UTTAR PRADESH
Govt moots ‘Sikh Circuit’ to promote pilgrimage in UP
To promote pilgrimage in Uttar Pradesh, the Yogi Adityanath government has mooted development of ‘Sikh Circuit’ comprising all religious places associated with the religion and ‘Gurus’. Sikh museums and research centres will also be set up in Lucknow and Agra. Earlier, the Chief Minister had directed the Tourism department to work on the concept.
A survey of the Sikh places and personalities — who contributed to art, culture and history — will also be undertaken as a preliminary step towards the development of ‘Sikh Circuit’. Last year, a four-point charter of demands was submitted to the CM and it included the proposal for setting up of a Sikh museum.
Meanwhile, UP is already working on several other tourism-centric religious circuits like Ramayana Circuit, Mahabharata Circuit, Buddhist Circuit etc.
INTERNATIONAL
Pakistan successfully tested Ra’ad-II cruise missile
Pakistan successfully flight tested the air-launched nuclear-capable cruise missile Ra’ad-II. The test aimed to boost the military’s deterrence capability on land and at sea. The Ra’ad-II missile is an attempt to match India’s BrahMos cruise missile.
The range of Ra’ad-II missile is 600 km. This range can enhance air delivered strategic standoff capability on land and at sea.
This missile will be attached to Mirage aircraft or F-16 fighter jets of the Pakistan Air Force.
In January 2020, Pakistan successfully conducted a training launch of surface-to-surface ballistic missile Ghaznavi. The missile was capable of delivering multiple types of warheads up to a range of 290 km.
Pakistan to remain in Grey List
The International Co-operation Review Group (ICRG) of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) announced that Pakistan will be retained on the “Grey List”. Pakistan failed to completely implement the 27-point action plan to check terror financing. The announcement was made during the five-day FATF Plenary session which is held in Paris.
Pakistan was evaluated by ICRG for the steps taken by the former on the implementation of its plan of action to curb terror funding.
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani wins for the second term
President Ashraf Ghani won Afghanistan’s presidential election. He has been elected for t he second term. The election results were announced by the Independent Election Commission (IEC) five months after the voting took place amid the threat of violence and concerns over electoral fraud.
Ghani won 50.64% of the vote on 28 September 2019. He defeated Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah who secured 39.52% of votes. The results were scheduled to be announced on 18 October 2019. But the announcement got delayed due to some technical issues, allegations of fraud and protests from candidates.
NATIONAL
Soil Health Card Day to be observed on 19 February
The Soil Health Card Day is observed on 19 February. The day commemorates the day Soil Health Card Scheme which was launched on 19 February 2015 by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi at Suratgarh, Rajasthan.
Soil health card scheme:
♦ The scheme aims to assess the nutrient status of every farm holding in India.
♦ The scheme was introduced to assist State Governments to issue Soil Health Card (SHC) to all farmers in the country.
♦ So far, a total of Rs.751.42 crore has been released under the scheme.
♦ The scheme aims to issue soil health cards to farmers every 2 years so as to provide a basis to address nutritional deficiencies in fertilization practices.
A report released by National Productivity Council (NPC) in 2017 stated that the SHC scheme has promoted sustainable farming and led to a decrease in the use of chemical fertilizer applications in the range of 8-10%. It showed an overall increase in the yield of crops to the tune of 5-6% was reported due to the application of fertilizer and micronutrients according to the recommendations available in the Soil Health Cards.
India will stop the import of thermal coal from FY 2023-24 says, Pralhad Joshi
Union Minister of Coal and Mines Pralhad Joshi chaired Chintan Shivir, a two-day brainstorming session at Kevadia in Gujarat on 17-18 February. The Minister announced that India will stop importing thermal coal from Financial Year 2023-24.
The workshop suggested ways to overcome various bottlenecks and provide innovative solutions to the Indian coal sector.
♦ It urged the key stakeholders to achieve 1 billion tonnes (BT) coal production target by Coal India Limited (CIL) by Financial Year 2023-24. The Ministry of Coal committed its effective coordination with Indian Railways and Shipping Ministry to enable CIL, Captive and Commercial Miners to evacuate more coal by 2030.
State of Indias Birds 2020 states 79 percent of the bird species are on a decline
State of India’s Birds 2020 reported that 79% of the bird species are on a decline in the last five years. The report was released at the 13th Conference of Parties (COP-13) of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) which is hosted in India.
The report stated a dramatic rise in Peafowl/Peacock population calls for an assessment of crop damage caused by the bird.
♦ The report was based on data provided by citizen scientists and enthusiasts.
♦ The Indian bird species was compiled from the 10 million observations provided by birdwatchers on an online database known as eBird.
♦ It determined the population trends for only 261 species. Out of the total species, 52% of species showed a decline and 43% of bird species had a stable population.
♦ Vultures and bustards showed the biggest decline.
IGIA became the first airport to be free of single-use plastic usage
Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) has become free of single-use plastic usage. With this feat, GMR-led Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL) became the first single-use plastic-free airport in India. The implementation of single-use plastic-free airport measures within IGI Airport’s operations was certified by the Confederation of Indian Industry-ITC Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Development (CII-ITC CESD).
The move by IGIA is in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision to abolish all single-use plastic from India by 2022.
♦ DIAL has committed to preserving the environment.
♦ It has significantly reduced the plastic waste generation with the use of eco-friendly sustainable alternatives.
India gets its first Greco-Roman gold medal after 27 years
Sunil Kumar won India’s first Greco-Roman gold medal in Asian Wrestling Championships in 27 years on 18 February. He defeated Azat Salidinov of Kyrgyzstan under the 87kg category at the summit. He scored 5-0 in the event to claim the title. The previous gold was won by Pappu Yadav in 1993 for India under the 48 kg in the Greco-Roman category.
Also, Arjun Halakurki won bronze at the championship under the 55 Kg category. He defeated Donghyeok Won of Korea to claim the medal. 
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