1. Chitra Bharati Film Festival begins at Gujarat University in Ahmedabad

• Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani & Bollywood filmmaker Subhash Ghai jointly inaugurated the three-day Chitra Bharati Film Festival (CBFF) at Gujarat University in Ahmedabad.
• The aim of this film festival is to establish a ‘Bharatiya’ narrative in Indian cinema.
• Around 140 films falling under four categories are to be screened at the festival.
• The categories are short film, documentary, animation and campus film.

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 National Affairs

2. Harsimrat Kaur Badal inaugurates National Organic Food Festival

• Harsimrat Kaur Badal (Food Processing Industries Minister) & Smriti Irani (Women and Child Development Minister) jointly inaugurated National Organic Food Festival in New Delhi.
• The three-day festival aims at strengthening the organic market and encouraging women entrepreneurs engaged in the manufacturing of organic produce.
• 'Unleashing India’s Organic Market Potential' is the theme of the festival.

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 National Affairs

3. Myanmar Prez U Win Myint will be on 4-day State Visit to India

• President of Myanmar U Win Myint will be on a four-day State Visit to India from 26th Feb 2020.
• U Win Myint will be accompanied by the First Lady Daw Cho Cho.
• The visiting dignitary is expected to visit Agra and Bodh Gaya following his official meetings in New Delhi

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 Obituaries

4. Former FICCI president V L Dutt passes away

• Former president of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) Dr V L Dutt passed in Chennai.
• Dutt headed the industry body in 1991-92.
• V L Dutt was awarded an honorary degree of doctor of letters by the Nagarjuna University.
• He also served as the honorary consul general of the Republic of Turkey in Chennai.

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 National Affairs

5. Department of Telecommunications launches '5G Hackathon'

• The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has launched ‘5G Hackathon’ in association with government, academia and industry stakeholders.
• The 5G Hackathon is open to developers, students, start-ups, SMEs, academic institutions and registered companies in India and NRIs.
• Winners of the various phases will share a total prize pool of 2.5 crore rupees.
• The 5G technology provides quantum leap over 4G in terms of speed, spectrum efficiency and connection density.

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 Sports

6. Ross Taylor becomes first player to play 100 matches in all three formats

• Veteran New Zealand batsman Ross Taylor (35-year) has become the first player in the world to play 100 matches in all three formats of cricket.
• The right-handed batsman Ross Taylor is already his country's leading run-scorer in Test, and ODI with 7174 (100-test) and 8570 runs (231 ODIs) respectively.
• He also scored 1909 runs in T20  match.

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 National Affairs

7. National Museum hosts 'Historical Gastronomica The Indus Dining Experience'

• The National Museum in New Delhi is hosting a unique exhibition on India’s ancient food history called Historical Gastronomica - The Indus Dining Experience'.
• The event is curated jointly by the National Museum and One Station Million Stories (OSMS) - is based on archaeological research, museum artefacts and their characteristics.
• The exhibition demonstrates the evolution of food habits, food processing techniques and related architecture of the Harappans.

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 National Affairs

8. Shri Vinod Kumar Yadav launches HRMS Mobile App

• Shri Vinod Kumar Yadav (Chairman, Railway Board) has launched HRMS Mobile App, designed and developed by Centre for Railway Information System (CRIS).
• This Mobile App provides an important link to Railway employees to communicate with administration regarding change required in their data for validation.
• An employee can view his date of joining in Railways including details related to his Increments, Promotions, Postings, Leave, and composition of Family.

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 National Affairs

9. GSI discovers gold deposits of over 3,000 tonnes in Sonbhadra district ofUP

• The Geological Survey of India (GSI) has discovered gold deposits to the tune of around 3,000 tonnes (5 times of India's reserves) in Sonbhadra district of Uttar Pradesh.
• According to District Mining Officer K.K. Rai, the gold deposits were found in Son Pahadi and Hardi areas.
• The deposits in Son Pahadi is estimated to be around 2,943.26 tonnes, while that at Hardi block is around 646.16 kilograms.

