National:
Lalandar (Shatoot) Dam in Afghanistan:
- A signing ceremony of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the construction of the Lalandar (Shatoot) Dam in Afghanistan took place over VTC on 9 February 2021.
The project is a part of the New Development Partnership between India and Afghanistan.
The Lalander (Shatoot) Dam would meet the safe drinking water needs of Kabul City, provide irrigation water to nearby areas, rehabilitate the existing irrigation and drainage network, aid in flood protection and management efforts in the area, and also provide electricity to the region.
This is the second major dam being built by India in Afghanistan. The First India- Afghanistan Friendship Dam (Salma Dam), which was inaugurated by the Prime Minister and the President in June 2016.
'SWITCH DELHI' Campaign:
- Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on 4 February 2021 launched the ‘Switch Delhi’ campaign to promote electric vehicles and appealed to people to buy such vehicles to combat pollution in the city.
Yudh Abhyas 20:
- The 16th edition of Indo-US joint military exercise “Yudh Abhyas 20” was held in Mahajan Field Firing Range of Bikaner district in Rajasthan from February 8 to 21 February, 2021.
Both the armies shared their war-related techniques, skills and experience with each other during this exercise.
This exercise was another step in the growing military cooperation between the two countries, which shows the growth in Indo-US relations.
18th Chennai International Film Festival:
- Indo Cine Appreciation Foundation (ICAF) organized the 18th Chennai International Film Festival (CIFF) from 18 February to 25 February, 2021.
During the scheduled screening:
Opening Film: THE GIRL WITH A BRACELET (France) – Locarno Film Festival (nominee)
Closing Film: I WAS, I AM, I WILL BE – Germany
The film festival was participated by 53 countries, where 91 films were screened, including 37 worldwide language and 10 Indian language films.
Awards:
Best Tamil Feature Film Award: Endravadhu Oru Naal, Directed by- Vetri Duraiswamy
Second Best Tamil Feature Film: Chiyangal, Directed by- Vaigarai Balan
Special Jury Award: Cinematographer Shanmuga Sundaram, for film ‘Endravadhu Oru Naal’
Special Mention Certificate: Actress Aishwarya Rajesh, for her role in the film ‘Ka Pae Ranasingam’
International
Appointment of Billionaire Bloomberg as Climate Envoy:
- UN chief reappointed American billionaire Michael Bloomberg as a special envoy to engage governments and businesses in tackling the threat of global warming. Bloomberg, who has long campaigned on the issue of climate change, was first tapped for the position in 2018.
New MD of Google CLOUD:
- Google Cloud has appointed Bikram Singh Bedi as the Managing Director for its India business. He took over the role from Karan Bajwa, who was recently elevated as the Vice President of Google’s Asia Pacific Cloud.