SPOTLIGHT

Monthly Current Affairs

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RBI - NABARD - SEBI

SPOTLIGHT – MAY 2023
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Contents
NATIONAL NEWS ......................................................................................................................................................... 2
STATE NEWS............................................................................................................................................................... 33
AGRICULTURE AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT..................................................................................................... 47
DEFENCE NEWS ........................................................................................................................................................ 49
MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING ................................................................................................................ 55
INTERNATIONAL NEWS............................................................................................................................................ 59
REPORTS AND INDICES .......................................................................................................................................... 71
BANKING AND ECONOMY ....................................................................................................................................... 82
GDP FORECASTS .................................................................................................................................................... 119
APPOINTMENTS ....................................................................................................................................................... 120
IMPORTANT DAYS ................................................................................................................................................... 129
AWARDS ..................................................................................................................................................................... 141
SPORTS ...................................................................................................................................................................... 149
MISCELLANEOUS..................................................................................................................................................... 156
QUESTIONS ............................................................................................................................................................... 160

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NATIONAL NEWS
1. Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, Union Minister for Education and Skill Development &
Entrepreneurship inaugurated the “Future of Work” exhibition during the 3rd G20 Education
Working Group meeting.
• The Working Group’s meeting took place at CSIR-Institute of Minerals and Materials
Technology (CSIR-IMMT), Bhubaneswar, Odisha.
Source: PIB

2. Union Minister Shri Sarbananda Sonowal inaugurated National Technology Centre for Ports,
Waterways & Coasts (NTCPWC) at Discovery Campus of IIT, Madras.
• NTCPWC was established under the ambitious Sagarmala program at a cost of ₹77
crore.
• Purpose – to provide solutions to challenges in the maritime sector through scientific
support, education, applied research and technology transfer at the local, regional, national
and international levels
Source: PIB

3. Khelo India Scheme completed 5 years in April 2023.

• The first edition of the Khelo India Games was played in 2018 in Delhi.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• Khelo India Games has three formats – Youth (School level), University, and Winter.

Editions -
Khelo India Youth Khelo India University Khelo India Winter
1st- 2018, Delhi 1st – 2020, Odisha 1st – 2020, Leh and Gulmarg
2nd – 2019, Maharashtra 2nd – 2021, Karnataka 2nd – 2021, Gulmarg
3rd – 2021, Haryana (winner: Jain University, 3rd – 2023, Gulmarg (winner:
4th- 2022, Madhya Pradesh Bangalore) J&K)
(winner: Maharashtra)

• 3rd Edition of Khelo India Winter Games, Gulmarg (February 2023) -

o Total - 11 sports

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o Organizers - Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, Jammu and Kashmir Sports
Council and the Winter Games Association of Jammu and Kashmir
o Medal tally – J&K (Total: 76 and Gold: 26), followed by Maharashtra (Total: 27 and
Gold: 13)
o Eklavya Jagal (class 10th student from Amity International School, Noida) won 2
gold medals in short track ice skating event in the 15-19 years age group.
Source: Olympics.com and Khelo India website

4. Ministry of Health and Family Welfare will be organizing the Asia Pacific Leaders’
Conclave on Malaria Elimination in New Delhi, in partnership with the Asia Pacific Leaders
Malaria Alliance (APLMA).
• Target - Asia Pacific Free from Malaria by 2030
• Among the 11 countries that are part of the World Health Organization's 'High Burden to
High Impact' initiative, only India has reported decline in malaria cases during the height
of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• In India, malaria cases and deaths also dropped by 85.1% and 83.6% respectively, from
2015 to 2022.
• April 25 – World Malaria Day; Theme - “Time to deliver zero malaria: invest, innovate,
implement”
Knowledge Nuggets -
• In November 2014, the Asia-Pacific Heads of Government adopted the goal of freeing
the region of malaria by 2030.
• The Asia Pacific Leaders Malaria Alliance’s (APLMA) Secretariate is in Singapore.
Source: PIB, WHO and APLMA

5. External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar has addressed the India-Guyana Business

Round in Guyana.
• Guyana capital – Georgetown; Currency - Guyanese Dollar
Source: News on Air

6. Civil 20 (C20) Working Group on Education and Digital Transformation (EDT) meeting
took place at Mizoram University premises.

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• Mizoram University and Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham of Kerala have partnered to

launch science, technology and innovation (STI) hubs in the districts of Aizawl and Serchhip
in Mizoram.
Source: News on Air

7. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the 20th anniversary of the State-Wide Attention
on Grievances by Application of Technology (SWAGAT) initiative in Gujarat.
• The scheme was launched by the Gujarat govt in April 2003 to bridge the gap between
citizens and the government by using technology to resolve their day-to-day grievances in a
quick, efficient, and time-bound manner.
• The Gujarat government is celebrating SWAGAT Saptah.
Source: News on Air

8. Union Cabinet has approved the setting up of 157 nursing colleges at the same locations as
medical colleges (that have been established since 2014).
• Purpose – to fill up nursing vacancies and remove disparities in distribution of nursing
colleges in the country
• These colleges will be established at a cost of Rs 1,570 crore (Rs 10 crore for each
college), in which states can also contribute, over the next two years.
• With 100 seats per college, the move will add 15,700 BSc nursing seats across the
country.
• The highest number of colleges will be in Uttar Pradesh (27), Rajasthan (23), and
Madhya Pradesh (14).
• A committee headed by the Union Health Secretary (incumbent: Rajesh Bhushan) and
the Principal Secretary of health or medical education in the state will monitor the
progress in their construction.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• States like Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu in the south have 40% of
the country’s nursing colleges at present. And there are 13 states that have no nursing
colleges at all.
• There are currently 1.18 lakh BSc nursing seats in the country.
• India’s nurses are globally recognised. Currently, there are 26,000 Indian nurses working
in the UK, 20,000 in the Gulf countries, 16,000 in the US, 12,000 in Australia and 5,000 in
Canada. [no need to remember any number; just for information]
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Source: Indian Express

9. Union Cabinet has approved the National Medical Devices Policy, 2023.
A) Vision
• Growth of Medical Devices Sector from present $11 Bn to $50 Bn by 2030.
B) Mission
• To achieve
o Access & Universality,
o Affordability,
o Quality,
o Patient Centred & Quality Care,
o Preventive & Promotive Health,
o Security,
o Research and Innovation, and
o Skilled manpower
C) Strategies to Promote Medical Device Sector:
• Regulatory Streamlining – Creating a ‘Single Window Clearance System' for
Licensing of Medical Devices; enhancing the role of Indian standards like BIS and;
designing a coherent pricing regulation policy for medical devices.
• Enabling Infrastructure – Establishment of medical device parks and integrating
them with Industrial parks and corridors under the National Industrial Corridor
Development Program to facilitate smooth production of medical devices.
o Also, these parks will be integrated with the proposed National Logistics
Policy 2021 under the ambit of PM Gati Shakti.
• Facilitating R&D and Innovation – India is working on the proposed National Policy
on R&D and Innovation in the Pharma- MedTech Sector.
o This component of the strategy aims at establishing Centres of Excellence in
academic and research institutions, innovation hubs, ‘plug and play’ (ready to
use) infrastructures and support to start-ups.
• Attracting Investments in the Sector – focus on Public-Private Partnership (PPP),
private investments, including Venture Capitalists.
• Human Resources Development – skilling professionals in the medical device
sector with the help of Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship;

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launching multidisciplinary courses on medical devices; and partnerships with foreign

academic/industry organizations for innovations
• Brand Positioning and Awareness Creation - a dedicated Export Promotion
Council for the sector under the Department of Pharmaceuticals

Knowledge Nuggets -
• Under the PLI scheme for Medical Devices, 4 Medical devices Parks in Himachal
Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh are being developed.
Source: PIB

10. The Consulate General of India in Dubai inaugurated the Study in India Pavilion at the
Global Education & Training Exhibition (GETEX) held at the Dubai World Trade Centre
from 26th to 28th April 2023.
• The India Pavilion has been organized by the Services Export Promotion Council
(SEPC) with the support of the Ministry of Commerce & Industry, India under the Market
Access Initiative (MAI) Scheme.
• SEPC has partnered with EdCIL (India) Limited, a public sector undertaking in India under
the Ministry of Education, to set up the India Pavilion at GETEX.
Knowledge Nuggets -

Study in India -
• Study In India (SII) programme is a flagship project introduced by the Ministry of
Education, launched in 2018.
• Purpose – to invite foreign students to pursue their higher education in India and position
India as a prime education hub for international students

Market Access Initiative (MAI) Scheme

• Market Access Initiative (MAI) Scheme is an Export Promotion Scheme of Ministry of
Commerce and Industry to promote India’s exports on a sustained basis.
• Under the scheme, assistance is provided to increase the share of Indian exports in the
new and existing markets.
• Activities eligible for assistance under the scheme are -
o Marketing Projects Abroad

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o Capacity Building
o Support for Statutory Compliances
o Studies
o Project Development
o Developing Foreign Trade Facilitation web Portal
o To support Cottage and handicrafts units
Source: Consulate General of India’s website, Study in India’s website, Ministry of Commerce

11. Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Summit was earlier scheduled to be held in New Delhi.
Now, it will be held virtually on 4 July 2023.
• Under India’s first-ever Chairmanship, the 22nd summit of the SCO Council of Heads of
State will be chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi.
• The SCO Council of Foreign Ministers’ Summit took place in Goa in the beginning of
May.
• The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Defence Ministers Meeting was held on 28
April, 2023 in New Delhi.
Source: PIB, The Hindu, TOI

12. India and United Kingdom will create India-UK "NET Zero" Innovation Virtual Centre.
• The decision was announced during the India-UK Science & Innovation Council meeting.
Source: PIB

13. The 100th episode of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s monthly radio programme ‘Mann Ki
Baat’ was broadcasted live at the United Nations headquarters at New York.
Source: Times of India

14. Aqua Line’s Sector 51 metro station has been selected as India's first ‘Eat Right Metro
Station’ by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).
Source: Times of India

15. External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar has visited an official visit to Guyana, Panama,
Columbia, and the Dominican Republic.
Guyana -
• It is his first official trip to Guyana.

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• He visited the site of the ongoing East Bank-East Coast Road Linkage project in
Georgetown, which is the capital of Guyana.
o The project is being developed by Ashoka Buildcon Ltd. (Indian company).
• 4th India-CARICOM ministerial meeting was organized in Guyana.
o CARICOM is an intergovernmental organisation that is a political and economic
union of 15 member states (14 nation-states and one dependency) throughout
the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean.
• India and Guyana have signed an Air Services Agreement to facilitate easy travel
between the two nations.
• GRSE-built ocean-going passenger-cum-cargo ferry MV ‘Ma Lisha’ for the Cooperative
Republic of Guyana was delivered and commissioned at Georgetown, Guyana.
Columbia -
• India-Colombia Business Forum was organized.
• The bilateral trade is reaching to USD 50 billion level annually.
Source: The Hindu, Business Standard, Hindu Business Line, New Indian Express

16. NITI Aayog and UNDP have released a compendium titled as “Best practices in social
sector”. It talks about 14 government initiatives.
Source: Official Report

17. Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance, has launched the “Vivad se Vishwas I –
Relief to MSMEs” scheme for providing relief to Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises
(MSMEs) for COVID-19 period.
• The scheme was announced in the Union Budget 2023-24.
• In cases of failure by MSMEs to execute contracts during the COVID period, 95% of the
forfeited amount relating to bid or performance security will be returned to them by
Government and Government undertakings. This will provide relief to MSMEs.
Source: PIB

18. Japan will train up to 1,000 Indian engineers before starting work on the High-Speed Rail
Track system for Mumbai Ahmedabad High Speed Rail corridor (MAHSR).
Source: The Hindu

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19. Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT), New Delhi celebrated its Diamond Jubilee on its
60th Foundation Day on May 2.
• Since its establishment in 1963, IIFT has emerge as an acknowledged centre of excellence
in international trade and business.
Source: PIB

20. Union Animal Husbandry and Dairying Minister Parshottam Rupala launched Veterinary
Council of India (VCI) portal on World Veterinary Day.
• Last Saturday of April (April 29) - World Veterinary Day; Theme - promoting diversity,
equity, and inclusiveness in the veterinary profession
Knowledge Nuggets -
• Veterinary Council of India is a statutory body established under the Indian
Veterinary Council Act 1984.
• It receives 100% grants–in–aid from the Department of Animal Husbandry and
Dairying, Ministry of Fisheries Animal Husbandry and Dairying to meet the cost of
running the offices of the Council.
• VCI President - Umesh Chandra Sharma
Source: LiveMint

21. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh visited Maldives and handed over two ‘Made in India’ - Fast
Patrol Vessel and a Landing Craft Assault Ship.
• Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and his Maldivian counterpart Mariya Didi have also laid
the foundation stone for the Maldives National Defence Forces (MNDF) Coast Guard
‘Ekatha Harbour’.
Source: Hindustan Times and The Hindu

22. Union Minister for MSME Shri Narayan Rane launched the India Health Dialogue (IHD)
platform at Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) in New Delhi.
• The India Health Dialogue (IHD) is a global initiative of India Chamber of Business and
Commerce, in partnership with Indian Council of Medical Research, Indian Medical
Association (IMA), and supported by the Ministry of MSME.
• Purpose - to promote AtmaNirbhar Bharat / self-reliance in the healthcare sector
Source: PIB

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23. Dhruva Space has announced the successful test of its ‘3U and 6U Satellite Orbital
Deployers’ and ‘Dhruva Space Orbital Link’ on board the ISRO’s PSLV-C55 mission.
• The launch took place from the first launch pad at Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC)
in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.
Source: The Hindu

24. On the World Intellectual Property Day, Dr Chintan Vaishnav, Chair Startup20, along with
Ms. Durga Jasraj founder of Pandit Jasraj Cultural Foundation, launched the “UPAJ: A
Festival of Innovations in Arts” in NITI Aayog, New Delhi.
• April 26 - World Intellectual Property Day; Theme - “Women and IP: Accelerating
innovation and creativity”
• The Office of the Controller General of Patents, Designs, and Trademarks, Ministry of
Commerce and Industry, has organized the celebrations of World IP Day 2023 in India.
Source: PIB

25. Union Minister Nityanand Rai inaugurated the Dawki Land Port in Meghalaya's West Jaintia
Hills district to promote trade and commerce between India and Bangladesh.
• The corresponding Land Port in Bangladesh is Tamabil, located in the Sylhet district.
• It is the 10th landport between India and Bangladesh.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• The Land Ports Authority of India (LPAI) was established in 2012 under the Ministry of
Home Affairs.
• Chairman – Aditya Mishra
Source: Economic Times and LPAI

26. A cargo vessel named MV-ITT LION (V-273) was flagged off from Shyama Prasad
Mukherjee Port, Kolkata to Sittwe Port in Myanmar at a ceremony held in Kolkata.
• This is the first shipment to operationalise the Sittwe Port in the Rakhine State of
Myanmar.
• The port has been developed with Indian assistance as part of the Kaladan Multimodal
Transit Transport Project (KMTTP).
Knowledge Nuggets -

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• India has developed the Sittwe Port in Myanmar for the construction and operation of a
Multimodal Transit Transport Facility on the Kaladan River connecting the Sittwe Port
in Myanmar with the state of Mizoram in India.
• The port connects to Paletwa in Myanmar via an inland waterway and from Paletwa to
Zorinpui in Mizoram through a road component.
• This project aims to provide alternate connectivity route to the North-East India
through Myanmar.
• India has already operationalized the India-Bangladesh Protocol Route to provide
alternate connectivity route to the North-East India.
• These alternate routes will ensure round-the-clock connectivity with the North-East India
in the light of China’s looming threat of blocking the Siliguri corridor.

Source: India Today

27. Union Cabinet Minister for Fisheries, Animal husbandry and Dairying, Shri Parshottam
Rupala will officially launch the Nationwide AHDF KCC Campaign for 2023-24.
• Purpose – to extend the KCC facility to all small landless farmers engaged in animal
husbandry and fisheries activities
• AHDF KCC - Kisan Credit Cards (KCC) for Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries
farmers
• The campaign will run from 1st May 2023 to 31st March 2024.
• During this Campaign, District Level KCC Camps were organized in every week by KCC
Coordination Committee coordinated by Lead District Manager (LDM).
Source: PIB

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28. Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has completed the post-mission disposal
(PMD) operation of the communication satellite GSAT-12.
• GSAT-12 is the 23rd GEO satellite to undergo PMD before decommissioning.
• The satellite was launched in 2011 with a mission life of 8 years.
Source: The Hindu

29. Ministry of Rural Development announced that 28 states and Union Territories have
adopted the National Generic Document Registration System (NGDRS) for land records.
• 26 states have adopted the Unique Land Parcel Identification Number (ULPIN) or Bhu-
Aadhar, with pilot testing underway in seven additional states.
• Some states have also integrated ULPIN with the SVAMITVA portal.
• The Department of Land Resources is implementing the Digital India Land Records
Modernization Programme (DILRMP) as a central sector scheme, with 100% funding
from the central government.
• The department has reached its expenditure target of ₹239.25 crore for the DILRMP in
2022-23.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• Department of Land Resources is implementing One Nation One Registration
Software namely “National Generic Document Registration System” (NGDRS) which
aims at ‘Computerization of Registration’ as a component of the Digital India Land
Records Modernisation Program (DILRMP).
Source: LiveMint

30. Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) organised the Pradhan
Mantri National Apprenticeship Mela (PMNAM) in 200+ districts across the country under
Skill India Mission.
• Individuals can register for the mela by visiting https://www.apprenticeshipindia.gov.in/.
• The candidates who are Class 5 to Class 12 pass outs or have skill training certificates or
are ITI certificate holders or Diploma holders or graduates can apply in this apprenticeship
mela.
• Through this Mela, the candidates will also earn National Council for Vocational
Education and Training (NCVET)-recognized certifications, improving their
employability rate after the training sessions.
Source: PIB

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31. Border-Haat between India and Bangladesh was inaugurated in Sylhet, Bangladesh.
• The first Border Haat was inaugurated in 2011 in the West Garo Hills district of Meghalaya
at Kalaichar and Kurigram in Bangladesh.
Source: News on Air

32. The National Institute of Epidemiology, a premier institute of the Indian Council for
Medical Research (ICMR), will train Ayush researchers in the fundamentals of basic
research.
• This is part of an initiative which was announced under the Memorandum of Agreement
(MoA) between Ministry of Ayush and ICMR, Health Ministry recently.
Source: The Hindu

33. Commission for Scientific and Technical Terminology (CSTT), under the aegis of the
Union Ministry of Education, is creating dictionaries in 10 Indian languages with technical
and scientific terminology.
• It will create fundamental (basic) dictionaries with 5,000 words per language, in three to four
months.
• The CSTT, which was set up in 1961, has the mandate of evolving technical terminology
in all Indian languages.
Source: The Hindu

34. Central Govt has set up an 11-member committee, under the chairmanship of Additional
Secretary of Department of Agriculture Research and Education and ICAR (incumbent:
Sanjay Garg), to restructure the Indian Council of Agriculture Research.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) is an autonomous organisation under
the Department of Agricultural Research and Education (DARE), Ministry of
Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.
• It was established on 16 July 1929 as a registered society under the Societies
Registration Act, 1860 in pursuance of the report of the Royal Commission on
Agriculture.
• It was formerly known as Imperial Council of Agricultural Research.
• The ICAR has its headquarters at New Delhi.

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• The Council is the apex body for co-ordinating, guiding and managing research and
education in agriculture including horticulture, fisheries and animal sciences in the entire
country.
• With 111 ICAR institutes and 71 agricultural universities spread across the country,
this is one of the largest national agricultural systems in the world.
Source: New Indian Express and ICAR

35. ISRO has launched a new introductory-level online training programme called ‘Space Science
and Technology Awareness Training (START)’ aimed at post-graduate and final-year
undergraduate students of physical sciences and technology.
• The programme will cover various domains of space science, including Astronomy &
Astrophysics, Helio-physics & Sun-Earth interaction, Instrumentation, and Aeronomy.
• It will be delivered by the scientists from Indian academia and ISRO centres.
Source: ISRO

36. Trade ministers of India and Canada will review the progress on the proposed free trade
agreement between the two countries to strengthen economic ties.
• The discussions were held during the sixth India-Canada Ministerial Dialogue on Trade
and Investment (MDTI) in Ottawa.
• Indian Pavilion was inaugurated at SIAL CANADA-2023, which is the largest food
innovation trade show in North America with participation of more than 1,000 national and
international exhibitors from 50 countries.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• India's exports to Canada stood at USD 3.8 billion during April-February 2022-23 as
against USD 3.76 billion in 2021-22.
• Imports from Canada stood at USD 3.77 billion during the 11-month period last year as
against USD 3.2 billion in 2021-22.
Source: Economic Times

37. Two new labs - Renewable Grid Integration Laboratory and Green Hydrogen Laboratory -
were inaugurated at the IIT Roorkee’s Department of Hydro and Renewable Energy
(HRED).
• IIT-Roorkee's Director - Kamal Kishore Pant
Source: Hindu Business Line

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38. A total of 3 Cheetahs, which were brought in India from South Africa, have died. A total of 20
Cheetahs (8 from Namibia and 12 from South Africa).
• Daksha (female Cheetah), Uday (male cheetah), and Sasha (male cheetah).
Source: BBC

39. 8th anniversaries of the three social security schemes — Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti
Bima Yojana (PMJJBY), Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY) and Atal
Pension Yojana (APY).
• PMJJBY, PMSBY and APY were launched by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi on 9th
May 2015 from Kolkata, West Bengal.
• 16.2 crore, 34.2 crore and 5.2 crore enrolments have been done under PMJJBY, PMSBY &
APY respectively till 26th April 2023.
Source: PIB

40. Central Govt has ordered that the All India Radio (AIR) will be exclusively referred to as
Akashvani in all broadcasts and programmes.
• All India Radio and Doordarshan are operated by Prasar Bharati under the Prasar Bharati
Act, 1990
Source: Indian Express

41. Union Law and Justice Minister Kiren Rijiju launched the trailer of a feature film, Love in
90s in New Delhi.
• This is the first movie based on the Tagin community of Arunachal Pradesh.
• The film, directed by Tapen Natam, depicts the local culture, lifestyle and other aspects of
the community.
Source: News on Air

42. National e-Governance Division (NeGD) organised 36th CISO Deep-Dive training
programme at the Indian Institute of Public Administration, New Delhi.
• It is a program for cyber-training of government officials.
• Cyber Surakshit Bharat is the initiative of Ministry of Electronics and Information
Technology (MeitY), which was conceptualised with the mission to spread awareness
about cyber-crime.
• It was launched in 2018.
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Source: PIB

43. Ministry of Health and Family Welfare launched the third phase of Thalassemia Bal Sewa
Yojana (TBSY), which is being supported by Coal India Limited as part of their Corporate
Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative to commemorate World Thalassemia Day.
• Thalassemia Bal Sewa Yojana Portal was also launched.
• Thalassemia is an inherited blood disorder that causes a body to have less haemoglobin
than normal.
• The Union Health Ministry has been implementing the TBSY since 2017 under the National
Health Mission (NHM) and had recently completed its second phase in March 2023.
Source: PIB

44. The Tarun Kapoor (former Oil Secretary) Committee has recommended the govt to ban the
use of diesel-powered four-wheelers in cities with over 10 lakh population by 2027.
• It also suggested phasing out motorcycles, scooters, and three-wheelers with internal
combustion engines by 2035.
Source: Indian Express

45. IIT-Madras and DRDO have developed a cutting-edge sensor technology for underwater
communications for the Indian Navy.
Source: The Hindu

46. Union commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal and his Canadian counterpart,
Mary Ng, hosted a CEOs roundtable in Toronto.
• They discussed about an Early Progress Trade Agreement (EPTA). EPTA is an interim step
towards the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement.
• The Business Council of Canada (BCC) and the Federation of Indian Chambers of
Commerce & Industry (FICCI) organised the roundtable.
• Canadian-India Business Council (C-IBC) President and CEO - Victor Thomas
• FICCI president - Subhrakant Panda
Source: Hindustan Times

47. MyGov, in collaboration with Institute of Hotel Management, Pusa is launching ‘YUVA
PRATIBHA - Culinary Talent Hunt’.
• The competition is hosted on the MyGov’s website - https://innovateindia.mygov.in/.
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• Prize money -
o 1st Winner: ₹ 1,00,000/- + Trophy + Certificate
o 2nd Winner: ₹ 75,000/- + Trophy + Certificate
o 3rd Winner: ₹ 50,000/- + Trophy + Certificate
o Following 12 Contestants (in the final round) will be rewarded with a Cash Prize of
₹5,000 /- each
Source: PIB

48. Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has launched the SAKSHAM (Stimulating Advanced
Knowledge for Sustainable Health Management), a Learning Management Information
System (LMIS) of the ministry.
• Developer - National Institute of Health & Family Welfare (NIHFW)
• Purpose - for providing online training and medical education to all health professionals in
the country
Source: PIB

49. India’s Home Minister Amit Shah launched the “world’s first liquid nano DAP (Di-Ammonia
Phosphate) fertiliser”.
• Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative Ltd (IFFCO) has manufactured the Liquid DAP.
• One 500 ml bottle of liquid DAP contains 8% of Nitrogen and 16% of Phosphorus. It can
easily replace a 50 kg bag of traditional DAP.
• IFFCO is expected to manufacture 18 crore bottles of nano DAP by 2025-2026, which will
reduce the consumption of 90 lakh tonnes of traditional DAP.
• IFFCO has manufacturing facilities in Kalol, Kandla in Gujarat, and Paradeep in Orissa to
produce nano DAP fertilisers.
Source: WION

50. Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL), a Central public sector enterprise of the Ministry of
Railways, has been granted Navratna status.
• RVNL was incorporated in 2003. RVNL has an authorized share capital of Rs. 3000 crore
and a paid-up share capital of Rs. 2085 crore.
Source: LiveMint

51. India has extended the timeline of repayment of $1 billion credit line for Sri Lanka till 2024
for providing the much-needed back-up funds to pay for essential imports.
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• The credit line is part of the $4 billion emergency assistance that was extended by India
during Sri Lanka’s peak crisis time in 2022 and was scheduled to end in March.
• Sri Lanka has also received a $3 billion bailout package from the IMF in March 2023. The
bailout was secured on the back of the financial assurances given by India, China, and
Japan to IMF.
Source: Business Today

52. Under the Swachh Bharat Mission Gramin, 50% villages have achieved the ODF Plus
status under phase II of the Mission.
• An ODF Plus village is one which has sustained its Open Defecation Free (ODF) status
along with implementing either solid or liquid waste management systems.
• As on date, more than 2.96 lakh villages have declared themselves ODF Plus, which is a
significant step towards achieving the SBM-G phase II goals by 2024-25.
• Top performing states in terms of percentage of ODF Plus villages are –
o Larger States - Telangana (100%), Karnataka (99.5%), Tamil Nadu (97.8%) & Uttar
Pradesh (95.2%)
o Smaller States - Goa (95.3%) and Sikkim (69.2%)
o UTs – Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Dadra Nagar Haveli & Daman Diu and
Lakshadweep (100% ODF Plus Model villages)
• Rs 52,137 crore has been allocated under the Swachh Bharat Mission Grameen in the
Union Budget 2023-24.
Source: PIB

53. Union Minister for Women and Child Development Smriti Irani launched the Centre’s
flagship programme ‘Poshan Bhi, Padhai Bhi’ to focus on Early Childhood Care and
Education (ECCE) at Anganwadis across the country.
• The ministry has allocated Rs 600 crore for the training of anganwadi workers to implement
the ECCE.
• The National Institute of Public Cooperation and Child Development (NIPCCD) has
been roped in for the training of Anganwadi workers.
Source: Indian Express

54. Ministry of Ports, Shipping & Waterways has launched ‘Harit Sagar’ (Green Port)
Guidelines to meet the larger vision of achieving Zero Carbon Emission Goal.

pg. 18
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• Major ports were also conferred ‘Sagar Shreshtha Samman’ for their all-time best
performance during 2022-23.
o Best Absolute Performance Award: Deendayal Port, Kandla (for handling highest
cargo of 137.56 MMT).
o Award for achieving major milestone in Turn Around Time: Jawaharlal Nehru Port.
o Performance shield on Ship Berth Day Output: Paradip Port.
o Award for pre-berthing detention time: Kamarajar Port.
o Performance shield in turn-around-time (non-container port) award: Cochin Port
o Award for best incremental performance: Paradip Port for attaining the highest cargo
growth rate of 16.56% last year
o Best Ship Berth Day Output: Mormugao Port
o Best Pre-Berthing Detention time: Kamarajar Port
o Award for the best port: Paradip Port.
▪ It was conferred for overall annual performance based upon cargo handling,
average turnaround time, ship birthday output, and idle time at berth, operating
ratio, pre berthing detention.
Source: PIB

55. Chief Justice of India (CJI) D Y Chandrachud launched ‘E-filing 2.0’ to allow filing of cases
electronically round the clock.
• The chief justice also inaugurated an ‘e-Sewa Kendra’ on the Supreme Court’s premises.
Source: The Print

56. World Bank has approved an $82 million loan for The Animal Health System Support for
One Health Program for adopting global best practices for animal health management to
prevent, detect, and respond to endemic zoonotic, transboundary, and emerging infectious
diseases.
• The loan has a maturity of 11.5 years with a grace period of 4.5 years.
Source: World Bank

57. Indian Semiconductor Mission has signed an MoU with Purdue University for capacity
building, research and development, and industry participation.
Source: Economic Times

pg. 19
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58. Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen visited India to hold a meeting with External Affairs
Minister S Jaishankar.
• The Israeli minister will also attend the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) India-Israel
Business Forum.
• They signed a mobility agreement to allow 42,000 Indian workers to work in Israel in the
fields of construction and nursing.
Source: LiveMint and ET

59. Lithuanian Ambassador to India Diana Mickeviciene welcomed the opening of a new
Indian mission in Lithuania.
• Lithuanian Embassy launched a comic book named 'First Lithuanian Travelers in India.'
Source: ANI

60. All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Delhi (AIIMS) has collaborated with World Health
Organization-South-East Asia to ensure patient safety and quality control.
• A core committee for Patient Safety and Quality at AIlMS is being constituted for
implementation of advanced patient safety and quality initiatives across various
departments.
• AIIMS will follow the learning curriculum proposed by WHO in collaboration with the Duke-
NUS (Institute of Patient Safety &Quality -IPSQ).
Source: LiveMint

