to develop resilience in food security. iii. This collaboration builds on the close links already
established between leading researchers in the United Kingdom and India.
iv. This collaboration will create opportunities for leading experts in the UK and India to come together to tackle
global challenges in the areas of food security, crop science and biotechnology.
v. All parties agreed on the importance of crop science as an area of enormous potential for scientific
collaboration, and of great importance for global food security in India and beyond.

4. EPFO Tightens Norms For Withdrawal Of Funds

i. Retirement fund body EPFO(Employees Provident Fund Organisation) has tightened norms on withdrawal of
provident fund as well investment of such amount in Varishtha Pension Bima Yojana for its over five crore
subscribers.
ii. As per the new norms he subscribers will not be able to claim withdrawal of their provident fund after
attaining age of 54 years.
iii. Earlier norms, the EPFO subscribers were allowed to claim 90 per cent of their accumulations in their PF
account at the age of 54 years.
iv. Now EPFO has made it mandatory to wait till attaining the age of 57 for claiming PF withdrawal for
transferring that to the Life Insurance Corporation of India for investment in Varishtha Pension Bima Yojana.In
today's scenario when retirement age is 58 years across all organisation the clause of scheme is not relevant.
v. But the big change is that now under this facility, the subscriber would be able to withdraw his contribution
and interest earned on it unlike 90 per cent of the total accumulations earlier. Now subscribers can directly file
their claims like PF withdrawals without attestation of present or previous employers.

5. Indian Government appoints 3 news information commissioners

i. The Indian Government has appointed three information commissioners in the Central Information
Commission (CIC).
ii. They are Amitava Bhattacharyya, Indian Administrative Service, (Gujarat 1980).
iii. Retired Chairman, Staff Selection Commission,Bimal Julka, IAS (Madhya Pradesh:1979).
iv. Retired Secretary, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting,Divya Prakash Sinha, Indian Police Service
(Manipur-Tripura: 1979), retired Secretary (Security), Cabinet Secretariat.

v. The appointments have been made for a term of five years from the date on which they enter upon their office
or till they attain the age of 65 years, whichever is earlier, as per the provisions of the Right to Information Act,
2005.

6. Jonathon Sinclair Neal appointed CEO of AAE Travel

i. Expedia, the online travel company has appointed Jonathon Sinclair Neal as the Chief Executive Officer of
AAE Travel.
ii. AAE Travels is the joint venture between AirAsia and Expedia Inc.Jonathon will be based out of Singapore.
iii. Now, Jonathon will provide strategic direction to the Singapore-based online travel company that drives two
key brands, Expedia and AirAsiaGo, across 12 countries including India, Southeast Asia, Hong Kong, Japan and
Korea.
iv. Currently, Jonathon was the Chief Financial Officer of AAE Travel where he was responsible for all aspects
of finance as well as corporate strategy and business analytics.

7. Justice Dinesh Maheshwari Appointed As Chief Justice Of Meghalaya High Court

i. Justice Dinesh Maheshwari has sworn in as the Chief justice of the Meghalaya High Court. He was
administered the oath as Chief Justice by state Governor V. Shanmuganathan.
ii. Prior to this appointment he was working in Allahabad High Court.
iii. The post of the Chief Justice of the High Court fell vacant after the retirement of Chief Justice Uma Nath
Singh on January 14, 2016. Since then, Justice Sudip Ranjan Singh was serving as the acting Chief Justice of the
state high court.
iv. Justice Maheshwari graduated in Law from Jodhpur University in 1980. He enrolled as an Advocate on 8
March 1981. He practiced mainly on civil and constitutional sides.
v. He took oath as judge of Rajasthan High Court on 2 September 2004 than later on he was transferred to
Allahabad High Court in 2014.

