CONTENTS

TNPSC BITS ...................................................................................................... 11

TAMIL NADU ..................................................................................................... 18
New GI Tag ..................................................................................................... 18
Pact with UNEP .............................................................................................. 18
Dry Fish outlet in railway Station .................................................................. 18
Keezhadi museum .......................................................................................... 19
St. Anthony’s feast Katchchatheevu............................................................... 20
Best Airport in Asia Pacific region .................................................................. 21
200 years of Thol Seelai Porattam .................................................................. 21
Women’s Day awards2023 .............................................................................. 22
Punnagai scheme ........................................................................................... 22
M sand Policy ................................................................................................. 23
Water release from Mettur dam ...................................................................... 24
All-women production line ............................................................................. 24
Thiruppugazh Panel final report ..................................................................... 25
First-ever synchronized survey ...................................................................... 25
Tamil Nadu organic farm policy ..................................................................... 25
Pyre novel ...................................................................................................... 26
Highlights of Tamil Nadu budget .................................................................... 27
RuPay Card For Pudhumai Penn Scheme ........................................................ 29
‘Navaratna' announcements ........................................................................... 30
TN Ethanol blending policy ............................................................................ 31
Tamil Nadu City Gas Distribution Policy 2023 ................................................ 32
TN Logistics policy and integrated logistics plan ............................................ 32
Appreciation for ‘The Elephant Whisperers’ team ........................................... 33
Reduction in TB deaths .................................................................................. 34
Tamil Nadu's 18th wildlife sanctuary .............................................................. 34
TN Agriculture Budget .................................................................................... 35
Re-adoption of Anti-gaming bill ...................................................................... 36
First PM MITRA Park ...................................................................................... 37
TN Disaster Management Policy ..................................................................... 37

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NATIONAL ......................................................................................................... 38
22nd Law Commission of India ........................................................................ 38
Jaipur Declaration.......................................................................................... 38
Unemployment Rate....................................................................................... 39
Hindustan 228 aircraft ................................................................................... 39
Mechanical elephant for performing rituals .................................................... 40
Raisina Dialogue 2023 .................................................................................... 40
Hindusthan Samachar .................................................................................... 41
Army exercise Topchi ..................................................................................... 41
Joint training exercise ‘Trishakti Prahar’ ....................................................... 42
TARKASH exercise ......................................................................................... 43
Country Reports on Terrorism 2021: India ..................................................... 44
Supreme Court verdict on ECI appointment ................................................... 44
Dibang Multipurpose Project .......................................................................... 45
Ornamental fish aquaculture .......................................................................... 45
Exercise Shinyuu Maitri ................................................................................. 46
AIRS Fellowship Program ............................................................................... 46
National Conference on Economics of Competition Law ................................. 47
DUSTLIK 2023 ............................................................................................... 47
Supreme Court Verdict on ECI Appointments................................................. 47
One Nation, One Challan Initiative ................................................................. 48
PMLA against Cryptocurrency ........................................................................ 49
Millets Giveaway ............................................................................................ 50
Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System ........................................................... 50
Criterion for Consumer courts........................................................................ 51
‘World’s first’ bamboo crash barrier ................................................................ 51
TROPEX 2023 ................................................................................................ 52
Nano liquid DAP ............................................................................................. 52
MSME Competitive (LEAN) scheme ................................................................. 53
4th National Youth Parliament Festival .......................................................... 54
New cities in Swadesh Darshan 2.0 ................................................................. 54
Landslide Atlas of India .................................................................................. 55
VAIBHAV Fellowship Scheme ......................................................................... 56
Underwater anti-submarine rockets ................................................................ 56

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 New Centers of Excellence for Horticulture crops ........................................... 57
G20 flower festival ......................................................................................... 57
Aahar 2023 .................................................................................................... 58
B2B Global Conference & Expo on Traditional Medicine ................................. 58
ATL Sarthi ...................................................................................................... 58
Best airport in India and South Asia ............................................................... 59
Women and Men in India 2022 ....................................................................... 59
Basic Animal Husbandry Statistics 2022 ........................................................ 60
Literacy rate in India ..................................................................................... 61
Groundwater: A Valuable but Diminishing Resource” Report .......................... 62
NSS 78th Round Report................................................................................... 63
Green Tug Transition Program ....................................................................... 64
Mission Sahbhagita ........................................................................................ 64
DigiClaim ....................................................................................................... 64
Vedic Heritage Portal ..................................................................................... 65
GST Appellate Tribunal .................................................................................. 65
Disqualification of Rahul Gandhi as MP .......................................................... 65
Kirit Parikh panel recommendations .............................................................. 66
AI use in the health sector ............................................................................. 67
Guidelines to Address Human-Wildlife Conflict............................................... 67
CBuD App ....................................................................................................... 68
Increase of MNREGA wages ............................................................................ 69
‘Human Rights Issues’ in India: US Report ..................................................... 69
INTERNATIONAL ............................................................................................... 70
UN Voting on Ukraine War .............................................................................. 70
New World Bank President .............................................................................. 70
World Sustainable Development Summit ........................................................ 71
FATF membership of Russia ........................................................................... 71
Russia and START Nuclear Treaty .................................................................. 71
Frozen seafood from India .............................................................................. 72
Windsor framework ........................................................................................ 73
‘Chip 4’ talks for supply chain ........................................................................ 73
83.7 percent enriched uranium ...................................................................... 74
Sweden International Information Campaign ................................................. 74

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REAIM 2023 ................................................................................................... 75
Nine Point Crypto Action Plan ........................................................................ 75
Ban on Caste Discrimination .......................................................................... 76
Vanuatu and climate justice ........................................................................... 76
Intercontinental ballistic missile Hwasong 5 .................................................. 77
Munich Security Conference .......................................................................... 77
Global Security Initiative ............................................................................... 78
Asia Energy Transition Initiative (AETI) ......................................................... 79
Cobra Warrior exercise ................................................................................... 79
India-ASEAN Digital Work Plan 2023 .............................................................. 80
Quad Cyber Challenge .................................................................................... 80
9th Asian Ministerial Energy Roundtable (AMER9) ......................................... 81
Fifth International MPA Congress .................................................................. 81
Ban on gas, diesel car sales ............................................................................ 82
IDEX and NAVDEX ......................................................................................... 82
Exercise Desert Flag VIII ................................................................................ 83
Malabar Exercise 2023 ................................................................................... 84
World’s longest calligraphic mural .................................................................. 84
New Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies ........................................................... 85
Bluesky .......................................................................................................... 85
The Qatar Ministerial Meeting on South-South Cooperation ........................... 86
UN High Seas Treaty ....................................................................................... 86
50th anniversary of CITES............................................................................... 87
Undernourished and Overlooked..................................................................... 88
FRINJEX-23 ................................................................................................... 88
IMX/CE-23 Exercise ....................................................................................... 89
Maritime Partnership Exercise (MPX) ............................................................. 90
Graduate from Least Developed Countries ...................................................... 90
Silicon Valley Bank Collapse .......................................................................... 91
Kill Web strategy ............................................................................................ 92
Sea Dragon 23 ................................................................................................ 92
3rd edition of La Perouse................................................................................. 93
Common Currency for Brazil and Argentina ................................................... 93
Doha Political Declaration .............................................................................. 94

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 Gender self-determination law........................................................................ 94
Australia - Anniversary of Stolen Generation Apology..................................... 95
King Charles III stamp ................................................................................... 96
Arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin ................................................................... 96
NZIA and CRMA .............................................................................................. 97
AFINDEX-23 ................................................................................................... 97
India-Bangladesh Friendship Pipeline ............................................................. 98
ECONOMY ......................................................................................................... 99
India’s first Municipal Bond Index .................................................................. 99
Global sovereign debt roundtable ................................................................... 99
Global trade and technology council of India ................................................ 100
India’s per capita income ............................................................................. 100
India Venture Capital Report 2023 ............................................................... 101
India’s sugar shipments ............................................................................... 102
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY........................................................................... 103
Deepest Region of the Earth ......................................................................... 103
1D Wormhole Corrosion ............................................................................... 103
CE-20 cryogenic engine ................................................................................ 104
Interstellar Boundary Explorer ..................................................................... 104
Decommission of Megha-Tropiques 1 ........................................................... 105
Handover of NISAR satellite ......................................................................... 105
Influenza subtype H3N2 ............................................................................... 106
Tsuchinshan - ATLAS - Comet C/2023 A3 .................................................... 107
SOFIA Telescope’s findings .......................................................................... 107
High-speed process of star formation ........................................................... 108
Multi-Angle Imager for Aerosols (MAIA) ........................................................ 108
Chat GPT-4................................................................................................... 109
World’s 1st Sand battery ............................................................................... 109
Anti-Submarine Craft INS Androth ............................................................... 110
Alien vitamins sample .................................................................................. 110
Launch of LVM3 ........................................................................................... 111
ENVIRONMENT................................................................................................ 112
Agriculture Innovation Mission for Climate .................................................. 112
Bird Survey Dharoi 2023 .............................................................................. 112

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 Methane Global Tracker Report .................................................................... 112
Global assessment of Soil Carbon ................................................................. 113
Jerdon’s narrow-mouthed frog...................................................................... 114
ENSO Update ................................................................................................ 114
‘CO2 Emissions in 2022’ report .................................................................... 115
Global alliance for big cats ........................................................................... 116
151st anniversary of Yellowstone National Park ............................................ 117
Mimeusemia ceylonic ................................................................................... 117
“Don’t Choose Extinction” climate campaign ............................................... 118
Antarctic sea ice cover 2023 ........................................................................ 118
Translocation of Lions of Asiatic Lions ......................................................... 119
Ganeshaiah’s Dwarf Gecko............................................................................ 120
Aravalli Green Wall Project ........................................................................... 120
Moray eel ..................................................................................................... 121
REPORTS AND INDICES .................................................................................. 122
Foundational Literacy and Numeracy report................................................. 122
International IP Index .................................................................................. 123
Women, Business and the Law 2023 report .................................................. 123
Price Growth in Luxury Housing ................................................................... 124
Academic Freedom Index 2023 .................................................................... 125
World Obesity Atlas 2023 ............................................................................. 126
V-Dem Electoral Democracy report 2023 ...................................................... 126
Mental State of the World Report ................................................................. 127
Wealth report 2023 ...................................................................................... 128
India Philanthropy Report 2023 ................................................................... 129
Special report by the IPES-Food ................................................................... 130
SIPRI report 2022 ........................................................................................ 131
Hunger Funding Gap Report 2023 ................................................................ 132
Mind the Gender Gap Report ........................................................................ 133
World’s Greatest Places of 2023 ................................................................... 133
Global Report on Sodium Intake Reduction .................................................. 134
The World Happiness Report 2023 ............................................................... 135
5th Annual World Air Quality Report 2022 .................................................... 136
Global Terrorism Index ................................................................................. 137

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 Report on social protection for children ....................................................... 137
City Index 2023 ........................................................................................... 138
Utility Bidder’s Deforestation Report ........................................................... 139
UN Water Development Report 2023 ............................................................ 140
GCEW report on water .................................................................................. 141
Technology and Innovation Report 2023 ...................................................... 141
QS World University Rankings ...................................................................... 142
STATES ........................................................................................................... 143
India’s first Marina ....................................................................................... 143
Bird’s eye chilly export to US ....................................................................... 144
First women MLAs from Nagaland ................................................................ 144
International Dharma Dhamma Conference .................................................. 145
Indian States’ electricity transition Report .................................................. 145
Bhojpur’s Millet Festival .............................................................................. 145
New Gold Deposits ........................................................................................ 146
New CMs of Meghalaya, Tripura and Nagaland .............................................. 146
Yaoshang Festival ........................................................................................ 147
World's Longest Railway Platform ................................................................. 147
Bengaluru-Mysuru Expressway ..................................................................... 148
Ladli Bahna scheme ..................................................................................... 148
Vote-From-Home .......................................................................................... 148
Mulethi cultivation ...................................................................................... 149
India’s first ‘Trans Tea Stall’ at a railway platform ....................................... 149
First methanol run buses ............................................................................. 150
Beggar-free city ............................................................................................ 150
All India Women’s Folk Art Conference ........................................................ 150
TB drug – Bedaquiline .................................................................................. 151
Bihar Diwas - March 22 ................................................................................ 151
Right to Health Bill – Rajasthan ................................................................... 152
PERSONALITIES, AWARDS AND EVENTS ......................................................... 153
Marconi Prize2023 ....................................................................................... 153
Ellora-Ajanta International Festival 2023 ..................................................... 153
Women 20 inception meet............................................................................ 154
Member of the National Commission for Women .......................................... 154

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 UNESCO Peace Prize 2022 ............................................................................ 155
Wolf Prize 2023 ............................................................................................ 155
76th BAFTA Awards ..................................................................................... 156
Asian Chess Excellence Awards 2023 ........................................................... 156
Group Captain Shaliza Dhami ....................................................................... 157
CBIP Award 2022 ......................................................................................... 157
8th National Photography Awards ................................................................ 158
Oscars for India ............................................................................................ 158
Oscars awards 2023...................................................................................... 159
Controller General of Accounts .................................................................... 159
32nd Vyas Samman ...................................................................................... 160
Swachh Sujal Shakti Samman 2023.............................................................. 160
WINS Awards 2023 ....................................................................................... 161
Golden city gate tourism awards 2023 ......................................................... 161
First woman to command an army battalion ................................................ 162
PEN/Nabokov Lifetime Achievement Award.................................................. 162
Laureate of the Pritzker Architecture Prize 2023 ......................................... 163
Fastest Indian to swim across Palk Strait ..................................................... 163
2023 Abel Prize ............................................................................................ 164
Ramnath Goenka Awards.............................................................................. 164
Gaganyaan mission astronauts ..................................................................... 165
Children’s Champion Award 2023 ................................................................ 165
SPORTS........................................................................................................... 166
25,000 runs in international cricket ............................................................ 166
Tops in all three formats .............................................................................. 166
FIFA Awards 2023 ........................................................................................ 167
Men's long jump Record ............................................................................... 167
Hyderabad Formula E-Championship ............................................................ 168
2026 FIFA World Cup ................................................................................... 168
ISSF Shooting World Cup ............................................................................. 169
India’s third-highest wicket-taker ................................................................ 169
IMPORTANT DAYS ........................................................................................... 170
Zero Discrimination Day - March 01 ............................................................. 170
World Civil Defence Day - March 01 ............................................................. 170

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World Seagrass Day - March 01 ..................................................................... 171
World Wildlife Day - March 03 ...................................................................... 172
World Hearing Day - March 03 ...................................................................... 172
National Security Day - March 04 ................................................................. 173
National Safety Day - March 04 .................................................................... 173
World obesity day - March 04 ....................................................................... 174
World Day of Fight Against Sexual Exploitation - March 04 .......................... 174
International Day for Disarmament and Non-Proliferation Awareness - March
05 ................................................................................................................ 174
5th Jan Aushadhi Diwas - March 07............................................................... 175
International Women’s Day - March 08 ......................................................... 175
National Pharmacy Education Day - March 06 .............................................. 176
No Smoking Day - March 08 ......................................................................... 177
World Kidney Day - March 09 ....................................................................... 177
54th CISF Raising Day - March 10 ................................................................ 178
International Day of Women Judges - March 10 ........................................... 178
World Rotaract Day - March 13..................................................................... 179
International Day of Action of Rivers - March 14.......................................... 179
International Day of Mathematics or Pi Day - March 14 ............................... 179
World Consumer Rights Day - March 15 ....................................................... 180
International Day to Combat Islamophobia - March 15 ................................. 180
National Immunization Day - March 16 ........................................................ 181
World Sleep Day - March 17.......................................................................... 182
Global Recycling Day - March 18 .................................................................. 182
India’s Ordnance Factories Day - March 18 .................................................. 182
International Day of Happiness - March 20 ................................................... 183
World Sparrow Day - March 20 ..................................................................... 183
World Oral Health Day - March 20 ................................................................ 184
Spring equinox - March 21 ........................................................................... 184
World Down Syndrome Day - March 21 ......................................................... 185
World Poetry Day - March 21 ........................................................................ 185
International Day of Forests - March 21 ....................................................... 185
International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination - March 21 .. 186
World Puppetry Day - March 21 .................................................................... 186

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 International Nowruz Day - March 21 ........................................................... 186
World Water Day - March 22 ......................................................................... 186
World Meteorological Day - March 23 ........................................................... 187
World Tuberculosis Day - March 24 .............................................................. 187
International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the
Transatlantic Slave Trade - March 25 ........................................................... 188
International Day of Solidarity with Detained and Missing Staff Members -
March 25 ...................................................................................................... 189
International Day of the Unborn Child - March 25 ........................................ 189
World Theatre Day - March 27 ...................................................................... 189
Earth Hour 2023 – March 25 ........................................................................ 190
188th Raising Day of Assam Rifles - March 24 ............................................. 190
Purple Day of Epilepsy - March 26 ................................................................ 191
International Transgender Day of Visibility - March 31 ................................ 191
World Backup Day - March 31....................................................................... 191
MISCELLANEOUS ............................................................................................ 192
World Heritage in Danger site ....................................................................... 192
1,300-year-old Buddhist stupa...................................................................... 192
Strongest telecoms operator ........................................................................ 193
Hallmark Unique Identification .................................................................... 193
Largest number of commercial women pilots................................................ 194

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 TNPSC BITS

 Indian Navy Kilo class conventional submarine, INS Sindhukesari, docked for the
first time in Jakarta, Indonesia.
 The Churchgate railway station in Mumbai will soon be renamed after the first
governor of the Reserve Bank of India 'Chintamanrao Deshmukh’.
 The Chinese government has decided to block ChatGPT, a search engine, in the
country, citing concerns about propaganda and censorship.
 Real Madrid lifted the FIFA Club World Cup for a record fifth time by win over Al
Hilal of Saudi Arabia held in Morocco.
 Rohit Sharma became the first Indian captain and globally fourth to score
centuries in all three formats with his first Test century against Australia.
 As part of India's G20 Presidency, the Youth 20 India Summit 2023 held at the
Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, Gujarat.
 Prime Minister inaugurated Shivamogga airport in Karnataka.
o This is the 9th domestic airport in Karnataka.
 The 19th annual Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, India Zone-3
conference, was inaugurated by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla at Gangtok,
Sikkim.
 Australia has won the 8th edition of Women’s T20 World Cup title for the sixth
time held at South Africa after defeating South Africa.
 Nokia of Finland changed its brand identity logo for the first time in nearly 60
years.
 Madhya Pradesh won the prestigious 13th Hockey India Senior Women National
Championship 2023 in Kakinada, Andhra Pradesh.
 The 31st edition of the New Delhi World Book Fair (NDWBF) began at Pragati
Maidan, New Delhi.
 Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma lays foundation stone of North East India's first
compressed biogas plant project in at Domora Pathar in Sonapur.
 The India Today Tourism Survey has chosen Jammu & Kashmir Tourism for best
adventure tourism award for its efforts in promoting 'Gulmarg' as an adventure
destination of international order.
 The Spanish government approved a law granting paid medical leave to women
suffering from severe menstrual pain.
o It is the first for any European country.
 'National Protein Day' is celebrated every year on 27 February in the country from
2020.

11
 Two Australian universities, Wollongong and Deakin, will be setting up their
campuses in GIFT city, Gujarat.
o These will be the first foreign education institutions to set up campuses in
India.
 Indian Air force’s Eastern Command has commenced its annual Command level
combat readiness exercise Ex - POORVI AKASH in the North East region of the
country.
o The Shillong-headquartered Eastern Air Command was carrying out the
exercise.
 Racewalkers Priyanka Goswami and Akshdeep Singh won National Race-Walking
Championships and qualified for the 2023 World Athletics Championships and
2024 Paris Olympics.
 Maharashtra government decided to rename Aurangabad and Osmanabad as
Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar and Dharashiv respectively.
 India hosted the first meeting of the governing board of BIMSTEC Energy Centre
(BEC) in Bengaluru.
 GSM Association (GSMA) has conferred Government Leadership Award 2023 to
India for implementing best practices in telecom policy and regulation.
 The Supreme Court formed a committee Headed by Justice Abhay Manohar
Sapre to examine the controversy following American short-seller Hindenburg
Research’s damning report against the Adani Group.
 The Union Health Ministry of India has been awarded the Porter Prize 2023 for
successfully combating the COVID-19 crisis.
 NTPC has commissioned India’s first Air cooled condenser installed Super Critical
plant at North Karanpura in Jharkhand to demonstrate its Commitment towards
water conservation through reduce, reuse and recycle.
 Gabrielle was a Severe Tropical Cyclone.
o It devastated the North Island of New Zealand and affected parts of Vanuatu
and Australia.
 The 4th edition of joint military exercise, “EX DHARMA GUARDIAN”, between
India and Japan held at Camp Imazu in Shiga province, Japan.
 Pusa Krishi Vigyan Mela held in New Delhi under the theme of ‘nutrition, food
grains and environmental protection through coarse grains’.
 President Droupadi Murmu launched the Jal Shakti Abhiyan - Catch the Rain
2023 campaign under the theme of ‘source sustainability for drinking water’.
 Salhoutuonuo Kruse made history by becoming Nagaland’s first woman minister.
o She and Hekani Jakhalu were elected as the first women MLAs of the State.

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 The biggest contract manufacturer in the world-Foxconn Group will set up
electronics manufacturing and assembly unit near Bengaluru with nearly $1
billion investment.
 As per UN report, Afghanistan become the most repressive in the world for women
and girls, deprived of many of their basic rights in 2023.
 Saurashtra Cricket team defeated Bengal team to lift the Ranji Trophy title 2023
for the second time in their history.
o During this season, Sikkim hosted Ranji Trophy matches for the first time
 Savlon appointed Sachin Tendulkar as its world’s first ‘Hand Ambassador’ for its
Swasth India Mission to inspire people for wash hands.
 The 23rd Commonwealth Law Conference held in Goa.
 The two-day G20 Foreign Ministers meeting under India's presidency held in New
Delhi.
 Tata Group has bagged the title rights for the Women’s Premier Cricket League.
o Tata already holds the rights to the Indian Premier League (IPL).
 Saudi Arabia has been selected to host the 2027 Asian Cup football tournament
during the 33rd AFC Congress recently held in Manama, Bahrain.
 The Election Commission of India (ECI) hosted the 3rd International Conference
on the theme ‘Inclusive Elections and Elections Integrity’ in virtual format.
 Supreme Court Judge Justice V. Ramasubramanian released a book titled India’s
Struggle for Independence – Gandhian Era.
 The first edition of the Naval Commanders’ Conference 2023 held in India’s first
indigenous aircraft carrier, INS Vikrant.
o It is a platform for the officers to discuss important security issues at the
military-strategic level and interact with senior government functionaries.
 Prime Minister inaugurated the permanent campus of Indian Institute of
Technology, Dharwad, Karnataka.
o The campus is the first Smart and green IIT campus in the country.
 Indian Bureau of Mines celebrated its 75th Foundation Day on March 1.
o It was established on 1st of March 1948 based on the recommendations of the
National Mineral Policy Conference.
 Delhi airport has been declared as the cleanest airport in the Asia Pacific region
by Airports Council International.
 Weightlifter Mirabai Chanu wins 2022 BBC Indian Sportswoman of The Year for
second year in a row.
 ‘Mundaka Upanishad: The Gateway to Eternity’, written by former MP Karan
Singh was released recently.

13
 o Another book in the same name was released by Bhartiya Vidya Bhavan in
1987.
 Spain became the first country in the world to give mothers and fathers the same
parental leave.
o In this, 16 weeks are non-transferable and fully paid.
 Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare released the book ‘India’s Vaccine
Growth Story - From Cowpox to Vaccine Maitri’ authored by Sajjan Singh Yadav
at the World Book fair 2023.
 Karnataka won its first Santosh Trophy national football championship by
beating Meghalaya in Saudi Arabia.
o Previously it had won four times as the princely state of Mysore after a major
gap of 54 years which was last in about 1968-69.
 Deepika Padukone become the third Indian presenter at the 95th Oscar Academy
Awards of 2023.
o The previous Indian presenters are Persis Khambatta (1980) and Priyanka
Chopra (2016).
 The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has extradited 33 fugitives involved in
various criminal activities under its ‘Operation Trishul’ in the past one year.
 Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA) has been granted an
'Infrastructure Finance Company' (IFC) status by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
 Asia's first woman loco pilot - Surekha Yadav, become the first female to operate
the semi-high speed Vande Bharat Express train.
 A Bench led by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud refers petitions to legally
recognise same-sex marriages to a Constitution Bench of five judges of the
Supreme Court.
 BSE and UN Women India launched a new programme, 'FinEMPOWER', at the
Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).
o It is a year-long joint capacity-building programme to empower women
towards financial security.
 Senior Nepali Congress leader Ram Chandra Paudel was sworn in as Nepal's third
President.
 An auditorium at the Government Ariyalur Medical College has named after S
Anitha, a medical aspirant.
o Her death triggered a protest in 2017.
 India and the World Bank have signed a loan agreement to construct 781
kilometres of green National Highway Corridors across four states in India.
o These states are Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Andhra
Pradesh.

