Chairman, Railway Board, Shri Vinod Kumar Yadav launched HRMS Mobile App today which has been designed and developed by Centre for Railway Information System (CRIS). All employees of Indian Railways can now see data related to their service and communicate with administration for any changes, if required.

India’s proposal to include Great Indian Bustard, Asian Elephant and Bengal Florican in Appendix I of UN Convention on migratory species was unanimously accepted today at the ongoing thirteenth Conference of the Parties to the Convention on MigratorySpecies (CMS) in Gandhinagar.

The 4th Anniversary of the launch of Shyama Prasad Mukherji Rurban Mission (SPMRM) will be observed tomorrow. On 21st February 2016, the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi launched the Mission with the vision to deliver catalytic interventions to rural areas on the threshold of growth.

The Indian Navy Hydrographic Survey Ship, INS Jamuna is on a deployment to carry out Joint Hydrographic Survey off the South – West coast of Sri Lanka wef 06 Feb 20. A team of Sri Lankan Navy hydrographers including officers and sailors have also been embarked onboard for the duration of the survey.

Rear Admiral Sanjay Jasjit Singh AVSM, NM took over as the Commandant of the prestigious Naval War College, Goa on 18 Feb 20. He has held a wide range of operational, training and staff appointments over the past three decades.

"People from different states of India have different ways of greeting each other, but only Arunachalis greet each other with 'Jai Hind', which is a shining example of patriotic fervour for the rest of India", said Shri Amit Shah, Union Minister for Home Affairs while presiding over the 34th Statehood Day celebrations of Arunachal Pradesh, in Itanagar today.

The Vice President of India, Shri M Venkaiah Naidu today urged the youth to take a firm resolve to shun negativism and join the forces of growth. He asked the youth to take the lead in fighting corruption, terrorism, extremism, religious fundamentalism, casteism, and gender discrimination.

RailMadad, the grievance redressal portal of Indian Railways, has been awarded Silver under Category II of National e-Governance Awards – “Excellence in providing Citizen-centric Delivery”.

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has greeted the people of Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh, on their Statehood Day.

“On the occasion of their Statehood Day, greetings to the wonderful people of Mizoram.

The Anti Evasion wing of CGST Delhi South Commissionerate has detected a case of Input Tax credit fraud through fake invoices issued by bogus firms. Investigations led to discovering the accused had also been generating bogus e-way bills to back the fake invoices.

Finance Minister Piyush Goyal has said that independent asset management companies (AMCs) and steering committees will be set up for faster resolution...

The US President will begin his maiden visit to India from Ahmedabad on the 24th of this month. The two-day visit is also going to be the first stand alone visit by a US President to India.

Briefing media this afternoon, External Affairs Ministry Spokesman Raveesh Kumar said, all issues including defence, security and trade are expected to come up during the restricted and delegation level talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the US President to be held on the 25th of this month in New Delhi.

With President Trump claiming that India has not treated his country very well on the trade front, Mr Kumar said the context in which the remarks were made was balance of trade and there have been efforts to address the concerns. He said, it is important to understand the context in which the remarks were made.

On how many agreements will be signed during the US President's visit to India on the 24th of this month, the Spokesman said, around five MoUs are under discussion. Replying to a question on when Indo-US trade deal will be signed, Mr Kumar said, they do not want to create any artificial deadline.
 

Federal Prosecutors are treating the case in the city of Hanau as terrorism, with authorities saying indications point to an anti-foreigner motive. Some of those killed were believed to be of Turkish origin.

Police said that the 43-year-old suspect killed himself and was found dead at his home along with the body of his mother.

The Bild tabloid reports the suspect was a German citizen with a firearms license and that ammunition and gun magazines were found in his car.

The shootings took place yesterday and the first target was the Midnight shisha bar in the city centre of Hanau. 

The meeting came a day after the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teertha Kshetra Trust was set up to oversee the construction of a Ram temple in Ayodhya.

Yesterday, Mahant Nritya Gopal Das was elected as the President of the trust whereas Champat Rai was elected General Secretary.

The 15-member trust was formed in adherence to the Supreme Court verdict on the Ayodhya dispute in November last year. 

