Nitin Gadkari laid foundation stone for projects worth Rs 5,894......For UPSC and SSC exam read todays Affairs 23rd February 2019

1.Narendra Modi accepted Seoul Peace Prize

Narendra Modi

*Narendra Modi received the Seoul Peace Prize from the South Korean government in recognition of his service to international cooperation, global growth and human development in his second visit to the Asian nation after his state visit in May 2015.


2.Nitin Gadkari laid foundation stone for projects worth Rs 5,894

Nitin Gadkari

*The Union Minister for Road Transport & Highways, Shipping and Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation Shri Nitin Gadkari inaugurated and laid a foundation stone for projects worth Rs 5,894 crore at Chandi Ghat in Haridwar,Uttarakhand.


3.Rajnath Singh inaugurates Waste to Wonder Park

*Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh inaugurated a new park which houses the replicas of seven wonders of the world at New Delhi. The park, which is called the Vaste to Wonder Park, was built by the South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC).

4.Suresh Prabhu inaugurated 4th India-ASEAN Expo and Summit

*Minister of Commerce & Industry and Civil Aviation, Suresh Prabhu, inaugurated the 4th India-ASEAN Expo and Summit 2019 in New Delhi. ASEAN has emerged as the second largest trade partner of India i in 2017-18, with a share of 10.58% in India's overall trade.


5.DoT against offensive WhatsApp messages

*People can file a complaint with the Department of Telecom (DoT) against offensive messages received on WhatsApp. The victim just needs to furnish a screenshot of the message along with the mobile number and e-mail it to ccaddn-dot@nic.in.


6.World Thinking Day- 22 February

*World Thinking Dayis a day of international friendship. It is an opportunity to speak out on issues that affect young women and fundraise for 10 million Girl Guides and Girl Scouts in 150 countries with the theme "Leadership".


7.Global Business Summit 2019

*The fifth edition of the Global Business Summit kickstarted at Taj Palace, New Delhi. It was presented by Yes Bank and The Economic Times, GBS is expected to be attended by over 2,000 delegates from across the world.


8.Israel blast off its first Moon Mission

*lsrael's first moon mission was launched by SpaceX. The Falcon 9 rocket blasted from Cape Canaveral, Florida. The rocket is carrying three separate spacecraft, most notably Israel's privately funded lunar lander.

9.Digital India Awards

*National Informatics Centre (NIC) organized the fifth edition of Digital India Awards where Minister of Law & Justice, and Electronics & Information Technology, Ravi Shankar Prasad gave away the awards.


10. US sanctions on Iran revive fortune of UCO Bank

*UCO bank which was designated as India's payment bank for Iranian oil in 2012 expects its payments for Iranian oil shipments to add more than 8 billion rupees ($110 million) to annual earnings because of renewed US sanctions on Iran.


11.Medical Fair India 2019 began in New Delhi 

*A 3-day medical trade show, Medical Fair India (MFl) 2019, kickstarted on 21 February 2019
*It will see the participation of global medical device manufacturers, healthcare experts, industry bodies, think tanks and policymakers from over 25 countries.
*The MFl is being organised by Messe Dusseldorf India, the world's leading trade fair organiser and exhibitions service provider.


12.Smart India Hackathon to be held in March

*The Ministry of Human Resource Development will conduct the Grand Finale of third edition (Software) of Smart India Hackathon (SIH) - 2019 on 2 and 3 March 2019,
*SIH is an initiative to identify new and disruptive digital technology innovations for solving the challenges faced by our country.
*lt is the largest ever Hackathon in the world and the only one to be held at the national leyel


13.Eri Farming project launched in Arunachal

*The Integrated Large Scale Eri Silk Farming project under North East Region
*Textile Promotion Scheme (NERTPS) was launched in Arunachal Pradesh on 22 February 2019.
*The Project will cover five districts: Papumpare, East Kameng, Siang, East Siang and West Siang.
*The project is funded by the government of India. Eri silk is derived from a silk worm which feeds mainly on castor plants.


14.Tamil Nadu gets 2 Coast Guard districts 

*Tamil Nadu became the first state in the country to get a second Coast Guard district headquarters in Thoothukudi.
 *The first district headquarters are in Chennai.
*The Thoothukudi district headquarters were set up with an aim to augment security mechanism on the eastern Coast.
*It will function under the administrative and operational control of the Commander Coast Guard Region (East).


15.Odish oroves Khushi' scheme

*Odisha government approved a Rs 466 crore 'Khusi' scheme on 22 February 2019.
*The aim of the scheme is to improve menstrual hygiene among adolescent girl students in the state,
*Under the scheme, free sanitary napkins will be provided to 17.25 lakh adolescent girl students of Class-VI to XIl studyingin government and non-government aided schools of the state.


16. BoB and KfW to fund solar projects in India

*Bank of Baroda (BoB) and Germany's KfW Development Bank have tied up to extend funding of $113 million to refinance solar power projects in India.
*The funding will be done as part of the scheme Solar Partnership Il Promotion of Solar PV in India, under the Indo-German Solar Energy Partnership.
*In 2015, Germany committed to provide financial support to solar power projects in India.