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 Sports

10. Drass Red lifts 2020 Ladakh Winter Sports Carnival

• In Ladakh, Drass Red lifted 2020 Ladakh Winter Sports Carnival, Junior (Under-18) Ice Hockey and Skating Championship by Defeating Drass Winter Games Association, by 4 -0.
• The Carnival was organized by Kargil Ice and Snow Sports Club in Collaboration with Letsleh.com from 15th to 20th February at Ice Hockey Rink of Kiss Club at Biamathang, Kargil in which six teams participated.

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 National Affairs

11. PM Modi inaugurates International Judicial Conference 2020 in New Delhi

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi has inaugurated a two-day International Judicial Conference 2020 organized by Supreme Court in New Delhi.
• The theme of the International Judicial Conference 2020 is "Judiciary and the changing world".
• Chief Justice Robert Reed of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom will deliver a keynote address at the conference.
• The conference will witness the participation of numerous other international legal luminaries from across the world.

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21 February 2020 - Daily Current Affairs

21 February 2020 - Daily Current Affairs

1. Sanjay Kothari becomes new Central Vigilance Commissioner

• Retired IAS officer Sanjay Kothari has been selected as the new Central Vigilance Commissioner (CVC) by a high-powered committee headed by PM Narendra Modi.
• Retired IAS officer Bimal Julka has been chosen as the new Chief Information Commissioner (CIC) in the Central Information Commission.
• The CVC is an an-corruption watchdog with autonomous status.
• The CIC is an independent and unconstitutional body to look after the complaints made to it.

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 National Affairs

2. Rajnath Singh lays foundation stone of new Army HQ building

• Defence Minister Rajnath Singh laid the foundation stone for construction of a new Army headquarter building in Delhi Cantonment.
• Christened 'Thal Sena Bhawan', the complex will be spread over nearly 39 acres.
• It will represent the unsung heroes of the armed forces who have sacrificed their lives for the country.

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 State Affairs

3. Haryana govt to set up Atal Kisan Majdoor canteens

• Haryana government will open Atal Kisan - Majdoor canteens in all mandi and sugar mills across the state.
• It will provide affordable & cheap meals to farmers and labourers at a concessional rate of 10 rupees per plate.
• 25 such canteens will be established this year.
• Haryana government will also provide free and concessional travel facility to 41 different categories of residents in the ordinary buses of Haryana Roadways.

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 Banking & Finance

4. Centre releases Rs 19,950 cr as GST compensation to states, UTs

• The Central Government has released 19,950 crore rupees as GST compensation to states.
• With this release of GST compensation, the Central Government has released a total of over 1.20 lakh crore rupees towards GST compensation to the states during current fiscal.
• In the financial year 2018-19, over 69 thousand crore rupees was released to the States and Union Territories as GST compensation.

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 Sports

5. Divya Kakran wins a gold medal at Asian Wrestling Championships

• Divya Kakran became only the second Indian woman to win a gold medal at the Asian Wrestling Championships defeating Naruha Matsuyuki in New Delhi.
• Divya won all four bouts in five-wrestler 68 kilogram category, as the competition was fought in the round-robin format.
• Navjot Kaur had become the first Indian woman to win a gold medal at the Asian Championships in 2018 in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan in 65 kilograms.

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 Important Dates

6. International Mother Language Day being celebrated today

• International Mother Language Day is being observed every year on the 21st of February (since February 2000) to promote linguistic and cultural diversity and multilingualism.
• The theme of this year’s Mother Language Day is ‘Languages without borders".
• The day was proclaimed by the General Conference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in November 1999.

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 National Affairs

7. Tripura Tea Board organizes 'Run for India Tea' event

• In Tripura, the Tea Board of India in collaboration with Tripura Tea Development Corporation (TTDC) organized "Run for India Tea" morning to promote and popularise Tripura tea alongside India tea.
• A large number of tea workers wearing traditional dresses along with students participated in the tableau procession.
• The corporation is working tirelessly to boost the tea industry in the state.

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 National Affairs

8. CPCB identifies 60 pollution river stretches in northeastern states

• The Central Pollution Board (CPCB) has identified 60 pollution river stretches based on Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) in different northeastern states.
• According to the report, CPCB has identified over 350 polluted river stretches across India and the number continues to grow.
• The study found out that the discharge of industrial and mining effluent and dumping of waste has been identified as the major causes of pollution of these stretches.

