IMPORTANT CURRENT AFFAIRS OF FEBRUARY 13th
&14th, 2019
IMPORTANT
CURRENT AFFAIRS OF FEBRUARY 13th & 14th, 2019
1.
13th February 2019 is observed as World Radio Day.
a. The day is
observed every year on the 13 of February to celebrate radio as a forum for
entertainment and information, as a bridge of communication for remote
communities and its role in empowering people.
b. This day
marks the first broadcast by UN radio in 1946.
c. It was
proclaimed on 3 November 2011 by UNESCO's 36th General Conference.
d. It was
originally proposed by the Kingdom of Spain.
e. First world
radio day was observed in the year 2012.
f.
Theme of World Radio Day 2019 :“Dialogue,
Tolerance and Peace”.
2.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Korea on
21-22 of this month.
a. During the
visit, he will be conferred with the 2018 Seoul Peace Prize at
a ceremony.
b. The visit
will provide an important occasion for the two countries to review the recent
developments in bilateral relations.
c. The two sides
will exchange views on regional and international issues of common interest
with the objective of further strengthening the Special Strategic Partnership.
3.
Macedonia officially changed its name to the Republic of North
Macedonia.
a. Note : The name
change clears the way for the country to join military alliance NATO.
4.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is planning
to change the country's name to 'Maharlika'.
a. The name
change would require a new law and the public's approval in a referendum.
b. Note :
'Philippines' was named after Spanish King Philip II.
5.
Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman will make his
1st state visit to India on February 19-20.
a. He'll be
accompanied by a high-level delegation, including ministers, senior officials
and Saudi businessmen.
b. The Crown
Prince will meet President Ram Nath Kovind and Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu,
and hold bilateral talks with PM Narendra Modi.
6.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will flag off India's 1st
semi high-speed train - Vande Bharat Express from
New Delhi Railway station tomorrow.
a. The train
will run between New Delhi and Varanasi via
Kanpur and Allahabad.
b. It will cover
the distance between New Delhi and Varanasi in eight hours and will run on all
days except Mondays and Thursdays.
7.
Rajasthan government today passed a bill in the Assembly to give 5%
quota in jobs and educational institutes for Gujjars and
four other communities.
a. The move
comes amidst the agitation by the Gujjar community for the last five
days.
8.
Rajasthan government also passed the Rajasthan
Panchayati Raj (Amendment) Bill, 2019 and the Rajasthan
Municipality (Amendment) Bill, 2019 to end the minimum education
criterion for panchayat and civic polls candidates.
9.
The Art and Culture Minister of Goa, Govind Gaude has announced
that Ghumot, an indigenous earthen drum will soon be
notified as a heritage instrument of Goa.
a. Ghumot is an
indigenous earthen drum fashioned as a designed clay pot, with the skin of the
monitor lizard stretched taut across the pot’s mouth, forming a drumhead.
b. Ghumot is a
percussion instrument widely played during Ganesh Chaturthi Aarties.
10.The Union Cabinet has
approved the introduction of Registration of Marriage of Non-Resident
Indian (NRI) Bill, 2019.
a. The Bill
provides for amendment of the legal framework to act as a deterrent to the
erring NRI spouses and creating more accountability and offer protection
against exploitation of Indian Citizens married to NRIs.
b. Once the Bill
is passed, marriages performed by NRIs would be registered in India or Indian
Missions & Posts abroad.
11.The union cabinet has
approved the continuation of sub-schemes under Umbrella programme for
the development of Scheduled Tribes from the period till March 2020.
a. over 10
crores Scheduled Tribe people will benefit from it.
b. The total
layout for the programme is 11,900 crore rupees.
c. The scheme
will also promote efficiency in the delivery of service and enhance the reach
of welfare schemes of government in service deficient tribal areas in the
sectors such as livelihood, health, education, through efforts of Voluntary
Organisations.
12.Union Cabinet also
approved a proposal for official amendments in The Constitution
(Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes) Order (Amendment) Bill that
seeks to add several new tribes in the list of Scheduled Tribes (STs) of
Chhattisgarh so they could avail benefits of various government schemes.
a. The Bill
seeks to add to the list tribes like Bhuinya, Bhuiyan, Bhuyan, Dhanwar,
Dhanuhar, Dhanuwar, Nagesia, Nagasia, Kisan, Oraon, Dhanka, Dhangad, Sawar,
Sawara, Saunra, Saonra and Binjhia.
b. After the
Bill becomes an Act, members of the communities newly-listed in the revised
list will also be able to derive benefits meant for Scheduled Tribes under the
existing schemes of the government.
13.Bihar government
has announced a universal old age pension scheme - Mukhyamantri
Vridhajan Pension Yojna- MVPY (मुख्यमंत्री वृद्धजन पेंशन योजना) for all
people above 60 years of age.
a. The scheme
will come into force from the 1st of April this year.
b. Except those
senior citizens who have retired from government service, all will be eligible
for 400 rupees monthly pension irrespective of caste, religion or community.
c. Note : Currently
old age pension scheme is applicable to only the BPL category.
