Current Affairs in English – February 21 2023

February 21, 2023

National Events:

Bipin Rawat:

• In commemoration of India’s late Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat, a bell has been placed at Nepal’s revered Shree Muktinath Temple.
• The bell named “Bipin Bell,” has been installed at the revered Hindu temple in Mustang district during the visit of four former Indian army chiefs namely Gen VN Sharma, Gen JJ Singh, Gen Deepak Kapoor and Gen Dalbir Suhag.

Rajesh Rai:

• Rajesh Rai has been appointed as Chairman & Managing Director (CMD) of Indian Telephone Industries Limited (ITI Ltd), a PSU under the Department of Telecommunications (DoT). The Central Government has approved his appointment.
• The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) has approved the appointment of Rai for a period of five years with effect from the date of his assumption of charge of the post, or till the date of his superannuation, or until further orders, whichever is the earliest. Presently, he is serving as General Manager in Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL).

Karmayogi:

• Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba will head a top panel comprising a senior official from the Prime Minister’s Office, seven secretaries, among others, to monitor the implementation of the government’s ambitious Mission Karmayogi programme for training of government employees.

BVR Subrahmanyam:

• Former IAS officer BVR Subrahmanyam was appointed as the new Chief Executive Officer of Niti Aayog. The former Commerce Secretary takes over from Parameswaran lyer, who has been named as the Executive Director of World Bank.
• Subrahmanyam will take over from current CEO Parameswaran Iyer who will join World Bank as executive director in Washington DC. Subrahmanyam’s appointment as NITI Aayog CEO was announced by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet. Mr. Subrahmanyam’s appointment is for two years from the date of assumption of the charge of the post.

BAFTA:

• At the Royal Festival Hall in London, England, the 76th British Academy Film Awards, also referred to as the BAFTAs, were presented.

List of winners:

Best Film-All Quiet on the Western Front

Leading Actress-Cate Blanchett, Tar

Leading Actor-Austin Butler, Elvis

Best Director-Edward Berger, All Quiet on the Western Front

Best Casting-Elvis

Best Cinematography-All Quiet on the Western Front

Adapted Screenplay-All Quiet On The Western Front, Edward Berger, Lesley Paterson, Ian Stokell

Editing-Everything Everywhere All At Once, Paul Rogers

Cinematography-All Quiet On The Western Front, James Friend

Best Documentary-Navalny (Daniel Roher)

EE Bafta Rising Star Award-Emma Mackey

Film Not In The English Language-All Quiet On The Western Front

Best Costume Design-Catherine Martin, Elvis

British Short Film-An Irish Goodbye

Make up & Hair- Elvis; Jason Baird, Mark Coulier, Louise Coulston, Shane Thomas

Production design- Babylon; Florencia Martin, Anthony Carlino

Sound- All Quiet On The Western Front; Lars Ginzsel, Frank Kruse, Viktor Prášil, Markus Stemler

Original Score- All Quiet On The Western Front; Volker Bertelmann

Supporting Actress- Kerry Condon, The Banshees of Inisherin

Supporting Actor- Barry Keoghan, The Banshees of Inisherin.

Dadasaheb Phalke Award:

• The Dadasaheb Phalke Award is the country’s highest award in the field of cinema. The 2023 winners were revealed by the Directorate of Film Festivals. Mumbai will host the 2023 Dadasaheb Phalke International Film Festival ceremony.

List of winners:

Best Film- The Kashmir Files

Film Of The Year- RRR

Best Actor- Ranbir Kapoor (Brahmastra Part One: Shiva)

Best Actress- Alia Bhatt (Gangubhai Khatiawadi)

Critics Best Actor- Varun Dhawan (Bhediya)

Critics Best Actress- Vidya Balan (Jalsa)

Best Director- R Balki (Chup)

Best Cinematographer- PS Vinod (Vikram Vedha)

Most Promising Actor- Rishab Shetty (Kantara)

Best Actor- In A Supporting Role Manish Paul (Jugjugg Jeeyo)

Best Playback Singer (Male)- Sachet Tandon (Maiyya Mainu – Jersey)

Best Playback Singer (Female)- Neeti Mohan (Meri Jaan – Gangubhai Khatiawadi)

Best Web Series- Rudra: The Edge Of Darkness (Hindi)

Most Versatile Actor- Anupam Kher (The Kashmir Files)

Television Series Of The Year- Anupamaa

Best Actor- In A Television Series Zain Imam for Fanaa (Ishq Mein Marjawaan)

Best Actress- In A Television Series Tejasswi Prakash (Naagin)

Dadasaheb Phalke International Film Festival Awards 2023 for Outstanding Contribution in the film Industry- Rekha

Dadasaheb Phalke International Film Festival Awards 2023 for Outstanding Contribution in the music Industry- Hariharan.

