Current affairs notes on 01/03/2019-05/03/2019

1.Indian badminton player and Olympic silver-medallist PV Sindhu co-piloted the indigenously made combat fighter jet "Tejas" at the Aero India 2019 as part of the Women's Day observed at the air show, becoming the first ever woman to co-pilot Tejas.

2.Prime Minister Narendra Modi conferred the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prizes for Science and Technology for the years 2016, 2017 and 2018 in New Delhi. There were 34 prize winners. The Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize is the most coveted national recognition bestowed upon young scientists and engineers to honour their research and developmental work in India.

3.The Union Human Resource Minister Prakash Javadekar launched the STARS scheme on National Science Day that is 28th February. STARS is abbreviated as Scheme for Translational and Advanced Research in Science.Theme for the 2019 NSD is, 'Science for the People and the People for Science'.

4.Suresh Raina has become the first Indian batsman to cross 8000 runs in T20 cricket.

5.National Boxing champion Deepak Singh (49kg) was the only Indian boxer to notch up the gold medal, while five others claimed silver medals in the Makran Cup in Chabahar, Iran. 

6.Indian shooter won women's 10m Air Rifle and bagged India's first gold medal by breaking the world record in the Shooting World Cup 2019.

7.The Union Minister for Science & Technology, Earth Sciences and Environment, Forest & Climate Change, Dr. Harsh Vardhan unveiling the plaque to inaugurate Atal Bhavan, the new campus of Centre for Marine Living Resources and Ecology (CMLRE), at Puthuvype, Cochin, in Kerala.

8.Zero Discrimination Day UN observed on 1st March is an annual worldwide event that promotes diversity and recognizes that everyone counts. Butterfly is the symbol for Zero Discrimination Day

9.Rice Knowledge Bank-Assam, which is an agriculture web portal is dedicated to magnify knowledge on rice production technologies and techniques, best production practices and state agriculture facts, was launched under World Bank funded project - Agri-business and Rural Transformation (APART).

10.Border Security Force (BSF) and Border Guards Bangladesh (BGB) took part in the 3-day 'Mainamati Maitree Exercise 2019' as a part of 'Confidence Building Measures' between India and Bangladesh held in Agartala, Tripura.

11.The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi approved the 'Pradhan Mantri Jaiv Indhan- Vatavaran Anukool fasal awashesh Nivaran (JI-VAN) Yojana' for providing financial support to the Integrated Bioethanol Projects.

12."Mukhyamantri Parivar Samman Nidhi" scheme was launched by Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar inChandigarh. It is primarily meant for farmers of the state who cultivate on land with areas upto five acres and the families with an income of less than Rs. 15,000 per month.

13.The 79th Indian History Congress (IHC) was held at Barkatullah University in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh from 26 to 28 February 2019.

14.Union Cabinet approved the establishment of a New Greenfield Airport at Hirasar in Rajkot, Gujarat.

15.Macky Sall has been re-elected for a second term as President of Senegal.

16.Bhagwan Lal Sahni appointed as new Chairman of the newly constituted National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC).The NCBC was given constitutional status by Parliament in 2018, after repealing the National Commission for Backward Classes Act, 1993.

17.Anil Kumble, a former Indian captain of Tests and ODIs, has been reappointed as the Chairman of the International Cricket Council (ICC).

18.According to the Delta ranking report released by NITI Aayog, Assam's Hailakandi has become the top aspirational district among the 112 aspirational districts of the country.

19.Abu Dhabi hosted the 46th session of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organisation of Islamic Co-operation (OIC).This is the first time that India participated in the meeting. Sushama swaraj  was welcomed as a "guest of honour".

20.World Wildlife Day is observed on 3rd March every year to spread awareness about wildlife. On this day, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) was signed. 

21.Cabinet approves investment proposal for transmission component of Arun-3 Hydro Electric Project (Nepal portion) by Sutlej Jal Vikas Nigam(SJVN) Limited.

22.In a bid to promote digital transactions, the Indian Rail Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has launched its much awaited payment aggregator system ‘IRCTC iPay’.

23.The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has constituted a panel under the former deputy governor Usha Thorat to examine issues related to offshore rupee markets and recommend policy measures to ensure the stability of the external value of the domestic currency.

24.Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently launched a National Common Mobility Card (NCMC). ‘One Nation One Card’, the inter-operable transport card would allow the holders to pay for their bus travel, toll taxes, parking charges, retail shopping and even withdraw money.

25.ISRO has launched a special programme for school children called Yuva Vigyani Karyakram or Young Scientist Programme.

26.‘The New Delhi Declaration on Asian Rhinos 2019’ for the conservation and protection of the species,The greater one-horned rhinoceros India’s Kaziranga National Park, Assam remains the key reserve for this species.

Thanks..