Month: April 2023

PM Narendra Modi inaugurates ‘Barisu Kannada Dim Dimava’ at Talkatora Stadium in New DelhiTo celebrate Karnataka’s culture, traditions and history, on February 25, 2023, the Prime Minister (PM) of India Narendra Modi inaugurated the ‘Barisu Kannada Dim Dimava‘ cultural festival at Talkatora Stadium in New Delhi, Delhi.

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• It is being held on the sidelines of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, and on the Central Government’s vision of ‘Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat’.

Key Notes:
i.The 75th-anniversary celebrations of the Delhi Karnataka Sangh is coinciding with the Amrit Mahotsav of 75 years of independence.
ii.From 2019-2023 till now Rs 30 thousand crore have been given to Karnataka by the Central Government.
About Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat:
On October 31st, 2015, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat program in commemoration of the 140th birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. It aims to foster national integration and strengthen emotional connections between the people of India.

• Under this, each state and Union Territory (UT) is paired with another state or UT for a designated period, during which they will engage in a structured exchange of ideas and experiences related to language, literature, cuisine, festivals, cultural events, tourism, and other areas.

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1st G20 Finance Ministers & Central Bank Governors and 2nd G20 Finance & Central Bank Deputies Meetings Held in Bengaluru, Karnataka – February 22-25, 2023  The “First G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors” (FMCBG) meeting took place in Bengaluru, Karnataka, on February 22-25, 2023, as part of the G20 (Group of Twenty) Indian Presidency.

• The meeting was co-chaired by Union Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Ministry of Finance (MoF) and Dr. Shaktikanta Das, Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
• Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi addressed the first FMCBG meeting via video message.

The 2nd G20 Finance & Central Bank Deputies Meeting – Feb 22, 2023
The ‘2nd G20 Finance and Central Bank Deputies’ (FCBD) meeting was co-chaired by Ajay Seth, Secretary (Economic Affairs), and Dr. Michael D. Patra, Deputy Governor, RBI, on February 22, 2023.

• The 2nd G20 FCBD meeting was inaugurated by Union Minister Anurag Thakur, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) and Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports (MoYAS), Government of India.

About the Group of Twenty (G20):
i.The G20 is the leading forum for economic cooperation on a global scale.

• G20 Members: It has 20 members, including 19 countries: Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Türkiye, United Kingdom (UK), United States (US), and the European Union (EU).

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Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh inaugurates International Biotech Conclave in Imphal, Manipur i.From February 24-26, 2023, the International Bio-resource Conclave 2023 along with the 22nd Congress of the International Society for Ethno-pharmacology and the 10th Congress of Society for Ethno-pharmacology (ISE SFEC-2023) was held at the City Convention Centre, Imphal, Manipur.
ii.It was inaugurated by Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Dr Jitendra Singh, Ministry of Science and technology (MeitY).
iii.It is for the first time since Independence, North East Region (NER) organized an International Conference on Biotechnology.
iv.The events were themed upon Reimagine Ethnopharmacology : Globalisation of Traditional Medicine
About Institute of Bio-resources and Sustainable Development (IBSD):
It is an autonomous institute under Department of Biotechnology, Ministry of Science & Technology (MeitY).
Director– Prof. Pulok Kumar Mukherjee
Headquarter– Imphal, Manipur
Establishment– 2001

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CM Himanta Biswa Sarma lays Foundation Stone of North East India’s 1st Compressed Biogas PlantOn 25th February 2023, Himanta Biswa Sarma, Chief Minister (CM) of Assam, laid the foundation stone of  5-tonne-per-day-capacity compressed biogas(CBG) plant, North East India’s first ever CBG plant, at Domora Pathar, Sonapur in Kamrup (Metropolitan) district, Assam.

• The First of its kind CBG plant is being built by entrepreneurs Pankaj Gogoi and Rakesh Doley under the banner of Redlemon Technologies Pvt Ltd based in Guwahati, Assam..
• The plant is proposed to be operational from November 2023.

The biogas unit in Sonapur, Assam, is being set up under the Centre’s Sustainable Alternative Towards Affordable Transportation (SATAK) scheme.
Key Highlights: 
i. The Northeast’s first-of-its-kind project will support the efforts of the Assam Government to switch to cleaner and greener energy sources.
ii. The plant will have a 5-tonne-per-day production capacity of compressed biogas that would be produced from raw materials such as cattle dung, municipal solid wastes, etc.
iii. The CBG plant would also provide an additional source of income to farmers since they would be able to sell the biogas producers their cattle wastes.
SATAK Scheme:

• The Sustainable Alternative Towards Affordable Transportation (SATAK) scheme on CBG was launched on 1st October 2018.
• It envisages a target production of 15 million tonnes (MMT) of CGB by 2023 from 5,000 plants.

About Assam:
Chief Minister- Himanta Biswa Sarma
Governor- Gulab Chand Kataria
Airports- Jorhat Airport (Rowriah Airport); Salonibari airport
Wildlife Sanctuary- Deepor Beel Wildlife Sanctuary; Marat Longri Wildlife Sanctuary

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PM Narendra Modi inaugurates Aadi Mahotsav at Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium, Delhi

“Aadi Mahotsav”, the mega National Tribal Festival was held from 16th February to 27th February 2023 at Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium in Delhi. The festival was inaugurated by Prime Minister(PM) Narendra Modi on 16th February 2023 in the presence of Arjun Munda, Union Minister for Tribal Affairs.

• Aadi Mahotsav is an annual initiative of the Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation Limited (TRIFED) under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs(MoTA).
• It aims to  promote tribal culture on a national scale and celebrate the spirit of traditional arts, crafts, cuisine, and commerce.
• With more than 200 stalls at the venue, the programme highlights the rich and varied heritage of tribes from all over India.

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MoHFW launched Sarva Dawa Sevan, MDA Campaign to End Filariasis

Rajesh Bhushan, Secretary of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare(MoHFW), nationwide Sarva Dawa Sevan, Mass Drug Administration (MDA) campaign, to eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis (LF) by 2027, 3 years ahead of the global target. The campaign aims to end disease transmission through the door-to-door administration of anti-filarial drugs, especially in 10 filaria-affected states.
The campaign was jointly launched by the High-burden districts in Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Karnataka, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, and Andhra Pradesh.

Lymphatic Filariasis a Vector Borne Disease caused by Culex mosquitoes.

• In January 2023, the Government of India unveiled a renewed five-pronged strategy for the elimination of LF .

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Karnataka to get India’s 1st Marina to Promote Coastal Tourism

Karnataka Chief Minister(CM) Basavaraj Bommai confirmed that Karnatka is set to get India’s 1st Marina to promote coastal tourism during the event “Seven Wonders of Karnataka” hosted under the Department of Tourism, Government of Karnataka.

• The Marina will be constructed by Byndoor in Udupi district after getting permission from the government of India for the relaxation of Coastal Regulation Zone Rules.
• It is proposed to take up beach tourism in coastal areas and pilgrim tourism.
• The Karnataka government has also proposed to build a corridor of ancient temples like Madhukeshwara in Banavasi and Dattatreya in Ganagapura and promote ‘Yatra tourism’.

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LIC reduces its stake in Industrial Investment Trust from 5.433% to 3.362%

Life Insurance Corporation of India(LIC), an Indian state-owned insurance group and investment company, has diluted its shareholding in Industrial Investment Trust Limited(IITL) from 12,25,017 to 7,57,966 Equity Shares, reducing its shareholding from 5.433% to 3.362% of the paid-up capital.

• Between 6th July 2012, and 23rd February 2023, LIC sold around 4.67 lakh shares of IITL at an average price of Rs 88.39.

Industrial Investment Trust Limited (IITL) was incorporated in 1933 as an investment trust company. IITL obtained a Certificate of Registration from the Reserve Bank of India(RBI) in 2000 to carry on as a Non-Banking Financial Company (NBFC) without accepting Public Deposits

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President of India Presented Sangeet Natak Akademi Felllowships and Awards for 2019, 2020 & 2021On 23rd February 2023, Droupadi Murmu, President of India, presented the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship (Akademi Ratna) and Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards (Akademi Puraskar) for the year 2019, 2020 and 2021 in New Delhi, Delhi.

• 9 eminent personalities were given Akademi Ratna in the field of performing arts and a total of 128 artists from the field of music, dance, theatre, traditional, folk, and puppetry were given the Akademi Puraskar.

Key People:
i. Kishan Reddy Union Minister for Minister of Culture, Ministry of Tourism and Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region(MoDoNER), Arjun Ram Meghwal, Minister of State(MoS) for Parliamentary Affairs & Culture, Uma Nadnuri, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Culture and Dr Sandhya Purecha, Chairman, Sangeet Natak Akademi were present during the event.
About Sangeet Natak Akademi: 
Sangeet Natak Akademi is the apex body in the field of performing arts in India.
Chairman– Dr Sandhya Purecha
Headquarters– New Delhi, Delhi
Established in 1953

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6th Annual HCA Film Awards 2023: SS Rajamouli’s ‘RRR’ Wins 5 TrophiesThe Hollywood Critics Association (HCA) Film Awards 2023 (6th Edition), held at the Beverly Wilshire in Los Angeles, United States (US), has acknowledged “RRR,” directed by SS Rajamouli, on a global scale and honored it with 5 awards.

• The film ‘RRR’ gained recognition for Best Action Film, Best International Film, Best Original Song, and Best Stunts, while the cast/crew of RRR earned an honorary HCA Spotlight Award.

Key Points:
i.The film “RRR” has been nominated in 8 categories for the HCA Film Awards and HCA Creative Arts Awards combined.

• RRR has also been nominated for Best Director, Best Picture, Best Editing, and Best Visual Effects.

ii.The HCA now creates and produces two in-person award ceremonies annually: the HCA Film Awards in the winter (January or February) and the HCA TV Awards in the summer (August).
About the Film ‘RRR’
i.RRR is a fictional pre-independence story about two real-life Indian revolutionaries from the 1920s, Alluri Sitarama Raju (Ram Charan) and Komaram Bheem (Junior NTR).
ii.RRR previously won Best Foreign Language Film and Best Original Music for Naatu Naatu at the 28th Critics’ Choice Awards 2023.
iii.In addition, Naatu Naatu won the ‘Best Song’ at the 80th Golden Globe Awards in Los Angeles (US) in 2023.
iv.RRR has also been nominated for “Best Original Song” at the 2023 Oscars for Naatu Naatu.

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Thyreus narendrani: New Cuckoo Bee Species Discovered in KeralaThyreus narendrani, a new species of cuckoo bee was discovered in Kerala’s Srayilkadavu Kole wetland ecosystem, Malappuram district, and Christ College campus.

• Kole wetlands, located in the districts of Thrissur and Malappuram in Kerala, are unique and productive ecosystems that were designated as Ramsar sites in 2002.

The new species is named after the late T.C. Narendran, Professor of Zoology, in recognition of his expertise and excellence in the field of entomology.
About ‘Thyreus narendrani’
i.The newly discovered species ‘Thyreus narendrani’ is a member of the Apidae family of the Hymenoptera order.

• The genus Thyreus consists of cuckoo bees or cleptoparasitic bees.
• Thyreus bees primarily parasitize solitary bees of the genera Amegilla and Anthophora.

ii.Cuckoo bees infiltrate other bees’ nests by breaking in, entering, and laying their eggs.

• When the larva of the cuckoo bee hatches from the nest of the host bee, it consumes the food accumulated by the host for its own growing larva.

iii.Cuckoo bees, unlike other female bees, lack pollen-collecting mechanisms.

• Bees are well-known pollinators, pollinating numerous food crops as well as natural vegetation.

Key Points:
i.The new bee species was discovered by researchers from Shadpada Entomology Research Lab (SERL), Christ College (autonomous), Irinjalakuda, and Government College, Kodenchery, Kerala.
ii.The findings are published online in the recent issue of the international journal ‘Oriental Insects’.
iii.The research was sponsored by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), New Delhi, Delhi.

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8th ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2023 held in South Africa: Australia won its title defeating South AfricaThe Australian women‘s national cricket team captained by Meg Lanning won the 8th edition of the International Cricket Council (ICC) Women’s Twenty20 (T20) World Cup 2023 by defeating South Africa women’s team captained by Sune Luus by 19 runs in the finals held in the Newlands Cricket Ground in Cape Town, South Africa.

• This marks the 6th and third consecutive ICC Women’s T20 World Cup title of Australia. Australia previously won the title in 2010, 2012, 2014, 2018 and 2020.
• ICC women’s T20 World Cup 2023 was hosted by South Africa from 10th to 26th February 2023.
• The tournament was held at 3 venues in three cities of SA viz. Newlands Cricket Ground (Cape Town), St George’s Park (Gqeberha), and Boland Park (Paarl).

About Australia:
Prime Minister– Anthony Albanese
Capital– Canberra
Currency– Australian Dollar

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World NGO Day 2023 – 27th February World Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) Day is annually observed across the globe on 27th February to recognise, celebrate, and honour all non-governmental and nonprofit organizations that contribute to society.
World NGO Day is celebrated in more than 89 countries and over 6 continents.

• 27th February 2023 marks the observance of the 10th edition of World NGO Day.
• The first-ever World NGO Day was observed on 27th February 2014. The Global Inaugural event was hosted by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland, in Helsinki, Finland ib 27th February 2014.

About  Council of the Baltic Sea States(CBSS):
The Council of the Baltic Sea States(CBSS), established in 1992, is an intergovernmental forum for cooperation between the states in the Baltic Sea Region.
Presidency (2022-2023)– Germany
Aim: To promote democratic and economic development in the Baltic Sea Region.
Members –  10 Member States and the European Union
Headquarters– Stockholm, Sweden

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4th National Protein day – 27 February 2023 National Protein Day is annually observed across India on February 27 to raise public awareness and educate people about the health benefits of protein.

• 27th February 2023 marks the observance of the 4th National Protein Day.

The theme of National Protein Day 2023 is “Easy Access to Protein for All”.

• The theme aims to raise awareness and promote the importance of having easy access to protein for a healthy and well-balanced diet.

Background:
i. National Protein Day was initiated by the Right To Protein (RTP), a nationwide public health campaign, which focuses on raising awareness of adequate protein consumption for better health and nutrition.
ii. The 1st ever National Protein Day was observed on 27th February 2020.

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Kerala, UN Women signs MoU to Empower Women in Tourism; JFE Engineering Ltd Providing Technical Support to Kerala’s 1st Waste-to-Energy PlantKerala Tourism has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with UN Women at the first-ever Global Responsible Tourism Summit, which was scheduled to be held for 4 days in Kumarakom, Kerala.

• Objective: To work towards promoting women-friendly tourism in Kerala with a focus on women empowerment.
• The MoU was signed by Director of  Kerala Tourism P.B. Nooh and UN Women India Representative Ms Susan Ferguson. The Responsible Tourism Mission will be the implementing agency for the MoU.

Chief Minister of Kerala Pinarayi Vijayan announced the agreement made with Japan-based JFE Engineering Limited to provide technical support to Kerala’s first waste-to-energy treatment plant at Kozhikode, Kerala.

• The Kerala government plans to complete the construction of the plant within 2 years.
• JFE Engineering Limited has experience of installing more than 350 waste disposal plants across the world.

About UN Women:
It is the United Nations entity dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women.
Headquarters – New York, USA
Establishment – July 2010
Executive Director – Ms. Sima Bahous

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Odisha’s FM Niranjan Pujari Presented the State’s Highest ever budget of Rs 2.3 lakh crore for FY24 Odisha’s Finance Minister Niranjan Pujari presented the state’s highest-ever budget for the Financial year 2023-24 with an outlay of Rs 2.30 lakh crore, increased by 15% from FY23’s budget outlay of Rs 2 lakh core.

• The budget was presented in two parts such as the agriculture budget and the general budget.

Key Budgetary Allocations:
i.An outlay of Rs 24,829 crore was made for the agriculture budget, which was 20% more than that of FY23. It constitutes about 22.5% of the Gross State Value Added (GSVA).ii.The capital outlay was increased by more than 60 times from Rs 834 crore in 2000-2001 to Rs 51,683 crore in 2023-24, which is about 6% of the GSDP
iii.The total budget allocation is proposed to be financed through revenue receipts of Rs 1,84,500 crore and borrowing and other receipts of Rs 45,500 crore.
iv.As per the FM’s statement, the state’s development expenditure increased by ‘35 times’ from Rs 3,538 crore in 2000-01 to Rs 1,25,000 crore in 2023-24.
v.Rs 16,048 crore was proposed for public health care. Rs 22, 528 crore allocated for School and mass education department.
vi.With a budgetary allotment of Rs 50 crore, FM announced a new scheme Mission Shakti Scooter Yojana for FY24.
About Odisha:
Governor –  Ganeshi Lal
Festival – Kalinga Mahotsav, Chandan Yatra or Gandhalepana Yatra
Stadium – Kalinga Stadium, Barabati Stadium

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Madhya Pradesh Cabinet Approves Ladli Behna Yojana to Empower WomenOn 25th February 2023, The Cabinet of Madhya Pradesh headed by Chief Minister of MP Shivraj Singh Chouhan, approved the Mukhyamantri Ladli Behna Yojana 2023 with the aim to empower women at every level.

• Under this scheme, married women aged between 23 and 60 years, will be offered financial assistance of Rs 1000 per month.

About Mukhyamantri Ladli Behna Yojana:
i.The scheme aims to ensure the all-round development of women in MP, their economic independence, better health and nutritional level.
ii.This will also support the women in strengthening their decision-making role in the family.
iii.The scheme is planned to benefit around one crore women in MP.
Rs 1000 will be deposited directly into the aadhar linked bank accounts of the eligible women.
Special provision: 
For women (aged below 60 years) receiving less than Rs 1000 per month under any other social security pension scheme, a provision has been made to pay her a raised amount of Rs 1000 per month.
About Madhya Pradesh:
Chief Minister– Shivraj Singh Chouhan
Governor– Mangubhai Chhaganbhai Patel
National Park– Madhav National Park; Satpura National Park
Wildlife Sanctuary– National Chambal Gharial Wildlife Sanctuary, Kheoni Wildlife Sanctuary

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UP Government signs MoA with Tata Technologies to Upgrade 150 ITIsOn 26th February 2023, the Government of Uttar Pradesh (UP) signed a 10-year Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) amounting to Rs 5472 crore with Tata Technologies Limited, a global engineering and digital services company, to upgrade 150 government-owned Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) across 75 districts in UP with modern infrastructure, industry-oriented courseware, training, and support for advanced equipment and software as per industry 4.0.
ITI Upgrade Project:
i. Tata Technology will invest around Rs 4282 crore and Rs 1190 crore will be spent by the Government of UP.
ii.With an investment of Rs 4887 crores, ITI centres will be modernised on the existing ITI premises with approx. 10,000 square feet of ITI area being developed by the Government of UP.
iii. When the ITIs are modernised, they will offer 6 new trades and 23 new short-term courses to meet Industry 4.0 demands. At full capacity, they will train over 1,20,000 students a year.
iv. The project is scheduled to start in March 2023 and is expected to be ready between January 2024 and March 2024.
Key Highlights:
i. After being upgraded, these ITIs will serve the needs of students and potential employers for advanced skills while also serving as technology hubs and skill centres for both large industries and Micro, Small, and Medium Businesses (MSME).
ii. The project will enhance industrial education and training while also improving the learning environment for young people to better fulfil the demands of the business.
iii. Upgraded ITIs will provide guidance, experience learning earning through physical and digital delivery, and employability skills.
iv. It will also function as a skill centre and support local artisan and handicraft industries by providing custom courses on product design and increasing their artistic level
v. The collaboration between Tata Technology and the UP Government aims to advance youth employment opportunities and the development of digital skills in UP, helping the state towards a brighter future.
About Tata Technologies Limited: 
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) & Managing Director (MD)- Warren Haris
Headquarters- Pune, Maharashtra
Establishment- 1989
About Uttar Pradesh:
Chief Minister- Yogi Adityanath
Governor- Anandiben Mafatbhai Patel
Airports- Chitrakoot Airport; Azamgarh Airport
Bird Sanctuary- Nawabganj Bird Sanctuary; Sandi Bird Sanctuary

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Ellora Ajanta International Festival 2023 held in Maharashtra- 25th to 28th February 2023

The 3 day- Ellora -Ajanta International Festival 2023 held in Chatrapati Sambhajinagar (formerly known as Aurangabad), Maharashtra, from 25th to 28th February 2023. The festival was organised at the historical place Soneri Mahal, under the campus of the Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University in Chatrapati Sambhajinagar (Aurangabad).

• The festival was inaugurated by the Union Minister of State (MoS) for Finance Dr. Bhagwat Karad on 25th February 2023.
• The festival is a celebration of the cultural heritage and diversity of the region. The festival featured a range of events, including live music performances, dance shows, art exhibitions, and food festivals.

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EAC-PM Chairman Bibek Debroy Released the 2nd Edition of Foundational Literacy and Numeracy Report Dr Bibek Debroy, Chairman of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM) released the second edition of the Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) report at the conference ‘TheIndiaDialog’, which was organised by Institute for Competitiveness and US-Asia Technology Management Center, Stanford University, on February 23 & 24, 2023.

• The FLN Index 2022 is an indicator of literacy among children below 10 years of age.
• India’s overall average score in the FLN index 2022 was 44.48 and 18 out of 36 state/UTs have scored above the country average.
• The report has been authored by Amit Kapoor, Chair, Institute for Competitiveness, Natalia Chakma, Researcher, Institute for Competitiveness, and Sheen Zutshi, Research Manager, Institute for Competitiveness.
• In the FLN index, under the large state categories, West Bengal maintained its top position while Uttar Pradesh stood at the bottom. Among smaller states, Punjab was at the top of the index while Telangana was at the bottom. Among UTs Puducherry topped the index while Ladakh was the worst performer.

About Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM):
It is an independent body constituted to give advice on economic and related issues to the Government of India, specifically to the Prime Minister.
Current members: Chairman – Dr. Bibek Debroy; Part-time Members – Rakesh Mohan, Dr. Sajjid Chinoy, Dr. Neelkanth Mishra , Shri Nilesh Shah, Prof. T.T. Ram Mohan and Dr. Poonam Gupta .
Headquarters– New Delhi, Delhi

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Kerala becomes 1st State to use Robotics Scavengers to Clean ManholesOn 24th February 2023, Roshi Augustine, Minister of Water Resources, launched a robotic scavenger “Bandicoot”, in Guruvayur in Thrissur district, Kerala and noted that the robotic technology would be extended throughout the state. With this, Kerala becomes the 1st state in India to use robotic technology to clean all its commissioned manholes and drainage.

• The Bandicoot was launched under the Guruvayur Sewerage Project by the Kerala Water Authority (KWA) as a part of the Kerala Government’s 100-day action plan.

Note: In 2018, KWA started using Bandicoot to clean the manholes in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, and later, it was introduced in Ernakulam, Kerala.
Bandicoot:
i. Bandicoot, the world’s 1st robotic scavenger, was developed as a Make in India and Swachh Bharat Abhiyan initiative by Kerala-based Genrobotics, National Award winning Robotics startup that focuses on developing robotic technologies for solving social issues.
ii. It is already in use in urban bodies across India to replace the practice of sanitation workers physically entering the manholes.
iii. Genrobotics has received the ‘Kerala Pride’ award at the Huddle Global 2022 conclave organised by the Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM) for Bandicoot innovation.
Function:
i. The major component of Bandicoot is the robotic Tron Unit, which enters the manhole and removes sewage with robotic hands that resemble human hands.
ii. Bandicoot has waterproof, High-definition (HD) vision cameras and gas sensors that can detect harmful gases inside the manhole
iii. The launch of a robotic scavenger in Guruvayur Municipality was a significant step towards the usage of technologically advanced manhole cleaning solutions across Kerala.Note: Bandicoot robots are currently deployed across selected cities in 17 States and 3 Union Territories.
About Kerala:
Chief Minister- Pinarayi Vijayan
Governor- Arif Mohammed Khan
Wild Life Sanctuary- Aralam Wildlife Sanctuary; Malabar Wildlife Sanctuary
Tiger Reserve- Periyar Tiger Reserve; Parambikulam Tiger Reserve

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UR dips to 7.2% in Q3FY23 & to 4.1% in July 2021-June 2022: NSO Surveysi.On February 24, 2023, the National Statistical Office (NSO), Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) released the 5th ‘Annual Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS)- July, 2021 – June, 2022’ stating Unemployment rate (UR) at 5-year low of 4.1% in 2021-22. It was 4.2% in July 2020-June 2021.
ii.The pan-India UR for male was 4.4% and for women was 3.3% in July, 2021 – June, 2022.
iii.The UR in both rural and urban areas declined to 3.2% and 6.3%, respectively from 3.3% and 6.7% respectively, in July 2020-June 2021.
iv.The NSO also released the 17th quarterly PLFS survey for urban India for October-December 2022 quarter (Q3FY23). As per it, India’s urban UR in CWS terms for persons aged 15 years and above stagnated at 7.2% in Q3FY23, the same as the Q2FY23.
v.However, as compared to October-December 2021 it has declined when it was 8.7%.
About Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI):
Minister of State (Independent Charge)– Rao Inderjit Singh (Constituency- Gurugram, Haryana)
Secretary– DR. G P Samanta

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NMCG Executive Committee Approved 9 Projects worth Rs 1278 crore for pollution abatement in Ganga Basin and Ghat DevelopmentNine projects worth around Rs. 1278 crore were approved at the 47th meeting of the Executive Committee of NMCG (National Mission for Clean Ganga) which was held under the chairmanship of G. Asok Kumar, Director General, NMCG.

• Out of the 9 projects, 7 were related to reducing pollution in the Ganga Basin and 2 were related to ghat development.

Key Points:
i.West Bengal: A project in West Bengal worth Rs 123.02 crore was approved for the creation of a 13 MLD (millions of litres per day) STP (Sewage Treatment Plant) and a 300 KLD (Kiloliters Per Day) decentralized STP at Chakdaha Municipal Town.
ii.Bihar:A project at an estimated cost of Rs. 94.12 crore for the development of two Sewage Treatment Plants (10.91 MLD and 10.66 MLD) for pollution abatement in River Ganga  was approved for Lakhisarai town in Bihar.
iii.Madhya Pradesh: A project costing Rs. 511.15 crore was approved to decrease pollution in Rivers Kahn and Saraswati in Indore, Madhya Pradesh.
iv.Uttar Pradesh: Under ghat development, a project worth Rs. 2.84 crore was approved for Nageshwar Dham Ashram ghat in Fatehpur.
About National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG):
NMCG was registered as a society on 12th August 2011 under the Societies Registration Act 1860. It acted as the implementation arm of the National Ganga River Basin Authority(NGRBA)
Director General – G Asok Kumar
Headquarters – New Delhi, Delhi

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Union Minister V. Muraleedharan to Launch New Initiatives at NIT CalicutOn 24th February 2023, V. Muraleedharan, Minister of State (MoS) for External Affairs and Parliamentary Affairs, visited the National Institute of Technology, Calicut (NIT-C), Kozhikode, Kerala. V. Muraleedharan launched several new initiatives in light of the implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP).

• The visit of MoS V. Muraleedharan was organized by the Centre for International Relations and Foreign Languages (CIRFL) of NIT-C.

Key Highlights:
i. V. Muraleedharan also released a brochure of the “Centre for Women’s Welfare and Social Empowerment (CWSE)” at the NIT-C.

• CWSE was established as an inclusive platform to assist women in developing their leadership, communication, and entrepreneurial skills through workshops, training programmes, and mentorship opportunities.

ii. The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 calls for several actions to promote the internationalisation of higher education and make India a top study destination.

• NEP 2020 calls for various actions, including facilitating faculty/student exchanges, research and teaching partnerships, and the signing of pertinent (mutually beneficial MOUs with foreign nations).

iii. The Centre for International Relations & Foreign Languages (CIRFL), one of the newly established multidisciplinary centres of the NITC, has actively established the International Students and Scholars Office (ISSO).
iv. The National Skills Qualifications Framework (NSQF) Level of Training (Level 3-7) Skill Hub is being established by NIT Calicut to support self and wage employment, apprenticeship, etc.

• Skill Hub in NIT Calicut will focus on new-age courses: Artificial Intelligence (AI), Blockchain, 3D Printing,  Drone, etc.

v. During the Minister’s visit, the new ISSO office was unveiled and the 1st newsletter from CIRFL will be published to highlight its activities and successes from the previous year (2022).
NITC signs MoU with MAGCOM for academic cooperation: 
NIT-C signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Kozhikode-based Mahatma Gandhi College of Mass Communication (MAGCOM) for academic cooperation. Under this MoU, both NIT-C and MAGCOM will work together on the role of communication in engineering studies and the role of technology in media studies.
In collaboration with CIRFL and NIT-C, academic courses in the domains of content writing, technical writing, and international media studies are set to be started.

• The MoU was signed by M.S. Shamasundara, Registrar of NIT-C, and A.K. Anuraj, Director of MAGCOM.

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MHA approves Renaming of Aurangabad and Osmanabad

On 24th February 2023, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) approved the renaming of Aurangabad city as “Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar” and Osmanabad city as “Dharashiv” in Osmanabad district, Maharashtra.

