KNOWLEDGE SIR

Man United's Alexis Sanchez returns to haunt Arsenal in FA Cup win KNOWLEDGE SIR Chilean forward Alex Sanchez  returned to haunt his old club with the opening goal in Manchester United's 3-1 victory at Arsenal in a heavyweight FA Cup fourth-round clash on Friday. In his first appearance back at the Emirates Stadium since swapping north London for Old Trafford a year ago, Sanchez silenced the inevitable boos to help continue Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's remarkable start as United's interim manager. Sanchez and Jesse Lingard scored within two minutes of each other in the first half but Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang replied just before halftime to set up an engrossing second half. Arsenal suffered injury blows, with defenders Sokratis and Laurent Koscielny both being forced off, although they pushed hard for an equaliser in the second period. But United, who are second behind Arsenal in all-time FA Cup wins with 12, absorbed the pressure and sealed an eighth suc...

Modi government's Bharat Ratna selection: A subtle message to friends and foes KNOWLEDGE SIR The Modi government on the eve of Republic Day announced names of  Bharat Ratna recipients for 2019. This year Bhupen Hazarika and Nanaji Deshmukh have been given Bharat Ratna posthumously, along with former President Pranab Mukherjee who also got the highest civilian honour of the country. Very few can question the choices made by the government as each of these three individuals are doyens in their field. Pranab Mukherjee, a consummate politician, has dedicated his entire life to public service finally bringing his political life to close after becoming President. He also enjoyed a rare bipartisan respect for his statesmanship, knowledge about laws and Parliament etiquettes. Bhupen Hazarika is truly an icon of Assamese music, who brought North-East to the mainstream consciousness through his mellifluent voice.  And Nanaji Deshmukh is one of the most iconic le...

ITBP jawans celebrate Republic Day at altitude of 18,000 ft in minus 30 degree Celsius temperature KNOWLEDGE SIR Celebrating the 70th Republic Day, Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) jawans on Saturday unfurled tricolour at the height of 18,000 feet in cold weather where temperature was somewhere around minus 30 degree Celsius. While a jawan held the tricolour aloft, 13 others formed a line behind him and saluted the flag. The pictures of these brave soldiers, away from civilisation, was received warmly by Twitterati who hailed the heroes securing the border.  The Twitter handle of ITBP tweeted four pictures of the jawans celebrating 69 years of Constitution in the cold weather.  The ITBP also retweeted a small 12-second video of jawans carrying a flag through knee-deep snow at the India-China border in Uttarakhand. The about 90,000 personnel strong force is primarily tasked with guarding the 3,488 km Sino-India border apart from other internal security...

Indian Navy finds second body from mine tragedy in Meghalaya KNOWLEDGE SIR Rescuers have located a second body from the site of a  "rat-hole" mining accident  in India's northeastern state of Meghalaya, a spokesperson for the country's navy said on Saturday, two days after recovering the first body. Fifteen miners were trapped on Dec. 13 when their illegal mine was flooded. A court stipulated a ban on unregulated mining in the state in 2014 has not stopped such activities. Thousands of workers in  Meghalaya , including children, have been killed in so-called rat-hole mines, in which miners crawl into narrow shafts on bamboo ladders to dig for low-quality coal. "Indian Navy diving team finds second body 280 feet inside the rat-hole mine," a navy spokesperson said in a tweet. There was no immediate indication on when the body will be brought to the surface, said a rescue official, who did not want to be named. Families and relatives of t...

ISRO launches military satellite Microsat-R KNOWLEDGE SIR India successfully launched Microsat-R  In a midnight launch, ISRO trusted workhorse PSLV-C44 carrying military satellite Microsat-R and students payload Kalamsat lifts off from the first launch pad at the spaceport of Sriharikota, on Thursday , PTI  India successfully launched Microsat-R, a military satellite onboard its Polar rocket PSLV C44, from the spaceport here on Thursday, in the first mission for the ISRO in 2019. The Indian Space Research Organisation's (ISRO) workhorse Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) blasted off from the first launchpad of the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at 11.37 pm at the end of a 28-hour countdown.In a textbook launch, the 44-metre tall, four-stage PSLV-C44 soared into the clear and starry night sky majestically and injected the 740-kg Microsat-R into orbit precisely 13 minutes and 30 seconds later. ISRO scientists broke into celebration at the mission control centr...

With SA President Cyril Ramaphosa's presence at Republic Day, India consolidates ties with African continent KNOWLEDGE SIR    India invites SA prez Cyril Ramaphosa on 70th Republic Day  First lady of SA Tshepo Motsepe, President of SA Cyril Ramaphosa, Indian President Ramnath Kovind, first lady Savita Kovind and Narendra Modi The visit of South African President  Cyril Ramaphosa's  comes even as New Delhi tries to increase engagement with the continent where China has made rapid strides.   Ramaphosa, along with his wife and First lady of SA, Tshepo Motsepe, arrived in New Delhi on January 25.  It's the 11th time an African leader has been called at  India's Republic Day since 1950. In 1971, India invited the then President of Tanzania Julius Nyerere as the chief guest. He was the first African leader to be at present during India's Republic Day.  Before 2019, it was in 2002 when India invited an African leader...

Noida-Greater Noida Metro: UP CM Yogi Adityanath inaugurates Aqua line metro, to open for public from tomorrow KNOWLEDGE SIR The much-awaited metro rail linking the twin-cities of Noida and Greater Noida in Gautam Buddh Nagar was inaugurated on Friday by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. The rail corridor, also known as the Aqua Line, would run between Sector 71 station in Noida and the Depot Station in Greater Noida. There are a total of 21 stations on the corridor - 15 of them in Noida and six in Greater Noida -- spread over a distance of 29.7 km. "Today we dedicate the Noida Greater Noida metro rail to the people of the region. The Aqua Line, which has been completed in record time, will provide better connectivity to the region and prove to a milestone in development of the region," Adityanath said. Senior officials of the Noida Metro Rail Corporation (NMRC) said that with its inauguration, the rail service would begin for citizens on Satu...