61. Union Minister for Environment, Forest, and Climate Change Shri Bhupender Yadav
launched the “Meri LiFE” (My life) mobile application ahead of the World Environment Day
(June 5).
• Purpose – to track the progress being made on Mission LiFE
• Users of the Meri LiFE app will be guided to participate in a series of LiFE related tasks
under the 5 themes - Save Energy, Save Water, Reduce Single Use Plastic, Adopt
Sustainable Food Systems and Adopt Healthy Lifestyle.
• The Ministry has also developed two portals to track the progress in a systematic manner.
o The Mission LiFE Portal (missionlife-moefcc.nic.in) - for public for updating their
activities
o The Meri LiFE Portal (merilife.org) - for ministries and institutions

pg. 20
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• Mission LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment) was launched in 2022 at Kevadia, Gujarat to
bring about behaviour changes in individuals through simple easy to do actions.
• World Environment Day 2023 is hosted by Côte d'Ivoire and supported by the
Netherlands and will focus on solutions to plastic pollution.
Source: PIB, and UNEP

62. REMC Ltd, a subsidiary of RITES Ltd, has set up the National Energy Management Centre
(NEMC) for Indian Railways at its office.
• The centre’s objective is to oversee and handle the procurement of energy for the Railways
on a national level.
Source: LiveMint

63. In October 2022, the Prime Minister launched the Mission DefSpace during 12th DefExpo in
Gandhinagar, Gujarat.
• The Mission had 75 Defence Space Challenges categorised into existing Department of
Defence Production initiatives of iDEX, Make-I and Make-2.
• Private Industries, including Start-ups, MSMEs and Individual Innovators, are eligible to
apply. They are required to innovate on -
o Launch System, Satellite System,
o Communication & Payload System,
o Ground System and,
o Software System
• In May, the Ministry of Defence has given 1st contract under Mission DefSpace to Thane-
based InspeCity Space Laboratories.
o This contract was signed by Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX), the flagship
initiative of Ministry of Defence. This contract is the 250th contract of the iDEX.
• iDEX has also signed the 100th contract under SPRINT (Navy) initiative with Siliconia
Technologies Pvt Ltd.
o SPRINT challenge was launched in July 2022 for developing technologies for the
Indian Navy.
o SPRINT stands for Supporting Pole-Vaulting in R&D through Innovations for Defence
Excellence (iDEX), NIIO and Technology Development Acceleration Cell (TDAC).
Knowledge Nuggets -

pg. 21
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• The iDEX framework was launched in 2018 with the objective to engage start-ups to
contribute to the defence sector and develop defence and aerospace technologies in the
country.
• iDEX is funded and managed by the ‘Defence Innovation Organization (DIO)’.
• DIO has been formed as a ‘not for profit’ company as per Section 8 of the Companies
Act 2013.
• iDEX will function as the executive arm of DIO, carrying out all the required activities
while DIO will provide high level policy guidance to iDEX.
Source: PIB, PIB, PIB, and IDEX

64. Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts in collaboration with Shree Guru Gobind Singh
Tricentenary University and Sanrachna Foundation held Rabindra Jayanti Celebrations in
New Delhi.
• ‘Vigyan Vaibhav’ portal has been developed by IGNCA to provide information about 75
Indian scientists. It identifies the contribution of women and men in equal numbers.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• Rabindranath Jayanti is dedicated to a great Bengali poet, novelist, writer and
philosopher.
• This day is celebrated all over India. It is celebrated in the Bengali month of Boishakh.
• As per Hindu calendar, this day is being celebrated today, May 7, 2023.
Source: PIB and Times of India

65. India and Bangladesh have launched the “50 start-ups exchange programme”. Under this
programme, 50 Start-ups from Bangladesh and 50 Start-ups from India will exchange visits
to each other’s countries for exploring partnerships, expanding business relations, sharing
experience and knowledge and expanding youth and entrepreneurial cooperation.
• The first group of 10 start-up companies returned to Dhaka after completing a successful
five-day visit to India.
Source: News on Air

66. Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw, Minister of Communications, Railways and Electronics & IT, launched
the Sanchar Saathi portal to prevent frauds such as identity theft, forged KYC, banking
frauds.
• Link of the portal is (https://sancharsaathi.gov.in).
pg. 22
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• The Department has also launched other initiatives such as -

o CEIR (Central Equipment Identity Register) – for blocking stolen/lost mobiles.
o Know your mobile connections – to know mobile connections registered in your
name.
o ASTR (Artificial Intelligence and Facial Recognition powered Solution for
Telecom SIM Subscriber Verification) – to identify fraudulent subscribers.
Source: PIB

67. ‘City Beauty Competition’ portal (https://citybeautycompetition.in) has been launched by the
Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.
• Purpose - to encourage and recognize the transformational efforts made by cities and
wards across the country to create beautiful, innovative and inclusive public spaces
• Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) across the country can participate in this competition through
an online process.
• Under this competition, wards and public spaces in cities would be judged against five
broad pillars viz., (i) accessibility (ii) amenities (iii) activities (iv) aesthetics and (v) ecology.
• Administrative Staff College of India (ASCI) as the knowledge partner will provide
handholding support to Wards / ULBs / States in this exercise.
Source: PIB

68. The University Grants Commission (UGC) has launched ‘NEP SAARTHI- Student
Ambassador for Academic Reforms in Transforming Higher Education in India’ to involve
students in the implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
• Three students will be chosen by the all Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) as their
nominations for NEP SAARTHIs.
• The UGC will select 300 NEP SAARTHIs from among the nominees.
• Activities to be undertaken by NEP SAARTHIs -
o Connect with student groups,
o establish dialogue among students, faculty members, administrators and UGC,
o prepare brief notes on each NEP initiative for display on campus,
o plan events, debates, discussions, competitions, quizzes, nukkads, chaupals, initiate
social media activities or campaigns and set up NEP help desks at college festivals.
Source: Indian Express

pg. 23
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69. IIT-Madras has signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) with Israel to build an ‘India-Israel Center of
Water Technology’ (CoWT) in Water Resources Management and Water Technologies.
• The Centre aims to build human capacity to ensure the implementation of the best
technologies of Israel in a tailor-made context for the Indian requirements and pilot
sustainable technologies to ensure water security for the country.
• MASHAV, Israel’s Agency for International Development Cooperation, will provide
assistance to the CoWT for the ‘AMRUT’ Mission for achieving its overall targets.
• The Centre will work for implementing the sustainable practices of water management.
Source: Business Standard

70. Union Minister of Ports, Shipping & Waterways (MoPSW) and Ayush, Shri Sarbananda
Sonowal, has made five major announcements under the ‘Panch Karma Sankalp’.
• The announcements are -
o MoPSW will provide 30% financial support for the promotion of Green Shipping;
o Under the Green Tug Transition Programme, Jawaharlal Nehru Port, VO
Chidambaranar Port, Paradip Port and Deendayal Port, Kandla will procure two
tugs each;
o Deendayal Port and VO Chidambaranar Port, Tuticorin will be developed as
Green Hydrogen Hub;
o Single Window Portal to facilitate and monitor river and sea cruises;
o Jawaharlal Nehru Port and VO Chidambaranar Port, Tuticorin will become smart
port by next year.
• In the last 8 years under the Sagarmala Programme, 90 port modernisation projects
have been completed.
• The cargo handled by coastal shipping has grown to 151 MMTPA (Million Metric Tonnes
Per Annum) in 2022-23 which was 74 MMTPA in 2014-15.
• All these announcements were made during the ministry’s second Chintan Shibir held in
Munnar, Kerala.
Source: PIB

71. Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs, Shri Hardeep S. Puri launched MoHUA’s mega
campaign ‘Meri LiFE, Mera Swachh Shehar’.
• The campaign is launched to champion the RRR’s of waste management- Reduce, Reuse,
and Recycle.

pg. 24
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• The RRR Centres will serve as one-stop solution for citizens, institutions, commercial
enterprises, etc. to deposit unused or used plastic items, clothes, shoes, footwear, books,
and toys.
• The Meri LiFE, Mera Swachh Shehar will culminate on 5th June, 2023 (World Environment
Day) with the Pledge for LiFE.
Source: PIB

72. Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry has extended the deadline of its Smart Cities
Mission from June 2023 to June 2024 to enable all 100 smart cities to not only complete
their projects but also document and disseminate the learnings from the mission.
• The mission, which was launched in 2015, selected 100 cities through a competitive
process from January 2016 to June 2018.
• Under the mission, 66 of the cities are small, with less than 1 million population and are
implementing two-thirds of the projects.
• Under the mission, all 100 cities had set up integrated command and control centres at
a total cost of Rs 11,775 crore.
• In total, Rs 71,000 crore has been released to the cities, of which Rs 38,000 crore is from
the Centre and the remaining from states and urban local bodies.
• Around 90% of the released funds have been utilised and the Rs 8,000 crore that has been
budgeted for 2023-2024 would be enough to complete the projects.
Source: Indian Express

73. Union Minister of Ayush and Ports, Shipping and Waterways Shri Sarbananda Sonowal visited
Pharmacopoeia Commission for Indian Medicine & Homoeopathy (PCIM&H), Ghaziabad
and inaugurated “e-Office portal of PCIM&H” and “Online portal”.
• Pharmacopoeia Commission for Indian Medicine & Homoeopathy (PCIM&H) under
Ministry of Ayush is actively engaged in Standardization and Quality Control of Ayurveda,
Siddha, Unani and Homoeopathic (ASU&H) drugs and is publishing the standards in the
form of Pharmacopoeias.
Source: PIB

74. India's AI supercomputer 'AIRAWAT' has secured the 75th position in the prestigious Top 500
Global Supercomputing List.

pg. 25
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• The announcement was made during the 61st edition of the International
Supercomputing Conference (ISC 2023) held in Germany.
• India aims to achieve the vision of “AI for ALL”.
• The supercomputer is installed at C-DAC, Pune as part of the National Program on AI.
• MeitY has planned to increase AIRAWAT’s capacity to 1,000 AI Petaflops Mixed Precision
compute capacity to cater to the current AI computational needs.
Source: Business Today

75. PM Narendra Modi has paid an official visit to Japan, Australia and Papua New Guinea. It is
the first visit of India’s PM to Papua New Guinea.
Visit to Papua New Guinea -

• Tamil classic Thirukkural was released in the Tok Pisin language to bring the Indian
thought and culture closer to the people of this southwestern Pacific nation.
o Thirukkural, a collection of couplets on ethics, political and economic matters, and
love, is written by Poet Thiruvalluvar.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi received the highest civilian honour from two Pacific
Island countries: Fiji and Papua New Guinea, on the sidelines of the 3rd Forum of India-
Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC) Summit at Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea.
o Fiji awarded PM Modi with the highest honour: Companion of the Order of Fiji in
recognition of his global leadership.
o Papua New Guinea also conferred the Companion of the Order of Logohu to
PM Modi for working towards unity of Pacific Island countries and spearheading
the cause of the Global South.
o Palau has conferred the "Ebakl Award" upon PM Narendra Modi.
• The 3rd Forum of India-Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC) Summit was co-chaired
by Indian and Papua New Guinea's Prime Minister and attended by 14 Pacific Island
Countries (PICs).
Visit to Australia -
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Australian counterpart jointly laid the foundation
stone of 'Little India' gateway to be built in Harris Park.
• Harris Park is a hub in Western Sydney where the Indian community celebrates festivals
and events such as Diwali and Australia Day.

pg. 26
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Visit to Japan -
• G7 Summit was organized at Hiroshima, Japan.
• At the Summit, leaders showed the progress made by the Partnership for Global
Infrastructure and Investment (PGII).
• G7 leaders were joined by Australia, Brazil, Comoros, Cook Islands, India, Indonesia,
Vietnam, the Republic of Korea, and the World Bank for mobilising capital in developing
countries.
o The initiative was launched in 2022 to mobilize $600 billion in global infrastructure
investments by 2027.
• Quad Summit 2023 also took place in Hiroshima, Japan. It is the third in-person Quad
Leaders’ Summit.
Initiatives announced at the Quad Summit 2023 -
• Clean Energy Supply Chains Initiative – to facilitate research and development and
support the Indo-Pacific’s energy transition.
• Quad Infrastructure Fellowships Programme – to support policy makers and
practitioners in the region to design, build and manage sustainable and viable
infrastructure in their countries.
• Partnership for Cable Connectivity and Resilience - to leverage Quad’s collective
expertise in design, manufacturing, laying and maintenance of undersea cables to secure
and diversify these critical networks.
• Quad support for a small-scale ORAN deployment in Palau, the first in the Pacific
region. They also released the ORAN Security Report to support industry investment in
open, interoperable and secure telecom platforms.
• Quad Investors’ Network has been launched as a private sector led platform to facilitate
investments in strategic technologies.
Source: Deccan Herald, ANI, HT, White House, PGII, Quad

76. Ministry of Civil Aviation has launched UDAN 5.1 to further enhance connectivity to remote
areas of the country and achieve last-mile connectivity through helicopters.
• Till now, four successful rounds of the Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS) - Ude Desh Ka
Aam Nagrik (UDAN) have been completed and the fifth round is underway.
• In this version, airfare caps have been reduced by 25% to make flying in helicopters more
affordable for passengers.

pg. 27
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• The government has approved the 'Revival of unserved and under-served airports'
scheme for the revival and development of 100 unserved and under-served airports,
helipads and water aerodromes by 2024.
Source: ET

77. Union Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying has announced the start of
Phase-V of the Sagar Parikrama initiative from Raigad in Maharashtra to Canacona in
Goa.
• Purpose – to spread information about fisheries-related schemes and programs such as
the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) and Kisan Credit Cards (KCC)
• The Phase-V will encompass six locations: Raigad, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg districts in
Maharashtra and Vasco, Mormugao and Canacona in Goa.
• The Sagar Parikrama program was launched in February as part of the 75th Azadi Ka Amrit
Mahotsav and has completed four phases, covering 19 locations in Gujarat, Daman and
Diu, Maharashtra and Karnataka.
Source: The Print

78. UIDAI has launched a new feature under the ‘Verify email/mobile Number’ feature on the
official website (https://myaadhaar.uidai.gov.in/) or through mAadhaar App.
• It has been developed for the residents to verify that their own email/mobile number is
seeded with respective Aadhaar.
Source: PIB

79. Central Govt has informed the Supreme Court that it will form a committee headed by the
Cabinet Secretary to address “human concerns” of same-sex couples without legally
recognising their relationship as a marriage.
Source: Indian Express

80. UK and India have partnered to launch the Innovating for Transport and Energy Systems
(ITES) to become first movers in the transition to Net Zero transport systems.
• Launched in partnership with the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) and the UK Research
and Innovation (UKRI), it is a unique collaboration to develop greener, quicker and more
affordable ways for transportation – in India, the UK, and beyond.
• A UK-India Net Zero Innovation Virtual Centre will be set up under ITES to help
maximise cooperation on Net Zero action.
pg. 28
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Source: ET

81. Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired the 8th governing council meeting of the Niti
Aayog on the theme of 'Viksit Bharat @2047: Role of Team India' at the new Pragati Maidan
Convention Centre in Delhi.
• Eight prominent themes will be discussed during the day-long Meeting including (i) Viksit
Bharat@2047, (ii) Thrust on MSMEs, (iii) Infrastructure and Investments, (iv) Minimising
Compliances, (v) Women Empowerment, (vi) Health and Nutrition, (vii) Skill Development,
and (viii) Gati Shakti for area development and social infrastructure.
Source: ET

82. Prime Minister Narendra Modi released a special commemorative postage stamp and a
₹75 coin to mark the inauguration of the new Parliament building.
• As per the Ministry of Finance notification, the latest Rs 75 coin is circular in shape with a
diameter of 44mm. The composition of the coin is of a quaternary alloy — 50% silver, 40%
copper, 5% nickel and 5% zinc.

Knowledge Nuggets -
• Security Printing & Minting Corporation of India Ltd. (SPMCIL) is a company under
the Department of Economic Affairs, a department under the Ministry of Finance. It is
responsible for conducting printing and minting activities of the Government of India.
• Security Printing and Minting Corporation of India Limited (SPMCIL), a wholly owned
Schedule ‘A’ Miniratna Category-I company of Government of India, incorporated on
13th January, 2006.
Source: Indian Express and SPMCIL

83. Union Minister for Rural Development and Panchayati Raj, Shri Giriraj Singh launched the
‘SAMARTH’ campaign on promoting digital transactions in 50,000-gram panchayats under
the Amrit Mahotsav in Lucknow.

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• The campaign started from 1st February 2023 and will continue till 15 August 2023 under
the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav.
• The key thrust of the campaign is to promote Digital Transactions in rural areas, particularly
among women.
• Shri Giriraj Singh, Minister for Rural Development & Panchayati Raj, lauded SHG’s NPA
coming down from 9.58% in 2013 percent to below 2% now.
• A compendium of 75 Inspirational Tales of BC (banking correspondence) Sakhis was
launched.
Source: PIB

84. Union Health Minister Dr Mansukh Mandaviya inaugurated the 8th International Conference
on Pharma and Medical Device Sector in Delhi.
• Organizers - Department of Pharmaceuticals in association with Federation of Indian
Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI)
• Purpose - to promote India as a manufacturing hub of quality medical products in the
pharmaceutical and Medical Device Sector
• Theme of the 1st day of the Conference - Sustainable MedTech 5.0: Scaling and
Innovating Indian MedTech
• Theme of the 2nd day of the Conference - Indian pharma industry: Delivering Value
through Innovation
• ‘Assistance for Medical Devices clusters for Common Facilities (AMD-CF)’ scheme
has been launched to establish and strengthen common infrastructure facilities in the
medical devices clusters and fortify testing facilities for medical devices.
Source: PIB

85. National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) has constituted a Cheetah Project Steering
Committee to review, progress, monitor and advice on the Cheetah introduction to the
Madhya Pradesh Forest Department and NTCA.
• The 11-member committee will be headed by Global Tiger Forum Secretary General Dr.
Rajesh Gopal.
• It will also have a four-member consulting panel of international Cheetah experts.
• Two more cubs born to Namibian cheetah Jwala at Madhya Pradesh’s Kuno National Park
(KNP) have died due to “dehydration” caused by the sweltering heat, after the death of one
of the four cubs. The fourth cub is in a critical condition.

pg. 30
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Source: News on Air

86. Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has conducted a trial run of blood bag delivery
by drones under its i-Drone initiative in Delhi.
• The project ‘i-DRONE’ (ICMR’s Drone Response and Outreach for North East) was
launched for using drone to deliver vaccines and medical supply.
Source: PIB and ICMR

87. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has successfully placed the NVS-01
navigation satellite, into Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit.
• The satellite was launched on the GSLV-F12 rocket from the Satish Dhawan Space
Centre SHAR, Sriharikota.
• NVS-01 is the first of the second-generation satellites envisaged for the Navigation with
Indian Constellation (NavIC) services.
• For the first time, an indigenous atomic clock will be flown in NVS-01.
Source: ISRO

88. Uber (cab aggregator) and Government e-Marketplace have partnered to allow govt
personnel to book taxis for official purposes from cab aggregator Uber.
• The government e-marketplace (GeM) portal was launched in 2016 by the commerce
ministry for buying goods and services by central ministries and departments to bring
transparency in government procurement.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• Among central government ministries, the power ministry was the top buyer in 2022-23
(Rs 30,572.9 crore), followed by the defence ministry (Rs 28,741.2 crore), Ministry of
Petroleum and Natural Gas (Rs 28,157.2 crore), steel ministry (Rs 12,527.3 crore), and
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (Rs 7,158.3 crore) from the platform.
• South Korea's KONEPS is the largest such platform in the world. Currently, GeM
stands at the third position after Singapore's GeBIZ.
Source: ET

89. Atal Bhujal Yojana (Atal Jal), India's central sector water conservation scheme, has been
extended for an additional two years beyond its original 2025 end date.

pg. 31
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• Launched in 2020, Atal Jal is active across 8,220 water-stressed Gram Panchayats
within 80 districts of seven Indian states, including Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh.
Source: LiveMint

90. President Droupadi Murmu has gone on a six-day official visit to Suriname and Serbia from
June 4-9.
• This is her maiden visit to Suriname and her first state visit since assuming office in July
2022.
Source: BS

91. India will launch its third lunar mission, Chandrayaan-3 in July 2023.
• Chandrayaan-3 will be launched by Launch Vehicle Mark-3 (LVM3).
• The first moon rocket, Chandrayaan-1, was launched in 2008, and was successfully
inserted into lunar orbit. Chandrayaan-2 was successfully launched and inserted into lunar
orbit in 2019.
Source: HT

92. The union government has notified the Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme 2.0 for IT
hardware, worth ₹17,000 crore and the window of applications under the scheme will open
from June 1.
• According to the Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY), the scheme is expected to lead to
total production of about ₹3.35-lakh crore, to bring an additional investment of ₹2,430
crore in electronics manufacturing and will lead to generation of 75,000 additional direct
jobs.
• The scheme will promote large scale manufacturing in laptops, tablets, all-in-one personal
computers (PCs), servers and ultra small form factor (USFF) devices and contribute
significantly to achieve electronics manufacturing turnover of around $300 billion by
2025-26.
• Approved applicants of existing PLI will also be allowed to apply under PLI 2.0.
• The scheme has three category of applicants-global companies, hybrid (global/ domestic)
companies and domestic companies.
Source: HBL

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93. XPoSat (X-ray Polarimeter Satellite) is India’s first dedicated polarimetry mission to study
various dynamics of bright astronomical X-ray sources in extreme conditions.
• The spacecraft will carry two scientific payloads in a low earth orbit.
• The mission consists of two payloads POLIX (Polarimeter Instrument in X-rays) and
XSPECT (X-ray Spectroscopy and Timing).
• ISRO is collaborating with the Raman Research Institute (RRI), Bengaluru, an
autonomous research institute, to build the X-Ray Polarimeter Satellite (XPoSat) that is
scheduled to be launched later this year.
Source: ISRO and Indian Express

94. Union Ministry of Minority Affairs allocated Rs 35.52 crore to the Central Council of
Research in Unani Medicine (CCRUM) and Rs 9.81 crore to the National Institute of Unani
Medicine (NIUM) Bengaluru.
Source: PIB

95. The Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute, a source on institutional investors and global capital,
will organize its Global Wealth Conference (GWC) in London.
• Sovereign wealth funds have directly invested $6.714 billion into India in 2022, compared to
just $4.3 billion in 2021.
Source: ET

STATE NEWS
1. 12-day Ganga Pushkaralu festival has been organized by Telugu-speaking population (from
Andhra Pradesh and Telangana) of India at Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh.
Source: Times of India

2. The Y-20 Pre-Summit Meeting under G20 Presidency was hosted by Ministry of Youth and
Sports Affairs in Leh, Ladakh.
• Y20 delegates also visited Hemis and Thiksey Monasteries.
• Cham dance is the folk dance in Ladakh.
• Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh - Shri Brig. (Dr.) B.D. Mishra (Retd)
Source: PIB

pg. 33
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3. The Voters Helpline app has been launched by the Election Commission for ensuring
seamless enrollment of voters in Karnataka.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• Article 324 of the Constitution – Election Commission of India, its functioning, its
independence, its composition etc.
• The Election Commission of India was constituted in 1950.

Source: News on Air and ECI’s website

4. Dr BR Ambedkar Telangana State Secretariat received the coveted ‘gold’ rating from CII’s
Indian Green Building Council under the IGBC Green New Building Rating system.
• Last month, the CM K. Chandrashekar Rao (KCR) inaugurated the new building of the
State Secretariate, which is named after Dr BR Ambedkar, in Hyderabad.
• The Secretariate is the brainchild of the chief minister and has been constructed as per
Indian Green Building Council norms.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• The Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) was established in 2001 as part of the
Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).
• Vision of IGBC - "To enable a sustainable built environment for all and facilitate India to
be one of the global leaders in the sustainable built environment by 2025”.
• IGBC gives certification to every type of building which conforms to its sustainability
criteria. The categories are mentioned below -

pg. 34
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Source: New India Express

5. Directorate of Tourism, Jammu and Kishtwar Tourism Development Authority (KTDA)

has organized a two-day Sinthan Snow Festival-2023 at Sinthan Maidan, Kishtwar.
• The snow festival is being organized in collaboration with the District Administration
Kishtwar, the Jammu & Kashmir Academy of Art, Culture, and Languages (JKAACL), and
the Army.
Source: News on Air

6. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. K. Stalin inaugurated a two-day Medical Value Travel
Conclave named as ‘Tamil Nadu - Where the World comes to Heal’.
• Purpose – for bringing together hospitals from 21 source countries with hospitals in Tamil
Nadu that have been accredited by the National Accreditation Board for Hospitals and
Healthcare Providers
pg. 35
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Source: The Hindu

7. A 50-day countdown to the International Day of Yoga began at Shri Bhawani Niketan
College in Jaipur.
• The program was organized by the Morarji Desai National Institute of Yoga.
Source: News on Air

8. Tamil Nadu Health Minister Ma. Subramanian has launched TN Food Safety Consumer
App and Website (www.foodsafety.tn.gov.in).
• Separately, the state increased the sum insured value from ₹2 lakh to ₹5 lakh under the
Chief Minister’s Health Insurance Scheme.
Source: The Hindu

9. President of India, Smt Droupadi Murmu launched the ‘Addiction Free Odisha’ campaign of
Brahma Kumaris Centre at Hatbadra, Mayurbhanj.
Source: PIB

10. The Centre for Innovation Incubation Research and Entrepreneurship (C-i2 RE) was
inaugurated at the Kakatiya Institute of Technology & Science (KITS) Warangal campus in
Telangana.
Source: News on Air

11. Himachal Pradesh Cabinet has approved to provide Rs 1,500 per month under the Indira
Gandhi Mahila Samman Nidhi to all the women aged 18-60 years in Spiti valley.
• In the state budget, the CM had already announced to increase the pension of 2.31 lakh
women to Rs 1,500 per month who are getting a pension of Rs 1,000 and Rs 1,150 at
present.
• It decided to amend Swaran Jayanti Energy Policy, 2021 to make transfer of land for
setting up solar power and new and renewable energy projects on lease/ purchase/
acquisition basis, subject to the applicable provisions of the various Acts pertaining to the
matter.
Source: Indian Express

12. Nagaland government has recently established a new Directorate of Minority Affairs under
its Planning & Transformation Department.

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• The Directorate of Minority Affairs will implement -

o Pre-Matric, Post-Matric and Merit-cum-Means based Scholarship Schemes;
o Maulana Azad National Fellowship,
o Naya Savera,
o Padho Pardesh;
o Nai Udaan;
o Pradhan Mantri Virasat Ka Samvardhan,
o Nai Manzil
o Concessional credit through National Minorities Development and Finance
Corporation
o Pradhan Mantri Jan Yikas Karyakram for development of infrastructure projects in all
districts
o Nai Roshni,
o Hamari Dharohar, and
o Haj management
Source: News on Air

13. Nagaland government has set up a high-level powered committee, headed by DGP
Nagaland Rupin Sharma, to investigate the restructuring and re-organisation of Nagaland
Police.
Source: News on Air

14. Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) will set up Asia’s largest bio-gas plant in
Mumbai to scientifically treat the segregated wet-waste of the city into compressed biogas
(CBG).
• The BMC will set up this plant jointly with Mahanagar Gas Limited (MGL), which is a
Public Sector Undertaking of the Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL).
• The plant will have a capacity to treat 1,000 tonnes of wet waste daily, making it Asia’s
largest bio-gas plant.
Source: Indian Express

15. Uttar Pradesh has launched the “School Health Program” for preparing the digital health
report card for children - the first in India.
• Under the pilot project, the School Health Program has been started by Lucknow Smart
City in three schools in Lucknow.
pg. 37
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• The digital health report card for the overall physical and mental well-being of 1765
municipal school students is also being prepared under the project.
• Along with this, the benefit of health insurance worth Rs 25,000 is also being given to
these children.
• The digital health report card is being prepared based on 130 parameters.
Source: The Print

16. Rajasthan announced three new conservation reserves, which are Sorsan in Baran,
Khichan in Jodhpur, and Hamirgarh in Bhilwara.
• Sorsan in Baran will be a safe home for the Great Indian Bustard and blackbucks, the
state animal of Rajasthan.
• Khichan in Jodhpur hosts thousands of migratory Demoiselle cranes. Khichan is also
India’s first conservation reserve for Demoiselle cranes.
• With these three new additions, now there are 26 wildlife conservation reserves in
Rajasthan.
Source: Times of India

17. Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone and dedicated to the nation various
development projects worth more than ₹4,850 crores at Silvassa, Dadra and Nagar Haveli.
Source: LiveMint

18. Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid foundation stone and inaugurated various developmental
projects worth over ₹5,500 crore in Nathdwara, Rajasthan.
Source: LiveMint

19. Odisha govt has announced financial support of Rs 10 lakhs for the patients suffering from
Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD).
• Purpose - for meeting the requirements of each discharged patient towards electric
wheelchair, appropriate physiotherapy, genetic test and treatments in higher super
speciality institutions
• The money will be taken from the Chief Minister's Relief Fund (CMRF).
Source: ANI

20. Shimla police will set up traffic lights at 10 bottlenecks of the city as per its ‘One Minute
Traffic Light Plan’.
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Source: LiveMint

21. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy launched a toll-free grievance
redressal helpline number 1902 and a website as part of the ‘Jaganannaku Chebudam’
programme.
• The program aims to provide quick and quality solutions to people’s grievances related to
welfare schemes and government services.
Source: The Hindu

22. 16 female and two male swamp deer were released in Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve (BTR) in
Madhya Pradesh's Umaria district from Kanha National Park, Madhya Pradesh.
Source: ANI

23. Yamuna Authority approved India’s first pod taxi project in Uttar Pradesh between Noida
International Airport in Jewar and the Film City.
Source: Economic Times

24. Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami approved ‘Chief Minister’s Skill Upgradation and
Global Employment Scheme’ to groom youths of the state and make them ready for seeking
jobs in foreign nations.
• ‘Apuni Sarkar Portal’ has been launched to create a database related to youth seeking
employment abroad.
Source: The Print

25. Punjab has become the first Indian state to implement Right to Walk.
Source: Times of India

26. Telangana Government has introduced India’s State Robotics Framework, which provides
a roadmap to promote a robotic ecosystem in the State.
• The state government will set up a Robo Park to provide testing facilities, co-working
options, and co-production/manufacturing options.
• It will also establish a robotics accelerator to provide start-ups with incubation,
infrastructure, authorisation support, market insights, investor connect, and mentorship
support.

pg. 39
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• The state government has signed MoU with IIT-Hyderabad, ART PARK IISC, GMR
Hyderabad International Airport Limited (GHIAL), AgHub (PJTSAU) and AIRA to launch
the framework.
Source: Hindu Business Line

27. Himachal Pradesh and Oil India Limited (OIL) has signed an MOU to establish a framework
for cooperation in harnessing and developing new and renewable energy sources (NRES).
• The state will set up floating solar power plants in various water reservoirs in the State
besides establishing ground-mounted solar power projects.
Source: ANI

28. Assam has launched the ‘Ayushman Asom - Mukhya Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana’ for
providing health insurance scheme of Rs 5 lakh per family per year for offering cashless
medical treatment.
• Ayushman Asom - Mukhya Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana shall initially be covering
approximately 26 lakh beneficiary families which shall in phases go up to 32 lakh families.
Source: ANI

29. Telangana CM K Chandrashekhar Rao has launched Geeta Karmikula Bima scheme for
extending an insurance cover of Rs.5 lakh to toddy tappers, similar to the existing Rythu
Bima scheme for farmers.

