Union Cabinet has approved the Pesticide Management Bill 2020. Briefing reporters in New Delhi yesterday, Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar said, the legislation will promote organic pesticides in the country. Major Ports Authority Bill to enhance overall efficiencies of the ports was cleared by the Cabinet.

Cabinet has also approved changes in the Direct Tax Vivad se Vishwas Bill, 2020. The bill seeks to increase its scope to cover litigations pending in various debt recovery tribunals (DRTs).

In another decision, the Cabinet has given in-principle approval for capital infusion of  2,500 crore rupees in three Public Sector General Insurance Companies. They are Oriental Insurance Company Limited, National Insurance Company Limited and United India Insurance Company Limited. The decision has been taken in the wake of the critical financial position and breach of regulatory solvency requirements of these companies.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah will inaugurate a two-day Conference on Combating Drug Trafficking for BIMSTEC Partner Nations in New Delhi today. The conference is being organized by Narcotics Control Bureau. This platform will provide an opportunity to all the member nations to deliberate on the increased threats posed by drug trafficking.

Asian countries are increasingly being affected by drug trafficking and BIMSTEC is one of the most effective platforms to tackle this global threat. The BIMSTEC is a regional organization comprising seven Member States lying in the littoral and adjacent areas of the Bay of Bengal - Bangladesh, Bhutan, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand besides India.

Aam Aadmi Party national convener Arvind Kejriwal will take oath as the Chief Minister of Delhi for the third time on February 16 at Ramlila Maidan, Deputy CM Manish Sisodia confirmed via a press conference in Delhi on February 12.

Invites are expected to go out to all political stalwarts from India, cutting across ideologies.

The two-time CM of the National Capital won the Delhi Assembly elections with a thumping majority by securing more than 60 seats, slightly short of the 67-seat benchmark it had set for itself in the previous polls.

Notably, the post of CM was abolished in Delhi for years, interspersed with President's rule a couple of times.

World Health Organisation (WHO), on February 11, announced that the novel Coronavirus 2019 would officially be called Covid-19.

WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced the official name on Twitter. “Having a name matters to prevent the use of other names that can be inaccurate or stigmatizing,” Ghebreyesus said.

The ‘Co’ stands for corona, ‘vi’ for virus, ‘d’ for disease, and the ’19’ stands for the year of its outbreak. Tedros said the name had been chosen to avoid references to a specific geographical location, animal species or group of people in line with international recommendations for naming aimed at preventing stigmatisation.

Taking a unique initiative to solve the queries of students ahead of the Board Examinations starting next week, Uttar Pradesh Government has launched toll-free helpline numbers.

Launching the helpline numbers yesterday Deputy Chief Minister, Dinesh Sharma said that a senior officer of Uttar Pradesh Madhyamik Shiksha Parishad is also designated as Nodal Officer so that students get maximum benefit.

AIR correspondent reports that The helpline numbers will remain active from 8 am to 8 pm. In case students have any queries regarding the board exams they can connect at the helpline numbers, 1800-180-5310 and 18001805312.

Experts of different subjects including English, life sciences, geography, general science, Hindi, Sanskrit, chemistry will be available on call on these numbers. Academicians will be open to queries regarding any subject,.

India forward Lalremsiami has been named as the 2019 FIH Women's Rising Star of the Year by the International Hockey Federation.  

Announcing the awards today the FIH said that 19-year-old Lalremsiami took the prize ahead of Argentina's Julieta Jankunas and Frederique Matla of the Netherlands.

The player from Mizoram got 40 per cent of all the votes cast. She got 47.7 per cent of her votes from among national associations, while the media, fans/players contributed 28.4 per cent and 36.4 per cent respectively.

Lalremsiami first came into the wider hockey consciousness at the Hockey Women's World Cup in 2018 when she was one of the stand-out players of the tournament.

Since then she has been at the heart of the rise of the Indian women's hockey team.

Ace cuiest Aditya Mehta defeated multiple-time world champion Pankaj Advani 6-2 to win the National Snooker Championship here.

Mehta, who represented the Petroleum Sports Promotion Board (PSPB) in the clash on Sunday night, started off with a bang after wining the first frame with a break of 103 while the score remained 103-17.

He lost the next two frames with a close margin of 50 -58, 47-48 and it looked like Advani was staging a comeback.

But, Mehta held his nerves and claimed all the following four frames to win the title with a 6-2 score line in the best of 11 frames.

“This title will be very special to me since it’s coming after four years. I was nursing an injury which kept me off the tables,” Mehta was quoted as saying on Monday.

Today is World Unani Day. This day is celebrated every year to mark the birth anniversary of great Unani scholar and social reformer Hakim Ajmal Khan. He was an eminent Indian Unani physician who was a versatile genius, a great scholar, a social reformer, a noted freedom fighter, a Unani medical educationist and founder of scientific research in Unani System of Medicine. He was one of the founders of the Jamia Millia Islamia in New Delhi.

The main objective of World Unani Day is to spread awareness about health care delivery through Unani system of medicine through its preventive and curative philosophy.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will be the Chief Guest at the function being organized by AYUSH Ministry in New Delhi on this occasion.

US President Donald Trump will arrive on a state visit to India on 24th of this month. This will be the President's first visit to India. He will be accompanied by First Lady Melania Trump.

An official release said that during the visit, President Trump and the First Lady will attend official engagements in New Delhi and Gujarat, and interact with a wide cross-section of Indian society.

AIR correspondent reports the global strategic partnership between India and the US is based on trust, shared values, mutual respect and understanding, and marked by warmth and friendship between the peoples of the two countries. The relationship has further evolved under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi and President Trump, with significant progress in all areas including trade, defence, counter-terrorism, and energy. The visit will provide an opportunity for the two leaders to review progress in bilateral ties and further strengthen our strategic partnership.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has announced that his government will give internship to youth to brighten employment prospects for them.

The chief minister made the announcement during a job fair organised by the Department of Labour and Employment Exchange yesterday in Gorakhpur.