National Current Affairs 2019! News related to National from January to December 2019. Questions related to the National issue is common in Government exams like State PSC, SSC, Banking, etc. Downloadable PDF is available at the end of the article.
IMPORTANT NATIONAL CURRENT AFFAIRS 2019
- Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi approved 10% quota in jobs and educational institutions for economically weaker sections in general category. For the implementation of the quota, Articles 15 and 16 of the Constitution will have to be amended.
- Andhra Pradesh got a separate high court. With the creation of the new high court, the country now has 25 high courts.
- Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister inaugurated India’s longest 300-meter single- lane steel cable suspension bridge also known as Byorung Bridge over Siang River in Upper Siang district.
- Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister, Pema Khandu declared Pakke Paga Hornbill Festival (PPHF) as the “State Festival”.
- Gujarat becomes the first state to implement 10% quota to Economically Weaker sections (EWS) of general category in educational institutions and government jobs.
- The third bridge was inaugurated in Goa. The bridge has been named as ‘Atal Setu’ after former prime minister of India late Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
- Civil Aviation minister launched the country’s first Geographical Indication (GI) store at Dabolim International Airport in Goa.
- The Jammu and Kashmir Law Department set up a State law commission, for three years, under the chairmanship of Justice (Retd) M K Hanjura.
- The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) launched a new platform named “Samwad with Students” (SwS) as part of the enhanced outreach programme and to engage youngsters across India to capture their scientific temperament in Bengaluru.
- Kerala women form 620-km long ‘wall’ to uphold gender equality against Sabarimala protests.
- Kerala launched country’s largest start-up ecosystem, integrated start-up complex measuring 1.8 lakh sq ft. under the Kerala Start-up Mission (KSUM), at the Technology Innovation Zone (TIZ), in Kochi, Kerala.
- The Union Government to set up the Centre for Classical Language at the Thunchath Ezhuthachan Malayalam University in Tirur, Kerala.
- Madhya Pradesh Government announced that it is going to create an Adhyatmik Vibhag (spiritual department) by merging several existing department.
- Nashik in Maharashtra will be the site of the country’s second defence innovation hub after Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu.
- India’s first National Museum of Indian Cinema opened in Mumbai, Maharashtra.
- Union Petroleum Minister launched the Ujjwala Sanitary Napkin initiative in Bhubaneswar, Odisha to provide access to hygiene products and employment to opportunities in every district of the state.
- Odisha state govt, launched a scheme, for overall development of small, marginal and landless farmers, dubbed as ‘The Krushak Assistance for Livelihood and Income Augmentation (KALIA)’ scheme.
- Three-day 6th ‘Women of India Organic Festival’ by WCD Ministry held in Chandigarh for the first time to Promote Women Farmers.
- Sikkim will become first state to roll out Universal Basic Income.
- Sikkim CM launched ‘One Family, One Job’ scheme in Rojgar Mela 2019 to give one state government job to one family.
- Secunderabad Railway Station, the first Railway station to hoist Tricolour National flag on a 100 feet tall pole under Railway’s order.
- Telangana to set up ‘Save Tiger Protection Force’.
- Tripura’s chief minister launched the logo ‘Neer Mahal’ for Tripura’s tea in Agartala which would enhances its popularity all over the world.
- Deen Dayal Veterinary University in Uttar Pradesh proposed to set up the first goat fertility lab in the state under Rastriya Krashi Vikas Yojna.
- The 15th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas was commenced in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. Prime Minister of Mauritius, Mr. Pravind Jugnauth was the chief Guest of Convention. The theme of this year’s Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas (PBD) convention was “Role of Indian Diaspora in building New India”
- A government appointed panel headed by IIT- Hyderabad chairman B V R Mohan Reddy has suggested to the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) to stop setting up new engineering colleges from 2020 and review the creation of new capacity every two years after that.
- Veer Savarkar International Airport in Port Blair declared as an authorized Immigration Check post.