Source: Telangana Today

30. Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma launched 'Digitizing Asom' for digitization of rare
Assamese journals and books published between 1813 and 1970 for public use.
Source: ANI

pg. 40
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31. Kerala has launched the Kerala Institutional Ranking Framework (KIRF), modelled on the
lines of the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF), to assess the quality of
higher education institutions in the State.
• KIRF will rank participating universities, colleges in the categories of overall, universities,
colleges, engineering, management, architecture, medical, dental, pharmacy, nursing, law,
and teacher education.
• Parameters - Teaching, Learning and Resources (TLR), Knowledge Dissemination and
Research Excellence (KDRE), Graduation Outcome (GO), Outreach and Inclusivity (OI)
o These components are also followed by NIRF.
• The National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) is a ranking system created by the
Ministry of Education in 2015 to evaluate higher education institutions across India.
Source: India Today

32. The city’s 1st ever direct international flight connecting Bhubaneswar-Dubai has started
by the Airbus A320 aircraft.
Source: News on Air

33. Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu launched ‘Him Data Portal’ to
integrate data of all government wings for the delivery of welfare schemes.
• It has been developed by the Indian School of Business (ISB).
Source: The Hindu

34. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has approved a new scheme
'Mukhyamantri Sikho Kamao Yojana' ('Learn and Earn scheme') for unemployed youths
in the state.
• Youth who have passed class 12th, ITI, Graduation and post-graduation, all of them will be
eligible for the scheme and a stipend amount will also be given to them for learning skills.
Source: ANI

35. Himachal Pradesh CM Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu has launched the Himcare scheme for jail
inmates, by providing Himcare cards to the prisoners at Model Central Jail Kanda in Shimla.
• Purpose – to cover the cost of treatment during their illness
• The state is already implementing Mukhya Mantri Sukh Aashray Scheme to provide
comprehensive support to orphaned children up to 27 years of age.

pg. 41
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• This includes covering their education and hostel expenses, providing them with a pocket
allowance of ₹4,000 and offering financial assistance to construct homes.
• The state has also launched the integrated campaign ISHTH to provide free counselling,
treatment and medicines for HIV, TB, STI and Hepatitis to the jail inmates during the
campaign.
Source: HIndustan Times

36. Andhra Pradesh has launched ‘E-chits’ application to ensure better regulation of the chit
fund businesses in the State.
Source: The Hindu

37. Kerala is set to become the first State to have a welfare fund for Mahatma Gandhi Rural
Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) workers.
• The Ayyankali Urban Employment Guarantee Scheme workers will also be part of the
welfare fund.
• The Welfare fund, which will provide the workers with pension, medical assistance,
educational assistance for their children and other benefits, has been formed as per the
Kerala Employment Guarantee Workers’ Welfare Fund Act, 2021.
Source: The Hindu

38. Madhya Pradesh has launched the Mukhyamantri Krishak Byaaj Maafi Yojana 2023 to
waive the loans of up to Rs 2 lakh (including the principal and interest) for defaulting farmers.
Source: Krish Jagran

39. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin inaugurated a 570-meter long and 4.2-meter-wide
skywalk bridge connecting the Mambalam railway station and T Nagar bus terminus.
• The skywalk, built by the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) at a cost of Rs 28.45 crore
under the Smart City funds.
Source: Times of India

40. Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh has become the first city in India to adopt the localisation of the
United Nations-mandated sustainable development goals (SDG).
• Chief Minister Shivraj Chouhan launched an Agenda for Action: Sustainable Urban
Transformation in Bhopal.
Source: Down to Earth

pg. 42
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41. Telangana has launched the SAHAS initiative for making workplaces safer for women.
• SAHAS, which means Courage, is a programme that aims at strengthening the support
ecosystem for women who face workplace sexual harassment.
• Under the initiative, the SAHAS Microsite, SAHAS Sathi Chatbot, SAHAS Whatsapp
Number, Forum and online support facilities were also launched.
Source: News on Air

42. Visakhapatnam district launched the first-of-its-kind initiative in the state named Niramaya
Health Insurance scheme for children suffering from autism, cerebral palsy, mental
retardation, multiple disabilities, and others.
• The money for the scheme was arranged from Sanjivani Nidhi, funds for which were
donated by government employees on New Year's Day.
• The district is implementing the scheme with the help of The Ability People Organisation.
• District collector - Dr A Mallikharjuna
Source: Times of India

43. Rajasthan has approved a proposal for developing Geographic Information System (GIS)
based 3D models of Jodhpur, Udaipur, Kota and Ajmer for better planning and management
of urban development.
• Apart from this, a 'repository' of satellite imagery of different time periods of Rajasthan will
also be established on the Rajdhara platform.
• Separately, the state has also approved to set up Lavkush Gardens in all the districts of
the state, for which Rs 66 crore has been approved.
Source: ET

44. Madhya Pradesh has become the first state in the country to conduct pilgrimage by air on
government expenditure under the Mukhya Mantri Teerth-Darshan Yojana.
Source: Business Standard

45. Uttarakhand Metro Rail Corporation (UKMRC) has announced its plans to develop state-of-
the-art rapid transit systems in Dehradun, Haridwar, and Rishikesh.
• UKMRC GFX will be the nation's first Neo Metro. It will be implemented on two corridors in
Dehradun, while Haridwar will witness the introduction of the country's inaugural Pod taxi.

pg. 43
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• The Neo Metro is a rubber tire-based mass transit system. It will draw power from an
overhead electric conductor and operate on a dedicated elevated track.
Source: NBMCW

46. Uttar Pradesh govt, in collaboration with IIT-Kanpur, has launched ‘Pahal’ initiative at the
Government UP Sainik Inter College, Sarojini Nagar in Lucknow.
• Under this programme, free online education will be provided at 10 government
secondary schools of the state in the initial phase.
• Through these classes, students of rural areas will be able to get the latest information
related to science and mathematics.
• On the occasion, the rural online education programme was started in 10 government
schools in Uttar Pradesh. This facility will be provided in 40,000 schools in the state in the
coming days.
• This initiative is in line with PM Narendra Modi’s mantra of Triple S (skill, scale and
speed), first you learn, scale-up and then through speed, benefit all the people.
Source: HT

47. Puducherry administration has signed a pact with L&T Engineering Limited to augment
infrastructure in tourism spots.
• Purpose – to include the areas of Puducherry and Karaikal regions under the Centre’s
Swadesh Darshan 2.0 scheme
• Under the scheme, the government is expecting financial assistance of around ₹80 crore
for each region to develop tourist places having heritage and cultural significance.
• The Centre has appointed L&T Engineering Limited as its project management
consultant for the Swadesh Darshan Scheme 2.0 in Puducherry and Karaikal regions.
Source: The Hindu

48. Odisha has signed an MOU with Infosys and NASSCOM for undertaking up-skilling and
developing the employability of students of Odisha’s Higher Education Institutions.
• Infosys aims to provide digital skills to over 10 million people in India by 2025 through
the Infosys Springboard program.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• Infosys Springboard was launched as part of the CSR activity.

pg. 44
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• It provides a completely free curriculum-rich virtual platform to students from Class

6th to lifelong learners with an enhanced user experience.
• It provides a holistic set of courses, developed in collaboration with world-leading digital
educators like Coursera, Skillsoft, Techademy, Knolskape and Harvard Business
Publishing.
• Infosys Springboard empowers women and students from rural areas.
• It is fully aligned with India's National Education Policy 2020.
Source: ANI

49. The annual five-day-long Great Prayer Festival, “Ladakh Monlam Chenmo,” a mass prayer
camp by Buddhist monks and nuns for world peace and happiness was held in Leh, Ladakh.
• The event is being organised by the All Ladakh Gonpa Association.
Source: News on Air

50. Tamil Nadu government has signed six MoUs with various institutions and companies based
in Singapore at the Singapore Investment Conclave on the second day of his nine-day visit
to Singapore and Japan.
Source: TOI

51. An MoU was signed for the development of ‘Riverine Based Religious Tourism Circuit’
among Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI), Sagarmala Development Corporation
Limited (SDCL), Assam Tourism Development Corporation (ATDC) and Department of
Inland Waterways Transport (DIWT) of Government of Assam.
• The MoU will facilitate modern ferry service on a ‘Hop on Hop off’ among seven historic
religious sites around Guwahati.
• The project, executed via a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV), is likely to completed with an
investment of ₹45 crores.
Source: PIB

52. The Kerala Startup Mission has been ranked as the world’s top public business incubator
by the UBI Global World Benchmark Study 2021-2022 of Business Incubators and
Accelerators.
• UBI Global is a Sweden-based innovation intelligence company and community founded in
2013 in Stockholm.

pg. 45
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• Back in 2019 also, UBI Global recognised KSUM as world’s No. 1 public business
accelerator.
• KSUM has launched innovative programmes such as the virtual incubation programme,
‘Fail Fast or Succeed’ (FFS), physical incubation support etc. to support startups from
ideation to market acceleration stages.
Source: Hindu Business Line

53. J&K administration and Indian Army had organized the two-day maiden Sinthan Festival at
Sinthan Maidan Kishtwar.
Source: ANI

54. Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has become India's first fully e-governed state after
digitizing an extensive range of government services, ensuring prompt and transparent delivery
to its citizens.
• It was announced at the 'Total e-Governance Kerala' event.
Source: LiveMint

55. Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami launched a mobile app "Patch Reporting App" to
record pictures of potholes and register their complaints with Public Works Department (PWD).
Source: ET

56. Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagged off the inaugural run of Vande Bharat Express from
Dehradun to Delhi.
Source: Indian Express

57. Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagged off northeast region’s first Vande Bharat Express
virtually.
• The train will connect Guwahati in Assam with New Jalpaiguri in West Bengal.
Source: ET

58. Odisha’s CM Naveen Patnaik launched ‘Mo Ghara’ (My House) to provide credit to
beneficiaries who face fund crunch to complete or upgrade their houses.
Source: The Hindu

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AGRICULTURE AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT

1. Union Home Minister Amit Shah launched IFFCO’s liquid nano Di-Ammonia Phosphate
(DAP) - world’s first Nano DAP (Liquid) - in New Delhi.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• The government gives subsidy is given on Urea, DAP (Di-ammonium Phosphate), MOP
(Muriate of potash), NPKS (Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium, and Sulphur).
• Ideal ratio to use nutrient-based subsidies is 4:2:1(Nitrogen: Phosphorus: Potassium)
in India.
• In November 2022, the govt had fixed the rates on Nutrient Based Subsidy rates for
Phosphatic and Potassic fertilizers for Rabi season 2022-23 from 1st October 2022 to
31st March 2023.

• In India, urea is the most used fertiliser for nitrogen requirements, followed by DAP for
phosphorous requirements.
Source: Indian Express and PIB

2. Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare and NAFED have launched the first of its kind
‘Millets Experience Centre’ (MEC) at Dilli Haat, INA, New Delhi.
Source: PIB

3. Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare has set the foodgrain production target at
332 million tonnes (MT) for the 2023-24 crop year (July-June), a 2.6% increase from the
previous year.
• The foodgrains production in 2022-23 crop year ending June is pegged at 323.5 MT.
• Different crop targets -
o Pulses - 29.25 MT
o Oilseeds - 44 MT
o Millets - 17 MT
o Sugarcane – 468.8 MT

pg. 47
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• The agriculture sector has witnessed an average annual growth rate of 4.6% over the
past six years.
• To support farmers, the government also plans to convert over 325,000 fertilizer shops into
Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samruddhi Kendras, offering fertilizers, seeds, soil testing, and
farming technique information.
• These announcements were made during the National Conference on Agriculture for
Kharif Campaign- 2023 at National Agricultural Science Complex, Delhi.
Source: LiveMint, and PIB

4. Third Advance Estimates of Production of Food Grains has been released by Ministry of
Agriculture & Farmers Welfare.
Crop Production
Total Production 3305.34 Lakh Tonnes (Record)
Rice 1355.42 Lakh Tonnes (Record)
Wheat 1127.43 Lakh Tonnes (Record)
Bajra 111.66 Lakh Tonnes
Nutri / Coarse Cereals 547.48 Lakh Tonnes
Maize 359.13 Lakh Tonnes (Record)
Total Pulses 275.04 Lakh Tonnes
Gram 135.43 Lakh Tonnes
Moong 37.40 Lakh Tonnes
Oilseeds 409.96Lakh Tonnes (Record)
Groundnut 102.82 Lakh Tonnes
Soybean 149.76 Lakh Tonnes (Record)
Rapeseed & Mustard 124.94 Lakh Tonnes (Record)
Cotton 343.47 Lakh bales (of 170 kg each)
Sugarcane 4942.28 Lakh Tonnes (Record)
Jute & Mesta 94.94 Lakh bales (of 180 kg each)
Source: PIB

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DEFENCE NEWS
1. For the first time, the Indian Army has inducted five women officers into its Regiment of
Artillery and three of them have been posted to frontline formations along the Line of Actual
Control (LAC) with China.
• Lt Mehak Saini, Lt Sakshi Dubey, Lt Aditi Yadav, Lt Pious Mudgil and Lt Akanksha have
completed their training at the Officers Training Academy (OTA) in Chennai.
Source: Economic Times

2. Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) and Indian Navy conducted the
successful maiden test trial of ‘ADC-150’ from IL 38SD aircraft off the coast of Goa.
• ‘ADC-150’ is an indigenously designed and developed Air Droppable Container with 150 kg
payload capacity.
• Three DRDO laboratories - Naval Science & Technological Laboratory (NSTL),
Visakhapatnam; Aerial Delivery Research & Development Establishment (ADRDE), Agra
and Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE), Bengaluru - have been involved in the
development of ADC-150 container.
Source: PIB

3. First edition of the ASEAN India Maritime Exercise (AIME-2023) is scheduled from 02 to 08
May 2023 in the South China Sea.
• The harbour phase of exercise will take place at Changi Naval Base.
• INS Delhi, India's first indigenously built guided missile destroyer and INS Satpura, an
indigenously built guided missile stealth frigate, will participate in this exercise.
• The ships, during their port call at Singapore, will also participate in International Maritime
Defence Exhibition (IMDEX-23) and International Maritime Security Conference
(IMSC) being hosted by Singapore.
Source: PIB

4. Indian Army organized an integrated surveillance and firepower training exercise named
'BULAND BHARAT' in the recently operationalised longest High-Altitude Artillery Ranges of
Eastern Theatre.

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• Indian Army, in close coordination with Special Forces, Aviation and Central Armed
Police Forces participated in the exercise, which took place in West Kameng and Tawang
districts of Arunachal Pradesh.
Source: ANI

5. Indian Navy decommissioned INS Magar, the oldest Landing Ship Tank (Large) after 36
years of service at the Naval base in Kochi.
• INS Magar was commissioned in 1987.
Source: Economic Times

6. A new Battlefield Surveillance System (BSS) under Project Sanjay is in the process of
being deployed, after extensive validation carried out in the plains, deserts, and mountains last
year.
• Under BSS, the aim is to have surveillance centres for all field formations by December
2025.
• Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) Ghaziabad is the project’s system integrator. Project
Sanjay aims at developing modern systems for battlefield.
Source: The Hindu

7. A mutual firefighting exercise named AGNI DAMAN-23 was conducted at 29 Field

Ammunition Depot, Dehu Road, Maharashtra under the aegis of headquarter of Southern
Command.
• Purpose - for awareness and training of men on firefighting
Source: PIB

8. Indian Air Force’s first C295 medium transport aircraft has completed its maiden flight at
Seville, Spain.
• European firm Airbus Defence and Space has developed the aircraft.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• In 2021, India signed a ₹21,935-crore contract with Airbus Defence and Space for
jointly manufacturing 56 C295 planes.
• Tata Advanced Systems Limited (TASL) and Airbus Defence and Space are jointly
manufacturing the aircrafts.

pg. 50
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• With this, the Indian Air Force is set to become the largest operator of the C295 in the
world.
• As part of the contract, 16 C295 aircrafts will be delivered by Airbus in flyaway condition
from Spain, and the remaining 40 will be manufactured in Vadodara, Gujarat, India.
• The 16 flyaway aircrafts are scheduled to be delivered between September 2023 and
August 2025, while the first Made in India C295 will be ready in September 2026 and
the remaining 39 by August 2031.
• These aircrafts will replace the Avro-748 aircrafts.
• This is the first time that a military aircraft will be manufactured in India by a private
consortium.
• All 56 aircrafts will be fitted with an indigenous electronic warfare suite developed by
Bharat Electronics Ltd and Bharat Dynamics Limited.

Indian Air Force -

• Motto - Touch the sky with Glory (taken from Bhagwat Gita)
Source: Hindustan Times

9. Tata Advanced Systems Limited (TASL) has designed ALS 50 Loitering Munitions for
Vertical Take Off and Landing (VTOL) and has successfully demonstrated its capability to
carry out precision strikes during trials and tests.
• The loitering munitions are also known as Suicide Drones.
Source: Economic Times

10. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh inaugurated India’s first Indian Air Force Heritage Centre in
Chandigarh’s Sector 18.
Source: Indian Express

11. Indian Naval Sailing Vessel (INSV) Tarini has set sail for an expedition to Cape Town, South
Africa for participating in the 50th edition of Cape to Rio Race 2023.
• The race is one of the most prestigious Trans-Atlantic Ocean races.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• INSV Tarini is known for circumnavigating the globe with an all-women officer crew in the
historic expedition titled ‘Navika Sagar Parikrama’ in 2017.
Source: LiveMint

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12. The 35th edition of India-Thailand Coordinated Patrol (Indo-Thai CORPAT) between the
Indian Navy and the Royal Thai Navy was conducted along the International Maritime
Boundary Line (IMBL) in the Andaman Sea.
• INS Kesari and His Thai Majesty’s Ship (HTMS) Saiburi participated in the CORPAT.
Source: PIB

13. 4th edition of India-Indonesia Bilateral exercise Samudra Shakti-23 was conducted.
• To participate in the exercise, INS Kavaratti arrived at Batam, Indonesia. An Indian Navy
Dornier Maritime Patrol aircraft and Chetak helicopter is also participating.
• The Indonesian Navy will be represented by KRI Sultan Iskandar Muda, CN 235 Maritime
Patrol Aircraft and AS565 Panther Helicopter.
Source: PIB

14. Defence Ministry has approved the 4th Positive Indigenisation List (PIL) for substituting
imports of 928 weapons worth ₹715 crore.
Source: The Hindu

15. 7th edition of joint military exercise “AJEYA WARRIOR-23” between India and the United
Kingdom was conducted at Salisbury Plains, United Kingdom.
• Exercise AJEYA WARRIOR is a biennial training event with the United Kingdom which is
conducted alternatively in the United Kingdom and India, the last edition was held at
Chaubatia, Uttarakhand in October 2021.
• Participants - Royal Gorkha Rifles from the United Kingdom and Indian Army soldiers from
the BIHAR Regiment
Source: PIB

16. The sixth Scorpene Submarine of Project-75, Yard 11880, Indian Navy’s Kalvari class,
‘Vaghsheer’ commenced its sea trials.
• The submarine was launched in April 2022 by the Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited
(MDL).
• Vagsheer is scheduled for delivery to the Indian Navy in early 2024 after the completion of
these trials.
• INS Vagsheer is named after the Sand Fish– a deadly deep-sea predator of the Indian
Ocean.
pg. 52
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Knowledge Nuggets -
• The first Submarine Vagsheer, ex-Russia, was commissioned into the Indian Navy in
1974 and was decommissioned in 1997.
• Project-75 includes the indigenous construction of six diesel-electric attack
submarines of Scorpene design.
• The submarines are being constructed at Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL)
in Mumbai in collaboration with the Naval Group of France.
• Six submarines are INS Kalvari, INS Khanderi, INS Karanj, INS Vagir, INS Vela and INS
Vagsheer.
Source: The Print and Times of India

17. For the first time, Indian Navy and the Royal Saudi Naval Force have collaborated to train
the Saudi Cadets.
• 55 cadets from the King Fahd Naval Academy, Saudi Arabia arrived this week in Kochi, the
headquarters of India’s Southern Naval Command.
Source: News on Air

18. For the first time, India's defence production rose more than 12% in FY23 and crossed Rs
1 trillion ($12 billion) mark.
• India's defence exports have also increased by 24% to about Rs 160 billion.
• India majorly exports Dornier-228 aircraft, artillery guns, Brahmos missiles made under a
joint venture with Russia, radars, armoured vehicles, rockets and Launchers, ammunition
and other equipment.
• India, the world's largest arms importer in the past decade, depends on Russia for nearly
half of its military supplies.
Source: ET

19. Garuda Aerospace and Naini Aerospace Engineering Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of
Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL), have signed a joint development partnership to
manufacture advanced precision drones.
• As part of the partnership, 5000 drones are planned in the first year.
Knowledge Nuggets -

pg. 53
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• NAeL was incorporated in December 2016 as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hindustan

Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) and is situated in the Naini industrial area of Prayagraj, developed
by the UP State Industrial Development Corporation.
• HAL was incorporated as the Hindustan Aircraft Limited on 23 Dec 1940 at Bangalore.
• It is a Navratna CPSE under the administrative control of Ministry of Defence.
Source: Hindu Business Line, HAL, and DPE

20. Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd has launched the GRSE Accelerated
Innovation Nurturing Scheme (GAINS 2023) to support the start-up ecosystem in India.
• Under the program, the GRSE will identify and encourage the development of innovative
solutions as part of the shipyard’s technology development efforts.
• GAINS aims to address present and emerging challenges in the ship design and
construction industry, and aims at achieving the objectives of Atmanirbhar Bharat.
• GRSE has also launched the GAINS challenge (a two-stage process) to select the startups
for support.
• The selected entities would be given a sum of a maximum ₹5 lakh each, against delivery
of the project report.
Source: Hindu Business Line

21. Indra has installed the first of the 23 Lanza-N radars (3D radars) to equip Indian Navy ships
over the next decade.
• The Madrid-based tech company are the original equipment manufacturer of the 3D radar
system.
• Indra and the Hyderabadi defence company, TATA Advanced Systems, signed a deal in
2020 as part of a technology transfer programme.
Source: Navy Technology

22. Indian Navy and Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) released the Gaganyaan
Recovery Training Plan at Water Survival Training Facility (WSTF) at INS Garuda, Kochi.
• The mission is scheduled to be launched in the fourth quarter of 2024.
Source: The Hindu

pg. 54
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MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING
1. NTPC Ltd. signed a supplementary joint venture agreement with Nuclear Power
Corporation of India Ltd. (NPCIL) for development of Nuclear Power Projects.
• Both the companies will work on developing the nuclear power plants in Madhya Pradesh
and Rajasthan.
Source: PIB

2. International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) and IHub-Data, IIIT Hyderabad
have signed an MoU at IIIT Hyderabad campus.
• Purpose - to collaborate in supporting and facilitating FinTech and TechFin entities
• The MoU will enable the FinTechs and TechFins registered with IHub-Data to access
IFSCA’s Regulatory and Innovation Sandbox and apply to the IFSCA (FinTech
Incentive) Scheme 2022.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• IHub-Data is a Technology Innovation Hub for Data Banks, Data Services, and Data
Analytics (IHub-Data) at IIIT Hyderabad.
• It was established under the National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber-Physical
Systems (NM-ICPS); funded by Department of Science and Technology.
• The scheme aims to bring closer different stakeholders – research community,
academics, government officials, NGOs, industry leaders, incubating start-ups and social
science critics -for enhancing or exploring mutual collaboration.
• International Institute of Information Technology, Hyderabad (IIITH) is an autonomous
research university, which was founded in 1998.
Source: Telangana Today

3. Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) and the Institute of Chartered

Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) have renewed their MoU, which will open
opportunities for the “appropriately qualified” member of both the institutes.
• “Appropriately qualified” member is one who has gained membership of either Institute
through completion of their respective Institute’s training and education route.
Source: Hindu Business Line

pg. 55
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4. Indian Institute of Technology-Kanpur (IITK) and Military Engineer Services (MES) Jhansi
have signed an MOU to convert Army stations into carbon-neutral campuses.
• The MOU aims to contribute towards India’s vision of achieving net zero emissions by
2070.
• Under the MoU, five campuses under the MES Jhansi cantonment have been identified
initially, which will be converted into NetZero Carbon, Net Zero Energy, Net Zero Water, and
Net Zero Waste campuses/stations in a phased manner.
Source: IIT-K's website

5. Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has signed an MOU with the
Directorate of Defense Research and Development (DDR&D) of Israel for Industrial
Research and Development Cooperation.
Source: PIB

6. Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs has signed an MOU with RITES Limited for technical
assistance in solid waste management (SWM) and used water management (UWM) under
Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 2.0.
• The technical support unit (TSU) of RITES will assist SBM-U for a period of three years.
Source: Economic Times

7. An MoU was signed between the Embassy of India, Nepal and Sushila Thakur Memorial
Health Foundation (STMHF) for the distribution of LPG gas stoves and cylinders in Mahottari
District, Nepal with the Indian grant assistance of Rs 50 million (approx.) under India-Nepal
Development Cooperation.
• The project is inspired by the India's Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana.
Source: ANI

8. Federation of Indian Export Organisations (Indian Apex exporters body) has signed an MoU
with Business Russia to promote trade and investments between the two countries.
Source: Economic Times

9. Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs and Ministry of Railways have signed an MoU with
Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) for ‘Station Area Development along
Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail’ (Project-SMART).

pg. 56
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• Project-SMART envisages to develop surrounding areas of Mumbai - Ahmedabad High

Speed Railway (MAHSR) Stations.
• Four High Speed Rail Stations- Sabarmati, Surat in Gujarat and Virar and Thane in
Maharashtra will be developed out of 12 stations in-route.
• Surat, Virar and Thane are green field while Sabarmati is a brown field development.
Source: Times of India

10. India Post has signed an MOU with Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) and Tripta
Technologies for logistics services.
• The partnership will provide shipping and the last mile delivery services to CAIT's strong
trader base and small and medium business in the unorganised sector.
Source: News on Air

11. PTC India has signed an MoU with Brookfield Renewables to purchase 100 MW of solar
power on a long-term basis.
• Brookfield Renewables, with a capacity of approximately 24,000 MW globally, is
developing a 400 MW solar power project in the Bikaner solar park in Rajasthan under
the $15 billion global transition fund (BGTF).
• CMD, PTC India Limited - Rajib K Mishra
Source: LiveMint

12. Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has signed an MOU between Art of Living at
Dr B.R Ambedkar International Centre, New Delhi.
• Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has been implementing National Action
Plan for Drug Demand Reduction (NAPDDR) to curb the menace of drug demand.
Source: PIB

13. Ministry of Ayush and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) have signed an
MOU to promote and collaborate on integrative health research.
• This MoU will enable both parties to jointly establish Ayush-ICMR Centers for Advanced
Research in Integrative Health at all AIIMS with co-funding.
Source: PIB

14. North Eastern Handicrafts and Handlooms Development Corporation Ltd. (NEHHDC) and
Indian Institute of Packaging (IIP) have signed an MoU.
pg. 57
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• Purpose - to enhance the packaging and branding of handloom and handicraft products
from the North Eastern region, promote the use of eco-friendly and sustainable packaging,
and to increase their visibility and marketability
Knowledge Nuggets -
• Indian Institute of Packaging (IIP) is an autonomous body which was set up in 1966 by
the packaging and allied industries under the Ministry of Commerce for improving the
packaging standards in the country.
Source: Economic Times

15. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and Indo-American Chamber of
Commerce (IACC) have renewed their MoU for five years.
• Purpose - to enhance collaboration between the American and Indian business
communities across sectors including health, climate change, economic growth, education
and women empowerment
Source: The Hindu

16. Startup Incubation and Innovation Centre (SIIC) of the IIT-Kanpur and YES Bank have
signed an MoU to identify innovative startups and extend them the required financial support.
• With this collaboration, both entities aim to enhance the startup ecosystem in India by
granting them access to a diverse range of resources through YES Head-Startup
program, a full-service banking solution for tech or tech-enabled startups.
Source: IIT-K

17. International Arbitration & Mediation Centre, Hyderabad has signed an MOU with the
Energy Disputes Arbitration Center (EDAC) of Türkiye in Istanbul.
• Purpose - to promote arbitration and mediation on an international scale in the energy
sector
• IAMC Hyderabad is an international arbitration and mediation centre, established in 2021
as a public charitable trust authored by the then Chief Justice of India (NV Ramana).
Source: IAMC

18. India and Nepal have signed an MOU for undertaking two High Impact Community
Development Projects with the assistance of the Indian government.

pg. 58
[Type here]

• These projects are going to cost around Nepali Rs 80.33 million.

