News in Short

• Goods and service tax (GST) collections for January 2021 touched an all-time high of Rs 1.19 lakh crore since introduction of GST regime.
• The consistent collections of over ? 1 lakh crore for the last four months and a steep increasing trend over January are indicators of rapid economic recovery' post pandemic.
• It attributed the continued rise in collections to closer monitoring against fake-billing, deep data analytics using data from multiple sources including GST, income-tax and customs IT systems, and effective tax administration.
• The average year-on-year growth in GST revenue over the first four months in the second half of the financial year has been 8% as compared to (-) 24% during the first half of the year.

• Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has announced a new centrally sponsored scheme – PM Aatmanirbhar Swasthya Bharat Yojana with an outlay of ? 64,180 crore over six years.
• The finance minister said the scheme will develop capacities of primary, secondary, and tertiary care health systems, strengthen existing institutions and create new institutions to cater to the detection and cure of new emerging diseases. The new scheme will be an addition to the National Health Mission.
• Emphasising the importance of the healthcare system in the post-Covid world, Sitharaman said the investment in health infrastructure has been substantially increased. The areas of preventive health, curative health, and well-being would be strengthened over the years.

• Tamil Nadu produced an impressive all-round display as they lifted the coveted Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy after defeating Baroda by seven wickets in the final here on.
• This was Tamil Nadu's second Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy triumph, after winning their first title way back in 2006-07. Baroda, who had won the title twice in the past (in 2011-12 and 2013-14), ended runners-up this time.
• Siddharth (4/20) spun his web around the Baroda batsmen to restrict them to a meagre 120 for 9 and then Tamil Nadu overhauled the target in 18 overs.

• BCCI secretary Jay Shah was unanimously elected as the president of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) at its Annual General Meeting (AGM). Shah replaces Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) chief
• The ACC is responsible for organising the Asia Cup tournaments, including the senior men, women, and Under-19 boys' competitions.
• Last year the ACC decided to postpone the men's tournament owing to the pandemic, with June 2021 and Sri Lanka jotted down as the date and venue.
• The BCCI has not yet indicated whether it would want to play the Asia Cup as a preparatory event before India host the T20 World Cup in October-November.

• Myanmar's military seized power in a bloodless coup, detaining democratically elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi as it imposed a one-year state of emergency.
• The intervention ended a decade of civilian rule in Myanmar, with the military justifying its power grab by alleging fraud in the November elections that Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) party won in a landslide.
• The coup sparked global condemnation, with the United States leading calls for democracy to be immediately restored.
• The military sealed off roads around the capital with armed troops, trucks, and armoured personnel carriers. Military helicopters flew across the city. The army has pledged to hold fresh elections after the year-long state of emergency.