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 Sports

9. Pragyan Ojha announces retirement from all forms of cricket

• Indian left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha (33-years) announced retirement from international and first-class cricket with immediate effect.
• He played his last match for India in 2013 during Sachin Tendulkar’s farewell Test against the West Indies in Mumbai.
• Pragyan Ojha played 24 Tests, 18 ODIs and 6 T20Is in which he scalped 113, 21 and 10 wickets respectively.

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 Arts & Culture

10. Bharat-Bangla Tourism festival begans in Agartala

• The Bharat-Bangla Paryatan Utsav-Tourism festival has begun in Agartala, Tripura.
• The aim of the festival is to promote tourism in Tripura and apprise the people of the state and neighbouring Bangladesh of the tourist destinations in this state.
• Seminars, discussions, cultural events, visit the important tourist spots, historical and archaeological sites are the main parts of the two-day friendship festival.

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 National & International Appointments

11. Mahant Nritya Gopal Das elected as President of Ram Mandir Trust

• The first meeting of the Ram Mandir Trust to oversee the construction of Ram temple (in Ayodhya) was held in New Delhi.
• The 15-member trust was formed in adherence to the Supreme Court verdict on the Ayodhya dispute in November 2019.
• Nripendra Misra will be the head of the temple construction committee.
• Mahant Nritya Gopal Das was elected as the president of the Trust whereas Champat Rai would be the general secretary.

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 International Affairs

12. Pakistan successfully tests air-launched cruise missile Ra’ad-II

• Pakistan conducted a successful flight test of the air-launched nuclear-capable cruise missile Ra'ad-II .
• The Ra’ad-II weapon system is equipped with state-of-the-art guidance & navigation systems ensuring of engagement targets with high precision.
• Ra’ad-II missile (range of 600 km) is planned to be attached to Mirage aircraft or F-16 fighter jets of the Pakistan Air Force.

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20 February 2020 - Daily Current Affairs

20 February 2020 - Daily Current Affairs

1. World Day of Social Justice being observed today

• The United Nations' (UN) World Day of Social Justice is annually observed on 20th February to encourage people to look at how social justice affects poverty eradication.
• It also focuses on the goal of achieving full employment and support for social integration.
• The theme for 2020 is "Closing the Inequalities Gap to Achieve Social Justice”.
• The united nation has approved on 26th November 2007 as the World Day of Social Justice.

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 International Affairs

2. S Jaishankar inaugurates Indian pavilion at Berlin International Film Fest.

• External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has inaugurated the Indian pavilion at the Berlin International Film Festival.
• Information and Broadcasting ministry in collaboration with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) is participating in the 70th edition of the festival.
• The External Affairs Minister is preparing the ground for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's planned visit for the India-EU summit in Brussels next month.

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 National Affairs

3. Kashi Mahakal Express to begin commercial run from Varanasi today

• The Kashi Mahakal Express (the third private train of IRCTC) has been started from Varanasi.
• The train service will link the three Jyotirlinga - Omkareshwar near Indore, Mahakaleshwar, in Ujjain and Kashi Vishwanath in Varanasi.
• The train will cover 1,131 km between Varanasi and Indore via Lucknow and a distance of 1,102 km between Varanasi and Indore via Prayagraj in approximately 19 hours.

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 National Affairs

4. Govt to set up Central Consumer Protection Authority by first week of April

• According to Food Minister Ram Vilas Paswan, the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) will be set up by the first week of April 2020.
• It will address issues related to consumer rights, unfair trade practices, misleading advertisements and impose penalties for selling spurious and adulterated products.
• The investigative wing will carry out inquiries in matters related to unfair trade practices and misleading advertisements.

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 State Affairs

5. Arunachal Pradesh celebrates 34th Statehood Day today

• Today, Arunachal Pradesh is celebrating its 34th Statehood Day (February 20, 1987).
• Home Minister Amit Shah will attend the celebrations at Itanagar and launch a slew of projects on the occasion.
• Mr. Shah will launch the Arunachal Pradesh Industrial and Investment Policy, 2020.
• He also inaugurates the Joram-Koloriang Road constructed by BRO, lay the foundation stone of the new headquarters of the state police and along with other projects.