- Indian Forest Service to be renamed as Indian Forest and Tribal Service.
- Andaman to be First Island to operate seaplanes under UDAN-3.
- President of India gives assent to The Constitution 103rd Amendment ACT, 2019 which grants 10% reservation in jobs and educational institutions to the economically weaker sections in the general category.
- Train 18 which is India’s first indigenously developed engineless semi high speed train has been named as Vande Bharat Express. The Train will run between Delhi and Varanasi at the maximum speed of 160 kmph.
- United Arab Emirates (UAE) based international cooling provider, National Central Cooling Company PJSC (Tabreed) entered into a 30-year concession with Andhra Pradesh Capital Region Development Authority (APCRDA) to build India’s first district cooling system in Amaravati, Andhra Pradesh.
- Bihar has become the first state to deploy specially-trained dogs to check smuggling of liquor.
- Himachal Pradesh became the second state to adopt Sanskrit as the second official language of the state after Uttarakhand.
- The Jammu & Kashmir Government declared Ladakh as the third administrative division of the state. The division will comprise Leh and Kargil districts, with Leh as the division’s headquarters.
- Jharkhand government has prohibited the Popular Front of India (PFI) in the state to prevent its anti-national tasks and activities, and for keeping alleged association with terror outfits like ISIS.
- Kerala became the first state to set up watchdog, “price monitoring and research unit (PMRU)”, to track violation of prices of essential drugs and medical devices.
- Second edition of World Count festival 2019 was held in Pune, Maharashtra.
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi dedicated to the nation the National War Memorial (NWM) near India Gate in New Delhi which commemorates the soldiers who participated and made the supreme sacrifice in Peacekeeping Missions and Counter Insurgency Operations.
- Odisha govt. approved Khusi scheme aimed at improving menstrual hygiene among adolescent girl students of Class 6 to 9 studying in government and non-government aided schools in the state.
- Indus River Dolphin declared as Punjab’s State aquatic animal.
- Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit inaugurated the second Coast Guard district headquarters at Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu. Tamil Nadu is the first state in India to get a second Coast Guard district headquarters. The first district headquarters is Chennai.
- 325 children including 11 girls have been rescued in Hyderabad under “Operation Smile” which was launched on 1st January 2019.
- Taj Mahal, Agra Fort and Qutub Minar are among the top 10 Revenue Generating Monuments for 2015-2018. The other monuments in the list are Ellora caves, Sun Temple in Konark, Mamallapuram monuments, Khajuraho monuments, Ajanta caves in Aurangabad, Red Fort.
- Union Railway Minister announced a new railway zone for Andhra Pradesh, that is the Southern Coast Railway and it will be headquartered in Visakhapatnam. It will be the 18th zone in the country.
- Shah Faesal, 2010 batch civil servant who had resigned from his post this year, launched his political party ‘Jammu and Kashmir Peoples’ Movement’(JKPM) in Jammu and Kashmir. Party slogan – “Ab Hawah Badlegi’ (Now winds will change directions)”
- The 79th Indian History Congress (IHC) was held at Barkatullah University in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh.
- The first HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) treatment centre and holistic clinic for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) launched by Humsafar trust in Mumbai, Maharashtra
- The second joint logistics node of tri-services has become operational at naval base in Mumbai, Maharashtra to enhancing interoperability, improve maintenance of military assets and provide logistical support to all the defence services. In 2018, the first joint logistics node (JLN) consisting of the three services was set up at Andaman and Nicobar Islands
- The first ever Space Dialogue of India and Japan was held in New Delhi.
- Thanga Darlong, a musician from Tripura was awarded with the first Atal Behari Vajpayee Life Time Award at the 37th Agartala Book Fair in Agartala, Tripura.
- Tripura has been ranked at second place in India, in terms of child marriages among girls between the age of 15 and 19 years, according to a report released by the National Family Health Survey (NFHS)
- Japan announces an investment worth Rs. 22 lakh for Rabindra Bharati Museum, Kolkata.