14
 The BVK Biryani, Chennai-based food startup has launched India's first ‘manless
takeaway’ in Kolathur.
 3rd edition of the National Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction (NPDRR) held in
New Delhi.
 The Mumbai-headquartered Central Railway has achieved a significant milestone
with 100 per cent electrification of the entire (3,825 km) broad gauge network.
 The Chief Election Commissioner and other members of ECI inaugurated Vote
Fest 2023 to create awareness on the election process in Bengaluru.
 The B20 meeting under India’s G20 Presidency took place in Sikkim’s capital
Gangtok.
 Gianni Infantino has been re-elected as president of FIFA for four more years.
 The second Meeting of the Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion (GPFI)
under G20 India Presidency took place in Hyderabad.
 The 146th Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Assembly held in Bahrain, Saudi
Arabia.
o The theme of the event is “Promoting peaceful coexistence and inclusive
societies: Fighting intolerance.”
 RBI Governor Shakti kanta Das, was awarded the 'Governor of the Year' award
for 2023 by the international publication Central Banking.
o Former governor Raghuram Rajan was the first to be conferred the title back
in 2015 from the country.
 Indian Railways has set a target of becoming a 'net-zero carbon emitter' by 2030.
 Krithi Krithivasan has been appointed as the CEO designate to Tata Consultancy
Services.
 Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin inaugurated the new 'Kalaignar
Karunanidhi stand' in at Chidambaram stadium, Chennai.
 National Institute of Ocean Technology is going to set up green, self-powered
desalination plant in Lakshadweep
o This will provide potable water in six islands of Lakshadweep using Low
Temperature Thermal Desalination (LTTD) technology.
 Bengaluru was awarded ‘Partnership for Healthy Cities Award’ for its efforts to
reduce smoking in public and thereby significantly reduce the burden of non-
communicable diseases.
 'Kashi'(Varanasi) has been declared the first tourism and cultural capital of the
Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).
 Team Rest of India secured their 30th Irani Cricket Cup title by defeating Madhya
Pradesh Team.
 Uttarakhand has become the first state in the country to start 'Resham Keet
Bima' insurance scheme for protecting its sericulturists.

15
 Asia's largest tulip garden, the Indira Gandhi Memorial Tulip Garden, opened in
Srinagar.
o The garden has over 1.5 million (15 lakh) tulips of various colours and hues.
 Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Global Millets (Shree Anna)
Conference in New Delhi.
 The United States passed a resolution to recognise the McMahon Line as the
international boundary between China and Arunachal Pradesh.
 The World Day of Theatre for Children and Young People occurs annually on
March 20 throughout the globe.
 Since 2010, The UN French Language Day is observed annually on 20 March.
o This day marks the creation of the Agency for Cultural and Technical
Cooperation.
 Tamil Nadu Agriculture-Farmers Welfare Minister M.R.K. Pannerselvam said that
the Government is to implement Tamil Nadu Millet Mission for a period of five
years.
o The millet festivals would be celebrated to create awareness among
consumers and increase millet cultivation.
 Bombay Jayashree was chosen for Sangita Kalanidhi Award 2023 by Music
Academy.
 The Radha Puram Assembly constituency in Tirunelveli district has become the
first Assembly segment in Tamil Nadu to get at least one smart classroom in all
295 government and government-aided schools.
 Indian team's star hockey player Rani Rampal has become the first woman in the
sport to have a stadium named after her, in Rae Bareli, Uttar Pradesh.
 President Xi Jinping was endorsed as a president for third five-year term by the
Chinese parliament.
 The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) opened the ITU Area Office and
Innovation Centre in New Delhi.
 India's 43 years old Rohan Bopanna creates history by becoming oldest player to
win ATP Masters 1000.
 International Color Day is observed every year on March 21.
 Chief Ministers of Tamil Nadu and Kerala will jointly inaugurate the State-level
celebrations in connection with the centenary year of the Vaikom Satyagraha at
Vaikom on April 1.
 Kerala's women empowerment and poverty alleviation programme Kudumba
Shree celebrates its silver jubilee in 2023.
 Dubai's Emaar Group will build a $60 million shopping and office complex called
'Mall of Srinagar' in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir.

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 o This marks the first foreign direct investment (FDI) in the Union Territory.
 The Income Tax Department of India has launched a new mobile app called ' AIS
for Taxpayers' to facilitate taxpayers.
o It uses to view their information as available in the Annual Information
Statement.
 The International Day for the Right to the Truth Concerning Gross Human Rights
Violations and for the Dignity of Victims is observed on 24th March every year.
 Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled the Bharat 6G Vision Document and
launched the 6G research and development test bed.
 Hindustan Zinc company has bagged the GreenCo Silver rating by CII
(Confederation of Indian Industry) for its sustainable mining operations.
 Six persons from India including Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray and BJP
Yuva Morcha vice-president Madhukeshwar Desai were named among the Young
Global Leaders for 2023 by the World Economic Forum.
 The World Trade Center Association (WTCA) and the Merlin Group have partnered
to develop a World Trade Center (WTC) in the Nabadiganta Industrial Township
Authority (NDITA) area, Salt Lake, Kolkata.
o This is the first under-construction World Trade Center in eastern India.
 The Border Roads Organisation opened the strategically important Leh-Manali
highway (NH 3) in a record time of 138 days.
o Last year, it took 144 days for the BRO to open the highway for traffic
movement.
 The UN 2023 Water Conference took place at UN Headquarters in New York.
o It is co-hosted by the Government of Tajikistan and the Kingdom of the
Netherlands.
 Mumbai Indians lifted inaugural Women’s Premier League cricket trophy by
defeating Delhi Capitals at Mumbai.
 Former Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff has been “unanimously elected” as
the head of New Development Bank.
 ICICI Lombard General Insurance has introduced an industry-first feature for
health insurance policyholders called 'Anywhere Cashless'.
o It allows customers to avail cashless facilities even at non-empanelled
hospitals.
 Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has formally invited Prime Minister
Narendra Modi to the G7 Summit.
 Jharkhand govt launched ‘Jharniyojan’ portal aimed to act as a digital platform
to bridge the gap between recruiting companies and employment seekers of the
state.

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 TAMIL NADU

New GI Tag
 The Vellore Spiny Brinjal and Ramanathapuram Mundu Chillies have been
awarded the Geographical Indications (GI) Tag.
 The Vellore Spiny Brinjal is known as Elavambadi Mullu Kathirikai in Tamil.
 It has 2 per cent Protein and 10.5mg per 100g.
 A single spiny brinjal weighs about 40 grams on average and has a shelf life of
three days at room temperature and about a week in a refrigerator.
 Mundu Chillies is a round-shaped chilli that is used as a food colouring and is
widely utilized in South Indian cuisine.

Pact with UNEP

 The Tamil Nadu government signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with
the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
 It aims to develop an urban cooling programme in the State.
 The programme is being undertaken under the framework of the ‘Cool Coalition’
and the India-Denmark Green Strategic Partnership.
 The MoU will facilitate capacity-building for a range of stakeholders on
sustainable cooling.
 It enhances South-South cooperation through training to other States in India
and other countries on lessons from the programme

Dry Fish outlet in railway Station

 India’s first Dry Fish (Karuvadu) outlet opened at Madurai railway station.
 Shungudi saree is currently sold at Madurai railway station.

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  To promote popular local products, the railway administration is setting up
outlets under the “One Station, One Item” scheme at the respective district
railway stations.
 Around 5,000 railway stations across the country have allowed such sales.
 Below that, at the railway stations in the following other six railway lines under
the Southern Railway, popular local products are available for sale.
o Chinlapatti handloom sarees at Dindigul railway station,
o Macaroon at Tuticorin and Vanchi Maniachi,
o Seaweed products at Rameswaram,
o Coconut candy at Kovilpatti,
o karachevu at Virudhunagar and Chattur,
o Bamboo products at Thenkasi and Sengottai.

Keezhadi museum
 The Keezhadi museum, constructed in Chetti nadu architectural style was
inaugurated by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin at the excavation site,
Sivagangai District.
 The museum contains artefacts unearthed from the Keezhadi excavation sites
since 2018.
 Keezhadi had the ancient civilisation that thrived on the banks of the Vaigai.
 Vaigai riverbed was urbanised during the early 6th century BCE, around the
same time that the Ganges civilisation was urbanised.
 Artefacts classified into categories of Keezhadi and Madurai, Agrarian and Water
Management, Ceramic Industry, Weaving and Iron Industry, Sea Trade and
Lifestyle.
 The excavations at Keeladi pushed the Sangam Age to 6th Century BCE from the
earlier assessment of between 3rd Century BCE and 3rd Century CE.
 More than 1000 symbols and 60 pot shells with lettering in Thamizhi, an ancient
Tamil script, have been found.
 The ASI carried out explorations at 293 sites along the Vaigai Valley in Theni,
Dindigul, Madurai, Sivagangai and Ramanathapuram districts in 2013-14.
 The excavation was carried out at Pallichanthai Thidal of Keeladi.
 The State Department of Archaeology took over from the fourth season in 2018.
 From the sixth season, Konthagai, Agaram and Manalur were added as clusters
of Keeladi.

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  While Konthagai is largely a burial site, Agaram and Manalur show the existence
of an active human habitation.

St. Anthony’s feast Katchchatheevu

 The Annual St. Anthony’s feast will be held at the Katchchatheevu island in Sri
Lanka.
 Indian pilgrims have reached the island to participate in the feast.
 Over 2400 pilgrims have reached the island and an equal number will join from
the Sri Lankan side.
 Katchchatheevu is the 163-acre uninhabited island near Jaffna.
 The shrine of St. Anthony is the only structure on the island.
 It was built by a prosperous Indian Catholic Tamilian fisherman in the early 20th
century.

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Best Airport in Asia Pacific region
 The Tiruchi International Airport has been rated the best airport in the Asia
Pacific region.
 This is topped in the category of under two million passengers for 2022.
 This is the first time that the Tiruchi Airport had received this recognition.
 The Tiruchi Airport received this global recognition following an Airport Service
Quality (ASQ) survey.
 Airports Council International (ACI), a global non-profit organisation of airport
operators conducted this survey.

200 years of Thol Seelai Porattam

 Tamil Nadu and Kerala Chief Ministers came together in Kanyakumari’s Nagercoil
on March 6, to commemorate 200 years of the Thol Seelai Porattam or Maaru
Marakkal Samaram.
 It is a decades-old struggle by women of the oppressed castes in erstwhile
Travancore to cover their upper bodies.
 Travancore was comprised parts of present-day south Kerala and south Tamil
Nadu.
 Wearing clothes to cover chests was at the time – early 19th century – deemed a
right only enjoyed by women of the dominant castes.

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  In 1812, the Maharani of Travancore gave order that allowed the depressed class
women who converted to Christianity to wear a blouse.
 Social reformer Ayya Vaikunda Swami began the struggle, bringing together
women and holding meetings with them.
 The first stage of ‘Upper Cloth Revolt’ held between 1822-1823.
 The second stage of the revolt happened between 1827-1829.
 It was during the third stage of revolt held between 1958-1859 that the women,
irrespective of class, caste and religion, were allowed to wear the upper cloth.

Women’s Day awards2023

 Tamil Nadu chief minister M K Stalin presented the Avvaiyar Award 2023 to R
Kamalam Chinnasami.
 She is a 90-year-old writer and social worker based in Ooty.
 She has penned many poems and authored around 43 books.
 Girl Child Empowerment Award 2022-23 was given to Class XI student Ilanthirai.
 She invented a new equipment to prevent deaths during repairing lifts in multi-
storey buildings.
 He also gave the first prize for improving child sex ratio for the year 2023 to
Tiruvallur Collector Alby John Varghese.
 The Collectors of Nagapattinam and Namakkal were given second and third prizes
respectively.

Punnagai scheme

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  The Minister of School Education launched a new scheme for government school
students called ‘Punnagai’.
 This scheme has been started for the dental care of students.
 In the first phase, the students of class VI-VIII will be subjected to dental
examination.
 This project has been started to prevent oral diseases among students.
 This program will benefit school children by screening them and creating
awareness about oral diseases, tooth decay and gum problems.

M sand Policy
 Tamil Nadu government has introduced a new policy to regulate quarries of
manufactured sand (popularly known as M-sand) in the state.
 It aims to improve the quality of M-sand, a type of crushed sand that is used as
a construction aggregate, and regulate the quarries.
 The government will establish a single-window portal and a centralised system to
monitor the activities of M-sand and crushed sand units.
 As per the new policy, the pollution control board, public works department,
mines, and other departments will be merged to ensure that quarry owners
receive speedy clearance for their licences.
 At present, there are 378 licensed crushed stone sand manufacturing units in
the state.
 Under the new policy, all crusher units must be registered with the Directorate
of Industrial Safety and Health under the Factories Act of 1948.
 M-sand or crushed sand is produced by crushing rock quarry stones into sand-
sized particles.
 The policy also states that no quarry lease will be granted exclusively for
manufacturing m-sand.
 Overall, the new policy is expected to bring more regulation and transparency to
the M-sand industry in Tamil Nadu.
 The M-sand units are classified into two groups
o Integrated units, which are owned and operated by persons who hold
operational stone quarry leases.
o Standalone units, which are operated by persons who do not hold valid stone
quarry leases.

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Water release from Mettur dam
 In 2022, the highest-ever quantum of excess water (440.76 tmcft) being released
from the Mettur dam.
 This is the highest quantity since it was built in 1934.
 The amount of surplus water let out was over 4.7 times the dam’s capacity.
 The total surplus quantum in the last 88 years was about 3,614 thousand million
cubic feet (tmcft).

All-women production line

 Ashok Leyland has unveiled a new production line in Hosur completely operated
by women employees.
 It aims to promote women empowerment and encourage them take up roles in
manufacturing industry.
 This firm set up this new line with 80 women employees.

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Thiruppugazh Panel final report
 Thiruppugazh Committee for the Chennai Flood Disaster Mitigation and
Management submitted its final report to Chief Minister in Tamilnadu.
 It had recommended reforms to the regulatory framework and improved gauging
of climate change induced flooding and techno-legal regime in mitigating flood
management in Chennai.
 The CM had requested the committee to give area-specific stormwater drainage
plans.
 The committee has also proposed area-specific detailed long-term flood
management plans for 600 and odd vulnerable areas in the city.

First-ever synchronized survey

 As many as 246 vultures were spotted in the first ever synchronised survey
conducted along the borders of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka.
 Tamil Nadu continues to remain a favourite nesting and roosting ground for
vultures among all three states.
 Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR) alone accounts for 98 of the bird species.
 The 98 includes the rare sighting of two Egyptian vultures and one Himalayan
vulture.
 The Bandipur and Nagarhole tiger reserves in Karnataka, recorded a combined
population of 94 vultures.
 Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary in Kerala is home to 52 vultures.

Tamil Nadu organic farm policy

 The Tamil Nadu Organic Farming Policy 2023 was released by Chief Minister.

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  This Policy is aimed at conserving and protecting soil health, agroecology, and
biodiversity besides providing safe, healthier and environment-friendly food.
 The policy will be reviewed after a period of five years.
 State-level and district-level committees will be formed to monitor the progress.
 A Single window system will be implemented to simplify the certification
procedure.
 The organic farming policy will help to ensure, upscale, and support chemical-
free organic agriculture in TN.
 India occupies fifth place with a total area of 2.66 million hectares.
 Tamil Nadu holds 14th rank in organic farming across the country with 31,629
hectares of organic agriculture land.
 Madhya Pradesh has the largest area under organic certification followed by
Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Karnataka.
 In 2020-21, Tamil Nadu shipped 4,223 metric tonnes of organic products worth
Rs 108 crore.

Pyre novel
 Tamil writer Perumal Murugan’s novel ‘Pookkuzhi’ was translated as ‘Pyre’ in
English by Anirudh Vasudevan.
 It has made it to the International Booker Prize 2023 longlist.
 Thus, it was becoming the first Tamil novel to be nominated for the Bookers.
 Set in rural Tamil Nadu in the 1980s, the book explores caste-based violence
through the elopement of a young inter-caste couple.
 In total, 13 novels have made it to the longlist this year.
 In 2022, Geetanjali Shree became the first Hindi novelist to win an International
Booker for ‘Ret Samadhi’.
 This was translated into English as ‘Tomb of Sand’ by Daisy Rockwell.

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Highlights of Tamil Nadu budget
 Tamil Nadu Finance Minister Palanivel Thiaga Rajan presented the Budget for
the financial year 2023-24 March 20, 2023.
 The fiscal deficit of the state would decline to 3.80% from 4.33% in the 2021-22
budget estimate.
 The overall revenue deficit decreased to Rs. 55,000 crores against the 2021
budget estimate of Rs. 58,000 crores.
 State's revenue deficit was reduced by Rs 30,000 crore from Rs 62,000 crore.
 State's own tax revenue is expected to increase to more than Rs 1.5 lakh crore in
FY24.
 It was over Rs 1.4 lakh crore in the current fiscal.
 TN to launch Rs 1,000 monthly financial aid for women home makers from
September 15.
 The assistance is officially known as 'Magalir Urimai Thogai' in Tamil, meaning
'Women's Right to Assistance’.
 For this the allocation was 7000 crores for this year.
 Free breakfast scheme is to be extended to all 30,122 government primary
schools from 2023-24.
 The Literacy and numeracy programme is to be extended up to Class V.
 North Chennai development initiative is to be launched at Rs 1000 crore.
 International birds centre would be established at Marakkanam.
 Monthly financial assistance for severely differently abled persons increased from
Rs1,500 to Rs.2000.
 Rs.3,993 crore will be allotted to waive gold and education loans.
 TN targets bank loans to the tune of Rs 30,000 crore for women self-help groups
 The Tamil Nadu government will set up a new Textile Park in the Western Region
at Salem.
 Tamil Nadu government will also set up a world class skill centre named “Tamil
Nadu World Innovation and Skill Training Hub” (TN-WISH) at Ambattur.
 A grand Chola Museum will be set up in Thanjavur.
 Rs 77,000 crore is allocated for developing a mega power project to generate
14,500MW power by 2030.
 The state-of-the-art global sports city will be set up in Chennai.

27
 All schools functioning under various departments including Adi-Dravida and
Tribal Welfare, Backward Classes, Most Backward Classes and Denotified
Communities and Forest will unify under the school education department.
 Civil service aspirants will be provided ₹7,500 per month for 10 months to
prepare for the preliminary examination.
 Those students who clear the preliminary examination will be provided a
lumpsum amount of ₹25,000.
 To promote economic development of SC/ST entrepreneurs, a new scheme called
‘Annal Ambedkar Business Champions Scheme’ will be launched.
 Tamil Nadu government is to hold international Tamil computing conference to
popularize the use of Tamil in computers.
 To promote Tamil Nadu as a global hub for IT/ITeS, the State Government will
establish ‘Tamil Nadu Tech City’ (TNTech city) at Chennai, Coimbatore and
Hosur.
 The government would extend the free bus pass scheme to 591 more elderly Tamil
scholars.
 The first ever 'Project Nilgiri Tahr' shall be initiated in TN at a cost of Rs 10 Crores
to protect & conserve Nilgiri Tahr.
 School education department is allocated Rs 40,229 crore in budget
 Rs 9000 crore is estimated for Coimbatore Metro between Avinashi Road and
Sathyamangalam Road.
 Rs 8500 crore is allocated for Madurai Metro between Thirumangalam and
Othakadai.
 Ezhilmigu Coimbatore and Ma Madurai programme is for planned development
of the two cities.
 Target to double the installed power generation capacity will be adding 33000
MW by 2030 and increase the share of green energy to 50 per cent will be by
2030.
 New SIPCOT industrial parks are to come up in Virudhunagar, Vellore,
Kallakurichi and Coimbatore
 A new wildlife sanctuary called the ‘Thanthai Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary’ is to
come up at Erode.
 New sanctuary declared will be the 18th in Tamil Nadu.
 A memorial would be established in Chennai to honour the legacy of Tamil
martyrs Thiruvalargal Thalamuthu and Natarajan, who sacrificed their lives to
protect Tamils in the struggle against Hindi imposition

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  1,000-bed Kalaignar Memorial Multi-Super Speciality Hospital in the premises of
the King Institute of Preventive Medicine and Research Centre, Guindy, will be
inaugurated this year.
 Neo-tidel parks to be expanded in 3 more locations including Chengalpattu,
Tirunelveli and Erode.
 Kalaignar memorial library in Madurai will be inaugurated in June 2023
 The State government has decided to reduce the registration fee to 2 per cent.
 A state-of-the-art Skill Development Centre will be established at SIPCOT
Industrial Park in Krishnagiri district.
 To establish better connectivity and provide various digital services at an
affordable cost, the Government will set up a “Unified Digital Infrastructure”, that
will create high speed optical fibre network from the State Headquarters to all
districts.
 To mitigate the effects of climate vagaries on the coastal ecosystem, the Tamil
Nadu government has announced the Tamil Nadu Coastal Restoration Mission.
 The mission, to be implemented with World Bank assistance at an estimated cost
of ₹2,000 crore over the next five years, is aimed at preventing sea erosion,
reducing marine pollution and conserving marine biodiversity.
 Chennai, Avadi, Tambaram, Coimbatore, Madurai, Tiruchirappalli and Salem
cities will get free Wi-Fi services at important places.

RuPay Card For Pudhumai Penn Scheme

 Bank of Baroda has partnered with the Government of Tamil Nadu to offer co-
branded RuPay Platinum Debit Card.
 The Bank has launched the debit card that would be offered to the beneficiaries
of the state government’s ‘Pudhumai Penn’ scheme.

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  The Pudhumai Penn scheme by the government aims to enhance the enrolment
ratio of the girls from government schools to higher educational institutions.
 Through this scheme, financial assistance of Rs 1,000 per month would be
provided to ever girl till the completion of their degree course.

‘Navaratna' announcements

 Tamil Nadu celebrates 50 years of women in police force.

 The women police force had a humble beginning with 22 cadets in 1973.
 Chief minister released a stamp to mark the occasion and announced Nava Ratna
schemes.

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Components:
 Roll-call for women changed to 8 am from 7 am
 Lodging facility for women cops
 Separate retiring rooms for women cops
 Child care centre for women cops will be gentrified
 Felicitation with Kalaignar police cup
 Transfers and holidays to accommodate a women cop's familial commitments
 An all-women shooting contest
 An annual national summit for women cops
 Work consultation committee would be set up

TN Ethanol blending policy

 The Tamil Nadu Ethanol Blending Policy (EBP) 2023 was released by the
Industries Department.
 Under the EBP programme, the State will encourage sugar industries to set up
molasses-based ethanol plants and improve capacity utilisation.
 The policy also will present an opportunity for reviving the sugar industry in the
State by improving the capacity utilisation of existing plants.
 Oil marketing companies (OMCs) presently source ethanol from other States,
including Maharashtra and Karnataka.
 In the present OMCs, the State currently has installed plant capacity of 664
kilolitres per day (KLPD).
 They are specifically used to produce fuel grade ethanol under the EBP were
blending up to 12% of ethanol with petrol in the State.

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Tamil Nadu City Gas Distribution Policy 2023
 The City Gas Distribution (CGD) Policy aims to promote the adoption of natural
gas by the state as a green and clean fuel.
 To speed up supply of piped natural gas to homes across Tamil Nadu, the state
government has come up with a detailed policy.
 The Govt also appointed the Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation Ltd
(TIDCO) as the nodal agency.
 The target is 2.28 lakh domestic connections and 2,785 compressed natural gas
(CNG) stations covering all 38 districts within eight years.
 The Centre had given the first contracts to build city gas distribution (CGD)
infrastructure in 2018.
 It includes for Chennai and neighbouring districts.
 The CGD network is being built in 15 districts and the contracts for the remaining
23 districts have also been authorised.

TN Logistics policy and integrated logistics plan

 The Tamil Nadu Logistics Policy and Integrated Logistics Plan 2023 was released
by the Chief Minister.