• Earlier, also, an MoU was signed between the Embassy of India and Sushila Thakur
Memorial Health Foundation (STMHF), for the distribution of LPG gas stoves and
cylinders in Mahottari District, Nepal with the Indian grant of Rs 50 million (approx) under
India-Nepal Development Cooperation.
o This initiative was inspired by the Government of India’s Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala
Yojana.
o This project will benefit nearly 8,000 underprivileged and marginalised families of five
municipalities in Mahottari District, Madhesh Pradesh of Nepal.
• Since 2003, India has taken up over 535 High Impact Community Development Projects
in Nepal and has completed 478 projects.
Source: The Print

INTERNATIONAL NEWS
1. LVMH became the first European company to cross market capitalization (m-cap) of $500
billion.
• LVMH owns brands such as Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior and Tiffany & Co.
Source: LiveMint

2. For the first time, Japan has approved the abortion pill to terminate early-stage pregnancy.
• In October 1988, China became the first country in the world to approve abortion pill.
Source: Wion

3. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced to host the third in-person Quad
Summit on May 24 in Sydney.
Source: News on Air

4. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan will launch the 17th Japan International MANGA
Award and accept entries by non-Japanese MANGA creators.
• The Ministry of Foreign Affairs established the Japan International MANGA Award in 2007
for expanding international relations through world-famous MANGA culture.
• Manga refers to a form of art developed in Japan in the late 19th century. The term manga
is used in Japan to refer to both comics and cartooning.
pg. 59
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Source: Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan

5. United Arab Emirates and the Kingdom of Cambodia have finalised the terms of the
Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA).
• Purpose - to increase and diversify bilateral trade by substantially eliminating tariffs,
reducing non-tariff trade barriers, and promoting trade in goods, services, and investment
Source: The Print

6. Dubai-based airline Emirates has unveiled the world's first robotic check-in assistant
named Sara.
• Sara will match customers' faces with scanned passports, check passengers in, and guide
them to the luggage drop area.
Source: News on Air

7. Janakpurdham Cultural Festival was celebrated in Nepal's Janakpur.

Source: ANI

8. International Apparel & Textile Fair 2023 (IATF) was organized in Dubai. It is the 15th
edition of the fair.
• The India Pavilion was jointly organised by Apparel Export Promotion Council, Ministry
of Textiles, and Federation of Indian Export Organisation.
Source: News on Air

9. 30th edition of Arabian Travel Market was organized at Dubai World Trade Centre by
Verteil Technologies.
Source: Hindu Business Line

10. UAE has organized the ‘Machines Can See 2023’ Summit at the Museum of the Future in
Dubai.
Source: News on Air

11. The coronation of King Charles III and his wife Camilla took place in London.
• King Charles III is the monarch and head of state for fourteen sovereign countries,
collectively known as the Commonwealth Group.
Knowledge Nuggets -

pg. 60
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• Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Belize,
Grenada, Jamaica, Papua New Guinea, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent
and the Grenadines, Solomon Islands, and Tuvalu are the Commonwealth Group of
Countries which accept England’s monarchy as the Head of the State.
• New Zealand has announced its plans to become a Republic (meaning, the country
would not accept England’s monarchy as the head of the state).
Source: News on Air

12. 14th edition of Petersberg Climate Dialogue (PCD) is an annual high-level political and
international forum that took place from 2 -3 May 2023 in Berlin.
• The PCD series was co-hosted by the Germany and the United Arab Emirates (COP28
President).
• The COP28 of UNFCCC will take place in Dubai, United Arab Emirates from 30
November to 12 December 2023.
Source: UN

13. New York has become the first state in the country to ban natural gas and other fossil fuels
in most new buildings.
• Separately, the US senators have approved a new legislation called the China
Competition 2.0 bill to counter China’s growing influence in various areas.
• The bill would broaden "Chips and Science" Act of 2022.
Source: CNN and Reuters

14. Russia has deployed the world’s largest bomber Tu-160 in the Ukraine war.
• The Tu-160 bomber, also known as the Blackjack in NATO countries, is a supersonic,
variable-sweep wing, strategic bomber developed by Russia in the 1980s.
• It is one of the largest and heaviest military aircraft ever built, and its impressive size
has earned it the nickname "White Swan."
Source: Wion

15. United States Agency for International Development (USAID) hosted the first South Asia
Clean Energy Forum (SACEF) for South Asian countries, including Bangladesh, Bhutan,
India, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, and Nepal.
• Purpose - to foster regional cooperation and advance clean energy initiatives

pg. 61
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• Asian Development Bank, along with its co-organizers the USAID and the Korea Energy
Agency (KEA), will organize the 18th Asia Clean Energy Forum (ACEF) from 13–16 June
2023 in Manila, Philippines.
• ACEF 2023 will be guided by the theme "Navigating Toward a Carbon-Neutral Future
through Clean Energy Solutions."
Source: USAID and ADB

16. Ubhauli, the most important festival of the Kirant community in Nepal, was celebrated.
• Ubhauli festival is celebrated every year on the full moon day of the month of Baishakh in
the Lunar calendar.
Source: News on Air

17. Food and Agriculture Organization has launched the Agriculture Market Information
System.
Source: AMIS

18. UK will launch a low-cost radar satellite named CarbSar for espionage next year.
Source: BBC

19. China has approved the safety of a gene-edited soybean to boost the food production.
Source: Business Today

20. NASA has announced the winners of the 2023 Human Exploration Rover Challenge (HERC)
- the annual engineering competition – one of NASA’s longest standing challenges.
• The challenge has various categories. Among these categories, India has won in the
following categories.
Categories Winners
Project Review Award • College/University Division: Birla
Institute of Technology and Science,
Pilani, Rajasthan, India
Social Media Award • High School Division: Young Tinker
Educational Foundation, Bhubaneswar,
Odisha, India

pg. 62
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• College/University Division: KIET Group

of Institutions, Ghaziabad, Uttar
Pradesh, India
Source: NASA

21. WHO has launched Preparedness and Resilience for Emerging Threats Initiative (PRET)
to provide guidance on integrated planning for responding to any respiratory pathogen such
as influenza or coronaviruses.
• PRET will provide technical guidance and support for promoting and strengthening
integrated preparedness and response.
Source: WHO

22. Rocket Lab has launched two cubesats (satellites) onboard the Electron rocket.
• These satellites are a part of NASA’s new hurricane-hunting constellation.
• The TROPICS constellation (short for "Time-Resolved Observations of Precipitation
Structure and Storm Intensity with a Constellation of Smallsats") will consist of four
cubesats in low Earth orbit.
Source: Space.com

23. Sweden’s space agency launched the microgravity research rocket named TEXUS-58,
which has crashed in Norway.
Source: BBC

24. Arab League has re-admitted Syria after an 11-year absence, following an extraordinary
meeting at the Arab League’s headquarters in Cairo, Egypt.
Source: CNN

25. Ecuador has launched the "Galapagos Bond" (blue bond) for the conservation of the
Galapagos Islands, which are located some 600 miles (970 km) off Ecuador's mainland coast,
• This is the world's largest "debt-for-nature" swap on record.
• Credit Suisse (Swiss company) has announced buying Ecuadorian bonds worth $1.6
billion (€1.45 billion) in a debt-for-nature swap.
• The new bond has an $85 million 'credit guarantee' from the Inter-American
Development Bank and $656 million of political risk insurance from the U.S. International
Development Finance Corp (DFC), effectively making it less risky.
pg. 63
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• The bond will have a coupon rate of 5.645%.

Knowledge Nuggets -
• Debt-for-nature swaps are financial transactions in which a portion of a developing
nation's foreign debt is forgiven in exchange for local investments in environmental
conservation measures.
Source: Reuters and Indian Express

26. NASA scientists are claiming to have found an ocean layer between their cores and icy
crusts on four of Uranus’ largest moons.
• The estimation is made by using the data given by NASA’s Voyager spacecraft.
• A total of 27 moons circle Uranus. Of them, Ariel, Umbriel, Titania, Oberon, and Miranda
are the largest moons.
Source: NASA

27. Bhutan has launched the Naykap Gokab online platform to connect innovators, policymakers,
and investors to create opportunities for collaboration and investment.
Source: ANI

28. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory has developed Exobiology Extant Life Surveyor
(EELS) as an autonomous snake robot to aid in explorations of life-supporting environments.
Source: NASA

29. Chinese President Xi Jinping will host the first-of-its-kind two-day summit with the leaders of
five Central Asian nations (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and
Uzbekistan) next week.
Source: The Hindu

30. IBM, in collaboration with NASA, unveiled a new geospatial foundation model designed to
convert satellite data into high-resolution maps of floods, fires, and other landscape
changes to reveal the planet’s past and hint at its future.
Source: The Hindu

31. Asian Development Bank organized its 56th Annual Meeting in Incheon, South Korea.
• ADB launched the Innovative Finance Facility for Climate in Asia and the Pacific (IF-
CAP), a landmark program to tackle climate change.
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• IF-CAP's initial partners are Denmark, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Sweden, the
United Kingdom, and the United States.
• IF-CAP financing will contribute to ADB’s raised ambition for $100 billion from its own
resources for climate change for 2019–2030.
• ADB will provide the funding to countries for tackling climate change for the Asia-Pacific
region with a model of ‘$1 in, $5 out’.
• The countries will be able to raise loans of up to $15 billion as against the initial contribution
of $3 billion in guarantees.
Source: ADB

32. NASA’s Scientific Balloon Program has launched a second football-stadium-sized, heavy-lift
super pressure balloon (SPB) from Wānaka Airport, New Zealand, on a technology mission
aimed for 100 days or more of flight in the Earth’s upper atmosphere.
• The second balloon contains the Extreme Universe Space Observatory 2 (EUSO-2), a
science mission from the University of Chicago.
• It aims to detect ultra-high energy cosmic-ray particles from beyond Milkyway galaxy as
they penetrate Earth’s atmosphere.
Source: NASA

33. WHO launched the “Accelerating anaemia reduction: a comprehensive framework for
action”.
• WHO aims to achieve the global target to halve anaemia prevalence in women of
reproductive age by 2025.
• Currently, an estimated 571 million women and 269 million young children face serious
health problems due to anaemia.
• Globally, it is estimated that in 2019, 40% of all children aged 6–59 months, 37% of
pregnant women and 30% of women 15–49 years of age were affected by anaemia.
• For all population groups combined, it is estimated that nearly one quarter of the world’s
population, or 1.8 billion people, suffered from some form of anaemia in 2019.

pg. 65
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Knowledge Nuggets -
• The amount of haemoglobin in whole blood is expressed in grams per deciliter (g/dl). The
normal Hb level for males is 14 to 18 g/dl; that for females is 12 to 16 g/dl.
Source: WHO

34. Vast, a space habitation technologies company in US, has announced its plans to launch the
world’s first commercial space station, called Haven-1, on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket to
low-Earth orbit in 2025.
• The mission will be quickly followed by Vast-1, the first human spaceflight mission to
Haven-1 on a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft.
Source: Vast

35. WHO has launched International Pathogen Surveillance Network (IPSN) to help protect
people from infectious disease threats through the power of pathogen genomics.
• The platform will provide a platform to connect countries and regions, improving systems for
collecting and analyzing samples, using these data to drive public health decision-making,
and sharing that information more broadly.
• The Secretariat of the IPSN will be hosted by the WHO Hub for Pandemic and Epidemic
Intelligence.
• It will work to detect and respond to disease threats before they become epidemics and
pandemics, and to optimize routine disease surveillance.
• The IPSN was launched on the sidelines of the World Health Assembly in Geneva.
Source: WHO

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36. According to the data from the World Meteorological Department, extreme weather, climate
and water-related events caused 573 disasters in India between 1970 and 2021 that claimed
1,38,377 lives.
• Globally, 11,778 reported disasters led to more than two million deaths and USD 4.3
trillion in economic losses during this period.
• Over 90% of the reported deaths worldwide occurred in developing countries.
• The information was revealed at the World Meteorological Congress 2023 in Geneva
(quadrennial event) in Switzerland.
• The “United Nations Early Warnings for All initiative” is one of the top strategic priorities
due to be endorsed by the World Meteorological Congress, WMO’s top decision-making
body.
• The WMO aims to ensure that early warning services reach everyone on earth by the end
of 2027.
• Between 1970 and 2021, Asia accounted for 47% of all reported deaths worldwide, with
tropical cyclones being the leading cause of reported deaths.
o Tropical cyclone Nargis in 2008 led to 1,38,366 deaths. It had formed in the Bay of
Bengal and
o Bangladesh reported the highest number of human deaths (5,20,758) in Asia
due to 281 events.
• According to the Annual Statement on Climate of India of the India Meteorological
Department, India recorded 2,227 human casualties due to extreme weather events in
2022.
Source: The Print

37. Iran unveiled a new version of a ballistic missile with a range of 2,000 kilometers (1,242 miles),
named Kheibar missile.
• It is Iran’s longest-range missile to date.
Source: Times of Israel

38. The World Meteorological Congress has approved a new greenhouse gas (GHG)
monitoring initiative to reduce heat-trapping gases, which are fuelling temperature increases.
• The new global GHG watch will fill critical information gaps and provide an integrated and
operational framework.

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• The framework will bring all space-based and surface-based observing systems, as well as
modelling and data assimilation capabilities, under one roof.
• The GHG watch will consist of four main components.
Source: Down to Earth

39. Axiom Space has launched Ax-2 mission, the second private astronaut mission, to the
International Space Station (ISS) on the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon capsule named
‘Freedom’ from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
• Four astronauts went to ISS through this mission. The crew included Saudi Arabia's first
astronaut woman, Rayyanah Barnawi and a Saudi man Ali AlQarni. Barnawi has become
the first Saudi woman in space.
• Other crew members were former NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson who will serve as
commander and John Shoffner, a paying customer who will serve as Ax-2's pilot.

Source: Space.com

40. World Bank has released the “Thriving – Making Cities Green, Resilient and Inclusive in a
Changing Climate” report.
• Globally, 70% of greenhouse gas emissions emanate from cities.
Source: World Bank

41. World Bank has announced to provide $2.25 billion to Bangladesh to support projects related
to growth, regional connectivity and disaster preparedness.
• World Bank will also provide $743.45 million to Bangladesh under its ‘Accelerating
Transport and Trade connectivity in Eastern South Asia (ACCESS) programme,
phase-1' to improve trade.

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• Under the Resilient Infrastructure for Adaptation and Vulnerability Reduction (RIVER)
project, Bangladesh will receive $500 million to support its Delta Plan 2100 to improve
disaster preparedness against inland flooding.
• The $250 million Sustainable Microenterprise and Resilient Transformation (SMART)
project aims to help transform the micro-enterprise sector in Bangladesh.
• Bangladesh Environmental Sustainability and Transformation (BEST) Project aims to
promote private sector participation in green investment.
• Bangladesh aims to achieve higher income country status by 2041.
Source: News on Air

42. The world's largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, has reached into Oslo,
Norway, a first for such a U.S. ship,
Source: Reuters

43. The second set of NASA's TROPICS cubesats has been launched completing the agency's
hurricane-studying mini constellation.
• The second launch is dubbed as "Coming to a Storm Near You".
• The first launch, conducted in the beginning of May, is named as "Rocket Like a
Hurricane".
• Both the launches carrying cubesats aim to study hurricanes.
• TROPICS program stands for "Time-Resolved Observations of Precipitation Structure
and Storm Intensity with a Constellation of Small Sats."
• Rocket Lab is the second company to launch TROPICS cubesats. The first one was the
California-based Astra company.
Source: Space.com

44. NASA has announced that its globetrotting SuperBIT balloon successfully completed a flight
test.
• The super pressure balloon carrying the Super Pressure Balloon Imaging Telescope
(SuperBIT) became the first science mission of NASA to complete two full revolutions of
the Southern Hemisphere floating at mid-latitudes.
Source: CNBC

45. South Korea launched a commercial-grade satellite for the first time using a domestically
produced space rocket- Nuri.
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• The three-stage KSLV-II Nuri is the country’s first domestically built space launch vehicle
using only South Korean rocket technology, and three more flights are expected by 2027.
Source: The Print

46. Bangladesh hosted the 6th Indian Ocean Conference (IOC) scheduled to be held between
May 12-13 in Dhaka.
• The 6th edition of the Conference is being organised by India Foundation in association
with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bangladesh and S. Rajaratnam School of International
Studies.
Source: News on Air

47. SpaceX launched a big telecommunications satellite named Arabsat BADR-8 on a Falcon 9
rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
Source: Space.com

48. China has sent 3 astronauts to its Tiangong space station on the Shenzhou 16 crew
spacecraft from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the Gobi Desert.
Source: Space.com

49. Negotiations for the Supply Chains (Pillar-II) Agreement were substantially concluded during
the second in-person Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) Ministerial Meeting held in
Detroit, US.
• The IPEF Supply Chains (Pillar-II) Agreement is one of the fastest ever concluded
plurilateral economic cooperation Agreements.
• Objectives of the agreement -
o Make supply chains more resilient, robust, and well-integrated through crisis
response measures;
o Cooperation for mitigation of the effect of disruptions to better ensure business
continuity, and improve logistics and connectivity;
o Promoting investments particularly in critical sectors and production of key goods;
and
o Worker role enhancement through requisite upskilling and reskilling, and increasing
comparability of skills credentials frameworks across IPEF
• It entails cooperative and collaborative efforts among the IPEF partners.

pg. 70
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Knowledge Nuggets -
• In May 2022, the United States launched the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for
Prosperity (IPEF) with Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Fiji India, Indonesia, Japan, the
Republic of Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and
Vietnam.
• This framework will advance resilience, sustainability, inclusiveness, economic growth,
fairness, and competitiveness for our economies.
• The 14 IPEF partners represent 40% of global GDP and 28% of global goods and
services trade.
Source: PIB and USTR

REPORTS AND INDICES

1. NITI Aayog released a report titled Promoting Millets in Diets: Best Practices across
States/UTs of India.
• The report presents a set of good and innovative practices adopted by states
governments and organizations in various aspects of millet value- chain especially
production, processing and consumption.
• Three themes of the report are (a) State Missions and initiatives to promote millets; (b)
Inclusion of millets in ICDS; (c) Research and development and use of technology for
innovative practices.
Source: PIB

2. NASSCOM has released the ‘Unpacking India’s IP Ecosystem for an Innovation-led

future’ report.
• As per the report, patent filings have increased in India at a 13.6% growth rate in 2022,
highest annual increase in the last decade.
• The share of domestic filings rose to 44.4% of total patents filed, compared to 41.6% in
the previous year.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• Nasscom, a not-for-profit industry association, is the apex body for the $245 billion
technology industry in India,
• Established - 1988
pg. 71
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Source: The Hindu

3. Department of Science and Technology, in collaboration with the United Nations Industrial
Development Organization, has prepared and released the National Manufacturing
Innovation Survey (NMIS) 2021-22.

About the Survey -

• The NMIS 2021-22 study was conducted as a 2-pronged survey that examined the
innovation processes, outcomes, and barriers in manufacturing firms and studied the
innovation ecosystem that affects innovation outcomes in these firms.
• This study is a follow-up of DST’s first National Innovation Survey held in 2011.
• The NMIS 2021-22 survey had two specific components: the firm-level survey and the
sectorial systems of innovation (SSI) survey.
• A total of 8,087 firms participated in the firm-level survey, while 5,488 firms and non-firms
participated in the SSI survey from 28 states and 6 Union Territories (UTs).

Results -
• Karnataka is the most innovative state in manufacturing, followed by Telangana, Tamil
Nadu, Maharashtra, and Haryana.
o Karnataka is not only the most innovative in its manufacturing sector but also has
the highest number of companies in manufacturing that carry out innovations.
• Uttarakhand has topped among the hill states, while Dadra and Nagar Haveli and
Daman and Diu topped among the UTs.
• Innovation in manufacturing is the lowest in the North-eastern states (excluding Assam),
followed by Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.
• Out of the total firms surveyed, only 25.01% were considered innovative.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• UNIDO is a specialized agency of the United Nations.
• UNIDO works for achieving the goals of SDG 9 - Build resilient infrastructure, promote
inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation.
• Established - 1966
• HQ – Vienna, Austria
• Members - 171 Member States

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• Director-General - Gerd Müller (Germany)

UN’s Specialised Agencies -

• Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
• International Atomic Energy Agency
• International Criminal Court
• International Fund for Agricultural Development
• International Labour Organization
• International Monetary Fund
• International Organization for Migration
• International Seabed Authority
• International Telecommunication Union
• International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea
• Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty Organization
• United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
• United Nations Industrial Development Organization
• World Bank
• World Health Organization
• World Intellectual Property Organization
• World Meteorological Organization
Source: PIB, Indian Express, Official report, UNIDO, UN’s website

4. Boston Consulting Group (BCG) has released the “Global Fintech 2023: Reimagining the
Future of Finance” report.
• More than half the world’s population remains unbanked or underbanked.
• The fintech sector, currently holding a mere 2% share of global financial services
revenue, is estimated to reach $1.5 trillion in annual revenue by 2030, constituting almost
25% of all banking revenues worldwide.
• Asia-Pacific will have the largest market with 42% of all incremental revenues.
Source: BCG’s report

5. World Economic Forum (WEF) has released the “Future of Jobs” report.
• The report finds analytical thinking, creative thinking and AI and big data will be top in-
demand skills by 2027.
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• Between 2023 and 2027, businesses predict that 44% of workers’ core skills will be
disrupted, because technology is moving faster than companies can design and scale up
their training programmes.

Source: WEF

6. World Economic Forum has released the “Chief Economists Outlook: May 2023”.
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• The report provides a comprehensive analysis of economists’ perspectives.

Source: Official report

7. United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) released its

2023 Annual Report.
• The 2023 Annual Report recommends the redesignation 12 countries as Countries of
Particular Concern for religious rights violation: Burma, China, Cuba, Eritrea, Iran,
Nicaragua, North Korea, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan.
• The report also designates Afghanistan, INDIA, Nigeria, Syria, and Vietnam as additional
CPCs.
• India has rejected the report as "biased" and "motivated".
Source: Official Report and The Hindu

8. Yale Program on Climate Change Communication and C-Voter International, an Indian

international polling agency in Delhi, have released the Global Warming’s Four Indias 2022
report.
• As per the report, 82% Indians are either “alarmed” or “concerned” about global warming,
and favour India’s participation in the Paris Agreement.
• The remaining 18% are either “cautious” or “disengaged” about these issues.
Source: The Print

9. Global Report on Food Crises (GRFC) for 2023 was released by the Food Security
Information Network (FSIN) and the Global Network against Food Crises (GNAFC).
Knowledge Nuggets -

Food Security Information Network

• Food Security Information Network (FSIN) is a technical platform for exchanging
expertise and best practices on food security and nutrition analysis.
• FSIN is funded by the European Union and the United States Agency for International
Development.

Global Network Against Food Crises

• European Union, Food and Agriculture Organization and World Food Program
launched the Global Network Against Food Crises at the 2016 World Humanitarian

pg. 75
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Summit (WHS) to tackle protracted crises and recurrent disasters, reduce vulnerability,
and manage risk.
• It aims at bridging the gap between development and humanitarian partners.
• It works towards achieving the Zero Hunger goal of the Sustainable Development
Agenda 2030 (SDG 2).
Source: FSIN and GNAFC

10. UNESCO has released the “Defending Creative Voices” report.

Source: UNESCO

11. PwC India and US-India Chamber of Commerce (USAIC) have released the “Clinical Trial
Opportunities in India” report.
Source: PwC

12. According to a report by Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and QED Investors, revenues in
the financial technology sector are projected to grow sixfold from $245 billion to $1.5 trillion
by 2030.
• The fintech sector, which currently holds a 2% share of the global financial services
revenue of $12.5 trillion, is estimated to grow up to 7%.
• Fintechs are estimated to constitute almost 25% of all banking valuations worldwide by
2030.
Source: Financial Express

13. UN’s Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) has released
the “Race to Net Zero” Report.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) is the most
inclusive intergovernmental platform in the Asia-Pacific region.
• The Commission promotes cooperation among its 53 member States and 9 associate
members to achieve SDGs.
• ESCAP is one of the five regional commissions of the United Nations.
• Secretariat – Bangkok, Thailand
Source: UN

pg. 76
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14. WHO and UNICEF has released the “Born too soon: decade of action on preterm birth”
report.
• The preterm birth rates reduced to 9.9% in 2020 globally, compared to 9.8% in 2010.
• Almost half (45%) of all preterm births in 2020 occurred in just five countries: India,
Pakistan, Nigeria, China and Ethiopia.
• India had the highest number of preterm births in 2020 (3.02 million, accounting for over
23% of all preterm births worldwide).
• 13.4 million babies were born preterm in 2020 (9.9% of all live births).
• National preterm birth rates vary from 4-16%. Southern Asia has the highest rates and
numbers of preterm birth.

Source: WHO

15. Office of the United States Trade Representative has released the “2023 Special 301
Report” to review of the state of intellectual property (IP) protection and enforcement in U.S.
trading partners around the world.
• India has been retained on the list of Priority Watch List 2023.
Source: Official Report

16. Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways has secured the 2nd position among 66
ministries in Data Governance Quality Index assessment for 2022-2023 Q3 (December
Quarter) with score of score of 4.7 out of 5.

pg. 77
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• Purpose - To measure the maturity level of administrative data systems and their use in
decision-making of various Ministries/Departments on the implementation of Central Sector
Schemes and Centrally Sponsored Schemes
• Conducted by - Development Monitoring and Evaluation Office, NITI Aayog
• It identifies reforms to reach the frontier of seamless data exchange and its synergistic use
within the ministry, while defining clear pathways to achieve these goals.
• Themes of the index -
o Data Generation
o Data Quality
o Use of Technology
o Data Analysis
o Use and Dissemination
o Data Security and HR Capacity
Source: PIB

17. Norwegian Refugee Council and Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre have released
the Global Report on Internal Displacement 2023 (GRID 2023): Internal displacement and
food security.
• The number of internally displaced people (IDPs) around the world reached 71.1 million as
of the end of 2022, an increase of 20% from the previous year.
• The number of disaster displacements increased by nearly 40% compared to the
previous year, reaching 32.6 million.
• Conflict and violence triggered 28.3 million internal displacements worldwide.
Source: Reliefweb

18. UN Environment Program has released the “Turning off the Tap How the world can end
plastic pollution and create a circular economy”.
• The report introduces measures to the global plastic pollution by 80% by the year 2040.
Source: UNEP

19. The Asian Development Bank has released the “ADB Annual Report 2022: Building
Resilience in Challenging Times”.
• As per the report, it committed USD 20.5 billion from its own resources in 2022 to help Asia
and the Pacific recover from the Covid-19 pandemic.

pg. 78
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• ADB mobilized an additional $11.4 billion in co-financing.

• ADB committed $6.7 billion in financing for climate mitigation and adaptation in 2022,
making progress toward its ambition of providing $100 billion in cumulative climate
financing during 2019–2030.
• Pakistan has become the largest recipient of ADB loans in the year 2022. Out of total
disbursement of over USD 31.8 billion to 40 countries, Pakistan received loans of USD 5.58
billion.
Source: ReliefWeb, ET, and ADB’s report

20. Knight Frank (UK-based real estate consultancy company) has released “The Wealth
Report” 2023.
• As per the report, the India’s ultra-high-net-worth individuals (UHNWI) with net worth
over $30 million will rise by over half (58.4%) in the next five years.
• The high-net-worth-individual (HNI) population, with asset value of $1 million and more,
which was recorded at 7.9 lakh persons in 2022 will also rise to 16.5 lakh in the next 5-year
period.
Source: LiveMint

21. ‘Internet in India Report 2022’ has been released by the Internet and Mobile Association of
India.
• Out of 759 million ‘active’ internet users in India for 2022, 399 million are from rural India,
while 360 million are from urban India.
• Approximately, 56% of all new internet users in India will be from rural areas by 2025.
• Urban India witnessed only 6% growth (in 2022) while the rural India witnessed a 14%
growth rate over the past year.
• Urban India witnesses an approximately 71% internet penetration.
Source: Economic Times

22. According to the International property consultant Knight Frank’s 'Data Centre Q1 2023'
report, Shanghai, Tokyo and Mumbai have emerged as the top data centre markets in the
Asia-Pacific region.
• The report was released in partnership with leading data centre research and analytics
platform DC Byte.

pg. 79
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• The report focuses on nine rapidly emerging markets in APAC - Bangkok, Hong Kong,
Kuala Lumpur, Mumbai, Seoul, Shanghai, Singapore, Sydney and Tokyo.
• Mumbai is the only city from India in the study.
Source: ET

23. World Bank has released the annual “State and Trends of Carbon Pricing” report at
Innovate4Climate, the flagship climate action event of the World Bank Group, held this year in
Bilbao, Spain, from May 23 to 25.
• Revenues from carbon taxes and Emissions Trading Systems (ETS) have reached a
record high about $95 billion.
• This is despite the challenging context for governments facing high inflation, fiscal
pressures, and energy crises.
Source: World Bank

24. Boston Consulting Group (BCG) has released a report of the top 50 companies in 2023
that are most innovative in their operations.
• Tata Group is the only Indian company to feature in the Top 50 list. It was placed in the
twentieth spot in the list of most innovative companies in the world.
• Apple has topped in this list.
Source: Business Standard

25. International Transport Forum has released the Transport Outlook 2023 report.
• This report examines the impacts of different policy measures on global transport demand
and carbon dioxide emissions to 2050.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• The International Transport Forum of the OECD is an intergovernmental
organisation with 66 member countries (including India).
• It acts as a think tank for transport policy and organises the Annual Summit of
transport ministers.
• ITF is the only global body that covers all transport modes. The ITF is administratively
integrated with the OECD, yet politically autonomous.
• Young Tae Kim (Korea) is the Secretary-General of the International Transport Forum
(ITF).
• HQ – Paris, France

pg. 80
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Source: ITF

26. UNICEF, WHO, and World Bank have released the “Levels and Trends in Child
Malnutrition” report.
• Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Target 2.2 aims at addressing the issues of child
malnutrition (stunting, wasting, overweight and underweight).
Stunting • It affected an estimated 22.3% or 148.1
million children under 5 globally in 2022
• Only about 1/3rd of all countries is ‘on
track’ to halve the number of children
affected by stunting by 2030.
• More intensive efforts are required if the
world is to achieve the global target of
reducing the number of children with
stunting to 89 million by 2030.
o With current progress, the 2030
target will be missed by 39.5
million children, with more than
80% of these ‘missed’ children
living in Africa.
Wasting • It estimated 6.8% or 45 million children
under 5 globally in 2022
• Even fewer countries are expected to
achieve the 2030 target of 3%
prevalence for overweight, with just 1
in 6 countries currently ‘on track’.
Overweight • It affected an estimated 5.6% or 37
million children under 5 globally in 2022
• Progress towards the wasting target is
not possible for nearly half of
countries.

Data on India -

pg. 81
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• According to this 2023 edition of the ‘Joint Malnutrition Estimates’ (JME) released by
UNICEF, WHO and the World Bank, there were 16 million less stunted children in India
in 2022 as compared to 2012.
• Stunting reduced from around 42% to 32% between 2012 and 2022 and India’s share in
the global burden has declined from 30% to 25%.
• The overall prevalence of stunting in 2022 as per global estimates at 31.7% in case of
India which is less than the national estimates of 35.5% (National Family Health Survey-5
2019-21).
• The overall prevalence of wasting in 2022 as per global estimates is 18.7% in India
similar to the national estimates of 19% (NFHS-5). India’s share in the global burden of
wasting is significant at 49%.
• The prevalence of overweight marginally increased in a decade, from 2.2% in 2012 to
2.8% in 2022. India’s share in the global burden of overweight is 8.8% in 2022.

Source: WHO and TOI

BANKING AND ECONOMY

1. According to the World Bank’s data, India has become the first country in the world to have
annual remittances from abroad crossing the $100-billion mark.
• Private remittances crossed this $100 billion threshold in 2022, with an impressive year-on-
year growth of 12%.
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• India is expected to be the top remittances destination in FY23.