8. Ashwini Nangia becomes Director of CSIR-National Chemical Lab, Pune

i. Ashwini Nangia has been appointed as the Director of the CSIR-National Chemical Laboratory, Pune.
ii. He was born in 1960 and an alumnus of the IIT Kanpur is at present with the School of Chemistry at the
UoH.After, his Ph.D. (1988), he worked in NOCIL Agrochemicals R&D Centre, Navi Mumbai for a year, and
then joined the University in 1989.
iii. He has contributed to the new field of cocrystals and its applications to the pharmaceutical industry.
iv. He is a JC Bose National Fellow and an elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry, London, Indian
Academy of Sciences, Bangalore, Indian National Science Academy, New DelhiHe has over 200 research
papers to his credit including several reviews.
v. Nangia has guided over 20 Ph.D. students in the past 25 years at UoH.

9. USL appoints MK Sharma as new chairman

i. The Diageo-controlled United Spirits USL) has announced the appointment of MK Sharma as its new
chairman, a day after the embattled liquor baron Vijay Mallya resigned from the post.

ii. Mallyas exit from the board of United Spirits ended a long-drawn tussle between him and the majority
owner, UKs Diageo, following allegations of irregularities on loans given to UB Group companies.
iii. USL is now controlled by the worlds largest spirits maker Diageo, which had acquired an additional 26 per
cent stake in USL for Rs 11,448.91 crore in July to take its total share in the Indian firm to 54.78 per cent.
iv. Vijay Mallya UB group chairman has stepped down as non-executive chairman of United Spirits Ltd
controlled by Diageo Plc,after striking a sweetheart deal with the UK firm which agreed to drop all charges of
irregularities under his watch, and pay him $75 million over five years in return for getting him to go.

10. IRCTC, OYO Rooms tie up for hotel bookings

i. OYO Rooms has tied up with the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC)The tie-up aims
to offer standardised accommodation and a convenient booking platform to rail travellers.
ii. Under the tie-up, OYO Rooms will power the IRCTC hotel-booking page, offering their inventory and
standardised amenities to passengers.With this, IRCTC customers will have ready access to hotel
accommodations under OYO.
iii. IRCTC-OYO Rooms will offer nearly 45,000 hotel rooms in over 170 cities in India.
iv. The IRCTC portal witnesses 5 to 5.5 lakh bookings a day.
v. The partnership symbolises the growing leverage of synergies between the government and homegrown
Indian businesses to drive the next wave of innovation.

11. Reliance Capital To Transfer Commercial Finance Business Into Separate Firm
i. Reliance Capital said that it will transfer its all commercial finance division into a separate company to unfold
the value through sale of stake post the transfer, Reliance Capital would be apply to the RBI for registering itself
as a Core Investment Company (CIC) and this move would also facilitated the application of banking as license
and when the apex bank's policy permits.
ii. According to the scheme the scheme the commercial finance division of Reliance Capital would be merged
into Reliance Gilt Securities a wholly owned subsidiary of Reliance Capital and this merged entity would be
renamed Reliance Commercial Finance.
iii. The company has an aggregate loan portfolio of Rs 15,049 crore at the end of December.
iv. The proposal will enhance management focus on Reliance Commercial Finance and also provide flexibility
to the company to unlock value through stake sale.
v. Reliance Life Insurance and Reliance Asset Management, both subsidiaries of Reliance Capital, already have
a strategic partner Nippon Life Insurance - with 49% stake.

12. Ratan Tata To Head Indian Railways innovation Committee

i. Suresh Prabhu, Minister of Railway has announced Ratan Tata to head the Indian Railway Innovation
Committee.
ii. In 2016- 2017 he has announced plans to set up a dedicated cross functional team called Special Unit for
Transportation Research and Analytics (Sutra).
iii. The main aim is to carry out detailed analysis leading to optimized investment decisions and operations.
iv. The team would comprise professional analysts and best in class decision support systems and optimization
engines.
v. The initiative would be administered by an Innovation Committee comprising reputed investors,
representatives from National Academy of Indian Railways, Railway Board and Kayakalp headed by Ratan
Tata.

13. Cabinet approves Atal Innovation Mission

i. The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given its approval for establishment of
Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) and Self Employment and Talent Utilisation (SETU) in NITI Aayog with
appropriate manpower.
ii. Establishment of AIM and AIM Directorate would result in implementation of Mission activities in a
focussed manner.
iii. This would be a focal point for innovation and entrepreneurship in the country.
iv. The Mission would be guided by a Mission High Level Committee (MHLC) which will take all decisions
relating to approval of requisite guidelines including Grand Challenge areas, prize money and implementation of
various elements of AIM and SETU.
v. NITI Aayog will hire Mission Director and other appropriate manpower.The headquarter of the Mission will
be New Delhi.