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 National & International Appointments

6. Cabinet approves constitution of 22nd Law Commission of India

• Union Cabinet approved the constitution of the 22nd Law Commission of India for a period of three years from its date of official constitution.
• Law Commission of India is a non-statutory body constituted by the Government from time to time.
• The Commission was originally constituted in 1955 and is re-constituted every three years.
• The Commission will give recommendations on different aspects of law which are entrusted to it.

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 Arts & Culture

7. Ministry of Textile Organises KALA KUMBH –Handicrafts Exhibitions

• The Ministry of Textiles is organising Kala Kumbh – Handicrafts Thematic Exhibition in various parts of the country to promote Geographical Indication (GI) crafts and heritage of India.(from 14 to 23 February 2020).
• The exhibition is being sponsored by the Export Promotion Council for Handicrafts (EPCH).
• It has been organized in Bengaluru and Mumbai (from 14 Feb to 23 Feb) while in Kolkata and Chennai in March 2020.

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 National & International Appointments

8. Ashraf Ghani wins the Presidential elections of Afghanistan

• Ashraf Ghani has won the Presidential elections of Afghanistan for the 2nd time.
• Mr. Ghani has won the Presidential elections by winning 9,23,592 votes or 50.64% of the total votes.
• He defeated his closest opponent Abdullah Abdullah who received 7,20,841 votes or 39.52% of votes.
• The Election Commission stated that only 1.8 million Afghan citizens voted in the election out of total of 9.6 million eligible voters in the country.

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 Obituaries

9. Computer scientist Larry Tesler passes away

• An icon of early computing ‘Larry Tesler’ (invented 'cut, copy and paste') passed away.
• Mr Tesler was born in the Bronx, New York, in 1945, and studied at Stanford University in California.
• Mr Tesler (74-years) started working in Silicon Valley in the early 1960s, at a time when computers were inaccessible to the vast majority of people.

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 Sports

10. Sindhu wins ESPN's Female Sportsperson of the Year award

• World champion shuttler P V Sindhu has won the ESPN's 'Female Sportsperson of the Year' award for a third consecutive time.
• Young shooter Saurabh Chaudhary bagged the honour in the male category.
• Sprinter Dutee Chand became the first winners of the 'Courage' award for being inspirational both on and off the field.

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 National Affairs

11. V Prez inaugurates four-day Indian Students’ Parliament in New Delhi

• Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu has inaugurated the four-day Indian Students’ Parliament in New Delhi.
• Mr Naidu expressed happiness that thousands of youngsters are taking active interest in politics and various issues concerning the nation.
• Mr Naidu said, politics is a vehicle for serving the people and bringing about the desired socio-economic change.

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19 February 2020 - Daily Current Affairs

19 February 2020 - Daily Current Affairs

1. Soil Health Card Day being observed today

• The Soil Health Card Day is being observed today.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi had launched the Soil Health Card (SHC) Scheme on 19th February 2015 at Suratgarh in Rajasthan.
• The scheme aims at issuing soil health cards to farmers every two years so as to provide a basis to address nutritional deficiencies in the soil.
• The scheme ensures additional income to farmers by the increase in yields and it also promotes sustainable farming.

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 Schemes

2. Kerala CM launches ''Yodhavu'' mobile app to combat drug menace

• Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan launched a mobile app 'Yodhavu' (Warrior), as part of efforts to curb the growing menace in the State.
• Through this app, the public can inform police about drug abuse and its distribution.
• A special feature of the application, introduced by the Kochi city police, was that the informer's identity could be kept secret.

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 Obituaries

3. Greatest woman golfer Mickey Wright passes away

• Greatest woman golfer Mickey Wright (85 -years) passed away at Florida in the United States.
• Her haul of 13 major victories included four US Women's Open titles and four US Women's PGA Championships. 
• Wright had accumulated 82 titles of Ladies Professional Golf Association Tour titles during a professional career which stretched from 1954 to 1969.
• She won the 1954 World Amateur Championship before turning professional the following season.