Authorities were searching for the perpetrators early Thursday, hours after the shootings that police said also wounded about five people. Police said a dark vehicle was spotted leaving the location of the first attack at about 10 p.m. (2100 GMT), and another shooting was reported at a second site.

 Police officers swarmed central Hanau, cordoning off the area of one of the shootings as a helicopter hovered overhead. A car covered in thermal foil also could be seen, with shattered glass next to it. Forensic experts in white overalls collected evidence.  A short police statement gave no information on the victims and said a motive was not immediately known. "This was a terrible evening that will certainly occupy us for a long, long time and we will remember with sadness," Hanau Mayor Claus Kaminsky told the Bild newspaper.

Regional public broadcaster Hessischer Rundfunk said, without citing sources, that the first attack took place in a hookah lounge in the center of the city. It said witnesses reported hearing eight or nine shots and seeing at least one person on the ground. The shooter or shooters then apparently went to another part of the city, where shots were fired inside another hookah lounge, the broadcaster said.

Hookah lounges are places where people gather to smoke flavored tobacco from Middle Eastern water pipes. Hanau is in southwestern Germany, about 20 kilometers (12 miles) east of Frankfurt. It has about 100,000 inhabitants and is located in Hesse state. Police from neighboring Bavaria were deployed to help their local colleagues, news agency dpa reported. 

Earlier, Dr Jaishankar held a very good meeting with his German counterpart Heiko Maas and thanked him for the support his country in expanding cooperation between India and the European Union (EU). The External Affairs Minister, who was in Germany during the weekend for the Munich Security Conference, arrived in Berlin on Monday to prepare the ground for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's planned visit for the India-EU summit in Brussels next month.

On Tuesday, Jaishankar met German Defence Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer in Berlin and discussed Afghanistan and policies in the Indo-Pacific region. On Monday, he held discussions with members of the European Parliament, who represented a broad spectrum of politics and member states, over political, economic and social issues.

A statement called the decision the first phase of France's energy strategy set out in 2018 by President Emmanuel Macron. The plan calls for a re-balancing of nuclear-produced energy and electricity derived from renewable sources.

The statement said, coal plants will be closed by 2022 to reduce greenhouse gases. It said, Reactor No 1 will be halted on Saturday and the entire complex will come to a halt on 30th June.

Germany has long called for the plant to be shut down. It is the first nuclear complex to be closed under President Macron's plan.

The program will work towards ensuring that no one is left behind and everyone uses a toilet. The phase-2 of the mission will be implemented in a mission mode with a total estimated budgeted financial implication of 52 thousand 497 crore rupees.

The ODF Plus programme will also converge with MGNREGA, especially for grey water management and will also complement the newly launched Jal Jeevan Mission. 

A special ceremony was held at the Nepal Army Pavilion Tudikhel in Kathmandu to mark the occasion. President Bidya Devi Bhandari, Vice President Nanda Bahadur Pun, Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, Speaker of the House of Representatives, National Assembly Chairperson, Chief Justice, cabinet ministers, members of parliament, senior government officials and people from all walks of life attended the ceremony.

In his address Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli said after resolving conflict Nepal is now moving towards economic and social transformation. He said Nepal has created its identity in the world and increased its prestige at various international fourms. Mr. Oli said his government has completed two years after 2017 historic elections.

First year was base for laying foundation of the government and now on his government is working for prosperity of the country. Prime Minister Oli also paid tribute to the martyrs who had sacrificed their lives in the struggle for democracy. Every year, Falgun 7 of the Nepali calendar is commemorated as the National Democracy Day in Nepal. In 2007 Bikram Sambat, on this day, democracy was established in the Himalayan nation ending over a century old autocratic Rana regime.

Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat: Buddhist heritage of Odisha

The scheme aims at issuing soil health cards to farmers every two years so as to provide a basis to address nutritional deficiencies in soil. The scheme ensures additional income to farmers by increase in yields and it also promotes sustainable farming.

Launching the scheme, Prime Minister Modi said, the farmers should know the health status of soil. He said, if soil will not be healthy, the farm production will not increase.
 
