NEWS 17/02/2021. NEWS FOR 19th-Feb (Friday) 1)The human spaceflight model of Gaganyaan will be launched, after the second unmanned mission which is planned for 2022-23. Union Minister Jitendra Singh said that 900 crore was allocated to ISRO for the financial year 2020-21 for developing the capacity of launching of satellites. India launched 328 satellites from 33 counties so far. 2) India and China on 16th Feburary held bilateral consultations on issues on the agenda of the United Nations Security Council via video conferencing. The two sides also agreed to continue their engagement on key issues on the Security Council's agenda. India began a two-year stint as a non-permanent member of the Security Council earlier this month. 3) ITBP is making 'Jhula Bridge' to link 13 villages which were cut off in Uttarakhand. The villages had lost their road connectivity from rest of the country after the flash flood in the region on 7th Feb. 4) India and Afghanistan signed a MOU for the construction of the Shahtoot dam to provide drinking water to Kabul. 5) Defence Minister, Rajnath Singh, inaugurated "Jalabhishekam" a water conservation campaign under which 57000 water structures were constructed in Madhya Pradesh. 6) Army is set to Get 118 Arjun Mark1A tanks. Defence Ministry recently cleared the induction of 118 Arjun Mark1A tanks into the Army which will cost around Rs 8,400 crore. The tank has been fully designed and developed by the DRDO in close coordination with the Indian Army. 7) The Reserve Bank of India has announced that the Export-Import Bank of India (Exim Bank) will provide USD 400 million to Maldives project. It will provide the fund for the Greater Male Connectivity Project. 8) India is about to sign a multi-billion dollar contract with Russia to supply around 500 T-14 'Armata' tanks. The T-14 'Armata' tanks can withstand a direct hit from a large caliber and a UAV strike. India is one of the oldest and largest buyers of Russian weapons. 9) Indian Navy's largest war game - the Biennial Theatre Level Operational Readiness Exercise (TROPEX-21) is underway with the participation of all operational units of the Indian Navy as well as the units from the Indian Army, Indian Air Force (IAF) and the Indian Coast Guards (ICG). The exercise is going on in the vast Indian Ocean Region, including its adjunct waters & it aims to test the Navy's combat readiness in a complex multidimensional scenario in the current geostrategic environment. 10) India has defeated England in the 2nd test match to level the series 1-1 in the 4 match test series. < < Back