• The renaming of Aurangabad as Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and Osmanabad as Dharashiv was the last Cabinet decision of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government led by Uddhav Thackeray. The demand was first raised by Bal Thackeray, founder of Shiv Sena.

Aurangabad derives its name from the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb, while Osmanabad was named for a 20th-century ruler of the princely state of Hyderabad.

• The new name of Aurangabad – ‘Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar’, is derived from Chhatrapati Sambhaji, the eldest son of Maratha king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and 2nd ruler of the Maratha state(1681-1689). Sambhaji Maharaj was executed on Aurangzeb’s orders in 1689.

‘Dharashiv‘, a new name for Osmanabad, is derived from the name of a cave complex near Osmanabad city. According to researchers, Dharashiv dates back to the 8th century.

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US’s International IPR Index 2023 (11th Edition): India Drops to 42nd Place According to the International Intellectual Property Rights Index 2023 (11th edition) released by the United States (US) Chamber of Commerce, India ranks 42nd with an overall index score of 38.64% (i.e.,19.32 out of 50) among 55 major global economies across 50 unique indicators.

• According to the index, India is well-positioned to take the lead among developing nations in driving innovation that is IP-driven to transform their economies.
• India was placed 43rd out of 55 countries in 2022 and 40th in the index in 2021, rising just one spot to the 42nd position in 2023.

The index was launched by the Global Innovation Policy Centre of the US Chamber of Commerce and is closely monitored by the Indian government.
International IP Index 2023 (11th Edition)
i.The annual international IP index assesses the protection of intellectual property rights (IPR) in 55 of the world’s largest economies, which account for around 90% of global GDP.

• The index found that several domestic and international measures threatened to weaken IPR.

ii.It addresses issues ranging from patent and copyright laws to the ability to monetize IP assets and the ratification of international treaties.
iii.The index seeks to guide countries towards a brighter economic future characterised by increased innovation, creativity, and competitiveness by analysing the IP landscape in global marketplaces.
Click here to read the executive summary of the report.

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Bangladesh Govt, ISA Inks Agreement to Enhance Usage of Solar Power in BangladeshThe International Solar Alliance (ISA) and the Government of Bangladesh have signed an agreement to enhance the use of solar energy in Bangladesh.

• The agreement was signed by Bangladesh Power Division Secretary Md. Habibur Rahman and ISA Director General Ajay Mathur.

The agreement is scheduled to take effect in December 2026.
Featured Projects under the Agreement

• 12 trolley-mounted solar irrigation systems of 2 kW (kilowatt) each for the Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI)
• 12 portable 2 kW solar paddy threshers
• 1.5 kW of solar-powered drinking water
• Installation of any one railway rooftop solar project on platforms
• Installation of two rooftop solar projects with a combined capacity of 22 KW

Key Points:
i.By 2041, the Bangladesh government intends to have 40% of its energy generated from renewable sources.
ii.By the year 2030, Bangladesh intends to generate 4000 MW of solar energy through several projects.

• The country is also promoting the use of other renewable energy sources like wind power, energy from waste, and hydropower to help it reach its goals.

iii.Guidelines for net metering rooftop solar installations have also been implemented. Solar energy is also being encouraged in agriculture.
International Solar Alliance (ISA)
i.The ISA is a group of 123 nations that was established to enhance solar energy and solar technology deployment to increase energy security and promote sustainable energy use among member nations.
ii.It was developed as a joint initiative between India and France to mobilize efforts to combat climate change by deploying solar energy alternatives.
iii.It was conceived on the fringes of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conference of Parties (COP21) in Paris (France) in 2015. All United Nations member states are eligible to join the ISA.
Director General – Ajay Mathur
Headquarters – Gurugram, Haryana

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FATF Suspends Russia’s Membership due to Ukraine War; Added South Africa, Nigeria on ‘grey list’Following its 2nd Plenary under the presidency of T. Raja Kumar of Singapore (22-24 February 2023), the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the Global financial crime watchdog, updated its statements identifying high-risk and other monitored jurisdictions.

• FATF suspended Russia’s membership stating that Russia’s war in Ukraine violated the FATF’s principles to promote security, safety, and the integrity of the global financial system.
• FATF has also added South Africa and Nigeria to its “grey list“, a list of countries that are failing to combat money laundering and terrorism financing.
• FATF has removed Cambodia and Morocco from the grey list.

Key Points:
i.While the membership of Russia has now been suspended, it still remains a member of FATF and the Russian Federation remains accountable for its obligation to implement the FATF Standards and continue to meet its financial obligations.
ii.This decision of FATF indicates to global banks, financial institutions and investors that these countries are not fully compliant with anti-money laundering and terrorist financing standards.

• Ukraine welcomed the decision of FATF and urged FATF to exclude Russia from the list of FATF member countries and to place it on the Blacklist as a high-risk country or jurisdiction.

iii.The addition of South Africa and Nigeria to the grey list means the clients at the  financial institutions in these countries are likely to experience increased due diligence checks in international banking and finance.
South Africa and Nigeria have made high-level political commitments to address the deficiencies it had found.

• The FATF has listed 8 areas that South Africa still needed to work on in order to remove it from the grey list.

Points to note: 
Paris (France) based FATF is an inter-governmental organisation established to combat money laundering and terrorism financing. FATF sets international standards to prevent these illegal activities.
Members: FATF members include 39 countries, which includes, the United States of America(USA), India, China, Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom(UK), Germany, and France. Ukraine is not a member of FATF.
Black list: Countries under the FATF blacklist: Democratic People’s Republic of Korea(North  Korea), Iran, Myanmar
About Financial Action Task Force (FATF):
President– T. Raja Kumar of Singapore (1 July 2022 to 30 June 2024)
Headquarters– Paris, France

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NSE Indices launches India’s 1st Nifty India Municipal Bond IndexIndia’s first ever municipal bond index namely ‘Nifty India Municipal Bond Index’ has been launched by NSE Indices Limited, a subsidiary of National Stock Exchange (NSE). It has a base date of January 1, 2021, and a base value of 1,000.

• It was launched at a Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) workshop on Municipal Debt Securities in Bengaluru, Karnataka.
• This index will track the performance of municipal bonds issued by Indian municipal corporations across maturities and having investment grade credit rating.

About Index:
i.Presently, the index has 28 municipal bonds issued by 10 issuers all having credit rating in the AA category.
ii.The index constituents are assigned weights based on their outstanding amount.
iii.The index is computed using the total return methodology including price return and coupon return.
iv.It will be reviewed quarterly.
Key Note:
In 2015, SEBI’s Issue and Listing of Municipal Debt Securities Regulations, 2015 came into effect after which the Indian municipal bond market has seen a resurgence of issuances. Raising money from capital markets incentivises municipal corporations to fund new projects and improve civic infrastructure
About NSE Indices Limited:
The company owns and manages a portfolio of indices under the Nifty brand of NSE
It also maintains fixed income indices based on Government of India securities, corporate bonds, money market instruments and hybrid indices.
CEO– Mukesh Agarwal
Headquarter– Mumbai, Maharashtra

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PFRDA Launches T+2 Settlement for Partial Withdrawal of NPSThe Pension Fund Regulatory & Development Authority (PFRDA) has reduced the waiting period for National Pension System (NPS) subscribers for processing partial withdrawal requests to T+2 (after two days of the request) across all Central Record Keeping Agencies (CRAs).

• Formerly, the turnaround time for NPS was T + 4 (after four days of the request).

In September 2022, PFRDA decreased the timeline for processing withdrawal requests from subscribers at the time of exit from T+4 working/settlement days (T being the day of authorization of withdrawal request by Nodal officer/ PoP/ Subscriber) to T+2 days.
Key Points:  
i.The pension regulator, PFRDA, has expanded the services available under T+2 timeframes and has now calculated the turnaround time for all types of withdrawals.
ii.Reduced timelines will be implemented gradually in the future for many more activities in the interest of subscribers.
iii.The intermediaries of PFRDA, namely CRAs, Pension Funds, and Custodians, have improved the system interface and enhanced their IT capabilities as part of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav and to commemorate 75 years of India’s independence.

• This has decreased the timelines of various transactions under the NPS and provided a better subscriber experience to meet their evolving needs.

iv.Assets under management (AUM) reached nearly Rs. 8.75 lakh crore as of February 11, 2023, as India’s pension assets [NPS and Atal Pension Yojana (APY)] continue to rise rapidly.

• Despite challenges like rising inflation and rising interest rates in India, AUM has been growing at a 28–30% rate.

About the Pension Fund Regulatory & Development Authority (PFRDA):
Chairman – Supratim Bandyopadhyay
Establishment – 2003
Headquarters – New Delhi, Delhi

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APEDA signs MoU with Lulu Hypermarket for export promotion of millets in GCC Countries

On 21st February 2023, The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), under the Ministry of Commerce (MoC) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Lulu Hypermarket LLC to promote the export of millets to the Countries of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).
APEDA in association with Lulu Group aims to promote millet products and value-added products around the world.

• The MoU was signed by Tarun Bajaj, Director of APEDA, and VI Saleem, Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Lulu Hypermarket LLC, at Gulfood 2023 in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), for the promotion of millets in GCC countries.
• From April to November 2022, India exported millets worth USD 46.05 million. The new MoU will help APEDA to reach its target of exporting millets and its value-added products worth USD 100 million by 2025.     

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Govindaraj Kempareddy becomes 1st Indian to be Nominated as President of FIBA AsiaGovindaraj Kempareddy(K Govindaraj), President of the Basketball Federation of India (BFI), was unanimously nominated as the President of FIBA Asia, a zone within the International Basketball Federation (FIBA – Federation Internationale de Basketball Amateur) which contains all 44 Asian FIBA federations. He becomes the 1st Indian to be elected as FIBA Asia President.

• K Govindaraj will replace Qatar’s Sheikh Saud Ali Al Thani, who is currently serving his 4th five-year term as President of FIBA Asia. He has been president of FIBA Asia since 2002.
• Indian National Congress activist K Govindaraj is currently serving as a member of the Karnataka Legislative Council (KLC) and Vice-President of the Indian Olympic Association(IOA).

Note: FIBA Asia is one of the five regional zones of FIBA: the other 4 zones are FIBA Africa, FIBA Americas, FIBA Europe and FIBA Oceania.
About Govindaraj Kempareddy:
i. Govindaraj Kempareddy started his career as National Basketball Player
ii. He also serves as Secretary of the Karnataka State Basketball Association for the last 25 years and is a member of the Sports Authority of Karnataka for the last 10 years.
iii. He is also a member of the Selection Committee for the prestigious Ekalavya Awards.
iv. He served as the Manager of the Indian team at the Asian basketball championship held in Shanghai (China) in 2001, and as a Manager of the Indian team at the Asian basketball championship held in Jakarta (Indonesia).
v. Presently, Govindaraj Kempareddy serves as the Director of the Indian Cost Accountants Institute, a Government of India Nominee.
About FIBA Asia:
President- Sheikh Saud Ali Al Thani
Chairman- Yao Ming
Headquarters- Beirut, Lebanon
Establishment- 1960

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First MCA Barge Launched by Indian NavyOn February 24, 2023, the first Missile cum Ammunition (MCA) Barge, Yard 75 (LSAM 7) was launched by Rear Admiral Sandeep Mehta at Guttenedevi, the launch site of SECON, Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh.

• Background: In February 2021, a contract for the construction of 8 Missile Cum Ammunition Barges (MCA) has been concluded with an MSME (Micro, Small & Medium Enterprise) SECON, Visakhapatnam.
• The MCA Barges included in Indian Navy to perform the mission needs for embarking/ disembarking Missile, Gunnery and ASW Ammunition.

Key Points:
i.Being a part of the ‘Make in India’ initiative of the Government of India, all major and auxiliary equipment/systems of the MCA Barge was sourced from indigenous manufacturers.
ii.The Barge was built with a service life of 30 years.
iii.The MCA Barges will support the Operational commitments of the Indian Navy by providing Transportation, Embarkation and Disembarkation of articles/ammunition to IN (Indian Navy) Ships both alongside jetties and at outer harbours.

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Roscosmos launches Soyuz MS-23 Spacecraft to bring back 3 Astronauts stranded on ISSOn 24th February 2023, State Space Corporation ROSCOSMOS (Roscosmos), the Russian Space Agency, launched a Soyuz MS-23 spacecraft to bring back 3 astronauts stranded on the International Space Station (ISS) due to the coolant leak on their original return capsule, Soyuz MS-22 capsule. The unmanned Soyuz MS-23 was launched from Baikonur space centre in Kazakhstan and had been placed in Orbit.

• Soyuz MS-23 will bring back 3 Astronauts: Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin, cosmonauts from Russia, and Frank Rubio, a NASA astronaut from the United States of America (USA) who had been due to end their mission in March

Key Points:
i. The 3 astronauts were intended to be on board the International Space Station (ISS) for 6 months when they arrived in September 2022, but their mission was extended when their return Soyuz MS-22 capsule began to leak coolant in December 2022.
ii. US and Russian space officials believe that the leak on MS-22 was caused by a micrometeorite, a tiny particle of space rock.
iii. The three astronauts would return to Earth aboard Soyuz MS-23 in September 2023.

• The damaged MS-22 spacecraft is scheduled to land without a crew in March 2023.

Note: 430 kilogrammes (about 950 pounds) of cargo was sent aboard the replacement craft, including medical equipment, scientific instruments, water, food and cleaning supplies.
About State Space Corporation ROSCOSMOS (Roscosmos):
Director-General- Yury Ivanovich Borisov
Headquarters- Moscow, Russia
Establishment- 1992

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Devisingh Ransingh Shekhawat, Former President Pratibha Patil’s husband, Passed Away

On 24th February 2023, Renowned educationist Devisingh Ransingh Shekhawat, husband of the former President of India Pratibha Patil and former First Gentleman of India (2007-2012), passed away in Pune, Maharashtra, at the age of 89. He was born in 1934.

• Devisingh Shekhawat was an Indian agriculturist and politician He also served as the first gentleman of Rajasthan (2004 -2007) and also as mayor of Amravati (1991–1992). He was a member of the Indian National Congress.
• He served in the Legislative Assembly for the years 1985 to 1990, having been elected from the Amravati constituency to the Maharashtra state assembly.

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Bihar cabinet approves USD 50,000 for developing fog alert system with US-NCAROn 24th February 2023, the Cabinet of Bihar chaired by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, approved USD 50,000(around Rs 41.41 lakh) to develop an early warning system for dense fog and cold wave conditions in collaboration with the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), a Federally Funded Research and Development Center of the National Science Foundation, United States of America.

• The proposal to approve USD 50,000 for this project was introduced by the Planning and Development Department, Government of Bihar.

Key Points:
i.USD 50,000 will be utilised to offer technical support for the works that will be jointly carried out by the government of Bihar and NCAR.
ii.Bihar and NCAR are set to sign a Memorandum of Understanding(MoU) in this regard.
About Early warning systems:
i.The Early warning systems will play a major role in climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction.
ii.The aim of the Early warning systems is to avoid or reduce the damages caused by extreme weather conditions.
iii.The Bihar Mausam Seva Kendra(BMSK) under Planning & Development Department, is developing an application which will provide early warning of dense fog and cold wave conditions to the people.

• These information will also be provided to the people through the call centre of the BMSK.

About Bihar:
Chief Minister– Nitish Kumar
Governor– Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar
National Park– Valmiki National Park
Wildlife Sanctuary– Bhimbandh Wildlife Sanctuary; Gautam Buddha Wildlife Sanctuary

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Ola Electric to set up World’s largest EV hub in Tamil Nadu with Rs. 7,614 crore investment

Ola Electric Mobility Private Limited has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Government of Tamil Nadu(TN) committing investments worth Rs 7,614 crore in the presence of TN Chief Minister(CM) Muthuvel Karunanidhi Stalin (M.K. Stalin) and Bhavish Aggarwal, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Ola, at the Secretariat in Chennai, TN.

• The investments include setting up of world’s largest  Electric Vehicle (EV) hub with an integrated two-wheeler, electric car and lithium-cell Gigafactories with a capacity of 20 GW in SIPCOT Bargur, Krishnagiri district of Tamil Nadu
• Ola will invest Rs 5,114 crore for making lithium cells and Rs 2,500 crore for the car plant.
• This will generate employment for around 3111 people in TN.

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CJI DY Chandrachud Launches “Neutral Citations” For All Supreme Court JudgementsOn 23rd February 2023, Chief Justice of India (CJI) D Y Chandrachud, launched the “Neutral Citations” which would ensure a uniform pattern of citing the decisions of the Supreme Court.
Neutral citation system:
i.The Neutral citations system is a part of the efforts of the Supreme Court to introduce and implement a uniform, reliable and secure methodology to identify and cite decisions in the supreme court.
ii.On 23rd February 2023, The bench headed by CJI, DY Chandrachud announced that all the judgements of the apex court will have neutral citations.
iii.A committee of 3 High Court judges has been constituted to work on the process of neutral citations.

• It is noted that the high court of Delhi and Kerala already have a neutral citation system.

Key Points: 
i.CJI noted that the SC will also employ a machine learning (ML) tool to translate the verdicts from English to Indian Languages. So far, Around 2900 judgements have been translated into Hindi.
ii.A team of district judges and law researchers will assist in checking the translated versions of the judgements.
Electronic Supreme Court Reports (e-SCR) project:
The e-SCR project launched by CJI on 2nd January 2023 is aimed to provide free access to around 34000 judgements to lawyers, law students and the common public.

• e-SCR projects also aims to provide a digital version of the apex court’s judgments in the manner as they are reported in the official law report – ‘Supreme Court Reports’.

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Mercom report: India’s Solar capacity  installations grows 27% to 13 GW in 2022 As per the Mercom India report, titled ‘2022 Q4 and Annual India Solar Market Update’, Solar capacity installations in India increased by 27% year-on-year (y-o-y) to 13 gigawatts (GW) during the calendar year (CY) 2022 compared to 10.2 GW installed in CY 2021.

• Solar capacity Installations in 2022 were the highest ever recorded in India.
• The cumulative solar capacity installed in India was approximately 63 GW at the end of Q4 2022.

Key Points:
i.During CY 2022, large-scale solar projects accounted for 87% of the installations. Rooftop installations decreased by 3.7% YoY.
ii.India’s large-scale solar project pipeline stood at 58 GW, with another 51 GW of projects tendered and pending auction
iii.India added 2.6 GW of solar installed in Q4 (October-December) 2022, decreased by 5% from 2.8 GW in 2021, a marginal decrease of 2.5% from 2.7 GW installed in Q3 2022.

• Solar accounted for 82% of new power capacity additions in 2022, the highest recorded in any year

iv.Rajasthan, Karnataka and Gujarat were the top three states for cumulative large-scale solar capacity, accounting for 54% of installations in India as of December 2022.
v.Renewable energy sources accounted for 96% of new power capacity added in 2022, the highest share in India’s history.
vi.India requires 27 GW annual solar installation per year to meet the 280 GW target by 2030.
vii.The average cost of projects throughout CY 2022 was affected due to higher module prices and supply constraints.

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CSC Academy and NIELIT signs MoU to Enhance Digital Literacy and Skill Development in IndiaOn February 23, 2023, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed between CSC Academy, a subsidiary of Common Service Centre (CSC) e-Governance Services India Limited, and New Delhi (Delhi)-based National Institute of Electronics and Information Technology (NIELIT) to enhance digital literacy and skill development in India.
The MoU was signed in the presence of Director General Dr. Madan Mohan Tripathi, NIELIT; Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Dr. Rishikesh Patankar, CSC Academy; MD (Managing Director) & CEO Sanjay Kumar Rakesh, CSC SPV (Special Purpose Vehicle); among others.
Aim behind MoU:
i.To establish a long-term partnership between the two organizations
iii.To create employment opportunities for the youth of India
What is in the MoU?
i.Under this, both sides will develop and implement training programs in various fields of technology that promote digital literacy.

• These will include Skill Development, Virtual Academy, Accreditation and Facilitation Centre, Faculty Development Program, Digital and financial inclusion, Entrepreneurship development, Content and certifications and Provision of support to mutual partners and NGOs (Non Government Organizations).

ii.Both entities will reach out to a wider audience and help them to acquire new skills, thus creating a skilled workforce for the Indian digital economy.
About CSC Academy:
It is a subsidiary of CSC SPV and provides digital literacy and skill development training to the rural youth of India. It bridges the digital divide and creates employment opportunities for the rural population of India.
About NIELIT:
It is affiliated with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), and provides training and certification programs in various fields of Information Technology (IT).

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18th UIC World Security Congress organized by UIC & RPF in Jaipur, RajasthanThe 18th UIC World Security Congress, a 3-day Conference, was held in Jaipur, Rajasthan from 21st February to 23rd February 2023. It was jointly organised by the International Union of Railways (UIC – Union International Des Chemins) and the Railway Protection Force (RPF), India.
The theme of Congress is “Railway Security Strategy: Responses and Vision for Future”.

• The congress was divided into 4 sessions with underlying sub-themes of “Protecting Critical Assets & Freight”, “Human Security Approach”, “Best Railway Security Tools & Practices across the World” and “Vision 2030”.

Inaugural Session: 
A Special UIC edition of the RPF Journal was released on the occasion.

• The journal contains articles from leading professionals from Indian and International police and security organizations, senior officials with decades of experience in civil administration and industry experts.

2nd Day: 
On the 2nd day, the Congress focused on exploring the best Railway Security tools and practices from around the world and called for an international collaboration to tackle Railway security challenges.
“Jaipur Declaration” adopted at the 18th World Security Congress 
On 23rd February 2023, the 18th UIC World Security Congress concluded with the adoption of the Jaipur Declaration for rail safety and security by the attendees.
About International Union of Railways (UIC) or Union International Des Chemins:
Chairman- Krzysztof Mamiński
Director-General- François Davenne
Headquarters- Paris, France
Establishment- 1922
About Railway Protection Force (RPF):
Director General- Sanjay Chander IPS
Headquarters- New Delhi, Delhi
Establishment- 1957 (Constituted as a federal Force)

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Union Cabinet approves Construction of Shinkun La tunnel in Ladakh

The Cabinet Committee on Security(CCS) approved the construction of the 4.1 kilometres (km) Shinkun La tunnel on the Nimu (Ladakh) -Padam (Ladakh) -Darcha(Himachal Pradesh) road link to provide all-weather connectivity to the border areas of Ladakh.

• The tunnel will be completed at a cost of Rs 1,681 crore by December 2025. An approach will also be built by December 2025.

The Shinkun La tunnel will provide Ladakh all-weather road access, which will be the shortest route to reach the Union Territory (UT) border regions

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CAG Girish Chandra Murmu selected as External Auditor of ILO Girish Chandra Murmu (G.C. Murmu), Comptroller and Auditor General(CAG) of India, has been selected as External Auditor of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) in Geneva, Switzerland, for a 4-year term (2024-2027).

• CAG Girish Chandra Murmu will replace the incumbent external auditor of ILO, Jose Callangan Calida, Chairperson of the Commission on Audit (COA), the Supreme Audit Institution of the Republic of the Philippines.

Note: The appointment of CAG is a recognition of its status within the international community and of its professionalism, high standards, experience with international audits, and solid national credentials.
Key Points:
i. The selection panel for the appointment of the external auditor was formed by ILO and invited bids from the Superior Audit Institutions (SAIs).
ii. The ILO selected three Supreme Audit Institutions (India, Canada, and the United Kingdom) for technical presentations based on their technical expertise and other criteria.
About Girish Chandra Murmu:
i. Girish Chandra Murmu, a 1985 batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of Gujarat cadre, assumed office as the 14th Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India on 8th August 2020.
ii. he served as the first Lieutenant Governor of the Union Territory (UT) of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) from 2019-2020 after the bifurcation of the state into two union territories.
iii. Previously, he served in various capacities in the Government of India such as Secretary of the Department of Expenditure, Special and Additional Secretary in the Department of Financial Services and Department of Revenue, and Joint Secretary in the Department of Expenditure.
iv. Girish Chandra Murmu is currently the external auditor of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (2020-2022), World Health Organization (2020-2023), Food and Agriculture Organization (2020-2025), Organization for Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (2021-2023), and International Atomic Energy Agency (2022-2027).
About the International Labour Organisation (ILO):
Director-General- Gilbert Fossoun Houngbo
Headquarters- Geneva, Switzerland
Establishment- 1919
Members- 187 Member States

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I2U2 Business Forum’s Inaugural Meeting Hosted by UAE in Abu Dhabi; India became member of AIM4C
The inaugural I2U2 (a grouping of Israel, India, the UAE, and United States) Business Forum was hosted by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on February 21-22, 2023 at Abu Dhabi, UAE.
Highlights of 1st I2U2 Business Forum:
i.I2U2 Business Forum discussed building integrated agricultural facilities across India. As a part of the forum’s initiative, the UAE is committed to $2-billion investment for integrated agricultural facilities across India and the development of a 300-MW wind and solar power plant in Gujarat.
ii.India was represented by Dammu Ravi, secretary (economic relations) of the external affairs ministry.

• Dammu Ravi stated India’s commitment to I2U2 and insisted all stakeholders to work towards achieving tangible progress in I2U2 initiatives, including setting up an innovation centre at Gurugram, Haryana.
• By representing India’s LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment) initiative, he urged I2U2 partners to work for a sustainable and environment-friendly lifestyle.

iii.The Business Forum was also addressed by Ahmed Al Sayegh, UAE minister of state,  Jose Fernandez, US under secretary of state, Ronen Levi, director general of Israel’s foreign ministry, and Brett McGurk, the White House coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa.
iv.Private and public sector representatives from the four countries participated in the forum and discussed opportunities for cooperation between the business communities.
-India Joins the Agriculture Innovation Mission for Climate
On the sidelines of the I2U2 Business Forum, in Abu Dhabi, UAE, India became the latest member of the Agriculture Innovation Mission for Climate (AIM4C), which was launched by the UAE and the US at COP26 in November 2021.

• AIM4C intends to increase investment in and support for climate-smart agriculture and food systems innovation.
• The AIM4C initiative has successfully increased these investments to more than 8 billion U.S. dollars globally.
• Being a member, India joins the more than 275 partners, including 42 governments, who are working to collectively advance AIM4C’s mission by supporting investment in climate-smart agriculture and food systems innovation.

About I2U2
The I2U2 Grouping was conceived during a conference of the Foreign Ministers of four countries, India, Israel, the United States, and the United Arab Emirates in October 2021 to deepen technological and private sector collaboration in the region and tackle transnational challenges in six focus areas water, energy, transportation, space, health, and food security.
Note – UAE prepares to host COP28 in November 2023.

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S&P Global’s Top 250 Global Energy Company ranking: NTPC Top among Independent Power Producers and Energy Traders 

NTPC Limited, India’s largest power generating company has topped among the Independent Power Producers and Energy Traders category in the S&P Global Commodity Insights Top 250 Global Energy Company Rankings® 2022.
Globally NTPC is ranked 58th on the ranking.
About NTPC:
i.NTPC currently contributes 24% of the total electricity produced in India with a share of 17% of the installed capacity.
ii.NTPC targets non-fossil fuel-based capacity to make up around 50% of its portfolio by 2032.

• NTPC’s portfolio includes a renewable energy capacity of 60 GW and a total portfolio of 130GW.

About the S&P Global’s Top 250 Global Energy Company ranking:
i.The S&P Global’s ranking, the annual survey of the publically traded global energy companies, calculates and ranks based on financial performance using four key metrics: asset worth, revenues, profits and return on invested capital.
ii.All the companies in the list have assets greater than USD 5 billion
Top 5 on the 2022 ranking:

Indian companies among the top 50 on the ranking: 

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Sri Lanka approves USD 442 Million Adani Green Wind Power PlantsOn 22nd February 2023, the Board of Investment (BOI) of Sri Lanka issued a letter of approval to India’s Adani Green Energy Limited (AGEL)  for 2 wind power plants project in Mannar and Pooneryn areas of (northern province) Sri Lanka with a total investment of USD 442 million.

• The two wind power facilities of 350 megawatts (MW) will be commissioned in two years and will be added to the national grid by 2025. It will likely create around 1500 to 2,000 jobs.

Key Highlights:
i. Adani Green Energy is the renewable energy unit of the embattled Adani Group. The Adani investments in Lanka’s energy sector are in addition to their investment in the port of Colombo’s Western container terminal.
ii. With this BOI’s approval, the Adani Group’s total investments in Sri Lanka now exceed USD 1 billion.

• Construction on the West Container Terminal began in November 2022, and it has already committed to investing USD 700 million at a strategic port terminal in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

iii. Sri Lanka raised power tariffs by a hefty 66% recently in an effort to get a USD 2.9 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as it struggles to emerge from its worst financial crisis in more than 7 decades.
0000About Adani Green Energy Limited(AGEL):
Chief Executive Officer (CEO)- Vneet Jaain
Headquarters- Ahmedabad, Gujarat
Establishment- 2015
About Sri Lanka:
Prime Minister- Dinesh Gunawardena
President- Ranil Wickremesinghe
Capitals- Colombo, Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte
Currency- Sri Lankan Rupee

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Karnataka Bank, Paisalo Digital inked Co-Lending Pact for MSME LendingA co-lending agreement has been signed between the Karnataka Bank (KBL) and Paisalo Digital Ltd (PDL), a non-deposit-taking NBFC (Non-Banking Financial Company) registered with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

• This arrangement will provide financial support, and inclusion to the small income segment, and give impetus to the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) segment of India.

