Which country bans Boeing 737 MAX 8 planes after the Ethiopian Airlines crash?

India was ranked 16th in the world in terms of highest number of impacted species in biodiversity-rich zones (also known as hotspots) due to human actions. In India, 35 species affected on an average in biodiversity-rich zones. Malaysia ranks first among countries with highest number of impacted species (on an average 125 species). Southeast Asian tropical forests - including those in India's Western Ghats, Himalaya and north-east - are among the 'hotspots' of threatened species.

In a bid to strengthen Indo-French ties, India has been designated as the guest of honour at the Paris Book Fair in 2020, while France will be the guest country at the New Delhi World Book Fair (NDWBF) in 2022. The announcement was made by the nodal agency - National Book Trust (NBT) - in a statement on Friday. The Livre Paris (Paris Book Fair) will take place from March 20 to 23, 2020.

Union cabinet approved the sanction of Rs 4315.15 crore for the 158 Central Educational Institutions (CEIs) for implementation of reservation in admission to students belonging to Economically Weaker Section (EWS). The Rajya Sabha on January 9 approved amending the Constitution to provide 10% reservation to general category poor in jobs and education, with the government terming the landmark move as "slog over sixes". The quota will be over and above the existing 50 per cent reservation to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes (OBCs). With the approval of the Cabinet, over 2 lakh additional seats will be created in 158 Central Educational Institutions (CEIs) across the country to implement 10% reservation for the Economically Weaker Section (EWS). while 1,19,983 additional seats will be created during 2019-20 academic session, 95,783 seats will be added in 2020-21.

Nilambar Acharya, Nepal's former law minister,was appointed as Nepal's ambassador to India in Kathmandu. Nilambar Acharya's oath of office position was administered by President Bidya Devi Bhandari in Kathmandu. The position of Nepalese ambassador to India was vacant after Deep Kumar Upadhyay resigned in October 2017.

India received the Award of Excellence for 'Best in Show' at the New York Times Travel Show 2019, the largest travel show in North America. India was honoured during the Closing Bell Ceremony at the New York Stock Exchange. The Ministry of Tourism, Government of India participated as the 'Presenting Partner' in the New York Times Travel Show (NYTTS 2019) organised at Jacob K Javits Centre, New York with a view to scale up its tourism promotional efforts in the US, enhance India's visibility and to increase its share of US Outbound travel market.

Muhammadu Buhari was re-elected Nigeria's President, results showed, after a delayed poll that angered voters and led to claims of rigging and collusion. Buhari, 76, took an unassailable lead of more than four million votes as the last states were yet to be declared, making it impossible for his nearest rival, Atiku Abubakar, to win.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi approved the launch of 'Kisan Urja Suraksha Evam Utthaan Mahabhiyan' (KUSUM Yojana) with the objective of providing financial and water security to farmers. The Central Government will provide a total financial support of Rs 34,422 crore for the scheme.

The Environment Ministry launched the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) aimed at reducing toxic particulate matter in 102 Indian cities by 2024. The NCAP will be a mid-term, five-year plan with 2019 as the first year, while 2017 will be the base year for comparison of concentration. An amount of INR300 crore has been sanctioned for this purpose.

The Union Cabinet approved the listing of 7 Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs) on the stock exchanges via Initial Public Offering (IPO) or Follow-on Public Offer (FPO). The companies that will go for IPOs include Telecommunication Consultants (India) Ltd., RailTel Corporation India Ltd., National Seed Corporation India Ltd., Tehri Hydro Development Corporation Limited, Water & Power Consultancy Services (India) Limited and FCI Aravali Gypsum and Minerals (India) Limited. Kudremukh Iron Ore Company Limited will go for an FPO.

According to the Henley Passport Index, India jumped two positions from 81st in 2018 to 79th in 2019. Japan retained its top spot as the world's most travel-friendly passport. China jumped almost 20 places in just two years, from 85th in 2017 to 69th this year. The Henley Passport Index is based on data provided by the International Air Transport Authority (IATA) and covers 199 passports and 227 travel destinations.