14. UP Government signs pact with OLA

i. Taxi aggregator Ola has entered into an agreement with the Uttar Pradesh government to create over 50,000
entrepreneurship opportunities across the state.
ii. According to the pact, Ola will work with the state government towards skill development of youth in state
and provide entrepreneurship opportunities for 50,000 men and women across the state over the next five years.
iii. Ola will also strive to introduce innovative and customised mobility solutions like Ola Auto, Ola Share and
Ola Shuttle in the coming months.
iv. After bringing transportation solutions on to its app using technology, now Ola is looking to serve citizens
across UP giving them instant access to reliable and convenient mobility.
v. Ola have presence across nine major cities in the state that includes Lucknow, Kanpur, Agra, Meerut, Aligarh,
Allahabad, Saharanpur, Varanasi and Mathura.Currently, over 2,100 vehicles are registered on the Ola platform
in the state and it is expected to go up to 20,000 in the next five years.

15. IDBI Bank Gets SEBI Nod To Raise Rs 3,771 cr Via QIP
i.SEBI has given approval to State-owned IDBI Bank market regulator to raise Rs 3,771 crore through issue of
shares to qualified institutional playersa (QIP) move which would dilute the government's holding significantly
in the lender.
ii. IDBI Bank said that Sebi has acceded to the request to permit the bank to raise capital by issue of equity
shares aggregating upto Rs 3,771 cr. by way of a QIP subject to provisions.
iii. As per the bank it is exempted from the applicability under the Regulation of 82(c) of Sebi (ICDR)
Regulation, 2009 as per Regulation 113 of Sebi (ICDR) Regulation, 2009.
iv. The current market valuation, Rs 3,771 cr. represents about 36.6 per cent equity stake of IDBI Bank.
v. The government holding in the bank stands at 80.16 per cent. Its current market capitalization stood at Rs
10,583.30 cr..

16. Times Internet partners with Investopedia to deliver trusted financial content to India
i. Indian largest digital network Times Internet announced strategic partnership with Investopedia.com, one of
the web's premier destinations for financial information. In this partnership Investopedia and Times Internet will
collaborate to create and curate a blend of local and international content, knowledge events and seminars to
grow the brand amongst the audience in India.
ii. Investopedia is the world's largest financial educational website in India, leveraging Times Internet's 150
million monthly unique users.
iii. Through this partnership, Investopedia and Times Internet will collaborate to create and curate a blend of
local.
iv. As part of the collaboration,Times Internet will drive local commercialization of Investopedia across both
desktop and mobile.
v. According to this collaboration, Times Internet will drive local commercialization of Investopedia across
both desktop and mobile.
17. Promotion of Payments through cards and digital means
i. The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given its approval for introduction of
steps for promotion of payments through cards and digital means.
ii. The move aims at reducing cash transactions. Promotion of payments through cards and digital means will be
instrumental in reducing tax avoidance, migration of Government payments and collections to cashless mode,
discourage transactions in cash by providing access to financial payment services to the citizens to conduct
transactions through card/ digital means and shifting payment ecosystem from cash dominated to non-cash/less
cash payments.
iii. The infrastructure of card/digital payments is growing, but remains modest in comparison to cash payments.
iv. For card/digital payments to increase, they should be easy to use, readily available and accepted, should not
impose any undue financial burden on the merchant and user, and should offer an appropriate level of security.

v. While the payment system initiatives taken in the form of Electronic Clearing Service Scheme, National
Electronic Funds Transfer, Real Time Gross Settlement Scheme etc. have been impressive, the benefits of
modern card/digital payment systems are yet to reach all sections of the society and be accepted across the
length and breadth of the country.