Signatories:
It was signed by Gokuldas Pai, Chief Business Officer of Karnataka Bank, and Santanu Agarwal, Deputy Managing Director of Paisalo in New Delhi, Delhi.
Key Points:
i.This pact will utilize KBL’s low cost of funds and its end-to-end digital capabilities and PDL to help the sourcing, servicing and recovery of small-ticket priority sector loans.

• This will help both sides in extending credit to the priority sector like agriculture, retail, MSME, and women entrepreneurs.

ii.This pact is on the line with RBI guidelines on Co-lending by banks and NBFCs to Priority Sector to improve the flow of credit to unserved and underserved segments.
iii.In September 2022, PDL signed a co-lending pact with UCO Bank. It also has tied up with SBI (State Bank of India) wherein the latter has allotted 984 codes for the opening of new Customer Service Point (CSP) Outlets during FY23.
About Karnataka Bank:
Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer– Mahabaleshwara MS
Headquarter– Mangaluru, Karnataka

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Niva Bupa rolls out ReAssure 2.0, a New Comprehensive PlanOn February 23, 2023, Niva Bupa Health Insurance Company (formerly Max Bupa Health Insurance) launched ‘ReAssure 2.0’ which is a ‘+’ (plus) variant of its current ReAssure plan.

• The current plan provides the benefits of ReAssure , Booster and Safeguard. But the new launch provides a ‘+’ variant of these benefits to offer greater benefits.
• It also offers a ‘live healthy’ benefit that gives a premium discount of up to 30% on policy renewal basis health points earned.

Eligibility:
It is available as an individual, multi-individual and family floater starting from Rs 5 lakh to Rs 1 crore for the age bracket of 18 years to 65 years.
Key Points:</stroni.This plan offers lock in of entry age until customer make a first claim thereby helping customers save on premium.

• After the first claim, regular age band wise premiums will be paid.

ii.ReAssure Forever: Under this, customer will always have a sum-insured equal to his base sum insured available to him after the customer has made his first claim, that too unlimited times in a policy.
iii.Booster+ benefit: It allows the unutilized base sum insured to be carried forward to the next policy year. The sum insured amount will keep on accumulating with each renewal till up to 5X and 10X, depending on whether the customer has opted for platinum+ or titanium+ variant.
iv.Safeguard+: This optional benefit lets one claim for all non-payable items as per Non-Payables Annexure in addition to safeguarding the Booster+ benefit if the claim in a policy year is up to 1 lakh.
Other Benefits:
No capping on room rent, any hospitalization of 2 hours and above will be covered, Smart Health+ rider – offering unlimited tele consultations – and Day one coverage for diabetes and hypertension.

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AUM of ARCs expected to grow 9.8% in FY23: CRISIL ReportAccording to the ASSOCHAM-Crisil Ratings report, Assets Under Management (AUM) of Asset Reconstruction Companies (ARCs) is projected to grow 9.8% in FY23 to Rs 1,19,000 crore after a period of relative stagnation.

• ASSOCHAM full form is Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India.
• This growth is five-year high driven by few large transactions.
• The report was released at the ARC seminar organised by ASSOCHAM.

Key Points:
i.The AUM stood at Rs 1.09 lakh crore in FY22.
ii.The growth in AUM, as measured by security receipts (SRs) outstanding, dropped to low single digits in the past 4 years.
iii.Between fiscals 2014 and 2018, AUM had grown at a steady pace (from Rs 42,000 crore to Rs 95,000 crore), initially driven by the supportive regulatory environment for banks to sell bad assets.
iv.There was steep fall in banks’ non-performing assets (NPAs), which is set to fall to under 5% by March 2023, down from over 11% in FY18.
v.There are 29 participants in the ARC industry. Though 70 per cent of the industry AUM are with just five of them and 54% of the total net owned funds are with just the top three of them..
vi.From Rs 2,500 crore capital deployed by 14 ARCs between fiscal 2003 and 2014, it has gone up to Rs 11,500 crore by 28 players in 2022.
vii.Until March 2022, 68% of the debt was corporate NPAs, down from a much higher 96% in FY19 when only 4% were non-corporate debt.
What is ARC?
It is a specialized financial institution that buys the NPAs or bad assets from banks and financial institutions at a mutually agreed value. It attempts to recover the debts or associated securities by itself.

• ARCs are registered under the RBI and regulated under the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Securities Interest Act, 2002 (SARFAESI Act, 2002).

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Policybazaar Launches Unique ‘Health, Wealth and Life Solution’

Policybazaar in partnership with the insurer partners Niva Bupa Health Insurance and Tata AIA Life Insurance Company Limited has developed a new unique solution ‘health, wealth and life solution’ to offer the benefit of health insurance, life insurance as well as return on investment.

• The new health + wealth + life offering combines the benefits of ULIP (Unit Linked Insurance Plan) and health insurance, thereby delivering protection against death and disease as well as enabling wealth creation for customers.
• This solution will be beneficial for all kind of customers as it overcomes buying multiple plans for health insurance, life insurance and investment.

Key Features:
i.Wealth creation– This plan offers double the amount of premium invested at the time of maturity even if the funds grow at an 8% rate.
ii.Ageless plan – The applicable premium has to be paid as per the same age (age at when the customer buys the plan) for blocks of 10 years.
iii.Tax saving – ULIP provides the policyholder with the benefit of Section 80C and 10 (10D) owing to the life insurance component and health insurance component being eligible for rebate under Section 80D.
iv.Preventive healthcare: The plan offers the customer coverage for annual health check-up from day 1 of the policy.
v.The solution also include Booster Benefit in health insurance and ReAssure Benefit
About Policybazaar:
Headquarters – Gurgaon, Haryana
Establishment – 2008
President & CEO  – Sarbvir Singh

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CBoI & Moneywise Financial Services partners for MSME loans

Central Bank of India (CBoI) and Moneywise Financial Services Pvt Ltd (MFSPL), a non-banking financial company, signed a co-lending agreement for lending to micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). The agreement will help both entities to expand their portfolio.

• According to the agreement, Moneywise Financial Services will process MSME loan proposals as per jointly formulated credit parameters and eligibility criteria.
• CBoI will record 80% of the MSME loans on its books under mutually agreed terms.

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Trade bodies sign MoU to foster Indo-Brazilian Bilateral Pulses Trade

The India Pulses and Grains Association (IPGA) and IBRAFE (Instituto Brasileiro do Feijão e Pulses), the Brazilian Institute of Beans, Pulses and Special Crops, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) at the 6th edition of the Pulses Conclave (16-18 February 2023) held in Mumbai, Maharashtra, to establish cooperative actions to contribute to the food security of both India and Brazil.

• As part of the MoU, both nations would take steps to promote the development of international trade between Brazil and India.
• MoU highlights market intelligence, food security, quality standards, trade promotion, technology transfer, and incentives for investments.
• IPGA and IBRAFE will conduct research in pre-harvest and post-harvest activities and promote pigeon peas (tur), black matpe (urad), and any other pulse crop of mutual interest.

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Infosys Collaborates with Microsoft to boost Enterprise Cloud Adoption

On 23rd February 2023, Infosys Limited, an Indian multinational information technology company, announced that it will expand its collaboration with Microsoft Corporation, an American multinational technology corporation, to help accelerate enterprise cloud transformation journeys worldwide.

• Businesses will benefit from the expanded partnership by receiving the best cloud services from Infosys Cobalt and Microsoft’s cloud computing technologies, headed by Azure, across the business value chain.
• Adopting the cloud improved speed to market and the ability to discover new revenue streams and increased profit growth by up to 11.2% year-over-year (YOY).
• The extended strategic collaboration aims to benefit enterprises by providing the best of Infosys Cobalt cloud products and Microsoft’s cloud computing technologies, led by Azure, across the business value chain.

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24th EY Entrepreneur of the Year Awards: Sajjan Jindal of JSW Group wins EY Entrepreneur of the Year Award 2022On 23rd February 2023, Sajjan Jindal, Chairman and Managing Director(CMD) of Mumbai (Maharashtra)-based JSW Group, has been named the EY Entrepreneur of the Year 2022 India at the 24th EY Entrepreneur of the Year™ Awards ceremony held in New Delhi, Delhi.

• He was recognised for his exceptional entrepreneurial journey in scaling the global conglomerate with a presence in steel, cement, infrastructure, energy, and paints to revenues of USD 22 billion, globally employing over 40,000 people.
• Sajjan Jindal will now represent India at the EY World Entrepreneur of the Year Award (WEOY) at Monte Carlo, Monaco, in June 2023.

K P Singh, Chairman Emeritus, DLF Group was honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award for his pioneering work in architecting the real-estate landscape of India.

• Hardeep Singh Puri, Union Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs and Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas, felicitated the winners and finalists.

Awards for 9 other categories were also announced and the winners represented both mature industries and young entrepreneurs from startups.
About EY:
EY refers to the global organisation and may refer to one or more of the member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited, each of which is a separate legal entity.

• Ernst & Young Global Limited, the United Kingdom (UK) company limited by guarantee, does not offer services to clients.

Chairman and CEO- Carmine Di Sibio
Headquarters- London, United Kingdom
Establishment- 1989

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Central Excise Day 2023 – February 24The Central Excise Day is annually observed across India on 24th February to recognise and acknowledge the efforts and contributions of the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) towards the development of India.

The day also marks the anniversary of the enactment of the Central Excise and Salt Act on 24th February 1944.

• The annual events and celebrations as a part of Central Excise Day are organised by the CBIC.

Objective of Central Excise Day: 
To encourage the excise department employees to carry out the duties of central excise across India in a better way in order to prevent corruption in the goods manufacturing business.
About Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs(CBIC):
Chairman– Vivek Johri
Headquarters– New Delhi, Delhi
Motto– “Desh Sevarth Kar Sanchay” Tax collection in Service of the Nation

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Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar Presents Tax-free Budget for FY24 with Rs 1,83,950 crore Outlay

On February 23, 2023, Chief Minister of Haryana Manohar Lal Khattar presented a tax-free state budget for financial year 2023-24 (FY24) with an outlay of Rs 1,83,950 crore, an increase of 11.6% from FY23 Budget of Rs 1,64,808 crore.

• The budget was focused on agriculture, rural development, education, and health
• No proposal was imposed for new tax.

Key Points:
i.Rs 57,879 crore was proposed under the budget for expenditure on capital asset creation, representing 31.5% and Rs 1,26,071 crore on revenue expenditure representing 68.5%.
ii.Revenue receipt was projected at Rs 1,09,122 crore, and Capital receipt was projected at Rs 71,173 crore.
iii.Fiscal Deficit: In Revised Estimates 2022-23 (RE FY23), the fiscal deficit was about 3.29% of Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) as against the permissible limit of 3.5% of GSDP. The fiscal deficit for FY24 was projected at 2.96% of GSDP.
iv.The old-age pension was proposed to be increased from Rs 2,500 to Rs 2,750 per month from April 1, 2023.
iv.The budget also ensured an increase in eligibility income from Rs 2 lakh to Rs 3 lakh.
About Haryana:
Governor – Bandaru Dattatreya
Zoological park – Mini Zoo and Rohtak Zoo
Wildlife Sanctuary – Chhilchhila Wildlife Sanctuary, Nahar Wildlife Sanctuary

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Gujarat Finance Minister Kanu Desai Presented Rs 3.01 lakh Crore Budget for FY 2023-24 with no new taxesGujarat Finance Minister Kanu Desai presented a Rs 3.01 lakh crore budget for fiscal 2023-24 with no new taxes imposed on people. The budget for 2023-24 includes proposals for various schemes and projects which were promised in the manifesto of the 2022 elections.

• The budget 23-24 focuses on infrastructure development, tourism, Electric Vehicle (EV) ecosystem and more.
• This records a significant increase of Rs 57,056.89 crore in the budgetary provisions, which is 23.38% higher than the budget of FY 2022-2023.

Highlights: 
i.Rs 500 crore has been allocated for the Ujjwala Yojana, under which around 39 lakh families would be provided with 2 cooking gas cylinders for free in a year.
ii.Gujarat government has announced a 10% point reduction in value-added tax (VAT) on Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) and Piped Natural Gas (PNG). The VAT is reduced from from 15% on CNG and PNG to 5%.
About Gujarat: 
Chief Minister– Bhupendrabhai Patel
Governor– Acharya Devvrat
Wildlife Sanctuary– Ratanmahal Sloth Bear Sanctuary; Kutch Desert Sanctuary
Zoological Park– Sakkarbaug zoo; Dr Shyamaprasad Mukherjee Zoological Garden (Sarthana Nature Park)

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Cabinet Approvals on February 22 2023The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister (PM) Narendra has approved the following proposals:
i.The Union Cabinet has approved the signing of the Air Services Agreement (ASA) between India and Government of Co-operative Republic of Guyana to enable the framework for provision of air services between the two countries.
ii.The Union Cabinet approved the ratification of three Protocols on Article 3 bis and Article 50 (a) and Article 56 relating to amendments in the convention on International Civil Aviation (Chicago Convention), 1944.
iii.The Union Cabinet also approved the extension of the term of the Twenty-second Law Commission of India upto 31st August, 2024 whose tenure was supposed to end on February 20, 2023. It was constituted for three years on February 21, 2020 and its chairperson is Justice Rituraj Awasthi (retd).
iv.The Union Government has approved Quality Control Order (QCO) for mandatory certification of cotton bales under specification No. IS12171: 2019-Cotton Bales to augment supply of good quality cotton to the textile industry.
About Guyana:
Capital– Georgetown
Currency– Guyanaese Dollar
President– Dr. Irfaan Ali

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MoSPI released  Revised Guidelines on MPLADS 2023On 22nd February 2023, Rao Inderjit Singh, Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), released the Revised Guidelines on Members of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS)-2023.

• MoS  Rao Inderjit Singh also launched a new Web portal for the implementation of the Revised Fund Flow Procedure under MPLADS.
• The new revised guidelines for MPLAD and the web portal will come into effect from 1st April 2023.

Aim of revised guidelines: To expand the scope of the MPLAD scheme to enable MPs to recommend developmental works as per the changing needs of the community; with focus on improving the functioning, implementation and monitoring of the MPLADS.
About Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI):
MoSPI became an Independent Ministry in 1999 after the merger of the Department of Statistics and the Department of Programme Implementation.
Minister of State (Independent Charge)– Rao Inderjit Singh

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Indian Navy’s IFC-IOR Signed MoU with RCOC, Seychelles to Enhance Maritime Domain AwarenessOn 21st February 2023, The Information Fusion Centre – Indian Ocean Region (IFC-IOR) hosted by the Indian Navy signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Regional Coordination Operations Centre (RCOC), Seychelles to further the existing cooperation in the Indian Ocean Region to enhance maritime safety and security.
Signatories: The MoU was signed by Captain Rohit Bajpai, Director of IFC-IOR and Captain Sam Gontier, Director of RCOC, Seychelles.
Key People: Vêlayoudom Marimoutou, Secretary General of IOC, Kartik Pande, High Commissioner of India to Seychelles, delegates from IOC, and senior officers of the Indian Navy attended the event.
Features of the MoU:
i.The MoU aims to promote the collaboration between IFC-IOR and RCOC towards enhancing maritime domain awareness, information sharing and expertise development.
ii.This partnership will enable the centres to develop a common maritime understanding to counter non-traditional maritime security threats.
iii.The non-traditional threats include piracy and armed robbery, human and contraband trafficking, Illegal Unregulated and Unreported (IUU) fishing, arms running, poaching, maritime terrorism, etc with a special focus on the Western Indian Ocean.
About IFC-IOR: 
i.IFC-IOR was established by the Government of India at Gurugram on 22 Dec 2018.
Objective: To enhance collaborative maritime safety and security in the Indian Ocean Region in line with India’s vision of Security and Growth for All in the Region (SAGAR).
ii.IFC-IOR also hosts International Liaison Officers (ILOs) from partner nations to enable better correlation, compressed information cycles and timely inputs.
iii.So far, IFC-IOR has hosted ILOs from 12 partner nations  Australia, France, Italy, Japan, Maldives, Mauritius, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Seychelles, Singapore, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America.
Additional info:
The Maritime Security Architecture in the Western Indian Ocean is implemented by the Indian Ocean Commission (IOC) and supported by the Regional Maritime Information Fusion Centre (RMIFC), the Regional Operations Coordination Centre (RCOC) and the national centres of the 7 signatory countries: Comoros, Djibouti, France, Kenya, Madagascar, Mauritius, and Seychelles.
About Seychelles:
Seychelles is an archipelago of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean, off East Africa.
President– Wavel Ramkalawan
Capital– Victoria
Currency– Seychellois Rupee

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BIS Signs MoU with IIT Guwahati, IIT Gandhinagar & NIT Calicut for Establishing “BIS Standardization Chair Professor” The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT) Guwahati (Assam), IIT Gandhinagar (Gujarat), and the National Institute of Technology (NIT) Calicut (Kozhikode, Kerala) for the establishment of “BIS Standardization Chair Professor” at these institutes.

• Professor Parameswar K. Iyer, Officiating Director of IIT Guwahati; Prof Rajat Moona, Director of IIT Gandhinagar; Prof Prasad Krishna, Director of NIT Calicut (virtually present) assured commitment towards this initiative and agreed to take forward the collaboration with BIS.

BIS Standardization Chair Professor:
i. The BIS Standardization Chair Professor initiative aims to institutionalise its relationships with India’s eminent institutes to ensure the active participation of academia in the standard formulation and to make the teaching of Indian standards an integral part of the curriculum.
ii. It is created for research and development, teaching and training in the field of Standardization and Conformity Assessment in India.

• It focuses on the areas of Civil, Electrical, Mechanical, Chemical, Earthquake Engineering, Development and Management of water resources and renewable energy projects, Infrastructure Development, Medical Biotechnology & Nanotechnology, Biomaterials, etc.

iii. This will promote excellence and leadership in teaching as well as scientific research and development (R&D) and various disciplines.
Key Points:
i. The MoUs between the top academic institutes and BIS would strengthen and enhance the standards formulation activity.

• It strengthens by facilitating R&D projects, encouraging the involvement of young minds in the area of the standardization process and jointly organizing seminars, conferences, workshops symposia or lectures, training and short-term education programs.

ii. Pramod Kumar Tiwari, director general of BIS, emphasised the importance to engage with start-ups and incubation centres at academic institutions to develop new standards and compliance with the existing ones.
About the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS):
BIS is the National Standard Body of India under the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution.
Director General- Pramod Kumar Tiwari
Headquarters- New Delhi, Delhi
Establishment- 1987

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UK Overtakes India as World’s 6th-Biggest Stock Market with $3.11 trillion McapAs per the data of Bloomberg, the United Kingdom (UK) became the world’s 6th-largest equity market surpassing India for the first time in almost 9 months (Since May 2022).

• On 21 February 2023, the combined market capitalization (Mcap) of primary listings in the UK, excluding ETFs (Exchange-Traded Funds) and ADRs (American depositary receipt ), reached about $3.11 trillion, about $5.1 billion higher than their Indian equivalents.

Key Points:
i.India’s stock market remains behind the UK due to a weaker rupee and falling share prices of companies in the Adani Group amid allegations of stock manipulation and accounting fraud by US-based short-seller Hindenburg Research.
ii.Indian stocks started declining from December 2022 and it reached a peak to more than 10% as of February 22, 2023.
iii.The MSCI (Morgan Stanley Capital International) India Index has dropped 6.1% in 2023, while the group of companies owned by Gautam Adani among Asia’s richest men has lost about $142 billion in market capitalization.
iv.UK loses its place as Europe’s biggest stock market in 2022 as UK’s equity market capitalization remains behind France.

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Every 2 Minutes, A Woman Dies During Pregnancy or Childbirth: WHO ReportAccording to the report titled “Trends in maternal mortality 2000 to 2020” produced by World Health Organization (WHO), which tracks maternal deaths nationally, regionally and globally from 2000 to 2020, it was estimated that around 287 000 women died from a maternal cause in 2020, which is approximately 800 deaths every day and one every 2 minutes.

• The report highlights the setbacks for women’s health in recent years. The Rate of maternal deaths fell significantly between 2000 and 2015 but largely stagnated between 2016 and 2020 in nearly all regions of the world.
• The report was produced on behalf of the United Nations Maternal Mortality Estimation Inter-Agency Group comprising WHO, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the World Bank Group and the Population Division of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs(UN-DESA).

According to the report, the global maternal mortality ratio (MMR) has dropped by 34.3% (one-third) over a period of 20 years. The Global MMR dropped from 330 deaths per 100000 live births in 2000 to 227 in 2015 to 223 in 2020.
About World Health Organization (WHO): 
Director-General– Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus
Headquarters– Geneva, Switzerland

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ADB Proposes up to $25 Billion Support to India’s Development Priorities On 21 February 2023, under the meeting of the Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi with Asian Development Bank (ADB) president Masatsugu Asakawa, ADB committed to provide $20 billion–$25 billion resources over 5 years to advance India’s aspirations for fast, inclusive, and green growth.

• ADB stated its assistance to meet India’s priority development needs, and its country partnership strategy (CPS) for India, 2023–2027.  ADB is now finalizing the new 5-year CPS following a comprehensive stakeholder consultation process.
• ADB president also admitted that India continues to be the fastest-growing major economy after the COVID 19 recovery with an anticipated 7% growth in the fiscal year ending March 31, 2023.

Key Points:
i.ADB will fund India’s infrastructure creation under PM’s Gati Shakti (National Master Plan for multimodal connectivity) initiative, building future cities, mobilizing domestic resources, and strengthening basic services in disadvantaged districts.
ii.Green growth agenda: ADB also plans to support India’s decarbonisation of transport and the clean energy transition, including carbon market development and circular economy transition.
iii.In his meeting with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Masatsugu Asakawa outlined ADB’s efforts to achieve annual regular lending of $4 billion from its sovereign operations in the next few years.
iv.Masatsugu Asakawa will visit the ADB-funded Delhi–Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System Investment Project and participate in the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting at Bengaluru, Karnataka on 24–25 February, 2023.
ADB’s Support to India:
i.ADB started operations in India in 1986. As of 31 December 2022, ADB had committed $52.28 billion in sovereign lending in India and $6.75 billion in non sovereign lending and investment.
ii.ADB’s current India portfolio comprises 64 projects worth about $16 billion across the transport, urban, energy, human development, agriculture and natural resources, and finance sectors.
iii.As a guest international organization, ADB is supporting the priorities of India’s presidency at the G20 meetings and Leaders’ Summit.
About Asian Development Bank (ADB):
Headquarters – Mandaluyong City, Manila, Philippines
Establishment – 1966
President – Masatsugu Asakawa
Member countries – 68 countries (49 from the region)

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India to Singapore Fund Transfers: SBI integrated ‘BHIM SBIPay’ with UPI-PayNow linkage; Axis Bank Launches Cross Border Transactions

On February 22, 2023, the State Bank of India (SBI) integrated its mobile application ‘BHIM SBIPay’ with UPI-PayNow linkage to facilitate fund transfers from India to Singapore through registered mobile numbers and from Singapore to India using UPI (Unified Payments Interface) ID.
Key Points:
i.Backdrop: SBI was one of the banking partners which would carry out both inward and outward remittances through the UPI-PayNow linkage.
ii.UPI-PayNow linkage: It is a linkage between Fast Payment Systems of India and Singapore i.e. linkage between ‘UPI’ and ‘PayNow’ which will enable users of the two fast payment systems in either country to make convenient, safe, instant, and cost-effective cross-border funds transfers using their respective mobile apps.
iii.Now under the UPI-PayNow linkage, Axis Bank would act as the settlement bank for peer-to-peer foreign inward remittance transactions initiated through PayNow by the Liquid Group in Singapore.
About State Bank of India (SBI):
Establishment – 1 July, 1955
Headquarters – Mumbai, Maharashtra
Chairman – Dinesh Kumar Khara

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IIT-M partners with GIC Re to develop Urine-Based TB Diagnosis

The Indian Institute of Technology Madras(IIT-M), Chennai, Tamil Nadu, is partnering with the General Insurance Corporation of India (GIC Re), a Public Sector Insurance Company, to develop a urine-based tuberculosis diagnosis or screening.

• This diagnosis will make testing faster and more affordable than the existing point-of-care diagnostic kits available for various diseases such as blood glucose monitors.
• The key beneficiaries of this project (CSR funding from GIC Re) will be primary, secondary, and tertiary healthcare centres besides the Health departments in State and Governments.

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Singapore’s RBB Ship Chartering becomes 1st Ship Leasing Operator at IFSC in GIFT City

On 22nd February 2023, RSCPL (IFSC) Pvt Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Singapore-based RBB Ship Chartering Private Ltd, has become the first ship leasing operator at the International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) in Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City), Gandhinagar, Gujarat.

• RSCPL (IFSC) Pvt Ltd received the maiden provisional licence for the ship leasing business in February and is planning to commence commercial operations by next month.
• The licence was granted in February 2023, and before March, commercial operations are expected to begin.

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DPIIT: FDI Equity Inflows Decline 15% to $36.75 Billion in April-December FY23As per the data released by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce and Industry, India’s Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) equity inflows declined 15% year-on-year to $36.75 billion during the first three quarters (April-December) of Financial year 2022-23 (FY23).

• Total FDI inflows, which includes the equity capital of unincorporated bodies, reinvest earnings, and other capital, decreased by 8% to $55.27 billion in April-December FY23 from $60.4 billion in April-December FY22.

Key Points:
i.Recipient of FDI in April-December FY23: 

• The Computer software and hardware manufacturing were the highest recipient of FDI at $8.07 billion.
• Services sector (encompassing financial, banking, insurance, and outsourcing, among others)  – $6.56 billion
• Telecommunications  – $5.33 billion
•  Trading sectors –  $4.14 billion

ii.Top investment in April-December FY23:

• State Wise: Maharashtra continued to be the most favoured destination of investors, receiving $10.76 billion, followed by Karnataka with $8.77 billion and Delhi with $6.11 billion.

Countrywise: Singapore was the top investing country with equity inflows of $13.07 billion. This was followed by the US ($4.95 billion), Mauritius ($4.73 billion), the United Arab Emirates ($3.1 billion), etc.

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ICOMM ties up with UAE’s CARACAL for Co-Manufacturing of Small Arms in IndiaOn February 21, 2023, ICOMM Tele Limited, a group company of Megha Engineering and Infrastructures Ltd (MEIL) signed a partnership and licensing agreement with the United Arab Emirates (UAE)-based CARACAL for the transfer-of-technology (ToT) to locally manufacture small arms for the domestic market under the ‘Make in India’ initiative.

• It is the first ever ToT in defence articles by CARACAL.
• The deal was signed during the ongoing (February 20-24, 2023) 16th edition of IDEX (International Defence Exhibition & Conference) 2023 defence exhibition in Abu Dhabi, UAE.

Key Points:
i.ICOMM is a group company of Megha Engineering & Infrastructures Ltd (MEIL).
ii.Under the agreement, ICOMM in collaboration with CARACAL will develop a full portfolio of locally manufactured small arms for the Indian market.

• This include EF pistol, modern CMP 9 submachine gun, CAR 814, CAR 816 and CAR 817 tactical rifles, CAR 817 DMR tactical sniper rifle, CSR 50 anti-material sniper rifle, CSR 338 and CSR 308 bolt action sniper rifles and CSA 338 semi-automatic sniper rifle.

iii.This entire range of small arms will be produced at ICOMM’s manufacturing facility in Hyderabad, Telangana.
iv.This pact will enable CARACAL to do business as per Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP) 2020.
IDEX is the only international defence exhibition and conference in the MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region demonstrating the latest technology across land, sea and air sectors of defence.
About ICOMM Tele Limited:
Managing Director– Sumanth Paturu
Headquarter– Telangana, Hyderabad

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CarDekho signs on Medulance to Provide Emergency Medical Services

CarDekho, an online used-car marketplace, has on-boarded Delhi-based Medulance, an ambulance service provider, on its platforms to provide emergency medical services.

• CarDekho’s partnership will enable its users to call for an ambulance from the app and website.
• Without any exchange of money, Medulance decided to offer CarDekho its ambulance services.
• Amit Jain, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of CarDekho, decided to add Medulance, a GPS-based platform enabling fast ambulance services.      

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Rajan Kohli President of Wipro’s iDEAS resigned Rajan Kohli, President of the iDEAS (Integrated Digital, Engineering, and Application Services) business at Wipro Limited, has resigned after a nearly three-decades career with the IT (Information technology) firm.

• As a President of Wipro’s iDEAS, he led a team of over 1 lakh employees.