Agriculture Secretary Sanjay Agarwal termed it a very important scheme and said that in the last five years crop production is continuously increasing due to this initiative.
 
The scheme has been introduced to assist State Governments to issue Soil Health Cards to all farmers in the country. It provides information to farmers on nutrient status of their soil along with recommendations on the appropriate dosage of nutrients to be applied for improving soil health and its fertility.

During Cycle-I (2015 to 17), 10.74 crore Soil Health Cards and during Cycle-II (2017 to 19), 11.74 crore Soil Health Cards have been distributed to farmers. The Government has spent more than 700 crore rupees on the SHC scheme.

Nagaland will be observing Soil Health Card Day ON Wednesday in all the 11 districts of the state in coordination with Krishi Vigyan Kendras. The day is being celebrated to create awareness, importance, values and benefits of the scheme.

Joint Director and State Nodal Officer of Soil Health Card and Management, Directorate of Soil and Water Conservation K. Khekiho Shohe said, the department has adopted one village each from 74 blocks of the 11 districts as a Pilot Village Project where the soil of each farmland will be analyzed and provided with Soil Health Card to every farmer of the pilot villages. He said, besides providing Soil Health Cards, organizing Kisan Mela and demonstration exercises in all the 74 villages will be followed in the coming months in order to familiarize the scheme with the stakeholders.

A regional workshop is being organized at ICAR Research Complex for North Eastern Hill Region in Umiam, Meghalaya with Minister of State for Agriculture & Farmers' Welfare Parshottam Rupala as the chief guest. The programme includes overview of Soil Health Cards, Integrated Nutrient Management, presentation and experience sharing by representatives from line departments and farmers from all the eight North Eastern states.

He said the policy is also driven by the principle of non seeking reciprocity. Ambassador Chinoy was  delivering key note address at a talk programme on "Nepal-India Ties and India's Neighbourhood First Policy" in Kathmandu on Tuesday evening. He said neighbouring countries should also be mindful of India's key concerns and sensitivities of security, economic future and prosperity.

Ambassador Chinoy said India would like to see prosperity in a broader context in terms of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas and Sabka Vishwas" motto. He said India and Nepal has age old friendship and bilateral relations have made significant progress in recent years.

Ambassador Chinoy said India is doing quite well in project delivery and many important projects including Motihari- Amlekhgunj petroleum pipeline and post earthquake housing reconstruction in Gorkha and Nuwakot districts have been completed much ahead of scheduled time. He also said future is bright and India and Nepal should work together to further strengthen bilateral relationship.

Eminent scholars, thinkers, former diplomats and security experts and journalists also participated in the programme.

The event was organised by Neeti Anusandhan Pratishthan, Nepal.

The death toll from China's coronavirus epidemic climbed to 1,868 on Tuesday morning as 98 more people died while the total number of confirmed cases jumped to 72,436.  

Of the new deaths, 93 were reported from Hubei Province, the epicentre of the virus, three from Henan, and one each from Hebei and Hunan.

Hubei reported 1,807 new confirmed cases, taking the total number of such cases to 59,989 in the province. Another 1,432 new suspected cases were reported from the rest of China.

A total of 358 people of 406 who were housed at an ITBP quarantine facility in Chhawla after being brought back from Wuhan have been released. All 406 have tested negative for novel Coronavirus in the latest sample examination and are being discharged in a phased manner . It is likely that all 406 will be released by Wednesday early morning from the ITBP Chhawla Centre. 

All released persons are advised to remain self isolated for the next 14 days at their respective places. They are also advised for do's and dont's during the period. 

Many of the people who were told that they would be allowed to go from the centre celebrated the moment with an impromptu dance and music show.

A total of 650 people were brought back from Wuhan in China on February 1 and 2 in two 747 Boeing Air India aircraft after the outbreak of the novel Coronavirus in China. While 406 of these are being looked after at the ITBP facility, rest are at an Army centre at Manesar in Haryana.
 

WHO also said that - with a mortality rate of around two percent, COVID-19 was "less deadly" than other Coronaviruses such as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome or Middle East Respiratory Syndrome.