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  The vision of the Policy is “to promote an integrated, reliable, cost-efficient and
sustainable logistics system in the State for enhanced competitiveness and fast-
tracked economic development of the State.”
 Adopting new age technologies, enabling skill development, and building
resilience and sustainability in logistics eco-system form part of key objectives.
 This is a strategic plan for the next 10 years.
 It is outlining identified interventions, their envisaged outcomes, timelines as well
as key stakeholders’ responsible for their implementation.
 The policy aims at
o Reduction of cost of logistics (for export-import as well as domestic freight) in
the State;
o Leveraging private participation for development of logistics infrastructure;
o Formulating an effective coordination mechanism between State and Central
agencies towards facilitation and execution of initiatives concerning the
logistics sector.
 The Govt will also explore providing medical and health insurance to heavy
vehicle drivers registered in the State at a nominal price.

Appreciation for ‘The Elephant Whisperers’ team

 The Tamil documentary "The Elephant Whisperers" created history at the 95th
Academy Awards by becoming the maiden Indian production to win in the
Documentary Short Subject category.
 Tamil Nadu Chief Minister gave away Rs one crore incentive to Kartiki Gonsalves,
director of Academy Award-winning documentary.
 Bomman and Bellie, the couple acted in the Documentary gets awarded with Rs
1 Lakh each as a token of appreciation.

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  The Chief Minister has also ordered the payment of ₹1 lakh each to all the 91
mahouts and cavadis at the Mudumalai and Anamalai elephant camps in Tamil
Nadu.

Reduction in TB deaths
 The initiative, TN-KET (Tamil Nadu Kasanoi Erappila Thittam, meaning TB death-
free project) began in April 2022.
 In 2,500-odd public healthcare facilities that diagnosed TB in 30 districts.
 It has already achieved significant reduction in the number of early TB deaths.
 Nearly 70% of all TB deaths among notified TB patients take place in the first two
months after diagnosis.
 Deaths within two months of TB diagnosis (early TB deaths) have reduced from
more than 600 in April 2022 to less than 350 in December 2022.
 Also, the average time to death after diagnosis doubled from less than 20 days
before April to 40 days in July 2022.
 In December 2022, we reached the 90%-90%-90% goal at State level.

Tamil Nadu's 18th wildlife sanctuary

 During the Tamil Nadu Budget 2023-24, creation of new wildlife sanctuary in
Erode district called 'Thanthai Periyar Animal Sanctuary' was announced.
 This is the 18th wildlife sanctuary in Tamil Nadu.

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  There are two existing wildlife sanctuaries in the district - Vellode Birds
Sanctuary and Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve (STR).
 In the proposed sanctuary, the animal populations would mainly comprise
elephants, tigers, leopards, panthers, wild boars, and deer.
 There are 21 different mammals, 139 bird species and 118 types of butterflies
that would also inhabit.

TN Agriculture Budget
 Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister M.R.K. Pannerselvam presented the
2023-2024 Agriculture Budget.
 The Agriculture Budget for 2022-23 increased the allocation for agriculture and
allied sectors to ₹33,007.68 crore.
 It is slightly higher than the ₹32,775.78 crore in the revised estimate for 2021-
22.
 The government will take steps to achieve 126 lakh MT of foodgrain production
in 2022-23.
 Rs 2,337 crore allocated as the state government’s share of premium subsidy for
crop insurance.
 The ‘Kalaignarin All Village Integrated Agriculture Development Programme’ was
announced in the first agriculture budget.
 Cooperative crop loan to the tune of Rs 14,000 crore will be given to farmers.
 Interest-free cooperative loan of Rs 1,500 crore will be given to farmers for goat
rearing, dairying, poultry and fisheries activities.
 Rs 744 crore will be allocated for the implementation of the micro irrigation
scheme.
 Rs 450 crore will be spent to cover 53,400 hectares under micro irrigation in the
group of villages where agriculture is affected due to water shortage.
 The Nammazhvar award will be given to farmers who practise and promote
organic farming and hand-hold fellow organic farmers.
 The award of Rs 5 lakh and a citation will be given on Republic Day.
 A new regional startup hub is to be created in Thanjavur by the Tamil Nadu
Startup and Innovation Mission to promote agrotechnological innovations in the
Cauvery delta region.
 A scheme to stabilise the supply of onion and tomato throughout the year will be
launched.
 An additional 20 per cent subsidy is to be provided for small and marginal
farmers of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.

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  Kits containing perennial fruit seedlings such as mango, guava, jackfruit, amla,
acid lime, and custard apple will be distributed to 10 lakh households.
 The beautification of government botanical gardens will be done at Yercaud and
horticultural park and Madhavaram in Chennai.
 Around 150 farmers will be taken on an overseas tour to countries like Israel,
Netherlands, Thailand, Egypt, Malaysia, Philippines etc to teach them about the
high-yielding technologies.
 Farm tourism is to be promoted in association with the education department for
school students.
 A specific cluster development scheme at cost of Rs 130 crore for bananas in the
Theni district will be provided.
 One scientist from agricultural colleges, research centres or Krishi Vigyan
Kendras is set to be appointed as officer-in-charge for each block.
 Desiltation in rivers, canals and drainage channels in the Cauvery delta
command area at an estimated cost of Rs 90 crore.
 Food parks will come up at Tindivanam, Theni and Manapparai in Trichy district.
 The production of jaggery will be encouraged to benefit the sugarcane farmers.
 3,000 solar pumps will be set up under the chief minister’s scheme.
 The state government will distribute 10 lakh palm seeds to increase the number
of the state tree – palmyra.
 Rs 3 crore will be allocated for Turmeric and ginger cultivation.
 The defunct cooperative NPKR Ramasamy Coop sugar mills at Mayiladuthurai
will be reopened.
 Special zone for tur dal cultivation will be set up in Salem and Krishnagiri
districts.
 New mobile app will be developed to provide all the required information to
farmers.
 Soil testing centre will be established at the cost of Rs 75 lakh at Mayiladuthurai.

Re-adoption of Anti-gaming bill

 The Tamil Nadu Assembly on Thursday re-adopted the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of
Online Gambling and Regulation of Online Games Bill, 2022 without any
changes.
 An ordinance was promulgated by the Governor on October 1, 2022 and was
notified in the gazette on October 3, 2022.
 It was followed by a Bill which was adopted in the Assembly on October 19, 2022.

36
  It was sent to the Governor for assent on October 26, 2022.
 After 141 days, the governor returned it on March 6 stating the legislature lacked
the legislative competence to enact the bill.

First PM MITRA Park

 India’s first PM MITRA mega textiles Park was setup in Virudhunagar district.
 PM MITRA stands for Pradhan Mantri Mega Integrated Textile Region and Apparel
Park.
 The parks were based on the 5F vision - Farm to Fibre to Factory to Fashion to
Foreign.
 Tamil Nadu accounts for one-third of the country’s handloom production.
 The PM MITRA Parks will have world-class industrial infrastructure.
 It would attract cutting age technology and boost FDI and local investment in the
textiles sector.

TN Disaster Management Policy

 Chief Minister released the updated Tamil Nadu State Disaster Management
Policy and Disaster Management Plan 2023.
 The policy aims at reducing the negative impact of disasters with the help of
strong disaster management machinery.
 The policy has been developed adhering to the global and national frameworks
for disaster risk reduction and contextualised to the State perspectives and
priorities.
 It provides a consistent, state-wide institutional framework to enable the state,
local governments, Central government, and the private sector to work together.

37
 NATIONAL

22nd Law Commission of India

 The 22nd law Commission was constituted under Justice Rituraj Awasthi for a
period of three years on February 21, 2020.
 The Union Cabinet now extended by one-and-a-half year (August 31, 2024) the
term of the 22nd Law Commission.
 The commission is mandated to identify laws which are “no longer relevant” and
recommend for their repeal.
 The Law Commission is a non-statutory body, constituted by the Ministry of Law
& Justice under the central government from time to time.
 The term of the 21st Law Commission ended on August 31, 2018.

Jaipur Declaration
 The Jaipur Declaration was adopted at the 18th World Security Congress jointly
organized by the Railway Protection Force and the UIC.
 It is an actionable agenda for UIC to explore innovative approaches that can help
global Railway organizations achieve their long-term goal of safety and security.
 The Congress held on the theme of "Railway Security Strategy: Responses and
Vision for Future."

38
Unemployment Rate

 The latest annual Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) was released by the
National Statistical Office.
 India’s unemployment rate was dropped to a five-year low in July-June (2021-
22) to 4.1 per cent.
 During 2021-22, the unemployment rate in both rural and urban areas declined
to 3.2 per cent and 6.3 per cent, respectively.
 During 2020-21, they stood at 3.3 per cent and 6.7 per cent in rural and urban
respectively.
 The latest survey also showed the labour force participation rate (LFPR) had
increased significantly in the last five years from 37.5 per cent in 2018-19 to 55.2
per cent in 2021-22.
 The Worker Population Ratio has increased to 52.9 per cent in 2021-22 from 52.6
in 2020-21.
 It was 50.9 per cent in 2019-20.
 Separately, the NSO released the quarterly PLFS survey for urban India.
 During the December quarter, the unemployment rate for men declined
marginally to 6.5 per cent.
 The unemployment rate of women increased narrowly to 9.6 per cent from 6.6
per cent.

Hindustan 228 aircraft

 A new variant of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited’s aircraft ‘Hindustan 228-201
LW’ has been approved by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation.
 This variant has maximum take-off weight of 5,695 kg with 19 passenger
capability.

39
  This can reduce pilot qualification requirement and enabling pilots with
Commercial Pilot Licence to fly the aircraft.

Mechanical elephant for performing rituals

 Kerala’s Irinjadapilly temple in Thrissur district introduced a life-size motorised
model of elephant for performing rituals.
 It is the first such initiative in India.
 The elephant was gifted to the temple by PETA India.
 The iconic life-like mechanical elephant, named Irinjadapilly Raman.
 It can carry around 4 people.
 The elephant's head, eyes, mouth, ears and tail all work on electricity.

Raisina Dialogue 2023

 Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni made official visit to India.
 She is the Chief Guest and Keynote Speaker at the 8th Raisina Dialogue, 2023.
 The Raisina Dialogue is an annual conference that brings together global leaders
to discuss and exchange views on important global issues.

40
  It is held annually since 2016 in New Delhi.
 It is organized by the Observer Research Foundation (ORF) in partnership with
the union Ministry of External Affairs.

Hindusthan Samachar

 Public broadcaster Prasar Bharati has signed a two-year contract with

Hindusthan Samachar (HS) to supply news feed for Doordarshan and All India
Radio (AIR).
 It is expected to provide 100 news stories every day to Prasar Bharati, which
would include 10 national stories and 40 “local” ones in regional languages.
 Prasar Bharati cancelled its subscription to Press Trust of India (PTI), the
nonprofit cooperative of Indian newspapers in 2020.
 Hindusthan Samachar was founded in 1948 by Shivram Shankar Apte, along
with M.S. Golwalkar.

Army exercise Topchi

 Indian Army conducted its annual training exercise Exercise Topchi in Devlali,
Nashik, Maharashtra.
 The event shows the capability of the Indian artillery.

41
  This year, we have stressed on 'Atma nirbharata' (self-reliance).
 It showcased the integrated employment of firepower and surveillance assets to
include guns, mortars, rockets, drones, and aviation assets.
 The guns and other systems be it the K-9 Vajra, Dhanush system or M777 gun
system and Pinaka multi-barrel rocket launchers.

Joint training exercise ‘Trishakti Prahar’

 The Indian military concluded a joint training exercise - Exercise Trishakti Prahar
in North Bengal.
 The aim of the exercise was to practice battle preparedness of the security forces,
using latest weapons and equipment in a networked, integrated environment,
involving the Army, the Indian Air Force and CAPFs.
 As a part of the exercise, swift mobilisation and deployment practices were carried
out in various locations across north Bengal.
 The area is strategically important to India.
 This narrow Siliguri region 20 to 30-km-wide passage touches Bangladesh in the
south and Bhutan in the north.

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TARKASH exercise
 India and USA military recently conducted the TARKASHA exercise in Chennai,
Tamil Nadu.
 It is a joint exercise by the National Security Guard (NSG) and US Special
Operations Forces (SOF).
 For the first time “Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN)” terror
response was included in this drill.
 CBRN weapons have the capability of creating mass casualties as well as mass
disruption and therefore, are classified as weapons of mass destruction.
 The Protocol for the Prohibition of the Use of CBRN in War, also known as the
Geneva Protocol, signed on June 17, 1925, at Geneva, Switzerland.
 It entered into force on February 8, 1928.
 Most recent use of CBRN weapons is came in the form of a sarin gas attack
carried out by the Syrian army in 2013 against civilians during the Syrian Civil
War.

43
Country Reports on Terrorism 2021: India
 The U.S. Bureau of Counterterrorism released a report named 'Country Reports
on Terrorism 2021: India'.
 The Indian government has made significant efforts to detect, disrupt, and
degrade the operations of terrorist organizations.
 Terrorism affected the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K), the north
eastern States, and parts of central India.
 Lashkar-e-Tayyiba, Jaish-e-Mohammed, Hizbul Mujahideen, ISIS, al-Qa'ida,
Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen, and Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh, are the terrorist
groups active in India.
 In 2021, 153 terrorist attacks were reported in India's Jammu and Kashmir.
 The attacks caused 274 deaths which included 45 security personnel, 36
civilians, and 193 terrorists.
 NIA (National Investigation Agency) through September 2021, investigated 37
cases related to ISIS and arrested 168 people.

Supreme Court verdict on ECI appointment

 The Supreme Court held that the appointment of an Election Commissioner for
a tenure less than six years is in “clear breach” of law.
 The court’s observation came while discussing the designation of Arun Goel as
an Election Commissioner.
 Mr. Goel appointment took place on November 18 last year, has a term of a little
over five years.

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  Section 4(1) of the Election Commission (Conditions of Service of Election
Commissioners and Transaction of Business) Act, 1991 requires that Chief
Election Commissioners and Election Commissioners should separately have a
period of six years in office.

Dibang Multipurpose Project

 India approved its largest ever hydropower project in Arunachal Pradesh.
 This multipurpose project is being set up close to China’s border on the Dibang
River.
 The Dibang project is estimated to take nine years to build.
 This project will be developed by National Hydroelectric Power Corporation
(NHPC) Limited.
 Dihang, Dibang, and Lohit are the major tributaries of Brahmaputra.
 Dibang joins River Lohit near Dibru-Saikhowa Sanctuary.
 The tributaries of Dibang are Emra, Ithun, Dri, Rangon, Mathun, and Sisar.

Ornamental fish aquaculture

 Community-based ornamental fish aquaculture, using local resources, is
expected to help women in the Lakshadweep islands.
 This takes the first step towards self-reliance through concerted activities.
 It is the first-of-its-kind experiment, as many as 82 islanders, 77 of them women,
were selected and underwent intensive training.
 They have formed groups for ornamental fish aquaculture with technical support
from the ICAR-National Bureau of Fish Genetic Resources (NBFGR).

45
Exercise Shinyuu Maitri
 The Indian Air Force (IAF) participated in Exercise Shinyuu Maitri with the Japan
Air Self Defence Force (JASDF) conducted at Japan.
 The exercise is being organised on the side-lines of the Indo-Japan Joint Army
Exercise, Dharma Guardian.
 The exercise gives an opportunity for the respective subject matter experts to
interact and study each other’s operational philosophies and best practices.

AIRS Fellowship Program

 More than 60 Australian and Indian emerging researchers have been awarded an
Australia India Research Students Fellowship for 2023.
 The AIRS Fellowship Program is a bilateral program between India and Australia.
 It is part of the Update to the India Economic Strategy to 2035 action plan that
seeks to strengthen academic relations.
 It is led by Australia India Institute.
 The funding for this program is provided by the Australian Government
Department of Education.
 It promotes research collaborations and student mobility between India and
Australia.
 It is to see collaboration among 22 Australian universities and 37 Indian higher
education institutes.

46
National Conference on Economics of Competition Law
 The Competition Commission of India (CCI) hosted its 8 th annual National
Conference on Economics of Competition Law.
 The Conference is being organised every year since 2016 by the CCI.
 The Conference has a plenary session and two technical sessions.
 The Plenary at this year's Conference is on the topic ‘Antitrust and Regulation:
Interfaces and Synergies’.

DUSTLIK 2023

 India-Uzbekistan 15-day joint military exercise DUSTLIK was concluded in

Uttarakhand.
 This was the fourth edition of the biennial exercise DUSTLIK, meaning friendship
in Uzbek.
 The first edition of the joint military exercise took place in Tashkent in 2019.
 It aims at enhancing military capability to undertake multi-domain operations in
a Sub Conventional scenario under United Nations Mandate.

Supreme Court Verdict on ECI Appointments

 A five-judge bench of the Supreme Court (SC) headed by Justice KM Joseph
unanimously gave verdict on appointment of the Chief Election Commissioner
and the Election Commissioners.
 These appointments shall be made by the President on the advice of a selection
Committee.

47
  This Committee will be consisting of the Prime Minister, the Leader of the
Opposition of the Lok Sabha and Chief Justice of India (CJI).
 In case no leader of Opposition is available, the leader of the largest opposition
Party in the Lok Sabha in terms of numerical strength will be a part of such
committee.
 The Bench also appealed to the central government to constitute an independent
secretariat for dealing with the expenditure of the Commission.
Appointment Procedure
 As per the Article 324(2), The appointment of the CEC and other Election
Commissioners shall be made by the President.
 It is also subject to the provisions of any law made in that behalf by Parliament.
 The President determines the conditions of service and tenure of office of the
Election.
 Under the Election Commission (Conditions of Service of Election Commissioners
and Transaction of Business) Act, 1991 they have a tenure of six years, or up to
the age of 65 years, whichever is earlier.
 Typically, the senior-most election commissioner is appointed as the CEC.

One Nation, One Challan Initiative

 Gujarat Government implemented ‘One Nation, One Challan Initiative’ recently.
 One Nation, One Challan is an initiative of the Ministry of Road Transport and
Highways.

48
  It aims to bring all related agencies, such as the traffic police and the Regional
Transport Office (RTO), on one platform.
 It will enable seamless collection of challans as well as data transfer.
 National Informatics Centre (NIC) is set to launch its own application for this.
 If someone doesn’t pay the challan amount within 90 days, the challan will be
automatically forwarded to a virtual court and proceedings will be initiated.
 Virtual courts are aimed at eliminating the presence of litigants in the court.

PMLA against Cryptocurrency

 The centre issued a notification bringing transactions involving crypto assets
under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002.
 It laid out the nature of transactions to be covered under PMLA.
 These are as follows
o Exchange between virtual digital assets and fiat currencies;
o Exchange between one or more forms of virtual digital assets;
o Transfer of virtual digital assets;
o Safekeeping or administration of virtual digital assets or instruments enabling
control over virtual digital assets;
o Participation in and provision of financial services related to an issuer’s offer
and sale of a virtual digital asset.
 The measure is expected to aid investigative agencies in carrying out action
against crypto firms.
 From April 2022, India introduced a 30 per cent income tax on gains made from
cryptocurrencies.
 In July 2022, rules regarding 1 per cent tax deducted at source on cryptocurrency
came into effect.

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Millets Giveaway
 Millets Giveaway is a special marketing campaign being undertaken by Small
Farmers’ Agri-Business Consortium (SFAC).
 Under this campaign the SFAC aims to promote buying directly from FPO (Farmer
Producer Organisation) farmers.
 It encourages citizens to purchase millets directly from FPOs through Open
Network for Digital Commerce’s My Store, a marketplace built for Indian sellers.
 It aims to supporting small & marginal farmers of the country.

Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System

50
  The Indian Army has moved a proposal to acquire indigenous Advanced Towed
Artillery Gun System (ATAGS).
 It can be deployed at high altitude areas and fill critical capability gaps.
 The ATAGS is configured with all electric drive to ensure maintenance free and
reliable operation over a longer period of time.
 It has advanced features in terms of high mobility, quick deployability, auxiliary
power mode, advanced communication system, automatic command and control
system with night firing capability in the direct fire mode.

Criterion for Consumer courts

 The Supreme Court used reduced the mandatory professional experience from
20 to 10 years to preside over consumer courts.
 For this, the Supreme Court used its extraordinary powers under Article 142.
 It also introduced written exams and viva voce to check the candidates'
performance.
 The Centre has proposed several amendments to the Consumer Protection
(Qualification for appointment, method of recruitment, procedure of
appointment, term of office, resignation and removal of President and Members
of State Commission and District Commission) Rules, 2020.

‘World’s first’ bamboo crash barrier

 India has tested bamboo crash barrier as an environmentally friendly alternative
to steel.
 This world’s first 200-meter-long Bamboo Crash Barrier has been installed on
the Vani-Warora Highway in Maharashtra.

51
  The bamboo crash barrier will be an alternative to steel and will be
environmentally friendly.
 The recycling value of the bamboo crash barrier is 50-70%, while that of steel
barriers is 30-50%.

TROPEX 2023
 Indian Navy’s major Operational level exercise TROPEX for the year 2023, was
conducted across the expanse of the Indian Ocean region.
 It includes the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal surface.
 The overall exercise construct included coastal defence exercise Sea Vigil and the
amphibious exercise AMPHEX.

Nano liquid DAP

 The Government recently approved the launch of nano liquid DAP (di-ammonium
phosphate) fertilizer in India.
 It has been notified in the Fertilizer Control Order (FCO).
 It has been issued under the Essential Commodities Act 1955.

52
  Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative Limited (IFFCO), introduced nano liquid
urea in 2021.
 DAP is the second most consumed fertilizer in the country after urea.
 Out of the estimated annual consumption of around 10-12.5 million tonnes, local
production is around 4-5 million tonnes, while the rest has to be imported.

MSME Competitive (LEAN) scheme

 Ministry of MSMEs launched the revamped MSME Competitive (LEAN) Scheme.

 It aims to provide a roadmap to global competitiveness for the MSMEs of India.
 The first phase will cover the manufacturing sector while the services sector will
be covered in the second phase.
 Under the revamped scheme, the Centre's contribution will be 90 per cent of the
implementation cost for handholding and consultancy fees as against 80 per cent
previously.

53
  Earlier, the implementation period for the scheme was set at 18 months.
 Additional contribution of 5 per cent with 90% for the MSMEs which are part of
SFURTI clusters, owned by Women/SC/ST and located in North East Region.

4th National Youth Parliament Festival

 The 4th edition of the National Youth Parliament Festival (NYPF) held in the
Central Hall of Parliament, New Delhi.
 The Youth Parliament has been organised since 2019.
 The objective of the event is strengthening democracy and enabling the student
community to understand the working of Parliament.
 The 4th edition was launched with the theme “Ideas for a Better Tomorrow: India
for the World”.

New cities in Swadesh Darshan 2.0

 As many as 30 cities from across 15 states are being shortlisted to be developed
as sustainable and responsible destinations Swadesh Darshan 2.0 programme.
 The 15 states also include Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Uttar
Pradesh and Maharashtra.
 The Swadesh Darshan Scheme was launched by the Centre in 2014-15 for the
integrated development of theme-based tourist circuits.
 Under the scheme, the Ministry of Tourism provides financial assistance to states
and Union territories for the development of tourism infrastructure.
 Swadesh Darshan 2.0, focussing on one destination at a time, to attract domestic
tourists, was conceptualised.

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Landslide Atlas of India

 The National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC), Hyderabad under the Indian Space
Research Organisation (ISRO) has released the Landslide Atlas of India.
 The team released a list of 147 most landslide-vulnerable districts in 17 states
and two Union Territories.

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  Rudraprayag and Tehri Garhwal districts of Uttarakhand have the highest
landslide density and landslide risk exposure in the country.
 Chamoli district of Uttarakhand, where Joshimath is grappling with a land-
subsidence crisis, has been ranked 19th.
 Haridwar and Udham Singh Nagar figure at the bottom at 146th and 147th,
respectively.
 Apart from Uttarakhand, among the 10 most landslide-prone districts, four are
in flood-prone areas of Kerala, two in Jammu and Kashmir and two in Sikkim.
 After the Himalayas, the Western Ghats has high landslide density.

VAIBHAV Fellowship Scheme

 The Union Government launched the VAIBHAV Fellowship scheme.
 The fellowship offers NRI researchers an opportunity to work for a minimum of
one month to a maximum of two months a year with a research institution or an
academic institution in India.
 The duration of the fellowship is three years with the government offering the
researchers an amount of up to Rs 37 lakh for the entire period.
 Applicants must be non-resident Indians (NRIs), Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs),
or Overseas Citizens of India (OCIs).

Underwater anti-submarine rockets

 The Indian Navy has received a fully indigenised fuze YDB-60 for underwater
Rocket RGB 60.
 The YDB-60 for underwater Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) Rocket RGB-60 will
be used in major warships.
 The Fuze is part of the weapon or ammunition that initiates its function.
 In torpedoes, its function is to make them explode.
 RGB-60 is a rocket used to hit submarines.

