1. Saurashtra beat Bengal by 9 wickets to bag second Ranji Trophy title
Tags: Sports Sports News
Saurashtra won the Ranji Trophy 2022-23 title by defeating Bengal by 9 wickets in the final match played on February 19, thanks to the superb bowling of team captain and left arm pacer Jaydev Unadkat.
An overview of the news
Saurashtra won their second Ranji Trophy title at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. Saurashtra won the Ranji Trophy title for the first time in 2019-20.
Saurashtra needed 14 runs to win, which they achieved at the loss of 1 wicket in 2.4 overs.
This is the second title win of the Saurashtra team in the last three seasons.
Jaydev Unadkat and Chetan Sakariya, who were the heroes of Saurashtra's victory, together broke the back of Bengal's batting, and the team could only manage 241 runs in the second innings.
Unadkat took 9 wickets, while Chetan Sakaria took 6 wickets.
Saurashtra won the toss in the match and decided to bowl first.
Bengal could score only 174 runs in the first innings while batting.
Unadkat took three wickets while Chetan Sakaria also took three wickets. Chirag Jani and DA Jadeja got two wickets each.
Saurashtra then took a huge lead over Bengal by scoring 404 runs in the first innings.
The second innings was also poor for Bengal and the team could only manage 241 runs. In such a situation, he could get a slight lead of 11 runs over Saurashtra.
Saurashtra captain Unadkat was adjudged man of the match for his nine-wicket haul in the match, while teammate Arpit Vasavada was adjudged player of the Ranji season.
Brief Scores
Bengal - 174 and 241 in 70.4 overs (Manoj Tiwary 68, Anustup Majumdar 61; Jaydev Unadkat 6/85, Chetan Sakariya 3/76).
Saurashtra - 404 and 14/1 in 2.4 overs.
Ranji Trophy Tournament
The Ranji Trophy tournament has been played since 1934.
The first match was played between Madras and Mysore at the Chepauk Ground from 4 November 1934.
Mumbai has won this tournament 41 times.
For the first time in 86 years, the 2020/21 season Ranji Trophy had to be cancelled due to Corona.
Ranji Trophy is named after Maharaja Ranjit Singh.
Number of teams- 37
Most runs - Wasim Jaffer (10665)
Most wickets - Rajinder Goyal (640)
2. Ben Stokes breaks world record for smashing most sixes in Test cricket history
Tags: Sports Sports News
England Test captain Ben Stokes on 18 February became the player to hit the most number of sixes in the history of Test cricket, surpassing England coach and former New Zealand cricketer Brendon McCullum in the match against New Zealand.
An overview of the news
Stokes holds the world record for hitting two sixes in the second innings of the first Test between England and New Zealand at Mount Maunganui (New Zealand).
Stokes played an innings of 31 runs in 33 balls, which included three fours and two sixes.
Wicket-keeper Tom Blundell stumped him off the bowling of all-rounder Michael Bracewell.
In 90 Test matches, Stokes scored a total of 5,652 runs at an average of 36.00 with 109 sixes and 12 centuries and 28 fifties.
His individual best score in Tests is 258.
McCullum has 107 sixes in 101 Tests. He scored 6,453 runs at an average of 38.64. He has 12 centuries and 31 fifties in Tests with a best score of 302.
Batsman who hit most sixes in test cricket
Australia's Adam Gilchrist is third after Stokes (109) and McCullum (107) to hit 100 sixes in Test cricket.
Chris Gayle of West Indies is fourth in the list with 98 sixes and Jacques Kallis of South Africa is fifth with 97 sixes.
India's Virender Sehwag is in sixth place, he has hit 91 sixes. Sehwag is the Indian to hit the most sixes in Tests.
3. Qatar lifts ban on frozen seafood from India
Tags: International News
Marine Products Exports Development Authority (MPEDA) has said that Qatar partially lifted a ban imposed last year on the import of frozen seafood from India on 18 February.
An overview of the news
The ban will continue on exports of chilled seafood, which accounts for about a third of the West Asian country's total seafood exports in 2021-22 with the worth of Rs 143 crore.