- As per Monster Salary Index (MSI) Survey, a high gender pay gap (GPG) is observed in India, as women earn 19% less than men.
- Justice Vikram Nath appointed as the first Chief Justice of new Andhra Pradesh High Court at Amaravati.
- Haryana Chief Electoral Officer inaugurated India’s first-of-its-kind ‘Voter Park’ in Vikas Sadan building complex, Gurugram.
- India’s First Foreign Interactive Bird Park launched by Essel World in Mumbai.
- Chennai Central railway station has been renamed by the Tamil Nadu State Government as Puratchi Thalaivar Dr MG Ramachandran Central Railway Station after it’s late Chief Minister and founder of Chennai’s ruling govt, All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), Dr. MG Ramachandran.
- Justice Thottathil Bhaskaran Nair Radhakrishnan sworn-in as the new Chief Justice of Calcutta High Court.
- Jhulan Goswami, former captain of India national women’s cricket team, awarded the “Sportsperson of the Year” honor at the Calcutta Sports Journalists’ club annual awards function 2019 held at Kolkata, West Bengal.
- The Geological Survey of India (GSI) in its report notified that the highest graphite reserves of India, that is, around 35% of India’s total Graphite reserves are found in Arunachal Pradesh.
- Karnataka Government limits the weight of school bags not more than 10% of the child’s weight.
- Kerala became the first state to tap into masala bond in overseas market by listing the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB)’s masala bond worth of USD 312 million (Rs 2,150 crore) in London Stock Exchange
- Delhi High court passed a judgment in Sanjaya Bahel v. Union of India & Others that United Nations Organization (UNO) is not a State under Article 12 of the Indian Constitution.
- India’s first Tree Ambulance initiated in Chennai by Green man of India, Dr K Abdul Ghani.
- Telangana has released a draft blockchain policy to set up country’s first ‘Blockchain District’ in Hyderabad.
- Central government has decided to merge two institutions the Central Statistical Organisation (CSO) and the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) to create new statistical body National Statistical Office (NSO) under Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI).
- Central Government has permitted to set up e-Foreigner Tribunal (e-FT) in Assam. It is a quasijudicial authority which assesses the question of the authenticity of a person’s citizenship. It should be set up by July 31, 2019, when the final list of National Register of Citizens (NRC) is published. The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of e-FT Mission is Anand Prakash Tiwari.
- In Bihar, 160 children have lost their lives due to Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) and heat wave. The total toll due to AES and heat wave has been pegged at 104 and 56 respectively. The toxic substance in lychee causes Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES), locally known as Chamki Bukhar, which is a form of brain fever that happens due to the inflammation of the brain.
- India & Portugal to set up National Maritime Heritage Museum in Lothal.
- Viral Sudhirbhai Desai, a young entrepreneur from surat launched an initiative to change Udhana railway station in Gujarat into India’s first green and clean railway station like Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus.
- The Haryana High court (HC) declared the entire animal kingdom, including avian and aquatic, as a legal entity having rights of a living person. The verdict of Punjab and Haryana HC comes a year after Uttarakhand HC passed similar order to protect and promote greater welfare of animals.
- Bancha in Betul district of Madhya Pradesh became the first solar kitchen only village in India.
- Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh has requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi to declare the 550th Guru Nanak Prakash Purab as National Tolerance Day cited the Sikhism founder’s message of love and compassion.
- World’s largest multi-stage, multi-purpose scheme Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project inaugurated in Telangana.
- West Bengal introduces free crop insurance scheme Bangla Shashya Bima for farmers.
- A recent study based on the National Sample Survey Organization (NSSO) data, India has 20.6 health workers per 10,000 people. This is less than the World health Organization’s (WHO) minimum overreach of 22.8 per 10,000 people.