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New Centers of Excellence for Horticulture crops
 The Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH) under the
Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare has approved three new Centers of
Excellence (CoEs) for horticultural crops.
 These CoEs serve as demonstration and training centres for latest technologies
in the field of horticulture.
 These CoEs also serve as source of planting material for fruits and vegetable
seedlings for protected cultivation and used for transfer of technology and
knowhow in diverse areas.
 The CoE for Kamlam (Dragon Fruit) will be established at the Experimental
station, Hirehalli, in Bengaluru.
 The CoE for Mango and Vegetables will be established in Panikoili, Jajpur
District, Odisha.
 The CoE for Vegetables and Flowers will be established in Govt. Agricultural
Farm, Codar, Khandepar, Ponda, South Goa, Goa.

G20 flower festival

 The New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) has organised a two-day G20-themed
flower festival.
 The festival is aimed at highlighting the vibrancy of G20 members and guest
countries.
 The four G20 countries – China, Japan, Singapore and the Netherlands – are
participating in the NDMC G20 Flower Festival.
 The festival also showcased the painting or photographs of flowers such as
national flowers or major flower gardens of G20 member countries and guest
countries.

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Aahar 2023
 The 37th edition of the International Food and Hospitality - Aahar, held at Pragati
Maidan, Delhi.
 Aahar is India’s largest four-day culinary show.
 It was organized with the support of the Union Ministry of Food Processing
Industries, Agriculture and Processed Food Products Export Development
Authority.
 It focused on unveiling the potential of the hospitality sector and exhibiting
technologies, products and services to domestic and international buyers.

B2B Global Conference & Expo on Traditional Medicine

 The business-to-business conference and Expo on Traditional Medicine held in
in Guwahati, Assam.
 The first-of-its kind conference is being held under the Shanghai Cooperation
Organization (SCO).
 It aims to promote traditional medicines at the global level.

ATL Sarthi
 Atal Innovation Mission launched ATL Sarthi initiative.
 It is a comprehensive self-monitoring framework to strengthen the ever-growing
ecosystem of Atal Tinkering Labs (ATL).
 Sarthi is a charioteer and ATL Sarthi will enable the ATLs to be efficient and
effective.
 In the first phase, AIM has provided funding for 10,000 schools to open Atal
Tinkering Laboratories (ATLs).
 The Atal Innovation Mission was initiated by the NITI Aayog in 2016 to promote
innovation and entrepreneurship across the country.

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Best airport in India and South Asia
 Delhi airport has been adjudged the best airport in India and South Asia.
 This is according to international air transport rating organisation Skytrax.
 The Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) has moved up to the 36th position
this year from 37th in 2022.
 The Skytrax World Airport Awards are based on annual global airport customer
satisfaction survey.

Women and Men in India 2022

 The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation has released Women
and Men in India 2022 report.
 India’s sex ratio (females per 1,000 males) is expected to improve to 952 by 2036.
 The sex ratio at birth went up by three points to 907 in 2018-20 from 904 in
2017-19.
 India’s Labour Force Participation Rate for those above 15 years of age has been
on the rise since 2017-2018.
 The rate was 77.2 for males and 32.8 for females in 2021-22.
 The population growth is on a downward trend from 2.2% in 1971 to 1.1% in
2021.
 It is projected to fall further to 0.58% in 2036.
 The age-specific fertility rate for the 20-24 years and 25-29 years age group
between 2016 and 2020 reduced from 135.4 and 166.0 to 113.6 and 139.6
respectively.
 The same indicator for the 35-39 years age group increased from 32.7 in 2016 to
35.6 in 2020.
 The mean age for marriage has improved marginally up from 22.1 years in 2017
to 22.7 years in 2020.

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  The population under 15 years of age is expected to decline and the population
above 60 years is expected to increase by 2036.

Basic Animal Husbandry Statistics 2022

 The Central government unveiled the department’s annual publication, the ‘Basic
Animal Husbandry Statistics 2022.
 The book become a tradition and important source of information in the field of
Livestock.
 Total milk production in the country during 2021-22 is 221.06 million tonnes.
 In the current year 2021-22, the milk production has registered an annual
growth rate of 5.29%.
 The Top five major milk producing States are Rajasthan (15.05%), Uttar Pradesh
(14.93%), Madhya Pradesh (8.06%), Gujarat (7.56%) and Andhra Pradesh
(6.97%).

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  In 2021-22, the total egg production in the country is 129.60 billion no which
has increased by 6.19% as compared to previous year.
 Total five major egg producing States are Andhra Pradesh (20.41%), Tamil Nadu
(16.08%), Telangana (12.86%), West Bengal (8.84%) and Karnataka (6.38%).
 The total meat production in the country is 9.29 million tonnes for the year 2021-
22 with an annual growth rate of 5.62%.
 The total five major meat producing States are Maharashtra (12.25%), Uttar
Pradesh (12.14%), West Bengal (11.63%), Andhra Pradesh (11.04%), and
Telangana (10.82%).
 The total wool production in the country during 2021-22 is 33.13 thousand
tonnes which has decline by 10.30% as compared to previous year.
 The top five major wool producing States are Rajasthan (45.91%), Jammu and
Kashmir (23.19%), Gujarat (6.12%), Maharashtra (4.78%) and Himachal Pradesh
(4.33%).
 In 2020-21, the share of Livestock at constant prices in Agriculture Sector and
total GVA was 30.13% and 4.9% respectively.

Literacy rate in India

 According to the World Bank India report, only 1 of 11 girls was literate at the
time of India's independence, about nine percent.
 At present, the women's literacy rate has jumped to 77%.
 India's male literacy rate stands at 84.7%.

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  As per the National Sample Survey report, Kerala is the most literate state in the
country with 92.2%.
 It is followed by union territory Lakshadweep (91.85%).
 The third-most literate state in the country is Mizoram (91.33%).
 Bihar has the lowest literacy rate in India at 61.8%, followed by Arunachal
Pradesh at 65.3% and Rajasthan at 66.1%.
 However, around 12.6% of students drop out of school in India.
 19.8% discontinued education at the secondary level.
 The literacy rate in rural India is 67.77% as compared to 84.11% in urban India.

Groundwater: A Valuable but Diminishing Resource” Report

 This report was tabled in Parliament by the Standing Committee on Water
Resources.
 Of the total annual extractable groundwater resource of 398 billion cubic metres
(BCM) in the country till 2020, 245 BCM was being extracted.
 It indicated there was a decrease in the overall level of groundwater extraction
from 63.3 per cent in 2017 to 61.6 per cent in 2020.
 Groundwater levels in Delhi, Ghaziabad, Faridabad, and 20 other cities dipped
by more than 20 metres from 2017 to 2020.

 Haryana’s Faridabad has become 100 per cent dependent on groundwater use.
 Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan, which are extracting 97%, 90% and 86% of
groundwater, respectively.
 Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh are also significant users of
groundwater for irrigation as they are using approximately 89%, 92% and 90%,
respectively.

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NSS 78th Round Report

 The National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) released the 78th round Multiple
Indicator Survey (MIS) report
 Kerala, Manipur, Nagaland, and Jharkhand have less than 90% access to an
improved source of drinking water.
 Among major states, Assam, Jharkhand, Bihar, and Odisha are among the worst
in access to tapped drinking water for both rural and urban households.
 Among the major states Bihar, Jharkhand, and Odisha have the lowest
proportion of rural households with access to an exclusive toilet.
 In Chhattisgarh, Odisha, West Bengal, Nagaland and Madhya Pradesh, for more
than 70% of households, firewood is the primary source of energy for cooking.
 These states along with Jharkhand have less than 25% of households using LPG
for cooking.
 During the survey period, 16.1% of males and 43.8% of females aged 15-24 years,
were not studying, working, or training.
 Less than 50 % of people who were aged 18 or above had exclusive access to
mobile phones.
 Among big states, Uttarakhand, Odisha, Kerala, and Delhi have the highest
proportion (more than 20%) of men aged 15 to 24 who were not in education,
employment, or training.

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  For females, the proportion was highest in the states of Uttar Pradesh, Assam,
Odisha, Gujarat, West Bengal, and Bihar.
 Some Key Findings

Green Tug Transition Program

 India aims at becoming ‘Global Hub for Green Ship’ building by 2030 with launch
of Green Tug Transition Programme (GTTP).
 The programme will start with ‘Green Hybrid Tugs.
 It will be powered by green hybrid propulsion systems, and subsequently
adopting non-fossil fuel solutions like (methanol, ammonia, hydrogen).
 India’s first National Centre of Excellence in Green Port and Shipping was
inaugurated in Haryana's Gurugram.

Mission Sahbhagita
 Mission Sahbhagita has been launched by the Ministry of Environment, Forest
and Climate Change.
 It is an important step towards participatory conservation and wise use of
wetlands.
 Its aim is to enable a society ownership approach with communities leading at
the forefront.
 The Ministry is currently implementing a centrally sponsored scheme namely,
National Plan for Conservation of Aquatic Eco-systems (NPCA).
 Under the NPCA scheme, the ministry has sanctioned the central assistance for
conservation of 165 wetlands across the country, including 42 Ramsar sites.

DigiClaim

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  The Union Minister of Agriculture ministry launched the National Crop Insurance
Portal’s digitized claim settlement module ‘DigiClaim’.
 This is launched under the ambit of Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY).
 Now claims will be disbursed electronically, which will benefit the respective
farmers of six states.
 Those 6 states are Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh,
Uttarakhand and Haryana.

Vedic Heritage Portal

 Union Home Minister inaugurated the Vedic Heritage Portal.
 It is created by the Indira Gandhi National Center for the Arts under the Ministry
of Culture.
 It aims to communicate the message contained in the Vedas.
 It will be a one-stop solution for any information regarding Vedic Heritage.
 It has more than 18 thousand mantras of all four Vedas.

GST Appellate Tribunal

 Lok Sabha cleared changes in the Finance Bill to pave the way for setting up of
an appellate tribunal for resolution of disputes under GST.
 As per the amendments, benches of the GST Appellate Tribunal would be set up
in every state.
 This bench will include two judicial members, and two technical members
representing the Centre and state.
 There will be a principal bench in Delhi.
 Principal bench will consist of a president, a judicial member and two technical
members representing the Centre and state.
 Currently, taxpayers are filing writ petitions before high courts in the absence of
the appellate tribunal.

Disqualification of Rahul Gandhi as MP

 Wayanad MP Rahul Gandhi’s membership of Parliament has been cancelled
following his conviction and 2 years sentencing by a local court in Surat.
 This disqualification made under in terms of the provisions of Article 102(1)(e) of
the Constitution of India read with “Section 8 of the Representation of the People
Act (RP), 1951”.

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  Section 8(3) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 states that “a person
convicted of any offence and sentenced to imprisonment for not less than two
years shall be disqualified from the date of such conviction and shall continue to
be disqualified for a further period of six years since his release.”
 Article 102 of the Constitution deals with grounds for disqualification of a
parliamentarian.
 Sub-clause (e) of Article 102(1) says an MP will lose his membership of the House
“if he is so disqualified by or under any law made by Parliament”.
 The law in this case is the RP Act.

Kirit Parikh panel recommendations

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  The Kirit Parikh panel was set up 2022 September to review the gas pricing
formula for gas produced in the country
 The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas seek cabinet approval on the
recommendations of the Kirit Parikh committee report.
 This report was suggesting fair price of natural gas to the end-consumer.
 The pricing of natural gas is revised bi-annually.

AI use in the health sector

 The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has released the country’s
first Ethical Guidelines for Application of Artificial Intelligence in Biomedical
Research and Healthcare.
 It is aimed at creating “an ethics framework which can assist in the development,
deployment, and adoption of AI-based solutions.
 This document is intended for all stakeholders involved in research on AI in
biomedical research and healthcare, including creators, developers, researchers,
clinicians, ethics committees, institutions, sponsors, and funding organizations.
 As per the guidelines, the ethical review process for AI in health comes under the
domain of the ethics committee.

Guidelines to Address Human-Wildlife Conflict

 The Union Ministry for Environment, Forest and Climate Change released
14 guidelines to address Human-Wildlife Conflict (HWC).
 It aims to facilitate a common understanding among key stakeholders, on what
constitutes effective and efficient mitigation of HWC in India.
 The guidelines are advisory in nature, and will facilitate in further development
of site-specific HWC mitigation measures.

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  These guidelines are developed under the Indo-German cooperation project on
HWC Mitigation.
 10 species-specific guidelines
o Guidelines for Mitigating Human -Elephant, -Gaur, -Leopard, -Snake, -
Crocodile, -Rhesus Macaque, -Wild Pig, -Bear, -Blue Bull and -Blackbuck
Conflict.
 4 guidelines on cross-cutting issues
o Guidelines for Cooperation between the Forest and Media sector in India:
Towards effective communication on Human-Wildlife Conflict Mitigation
o Occupational Health and Safety in the Context of Human–Wildlife Conflict
Mitigation
o Crowd Management in Human-Wildlife Conflict Related Situations
o Addressing Health Emergencies and Potential Health Risks Arising Out of
Human—Wildlife Conflict Situations: Taking a One Health Approach.

CBuD App
 The app named ‘Call Before u Dig’ (CBuD) was launched recently.
 It is an initiative of the Department of Telecommunications, Ministry of
Communications.
 It is aimed at providing an interface to the excavating agencies where they can
enquire about the availability of existing underground utilities before beginning
excavation work.
 It will prevent losses of about Rs 3,000 crore ($400 million) every year due to
damage to underlying assets like optical fibre cables.
 It will help ensure the safety of the various underlying utility assets such as gas
pipelines, water pipelines, and optical fibre cables.

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Increase of MNREGA wages
 The Centre has notified a hike in wage rates under its rural job guarantee
programme, the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee
Scheme (MNREGS), for the 2023-24 financial year.
 Haryana gave the highest daily wage at Rs 357 per day.
 Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh gave the lowest at Rs 221.
 Goa and Karnataka have received the lowest hike with an increase of a mere two
per cent.
 Rajasthan has received the maximum gain, with wages increasing by 10.39 per
cent from April 1 over the current wage rate.
 Seven other states have received less than a 5 per cent increase in wage rates for
2023-24 over the current (2022-23) rates.
 They are Meghalaya (3.4 per cent), Manipur (3.59 per cent), Arunachal Pradesh
(3.7 per cent), Nagaland (3.7 per cent), Assam (3.93 per cent), Tamil Nadu (4.63
per cent), and Puducherry (4.63 per cent).

‘Human Rights Issues’ in India: US Report

 This is an annual exercise led by a bureau within the State Department and is
mandated by the US Congress.
 It has listed significant human rights issues in India in 2022.
 This includes unlawful and arbitrary killing, freedom of press and violence
targeting religious and ethnic minorities.
 It mentions human rights violations such as extrajudicial killings, torture or
cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment by police and prison
officials, and harsh and life-threatening prison conditions.

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 INTERNATIONAL

UN Voting on Ukraine War

 India has once again abstained from voting in a UN General Assembly resolution
that condemned Russia's invasion of Ukraine on the eve of the first anniversary
of Russia's invasion.
 During the vote in the 193-member UNGA, 141 member nations voted in favour
of the resolution.
 While 7 opposed the resolution, India, China, Iran and South Africa were among
the 32 countries to abstain in the vote.
 The seven countries who voted against it were Russia, Belarus, North Korea,
Eritrea, Mali, Nicaragua and Syria.
 India’s defence trade with the US is around 21 billion USD.
 But Russia is still the largest exporter of defence goods for India.

New World Bank President

 Indian-American business executive Ajay Banga was nominated by US President
Joe Biden to head the World Bank.
 He will be the first Indian-American to head either of the two top international
financial institutions: the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
 He was also the president and CEO of Mastercard, the financial services
company.
 In 2016, Banga was awarded the Padma Shri by the President of India.
 The president of the World Bank is ex officio chair of the Board of executive
directors of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD)
or the World Bank and the International Development Association (IDA).
 US banker David Malpass was the previous president of the World Bank Group
who stepped down recently.

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World Sustainable Development Summit
 The 22nd edition of the Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) — the World
Sustainable Development Summit (WSDS) is held in New Delhi.
 The Summit deliberations was focused on the umbrella theme: Mainstreaming
Sustainable Development and Climate Resilience for Collective Action.
 The year 2022 marks an important milestone.
 It has been 50 years since the United Nations Conference on the Human
Environment, popularly known as the 1972 Stockholm Conference.

FATF membership of Russia

 The Financial Action Task Force has suspended Russia’s membership.
 But the Russian Federation must continue to meet its financial obligations.
 It also added Africa’s two largest economies, Nigeria and South Africa in the “grey-
list”.
 Morocco and Cambodia were taken off the list after improving their controls.
 The Financial Action Task Force is an inter-governmental organisation, founded
in 1989 on the initiative of the G7.
 It fights against money laundering and terrorism financing by setting global
standards and checking if countries respect them.

Russia and START Nuclear Treaty

 Russian President Vladimir Putin suspended his country’s participation in the
New START nuclear arms reduction treaty with the United States.
 The name START comes from the original “Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty”.

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  It is also known as START-I.
 It was signed between the US and the erstwhile USSR in 1991, and came into
force in 1994.
 START-I is capped the numbers of nuclear warheads and intercontinental
ballistic missiles (ICBMs) that each side could deploy at 6,000 and 1,600
respectively.
 The New START was officially entered into force on February 5, 2011.
 The US and Russia Federation subsequently agreed to extend the treaty through
February 4, 2026.

Frozen seafood from India

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  Qatar has lifted its temporary ban on the import of frozen seafood from India.
 It was paving the way for enhanced export and improved bilateral relations with
the West Asian country.
 The ban was imposed last year in November 2022 following the alleged detection
of Vibrio cholera from a few consignments from India.
 Recently, Beijing also lifted the suspension of 99 Indian seafood-processing
exporters after acknowledging India's assurance over source control.

Windsor framework
 The UK government under Prime Minister Rishi Sunak reached a landmark deal
with the European Union (EU).
 This will aid on post-Brexit trade rules that will govern Northern Ireland.
 The ‘Windsor Framework’ will replace the Northern Ireland Protocol.
 It had proved to be among the thorniest of Brexit fall-outs, creating problems
both economic and political.
 The new framework has two crucial aspects – the introduction of a green lane
and red lane system for goods that will stay in Northern Ireland and those that
will go to the EU respectively.
 It also aimed at protecting Northern Ireland’s position within the U.K., and
restoring its people’s sovereignty.

‘Chip 4’ talks for supply chain

 Japan, USA, South Korea and Taiwan have taken part in the virtual conference
of the “Chip 4” alliance.
 It is held under a new U.S.-led framework to help ensure a stable supply of
semiconductors.

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  It aims to discuss ways to maintain supply chain resilience in times of natural
disasters and other contingencies.

83.7 percent enriched uranium

 International Atomic Energy Agency discovered uranium particles enriched up to
83.7 per cent in the underground Fordo nuclear site of Iran.
 But there is no stockpile of uranium enriched above 69 per cent is being built by
Iran.
 Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal limited Tehran’s uranium stockpile to 300 kilograms
(661 pounds) and enrichment to 3.67%.
 The 3.67% enrichment is enough to fuel a nuclear power plant.
 The U.S.' unilateral withdraw from the accord in 2018 set in motion a series of
attacks and escalations by Tehran over its program.

Sweden International Information Campaign

 The Swedish government has announced an international information campaign

to discourage migrants from coming to the country.

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  The campaign will spread information about the migration policy of Sweden.
 During the campaign, the Sweden Government will create contact points in
foreign countries.
 Sweden has been welcoming refugees and resettling them since 1950.
 According to the Sweden Government, in 2019, 76% of the refugees who arrived
in the Nordic countries ended up in Sweden.
 Sweden is planning on decreasing this number by adopting this campaign.

REAIM 2023
 The world’s first international summit on the responsible use of artificial
intelligence in the military held in the Netherlands.
 The REAIM 2023 brings together governments, corporations, academia, startups,
and civil societies.
 It aims to raise awareness, discuss issues,
 And possibly, it aims agree on common principles in deploying and using AI in
armed conflicts.

Nine Point Crypto Action Plan

 The International Monetary Fund has laid out a nine-point action plan for how
countries should treat crypto assets.
 It was against to give cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin legal tender status
safeguard monetary sovereignty.
 It was asked to guard against excessive capital flows.
o Instruction to adopt unambiguous tax rules and laws around crypto assets.
o Favour to developing and enforcing oversight requirements for all crypto
market actors.
o Establishment of international arrangements to increase enforcement
regulations.
o Setting up of methodologies to monitor the impact of cryptocurrency.
o Imposing taxes on organizations which using crypto.
 El Salvador in late 2021 became the first to adopt bitcoin as legal tender.
 It lost more than 60 million USD during its bitcoin experiment and faced an
economic crisis and a very high deficit.

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Ban on Caste Discrimination
 Seattle has become the first city in the US to bring in legislation banning caste-
based discrimination.
 It prohibits “businesses from discriminating based on caste with respect to hiring,
tenure, promotion, workplace conditions or wages.”
 Over 1,67,000 people from South Asia live in Washington state, largely
concentrated in the Greater Seattle area.
 In December 2019, Brandeis University near Boston became the first U.S. college
to include caste in its non-discrimination policy.

Vanuatu and climate justice

 A group of 16 countries has launched a gallant effort to fight the problem of
climate change at the United Nations (UN).
 The group led by Vanuatu, seeks an advisory opinion from the International
Court of Justice (ICJ) on the issue of climate change.
 Vanuatu launched an initiative, through the UNGA, to seek an advisory opinion
from the ICJ to “clarify the legal obligations of all countries to prevent and redress
the adverse effects of climate change”.
 The ICJ has two types of jurisdictions: contentious and advisory.
 While contentious jurisdiction refers to resolving legal disputes between
consenting states, under advisory jurisdiction.
 Unlike decisions given under the contentious jurisdiction, the ICJ’s advisory
opinions are non-binding.
 The ICJ’s advisory opinion on climate change will also be handy in climate-related
litigation at the national level.

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Intercontinental ballistic missile Hwasong 5
 North Korea launched its Hwasong-15 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) in
open waters of the East Sea of Korea.
 The missile flew 989 km with a maximum altitude of 5,768 km.
 It had the capacity to reach the continental United States given a normalized
range of 14,000 kilometres.
 The missile had its maiden flight in 2017.

Munich Security Conference

 Munich Security Conference (MSC) is an annual conference on contemporary
global security policy challenges in Munich, Germany.
 The MSC was founded by a German official and publisher Ewald-Heinrich von
Kleist at the peak of the Cold War (1947-1991).

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  The conference, started in 1963 and initially only focused on military issues.
 It was mainly attended by western countries and their high-profile officials.
 After the end of the Cold War, it expanded its agenda that went beyond defence
and security matters to include issues such as climate change and migration.
 It also started to invite leaders from eastern nations, including Russia, India and
China.

Global Security Initiative

 A new Global Security Initiative (GSI) was proposed by Chinese President

Recently.
 GSI calls for a "common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable" security
and building an Asian security model of mutual respect, openness and
integration”.
 It aims to counter the US Indo-Pacific strategy and the Quad (India, US,
Australia, Japan grouping).
 China held that the Global security initiative is envisaged to uphold the principle
of "indivisible security”.
 The principle of "indivisible security" means that no country can strengthen its
own security at the expense of others.

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Asia Energy Transition Initiative (AETI)
 Japan plans to provide support to India to drive the transition to clean energy,
expanding Japan's 'Asia Energy Transition Initiative'.
 Japan’s Asia Energy Transition Initiative (AETI) was launched in 2021.
 Initially it supported the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN)
countries towards achieving net zero emissions.
 India has set an ambitious target of achieving net zero by 2070.
 Japan has initiated a goal of becoming net zero by 2050.
 The countries are utilising new technologies and economic models that would
help reduce emissions.

Cobra Warrior exercise

 The Cobra Warrior Exercise is to be held at Waddington Air Force Base, England.
 It is a multilateral Air exercise in which Air Forces from Finland, Sweden, South
Africa, the United States of America and Singapore would be participating.

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  India is also participating in the exercise with Mirage 2000 fighters, C-17
Globemaster III and an IL-78 mid-air refueller aircraft.

India-ASEAN Digital Work Plan 2023

 The 3rd ASEAN Digital Ministers (ADGMIN) meeting with India was held on a
virtual platform.
 India-ASEAN Digital Work Plan 2023 approved during the meeting.
 This plan includes initiatives for capacity building and knowledge sharing in
areas such as AI in Cybersecurity, IoT and AI in Next Generation Smart Cities,
and the role of ICTs in implementing digital health and security.
 The theme of the meeting was “Synergy towards a Sustainable Digital Future”.
 The main objective of the meeting was to enhance the strength between India and
ASEAN in the field of IT.