About Rajan Kohli:
i. Rajan Kohli resides in New York, the United States of America (USA). He is a director of the Wipro US Foundation and an Independent Director (Member of the Board) of Technicolor Creative Studios.
ii. He is also a member of the Wipro Executive Board (WEB) and the Wipro Executive Council (WEC).
iii. He has led the Banking and Financial Services (BFS) segment during his tenure at Wipro.
iv. Previously he served as the  President of Wipro Digital, Wipro’s digital transformation business, which he incubated and scaled to become one of the largest and most recognized businesses of Wipro.
Note:

• iDEAS brings together strategic design, domain and consulting capabilities along with cloud applications, Artificial intelligence (AI), data, engineering and next-generation technologies.
• Since iDEAS starts with a design-led approach, it is in a unique position to provide the business solutions needed by companies to develop what matters to their business.
• iDEAS orchestrate solutions for clients to build and operate digital businesses focusing on 5 themes: cloud, intelligence everywhere, Industry 4.0, 5G & edge computing, and sustainability.

About Wipro Limited: 
Founder Chairman- Azim H Premji
Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director- Thierry Delaporte
Headquarters- Bengaluru, Karnataka
Establishment- 1945

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Rajeev Raghuvanshi was appointed as the new Drug Controller General of India

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet(ACC) chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved the recommendation submitted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) to appoint Dr Rajeev Raghuvanshi as new Drug Controller General of India(DCGI), head of Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO) with effect from the date of his assumption of charge till his attaining the age of superannuation on 28th February 2025 or until further orders.
The appointment is made at “Level 14 of the Pay Matrix”, on a “short-term contract basis”.

• He will be taking over as DCGI from Dr PBN Prasad, who was appointed as DCGI with effect from 16th February 2023 till 28th February 2023.
• Dr Rajeev Raghuvanshi has been serving as the secretary-cum-scientific director at Indian Pharmacopoeia Commission (IPC) since 2021.

He previously worked National Institute of Immunology for 7 years, at Ranbaxy Research Laboratories till 2010 and had a stint with Dr Reddy’s Laboratories between 2010 and 2021.
He has 14 granted United States of America (USA) patents along with more than 250 published patent cooperation treaties and Indian patents. He has more than 25 publications in peer-reviewed journals and has co-authored 6 chapters in books.

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CCI approves Acquisition of 100% of issued and outstanding share capital & sole control of VGP Holdings LLC by Gateway The Competition Commission of India (CCI) approved the acquisition of 100% of issued and outstanding share capital and sole control of VGP Holdings LLC, a subsidiary of Valvoline Inc, by Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Saudi Aramco) through Gateway Velocity Holding Corp(Gateway) and Aramco Overseas Company B.V. (AOC) from Valvoline Inc.
Note: Gateway is a wholly-owned subsidiary of AOC, which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Saudi Aramco.
Acquirer: Gateway Velocity Holding Corp. (Gateway)
Target: VGP Holdings LLC
Seller: Valvoline Inc.
CCI gives nod to Deal Involving VVDN Technologies
The CCI has approved the acquisition of shareholding by Kotak Funds, Kotak Special Situations Fund (KSSF) and Kotak Pre-IPO Opportunities Fund (KPIOF), and India Business Excellence Fund (IBEF)-IV through a combination of secondary share purchases of equity shares and subscription to Compulsorily Convertible Debentures (CCD) of VVDN Technologies.
Acquirers: KSSF, KPIOF and IBEF-IV
Target: VVDN Technologies Private Limited
About the Competition Commission of India:
Acting Chairperson- Sangeeta Verma
Headquarters- New Delhi, Delhi
Establishment- 2003

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Tokamak Energy Built World’s 1st Super Magnets for Fusion Power Plant TestingUnited Kingdom (UK)-based Tokamak Energy Limited, a fusion power research company, has built the world’s first set of new-generation High-Temperature Superconducting (HTS) Magnets to be assembled and tested in fusion power plant-relevant scenarios.

• Strong magnetic fields are required to contain and manage the extremely hot, positively-charged hydrogen fuel, which becomes a plasma several times hotter than the Sun to produce clean, sustainable fusion energy.

Key Points:
i. The new Demo4 facility from Tokamak Energy will consist of 44 individual magnetic coils made using 38 kilometres (Km) of ground-breaking HTS tape, which carries currents with zero electrical resistance and requires 5 times less cooling power than traditional superconducting materials.
ii. According to Tokamak Energy, the Demo4 magnet has a magnetic field that is about a million times stronger than the Earth’s magnetic field, which will have a strength of over 18 Tesla.
About Tokamak Energy Ltd:
Chairman- Dr Chris Martin
Headquarters- Oxfordshire, UK
Establishment- 2009

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UP Finance Minister Suresh Kumar Khanna Tabled Rs 6.90 Lakh Crore Budget for FY 2023-24On 22nd February 2023, Suresh Kumar Khanna, Finance Minister of Uttar Pradesh(UP) presented Rs 6.90 lakh crore budget for the year 2023-24 in the UP assembly focusing on agriculture, education and populist schemes.

• The budget of Rs 6,90,242.43 crore for FY24 was the biggest budget in the history of UP.
• The FY24 budget focuses on the all-around development of UP for making it a USD 1 trillion economy.

i.CM Yogi Adityanath noted that the 50% subsidy in electricity for irrigation for the farmers will be increased to 100% in a systematic way in the future.
ii.With an investment of Rs 10 lakh crore, the government aims to create around 20000 jobs in the next 5 years under UP Tourism Policy 2022.
iii.A provision of over Rs 21,159 crore was proposed for the construction of roads and bridges, and Rs 6,209 crore for their maintenance. Rs 3,473 crore is proposed for the work of bridges and roads for agricultural marketing facilities and Rs 1,525 crore for roads in rural areas.
Chief Minister– Yogi Adityanath
Governor– Anandiben Patel
Airport– Bareilly Airport, Aligarh Airport
UNESCO Heritage Sites– Agra Fort, Taj Mahal

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Indian Railways Completed Electrification of Entire Broad Gauge Rail Line In Uttar Pradesh

On 21st February 2023, Indian Railways completed the electrification of the entire Broad Gauge (BG) routes in Uttar Pradesh (UP) with the electrification of the Subhagpur-Pachperwa BG route in the North Eastern Railway. This will increase the region’s rail connection and train speed.

• Also, the Highly Utilized Network (HUN-5), Jhansi-Muzzaffarpur-Katni is fully electrified now.
• Indian Railways has completed the electrification of BG routes in 6 zonal railways: East Coast Railway, North Central Railway, North Eastern Railway, Eastern Railway, South Eastern Railway, and West Central Railway.
• Indian Railways has electrified 85% of Route Kilometer (RKM) and is rapidly progressing to complete Mission 100% Electrification and become the largest green railway network in the world.

‘Jaadui Pitara’: Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan Launches Learning-Teaching Material for Foundational Years

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Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan launched “Jaadui Pitara,” a learning and teaching material for the foundational stage, as envisioned by the National Education Policy 2020 (NEP 2020).

• “Jaadui Pitara” (magic collection) was created in accordance with the National Curriculum Framework (NCF) and is available in 13 Indian languages.

The Amrit Generation, as envisioned in the NEP 2020, will benefit greatly from an environment that is more child-centric, lively and joyful for learning and teaching.
What is ‘Jaadui Pitara’?
i.“Jaadui Pitara” is a play-based learning and teaching material designed for children aged 3 to 8 years.

• It is intended to stimulate interest and meet the evolving needs of foundational stage learners.
• It includes playbooks, toys, puzzles, posters, flash cards, storybooks, and worksheets, as well as cultural, social, and linguistic materials.

ii.It will be made mandatory in at least 1,200 union government-run schools starting next academic year.
Backdrop
i.The NEP 2020 envisions a 5+3+3+4 curriculum pedagogical structure.
ii.A National Steering Committee led by Professor K. Kasturirangan has been established by the Department of School Education and Literacy under the Ministry of Education (MoE) to develop the NCF for each stage.
iii.The MoE launched the NCF for Foundational Stage (FS) in October 2022.
iv.The National Council for Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has developed and collected learning teaching material (LTM) in compliance with the NCF.

• As a result, LTM at the foundational level was introduced, based on the “Jaadui Pitara” concept, for children enrolled in Balvatika, which includes classes in nursery, lower kindergarten (LKG), and upper kindergarten (UKG).

Salient features of “Jaadui Pitara“
i.“Learn through play” is the CORE transformative feature of NCF-FS.
ii.Children learn most efficiently and effectively through play during the foundational stage (ages 3-8).
iii.Research from fields as diverse as Neurosciences to Education
iv.This also applies to Classes 1 and 2 (aged 6-8 years), resulting in a significant shift in which children will learn via play, have fun, and FLN will be addressed.
v.It emphasizes on the Learning and Development of children in 5 domains – Physical Development, Socio-emotional and Ethical Development, Cognitive Development, Language and Literacy Development, Aesthetic and Cultural Development, Positive Learning Habits.

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BEL signs MoUs with Cisco, Aeronautical Development Agency Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), a Public Sector Undertaking (PSB) under the Ministry of Defence (MoD), has signed two Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) for the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) program with Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA); and for networking and security with Cisco.

• These were signed on the sidelines of Aero India 2023 in Bengaluru (Karnataka) from February 13 to 17.

MoU with ADA:
The first MoU was signed with the ADA for the AMCA program. ADA is an autonomous body under MoD. The AMCA is a 5th generation, multi-role, all-weather fighter aircraft designed with high survivability and stealth capability.

• Under this MoU, BEL and ADA will co-operate for the design, development, qualification, production and supply of Internal Weapon Bay Computer and other Line Replaceable Units (LRUs) for AMCA and provide lifetime product support to the Indian Air Force.

MoU with CISCO:
The second with Cisco is for long-term strategic co-operation in the areas of networking, collaboration and security, among other associated services.  This will give BEL access to Cisco technology, including enterprise networks, advanced wireless technology, security, data centre network, etc.

• As a part of the MoU, Cisco will explore establishing a Cisco Network Training Academy at the BEL Academy for Excellence (Nalanda), Bengaluru.
• This MoU will facilitate joint customization and product lifecycle management for BEL’s various projects.
• This MoU will enable BEL to elevate its relationship with Cisco as a “Strategic Partner”.

The above partnerships with Cisco and ADA are expected to further boost BEL’s capabilities and contribute towards the government’s vision of making India self-reliant in defence technology.
About Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL):
Chairman & Managing Director– Bhanu Prakash Srivastava
Headquarter– Bengaluru, Karnataka
Establishment– 1954

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Vedanta-Foxconn Selects Dholera SIR for First Semiconductor Facility in IndiaThe Dholera Special Investment Region (SIR) near Ahmedabad, Gujarat, has been chosen by the joint venture (JV) of Indian conglomerate Vedanta and electronics manufacturing giant Foxconn to set up their semiconductor and display manufacturing facility.

• It is India’s first semiconductor manufacturing facility.
• The project is in the advanced stage of evaluation by the Government of India (GoI).

Backdrop
In September 2022, the Gujarat government and the Vedanta-Foxconn JV signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the JV to invest Rs. 1,54,000 crore in the establishment of a semiconductor and display manufacturing facility.

• The MoU was signed in Gandhinagar in the presence of Minister for Railways, Communications, Electronics & Information Technology, Ashwini Vaishnaw.

Key Points:  
i.The Gujarat government announced the “Gujarat Semiconductor Policy 2022-27” in July 2022.

• The project is set to receive significant subsidies and incentives under the policy, such as zero stamp duty on land purchases and subsidised water and electricity.

ii.Gujarat is the first Indian state to have a specific policy for the semiconductor and display fabrication sectors.
iii.This policy provides eligible projects with a 75% subsidy on the first 200 acres of land they purchase to develop manufacturing units.

• For the first 5 years, eligible projects would be provided with high-quality water at a cost of Rs. 12 per cubic metre.

iv.The Gujarat government has also declared that it will reimburse investors for 100% of the stamp duty that they would pay for the first time when leasing, selling, or transferring land.
About Vedanta Resources Limited (Vedanta):
Vedanta is a leading global natural resources conglomerate operating across India, South Africa, Liberia and Namibia.
Chairman & Founder – Anil Agarwal
Whole-time Director & CEO – Sunil Duggal
Founded – 1976
Headquarters – London, United Kingdom (UK)

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MoRD & Meesho signs MoU to Onboard Rural Women as Online Sellers

The Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Meesho, an e-commerce platform owned by Bengaluru (Karnataka)-based Fashnear Technologies Private Limited, to drive digital inclusion of all women registered under State Rural Livelihood Missions (SRLMs) and enable them to sell online.

• The MoU was signed in the presence of Giriraj Singh, Union Minister of Rural Development.

Charanjit Singh, Additional Secretary (RL-I) of MoRD, and Sanjeev Barnwal, Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Meesho, signed and exchanged the MoU.
Key Points:
i. The partnership would help Meesho continue its efforts to support rural women entrepreneurs in various states and enable them to start and expand their businesses online.
ii. The cumulative loan to Self Help Groups (SHGs) was about Rs 80000 crore before 2014. Now, the bank linkage has crossed over 6.25 lakh crore in the last 9 years, with an NPA of just 2.08%.
iii. SHGs are present in 97% of Blocks, and 85% of them have direct connections to the Ministry’s network.
iv. Meesho will offer free support to individual sellers for 100 products and to aggregators for 300 products, as well as training on cataloguing, order management, pricing, and business growth.
v. Meesho currently offers zero commission fees on all products for Rural Livelihood Mission affiliate sellers.
About the Ministry of Rural Development(MoRD):
Union Minister- Giriraj Singh (Constituency- Begusarai, Bihar)
Minister of State (MoS)- Faggan Singh Kulaste (Constituency- Mandla, Madhya Pradesh); Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti (Constituency- Fatehpur, Uttar Pradesh)
About Meesho:
Chief Executive Officer (CEO)- Vidit Aatrey
Headquarters- Bengaluru, Karnataka
Establishment- 2015

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NSE lists first Green Bonds issued by Indore Municipal CorporationThe Indore Municipal Corporation’s (IMC) Green Bonds have been listed on the National Stock Exchange (NSE), marking the first-ever green bond issue by a municipal corporation in India.

• The public issue of IMC green bonds was subscribed 5.91 times the issue size.
• This issue will provide momentum for the advancement of green financing and aid in India’s goal of moving towards clean and sustainable energy.

The Green bonds are debt securities designated to finance environment-friendly projects.
Key Points:
i.Municipal bonds provide an alternative means of financing for urban local bodies (ULBs), reducing dependence on Central and State Grants.

• Most urban infra bonds can be categorized as green bonds since the proceeds are primarily directed towards energy, transport, water management, sewage treatment and energy-saving.

ii.Green municipal bonds attract specialized foreign investors who are experienced in sustainable financing with environmental, social and governance considerations.
iii.There is an exponential increase in the global green bond market, which has now surpassed $2 trillion in cumulative green bond issuance.

• From 2019 to 2022, Indian corporations, public sector undertakings (PSUs), and financial institutions have collectively issued green bonds totaling approximately $10.8 billion.

About National Stock Exchange (NSE):
Managing Director & CEO– Ashishkumar Chauhan
Headquartered– Mumbai, Maharashtra
Establishment– 1992 (commenced operations as a stock exchange- 1994)

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Gopalan Aerospace signs Joint Venture with Slovakian Firms to Develop Precision DronesGopalan Aerospace India Pvt Ltd signed a joint venture (JV) with Slovakia-based Magic Trading Corporation, Inc. (MTC), a self-regulatory organization (S.R.O), and DEFSYSTECH S.R.O for the development of precision drones in India.

• The JV was signed by C Prabhakar, Director, Gopalan Aerospace and Peter Ostromecky, President of DEFSYSTECH S.R.O at Aero India 2023, Bengaluru, Karnataka.

Gopalan Aerospace Ties Up With Omnipol Group of Czech Republic For Passive Radars
Gopalan Aerospace signed a joint venture with Omnipol Group, a partner of the Czech government institution and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in the field of defence and security, to integrate Passive Radars for the Indian Defense Industry in border regions.

• The agreement was signed by C Prabhakar and Podpera Jiri, President of Omnipol Group.

About Gopalan Aerospace India Pvt Ltd:
Gopalan Aerospace is a fast-paced, innovative ISO 9001/AS 9100 Rev D 2015 certified, Aerospace components and composites design, development, and manufacturing company.
Director- C Prabhakar
Headquarters- Bengaluru, Karnataka

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DPIFF Awards 2023:  Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, Vivek Agnihotri’s ‘The Kashmir Files’ won AwardsIndia’s only independent international film festival, Dadahaheb Phalke International Film Festival (DPIFF) 2023, held on February 20, 2023 in Mumbai, Maharashtra.

• The winners of DPIFF Awards 2023 under different categories were announced to recognize the outstanding efforts by international and national personalities from cinema.
• Bollywood actors Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt received awards in the Best Actor and Best Actress category for their performances in movies ‘Brahmastra: Part 1‘ and ‘Gangubai Kathiawadi.
• Filmmaker SS Rajamouli’s Telugu Movie, ‘RRR’ received the Film of the year award and Filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri’s Hindi Movie ‘The Kashmir Files’ won the Best Film award.

About Dadasaheb Phalke International Film Festival (DPIFF):
i.DPIFF,  was founded in 2012 and established in 2016 to carry forward the legacy of Dhundiraj Govind Phalke, The Father of Indian Cinema.The Dadasaheb Phalke Award is India’s highest award in the field of cinema.
ii.It is presented annually at the National Film Awards ceremony by the Directorate of Film Festivals, an organisation set up by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
Founder & MD – Anil Mishra
CEO – Abhishek Mishra

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13th Sansad Ratna Awards: 13MPs selected for Sansad Ratna Awards for 2023;  T K Rangarajan selected Lifetime Achievement Award On 20th February 2023, the Jury Committee chaired by Arjun Ram Meghwal, Union Minister of State (MoS) for Parliamentary Affairs has nominated 13 members of Parliament (MP) : 5 from Rajya Sabha and 8 from Lok Sabha for Sansad Ratna Awards for 2023.

• In addition, T K Rangarajan, Former Member of Parliament – Rajya Sabha for two terms  and a Senior Communist Party of India (Marxist)(CPI-M) Leader has been nominated for the Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Lifetime Achievement Award. 
• 2 Departmentally Related Standing Committees (DRSC) were also selected for the Sansad Ratna Awards under special awards category.

About Ministry of Parliamentary Affair: 
Union Minister- Pralhad Joshi (Constituency- Dharwad, Karnataka)
Minister of State– Arjun Ram Meghwal(Constituency- Bikaner, Rajasthan) & V Muraleedharan (Rajya sabha – Maharashtra)

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INS Nireekshak Receives On-the-Spot Unit Citation for Salvage OperationChief of the Naval Staff (CNS) Admiral R. Harikumar presented a “on the spot” unit citation to “Indian Naval Ship (INS) Nireekshak” at Kochi, Kerala, marking a first for the Indian Navy.

• INS Nireekshak was honoured for deep water diving and salvage operations at a depth of 219 metres (m) in the Arabian Sea under the most difficult conditions.
• This is the deepest salvage operation ever performed in Indian waters.

The CNS also awarded commendations to the crew involved in the salvage operation.
INS Nireekshak
i.INS Nireekshak is a dive support and submarine rescue vessel of the Indian Navy.

• The ship was constructed in 1985 by Mazgaon Shipbuilders, entered Navy service in 1989, and was commissioned in 1995.

ii.It has participated in numerous diving operations and holds the record for the deepest dive performed in India, at a depth of 257 m.
iii.INS Nireekshak recently paid tribute to the erstwhile INS Khukri off the coast of Gujarat by laying a wreath at 80 m depth.
iv.During the Indo-Pakistan War in 1971, the Indian Navy frigate INS Khukri was sunk by three torpedoes fired by a Pakistani submarine.

• Captain Mahendra Nath Mulla of the Indian Navy, who was the ship’s commanding officer at the time, was awarded the Mahavir Chakra (posthumously).

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Justice Sanjaya Kumar Mishra became the 14th chief justice of Jharkhand High Court 

On 20 February, 2023, Justice Sanjaya Kumar Mishra was sworn in as the 14th chief justice of the Jharkhand High Court.

• After the superannuation of justice Ravi Ranjan on December 19, 2022, the post of the chief justice of the Jharkhand High Court became vacant.
• On February 17, 2023, the Union Ministry of Law and Justice issued a notification regarding the appointment of justice Sanjaya Kumar Mishra as the chief justice of the Jharkhand high court.
• Governor CP Radhakrishnan administered the oath of office to Sanjaya Kumar Mishra. Chief Secretary Sukhdev Singh read out the warrant of appointment issued by President Droupadi Murmu.
• Chief Minister Hemant Soren, and several judges and senior government officials have participated in the swearing-in ceremony.

About Sanjaya Kumar Mishra:
i.He hails from Odisha and completed LL.B (Bachelor of Law) from Law Faculty Delhi University in 1987.
ii.He worked as District & Sessions Judge, Sundergarh, Dhenkanal, Special Judge (CBI), Bhubaneswar, Odisha and joined as Registrar General of Orissa High Court.
iii.He was elevated as Judge of the Orissa High Court on October 7, 2009.
iv.Later he assumed the charge of the office of Judge of the High Court of Uttarakhand and was appointed as the Acting Chief Justice on December 24, 2021 and held the office till June 28, 2022.
Additional info: According to clause (1) Article 217 of the Constitution of India, Chief Justices of the High Courts are appointed by the President in consultation with the Chief Justice of India (CJI) and the Governor of the State.

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ASSOCHAM appoints Sanjay Nayar as New Vice-President

On 21st February 2023, Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry (ASSOCHAM), a non-governmental trade association, announced the appointment of Sanjay Nayar, a global financial markets expert, as its new Vice-President.

• Sanjay Nayar is a prominent finance professional in the banking landscape in India and private equity sectors with almost 40 years of experience in both the domestic and international financial markets.
• Currently, he serves as the Founder and Chairman of the Sorin Investment Fund, a fund for early-stage technology companies.
• Sanjay Nayar also serves as a non-executive Director at the e-commerce company Nykaa founded by him and his wife Falguni Nayar.
• He assists in a non-executive capacity in mergers and acquisitions activity as well as overseeing its expansion in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the United Kingdom (UK), and the United States of America (USA).
• He was recently also appointed as a non-official member of the Centre’s Board of Trade, representing the private sector.

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Rajesh Rai appointed CMD of Indian Telephone Industries Ltd for 5 Years

On 20th February 2023, the Union Government approved the appointment of Rajesh Rai for the post of Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of Indian Telephone Industries Limited (ITI Limited), a Public Sector Undertaking (PSU) under the Department of Telecommunication (DoT), for a period of 5 years with an immediate effect.

Rakesh Chandra Tiwari, Director of Marketing, has resigned from the additional charge as Chairman and Managing Director with effect from Feb 21, and will only serve as Director-Marketing.

• Rajesh Rai has more than 30 years of rich experience in the Telecommunication industry.
• Prior to ITI Limited, Rajesh Rai served as the General Manager of Mahanagar Telphone Nigam Limited (MTNL), Mumbai, Maharashtra.
• He also held the prestigious post of Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Mahanagar Telephone Mauritius Limited (MTML) in Mauritius for 12 years.      

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HAL gets ITSO approval from DGCA for Indigenously Developed “Black Boxes” 

Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL)has received the Indian Technical Standard Order (ITSO) authorisation from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) for its indigenously developed Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) and Flight Data Recorder (FDR), which is popularly known as “Black Boxes”.

• The ITSO is a minimum performance standard for specified materials, parts, processes, and appliances used on civil aircraft.
• Critical flight characteristics and audio environment are recorded using CVR and FDR and then used for the investigation of an aircraft incident or accident.

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Horaglanis populi: New Catfish Species with no Eyes Discovered in Kerala

“Horaglanis populi”, a new species of catfish with no eyes and blood red body was discovered in Kerala by an Indo-German team of researchers, led by Rajeev Raghavan from the University of Kochi, Kerala and Neelesh Dahanukar from Shiv Nadar Institution of Eminence, Delhi-National Capital Region (NCR).

• This marks the 4th Horaglanis species endemic to the southern Indian state of Kerala.
• The discovery of Horaglanis populi is reported in a paper in the journal Vertebrate Zoology.

Note:
The other 3 Horaglanis species endemic to Kerala are: Horaglais abdulkalami; Horaglanis alikunhii and Horaglaris Krishnai.
Significance: 
i.Horaglanis populi belongs to Horaglanis, a genus of rarely-collected, tiny, blind, pigment less, and strictly aquifer-residing catfish.
ii.Horaglanis populi has a blood-red body, four pairs of well-developed barbels, and measures less than 3.2 cm in length.
iii.The fish is blind and pigmentless, and is genetically distinct from the 3 previously known Horaglanis species.
iv.This species is considered to be at high risk of extinction.
Naming: 
The species name populi, genitive of the Latin noun populus which means “people”, honours the contributions by the public of Kerala in documenting the biodiversity of subterranean and groundwater systems, including the discovery of this new species.
Occurrence: 
i.The new species occurs in the lateritic aquifer systems in the Alappuzha and Pathanamthitta districts of Kerala.
ii.The specimens were collected from the dug-out wells in the towns of Malapally, Edanadu, and Chengannur, and the nearby village of Thiruvanvandoor.
Discovery: 
i.The biologists team conducted a series of workshops, focus group discussions, and informal conversations with communities at several sites over a period of 6 years.
ii.The team generated data sets with a total of 47 new site detections and 65 new genetic sequences.
iii.This highlights that Horaglanis are endemic to the part of Kerala state south of the Palghat Gap. The mountain pass represents a biogeographical barrier.

• At present, around 289 fish species are known from Subterranean aquatic habitat and only around 10% of them lives in aquifers.

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JP Nadda launches a Book “Modi: Shaping a Global order in flux”

On 22nd February 2023, JP Nadda, President of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), launched a book titled “Modi: Shaping a Global Order in Flux” in Chanakyapuri, New Delhi, Delhi.

• The book was edited by Sujan Chinoy, Vijay Chauthaiwale, and Uttam Kumar Sinha; and the foreword was written by Dr S Jaishankar, Minister of External Affairs, Government of India.
• The publisher of the book is Wisdom Tree.

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World Thinking Day 2023 – February 22World Thinking Day (WTD) is annually observed across the globe on February 22 by Girl Scouts and Girl Guides in the 152 member organisations across the world. The day aims to collect money for the 10 million girl scouts and guides in over 150 countries to honour sisterhood, solidarity, and women’s empowerment.

• The day is annually observed and organised by the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS).

World Thinking Day 2023 is observed on 22nd February 2023 under the theme “Our World, Our Peaceful Future: The environment, peace, and security”.
Background:
i. In 1926, Girl Guides and Girl Scouts delegates from across the world met in the United States of America (USA) for the 4th World Conference and declare February 22 of every year as Thinking Day, a special day for the Girl Guides and Girl Scouts across the globe.
ii. In 1999, at the 30th World Conference in Dublin, Ireland, delegates from across the globe decided to rename the day from Thinking Day to World Thinking Day.
About the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS):
WAGGGS was formed at the 5th International Conference in Hungary in 1928. It is the world’s largest voluntary movement dedicated to girls and young women.
Chief Executive Officer- Anna Segall
Headquarters- London, the United Kingdom

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India’s 1st Marine Spatial Planning Framework launched in PuducherryIndia’s first Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) Framework was launched in Puducherry as a part of a pact under the Indo-Norway Integrated Ocean Initiative.

• Puducherry and Lakshadweep were chosen as coastlines to pilot the MSP initiative.
• This follows the 2019 Memorandum of understanding (MoU) between India and Norway.

Aim:
To achieve growth and sustainability in the management of ocean resources and preservation of coastal environments
What is MSP?
It is a process of allocating spaces in marine zones for human activities like economic purposes, ecological purposes, or social purposes. MSP is a spatial planning approach based on the principles of ecosystem management.

• It involves analyzing existing and potential ocean and coastal activities to identify suitable areas.

About Framework:
i.The framework includes ecosystem-based plans, integrated plans, area-based plans, strategic plans, and adaptive and participatory plans.
ii.India’s Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) oversees the implementation of the MSP through National Centre for Coastal Research (NCCR), the National Centre for Sustainable Coastal Management, the Puducherry Coastal Zone Management Authority and Department of Science, Technology and Environment, Puducherry in collaboration with Norwegian Environment Agency.
iii. Both sides will ensure the sustainable utilization of ocean resources, with the goal of fostering economic and social progress in coastal areas.
iv.After successful implementation of pilot project in Lakshadweep and Puducherry, the framework can be replicated to other coastal regions of the country.
About Puducherry:
Chief Minister– Natesan Krishnasamy Rangasamy
Lt. Governor– Tamilisai Soundararajan

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Manipur CM presents FY24 Budget with Expenditure Proposal of Rs 35,022cri.On February 21, 2023, the Chief Minister (CM) of Manipur Nongthombam Biren Singh who is also the minister in-charge of finance presented the Manipur state budget for 2023-24 with an expenditure proposal of Rs 35,022 crore out of the consolidated fund of the state.
ii.The budget proposals focus on education, health, sports and agriculture.
iii.This was the 3rd sitting of the 3rd session of the 12th Manipur Legislative Assembly which began on February 2, 2023.
iv.The Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) for 2023-24 is estimated at Rs 45,145 crore.
v.It is proposed to launch the ‘College Fagathansi Mission’ to improve the infrastructure of government colleges.
About Manipur:
Governor – Ms. Anusuiya Uikey
National Park – Sirohi National Park
Wildlife Sanctuary – Yangoupokpi-Lokchao Wildlife Sanctuary

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WB CM Mamata Banerjee Launched Apan Bangla Portal for Non-Resident BengalisOn the occasion of the International Mother Language Day(21st February 2023), West Bengal(WB) Chief Minister(CM) Mamata Banerjee launched Apan Bangla (Own Bengal) portal non-resident Bengalis residing in other Indian states and other countries to communicate with the WB government during emergency.
Features of Apan Bangla postal:
i.Apan Bangla postal will provide the non resident bengalis with a one-stop window to connect with the state government during emergency situations and to get updates about the recent developments in West Bengal.
ii.This portal will also offer a platform for the non residents to virtually participate (online) in state organised programmes like business summit and cultural programmes.
iii.They will also be able to access different forms of the state government for public services.
iv.The portal will also have the option to give their valuable advice to the state government for improvement of services and facilities
About West Bengal:
Chief Minister– Mamata Banerjee
Governor– CV Ananda Bose
National Park– Buxa National Park; Gorumara National Park
Wildlife Sanctuary– Jorpokhri Wildlife Sanctuary; Senchal Wildlife Sanctuary

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Kerala HC became the First in India to Publish Judgements in Regional LanguageOn the occasion of International Mother Language Day (21st February 2023), the Kerala High Court (HC) published 2 of its recent judgments in and became the 1st HC in India to publish its judgments in the regional language.

