INDIA
‘Chauri Chaura’ Centenary celebrations inaugurated
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated ‘Chauri Chaura’ Centenary Celebrations at Chauri Chaura, Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh on February 4, 2021. The day marks 100 years of the ‘Chauri Chaura’ incident, a landmark event in the country’s fight for independence. A group of freedom fighters participating in the non-cooperation movement launched by Mahatma Gandhi in 1922 were fired upon by police, leading to death of many of them. In retaliation, protestors attacked and set fire to the Chauri Chaura police station, killing many of its occupants. Gandhi had called off the movement due to the violence.
Rajpath redevelopment project begins
The government’s Central Vista Avenue redevelopment project began on February 4, 2021 with Housing and Urban Affairs (HUA) Minister Hardeep Puri performing a “bhoomi pujan” at India Gate. The avenue, which stretches from North and South Block till India Gate, and includes Rajpath and its lawns and Vijay Chowk, is 3 km long. The project was awarded to Shapoorji Pallonji & Company Private Limited on January 8. After the construction of the new Parliament building began in January 2021, the redevelopment of the avenue becomes the second part of the government’s larger Central Vista revamp project to begin.
PM Modi holds phone talk with Cyril Ramaphosa, President of South Africa
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had a telephone conversation on February 4, 2021 with M. Cyril Ramaphosa, President of South Africa. The two leaders discussed the continuing challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, and in this context the vaccination campaigns being undertaken in their respective countries.
Economy & Corporate
Agreements/MoU signed on Feb 4 at Aero India 2021 in Bengaluru
Several agreements/MoUs were signed on February 4 at the three-day Aero India 2021 in Bengaluru that will conclude on February 5. Israeli defence technology company Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) are teaming up for joint induction of an anti-torpedo defence system called ‘SHADE’ for the Indian Navy. Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) received a Request for Proposal (RFP) from the Indian Air Force for 70 HTT-40 Basic Trainer Aircraft. HAL and Mishra Dhatu Nigam Limited (MIDHANI) have signed MoU for development and production of composite raw materials that are used in manufacture of aircrafts and are currently being imported. Israel’s SpearUAV, developers and suppliers of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) solutions, has signed an MoU with Paras Aerospace to introduce encapsulated Ninox 40 system to the Indian market.
Banks wrote off Rs 62,000 cr loans of top 100 willful defaulters: RBI
Banks have written off almost Rs 62,000 crore of loans of top 100 wilful defaulters as of March 2020, with Jatin Mehta’s Winsome Diamonds & Jewellery topping the list at Rs 3,098 crores. This data was shared by the Reserve Bank of India shared with Right to Information Act activist Biswanath Goswami.
L&T’s CEO & MD appointed as Chairman of the National Safety Council
The Ministry of Labour & Employment has appointed S.N. Subrahmanyan, CEO and Managing Director, L&T Ltd, as the Chairman of the National Safety Council for a period of three years.
Govt. launched KAPILA for IP Literacy and creating patent awareness
Govt. launched KAPILA (Kalam Program for Intellectual Property Literacy and Awareness Campaign) for Intellectual Property Literacy and creating patent awareness
The Government has launched a campaign namely Kalam Program for Intellectual Property Literacy and Awareness Campaign (KAPILA) on 15th October, 2020. This information was given by the Union Minister for Education Ministry, Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha on February 4, 2021.
Serum Institute, UNICEF enter into long-term supply for Covid-19 vaccines
Pune-based Serum Institute of India (SII) and UNICEF have entered into a long-term supply agreement for the AstraZeneca/Oxford and the Novavax vaccines, with the UN children’s agency saying it will have access to up to 1.1 billion doses of vaccines for around 100 countries. This was announced by United Nations International Children Education Fund (UNICEF) Executive Director Henrietta Fore.
World
US extends New START Nuclear Arms Control Treaty with Russia for five years
United States has extended the New START (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty) nuclear arms control treaty with Russia for five years till February 5, 2026. The treaty, which first went into effect in 2011, limits the US and Russia to deploying no more than 1,550 strategic nuclear warheads each and imposes restrictions on the land- and submarine-based missiles and bombers to deliver them.
Pak tests nuclear-capable surface-to-surface ballistic missile Ghaznavi
Pakistan on February 3, 2021 said it has successfully test-fired the nuclear-capable surface-to-surface ballistic missile Ghaznavi which can strike targets up to 290 kilometres.
International Criminal Court convicts former Ugandan warlord of war crimes
The Hague, Netherlands-based International Criminal Court (ICC) on February 4, 2021 convicted former Ugandan warlord Dominic Ongwen of war crimes and crimes against humanity between 2002 and 2004 in northern Uganda when he led a brigade of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA).
UK revokes China Global Television Network’s license to air its programs
In the United Kingdom, the broadcasting regulator Ofcom has revoked China Global Television Network’s (CGTN) license to air its programs in the country. Ofcom said that Star China Media Ltd (SCML), which owns the UK licence for CGTN, does not have day-to-day control over the channel, which is against its rules.
International Day of Human Fraternity celebrated on Feb 4 by UN
The International Day of Human Fraternity was celebrated on February 4, 2021 by the United Nations. 2021 theme: ‘A Pathway to the Future’. A meeting between Pope Francis and the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, Ahmad al-Tayyib, on 4 February 2019 in Abu Dhabi had resulted in the signing of the document entitled “Human fraternity for world peace and living together”.