Quad Cyber Challenge

 The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue or Quad launched a public campaign 'Quad
Cyber Challenge' to improve cyber security across their nations.
 The Quad has invited Internet users across the Indo-Pacific and beyond to
become part of the challenge and practice "safe and responsible cyber habits.
 It is the continuous efforts of Quad nations to bolster cyber security awareness
and action and to foster a more secure and resilient cyber ecosystem to benefit
economies and users.

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  The action in India is being coordinated by the office of the National Cyber
Coordinator with the National Security Council Secretariat.
 The Quad is comprising India, United States, Japan and Australia.

9th Asian Ministerial Energy Roundtable (AMER9)

 India hosted 9th Asian Ministerial Energy Roundtable in association with the
International Energy Forum (IEF) in Bengaluru.
 Theme for this event was “Mapping new pathways for energy security, inclusive
growth and energy transitions.”
 India has met its commitment of 40% of its installed electricity capacity from non-
fossil energy sources by 2030 November 2021.
 The International Energy Forum (IEF) is the world’s largest energy organization
with 71 member countries.
 The members accounting for 90 per cent of the global energy market.

Fifth International MPA Congress

 Recently, the 5th International Marine Protected Areas Congress (IMPAC5) was
held in Canada.
 It aims to discuss the solutions to address the Funding Gap of Marine Protected
Areas (MPAs).
 IMPAC5 aims to provide a forum for sharing knowledge, successes and best
practices in an open and respectful environment for the exchanging of ideas
among a diversity of views.
 Three marine protected areas (MPAs) won prestigious Blue Park Awards in the
event.

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Ban on gas, diesel car sales
 The European Parliament has approved the law to ban the sale of new gas and
diesel cars in the EU, starting in 2035.
 But the manufacturers can still make the cars and sell them in other countries
 The new legislation sets the path towards zero CO2 emissions for new passenger
cars and light commercial vehicles in 2035.
 The Commission will present by 2025 a methodology to assess and report data
on CO2 emissions throughout the full life-cycle of cars and vans sold on the EU
market.
 This regulation encourages the production of zero- and low-emission vehicles.

IDEX and NAVDEX

 Indian Navy has sent INS Sumedha to participate in NAVDEX 23 (Naval Defence
Exhibition) and IDEX 23 (International Defence Exhibition).
 The IDEX-UAE is considered to be a strategically important tri-service defence
exhibition internationally.

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  This is the only international defence exhibition and conference which takes place
in the Middle East and North Africa region (MENA) region.
 It displays the latest, state of the art technology available globally in the defence
sector – across land, sea and air.
 INS Sumedha is the 3rd ship of the indigenously built Saryu class Naval Offshore
Patrol Vessels (NOPV) which was commissioned into the Indian Navy in 2014.

Exercise Desert Flag VIII

 UAE is hosting 3-week long Exercise Desert Flag VIII.

 It is a multilateral air exercise involving the participation of UAE, France, Kuwait,
Australia, the UK, Bahrain, Morocco, Spain, the Republic of Korea, and the US.
 It aims to bring about the interoperability of different fighter engagements and
sharing of best practices of various Air Forces.
 The IAF would be participating with five LCA Tejas and two C-17 Globemaster III
aircraft.
 This is the first occasion when the LCA Tejas shall participate in an international
flying exercise outside India.

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Malabar Exercise 2023
 Malabar 2023 is scheduled to be held in August this year and Australia will host
this edition.
 Australia was included as a permanent member of Ex Malabar in 2020.
 Japan joined the Naval Exercises in 2015.
 Japan hosted the last edition of Malabar which was held in November 2022.
 2022 edition marked 30 years of the exercise which began as a bilateral exercise
between India and the U.S. in 1992.

World’s longest calligraphic mural

 Saudi Arabia has installed the longest calligraphic mural in the world on King
Abdul Aziz Street, the road that leads to Makkah’s Grand Mosque.
 The 75-meter-long mural, designed by artist Amal Felemban, joins an array of
sculptures and installations.
 The mural presents a beauty that carries the heritage of people, their ideas and
their history throughout the ages.

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New Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies
 Switzerland is the first WTO member to formally accept the new Agreement on
Fisheries Subsidies.
 Singapore became the second member to ratify this agreement.
 WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies was adopted at the 12th Ministerial
Conference in 2022.
 The agreement is prohibiting harmful fisheries subsidies, which are a key factor
in the widespread depletion of the world’s fish stocks.
 Developing Countries and Least Developed Countries have been allowed a
transition period of two years from the date of entry into force of this Agreement.
 It is the first WTO agreement to focus on the environment, the first broad,
binding, multilateral agreement on ocean sustainability.
 Also, this is the second agreement reached at the WTO since its inception.

Bluesky

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  Jack Dorsey, Twitter's former CEO and founder launched his own social media
platform, called Bluesky.
 Bluesky is based on the principle of allowing users to build a shared and open
social media platform.

The Qatar Ministerial Meeting on South-South Cooperation

 A Ministerial Meeting on South-South Cooperation has been held during LDC5
(Least Developed Countries).
 It aims to explore concrete, innovative and actionable solutions.
 The South-South cooperation track aims to provide a platform to forge broad
partnerships in support of deliverables of the Doha Programme of Action.

UN High Seas Treaty

 Members of the United Nations have agreed on an international treaty to protect
biodiversity in international waters, which cover nearly two-thirds of the ocean.
 It is also referred to as the ‘Paris Agreement for the Ocean’.
 In 1982, the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, or UNCLOS was adopted.
 The Convention delineated rules to govern the oceans and the use of its
resources.
 But there was no comprehensive legal framework that covered the high seas.
 Parts of the sea that are not included in the territorial waters or the internal
waters of a country are known as the high seas, according to the 1958 Geneva
Convention on the High Seas.
 It is the area beyond a country’s Exclusive Economic Zone which extends up to
200 nautical miles (370 km) from the coastline.
 No country is responsible for the management and protection of resources on the
high seas.

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  The high seas account for more than 60% of the world’s ocean area and cover
about half of the Earth’s surface.
 At the COP of the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP15), countries agreed
to protect 30% of oceans by 2030.
 It is a part of the ’30 x 30 pledge’ made by the historic Kunming-Montreal Global
Biodiversity Framework (GBF).

50th anniversary of CITES

 The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and
Flora (CITES) was signed in 3rd March 1973.
 CITES is an international treaty that aims to regulate and monitor the trade of
endangered plants and animals, including their parts and derivatives.
 Under CITES, member countries are required to regulate and monitor the trade
of endangered species through a system of permits and quotas.
 They must also report regularly on their implementation of the treaty and
collaborate with other countries to ensure its effectiveness.
 CITES protects almost 40,000 species against over-exploitation because of
international trade.
 Currently, CITES has 184 parties.

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Undernourished and Overlooked

 UNICEF released a report named ‘Undernourished and Overlooked: A Global

Nutrition Crisis in Adolescent Girls and Women’.
 It examines the current status, trends and inequities in the nutritional status of
adolescent girls and women of reproductive age.
 The number of pregnant and breastfeeding adolescent girls and women suffering
from acute malnutrition has soared from 5.5 million to 6.9 million or 25 per cent
since 2020 in 12 countries.
 The 12 countries are including Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Chad, Ethiopia,
Kenya, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan and Yemen.
 Globally, 51 million children under 2 years suffer stunting, meaning they are too
short for their age due to malnutrition.
 South Asia and sub-Saharan African remain the epicentre of the nutrition crisis
among adolescent girls and women.
 They are the home to 2 in 3 adolescent girls and women suffering from
underweight globally, and 3 in 5 adolescent girls and women with anaemia.
 In 2021, there were 126 million more food insecure women than men, compared
to 49 million more in 2019.

FRINJEX-23
 The maiden joint military exercise, FRINJEX-23, between the Indian Army and
French Army conducted at the Pangode military station, Kerala.
 It is for the first time that both countries are engaging in this format with each
contingent comprising a Company Group.
 The exercise is aimed at enhancing inter-operability, coordination, and
cooperation between both forces at tactical the level.

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  The theme for the exercise is based on “Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster
Relief Operations in a Contested Environment”.

IMX/CE-23 Exercise

 INS Trikand is taking part in the International Maritime Exercise/ Cutlass

Express 2023 (IMX/CE-23), being held at the Gulf region.
 It is organized by the US-led Combined Maritime Forces (CMF), a 34-nation naval
group.
 Trikand will participate in the exercise alongside participants from over 50
nations and international maritime agencies.
 IMX/CE-23 is one of the world’s largest multinational maritime exercises.
 While this is the Indian Navy’s first IMX participation, it is also the second time
an Indian Naval ship has participated in a CMF exercise.

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  Previously, in November 2022, INS Trikand took part in the CMF-led Operation
Sea Sword 2.

Maritime Partnership Exercise (MPX)

 Indian Navy’s INS Sahyadri participated in Maritime Partnership Exercise (MPX)

along with French Navy ships held in the Arabian Sea.
 The exercise witnessed a wide spectrum of evolutions at sea which included cross
deck landings, boarding exercises and seamanship evolutions.
 INS Sahyadri is the advanced, stealth-minded, guided-missile frigate warship of
the Shivalik class.

Graduate from Least Developed Countries

 Bhutan become the seventh nation to graduate from the United Nations’ (UN) list
of Least Developed Countries (LDC).
 Bangladesh, Laos, and Nepal were suggested for deletion from the list at the UN’s
triennial review of LDC nations in 2021.
 In 1971, Bhutan was added to the initial list of LDCs.
 Bhutan first achieved graduation criteria in 2015 and then again in 2018.
 Bhutan was so expected to complete its graduation in 2021.
 With an average annual growth rate of more than 7 per cent, Bhutan’s economy
has grown more than eight times in the previous 20 years.
 Its hydropower exports to India currently make about 20% of its economy.
 UN definition for LDC: A country that exhibits the lowest indicators of socio
economic development, with low levels of income, human capital, and economic
diversification, high levels of economic vulnerability, and a population that is
disproportionately dependent on agriculture, natural resources, and primary
commodities.

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  The UN now recognises 46 nations as LDCs.
 One from the Caribbean, 9 from Asia, 33 from Africa, and 3 from the Pacific region
make up the remaining group.

Silicon Valley Bank Collapse

 The Silicon Valley Bank was closed by California banking regulators of USA.
 This is the biggest retail banking failure since the global financial crisis in 2008.
 US regulators shuttered Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) and took control of its
deposits.
 Silicon Valley Bank is known for lending money to some of the biggest technology
startups.
 Silicon Valley Bank invested most of its assets in US bonds.
 To bring down the inflation rates, the federal reserve last year began raising
interest rates, which resulted in the bond values going down.
 It had lost nearly $2 billion.

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  After the bank's closure, nearly $175 billion of customer deposits are now under
the control of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).
 The FDIC has created a new bank, the National Bank of Santa Clara.
 That will now hold all the assets of Silicon Valley Bank.

Kill Web strategy

 South Korean military would use a more effective operational concept, “Kill Web”.
 This will eliminate threats from North Korea’s advancing nuclear and missile
capabilities even at the prelaunch stage.
 It is a multi-layered system that uses advanced warfare techniques such as cyber
operations and electronic warfare.
 The Kill Web is a flexible strategy that allows field officers to modify their initial
target selections to maximize strike operations.
 Currently, the nation uses the Kill Chain mechanism, under its Three Axis
System.
 Unlike the Kill Web, the Kill Chain uses a single path and is less flexible.

Sea Dragon 23
 The Indian Navy’s P8I aircraft participated in Sea Dragon 23, Guam of USA.
 It is the third edition of the coordinated multilateral anti-submarine warfare
(ASW) exercise for long-range maritime reconnaissance aircraft.
 The exercise aimed to consolidate their shared commitment to regional and global
security challenges.

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  The Exercise also aims to achieve high levels of synergy and coordination between
the friendly navies.

3rd edition of La Perouse

 The two-day multilateral maritime exercise La Perouse was held in the Indian
ocean.
 The French navy is the in-charge of this drill.
 Personnel, ships and integral helicopters of the Australian Navy, French Navy,
Indian Navy, Japanese force, and United States participated in this event.
 It aims to enhance maritime co-ordination among the participant navies.

Common Currency for Brazil and Argentina

 Brazil and Argentina are starting preparatory work on having a common
currency.
 The new currency Brazil suggests called as "sur" (south).

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  It could boost regional trade and reduce reliance on the U.S. dollar.
 It would at first run in parallel with the Brazilian real and Argentine peso.
 A currency union that covered all of Latin America would represent about 5 per
cent of global GDP.
 The world’s largest currency union, the euro, encompasses about 14 per cent of
global GDP when measured in dollar terms.

Doha Political Declaration

 The Fifth United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries LDC5
conference held under the theme “From Potential to Prosperity” at Qatar.
 The LDC5 concluded with adoption of the ‘Doha Political Declaration’ by the world
leaders.
 The 10-year plan to put the world’s 46 most vulnerable countries back on track
to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).
 In the last decade, debt service costs in LDCs have jumped to over 20 per cent
from around 5 per cent in 2011.

Gender self-determination law

 Spanish lawmakers approved a transgender law letting anyone 16 and older
change the gender on their ID card.
 In Europe, Denmark was the first country to grant such a right in 2014.
 This law recognises the right of trans people to self-determine their gender
identity, it depathologises trans people.

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Australia - Anniversary of Stolen Generation Apology

 As many as one in three Indigenous children were removed from their families
between 1910 and the 1970s in a bid to assimilate them into white society.
 In 1995, the Human Rights Commission of Australia launched a nationwide
investigation and collected more than 1000s of stolen generation children.
 In 1997, “Bringing them Home” was launched.
 In 2008, farmer Prime Minister of Australia Kevin Rudd formally apologized to
the indigenous people of Australia.
 In 2023, the Australian Government is marking the 15th Anniversary of Stolen
Generation Apology.

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King Charles III stamp
 New stamps featuring the image of King Charles were revealed recently.
 The new so-called "definitive stamp" is intended for everyday use and consisting
solely of the monarch's head.
 From coins and banknotes and to the official royal cypher used by the
government.
 Britain has been slowly introducing replacements featuring the new monarch.
 Charles is the seventh British monarch to appear on a definitive stamp.

Arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin

 The international criminal court (ICC) in the Hague has issued an arrest warrant
for Vladimir Putin for overseeing the abduction of Ukrainian children.
 Russia does not recognise the court’s jurisdiction, and it was not affected by the
warrants.
 But the Russian leader will face limits on his freedom of travel to the ICC’s 123
member states.
 India is also not an ICC member.
 And Putin is expected to travel to New Delhi at the end of the year for the G20
world leaders' summit.
 The ICC does not recognise immunity for heads of state in cases involving war
crimes, crimes against humanity or genocide.

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NZIA and CRMA

 The European Union (EU) has recently announced two major legislations.
 They are the Net Zero Industry Act (NZIA) and the Critical Raw Materials Act
(CRMA).
 The NZIA aims to meet at least 40 per cent of the EU’s green technology needs
through domestic manufacturing by 2030.
 Eight technologies are identified as “strategic net zero technologies”.
 The CRMA aims reduce the EU’s reliance on imports of critical raw materials by
setting goals for their extraction, processing, and recycling within the EU.
 The expected reduction level is, at least 10 per cent of the EU’s annual
consumption for extraction, 40 per cent for processing, and 15 per cent for
recycling by 2030.

AFINDEX-23
 The second edition of the Africa-India Field Training Exercise (AFINDEX 2023)
began at Pune.
 The first Africa-India Field Training Exercise was held in Pune in March 2019.
 The exercise is divided into four phases in which trainers would be initially
trained.

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  This would be followed by a humanitarian mine action and a peace-keeping
operations phase.

India-Bangladesh Friendship Pipeline

 Prime Ministers of India and Bangladesh virtually inaugurated the India-

Bangladesh Friendship Pipeline.
 This is the first cross border energy pipeline between India and Bangladesh.
 The 131.57Km long pipeline runs from Siliguri, West Bengal to Parbatipur,
Bangladesh.
 The Pipeline has a capacity to transport 1 Million Metric Ton Per Annum (MMTPA)
of High-Speed Diesel (HSD).
 The fuel transport deal will be effective for 15 years with an option for further
extension.

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 ECONOMY

India’s first Municipal Bond Index

 NSE Indices Limited launched India’s first-ever Municipal Bond Index.
 The Nifty India Municipal Bond Index tracks the performance of municipal bonds
issued by Indian municipal corporations across maturities and having
investment-grade credit rating.
 The index includes municipal bonds issued as per the Securities Exchange Board
of India Issue and Listing of Municipal Debt Securities Regulations, 2015.
 Presently, the index has 28 municipal bonds issued by 10 issuers all having
credit rating in the AA rating category.

Global sovereign debt roundtable

 Global Sovereign Debt Roundtable was held in Bengaluru.
 It was co-chaired by the IMF, the World Bank and India.
 It brought in key stakeholders to discuss issues that have been impeding a timely
debt restructuring process.

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  Sovereign Debt is the debt the government of a country owes to a financial
organization.
 This includes both domestic and foreign financial organizations.

Global trade and technology council of India

 India and the European Union announced setting up of a new Trade and
Technology Council (TTC).
 The TTC is a strategic coordination mechanism that will allow both partners to
tackle challenges at the nexus of trade, trusted technology and security.
 Under the TTC, three working groups have been established.
 The first working group is on strategic technologies, digital governance and digital
connectivity.
 The second one will cover green and clean energy technologies.
 The third working group is on trade, investment and resilient value chains.
 The ministerial meetings of the TTC will take place at least once a year, with the
venue alternating between the EU and India.
 It is the second such TTC after the first one with the United States that was firmed
up in June 2021.

India’s per capita income

 The National Statistical Office (NSO) had released the second advance estimates
of national income and expenditure components of GDP, 2022-23.
 India's per capita income has doubled in nominal terms since 2014-15.
 The per capita national income (at current prices) was Rs 86,647 in 2014-15.
 It is now Rs 172,000.
 This is an increase of 98.5%.

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  Per capita income is a measure of the average income earned per person in a
given area in a specified year.
 It is calculated by dividing the area’s total income by its total population.
 If the per capita population of a country has increased, it doesn’t mean the
income of the entire population has increased.
 As per the Oxfam India’s report, the top 1% of the population in India owned
more than 40.5% of the total wealth in 2021.
 While the bottom 50% or 700 million people, had around 3% of the total wealth.

India Venture Capital Report 2023

 Bain & Company released its annual India Venture Capital Report 2023.
 As per the report, venture capital investments in India saw a decrease in deal
value of 33% from $38.5 billion to $25.7 billion in 2022.
 Software-as-a-service and fintech will continue to be significant segments for
investors
 The two sectors together contributed roughly 35% and 25% to the overall funds
that came to Indian startups in 2022 and 2021.
 Investments grew 1.4x over the first half of 2021–2022.
 It saw a 70% decline in the second half of 2022 compared to the second half of
2021.

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India’s sugar shipments
 Sugar exports from India Between 2017-18 and 2021-22 have soared from
$810.9 million to $4.6 billion.
 During the 2016-17 and 2017-18 sugar years (Oct-Sept), India’s shipments were
a mere 0.46 lakh tonnes (lt) and 6.2 lt respectively.
 They had zoomed to 110 lt by 2021-22.
 The biggest importers of Indian raw sugar were Indonesia (16.73 lt), Bangladesh
(12.10lt), Saudi Arabia (6.83 lt), Iraq (4.78 lt) and Malaysia (4.15 lt).
 India has become the world’s No. 2, next only to Brazil (255.40 lt).

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 SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Deepest Region of the Earth

 The fifth layer of Earth has been uncovered by scientists working to unlock the
geological mysteries of the planet.
 The crust, mantle, outer core, and inner core were once thought to make up the
Earth’s structure.
 The team analysed the variation of travel times of seismic waves for different
earthquakes.
 They found that crystallised structure within the inner core’s innermost region is
likely different from the outer layer.
 This structure is an 800-mile (1,350-kilometre) wide solid ball of iron and nickel
which is fiercely hot.
 This layer is a solid ‘metallic ball’ that sits within the centre of the inner core.

1D Wormhole Corrosion
 Scientists have recently discovered a new form of corrosion known as the 1D
wormhole corrosion.
 The 1D wormhole corrosion is a highly localized form of penetrating corrosion
that occurs in a nickel-chromium alloy when exposed to molten fluoride salt.
 This type of corrosion leads to the development of a percolating network of
tunnels along grain boundaries.
 These tunnels are filled with molten salt and leave voids along the grain
boundaries.
 It has important implications for the understanding of material degradation
mechanisms in molten salt environments.
 Molten salts are a key candidate for coolants in next-generation nuclear power
plants.

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  The use of molten salts as coolants is particularly attractive because they have a
high thermal conductivity and a high boiling point.
 This makes them ideal for transferring heat away from the reactor core and for
generating electricity.

CE-20 cryogenic engine

 ISRO has successfully conducted the flight acceptance hot test of the CE-20
cryogenic engine.
 It will power the Cryogenic Upper Stage of the LVM3 launch vehicle for the
Chandrayaan-3 mission.
 Chandrayaan-3 interplanetary mission has three major modules — the
Propulsion module, Lander module and Rover.

Interstellar Boundary Explorer

 NASA’s Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) spacecraft is fully operational after
successful reset.

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  IBEX is a small spacecraft designed to map the boundary (heliosphere) where
winds from the Sun interact with winds from other stars.
 It was launched in 2008 and has spent nearly 15 years in space already.

Decommission of Megha-Tropiques 1
 A decommissioned Indo-French weather satellite, Megha-Tropiques 1 (MT-1), was
safely disintegrated in the Earth’s atmosphere.
 It was done by ISRO after the controlled re-entry operation that was successfully
carried out on March 7.
 The weather satellite was launched on October 12, 2011, as a collaborative effort
between ISRO and French space agency CNES.

Handover of NISAR satellite

 The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has received the NASA-ISRO SAR
(NISAR) satellite from the U.S. space agency.

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  NISAR is a Low Earth Orbit observatory jointly developed by NASA and ISRO.
 The satellite is expected to be launched in 2024 into a near-polar orbit.
 NISAR carries L and S dual-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR).
 According to ISRO, NISAR will map the entire globe in 12 days.

Influenza subtype H3N2

 Two persons have succumbed to the H3N2 subtype of seasonal influenza in India.
 The first recorded death from H3N2 this year was of an 82-year-old man in
Karnataka’s Hassan district.
 H3N2 is a non-human influenza virus that normally circulates in pigs and has
infected humans.
 This virus is known to be a subtype of Influenza A virus.
 Symptoms are similar to those of seasonal flu viruses and can include fever and
respiratory symptoms.
 H3N2 outbreaks can "indeed cause death" and are more severe than regular flu.

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Tsuchinshan - ATLAS - Comet C/2023 A3
 Astronomers discovered a new comet named C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS).
 The comet is currently between the orbits of Jupiter and Saturn, a billion
kilometres from Earth.
 It is currently about 680 million miles (1.09 billion kilometers) from Earth and
will make its nearest approach to the Sun.
 It will dazzle Earth's night sky in October 2024.
 And it will be as bright as many of stars or even the planet Venus.

SOFIA Telescope’s findings

 Scientists used Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) to
formulate a detailed map displaying the distribution of water on the moon.
 The telescope also detected heavy atomic oxygen in the upper layers of Earth's
atmosphere, the mesosphere, and the lower thermosphere.
 This is the first-time heavy oxygen has been found outside a laboratory.
 The oxygen 18 is stable isotope of oxygen.
 It has eight protons and 10 neutrons.
 Oxygenn-18 is used to determine the temperature at which ice forms at
temperatures in Arctic and Antarctic regions.

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High-speed process of star formation
 SOFIA Telescope have revealed a much more accelerated process of star
formation than previously believed.
 The Cygnus X region is a stellar nursery about 5,000 lightyears from the Earth,
with a vast luminous cloud of gas and dust.
 In the Cygnus X region, the gas clouds were found to consist of dense cores of
molecular hydrogen, surrounded by atomic shells.
 These clouds then interact with each other at high speeds, to dynamically and
quickly form new stars.
 The new findings can better explain the process by which particularly massive
stars can be formed.

Multi-Angle Imager for Aerosols (MAIA)

 NASA will be partnering with the Italian Space Agency ASI to build and launch
MAIA, or the Multi-Angle Imager for Aerosols missions.
 The joint mission will investigate the health impacts of air pollution in the world’s
most populated cities.

