• The Central Government has recently notified the structure of the National Startup Advisory Council to advise the Government on measures needed to build a strong ecosystem for nurturing innovation and startups in the country to drive sustainable economic growth and generate large scale employment opportunities.
• It will be chaired by Minster for Commerce & Industry.
• The Council will consist of the non-official members, to be nominated by Central Government, from various categories like founders of successful startups, veterans who have grown and scaled companies in India, persons capable of representing interests of investors into startups, persons capable of representing interests of incubators and accelerators and representatives of associations of stakeholders of startups and representatives of industry associations.
• The term of the non-official members of the Startup Advisory Council will be for a period of two years.
• The nominees of the concerned Ministries/Departments/Organisations, not below the rank of Joint Secretary to the Government of India, will be ex-officio members of the Council. 
• Joint Secretary, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) will be the Convener of the Council.
• The Council will suggest measures to foster a culture of innovation amongst citizens and students in particular,

1. Promote innovation in all sectors of economy across the country, including semi-urban and rural areas
2. Support creative and innovative ideas through incubation and research and development to transform them into valuable products
3. Processes or solutions to improve productivity and efficiency and create an environment of absorption of innovation in industry.

• It will also suggest measures to

1. Facilitate public organizations to assimilate innovation with a view to improving public service delivery
2. Promote creation, protection and commercialization of intellectual property rights
3. Make it easier to start, operate, grow and exit businesses by reducing regulatory compliances and costs
4. Promote ease of access to capital for start-ups
5. Incentivize domestic capital for investments into start-ups
6. Mobilize global capital for investments in Indian start-ups
7. Keep control of startups with original promoters
8. Provide access to global markets for Indian startups.

• The EAO (East Asian Observatory) is formed by EACOA (East Asian Core Observatories Association) for the purpose of pursuing joint projects in astronomy within the East Asian region.
• East Asian Observatory consists of China, Japan, Taiwan, Korea as full members and Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia and Indonesia as ‘observers’.
• India is in preliminary discussions to be a part of the East Asian Observatories Consortium of eight countries committed to build large telescopes and pool resources. 
• The intention of EAO is to build and operate facilities, which will enhance and leverage existing and planned regional facilities.
• The intention of EAO is to raise funding and to build an observatory staff, separate from that of the EACOA institutions.
• As partners of the EAO, the EACOA institutes will help to establish the funding and to oversee the governance of EAO.
• The communities represented by the partners in EAO would have full access to all EAO facilities.

• Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and Nigerien President Mahamadou Issoufou jointly inaugurated the first convention centre established in Africa by India to honour the memory of Mahatma Gandhi recently.
• The establishment of the Mahatma Gandhi International Convention Centre (MGICC) is a landmark for India-Niger friendship, as also a symbol of India's firm commitment towards Africa.
• It is the first centre to be established in Africa by India to honour the memory of Mahatma Gandhi whose 150th Birth Anniversary was observed last year.

• Uttar Pradesh Government has launched the Mukhyamantri Krishak Durghatna Kalyan Yojana which will provide financial assistance to family of farmers who die or become handicapped while working in fields.
• Under the scheme, if a farmer or any member of his family dies while working in a field then they will be given financial assistance of five lakh rupees.
• For the first time, the scheme will also include the Bataidars, who work in the field of other persons and share the crop after it is harvested. 
• The scheme will cover farmers and their family members in the age group of 18-70 years.
• U.P government has also decided to implement Mukhyamantri Paryatan Samvardhan Yojana to boost tourism in state.
• Under Mukhyamantri Paryatan Samvardhan Yojana one tourist point will be developed with a fund of 50 lakh rupees in each and every assembly segment of the state. 

UNAIDS

• It is leading the global effort to end AIDS as a public health threat by 2030 as part of the Sustainable Development Goals.
• UNAIDS is a model for United Nations reform and is the only cosponsored Joint Programme in the United Nations system.
• It draws on the experience and expertise of 11 United Nations system Cosponsors and is the only United Nations entity with civil society represented on its governing body.
• It places people living with HIV and people affected by the virus at the decision-making table and at the centre of designing, delivering and monitoring the AIDS response.
• It charts paths for countries and communities to get on the Fast-Track to ending AIDS and is a bold advocate for addressing the legal and policy barriers to the AIDS response.
• The Union Minister of State for Shipping (I/C) and Chemical & Fertilizers participated in the High-level roundtable of UNAIDS (The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS) held recentl on the theme “Access for all: Leveraging Innovations, Investments and Partnerships for Health” at World Economic Forum at Davos, Switzerland.

