National:
AWBI Awards: (PRANI MITRA & JEEVDAYA Awards)
- AWBI (The Animal Welfare Board of India) Awards dedicated for Animal Welfare and Protection-2021 was held on auspicious day of vasant panchami at New Delhi.
The Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) conferred 14 Prani Mitra awards and JeevDaya awards 2021 to the individuals, organizations and corporates for their outstanding performance in the field of animal welfare.
AWBI is an apex body in the country for the welfare and protection of animals, established under Section 4 of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960.
Shri Giriraj Singh, Minister for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Govt of India distributed the Prani Mitra and JeevDaya Awards.
Winners:
- Prani Mitra Award (Individual): Shri Yogender Kumar, New Delhi, Shri Manish Saxena, Jaipur, Rajasthan and Shri Shyam Lal Chaubisa, Udaipur, Rajasthan
- Prani Mitra Award (Shaurya): Shri Anil Gandas, Gurugram, Haryana, Late Smt. Kalpana Vasudevan, Coimbatore, Tamilnadu
- Prani Mitra Award (Life Time Animal Service): Maj. Gen. (Retd) Dr. R. M. Kharb, AVSM, Gurugram, Haryana, Dr. S. Chinny Krishna, Chennai, Tamilnadu and Dr. S.R. Sundaram, Chennai, Tamilnadu
- Prani Mitra Award (Animal Welfare Organization): World Sankirtan Tour Trust, Hodal, Haryana, Shri Karuna Foundation Trust, Rajkot, Gujarat and People for Animals, Ahmedabad, Gujarat
- Prani Mitra Award (Corporate): Tata Trust Foundation, Mumbai, Maharashtra
- JeevDaya Award (Animal Welfare Organization): Dhyan Foundation, New Delhi and Animal Aid Charitable Trust, Udaipur, Rajasthan
Arjun Main Battle Tank' (MK-1A) Handed over to Army:
- On 14 February 2021, Prime Minister Narendra Modi handed over to the Army the home-made ‘Arjun Main Battle Tank’ (MK-1A) at the Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium in Chennai.
The state- of-the-art tank is indigenously designed, developed, and manufactured by the Chennai-based Combat Vehicles Research and Development Establishment, a unit of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).
New Species of Fly:
- Researchers at the Singanallur Tank recently identified a new species of fly, which has been named after the water body. The insect was named Asphondylia singanallurensis in the research paper published in the Zootaxa journal in March 2020.
International:
CECPA between India and Mauritius:
- The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has approved signing of the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation and Partnership Agreement (CECPA) between India and Mauritius.
The India-Mauritius CECPA will be the first trade Agreement to be signed by India with a country in Africa.
The Agreement is a limited agreement, which will cover:
- Trade in Goods
- Rules of Origin
- Trade in Services
- Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT)
- Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) measures
- Dispute Settlement
- Movement of Natural PersonsTelecom
- Financial services
- Customs Procedures and Cooperation in other Areas
Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court:
- United Kingdom barrister, Karim Khan has been elected in the second round as the next chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC).
On 12 February 2021, Parties to the International Criminal Court elected Mr Khan as the new prosecutor for a nine-year term starting on June 16.
Sports:
Retirement of Naman Ojha:
- Former India wicketkeeper-batsman Naman Ojha on 15 February 2021 announced his retirement from all forms of cricket.
The 37-year-old player from Madhya Pradesh has featured in one Test, one ODI and two T20 Internationals.
Death:
- Kendra Sahitya Akademi awardee and popular writer Vasala Narsaiah died in Karimnagar on 14 February 2021. He was 80. He was a recipient of Bala Sahitya Puraskar of Potti Sriramulu Telugu University, in 2009.