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 Important Dates

4. Shivaji Jayanti being celebrated in Maharashtra

• The birth anniversary of Maratha Warrior King ‘Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’ is being celebrated in all over Maharashtra.
• Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu paid tributes to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj on his birth anniversary.
• Shivaji Bhonsle was an Indian warrior king and a member of the Bhonsle Maratha clan.
• Shivaji carved out an enclave from the declining Adilshahi sultanate of Bijapur that formed the genesis of the Maratha Empire.

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 Agreement

5. JSW Steel gets NCLAT's approval to acquire Bhushan Power for Rs 19,700 Cr

• The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal has approved the Rs.19,700-crore resolution plan of JSW Steel to take over the bankrupt Bhushan Power and Steel.
• The approval comes with the immunity sought by the new owner against investigations being carried out against the erstwhile promoters of Bhushan Power and Steel.
• This comes after the government recently amended Section 32A of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code.

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 Obituaries

6. Popular Bengali film actor Tapas Pal passes away

• Popular Bengali film actor and former Trinamool Congress MP Tapas Pal passed away at a private hospital in Mumbai.
• His acting in 'Dadar Kirti', Saheb, Parabat Priya and other films acclaimed appreciation.
• Tapas Pal elected in West Bengal state assembly and in Lok Sabha from Krishnanagar Constituency in Nadia District in the state.

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 National Affairs

7. Two new bird species found during Great Backyard Bird count in Ladakh

• In Union Territory of Ladakh, two new bird species (Red-throated Thrush and Plumbeous Water Redstart) have been found during the Great Backyard Bird count.
• Common Rose Finch and Grey Haron species have arrived in Ladakh region early than usual.
• Three-Group birders and wildlife experts have counted and recorded a total of 87 various species of birds in Ladakh.
• The details will be recorded in the eBird India website for further studies.

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 International Affairs

8. Bangladesh to sign Free Trade Agreement with Nepal

• Bangladesh and Nepal have agreed to sign a Free Trade Agreement to enhance trade between the two countries.
• Bangladesh has also agreed to allow Nepal to use it Saidpur airport located in its northernmost district of Nilphamari close to Nepal.
• Bangladesh exports commodities worth $38 million to Nepal and imports goods worth around 18 million dollars.

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 Sports

9. NADA bans javelin thrower Amit Dahiya for four years

• National Anti Doping Agency (NADA) has banned javelin thrower Amit Dahiya for four years for evading sample collection and trying to cheat officials during the 2nd National Javelin Throw Open Championship 2019 held at SAI Centre in Sonipat.
• NADA had issued the charge of notice to Dahiya on July 16 for violating rule 2.3 of the NADA.

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 Sports

10. AIFF receives 'Grassroots Charter Bronze Level' membership of AFC

• The All India Football Federation (AIFF) has received the "Grassroots Charter Bronze Level" membership of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).
• This declaration accords AIFF the right to promote its grassroots events and activities with the support and recognition of the AFC in accordance with the applicable terms of the AFC Grassroots Charter.

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 Sports

11. Sunil Kumar wins gold in Asian Wrestling Championships

• Sunil Kumar won the gold medal in Asian Wrestling Championships 2020 in New Delhi.
• The seasoned grappler beat Azat Salidinov from Kyrgyzstan in the final of the 87 kg category.
• Last year also, Sunil Kumar had made it to the final and ended with a silver medal.

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 Sports

12. FIFA U-17 Women's Football World Cup to be hosted in 5 cities in November

• Union Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju has launched an event to unveil the five host cities for the FIFA Under-17 Women's Football World Cup.
• The matches of the world cup will be held in five cities including Ahmedabad, Bhubaneswar, Guwahati, Kolkata and Navi Mumbai.
• These cities will play host to 16 teams which will compete across 32 matches to lift the coveted title.
• The official slogan - Kick Off The Dream - was also unveiled during the event.

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 International Affairs

13. UK announces new points-based visa system

• UK Home Secretary, Priti Patel has announced the launch of Britain's new points-based visa system.
• It aims at attracting the "brightest and the best" from the world, including from India.
• The new system will cut down numbers of cheap, low-skilled migrating workers coming to the country.
• The new system will come into force from January 1, 2021.

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Himachal Pradesh GK Quiz (हिमाचल प्रदेश सामान्य ज्ञान) in Hindi -Part 5