• According to the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade’s data, FDI in
India fell by 15% on year to $36.75 billion during the April-December 2022.
• Around 18 million Indians are living outside their country of birth — the biggest diaspora
in the world.
• About $630 billion was sent in remittances to low- and middle-income nations in 2022, up
by 5% from previous year.
• Remittances to these countries were equivalent to the FDI inflows into them during the
year.
Source: Financial Express

2. Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) has announced to operationalise the
Electronic Cash Ledger (ECL) in phases for importers and exporters w.e.f., April 1, 2023.
• As per Section 51A of the Customs Act, 1962, every assessee must maintain an electronic
cash ledger in the customs portal.
• ECL is a non-interest-bearing deposit account of exporters/importers with the Government
for ensuring compliance in the payment of export/import duties.
• Only the people registered on the ICEGATE portal can create an ECL account.
• Once registered, deposits can be made in any of the 12 banks, including the SBI and PNB.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• Indian Customs Electronic Data Interchange Gateway (ICEGATE) is the national
portal of the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) that provides e-
filing services to the Trade, Cargo Carriers and other Trading Partners electronically.
• ICEGATE serves as an interface between the trade users and Customs Department
and acts as a hub for exchanging information with external trading partners involved
in international trading.
• In November 2022, the CBIC had launched ICEGATE 2.0.
Source: Hindu Business Line, ICEGATE, and ICEGATE 2.0

3. Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries’ (OPEC) share of India's oil imports
fell at the fastest pace in 2022-23 to the lowest in at least 22 years, due to cheaper Russian
oil.
• India shipped in about 1.6 million barrels per day (bpd) of Russian oil in 2022-23, about
23% of its overall 4.65 million bpd imports.
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• India is the world's third largest oil importer.

Source: Times of India

4. According to Economic Affairs Department (DEA) of the Finance Ministry’s report, 24

major states have cumulatively announced a 17.7% increase in capital expenditure in FY24
as compared to the previous year’s Budget estimates.
• In the Union Budget of 2023-24, Centre increased its capital expenditure outlay by
37.4% to ₹10 lakh crore (BE) over ₹7.28 lakh crore (RE) of FY2022-23.
• Also, the scheme for providing financial assistance to the States for capital expenditure
introduced in FY2022-23 has been extended in FY2023-24, with the enhanced outlay of
₹1.30 lakh crore.
Source: Hindu Business Line and PIB

5. Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman chaired a review
meeting with Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs (CBIC) in New Delhi.
• The total indirect tax collections for 2022-23 which stood at Rs. 13.82 lakh crore (as
against Rs. 12.89 Lakh Crore in 2021-22).
• The average gross monthly collection of the GST for the year 2022-23 stood at Rs. 1.51
lakh crore and monthly GST revenue collections exceeded Rs. 1.4 lakh crore for 12
months in a row.
Source: PIB

6. The banking and financial services sectors of India saw a Foreign Portfolio Investment
(FPI) outflow of Rs 29,921 crores in FY23.
Source: The Wire

7. HDFC Bank has introduced digital distribution platform Smart Saathi to connect business
correspondents (BCs) and business facilitators (BFs) to the bank.
• The platform aims at making banking products and services available, especially credit for
rural customers.
Source: LiveMint

8. BharatPe has acquired a 51% stake in Trillion Loans, a Mumbai-based non-banking financial
company (NBFC).
Source: Times of India

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9. Dvara SmartGold and Jana Small Finance Bank have announced a strategic partnership
to offer gold loans to customers in Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh, and Maharashtra.
Source: Times of India

10. Dialog Axiata and Bharti Airtel have announced plans to merge their operations in Sri Lanka,
to become the nation's largest telecom operator.
Source: LiveMint

11. Pine Labs, a merchant commerce omnichannel platform, has announced to accept Digital
Rupee on its PoS terminals in partnership with ICICI Bank.
• The technology integration between the two entities will now support e₹ (Digital Rupee)
acceptance at Pine Labs’ point-of-sale terminals across key retail outlets in Mumbai and
Bengaluru.
Source: Hindu Business Line

12. Airtel Payments Bank has collaborated with the National Payments Corporation of India
(NPCI) to roll out Face Authentication for AePS (Aadhaar-enabled Payment System) at its
500,000 banking points.
• Airtel Payments Bank is amongst the first four banks to offer Face Authentication for AePS
in the country.
Source: LiveMint

13. LIC has introduced a new Group Post-Retirement Medical Benefit Scheme, which is a non-
linked, non-participating, life, group savings insurance product.
• Purpose - to assist employers in meeting their post-retirement medical benefit obligations
to their employees
• Features of the scheme -
o Under the group cover, if a member dies while still in service before retirement, the
sum assured will be paid.
o If a member resigns or retires, post-retirement medical benefits will be paid out.
o Eligible family members of the retired employees may also receive post-retirement
medical benefits if allowed by the scheme rules and subject to the availability of
funds in the Group Policy Account.
Source: Times of India
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14. Axis Bank and India Shelter Finance Corporation Ltd (IndiaShelter), a Gurgaon based
Housing Finance Company, have announced a co-lending partnership.
• With this partnership, both lenders will be offering secured MSME loans to middle and low-
income segment borrowers based in the semi-urban regions.
Source: Axis Bank

15. Cashfree Payments and Yes Bank have launched ‘Global Collections’, an international
collection service for exporters, who are account holders of Yes Bank.
• Under this partnership, the Bank’s account holders will be able to collect payments in
over 30 foreign currencies using the Global Collections service.
• The funds so received can then be converted into INR and settled into their local bank
account in India within one business day.
Source: Economic Times

16. RBI has released its annual “Report on Currency and Finance 2022-23".
• The theme of Report on Currency and Finance 2022–23 is 'Towards a Greener Cleaner
India'.
• It focuses on the challenges and opportunities of climate change for India and the role of
the financial sector in achieving a low-carbon and climate-resilient development path.
• As per the report, green finance comprises financing of green investments and policies
that promote mitigation or adaptation.
• The cumulative total expenditure for adapting to climate change in India is estimated to
be Rs 85.6 lakh crore (at 2011-12 prices) by the year 2030.
• India needs to reduce its energy intensity of GDP by about 5% annually.
• India needs to increase its green finance spending up to at least 2.5% of GDP annually till
2030.
Source: RBI’s official report

17. HDFC Bank launched ‘Vishesh’ its retail banking programme to onboard around 1 lakh new
customers from semi-urban and rural areas.
• HDFC Bank will look to add 675 branches in semi urban and rural areas in FY24 to take the
total number to nearly 5,000.

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• As of March 31, 2023, 52% of the bank’s 7,821 branches are in rural and semi urban
locations.
• HDFC Bank already has a ‘Classic’ programme for High-Net-Worth-Individuals where it
has customer base of 9 lakh, of which 3 lakhs are in semi urban and rural locations.
Source: Hindu Business Line

18. India and Russia have announced plans to explore the possibility of accepting RuPay and Mir
cards in each other's country for hassle-free payments amid sanctions imposed by the West
on Moscow.
• The plan was announced during the high-level Internal Governmental Commission
meeting on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technological and Cultural Cooperation
(IRIGC-TEC).
• The mutual acceptance of RuPay (India) and Mir cards (Russia) will help Indian and
Russian citizens to make hassle-free payments in Indian Rupees and Russian Ruble in
their respective countries.
• They also planned the collaboration of Unified Payments Interface (UPI) of National
Payment Corporation of India and the Faster Payments System (FPS) of the Bank of
Russia.
Source: The Hindu

19. Max Life Insurance Company and Capital Small Finance Bank have partnered to offer life
insurance to the bank’s customers.
• Capital Small Finance Bank Ltd (CSFB) started operations as India’s first Small Finance
Bank in 2016.
• MD & CEO, Capital Small Finance Bank - Sarvjit Singh Samra
Source: Hindu Business Line

20. Bank of International Settlements’ (BIS) Innovation Hub, in collaboration with RBI, has
launched the 4th edition of the “G20 TechSprint 2023”.
• 2023 edition focuses on three problem statements related to cross-border payments,
which are
o Technology solutions to reduce illicit finance risk around anti-money laundering,
countering the financing of terrorism and sanctions.

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o Foreign exchange and liquidity technology solutions to enable settlement in

emerging market and developing economy currencies.
o Technology solutions for multilateral cross-border central bank digital currency
platforms.
• Previous three editions were organized on the themes of
o Regulatory compliance (regtech) and supervision (suptech),
o Green and sustainable finance and,
o Central bank digital currencies (CBDCs)
Knowledge Nuggets -
• Established in 1930, the Bank for International Settlements is the oldest international
financial institution.
• The BIS Innovation Hub aims to develop public goods in the technology space to support
central banks and improve the functioning of the financial system.
• HQ – Basel, Switzerland
Source: BIS

21. RBI has instructed banks and other financial institutions to ensure cross-border as well as
domestic wire transfers contain complete information about the originator and beneficiary.
• RBI has updated instructions in the Master Direction on Know Your Customer (KYC)
related to wire transfers and aligned the same with the relevant recommendation of the
Financial Action Task Force (FATF).
• For the Domestic Wire Transfers of Rs 50,000 and above, the regulated entity would ask
for the details of the originator (customer who initiated the payment) and beneficiary
information, in case the originator does not have any account with the said regulated entity.
Source: Economic Times

22. Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has approved the merger of Griha Pte, a wholly
owned subsidiary of HDFC Investments in Singapore with HDFC Bank.
• Last year, the HDFC Bank had agreed to take over the HDFC Ltd in a deal valued at about
USD 40 billion.
• The proposed entity will have a combined asset base of around Rs 18 lakh crore.
• Every HDFC Ltd’ shareholder will get 42 shares of HDFC Bank for every 25 shares they
hold.
Source: Economic Times and HDFC Bank Shareholding

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23. Actyv.ai has announced a partnership with Bajaj Allianz General Insurance to offer
insurance products its customers.
• Actyv.ai is a Singapore-headquartered enterprise SaaS (software-as-a-service) platform
with embedded B2B BNPL (buy now, pay later) and insurance.
Source: Economic Times

24. Canara Bank, in collaboration with the Reserve Bank Innovation Hub (RBIH), launched the
“Digitalised Submission of Form 15G/15H” as one of our customer-friendly services,
furthering our commitment to “Customer Delight.”
• Form 15G (Individual and HUF) and Form 15H (Individual-Senior Citizen) are self-
declaration forms that an individual submits to the bank to request that TDS on interest
income not be deducted because their income is less than the basic exemption limit. It is
necessary to provide PAN for this.
Source: BFSI

25. Ministry of Finance has widened the scope of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act
(PMLA), 2002, to include transactions facilitated by Chartered Accountants, Company
Secretaries, and Cost and Works Accountants.
• The professionals will now be responsible for activities on behalf of clients such as buying
and selling of any immovable property, managing assets, creation, operation or
management of companies, limited liability partnerships or trusts, and buying and selling of
business entities.
Source: LiveMint

26. SEBI has released the “Testing Framework for IT Systems of Market Infrastructure
Institutions” (MIIs).
• MIIs are Stock Exchanges, Clearing Corporations and Depositories etc.
• The Framework has been developed on the recommendation of the Technology Advisory
Committee (TAC).
Source: SEBI

27. Ministry of Labour & Employment has announced that the additional 1.16% which the
employees had to pay to receive higher EPS pension, will now be subsumed under the 12%
contribution made by the employees.
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• The 1.16% contribution will be added to the employer's contribution and therefore, the
employer's contribution towards EPF will rise from 8.33% to 9.49%.
• Separately, the Centre has extended the time to submit joint options to claim higher
provident fund pension till June 26.

Source: Economic Times and The Hindu

28. BharatPe Group has announced to rebrand its Payback India, multi-brand loyalty program,
as Zillion.
• Chief marketing officer of BharatPe - Parth Joshi
Source: Economic Times

29. Visa has launched the cardholder verification value (CVV)-free cards to allow users to carry
out online transactions without the entering the CVV, if the card has been tokenised.
• Purpose – for making the online transaction process smoother
• The merchants who adopt this will not have to ask customers for their CVV every time they
do a domestic transaction. They will be verifying this three-digit number on the back of the
card only once, at the time of tokenising the card.
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Source: Economic Times

30. Vistara has become the first Indian airline to operate a commercial plane i.e., Boeing 787-9
Dreamliner using Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF).
• The flight was routed from Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA), Delhi to Chhatrapati
Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, Mumbai.
• The blend included 17% SAF with 83% conventional jet fuel.
• Through this, Vistara was able to reduce approximately 10,000 pounds of CO₂ emissions
on this flight.
• Last month, Vistara operated the SAF blended fuel (30:70) on an international flight from
USA to India, first time for an Indian airline.
Source: Economic Times

31. As per the Commerce Ministry’s data, India's goods exports for 2022-23 increased to
almost $451 billion, indicating a 6.9% year-on-year growth.
Source: The Hindu

32. Reliance General Insurance has become the first general insurance company to accept
RBI’s Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) e-Rupee (e₹) for premium payments.
• The insurer has collaborated with YES Bank to facilitate the collection of premiums in
digital mode using the bank’s e-rupee platform.
Source: Hindu Business Line

33. SBI General Insurance launched a fully customizable digital-only health product ‘Health Edge
Insurance’.
• The policy provides multiple sums insured options ranging between INR 3 Lacs to INR 25
Lacs, with long-term policy options available for up to 3 years.
• The entry age to purchase the ‘Health Edge’ plan is 18 years to 65 years for adults and for
children it starts from 91 days.
Source: The Print

34. NPCI Bharat BillPay Ltd (NBBL) has launched the NOCS platform to provide reconciliation
and settlement services for transactions undertaken on the Open Network for Digital
Commerce (ONDC) network.

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• The NOCS platform is integrated with banks, fintechs and e-commerce players, and will
soon go live with the first set of five banks on ONDC--AU Small Finance Bank, Axis Bank,
HDFC Bank, IDFC First Bank, and YES Bank.
Source: Hindu Business Line

35. Neobanking startup Jupiter has secured a non-banking finance company (NBFC) licence
from RBI.
Source: Economic Times

36. RBI cancelled the banking licence (dated January 03, 1987) granted to The Adoor Co-
operative Urban Bank (Adoor, Kerala).
• The cancellation of licence is with effect from the close of business on April 24, 2023.
• Separately, RBI has imposed penalties on
o Bombay Mercantile Co-operative Bank – Rs 13 lakh for contravention of the
provisions of Banking Regulation Act, 1949
o Tamil Nadu State Apex Co-operative Bank - ₹16 lakhs for non-compliance with the
directions issued by the NABARD on “Review of Frauds - Guidelines on Monitoring
and Reporting System"
o Janata Sahakari Bank, Pune - ₹13 lakh for non-compliance with directions on
'Interest Rate on Deposits'
o Baran Nagrik Sahkari Bank, Rajasthan - ₹2 lakh
Source: LiveMint

37. Amazon Web Services (AWS) has launched two skill development programmes for
quantum computing in India.
• The company is collaborating with academic institutions and learning platforms to integrate
Amazon Braket — a fully managed quantum computing service — in the courses.
• AWS will be collaborating with QpiAI to integrate Amazon Braket with the QpiAI Explorer
platform — an interactive learning platform for students, industry professionals, and
researchers.
• The QpiAI Explorer has curriculum designed by QpiAI and Indian Institute of Science
(IISc) with direct integration of the Amazon Braket quantum programming framework.

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• AWS is also working with Tech Mahindra and Mahindra University (MU) and integrating
the Amazon Braket platform to provide a quantum computing programme for students
and working professionals.
Source: The Hindu Business Line

38. RBI added 34.22 metric tonnes of gold in its reserves in FY23, taking the total gold reserves
to 794.64 metric tonnes.
Source: Indian Express
Note: Do read about the “gold monetisation scheme” and “sovereign gold bond” scheme.

39. Max Life Insurance Company has partnered with the Indian Industries Association (IIA) to
provide life insurance plans to the MSME sector’s workforce in Uttar Pradesh.
• Max Life is the appointed lead insurer for the state of Uttar Pradesh under IRDAI’s State
insurance plan.

IRDAI’s State Insurance Plan -

• In March 2023, IRDAI has announced to roll out the insurance plans for all States along
with identifying a lead insurer for each district.
• IRDAI aims to enable insurance for all by 2047, where every citizen has an appropriate
life, health and property insurance cover, and every enterprise is supported by appropriate
insurance solutions.
• A state level co-ordination committee, consisting of insurers, state government officials
and representatives of the IRDAI, will monitor the implementation of the state insurance
plans.
• There will be two lead Insurers in each district for both life and non-life sectors.
• As per IRDAI estimates, the insurance industry is estimated to have registered about 18%
growth in FY23.
Knowledge Nuggets -

Indian Industries Association -

• Established in 1985, the Indian Industries Association (IIA) is an apex representative
body of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME), spread across U.P., Delhi,
Uttarakhand and surrounding states.
• IIA is a member of National Board of MSME.

pg. 93
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• IIA has a two-tier system operating at State/National/International and the

Divisional/District/Local area level.

National Board of MSME -

• The National Board for Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (NBMSME) was
established in 2007 for the first time.
• It was established in accordance with the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises
Development Act, 2006 and National Board for Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises
Rules, 2006.
• The Minister of MSME is ex-officio Chairman of the National Board.
• NBMSME consists of 47 members (18 Ex-officio members and 29 members). The tenure
of members is for two years from the date of notification.

IRDAI -
• The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) is a statutory
body formed under the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority Act, 1999
for overall supervision and development of the Insurance sector in India.
• The powers and functions of the Authority are laid down in the IRDA Act, 1999 and
Insurance Act, 1938.
• Chairman - Debasish Panda
Source: Hindu Business Line, IIA, NBMSME, HBL, IRDAI

40. Nextbillion Technology, which runs investment platform Groww, has completed the
acquisition of the mutual fund business of Indiabulls Housing Finance (IBHFL) for Rs 175.6
crore.
Source: Economic Times

41. Axis Bank has successfully enabled UPI services on RuPay Credit Card.
• According to the RBI’s Payments Vision for 2025, credit-based payment transactions are
expected to grow by 16% year-on-year for the next four years.
Source: Axis Bank

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42. Agritech firm Rukart, which sells 'Subjee Cooler' to enhance shelf life of fruits and vegetables,
has partnered with SBI to help potential customers in getting easy loan options to buy the
cooler.
• It increases the shelf life of fruits, flowers and vegetables by 4-6 days.
• Rukart is mentored by the Powering Livelihoods program, jointly run by Council on
Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW) and Villgro Innovations Foundation.
Source: Economic Times

43. Federal Bank has partnered with National E-Governance Services Limited (NeSL) to launch
its customers' electronic Bank Guarantee (e-BG) facility.
• With this facility, Federal Bank's customers can now digitally obtain a Bank Guarantee,
replacing the traditional paper-based process.
Source: Times of India

44. Yes Bank has launched YES KIRAN, an attractive credit scheme for offering financial
assistance to Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) manufacturers to install solar
panels on their premises.
Source: Economic Times

45. WYLD has launched the world’s first social currency payment card in Mumbai, powered by
Visa.
• The platform will allow everyday social media users (with as little as 1K followers) to
leverage their Instagram following to earn massive cashbacks on everyday spends.
• WYLD is a Fintech and Martech mobile app and payment card.
Source: Economic Times

46. Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited has re-domiciled Alchemy India Long Term Fund from
Mauritius to GIFT City in Gandhinagar.
• Thus, the bank has become India’s first to issue foreign portfolio investor (FPI) license to
Alchemy’s Fund incorporated in GIFT.
• This is the first such FPI license issued by a custodian bank or designated depository
participant (DDP) in India, to a fund incorporated in GIFT City, to relocate an existing fund.
Source: Times of India

pg. 95
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47. AU Small Finance Bank has partnered RuPay to roll out the Business Cashback Rupay
credit card for the self-employed customers.
• It also offers fire insurance, burglary, and housebreaking coverage, making it a one-stop
solution for businesses.
Source: Hindu Business line

48. Department of Consumer Affairs and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs
and Climate Action have signed the new work plan for 2023 during the 9th Annual Meeting
of the Indo-German Working Group on quality infrastructure.
• This year’s Annual Meeting marks the 10th anniversary of the Working Group.
Source: LiveMint

49. Redington Ltd, a major distributor of IT hardware, has partnered with SBI for facilitating solar
loans of up to Rs 5 crore at interest rates linked to rates that the bank charges its best
customers.
• The interest rates for these solar loans ranges between 9.5% and 10%.
Source: Hindu Business Line

50. Razorpay has announced to join the ONDC (Open Network for Digital Commerce)
ecosystem.
• It becomes the First Payment Gateway to launch a Payment Reconciliation Service for
buyers, sellers, and logistic partners on ONDC, and provide them with an integrated single
view of all their transactions.
Source: Razorpay

51. NPCI International Payments has partnered with digital payments infrastructure provider
PPRO to facilitate global e-commerce payments through UPI.
• Through this, consumers can shop online worldwide and make cross-border purchases in
rupees, safely using UPI.
• The e-commerce market is expected to reach an estimated $111 billion next year and
almost double to $200 billion by 2026.
Source: Hindu Business Line

52. Top 10 companies as per the market capitalisation on both exchanges (BSE and NSE) as
of May 16, 2023 -
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[Type here]

• ITC has pushed Infosys to be at the 6th position. [no need to remember the amount of market capitalisation]
Source: Moneycontrol

53. RBI has lifted limitations on individuals creating interest-earning Foreign Currency
Accounts (FCA) to make India's International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) more
appealing.
• RBI has abolished the requirement that any funds remaining idle in the FCA account for up
to 15 days be repatriated.
• RBI authorised resident individuals to send remittances to IFSCs established in India under
the Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) in February 2021. However, the payments
were only to be used for investments in IFSC securities.
Source: Business world

54. All India Bank Employees Association – the largest bank union in the country – will set up
‘bank clinics’ to redress grievances of customers with their banks.
• AIBEA general secretary - C H Venkatachalam
Source: Times of India

55. Agritech firm Unnati’s subsidiary Ora Finance has received a license to operate an NBFC
from RBI.
Source: Hindu Business Line

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56. RBL Bank has gone live with ‘Direct Tax Collections’ on behalf of the Government of India
through the new Tax Information Network (TIN) portal.
• In 2021, RBL Bank received approval for conducting banking business for the Central and
State Governments.
• The Bank already offers customs duty collections through a direct interface via ICEGATE.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• Indian Customs Electronic Data Interchange Gateway (ICEGATE) is the national
portal of the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) that provides e-
filing services to the Trade, Cargo Carriers and other Trading Partners electronically.
• ICEGATE serves as an interface between the trade users and Customs Department
and acts as a hub for exchanging information with external trading partners involved
in international trading.
• In November 2022, the CBIC had launched ICEGATE 2.0.
Source: United News and ICEGATE

57. SEBI has allowed stock exchanges to extend direct market access facility to foreign
portfolio investors (FPIs) for participation in Exchange Traded Commodity Derivatives
(ETCDs).
• The new provision would come into force with immediate effect.
• Direct Market Access (DMA) facilitates the clients of a broker to directly access the
exchange trading system through the broker's infrastructure to place orders without manual
intervention by the broker.
Source: Economic Times

58. Ministry of Finance has notified those businesses with a turnover of ₹5 crore or more will
be required to adopt e-invoicing from August 1, 2023, as against the current threshold of
₹10 crore.
Source: Hindu Business Line

59. State-owned Bank of Baroda has launched electronic bank guarantee (e-BG) on its
BarodaINSTA platform, in partnership with National E-Governance Services Limited
(NeSL).

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• NeSL is India's first and only Information Utility and is regulated by the Insolvency and
Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) under the provisions of the Insolvency and
Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (IBC).
Source: Economic Times

60. Razorpay’s neobank arm RazorpayX launched ESCROW+ solution to help merchants
handle money transfers smoothly.
• RazorpayX has onboarded Axis Trustee Services as the Escrow trustee.
Source: Financial Express

61. Kotak Mahindra Bank has launched a premium banking programme, Privy League, aimed at
high-net-worth individuals.
• The program will offer Premium Metal Debit Card for the Privy League black tier, and
Signature LED Debit Card for Privy League Platinum tier.
• The Signature LED Debit Card is India's first LED card.
Source: Times of India

62. Profectus Capital has received the Certificate of Registration (CoR) from the RBI to provide
factoring services to MSMEs under the Factoring Regulations Act, 2011.
Source: Economic Times

63. RBI has announced that certain fees/ charges levied by ‘Authorised Persons’ on
International Debit Cards, Store Value Cards, among others, and payable in India have to be
denominated and settled in Rupees only.
• Authorised Persons include banks authorised to deal in foreign exchange, full-fledged
money changers, etc. under Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999.
Source: Hindu Business Line

64. Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) has announced to integrate PayNearby's
newly launched meta commerce platform PayNearby Mall to enable easy availability of goods
and services.
Source: Economic Times

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65. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has mandated the banks to commence a ‘100 Days 100
Pays’ campaign, where they will trace and settle the top 100 unclaimed deposits of every
bank in every district within 100 days.
• The banks will commence the campaign for return of unclaimed deposits from June 1.
• The banks will reduce the quantum of unclaimed deposits in the banking system and return
such deposits to their rightful owners/claimants.
Source: Hindu Business Line

66. Quant Mutual Fund has launched Quant Business Cycle Fund, an open-ended equity
scheme.
• The scheme aims to invest with a focus on riding business cycles through allocation
between sectors and stocks at different stages of business cycles.
• The performance of the scheme will be benchmarked against NSE 500 TRI.
Source: Economic Times

67. According to the commerce ministry's data, US, UAE, and Netherlands are the top 3 export
destinations of India in 2022-23.
• The Netherlands has taken over major destinations such as the UK, Hong Kong,
Bangladesh and Germany.
Source: Economic Times

68. IRDAI has constituted a five-member expert committee for advice on matters related to
mental health and insurance.
• Chairperson - National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS) Director
Pratima Murthy
• The committee will be providing advice and inputs on existing coverage and those to be
offered for mental illnesses.
Source: The Hindu

69. RBI has mandated the banks and financial institutions to shift from London Interbank
Offered Rate (LIBOR) and Mumbai Interbank Forward Outright Rate (MIFOR) to Alternative
Reference Rate, such as the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR) from July 1, 2023.
Source: Indian Express

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70. State Bank of India (SBI) Funds Management has received the approval of the Reserve
Bank of India (RBI) to acquire up to 9.99% stake in HDFC Bank.
Source: Business Standard

71. World Bank has approved a grant of Rs 51 crore to set up an integrated road safety
enforcement system in Shimla and Nurpur police districts and develop the Palampur-
Sheela chowk in Kangra as a “safe corridor”.
• A traffic enforcement control room will be set up in Shimla and the allocation of funds for
interceptors and patrol vehicles, an intelligent traffic management system, artificial
intelligence (AI) cameras and rescue equipment will be made.
Source: The Print

72. Food aggregator platform Zomato has partnered with ICICI Bank to launch its very own
unified payments interface (UPI) offering called Zomato UPI, for some of its users.
Source: Business Standard

73. HDFC Asset Management Company Ltd has launched India's first mutual fund focussed
on defence sector.
• The new fund offering (NFO) of HDFC Defence Fund is an open-ended equity scheme.
• The fund will invest at least 80% of its net assets in defence and allied sector companies.
Source: Economic Times

74. SBI Capital Markets, BoB Capital Markets and IDBI Capital Markets and Securities have
been chosen as the merchant bankers (nodal agencies) for conducting the initial public
offer (IPO) of state-run Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA).
• The draft red herring prospectus (DHRP) for the IPO is expected to be submitted to SEBI
within next six months.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• Meaning - A draft red herring prospectus (DRHP), or offer document, is the preliminary
registration document prepared by merchant bankers for prospective IPO-making
companies in the case of book building issues.
o Book Building is the process by which an underwriter determines the price at
which the shares must be sold in an Initial Public Offer (IPO).
• Details -

pg. 101
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o The document includes information about the company’s business operations,

promoters, financials, its standing within its industry and listed or unlisted
companies in the said industry.
o The document clarifies the reason why the company wants to raise money from
the public, how the money will be used and risks involved in investing in the
company.
o It contains the details of the issue size. It contains the price band of the shares to
be issued.
Source: ET and ET

75. Grain commerce platform Arya.ag has partnered with Shivalik Small Finance Bank to drive
financial inclusion for farmers and FPOs and offer loans through Shivalik Small Finance Bank
under Warehouse Receipt Finance.
• A warehouse receipt financing system is a mechanism that allows the use of commodities
as collateral to secure loans.
Source: ET

76. According to RBI’s data, Scheduled Commercial Banks’ credit growth moderated to 15% as
of March 24, 2023, from the peak of 17.8% recorded in October 2022.
• Aggregate deposits with banks increased by 9.1% year-on-year (y-o-y) as on March 24,
2023 (8.4% a year ago).
• As on April 7, 2023, SCBs’ credit-deposit (C-D) ratio stood at 75.8% (71.5% as on April 8,
2022).
Source: Hindu Business Line

77. The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has introduced the CVV (Card
Verification Value) free facility for its Rupay debit, credit and prepaid cardholders who
have tokenized their cards on the merchant application.
• Mechanism – Now, the cardholders will not have to fill any card details, if they have saved
(tokenized) their card on the e-commerce merchant which supports this feature
Knowledge Nuggets -
• Process of tokenisation
o When a cardholder opts to save their card for a domestic ecommerce transaction,
they authenticate the transaction through the card details (Card number, CVV,

pg. 102
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Card expiry date) as a one-time activity followed by entering the OTP (two-factor
authentication), the details are then Tokenized and saved with the merchant.
o The customer can complete the payment for the subsequent transactions by just
entering the OTP without the need to enter the CVV or other card details again.
o RuPay had launched the Card on File Tokenization facility in 2021.
Source: Economic Times

78. RBI has withdrawn the currency notes of Rs 2,000, from circulation, adding that the notes will
continue to be legal tender.
• It said the existing Rs 2,000 notes can be deposited or exchanged in banks until September
30, but set a limit of “Rs 20,000 at a time”.
• The facility for exchange of Rs 2,000 notes, up to the limit of Rs 20,000 at a time, will also
be provided at the 19 regional offices of the RBI having issue departments from May 23.
• At present, Rs 2000 notes are only 10%-11% of the total currency.
• The Rs 2,000 note was introduced in November 2016 under Section 24(1) of RBI Act,
1934.
Source: Indian Express

79. AirAsia India flight i5-767 became India’s first commercial passenger flight, which used
an indigenously produced Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) blend. was successfully flown on
Friday. departed from
• The flight was routed from Pune to New Delhi.
• It used a blend of indigenous SAF supplied by Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. (IOCL) in
partnership with Praj Industries Ltd. (Praj).
• Earlier this month, Vistara became the first Indian airline to operate a commercial plane
i.e., Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner using Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF).
Source: Times of India and Economic Times

80. Aditya Birla Capital, through its lending arm, Aditya Birla Finance, has launched Udyog
Plus, an innovative one-stop business platform, for MSME customers.
• The platform will provide financing, protection, investments, advisory and value-added
services for managing and growing MSME businesses.
Source: Economic Times

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81. Paytm Money has launched a bonds platform for retail investors in India. The platform will
enable retail investors to invest in three types of bonds - government, corporate and tax-free.
Source: Business Standard

82. Tide, the UK's leading SME-focused business financial platform in partnership with Transcorp
International Limited, has launched India's first recycled PVC Rupay card, along with MCT
Cards & Technology Pvt. Ltd. and NPCI.
• Transcorp is a Reserve Bank of India (RBI) regulated Prepaid Payment Instrument (PPI)
license holder.
• The card is named as “Tide rPVC cards”.
Source: ANI

83. Bajaj Allianz Life has launched India's first Small-Cap fund in the ULIP segment which will
invest in small-cap stocks.
• This fund will use the Nifty Small Cap 100 index. The New Fund Offer (NFO) period for
Bajaj Allianz Life's Small Cap Fund ends on 23 May, 2023.
Source: ANI

84. SEBI has introduced the risk disclosure framework for individual traders with respect to
trading in the equity Futures & Options (F&O) segment to facilitate informed decision
making by investors.
• The new framework would come into force from July 1, 2023.
• Under the new framework, all stock brokers will have to display the risk disclosures on their
websites and, also inform all their clients in the specified manner.
• In addition, all Qualified Stock Brokers (QSBs) have been directed to maintain the Profit
and Loss (P&L) data of their clients on continuous basis. Such data of the clients need to
be retained for at least five years.
Source: ET

85. The National Stock Exchange (NSE) launched the rupee-denominated NYMEX WTI Crude
Oil and Natural Gas futures contracts in its commodity derivatives segment.
• NSE had signed a data licensing agreement with CME Group allowing NSE to list, trade
and settle rupee denominated NYMEX WTI crude oil and natural Gas derivatives contracts
on its platform.
Source: ET
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86. On May 17, RBI cancelled the Certificate of Registration (CoR) of 7 NBFCs while 14 NBFCs
have surrendered their CoR.
• The NBFCs whose registrations were cancelled were Coorg Tea Company, Karnataka;
Trimurthi Finvest, Chattisgarh; East West Finvest India, Chattisgarh; J.V.Modi Securities,
Madhya Pradesh; K K Patel Finance, Madhya Pradesh; Purvi Finvest, Chattisgarh; and
Genfin Capital Pvt Ltd, Karnataka.
• The RBI, in exercise of powers conferred on it under Section 45-IA (6) of the Reserve
Bank of India Act, 1934, has cancelled the Certificate of Registration of these NBFCs.
Source: ET

87. JSW Steel has signed an agreement with JFE Steel to establish a 50:50 joint venture
company (JV) to manufacture cold-rolled grain-oriented (CRGO) electrical steel in India.
• JFE Steel holds a 15% equity stake in JSW Steel.
Source: MoneyControl

88. RBI has approved the transfer of Rs 87,416 crore as dividend, to the Union Government for
the accounting year 2022-23.
• This is a 188% jump from the last year’s (2021-22) surplus transfer of Rs 30,307 crore,
which was also the lowest in 10 years.
• The Union Budget had expected a dividend of around Rs 48,000 crore from both banks and
RBI.
• The RBI transferred Rs 99,126 crore in FY21 to the government. In FY19, it approved a
record transfer of Rs 176,051 crore, including a surplus or dividend of Rs 1,23,414 crore
and a one-time transfer of excess provisions of Rs 52,637 crore.
Source: Indian Express

89. Bank of Baroda has launched two innovative customer service initiatives to allow its
customers to effortlessly get in touch with the Bank and seamlessly address their banking
queries.
• The Bank has introduced a Live Video Calling service - bob Video Chat and a Live Web
Chat facility - bob Live Chat on its website.
• In addition, the Bank has also launched an easy-to-remember, single 8-digit toll-free
number - 1800 5700 - with 24x7x365 customer support, which is available in 11 languages.