18. Rohit Sharma named global ambassador of Nissan

i. Japanese Carmaker Nissan has named Indian cricketer Rohit Sharma as their new global ambassador.
ii. Nissan also named West Indies all-rounder Andre Russell and New Zealand women's team captain Suzie
Bates as its ambassadors.
iii. In addition to an advertising campaign, the ambassadors will be active on social media across the World T20,
supporting fan-focused initiatives of Nissan.
iv. Rohit, Russell and Bates join South African pacers Dale Steyn and Kagiso Rabada in the Nissan cricket
family who were recently announced as ambassadors in their home country.
v. Nissan's eight-year sponsorship deal with ICC comprises all tournaments for the period 2016 to 2023. The
World T20 will be played in India from March 15 to April 3.

19. India Sports Awards 2015 : Long Distance Runner Lalita Babar Named As The Sports Person Of The
Year
i. India's top female Long-distance runner Lalita Babar was named as the Sports Person of the Year in the India
Sports Awards 2015 in a ceremony organised by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry
(FICCI) with the support of the Sports Ministry.
ii. The Indian Sports Award were given away in New Delhi at the conclusion of day one of Turf 2015-16'.
iii. The long distance runner Lalita Babar has qualified for Rio Olympics in the 3000 meter steeplechase event
and is the current Indian national record holder.
iv. She has also won a bronze medal in 2014 Incheon Asian Games and is the current Asian champion.
v. On the other hand, Gymnast Dipa Karmakar was named as the Breakthrough Sports Person of the Year while
Amateur Kabaddi Federation of India was conferred with the Best National Sports Federation recognition.

1. ISRO to set up Satellite Centre for in ASEAN countries in Vietnam

i. Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) is working to establishment of a Satellite Tracking & Data
Reception Station and Data Processing Facility for ASEAN Member countries in Vietnam.
ii. ISRO will set up this satellite centre at the behest of Union Government as part of Space Cooperation
between India and Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN). This information was provided by the
Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh in a reply to an
unstarred question in Lok Sabha.
iii. This facility is intended to acquire and process Indian Remote Sensing Satellite (IRSS) data pertaining to
ASEAN region and disseminate to ASEAN Member countries.

iv. Under this initiative, all 10 ASEAN member countries including Vietnam will be allowed to access
processed remote sensing data pertaining to their country.
v. Ground facility is designed in such a way that it will not allow Indian data to be accessed and processed by
the system

2. E-Tourist Visa Scheme extended to 37 more countries

i. The Union Government has extended e-Tourist Visa Scheme to 37 more countries. With this, the total count
of countries under the scheme will become 150.
ii. The new countries included in e-Tourist Visa scheme are Austria, Albania, Botswana, Brunei, Bulgaria,
Bosnia & Herzegovina, Comoros, Cote dlvoire, Cape Verde, Czech Republic, Croatia, Eritrea, Denmark,
Gabon, Greece, Guinea, Gambia, Ghana, Madagascar, Malawi, Iceland, Lesotho, Liberia, San Marino,
Moldova, Namibia, Romania, South Africa, Swaziland, Switzerland, Senegal, Serbia, Slovakia, Trinidad &
Tobago, Tajikistan, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
iii. Union Government had launched e-Tourist Visa Scheme (as Tourist Visa on Arrival scheme) in November
2014. The e-Tourist Visa Scheme facilitates pre-authorization of Visa i.e. electronic travel authorisation given to
foreigners prior to travel.
iv. Under this scheme, an applicant registers for visa online and receives an email authorising him/her to travel
to India after it is approved. On arrival, the visitor has to present the authorisation to the immigration authorities
who will in turn allow them to enter into the country.
v. The scheme seeks to tap the vast tourism potential of India which still remains untapped and explored.

3. Ex-DRDO Chairman Dr Avinash Chander received Aryabhata Award 2013

i. Former Scientific Adviser to Defence Minister and ex-DRDO chief Dr Avinash Chander on 25 February 2016
received the prestigious Astronautical Society of India's Aryabhata Award 2013.
ii. He received the award from Dr R Chidambaram, Principal Scientific Adviser to Union Government and Dr A
S Kiran Kumar, Chairman ISRO, at ASI-ISRO Awards function held at Space Applications Centre (SAC) in
Ahmedabad.
iii. Besides, Dr.Ranganath R Navalgund, Vikram Sarabhai Distinguished Professor, received the Aryabhata
Award for the year 2012.
iv. Aryabhata Award was named after the fifth century Indian astronomer and mathematician and also in
commemoration of the first Indian Satellite launched on 19 April 1975, Aryabhata. It is presented every year to
an individual for outstanding lifetime contribution to the promotion of astronautics in India.

