International News
Kala Ghoda Festival
- The festival began in the year 1999 and thereafter was born as the biggest street art festival of India.
- Kala Ghoda Association organises the festival, was formed on 30th October 1998 with the object of maintaining and preserving the heritage and art district of South Mumbai.
International Gandhi Awards for Leprosy
- The International Gandhi Awards for Leprosy is presented to Dr N.S. Dharmashaktu and the Leprosy Mission Trust.
- The award has been instituted by Gandhi Memorial Leprosy Foundation, a pioneering organisation established in 1986.
National News
34th Surajkund International Crafts Mela
- The Surajkund Mela showcases the richness and diversity of the handicrafts, handlooms and cultural fabric of India & is the largest crafts fair in the world.
- The Mela is organized by the Surajkund Mela Authority & Haryana Tourism in collaboration with Union Ministries of Tourism, Textiles, Culture and External Affairs.
5 IIITs Given Status of Institution of National Importance
- The cabinet chaired by PM Modi has approved the introduction of the Indian Institutes of Information Technology Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2020.
- The bill will declare the remaining five IIITs along with the existing 15 IIITs in PPP mode as Institutions of National Importance with powers to award degrees.
31st Veer Savarkar Akhil Bharatiya Samudra Taran Spardha
- The Veer Savarkar Akhil Bharatiya Samudra Taran Spardha also called as Veer Savarkar All India Sea Swimming Competition was held in the Arabian Sea off Gir Somnath coast of Gujarat.
- Monika Nagpure and Rutvik Bhajiwala both belong to Surat, Gujarat.
SC stays HC Order Directing Sale of HDIL Assets
- A bench comprising of Chief Justice S A Bobe and Justices B R Gavai and Surya Kant gave stay order, on the appeal of RBI against the Bombay High Court order.
- The Bombay High Court had set up a three-member committee for valuating and sale of encumbered assets of HDIL to expeditiously recover dues payable by the firm to PMC Bank.
Banking
RBI Increased Insurance Cover on Bank Deposits
- The Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Reserve Bank of India provides the insurance coverage to the depositors.
- The DICGC has raised the limit of insurance cover for depositors in insured banks to provide a greater measure of protection to depositors in banks and boost the confidence of people in the banking system.
Union Cabinet Approved Amendment to Bring Co-op Banks under RBI
- The government approved amendments to the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 to ensure greater accountability and transparency in the functioning of Cooperative Banks.
- According to the data released by RBI, Urban cooperative banks (UCBs) reported nearly 1,000 cases of fraud worth more than Rs 220 crore in the last five fiscals.
RBI: Status Quo on Repo Rate at 5.15%
- RBI has maintained a status quo on the policy rate with repo rate remains unchanged at 5.15% under the Liquidity Adjustment Facility (LAF) and is not expected to cut interest rates before June 2020.
- These decisions are in consonance with the objective of achieving the medium-term target for consumer price index (CPI) inflation of 4 % within a band of plus or minus 2%.
Appointments
| Name of the Person | Designation |
| M. Ajit Kumar | Chairman of Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) |
| Lieutenant General YK Joshi | General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Northern Command |
Awards and Honours
| Award | Awardee |
| Implementation of Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana |
Madhya Pradesh |
Important Days
| Date | Day | Theme |
| 1st February 2020 | Foundation Day of the Indian Coast Guard | -- |
| 4th February 2020 | World Cancer Day | Theme: “I Am and I Will”. |
MoUs Signed
India and Maldives Signed 5 MoUs
- The Addu Tourism zone will be established in five islands of Addu atoll at a cost of 2.49 million dollars.
- The MOUs were signed between the High Commissioner of India Sunjay Sudhir, Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdulla Shahid and Addu City Council.
Government Schemes
Portal Santusht
- The objective of ‘Santusht’ is to promote transparency, accountability, effective delivery of public services and implementation of policies, schemes of Ministry of Labour and Employment through constant monitoring.
- The portal 'Santusht' ensures speedy redressal of worker as well as employer grievances and ensuring effective implementation of labour laws at the grassroots level.
Defence
Exercise SAMPRITI-IX
- The defence cooperation exercise SAMPRITI 2020 will be the ninth edition of the exercise which is hosted alternately by both countries.
- During SAMPRITI-IX a Command Post Exercise (CPX) and a Field Training Exercise (FTX) will be conducted.
11th Edition of DefExpo 2020
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the biennial mega defence exhibition which will cover the entire spectrum of the country's aerospace, defence and security interests.
- The theme of the DefExpo 2020 is ‘India: The Emerging Defence Manufacturing Hub’.
Science and Technology
New Natural Gas Field Discovered in UAE
- The gas field contains 80 trillion standard cubic feet of gas and is situated in the cross-border area of the Emirates of Abu Dhabi and Dubai.
- Government of Dubai stated that the discovery of the Jebel Ali gas field will contribute to achieving gas self-sufficiency for the nation.
SATHI Initiative
- SATHI is a shared, professionally managed, Science and Technology infrastructure facility, which can readily be accessible to academia, start-ups, manufacturing units, industries and R&D Labs.
- The primary objective of the science and technology infrastructure facility will be to extend help to the academic institutes, industries, manufacturing units etc. in the neighbouring regions.
PMI Shot Up Eight Year High
- Manufacturing sector growth in India continued to strengthen in January, with operating conditions improving at a pace not seen in close to eight years.
- As per the HIS Markit, India Services Business Index rose to 55.5 in January 2020 from 53.3 in December 2019 for Service sector making services activity hit seven years high in January.
Christina Koch is Set to Return to Earth
- Christina Koch has shattered the spaceflight record for female astronauts by spending almost a year aboard the International Space Station (ISS).
- Koch has spent 328 days on ISS, surpassing the previous record held by fellow American Peggy Whitson.
Sports
India won 6 Gold at Golden Girl Championship
- The Golden Girl Box Cup is open for all female boxers, all categories.
- First time in 2009, 70 of the best female boxers in Europe came to fight for the title” GOLDEN GIRL”.
High-Performance Centres
- The High-Performance Centres in seven places will be launched to provide state-of-the-art facilities to Junior and Sub-Junior players and also international exposure.
- The move is aimed at grooming young talent in view of 2024 and 2028 Olympic Games.
Summits and Conferences
INCCU Meet with UNESCO
- The meet emphasised on measures to promote UNESCO’s ideals and objectives in the fields of education, culture, communication, natural sciences and social and human sciences.
- In the culture sector, UNESCO’s programmes aim to promote, preserve and safeguard cultural heritage and spread respect for all cultures.
World Expo-2020: Dubai
- Expo 2020 Dubai is a World Expo that’s going to be hosted by Dubai in the United Arab Emirates and is scheduled to open on 20th October 2020.
- The World Expo provides a platform where people from all over the world come together and connect with each other, share ideas, learn and innovate.
4th EAS Conference on Maritime Security Cooperation
- Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Government of India in partnership with Government of Australia and Indonesia will organise the 4th EAS Conference on Maritime Security Cooperation from 6-7th Feb 2020 in Chennai.
- Research and Information System for Developing Countries (RIS) and The National Maritime Foundation (NMF) are the knowledge partners of the conference.
1st India-Africa Defence Ministers Conclave
- The conclave was co-organised by the Ministry of Defence and was the first in the series of Pan Africa events at the Ministerial level.
- A Joint Declaration - "Lucknow Declaration”, was adopted after the conclusion of IADMC 2020.