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  The MAIA observatory will consist of the PLATiNO-2 satellite.
 It will collect and analyse data from the observatory, sensors on the ground and
atmospheric models.

Chat GPT-4
 Microsoft Corp-backed startup OpenAI began the rollout of GPT-4.
 It is a powerful artificial intelligence model that succeeds the technology behind
the wildly popular ChatGPT.
 GPT-4 is "multimodal", which means it can generate content from both image and
text prompts.
 GPT-3.5 takes only text prompts, whereas the latest version of the large language
model can also use images as inputs to recognize objects in a picture and analyse
them.
 GPT-3.5 is limited to about 3,000-word responses.
 The new GPT-4 can generate responses of more than 25,000 words.

World’s 1st Sand battery

 Finland has installed the world’s first sand battery that can store heat from
renewable energy sources for months.
 It is connected to the town’s centralised heating network that keeps buildings
and public water systems warm.
 The storage has 100 kW of heating power and 8 MWh of capacity.
 Sand or sand-like materials are used as the store medium in a high-temperature
thermal energy storage system known as a "sand battery."
 Sand acts as a heat reservoir for energy.
 Its primary function is to serve as a high-power and high-capacity energy storage
system for extra wind and solar energy.
 The energy is converted into heat, which can be utilised to heat buildings and
other uses.

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Anti-Submarine Craft INS Androth

 The INS Androth, second in a series of eight Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow

Water Craft (ASW SWC), was launched in Kolkata.
 It is designed to conduct anti-submarine operations in coastal waters, low
intensity maritime operations and mine laying operations.
 The first ship of the series, the INS Arnala, was launched three months ago.

Alien vitamins sample

 The Hayabusa2 spacecraft spent a year and a half gathering rock samples from
the asteroid Ryugu.
 Organic compounds essential for life have been discovered these samples.
 The compounds discovered include niacin, which is also known as vitamin B3,
and uracil.
 It is one of the four nucleobases (nitrogen-containing compounds), that make up
RNA.

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  These molecules contain the instructions of how to build living organisms.
 Hayabusa2 was launched in December 2014 by the Japanese space agency
JAXA.
 It reached its target, the space rock Ryugu, in June 2018, stayed for a year and
a half to gather samples, and returned them to Earth in December 2020.

Launch of LVM3
 Indian Space Research Organisation’s heaviest payload rocket, LVM3 carrying 36
OneWeb satellites onboard took off from Sriharikota.
 The first set of 36 satellites was launched in LVM3-M2/OneWeb India-1 mission
on October 23, 2022.
 This is the sixth flight of LVM3.
 The LVM3 had five consecutive successful missions, including the Chandrayaan-
2 mission.

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 ENVIRONMENT

Agriculture Innovation Mission for Climate

 India has joined a global platform launched by the US and the UAE on the
margins of the I2U2.
 It aims to accelerate investment and support for climate-smart agriculture and
food systems innovation.
 I2U2 - Israel, India, the United States and the United Arab Emirates – is the
Business Forum held in Abu Dhabi.
 The Agriculture Innovation Mission for Climate (AIM4C) was launched by the two
nations in November 2021.
 IM4C seeks to increase investment in and support for climate-smart agriculture
and food systems innovation.
 To date, the AIM4C initiative has successfully increased these investments to
more than USD8 billion globally.

Bird Survey Dharoi 2023

 Birdwatchers from Gujarat, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh completed the
second two-day Bird Survey Dharoi 2023.
 Dharoi is a wetland and is spread over 107 square kilometres.
 There are more than 616 bird species in the state of Gujarat.
 The surveyors found only 193.
 The maiden Dharoi Bird Survey held in 2022.

Methane Global Tracker Report

 International Energy Agency (IEA) released its annual Methane Global Tracker
report.
 As per the report, the fossil fuel companies emitted 120 million metric tonnes of
methane into the atmosphere in 2022.
 This is only slightly below the record highs seen in 2019.
 The best performing countries are more than 100 times better than the worst.
 Norway and the Netherlands have the lowest emissions intensities.
 Countries in the Middle East such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates
also have relatively low emissions intensities.

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  Turkmenistan and Venezuela have the highest emissions.
 75 per cent of methane emissions from the energy sector can be reduced with the
help of cheap and readily available technology.
 The energy sector accounts for around 40 per cent of the total average methane
emissions from human activity.
 Oil and natural gas companies are known to release methane into the atmosphere
when natural gas is flared or vented.
 Methane is a greenhouse gas, which is responsible for 30 per cent of the warming
since preindustrial times, second only to carbon dioxide.

Global assessment of Soil Carbon

 The first FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization) Global assessment of Soil
Carbon in Grasslands measured the baseline of stocks of Soil Organic Carbon
(SOC).
 SOC is the amount of carbon stored in soil organic matter.

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  It is made in both semi-natural and managed grasslands and estimated their
potential of SOC sequestration.
 Grasslands contain approximately 20 per cent of the world’s SOC.
 The fodder gardens have a potential increase in soil carbon of 0.03 tonnes C/ha
per year.

Jerdon’s narrow-mouthed frog

 Uperodon montanus, a frog endemic to the higher altitudes of Western Ghats,
was rediscovered after 89 years Recently.
 It was studied last in 1934 by a British scientist.
 It is also known as Jerdon’s narrow-mouthed frog, Jerdon’s ramanella, mountain
dot frog, mountain globular frog, or Malabar Hill frog.
 This frog is considered a montane species and is restricted to higher altitude
ranges of 800-1,700 metres.
 They are distributed from near Wayanad south across the Palghat and the
Shencottah gaps to the Agasthyamalai hills.
 It is classified as ‘Near Threatened’ in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

ENSO Update
 As per the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) updates, a warming El Nino
event may develop in the coming months.
 The El Nino event may develop after three consecutive years of an unusually
stubborn and protracted La Nina.
 It will influence temperature and rainfall patterns in different parts of the world.
 The year 2016 is currently the warmest on record because of the combination of
El Nino and climate change.
 There is a 93% likelihood of at least one year until 2026 being the warmest on
record.

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  The current La Nina began in September 2020 with a brief break in the boreal
summer of 2021.
 La Nina has the opposite impacts on weather and climate as El Nino in affected
regions.
 La Nina has been associated with the persistent drought in the Greater Horn of
Africa and large parts of South America as well as above average rainfall in South
East Asia and Australasia.

‘CO2 Emissions in 2022’ report

 CO2 Emissions in 2022 Report was released by the International Energy Agency.
 Global energy-related emissions of carbon dioxide hit a record high last year.
 Global emissions from energy rose by 0.9% in 2022 to a record 36.8 billion
tonnes.
 Carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from coal grew by 1.6% last year
 CO2 emissions from oil rose by 2.5% but remained below pre-pandemic levels.
 Emissions in China decreased in 2022 due to the COVID lockdown.
 In the European Union, emissions decreased by 2.5%.
 The Asia Pacific region also saw unprecedented reductions (-1.8%).
 The emissions from the global industries decreased.
 The main reason behind the reduction was a 10% decrease in cement production
and a 2% decrease in steel production.
 Emissions due to natural gas decreased by 1.6%.

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  The biggest sectoral increase in emissions in 2022 came from electricity and heat
generation.

Global alliance for big cats

 India has proposed to launch a mega global alliance under its leadership to
protect big cats.
 It also assured support over five years with guaranteed funding of $100 million
(over Rs 800 crore).
 This International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA) will focus on the rehabilitation and
conservation of the seven big cats namely tigers, lions, leopards, snow leopards,
pumas, jaguars and chives.
 Its major activities will include advocacy, partnership, knowledge e-portal,
capacity building, eco-tourism, partnerships between expert groups and finance
tapping.

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151st anniversary of Yellowstone National Park
 Yellowstone National Park of USA, the first national park in the world, celebrated
its 151st anniversary.
 It is located in the northwest corner of Wyoming and extending into Montana and
Idaho.
 It was established by the US Congress on March 1, 1872 with the Yellowstone
National Park Protection Act.

Mimeusemia ceylonic
 Mimeusemia ceylonica, a rare moth species, was last recorded in Sri Lanka 127
years ago.
 This has been rediscovered now in Thoothukudi and Tirunelveli.
 George Hampson recorded Mimeusemia ceylonica at Thirukonamalai in Sri
Lanka in 1893.
 It was not recorded elsewhere across the world since then.

 This is the first time this moth species is being recorded in India.

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  Mimeusemia ceylonica species belonging to the subfamily Agaristinae and family
Noctuidae.
 It was first sighted in India during a moth survey conducted by Thalavai Pandi
in 2020 at the Agasthyamalai Community-based Conservation Centre (ACCC).
 ACCC situated in the buffer zone of Kalakad Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve (KMTR)
in Tirunelveli district.

“Don’t Choose Extinction” climate campaign

 The ‘Don’t Choose Extinction’ campaign was launched by the UN Development
Program (UNDP) to raise awareness about the climate emergency.
 It has won Gold and Silver in two different categories at the 2nd Annual Anthem
Awards.
 This was announced by the International Academy of Digital Arts & Science
(IADAS).
 The Awards are intended to celebrate mission-driven work and the social impact
of individuals, corporations and organizations.
 Its goal is to define a new benchmark for impactful work that inspires others to
take action in their communities.

Antarctic sea ice cover 2023

 In February 2023, sea ice around Antarctica reached the lowest extent ever
observed since the start of the satellite record in 1979.
 The figures were published by the US-based National Snow and Ice Data Centre
(NSIDC).
 Sea ice around Antarctica reached its lowest extent on February 21, 2023, at
1.79 million square Km (691,000 square miles).

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  It is 130,000 square kilometres (50,000 square miles) below the previous record-
low reached on February 25, 2022.
 It marks the second time that scientists observed the ice shrinking below 2
million square kilometers.

Translocation of Lions of Asiatic Lions

 The Gujarat government has planned to translocate 40 adult and sub-adult lions
to the Barda Wildlife Sanctuary.
 Barda sanctuary is located about 100 kilometres away from Gir National Park.

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  It has been identified as a potential site to accommodate the Asiatic Lions.
 As per the last count in 2020, there are 674 lions in the state and Gir has long
been overflowing with the big cats.
 The Supreme Court of India in 2013 had also ordered relocating some lions to
Madhya Pradesh to avoid the possibility of disease or some other disaster wiping
out the entire population.

Ganeshaiah’s Dwarf Gecko

 A new species of gecko has been discovered in the Male Mahadeshwara Hills in
Chamarajanagar, Karnataka.
 Researchers named the new species 'Cnemaspis ganeshaiahi' or Ganeshaiah's
dwarf gecko.
 KN Ganeshaiah is an agricultural scientist from University of Agricultural
Sciences (UAS) Bengaluru and noted Kannada writer.
 Previously, a grass species (Centotheca ganeshaiahiana) at the Saddle Peak
National Park, North Andaman, a small cryptic ant species (Parasyscia
ganeshaiahi) and a cycas species (Cycas uma-ganeshaiahi) were named after
him.

Aravalli Green Wall Project

 India launched its own green wall project that will, through afforestation, cover
roughly 1,400-km long and five-km wide green belt.
 This will be the buffer around the Aravalli Mountain range.
 It is covering parts of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana and Delhi.
 The ambitious project will involve planting native species of trees and shrubs on
scrubland, wasteland and degraded forest land.
 It will preventing eastward expansion of the Thar Desert.

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  The green belt will also act as a barrier for the dust coming from the western side
of the country to Delhi-NCR.
 The five-km buffer zone of the entire Aravalli covers 6.3 million hectares (Mha) of
land.

Moray eel

 Researchers have discovered a new species of Moray eel at the Mudasalodai fish
landing centre off the Cuddalore coast.
 The species has been named after Tamil Nadu as Gymnothorax tamilnaduensis.
 Tamil Nadu brown moray will be the common name of this species.
 This is the first ever record of this genus, Gymnothorax.
 About 28 species of Gymnothorax have been documented in Indian waters so far.

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 REPORTS AND INDICES

Foundational Literacy and Numeracy report

 The study was released by the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister
(EAC-PM) recently.
 It was prepared by the Institute for Competitiveness — the Indian wing of the
Institute for Strategy and Competitiveness at Harvard Business School.
 This is an indicator of literacy among children below 10 years of age.
 Punjab topped all key indicators like educational infrastructure, access to
education, basic health, learning outcomes and governance.
 West Bengal maintained its lead while Uttar Pradesh stood at the bottom among
large state categories.
 Among smaller states, Punjab was at the top of the index while Telangana was at
the bottom.
 While Puducherry topped the index among union territories Ladakh was the
worst performer.

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International IP Index
 India ranks 42nd among 55 leading global economies on the International IP
Index.
 It is released by the US Chambers of Commerce.
 This is a fall for India, which was at the 40th rank in 2021 and at the 25th place
(out of 25 countries assessed) in 2014.
 The United States ranks first in the index, followed by the UK and France.

Women, Business and the Law 2023 report

 Women, Business and the Law 2023 is the 9th in a series of annual report of
World Bank.
 It analyses laws and regulations affecting women’s economic opportunity in 190
economies.
 It has eight indicators such as Mobility, Workplace, Pay, Marriage, Parenthood,
Entrepreneurship, Assets, and Pension.

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  A perfect score of 100 on the Index means that women are on an equal standing
with men.
 Only 14 countries scored a perfect 100.
 India scored 74.4 in the index which was higher than the 63.7 average for the
South Asian region.
 But it is lower than Nepal which had the region’s highest score of 80.6.
 The Index used data on the laws and regulations applicable in Mumbai.
 In 2022, the global average score is 76.5 out of 100.

Price Growth in Luxury Housing

 Property consultant Knight Frank virtually released ‘The Wealth Report 2023’.
 Mumbai's rank has improved to 37th from 92nd in a global list of movement in
prices of luxury homes.
 Mumbai’s prime property market has seen a 6.4 percent price increase globally.
 In Bengaluru, prime property prices rose 3 percent and ranked 62nd.
 Delhi increased by 1.2 percent, moving it up to 77th from 93rd in 2021.
 This report tracks the movement in luxury house prices across the world
increased by 5.2 percent YoY (year-on-year) in 2022.
 As per the report, the prime residential prices in Dubai rose 44.2 percent in 2022
and ranked first.
 Colorado’s Aspen ranks 2nd with 27.6 percent growth in prices, followed by
Riyadh Riyadh (25 percent).

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Academic Freedom Index 2023
 This report was compiled by Swedish think tank V-Dem Institute and the
Institute of Political Science at the Friedrich Alexander University in Germany.
 The report provides an overview of academic freedom in 179 countries by
assessing five indicators.
 India’s academic freedom index is in the bottom 30% among 179 countries in
2022.
 India is among 22 countries and territories out of 179 in the world that achieved
this feat.
 India's immediate neighbours Nepal (0.86), Pakistan (0.45) and Bhutan (0.46)
scored higher than India whereas Bangladesh (0.25) and Myanmar (0.01) scored
lower than India.
 India’s freedom index score was high in the past, ranging from 0.60-0.70 between
1950 and 2012.
 Only five small countries (Gambia, Uzbekistan, Seychelles, Montenegro, and
Kazakhstan) improved their rankings.

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World Obesity Atlas 2023
 The World Obesity Federation has released a report “World Obesity Atlas 2023”.
 Childhood obesity in India is likely to see an annual rise of 9.1 per cent by 2035.
 In India, around 11 per cent people will be obese by 2035.
 Annual increase in adult obesity between 2020 and 2035 is to be 5.2 per cent.
 In 2020 boys in India had a 3 per cent obesity risk, but by 2035 the risk will
likely go up by 12 per cent.
 For girls the risk was 2 per cent in 2020, but in the next 12 years, it will rise to
7 per cent.
 Indian women in 2020 had an obesity risk of 7 per cent, which will rise to 13 per
cent by 2035.
 Men had a risk of 4 per cent in 2020, which will rise to 8 per cent in 12 years.
 Obesity risk will contribute to a total economic impact of UD 4.32 trillion by 2035
 It is equal to nearly 3 per cent of global GDP.
 The likely impact on India’s national GDP will be 1.8 per cent,

V-Dem Electoral Democracy report 2023

 India ranks 108th in the Electoral Democracy Index of the V-dem Democracy
report 2023.
 The country ranks way below countries such as Tanzania, Bolivia, Mexico,
Singapore and Nigeria.
 India has also been named in the top 10 autocratizing countries in the last 10
years in the report.
 India's ranking dipped from the 100th position in 2022 to 108th this year in the
report's Electoral Democracy Index (EDI).

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  It was 97th in the Liberal Democracy Index (LDI).
 Pakistan slipped two steps lower at 106th in the LDI and 110th in the EDI.
 The US ranked 23 in the LDI while Canada and the UK occupied 24th and 20th
spots, respectively.
 Denmark was ranked first with the highest comprehensive score in the LDI.
 Sweden and Norway occupy the second and third spot respectively.
 The report finds that inter-democracy world trade has declined to 47% in 2022
from 74% in 1998.
 46% of the world’s Gross Domestic Product now comes from autocracies and
democracies.

Mental State of the World Report

 The third annual mental state of the world report (MSW) was released by Sapien
Labs.
 The survey found that there has been little recovery in declining mental health
during the pandemic.

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  The group measures by a score called “mental health quotient”.
 It had found that average score had declined by 33 points over the past two years
and still showed no signs of recovery.
 People aged 18 to 24 also had a lower “social self”.
 It is a metric that measures how an individual perceives themselves and the
ability to maintain meaningful relationships.
 The global average Mental Health Quotient was 64.
 Tanzania, Panama, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic and Venezuela are
countries with the top 5 highest rankings of mental health.
 Britain, Ireland, Australia, South Africa and Brazil all have lower mental health
rankings.
 India placed at 49th rank and Pakistan in 48th place.
 Peru, India, Bolivia tops the list with over 42% more young adults 18-24
Distressed or Struggling with their mental health compared to those aged 55-64.
 The report did not include any details about China.

Wealth report 2023

 Knight Frank, a global real estate consultancy, was released its Wealth Report
2023.
 This report provides insights into the trends and performance of the prime
residential property market across the world.
 Among Indian respondents, 88 per cent saw a rise in UHNWI’s (ultra-high-net-
worth individuals) wealth in 2022.

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  Indian UHNWIs saw an increase in their wealth in excess of 10 per cent last year.
 While 47 per cent expect wealth to increase by more than 10 per cent.
 53 per cent expect wealth to rise by at least 10 per cent over the previous year.
 The survey also found that investable wealth of Indian UHNWIs is largely
allocated between equities, real estate and bonds.
 Allocation in equities is higher by Indian UHNWIs than wealthy people globally.

India Philanthropy Report 2023

 Recently the India Philanthropy Report 2023 was released by Dasra and Bain &
Co.
 The report, which is a comprehensive analysis of the state of philanthropy in
India, gives insights into interesting trends.
 Philanthropic contributions made by India's ultra-high net worth individuals
(UHNIs) dropped significantly.
 It was reduced to Rs 4,230 billion in FY22 from Rs. 11,821 billion the previous
financial year.
 UHNI contribution from all other sources decreased to Rs 3,843 crore in FY22
from Rs 4,041 crore in FY21.
 But the corporate social responsibility spending increased by 5%, amounting to
INR 27,000 crore in 2021-22.
 India's UNHIs have chosen to focus on education and health.
 CSR contributions are anticipated to increase at a rate of 19% annually.
 It may reach a proportion of around 32% of total private giving by FY 2026.

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  Relative contributions made by Indian UHNIs range from 0.1% to 0.15%.
 While they range from 1.2% to 2.5% in the US, 0.5% to 1.8% in the UK, and 0.5%
to 1.4% in China.

Special report by the IPES-Food

 The IPES-Food (International Panel of Experts on Sustainable Food Systems)
released a special report.
 60% of low-income countries are now considered at high risk of, or already in,
debt distress.
 Some 21 countries are nearing catastrophic levels of both debt distress and food
insecurity.

 Zambia, Sri Lanka, and Suriname already defaulted on their debts.

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  Ghana and Pakistan are currently in urgent talks to avoid default.
 The world’s poorest countries saw the costs of servicing their debt increase by
35% in 2022.
 They paid 47% of external debt payments to private lenders, 12% to China, 14%
to other governments and the remaining to multilateral institutions like the IMF.
 Several countries are now stuck in what has been described as a ‘fertilizer trap’.
 India, Kenya, and the Philippines are among a host of governments ramping up
fertilizer subsidies in the face of the crisis, alongside rising fuel import costs.

SIPRI report 2022

 The new data on global arms transfers between 2018 and 2022 released by the
Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).
 India’s arms imports fell 11% between 2013-17 and 2018-22.
 In 2022, India’s imports fell 21% between 2012-16 and 2017-21.
 But that the country was still the world’s biggest arms importer.
 India’s share of the global arms imports was the highest in the past five years at
11%.
 It is followed by Saudi Arabia (9.6%), Qatar (6.4%), Australia (4.7%) and China
(4.7%).
 The ranking system is dynamic as it depends on how orders are placed in a
particular year.
 France’s arms exports jumped 44% between 2013-17 and 2018-22.
 India is receiving 30% of its exports during the past five years.
 US was the world’s top most military exporter in the past five years, accounting
for 40% of global exports.
 It is followed by Russia (16%), France (11%), China (5.2%) and Germany (4.2%).
 US arms exports jumped 14% between 2013-17 and 2018-22.
 Russia’s fell 31% during the same period.
 Russia’s imports to India fell 37%.
 Ukraine was the third biggest importer of major arms in 2022.
 The report also highlighted that arms imports, especially long-range strike
weapons, rose in South Korea by 61 per cent, in Japan by 171 per cent, and in
Australia by 23 per cent.

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Hunger Funding Gap Report 2023
 A report titled “2023 Hunger Funding Gap Report: What’s Needed to Stop the
Global Hunger Crisis” was released recently by Action Against Hunger.
 According to this report, countries facing intense hunger crises received lesser
hunger funding than the countries that have comparatively lesser hunger crises.
 The report noted a hunger funding gap of 53%. In 2022.
 Only 3 per cent of hunger programme needs were fully funded.
 Around 65 per cent of appeals were not fulfilled even to a halfway point.
 47% of the global hunger needs are met through UN funds.
 Thus, the Hunger Funding Gap stands at 53%.
 828 million people were affected by hunger in 2021.
 This is 46 million people more than the year earlier and 150 million more from
2019.
 It requires 4 billion USD to stop the hunger crisis in the world.
 Mozambique and Kenya received 32% higher funding than Afghanistan and Haiti.

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Mind the Gender Gap Report
 The report titled “Mind the Gender Gap” was released recently by the CFA
Institute.
 Women’s participation rate in finance and related sectors are low in India.
 The average female participation rate across companies in our sample was 12.7%.
 Among sectors, IT companies had the highest female participation rates, at 30%,
followed by financial services (22.4%).
 Only 15.9 per cent are employed in key managerial positions.
 The ratio of women to men was 0.97.
 It drops down to 0.52 for key management personnel and around 0.64 for
directors.
 69% had no women working in their companies.

World’s Greatest Places of 2023

 The TIME magazine has released its annual list of the 'World's Greatest Places'
for the year 2023.
 The list which has 50 spots includes two Indian places.
 Mayurbhanj and Ladakh, have been selected for their rare tigers and ancient
temples, and adventures and eats, respectively.
 Last year, Kerala and Ahmedabad were the Indian destinations in Time's 'World's
Greatest Places of 2022'.

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Global Report on Sodium Intake Reduction
 World Health Organization released a report named Global Report on Sodium
Intake Reduction.
 The report says the estimated global average salt intake is 10.8 grams per day.
 It is more than double the WHO recommendation of less than 5 grams per day in
adults.

 The report allocated a sodium country score from 1 (the lowest level) to 4 (the
highest level) to each member state.
 This score is based on the level of implementation of sodium reduction policies
and other measures.
 The sodium country score is used to estimate the impact of policy progress on
population dietary sodium intake and cardiovascular disease.
 Although all 194 WHO member countries committed to the target set in 2013,
only 5% have implemented comprehensive sodium-reduction policies,
 Of the 194 WHO member states, 56 remain in score 1 in the sodium country
score card.

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  Ninety-eight implemented either voluntary, or mandatory policies and other
measures, and scored higher.
 Such policies could save an estimated 7 million lives globally by 2030.

The World Happiness Report 2023

 This is the 10th year of the World Happiness Report.
 It is published by the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions
Network.
 Finland has maintained its position as the world’s happiest country for the sixth
consecutive year.
 Six different factors go into determining a country’s happiness quotient.
 These include GDP per capita, social support, healthy life expectancy, freedom,
generosity and low corruption.
 India’s rank improved from 136th (2022) to 126th in 2023 Report.
 India is still behind close neighbours like Sri Lanka (112), Pakistan (108), Nepal
(78) and China (64).
 The war raged Ukraine was positioned at 92 and Taliban ruled Afghanistan stood
in the list at the last spot (137th).