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• Bank of Baroda is the first PSU bank to offer live video chat and live web chat services
to its customers.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• BoB was founded on 20th July, 1908 by Sir Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad III.
• Government of India owns 63.97% stake in this bank.
• The Bank operates in 17 countries in five continents.

Source: BoB

90. Google Pay, in collaboration with the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), has
rolled out support for RuPay credit cards on Unified Payments Interface (UPI).
• This means that Google Pay users can now link their RuPay credit cards with Google Pay
to pay at all online and offline merchants where RuPay credit cards are accepted.
• According to the GooglePay, this feature is available to RuPay credit card holders of Axis
Bank, Bank of Baroda, Canara Bank, HDFC Bank, Indian Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank,
Punjab National Bank and Union Bank of India.
Source: Times of India

91. Public sector banks' cumulative profit has crossed the ₹1 lakh crore mark in the financial
year ended March 2023.
• The profit of PSBs touched ₹1,04,649 crore in 2022-23. These 12 PSBs witnessed a 57%
increase in total profit compared to ₹66,539.98 crore earned in 2021-22.
• The government has implemented a comprehensive 4R strategy: Recognising NPAs
transparently, Resolution and recovery, Recapitalising PSBs, and Reforms in the financial
ecosystem.
• As part of the strategy, the government infused a record of ₹3,10,997 crore to recapitalize
PSBs during the last five financial years -- from 2016-17 to 2020-21.

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PSBs Profit in FY23 Percentage of growth in

comparison to previous
year
Bank of Baroda ₹14,110 crore 94%
Bank of India ₹4,023 crore 18%
Bank of Maharashtra ₹2,602 crore 126%
Canara Bank ₹10,604 crore Not available
Central Bank of India ₹1,582 crore 51%
Indian Bank ₹5,282 crore 34%
Indian Overseas Bank ₹2,099 crore 23%
Punjab National Bank ₹2,507 crore (decline from - 27% (decline)
₹3,457 crore in 2021-22)
Punjab and Sind Bank ₹1,313 crore 26%
Union Bank of India ₹8,433 crore 61%
UCO Bank ₹1,862 crore 100%
State Bank of India ₹50,232 crore 59%

• Bank with highest profit – State Bank of India

• Banks with highest percentage of growth in profit – Bank of Maharashtra, followed by
UCO Bank, and Bank of Baroda
• Bank with negative profit growth – Punjab National Bank
Source: LiveMint and Economic Times

92. CCAvenue, a payments aggregator in the Middle East and a part of the Infibeam Avenues
group, has partnered with PayPal to provide global payment acceptance solutions for
businesses in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.
Source: TOI

93. Axis Bank has launched ‘Sarathi’, a first of its kind digital onboarding journey, to enable
onboarding of merchants for Electronic Data Capture (EDC) or Point of Sale (POS) for
merchants.
• Now, the merchants are not required to fill out the cumbersome forms or wait for extended
periods to have their POS terminals installed.
Source: Axis Bank
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94. Plotch, which aims to bring over 10,000 sellers to the Open Network for Digital Commerce
(ONDC), has launched an ONDC-focused payment solution NodePe, in collaboration with
IDFC First Bank.
• Founded in 2020 by Craftsvilla.com founders Manoj and Monica Gupta, Plotch has built-in
technology support for businesses to launch their ecommerce buyer or seller app nodes on
ONDC quickly.
• NodePe will currently use the NOCS platform of National Payments Corporation of India
(NPCI) for payment settlement between parties.
• The company will settle funds to sellers instantly upon delivery of the product by the seller.
• According to a report by McKinsey, India's digital consumption is expected to rise
fivefold to reach $340 billion by 2030.
• Indian e-commerce market is set to cross the $100 billion milestone by 2024.
Source: ET

95. SBI General Insurance has launch the General Surety Bond Bima (Conditional &
Unconditional)' insurance product.
• The Surety insurance product consists of a wide range of bonds, such as bid bonds,
advance payment bond, performance bond, and retention money bond.
Source: Business Standard

96. HDFC Bank has launched Future Bankers 2.0, a pan-India recruitment programme to
transform young graduates into banking professionals within one year.
• To be offered in association with the Manipal Global Academy of BFSI, Future Bankers
2.0 is a one-year professional diploma that aims to create a robust, future-ready talent
pipeline for HDFC Bank’s retail banking business.
Source: Business World

97. Paytm has launched UPI SDK to allow customers of online merchants to make UPI payments
directly and in-line from the merchant's mobile app without getting redirected during checkout.
• The new feature will allow customers to pay directly from their bank accounts by entering
their UPI PIN without leaving the merchant app.
Source: ET

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98. Central Govt has cleared a prompt digital reporting and communication mechanism under
which the Central Economic Intelligence Bureau (CEIB) will send a report digitally regarding
borrowers to the PSU banks for a loan amount of Rs 50 crore or higher at pre-approval
stage within 15 days of request.
• This system replaces the paper-based system.
• The new system will streamline the process of communication between banks and the
Central Economic Intelligence Bureau (CEIB).
• The new system will require banks to submit their requests to CEIB through dedicated
emails in a specific format. In turn, CEIB will exclusively send reports to banks via email,
maintaining a record of the timeline and actions taken by the banks.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• CEIB was setup in 1985 as the nodal agency for economic intelligence
mandated to ensure effective interaction and coordination among all the
concerned agencies in the area of economic offences.
• It also functions as the clearing house of all economic intelligence and
provides a platform for such exchange between various agencies within the
Department of Revenue and other intelligence and enforcement agencies
including IB, RAW, CBI etc.
Source: ET and CEIB

99. Competition Commission of India (CCI) granted approval for the proposed merger of Credit
Suisse Group AG with UBS Group AG, two prominent Swiss-based multinational investment
banks and financial services companies.
Source: LiveMint

100. The Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance has scrapped the Rule 7 of
the Foreign Exchange Management (Current Account Transactions) Rules, 2000.
• As per the rule 7, the purchases made by using the international credit cards (ICCs) by
residents touring abroad was not counted in the Liberalized Remittance Scheme (LRS).
But, now it will be counted.
o Under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme, all resident individuals, including minors,
are allowed to freely remit up to USD 2,50,000 per financial year (April–March)
outside India. Beyond this limit, the central bank's approval is required.

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• This means that the use of ICC by residents on a visit outside India or even for international
purchases on the internet will be included while computing the overall LRS limit of $250,000
per person per financial year.
• The change comes into effect immediately.
• Ministry of Finance has also 20% TCS (Tax Collected at Source) on international credit
card usage from July 1, 2023 under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA),
which has brought ICC spending under the LRS.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• The LRS scheme was introduced in 2004 with a limit of USD 25,000. The LRS limit has
been revised in stages.
• The Scheme is not available to corporates, partnership firms, HUF, Trusts etc.
Source: ET, RBI, and TOI

101. IRDAI has relaxed norms for 'surety bonds' to expand the surety insurance market by
increasing the availability of such products.
• Now, the solvency margin requirement applicable for the insurers of such products has
been reduced to control the level of 1.5 times from 1.875 times previously prescribed.
o Solvency margin is the extent to which an insurance company’s assets exceed its
liabilities. It means that the insurers must a have capital of 1.5X against its liabilities.
• The current requirement of 30% exposure limit applicable on each contract underwritten
by an insurer, has also been removed.
• Earlier, the IRDAI had removed the cap on premiums that could be underwritten in a
financial year by the insurers transacting only surety insurance business.
• The regulator had issued 'IRDAI (Surety Insurance Contracts) Guidelines' in January 2022.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• At present, it is mandatory to maintain a solvency margin of 150% for every insurer.
Source: ET and LiveMint

102. One97 Communications Limited, owner of Paytm, has partnered with credit card issuer
SBI Card and the National Payments Corporation of India to launch a co-branded RuPay
Credit Card.
Source: HT

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103. Godrej Agrovet's Oil Palm Business has partnered with the State Bank of India (SBI) to
offer loans to oil palm farmers for setting up micro irrigation facility and install fencing to
protect crops from cattle and improvement of tube well at their oil palm farms.
• The loan facility Rs 1 lakh to Rs 50 crore is available for the company’s oil palm farmers
from Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Assam, Manipur and Tripura.
• For a loan up to Rs 1.6 lakhs, no security is needed.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• Godrej Agrovet is the largest oil palm processor in India. With 65,000 hectares of palm
oil under cultivation across the country, the company plans to increase cultivation by 1
lakh hectares by 2027.
• The company has also established its Samadhan Centres, a one-stop solution centre,
for providing assistance to farmers.
Source: Business Standard

104. The YES BANK has launched YES PAY EASY mobile application for enabling small-scale
merchants to accept instant cashless payments from their customers.
• The app has been developed in collaboration with Mastercard and Worldline India.
• It offers features such as Bharat QR, Tap-On-Phone, and SMS Pay, allowing merchants to
transact through various digital modes.
Source: CNBC

105. ICICI Lombard has partnered with actyv.ai, a Singapore-based enterprise SaaS platform,
to use AI and ML capabilities to create insurance products.
• Purpose – to serve the unique requirements of enterprises and their entire supply chain
ecosystem, including distributors, retailers, and suppliers
Source: Techcircle

106. The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), the European Union (EU’s)
financial markets regulator and supervisor, has derecognised six Indian central
counterparties (CCPs) from April 30, 2023.
• These six CCPs are The Clearing Corporation of India (CCIL), Indian Clearing
Corporation Ltd (ICCL), NSE Clearing Ltd (NSCCL), Multi Commodity Exchange
Clearing (MCXCCL), India International Clearing Corporation Ltd (IICC) and NSE IFSC
Clearing Corporation Ltd (NICCL).

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• Reason – There were ‘no cooperation arrangements’ between ESMA and Indian regulators
– the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) and
the International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA).
Knowledge Nuggets -
• As per the European Market Infrastructure Regulations (EMIR), a CCP in a third country
can provide clearing services to European banks only if it is recognised by ESMA.
• CCPs perform two main functions as the intermediary in a market transaction – clearing
and settlement – and guarantee the terms of trade.
• A CCP is authorised by the RBI to operate in India under the Payment and Settlement
Systems Act, 2007.
Source: Indian Express

107. The Gross GST collections for the month of April 2023 hit ₹1,87,035 crore, 12% higher
than the same month last year which stood at ₹1.67 lakh crore.
Source: The Hindu

108. Tata Consultancy Services-led consortium has bagged a Rs 15,000-crore contract

from BSNL to deploy 4G network for the state-run telco.
• TCS is the country’s largest software exporter.
Source: The Print

109. Indian Bank has been empanelled as a Clearing and Settlement Bank with the Indian
Clearing Corporation Ltd (ICCL).
• Now, the Indian Bank will facilitate banking services to members of BSE for clearing and
settlement operations.
• The bank also launched the e-TDR (Term Deposit Receipt) product for online transmission
of Fixed Deposit Receipt.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• List of Clearing Corporations in India (as per SEBI’s website) -
o Indian Clearing Corporation Ltd.
o Metropolitan Clearing Corporation of India Ltd.
o Multi Commodity Exchange Clearing Corporation Ltd.
o National Commodity Clearing Ltd.
o NSE Clearing Limited.

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Source: Hindu Business Line and SEBI

110. Maratha Sahakari Bank (based in Mumbai) has merged with Cosmos Cooperative Bank
Ltd. (based in Pune).
• It is a first of its kind merger of a negative net worth bank, after the RBI allowed voluntary
mergers and amalgamation between cooperative banks in March 2021.
• Maratha Sahakari Bank was under the operational restriction imposed by the Reserve
Bank.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• With this merger, Cosmos Bank now has 40 branches in Mumbai and the bank already
has 159 branches in 7 states across India.
• The bank will be looking at acquiring more cooperative banks and scale up its branch
network to 200.
Source: ET

111. SEBI has constituted a 21-member Intermediary Advisory Committee, chaired by former
Sebi executive director S Ravindran, to advise on changes in legal framework and increasing
transparency in the functioning of market intermediaries like stock exchanges, depository
participants, clearing corporations, among others.
• Functions of the committee -
o Advise on enhanced adoption of technology and cyber security by intermediaries
o To suggest measures for improving market safety, efficiency, transparency and
integrity, and
o To advise on simplification and transparency in systems and procedures.
Source: Business Standard

112. Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has increased the tax exemption on leave
encashment on retirement of non-government salaried employees from ₹3 lakh to ₹25
lakh.
• The relief, which was announced in the union budget speech this year, is effective from 1
April, 2023.
• The total tax-exempt amount with leave encashment of salaried private sector
employees shall not exceed the limit of Rs. 25 lakhs.

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• The relief applies to the period of earned leave in the credit of the employee at the time of
retirement whether on superannuation or otherwise.
• In the case of government employees, the entire leave encashment amount received is
tax exempt. In the case of private sector employees, the benefit is subject the conditions
listed under section 10 of the Income Tax Act, which deals with incomes exempt from
taxation.
Source: LiveMint

113. US-based Cisco firm has announced to start manufacturing operations in Tamil Nadu,
India.
Source: The Hindu

114. ICICI Bank will increase its stake in its general insurance subsidiary, ICICI Lombard
General Insurance by 4%.
Source: ET

115. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has launched the 2023-27 country partnership
strategy (CPS) for India for accelerating structural transformation and job creation, promoting
climate-resilient growth, and deepening social and economic inclusiveness as key focus areas.
• ADB projects India to grow at 6.4% in FY24.
• Focus areas of CPS -
o Climate sustainability
o Inclusive growth
o Increase support for education, health, and social protection
o Improvements in urban liveability and rural development
o Contribute to national flagship programmes on industrial corridors, multimodal
logistics systems, urban infrastructure, skill ecosystem, and small businesses
Source: ET

116. National Statistical Office (NSO), Ministry of Statistics and Programme

Implementation (MoSPI) has released the Provisional Estimates of National Income for
2022- 23 and Quarterly Estimates of GDP for January-March of 2022-23 (Q4 2022-23) both
at Constant and Current Prices.
Real GDP of 2022-23 ₹160.06 lakh crore 7.2% GDP growth in FY23

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Nominal GDP of 2022-23 ₹272.41 lakh crore 16.1% GDP growth in FY23
Real GDP of Q4 2022-23 ₹43.62 lakh crore 6.1% growth rate over
previous quarter
Nominal GDP of Q4 2022-23 ₹71.82 lakh crore 10.4% growth rate over
previous quarter
• The next release of quarterly GDP estimates for the quarter April-June of 2023-24 (Q1
2023-24) will be on 31.08.2023.
Source: PIB

117. As per the data released by banks, Bank of Maharashtra has emerged as the best bank
in NPA reduction, with its net non-performing assets (NPAs) falling as low as 0.25% during
FY23.
• This is the lowest ratio among all banks having total business above Rs 3 lakh crore
(including private and public sector banks).
• HDFC Bank is at the 2nd position with net NPA falling to 0.27% and Kotak Mahindra Bank
clinching the 3rd spot with 0.37% of net advances.
• Among the Public Sector Banks, BoM was followed by State Bank of India (SBI) with net
NPAs falling to 0.67% and Bank of Baroda at 0.89% at the end of March 2023.

Data on other indicators -

• BoM has the highest Provision Coverage Ratio at 98.28% followed by UCO Bank at
94.50% and Indian Bank at 93.82%.
• With regards to Capital Adequacy Ratio, BoM has the highest CAR of 18.14% among
PSBs followed by Punjab & Sind Bank at 17.10% and Canara Bank at 16.68% as of
March 31, 2023.
• In terms of loan growth, BoM retained the top spot among the scheduled commercial
banks by recording a 29.49% increase on an annual basis. Indian Overseas Bank stood
at second spot with a rise of 21.28% followed by IndusInd Bank with 21% increase.
• With regards to deposits growth rate, HDFC Bank was at the first spot with 20.80%,
followed by Federal Bank with 17% rise and Kotak Mahindra Bank (KMB) with 16.49%
rise.
• In terms of low-cost Current Account and Savings Account (CASA) deposits, BoM is
again at the top with 53.38% followed by IDBI Bank with 53.02% and KMB at 52.83%.
Source: ET

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118. According to the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) data,
foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows in India have declined by 22% to $46 billion in
FY23, due to lower inflows in computer hardware and software, and automobile industry.
• The FDI inflows stood at $58.77 billion during FY22.
• Total FDI inflows, which include equity inflows, re-invested earnings and other capital,
declined by 16% to $70.97 billion in the last fiscal.
Top 5 countries sending FDI in India during Amount
FY23
Singapore $17.2 billion
Mauritius $6.13 billion
US $6 billion
UAE $3.35 billion
Netherlands $2.5 billion
Japan $1.8 billion
UK $1.73 billion
Cyprus $1.27 billion
Cayman island $772 million
Germany $547 million

Sector wise inflows in FY23 Amount

Computer software and hardware sector $9.4 billion (declined from $14.5 billion in
FY22)
Services $8.7 billion
Trading $4.8 billion
Automobile industry $1.9 billion (declined from $7 billion in FY22)
Chemicals $1.85 billion

State-wise FDI inflows in FY23 Amount

Maharashtra $14.8 billion
Karnataka $10.42 billion
Gujarat $4.71 billion (increased from $2.7 billion in
FY22)

pg. 116
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Source: Hindu Business Line

119. The Yes Bank has launched a new logo of the company and rolled out an integrated
campaign with the tagline – ‘Life Ko Banao Rich’.

Source: LiveMint

120. IBM Consulting has collaborated with Equitas Small Finance Bank to design and build a
digital banking platform that delivers a modern and highly secure experience to the bank’s
customers and partners.
Source: IBM

121. Razorpay has partnered with Axis Bank and the National Payments Council of India
(NPCI) to launch Turbo UPI.
• Turbo UPI claims to make UPI payments faster and reduce potential payment failures. The
company will also allow merchants to integrate Turbo UPI at the payment gateway.
Source: TOI

122. "The Indian Payments Handbook - 2022-27" report has been released by PwC India.
• UPI transactions are likely to reach 1 billion per day by 2026-27, accounting for 90% of
all the retail digital payments in the country.
• UPI accounted for about 75% of the total transaction volume in the retail segment during
2022-23.
Source: ET

123. Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBIC) has released a standard operating
procedure for scrutiny of GST returns for fiscal 2019-20 onwards.
• CBIC has informed that the Directorate General of Analytics and Risk Management
(DGARM) will identify returns for scrutiny depending on various risk parameters.
• The DGARM is an attached office of the CBIC.
Source: CNBC

124. According to industry group Sa-Dhan, microfinance loans in India increased 21.3% year-
on-year (YoY) at Rs 3.5 trillion in Financial Year 2022-23 (FY23).

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Source: BS

125. According to SEBI’s data, the value of P-note investments in Indian markets -- equity,
debt, and hybrid securities -- stood at Rs 95,911 crore at the end of April as compared to Rs
88,600 crore in March-end.
• Participatory notes (P-notes) are issued by registered Foreign Portfolio Investors
(FPIs) to overseas investors who wish to be part of the Indian stock market without
registering themselves directly.
Source: ET

126. Periodic Labour Force Survey for the Q4 of 2022-23 has been released by the National
Statistics Office.
• Urban unemployment declined to 6.8% from 7.2%.
• Among the major states, Chhattisgarh had the highest female labour force participation
rate at 31.5%, followed by Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu at 30.5% and 27.4%,
respectively. Uttar Pradesh was the worst performer with a FLFPR of 13.3%.
• Overall, unemployment rate was the highest in Chhattisgarh at 12.5%. It was lowest for
Delhi at 3.1%.

Source: ET

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GDP FORECASTS
1. International Monetary Fund has released its “Regional Economic Outlook – Asia and
Pacific” May 2023.
• Asia-Pacific region’s growth rate - 4.6% in FY23 (as compared to 3.8% in FY22)

Source: IMF

2. Fitch Ratings has reduced India’s GDP forecast for 2023-24 to 6% from 6.2%.
• 2022-23 GDP forecast - 7%
• India’s long-term foreign-currency issuer default rating has been kept at ‘BBB-’ with a
stable outlook.
o A ‘BBB’ issuer default rating indicates that expectations of default risk are
currently low and payment capacity to meet financial commitments is considered
adequate, but adverse business or economic conditions are more likely to impair this
capacity.
• Although Fitch expects the central government to meet its fiscal deficit target of 5.9% of
GDP in 2023-24 from 6.4% last year; States’ deficits are likely to rise from 2.7% of GDP
estimated in 2022-23 to 2.8% of GDP in 2023-24.
Source: The Hindu

3. UN has released the World Economic Situations and Prospects 2023 report.
• India’s economy is expected to expand by 5.8% in 2023 and 6.7% in 2024 (calendar year
basis), supported by resilient domestic demand.

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• Inflation in India is expected to reduce to 5.5% in 2023 as global commodity prices

moderate and slower depreciation of Indian currency will reduce the inflation caused by
imported products.
• Global inflation is projected to decline from 7.5% in 2022 to 5.2% in 2023, mainly due to
lower food and energy prices and softening global demand.
• Global growth is now projected to slow from 3.1% in 2022 to 2.3% in 2023 due to resilient
household spending in developed economies and recovery in China.

Source: UN WESP

4. Goldman Sachs has raised India’s GDP growth forecast for calendar year 2023 to 6.3%,
citing a rise in exports.
Source: LiveMint

5. India’s GDP is expected to grow in the range of 6-6.5% in FY24, according to Bank of
Baroda’s economic research department (ERD).
• The fiscal deficit target of 5.9% of GDP for FY24 will be met.
Source: Hindu Business Line

APPOINTMENTS
1. NASSCOM has appointed Anant Maheshwari (president of Microsoft India) as its
chairperson for 2023-24.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• Nasscom, a not-for-profit industry association, is the apex body for the $245 billion
technology industry in India.

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• Established – 1988
Source: Economic Times

2. Siddhartha Mohanty has been appointed as the first chief executive of the Life Insurance
Corporation of India (LIC) for the term beginning in June 2024 to June 2025.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• In 2021, Centre had replaced the post of Chairman with CEO and MD in LIC to align its
structure with other publicly traded corporations.
• The Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director shall be appointed by the Central
Government under section 4 of the LIC Act, 1956.
• In May 2022, LIC offered the largest IPO in India to date as the government agreed to sell
a 3.5% stake.
Source: Hindustan Times and LiveMint

3. Ajay Banga has been appointed as the President of the World Bank for a five-year term
beginning June 2, 2023.
• Ajay Banga most recently served as Vice Chairman at General Atlantic. Previously, he was
President and CEO of Mastercard (2010-2021).
Knowledge Nuggets -
• Milestones achieved by Banga -
o Under his leadership, MasterCard launched the Center for Inclusive Growth,
which advances equitable and sustainable economic growth and financial inclusion
around the world.
o He was Honorary Chairman of the International Chamber of Commerce, serving
as Chairman from 2020-2022.
o He became an advisor to General Atlantic’s climate-focused fund, Beyond
NetZero, at its inception in 2021.
o Ajay Banga is a co-founder of The Cyber Readiness Institute and was Vice Chair
of the Economic Club of New York.

Note: Read more about the World Bank.

Source: World Bank

4. Santiago Peña has been elected the President of Paraguay.

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Source: Al Jazeera

5. Arun Sinha has been appointed as the Chairman of the National Technical Research
Organisation (NTRO).
• The National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO) is a technical intelligence agency
under the National Security Advisor in the Prime Minister's Office, India.
• It was set up in 2004.
Source: India today

6. Hari Hara Mishra has been appointed as the Chief Executive Officer of the Association of
Asset Reconstruction Companies.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• The Association of Asset Reconstruction Companies, which is the voice of all Asset
Reconstruction Companies (ARCs), has been active for more than eight years. Currently,
there are 28 ARCs registered with Reserve Bank of India.
Source: Hindu Business Line

7. Accenture has appointed Ajay Vij as India’s Managing Director, a newly created role, and
Sandeep Dutta as the lead of its India Market Unit.
Source: The Hindu

8. N Kamakodi will continue as Managing Director & CEO of the City Union Bank (CUB) for
another three years.
Source: Hindu Business Lab

9. Vodafone Group Plc (based in UK) has announced Margherita Della Valle as its new CEO.
• Vodafone Idea CEO - Akshaya Moondra
Source: WION

10. Wesley W Simina has been elected as the 10th president of Federated States of
Micronesia.
Knowledge Nuggets –
• Micronesia is a country in the Western Pacific Ocean.
• Capital – Palikir; Currency - United States dollar; Official language - English

pg. 122
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Source: News on Air

11. National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF), a quasi-sovereign wealth fund, has
appointed Rajiv Dhar as interim managing director and CEO.
Knowledge Nuggets –
• The government had set up the Rs 40,000-crore NIIF in December 2016 as an
investment vehicle for funding commercially viable greenfield, brownfield and stalled
projects. It was envisioned as a mother fund with several sectoral feeder funds.
• Of Rs 40,000 crore, the govt will invest up 49%. The remaining amount will be raised
from a third-party.
• The government invests in three funds -- Master Fund, Fund of Funds, and Strategic
Opportunities Fund (together referred to as NIIF).
Source: Moneycontrol

12. Alia Bhatt has been appointed as global ambassador for Gucci.
Source: Indian Express

13. Twitter has appointed Linda Yaccarino as CEO.

Source: NDTV

14. Karnataka cadre Indian Police Service (IPS) officer Praveen Sood has been appointed the Director of
the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for two years.
Source: Indian Express

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15. Amy E. Pope has been elected as the next Director General of International Organization
of Migration (a specialised organization of UN).
Knowledge Nuggets -
• Established – 1951 as Provisional Intergovernmental Committee for the Movement of
Migrants from Europe (PICMME)
• 1989 – The name was changed to International Organization for Migration (IOM)
• Members - 175 countries and 8 states hold observer status
• Secretariate – Geneva, Switzerland
Source: International Organization of Migration, IOM

16. Central government has appointed former Coal Secretary Anil Kumar Jain as the chairman of
the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB).
Knowledge Nuggets -
• The Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) is a statutory body,
constituted under The Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board Act, 2006 in
March 2006.
• Purpose - to regulate the refining, processing, storage, transportation, distribution,
marketing and sale of petroleum, petroleum products and natural gas excluding
production of crude oil and natural gas
o It also aims to ensure uninterrupted and adequate supply of petroleum, petroleum
products and natural gas in all parts of the country.
Source: MoneyControl and

17. Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) has approved the appointment of Ravneet
Kaur as the Chairperson of Competition Commission of India (CCI).
• She has been appointed for a period of 5 years from the date of assumption of charge of
the post or till the date of attaining the age of 65 years.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• The Competition Act, 2002 was passed by the Parliament in the year 2002, to which the
President accorded assent in January, 2003. It was subsequently amended by the
Competition (Amendment) Act, 2007.
• The Competition Commission of India is a statutory body under the administrative
aegis of Ministry of Corporate Affairs.