• The judgements passed by a division bench of Chief Justice S. Manikumar (WA 926/2016) and Justice Shaji P. Chaly (WA 1638/2022) in January 2023 were published in Malayalam on the High Court’s website.

Key Points:
i. Since Chief Justice of India (CJI) D Y Chandrachud assumed office in November 2023, there has been a renewed push for the publication of High Court and Supreme Court decisions in regional languages.
ii. On 2023 Republic Day, the supreme court also proposed to release 1,268 of its judgments in 13 Indian languages.

• Translated Judgments in Supreme Court: 1,091 judgments had been translated to Hindi, 21 to Odia, 14 to Marathi, 4 to Assamese, 1 to Garo, 17 to Kannada, 1 to Khasi, 29 to Malayalam, three to Nepali, 4 to Punjabi, 52 to Tamil, 28 to Telugu and 3 to Urdu.

About Kerala:
Chief Minister- Pinarayi Vijayan
Governor- Arif Mohammed Khan
National Park- Anamudi Shola National Park; Periyar National Park
Wildlife Sanctuary- Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary; Chimmony Wildlife Sanctuary

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International ‘Khajuraho Dance Festival-2023’ Begins in Madhya PradeshThe Khajuraho Dance Festival-2023 (49th edition) began on February 20, 2023, at the world-famous tourist destination of Khajuraho in Madhya Pradesh.  

• Vishnu Dutt Sharma, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) state president and Khajuraho MP (Member of Parliament), officially inaugurated the seven-day event, which will be held till February 26, 2023.

Key Points:
i.The Khajuraho Dance Festival began in 1975.

• Since then, it has been successfully organised by the Ustad Allauddin Khan Music and Arts Academy under the Department of Culture, Government of Madhya Pradesh.

ii.Khajuraho is home to an outstanding collection of temples that are part of a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Site.
iii.On this occasion, the Madhya Pradesh State ‘Rupankar Kala Puraskar 2023’ was presented to 10 artists from various fields.

• The artists were awarded Rs. 51,000 in cash and certificates, and their works will be presented in the State Rupankar Kala Puraskar exhibition.

iv.On February 22–25, 2023, Khajuraho will host the first meeting of the G20 (Group of Twenty) Cultural Working Group (CWG).
About Madhya Pradesh:
Chief Minister – Shivraj Singh Chouhan
Governor – Mangubhai Patel
National Parks – Sanjay National Park; Kanha national park
Wildlife Sanctuaries – Karera Wildlife Sanctuary; Ken Gharial Wildlife Sanctuary

Nitin Gadkari Laid Foundation Stone for World’s Largest Divyang Park – Anubhuti Inclusive Park in MaharashtraOn 20 February 2023, Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari,  laid the Foundation Stone of the world’s largest and unique ‘Divyang Park – Anubhuti Inclusive Park’ in Nagpur, Maharashtra.
About Divyang Park – Anubhuti Inclusive Park:
Nitin Gadkari has mentioned Divyang Park – Anubhuti Inclusive Park as the world’s first inclusive disabled park.

• The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment (MSJE), Government of India, has provided the provision of about Rs 12 crore for this park which has been built on 90,000 square feet.
• The park will have facilities for all 21 types of disabilities, like a touch-and-smell garden, hydrotherapy unit, water therapy, and an independent room for mentally challenged children, and mother.
• This park act as an initiative taken under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 (RPWD Act).

Note:

• Divyang is a Hindi word which means the one with a divine body part.
• Prior to this persons with disabilities are referred to as viklang. The word viklang is Hindi for someone with non-functional body parts. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, uttered the word divyang and coined a new meaning for it.

About Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 (RPWD Act):
i.United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) was formed on the 13th day of December, 2006. India signed the UNCRPD and subsequently ratified the same on 1st October, 2007.
ii.RPWD Act was enacted in 2016 and came into force in 2017 to give effect to the UNCRPD. The act replace the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995.
iii.The act promotes and protects the rights and dignity of people with disabilities in educational, social, legal, economic, cultural and political spheres.
iv.Types of disabilities: As of now 21 types of disabilities were included under the act  
Note –  UN’s International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD) is annually observed on December 3.

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India, Uzbekistan 4th Joint Military Exercise ‘DUSTLIK 2023’ commences in UttarakhandA 14-day long India, Uzbekistan 4th Joint Military Exercise ‘DUSTLIK 2023’ between the Indian Army and Uzbekistan Army was commenced in Foreign Training Nodein Pithoragarh, Uttarakhand on February 20, 2023. It will culminate on March 5, 2023.

• It is a biennial bilateral training Exercise.

Aim:
i.To promote positive relations and interoperability between both the armies
ii.To enhance military capability to undertake multi-domain operations in a Sub Conventional scenario under United Nations Mandate.
Representors:
Indian Army: 14th Battalion, The GARHWAL RIFLES, part of Western Command
Uzbekistan Army: North Western Military District of Uzbekistan Army.
Participants:
45 soldiers each from Uzbekistan and Indian Army
Key Points:
i.It will focus on joint counter-terrorist operations in mountainous and semi-urban scenario under the United Nations (UN) mandate.
ii.This will include field training exercises, combat discussions, lectures, demonstrations and culminate with a validation exercise.
iii.Both sides will jointly train, plan and execute a series of tactical drills for neutralisation of likely threats.
iv.Training will be given to the soldiers on how to exploit new-generation equipment and technology for conducting joint operations.
About DUSTLIK:
The 1st Indo-Uzbekistan Joint Field Training Exercise “DUSTLIK-2019” was held in 2019 at Uzbekistan’s Chirchiq Training Area. It was focused on counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism operations (CI/CT Ops) in an urban scenario as well as the exchange of expertise on skills at arms.

• The second edition of the exercise was held at the Foreign Training Node in Ranikhet, Uttarakhand in 2021 while 3rd edition was conducted at Yangiarik, Uzbekistan in 2022.

About Uzbekistan:
Capital– Tashkent
Currency– Uzbekistani Som
President– Shavkat Mirziyoyev

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India & Singapore Introduce Live Cross-Border UPI-PayNow ConnectivityThe Prime Minister (PM) of India, Narendra Modi, and the Prime Minister (PM) of Singapore, Lee Hsien Loong, took part in the virtual launch of real-time payment linkage between the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) of India and PayNow of Singapore.

• The integration of UPI and PayNow marks a significant shift in India-Singapore relations.

Shaktikanta Das, Governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), and Ravi Menon, Managing Director (MD) of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, launched the UPI-PayNow linkage.
i.The PayNow-UPI linkage is India’s first and Singapore’s second cross-border real-time payment system linkage.
ii.Singapore is the first country to introduce a cross-border person-to-person (P2P) payment service.
About Republic of Singapore:
Prime Minister – Lee Hsien Loong
Capital – Singapore
Currency – Singapore Dollar (SGD)

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ONGC Videsh signed MoU with YPF SA, Argentina to enhance cooperation in the Energy Sector

ONGC Videsh Limited (OVL), a wholly-owned subsidiary and overseas arm of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC), has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with YPF SA, Argentina to enhance cooperation in the areas of upstream oil and gas opportunity exploration and development, promote investment and cooperation, and forge closer ties between research and training centres.

The MoU was signed on the sidelines of the maiden India Energy Week 2023 being held in Bengaluru, Karnataka, by the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas.

• OVL currently has a stake in 32 oil & gas projects in 15 countries.
• YPF S.A. is Argentina’s largest integrated energy company, 51% owned by the Argentine Government and 49% listed in the New York, United State of America (USA) and Buenos Aires stock exchanges, Argentina.

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2023 GDCR – World’s First Comparison of Every State’s Physical Climate Risk; 9 Indian States Among World’s Top 50 Facing Climate RiskAccording to the “2023 Gross Domestic Climate Risk Assessment” released by Cross Dependency Initiative (XDI), 9 Indian states are among the world’s top 50 regions at risk of causing damage to the built environment as a result of climate change hazards.

• The 9 states are Bihar (ranked 22), Uttar Pradesh (25th), Assam (28thg), Rajasthan (32nd), Tamil Nadu (36th), Maharashtra (38th), Gujarat (44th), Punjab (48th), and Kerala (50th).

This Gross Domestic Climate Risk Report (GDCR) is the first physical climate risk analysis to compare every state, province, and territory in the world with a specific emphasis on the built environment.
i.Overall, the “globally significant states” of India, China, and the United States (US) are home to 80% of the world’s top 50 most vulnerable cities and economic centres.
About the Cross Dependency Initiative (XDI):
CEO – Rohan Hamden
Founded – 2017
Headquarters – Sydney, NSW ( New South Wales), Australia

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Banking mergers in India have been Beneficial to the Banking Sector: RBI paper As per the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) occasional paper Vol. 43, No.1, 2022 titled ‘Do Bank Mergers Improve Efficiency? The Indian Experience’, banking mergers in India have been, on an average, beneficial to the banking sector as the financial performance and efficiency of acquirers improved post-merger.

• The paper is authored by Snehal S. Herwadkar, Shubham Gupta and Vaishnavi Chavan, Director, Department of Economic and Policy Research, RBI.
• It has evaluated bank mergers in India since 1997 to gauge their impact on acquirers’ efficiency.

The views expressed in the paper are of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Reserve Bank of India.
Assessment:
The Findings of data envelopment analysis (DEA) are for the period 1997-2017. The study covered all registered Mergers and Acquisitions (M&As) in the Indian commercial banking industry, between 1997 and 2020.

• The sample reduced to includes 17 merger cases during 1997- 2017 and five merger cases during 2019-2020.

Key Points:
i.Most of the mergers amongst PVBs (private sector banks) were market-driven and those between PSBs (public sector banks) were government-led mergers.
ii.The mean technical efficiency of acquirers increased from 90.88 in the pre-merger period to 93.80 three years post-merger, and 94.24 five years post-merger.
iii.Factors that may have led to efficiency gains are post-merger geographical diversification and improvement in the share of interest income.

• The impact was sharper in the medium term (-3 to +5 years period) as compared to the short-term (-1 to +1 years or -3 to +3 years period).

iv.Post-merger, banks were able to channelise higher share of deposits/assets into loans.
v.There is also improvement in capital adequacy and NPA (Non Profit Asset) provisions measures post-merger as the combined entity has become relatively more resilient to financial risks.
vi.Post-merger, banks have been able to cut some operating costs by consolidating bank branches/ATMs operating in the same area, etc.
About Reserve Bank of India (RBI):
i.The Reserve Bank of India was established on April 1, 1935, in accordance with the provisions of the RBI Act, 1934.
ii.The Central Office of the Reserve Bank was initially established in Calcutta but was permanently moved to Mumbai in 1937.
iii.Though originally privately owned, since nationalization in 1949, the Reserve Bank is fully owned by the Government of India.

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SBI Mutual Fund launches SBI Dividend Yield FundSBI Mutual Fund announced the launch of SBI Dividend Yield Fund, an open-ended equity scheme that will invest at least a minimum of 65% of the assets into equity & equity related instruments predominantly into dividend yielding companies.

• The new fund offer (NFO) is opened on February 20, 2023 and will close on March 6, 2023.
• The first-tier benchmark of the fund is the NIFTY 500 TRI.

Objective:
To provide investors with opportunities for capital appreciation and/or dividend distribution
Key Points:
i.The fund will hunt for investment opportunities in companies which may have relatively lower dividend yield currently but have been consistently demonstrated growth in their dividend pay-out.
ii.It aims to achieve an aggregate dividend yield that is at least 50% higher than that of the Nifty 50 Index.
iii.The scheme will consider dividend-paying stocks that have paid dividends or repurchased shares in at least one of the previous three fiscal years.
iv.Investors who want regular income, can use the SWP (A) facility offered in this fund to plan regular tax efficient cash flows.
About SBI Mutual Fund:
MD & CEO– Shamsher Singh
Headquarters– Mumbai,  Maharashtra

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BoM Launched its own Private Cloud Infrastructure Mahabank Nakshatra

Bank of Maharashtra (BoM) has launched its own private cloud infrastructure, Mahabank Nakshatra, to improve the performance of cloud capabilities of the bank’s digital infrastructure and hosting applications.

• BoM’s own private cloud platform will strengthen asset monitoring mechanism via predictive machine learning model.
• The Cloud platform will alert in advance whether a borrowal account will move into special mention account (SMA)-0 (principal or interest payment not overdue for more than 30 days). Thus the prior alert will reduce the potential stress accounts in retail, agriculture and MSME (Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises) portfolios.

Initiatives undertaken by BoM:
i.The bank has upgraded its mobile banking application version with enhanced UI/UX features for seamless customer experience.
ii.A mobile app named Arjun (Automated Remote Junction for Monitoring of Assets Under Stress) was launched by the bank to provide a snapshot of stressed asset (SMA & Slippages) portfolio to bank staff and feat on street (FOT).

• Analysis to identify the daily variation in stressed asset portfolio will also be given by the app alongwith recovery suggestions.

iii.The bank launched a legal case tracking software termed ‘Mykase’ to strengthen Recovery mechanism. The software will fetch all the cases in various courts of India which are online where BoM.
iv.‘Pension slip facility’ was developed by the bank using Digi locker, which is a flagship initiative of Ministry of Electronics & IT (MeitY) under Digital India programme.
v.The FASTag auto top-up facility of the bank will now enable its customers to set a Standing Instruction (SI) facility for their FASTag wallet.
vi.The bank’s WhatsApp banking now include Credit Card with detailed account summary and transactions, pension slip for pensioners, account statement, health insurance etc.,
About Bank of Maharashtra (BoM):
Establishment – 16 September 1935
Headquarters – Pune, Maharashtra
Managing Director and CEO – A S Rajeev
Tagline – Ek Parivaar, Ek Bank (One Family One Bank)

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Kotak Mahindra Bank Launched a Banking Portal Kotak fynKotak Mahindra Bank Ltd (KMBL) launched an integrated banking portal named ‘Kotak fyn‘, to provide inclusive digital banking and value-added services to its business banking and corporate clients.
Features of the Portal Kotak fyn:

• Under the portal, services will be provided for all products, including trade & services, account services, payments, and collections.
• It will offer the option to unify data across multiple product-specific portals and back-office systems to create a single view of transactions, positions and balances, enabling self-service and driving operational efficiency,
• It will also assure paperless transactions and overcomes the need for multiple logins and disparate user interfaces, making all trade and service transactions seamless and easy for customers.
• The corporate customers of the bank would have a superior banking experience through the portal as it has an innovative user interface with several industry-leading features.

About Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd (KMBL):
Establishment – 2003
Headquarters – Mumbai, Maharashtra
MD & CEO – Uday Kotak
Tagline – Let’s Make Money Simple

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SBI Ecowrap pegs India’s Q3FY23 GDP growth at 4.6%As per the research report by the State Bank of India (SBI) Ecowrap, India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth for Q3 FY23 is estimated at 4.6%.

• For the whole FY23, the GDP is estimated to grow between 6.8 and 7%.

Basis of Estimate:
This estimate is based upon an in-house SBI Artificial Neural Network (ANN) model.
ANN is a computational network model that has artificial neural networks like biological neurons that are linked to each other in various layers of the networks. These neurons are known as nodes.

• The SBI ANN model has been developed with 30 high frequency indicators, and has been trained for the quarterly GDP data from Q4 2011 to Q4 2020.

Key Points:
i.This Q3FY23 projection by SBI is higher than the 4.4% growth projected by Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and National Statistical office (NSO).
ii.Notably India’s GDP grew at 0.7% and 5.4% in Q3 FY21 and Q3 FY22, respectively.
iii.In Q1FY23 the growth has been pegged at 13.5%, and for Q2FY23, it was at 6.3%.
iv.The corporate results, excluding BFSI (banking, financial services and insurance), for Q3 FY23 shows a decline in EBIDTA (earnings before interest, depreciation, tax and ammortisation) by 9% year-on-year (y-o-y) against 18% EBIDTA growth in Q3 FY22

• Net sales grew by 15% in Q3 FY23.

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BEML signed MoU with DMRC led SPV for Bahrain Metro Rail Project On 20th February 2023, BEML Limited(formerly Bharat Earth Movers Limited), a schedule ‘A’ company under the Ministry of Defence(MoD) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC)-led Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) for constructing the Bahrain Metro Rail Project Phase-1.

• The project involves the construction of a 30 kilometer (Km) network with 20 stations.

Signatories:
Saleem Ahmed, Executive Director (Last Mile Connectivity), Delhi Metro and DS Ganesh, General Manager (Marketing), BEML signed the MoU in the presence of Vikas Kumar, Managing Director (MD) of DMRC, and Amit Banerjee, Chairman and Managing Director(CMD), BEML.
Note: 
The DMRC has qualified for the pre-qualification tender process for an international consultancy project to construct the Phase-1 of the Bahrain Metro Project.
Features of the MoU:
i.Under this MoU, BEML will manufacture and supply Metro rolling stock and DMRC will provide expertise in the fields of project development, budgeting, and facilitation of contractual obligations for the phase-1 of the Bahrain Metro Project.
ii.The MoU will enable BEML to utilise its manufacturing expertise and technological resources and expand globally and optimise business processes for Metro Rolling Stock used in urban transportation.
Other projects of Delhi Metro:

• Previously, Delhi Metro has qualified in the pre bid process for constructing the Tel Aviv Metro Project in Israel.
• It is also in process of bidding for other international projects like Alexandria in Egypt, Ho Chi Minh in Vietnam, and Mauritius.
• At present Delhi Metro is engaged in the construction of Dhaka Metro in Bangladesh as consultant.

About BEML Limited: 
BEML Limited was established in May 1964 as a Public Sector Undertaking(PSU) for Rail Coaches & Spare Parts and Mining equipment.
BEML operates under 3 major business verticals: Defence & Aerospace, Mining & Construction and Rail & Metro.
Chairman and Managing Director(CMD)– Amit Banerjee
Headquarters– Bengaluru, Karnataka

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Karnataka Bank wins ‘Prathista Puraskar-Digidhan Award’ from MeitY 

Karnataka Bank Limited was awarded “Prathista Puraskar” under ‘Digidhan Awards 2021-22’ by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), Government of India (GoI), for achieving the target with the highest percentage in Bharat Interface for Money-Unified Payments Interface (BHIM-UPI) transactions in Private Sector Bank category.

• Gokuldas Pai, Chief Business Officer and Jagadeesh K S, Deputy General Manager of Delhi-Region, received the award from Ashwini Vaishnaw, Minister for Electronics & Information Technology, Communications and Railways, in a function held at New Delhi, Delhi.
• The bank, known as “KBL-NxT”, is currently undertaking an accelerated digital drive under its transformation journey “KBL VIKAAS 2.0.”   

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GoI Appoints BVR Subrahmanyam as NITI Aayog CEO; Incumbent CEO Iyer Moves to World BankThe Government of India (GoI) has approved the appointment of former Commerce Secretary BVR Subrahmanyam (56 years old) as the new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of NITI Aayog (National Institution for Transforming India).

• The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved Subrahmanyam’s appointment for a period of 2 years from the date of assumption of the charge of the post.

Subrahmanyam will succeed incumbent CEO Parameswaran Iyer, who will join the World Bank (WB) as Executive Director in Washington, DC, United States (US) for a 3-year term.
About BVR Subrahmanyam
i.BVR Subrahmanyam is a 1987 batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer from the Chhattisgarh cadre.
ii.Subrahmanyam was named Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of the India Trade Promotion Organization (ITPO) in 2022 on a contract basis for a period of two years following his retirement on September 30, 2022.
iii.He was Additional Chief Secretary (Home) in Chhattisgarh before being deputed to Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) as Chief Secretary when the state proclaimed Governor’s Rule in June 2022.
iv.From 2004 to 2008, he served as a private secretary to former Prime Minister (PM) Manmohan Singh.
v.After serving at the World Bank, he rejoined the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) under Narendra Modi between 2012 and 2015.
About Parameswaran Iyer
i.Parameswaran Iyer, the current CEO of NITI Aayog, is a retired 1981-batch IAS officer of Uttar Pradesh cadre.

• In July 2022, he was appointed CEO of NITI Aayog for a 3-year term.

ii.As appointed to the World Bank (WB), Parameswaran Iyer will take over for Rajesh Khullar, a 1988-batch IAS official who has been repatriated to his home cadre of Haryana.
iii.Iyer voluntarily retired from the IAS in 2009 to join the WB as the global lead for strategic initiatives in the water and sanitation sector.
iv.Between 2016 to 2020, he was the Secretary to the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation in New Delhi, where he oversaw the implementation of India’s flagship initiative, the USD 20 billion Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM).
About NITI Aayog (National Institution for Transforming India):
Chairperson – Prime Minister of India (Narendra Modi)
Vice Chairperson – Suman Bery
Establishment – 2015
Headquarters – New Delhi, Delhi

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UN appoints Indo-Canadian Afshan Khan Coordinator for SUN Movement

On 20th February 2023, United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres announced the appointment of Indo-Canadian Afshan Khan as Coordinator of the Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) Movement. She will coordinate the implementation of the SUN movement through its 3rd phase (2021-2025).

• Afshan Khan will succeed Gerda Verburg of the Netherlands.

Currently, she serves as United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)’s Regional Director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia.
Key Points:
i. Afshan Khan will coordinate the implementation of the SUN Movement through its 3rd phase (2021-2025).
ii. She will lead the SUN Movement Secretariat and manage the network of SUN Government Focal Points, stakeholders, and supporters.
iii. As the coordinator of the SUN movement, she will work to ensure the execution of the SUN strategy at the global level by building partnerships, and galvanizing engagement and commitment to end malnutrition in all its forms.
SUN Movement: 
i. The Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) Movement, which is led by 65 Countries and 4 Indian States (Maharashtra, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh), is a country-driven initiative with an aim of eradicating all types of malnutrition by 2030.
ii. It is a renewed initiative to end all forms of malnutrition, based on the principle that everyone has a right to food and good nutrition.
iii. It works to achieve sustainable and equitable reductions in malnutrition and nutrition justice for all.
About Afshan Khan:
i. Afshan Khan was born in Hyderabad, Telangana, India and has both Canadian and United Kingdom (UK) citizenship.
ii. She worked as a consultant to the Canadian International Development Agency between 1984 and 1986.
iii. She started her work for UNICEF in Mozambique in 1989.
iv. Since Afshan Khan also served as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Women for Women International from 2012-2014.

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HAL extends C B Ananthakrishnan Tenure as CMD for Six Months

On 20th February 2022, the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) have approved to extend the tenure of C B Ananthakrishnan, Director (Finance) of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), as Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) (additional charge) for a period of 6 months with effect from 1st February 2023.

• He assumed additional charge of the post of CMD following the superannuation of R Madhavan as CMD of HAL on 31st July 2022.
• HAL is an aerospace and defence company under the Ministry of Defence, Government of India headquartered in Bengaluru, Karnataka.    

Ranji Trophy 2022-2023: Saurashtra won their 2nd Ranji Trophy title defeating BengalSaurashtra cricket team won the Mastercard Ranji Trophy 2022-2023 defeating Bengal cricket team(West Bengal) by 9 wickets in the finals of held in Eden Gardens in Kolkata, West Bengal.

• This marks Saurashtra’s 2nd Ranji Trophy Title. Saurashtra won their maiden Ranji Trophy in 2020.
• Mastercard Ranji Trophy 2022-2023 was the 88th season of the Ranji Trophy, the premier first-class cricket tournament in India.
• Ranji Trophy 2022-23 was held from 13th December 2022 to 19th February 2023

Note: Saurashtra cricket team is one of the  three first-class cricket teams based in Gujarat. The others 2 teams are Baroda and Gujarat.
Captains:
Saurashtra: Jaydev Unadkat
Bengal: Manoj Tiwary
Awards – Ranji Trophy 2022-2023: 
Jaydev Unadkat, captain of Saurashtra, was declared Man of the Match (finals) for his impressive performance.
Arpit Vasavada, a middle-order batsman for Saurashtra, was adjudged the Player of the Series for his consistent run in this Ranji season(2022-2023).
Prize Money: 
Ranji Trophy winning team receives a coveted trophy and Rs 2 crore in prize money.
Player of the Series: Rs 10 lakhs
Player of the Match: Rs 25000
About Ranji Trophy: 
i. Ranji Trophy was founded by the Board of Control for Cricket in India(BCCI) in 1935.
ii. The Ranji Trophy is named after one of India’s first test cricketers, Ranjitsinhji, who played for England and Sussex.
iii. It is annually organised across various grounds and stadiums in India.
iv. The inaugural edition of the Ranji Trophy was played in the 1934-35 season with Mumbai (Bombay), Maharashtra.
Note: 
Mumbai (Bombay) dominates the Ranji Trophy by winning the tournament 41 times.
After Mumbai, Karnataka have won the most Ranji Trophies (8) followed by Delhi (7) and Baroda (5).

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Indian Chess Player N.R. Vignesh from TN Becomes India’s 80th Chess GrandmasterIndian Chess Player N.R. Vignesh (25-year-old), from Chennai, Tamil Nadu (TN), became India’s 80th Grandmaster (GM) after defeating International Master (IM) Ilja Schneider of Germany at NordWest Cup 2023 (24th edition) at Bad Zwischenahn in Germany which was held from 26th January 2023 to 29th January 2023.

• He became the Grandmaster after crossing 2500 in the live ratings.
• N.R. Vignesh also became the 29th Grandmaster hailing from Tamil Nadu(TN).

M Pranesh from TN became India’s 79th GM in January 2023 after winning the Rilton Cup 2022/2023 in Stockholm, Sweden.
Note: 
N.R. Visakh, elder brother of Grandmaster N.R. Vignesh, became had become India’s 59th GM in 2019.

• Visakh and Vignesh became India’s first pair of siblings (brothers) to hold the title of Grandmaster.

About N.R. Vignesh:
i. N.R. Vignesh become an International Master in chess in 2015. He is ranked 767th in FIDE (Fédération Internationale des Échecs or International Chess Federation) World Rank (Active Players).
ii. His GM-Norms: 1st GM-norm: At Qatar Masters in 2015; 2nd GM-norm: At 24th Abu Dhabi Masters in 2017; 3rd GM-norm: At 1st Gujarat GM Open 2018; and 4th GM-norm: At Asian Continental 2019 at Xingtai, China.
Highlights:
i. After becoming GM, N.R. Vignesh returned to India to play for Railways Sports Promotion Board (RSPB) A at MPL 42nd Indian Team Chess Championship Open 2023, a 9-round swiss team tournament, held from 10 to 16 February 2023 in Pollachi, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu.
ii. IM Vignesh N R remained undefeated for the 2nd consecutive year for RSPB A.

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Former Gujarat Governor & Veteran BJP Leader Om Prakash Kohli  Passed Away On 20th February 2023, Om Prakash Kohli (O P Kohli), former Governor of Gujarat (2014-2019) and Veteran Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader, passed away in Noida, Uttar Pradesh (UP), at the age of 87. He was born on 9th August 1935 in Delhi.
About Om Prakash Kohli:
i. O. P. Kohli was a lecturer at Hansraj College (Delhi) and Deshbandhu College, University of Delhi, for over 37 years.
ii. O. P. Kohli began his political career as a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh volunteer. He then held several positions with the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), the Delhi University Students Union, and the Delhi University Teachers Association.
iii. In 1991, he served as the President of the Delhi BJP, where he held the position for 3 terms. As a member of the BJP national executive, he oversaw the organisational charge of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K), Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Punjab, and Haryana.
iv. He served as a Member of Parliament (MP) – Rajya Sabha (representing Delhi) from  1994 to 2000.
v. O. P. Kohli served as the 19th Governor of Gujarat between 2014 and 2019.

• He also held the additional charge of the office of the Governor of Madhya Pradesh along with Gujarat from 2016 to 2018 and also held the additional charge as the Governor of Goa for 3 weeks in 2014.

