• Economy and Business

India Jumps 8 Place To 36th On International IP Index 2019

• India has jumped eight places to 36th position on the International Intellectual Property (IP) Index, which analyses the IP climate in 50 global economies, this year.
• India’s eight-point jump in 2019 from 44th position in 2018 is the highest increase among 50 nations mapped by the index.
• The US, the UK, Sweden, France and Germany remained the top five economies on the intellectual property index in 2019 retaining their spots from the last year.
• The index brought out by the US Chamber of Commerce’s Global Innovation Policy Center (GIPC) ranks countries based on 45 indicators that are critical to an innovation-led economy supported by robust patent, trademark, copyright, and trade secrets protection.

• Sports

Mirabai Chanu notched up gold at EGAT Cup in Thailand

• World champion Indian weightlifter Saikhom Mirabai Chanu (24-year) notched up a gold medal (in 48kg category) at the EGAT Cup in Thailand.
• Chanu (from Manipuri) won the 48kg category gold with an effort of 192 kg in the silver level Olympic qualifying event.
• She lifted 82 kg in snatch and 110 kg in clean and jerk to finish on top of the podium.

• Awards

Francois Laborde Conferred France’s Highest Civilian Honour

• Father Francois Laborde (92-year) was conferred the Légion d’Honneur (Legion of Honour), the highest civilian award of France, in recognition of his work for specially-abled children.
• He is the third person from the state to have been awarded the Legion of Honor after Satyajit Ray (film maestro- in 1987) and Soumitra Chatterjee(actor).
• Father Laborde had set up Howrah South Point, an organisation working for the development of specially-abled children, the destitute and the most deprived sections of the society.
• He was entitled by the Alexandre Ziegler (French Ambassador to India).

• Awards

Yes Bank won Data Science Innovation Award

• Yes Bank was announced as the winner of the 9th edition of Aegis Graham Bell Award 2018 for its ‘Yes Engage Enrich Excel (EEE)’ project in data science.
• Its EEE program is an industry-first analytics tool that aids the Bank’s relationship managers with top 3 talking points to engage with their customers.
• Aegis Graham Bell Award promotes innovations and entrepreneurship in the ICT domain.

• Defence

Sena medals awarded to 92 army men, including Lance Naik Wani

• 92 army men were awarded Sena medals for their gallantry and distinguished services at an investiture ceremony in Udhampur.
• Lieutenant General Ranbir Singh (GOC-in-C of Northern Command) presented 76 medals for gallantry services, 7 medals for distinguished services and 8 for Vishist Seva.
• Lance Naik Nazir Ahmed Wani, (recipient of Ashok Chakra) was also awarded Bar to Sena Medal posthumously which was received by his wife.
• Twenty units of the army were also awarded appreciation for their outstanding performance in the Command Theatre in 2018.

• Obituaries

Longest-Serving US Congressman John Dingell Passes Away

• John Dingell, the longest-serving congressman in US history, has passed away aged 92.
• He was first elected in 1955, serving in the House of Representatives for the next 59 years. He retired in 2015.
• Dingell served through the terms of 11 US presidents.

• Obituaries

India’s oldest elephant died at 88

• ‘Granny Dakshayani’, India’s oldest elephant in captivity died at 88 in Kerala.
• She was awarded with the title ‘Gaja Muthassi’ and also took part in the temple processions and rituals for decades.
• India has around 2,454 elephants in captivity as per a survey released last month.

• Obituaries

Oscar-Nominated British Actor Albert Finney Passes Away

• Oscar-nominated British actor Albert Finney passed away peacefully after a short illness.
• He aged 82.
• He was a five-time Oscar nominee who began his career at the Royal Shakespeare Company before making his mark in film.
• His big film break came as “angry young man” Arthur Seaton in Saturday Night and Sunday Morning.
• He went on to star in Tom Jones, as Hercule Poirot in Murder on the Orient Express, Erin Brockovich and Skyfall.

• States

Dinkar Gupta takes over charge of DGP Punjab

• Senior IPS officer Dinkar Gupta (1987 batch IPS officer) has taken over the charge of Director General of the Punjab Police at a simple ceremony at Chandigarh.
• He succeeds current DGP Suresh Arora.
• Earlier, Mr Gupta was posted as Director General of Police, Intelligence, Punjab.
• Gupta had also served as Senior Superintendent of Police of Ludhiana, Jalandhar and Hoshiarpur districts for more than seven years.

• States

Chennai Police launches ‘DigiCop’ app

• Chennai Police Commissioner launched ‘DigiCop’ mobile app on 6 February 2019.
• The user can lodge mobile theft complaints using the app and can check if the user’s mobile is in the police list of retrieved mobiles.
• Through the app, the user can also know the traffic condition in the city and also information about nearby police stations.