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• The Commission has a chairperson and six members.

Source: Hindu Business Line and CCI

18. One 97 Communications Ltd, the parent company of fintech firm Paytm, has appointed
Bhavesh Gupta as its president and chief operating officer.
Source: Economic Times

19. Raheja QBE General Insurance Company Limited has appointed Rajeev Dogra as the new
Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer following regulatory approval from Insurance
Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI).
Source: Economic Times

20. Debadatta Chand has been appointed as the Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer
of the Bank of Baroda for a period of three years.
• Rajneesh Karnatak will take over as the MD and CEO of the Bank of India.
Source: Economic Times

21. SP Singh Baghel has taken charge as the Minister of State in the Ministry of Health and
Family Welfare.
Source: ANI

22. Siddaramaiah (from Indian National Congress) has sworn in as the 22nd Chief Minister of
Karnataka.
Source: The Hindu

23. Sony Sports Network has roped in Sania Mirza as the Tennis Ambassador for Sony Sports
Network.
• Sony Sports Network is the broadcaster to three out of the four Grand Slams, the Australian
Open, Roland-Garros, US Open, along with the Davis Cup, making it the Home of Tennis in
India.
• Sania Mirza has won six Grand Slam titles across Australian Open (2), US Open (2),
Roland Garros (1) & Wimbledon (1), including three women's doubles titles and three mixed
doubles titles.
Source: ANI

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24. Former Indian Cricket captain Sourav Ganguly has become the tourism brand ambassador
of the Tripura state government and will promote sporting talents of the state.
Source: Times of India

25. IDBI Bank has appointed Jayakumar S. Pillai as Deputy Managing Director on the Bank’s
Board for 3 years.
• IDBI Bank has two Deputy Managing Director (DMD) positions. The other DMD is Suresh
Khatanhar.
• Samuel Joseph Jebaraj (former DMD) has moved to the National Bank for Financing
Infrastructure and Development (NaBFID) as Deputy Managing DIrector (Lending &
Project Finance) in early April 2023.
Source: Hindu Business Line

26. Paytm Payments Bank has received RBI approval to re-appoint Paytm CEO Vijay Shekhar
Sharma as part-time chairman for a year.
Source: ET

27. Realme has announced Bollywood star Shahrukh Khan as its brand ambassador for the
smartphone category.
Source: Business Today

28. Genpact founder Pramod Bhasin has been appointed the new chairman of the Data Security
Council of India (DSCI), effective April 1, 2023.
• Bhasin is currently also the chairman of Indian Council for Research on International
Economic Relations (ICRIER).
Source: ET

29. Arjun Ram Meghwal was appointed as the new Union Law Minister.
• Kiren Rijiju has been appointed as the Minister of Earth Sciences.
Source: ET

30. Union Government has appointed new chief justices to the high courts of Bombay,
Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Madras and Rajasthan.
Courts Chief Justices
Bombay High Court judge Justice Ramesh D. Dhanuka
pg. 126
[Type here]

Madras High Court Justice Sanjay V. Gangapurwala

Himachal Pradesh High Court Justice M.S. Ramachandra Rao
Kerala High Court Justice S.V. Bhatti
Rajasthan High Court Augustine George Masih

Knowledge Nuggets -
• There are 25 high courts in India.
• High courts and their jurisdictions -
Allahabad High Delhi High Court Jharkhand High Manipur High Rajasthan High
Court – Uttar - Delhi Court - Court - Manipur Court -
Pradesh Jharkhand Rajasthan
Andhra Pradesh Gauhati High Karnataka High Meghalaya High Sikkim High
High Court - Court -Arunachal Court - Court - Court - Sikkim
Andhra Pradesh Pradesh, Assam, Karnataka Meghalaya
Mizoram,
Nagaland
Bombay High Gujarat High Kerala High Orissa High Telangana High
Court - Goa, Court - Gujarat Court - Kerala, Court - Odisha Court -
Dadra and Lakshadweep Telangana
Nagar Haveli
and Daman and
Diu,
Maharashtra
Calcutta High Himachal Madhya Pradesh Patna High Tripura High
Court - Andaman Pradesh High High Court - Court - Bihar Court - Tripura
and Nicobar Court - Himachal Madhya Pradesh
Islands, West Pradesh
Bengal
Chhattisgarh Jammu & Madras High Punjab and Uttarakhand
High Court - Kashmir and Court - Tamil Haryana High High Court -
Chhattisgarh Ladakh High Nadu, Court - Uttarakhand
Court – J&K and Puducherry Chandigarh,
Ladakh Haryana, Punjab

pg. 127
[Type here]

Source: The leaflet and Supreme Court

31. The Public Enterprise Selection Board (PESB) has recommended the name of Parminder
Chopra to become the next CMD of Power Finance Corporation (PFC).
• It is India’s largest NBFC by net worth (all reserves).
• PFC is a Maharatna company.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• The Public Enterprises Selection Board is a high-powered body constituted by
Government of India in 1987.
• Purpose – for evolving a sound managerial policy for the Central Public Sector
Enterprises and to advise Government on appointments to their top management posts
• Chair of PESB - Mallika Srinivasan
Source: Hindu Business Line and List of Maharatna companies

32. Reliance Industries Ltd head Mukesh Ambani has been named as a member of the
international advisory committee to provide guidance and counsel to the presidency of the
28th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP28) of UNFCCC in Dubai, UAE.
• COP28 presidency has now named 31 eminent people to the advisory board.
• The 2023 UN Climate Change Conference will convene from November 30 to December 12
in Dubai, UAE.
Source: ET

33. Karnataka Bank has appointed Srikrishnan Harihara Sarma as its new Managing Director
& CEO for a period of three years.
Source: The Hindu

34. Vigilance Commissioner Praveen Kumar Srivastava was sworn in by President Droupadi
Murmu, as the Central Vigilance Commissioner (CVC).
• Central Vigilance Commission is a statutory body under the Central Vigilance Commission
Act of 2003.
• It was already functioning since 1964. It was set up on the recommendations of the
Committee on Prevention of Corruption, headed by Shri K. Santhanam.
Source: The Hindu

pg. 128
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35. Comptroller and Auditor General Girish Chandra Murmu was re-elected as the external
auditor of the World Health Organisation (WHO) from 2024 to 2027.
• He currently has this position for a four-year term and will serve till 2023.
• The election took place at the 76th World Health Assembly in Geneva, Switzerland.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• The CAG is a member of the United Nations Panel of External Auditors as well as the
governing boards of the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions
(INTOSAI) and Asian Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (ASOSAI).
• Murmu chairs the INTOSAI Knowledge Sharing Committee, its working group on IT audit,
and the Compliance Audit Sub-Committee.
Source: Business Today

IMPORTANT DAYS
1. March 23 - World Meteorological Day; Theme - The Future of Weather, Climate and Water
across Generations
• The day commemorates the coming into force of the Convention establishing the World
Meteorological Organization on 23 March 1950.
Source: WMO

2. April 24 – World Day for Laboratory Animals; Theme - Compassion for Animals in Research
Source: All World Day

3. April 25 - World Penguin Day

Source: Penguin International

4. April 25 – International Delegate’s Day

5. Last Wednesday of April (April 26, 2023) - Administrative Professionals Day (also known as
Secretaries Day or Admin Day)
Source: National Calendar

6. April 26 - International Chernobyl Disaster Remembrance Day

Source: UN
pg. 129
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7. April 27 – International Girls in ICT Day; Theme - Digital Skills for Life
Knowledge Nuggets -

International Telecommunication Union

• Established – 1865
• Secretary-General - Doreen Bogdan-Martin
Source: ITU and ITU

8. April 28 - World Day for Safety and Health at Work; Theme - A safe and healthy working
environment is a fundamental principle and right at work
Source: UN

9. April 28 - World Day for Safety and Health at Work; Theme - A safe and healthy working
environment is a fundamental principle and right at work
Source: UN

10. April 30 – Ayushman Bharat Diwas

Note: According to some unauthenticated websites, “Swasthya Amrit” is the theme of this day.
Source: Times of India

11. April 30 - International Jazz Day

Note: Acc. To some websites, “A Jazz Journey Around the World” is the theme of this day.
Source: UNESCOSource:

12. May 1 – International Workers’ Day/ Labour Day/ May Day/ Maharashtra Statehood Day
Source: LiveMint

13. May 2 – World Tuna Day

• UN aims to achieve sustainable tuna fishing by 2027.
Source: UN

14. May 2 - World Asthma Day; Theme - Asthma care for All
Knowledge Nuggets -

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• The Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA) was launched in 1993 in collaboration with the
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, USA, and the
World Health Organization.
• GINA organizes World Asthma Day in May.
• The first World Asthma Day was observed in 1998.
• HQ - USA
Source: Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA)

15. May 3 - International Leopard Day

Knowledge Nuggets -
• The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change launched the ‘Status of
leopards in India, 2018’ report in 2020.
• As per the report, there has been a 60% increase in the population count of leopards in
India from 2014 estimates.
• The population increased from 8,000 to 12,852.
• Madhya Pradesh (3,421) is estimated to have the largest number of leopards, followed
by Karnataka (1,783) and Maharashtra (1,690).
Source: Down to Earth and PIB

16. May 3 - World Press Freedom Day; Theme - Shaping a Future of Rights: Freedom of
expression as a driver for all other human rights
• Niloofar Hamedi, Elaheh Mohammadi and Narges Mohammadi (Iranian) women
journalists have won the 2023 UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize.
• 2023 World Press Freedom Index (21st edition) has been released by the Reporters
Without Borders (RSF).
o Total Countries – 180
o Top – Norway (for a 7th consecutive year)
▪ Unusually – a non-Nordic country is ranked second, namely Ireland (which is
up by 4 places at 2nd), ahead of Denmark (down 1 place at 3rd).
o India’s rank – 161st (down from 150th in 2022)

pg. 131
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o Parameters – political context, legal framework, economic context, sociocultural

environment and security
o Score -

Knowledge Nuggets -
• The UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize was established in 1997.

pg. 132
[Type here]

• It is presented annually to a person, organization or institution that has made an

outstanding contribution to press freedom, and especially when this has been achieved in
the face of danger.
• The award is named in honour of Colombian journalist Guillermo Cano Isaza, who
was assassinated in front of the offices of his newspaper, El Espectador, in Bogotá
(Columbia), in 1986.
Source: UNESCO, UN, Official Report

17. May 4 – International Firefighters Day

Source: The Quint

18. May 5 – World Cartoonist Day

Source: News18

19. May 5 - African World Heritage Day

Source: UNESCO

20. May 5 - World Hand Hygiene Day; Theme - Accelerate action together. SAVE LIVES – Clean
Your Hands
Source: WHO

21. May 5 - International Day of the Midwife

• According to UN Population Fund, the theme is “Actioning Evidence: Leading the Way
to Enhance Quality Midwifery Care Globally.”
• According to the International Confederation of Midwives, the theme is “Together
again: from evidence to reality.”

pg. 133
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Knowledge Nuggets -
• The International Confederation of Midwives (ICM) supports, represents and works to
strengthen professional associations of midwives throughout the world.
• There are currently 140 Members Associations, representing 119 countries across every
continent.
• Established – 1922 as International Midwives Union (IMU)
• Renamed – 1954 as International Confederation of Midwives (ICM)
• Current Headquarters - The Hague, the Netherlands
Source: UNFPA and ICM

22. May 5 – World Portuguese Language Day

• Lusophone is a term used for peoples who speak Portuguese as a native or as common
second language and nations where Portuguese features prominently in society.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• The Community of Portuguese-speaking Countries (CPLP) established May 5 as the
World Portuguese Language Day in 2009.
• The CPLP is an intergovernmental organization that has been in official partnership
with UNESCO since 2000.
• The CPLP brings together Portuguese-speaking peoples to celebrate the Portuguese
language and Lusophone cultures.
• In 2019, the 40th session of UNESCO's General Conference also adopted May 5 as
"World Portuguese Language Day".
Source: UNESCO

23. May 6 - International No Diet Day

Source: Republic World

24. May 7 - World Athletics Day; Theme - 'Athletics for All – A New Beginning'
Source: News on Air

25. May 7 - 64th Raising Day of Border Roads Organization

• The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) has constructed its first highway café, ‘BRO
CAFÉ’, at Pandukeshwar, about 18km from Joshimath on the Rishikesh-Badrinath national
highway in Uttarakhand.

pg. 134
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Knowledge Nuggets -
• Set up in 1960, the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) is a road construction
organization in India that provides support to Indian Armed Forces. It develops and
maintains road networks in India's border areas and friendly neighbouring
countries.
• This includes infrastructure operations in 19 states and 3 union territories (including
Andaman and Nicobar Islands) and neighbouring countries such as Afghanistan, Bhutan,
Myanmar, Tajikistan and Sri Lanka.
• Motto - Shramena Sarvam Sadhyam (everything is achievable through hard work)
• BRO Director General - Lt Gen Rajeev Chaudhry
• Projects of BRO -
o Eastern front – Arunank, Brahmank, Dantak (in Bhutan), Pushpak, Setuk, Sewak,
Swastik, Udayak, Vartak
o Western – Beacon, Chetak, Deepak, Himank, Hirak, Rohtang Tunnel, Sampark,
Shivalik, Vijayak
Source: Times of India, BRO, and Times of India

26. May 8 - World Thalassemia Day; Theme - “Be Aware. Share. Care: Strengthening Education to
Bridge the Thalassaemia Care Gap”
Knowledge Nuggets -
• Thalassaemia International Federation (TIF) is a non-profit, non-governmental
organisation founded in 1986 by a small group of patients and parents representing
mainly National Thalassaemia Associations in Cyprus, Greece, UK, USA and Italy.
• HQ - Nicosia, Cyprus
Source: Thalassaemia.org

27. May 8 - World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day; Theme - Everything we do comes
#fromtheheart
Knowledge Nuggets -
• The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) is the
world’s largest humanitarian network, is the world’s largest humanitarian network.
• 192 Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies support them through a global secretariat.
Source: IFRC

pg. 135
[Type here]

28. May 8-9 - Time of Remembrance and Reconciliation for Those Who Lost Their Lives during the
Second World War
Source: UN

29. May 10 - International Day of Argania; Theme - "Socio-economic development & sustainability
of the Argan ecosystem"
• Argania is a genus of flowering plants containing the sole species Argania spinosa, known
as argan. It is native to Morocco.
Source: UN

30. May 11 - National Technology Day (25th edition); Theme - School to Startups-Igniting Young
Minds to Innovate
• Under Operation Shakti (1998), nuclear tests were conducted in Pokhran, Rajasthan on
this day.
• May 11-14 - National Technology Week 2023
• Prime Minister laid the foundation stone and dedicated to the nation multiple projects
related to scientific and technological advancement in the country worth more than Rs
5,800 crore.
• Foundation stone was laid for
(1) Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory – India (LIGO-India),
Hingoli, Maharashtra;
(2) Homi Bhabha Cancer Hospital and Research Centre, Jatni, Odisha;
(3) Platinum Jubilee Block of Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai;
(4) Fission Molybdenum-99 Production Facility, Mumbai;
(5) Rare Earth Permanent Magnet Plant, Visakhapatnam;
(6) National Hadron Beam Therapy Facility, Navi Mumbai;
(7) Radiological Research Unit, Navi Mumbai;
(8) Homi Bhabha Cancer Hospital and Research Centre, Visakhapatnam; and
(9) Women & Children Cancer Hospital Building, Navi Mumbai
Source: The Quint and PIB

31. May 12 - International Nurses Day; Theme - Our Nurses. Our Future.
Knowledge Nuggets –

pg. 136
[Type here]

• International Council of Nurses (ICN) is a federation of more than 130 national nurses
associations (NNAs), representing the more than 20 million nurses worldwide.
• Founded in 1899, ICN is the world’s first and widest reaching international organisation
for health professionals.
• Headquarters – Geneva, Switzerland
Source: International Council of Nurses and ICN

32. May 12 - International Day of Plant Health; Theme – Plant Health for Environmental Protection
Source: News18

33. May 13 and 14 - World Migratory Bird Day; Theme - Water

Source: UNEP

34. May 15 - International Day of Families; Theme - Demographic Trends and Families
Source: UN

35. May 15-21 - UN Global Road Safety Week (7th edition); Focus - #RethinkMobility
• This 7th edition focuses on sustainable transport, in particular the need to shift to walking,
cycling and using public transport.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• The Global Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021-2030 aims to reduce
road traffic deaths and injuries by 50% by 2030.
• Road traffic injuries are a leading cause of death and disability worldwide, with around 1.3
million people killed and as many as 50 million people injured each year.
• Globally, 1 of every 4 deaths occur among pedestrians and cyclists.
• WHO, in collaboration with partners, organizes periodic UN Global Road Safety Weeks
Source: WHO

36. May 16 – International Day of Lights

Source: UNESCO

37. May 16 – International Day of Living Together in Peace

Source: UNESCO

38. May 16 - National Dengue Day

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[Type here]

Source: Business Standard

39. May 17 - International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia; Theme -
“Together always: United in diversity”
Source: UNFPA

40. May 17 - World Hypertension Day; Theme - Measure Your Blood Pressure Accurately, Control
It, Live Longer
Source: World Hypertension League

41. May 17 - World Telecommunication and Information Society Day; Focus - “Empowering the
least developed countries through information and communication technologies”
Source: UN

42. May 18 - World AIDS Vaccine Day (red ribbon is used to spread awareness)
Source: Moneycontrol

43. May 18 - International Museum Day; Theme - ‘Museums, Sustainability and Well-being'
Source: PIB

44. 3rd Friday in May (May 19, 2023) - National Endangered Species Day (in United States)
• This year marks the 18th anniversary of the day.
• According to the Endangered Species Coalition, “Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the
Endangered Species Act” is the theme of this day.
Source: CNBC and Endangered.org

45. May 20 – World Bee Day; Theme - “Bee engaged in pollinator-friendly agricultural production”
Source: UN

46. May 21 - National Anti-Terrorism Day (to commemorate the death of former Prime Minister
Rajiv Gandhi)
Source: LiveMint

47. May 21 - World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development
Source: UN

pg. 138
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48. May 21 - International Tea Day

Knowledge Nuggets -
• The present Tea Board set up under section 4 of the Tea Act 1953 was constituted on 1st
April 1954.
• The Board's Head Office is situated in Kolkata and there are two Zonal offices-one each
in North Eastern Region at Jorhat in Assam and in Southern Region at Coonoor in Tamil
Nadu.
• Besides, there are 18 regional offices spread over in all the major tea growing states and
four metros.
Source: UN and Commerce Ministry

49. May 22 - International Day for Biological Diversity; Theme - From agreement to action: build
back biodiversity
Source: UN

50. May 23 - International Day to End Obstetric Fistula; Theme - “20 years on – progress but not
enough! Act now to end fistula by 2030!”
Source: UN

51. May 23 - World Turtle Day; Theme - ‘I love Turtles’

• Zoological Survey of India, in collaboration with Zoological Garden, Kolkata, organized
an awareness program on World Turtle Day.
• Zoological Survey of India is also organising an "Adopt Health Lifestyle" week starting
from May 23 at ZSI, Kolkata.
• Centre for Socio-Economic Development of GB Pant National Institute of Himalayan
Environment (NIHE), Delhi, organized an awareness campaign programme for
mushroom cultivation under Mission LiFE theme ‘Adopt sustainable food system’ and
‘Adopt healthy lifestyle’.
• This year, India plans to celebrate World Environment Day 2023 with a focus on the Mission
LiFE.
• Regional Museum of Natural History, Mysore conducted "Introduction to Insect Life
activity" as part of MISSION LiFE for visitors.
Source: PIB and CNBC

pg. 139
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52. May 25 - World Thyroid Day

Source: Financial Express

53. May 25 – International Missing Children’s Day

Source: AFP

54. May 28 - Menstrual Hygiene Day; Theme - “Making menstruation a normal fact of life by 2030”
Source: UNFPA

55. May 28 – International Day of Women’s Health

Source: CNBC
Note: According to some unauthenticated websites, “Our voices, our actions, our demand: Uphold Women’s health
and rights now” is the theme for 2023.

56. May 28 – World Hunger Day; Theme - Celebrating sustainable solutions to Hunger and
Poverty
Source: ETV Bharat

57. May 29 - World Digestive Health Day; Theme - Your Digestive Health: A Healthy Gut from the
Start
Source: NDTV

58. May 29 - International Everest Day (to mark the summit of Edmund Hillary from New Zealand
and Tenzing Norgay Sherpa from Nepal on Everest)
Source: CNBC

59. May 29 - International Day of UN Peacekeepers (75th edition); Theme - “Peace begins with
me”
• Under the ‘India-ASEAN Initiative for women in UNPK operations’, India will provide
tailor-made courses for women peacekeepers of ASEAN member-states at the Centre for
United Nations Peacekeeping (CUNPK) in New Delhi this September.
Source: UN and The Hindu

60. May 30 - World Vape Day

Source: World Vape Alliance

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AWARDS
1. Former Lok Sabha MP Pandit Ramkishan was honoured with the title of Shatabdi Purush
(Man of the Century) in New Delhi.
Source: Indian Express

2. Popular UK-based Indian-origin actor-writer Meera Syal has been conferred a BAFTA
Fellowship, the highest accolade bestowed by the British Academy of Film and Television
Arts (BAFTA).
• Purpose – it is bestowed upon an individual in recognition of an outstanding and
exceptional contribution to film and/or television
• Syal’s best works - 'Goodness Gracious Me' and 'The Kumars at No. 42' (TV shows)
Source: Economic Times

3. 2023 Goldman Environmental Prize (aka Green Nobel Prize) has been announced to
recognise individuals who contribute towards environmental conservation.
Winners Nationality
Zafer Kizilkaya Turkey
Alessandra Korap Munduruku Brazil
Chilekwa Mumba Zambia
Tero Mustonen Finland
Delima Silalahi Indonesia
Diane Wilson USA

Knowledge Nuggets -
• The Goldman Environmental Prize was founded in 1989 by Richard and Rhoda Goldman.
• The Goldman Environmental Prize recognizes grassroots environmental heroes from
roughly the world’s six inhabited continental regions:
o Africa
o Asia
o Europe
o Islands & Island Nations
o North America

pg. 141
[Type here]

o South & Central America

Source: Goldmanprize.org

4. Fatimah Asghar (poet and screenwriter) won inaugural Carol Shields Prize for Fiction
(worth $150,000) for her debut novel “When We Were Sisters”.
• The Carol Shields Prize for Fiction is named for the late Pulitzer Prize-winning writer. It is
given for outstanding work by a woman or non-binary person in the U.S. or Canada.
Source: Economic Times

5. Maria Stepanova (Russian now living in exile in Berlin) has been awarded the prestigious
Leipzig Book Prize for European Understanding in 2023.
Source: Indian Express

6. Forbes released The World’s 10 Highest-Paid Athletes 2023.

• 1st - Cristiano Ronaldo (Portuguese)
• 2nd - Lionel Messi (Argentine)
Source: Forbes

7. Former President of India Ram Nath Kovind honoured Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath with
the Bharat Ratna Dr Ambedkar Award 2023 for creating a fear-free Uttar Pradesh.
Source: Economic Times

8. Prince of Arcot Nawab Mohammed Abdul Ali has won the Meritorious Service Award,
2023, given by the Indo-Australian Association (IAA).
• The award was given by Sara Kirlew, Australian Consul General to South India, and Dr
Susan Verghese, president, Indo-Australian Association.
Source: Times of India

9. Biologist Sathyabhama Das Biju, who is popularly known as ‘the Frogman of India’, has
been chosen for Harvard University’s prestigious Radcliffe fellowship.
• He will be a part of the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study (or Harvard Radcliffe
Institute) at Harvard University.
Source: The Hindu

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10. 2023 Pulitzer Prizes have been announced by Columbia University for achievements in
newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United
States.
Category Winner
Public Service Associated Press
Fiction Demon Copperhead, by Barbara Kingsolver
Trust, by Hernan Diaz
Drama English, by Sanaz Toossi
Biography G-Man: J. Edgar Hoover and the Making of the
American Century, by Beverly Gage
Memoir or Autobiography Stay True, by Hua Hsu
Poetry Then the War: And Selected Poems, 2007-
2020, by Carl Phillips
Music Omar, by Rhiannon Giddens and Michael
Abels
Source: Pulitzer.org

11. 2023 Laureus World Sport Awards have been announced.

Category Winner
Laureus World Sportsman of The Year Lionel Messi (Footballer, Argentine)
Laureus World Sportswoman of The Year Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce (Athlete, Jamaica)
Laureus World Team of The Year Argentine Men’s Football Team
Laureus World Breakthrough of The Year Carlos Alcaraz (Tennis, Spain)
Laureus World Sportsperson of The Year with Catherine Debrunner
A Disability
Laureus Sport For Good TeamUp

(A psycho-social support intervention

developed by War Child, Save the Children
and UNICEF Netherlands)
Source: Laureus

pg. 143
[Type here]

12. Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Ltd won the Steel Ministry’s "Ispat Rajbhasha Samman" First Prize
for the year 2021-22.
• RINL's March issue of Hindi In-house Magazine "Rashtriya Ispat Sugandh" was also
released.
• CMD of RINL - Shri Atul Bhatt
Source: PIB

13. Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama was presented with the 1959 Ramon Magsaysay
Award.
• Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation, Philippines president Susanna B Afan and
foundation trustee Emily A Abrera personally presented the award to the spiritual at his
residence in Himachal Pradesh’s McLeod Ganj.
Source: Times of India

14. Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban) Uttar Pradesh has been awarded the country's prestigious
HUDCO Award (2022-2023).
• The award given on the 53rd Foundation Day of Housing and Urban Development
Corporation Limited (HUDCO).
• This award has been given in the Best Practices to Improve the Living Environment
2022-23 category for cleanliness. Rs 1 lakh was also given to the UP government as part
of the award.
• J&K has won two awards including 'Overall best performing Union Territory’ and ‘Best
Performing UT for implementation of Affordable Rental Housing Complexes (ARHCs)'.
Source: ANI

15. An environmental non-profit organisation called The Green Organisation in the UK presented
the Green World Award 2023 to recognise, honour, and promote the best practices for the
environment all over the world.
• Green World Champion of Champions is Grupo Ambipar-Brazil for their project Sustainable
BioCapsules – Transforming Waste into Trees.
• Indian organizations have won three awards, which are
Category Winner
Environmental Policy Silver - Chennai Metro Rail, India
Environmental Policy & Management Gold - Vedanta, India

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CSR Gold - Power Grid Corporation of India

Source: GWA

16. 68th Hyundai Filmfare Awards 2023 have been announced.