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5th Annual World Air Quality Report 2022

 The 5th Annual World Air Quality Report was released by IQAir.
 It states that roughly 60% of cities in India included in the report recorded annual
PM2.5 levels at least seven times higher than the WHO guidelines.
 The average PM2.5 level in 2022 was 53.3 pg/m3.
 It is only slightly lower than 58.1 pg/m3 in 2021.
 Bhiwadi in Rajasthan was the most polluted city in the country with PM levels of
92.7.
 Delhi is the most polluted metropolitan city with PM levels of 92.6.
 India has ranked eighth in the list of countries with the worst air quality index.
 It is dropped from the fifth spot the previous year.
 Lahore in Pakistan jumped more than 10 places to become the city with the worst
air in the world in 2022.
 12 of the 15 most polluted cities in Central and South Asia are in India.
 The PM2.5 levels in Bengaluru went up from 29 to 31.5 micrograms/cubic metre.
 In Hyderabad the increase was from 39.4 to 42.4 micrograms/cubic metre.
 Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai saw a marginal drop in the level of pollutants by a
few micrograms.

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  Kolkata remained the same.
 The US Pacific territory Guam had cleaner air than any country, with a PM2.5
concentration of 1.3.
 Canberra of Australia had the cleanest air for a capital city, with 2.8.

Global Terrorism Index

 Afghanistan retains the top spot in the list of country impacted by terrorism in
the new Global Terrorism Index report.
 It is released by the Australia-based Institute for Economics and Peace.
 Afghanistan has topped for the fourth consecutive year.
 India was ranked 13th on the index, marking only a marginal decrease from the
previous year.
 Pakistan has overtaken Afghanistan as the country with the most terrorist
attacks and death in South Asia.
 The report listed India among the 25 worst terror-hit countries, with a high
impact of terrorism and ranked 13th.

Report on social protection for children

 The International Labour Organization–UNICEF Second joint report on social
protection for children has been released.

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  Globally 26.4 per cent (just 1 in 4 children) of children aged 0-15 years are only
shielded by social protection.
 The remaining 73.6 per cent are exposed to poverty, exclusion and
multidimensional deprivations.
 Nearly 1.77 billion children aged 0-18 years lack access to a child or family cash
benefit
 It is a fundamental pillar of a social protection system.
 Regional disparities exist in effective social protection coverage for children.
 In the Americas, coverage is 57.4%, in the Arab States at 15.4 % and in Asia and
the Pacific, coverage is currently 18.0 %.
 31 Indian states have implemented the national “PM CARES for Children” scheme
launched during the pandemic.
 So far, only 4,302 children have received support from the scheme.

City Index 2023

 According to City Index, the United States has the highest number of female
billionaires in the world with 92 in total.
 China is in second place with 46 female billionaires.
 Germany takes third place with 32 female billionaires.

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  With 16 female billionaires Italy stood in fourth place.
 Australia, India and Hong Kong are home to the fifth highest number (9) of female
billionaires in the world.
 Savitri Jindal, an Indian politician and businesswoman, is the richest woman in
India.

Utility Bidder’s Deforestation Report

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  This report analysed deforestation trends of 98 countries in the last 30 years.
 India has seen the highest rise in deforestation in the last 30 years, with a stark
surge recorded between 2015 and 2020.
 During these years, the country was ranked second only after Brazil, with average
deforestation of 668,400 hectares.
 Indonesia witnessed a significant loss of forests due to palm oil cultivation.
 Soyabean cultivation is also responsible for significant deforestation globally.

UN Water Development Report 2023

 On the eve of World Water Day, UN World Water Development Report 2023 was
released.
 India is expected to be the most severely affected country by water scarcity by
2050.
 About 80% of the people living under water pressure are in Asia, especially
northeast China, India and Pakistan.
 26 per cent of the world's population do not have access to safe drinking water
 And 46 per cent lack access to basic sanitation.
 On average, “10% of the global population lives in countries with high or critical
water stress”.
 Up to 3.5 billion people live under conditions of water stress at least one month
a year.
 Globally, 80% of wastewater is released to the environment without any
treatment

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GCEW report on water
 The report is titled ‘The What, Why and How of the World Water Crisis: Global
Commission on the Economics of Water Phase 1 Review and Findings’ published
by the Global Commission on the Economics of Water (GCEW).
 India will face a reduction of over 16 % in food supply due to water and heat
stress in 2050.
 The report placed China at the top, where food supply would be reduced by
22.4%, followed by South America by 19.4%.
 Many Asian countries, including China and ASEAN members, who are currently
net food exporters, would become net food importers by 2050.
 The water supply availability in India is between 1100-1197 billion cubic meters
(bcm).
 In contrast, the demand is expected to grow from 550-710 bcm in 2010 to around
900-1,400 bcm in 2050.
 India ranks 13 globally on the facing water stress in 2019.

Technology and Innovation Report 2023

 This was released by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development
(UNCTAD).
 The developed countries are benefiting more from green technologies than
developing countries, and this could deepen global economic inequality.

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  The green technologies could create a market worth $9.5 trillion by 2030, up from
$1.5 trillion in 2020.
 The ‘frontier technology readiness index’ was included in this year report.
 As per this, only a few developing countries have the capacity to take advantage
of frontier technologies such as blockchain, drones, and solar power.
 It is dominated by high-income economies, notably the US, Sweden, Singapore,
Switzerland, and the Netherlands.
 Notably Brazil was ranked at 40, the Russian Federation at 31, India at 46, China
at 35, and South Africa at 56.

QS World University Rankings

 QS World University Rankings by Subject 2023 12th edition was released
recently.
 The QS Rankings highlights that the IIT Delhi has marked its place in top 50
institutions for engineering.
 India is ahead of 5 courses when it comes to marking its place in top 100.
 This year, 44 programmes offered by Indian higher education institutions in
different disciplines have figured in the top 100 globally.
 Last year, the number was 35.

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  IIT Bombay is 67th spot in mathematics.
 IIT-Kanpur has been ranked 87th in engineering-electrical electronic and in
computer science information systems 96th.
 IIT-Kharagpur has occupied 94th spot for computer science and information
systems.
 IIT-Madras to come at 98th spot for mathematics.

STATES

India’s first Marina

 Karnataka is set to get India's 1st Marina which will be constructed Byndoor in
the Udupi district.
 This project has been initiated to promote coastal tourism in the state.
 Marina is a specially designed place of pleasure for small boats and yachts.

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Bird’s eye chilly export to US
 Mizoram would soon export ‘bird’s eye chilli’ of the state to the United States for
the first time.
 The Government has obtained geographical identification (GI) tag for bird’s eye
chilli or ‘Mizo chilli’.
 The chilli is to be exported has passed an organic confirmation test in Bangalore
last week.
 The chillies are highly pungent.
 The Scoville Heat Units (SCU) of spiciness is 50,000 to 1,00,000.
 The higher the SCU are the greater their spiciness.
 They are widely grown in Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand, etc.

First women MLAs from Nagaland

 Two women created history in Nagaland by becoming the first two women to win
the Assembly polls.
 Hekani Jakhalu and Salhoutuonuo Kruse are both from Nagaland Chief Minister
Neiphiu Rio's Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party.
 No woman was elected an MLA in Nagaland, though the state has witnessed 14
Assembly elections since its formation.
 Four women were among the 183 candidates who contested this year's elections
for the Nagaland Assembly.

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International Dharma Dhamma Conference
 The President of India, inaugurated the 7th International Dharma Dhamma
Conference in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh.
 Theme of the event is "Eastern Humanism for the New Era"
 It is organised by the India Foundation in collaboration with the Sanchi
University of Buddhist-Indic Studies.
 India Foundation is a New Delhi-based independent think-tank that focuses on
issues, challenges and opportunities of Indian polity.

Indian States’ electricity transition Report

 India’s energy transition report was prepared by the Institute for Energy
Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) along with EMBER India.
 The report has analysed 16 states, which together account for 90% of India’s
annual power requirement.
 Karnataka and Gujarat are among the major states making the most progress in
transition to clean electricity.
 The analysis has tracked four dimensions of transition module.

Bhojpur’s Millet Festival

 The Bhojpur’s Millet Festival was organized in Bihar.
 It aims to increase the awareness among the people towards Shree Anna.
 Bihar is known to produce Jowar, Bajra, Ragi and Small Millets.

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  India accounts for 20% of the global millet production and 80% of Asia’s millet
output.
 However, millets still account for a mere 3% of the world grain trade.

New Gold Deposits

 Gold mines have been found at different locations of three districts (Deogarh,
Keonjhar and Mayurbhanj) of Odisha.
 An estimated 1,685 kg of gold ore has been detected by the Geological Survey of
India experts along with copper in the Adas area.
 Odisha is accounting for 98 per cent of the country’s chromite deposits.

New CMs of Meghalaya, Tripura and Nagaland

 National People's Party (NPP)'s Conrad Sangma took oath as Chief Minister of
Meghalaya.
 Prestone Tynsong and Sniawbhalang Dhar took oath as deputy chief ministers.
 Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP)'s Neiphiu Rio took oath as Chief
Minister of Nagaland.
 He is the longest serving chief minister and this is his fifth consecutive term.
 Manik Saha took oath as the Chief Minister of the coalition government in
Tripura.

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Yaoshang Festival
 The five-day-long Yaoshang festival is Manipur’s version of Holi.
 The festival is celebrated every year on the full moon of Lamta (February-March)
of the Meitei lunar calendar.
 Traditional “thabal chongba” dance held during the celebration.
 The thabal chongba is a traditional dance of the Meitei.

World's Longest Railway Platform

 Prime Minister dedicated World`s longest railway platform (1.5 km long) in
Hubballi, Karnataka.
 South Western Railway Zones Hubbali is now registered in the Guinness Book of
World Records for having the longest platform.
 Gorakhpur platform in Uttar Pradesh is the second longest at 1,366.33 meters.
 Kollam Junction in Kerala has the third longest platform at 1,180.5 meters.

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Bengaluru-Mysuru Expressway
 Prime Minister inaugurated the Bengaluru-Mysuru Expressway.
 The 118-km-long expressway will reduce the travel time between Bengaluru and
Mysuru from three hours to about 75 minutes.
 He also laid the foundation stone for the Mysore-Kushalnagar four-lane highway
which is about 92 km.

Ladli Bahna scheme

 Ladli Behna Scheme is a programme launched by Madhya Pradesh government.
 As part of the initiative, women from lower- and middle-class homes will get a
monthly transfer of Rs 1,000 into their accounts.
 It will help women become more financially independent and encourage their
effective participation in family decision-making.

Vote-From-Home
 Karnataka is all set to elect its next government in the elections in April-May.
 For this, the Election Commission of India has introduced the Vote-From-Home
Option.
 It will be beneficial to those above the age of 80 years and also those who are
suffering from any disabilities.
 This is for the first time that the Election Commission is providing this facility to
those above the age of 80 years.
 A mobile application 'Saksham' has been introduced through which they can
login and choose the facility to vote.
 Another mobile application called, 'Suvidha' has been developed.
 This is an online portal for candidates to file their nomination and affidavits.
 Candidates can use this portal to seek permission for meetings and rallies.

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Mulethi cultivation
 Himachal Pradesh has become the first state in India to start the organized
commercial cultivation of Licorice (Mulethi).
 Mulethi' (glycyrrhiza glabra) is not only used as a spice but also in ayurvedic
medicines.
 The presence of glycyrrhizin, which is 50 times sweeter than sucrose, gives the
roots a sweet flavour.
 In this, Antiviral, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and antibacterial properties are
present.
 Presently, it is largely imported from other countries.

India’s first ‘Trans Tea Stall’ at a railway platform

 All Assam Transgender Association got approval from Indian Railways for Trans
Tea Stall’.
 The first tea stall came up on Guwahati railway station's platform.
 It would empower the community and generate income for them.

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First methanol run buses
 For the first time, Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) run
some of its city buses using methanol-blended fuel.
 The buses will be operated on a pilot basis.
 These Buses run on 15% methanol-blended fuel.
 On this occasion, a truck that runs on 100% methanol (M 100) also launched.
 Blending 15% methanol in gasoline can result in at least a 15% reduction in the
import of gasoline/crude oil.
 In addition, this would bring down GHG emissions by 20%, thereby improving
urban air quality.

Beggar-free city
 In Maharashtra, a new initiative called ‘beggar-free city’ has been started in
Nagpur.
 This is the joint venture of Nagpur City police and Nagpur Municipal
Corporation’s (NMC) social welfare department.
 The NMC has made special arrangements to accommodate homeless people in
the shelters owned by it.

All India Women’s Folk Art Conference

 On the occasion of International Women's Day, an All-India Women's Folk Art
Conference was organised in Mumbai.
 It was organised by P. L. Deshpande Maharashtra Kala Academy, Government of
Maharashtra in association with Sangeet Natak Akademi.
 Two seminars on ‘Contribution of Indian Saint Poetess’ and ‘Folk Art on Silver
Screen’ also organised during the event.

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TB drug – Bedaquiline
 Pharma major Johnson and Johnson made application to extend its patent on
anti-Tuberculosis drug Bedaquiline that expires in July this year.
 The Indian Patent Office rejected this application.
 The patent would have extended J&J’s monopoly on the drug in India till 2027.
 But with this rejection, generic manufacturers can now make their own versions
at an affordable price from this year.

Bihar Diwas - March 22

 Bihar came into existence on March 22, 1912.
 Earlier, Bihar and Bengal provinces were the same.
 Bihar and Bengal were divided in 1912.
 Odisha was separated from Bihar in the partition of 1936.
 The third partition took place in 2000 when Jharkhand became a separate state.

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Right to Health Bill – Rajasthan
 The Right to Health (RTH) Bill was passed by the Rajasthan Assembly.
 It becomes the first Indian State to enact such Act.
 Under the law, neither government nor private hospitals nor doctors can refuse
a person seeking emergency treatment.
 Emergency treatment would include care in case of accidents, animal or snake
bite, complications in pregnancy or an emergency defined by the state health
authority.
 In such a case, a patient will not be required to make an advance deposit, or pre-
payment for either treatment or diagnostics even at a private hospital.
 In case a patient cannot pay for his treatment, the state government will
reimburse the hospital for the cost.
 Patient also gets the right to choose the shop or the lab from where he wants to
buy medicines.

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 PERSONALITIES, AWARDS AND EVENTS

Marconi Prize2023
 Computer scientist Hari Balakrishnan has been awarded the 2023 Marconi Prize.
 He has been cited “for fundamental contributions to wired and wireless
networking, mobile sensing, and distributed systems”.
 The Marconi Prize is a top honour for computer scientists and is awarded by the
U.S.-based Marconi Foundation.
 It is given to those “who have made a significant contribution to increasing digital
inclusivity through advanced information and communications technology.”
 Dr. Balakrishnan has previously won the Infosys Prize (2020) and the IEEE Koji
Kobayashi Computers and Communications Award (2021).

Ellora-Ajanta International Festival 2023

 The three-day Ellora-Ajanta International Festival held at Soneri Mahal in

Aurangabad, Maharashtra.
 The Ellora-Ajanta International Festival aims to promote tourism in Aurangabad
district.
 The festival was a massive hit when it was first launched in 1985.
 The Ellora-Ajanta International Festival was last held in 2016.

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Women 20 inception meet
 The two-day W20 (Women 20) inception meeting as part of India’s presidency of
the G20 forum held in Aurangabad, Maharashtra.
 The W20 is an official engagement group under G20 and was established during
the Turkish presidency in 2015.
 Its primary objective is to ensure gender considerations are mainstreamed into
discussions of G20.
 W20 India took over the presidency from W20 Indonesia on December 12, 2022.

Member of the National Commission for Women

 Khushbu Sundar from Tamil Nadu has been nominated as a member of the
National Commission for Women.
 The National Commission for Women was set up in 1992 under the National
Commission for Women Act, 1990.
 This body was established to review the constitutional and legal safeguards for
women.
 The first commission was constituted on 31st January 1992 as Jayanti Patnaik
as the chairperson.
 The Commission consist of a minimum number of members which includes a
chairperson, a member secretary, and the other five members.
 The five members are nominated by the central government from amongst the
person of ability, integrity, and standing.

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UNESCO Peace Prize 2022
 Germany's former chancellor Angela Merkel received a prestigious UNESCO
Peace Prize 2022.
 Merkel was hailed for welcoming more than 1.2 million refugees and asylum
seekers to Germany in 2015 and 2016.
 She was elected as first women Chancellor of Germany in 2005 and served 16
years.
 UNESCO’s Felix Houphouet-Boigny Peace Prize was created in 1989.
 It honours living individuals and active public or private bodies or institutions
that have made significant contribution to peace.

Wolf Prize 2023

 The awards are presented in six fields namely arts, physics, agriculture,
mathematics, chemistry, and medicine.
 The Arts Wolf Prize rotates between music, painting, architecture, and sculpture.
 The Wolf prize is presented by the Wolf Foundation of Israel since 1978.
 The award winners are
o Medicine: Professor Daniel Drucker - Canada
o Agriculture: Martinus Th Rien - Rio De Janeiro
o Physics: Professor Can Genuchten
o Chemistry: John T Wilson, Hiroaki Suga and Jeffery W Kelly
o Mathematics: Ingrid Daubechies - USA
o Arts: Fujiko Nakaya - Japan and Richard Long – England

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76th BAFTA Awards
 The 76th British Academy Film Awards, also known as the BAFTAs were
presented at the Royal Festival Hall in London, England.
 The winners are

Asian Chess Excellence Awards 2023

 Indian Grandmaster D Gukesh has been honoured with Player-of-the-Year award
by the Asian Chess Federation (ACF) annual summit at Abu Dhabi, United Arab
Emirates.

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  This is award for clinching the gold medal with a record-breaking score of 9/11
in the 44th Chess Olympiad at Mahabalipuram last year.
 Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin has been conferred with Man-of-the-Year
award for his effort in the successful hosting of the FIDE Chess Olympiad in
Chennai.
 The Indian women’s team, comprising of Koneru Humpy, D Harika, R Vaishali,
Tania Sachdev and Bhakti Kulkarni, was adjudged the ’Best Women’s team of
the Year’.
 Grandmaster R B Ramesh bagged the men’s Coach-of-the-Year award.
 Grandmaster Abhijit Kunte won the Women’s Coach-of-the-Year awards.
 The All-India Chess Federation (AICF) bagged the ‘Most Active Federation’ award.

Group Captain Shaliza Dhami

 The Indian Air Force has selected Group Captain Shaliza Dhami to take over
command of a frontline combat unit in the Western sector.
 She will be the first woman officer in the IAF to command a missile squadron in
the Western sector facing Pakistan.
 A Group Captain in the IAF is equivalent to a Colonel in the Army.
 The Indian Army has the largest number of women officers at 1,705, followed by
1,640 women officers in the Indian Air Force, and 559 in the Indian Navy

CBIP Award 2022

 NTPC Limited was awarded CBIP Award 2022 for the ‘Outstanding Contribution
in Power Generation’.
 The Odisha Power Transmission Corporation Limited (OPTCL) has been conferred
with the Central Board of Irrigation and Power Award 2022.
 OPTCL awarded for the ‘best-performing transmission power sector’.

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  The State-run utility has been conferred with this award for the first time since
its inception.
 Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) has been awarded the CBIP Award 2022
for ‘Best Contribution in Solar Energy’.

8th National Photography Awards

 A total of thirteen awards were presented during the ceremony including 6 each
in the Professional and Amateur category and one Lifetime Achievement Award.
 The theme for the Professional category was “Life and Water”.
 The theme of the Amateur category was “Cultural Heritage of India”.

Oscars for India

 SS Rajamouli’s RRR has created history by becoming the first Indian feature film
to win an Oscar.
 The film’s ‘Naatu Naatu’ soundtrack by MM Keeravani was awarded the Best
Original Song Award.

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  Notably, ‘Naatu Naatu’ won the Golden Globe for the best song earlier this month.
 The win made RRR the first Indian film to win a Golden Globe.
 India won a second Oscar for ‘The Elephant Whisperers’ which won in the Best
Documentary Short film category.

Oscars awards 2023

 The Academy Awards, or Oscars Awards 2023’s 95th anniversary ceremony held
recently.
 Oscars Awards 2023 full winner list.

Controller General of Accounts

 Senior Civil Accounts Service officer S.S. Dubey took charge as the 28th Controller
General of Accounts (CGA).
 He will be the principal adviser on accounting matters to the Union government.
 He is responsible for preparation of the accounts and conduct of internal audits
for the central government.
 The Office of CGA prepares monthly and annual analysis of expenditure,
revenues, borrowings and various fiscal indicators for the Union government.

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  The Controller General of Accounts (CGA) works under the Department of
Expenditure in the Finance Ministry.
 The accounting functions of the CAG were taken away in 1976 and handed over
to the CGA.

32nd Vyas Samman

 Hindi writer Dr Gyan Chaturvedi’s 2018 satirical novel, Pagalkhana, has been
selected for the 32nd Vyas Samman, 2022.
 It was Instituted by the KK Birla Foundation in 1991.
 The annual Vyas Samman is given to an outstanding Hindi literary work by an
Indian citizen published during the last 10 years.

Swachh Sujal Shakti Samman 2023

 Ministry of Jal Shakti has organized the “Swachh Sujal Shakti Samman 2023”.
 It aims to honour the women champions of the rural water and sanitation sector.

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  The event also saw the launch of Jal Shakti Abhiyan – Catch the Rain 2023.
 36 women WASH Champions were conferred with the ‘Swachh Sujal Shakti
Samman 2023’.

WINS Awards 2023

 To highlight the impact of women in sanitation and waste management, the

Union Ministry for Housing and Urban Affairs announced the WINS Awards.
 The WINS Awards 2023 aim to recognize celebrate and disseminate inspiring and
exemplary initiatives in urban sanitation and waste management by women led
organizations and individual women.
 WINS stands for ‘Women Icons Leading Swacchata’.

Golden city gate tourism awards 2023

 The Golden City Gate Tourism Multimedia Awards are given annually in various
categories related to the Tourism and Hospitality sectors.
 The annual award ceremony takes place at ITB Berlin, the world’s leading
tourism trade show.
 The Ministry of Tourism of India, has bagged Golden & Silver Star awards in
‘TV/Cinema Commercials International and Country International’ Category.

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First woman to command an army battalion

 Colonel Geeta Rana has taken charge of an independent field workshop in a

forward and remote location in eastern Ladakh.
 A woman officer has, for the first time, taken over the command of an
independent unit in the sensitive Ladakh sector.
 In early January, the army for the first time deployed a woman officer, Captain
Shiva Chouhan, at Siachen, the world’s highest and coldest battleground.

PEN/Nabokov Lifetime Achievement Award

 Vinod Kumar Shukla of India, has won the PEN America award for lifetime
achievement in literature.
 This is one of the most coveted literary prizes worldwide.
 He composed acclaimed novels like Naukar Ki Kameez (1979) and poetry
collections like Sab Kuch Hona Bacha Rahega (1992).

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  The award was founded in 2016 by Pen America in collaboration with the
Vladimir Nabokov Literary Foundation.

Laureate of the Pritzker Architecture Prize 2023

 Urban planner and activist, Sir David Alan Chipperfield of British has been
selected as the 2023 Laureate of The Pritzker Architecture Prize.
 It is widely regarded as architecture's highest honour.
 Chipperfield's storied career spans more than 40 years and includes 100-plus
projects, ranging from civic, cultural, and academic buildings.

Fastest Indian to swim across Palk Strait

 Pune-based swimmer, Sampanna Ramesh Shelar has become the fastest Indian
in the Under-21 group to swim across the Palk Strait.
 This is spread from Talaimannar in Sri Lanka to Dhanushkodi in Tamil Nadu.
 He crossed this distance in 5 hours 30 minutes.
 The previous record was 8 hours 26 minutes.

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2023 Abel Prize
 Argentine-American mathematician Luis Caffarelli was awarded the Abel Prize for
this year 2023.
 The prize is conferred every year by the King of Norway and is awarded to one or
more outstanding mathematicians.
 Caffarelli’s work has had a significant impact on several areas of mathematics.
 This awarded is widely regarded as the equivalent of the Nobel Prize in
mathematics.

Ramnath Goenka Awards

 The awards, every year, celebrate the legacy of the founder of The Indian Express
Group, acknowledging and honouring the excellence in journalism.
 A total of 43 winners from 2019 and 2020- who could not be honoured earlier
owing to the pandemic were felicitated this year in New Delhi.