100 hot wathces

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International Mother Language Day 2023 – February 21United Nations (UN)’s International Mother Language Day (IMLD) is annually observed across the globe on February 21 to promote linguistic and cultural diversity, as well as multilingualism.

• 21st February 2023 marks the observance of the 24th edition of IMLD.

The theme of International Mother Language Day 2023 is “Multilingual education – a necessity to transform education”.
Aim: To preserve traditional knowledge and cultures through sustainable methods and support multilingualism in societies.
Background:
i. International Mother Language Day was established on the initiative of Bangladesh.
ii. In 1999, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) General Conference approved the observance of February 21 as the IMLD and has been observed worldwide since 2000.
iii. The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopted the resolution A/RES/56/262, titled Multilingualism, on 9th April 2002 and formally recognized February 21 of every year as International Mother Language Day.
About the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO):
Director-General- Audrey Azoulay
Headquarters- Paris, France
Establishment- 1945 (came into force in 1946)
Members- 193 Members and 11 Associate Members.

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Odisha Governor Ganeshi Lal launched India’s 1st Agri Chatbot – Ama KrushAI

Ganeshi Lal, Governor of Odisha, launched “Ama KrushAI”, India’s first Artificial Intelligence (AI)-powered ChatBot for the agriculture sector, at the valedictory session of ‘Krushi Odisha 2023’. It is designed to help farmers access agronomic practices, government schemes, and loan products from more than 40 commercial and cooperative banks.

• The ChatBot will run under a pilot project involving more than 10,000 farmers and will be implemented in full-fledged in the next two months.
• Ama KrushAI is created using Bhashini (a language interpretation platform) and the ChatGPT system by the Indian Institute Of Technology–Madras (IIT Madras).

Krushi Odisha 2023: Three-day event under the theme “Emerging Technologies in Agriculture”, organised by Odisha’s Agriculture and Farmers’ Empowerment department in collaboration with the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) to promote farm mechanisation and enhancement in farmers’ income. More than 20,000 farmers and agri-entrepreneurs from across Odisha.

Aero India 2023 (14th Edition) Held in Bengaluru, Karnataka  – Feb 13- 17, 2023The 14th edition of “Aero India 2023,” a biennial event highlighting India’s indigenous defence capabilities, was launched by Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi, who also released a commemorative stamp on the occasion.

• The five-day event took place at Air Force Station Yehlanka in Bengaluru, Karnataka, from February 13 – 17, 2023.
• The theme of the event was “The runway to a billion opportunities.”

The event was organized by the Department of Defence Production of the Indian Ministry of Defence (MoD) in Bengaluru.

The major exhibitors of Aero India 2023 include Airbus, Boeing, Dassault Aviation, Lockheed Martin, Israel Aerospace Industry, BrahMos Aerospace, Army Aviation, HC Robotics, SAAB, Safran, Rolls Royce, Larsen & Toubro, Bharat Forge Limited, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) and BEML Limited.

• Aim: To encourage the export of indigenous aircraft such the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA)-Tejas, HTT-40, Dornier Light Utility Helicopter (LUH), Light Combat Helicopter (LCH), and Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH).

Rajnath Singh launches 9th Defence India Start-up Challenge on ‘Cybersecurity’
Union Minister Rajnath Singh, MoD, launched the 9th edition of the Defence India Startup Challenges (DISC 9) on “Cybersecurity” at the “Startup Manthan” at Aero India 2023.

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12 Cheetahs from South Africa released into enclosures at Kuno National ParkOn February 18, 2023, Madhya Pradesh (MP) Chief Minister (CM) Shivraj Singh Chouhan released 12 cheetahs into the Kuno National Park (KNP) in Sheopur, MP. The cheetahs include 7 males and 5 females from South Africa (SA).
While 8 cheetahs were put up in separate quarantine enclosures, 4 others were kept in two bomas in pairs.

• Now, the total number of Cheetahs in KNP or India has increased to 20.
• KNP is situated on the northern side of Vidhyachal mountains and is spread across more than 700 square km.

The Cheetah, Acinonyx jubatus, is the world’s fastest mammal. The average life span of a South African cheetah was 8-10 years.
Key Points:
i.This move comes after five months (September 17, 2022) when the first batch of 8 cheetahs arrived in KNP from Namibia.

• The cheetahs from Namibia, 5 females and 3 males, are currently in hunting enclosures at the park before their full release into the wild.

ii.The eldest of the 12 cheetahs to be housed in the KNP is an eight-years-and-three-month-old male, while the youngest is a female which has completed two years and four months,
iii.The CM was accompanied by Union Minister Bhupender Yadav, Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEF&CC); Union Minister Narendra Singh Tomar, Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare (MoA&FW); and Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA).
Background:
The Indian and South African governments signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on January 26, 2023 to translocate more than 100 cheetahs to India over the next decade. The terms of the MoU will be reviewed every five years to ensure it remains relevant.

• The last cheetah in India was killed in Koria district of present-day Chhattisgarh in 1947, and the species was declared extinct in 1952.

This multi-disciplinary international programme is being coordinated by the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE), the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) in collaboration with the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI), South African National Parks (SANParks), The Cheetah Metapopulation Initiative, the Faculty of Veterinary Science of the University of Pretoria and the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) in South Africa together with the MoEF&CC, the High Commission of India, the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) and the Wildlife Institute of India (WII)  and Madhya Pradesh Forest Department.

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GHAVP: North India’s 1st Nuclear Plant to be set up in HaryanaUnion Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology and the Atomic Energy and Space, Jitendra Singh mentioned about upcoming installation of North India’s 1st Nuclear Plant ‘Gorakhpur Haryana Anu Vidyut Pariyojana’ (GHAVP) near Gorakhpur village in Fatehabad, Haryana.

• GHAVP’s two units of 700 MWe capacity each of Pressurised Heavy Water Reactor (PHWR) indigenous design is under implementation.
• Out of the total allocated funds of Rs 20,594 Crore an amount of Rs 4,906 Crore has been spent so far. Thus as of the date, the total financial progress is 23.8%.

Background:
i.Jitendra Singh has stated about approval given by the centre for the installation of 10 nuclear reactors.
ii.In June 2017 approval was granted for the construction of 10 indigenously developed Pressurised Heavy-Water Reactors (PHWRs) of 700 MegaWatts (MW) each with a total cost of Rs 1.05 Lakh crore.

• Kaiga Atomic Power Plant, Karnataka, Gorakhpur Haryana Anu Vidyut Praiyonjan, Chutka Madhya Pradesh Atomic Power Project, Mahi Banswara Rajasthan Atomic Power Projects were planned for construction.

iii.To fulfil India’s all energy needs, the department of atomic energy has also been given permission to form joint ventures with Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) for resources to open up atomic energy plants.
In Progress: Main Plant buildings and structures like the fire water Pump House (FWPH), Safety Related Pump House (SRPH), Fuel Oil storage area-1&2 (FOSA-1&2), Ventilation stack, overhead tank (OHT), Switchyard Control Building, Safety related and Non-safety related Tunnel and Trenches, Retaining walls and Garland Drain are under construction.

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Govt. forms Panel led by Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba to Monitor Mission Karmayogi 

Central Government (Govt) has formed a 12-member Cabinet Secretariat Coordination Unit (CSCU) panel headed by Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba to monitor the implementation of the government’s National Programme for Civil Services Capacity Building (NPCSCB) or Mission Karmayogi for training government employees.
Key Points:
i.Members of the CSCU include a nominee of Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), secretary (Coordination), cabinet secretariat, DoPT (Department of Personnel and Training) secretary, home secretary, expenditure secretary, Environment, Forest & Climate Change secretary, Higher Education secretary and revenue secretary.
ii.Chief Executive Officer of Karmayogi Bharat and secretary of Capacity Building Commission will be the permanent invitees to the panel, Additional Secretary/Joint Secretary (Training), DoPT will be the Member Secretary.
iii.The CSCU will monitor the implementation of NPCSCB, oversees the formulation of the National Capacity Building Plan (NCBP) and place it for approval of the Prime Minister’s Human Resource Council (PMHRC), and periodically monitor the implementation of Annual Capacity Building Plans.
iv.The meeting of CSCU was planned to be convened quarterly or as and when deemed appropriate.
Initiatives under iGOT Karmayogi Platform:
i.As per the latest update, a total of 3,13,367 learners have been onboarded with 5 million learning minutes on the iGOT (Integrated Government Online Training) Karmayogi platform.
ii.As many as 341 courses have been published by 1,532 ministries/departments and their organisations as of January 2023, on the iGOT Karmayogi digital learning platform.
iii.A ‘Karmayogi Talks Series’ was also launched by Karmayogi Bharat, as a forum for all learners on iGOT Karmayogi to engage and interact with renowned experts/professionals across the government, industry and private entities.

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India & Nepal inks Pact to Rise 200 MW to Dhalkebar-Muzaffarpur Transmission LineIndia and Nepal have signed an agreement to increase the power import and export capacity through the Dhalkebar-Muzaffarpur transmission line by 200 MW, increasing it from 600 megawatts (MW) to 800 MW.

• The agreement between India and Nepal was signed on On 18th February 2023, during the 10th India Nepal Energy Secretary-level Joint Steering Committee (JSC) meeting in Mount Abu, Rajasthan.

10th India Nepal Energy Secretary-level JSC meeting:
i. The Meeting was co-chaired by Madhu Prasad Bhetwal, Joint Secretary Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, Nepal and Alok Kumar, Secretary of the Ministry of Electricity, India.
ii. During the 10th meeting of Nepal India Energy Secretary-level JSC, the power of existing, projected, and under-construction transmission lines, Arun Third hydroelectric power, was discussed along with related transmission line projects and international power export and import.
Features of the agreement:
i. The agreement was made to increase the capacity to import & export electricity through the 400 KV Dhalkebar-Muzaffarpur transmission line by 200 MW (600 MW-800 MW).
ii. It has also been agreed to set up the necessary mechanisms to use the existing 132 KV transmission line to export electricity from Nepal to Bihar throughout the rainy season.
iii. India and Nepal concurred that the 400 KV new Butwal-Gorakhpur transmission line, the second international transmission line, should be completed by March 2025.
iv. Also, it was decided to construct two more 400 KV international transmission lines between the two nations, namely the Inaruwa-Poornia transmission line by 2027/28 and the New Lamki-Bareli transmission line by 2028/29.
v. India has granted permission for Nepal to export 50 MW of power to Bangladesh through India under export-import guidelines if a specific proposal is submitted.
Additional Information:
i. An agreement to import and export 70 to 80 MW of electricity from Tanakpur-Mahendranagar 132 KV (kilovolt) power transmission was also signed between the two sides.
ii. It has also been agreed to set up the necessary mechanisms to export power from Nepal to Bihar during the rainy season through the existing 132 KV transmission line.
Dhalkebar-Muzaffarpur transmission line:
In 2016, the 140 km Muzaffarpur-Dalkebar power transmission line was launched by Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi and his then-Nepalese counterpart KP Sharma Oli.

• By then, an agreement was signed to import and export 70 to 80 MW of electricity from Tanakpur-Mahebdranagar’s 132 KV power transmission.

About Nepal:
President- Bidhya Devi Bhandari
Prime Minister- Pushpa Kamal Dahal
Capital- Kathmandu
Currency- Nepalese Rupee

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World’s Highest Weather Station Rebuilt on Mount EverestThe World’s Highest Weather Station, which was installed by the National Geographic Society (NatGeo), has been rebuilt on Mount Everest after it was destroyed due to hurricane-force winds on Mt Everest.

• A team of scientists and Sherpa have again placed its new version atop Mt Everest.
• The group has been led by Tenzing Gyalzen Sherpa, a 31-year-old electrician and mountain guide.

Installation of the World’s Highest Weather Station:
i. According to the Guinness World Records report, the team of mountaineers and scientists of NatGeo installed a record-breaking weather station in 2022 at an altitude of 8,810 metres (28,904 ft); just 39 metres (128 ft) below Everest’s summit.

• It was installed to automatically measure various meteorological phenomena.

ii. The station will be fully operated by NatGeo till 2025 before transferring the technology to the Nepal Government in 2026.
Key Points:
i. As part of National Geographic and Rolex’s “Return to Everest Expedition” in May 2022, the crew began reinstalling the world’s highest meteorological station.
ii. Twelve additional Sherpas helped Tenzing, Matthews, and Perry rebuild the weather station on the highest mountain in the world.
iii. The old weather station, which was about 400 metres lower than the current one, was situated on Everest’s “Balcony”.

• It was notable for being the first terrestrial weather station to be positioned over 8,000 metres.

iv. The highest weather station needed to be rebuilt because the data it was gathering could impact the lives of 1.6 billion people who depend on the area’s freshwater supply.
v. The team began cleaning the damaged Balcony’s weather station in May 2022 and assembling its updated version together.

• On 9 May 2022, in the chilly winter at -40°C (-40°F), the team arrived at Bishop Rock carrying several weather station components.

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NDDB Mrida Ltd. signs MoU with Sistema.bio & unveils “Gobar Se Samriddhi” programme

NDDB Mrida Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary company of the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB), signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Sistema.bio, India’s leading biogas company, and launched the “Gobar Se Samriddhi” programme in Anand, Gujarat.

• The agreement is signed to collaborate with smallholder dairy farmers and offers sustainable waste-to-energy solutions and creates opportunities for farmers to earn additional income.

Meenesh Shah, Chairman of the NDDB and NDDB Mrida Ltd. and Piyush Sohani, Managing Director (MD) of Sistema.bio India graced the occasion.

• As per the agreement, in the initial phase, 15,000 biogas plants will be installed by the bio company for the farmers in Surat, Kolhapur, and Pune.
• Currently, around 370 farmers have installed biogas plants in Jankharia, Anand, Gujarat.
• The plan is to reach out to more than 25,000 farmers with biogas plants in 2023, with a vision to serve 3,00,000 dairy farms in the coming 2-3 years.

Note: At present, 40,000 farmers use biodigesters developed by Sistema.bio to create value from waste.

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Union Minister Parshottam Rupala launches Sagar Parikrama Phase-III from Hazira Port in Gujarat

Parshottam Rupala, Union Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, launched the Sagar Parikrama Phase-III from Hazira Port in Gujarat, and proceeds towards the coastal line of Maharashtra at Satpati, Vasai, Versova, and Parikrama will end at Sasson Dock, Mumbai.

• The main objectives of Sagar Parikrama are to promote responsible fisheries, save marine ecosystems, disseminate information about the various fisheries-related government schemes and programmes, and show solidarity with all fishermen and concerned stakeholders.
• The 3rd phase focuses on finding a sustainable balance between using marine fisheries resources to support coastal fishing communities’ livelihoods and India’s food security.
• It also aims to close gaps between fishing communities and safeguard maritime ecosystems.

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Bank of Maharashtra tops list of PSBs in Loan GrowthAs per an analysis of the latest financial results of Public Sector Banks (PSBs), Pune (Maharashtra) based Bank of Maharashtra (BoM) tops the list of Public Sector Banks (PSBs) in terms of loan growth percentage for the third quarter of FY23/Q3FY23.

• It shows a growth of 21.67% in gross advances year-on-year (y-o-y) in Q3FY23.
• BoM is followed by Union Bank with a growth rate of 19.80% in advances.

Highlights:
i.PSBs had a robust profit growth of 65% at Rs 29,175 crore during Q3FY23, with BoM emerging as the top performer in terms of percentage growth in profit. It recorded a 139% jump in profit at Rs 775 crore.

• BoM was followed by UCO Bank which posted a profit of Rs 653 crore.

ii.The State Bank of India (SBI) with a growth rate of 16.91% YoY in lending platforms held the 4th spot. However, in value terms, SBI’s total loan book is at Rs 26,47,205 crore, which is more than 17 times higher than BOM’s lending book of Rs 1,56,962 crore.
Key Points:
i.BoM has maintained the top slot in credit growth in percentage terms consistently for the past 10 quarters despite COVID-19 pressures.
ii.In terms of Retail-Agriculture-MSME (RAM) loans, BoM attained the highest growth of 19.18%, followed by Punjab & Sind Bank with a growth rate of 19.07%, and Bank of Baroda (BoB) with a growth of 18.85% on an annual basis.
iii.In terms of asset quality, BoM and SBI were in the lowest quartile w.r.t. non-performing assets (NPAs) and net NPAs.
iv.As of December 31, 2022, BoM and SBI’s gross NPA were at 2.94% and 3.14% respectively.

• Their net NPAs stood at 0.47% and 0.77%.

v.With regard to deposit growth, BoB topped the charts among PSBs with a growth rate of 14.50%, followed by Union Bank of India which recorded an upside of 13.48% year-on-year. BoM was in the third spot in terms of deposit growth.
vi.In terms of total business growth, Union Bank of India recorded the highest growth of 16.07% during Q3FY23. It was followed by BoM with 15.77% rise, and BoB with 15.23%.
vii.With regard to Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR), BoM recorded 17.53%, the highest among PSBs, followed by Canara Bank at 16.72% and Indian Bank at 15.74% as on December 31, 2022.

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UAE-India Business Council launched the UAE chapter to Boost Bilateral Trade & InvestmentOn 18th February 2023, UAE-India Business Council-UAE Chapter (UIBC-UC) was launched to boost Bilateral Trade and Investment between India and UAE, commemorating the 1st anniversary of the India-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) to strengthen economic ties and to make it easier to achieve the shared goal of enhancing bilateral trade and investment.

• UIBC-UC was launched by Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade, in the presence of Sunjay Sudhir, the Ambassador of India to the UAE, Aman Puri, Consul General of India in Dubai, and founding members of the UBIC-UC.
• The 2 countries aim to increase bilateral trade to USD 100 billion and attract USD 75 billion in investment from the UAE to India.

Leadership:
i. Chairman of UIBC-UC- Faizal Edavalath Kottikollon (Chairman of KEF Holdings)
ii. Co-Chairman of UIBC-UC- Rizwan Soomar (Chief Executive Officer (CEO) & Managing Director (MD) (India Subcontinent) at DP World).
Major General (Retd.) Sharafuddin Sharaf, Chairman of the UIBC India Chapter, will also hold the position of Vice Chairman of UIBC-UC.

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UNICEF India appoints Bollywood Actor Ayushmann Khurrana as National Ambassador

On 18th February 2023, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) India announced the appointment of Ayushmann Khurrana, a National Award-winning Bollywood Actor, as a National Ambassador.

• Ayushmann Khurrana joins hands with UNICEF to support ensuring the rights of every child to survive, thrive, and be protected as well as promoting their voice and agency in decisions that concern them.
• In 2020, he was appointed UNICEF India’s Celebrity Advocate to advocate for ending violence against children and the broader child rights agenda.
• He made active participation in international observance of Children, women, child labour and more.

Note: Global, Regional and National Ambassadors are among the most recognizable faces of UNICEF.

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ISRO’s Chandrayaan-3 successfully undergoes EMI/EMC TestAs per the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), between January 31 and February 2, 2023, the ‘Chandrayaan-3’ lander has successfully underwent the Electro-Magnetic Interference/Electro-Magnetic Compatibility (EMI/EMC) test at the U R Rao Satellite (URSC) Centre in Bengaluru, Karnataka.

• The performance of the systems was satisfactory.

What is EMI/EMC test?
It is conducted for satellite missions to ensure the functionality of the satellite subsystems in the space environment and their compatibility with the expected electromagnetic levels.
About Chandrayaan-3:
i.Chandrayaan-3 interplanetary mission has the following three major modules:

• Propulsion module
• Lander module and Rover
• Mission’s complexity calls for establishing radio-frequency (RF) communication links between the modules.

ii.It is a follow-on mission to Chandrayaan-2 to demonstrate end-to-end capability in safe landing and roving on the lunar surface.
iii.It will be launched by GSLV MkIII from Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC), Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh, tentatively in June 2023.
iv.The propulsion module has Spectro-polarimetry of Habitable Planet Earth (SHAPE) payload to study the spectral and polarimetric measurements of Earth from the lunar orbit.
v.The Lander payloads has Chandra’s Surface Thermophysical Experiment (ChaSTE) to measure the thermal conductivity and temperature.
vi.The Rover payloads has Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS) and Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscope (LIBS) for deriving the elemental composition in the vicinity of landing site.

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Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Satellite Launch Vehicle Mission 2023: India’s 1st hybrid Sounding Rocket made by Students Launched On February 19, 2023,  India’s 1st hybrid sounding rocket made by school students from various states as part of ‘Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Satellite Launch Vehicle Mission 2023’ was launched from Pattipulam Village in Chengalpattu, Tamilnadu in the presence of Tamilisai Soundararajan, Governor of Telangana and Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry.
Key Points:
i.The project “Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam Satellite Launch Vehicle Mission 2023” was formed by Dr.APJ Abdul Kalam International Foundation- House of Kalam, Rameswaram in association with the Space Zone India, Chennai and Martin Charitable Trust.
ii.Around 5000 students from colleges and schools (from Grades VI to XII) across the country were involved in the project. The team included 200 from the fishermen community in Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry, 100 students from tribal communities across India, and 60 from Tamil Nadu.
iii.Top 100 students were selected under the project which enabled them for designing and developing 150 PICO Satellites research experiment cubes that contained different payloads

• Those 150 PICO satellites were launched through the sounding Rocket from Pattipulam village.
• The rocket can be used for research in weather, atmospheric conditions and radiation.
• Selected students also learnt more about Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM).

100 Femto satellites:
The current project is the continuation of “Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam Space Research Payload Cubes Challenge 2021” a project which involved 1347 students from schools who were given training through virtual classes and also hands-on training for designing and developing 100 Femto satellites.

• Those 100 Femto satellites were launched through a single high-altitude scientific balloon from Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu on 7th February 2021.

Note – Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam International Foundation (AKIF) was launched on 11th October 2015 to fulfil his dreams of transforming India.

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Delhi Metro Launches first-ever Indigenously Developed Automatic Train Supervision SystemIndia’s first-ever Indigenous Automatic Train Supervision System (i-ATS) was launched in February 2023 for operations on the Delhi Metro’s 1st corridor Red Line (Rithala to Shaheed Sthal) from the Operations Control Centre (OCC) in Shastri Park by Manoj Joshi, Secretary of Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, and Chairman of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC).

• It has been developed by a joint team of DMRC and Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), under the government of India’s ‘Make in India’ and ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ initiatives for metro rail transit systems.

DMRC stated about the launch of India’s first virtual shopping app for the metro, ‘Momentum 2.0’, which will allow users to make a variety of purchases and schedule a variety of services.

• It includes features such as instant recharge of Delhi Metro’s smart cards and smart payment options for other utility services.
• The app includes features for e-shopping options with a variety of goods and the ‘brick & click’ store experience will enable shopping for groceries and other essential items at the metro stations.

About Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC)
Headquarters – New Delhi
Establishment – 1995
Chairman – Manoj Joshi
Managing Director – Vikas Kumar

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Rolls-Royce Marine North America signed MoU with KSSL for naval marine propulsorsRolls-Royce Marine North America Inc, a subsidiary of Rolls-Royce North America Inc,, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Kalyani Strategic Systems (KSSL), a 100% subsidiary of Bharat Forge limited, to indigenously develop niche naval propulsion technologies and products for the Indian Navy.

• This partnership of Rolls Royce with KSSL will strengthen its defence ecosystem in India.

Note: Rolls-Royce North America Inc is a subsidiary of multinational corporation Rolls-Royce plc.
Features of the MoU:
i.The MoU aims to enable the creation of a local supply chain ecosystem in India for controllable pitch propellers and shafting.
ii.Under this MoU, the KSSL will explore the options to become an in-country provider for propulsor sales within the Indian market.
iii.This also includes, design and development; licensed manufacturing; pre-sales and sales support; installation, commissioning, testing; and aftermarket services and support.

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Indian team won Bronze at Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championship 2023 in DubaiThe 3rd edition of Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championships 2023/Tong Yun Kai Cup 2023 (official and sponsored title: Blue Ocean Badminton Asia Mixed Team Championship Dubai 2023) was held from February 14-19, 2023 at Dubai Exhibition Centre in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE).

• The championship was won by China with Gold medal by defeating South Korea with 3-1.
• With this, South Korea stood at 2nd position with Silver medal.
• The 3rd position or Bronze medal was shared by India and Thailand.

Participants:
17 teams representing all five regions in Asia
Organizers:
Badminton Asia and United Arab Emirates Badminton Federation.
Official shuttle:
Li-Ning G900
Key Points:
i.India faced a 2-3 defeat against China in the semifinals.
ii.This is a continental badminton tournament to crown the best mixed national badminton teams in Asia.

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Legendary Yakshagana Playback Singer Balipa Narayana Bhagawatha Passed Away

Balipa Narayana Bhagawatha, a legendary Yakshagana playback singer, passed away on 16th February 2023 in Moodbidri, Karnataka. He was born on 13 March 1938 in Kasaragod, Kerala.

• Balipa Narayana Bhagawatha was known as the “Bheeshma” of Tenku Thittu school of Yakshagana.
• He was known for the “Balipa style” of singing with his rich voice. He inherited the style from his grandfather who was also Balipa Narayana Bhagawatha
• He had performed in Kateel Yakshagna Mela alone for over four decades.
• Balipa Narayana Bhagawatha was the recipient of the State-level Kannada Rajyotsava Award and the prestigious Parthi Subba Award instituted by Karnataka Yakshagana Academy.

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World Day of Social Justice 2023 -February 20United Nations (UN)’s World Day of Social Justice is annually observed across the globe on February 20 to raise a voice against social injustice.

• The day also aims to eradicate poverty, physical discrimination, gender inequalities, religious discrimination and illiteracy, and create a socially integrated society by bringing together diverse communities worldwide.

World Day of Social Justice 2023 was observed on 20th February 2023 under the theme “Overcoming Barriers and Unleashing Opportunities for Social Justice”.
Background:
i. The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopted the resolution A/RES/62/10 on 26th November 2007 and proclaimed February 20 of every year, starting from the 63rd session of UNGA (September 2008 to September 2009), as World Day of Social Justice.
ii. The 1st ever World Day of Social Justice was observed on 20th February 2009.
About the International Labour Organisation (ILO):
Director-General- Gilbert Fossoun Houngbo
Headquarters- Geneva, Switzerland
Establishment- 1919
Members- 187 Member States

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Financial Literacy Week 2023 – 13 to 17 February 2023Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is annually observing the Financial Literacy Week (FLW)  to create awareness about the importance of financial literacy to address demand side barriers and enable customers to make better financial decisions.
The Financial Literacy Week 2023 was observed from 13th to 17th February 2023.

• The theme of FLW 2023 is “Good Financial Behaviour, Your Saviour”. 

Significance of FLW 2023: 
FLW 2023 aims to create awareness about financial education messages on relevant themes including “Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs)”, “Credit Discipline and Credit from Formal Institutions” and “Digital Financial Literacy” and others.
Background:
In April 2017,  the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) decided to observe one week in a year as ‘Financial Literacy Week’ to emphasise the importance of financial literacy.

• The Financial Literacy Week 2017 was observed from 5th to 9th June 2017.

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Wadhwani AI signs MoU with KSDA to promote the welfare of Farmers across Karnataka 

Wadhwani Institute for Artificial Intelligence (Wadhwani AI) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Karnataka State Department of Agriculture (KSDA) to improve farmers’ welfare across Karnataka using AI-powered solutions.

• Under this partnership, the KSDA and Wadhwani AI will explore opportunities for the scaled deployment of Wadhwani AI’s AI-powered early pest warning and advice solution for cotton and other crops.
• Wadhwani AI will also conduct capacity-building programmes for ministry personnel on the responsible use of AI and its application to improve agriculture systems in Karnataka and strive to ensure the KSDA is AI-ready.

Note: The Wadhwani Institute for Artificial Intelligence was inaugurated in 2018 by Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India.

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MoTA Minister Arjun Munda launches CSS ‘Marketing and Logistics Development for Promotion of Tribal Products from NER‘ in Manipur i.On April 18, 2023, Union Minister Arjun Munda, Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA) launched MoTA’s new Central Sector Scheme (CSS) namely ‘Marketing and Logistics Development for Promotion of Tribal Products from North -Eastern Region (PTP-NER)’ during a function at Auditorium of Manipur State Film Development Society (MSFDS) in Imphal, Manipur.
ii.The outlay of scheme is ∼ Rs 143 Crore
iii.It aims to strengthen livelihood opportunities for NER’s artisans from Scheduled Tribes (STs) through increased efficiency in procurement, logistics and marketing of tribal products from North Eastern states.
About Manipur:
Governor– Anusuiya Uikey
Zoological Park– Manipur Zoological Garden
Airport– Imphal Airport (also called Bir Tikendrajit International Airport or Tulihal Airport)

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India’s target of blending 20% ethanol in petrol advanced from 2030 to 2025-26On April 18, 2023, the Government of India (GoI) advanced its target to achieve 20 percent ethanol blending in petrol from 2030 to 2025-26.

• As per the Union Minister – Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoP&NG), Hardeep Singh Puri in the Global CBG (Compressed BioGas) Conference of the Indian Federation of Green Energy (IFGE) – CBG Producers Forum, the GoI has notified the National Policy on Biofuels, 2018 to increase the usage of biofuels in the energy and transportation sectors of the country.
• The GoI has set a target to increase the share of gas in the energy mix up to 15 per cent in 2030 to make India a Gas based economy.

