Current Affairs in English – February 16 2023

February 16, 2023

National Events:

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh:

• Defence Minister Rajnath Singh announced that a record 75% of the India’s defence capital procurement budget has been earmarked for domestic industry in 2023-24.
• In 2023-24, Defence Ministry has been allocated a total Budget of 5.94 lakh cr, which is 13.18% of the total budget. Capital outlay pertaining to modernisation and infrastructure development has been increased to 1.63 lakh cr.

Central Government:

• Government has approved strengthening the cooperative movement in the country and deepening its reach up to the grassroots.
• For this, initially 2 lakh multipurpose Primary Agricultural Credit Society (PACS), dairy and fisheries cooperative will be established in each uncovered Panchayat.
• They will be established in the next 5 years. This will enable cooperatives to modernise infrastructure.

LORA Weapon System:

• At Aero India 2023, Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL) has signed an MOU with Israel Aerospace Industries for domestic manufacture and supply of its LORA Weapon System for the Indian Tri-services.
• Under this, BEL will manufacture the system. LORA (Long Range Attack) is a sea-to-ground and ground-to-ground system which comprises a long-range ballistic missile, launcher, command and control system.

Safran Helicopter Engines & HAL:

• Safran Helicopter Engines and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) have signed a agreement for development of the engine of the Indian Multi-Role Helicopter (IMRH) and its naval version.
• They will jointly develop engine for the 13-tonne IMRH and the Navy variant Deck-Based Multi-Role Helicopter (DBMRH). It was signed at Aero Show 2023. This agreement follows the MoU signed on July 8, 2022.

First woman:

• Justice Sonia Gokani took oath as Chief Justice of Gujarat High Court on 16 February 2023. The oath was administered to her by Gujarat Governor Acharya Devvrat.
• She became the first woman to head the Gujarat High court. Chief Justice Gokani, is the senior most judge at the Gujarat High Court. She is due to retire on 25 February 2023.

ITBP:

• The Cabinet Committee on Security, on 15 Feb’23, approved a proposal to raise 7 new battalions of Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP). The approval has also been given for an operational border base with a fresh strength of 9,400 personnel for the ITBP.
• This manpower will be utilised for manning 47 new border posts and a dozen ‘staging camps’ or troops bases along the Line of Actual Control.

Gopalan Aerospace:

• Gopalan Aerospace signed JVs with MTC Slovakia S.R.O and DEFSYSTECH S.R.O for the development of precision drones in India. The JV will develop a high-precision weapon system, AX-2 Predator.
• It is an attack system of Beyond-Line-Of-Sight guidance type, based on the UAV platform. It searches, identifies and destroys High-Value targets using direct hit while destroying its own platform.

Manufacturing and assembling of 1st passenger aircraft:

• Gopalan Aerospace India Pvt. Ltd. and Omnipol, Czech Republic has signed a MOU for development of a passenger aircraft.
• It was signed for manufacturing and assembling of 1st passenger aircraft (L 410 UVP-E20 version) by a private company in India. The MoU was signed at the Bandhan Ceremony of Aero India Show 2023 held on 15 February 2023.

IFFCO:

• Union Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya inaugurated the Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative Limited (IFFCO) Nano Urea Liquid Plants at Aonla and Phulpur in Uttar Pradesh on 14 February 2023.
• The Minister while highlighting the benefits of Nano urea said it is the best green technology and provides solutions to pollution. It saves the soil and increases farm productivity.

Justice Sandeep Mehta:

• Justice Sandeep Mehta on 15 February 2023 took the oath as the Chief Justice of Gauhati High Court. He took the place of Justice RM Chhaya who retired recently from the post.
• Previously, he was the Judge of the Rajasthan High Court. He was appointed as Judge of the Rajasthan High Court on the 30th of May, 2011, and is due to retire on the 10th of January, 2025.

Shinku La Tunnel:

• The Union Cabinet has approved the construction of Shinku La Tunnel to provide all-weather connectivity between Himachal Pradesh and Ladakh.
• The construction work of this 4.1 km tunnel will be completed by Dec 2025. Total expenditure on this project will be ₹1,681 cr. The tunnel will lead to all-round development of the region and give a boost to the tourism, Health and education sectors.

