Current Affairs Quiz - February, 2021

Notes:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi handed over the Arjun Main Battle Tank Mark-1A (MK-1A) to the Indian Army, at a function held at Chennai.
The battle tank has been indigenously designed, developed and manufactured by the DRDO’s Combat Vehicles Research & Development Establishment (CVRDE), Chennai.

Notes:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi dedicated Bharat Petroleum’s Propylene Derivatives petrochemical complex at Kochi Refinery.
The Rs 6,000 crore worth Propylene Derivative Petrochemical Project (PDPP) will produce Acrylic Acid, Oxo-Alcohol and Acrylates, which are mainly imported in India. He also inaugurated the Ro-Ro vessels of Inland Waterways Authority in Kochi, Kerala

Notes:
As per the recent report released by Tracxn, a company which tracks investments and financials, the number of start-ups founded in Bengaluru has been higher than in San Francisco, United States in the past five years.
In 2015, 3,080 firms were founded in the Indian city, as against 2,040 companies in San Francisco. Similarly, in 2020, 805 firms were founded in Bengaluru, whereas the US city’s count was 619. Bengaluru has around 13,000 active start-ups, at present.

Notes:
Indian Origin investment and development banker Preeti Sinha has been appointed as the Executive Secretary of UN Capital Development Fund.
It is an organisation that provides micro finance access to Least Developed Countries (LDCs). It is headquartered in New York.

Notes:
Global Ratings major “S&P Global Ratings” has projected Indian economy to grow at 10% for the next financial year 2021-22.
This is 1% less than the growth projections made by the Economic Survey (11%) for the next financial year. S&P’s projections is based on continued normalisation of economic activities in India.

Notes:
The Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) has unveiled the draft blue economy policy in the public domain, inviting suggestions and inputs from various stakeholders.
The draft policy document highlights the strategy that can be adopted by the government to utilise the oceanic resources available in the country. It also has recognised seven thematic areas.

Notes:
India is set to host a virtual South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) meet to discuss on management and response of Covid-19 pandemic.
This health secretary-level meet virtually with other SAARC countries, will be conducted as a virtual workshop to exchange best practices amid the pandemic. In 2014, Nepal hosted a SAARC leaders’ summit, which was the most recent meeting of the countries.

Notes:
The United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres proposed that the G-20 association set up an emergency task force to prepare a “Global Vaccination Plan” against Covid-19.
As per the UN, this task force should include all countries that are capable of developing vaccines or to produce them, along with vaccination organisations, other technical organisations and international financial institutions.

Notes:
India-Singapore CEO Forum was recently organised by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) and FICCI.
The India-Singapore CEO Forum was launched in November 2018. Union Minister Piyush Goyal addressed the forum and expressed that both the countries can work together in areas such as e-commerce, fintech, smart manufacturing and healthcare.

Notes:
The Smart Cities Mission, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, recently announced twenty-five shortlisted cities for the ‘Nurturing Neighbourhoods Challenge’ cohort.
This challenge is a three-year initiative aimed to support early childhood-friendly neighbourhoods under the Smart Cities Mission of the Central Government. Over 300 pilot projects were proposed in the challenge that would improve quality of life for over 12 lakh children.