WHO officials rejected the suggestion that all cruises should be halted to avoid risking a new nest of infection like the one on the coronavirus-hit Diamond Princess off Japan.
 

Allies of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei have ensured hardliners dominate the February 21 vote, removing moderates and leading conservatives and permitting voters a choice mostly between hardline and low-key conservative candidates loyal to him.

It is to be noted that the elections come at a crucial time for the country, as it seeks to resist and negotiate intense pressure and sanctions from the administration of United States President Donald Trump over its nuclear programme. 
 

The team, which arrived in Jaipur on Monday, will assess the damage in Bikaner and Jodhpur divisions in three parts. 

The central team will meet public representatives in Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, Jalore and Barmer. The team will also hold discussions with district collectors and representatives of Jodhpur, Barmer, Bikaner and other districts.

The state has witnessed the biggest ever locust attack in which almost 3.71 lakh hectares was damaged by locusts since May 2019. in some districts, the state government has already completed the crop assessment and distributed ex-gratia.
 

The CII-ITC Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Development, that supports the business community towards achieving sustainability has certified DIAL for its successful voluntary implementation of single-use plastic-free airport measures within IGI Airport's operations. 

In a statement, DIAL said our objective to make Delhi Airport free from single-use plastic is in line with Prime Minister's vision to abolish all single-use plastic from India by 2022. DIAL said it is committed to preserve the environment and do its bit.
 

The duo received the same number of votes, a first in the 20-year history of the awards with the jury unable to split Hamilton and Messi. Messi, the six-time FIFA World Player of the year, is the first team-player to bag the award. He though was not present to receive the award on Monday and sent a video message. They pipped golfing great Tiger Woods, Kenyan marathoner Eliud Kipchoge, tennis legend Rafael Nadal and MotoGP champion Marc Marquez.

American gymnast Simone Biles, who won five gold medals at the 2019 World Championships, grabbed the World Sportswoman of the year award, her third in four years after winning it in 2017 and 2019. She beat a strong challenge from Jamaican sprinting great Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, who missed out on the honour for the fifth time. She was nominated in 2010, 2013, 2014 and 2016 also but did not win it. The most decorated gymnast also beat competition from American footballer Megan Rapinoe, Japanese tennis sensation Naomi Osaka, American track and field athlete Allyson Felix and skier Mikaela Shiffrin.

The awards ceremony was hosted by actor Hugh Grant. A tribute was paid to American basketball legend Kobe Bryant, who recently died in a helicopter crash. Snowboarding sensation Chloe Kim won the World Action Sportsperson honour, her second straight in the same category. In the Sportsperson of the year with a disability category, Oksana Masters, born with limb impairments caused by radiation from Chernobyl and adopted by an American single parent, was recognised for an outstanding year in 2019. She won five gold medals and a silver at the World Para Nordic Skiing Championships.

South Bronx United (SBU), a football programme based in New York, was honoured with the Sport for Good Award. The programme uses football to achieve educational outcomes for young people from underserved communities. The 2019 Rugby World Cup winners South Africa won their second Laureus World Team of the Year Award, beating Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool and the US Women's Football Team, among others.

For the 2020 Laureus World Comeback of the Year, Germany's gritty F3 driver Sophia Florsch was the winner. Travelling at 276km per hour, she had lost control of her car at the Macau circuit, crashing through safety barriers and leaving her with a spinal fracture which required an 11-hour surgery and months of rehabilitation. In November 2019, a year on from her accident, the 18-year-old Sophia was back in the cockpit, racing once again in the Macau Grand Prix.

Egan Bernal, who became the youngest rider to win the Tour de France at 22, grabbed the World Breakthrough of the Year award. German basketball great Dirk Nowitzki was recognised at the Ceremony with the Laureus Lifetime Achievement Award for his contribution to the sport of basketball. Spanish Basketball Federation got the Exceptional Achievement Award.

It will be held at the KD Jadhav Hall of Indira Gandhi Stadium till 23rd of this month. The event will have a total of 30 weight classes, 10 each in Freestyle Men, Women, and Greco Roman.