ICAI & ICAEW:

• The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, has approved the signing of Memorandum of Understanding between the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) and The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales (ICAEW).

Ministry of Rural Development:

• Ministry of Rural Development signed an MoU between the ministry and Meesho an e-commerce platform owned by Bengaluru-based Fashnear Technologies Private Limited.
• As per the agreement, the e-commerce platform will help in the marketing of products made by the Self-Help Groups under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Rural Livelihood Mission.
• Rural Development Minister Giriraj Singh informed that when Prime Minister Narendra Modi took charge, there were 2.35 crore SHG members, but with a focused approach to empower rural poor women in the last 9 years, the number of SHG members has expanded to more than 9 crores and will touch 10 crores by 2024.

Khajuraho Dance Festival:

• The seven-day 49th Khajuraho Dance Festival will begin with Bharatnatyam and kathak at the temple declared as UNESCO heritage.
• The annual event of the Khajuraho Dance Festival is being organized by Ustad Allauddin Khan Sangeet Evam Kala Akademi and the directorate of culture in association with the tourism department and the Archaeological Survey of India.
• Bharatanatyam dance will be presented by Janki Rangarajan, whereas Kathak-Bharatnatyam will be presented by Dhirendra Tiwari, Aprajita Sharma, and Kathak by Prachi Shah respectively.

Arunachal Pradesh’s Statehood Day:

• Statehood Day in Arunachal Pradesh is a state holiday observed on 20th February in the Northeastern Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh. Statehood Day in Arunachal Pradesh is celebrated to commemorate the granting of statehood to the state which occurred in the year 1987.
• Arunachal Pradesh holds a key position in the whole northeastern Indian states, as it served as the general name of the whole region before its statehood. It is full of mountains and situated close to the Himalayas. Arunachal Pradesh shares its international border with China, Myanmar, and Bhutan.

Taj Mahotsav:

• The Taj Mahotsav was officially launched on February 20 (Monday) in Agra by Yogendra Upadhyay, minister of higher education for the state of Uttar Pradesh. He claimed that the 10-day festival had drawn tourists from other countries in addition to locals.
• A total of 300 artisans from a number of states and UTs, including Jammu & Kashmir, West Bengal, Bihar, and Himachal Pradesh, are taking part in the event this year, which has as its subject “Vishwa Bandhutva”.

Foxconn:

• Anil Agarwal-led Vedanta and manufacturing behemoth Foxconn announced their joint venture’s plans to build a semiconductor and display manufacturing facility in Gujarat’s Dholera Special Investment Zone.
• In September of last year, the Gujarat government and the Vedanta-Foxconn JV inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the JV to invest 1,54,000 crore to build a semiconductor and display manufacturing facility. It is India’s first factory for the production of semiconductors.

CoE:

• Serum Institute of India will be setting up Dr. Cyrus Poonawalla Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Infectious Diseases and Pandemic Preparedness in the Indian Institute of Public Health, Hyderabad.

EMI-EMC:

• India’s lunar mission, Chandrayaan-3 has successfully underwent EMI-EMC (Electro-Magnetic Interference/ Electro-Magnetic Compatibility).
• The EMI-EMC test is conducted for satellite missions to ensure functionality of the satellite subsystems in the space environment and their compatibility with the expected electromagnetic levels.
• The test was conducted between January 31 and February 2 at U R Rao Satellite Centre, Bengaluru.

Tata Motors & Uber:

• Tata Motors signed an MoU in February 2023, with Uber to bring 25,000 XPRES-T Electric Vehicles (EVs) to India.
• The services will be available across Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, and Ahmedabad.
• It has features like zero tail-pipe emission, single-speed automatic transmission, and dual airbags and can be charged from 0-80% in 1 hour.

First nuclear power plant:

• The first nuclear power plant in North India would be built in Gorakhpur, Haryana, according to Union Minister Jitendra Singh. The plant will have capacity of 1,400 MW.
• The Gorakhpur Haryana Anu Vidyut Pariyojana (GHAVP), having two units of 700 MW capacity each of Pressurised Heavy Water Reactor (PHWR) of indigenous design, is under implementation near Gorakhpur village of Haryana.

G20:

• India will host the Permanent Mission Roundtables at United Nations Head Quarter as Chair of G- 20. It will be held ahead of the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Summit 2023, to be held in New York.
• During the event, the focus will be on India’s growth story and achievements and how these might be scaled for the potential benefit of the global South.