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Gaganyaan mission astronauts
 Four astronauts have been selected for India’s first Human Space Flight
Programme or the Gaganyaan.
 They have successfully completed the first semester of crew training.
 The candidates who are Indian Air Force (IAF) test pilots have been undergoing
Gaganyaan Mission specific training at the Astronaut Training Facility in
Bengaluru.
 They were sent to Russia in 2020 where they completed generic space flight
training at Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre.

Children’s Champion Award 2023

 An Assam-based NGO that cares for special and autistic children has won the
Children’s Champion Award 2023 in the health and nutrition category.
 The award was instituted by the Delhi Commission for Protection of Child Rights
in 2022.
 It recognises individuals and institutions championing the cause of children in
education, justice, health, nutrition, sports, and artistic expression.

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 SPORTS

25,000 runs in international cricket

 Virat Kohli became the sixth and the fastest batter in the world to score 25,000
runs in 549 innings.
 He broke the legendary Sachin Tendulkar's record to become the fastest batter
in international cricket history to score 25K runs.
 Sachin took 577 innings to complete 25,000 runs.
 Virat is the second Indian after Sachin who has joined this elite club.

Tops in all three formats

 The Indian Men's Cricket Team has become the ICC World No.1 in all three
formats of the game.
 This is the first time India has become the World No.1 in all three formats at the
same time.
 South Africa had achieved this feat in 2014.

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  India is only the second team in the world to achieve the rare feat of becoming
the World No.1 in all three formats.
 India is also the first Asian team to achieve the feat.

FIFA Awards 2023

 The FIFA Football Awards 2022 ceremony held in Paris.
 Alexia Putellas and Lionel Messi were crowned as the outstanding players of the
past year.
 The winners of The FIFA Football Awards 2022 are
o The Best Women's Player: Alexia Putellas (Spain)
o The Best Men's Player: Lionel Messi (Argentina)
o The Best Women's Goalkeeper: Mary Earps (England)
o The Best Men's Goalkeeper: Emiliano Martínez (Argentina)
o The Best Women's Coach: Sarina Wiegman (England Women’s Team)
o The Best Men's Coach: Lionel Scaloni (Argentina Men’s National Team)
o The FIFA Puskás Award: Marcin Oleksy (Poland)
o The FIFA Fair Play Award: Luka Lochoshvili (Georgia)
o The FIFA Fan Award: Argentinian Fans

Men's long jump Record

 Tamil Nadu's Jeswin Aldrin hogged the limelight with a national record in men's
long jump in the second AFI National Jumps Competition, held at Karnataka.
 He leapt 8.42 metres to erase the previous mark of 8.36 metres set by India
teammate M Sreeshankar last year.

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Hyderabad Formula E-Championship
 The Hyderabad ePrix is a race of the single-seater, electrically powered Formula
E race held in Hyderabad.
 It was first held as part of the 2022–23 Formula E World Championship season
and was the first Formula E race to be held in the country.
 Two-time Formula E world champion Jean-Eric Vergne won the championship.

2026 FIFA World Cup

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  The US men's national football team, along with Mexico and Canada, will
automatically qualify for the 2026 World Cup.
 The US men's national team, along with Mexico and Canada, will automatically
qualify for the 2026 World Cup.
 The three countries won the right to host the World Cup in a united North
American bid.
 FIFA usually allows host nations to surpass qualification rounds.
 This is the first time FIFA had to set aside three host bids.
 The tournament is set to expand from 32 teams to 48 in 2026.

ISSF Shooting World Cup

 The ISSF Shooting World Cup 2023 was held at Cairo in Egypt.
 Indian shooters closed their account with 4 gold and 3 bronze in Cairo, and one
bronze in Doha.
 Their overall medal tally is 8 and got 5th place in the overall Medal Table.
 India Medal Winners list:

India’s third-highest wicket-taker

 The spinner R Ashwin surpassed the legendary Kapil Dev to become India’s third-
highest wicket-taker in international cricket.
 Ashwin, who has played 91 Tests, 113 ODIs and 65 T20Is for India, has 466, 151
and 72 wickets in the three formats respectively.
 He has a total of 689 wickets in 269 international matches.
 Anil Kumble leads the wicket-taking charts for India in international cricket with
953 wickets in 401 matches.
 He is followed by Harbhajan Singh at the second spot with 707 scalps.

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 IMPORTANT DAYS

Zero Discrimination Day - March 01

 In order to promote equality and justice, the United Nations and other
international organizations marked this day.
 The goal is to fight structural and cultural prejudice against those who have
HIV/AIDS and to advance equality and fairness before the law.
 The UNAIDS aims to raise awareness about discriminatory laws and practices
that rob individuals of their dignity
 The theme for Zero Discrimination Day for this year is "Save lives: Decriminalize."

World Civil Defence Day - March 01

 It aims to raise awareness about the importance of civil defence measures in
protecting people and their property from natural disasters, accidents, and other
emergencies.
 The day honours the work of several civil defence organisations.

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  The day also recognises the efforts put in by the organisations in protecting
communities and saving lives.
 This Day was first celebrated in the year 1990 by the International Civil Defence
Organisation (ICDO).
 The theme for this year is “The role of information technology in risk assessment”.

World Seagrass Day - March 01

 This is a day of awareness and celebration of the role seagrass plays in creating
healthier oceans, coastlines and its role as a climate solution.
 It serves to highlight the importance of protecting seagrass ecosystems and
increasing their resilience to challenges such as climate change, pollution and
other human impacts.
 Seagrasses are the only marine flowering plants and are found in shallow waters
from the tropics to the Arctic Circle.
 There are more than 60 seagrass species in the world.
 It was covering over 300,000 square kilometres of the ocean floor.
 It is referred as a type of “blue forest” - supply food and shelter to thousands of
species of fish, seahorses, turtles, and other marine animals.
 IUCN categorizes nearly 21% of the world’s seagrasses as near threatened or
vulnerable or endangered.
 It was established by the UN General Assembly in a resolution adopted in May
2022.

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World Wildlife Day - March 03
 The 68th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) designated this
Day on December 20, 2013.
 It aims to raise awareness of world's wild flora and fauna.
 It was on March 3 when the adoption of the Convention on International Trade
in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) took place in 1973.
 The convention helps ensure that international trade doesn't pose any threat to
the species.
 This March 3 marks the 50th anniversary of the convention.
 The theme for this year is 'Partnerships for Wildlife Conservation’.

World Hearing Day - March 03

 This Day is observed to encourage ear and hearing care worldwide and to increase
awareness of ways to avoid deafness and hearing loss.

 The World Health Organization has been hosting this event since 2007.

 The theme for this year is "Ear and hearing care for all!"

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National Security Day - March 04
 The day aims to show gratitude to our security forces which include military,
para-military, commandos, police officials, guards, and other security forces.
 National Security Council is the apex agency looks into the country’s political,
economic, energy and strategic security concerns.
 It was established by the then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on November
19, 1998.

National Safety Day - March 04

 The main goal of the day is to highlight safety measures and ensure that people
are aware of them and follow them in order to avoid workplace accidents.
 This day commemorates the establishment of the National Safety Council.
 National Safety Council is a non-profit, self-financing body.
 It was established on March 4, 1966.
 This year's theme is “Our Aim - Zero Harm”.
 National Safety Week is also observed in India every year from the 4 th to the 10th
of March.

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World obesity day - March 04
 World Obesity Day was established in 2015.
 It aims to draw attention towards the rising cases of obesity.
 Theme of this year is ‘Changing Perspectives: Let’s Talk About Obesity'.
 Obesity is a complex disease that occurs when an individual’s weight is higher
than what is considered healthy for his or her height.

World Day of Fight Against Sexual Exploitation - March 04

 This day was first observed as a global movement in 2009.
 This day is dedicated to raising awareness about the disturbing reality of sexual
abuse and trafficking, and empowering individuals and communities to fight
back against these heinous crimes.
 The day also aims to promote and protect the rights of victims of sexual
exploitation.
 It is estimated that every second of the day, an average of eight people is trapped
by international criminal networks for sexual exploitation, trafficking, and
enslavement.
 The U.N. General Assembly designated July 30 as World Day against Trafficking
in Persons.

International Day for Disarmament and Non-Proliferation Awareness -

March 05

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  It aims to promote better awareness and understanding of disarmament issues
among the public, especially young people.
 It makes understanding about how disarmament efforts contribute to enhancing
peace and security, preventing and ending armed conflicts, and curbing human
suffering caused by weapons.
 In 2021, global military spending reached $2.1 trillion and 12,700 nuclear
weapons remain an existential threat to humanity.

5th Jan Aushadhi Diwas - March 07

 The 5th Jan Aushadhi Diwas is organized across India based on the theme “Jan
Aushadhi – Sasti bhi Acchi bhi”.
 The programme was kick started with Jan Aushadhi Jan Chetna Abhiyan on 1 st
March across the country.
 It was organized by the Union Health Ministry in collaboration with the
Pharmaceuticals & Medical Devices Bureau of India and states and union
territories.

International Women’s Day - March 08

 This global day is celebrating the social, economic, cultural, and political
achievements of women.
 It was first celebrated in 1911, in Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland.
 This year we are celebrating the 111th International Women's Day.
 In 1975, the United Nations started celebrating the day.
 The UN's theme for 2023 is "DigitALL: Innovation and technology for gender
equality".

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National Pharmacy Education Day - March 06
 The day was designated by the Pharmacy Council of India (PCI).
 This day commemorate the birth anniversary of Professor Mahadeva Lal Schroff.
 It aims to recognise his contribution to establishing pharmacy education in India.
 He is known as Father of Indian Pharmacy Education.
 In 1935, he founded the United Provinces of Pharma Association.
 PCI is a statutory body working under the Ministry of Health, Government of
India.
 It is constituted under the Pharmacy Act, 1948.

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No Smoking Day - March 08
 This day is an annual health awareness day observed on the second Wednesday
of March.
 The day aims to encourage people to quit smoking and raise awareness about its
harmful effects on their health.
 No Smoking Day awareness movement was first started in 1984 in the United
Kingdom on the day of Ash Wednesday.

World Kidney Day - March 09

 World Kidney Day is observed on the second Thursday of March every year.
 It aims to raise awareness of the importance of our kidneys to our overall health
and to reduce the frequency and impact of kidney disease and its associated
health problems worldwide.
 It is a joint initiative of the International Society of Nephrology (ISN) and the
International Federation of Kidney Foundations – World Kidney Alliance (IFKF-
WKA).

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54th CISF Raising Day - March 10
 The CISF was set up under the act of the Parliament of India on March 10, 1969.
 The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) is one of the five Central Armed
Police Forces in India.
 The primary objective is providing security to public sector undertakings.
 This is the first time that this Day is celebrated at Hyderabad, outside the
National capital.

International Day of Women Judges - March 10

 This day aims to honour female judges across the globe and their contributions
towards justice, equality and fairness in society.
 It is a symbolic day for the fight for gender equality, equality of opportunities and
the fight against gender-based discrimination
 On April 28, 2021 UNGA adopted a resolution for this day.

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  In India, Anna Chandi became the first female judge of court in 1937 in
Travancore.
 In 1989, Fathima Beevi became the first female judge of the Supreme Court of
India.

World Rotaract Day - March 13

 This day acknowledge the services provided by the rotaractors across the world.
 Rotaract means rotary in action.
 Rotary Club is the community service organization for young men and women.
 The theme of 2023 is “Create Hope in the World”.
 The Rotary Club of Calcutta became the first Rotary club chartered in India on 1
January 1920.

International Day of Action of Rivers - March 14

 This day aims to raise awareness of how crucial rivers are to our daily lives.
 This year, the 25th anniversary of the day will be observed.
 The day also seeks to spread awareness about unequal access to clean water and
the growing pollution of freshwater habitats like rivers.
 Theme for 2023 is 'Rights of Rivers'.
 The day was earlier known as International Day against Dams, for Rivers, Water,
and Life.

International Day of Mathematics or Pi Day - March 14

 International Day of Mathematics is also known as Pi Day.
 The date is written in the format of month and date (MM/DD) to represent the
value of Pi, which is 3.14.
 The day is celebrated by mathematics enthusiasts and educators worldwide to
recognize and appreciate the significance of mathematics in our lives.

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  The theme for International Day of Mathematics 2023 is “Mathematics for
Everyone’’.
 In 2019, International Mathematics Day was recognized by UNESCO.

World Consumer Rights Day - March 15

 The day is observed to create global awareness about the rights and needs of
consumers.
 It aims to recognise consumer rights and ensure that they are respected and
protected.
 The theme for this year is “Empowering consumers through clean energy
transitions”.
 World Consumer Rights Day has been inspired by former President of the United
States John F Kennedy in 1962 March 15.
 World Consumer Rights Day was first marked in 1983.
 On December 9, 1986, the consumer protection act was passed in the Indian
Parliament to empower the consumers.

International Day to Combat Islamophobia - March 15

 The UN General Assembly approved a resolution for setting March 15th as the
International Day to Combat Islamophobia.
 The resolution was introduced by Pakistan on behalf of the Organisation of
Islamic Cooperation (OIC).

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  Islamophobia is a fear, prejudice and hatred of Muslims that leads to provocation,
hostility and intolerance.

National Immunization Day - March 16

 It aims to spread awareness about the importance of vaccines in the human
health.
 The day was first observed in 1995 when the government of India officially
launched the Pulse Polio Immunisation program to eradicate polio from the
country.
 On March 16, 1995, the first dose of the oral polio vaccine was administered in
India.

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World Sleep Day - March 17
 It is organized by the World Sleep Day Committee of World Sleep Society.
 It aims to lessen the burden of sleep problems on society through better
prevention and management of sleep disorders.
 ‘Sleep is Essential for Health’ is the theme for this year.

Global Recycling Day - March 18

 This day aim to spread awareness about the rapid pace at which our natural
resources are depleting and the need for recycling to slow it down.
 The day promotes the concept and practice of recycling and encourages the
limited use of natural resources to save the planet.
 Theme of the 2023 observation is “Creative Innovation”.

India’s Ordnance Factories Day - March 18

 This day commemorates the founding of the first ordnance factory in colonial
India near Kolkata, in 1801.
 The Ordnance Factories Board was founded in 1775.
 Now it has 41 ordnance factories, nine training institutes, three regional
marketing centres and five regional controllerates of safety.

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  East India Company established a Gun Carriage Agency in 1801 in Kolkata.

International Day of Happiness - March 20

 It was first observed by the United Nations General Assembly in 2012.
 It aims to raise awareness about the importance of happiness and well-being as
universal goals and aspirations in the lives of people all over the world.
 This year's theme is: 'Be Mindful. Be Grateful. Be Kind'.

World Sparrow Day - March 20

 It is designated to raise awareness about sparrow conservation and protection,

as their numbers are declining globally.
 The first commemoration of the day occurred in 2010.
 The goal of the day is to educate people about the value of sparrows in the
ecosystem, their role in pollination, and their importance in pest control.
 The theme of 2023 is “I Love Sparrows”.

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World Oral Health Day - March 20
 The day aims to create awareness about the significance of oral health.
 It also tries to educate individuals about the different oral hygiene practices that
one should be following on daily basis.
 In the year 2021, a three-year-long theme was launched for the day as "Be Proud
of Your Mouth."

Spring equinox - March 21

 The Spring Equinox 2023 also called the vernal equinox is the first day of spring
in the Northern Hemisphere.
 On this day, Sun is exactly above the Equator and day and night are of equal
length.
 The Persian New Year, Nowruz, also falls on the first day of spring.

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World Down Syndrome Day - March 21
 The day is celebrated in an effort to raise awareness about Down syndrome and
to advocate for the rights, inclusion, and well-being of people with Down
syndrome.
 The date was selected because Down syndrome is caused by the presence of a
third copy of the 21st chromosome, and 21/3 (March 21st) represents this genetic
condition.
 This day was first observed on March 21, 2006.
 It was officially recognized by the United Nations General Assembly in 2011.
 The Theme for 2023 is "With Us Not For Us".

World Poetry Day - March 21

 The day was first adopted by UNESCO in 1999 at the 30th General Conference
in Paris.
 It is an occasion to honour the poets, revive oral traditions of poetry recitals, and
promote the reading, writing, and teaching of poetry.
 It aims to support “linguistic diversity through poetic expression and increasing
the opportunity for endangered languages to be heard”.

International Day of Forests - March 21

 The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) established
World Forestry Day in 1971.
 The day was established to create and raise awareness of the importance of
forests for people and the planet.
 In 2011, the United Nations declared the years 2011 to 2020 as the International
Decade of Forests.
 In the year 2012, the International Day of Forests was established.
 The theme for 2023 is 'Forests and Health.'

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International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination - March 21
 On that day, in 1960, police opened fire at a peaceful demonstration in
Sharpeville, South Africa, against the apartheid pass laws.
 On October 26, 1966, the UN General Assembly designated this day.
 Theme of this year is : 75th anniversary of UDHR - an impetus to combat racism.

World Puppetry Day - March 21

 This day was established in 2003 by the International Puppetry Association.
 The 1st ever World Puppetry Day was observed on 2003.
 The day is an attempt to pay tribute to and honour puppeteers from around the
world.
 Theme of This year: "Call of the Forest’.
 There are 4 major different types of puppets used in India.
o Glove Puppets – 3 different types
o Rod Puppets – 3 different types
o Shadow Puppets – 6 different types
o String Puppets – 6 different types

International Nowruz Day - March 21

 Nowruz is the Persian New Year.
 The first month of the Iranian solar calendar is sometimes referred to as the
Persian New Year.
 Nowruz is celebrated in Iran, Afghanistan, the Kurdish areas of Iraq, Turkey,
Syria, India, and Central Asia.
 It was established in 2010 with the goal of fostering closer relations amongst
nations.
 Balban introduced this into India.

World Water Day - March 22

 Since 1993, it has been celebrated to highlight the importance of freshwater.
 It focuses attention on the importance of water and how to preserve it.
 The theme for this year is ‘Accelerate Change.

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World Meteorological Day - March 23
 This day commemorates the formal establishment of the World Meteorological
Organisation (WMO) in 1950.
 The day highlights “the essential role that ‘National Meteorological and
Hydrological Services’ (NMHS) plays in the safety and wellbeing of the society.”
 This year theme is ‘the future of weather, climate and water across generations’.
 The idea of IMO came from the Vienna International Meteorological Congress
1873.
 This year marks WMO's 150th anniversary.

World Tuberculosis Day - March 24

 On this day in 1882, Dr. Robert Koch identified the bacterium that causes
tuberculosis, Mycobacterium tuberculosis.
 It aims to create and raise awareness about tuberculosis (TB) and work to
completely eliminate this disease.
 TB is caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis and primarily affects
the lungs.

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  TB is one of the top 10 causes of death worldwide
 ‘Yes, we can end TB!’ is the theme for 2023.

International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the

Transatlantic Slave Trade - March 25
 The day honours and remembers those who suffered and died as a consequence
of the transatlantic slave trade.
 It has been called "the worst violation of human rights in history".
 Over 400 years more than 15 million men, women and children were the victims
of this practice.
 The theme for this year is “Fighting Slavery’s Legacy of Racism Through
Transformative Education.”

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International Day of Solidarity with Detained and Missing Staff Members -
March 25
 This day commemorates the abduction of a journalist named Alec Collett, who
died while on a UN assignment.
 The day is observed on March 25 to mark the anniversary of the abduction of
Alec Collett.
 He was a former journalist who worked for the United Nations Relief and Works
Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).
 In 1985, he was abducted by armed gunmen.
 In 2009, his body was found in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley.
 The resolution to protect the UN’s employees was first adopted in 1993 by the
Security Council.

International Day of the Unborn Child - March 25

 The aim of this day is to raise awareness about the value and importance of
unborn children and to promote the protection of their rights as it condemns
abortions.
 This day was established in 1999 by the late Pope John Paul II.
 Theme of this year is: The dignity and value of every child yet-to-be-born.

World Theatre Day - March 27

 The day has been celebrated since 1962 at the International Theatre Institute.
 The first ITI conference took place in Finland, Helsinki, and the next session was
held in Vienna.
 This day preserves dramas and their essential role in the theatrical arts.
 “Theatre and a Culture of Peace.” is the theme of 2023.

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Earth Hour 2023 – March 25
 Earth Hour is a worldwide movement organised by the World Wildlife Fund
(WWF).
 Earth Hour is an annual event that takes place on the last Saturday of March.
 It encourages individuals, communities and businesses to turn off non-essential
electric lights for one hour, from 8:30 pm to 9:30 pm as a symbol of commitment
to the planet
 More than 100 countries across the world participated in Earth Hour.
 It was first started in Sydney, Australia in 2007.

188th Raising Day of Assam Rifles - March 24

 March 24 marks the 188th Raising Day for the Assam Rifles.
 It is the nation's oldest and most esteemed paramilitary organisation.
 Assam Rifles was raised on March 24, 1835.
 The force was redesigned as Assam Frontier Police in 1883, Assam Military Police
in 1891, and East Bengal and Assam Military Police in 1913.
 It got its present name in 1917.
 It is a central paramilitary force responsible for border security, counter-
insurgency, and maintaining law and order in Northeast India.
 It is also responsible for guarding the Indo-Myanmar border.

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Purple Day of Epilepsy - March 26
 This day dedicated to raising awareness about epilepsy and reducing the stigma
surrounding this neurological disorder.
 Epilepsy is a chronic disorder of the brain.
 It affects brain's ability to transmit electrical impulses which could lead to
seizures.
 This day was first organised by Cassidy Megan from Canada on March 26, 2008.
 It accounts for a significant proportion of the world affecting 50 million people
worldwide.
 Each year an estimated 5 million people are diagnosed with epilepsy.
 In India, more than 10 million patients (20%) are suffering with Epilepsy.

International Transgender Day of Visibility - March 31

 It aims to raise awareness of discrimination faced by transgender people
worldwide, also celebrating their contributions to society.
 The day was founded by US-based transgender activist Rachel Crandall of
Michigan in 2009.
 It recognizes and revere their contributions, successes, and relentless resilience
in standing tall and strong in the face of injustice.

World Backup Day - March 31

 The day reminds us to protect our precious digital documents as we’ve become
more reliant on technology.
 It is a day for people to learn about the increasing role of data in our lives and
the importance of regular backups.
 According to the World Backup Day web site, 21% of people have never backed
up their data.
 29% of data losses are caused by accidents and 30% of all computers are infected
with malware.

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 MISCELLANEOUS

World Heritage in Danger site

 UNESCO had designated the historic centre of Odesa, a strategic port city on
Ukraine's Black Sea coast, a World Heritage in Danger site.
 It has been under threat since Russia's invasion, and enable access to financial
and technical international aid.
 Odesa has been bombed several times by Russia since its invasion of Ukraine.
 Odesa's Museum of Fine Arts was inaugurated in 1899.
 This city was founded in the final years of the 18th century, near the site of a
captured Ottoman fortress.

1,300-year-old Buddhist stupa

 The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) found a 1,300-year-old stupa in Odisha’s

Jajpur district.

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  The stupa could be 4.5-metre tall and initial assessment showed it may belong
to the 7th or 8th century.
 It was found at Parabhadi which is situated near Lalitagiri, Odisha.
 Lalitagiri is a major Buddhist complex, having a large number of stupas and
monasteries.

Strongest telecoms operator

 Brand Finance has compiled a list of companies based on their brand value.
 In this post, we will explore the Top 150 most valuable and strongest telecoms
operator brands according to Brand Finance 2023 rankings.
 Swisscom is the strongest telecoms brand earning 92/100 and elite AAA+ rating.
 It is followed by Jio and Etisalat as the second and third strongest brands.
 Huawei is ranked the most valuable and strongest telecoms infrastructure brand.

Hallmark Unique Identification

 From April 1, the sale of gold jewellery will not be allowed without a Hallmark
Unique Identification (HUID) number.
 It is a unique identifier for each gold item.
 It is aimed at ensuring the purity of Hallmarked jewellery and check any
malpractice.
 Hallmark is a mark on gold jewellery which is affixed by an entity recognised by
Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) to assure its fineness and purity.
 Earlier, the HUID used to be of four digits.
 As of now both HUIDs (4- and 6-digit) are used in the market
 After March 31 only 6-digit alphanumeric code will be allowed.

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  The jewellery is stamped with the unique number manually at the Assaying &
Hallmarking centre.

Largest number of commercial women pilots

 Air India said 15% of its 1,825 pilots are women pilots.
 This was making it an airline with the largest number of female pilots.
 Air India is flying 40 flights across domestic and international locations.
 According to the carrier, women constitute more than 40% of Air India's work
force.
 Thus, India has the largest number of commercial women pilots in the world.

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