- The Election Commission of India granted the National party status to National People’s Party(NPP) led by Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma. It becomes the first Party from North East region to get this tag. With this tag, it becomes the eighth national party in the country among All India Trinamool Congress, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), BSP, CPI, Communist Party of India (Marxist), Indian National Congress (INC) and NCP parties.
- The National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog, think tank of the government, has proposed that only Electric Vehicles (EVs) should be sold after 2030.
- The five Asian countries including India, Bhutan, Indonesia, Malaysia and Nepal have signed a declaration ‘The New Delhi Declaration on Asian Rhinos 2019’ to augment Rhino protection measures including the greater one-horned rhinoceros that are found in the Indian subcontinent.
- 14th Agricultural Science Congress held at New Delhi
- Early Ed Asia 2019, Asia‟s largest early childhood conference, held in Jaipur.
- India and the European Union have made a decision to mutually invest up to 40 Million Euros (Rs.323 Crore) on 7 Research and Innovation projects to tackle and handle immediate water challenges in the country.
- Institute of Advanced Virology (IAV) inaugurated in Thiruvananthapuram by Kerala CM.
- Meghalaya government to rename Dikki Bandi stadium after P A Sangma.
- A Himalayan Cloud Observatory is set up in Tehri district with a motive to forecast and monitor cloudburst incidents in the Himalayan region and help minimising the damage.
- Dhanbad, the coal capital of India scored 95.3 percent and become the number one city in terms of highest 4G availability in India by the report name ‘Open Signal’s hottest city for 4G Availability’.
- The first HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) treatment centre and holistic clinic for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) launched by Humsafar trust in Mumbai, Maharashtra.
- The 79th Indian History Congress (IHC) was held at Barkatullah University in Bhopal, Maphya Pradesh.
- NITI Aayog’s Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) and Adobe signed a Statement of Intent (SOI) to collectively drive the charter of developing creative skills and spreading digital literacy across all Atal Tinkering Labs (ATL) in India.
- Tamil yeoman butterfly has been declared the state butterfly of Tamil Nadu.
- Gujarat ranks on top in the installation of rooftop solar projects with an installed capacity of 261.97 MW followed by Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu.
- ‘Pink coaches’ introduced by the North-east Frontier Railway.
- E-commerce Company Amazon inaugurated its single-largest campus in the world in terms of area (9 acres) in Hyderabad, Telangana.
- Union Human Resource Development Minister launched the National Initiative for School Heads and Teachers Holistic Advancement (NISHTHA) at Dr Ambedkar International Centre in New Delhi. It is the largest teachers’ training programme of its kind in the world.
- Air India hoisted its Boeing 777 aircraft (Delhi-San Francisco flight AI-173) over the zero degrees the North Pole and became the first Indian airline to operate commercial flights overflying polar region.
- India has become the first country in the world to issue Biometric Seafarer Identity Document (BSID), capturing the facial biometric data of seafarers.
- The Uttarakhand government has decided to form a Special Tiger Force for Corbett Tiger Reserve.
- Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine in Jammu and Kashmir has been adjudged as the “Best Swachh Iconic place” in the country in the “Swachh Iconic Places”.
- Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport gets India’s tallest ATC tower to enhance the safety and boost the efficiency of air transport management services.
- Microsoft India and the Central Board of Secondary Education have partnered to build AI learning for schools.
- India’s first electronic-waste (e-waster) is going to be set up in Bhopal, capital of Madhya Pradesh.
- The first corporate run train of the country, Lucknow-Delhi Tejas Express was flagged off from Lucknow Junction.
- Air India has become the first airline in the world to use a Taxibot on an A-320 aircraft with passengers on board.
- UNESCO has included Mumbai and Hyderabad in its network of ‘Creative Cities’.
- Mumbai has been designated as Creative City of Films an Hyderabad as a Creative City of Gastronomy.