Frozen seafood is stored at minus 20 degrees, while chilled seafood is stored at 3-4 degrees Celsius.
In the current financial year, India's seafood exports to the West Asian country stood at around Rs 90 crore, with prawns taking the number one spot.
China has also lifted the suspension of shipments from 99 Indian seafood processing and export units.
Now seafood exports are expected to cross USD 8 billion in the current fiscal.
Why was the ban imposed?
This ban was imposed in November 2022.
Vibrio cholerae, the bacteria that causes cholera infection, was reportedly detected in consignments exported from India to Qatar ahead of the FIFA World Cup. After this these food products were banned.
4. Khalistan Tiger Force and Jammu and Kashmir Ghaznavi Force declared as terrorist organisations
Tags: National National News
The central government on 17 February declared Khalistan Tiger Force, and Jammu and Kashmir Ghaznavi Force as terrorist organisations under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
An overview of the news
Apart from this, Punjab resident Harvinder Singh Sandhu alias Rinda, the mastermind of the 2021 attack on the intelligence headquarters of Punjab Police, has been declared a terrorist.
The government has so far designated 54 individuals as terrorists and 44 organisations as terrorist organisations.
Khalistan Tiger Force
It came into existence in 2011 as an offshoot of terrorist organization Babbar Khalsa International.
It is a banned organisation under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA).
It is a militant organization whose aim is to revive militancy in Punjab.
This organisation is promoting various acts of terrorism including targeted killings in Punjab.
Its agenda is the formation of a separate state of Khalistan.
Jammu and Kashmir Ghaznavi Force (JKGF)
It has been formed with cadres of terrorist organisations like Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed.
It has been found involved in infiltration attempts, smuggling of narcotics and arms and carrying out terrorist attacks in Jammu and Kashmir.
It draws its cadres from Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Mohammed, Tehreek-ul-Mujahideen, Harkat-ul-Jihad-e-Islami and various banned terrorist organisations.
Harvinder Singh Sandhu alias Rinda
He hails from Lahore and is associated with the banned Babbar Khalsa International (BKI), a terrorist-designated group.
He is accused of masterminding the attack on the intelligence headquarters of the Punjab Police in 2021.
He has direct links with Pakistan-based terrorist groups and is also involved in large-scale smuggling of drugs, arms, ammunition and militant hardware.
He has been involved in various crimes like murder, attempt to murder, contract killing, dacoity and extortion in Punjab, Maharashtra, Haryana, West Bengal, Himachal Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.
He is the 54th person to be declared a terrorist by the government.
5. AICTE and BPRD Jointly Launch KAVACH-2023
Tags: National National News
A national level hackathon KAVACH-2023 was launched on 16 February to identify innovative ideas and technological solutions to address India's 21st century cyber security and cybercrime challenges.
An overview of the news
KAVACH-2023 is a one-of-a-kind national hackathon jointly developed by AICTE, Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPRD) and Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre.
It identifies innovative ideas and technological solutions to address 21st century cyber security and cybercrime challenges faced by law enforcement agencies and common citizens.
KAVACH-2023 will be organised in two phases.
In the first phase, topics related to Fake News/Social Media, Dark Web, Women Safety, Phishing Detection, Video Analytics/CCTV, Obscene Content Detection, Spam Alerts, and Malware Analysis/Digital Forensics will be covered.
6. President of India inaugurates International Engineering and Technology Fair 2023
Tags: Festivals National News
President Droupadi Murmu on 16 February inaugurated the International Engineering and Technology Fair (IETF) 2023 in New Delhi.
An overview of the news
This event is being organised from 16 to 18 February at Pragati Maidan.
The International Engineering and Technology Fair is organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).
The event is not only a celebration of India's growth story in engineering and manufacturing sectors, but also a testimony to collaboration with other countries in the best advanced technologies in the world.
IETF-2023 covers 11 areas of emerging technologies that will have a profound impact on the economy and society.
IETF-2023 is a determined effort to showcase engineering and technologies that promote harmony between nature and science.