4. Gianni Infantino elected FIFA President

i. Gianni Infantino was elected as the President of FIFA (Fdration Internationale de Football Association)
after winning a second-round vote at Extraordinary FIFA Congress held in Zurich on 26 February 2016.
ii. He was elected as the ninth FIFA President after the second ballot in which he secured 115 of 207 total votes.
He will serve FIFA for the remainder of current term of office (until 2019).

iii. Infantino, the 45-year-old general secretary of European governing body UEFA, succeeded the 79-year-old
Sepp Blatter, who held the position since 1998.
iv. Sheikh Salman of Bahrain got 88 votes after being the front-runner during the four-month campaign. Prince
Ali of Jordan had four, and Jerome Champagne of France got zero votes.

5. Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Ranveer Singh To Get Dinanath Mangeshkar prize

i. Actor Ranveer Singh was on 26 February 2016 selected for Pandit Dinanath Mangeshkar award. The award
will be bestowed upon Ranveer by Lata Mangeshkar at a function to be held in Pune.
ii. The award is annually conferred on artists on 24 April to commemorate Pandit Dinanath Mangeshkars death
anniversary.
iii. Pandit Dinanath Mangeshkar award was instituted in 1999 in the memory of Dinanath Mangeshkar, father of
Lata Mangeshkar. Since then it is awarded annually to persons for their outstanding contributions to music and
movies.
iv. The award carries monetary award of 101001 rupees, a memento and a citation.
6. Mumbai won Ranji Trophy for the 41st time
i. Mumbai on 26 February 2016 won the Ranji Trophy with an innings and 21 run victory over Saurashtra. It
won the trophy for the first time in three seasons.
ii. With this, they have 41 titles in 45 finals with 10 of them being an innings victory. Karnataka stands second
in the overall Ranji standings with eight titles. It was a repeat of the 2012-13 final where Mumbai had made
short work of Saurashtra with an innings and 125-run victory.
iii. Mumbai made 371 runs in 82.2 overs in their first innings and in reply Saurashtra managed 235 and 115 runs
in first and second innings respectively. Mumbai pacer Shardul Thakur shackled opposition batting in the
second innings and claimed five wickets for 26 runs in 13.2 overs to took his match tally to eight.
iv. Shreyas Iyer was named man of the match for his 117 runs in Mumbai's only innings of the match. He ended
the season as the leading run-getter with 1321 runs at 73.38 including four centuries and seven fifties.
vi. In 2015, the trophy was Karnataka which was their eighth title. In the final, Karnataka defeated Tamil Nadu.

1. The Major Highlights/Announcement of the Union Budget 2016-17

i. Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley presents his third Union Budget. To support the small tax-payer and the
small investor, the Minister announced a slew of schemes, and income tax exemptions.
ii. Following are the key highlights :
- Forex reserves are at highest level at $350 billion'
- 2016: Current account deficit seen at 1.4% of GDP'
- 3 schemes to address weaker sections'
- GDP growth has accelerated to 7.6%. CPI inflation has come down to 5.4%.

- FY 16-17 will have the additional burden of implementing the VII pay commission and the defence OROP.
- New scheme for BPL families for gas connections. Staturtory backing for Aadhaar platform to ensure delivery
of benefits. etc

2. Naveen Patnaik Has Been Elected As BJD President For The 7th Consecutive Term
i. Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik was formally declared elected as the president of the Biju Janata Dal
(BJD) for the 7th consecutive term.
ii. Besides Naveen, 80 others were elected unopposed to the State executive of the party.
iii. The election as BJD president was a mere formality as he was the only candidate to file nomination papers
for the post.
iv. Naveen Patnaik re-election as the BJDs president was announced by the State returning officer (SRO)
Pratap Keshari Deb at the partys State council meeting.
v. The partys organisational poll process was started in the last week of December and it was completed on
Sunday in five phases.