• A new study from researchers at Columbia University examined the greenhouse warming effects of Ozone-depleting substances (ODS).
• It found that the Ozone-depleting substances acted as a strong supplement to carbon dioxide, the most pervasive greenhouse gas.
• Ozone-depleting substances caused half of Arctic warming and sea ice loss from 1955 to 2005, causing about a third of all global warming during that period, reveals a study.
• Ozone depleting substances are man-made gases that destroy ozone once they reach the ozone layer.
• Ozone depleting substances include:

1. Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)
2. Hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs)
3. Hydrobromoflurocarbons (HBFCs)
4. Halons
5. Methyl bromide
6. Carbon tetrachloride
7. Methyl chloroform.

• A class of widely used chemical coolants known as Hydrofluorocarbons (HFC) also contributes to ozone depletion by a small but measurable amount, countering a decades-old assumption, according to a NASA study.

• India, co-builder of Hawaii telescope, wants it shifted out of proposed site.
• The $2 billion project , a joint venture involving 5 countries, has been marred by protests for over a decade; proposed site is considered sacred to the island’s indigenous people.
• The TMT or Thirty Metre Telescope, as it is called, is a joint venture (JV) involving 5 countries, proposed at Mauna Kea, a dormant volcano in Hawaii.
• It is an inactive volcano that rises 13,796 feet (4,205 meters) above sea level.
• Hanle, in Ladakh, was also in the running to host the TMT, but lost out to Mauna Kea, which is considered a superior site due to the imaging possibilities it offers and its stable weather.

• India attracted $49 billion FDI in 2019, among top 10 recipients of overseas investment according to the UNCTADs - Global Investment Trend Monitor report.
• With 16% surge in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflows in 2019, India drove the FDI growth in South Asia.
• In the developed economies, FDI flows fell by 6% to an estimated $643 billion from their revised $683 billion in 2018.
• It remained at a historically low-level, at half of their peak in 2007.
• FDI flows to developing economies remained stable at an estimated $695 billion, added the report.
• According to the report, the global FDI remained flat in 2019, at $1.39 trillion, a decline of 1% from a revised $1.41 trillion in 2018.
• This is against the backdrop of weaker macroeconomic performance and policy uncertainty for investors, including trade tensions.

• January 18 marked the beginning of this year’s Pulse Polio Programme.
• The Union health ministry has launched the campaign to check the disease that affects children at a young age.
• With the global initiative of eradication of polio in 1988 following World Health Assembly resolution in 1988, Pulse Polio Immunization programme was launched in India in 1995.
• Children in the age group of 0-5 years administered polio drops during National and Sub-national immunization rounds (in high risk areas) every year.
• The Pulse Polio Initiative was started with an objective of achieving hundred per cent coverage under Oral Polio Vaccine.
• WHO on 24th February 2012 removed India from the list of countries with active endemic wild polio virus transmission.
• The last polio case in the country was reported from Howrah district of West Bengal with date of onset 13th January 2011.

• The International Monetary Fund (IMF) blames India for global slowdown, lowers 2019 growth forecast to 4.8%.
• The IMF estimated world economic growth at 1.9% for 2019, 0.1% point lower than its earlier forecast.
• The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is an organization of 189 countries, working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world.
• The World Bank Group consists of 5 Institutions, 1 Group

1. The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD)
2. The International Development Association (IDA)
3. The International Finance Corporation (IFC)
4. The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA)
5. The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID)

• The World Bank Group is a unique global partnership, 5 institutions working for sustainable solutions that reduce poverty and build shared prosperity in developing countries. 
• To become a member of the World Bank, under the IBRD Articles of Agreement, a country must first join the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Membership in IDA, IFC and MIGA are conditional on membership in IBRD.