7. Dr Mansukh Mandaviya inaugurates IFFCO Nano Urea Liquid Plants at Aonla and Phulpur in UP
Tags: National News
Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Chemicals and Fertilizers, Dr Mansukh Mandaviya inaugurated the IFFCO Nano Urea Liquid Plants at Aonla and Phulpur in Uttar Pradesh on 14 February.
An overview of the news
Nano Urea will ensure the progress of the farmers in times to come, increasing their income.
In this way it will change the future of Indian farmers.
Nano Urea is the best green technology and provides a solution to pollution.
It protects the soil and also increases the production and hence best for the farmers.
Nano DAP has been approved by the expert committee of the government and it will soon replace DAP.
Nano-DAP will greatly benefit farmers and will be available at half the cost of DAP.
What is Liquid Nano Urea (LNU)?
Nano urea is a liquid form of nitrogen providing plant nutrient as a conventional alternative to urea.
It has been developed in place of conventional urea and has the potential to reduce the requirement of conventional urea by at least 50 percent.
One 500 ml bottle contains 40,000 mg/l nitrogen, which can provide nitrogen nutrients equivalent to one bag/sack of normal urea.
The effectiveness of Nano Urea Liquid is more than 80%.
Its use has been found to increase the yield by about 8%.
Its aim is to reduce farmers’ dependence on packaged urea.
8. Cabinet approves signing of the MoU between the India and South Africa for cooperation in Disability Sector
Tags: National National News
The Union Cabinet on 15 February approved the signing of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) between India and South Africa for cooperation in the 'disability sector'.
An overview of the news
It aims to encourage cooperation between the Department for the Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities and South Africa through joint initiatives in the disability sector.
It will strengthen bilateral relations between India and South Africa.
This MoU will benefit a large number of Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) in both the countries, especially those who are in need of modern, scientific, durable, low cost aids and assistive devices.
South Africa
President: Cyril Ramaphosa
Capitals: Cape Town (Legislative), Pretoria (Executive), Bloemfontein (Judicial)
Currency : Rand
9. India and Fiji sign MoU on visa exemption for holders of diplomatic and official passports
Tags: International Relations International News
India and Fiji signed a Memorandum of Understanding on visa exemption for diplomatic and official passport holders on 16 February in presence of External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Fiji Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka.
An overview of the news
Under this agreement, holders of diplomatic and official passports will be able to enter, transit and stay in each other's territory without a visa for a period of 90 days.
India and Fiji share close and long-standing relations and the two countries also reviewed bilateral relations.
India and Fiji have inaugurated the solarisation of the State House in Suva and this is the first of a series that India is supporting in the Pacific Islands.
It shows India's commitment towards climate action.
The Visa Waiver Agreement will be helpful in encouraging greater travel between the two countries.
Republic of Fiji
It is an archipelago consisting of around 300 islands in the South Pacific Ocean.
Capital: Suva
Currency: Fijian Dollar
President : Wiliame Katonivere
Prime Minister: Sitiveni Rabuka
10. Bollywood actor Javed Khan Amrohi passes away
Tags: Person in news
Bollywood actor Javed Khan Amrohi passed away due to lung failure at a Mumbai hospital on 14 February.
An overview of the news
Amrohi is survived by a son and a daughter.
He worked in more than 150 films with many big stars including Shah Rukh Khan to Aamir Khan and Salman Khan.
Javed Khan last worked in the year 2020 in Alia Bhatt and Aditya Roy Kapur starrer film 'Sadak 2'.
He started his career in 1973 with the film 'Jalte Badan'.
Apart from this, he worked in many best films like Satyam-Shivam-Sundaram, Prem Bandhan, Jhootha Kahin Ka, Prem Rog, Pasand Apni-Apni, Ram Teri Ganga Maili.
Apart from this, Doordarshan's famous show 'Nukkad' also gave him a lot of recognition, after that he also worked in Gulzar's 'Mirza Ghalib', in which his role of a fakir was highly appreciated.
Javed Khan was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor in 2001 for the film 'Lagaan'.
