Today’s top news: 20 Feb
1. PM Modi inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of key projects of power and urban sector in Kerala yesterday evening through video conferencing. : dedicated the Pugalur – Thrissur Power Transmission Project to the nation. The project that was completed at a cost of 5070 crore rupees will infact enable Thrissur district to be the major power hub of Kerala.
2. After announcing his entry into BJP, 88-year-old ‘Metro Man’ E Sreedharan on Friday, said that he was open to chief ministership if BJP comes to power in Kerala, he said that he was not interested in governorship as he won’t be able to contribute to state in such a ‘constitutional’ position with no powers at all. Kerala goes to polls in April-May.
3. PM to discuss with CMs today plan to make India a manufacturing hub. The meeting is also expected to deliberate measures to reduce compliance burden through business process reforms and cutting logistics costs to boost exports.
4. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Punjab’s Captain Amarinder Singh may skip the discussions. the Niti Aayog’s governing council meeting to be chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on February 20.
5. Bail plea of Lalu Prasad, former Bihar Chief Minister convicted in fodder scam was rejected in the single bench court of Justice Apresh Kumar Singh of Jharkhand High Court. Lalu Prasad was convicted in the illegal withdrawal case from Dumka treasury and violation of Jail Manual case.
6. Farmer leader Rakesh Tikait raised the spectre of the protesting farmers moving to poll-bound Bengal if the Centre did not accept their demands.
7. The Election Commission of India (ECI) has decided to deploy 125 companies of central forces in West Bengal by February 25 for the ensuing assembly elections, Elections to the 294-member assembly are due in April-May.
8. Punjab govt plans to unveil budget on March 8, session proposed from March 1-10 . The session will see the presentation of the Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India for the year 2018-19 and Appropriation Accounts for the year 2019-20
9. Vehicle owners in Punjab can now carry digital copies of driving licenses and registration certificates. Documents on mParivahan and DigiLocker treated as valid
10. Punjab schools to open full time from February 22. Education Minister Vijay Inder Singla announces new timings for all the schools across the state
11. Bollywood actors Amitabh Bachchan, Ajay Devgn and other celebs extend warm wishes on Shivaji Jayanti : Megastar Amitabh Bachchan took to his Twitter handle to pen down a note in Marathi and wrote, “Chatrapatī śivājī mahārāja jayantīcyā hārdika śubhēcchā (Heartfelt wishes on the birth anniversary of Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj) … Feb 19th Birth Anniversary.”
12. 2 cops shot dead by terrorist in upmarket Srinagar area : The two policemen, posted in nearby Saddar Police station on the high-security airport road, had gone to a close by shop to have their morning tea when they were attacked by the terrorist.
13. The Indian Army will be raising three additional battalions — with a total of about 3,000 troops troops, under Sikh, Kumaon, J&K regiments — to add to its manpower as part of its larger reorganisation plan and options to raise more are open.
14. India successfully test-fired indigenously-developed anti-tank guided missile systems, ‘Helina’ and ‘Dhruvastra’, paving their induction into the Army and the Indian Air Force respectively.
15. The Union Cabinet approved further delegation of financial powers under capital procurement that empowers command heads of the Army , the Air Force and the Navy to make expenses to the tune of Rs 100 crore at their own discretion.
16. COVID-19 recovery rate improves to 97.30 pct; Over 1 crore doses of vaccine administered in a month
17. Coronavirus Cases:
10,976,388
Deaths: 156,237
Recovered: 10,675,478
✈INTERNATIONAL NEWS
1. India and China hold 10th round of Corps Commander level talks on Saturday at Moldo on the Chinese side of LAC in eastern Ladakh. The move follows the first phase of disengagement at Pangong Lake.
2. Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying told media in Beijing that the two sides are in communication. She said India is an important neighbour and restoring a healthy stable relationship is the aspiration and in the interest of the people.
3. Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), India have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to support the development, conduct and promotion of health research in India.
4. Teen climate activist Greta Thunberg on Friday tweeted in support of Disha Ravi, the 21-year-old arrested for allegedly being involved in sharing a “toolkit” on social media related to the farmers protest.
“Freedom of speech and the right to peaceful protest and assembly are non-negotiable human rights.
5. The Chinese media on Friday released a video of the Galwan Valley clash in eastern Ladakh in June last year. The video showing the confrontation between Indian and Chinese soldiers in June 2020.
Four Chinese soldiers were killed during a fierce hand-to-hand battle with the Indian Army in the Galwan Valley in eastern Ladakh in June last year, the People’s Liberation Army acknowledged for the first time.
WORLD NEWS
1. Joe Biden will attend his first meeting as U.S. president with Group of Seven leaders to discuss plans to defeat the novel coronavirus, reopen the battered world economy and counter the challenge posed by China.
2. The G7–US, Japan, Germany, UK, France, Italy, Canada– has gross domestic product of about $40 trillion : Biden “will focus on the global response to the pandemic, including vaccine production, distribution of supplies” and efforts to fight emerging infections.
