Current Affairs in Short: 9 March 2021

DGCA declares aircrew medically unfit for flying for 48 hours after COVID-19 Vaccination

•The Director-General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said on March 9, 2021 that the airline crew will be medically unfit for flying for 48 hours after receiving the COVID-19 vaccine. The aviation watchdog said this in its guidelines for 'Temporary Unfitness for Flying'. 
•Under the guidelines, the DGCA said the aircrew will be monitored for 30 minutes at the COVID-19 vaccination centre for any anaphylactic or idiosyncratic reaction. 
•DGCA further said that they will be medically unfit for flying for 48 hours after vaccination and if there are no symptoms after the period, they will be deemed fit to resume unrestricted flying duties. 
•In case the pilots experience any symptoms after 48 hours, they will be reviewed by the treating physician. 
•The pilots will be declared fit for flying duties provided they are asymptomatic without any medications and a medical cure certificate will have to be obtained. 
•If the medical unfitness period of an aircrew member post-COVID-19 vaccination is more than 14 days, then a special medical examination will be required to ascertain fitness for flying of the aircrew.

President Ram Nath Kovind to begin three-day visit to Tamil Nadu today

•President Ram Nath Kovind will begin his three-day visit to Tamil Nadu today, on March 9, 2021. He will leave for Chennai in the evening today.
•The President will visit Vellore on March 10th to attend the 16th annual convocation of the Thiruvalluvar University.
He will attend the 41st annual convocation of Anna University in Chennai on March 11th. 
•The President had earlier visited Madhya Pradesh for two days from March 6-7, 2021, during which he had the All India State Judicial Academies Directors' Retreat at Jabalpur and later visited the Janjatiya Sammelan on March 7, organised by the MP state government's Tribal Welfare Department at Singrampur village in Damoh district.

R Ashwin named ICC Men's Player of the Month for February 

•Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin was named as the Men's Player of the Month (February) by the International Cricket Council (ICC) on March 9, 2021. England's Tammy Beaumont was named as Women's Player of the Month for February. 
•The ICC Player of the Month Awards aims to recognise and celebrate the best performances from both male and female cricketers across all forms of international cricket each month.
•Ashwin won the honour for his impressive performance against England as part of India's 3-1 Test series win. Ashwin reached a milestone when he took his 400th Test wicket in India's third Test win at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

India – Nigeria hold First Strategic and Counter-Terrorism Dialogue

•India and Nigeria held First Strategic and Counter-Terrorism Dialogue at the National Security Adviser level from March 4-5, 2021. 
•The National Security Adviser of Nigeria Major General (Retd.) Babagana Monguno visited New Delhi, India at the invitation of India's National Security Adviser Ajit K. Doval for the dialogue. 
•During the dialogue, the National Security Advisors of the two countries held in-depth discussions regarding the threats and challenges faced by democratic societies from extremism, terrorism, radicalization through cyberspace as well as from international crime, arms and drug smuggling and piracy.
•The two sides also identified specific areas of cooperation to enhance the fight against all forms of terrorism, while reaffirming that there can be no justification for terrorism in any form or manifestation. 
•The two nations also agreed to enhance their cooperation in the international arena and maintain regular contact in this area.

US offers temporary legal residency to Venezuelans

•The United States has announced to offer temporary legal residency to the hundred thousand Venezuelans who have fled their country due to economic collapse. 
•The White House also announced that the US will review the US sanctions intended to isolate the South American nation.  
•These two measures mark a shift from US policy towards Venezuela under former President Donald Trump. 
•President Joe Biden’s administration also announced it would grant temporary protected status to Venezuelans already in the United States, allowing an estimated 3,20,000 people to legally live and work in the country for 18 months.

Philippines Vaccine Head to visit India today to finalise vaccine agreements 

•The Chief Implementer of the Philippines' Declared National Policy Against COVID-19 Carlito Galvez Jr will visit India today to finalize agreements with several vaccine manufacturers. 
•Galvez made the announcement on March 8, 2021 saying that he will be on a trip to India from March 9 to 12 to sign VACCINE supply agreements and negotiate earlier deliveries of vaccines. 
•The Vaccines developed by Novavax and AstraZeneca are being manufactured by the Serum Institute of India, which is the world's largest vaccine manufacturer.
•Though the Philippines officially began rolling out its vaccination programme on March 8, 2021, it has yet to sign a supply agreement that would guarantee vaccine doses for all its people. 
•Galvez also highlighted the importance of building a vaccine stockpile if the nation plans to relax quarantine restrictions and resume face-to-face classes in May or in the 2nd quarter of 2021. 
•The Philippines is one of the last countries in Southeast Asia to start its COVID-19 vaccine rollout despite being among the worst affected nations in the region.