3. President of India to be the chief guest at the 40th anniversary celebrations of Indian Civil Accounts
Service tomorrow
i. The President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee will be the Chief Guest at the 40th Anniversary Celebrations of
Indian Civil Accounts Service tomorrow (March 1,2016).
ii. The event will be celebrate in New Delhi.
4. Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat Programme to be Launched
i. Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat programme will be launched to link States and Districts in an annual programme
that connects people though exchanges in areas of language, trade, culture, travel and tourism.
ii. Today While presenting the General Budget 2016-17 in Lok Sabha, the Union Finance Minister Shri Arun
Jaitley said that to strengthen understanding of each other.
iii. it is proposed to create a closer engagement between States and Districts in a structured manner.

5. Oscar Awards 2016 conferred; Film Mad Max: Fury Road won maximum awards
i. 88th Academy Awards, popularly called Oscar Awards, were conferred on 29 February 2016.
ii. The award ceremony was held at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles.
iii. Chris Rock hosted the ceremony and Indian Bollywood actress Priyanka Chopra made her debut on the
Oscars red carpet and presented the award.
iv. The Oscar Awards for the year 2016 were presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
(AMPAS) in 24 categories.

v. Some of winners of 88th Academy Awards: Best Picture: Spotlight, Best Director: Alejandro Gonzlez
Irritu for The Revenant, Best Actor: Leonardo DiCaprio for The Revenant, Best Actress: Brie Larson for
Room, Best Animated Short Film: Bear Story and Best Animated Feature Film: Inside Out etc.

6. National Science Day observed with theme Scientific Issues for Development of the Nation
i. National Science Day was observed across India on 28 February 2016.
ii. The theme for the National Science Day 2016 is Scientific Issues for Development of the Nation.
iii. The day is observed annually to mark the discovery of the Raman Effect (phenomenon of scattering of
photons) by Indian physicist Sir Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman on 28 February 1928.
iv. Raman was awarded with the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1930 for his discovery and this was the first Nobel
Prize for India in the field of Science.
v. The first National Science Day was celebrated on 28 February 1987.

7. 100 Crore each allocated for celebrating Birth Centenary of Pt Deen Dayal Upadhyay and 350th Birth
Anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh
i. General Budget 2016-17 has proposed allocation of initial sums of Rs. 100 Crore each allocated for
celebrating Birth Centenary of Pt Deen Dayal Upadhyay and 350th Birth Anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh.
ii. While presenting the General Budget 2016-17 in Lok Sabha today, the Union Finance Minister Shri Arun
Jaitley said that in 2017, the country will also celebrate the 70th Anniversary of our Independence.
iii. Government will chalk out milestones for nations journey beyond the 70th Anniversary of Independence.

8. President to declare Kerala as first digital state today

i. President Pranab Mukherjee will declare Kerala as the first digital state of the country on 27th February,2016.
ii. pinning another feather on the cap of the southern state that boasts of many firsts in the human development
index.
iii. It will be the 1st fully digitised state With high e-literacy rate and mobile penetration (32 m connections).
iv. It is also the first to complete the national optic fiber network project which helps to provide high-speed
internet in all gram panchayats and remote areas.
v. Many key government offices will be paperless soon. More than 3000 offices in the state, including motor
vehicles and land registration departments, have achieved this feat.

9. Dinesh Sharma Appointed As Chairman Of Governing Council Of IFAD

i. Dinesh Sharma, Additional Finance Secretary, Department Of Economic Affairs and Indias Governor to the
International Fund for Agriculture Development (IFAD) was unanimously elected as the Chairperson of the
Governing Council of IFAD for a period of two years in its 39th Session held in Rome, Italy.

ii. IFAD was setup in 1977 as the 13th Specialized Agency of the United Nations and works towards removing
poverty and hunger in rural areas all over the world.
iii. India is a founder member of IFAD and a key contributor among the member countries.
iv. IFAD is managed by the two main governing bodies those are Governing Council and the Executive Board.
v. The Governing Council is the highest decision making body and consists of 176 member countries.