La. Ganesan:

• Ganesan was sworn in as the 21^st Governor of Nagaland on 20 February 2023. He succeeded Prof Jagdish Mukhi, the Governor of Assam, who was holding additional charge of Nagaland. Before this appointment, he was Governor of Manipur since August 2017.
• He has also served as Governor of West Bengal from July to November 2022. Prior to all this, he was senior leader of Tamil Nadu BJP.

PM Gati Shakti:

• The first PM Gati Shakti regional workshop for the Western and Central Zone was held in Goa on 20 Feb 2023. The workshop featured discussions on use cases of National Master Plan (NMP) adoption by Central Ministries & State Departments for planning.
• The scheme incorporates the infrastructure schemes of various Ministries and State Governments and was launched on 13 October 2021 by PM Modi.

Jaadui Pitara:

• Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan launched a Learning-Teaching Material Jaadui Pitara’ for foundational years of children in New Delhi on 20 February 2023. It was launched under the National Curriculum Framework for foundational stage – 2022.
• It comprises of playbooks, activity books, flash cards, posters depicting various stories, games, puzzles, puppets and many more items.

Rajan Amba:

• Rajan Amba, Vice President of Sales, Marketing & Customer Care, Tata Motors, has been appointed as the Managing Director of Jaguar Land Rover India in February 2023.
• He will be replacing Rohit Suri, who announced his retirement from the position of MD and President back in January 2023. He started his career in 1990 and worked at Nike, Titan Watches, and Levi Strauss companies.

Tamil Nadu Events:

APJ Abdul Kalam Satellite Launch Vehicle Mission-2023:

• The Martin Foundation in association with Dr APJ Abdul Kalam International Foundation and Space Zone India launched the APJ Abdul Kalam Satellite Launch Vehicle Mission-2023 from the Pattipolam village of Chengalpattu district in Tamil Nadu.
• Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan was also present at the event.

International Events:

World’s highest altitude weather station:

• The world’s highest altitude weather station was destroyed due to hurricane-force winds on Mount Everest and a team of scientists and Sherpa have again placed its new version atop Mount Everest. The group has been led by a 31-year-old electrician and mountain guide Tenzing Gyalzen Sherpa.
• According to the Guinness World Records report, the team of mountaineers and scientists has installed a record-breaking weather station at an altitude of 8,810 meters just 39 meters (128 ft) below Everest’s summit.

International Mother Language Day:

• Every year on February 21, the world celebrates International Mother Language Day to encourage linguistic, cultural, and multilingualism variety.
• The aim of the celebrations is to preserve traditional knowledge and cultures through sustainable methods and support multilingualism in societies. In India, we also refer to it as the Matribhasha Diwas.

Ookla’s Speedtest Global Index:

• As per Ookla’s Speedtest Global Index, India climbed 10 spots in Jan 2023 to become the 69th fastest mobile internet provider in the world.
• According to report, India’s median mobile download speed reached 29.85 Mbps, while the upload speed reached 6.16 Mbps, with a latency of 31 milliseconds. Singapore had the fastest broadband in the world, with a median download speed of 234.55 Mbps.

India-Iraq:

• The second round of the India-Iraq Foreign Office Consultations was held on 20 Feb 23 in Baghdad. During this, detailed discussions were held on further strengthening of the bilateral relations.
• The newly-constructed Indian Consular Application Centre in Baghdad was also inaugurated. The bilateral trade between India- Iraq exceeded $ 34bn in 2021-22.

Versuni:

• Philips Domestic Appliances has been renamed as ‘Versuni’ in February 2023. As a licensee of Royal Philips, the company will continue to use the Philips consumer brand, as well as Saeco, Gaggia, and Philips Walita, on its products and services.
• Philips Domestic Appliances is headquartered in the Netherlands and has business offices in more than 100 countries.

‘Hwasong-15’:

• North Korea successfully test-fired a ‘Hwasong-15’ Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) on 18 February 2023. It was launched into the sea off Japan’s west coast. Hwasong-15 was first tested in 2017. The UN Security Council bans North Korea’s missile and nuclear weapons programs. It is the first ballistic missile developed by North Korea to reach all of the United States mainlands.

Mosi II:

• South Africa started a joint naval military exercise ‘Mosi II’ with Russia and China in the Indian Ocean in February 2023. The South African National Defence Force says 350 members of its armed forces will take part.
• China is South Africa’s top bilateral trading partner. Russia has announced it will send its Admiral Gorshkov warship, which carries Zircon hypersonic missiles.

Sports Events:

Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championships:

• The third edition of the Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championships which was held at the Dubai Exhibition Centre in the United Arab Emirates from 14 to 19 February 2023 concluded.

In the mixed team championship,

China became the winner and won the gold medal.

South Korea became the runner-up and won the Silver medal.

India and Thailand shared third place and won the Bronze medal.