17.Two silk projects launched in Assam 

*Union Minister Snmriti Irani inaugurated two silk projects under the Ministry of textiles at Udalguri district in Assam on 22 February 2019.
*The two projects are: Integrated 'Soil to Silk Project and Eri Spun Silk Mil.
*The projects are aimed at the economic uplift of the people below the poverty line by Eri silk farming.


18.Sushma Swaraj to participate in 16th RIC

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will attend the 16th Russia-India-China (RIC) meeting on 27 February 2019. The meeting will be held at Wuzhen in China
The last RIC Foreign Ministerial Meeting was held in New Delhi in December 2017, Chinese Foreign Minister Mr. Wang Yi and the Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will also participate in the meeting.


19.Defence Ministry approves torpedo acquisition

*On 22 February 2019, the Defence Ministry has approved the acquisition of more than 100 heavyweight torpedoes.
*The torpedoes will be equipped on Indian Navy's six Scorpene-class submarines being built at Mazagon Dockyards in Mumbai.
*Torpedo is a self-propelled weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface and propelled underwater towards a target.



20.RBI merges NBFCS into onecategory

*On 22 February 2019, the Reserve Bank of India created a single category of Non Banking Financial Company (NBFC) by merging their present three-tier structure.
*Asset finance, loan. and investnment companies have been merged into a new category called NBFC- Investment and Credit Companies.
*This will provide greater operational flexibility to NBFCs.



21.Committee to help bring down tax litigation

*The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has formed a four-member committee to address taxation-related pain points and cut down the number of tax litigations.
*It will be headed by Income Tax Commissioner Sanjeev Sharma.
*It will also focus on some of the major issues that may lead to revenue generation.
*It will submit its final report and recommendations by mid-March 2019.


22.  100-day job quarantee scheme launched in MP

*Madhya Pradesh government launched its flagship 'Mukhyamantri Yuva Swabhiman Yojana' on 22 February 2019.
*The scheme guarantees 100 days of employment every year to urban youth from economically weaker sections. Under the new scheme, each youth will get Rs. 4,000 stipend per month during 100 days of period.


23.NFFK to be held in Thiruvananthapuram

*The third edition of National Folk Festival of Kerala (NFFK) will begin on 23 February 2019 in Thiruvananthapuram. NFFK is organised by the Kerala State Youth Welfare Board,
*The main attraction of the festival will be kathputli from Rajasthan.
*The highlight of this year's festival will be the performance of Barmer Boys from Rajasthan.



24.Click to Participate in RRB NTPC LIVE Test

*In a wild race to attain a stable Govt Job,students from all over India have now jumped at the opportunity provided by Railways to appear for the NTPC exams.
*Join in the RRB NTPC Live Test on Testbook.comfrom 23rd Feb to 25th Feb 2019 & take the test along with thousands of fellow students, Find your AIR and analysis of weaker topics



25. HAL hands over three ALH to Indian Army 

*Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) handed over first three ALHs as part of the 22 ALH MK Il contract to the Indian Army on 22 February 2019. HAL had entered into a contract with the Indian Army for 40 ALH in August 2017.
*The Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) is a multi-role, new generation helicopter in the 5.5-ton weight class, indigenously designed and developed by HAL


26.Suresh Prabhu inaugurates various projects

*Union Minister of Commerce & Industry and Civil Aviation, Suresh Prabhu inaugurated projects worth Rs. 1000 crore on 22 February 2019.
*He inaugurated skilling Common Facility Centre (CFC) in Udupi, Karnataka.
*Two spices parks at Kota in Rajasthan and Raebareli in Uttar Pradesh were also inaugurated.
*He also inaugurated National Institute of Design campus in Assam and Madhya Pradesh,


27.Year-long state of emergency decalred in Sudan

*On 23 February 2019, Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir has declared a ear-long state of emergency
*He also dissolved his cabinet and local governments throughout the country.
*President Omar al-Bashir's term ends in 2020.
*The capital of Sudan is Khartoum and its currency is Sudanese pound.


28.Aero lndia 2019 celebrates Women's Day 

*Highlighting the achievements of Women in Aviation, 'Women's Day' was celebrated on 23 February 2019 at the biennial Aero India 2019 expo.It was held at the Yelahanka base of the Indian Air Force (AF).
*Women achieyers in the aviation sector were felicitated on the occasion and a book and film on 'Women in Aviation' was also released.
*Aero India show will continue till 24 February 2019.


29.OMCS to a point women as Ujjwala Didis'

*Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) will appoint more than 10,000 rural women as 'Ujjwala Didis' in Odisha.
*Ujjwala Didis will act as grassroot energy ambassadors across Odisha to ensure sustainability of LPG use.
*They will act as a bridge between existing and prospective LPG consumers and the distributors in the state of Odisha.

30.NITI Aayog hosts Confeenceon Indian Banking

*A conference on 'The Future of Indian

Banking' was held in New Delhi on 22

February 2019.

*It was organised by NITI Aayog and the

Foundation for Economic Growth and

Welfare (EGROW Foundation).

*The aim of the conference was to

increase and eleate the discourse on

the banking sector in India and help

develop insights to inform the continued

evolution of the Indian banking sector