Production of Compressed BioGas:
i. Production of indigenous biofuels will play a pivotal role in achieving the targets of net zero and import reduction.
ii. The ethanol blending in petrol has been increased from 1.53 per cent in 2013-14 to 10.17 per cent in July 2022.

• This translates into forex savings of Rs 41,500 crore, timely payment of over Rs 40,600 crore to farmers and a reduction of 27 lakh tones in CO2 emissions.

iii. The objectives of the Programme include reducing import dependence, savings in foreign exchange, providing boost to domestic agriculture sector and for associated environmental benefits.
Note: At present we are importing around 50 percent of our requirement of natural gas.
India has a target to set up 5000 commercial plants by 2024- 25 and produce 15 MMT (Methylcyclopentadienyl manganese tricarbonyl) of CBG which would replace other gaseous fuels being used in the country.
About Ethanol blending:
i. In ethanol blending, a blended motor fuel containing ethyl alcohol derived from agricultural products is blended with petrol.
ii. Ethanol blended petrol has higher octane number than petrol thereby aiding in complete combustion and reduced vehicular emissions.

• Ethanol is a biofuel, naturally produced by the fermentation of sugars by yeasts or by petrochemical processes like ethylene hydration.

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NTPC & Chempolis India signs MoU for Setting Up Bamboo-Based Bio-Refinery at Bongaigaon

On 10th April 2023, NTPC Limited (formerly known as National Thermal Power Corporation Limited), the largest power-generating utility in India, and Chempolis India Private Limited, a Fortum group associate company and a leading Finnish bio-refining technology provider, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to explore the feasibility of setting up a Bamboo-based Bio-Refinery in Bongaigaon, Assam.

• The MoU was signed in presence of Dilip Kumar Patel, Director (HR) of NTPC, Ashok Kumar Kalra, Director (HR) of Engineers India Limited (EIL), and Markus Alholm, President & Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Chempolis.
• Chempolis will work with NTPC to conduct the feasibility study for the project that would use bamboo for the manufacturing of 2G Ethanol, Bio-Coal for thermal power plants, and other value-added goods.

The proposed Bio-Refinery is planned as an integration project with NTPC Bongaigaon Power Plant.

• The Bio-Coal produced by the Bio-Refinery shall partly replace coal in the power plant, effectively converting 5% of the generation of the power plant to green.

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World’s Wealthiest Cities Report 2023 released by Henley & Partners; New York topsi.The investment migration firm Henley & Partners released its annual ‘World’s Wealthiest Cities Report 2023‘ which is again topped by New York, United States (US) with 340,000 millionaires, 724 centi-millionaires, and 58 billionaires in 2022.
ii.New York followed by Tokyo (Japan), California’s Bay Area (US), London (United Kingdom) and Singapore.
iii.The annual survey looked at 97 cities in 9 regions around the world viz. Africa, Australasia, CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States), East Asia, Europe, the Middle East, North America, South Asia, and Southeast Asia.
iv.The list also featured Mumbai (Maharashtra) at 21st rank with 59,400 millionaires, 238 Centi-millionaires, and 29 Billionaires.
About Henley & Partners:
Chief Executive Officer– Dr. Juerg Steffen
Headquarters– London, UK

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Highlights of EAM S Jaishankar’s Visit to Uganda, Ethiopia, & MozambiqueUnion minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) visited African nations – Uganda, Ethiopia and Mozambique for 6 days from April 10 to 15, 2023 to strengthen India’s bilateral relationship with the countries.
Key Points:
i.Launch of Tulsi Ghat Restoration Project:

• During his visit to Kampala, Uganda, the External Affairs Minister (EAM), S. Jaishankar launched the ‘Tulsi Ghat Restoration Project‘ of Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh), a project funded by the Indian community of Uganda.

ii.Inauguratin of NFSU’s Uganda Campus: 

• EAM inaugurated the first foreign campus of India’s National Forensic Sciences University (NFSU) in Jinja, Uganda.
• Notably, the inauguration of NFSU’s Uganda campus marks the first government University of India to open a campus anywhere abroad in the world.

iii.Rides ‘Made in India’ train in Mozambique: EAM rode a ‘Made in India’ train (procured under an Indian Line of Credit (LoC)) from Maputo to Machava in Mozambique.
iv.Inaugurated Buzi Bridge in Mozambique:  He also virtually inaugurated the Buzi Bridge constructed as part of the 132 km Tica-Buzi-Nova-Sofala Road project. The bridge is being constructed by India through Indian LoC.
About Ministry of External Affairs(MEA)
Union Minister – Subrahmanyam Jaishankar (Rajya Sabha Gujarat)
Minister of State (MoS) – VMuraleedharan; Meenakashi Lekhi ; Dr. Rajkumar Ranjan Singh

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UNFPA’s SOWP 2023: India’s population pegged at 142.8 crore, becomes World’s most populous nationAccording to the State of World Population (SOWP) 2023 titled “8 Billion Lives, Infinite Possibilities: the case for Rights and Choices” published by the
United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), India overtakes China to become the most populous nation in the world, the population of India has grown by 1.56% in the past year and it is estimated to be 142.86 crore.

• The population of China is estimated to be 142.57 crore. 

Global population:
In November 2022, the global population has crossed the 8 billion mark. Experts states that the population growth is not as rapid as it was and the growth is at its slowest rate since 1950.
About United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA):
United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), formerly the United Nations Fund for Population Activities, is the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency.
Executive Director– Natalia Kanem
Headquarters– New York, United States of America(USA)

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RBL Bank launches Unique Digital FD Scheme for New-to-Bank CustomersOn April 18, 2023, RBL Bank launched an innovative Digital Fixed Deposit (FD) Scheme available to new-to-bank customers. Customers can book the Digital FD within minutes without having to visit a branch or opening a savings account with the Bank.

• It has an interest rate of up to 7.8 per cent and a term of 15 months to 725 days.

Key Points:
i.It will offer several additional benefits, such as embedded insurance cover, seamless savings account opening process, ability to track and manage FD digitally, etc.
ii.The FD holders can opt for insurance cover under a Hospital Daily Cash Benefit policy which offers daily cash benefit for hospital expenses.
iii.The Digital FD utilizes quick online KYC (Know Your Customer) process, making it easy and hassle-free for customers to open an FD within minutes.
About RBL Bank:
Managing Director & CEO– R Subramaniakumar
Headquarters– Mumbai, Maharashtra
Tagline– Apno Ka Bank

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IBA Constituted 4-Member Working Group on ARCsThe Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) has constituted a four-member working group on Asset Reconstruction Companies (ARCs) which will operate on various issues and report them to the IBA, the RBI (Reserve Bank of India) and the Union government.
The four-member of the working group include

• Hari Hara Mishra, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Asset Reconstruction Companies Association.
• Purshotam Agarwal, Chief investment officer, National Asset Reconstruction Company Limited (NARCL).
• Mythili Balasubramanian, Executive Director, Edelweiss.
• Tarun Kumar, Director, Encore Asset Reconstruction Company.

About Asset Reconstruction Companies (ARCs):
It is a financial institution (FI) that buys the NPAs (Non-Performing Assets) or bad loans from banks and FI and helps them to recover from the NPAs.
They are registered under RBI and regulated under the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Securities Interest (SARFAESI) Act, 2002.
About Indian Banks’ Association (IBA):
Chief Executive – Sunil Mehta; Chairman – Atul Kumar Goel (MD & CEO of Punjab national Bank)
Headquarters – Mumbai, Maharashtra
Establishment – 1946

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SIB introduces 2 Savings Accounts for NRIs – SIB SEAFARER & SIB PULSEOn April 18, 2023, South Indian Bank (SIB) launched two flexible saving products namely, SIB SEAFARER and SIB PULSE for its non-resident Indian (NRI) customers specifically for mariners and healthcare professionals.

• The two saving products would enable the NRIs to either maintain the term deposits or the prescribed minimum balance in the saving account.

Features of SIB Seafarer & SIB PULSE :

• Free and unlimited Debit card transactions, NEFT (National Electronic Funds Transfer)/ RTGS & DD / PO.
• Free International Debit card, SMS & Internet banking services.

About South Indian Bank Ltd.
MD&CEO – Murali Ramakrishnan
Headquarters – Thrissur, Kerala
Tagline – Experience Next Generation Banking

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SBI Board Approves to Raise USD 2 Billion Via Long-Term Debt

On 18th April 2023, the State Bank of India (SBI), a public sector lender, in its Executive Committee of the Central Board, approved to examine the status and decide on long-term fund-raising in single or multiple trenches up to USD 2 billion (about Rs 16,000 crore) under Reg-S/144A, through Public Offer and/or private placement of senior unsecured notes in USD or other convertible currency during FY2023-2024.
SBI will raise USD 2 billion through foreign currency bonds in 2023-2024 in single or multiple tranches.

• SBI will utilise the fund for augmenting additional Tier 1 capital and the overall capital base, and for strengthening capital adequacy according to Reserve Bank of India (RBI) guidelines.
• In March 2023, SBI raised Rs 3,717 crore through an additional tier 1 bond sale.
• According to SBI, this is the 3rd Basel III compliant additional tier 1 (AT1) bond sale and the latest issue was closed at a coupon rate of 8.25%.

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IIT Roorkee signs MoU with Taiwan’s NCDR to Develop Tech Solutions for Earthquakes & Floods

The Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee (IIT Roorkee), Uttarakhand, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the National Science and Technology Centre for Disaster Reduction (NCDR), Taiwan, to develop technology solutions to natural hazards, including earthquakes, landslides, floods, debris flow, and compound disasters. The agreement was signed during a visit by NCDR scientists and faculty members, as well as NCDR director Dr Hongey Chen.

• The MoU aims to develop scientific and academic cooperation and scientific research to promote relations and mutual understanding between NCDR and the Centre of Excellence in Disaster Mitigation and Management (CoEDMM) of IIT Roorkee.
• The researchers from IIT Roorkee and NCDR aim to co-establish an early warning sensor network equipped with P-Alert sensors at selected locations in Uttarakhand.

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Hurun’s Global Unicorn Index 2023: BYJU’s, Swiggy & Dream11 Named India’s top UnicornsAccording to the Global Unicorn Index 2023 published by Hurun Research Institute, India is ranked 3rd on the index with 68 unicorns (up 14 compared to 2022).  Online educator BYJU’S worth USD 22 billion topped the list of Indian Uniocrons, followed by on-demand delivery start-up Swiggy and fantasy sports platform travel-stay finder Dream11 (USD 8 billion each).

• The United States of America(USA) topped the index with 666 unicorns, up 179 compared to 2022, followed by China in 2nd spot with 316 unicorns (up 15).
• BYJU’S is the only Indian Unicorn among the list of the top 10 biggest rises in valuation since pre-Covid.

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Tata Steel becomes Steel Sustainability Champion 2023 for sixth consecutive yearTata Steel has been recognised as 2023 Steel Sustainability Champion by the World Steel Association and the announcement was made at the Worldsteel Special General Meeting of the Board of Members held in Vienna, Austria.

• Recognised for the sixth consecutive year this year, Tata Steel has been a champion every year since the programme’s launch in 2018.
• This prestigious award highlights Tata Steel’s commitment to sustainability and acknowledges its position as a world-class steel producer.

Evaluations:

• The Steel Sustainability Champions recognition is based on evaluations of data provided on various sustainability indicators, like material efficiency, environmental management systems, lost time injury frequency rate, employee training, investment in new processes and products, and economic value distributed.
• Companies are also required to provide Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) data to worldsteel’s data collection programme, which covers more than 60 percent of its crude steel production data and is less than five years old.

Other Recognitions:
i. Tata Steel was recognised as 2022 ‘Supplier Engagement Leader’ by CDP (Carbon Disclosure Project), a global environmental non-profit charity, for its efforts in measuring and reducing environmental risks across its supply chain.

• This achievement marks the third time in the last four years that the Company has been rated at the highest level by its suppliers.

ii. The company’s Noamundi and Joda East Iron Mines received a 5-Star rating for sustainable development for 2021-22 from the Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM).

• The Noamundi mine received the honour in 2015-16, 2016-17, 2017-18, 2018-19 and 2019-20 as well.

About Tata Steel Company:
Asia’s first integrated private steel company in India.
Founded in: 25 August 1907, in Jamshedpur, Jharkhand
Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra
CEO & MD: T. V. Narendran

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World’s 1st Smart Gun: Biofire Technologies Unveils Biometric Identification to Prevent Misuse

Colorado (United States of America-USA)-based Biofire Technologies, a gun-making company, has unveiled the world’s 1st smart gun “Biofire Smart Gun”, a 9mm handgun secured by fingerprint and facial recognition biometrics. The smart gun can only be fired after verifying the shooter’s identity with fingerprint/biometric and facial recognition technology.

• A 9mm handgun is designed to prevent unauthorised access and usage by individuals such as children and criminals.
• It makes use of advanced technology that limits access to only the owner and individuals who have been properly authorised by the owner.

Kai Kloepfer, the founder of Biofire, has the goal of lowering the suicide rate in the USA as well as the number of children dying from accidental firing.

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World Liver Day 2023 – April 19World Liver Day is annually observed across the globe on April 19 to raise awareness about the importance of liver health and educate people on how to maintain a healthy liver. The day provides an opportunity to educate people about the risk factors for liver diseases, such as alcohol consumption, obesity, viral hepatitis, and certain medications.

• World Liver Day 2023 was observed on 19th April 2023 under the theme “Be Vigilant, Do Regular Liver Check-Up, Fatty Liver Can Affect Anyone”.

Note: WHO annually observes 28th July as World Hepatitis Day to mark the birthday of Nobel-prize-winning scientist Dr Baruch Blumberg, who discovered the Hepatitis B virus (HBV) and developed a diagnostic test and vaccine for the virus.

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TNeGA signs MoU with Indian Bank for Payment Aggregator Services

On 18th April 2023, the Tamil Nadu e-Governance Agency (TNeGA), a State Nodal Agency under the Information Technology and Digital Service (IT&DS) Department, Government of Tamil Nadu(TN), signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the public sector Indian Bank for integrating Payment Aggregator for e-Governance Application of various department in Tamil Nadu (TN).

• The MoU was signed in the presence of T. Mano Thangaraj, Minister for IT&DS  Tamil Nadu, and Mahesh Kumar Bajaj, Executive Director of Indian Bank.

Key Highlights:
i. With this MoU, all government departments now have access to a plug-and-play platform for their payment-related needs.
ii. The Indian Bank Payment Aggregator platform services will offer timely and cost-effective solutions to departments as well as provide citizens and businesses with a seamless payment experience.
iii. This MoU would support one of the top priorities of the TN government by enabling easy access, transparency, and quick service delivery.
iv. The bank’s payment aggregator service will serve as a one-stop solution for all payment collection needs for different departments in the TN government.

• This payment aggregator solution platform enables an integrated payment mechanism for online payment and collection through aggregation and reconciliation services with multiple payment channels such as debit/credit cards, UPI payment wallets, net banking, e-challans, and e-UPI.

About Indian Bank:
Managing Director (MD) & Chief Executive Officer (CEO)- Shanti Lal Jain
Headquarters- Chennai, Tamil Nadu
Establishment- 15 August 1907

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Sabarimala Greenfield Airport Project gets Site Clearance from MoCA 

The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) has granted site clearance for the Sabarimala Greenfield Airport project at Kottayam in Kerala, which aims to enhance infrastructure and connectivity to Sabarimala.

• The Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation (KSIC) has proposed the project, which is expected to be built on 2,250 acres of land using a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model, with an estimated cost of Rs 4,000 crore.
• The airport will have a runway length of at least 3.5 kilometres on the 08/26 alignment.
• Once completed, the airport will become the 5th International Airport in Kerala.

India Acquires Weapons Worth USD 300 Million from US for Indian NavyIndia is set to clear the proposal to acquire armaments worth over USD 300 million from the United States of America(USA) to arm the Indian Navy’s MH 60 “Romeo” chopper, the multi-role helicopters which will enhance its capabilities to counter enemy warships and submarines.
Under this, the fleet of 24 choppers will get additional Hellfire missiles and Mk 54 lightweight torpedoes.

• The Hellfire missiles are a potent anti-shipping weapon and can be used to take down the targets like tanks, and command posts.
• Mk 54 lightweight torpedoes are a very effective anti-submarine weapon. They are also equipped onboard the P8I maritime aircraft.

Note:The negotiation for the USD 300 million deal will be concluded under the Foreign Military Sales route.
Background:
i.India signed an agreement to procure 24 MH 60 Romeo naval multi-role helicopter worth USD 2 billion(over Rs 16000 crore) from Lockheed Martin in February 2020.
ii.Under the original contract signed with the USA, a limited amount of armaments. The 24 MH-60 Romeos were equipped with multi-mode radars and night-vision devices as well as armed with missiles, torpedoes and other precision-guided weaponry.
iii.The delivery of all 24 anti-submarine helicopters are expected to be completed by 2025.
iv.The first batch of MH 60 Romeos were delivered in 2022 at Kochi, Kerala and has been acquired to fill a critical capability gap in the Indian Navy.
v.The MH-60 which can operate from frigates, destroyers, cruisers and aircraft carriers, are going to replace Sea King choppers.
About Indian Navy: 
Chief of the Naval Staff– Admiral R Hari Kumar
Headquarters– New Delhi, Delhi

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Indian Navy conducts offshore security exercise ‘Prasthan‘ in MumbaiOn April 6th 2023, Indian Navy conducted the offshore security exercise Prasthan, a bi-annual co-ordinated exercise along with other defence, state and civilian agencies on the Greatdrill Chaaya platform about 30 nautical miles South West of Mumbai harbour, Maharashtra.

• The exercise is held every six months, to verify the policies and methods for handling potential emergencies on oil production platforms.
• The previous ‘Prasthan’ exercise was conducted on October 11 and 12 2022 in the Krishna Godavari Basin Offshore Development Area (ODA) under the aegis of Headquarters, Eastern Naval Command, Vishakapatnam in Andhra Pradesh.

About Prasthan exercise:

• It ensures offshore security and aims to integrate the efforts of all maritime stakeholders involved in offshore defence.
• Actions were taken throughout the simulation to prepare for several situations, including an oil platform fire, a man overboard, an oil spill in the area, helicopter emergencies, a hazardous gas leak, assisting a disabled vessel in the offshore area and medical evacuation of the platform crew.
• A number of ships and helicopters from the Indian Navy, Indian Air Force, Indian Coast Guard, ONGC (Oil and Natural Gas Corporation) and Directorate General of Shipping were deployed for the exercise.
• Personnel from Maharashtra Police, Customs, Fisheries Department, Mumbai Port Authority, JN (Jawaharlal Nehru) Port Authority and other concerned state and central civilian agencies also participated in it.

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Union Minister Giriraj Singh launches ‘Sangathan se Samriddhi’ Campaign to Bring Marginalised Rural Women into SHGs 

On 18th April 2023, Union Minister Giriraj Singh, Minister of Rural Development (MoRD), launched the “Sangathan Se Samriddhi” campaign. It will empower marginalised rural households by bringing all eligible rural women into Self Help Groups (SHGs).

• The government is targeting to bring 10 crore women under the purview of SHGs from the existing 9 crores. The number of members has now crossed 9 crores from just over 2.3 crores in 2014.
• The government has also set a target that every woman associated with SHGs should be able to earn Rs 1 lakh per annum.

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Law Minister Kiren Rijiju releases 1st Edition of Dogri version of Constitution of India

Union Minister Kiren Rijiju, Ministry of Law and Justice (MoL&J), released the 1st edition of the Dogri version of the Constitution of India at the University of Jammu, Jammu and Kashmir (J&K).

• Kiren Rijiju described the translated document as very important in providing justice to the common people.
• According to Kiren Rijiju, it is necessary to understand the law and it cannot be done better than organising it in one’s mother tongue.

Dogri is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in the Jammu region of J&K and is one of the 22 official languages recognized by the Indian Constitution.

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IAF Participated in Multilateral Military Exercise Orion at Mont-de-Marsan Airbase in FranceOn April 17, 2023, a Multilateral Military Exercise Orion was initiated at Mont-de-Marsan, an Air Force base of the French Air and Space Force (FASF) in France

• It saw the participation of the Indian Air Force (IAF) along with other Air Forces from Germany, Greece, Italy, Netherlands, United Kingdom, Spain and the United States of America (USA).
• The exercise will culminate on May 5, 2023.

Key Points:
i.The Indian Air Force Contingent comprises four Rafale, two C-17, two IL-78 aircraft and 165 air warriors.

• This is the first overseas exercise for the IAF Rafale aircraft. It is regarded as among the most powerful fighter jets in service with any military in Asia.

ii.By participating in this exercise, the IAF will incorporate the best practices of other Air Forces, further enhancing their employment philosophy.
iii.Exercise Orion is one of the largest military exercises organized by France recently, involving approximately 12,000 troops from North Atlantic Treaty Organization and four phases.
iv.The French armed forces, including the Army, Navy, and Air Force, have conducted several sections of military drills. The exercises have also involved several allied nations, such as the US and UK, in the past.

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UPI remains Preferred Medium for Digital Payments in 2022; Bengaluru tops with Rs 6,500cr digital transactions: Worldline Report i.According to the report by Worldline India titled ‘India Digital Payments Annual Report 2022‘ Unified Payments Interface (UPI) continued to be the most preferred medium for digital payments in 2022 in India with a 70% increase in the number of transactions to 74 billion and a 54% increase in the value of transactions to Rs 126 trillion.
ii.A total of 8,792 crore digital payments were undertaken in 2022 worth Rs 149.5 lakh crore.
iii.The UPI volume and value market share was 84%. It recorded 91% increase in volume and over 76% increase in value in Year 2022 as compared to Year 2021.
iv.Credit card issuance increased 18% to 81.1 million, while debit cards increased slightly by 0.2% to 939.4 million from 938 million.
v.As per the data by Worldline Report, Bengaluru recorded 29 million transactions valued at Rs 6,500 crore, the highest number of digital transactions across 12 cities in India in 2022.
About Worldline India Private Limited:
CEO– Ramesh Narasimhan
Headquarter– Mumbai, Maharashtra

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HDFC Bank launches Regalia Gold Credit CardHDFC Bank, India’s largest private bank, launches Regalia Gold Credit Card, for travel and lifestyle needs. It is a super-premium credit card launched under the bank’s Regalia range of credit cards with multiple features and benefits.
Key Points:
i.The card has Travel and Lifestyle benefits, allowing customers to redeem rewards for the global travel and on a collection of premium brands via the exclusive Regalia Gold catalogue.
ii.It also offers cardholders complimentary airport lounge access globally, and premium milestone benefits.
iii.The credit card was available to high-income individuals and is designed exclusively to cater to the needs and requirements.
iv.Regalia Gold Credit Card also offers an option to convert spends into EMI.
v.The Credit Card is enabled for contactless payments, facilitating fast, convenient and secure payments at retail outlets.
Note – Government has allowed payment through contactless mode (without being asked to input your Credit Card PIN) for a maximum of Rs 5,000 for a single transaction.
Additional info: HDFC Bank is the leading player in the payment’s ecosystem in India with over 1.65 crore credit cards and, an overall cumulative card base of over 6 crore, including credit, debit, and prepaid cards, addressing the need of different market segments.
About HDFC Bank Ltd:
MD & CEO – Sashidhar Jagdishan
Establishment – 1994
Headquarters – Mumbai, Maharashtra
Tagline – We Understand Your World

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India gives $500,000 to UN Women for Women EmpowermentIndia has made a contribution of $500,000 (Rs 4.09 crore) to the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women, also known as UN Women.  The cheque for the same was handed over by Ruchira Kamboj, the Permanent Representative of India to the UN, supporting UN Women’s core voluntary budget.

• The donation was received by Sima Sami Bahous, the Under Secretary General and Executive Director of UN Women.

Key Points:
i.This funding highlights India’s commitment towards gender equality and empowerment of women, as well as the government’s support towards UN Women’s activities.
ii.The donation will be utilized towards UN Women’s efforts to promote gender equality and empower women globally.
iii.India currently serves as a member of the Executive Board of the UN Women and Women-led Development is one of the priorities of India’s G20 presidency.
iv.India’s development model is centered around women-led initiatives, entrepreneurship, and STEM (Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) education.
About United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women
Executive Director– Sima Bahous
Headquarters– New York, United States

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AU SFB partnered with BBPS to Enable Bill Payment Via Video Banking

AU Small Finance Bank (AU SFB), has become India’s 1st commercial bank to connect with the Bharat Bill Payment System (BBPS) and deliver bill payment services through video banking. This initiative’s primary goal is to promote digital accessibility and improve economic capability leading to greater financial inclusion.

• Customers can use this platform to pay their bills without having to go to a branch, which is especially useful for senior citizens and others with mobility challenges who live in remote areas.

Customers of AU SFB can access the bill payment service on video banking through https://www.aubank.in or AU 10101 app.

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Karnataka Bank launches “KBL Centenary Mahotsav” Campaign for Home loans

Karnataka Bank Limited (KBL) launched a special campaign “KBL Centenary Mahotsav” for Home loans from 17 April 2023 to 17 July 2023 to mark its 100th year of establishment. KBL was incorporated on 18th February 1924 at Mangaluru, Karnataka.

• Customers can utilize the benefits of digital banking and offers of the special campaign across all its 901 branches.
• Customers can obtain a Horne loan under the KBL Centenary Mahotsav campaign with a reduction in the upfront fee, an attractive rate of interest starting at 8.75%, Nil processing charge for a Horne loan and other benefits.
• Karnataka Bank has developed digital loan products for home loans, allowing customers to take advantage of seamless digital processes and immediate in-principle approvals at their comfort and convenience.

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President Droupadi Murmu Conferred National Panchayat Awards 2023 & Inaugurated the ‘National Conference on Incentivisation of Panchayats’On April 17, 2023, the President of India, Droupadi Murmu conferred the National Panchayat Awards 2023 and inaugurated the ‘National Conference on Incentivisation of Panchayats’ in New Delhi, Delhi.

• The President also inaugurated the National Panchayat Awards Week which was celebrated by the Ministry of Panchayati Raj (MoPR)from April 17 to 21, 2023 as part of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav (AKAM) 2.0.

i.The National Panchayat Awards under different categories are conferred annually by the MoPR since 2011 to acknowledge and incentivize the best-performing Panchayats (local self-government bodies) across the country.
ii.All the Panchayats will be ranked based on their performance under 9 Localization of Sustainable Development Goals (LSDGs) themes aggregating 17 SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals).
iii.The MoPR conceptualized a series of Thematic Conferences for the National Panchayat Awards Week on the theme of “Panchayaton ke Sankalpon ki Siddhi ka Utsav”
iv.A booklet on ‘Best Practices on Works of Awardee Panchayats’ was released by Giriraj Singh, Union Minister of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj.
GS NIRNAY App: Union Minister Giriraj Singh launched a mobile application GS NIRNAY (National Initiative for Rural India to Navigate, InnovAte and Resolve PanchaYat decisions), for empowering rural communities during the National Conference.
About the Ministry of Panchayati Raj (MoPR):
Union Minister – Giriraj Singh (Constituency- Begusarai, Bihar)
Minister of State (MoS) – Kapil Moreshwar Patil (Constituency- Bhiwandi, Maharashtra)

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Economist Utsa Patnaik selected for Malcolm Adiseshiah Award 2023 Utsa Patnaik, a renowned economist of national and international repute, has been selected for the Malcolm Adiseshiah Award 2023 by the Malcolm & Elizabeth Adiseshiah Trust (MEAT) based in Chennai, Tamil Nadu (TN).

• The award will be given with a citation and a prize money of Rs. 2 lakh at a function which will be held in Chennai, TN.

About Malcolm Adiseshiah Award: 
i. MalcolmAdiseshiah Award is annually presented by the MEAT to honour the contributions of the outstanding social scientist in the field of development studies.
ii. The recipients are selected by a national-level jury specially constituted for this purpose, from the nominations received.
Note:
Malcolm Adiseshiah Award 2022 was awarded to Prabhat Patnaik, a renowned Indian Economist and Political commentator, and he is the Husband of Utsa Patnaik.
About Utsa Patnaik:
i. Utsa Patnaik is an Indian Marxian economist, who obtained her doctorate in economics from the Somerville College, Oxford, United Kingdom(UK).
ii. She served as the Professor of Economics at the Centre for Economic Studies and Planning (CESP) in the School of Social Sciences at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in New Delhi, Delhi, from 1973 until her retirement in 2010.
Awards:
She had won the V.V. Giri Memorial Award 2011 for her outstanding contribution to labour studies, instituted by the V.V Giri National Labour Institute, Noida in Uttar Pradesh.
Malcolm & Elizabeth Adiseshiah Trust:
MEAT was registered on 8th March 1996 as a Public Charitable Trust and the award instituted during the year 2000.
The trust established The Malcolm Adiseshiah Award & The Elizabeth Adiseshiah Award for Distinguished Contributions to Development Studies.

• The Elizabeth Adiseshiah Award, Instituted in 2018, will be presented to a young scholar below the age of 45. The award carry a cash prize of Rs. 1 lakh.
• Both awards are open to Indian and foreign scholars ordinarily resident in India.

