1 According to the estimates of global investment advisory firm Jefferies, India will become the third largest economy by the year 2027.
Global investment advisory firm Jefferies has projected an optimistic outlook for the Indian economy and investment. The New York- based company said that in the last ten years, fundamental structural reforms have taken place in India. According to the company , in the next four years, India’s economic growth will reach five trillion dollars. With this, India will become the third largest economy by the year 2027, leaving behind Japan and Germany . According to the company, India’s status as the fastest growing major economy will remain intact. According to the company, the Indian stock market will reach $10 trillion by the year 2030 . India’s market ranks 5th in the world after America, China, Japan and Hong Kong .
2 Dubai introduces 5-year multiple entry visa for Indian tourists to boost travel and economic ties
Dubai has implemented a five-year multiple entry visa system for Indian tourists . Its objective is to promote economic cooperation and encourage tourism and business relations. According to Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism-DET, this visa will be issued in two to five working days and will be allowed to stay in Dubai for ninety days . This visa can also be extended for a period of ninety days . But the duration of this visa cannot exceed 180 days in a year . Through this initiative, tourists can avail multiple entry and exit facilities. This visa also provides operational convenience for business, leisure travel and seamless connectivity.
3 Successful landing of America’s first private space craft Odysseus on the Moon.
Moon landing of the robotic spacecraft lander Odysseus of America ‘s private company Intuitive Machines has been done. Since the last Apollo mission in 1972, an American-made spacecraft has now landed on the surface of the Moon. The name of this spacecraft that landed on the moon is Odysseus or Audi . The United States’ Odysseus spacecraft successfully landed on the Moon on Thursday (local time), becoming the first US spacecraft to achieve this feat in more than 50 years. With this, Intuitive Machines (IM) – the commercial venture behind the Nova -C lander – has become the first private venture to make a successful landing on the lunar surface. The South Pole of the Moon is the same part near which India’s Chandrayaan 3’s Vikram Lander landed.
4 International Gita Mahotsav will be organized in Colombo from March 1.
Sri Lanka ‘s Minister of Buddhist Governance, Religious and Cultural Affairs Vidur Wickramanayake has said that the International Gita Mahotsav will be organized in Colombo from March 1 . In the steering committee meeting, the minister said that the objective of this festival is to popularize the timeless teachings of Srimad Bhagavad Geeta . The three-day International Geeta Mahotsav will be organized at Nelum Pokuna Theater Complex with the financial support of Kurukshetra Development Board, Haryana . Thousands of delegates from across the world are expected to attend the festival. There will be Geeta Yagya, Geeta chanting, Shobha Yatra, conferences on many topics of contemporary interest and many competitions. A copy of Srimad Bhagavad Gita will be presented in the Parliament of Sri Lanka on March 4.
5 CJI DY Chandrachud inaugurates AYUSH Holistic Health Center in Supreme Court Complex
Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud inaugurated the AYUSH Holistic Health Center in the Supreme Court Complex in New Delhi . Union AYUSH Minister Sarbananda Sonowal and Union Minister of State for AYUSH Munjpara Mahendrabhai were present on this occasion. On this occasion, an MoU was also signed between the Supreme Court and the All India Institute of Ayurveda regarding the establishment, operation of AYUSH Holistic Wellness Center and providing expert services. The AYUSH Holistic Wellness Center in the Supreme Court Complex is a state-of-the-art facility that provides holistic care for physical, mental and emotional well-being. It promotes the overall health of the judges and staff of the Supreme Court. This facility has been set up under the aegis of the Ministry of AYUSH with the active participation of All India Institute of Ayurveda. The Ayush Wellness Center in the Supreme Court Complex is an initiative of the Supreme Court of India in collaboration with the All India Institute of Ayurveda (AIIA) under the Ministry of AYUSH. All India Institute of Ayurveda (AIIA) has expanded its centers at many places like LABSNA, Safdarjung, IIT etc. Similarly, a holistic and integrated wellness center is also being opened for the judiciary, judges and other employees of the Supreme Court.