14.The Parliament today
approved the Narendra Modi-led government's sixth and final budget 2019.
a. The
Appropriation Bills and Finance Bill were also passed in the Upper House
without a debate.
15.The European Commission has
added Saudi Arabia, Libya and Nigeria,
among other nations, to a blacklist of countries that fail to tackle
money laundering and the financing of terrorism.
a. The EU's
banks will have to carry out additional checks on financial operations involving
entities from the blacklisted countries.
b. The list
needs approval by all 28 EU member states.
16.US National Security
Advisor John Bolton has warned India against
buying Venezuelan oil, saying countries that support President
Nicolás Maduro's "theft of Venezuelan resources will not be
forgotten".
a. Bolton issued
the warning sharing a news story about Venezuelan Oil Minister Manuel Quevedo
visiting India to sell more oil. The US last month sanctioned Venezuela's
state-owned oil firm PDVSA.
17.Kerala
CM Pinarayi Vijayan launched software application K-SWIFT (Kerala Single Window Interface
for Fast, Transparent Clearances) to ensure
clearance of investment proposals within 30 days of application.
a. After 30
days, proposals will be deemed cleared if the application isn't processed by
then
18.National
Productivity Council (NPC) is celebrating National Productivity week from
February 12th to 18th, 2019.
a. Theme of
National Productivity Week 2019 : “Circular Economy for Productivity & Sustainability”.
19.Bihar Deputy Chief
Minister Sushil Kumar Modi presented
budget of 2 lakh 501 crore rupees for the financial year
2019-20 in the assembly.
20.In an effort to increase
the birth rate, Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has
announced a lifetime personal income tax exemption for women who
have 4 or more children.
a. The new tax
measures also include subsidies for car purchases and the expansion of a loan
programme for families with at least two children to help them buy homes.
21.A visa
facilitation agreement between India and the Maldives signed
during Maldivian President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih's visit to
India last year, will come into force on March 11.
a. The agreement
allows for obtaining multiple-entry student visas and eases the process of
obtaining medical visas.
b. It'll make it
easier for Indians to travel to the Maldives for business purposes.
22.Kim Phuc, who was
photographed running down a road in tears, naked and severely burned at the age
of nine in 1972 during the Vietnam War, has received the Dresden
prize for her work for peace.
a. Now aged 55,
Phuc was honoured for her support of UNESCO and children wounded in war, and
for speaking out against violence and hatred.
23.The CEO and
Managing director of Eicher Motors, Siddhartha Lal has
been named the EY Entrepreneur of the Year for 2018.
a. He was
responsible for a huge turnaround of the Eicher Motors after he had taken over
the reins in 2006.
24.The National Aeronautics
and Space Administration (NASA) declared
its longest-running Mars rover 'Opportunity' dead after over
800 failed attempts to make contact with it.
a. The
solar-powered rover went into hibernation in June 2018 after being hit by a
planet-wide dust storm that blocked sunlight.
b. Launched in
2004, Opportunity travelled over 45 km despite being designed to travel only 1
km and last 90 days.
25.Defence Ministry today
signed a contract to procure 72,400 Sig Sauer assault riflesunder
fast-track procedures for the Indian Army.
a. Aiming to
modernise the infantry, India has signed the contract with the United States
for the assault rifles.
26.German scientist Manfred
Eigen (91), who jointly won the 1967 Nobel Prize for
Chemistry, passed away.
a. Eigen had won
the prize for working on method to calculate speeds of extremely fast chemical
reactions, effected by disturbing the equilibrium by means of short energy
pulses.
b. In 1971, he
founded Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry in Germany.
27.England's World
Cup-winning goalkeeper Gordon Banks (81) passed away.
a. Banks, who
was part of England's 1966 World Cup-winning squad, made 73 appearances for
England.
28.Telugu director and
producer Vijaya Bapineedu (82) passed away.
a. Bapineedu
made his directorial debut in 1981 with the film 'Dabbu Dabbu Dabbu',
and went on to direct and produce several films including 'Gang Leader'
and 'Magadheerudu'.
29.
Chairman of the Central Board of Direct Taxes, Sushil
Chandra, has been appointed as the new Election Commissioner.
a. With his
appointment, the Election Commission now has Sunil Arora as
the Chief Election Commissioner and Ashok
Lavasa and Sushil Chandra as fellow
commissioners.
30.Global card payments
company MasterCard appointed Sachin Mehra as
the company's new Chief Financial Officer (CFO).
a. He is going
to replace Martina Hund-Mejean on 1st April 2019.
31.The government today
appointed former Railway Board Chairman Ashwani Lohani as
the Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of Air India.
a. This will be
his second tenure as Air India chief.
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