10. Resul Pookutty became first Asian to win Golden Reel Award
i. Famous sound designer Resul Pookutty on 27 February 2016 became the first Asian to win the award for Best
Sound for documentary Indias Daughter at the Motion Picture Sound Editors (MPSE) 63rd annual Golden
Reel Awards.
ii. The competing films television documentaries in the list included Beware Baltimore, Chefs Table, Deadliest
Catch, and The Undrafted, Mad Max: Fury Road, The Martian, Star Wars: The Force Awakens and The
Revenant among others.
iii. Pookutty made his debut in sound design with the 1997 film Private Detective: Two Plus Two Plus One,
directed by Rajat Kapoor.
iv. He got his big break with the critically acclaimed 2005 film Black.
v. Each year the MPSE presents The Golden Reel Awards, in which it acknowledges the year's best work in the
various areas of sound editing.

11. Vinod Rai Appointed Chairman Of Newly Constituted Banks Board Bureau(BBB)
i. Former Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) Vinod Rai has been appointed as the first Chairman of Banks
Board Bureau (BBB).
ii. His appointment comes after Prime Minister has approved the proposal of the Department of Financial
Services for the constitution of the BBB.
iii. He is former Comptroller and Auditor General(CAG) from January 2008 and May 2013.
iv. Last year Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in last 2015 announced that the government is going to set up a Bank
Board Bureau for Public Sector Unit (PSU) banks, where each bank would be monitored on the basis of"key
performance indicators". Apart from chairman Vinod Rai , the other three members are Anil K. Khandelwal,
former CMD of Bank of Baroda, H.N. Sinor, former Joint MD, ICICI Bank and Rupa Kudwa, former MD and
CEO, CRISIL.

12. Former Maharashtra Minister Nihal Ahmed Maulavi Mohammed Usman died
i. Socialist leader and former Maharashtra Minister Nihal Ahmed Maulavi Mohammed Usman today passed
away in Nashik following age-old ailments.
ii. He was 90. Ahmed was the former Maharashtra Minister of technical and higher education, state president of
Janata Dal (Secular) and former legislator in the state Assembly for nearly three decades.

iii. He passed away in Nashik and popularly known as Nihalbhai, he was also the first mayor of the Malegaon
Municipal Corporation.
iv. He was the state president of Janata Dal (Secular). He was a former Minister of technical and higher
education of Maharastra.
v. He was elected as legislator in the state Assembly for nearly three decades.

13. BK Garudachar, India's oldest first-class cricketer, died

i. India's oldest first-class cricketer BK Garudachar, who represented Mysore (as Karnataka was called till
1974), United Province and Bombay, died in Bangalore.
ii. He was 99. A right-hand batsman and a leg-break bowler, Garudachar made 1126 runs at an average of 29.63
from 27 matches in first-class cricket between 1935 and 1946.
iii. Born on 13 January 1917 at Chikamagalur in Karnataka, Garudachar started playing for Mysore before
representing United Province and Bombay in the 1940s.
iv. He graduated in engineering from the Benares University.

14. Famous Tamil comedy actor Kumarimuthu died

i. Famous Tamil Comedy actor Kumarimuthu died in Chennai. He was 77.
ii. He was in politics as the celebrity faces of Karunanidhi headed Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) Party.
iii. He made his acting debut in Ival Oru Seethai in 1978. After the film Nandu written and directed by J
Mahendran, he got many offers.
iv. He acted more than 500 films in Kollywood and did a variety of roles through his humorous acts.
v. Vijay and Nayantara starred Villu in 2009 was his Last Movie.He acted in some of the popular films which
are Oomai Vizhigal, Idhu Namma Aalu, Pudhu Vasantham, Idhayam, Sahadevan Mahadevan and Aanazhagan.

15. Wawrinka Beats Baghdatis To Win Dubai Title

i. Switzerland Player Stanislas Wawrinka won the battle of the 30-year-olds by defeating Marcos Baghdatis of
Cyprus 6-4, 7-6 (13) to win the Dubai Tennis Championships title.
ii. He also won the last nine finals he's played, including the 2014 Australian Open and 2015 French Open.
iii. The last final he lost was in 2013.
iv. The victory is Wawrinka's second title of the year.
v. Baghdatis, who was unseeded, has now lost his last seven finals.