The Championship will begin with Greco-Roman events, followed by women wrestling and men's freestyle. On day 1 of the tournament, 55, 63, 77, 87 and 130 kg wrestlers will take to the mat to prove their mettle.

The preliminary and qualification matches will be played in the morning sessions while the semis and finals will be conducted from 6 PM to 9 PM. India will be among the favourites to bag gold on Day 1 itself. 

Ajanta & Ellora Caves: Epitome of art, architecture and culture of ancient India

Supreme Court has adjourned the hearing on Shaheen Bagh issue till Monday. Before adjourning Monday's hearing, The Apex Court appointed advocate Sanjay Hegde and Sadhna Ramchandran as interlocutors in the case.

While hearing, the top court expressed concern over people taking roads for protest.  Apex court has also acknowledged people's right to protest in the democracy and at the same time it should not trouble others said the SC.

Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said the government is ready to talk to Shaheen Bagh protesters to clear their doubts but, they need to come.

The Supreme Court has directed the Centre to grant permanent commission to all women officers in the Army within three months and said there will not be any absolute bar on giving them command postings.

A bench headed by Justice D Y Chandrachud rejected the Centre's argument of physiological limitations and social norms for denying them permanent commission and command postings.

The bench said it is disturbing and against the concept of equality and that Women officers in the past have brought laurels to the country and change of mindset is required on the part of the government to put an end to gender bias in armed forces.

The top court said despite there being no stay on the 2010 Delhi High Court verdict allowing grant of permanent commission to women officers, the Centre showed scant regard in implementing the directive in past one decade.

Women officers from Indian Army were overjoyed with the verdict and called it as a progressive and historical judgement.

Senior BJP leader Meenakshi Lekhi termed the decision of the court as excellent and said that all the rights which are held by male officers will now be given to women officers aswell.

Storm prompted flooding alerts for many parts of the country and disrupted flights and train services. Whereas in central England, streets and local businesses were also flooded after heavy rainfall.

Country's Environment Agency issued a total of 30 warnings of severe flooding across united kingdom and 238 alerts at different part of England.

A total of 75 military personnel were helping to build barriers and repair flood defences in northern England while emergency workers also evacuated hundereds of people in Wales.
 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the COP 13 to the convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals. CMS provides a global platform for the conservation and sustainable use of migratory animals and their habitats. India holds the presidency of COP for the three years. PM announced that India has prepared a national action plan for conservation of migratory birds along Central Asia flyway. He emphasised that India championed the challenges of climate change, through conservation, sustainable lifestyle and green development mode.

Prime Minister Modi also highlighted India's efforts in conservation of tigers. The population of tigers in India has grown significantly, and achieved its target of doubling the number of tigers  before the committed date. Adding another feather to its hat, PM mentioned that India is among the few countries whose actions are compliant with the Paris Agreement goal of keeping rise in temperature to below 2° Celsius.

PM Modi asserted that his government is committed to sustainable development and are taking all the measures ensure a better environment for the future generations.

While addressing the inaugural session of 13th Convention on Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals, Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar said that Nature is strength of India and added that to conserve planet people's voluntarily participate is necessary.

World Rapid Chess Champion Koneru Humpy re-asserted her supremacy in style by winning the Cairns cup title with 6 points from nine rounds and bag the 45,000 dollar winner's purse in St. Louis.

Interestingly, in the final round, Humpy drew with GM Dronavalli Harika, who finished sixth with 4.5 points.

The icing on the cake is that Humpy would be gaining five ELO rating points  and moving to no.2 in the world list. Reflecting on her game, Koneru Humpy is happy with the way things are going and is looking forward to the Grand Prix in Italy.

The theme of CMS COP13 in India is 'Migratory species connect the planet and we welcome them home'.

Meanwhile, a High Level Dialogue was held between ministers and senior officials governments, executives of international organisations and other biodiversity leaders on the eve of the conference.

Addressing the dialogue, Union Minister Prakash Javadekar said its time we should also learn from the experiences and success stories of other countries which will benefit us in keeping the biodiversity alive.

Key messages from the High-Level dialogue will be incorporated into the Gandhinagar Declaration, which will be proposed by the Government of India for adoption during Conservation of Migratory Species COP13.