Correct Answer :   Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL)

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Defence PSU Bharat Electronics Ltd. (BEL) has signed an MoU with Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) for domestic manufacture and supply of its Long-Range Artillery (LORA) Weapon System for the Indian Tri-services.

* The state-of-the-art strategic weapon system weapon will be manufactured by BEL, as the prime contractor, based on the workshare arrangement with IAI.

* The MoU is an outcome of the growing partnership between India and Israel in the field of high technology strategic defence systems, and is in line with the Government of India’s Make in India initiative for major weapon systems.

* Developed by IAI’s MALAM division, LORA is a sea-to-ground and ground-to-ground system which comprises a long-range ballistic missile, a unique launcher, a command and control system, and a ground/marine support system.

* The LORA system provides ballistic assault capabilities for multiple ranges with a precision level of 10 meters CEP.

* The MoU was signed at the ongoing Aero India 2023 and it is an outcome of the growing partnership between India and Israel in the field of high-technology strategic defense systems.

* It is in line with the Government of India’s ‘Make in India’ initiative for major weapon systems.

* Defence Minister Rajnath Singh informed that India is set to spend 75% of defense capital outlay on procurement from domestic firms...

Source : The Hindu

Correct Answer :   Kollam

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The Kollam district panchayat won the Swaraj Trophy for the best district panchayat in the Kerala State for the 2021-22 financial year.

The Kannur district panchayat stood second in the rankings. The Thiruvananthapuram Corporation bagged the trophy for the best corporation.

The Mulanthuruthy grama panchayat won the award for the best grama panchayat in the State and Pappinissery and Marangattupilly grama panchayats won the second and third places.

The award for the best block panchayat went to Perumpadappu, while Kodakara and Nedumangad won the second and third places. Tirurangadi won the award for the best municipality, while Wadakkanchery and Sulthan Bathery won the second and third places.

The Kallikkad grama panchayat in Thiruvananthapuram won the Mahatma award for the best implementation of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) while the Kollam Corporation won the Mahatma Ayyankali award for the implementation of the Ayyankali Urban Employment Guarantee Scheme (AUEGS). Wadakkanchery and Vaikom won the award for municipalities.

Minister for Local Self-Governments M.B. Rajesh announced the awards at a press conference here on Wednesday (15th Feb 2023). The awards will be presented at the Local Self-Governance Day celebrations to be held at Thrithala in Palakkad on February 18 and 19, 2023. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan will inaugurate the celebrations. .

Source : The Hindu

Correct Answer :   16th February 2023

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Legendary Yakshagana playback singer and scriptwriter Balipa Narayana Bhagawatha passed away at his residence near Moodbidri in Dakshina Kannada district on Thursday (16th February 2023). He was 84.

He hailed from Maruru, near Moodbidri, and is survived by sons Madhava, Shashidhara, and Shivashankara who is also a noted Yakshagana playback singer.

His wife, Jayalakshmi, predeceased him. His another son Prasad Balipa, who was also a well-known Yakshagana playback singer, died in April, 2022.

Mr. Narayana Bhagawatha, who had a large fan following, had mastered a unique style of singing which fans had named as “Balipa shaili” (Balipa style). It was distinct from that of other singers. Though many other Yakshagana singers had tried to emulate this, none could master it. Mr. Narayana Bhagawatha had a rich voice and wrote over 30 Yakshagana “prasangas” (scripts).

Mr. Narayana Bhagawatha was born on March 19, 1938 at Padre village in Kasaragod (Kerala) district. His family later shifted to Maruru. He hailed from a family of Yakshagana artists...

Source : The Hindu

Correct Answer :   Rajan Amba

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Jaguar Land Rover India, part of Tata Motors, has appointed Rajan Amba, Vice President - Sales, Marketing and Customer Care, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles.

* Amba will be taking up his new position in JLR from 1st March 2023.

* Rajan was a key contributor to the development of the commercial teams, the new zone organization, the network expansion, the improvement of the customer experience, and the growth of TMPV's market share over the past two and a half years.

* He was also actively involved in cross-functional teams that were advancing the agenda for culture and diversity & inclusion programs at Tata Motors.

* Prior to Tata Motors, Rajan has worked with Carat Lane, a subsidiary company of Titan where he worked as a Chief Operating Officer.

* He has been with Titan since 2012, this is his second stint with the company where he was Brand Manager for Titan watch. till 2015 and Head of Sales and Retail for Tanishq till he joined Carat Lane.