6 Class 10 and 12 board exams to be conducted twice a year from 2025
Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan announced on February 20, 2024 that students will have the option to appear twice in the annual secondary and higher secondary board examinations starting from the academic year 2025-26. The reformative measure is aimed at reducing exam stress in line with the objectives of the National Education Policy 2020. The decision comes in the wake of the emphasis on increasing learning flexibility in the National Education Policy 2020. Writing board exams twice provides more opportunities to improve performance rather than the high-risk one-shot annual paper – which is a major factor causing exam stress among students. This reform promises to be a transformative development in India’s assessment ecosystem by balancing excellence with mental well-being.
7 Shashi Tharoor awarded France’s highest civilian medal
On February 21, 2024, French authorities honored Indian Member of Parliament and author Shashi Tharoor with the highest French civilian honour, ‘Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur’ (Knight of the Legion of Honour ) . It recognizes his long-term contribution in promoting India-France relations. Dr. Tharoor is an acclaimed author, former diplomat and MP currently affiliated with the Indian National Congress party representing the Thiruvananthapuram constituency in the Lok Sabha.
8 Swami Prasad Maurya launched his new political party ‘Rashtriya Shoshit Samaj Party’
Before the Lok Sabha elections, Swami Prasad Maurya on Thursday launched his new political party ‘ Rashtriya Shoshit Samaj Party ‘. The party was announced during an event at Talkatora Stadium in the national capital Delhi . A large number of supporters of Swami Prasad Maurya were present during the program. In fact, along with leaving SP (Samajwadi Party), he had made it clear that he would form a new political party. Recently, Swami Prasad Maurya had resigned from SP, objecting to the political ideology of SP chief Akhilesh Yadav .
9 Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Singh Thakur launched four portals of the ministry
Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Singh Thakur launched four portals of the ministry . These include Press Service Portal, Central Bureau of Communications Portal and Website, Navigate India Portal and Local Cable Operators National Register Portal. On this occasion, Shri Thakur said that the objective of starting these portals is to bring transparency in the system and ease of doing business. Shri Thakur said that this will also reduce human interference and the functioning of the departments under the Ministry will become more efficient and transparent.
10 Union Cabinet approves ‘Fair and Remunerative Price’ (FRP) of sugarcane payable by sugar mills for sugar season 2024-25 (October-September)
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, approved raising the Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP) of sugarcane to ₹ 340/quintal at 10.25 percent sugar recovery rate for the sugar season 2024-25 . This is the historical price of sugarcane which is about 8 percent more than the FRP of sugarcane for the current season 2023-24. The revised FRP will come into effect from 01 October 2024. At 107 per cent more than the A2+FL price of sugarcane, the new FRP will ensure prosperity to sugarcane farmers. It is noteworthy that India is already paying the highest price for sugarcane in the world but despite this the government is providing the world’s cheapest sugar to the domestic consumers of India.
11 Reliance will launch AI chatbot ‘Hanuman’ next month
A high-profile consortium named ‘ BharatGPT ‘ comprising billionaire Mukesh Ambani ‘s Reliance Industries along with eight elite Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) and the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) has signed an agreement to develop an indigenous alternative to the popular conversational AI chatbot ChatGPT by March 2024. Launch timeline announced. The AI model – named Hanooman – is expected to establish India as a global contender in cutting-edge generative language technologies.
12 At the Asian Track Cycling Championships in Delhi, India won gold medal in the junior women’s team sprint event.
India won the gold medal in the junior women’s team sprint event at the Asian Track Cycling Championships at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in Delhi . Sarita Kumari, Nia Sebastian, Jaina Mohammad Ali Parikhan and Sabina Kumari were included in this winning team. Men’s junior team won the silver medal. This team included Narayan Mahato, Syed Khalid Baghi and Mayangalambam Wattaba. Para team sprint event Arshad Shaikh, Jalaluddin Ansari and Basavaraj Horady also won silver medal .