3. Joe Biden hailed the “historic” landing of the Perseverance rover on Mars. : After seven months in space, NASA’s Perseverance rover overcame a tense landing phase with a series of perfectly executed maneuvers to gently float down to the Martian soil and embark on its mission to search for signs of past life.
4. Shortly after landing, the rover sent back its first black-and-white images, revealing a rocky field at the landing site in the Jezero Crater, just north of the Red Planet’s equator.
5. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) Perseverance Rover on Thursday (local time) successfully touched down on the surface of Mars after surviving a blazing seven-minute plunge through the Martian atmosphere. Among the scientists who are part of this historic mission, Indian-American Dr Swati Mohan spearheaded the development of attitude control and the landing system for the rover.
6. The Bangladesh Supreme Court yesterday launched the Artificial Intelligence (AI) based translation software ‘Amar Vasha’ through a virtual event. The software will translate orders and judgements of the Supreme Court from English to Bangla.
7. Britain’s Prince Harry will relinquish his honorary military appointments and patronages after confirming to Queen Elizabeth II that he and his wife Meghan Markle will not return as working royals. They have since embarked on a new life involving several commercial ventures in the United States, and now live in California.
8. Coronavirus Cases:
111,031,233
Deaths: 2,456,628
Recovered: 85,935,970
Sports:
1. Sachin Tendulkar’s son Arjun Tendulkar reacted after earning his maiden IPL contract. Arjun was the last cricketer to be picked in IPL auction 2021 in Chennai. The all-rounder was picked up at his base price of ₹20 lakh by defending champions Mumbai Indians right at the fag end of the mini-auction.
2. India shooter Manu Bhaker on Friday took to Twitter and sought help from Union Sport Minister Kiren Rijiju and Union Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri after officials at Delhi airport stopped her from boarding her flight to Bhopal. The Tokyo-bound shooter said that the officials stopped her and treated her “like a criminal” because she was carrying guns and ammunitions for training at the MP Shooting Academy.
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In Lucknow(UP)
Gold ₹49,260 @10 gm 24 (Krt)
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BSE Sensex
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??Facts about India??
Sinhagad is a hill fortress The Sinhagad (Lion’s Fort) located at around 35 km southwest of the city of Pune, India. Previously known as Kondhana, the fort had been the site of many battles, most notably the Battle of Sinhagad in 1670. The fort was also strategically located at the centre of a string of other Maratha Empire forts such as Rajgad Fort, Purandar Fort and Torna Fort.
The Sinhgad Fort was initially known as “Kondhana” after the sage Kaundinya. The Kaundinyeshwar temple coupled with the caves and carvings indicates that the fort had probably been built around two thousand years ago. It was seized by Muhammad bin Tughlaq from the Koli king Nag Naik in 1328 AD
Thought of the day
It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop
Joke of the day
Teacher – “बहुत तेज हवाओं के साथ बारिश हो रही है”
इसका Future tense bathow
Student : Kal school Bandh rahegi…?
?GK Today?
ALESSANDRO VOLTA discovered that particular chemical reactions could produce electricity (by positive and negative charges).
then THOMAS ALVA EDISON discovered Direct Current and NIKOLA TESLA invented Alternative current.
?Why❓❓❓
Why our tooth will fall
Front teeth usually have only one root but back teeth can have as many as three roots. When the time is right, our bodies have special cells that slowly eat away the roots of the teeth. As the roots get shorter, the teeth start to become loose. Finally, most of the root disappears and the tooth falls out.
LEARN Sanskrit
Ksheer क्षीर: milk.
How it works ⁉
How milk becomes curd
Milk is converted into curd or yogurt by the process of fermentation. Milk consists of globular proteins called casein. Here curd forms because of the chemical reaction between the lactic acid bacteria and casein. During fermentation, the bacteria use enzymes to produce energy (ATP) from lactose.
VEDIK GNAN
न कर्मणामनारम्भान्नैष्कर्म्यं पुरुषोऽश्नुते |
न च संन्यसनादेव सिद्धिं समधिगच्छति
na karmaṇām anārambhān naiṣhkarmyaṁ puruṣho ’śhnute
na cha sannyasanād eva siddhiṁ samadhigachchhati
One cannot achieve freedom from karmic reactions by merely abstaining from work, nor can one attain perfection of knowledge by mere physical renunciation
HEALTH CARE: HOME REMEDIES
( Note : These home tips followed in villages/ancient traditions, it is up to you to use it or not??)
Drum stick health benefits
Drumsticks are a boon for diabetics as they are known to reduce spiked blood sugar levels significantly. It is also known to enhance the gall bladder function, which in turn is helpful in lowering blood glucose.
?PLZ FOLLOW GOVT. NORMS, MAINT SOCIAL DISTANCE, KEEP YOURSELF & YOUR FAMILY SAFE?