1. Rajnath Singh,the first Defence Minister to fly indigenously-built fighter aircraft Tejas.
- Union minister Rajnath Singh became the first defence minister to fly in the indigenously-built light combat aircraft —Tejas— from the HAL airport in Bengaluru.
- He was accompanied by Air Vice Marshal N Tiwari, who is also the Project Director, National Flight Test Centre, ADA (Aeronautical Development Agency) in Bengaluru. The minister flew a sortie in the twin-seater version of Tejas. Rajnath Singh was wearing a G-suite, a white helmet and an oxygen mask.
- Rajnath Singh would also be attending an exhibition of DRDO in Bengaluru.
About Tejas
1. Tejas last week became the first aircraft in India to successfully perform an 'arrested landing' in Goa.
About DRDO
Headquarters location: New Delhi
1. Motto: बलस्य मूलं विज्ञानम्; "Strength's Origin is in Science" (Sanskrit)
2. Founded: 1958
2. GoI Appoints Four Supreme Court Judges
The Centre has cleared four names recommended by the Supreme Court Collegium for elevation as judges of the apex court. The four appointed judges are:
- Himachal Pradesh High Court: Chief Justice V. Ramasubramanian
- Punjab and Haryana High Court: Chief Justice Krishna Murari
- Rajasthan High Court: Chief Justice S. Ravindra Bhat
- Kerala High Court: Chief Justice Hrishikesh Roy
- The Supreme Court vacancies had increased its judicial strength from 31 to 34 following the enactment of the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Bill of 2019.
About GoI
1. Chief Justice of India: J Ranjan Gogoi
2. Founded: 28th January 1950.
3. Sitharaman hands over 12th century Buddha statue to culture minister
- Almost a month after a 12th century was Buddha statue stolen from the ASI Museum at Nalanda in 1961 was returned to the Indian High Commission by the London Met. Police, Union Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman handed over the statue.
- “The 12th Century AD Bronze image of Buddha seated in the Bhumipasara mudra was amongst the 19 bronze statues stolen from the Archaeological Survey of India’s (ASI) Nalanda site museum in August 1961. After a gap of nearly 57 years, in early 2018, the image was spotted by Art enthusiasts at an auction organised by a London based dealer.
- On receipt of the information, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) through its attaché posted in High Commission of India, London, UK took up the matter with the ASI, UK Customs and London Metropolitan Police. The ASI confirmed the findings and provided documentary evidence including an FIR which was filed in 1961.
Foot Notes:
1. About UK
2. Currency: Pound sterling
3. Capital: London
4. Prime minister: Boris Johnson
4. Robert O’Brien becomes National Security Adviser of US
- Robert O’Brien has been appointed as the National Security Adviser of United States of America.
- Robert O’Brien will replace John Bolton as the NSA of US.
- Robert O’Brien has had a long career in foreign policy working for both main US parties and currently heading the hostage negotiations at the State Department.
Foot Notes:
About US
1. US President: Donald Trump
2. Capital: Washington, D.C
3. Currency: US Dollar.
5. Spy thriller ‘Raazi’ steals show at Bollywood’s Oscars
- Spy thriller Raazi stole the night at Bollywood’s answer to the Oscars, taking best film and best actress for its young star Alia Bhatt in Mumbai where the glitzy awards gala was held for the first time since being established two decades ago.
- Megastar Ranveer Singh won best actor for his role in the controversial Padmaavat, a historical action movie that enraged Hindu radicals but was an international success.
- The International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) awards went on into the early hours of today and Indian-British star Bhatt said it had been worth the wait as she received her prize.
6. Secunderabad station received the first green Platinum rating
- Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) has awarded Secunderabad junction station of Indian Railways with a green Platinum rating. The biggest rail hub is the first Indian Railways to be awarded so.
Various initiatives:
The Secunderabad station has been awarded as it has introduced several energy conservation initiatives and inclusion of modern passenger amenities. Other initiatives include:
- Air-conditioned waiting halls equipped with CO2 sensors
- Installation of solar panels and LED lights
- Solid waste management system
- It has been awarded ISO 14001-2015 Certificate- Environmental Management system. It has also received the National Tourism Award 2016-2017.
7. Researchers identifies the worlds biggest amphibian
- The researchers from the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) and London's Natural History Museum has identified a new species of giant salamander using DNA from museum specimens.
- The 74-year-old museum specimen can possibly be the world's biggest amphibian. The specimens were collected in the 1920s.
- The researchers found three distinct genetic lineages in salamanders from China. The species are Andrias davidianus, Andrias sligoi, and a third species which has yet to be named. Andrias davidianus was earlier considered as a single species.
About Zoological Society of London
1. Founded: 1826
2. Headquarters location: London, United Kingdom
3. Founders: Humphry Davy, Robert Peel, Stamford Raffles
8. Google to launch AI Research Lab in Bengaluru
- Google Pay has grown more than three times to 67 million monthly active users, driving transactions worth over $110 billion on an annualized basis across offline and online merchants.
- The two-thirds of the transactions are coming from tier-II and -III cities and towns.Google Pay competes with players like Paytm and PhonePe is introducing the Spot platform that will enable merchants to create branded commercial experiences and reach new customers.
- Google already onboarded merchants like UrbanClap, Goibibo, MakeMyTrip, RedBus, Eat.Fit and Oven Story through its early access programme.
Foot Notes:
1. About Google
2. CEO: Sundar Pichai
3. Founded: 4 September 1998, Menlo Park, California, United States
9. Anurag Thakur announces cricket and sports academy for Leh
- Union Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs Anurag Thakur announced that a cricket and sports academy will be set up in Leh, Ladakh.
- This cricket and sports academy will ensure that talented athletes of the region get the required training to excel. He also joined Army personnel in Leh to carry out a cleanliness drive to mark Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s 69th birthday.
10. Veteran Malayalam Actor Sathar Passes Away
- Veteran Kerala actor Sathar passed away.
- He made his acting debut in 1975 with Malayalam movie Bharyaye Aavashyamundu directed by M. Krishnan Nair & in 1976 with Vincent Master’s directorial Anavaranam.
- He was acted in more than 300 films, majority of them in Malayalam.