* During his tenure in Titan, he has been instrumental in redefining the product design and language for the Titan brand as well as bringing a blend of science and art to the area of product line management.

* Rajan is a graduate in Mechanical Engineering from National Institute of Technology, Calicut and Rajan completed MBA in Marketing from Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies, Mumbai.

* He started his career in 1990 with FILL and then worked in Nike, Titan Watches and Levi Strauss...

Source : India Times

Correct Answer :   6th Phase

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The Sixth (6th) phase of Sujalam-Sufalam Jal Abhiyan has been started in Gujarat on 17th February 2023.

* The state-wide campaign was launched by the Gujarat CM, Bhupendra Patel at Khoraj in Gandhinagar.

* Aim : To raise the groundwater level and maximize the use of rainwater.

* This phase will be held for 104 days and continue till 31st May 2023.

* Developmental works like the deepening of lakes, delisting works of check dams and reservoirs, and cleaning of canals will be carried out across the state..

Source : AIR

Correct Answer :   Lt Gen MV Suchindra Kumar

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Lt Gen MV Suchindra Kumar has been appointed as the new Vice Chief of Army Staff, while incumbent Lt Gen B S Raju will take charge as South Western Army Commander, official sources said on Thursday (16th February 2023).

* Lt Gen Rashim Bali has been appointed as the commander of Leh-based 14 Corps which takes care of security along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China in the Ladakh sector.

* Lt Gen Anindya Sengupta, the current commander of the 14 Corps, will become the new Chief of Staff of Udhampur headquartered Northern Command.

* They said Lt Gen BS Raju, at present serving as the Vice Chief of Army Staff, has been appointed as South Western Army Commander.

* Lt Gen NSR Subramani, currently the Chief of Staff at the headquarters of the Northern Command in Udhampur, has been promoted to the rank of Army Commander and appointed as the next Central Army Commander.

* The sources said Lt Gen Suchindra Kumar too has been promoted as Army Commander and appointed as the new Vice Chief of Army Staff. He is serving as the Deputy Chief of Army Staff (Strategy) in the Army Headquarters at present.

* They said Lt Gen Raju will succeed Lt Gen Amardeep Singh Bhinder when he retires from service by the end of February 2023.

* Lt Gen Subramani will take over as the Central Army Commander from Lt Gen Yogendra Dimri, who also superannuates by the end of this month.

* Lt Gen Kumar, Lt Gen Raju and Lt Gen Subramani will assume their new responsibilities on March 1, 2023.

* Lt Gen Kumar is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy, Khadakwasla. He was commissioned into 1 Assam Regiment in June 1985.

* He has commanded the 59 Rashtriya Rifles Battalion, an Infantry Brigade, and an Infantry Division on the Line of Control.

Source : NDTV

Correct Answer :   17th February

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United Nations General Assembly has adopted a resolution from Jamaica to declare the first-ever Global Tourism Resilience Day on 17th February 2023.

* In an effort to future-proof the sustainability of tourism. The move to mark the day annually was supported by more than 90 countries.

* The UNGA invites everyone to observe February 17 as a day to raise awareness of the importance of sustainable tourism, in accordance with local, regional and national priorities and through education, activities and events. The first Global Tourism Resilience Conference will be held in Jamaica on February 15, culminating on Global Tourism Resilience Day.

Global Tourism Resilience Day History : Global Tourism Resilience Day was proclaimed earlier this month by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in resolution A/RES/77/269. The day calls for the celebration of tourism’s resilience and the promotion of sustainable tourism practices. It was established as a result of Jamaica’s initiatives to promote resilience in international tourism, which included suggesting that February 17 be formally recognised as Global Tourism Resilience Day. More than 90 countries endorsed the idea of the celebration.

The ratification of Global Tourism Resilience Day has made it a part of the ongoing Global Tourism Resilience Conference being hosted by Jamaica. This hybrid conference is an important part of the efforts being made by the Ministry of Tourism and its partners, including the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre (GTRCMC), to boost the resilience of the global tourism industry. Through this conference, attendees can participate in discussions and share knowledge on how to address challenges facing the tourism industry, including the impacts of crises and disasters.

Global Tourism Resilience Day Significance : The significance of Global Tourism Resilience Day lies in its ability to bring attention to the importance of sustainable tourism practices and their role in creating a more resilient and sustainable world. The tourism industry has been hit hard by a series of crises and challenges over the past few years, including the COVID-19 pandemic, natural disasters, and political unrest.