- Earlier Indian cities like Chennai and Varanasi have been included in UNESCO Cities of Music while Jaipur has been included in the City of Crafts and Folk Arts.
- Keezhadi an Urban Settlement of Sangam Age on the Banks of River Vaiga excavation in Tamil Nadu.
- Tamil Nadu has become the first state in the country to enact a law on contract farming.
- South Central Railways (SCR) of Indian Railways commissioned the longest electrified tunnel in India. It is situated between Cherlopalli and Rapuru stations in Nellore district, Andhra Pradesh.
- Andhra Pradesh became the first state in India to reserve 75% private jobs for locals
- Fashionova’, India’s first Design Development Center was launched in the Textile city Surat, Gujarat.
- Monkeys declared as ‘vermin’ in Shimla, Himachal Pradesh
- Operation Khumaar launched in J&K to make 312 panchayats free from tobacco.
- India’s first elephant rehabilitation centre will be set up at Kerala’s Kottoor.
- India’s first space tech park to come up in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala.
- The first space museum of India opening new attraction to space enthusiasts, was set up at Hyderabad in association with ISRO.
- Western Railways (WR) opened its first printing press heritage gallery named Western Railway Mahalaxmi General Stores Depot (GSD) at Mahalaxmi in Mumbai
- Meghalaya became the first state in India to ensure water conservation with its State Water Policy.
- Uttar Pradesh has highest number of senior citizens with more than one crore 54 lakhs.
- The Uttar Pradesh State Government has set the state a target of becoming a $1-trillion economy in the next three years.
- India has fixed a deadline of 2025 for eradicating tuberculosis (TB) against the global deadline of 2030.
- Indian Army launches ‘Mission Reach Out’ post Article 370 revocation in Jammu.
- Odisha CM to launch “Mo Sarkar” initiative for transparency in governance.
- Rajasthan becomes the first state in the country to implement biofuel policy.
- Speaker of Lok Sabha, Om Birla announced that the Lower House (Lok Sabha) will become paperless from the next session.
- A fun zone, the first of its kind in Indian Railways, has been set up at the Visakhapatnam Railway Station, Andhra Pradesh.
- Kerala to set up India’s first International Women’s Trade Centre (iWTC) in Kozhikode.
- Maharashtra set to become India’s first state to formulate vertical property rules to create a database of all flats, buildings and commercial complexes with an aim to prevent property-related frauds.
- Maharashtra govt. to set up “Swachh Bharat World University” at Sevagram in wardha district.
- Rupa Gurunath appointed as first woman president of Tamil Nadu Cricket Association.
- Telangana declares 2020 as Artificial Intelligence (AI) year.
- India’s first Central Police University will be established in Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh.
- The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) inaugurated India’s first National Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) Hub in Kolkata
- Andhra Pradesh Government launches India’s first Village secretariat system.
- Rajasthan Becomes First Indian State To Launch Policy on Pneumoconiosis Detection, Prevention, Control and Rehabilitation’.
- India’s 1st plant to produce diesel from plastic waste in Mathura district of Uttar Pradesh.
- Ayodhya, Uttar Praesh created Guinness record by lighting 6 lakh earthen lamps on the banks of the Saryu River.
- The 2nd Assembly of International Solar Alliance (ISA) was held in New Delhi.
- World’s first CNG terminal to be built in Bhavnagar port, Gujarat.
- India’s First Elephant Memorial namely “Wildlife SOS Elephant Memorial” opens on Agra-Mathura Highway in Mathura, Uttar Pradesh by Wildlife SOS
- Coal ministry announced 1 billion tonne coal target by 2024 on 45th Coal India Foundation Day in Kolkata
- Kolkata-1st city to install ‘Third Umpire’ Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) machines to assess medical reports.
- 5th India international science festival 2019 held in Kolkata, West Bengal.
- Greater Chennai Corporation, Chennai, Tamil Nadu (TN) launched country’s first waste exchange platform namely “Madras Waste Exchange” (www.madraswasteexchange.com) to buy and sell municipal solid waste online.