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Indian-American FedEX CEO Raj Subramaniam awarded with Pravasi Bharatiya SammanAn Indian-American Rajesh Subramaniam, President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of FedEx Corporation, has been awarded the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award, for his contribution to Business.

• The award was conferred by Droupadi Murmu, President of India, on 10 January 2023, as a part of the celebration of Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) 2023 at Indore, Madhya Pradesh.

Note: 27 Indians living abroad received the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award in 2023.
About Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award:
i. The Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award is the highest honour conferred on a Non-Resident Indian (NRI) to recognise their achievements and honour their contributions to various fields, both in India and abroad.
ii. The inaugural Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award was given in 2003.

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Sekhar Rao appointed as interim MD and CEO of Karnataka Bank Karnataka Bank had appointed Sekhar Rao as the interim managing director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), following the completion of M S Mahabaleshwara’s term as the incumbent CEO.
Additional Info:

• Mahabaleshwara M S, who served as the bank’s managing director and CEO, completed his second three-year term and demitted office on April 14.
• Term 1:(15th Apr 2017 – 14th April 2020)
• Term 2:(15th Apr 2020 – 14th April 2023)
• Sekhar Rao, the bank’s executive director, assumed the role of interim managing director and CEO on April 15, 2023, after receiving approval from the Reserve Bank of India on April 12, 2023.
• As per the appointment terms, he will hold the position for a duration of three months or until a regular managing director and CEO is appointed, whichever is earlier.

About Karnataka Bank:
CEO – Sekhar Rao
Headquarters – Mangalore, Karnataka
Tagline – Your family bank across India
Founded in – 1924

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Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh launches ‘YUVA PORTAL’ to Identify Potential Young Start-UpsOn 17th April 2023, Dr Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology, launched the “YUVA Portal” and One Week- One Programme at National Physical Laboratory (NPL) in New Delhi, Delhi, to help in connecting and identifying potential young Start-Ups.

• YUVA- Young, Upcoming and Versatile Authors.

Key Highlights:
i. Dr Jitendra Singh highlighted the 37 Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR) Labs spread across India as examples of India’s excellence in technology, innovation, and start-ups.
ii. The One Week – One Lab programme will offer the opportunity for the CSIR labs to showcase the work being done by them so that others can avail of it.

• In the campaign, each of the CSIR labs is showcasing their exclusive innovations and technological breakthroughs to the people of India.

One Week – One Lab programme:
i. CSIR-National Physical Laboratory (NPL) is going to organise the One Week- One Lab program from 17 to 21 April 2023.
ii. Aim of  One Week – One Lab programme:

• To create awareness about the available technologies and services present at NPL among potential stakeholders,
• To provide solutions to societal problems,
• To sensitise the masses about the importance of precise measurements
• To develop the scientific temperament among the masses, especially amongst students who are the future of India.

iii. From 18 to 20 April 2023, there will be three days of Start-up/Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME)/Industry Meet.

• The aim of this event is to showcase various services extended by NPL to industries.

Additional Information:
i. Dr Jitendra Singh also noted the launch of the astronomy lab that has come up in Karnal, Haryana, that it will provide a level-playing field to all and even Divyangs (persons with disabilities) could excel in various forms of skill, art and craft.

• The facility in different languages will enable hearing-impaired students to study the sun, moon, and stars along with basic to complicated ideas of space

ii. Indian Sign Language AstroLab has 65 pieces of equipment, including a large telescope, interactive models, audio-visual aids, etc.

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International Day For Monuments and Sites 2023 – April 18International Day for Monuments and Sites, also known as World Heritage Day is annually observed across the globe on April 18 to create global awareness about the significance of historical, heritage, and cultural monuments, and measures to protect them so that future generations can also witness them and embrace the rich heritage of the world.

• International Day for Monuments and Sites 2023 was observed on 18th April 2023 under the theme “Heritage Changes”.
• The theme for World Heritage Day is annually proposed by the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS).

Background:
i. International Day for Monuments and Sites was established by ICOMOS, a non-governmental international organisation dedicated to the conservation of the world’s monuments and sites.
ii. Later, the day was adopted by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) during its 22nd General Conference in November 1982 and declared April 18 of every year as International Day for Monuments and Sites.

• The day was 1st observed in 1983 by UNESCO.

About the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS):
President- Teresa Patricio
Secretary General- Mario Santana
Headquarters- Paris, France
Establishment- 1965

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Kerala adopts Water Budget, the 1st of its kind in India, to tackle water scarcity in SummerKerala became the first state in India to adopt a water budget to tackle water shortage in summer. Pinarayi Vijayan, Chief Minister (CM) of Kerala, unveiled the details of the 1st phase of the Water Budget in Kerala covering 94 grama panchayats in 15 block panchayats.

• CM handed over a copy of the budget to  Additional Chief Secretary Sarada Muraleedharan during the event held in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala.
• Water Resources Minister Roshy Augustine presided over the event.

About the Water Budget:
i.The Water Budget provides the scientific methods for the conservation of water and it also aims to create awareness about the need for water conservation.
ii.This water budget would support Kerala to meet the demand and supply of Water, the precious liquid resource and apportion it accordingly.
Water Budget Preparation:
i.The Water budget was prepared by a committee of officials including Water Resources department representatives and experts from the sector.
ii.The budget was prepared in consultation with the  Centre for Water Resources Development and Management (CWRDM).
Background:
i.Despite housing 44 rivers, several backwaters, lakes, ponds, streams and abundant rain, several parts of Kerala is facing water scarcity during the summers.
ii.The water budget will regulate the usage of water in accordance with its availability in the area.
iii.This would create awareness among the public against water wastage and will support achieving water conservation.
Other highlights:
CM also inaugurated the 3rd phase of the Haritha Keralam Mission’s ‘Ini Njan Ozhukatte’ campaign to revive rivulets, canals, and streams in the Western Ghats.

• Around 7,290 kilometres (km) of irrigation networks had been rejuvenated under the 1st and 2nd phases of the project.
• Water sources in 230 grama panchayats spread over 9 districts will be mapped using satellite images.
• Following the completion of the surveys, the local bodies will undertake activities to revive the sources before the onset of the monsoon.

About Kerala: 
Chief Minister– Pinarayi Vijayan
Governor– Arif Mohammed Khan
Wildlife Sanctuary– Kottiyoor Wildlife Sanctuary; Mangalavanam Bird Sanctuary
Airport– Calicut International Airport; Kannur International Airport

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Himachal Pradesh launches project Sanjeevani to empower dairy farmersOn April 9th, The Animal Husbandry Department (AHD) of Himachal Pradesh along with Bharat Financial Inclusion Ltd. (BFIL), (a subsidiary of IndusInd Bank) has launched an initiative called ‘Sanjeevani‘ which aims to provide doorstep veterinary services to farmers.

• Under the Sanjeevani project, mobile veterinary clinics will be set up to provide doorstep veterinary services to farmers at a single toll-free phone call.
• The collaboration under National Animal Disease Control Programme-Mobile Veterinary Van (NADCP-AHD-MVU) will enhance the doorstep services.
• The integrated call centre will function as a single contact point for various matters related to livestock healthcare and vaccination programs.
• To support farmers and improve their livelihoods, the Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh, Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, has launched the Sanjeevani project which will benefit farmers in 44 blocks of all 12 districts of the state.

Key Points:

• The Sanjeevani project is a farmer-friendly initiative that aims to empower the livelihoods of small dairy farmers and livestock owners. By providing convenient and quality care for their livestock at their doorstep, the project will enhance the lives of many farmers from rural remote areas. The collaboration will ensure holistic veterinary services to farmers.
• The project’s uniqueness lies in its mobile app that connects doctors and farmers, tracks the efficiency of service delivery, medicines prescribed, and livestock diseases related data in one platform.

About Himachal Pradesh: 
Chief Minister – Thakur Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu
Governor – Shiv Pratap Shukla
Capitals – Shimla (Summer), Dharamshala (Winter)
National Parks – Great Himalayan national park, Pin valley national park
About Bharat Financial Inclusion Ltd:
Founded : 1998
Headquarters : Hyderabad, Telangana
Executive Vice Chairman : J Sridharan

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TN & High Glory Footwear signed MoU for an investment of Rs 2302 crore 

On 17th April 2023, the Tamil Nadu (TN) Government signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the High Glory Footwear India Private Limited subsidiary of Taiwan-based Pou Chen Group, for setting up a footwear manufacturing facility in Tamil Nadu involving an investment of Rs 2,302 crore over 12 years.

• The manufacturing unit will come up at the SIPCOT (State Industries Promotion Corporation of Tamilnadu Ltd) Industrial Park, Ulundurpet in Kallakurichi, TN.
• This partnership will generate job opportunities for more than 20,000 people in the non-leather footwear sector, especially for the youth and women in and around the Kallakurichi district, TN.
• The investment has been attracted after the government released its Footwear and Leather Products Policy in August 2022.

4th Edition of India-Japan Army exercise ‘Dharma Guardian’ Commenced in JapanOn 17, February 2023, the 4th edition of the India-Japan joint annual military training exercise ‘Dharma Guardian’ commenced at Camp Imazu in the Shiga province of Japan. The exercise was scheduled to be conducted till 2 March, 2023.

• Objective: To strengthen bilateral relations between India and Japan and enhance the level of defence cooperation between the two forces.
• Participants: Infantry Regiment from the Middle Army of the Japan Ground Self Defence Force (JGSDF) and Troops of the Garhwal Rifles Regiment of the Indian Army have participated in the exercise.

Key Points:
i.The two armies will share best practices in tactics, techniques, and procedures of conducting tactical operations under a UN (United Nations) Mandate, along with developing inter-operability, bonhomie, camaraderie, and friendship.
ii.The exercise includes platoon-level joint training on operations in jungle and semi-urban/urban terrain to improve the interoperability in planning and execution.
iii.Both armies will engage in a variety of missions ranging from joint planning, joint tactical drills, basics of establishing integrated surveillance grids, including employment of aerial assets.
iv.During the port call by the two JMSDF (Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force) ships Uraga and Awaji at Kochi, Kerala the ship’s crews visited training facilities and activities undertaken at the Training Command of the Indian Navy.

• Port call is an intermediate stop for a ship on its sailing itinerary

Note – The last edition of Exercise Dharma Guardian was held in Belgaum, Karnataka in February, 2022.

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OECD STRI Index: India Ranked 47; Japan and UK gained 1st two Spots

India ranked 47th in OECD’s (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development) report titled ‘OECD Services Trade Restrictiveness Index (STRI): Policy trends up to 2023’, which highlights the key outcomes of the 2022 OECD STRI.
Key Points:
i.India’s rank of 47 (which was increased from ) among 50 countries shows the presence of more market restrictions in the country.
ii.OECD STRI index covers 38 OECD members, as well as Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Peru, Russia, Singapore, South Africa, Thailand, and Vietnam.
iii.Russia, Thailand and Indonesia are the three countries ranked below India.
iv.On average, Japan, the United Kingdom (UK) and the Netherlands displayed the lowest regulatory barriers to services trade across sectors in 2022.
v.Economies with the highest trade liberalisation impact on the STRI in 2022 were Viet Nam, Japan, and Kazakhstan.

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World Bank Report: COVID-19 Damaged Cognitive Development, Lifetime Earnings of an Entire Generation

According to the World Bank report “Collapse and Recovery: How the COVID-19 Pandemic Eroded Human Capital and What to Do About It”, the COVID-19 pandemic caused a massive destruction of human capital at essential stages of the life cycle, especially affecting children and young people in underdeveloped and developing countries.
Key Findings from the Report
i.In the report, researchers analyzed global data on how the pandemic affected children at three crucial developmental ages: early childhood (0–5 years), school-age (6–14 years), and youths (15–24 years).
ii.It concluded that COVID-19-related education shocks could cause students in South Asia to lose up to 14.4% of their future earnings.
iii.Between April 1, 2020, and March 31, 2022, schools in South Asia were entirely or partially closed for 83% of the time—significantly longer than the global average of 52%.
iv.The report claims that COVID-19 also did significant damage to youth employment.

• Earnings for young people fell by 15% in 2020 and 12% in 2021.

Key Points:
i.During the two years since the pandemic began (April 2020–April 2022), the World Bank has provided roughly USD 11 billion in pandemic response financing in South Asia.
ii.The amount includes USD 2.7 billion to support social safety nets for more than 857 million vulnerable people, USD 2.5 billion for 15 health projects, USD 2.80 billion for 12 education projects, and USD 1 billion to support the purchase and distribution of vaccines.

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12th World Hindi Conference held in Fiji; The 12th World Hindi Conference, which took place from February 15–17, 2023, in Nadi, Fiji, decided to promote Hindi as a language of contact-dialogue among all people around the world who speak, understand, and are fond of it.

• The Conference was jointly inaugurated by Fijian President Rato Wiliame Katonivere and Indian External Affairs Minister (EAM) S. Jaishankar, who was on his maiden visit to Fiji.
• The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Government of India (GoI) organized the conference in collaboration with the Government of Fiji.

The main theme of the conference is “Hindi – Traditional Knowledge to Artificial Intelligence.”
Note: The 11th World Hindi Conference was held in Mauritius in 2018.

i.In 1973, the Rashtrabhasha Prachar Samiti of Wardha (Maharashtra) envisioned the idea of World Hindi Conferences.
ii.As a result, the inaugural World Hindi Conference was held in Nagpur, India, from January 10–12, 1975.
iii.So far, 11 World Hindi Conferences have been held in various parts of the world.
Key Points:
i.A commemorative postal stamp was released by the Fijian government during the commencement of the conference.
ii.On the occasion, a special Samarika and five additional publications were also released.
iii.During the conference, the “Vishwa Hindi Samman” was presented to a total of 12 Hindi scholars from India and 19 scholars from abroad, as well as two institutions from each of India and abroad.
iv.The Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) and the Fijian government organized special cultural performances to take place during the conference.
v.A special exhibition on the history of the Girmitiyas in Fiji was presented in accordance with the conference.
India-Fiji Ink Visa Exemption Pact for Diplomatic and Official Passports Holders
India and Fiji signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on visa exemption for holders of diplomatic and official passports on the margins of the 12th World Hindi Conference, held in Fiji.

• The MoU exchange was witnessed by Fiji’s Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka and India’s EAM S. Jaishankar.

Key Points:
i.Diplomatic and official passport holders in India and Fiji will now be permitted to enter, transit through, stay, and leave each other’s territories without a visa for a period not exceeding 90 days as a result of the visa exemption.
ii.The exception will make it simpler for both countries to participate in opportunities for discussion, meetings, and collaboration at all levels.

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RBI Issues Final Guidelines On Interest Rate Risk in Banking BookThe Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued final guidelines on “Interest Rate Risk in Banking Book” (IRRBB), which mandate banks to measure, monitor, and disclose their exposure to IRRBB, which may have an impact on lenders’ capital base and future earnings.

• The final IRRBB guidelines are consistent with the revised framework issued by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS).
• The implementation date of the guidelines will be announced in due course.

Interest Rate Risk in Banking Book (IRRBB)
IRRBB refers to the current or future risk to banks’ capital and earnings resulting from unfavourable changes in interest rates that affect their banking book positions.

• Increased IRRBB can adversely impact a bank’s current capital base and/or future earnings.

Key Points:
i.Banks are mandated to be prepared to measure, monitor, and disclose their exposure to interest rate risk in the banking book.
ii.According to the guidelines, the bank’s board is accountable for identifying the nature and extent of the bank’s IRRBB exposure.
iii.The board may assign responsibility for IRRBB management and monitoring to ALCO (Asset-Liability Committee), which should regularly assess the nature and extent of the bank’s IRRBB exposure.
iv.The Board/ALCO is in charge of establishing adequate limits on IRRBB, valuing positions, and evaluating performance.

• It includes procedures for updating interest rate shock and stress scenarios and key underlying assumptions guiding the institution’s IRRBB analysis.

v.Banks are required to have a clearly defined, board-approved risk appetite statement that outlines the policies and procedures for limiting and controlling IRRBB.
vi.Prior to implementation, significant hedging or risk management measures must be approved.
Click here for official guidelines
About the Reserve Bank (RBI):
Governor – Shaktikanta Das
Deputy Governors – Mahesh Kumar Jain, Michael Debabrata Patra, M. Rajeshwar Rao, T. Rabi Sankar
Headquarters – Mumbai, Maharashtra
Establishment –1935

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Paytm Payments Bank becomes the first in India to launch UPI LITE feature  Paytm Payments Bank Limited (PPBL) has launched UPI LITE, a feature enabled by National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) for multiple small-value UPI transactions.

• PPBL has become the first payments bank to deploy such a UPI LITE feature as part of its commitment to promote innovation.

UPI LITE
i.The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) introduced the UPI LITE feature, designed by NPCI, in September 2022.

• UPI LITE offers customers a better experience by enabling faster and safer real-time small value payments.

ii.A UPI LITE wallet, once loaded, enables a user to make instant transactions of up to Rs. 200, making the entire experience quick and seamless.

• A maximum of Rs. 2,000 can be added to UPI LITE twice daily, increasing the cumulative daily usage to Rs. 4,000.

Note: According to official NPCI data, half of all daily UPI transactions in India are for less than Rs. 200.
Key Points:
i.As PPBL strives to promote the use of digital payments across India, the feature enables faster real-time transactions with a single click through Paytm.
ii.Additionally, it clears the bank passbook of small transactions since they are now only displayed in the Paytm balance and history section rather than the bank passbook.
iii.This will improve customer experience, increase transaction success rates, and get PPBL closer to processing a billion transactions per day on the UPI platform.
Paytm Payments Bank Limited (PPBL)
i.With more than 1,726.94 million transactions in December 2022, PPBL continued to lead all other major Indian banks as the largest UPI beneficiary bank for 19 months in a row.
ii.PPBL is among the top 10 remitter banks for UPI transactions, with 386.50 million registered transactions.

• It is also one of the leading issuers and acquirer banks for the National Electronics Toll Collection (NETC) FASTag.

About National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI)
NPCI was formed as an umbrella organisation for retail payment and settlement systems in India.
MD & CEO – Dilip Asbe
Headquarters – Mumbai, Maharashtra
Establishment – 2008

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RBI Appointed Vikramaditya Singh Khichi as a Member of the Advisory Committee on RCLOn February 17, 2023, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) appointed Vikramaditya Singh Khichi, former ED ( Executive Directors) of Bank of Baroda(BoB) as a member of the Advisory Committee on Reliance Capital LimitedLtd (RCL).
Background: 
i.On December 7, 2021, RBI had constituted an Advisory Committee under Rule 5 (c) of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy (Insolvency and Liquidation Proceedings of Financial Service Providers and Application to Adjudicating Authority) Rules, 2019, to assist Nageswara Rao Y, Administrator of RCL in the operations of the financial service providers during the corporate insolvency resolution process.
ii.Members: In December 2021, the  Advisory Committee was formed with the following members,

• Sanjeev Nautiyal, ex-DMD(Deputy Managing Director), State Bank of India
• Srinivasan Varadarajan, ex-DMD, Axis Bank
• Praveen P Kadle, ex-MD & CEO, Tata Capital LimitedF

Key Points:
i.Now due to the resignation of Srinivasan Varadarajan from the Advisory Committee with effect from February 17, 2023, RBI has decided to appoint Vikramaditya Singh Khichi as a member of the Advisory Committee with immediate effect.
ii.The Advisory Committee will advise the Administrator in the operations of RCL during the corporate insolvency resolution process.

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Philips Domestic Appliances globally renamed as Versuni

Philips Domestic Appliances, headquartered in the Netherlands, has been rebranded as “Versuni” after Royal Philips sold its domestic appliance business to Hillhouse Capital in September 2021.
Following the sale, the Domestic Appliances business became independent.

• As a licensee of Royal Philips, the company will continue to use the Philips consumer brand, as well as Saeco, Gaggia and Philips Walita, on its products and services.
• The new company name will be implemented worldwide throughout 2023 and supported with a new and distinct company visual identity.
• The company’s portfolio includes kitchen appliances, coffee, climate care, garment and floor care.

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Indian Railways & India Posts launch joint parcel service – Rail Post Gati Shakti Express Cargo Service

The Indian Railways and India Posts have formally launched their joint parcel service “Rail Post Gati Shakti Express Cargo Service”. The service is started in 4 sectors: Delhi to Kolkata; Bangalore to Guwahati; Surat to Muzaffarpur; and Hyderabad to Hazrat Nizamuddin. In the first phase, a total of 15 sectors have been planned to be covered.

• A pilot weekly service was launched on 31st March 2022 from Surat to Varanasi by attaching a VPU to Tapti Ganga Express.
• India Post will be the single point of contact for the customer for the despatch of consignment from pick-up till delivery.

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Union Minister G. Kishan Reddy Presented Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar 2019, 2020 and 2021 to102 Artists of IndiaOn 15th February 2023, G. Kishan Reddy, Union Minister, Ministry of Culture presented the Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar (UBKYP) for 2019, 2020 and 2021 to around 102 Artists  (including three joint awards) at Meghdoot Theatre Complex, Rabindra Bhavan in New Delhi, Delhi.

• The event was presided over by Dr Sandhya Purecha, Chairperson of Sangeet Natak Akademi, the national academy of Music, Dance and Drama, and the apex body of the performing arts in the country.
• Note: The winners of includes 19 artists from the North East region of India, which highlights the changed circumstances of the region.

Background:
On 8th November 2022, the General Council meeting of Sangeet Natak Akademi has selected 102 artists of India who have made a mark as young talents in their respective fields of performing arts for the Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar 2019, 2020 and 2021.
Key Points:
From 14th to 17th February 2023, a four-day festival of music, dance and drama was organised featuring the recipients of the Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar for the year 2019 at Meghdoot Theatre Complex, Rabindra Bhavan, New Delhi, Delhi.
About Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar:
i.Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar is presented to artists up to the age of 40 years to encourage young talents in diverse fields of the performing arts.
ii.The award was introduced in 2006 with the objective to identify and encourage young talents and give them national recognition early in their life.
iii.The award carries a purse money of Rs 25,000, an Angavastram and a plaque.

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Indian-Origin Neal Mohan Replaces Susan Wojcicki as Youtube’s New CEONeal Mohan, a longtime Google and YouTube executive who is an Indian-American, has been appointed the new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of YouTube.

• Mohan will succeed Susan Wojcicki, YouTube’s outgoing CEO, who is departing after nine years in the position.
• She had been with Alphabet Inc., YouTube’s parent company, for nearly 25 years.

About Neal Mohan
i.Mohan began his career at Accenture in 1996.
ii.He subsequently joined NetGravity, a startup that was later acquired by DoubleClick, an internet advertising firm, in 2002.

• DoubleClick was acquired by Google in 2008.

iii.Mohan was in charge of Google’s display and video advertising units from 2008 to 2015.

• He led the development of advertising products for Google’s AdSense, AdMob, DoubleClick, YouTube, and Google Display Network ad tech products.

iv.He has been the Chief Product Officer at YouTube since 2015.
Key Facts:   
i.Neal Mohan’s appointment elevates him to a growing list of renowned Indian-American CEOs at some of the world’s largest technology firms.

• He will join executives like Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen, and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai.

ii.With over 20,000 searches for his name, Neal Mohan scored third in Google’s trending searches following the announcement of his appointment as YouTube CEO.
About YouTube:
CEO – Neal Mohan
Founded – 2005
Headquarters – San Bruno, California, United States (US)

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Govt Approved 3 major appointments in Army: Lt Gen MV Suchindra Kumar as new Army Vice Chief

The Government of India (GoI) has approved 3 major appointments in the Indian Army, Lieutenant general MV Suchindra Kumar, who is currently serving as the Deputy Chief of Army Staff (Strategy) in the Army Headquarters, was appointed as the new Vice Chief of Army Staff.  He succeeds Lt Gen B S Raju who has been appointed as the Jaipur- headquartered South Western Army Commander.
The government has also appointed new commanders for the Central and South Western commands.

• Lt Gen NSR Subramani, serving as the Chief of Staff at the headquarters of the Northern Command in Udhampur, has been appointed as the next Central Army Commander in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh(UP).
• Lt General Kumar replaces Lt Gen BS Raju, who has been appointed as the Jaipur-headquartered South Western Command chief.

The new appointments will come into effect on 1st March 2023.

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MEA launched ‘mPassport Police App’ to Fast Track Passport Verification ProcessThe Ministry of External Affairs(MEA), Government of India launched ‘mPassport Police App’ to streamline and expedite the passport issuance system. This app will also help with the timely updation and issuance of passports.
Background: 
i.Police verification is one of the integral parts of the passport issuance system.
ii.Various efforts have been undertaken to streamline and expedite the process of the passport issuance system.
iii.The MEA introduced the ‘mPassport Police App’ to further expedite the process,
Additional info:
i.On the occasion of the 76th Delhi Police Raising Day, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, dedicated 350 mobile tablets to personnel of the Delhi Police Special Branch.
ii.This will result in the entire process of police verification and submission reports digital and paperless.
iii.Passport verification using tablets will reduce the verification time from 15 days to 5 days, effectively reducing the passport issuance timeline by 10 days.

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12th World Pangolin Day – 18th February 2022World Pangolin Day is annually observed across the world on the 3rd Saturday of February with an aim to create awareness about Pangolins a unique endangered mammal and their plight.
18th February 2023 marks the observance of the 12th World Pangolin Day. 

• The 11th World Pangolin day was observed on 19th February 2022.
• The 13th World Pangolin Day will be observed on 17th February 2024.

About Pangolin:
i.Pangolins are the only mammals wholly covered in scales and they use those scales to protect themselves from predators in the wild that feeds on ants and termites.
ii.The hard plate-like scales of the pangolins are made of Keratin.
iii.The name pangolin is derived from the Malay word ‘pengguling’ meaning ‘something that rolls up’.

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Karnataka CM Basavaraj Bommai Presented Revenue Surplus Budget with Outlay of Rs 3 lakh croreOn 17th February 2023, during the Karnataka State Assembly, the Karnataka Chief Minister(CM) Basavaraj Bommai presented a revenue surplus budget with no tax hike. For the 1st time, the budget outlay of Karnataka has crossed Rs 3 lakh crore mark and is pegged at Rs 3,09,182 crore, up from Rs 2,65,720 crore in 2022-2023.

• The budget for the first time, post-pandemic, was a revenue surplus one, with receipts expected to be more than expenditure by Rs 402 crore.
• To further boost capital expenditure, the budget has enhanced outlay by 30.4% for capex to Rs 61,234 crore in FY24.

Key Points:
i.The fiscal deficit has been expected to be at Rs 60,581 crore which is 2.60% of the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP).  The total liabilities at the end of 2023-2024 are estimated at Rs 5,64,896 crore, which is at 24.2% of GSDP.
ii.With borrowings of Rs 77,750 crore, the liabilities at the end of 2023-24 are pegged at Rs 5,64,896 lakh crore, or 24.20% of GSDP, thereby satisfying all parameters of the Karnataka Fiscal Responsibility Act, 2002.
About Karnataka:
Chief Minister– Basavaraj Somappa Bommai
Governor– Thawar Chand Gehlot
Wildlife Sanctuary– Brahmagiri Wildlife Sanctuary; Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuaries

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J&K Govt Approves Rs 30.40 cr ‘Sensor-based Smart Agriculture’ ProjectJammu and Kashmir (J&K) government (Govt) has approved a ‘Sensor-based Smart Agriculture’ project worth Rs 30.40 crore for integration of agriculture with technology driven by Artificial Insemination (AI) and IoT (Internet of Things) for automation of practices, and make it efficient and profitable for the farmers.
Key Points:
i.Under the project, a sensor-based pilot study will be conducted on high-density apple orchards, protected cultivation and smart livestock farming.
ii.Hi-tech poly houses would be used for the cultivation of cash crops around the year with the application of IoT and automation for monitoring the microclimatic parameters of plants.
iii.The greenhouse technology will increase yields and produce off-season vegetables as early production or late availability as compared to open field conditions.
iv.As 70% of the J&K’s economy is based on agriculture, the adoption of digital agriculture, particularly AI and IoT, will increase efficiency, production, productivity, and profitability.
v.The project intends to increase the use of resources and improve efficiency by up to 80%  and automate agricultural operations with precision in HDPs (High-Density Plantings) of Apple, vegetables, and livestock.
vi.Identifying pests and diseases via AI-based detection using handheld sensor devices would reduce the drudgery and cost of cultivation by 20%.
vii.Real-time detection and variable rate spray using robotics and drones will reduce the production cost by 80%.
viii.The project also aims to build a sensor corridor for livestock and phenotyping and yield prediction.
About Jammu & Kashmir:
Airports – Udhampur Air Force Station, Awantipur Air Force Station
Bird sanctuary – Hokersar bird sanctuary

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Mastercard & ACCESS announce FPO empowerment programmes in Assam

Mastercard and ACCESS Development Services have announced the launch of a new programme in Assam with a focus on empowering Farmer Producer Organisations(FPOs) in Assam.

• The programme aims to strengthen FPOs by helping build their capacity through structured technical assistance by a professional cadre of trainers.
• The programme mainstreams Agriculture through Networks and Development Initiatives, or MANDI.
• Mastercard and ACCESS are aiming to help address these challenges by facilitating training frameworks, curriculum, and tools for FPOs.