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February 22, 2017

22nd February 2017 Important Daily Current Affairs

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Dear Great Ambitionists, here are today's (22nd February 2017) Important Current Affairs updates. Happy Reading :)

Daily Current Affairs of 22nd February 2017

International Current Affairs
  • The 9th BRICS Summit's first Sherpas Meeting will be held in Nanjing (Capital city of Jiangsu province of People's Republic of China), from tomorrow.
    • The 2-day meeting will attract more than 100 participants, including coordinators from all sides, foreign diplomats, and representatives from the BRICS New Development Bank (NDB).
    • Important Points to Note
      • The Sherpas Meeting, as a major channel to push forward BRICS cooperation, aims at political preparation for the leaders' meeting.
      • It is also routine for the BRICS chairmanship to hold several Sherpas Meetings before the summit.
      • The 9th BRICS Summit will be held in Xiamen in southeast China's Fujian Province.
  • Pakistan's top Shariat court has legalised using 'test tube baby' method of conceiving for married couples with medical complications. 
    • It is lawful only if the sperm belongs to the actual father and the egg of the actual mother and the child is born by the actual mother, the court added. 
    • The court further declared the practice of surrogacy as "un-Islamic".
  • Turkey's army is lifting a historic ban on female officers wearing the Islamic headscarf in the officially secular country.
    • This move applies to female officers working in general staff, command headquarters and branches. 
  • Canada's second most populous city Montreal has voted unanimously on a legislation to declare itself a sanctuary city to allow undocumented immigrants access to city-funded services such as shelters, housing and food banks.

National Current Affairs
  • Indian Navy's aircraft carrier INS Viraat will be decommissioned from service on March 6.
    • Viraat is the oldest surviving aircraft carrier in the world, and holds a Guinness world record for the same.
    • INS Viraat was first commissioned in the Indian Navy on May 12, 1987, and had previously served the United Kingdom Royal Navy for 27 years.
    • The decommissioning ceremony will be attended, among other dignitaries, by defence minister Manohar Parrikar.
  • The Supreme Court today ordered the state governments and local bodies to stop electricity supply to polluting industries that fail to set up an effluent treatment plant. 
    • The court gave authorities six months to set up effluent plants for industrial areas. 
    • The state pollution control boards should inspect the status of the plants after three months, it added.
  • The government has launched free anti-virus softwares for smartphones and personal computers named 'Mkavach' and 'Samvid' respectively. 
    • Another software named 'USBPratirodh' has been launched to control the unauthorised usage of removable USB storage devices. 
    • The launches are a part of government's new 'Cyber Swachhta Kendra' project where it will spend ₹90 crore over five years on cyber security.
  • The 1st heliport in India was inaugurated by Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju in North Delhi
    • The heliport, built by state-owned Pawan Hans, consists of a terminal building, nine parking bays and four hangars with a parking capacity of 16 helicopters.
    • It was built at an investment of ₹100 crore.
  • The Jammu and Kashmir government has put a cap on the number of guests for a daughter's wedding at 500, and for a son's wedding at 400 starting April 1. 
    • The number of guests has been restricted to 100 for smaller functions like engagements. 
    • The state government has also banned sending sweets or dry fruits with wedding invitation cards.
  • Punjab Government has banned the manufacture, storage, sale or distribution of gutkha, pan masala, processed/flavoured/scented chewing tobacco and any other food products containing tobacco or nicotine as ingredients for a period of one year.

Business & Economic Affairs
  • The Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has introduced a Common Form to let people make different types of money withdrawals from their PF account. 
    • Fund subscribers will no longer require filing documents like marriage invitation cards for taking advances. 
    • The forms, besides the ones for advances and withdrawals, have been replaced with a single page Composite Claim Form (Aadhaar).
  • The government today approved a 900 MW hydropower project worth ₹5,723.72 crore to be set up in Nepal's Sankhuwasabha district
    • An MoU for the project, to be implemented within five years, was signed in 2008. 
    • It would be implemented by a subsidiary of the state-owned SJVN, which is a joint venture between the Centre and the Himachal Pradesh government.
 Awards & Honors
  • PM Narendra Modi has become the most followed world leader on Facebook, with nearly 40 million followers, according to PR firm Burson-Marsteller which studied world's 169 governments.

People in News
  • Irom Sharmila-led PRJA party has fielded the first-ever Muslim woman candidate for Manipur, Najima Bibi, in the forthcoming Assembly elections. 
    • She is an active advocator for women's rights.

Deaths
  • Vitaly Churkin, who had served as Russia's permanent representative to the United Nations since 2006 died of heart attack. 
    • He had earlier served as the ambassador to Belgium, Canada and Liaison Ambassador to NATO and Western European Union.

General Knowledge
  • Bengali was announced as an official language in the west African nation of Sierra Leone to recognise the contributions of the Bangladeshi peacekeeping forces in the country's civil war. 
    • Bangladeshi forces, which constituted the largest part of the UN Mission, played an important part in fighting the rebels during the civil war, which lasted from 1991 to 2002.

Science & Technology
  • Scientists are embarking on an expedition to the Arctic to better understand climate change. 
    • The MOSAiC mission starting in 2019, would be the first in over a century after Norwegian explorer Fridtjof Nansen crossed the polar ice cap in 1894. 
    • During the year-long 2500-km trip, scientists would locally study the atmosphere, ice, and ocean via drones, remote stations, and satellites.

New Appointments
  • Shurhozelie Liezietsu was today sworn in as the new Chief Minister of Nagaland by Governor PB Acharya. 
    • The 81-year-old scholar had begun his political career as a member of Nagaland Legislative Assembly in 1969 from northern Angami-I under Kohima district. 
    • He has served the office eight times, holding different portfolios, including education and planning.
  • Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev today appointed his wife Mehriban Aliyev as the First Vice President of the country.
    • The position was created after a constitutional referendum in September last year. 
    • According to Azerbaijan's constitution, the First Vice President takes over the country's presidency if the president is unable to perform the duties.
  • Virat Kohli and Alia Bhatt will participate in Centre's gender equality campaign, 'WeAreEqual' on International Women's Day (8th March). 
    • The campaign will help highlight the need for an equal opportunity for women in the field of education, health, safety and dignity.
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