Government of India and the Government of the Republic of South Africa:

• The Union Cabinet, chaired by PM Narendra Modi has approved the signing of the MoU between the Government of India and the Government of the Republic of South Africa for cooperation in the Disability Sector.
• The MoU will encourage cooperation between the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities of India and the Government of South Africa through joint initiatives in the disability sector.

First Culture Working Group meet:

• The first Culture Working Group meet will be held in Madhya Pradesh’s temple town Khujaraho from 22 to 25 February 2023. The theme of the event is “Protection and Restitution of Cultural Property”.
• The event will also have an exhibition which will be organized at the Maharaja Chhatrasal Convention Centre, which will be inaugurated by Union Minister for Culture G Kishan Reddy.

SWARM:

• NewSpace Research company has delivered ‘SWARM’ drones to Indian Army in February 2023. It makes the Army the first armed force in the world to operationalise SWARM drones.
• The swarm of 100 drones is capable of hitting targets at least 50 kms away into enemy territory. These drones are capable of carrying bombs of a particular weight and can hit targets like moving armoured columns.

Science Center and Planetarium:

• In Rajasthan, Science Center and Planetarium will be constructed in Kota. It will be one of the best science centers and planetariums in the world.
• An MoU was signed on 15 February 2023, between the National Council of Science Museums (NCSM) and the Government of Rajasthan for construction of the center. There are 24 science centers or museums of NCSM, located in different states in India.

ICICI Bank and BNP Paribas:

• ICICI Bank and BNP Paribas in February 2023, have signed an MOU to cater to the banking requirements of European corporates operating in India.
• It establishes a framework of partnership between the two banks for providing financial services to corporate customers operating in India. BNP Paribas Group has been in India since 1860 and is among the leading international financial institutions.

First payments bank:

• Paytm Payments Banks Limited (PPBL) in February 2023, has launched UPI LITE feature for multiple small-value UPI transactions and become the first payments bank to launch such feature.
• The UPI LITE feature will help with faster real-time transactions with a single click through Paytm. The NPCI designed the feature which was launched by Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in September 2022.

‘TARKASH’:

• The 6th edition of the joint exercise ‘TARKASH’, held from 16 January to 14 February 2023, was concluded in Chennai by the National Security Guard (NSG) and the US Special Operations Force (SOF).
• “Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear (CBRN) Terror Response” has been included in this exercise for the first time. CBRN are classified as weapons of mass destruction (WMD).

VVP:

• The Union Cabinet on 15 February 2023 approved “Vibrant Villages Programme” (VVP) for the Financial Years 2022-23 to 2025-26 with financial allocation of Rs 4800 crore.
• The scheme will provide funds for development of essential infrastructure in 4 states and 1 union territory along the northern land border of the country. In the first phase 663 Villages will be taken up in the programme.

Global Tech Summit:

• A two-day Global Tech Summit (GTS) is going to be held in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh on February 16 and 17, 2023. The summit’s key areas of focus include health, technology, food processing, finance and pharma sector.
• Nearly 1,000 delegates from more than 25 countries will attend the event to discuss on integrating technological advancements in pharmaceutical curriculum.

Swaraj Trophy:

• The Kollam district panchayat won the Swaraj Trophy for the best district panchayat in Kerala for the year 2021-22. The Kannur district panchayat stood 2nd in the rankings. The Thiruvananthapuram Corporation bagged the trophy for the best corporation.
• The Mulanthuruthy grama panchayat won the best grama panchayat award & Pappinissery and Marangattupilly panchayats won the 2nd & 3rd places.

International Events:

India & Fiji:

• India and Fiji have signed a MoU on visa exemption for holders of diplomatic and official passports.
• Under this agreement, diplomatic and official passport holders will be able to enter, transit, and stay in each other territories without a visa for a period not exceeding 90 days. The MoU will be helpful in encouraging greater travel between both countries.

India & Chile:

• The Union Cabinet approved the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Chile on 15 February 2023 for cooperation in agriculture and allied sectors.
• The meetings of the Agricultural Working Group will be held once a year alternatively in Chile and India. A Chile-India Agricultural Working Group will be constituted for the implementation of the MoU.