ODISHA

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik inaugurated and laid foundation stones for Rs 2114 crores

Naveen Patnaik, Chief Minister of Odisha, inaugurated and laid foundation stones for numerous development projects amounting to Rs 2,114 crore in Kalahandi district on 16th February 2019.

The major projects inaugurated were:

Ret Medium Irrigation projectwhich is constructed at a cost of Rs 768.46 crore, as stated officially.
The project is expected to benefit 79 villages by providing them with irrigation facility for 8500 hectares of agricultural land under the four blocks of Bhawanipatna, Kesinga, Narla and Lanjigarh in the district.
38 more developmental projects worth Rs 1346 crore– out of which 23 projects were completed at an estimated cost of Rs 910.57 crore, while foundation stones were laid for 15 others, expected to incur a cost of Rs 435.28 crore.

INTERNATIONAL

· World Sustainable Development Summit 2019 Held At New Delhi

World Sustainable Development Summit (WSDS) 2019, the flagship event of ‘The Energy and Resources Institute’ (TERI),was inaugurated by Vice President Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi.
The theme of WSDS 2019 was ‘Attaining the 2030 Agenda: delivering on our promise’.
Frank Bainimarama, Prime Minister of Fiji was honoured with the Sustainable Development Leadership Award 2019 for his outstanding contributions towards sustainable development in Fiji

· India hiked the custom duty of Pakistan goods to 200 percent

After the Pulwama terror strike,the Union government has hiked the basic customs duty on all goods imported from the neighbouring country to 200% with immediate effect. This comes after India revoked the ‘Most Favoured Nation’ (MFN) status to Pakistan on February 15 following the Pulwama terror strike, that killed 40 CRPF personnel.
The two main items imported from Pakistan arefruits and cement, on which the current customs duty is 30-50% and 7.5%, respectively.The hike on import duty of 200 percent effectively means almost banning the imports from Pakistan.

NATIONAL

· CBDT proposes 30-40% digital tax for tech giants like Google, FB and Amazon

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has prepared a draft proposal under the newly introduced concept of ‘significant economic presence’, also known as digital permanent establishment (PE), which seeks to impose tax at 30 to 40 per cent ratebased on the revenues and user base of such companies in India.
Large Indian companies pay 30 percent corporate tax, while subsidiaries of foreign companies in India have to shell out 40 percent.

· Union Government Raised Rs.10000 Crore From Bharat-22 ETF Offering

The government has raised Rs 10,000 croreby the additional offering of Bharat-22 Exchange Traded Fund (ETF).
The additional ‘on-tap’ offering of Bharat-22 ETF was opened for a single day with a base issue size of Rs 3,500 crore and an option to retain over-subscription.
The issue was over-subscribed 10 times and received bids for Rs 4,00,000 crore till 7 pm. Bids will pour in till 8 pm.
The Bharat-22 ETFissue received an overwhelming response from all categories of investors including retail investors.

Himachal passed bill to make Sanskrit 2nd official language

The Himachal PradeshAssembly passed the Official Language (Amendment) Bill 2019 to make Sanskrit the second official language in the state.
The bill was introduced in the Assembly by Irrigation and Public Health Minister Mahender Singh.
Once given assent by the Governor, it will amend the Himachal Pradesh Official language Act, 1975.
Now, Hindi is the official language of Himachal Pradesh.
The Assembly also renamed Himachal Pradesh University of Health Sciences after former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

· About 16 crore Indians consume alcohol: Govt survey

According to a survey conducted by the Social Justice and Empowerment Ministry, about 16 crore (14.6 per cent) Indians in the 10-75 age group consume alcohol.
Chhattisgarh, Tripura, Punjab, Arunachal Pradesh and Goa have the highest prevalence of liquor use.
After alcohol, cannabis and opioids are the next commonly-used substances in India.

· Sunil Chhetri given first ever Football Ratna Award

Football Delhi conferred Sunil Chhetri with first ever “Football Ratna” Award.
Delhi Dynamos player Shubham Sarangi was also honoured.

Chhetri was recently named as the 6^thIndian Footballer in the elite Padma Shri list

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