Daily GK Update : 19th February, 2016

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 country’s 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 Horgoš (Serbia) and Röszke (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 Sahib’s 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 UltraCash’s ‘Tap and Pay’ works on all devices and doesn’t need any special hardware to make the payment. There are no need of special near field communication (NFC) chips.

iv. UltraCash’s 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 friction-free 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. India’s 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 city’s 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 Indonesia’s First Formula1 Driver

i. Rio Haryanto will become Indonesia’s 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.

Daily GK Update : 18th February, 2016

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 WTO’s first-ever multilateral accord that aims to simplify customs regulations for the cross-border 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 government’s 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. Bollywood’s 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 : France’s 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 Women’s 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 designer’s 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 Minister’s Office for excellence in academic and professional achievements. 

v. In 1987, he had won prestigious MacArthur Fellowship becoming 1st Israeli to win it. 

Daily GK Update : 17th February 2016

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 Government’s 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. India’s 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 China’s 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 China’s 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 HCL’s global automotive and manufacturing customers.

v. Volvo’s IT business is an important addition of HCL’s 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 airline’s 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 Secretary-General 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. India’s 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 men’s matches, Japan trounced Sri Lanka 5-0, Malaysia defeated Nepal 5-0 and Hong Kong China beat Philippines 4-1.

Daily GK Update : 16th February, 2016

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 two-day 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 People’s 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.