- India’s 1st National maritime heritage museum to be built in Lothal, Gujarat with the help of Portugal.
- Mumbai Central station of Western Railways was conferred with the ‘Eat Right Station’ certification with a 4-star rating by FSSAI.
- Nagpur Resolution to empower citizens adopted at conference organized by DARPG in Nagpur.
- India’s 1st transgender university will open in Fazilnagar in Uttar Pradesh.
- Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) announced that the Aadhaar project crossed 125 crore mark of registration.
- 16-year old Vadodara based Aayushi Dholakia won the crown Miss Teen International 2019
- India State of Forest Report (ISFR) 2019
- The total forest cover of the country is 7,12,249 sq km which is 21.67% of the geographical area of the country.
- The tree cover of the country is estimated as 95,027 sq km which is 2.89% of the geographical area.
- The total Forest and Tree cover of the country is 8,07,276 sq km which is 24.56% of the geographical area of the country.
- The top three states in terms of increase in forest cover are Karnataka (1,025 sq km), Andhra Pradesh (990 sq km) and Kerala (823 sq km).
- There has been a decrease of forest cover to the extent of 765 sq km (0.45%) in the North Eastern region all states except Assam and Tripura.
- Mangrove cover in the country has increased by 54 sq km (1.10%) as compared to the previous assessment.
- Maharashtra has had the highest increase in tree cover and a large part of that is due to horticulture.
- Amongst the States, Gujarat has the largest area of wetlands within RFA in the country followed by West Bengal.
- Dependence of fuel wood on forests is the highest in the State of Maharashtra, whereas, for fodder, small timber and bamboo, dependence is highest in Madhya Pradesh.
- 20th Livestock Census 2019
- The total Livestock population is 535.78 million in the country showing an increase of 4.6% over Livestock Census-2012. West Bengal observed the highest increase of 23%, followed by Telangana (22%).
- Uttar Pradesh has the highest number of livestock of 67.8 million, followed by Rajasthan 56.8 million, Madhya Pradesh: 40.6 million and West Bengal: 37.4 million.
- West Bengal has seen the highest rise of 15% in cattle population and Uttar Pradesh has observed a maximum decrease in cattle population though the state has taken several steps to save cattle.
- Tamil Nadu has the highest number of poultry population with 120.8 million, followed by Andhra Pradesh (107.9 million), Telangana (80 million) and West Bengal (77.3 million).
- India Innovation Index 2019
- NITI (National Institution for Transforming India) Ayog with the Institute for Competitiveness has released the India Innovation Index 2019.
- Karnataka with score 35.65 emerged topper in the overall rankings in the category of major states with Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra in the second and third positions.
- Health Index 2019 – NITI Aayog
- The second edition of NITI Aayog’s Health Index was released in its report titled ‘Healthy States, Progressive India: Report on Rank of States and UTs.
- Kerala continued to top the list for the best performing State in the health sector among the 21 large States.
- Uttar Pradesh retains the worst performer tag in the index.
- India Skills Report, 2019
- The survey was conducted jointly by Wheebox, People Strong, and Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).
- Andhra Pradesh has topped the list of states with the highest employability followed by Rajasthan and Haryana, as per the India Skills Report, 2019.
- Railway Cleanliness Survey 2019
- Three railway stations of Rajasthan; Jaipur, Jodhpur, and Durgapura have topped the Railway Cleanliness Survey 2019.
- Among the railway divisions, North Western Railway stood at the top, South Eastern Railway at the second position and East Central Railway at the third position.
- State Rooftop Solar Attractiveness Index (SARAL) 2019
- Karnataka got the top spot with SARAL score of 78.8 as the best state for setting up a rooftop solar project followed by Telangana (72.2), Gujarat (67.9) and Andhra Pradesh (66.1).
- Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) has been ranked last with a score of 14.4.