Despite these challenges, the industry has shown remarkable resilience, adapting to changing circumstances and finding new ways to promote sustainable tourism practices. Global Tourism Resilience Day is a way to recognise and celebrate this resilience and to encourage the tourism industry to continue working towards a more sustainable and resilient future..

Source : News9live

Correct Answer :   IIT Kanpur

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Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur has developed an energy-efficient compressed air-based pipeline system for transporting coal and minerals, offering round-the-clock monitoring with considerable savings in time and costs .

* The cargo-based hyperloop system, developed by Professor Bishakh Bhattacharya and research scientists Kanhaiya Lal Chaurasia and Yashasvi Sinha at the Department of Mechanical Engineering, will address challenges such as material loss, uncertainty in delivery time and air pollution.

* An energy efficient pipeline system for evacuating coal, which accounts for almost 75 per cent of India’s power consumption, will not only save transportation time, but also reduce dust pollution at the mining sites and loading points.

* Developed at IIT Kanpur’s Smart Materials, Structures and Systems (SMSS) Lab, the system has already undergone a successful demonstration at the recent UP Global Investors Summit 2023 and has received positive feedback from experts in the field.

Hyperloop : The system is designed to transport coal or slurry from one point to another with compressed air as its energy source.

* The robot travels at around 120 km an hour and can transport the loaded block to the designated receiving or unloading sub-section continuously, IIT Kanpur said in a statement.

* This will be a continuous process and there could be more than one robotic vehicle operating in series depending on the workload and requirement. Even parallel pipeline loops can increase transportation efficiency significantly.

* Each module of the vehicle is connected to the adjacent modules through a ball and socket joint. This provides connectivity as well as manoeuvrability to the system which enables the robot to pass through complex bends present in the pipeline network...

Source : The Hindu Businessline

Correct Answer :   Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports

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Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, Government of India, Food Safety & Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) and National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education & Research, Hyderabad (NIPER Hyderabad) signed a tripartite Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to create nutritional supplement testing capacity in India.

* This will provide information & build awareness about the risks associated with use of nutritional supplements, increase research opportunities in the clean sport & anti-doping domain and provide options for safe and dope-free nutritional supplements for sportspersons.

* This MoU is a form of mutual commitment in compliance with the mandate towards strengthening the field of “Food for Special Dietary Use for Sportspersons”.

* This collaboration will help develop tools for dissemination of data and information generated by the testing laboratory at NIPER Hyderabad for the benefit of the sports ecosystem and the public in India.

* It will also educate the athletes about the harmful components present in the nutritional supplements that may affect their long-term performances.

* Smt. Sujata Chaturvedi, Secretary (Sports), Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, Government of India addressed the gathering and expressed Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, Government of India’s continuous commitment towards creating a clean sporting environment in the country.

* She further added that this MoU is a step to empower our athletes and sports ecosystem to make informed decisions regarding nutritional supplements.

* Smt. S. Aparna, Secretary, Department of Pharmaceuticals, Government of India congratulated everyone on achieving this milestone towards nation’s growth in testing nutritional supplements for sportspersons...

Source : PIB

Correct Answer :   Bengaluru

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Bengaluru is the second slowest city in the world to drive in as one can cover just 10 km in 29 minutes and 10 seconds in the city, stated a report by TomTom, a Dutch multinational developer of location technology.

* It took 29 minutes and 9 seconds to travel 10 km in Bengaluru city centre last year, it stated.

* Tom Tom, a multinational developer of traffic-based technologies, released its index on Thursday. It detailed traffic trends across 389 cities in 56 countries, throughout 2022.

* Tom Tom, in its research, stated that Bengaluru is globally the second slowest city to drive in, where it takes 29 minutes and 10 seconds of travel time to cover 10 km by road.

* London ranks first with an average of 36 minutes and 20 seconds to travel 6.2 miles (10 km). Ireland's capital, Dublin, Japanese town of Sapporo and Milan in Italy, rank third, 4th and 5th.

1. London : 36 min 20 sec
2. Bengalure : 29 min 10 sec
3. Dublin : 28 min 30 sec
4. Sapporo : 27min 40 sec
5. Mila : 27 min 30 sec
6. Pune : 27 min 20 sec
7. Bucharest : 27 min 20 sec
8. Lima : 27 min 10 sec
9. Manila : 27 min
10. Bogota : 26 min 10 sec.

Source : India Today