Category Winner
Best Film Gangubai Kathiawadi
Best Actor in Leading Role Rajkumar Rao for Badhai Do
Best Actress in Leading Role Alia Bhatt for Gangubai Kathiawadi
Source: Hyundai Filmfare

17. Indian American Neeli Bendapudi, the president of Penn State University, will be receiving the
American Immigration Council's 2023 Immigrant Achievement Award.
Source: HT

18. Swansea University Dylan Thomas Prize 2023 has been won by Arinze Ifeakandu
(Nigeria).
Source: Swansea University

19. Prof. Jayant V. Narlikar has won ASI Govind Swarup Lifetime Achievement award for
Astronomy and Astrophysics for the year 2022.
Source: Astronomical Society of India

20. Author and translator Musharraf Ali Farooqi (Pakistani Canadian) has won the inaugural
edition of the Armory Square Prize for South Asian Literature in Translation.
• He translated Siddique Alam’s The Kettledrum and Other Stories from Urdu to English.
• US-based Armory Square Ventures is the sponsor of the award.
Source: Indian Express

21. National Technology Awards 2023 were announced by Technology Development Board
(TDB) of Ministry of Science & Technology.
• The categories of awards are Main, MSME, Startup, Translational Research and
Technology Business Incubator.
• A total of 11 winners are there in 2023.

pg. 145
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Category 1 – Main National Technology Award M/S Mylab Discovery

(Main) Solutions Private Limited,
Maharashtra
Prize - Rs.25 Lakh
Category 2 – MSME National Technology Award M/S Ideaforge Technology
(MSME Category) Limited, Maharashtra

Prize - Rs. 15 Lakhs M/S. Electronics Devices

Worldwide Private Limited,
Maharashtra

M/S. XIOTZ Private Limited,

Karnataka (Women Led
MSME)
Category 3 – Technology National Award (Technology M/S Kanpur Flower Recycling
Startup Start-up) Private Limited, Uttar Pradesh

Prize - Rs.15 Lakh M/S Sascan Meditech Private

Limited, Kerala

M/S Xyma Analytics Private

Limited, Tamil Nadu

M/S Wellrx Technologies

Private Limited, Haryana

M/S Qzense Labs Private

Limited, Karnataka (Women
Led Start Up)
Category 4 - Translational National Technology Award Prof. Govindaraju Thimmaiah
Research (Translational Research)

pg. 146
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Category 5 - Technology National Technology Award T-hub Foundation, Telangana

Business Incubator (Technology Business
Incubator)
Source: PIB

22. Dr M.N. Nandakumara, a well-known UK-based Sanskrit scholar and the Executive
Director of the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan centre in London, has been conferred an honorary
MBE by King Charles III for services to Indian classical arts in Britain.
• Nandakumara hails from the village of Mattur in Karnataka.
• The honorary Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) is given by the British
monarch to foreign nationals for their contribution to public life.
Source: HT

23. Twenty countries and territories are represented on Forbes’ 30 Under 30 Asia 2023 list. India
ranked first with 75 entries, followed by China (34), Japan (32), Singapore (30) and South
Korea (28).
Source: Forbes

24. “Time Shelter” novel, written by Georgi Gospodinov and translated into English by Angela
Rodel, has won the International Booker Prize 2023.
• This is the first time a novel originally published in Bulgarian has won the annual award.
• The Italian translation of “Time Shelter” won the Premio Strega Europeo prize last year.
Knowledge Nuggets -
• This award is given to a work of fiction translated into English and published in the United
Kingdom in the preceding year.
• Last year, the prize went to Geetanjali Shree’s Tomb of Sand from India, translated into
English by Daisy Rockwell.
Source: Indian Express

25. Kavitha Lankesh’s Gauri, the eponymous documentary film about her sister and slain
journalist Gauri Lankesh, won the “Best Long Documentary Award” at the South Asian
Film Festival of Montreal.
Source: The Wire

26. The regional winners of the Commonwealth Short Story Prize 2023 have been announced.
pg. 147
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• Winners - Agnes Chew (Singapore, Asia), Hana Gammon (South Africa, Africa), Kwame
McPherson (Jamaica, Caribbean), Himali McInnes (New Zealand, Pacific), and Rue Baldry
(United Kingdom, Canada and Europe)

Source: Indian Express and Commonwealth Foundation

27. Trichy International Airport’s new terminal project has been awarded the international
safety award by the British Safety Council in the first-class merit category.
• ITD Cementation India Limited developed the terminal.
• The terminal building is being constructed as per the standards of ‘GRIHA’ (green rating for
integrated habitat assessment), in which the design maximizes the use of natural light
within the building and incorporates renewable energy measures.
Source: TOI

28. Sikh Empire's last ruler's daughter Princess Sophia Duleep Singh, daughter of Maharaja
Duleep Singh, was honoured with a commemorative Blue Plaque for her house (“The
Faraday House”) in London.
• Maharaja Duleep Singh settled in England in 1854.
• Princess Sophia Duleep Singh is also the goddaughter of Queen Victoria.
• The Blue Plaque scheme, run by the English Heritage charity, honours the significance of
buildings associated with historical figures.
• Named after another former resident, the eminent English physicist Michael Faraday
(1791–1867), Faraday House was Princess Sophia’s main residence for over four decades.
Source: LiveMint and Royal Trust, UK

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29. GMR Hyderabad International Airport has been recognized as the most punctual airport in
the world by aviation analytical firm, CIrium.
• Hyderabad airport topped the charts both in the ‘Global AIrports’ and ‘Large Airports’
categories.
Source: The Hindu

30. Hrithik Roshan won the Best Actor award in a Leading Role (male) at International Indian
Film Academy Awards (IIFA) 2023.
• Alia Bhatt won Best Actor in a Leading Role (female) at IIFA 2023 for Gangubai
Kathiawadi.
Source: HT

31. Cannes Film Festival 2023 (76th edition) -

Category Winners
Palme D’or Anatomie D’une Chute (Anatomy Of A Fall)
Directed By Justine Triet
Grand Prix The Zone Of Interest Directed By Jonathan
Glazer
Best Director Tran Anh Hùng For La Passion De Dodin
Bouffant (The Pot-au-feu)
Source: Cannes

SPORTS
1. 7th edition of the 2023 Men's Asian Champions Trophy will be hosted by Chennai, India in
August 2023.
• It is a men's field hockey tournament, played amongst the six best Asian hockey teams
— India, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, China and Pakistan.
• Asian Hockey Federation (HQ- Malaysia) organizes the tournament.
• It will be the first international hockey competition to be hosted in Chennai since the
Asia Cup, which was held there in 2007.
• Asian Games 2023 will be held in Hangzhou, China in September-October.
Knowledge Nuggets -

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• The Asian Champions Trophy was last held in Dhaka, Bangladesh in 2021.
o Gold - South Korea
o Silver - Japan
o Bronze - India (defeated Pakistan)
Source: Olympics.com and Sportstar

2. Iga Świątek (Poland) won the women's singles at the Stuttgart Open (Women’s tennis
tournament) in Stuttgart, Germany.
Source: Hindu Sportstar

3. Indian batter KL Rahul became the fastest player to reach the 7,000 run-mark in T20 cricket
format.
• He achieved this feat while playing for Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) against the Gujarat
Titans in Lucknow.
Source: Times of India

4. Carlos Alcaraz (Spain) has won the ATP 500 Barcelona Open (annual men’s tennis
tournament) in Barcelona, Spain.
Source: Hindu Sportstar

5. Brian Lara and Sachin Tendulkar have joined Donald Bradman, Alan Davidson and Arthur
Morris by having a set of gates named in their honour at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
• The gates, at the entrance of the ground, were unveiled to mark Tendulkar’s 50th birthday
and 30 years since Lara’s innings of 277 at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
Source: Times of India

6. World Table Tennis Championships 2023 will be held in Durban, South Africa from
20–28 May.
• A. Sharath Kamal and Manika Batra will spearhead the 11-member Indian squad,
comprising five men and six women, at the championship.
Source: Hindu Sportstar

7. Indian athletes Aarti and Khusbhu Yadav have bagged the third and fourth positions in the
Girls' five thousand-metre Race Walk in the Asian U18 Athletics Championships held in
Tashkent, Uzbekistan.
pg. 150
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Source: News on Air

8. Abdulla Aboobacker won the men’s triple jump gold at the 57th Oda Mikio memorial
athletics meet in Hiroshima.
Source: Sportstar

9. Sumit Nagal from India won the men’s singles at the Roma Garden Open 2023 (ATP
Challenger’s tour).
Source: ATP tour

10. Sergio Pérez (Mexican) has won the Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix 2023.
Source: ATP

11. Retired Commander Abhilash Tomy created history as the first Indian to complete the
Golden Globe Race 2023.
Source: Indian Express

12. Ding Liren of China has crowned as the 17th world chess champion.
Source: Al Jazeera

13. Mairaj Ahmad Khan and Ganemat Sekhon received India’s first gold medal in the ongoing
ISSF World Cup Shotgun in Cairo, Egypt.
Source: News on Air

14. Third edition of the Khelo India University Games 2022 will be organized in Uttar Pradesh
from May 25-Jun 03, 2023.
• The KIUG 2022 Games will be held in Varanasi, Noida, Gorakhpur, and Lucknow.
• Total - 21 sports
Knowledge Nuggets -
• Khelo India Games has three formats – Youth (School level), University, and Winter.

Editions -
Khelo India Youth Khelo India University Khelo India Winter
1st- 2018, Delhi 1st – 2020, Odisha 1st – 2020, Leh and Gulmarg
2nd – 2019, Maharashtra 2nd – 2021, Gulmarg

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3rd – 2021, Haryana 2nd – 2021, Karnataka 3rd – 2023, Gulmarg (winner:
4th- 2022, Madhya Pradesh (winner: Jain University, J&K)
(winner: Maharashtra) Bangalore)

• 3rd Edition of Khelo India Winter Games, Gulmarg (February 2023) -

o Total - 11 sports
o Organizers - Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, Jammu and Kashmir Sports
Council and the Winter Games Association of Jammu and Kashmir
o Medal tally – J&K (Total: 76 and Gold: 26), followed by Maharashtra (Total: 27 and
Gold: 13)
o Eklavya Jagal (class 10th student from Amity International School, Noida) won 2
gold medals in short track ice skating event in the 15-19 years age group.
Source: PIB

15. Indian Olympic gold medallist and star javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra won at the Doha
Diamond League 2023.
Source: Times of India

16. Indian archery men and women teams won 5 Gold medals, 5 Silvers and 2 bronze at Asia
Cup-World Ranking Tournament, Stage II in Tashkent.
Source: News on Air

17. Sound Running Track Festival, a World Athletics Continental Tour-Silver event, was held in
California.
• Avinash Sable and Parul Chaudhary set new marks in the 5,000m.
• Praveen Chithravel broke the triple jump national mark.
Source: Hindustan Times

18. Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian) has won the 2023 F1 Miami Grand Prix in Florida.
Source: New York Times

19. India has finished second by winning 2 golds, 1 silver and 1 bronze at the Archery World
Cup 2023 Stage 1 in Antalya, Turkey.
• USA is at the first position with (2 golds, 2 silver).
• Medal winners -
pg. 152
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Category Winner
Gold in Women's Individual Compound Jyothi Surekha Vennam
Gold in Compound Mixed Team Jyothi Surekha Vennam and Ojas Pravin
Deotale
Silver in Men's Recurve Team Atanu Das, Dhiraj Bommadevara and
Tarundeep Rai
Bronze in Men’s Individual Recurve Dhiraj Bommadevara
Source: Olympics.com

20. India has won a total of three silver medals at Asian Weightlifting Championships 2023 in
South Korea.
• Bindyarani Devi (women's 55kg) - silver medal in overall
• Bindyarani Devi (women's 55kg) - silver medal in clean & jerk
• Jeremy Lalrinnunga (men's 67kg) - silver medal in snatch
Source: ANI

21. 2023 Madrid Open – Men's Singles: Carlos Alcaraz (Spain); Women’s Singles: Aryna
Sabalenka (Belarus)
Source: Sportskeeda

22. China has defeated South Korea to win the Sudirman Cup 2023 (a biennial mixed team
competition organised by Malaysia-based Badminton World Federation) in held in Suzhou,
China.
Source: Olympics.com

23. Barcelona Football Club won its 27th LaLiga title held in Spain.
Source: Reuters

24. Tamil Nadu Champions Foundation (TNCF) was officially launched, and the Chief
Minister’s Trophy 2023 logo, mascot, and theme song were unveiled at The Leela Palace in
Chennai.
Source: The Hindu

25. Young Indian racer Jaden Pariat won the first round of the ROKiT British F4 Championship
at Donington Park in Leicestershire.
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• He has become the first Indian in six years.

Source: The Statesman

26. Indian team has 17 medals (all by girls) at the Moscow Wushu Stars Championship 2023.
• The girls bagged 10 gold, 4 silver and 3 bronze medals in the junior girls, sub-junior girls
and senior girls’ categories across Sanda (Fight) and Taolu in Moscow.
Source: PIB

27. China’s Lin Dan and Malaysia’s Lee Chong Wei have been elected to the 2023 Badminton
World Federation (BWF) Hall of Fame.
• BWF HQ - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Source: Hindu Sportstar

28. V. Prraneeth became Telangana’s sixth and India’s 82nd Grandmaster after winning in
Baku Open 2023 against GM Hans Niemann of the US in the second last round of the
championship.
Source: The Hindu

29. India finished second in the overall medals tally with one gold, two silvers and one bronze
at the ISSF World Cup Baku 2023.
• Gold winners - Sarabjot Singh and Divya TS in 10m air pistol mixed team event
• China finished at the first rank.
Source: Olympics.com

30. Indian athlete Shaili Singh has won a bronze medal at the Golden Grand Prix 2023
athletics meet in the women’s long jump event in Yokohama, Japan.
• Germany’s Maryse Luzolo won the gold medal while Australia’s Brooke Buschkuehl bagged
the silver medal.
• Two years back, Shaili Singh had won a silver medal win at the World Athletics UNDER-20
Championships in Nairobi.
Source: News on Air

31. Italian Open 2023-

• Men’s Singles - Daniil Medvedev (Russian) defeated Holger Rune
o It is Medvedev’s first clay-court title.
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• Women’s Singles - Elena Rybakina (Kazakhstani) defeated Anhelina Kalinina

Source: Google News and Skysports

32. All India Football Federation has declared June 23, the birthday of Indian football icon
Pradip Kumar Banerjee, as the ‘AIFF Grassroots Day’
Source: The Hindu

33. China’s Ding Liren has been crowned as the world’s chess champion, after he defeated
Russian GM Ian Nepomniachtchi in Astana, Kazakhstan.
Source: HT

34. Indian team began its campaign at the Men’s Junior Asia Cup 2023 in Salalah, Oman.
Source: The Hindu

35. Olympian Archer and World Championship Silver Medallist Atanu Das was re-inducted in the
Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports (MYAS) Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS).
• A total of 27 new names were inducted in the TOPS Core and Development lists which now
takes the total number of TOPS Athletes to 270 (101 in Core, 269 in Development).
Source: PIB

36. Ambati Rayudu has retired from the Indian Premier League.
Source: India Today

37. Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian motorsports racing driver) has won the Monaco Grand Prix.
Source: Formula 1

38. Malaysia Masters (badminton) 2023 – Men's Singles: Prannoy HS; Women’s Singles: A.
Yamaguchi (Japan)
Source: BWF

39. Chennai Super Kings won its 5th IPL title in 2023 by defeating Gujarat Titans at the
Narendra Modi Stadium.
• Chennai Super Kings captain MS Dhoni became the first Indian to record 300 dismissals in
T20 cricket during the IPL 2023.
Source: HT and Sportstar

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40. D. Gukesh defeated World champion Magnus Carlsen in the Norway Chess blitz
tournament.
Source: Sportstar

41. Jyothi Yarraji won the gold medal in the women's 100m hurdles event in the T-Meeting
2023 athletics meet, in Tilburg, the Netherlands.
Source: ANI

MISCELLANEOUS
1. “Made in India: 75 Years of Business and Enterprise” book has been authored by Amitabh
Kant (former CEO of NITI Aayog).
Source: Hindu Business Line

2. Arun Manilal Gandhi, an Indian American social activist, journalist, writer and grandson of
Mahatma Gandhi, has passed away.
• Arun Gandhi authored several books including ‘The Gift of Anger: And Other Lessons
from My Grandfather Mahatma Gandhi’ and ‘A Patch of White’ about life in prejudiced
South Africa.
Source: Indian Express

3. Former world and Olympic sprint champion Tori Bowie passed away.
Source: The Guardian

4. Legendary tennis player Jaidip Mukerjea launched his autobiography titled “Crosscourt”.
Source: Hindu Sportstar

5. Tarek Fatah (Pakistani-Canadian journalist and author) passed away.

Source: Indian Express

6. Fuego Volcano has erupted in Guatemala.

Knowledge Nuggets -
• Capital - Guatemala City; Currency – Quetzal; Official languages – Spanish

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Source: CBS News and Wikipedia

7. “Sachin @50: celebrating a maestro” book has been authored by Boria Majumdar.
• The book has been launched on the 50th birthday of Sachin Tendulkar (April 24).
Source: The Hindu

8. Dr Sandeep Marwah, the Chancellor of AAFT University and President of the International
Chamber of Media and Entertainment Industry (ICMEI), presented the first copy of the book "8
Years of Modi Sarkar- A compilation of Achievements" to former President of India, Ram
Nath Kovind.
• The book, published by ICMEI, documents the achievements of the Modi government over
the past eight years.
Source: ANI

9. The Hindi version of "Cyber Encounters", a highly anticipated book depicting the challenges
of cybercrime, was launched.
• The book, co-written by Ashok Kumar, Director General of Police in Uttarakhand, and O.P.
Manocha, a former DRDO Scientist.
Source: Times of India

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10. Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi virtually released a 113-verse book titled
‘Saurashtra Tamil Sangam Prashasti’ written by Somnath Sanskrit University.
• Saurashtra Tamil Sangam event was organized in Gujarat.
Source: CMO Gujarat

11. Tripura's first Padma Shri awardee, Himangshu Mohan Chowdhury, has passed away.
• He was a retired Civil Service officer and a humanitarian.
Source: ANI

12. “Just Aspire” book has been authored by Ajai Chowdhry.

Source: The Print

13. Samaresh Majumdar (Sahitya Akademi Award winning Bengali writer) has passed away.
• He was best known for his political trilogy – ‘Uttaradhikar’, ‘Kalbela’ and ‘Kalpurush’.
Source: Indian Express

14. K.K. Shailaja has authored the “My Life as a Comrade” book, co-written with Manju Sara
Rajan.
Source: The Hindu

15. Padma Shri Awardee and American Indian Economist Padma Desai has passed away.
Source: Economist Times

16. Boxing champion Kaur Singh has passed away.

Source: India Today

17. N. Gopalakrishnan, founder of the Indian Institute of Scientific Heritage (IISH) and former
scientist at the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), has passed away.
Source: The Hindu

18. Antonio Carbajal (Mexican football player) has passed away. He was nicknamed as ‘Tota’.
• He was the first footballer to play in five World Cups.
Source: The Hindu

19. Eminent singer Kalyani Kazi has passed away. She is the daughter in law of Bangladesh’s
national poet.
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Source: Business Standard

20. 'The Golden Years' has been authored by Ruskin Bond.

Source: Times of India

21. SP Hinduja, the eldest of four Hinduja brothers and Hinduja Group chairman, has passed
away.
Source: LiveMint

22. Nobel Prize winning American Economist Robert Lucas Jr. (Professor at the University of
Chicago) has passed away.
Source: Indian Express

23. Owen Davidson (Australian tennis player) has passed away.

• He won the 8 Grand Slams in the category of mixed doubles titles with Billie Jean King
only.
• From 1965 to 1974, he won 11 major mixed doubles titles and two men’s doubles titles.
Source: New York Times

24. ‘Collective Spirit, Concrete Action’ book has been written by Shashi Shekhar Vempati,
former CEO of Prasar Bharati (2017-2022).
Source: The Print

25. Assam Governor Gulab Chand Kataria has released the 'Partitioned Freedom' book,
written by Ram Madhav.
Source: ANI

26. Renowned British novelist Martin Louis Amis has passed away.
• He is best known for his works "Money: A Suicide Note" and "London Fields."
• Other famous works of Amis are "Time's Arrow", "The Zone of Interest", "Experience" and
"The War Against Cliche."
Source: ET

27. Renowned Telugu writer Kethu Viswanatha Reddy has passed away.
Source: Telangana Today

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28. Tina Turner, an African-American pop sensation in the ’80s, has passed away.
Source: Reuters

29. “RINGSIDE – Up, Close and Personal on India and Beyond”, a new book written by
Chairman of the Editorial Board of Lokmat Media Group and former MP Dr Vijay Darda.
• It will be released by renowned author and Congress MP Dr Shashi Tharoor.
Source: The Print

30. Writer and literary critic Govindaray H Nayak (popularly known as G H Nayak) passed away.
Source: Deccan Herald

31. Cyclone Mocha hit Myanmar and Bangladesh.

Source: BBC

32. Goa Governor P S Sreedharan Pillai has announced the release of five books published
under the Raj Bhavan’s scheme for new writers titled ‘Nayi Pahal’.
• Under this scheme, the government will sponsor the cost of printing and publishing fiction,
non-fiction, poems, autobiography, or an anthology of short stories. The Raj Bhavan,
however, will not be involved in the sale process of the books.
Source: TOI

33. ‘NTR: A Political Biography’ book has been authored by Ramachandra Murthy
Kondubhatla
• It is the biography of NTR Rama Rao (actor turned politician).
Source: Hindu Business Line

QUESTIONS
Q.1) Where was the “Future of Work” exhibition [d] Central Drug Research Institute (CSIR-CDRI),
organized? Lucknow
[a] Advanced Materials and Processes Research [e] Central Electrochemical Research Institute
Institute (CSIR-AMPRI), Bhopal (CSIR-CECRI), Karaikudi
[b] Institute of Minerals and Materials Technology
(CSIR-IMMT), Bhubaneswar Q.2) Union Minister Shri Sarbananda Sonowal
[c] Centre for Cellular Molecular Biology (CSIR- inaugurated National Technology Centre for Ports,
CCMB), Hyderabad Waterways & Coasts (NTCPWC) to provide
solutions to challenges in the maritime sector
pg. 160
[Type here]

through scientific support, education, applied Q.7) Recently, Union Cabinet has approved the
research and technology transfer at the local, setting up of 157 nursing colleges at the same
regional, national and international levels. locations as medical colleges (that have been
NTCPWC was established under the ambitious established since 2014) to fill up nursing
Sagarmala program at a cost of ₹77 crore. Which vacancies and remove disparities in distribution of
IIT hosts this centre? nursing colleges in the country. These colleges
[a] IIT-Kanpur will be established at a cost of Rs 1,570 crore (Rs
[b] IIT-Roorkee 10 crore for each college), in which states can
[c] IIT-Ropar also contribute, over the next two years. With 100
[d] IIT-Madras seats per college, the move will add 15,700 BSc
[e] IIT-Delhi nursing seats across the country. Which state will
get the highest number of colleges under this
Q.3) Which state had won maximum medals in initiative?
the latest edition of Khelo India Youth Games? [a] Uttar Pradesh
[a] Maharashtra [b] Madhya Pradesh
[b] Madhya Pradesh [c] Rajasthan
[c] Gujarat [d] Gujarat
[d] Haryana [e] Telangana
[e] Punjab
Q.8) According to the World Bank’s data released
Q.4) Identify the correct statement(s) from the in April 2023, India has become the first country in
options given below. the world to have annual remittances from abroad
[a] The Asia Pacific Leaders’ Conclave on Malaria crossing the $100-billion mark. The remittances
Elimination was held in Delhi have increased at an impressive growth rate of
[b] The Asia-Pacific Heads of Government aims to __%.
free the region of malaria by 2030 [a] 10%
[c] The Asia Pacific Leaders Malaria Alliance’s [b] 17%
Secretariate is in Singapore [c] 23%
[d] Only A and B [d] 12%
[e] Only A, B, and C [e] 15%

Q.5) Where did the Civil 20 (C20) Working Group Q.9) Who is the chairperson of NASSCOM in
on Education and Digital Transformation (EDT) 2023-24?
meeting take place? [a] Anant Maheshwari
[a] Mahatma Jyotiba Phule Rohilkhand University [b] Ritika Singh Verma
[b] Anna University [c] Amarendra Singh
[c] Birla Institute of Technology and Science [d] Gopal Sadhwani
[d] Mizoram University [e] Santosh Kumar Gaund
[e] Savitribai Phule Pune University
Q.10) 7th edition of the 2023 Men's Asian
Q.6) State-Wide Attention on Grievances by Champions Trophy will be hosted by Chennai,
Application of Technology (SWAGAT) is the India in August 2023. It will be ___ international
initiative of which state? hockey competition to be hosted in Chennai since
[a] Gujarat the Asia Cup, which was held there in 2007?
[b] Jharkhand [a] First
[c] Maharashtra [b] Fourth
[d] Madhya Pradesh [c] Second
[e] Karnataka [d] Third
[e] Fifth
pg. 1
[Type here]

Q.15) Where did the harbor phase of the first

Q.11) When a company falsely claims to be edition of the ASEAN India Maritime Exercise
environmentally conscious and markets its (AIME-2023) take place?
products as such, but is not making any notable [a] Little Creek Naval Base
sustainability efforts, it is termed as ______? [b] Great Lakes Naval Base
[a] Bait-And-Switch Tactics [c] Whidbey Island Naval Base
[b] Greenwashing [d] Changi Naval Base
[c] Fielding [e] Mayport Naval Base
[d] Toe the Line
[e] Surrogate Marketing Q.16) IHub-Data is a Technology Innovation Hub
for Data Banks, Data Services, and Data
Q.12) Which country has received the ‘Ma Lisha’ Analytics (IHub-Data). It was established under
ocean-going passenger-cum-cargo ferry from the National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber-
India? Physical Systems (NM-ICPS); funded by the
[a] Columbia Department of Science and Technology. Which
[b] Guyana organization houses the hub?
[c] Argentine [a] Pandit Dwarka Prasad Mishra Indian Institute
[d] Panama of Information Technology, Design and
[e] Dominican Republic Manufacturing
[b] Indian Institute of Information Technology,
Q.13) Recently, Dr BR Ambedkar Telangana State Design and Manufacturing
Secretariat received the coveted ‘gold’ rating from [c] Dr. B. R. Ambedkar National Institute of
CII’s Indian Green Building Council under the Technology
IGBC Green New Building Rating system. The [d] Visvesvaraya National Institute of Technology
Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) was [e] Indian Institute of Information Technology-
established in _____ as part of the Confederation Hyderabad
of Indian Industry (CII) to enable a sustainable
built environment for all and facilitate India to be Q.17) Which airline has unveiled the world's first
one of the global leaders in the sustainable built robotic check-in assistant named Sara?
environment by ____. IGBC gives certification to [a] Alliance Air
every type of building which conforms to its [b] British Airways
sustainability criteria through its ___ different [c] Qatar Airways
rating indices. [d] Emirates
[a] 2005; 2027; 30 [e] Qantas Airways
[b] 2010; 2030; 15
[c] 2003; 2024; 32 Q.18) Identify the correct statement with regards
[d] 2001; 2025; 33 to National Manufacturing Innovation Survey
[e] 2002; 2028; 25 (NMIS) 2021-22?
1) The survey has been developed by the
Q.14) Which state organized the Medical Value Department of Science and Technology, in
Travel Conclave 2023? collaboration with the WEF.
[a] Andhra Pradesh 2) The NMIS 2021-22 study was conducted as a
[b] Tamil Nadu 2-pronged survey.
[c] Telangana 3) This study is a follow-up to DST’s first National
[d] Odisha Innovation Survey held in 2001.
[e] Maharashtra 4) A total of 8,087 firms participated in the firm-
level survey, while 5,488 firms and non-firms
participated in the SSI survey from 28 states and
6 Union Territories
pg. 2
[Type here]

5) Out of the total firms surveyed, only 25.01% Q.22) Where has Defence Minister Rajnath Singh
were considered innovative. laid the foundation stone of ‘Ekatha Harbour’?
[a] Madagascar
[a] Only 1, 2 and 5 [b] Malayasia
[b] Only 1, 2, and 3 [c] Mauritius
[c] Only 1, 2, 3, and 4 [d] Maldives
[d] Only 2, 3, and 5 [e] Mozambique
[e] Only 1, 2, 4, and 5
Q.23) “UPAJ: A Festival of Innovations in Arts”
Q.19) Which bank has introduced digital was organized as a segment of the larger World
distribution platform Smart Saathi to connect IP Day celebration. In India, the World IP Day
business correspondents (BCs) and business celebration are organized by the Office of the
facilitators (BFs) to the bank? Controller General of Patents, Designs, and
[a] HDFC Bank Trademarks. Dr. Chintan Vaishnav, Chair
[b] Axis Bank Startup20, G20 along with Ms. Durga Jasraj
[c] Bank of Maharashtra founder of Pandit Jasraj Cultural Foundation
[d] HDFC Bank launched the festival. The Office of the Controller
[e] Bank of India General of Patents, Designs, and Trademarks is
under the administrative aegis of which of the
Q.20) Which payment bank has collaborated with following ministries?
the National Payments Corporation of India [a] Ministry of External Affairs
(NPCI) to roll out Face Authentication for AePS [b] Ministry of Corporate Affairs
(Aadhaar-enabled Payment System) at its [c] Ministry of Finance
500,000 banking points? [d] Ministry of Commerce and Industry
[a] Airtel Payments Bank [e] Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare
[b] NSDL Payments Bank
[c] Jio Payments Bank Q.24) Dawki Land Port has been recently
[d] Fino Payments Bank inaugurated to facilitate trade between India and
[e] India Post Payments Bank ____?
[a] Bhutan
Q.21) Union Animal Husbandry and Dairying [b] Nepal
Minister Parshottam Rupala launched Veterinary [c] Myanmar
Council of India (VCI) portal on World Veterinary [d] Sri Lanka
Day. Veterinary Council of India is a statutory [e] Bangladesh
body established under the Indian Veterinary
Council Act of ___. It receives ____ percent Q.25) Which of the following points will be
grants–in–aid from the Department of Animal connected through Multimodal Transit Transport
Husbandry and Dairying, Ministry of Fisheries Facility on the Kaladan River?
Animal Husbandry and Dairying to meet the cost [a] Kolkata-Paletwa-Sittwe-Zorinpui-Aizwal
of running the offices of the Council. The [b] Aizwal- Zorinpui- Paletwa- Sittwe- Kolkata
designation of this council’s head is known as [c] Zorinpui- Paletwa- Sittwe- Kolkata- Aizwal
______. [d] Kolkata-Sittwe-Paletwa-Zorinpui-Aizwal
[a] 1997; 80%; Chairman [e] Aizwal- Kolkata- Zorinpui- Paletwa- Sittwe
[b] 1968; 95%; CEO
[c] 1988; 60%; Chairman Q.26) Union Cabinet Minister for Fisheries,
[d] 1984; 100%; President Animal husbandry and Dairying, Shri Parshottam
[e] 1956; 75%; Managing Director Rupala will officially launch the Nationwide AHDF
KCC Campaign for a period of _____?
[a] 12 months
pg. 3
[Type here]

[b] 20 months Q.31) When is the World Hand Hygiene Day

[c] 24 months observed?
[d] 11 months [a] May 5
[e] 15 months [b] May 28
[c] May 19
Q.27) Recently, Indian Space Research [d] May 20
Organisation (ISRO) has completed the post- [e] May 16
mission disposal (PMD) operation of the
communication satellite GSAT-12. GSAT-12 is the Q.32) Which institute is hosting the Centre for
23rd GEO satellite to undergo PMD before Innovation Incubation Research and
decommissioning. When was the satellite Entrepreneurship (C-i2 RE)?
launched? [a] Dravidian University
[a] 2009 [b] Rayalaseema University
[b] 2011 [c] Sri Padmavati Mahila Visvavidyalayam
[c] 2002 [d] Kakatiya Institute of Technology & Science
[d] 2013 [e] Vikrama Simhapuri University
[e] 2017
Q.33) Which state has recently established a new
Q.28) How many states/UTs have adopted Directorate of Minority Affairs?
National Generic Document Registration System [a] Nagaland
(NGDRS) as of May 2023? [b] Mizoram
[a] 29 [c] Meghalaya
[b] 28 [d] Assam
[c] 25 [e] Arunachal Pradesh
[d] 21
[e] 24 Q.34) What is the foodgrain production target for
2023-24 (July-June) crop year?
Q.29) Ajay Banga has been appointed as the [a] 234 million tonnes
President of the World Bank for a five-year term [b] 332 million tonnes
beginning June 2, 2023. Which company was [c] 187 million tonnes
headed by Banga before assuming the [d] 256 million tonnes
Presidency of the World Bank? [e] 298 million tonnes
[a] Mastercard
[b] General Atlantic Q.35) How many sports will be played in third
[c] Boeing edition of the Khelo India University Games
[d] Visa 2022?
[e] IBM [a] 32
[b] 21
Q.30) Recently, the Border-Haat between India [c] 29
and Bangladesh was inaugurated in Sylhet, [d] 40
Bangladesh. When was this initiative of [e] 30
organizing the Border Haats launched?
[a] 2011 Q.36) Which of the following PSU has
[b] 2019 collaborated with Ministry of Housing and Urban
[c] 2015 Affairs for technical assistance in solid waste
[d] 2015 management (SWM) and used water
[e] 2007 management (UWM) under Swachh Bharat
Mission-Urban 2.0?
[a] NLC India Limited
pg. 4
[Type here]

[b] RITES Limited Carbon-Neutral Future through Clean Energy

[c] Bharat Electronics Limited Solutions." Which countries are the co-organizers
[d] Power Finance Corporation of this forum?
[e] Engineers India Limited [a] China and Philippines
[b] UAE and Saudi Arabia
Q.37) Which country organized the ‘Machines [c] India and Japan
Can See 2023’ Summit? [d] USA and Republic of Korea
[a] Oman [e] Uzbekistan and Turkey
[b] UAE
[c] Bahrain Q.42) Which sport are Avinash Sable, Parul
[d] Saudi Arabia Chaudhary, and Praveen Chithravel associated
[e] Israel with?
[a] Athletics
Q.38) Which of the following countries does not [b] Badminton
accept the Monarch of the United Kingdom as the [c] Billiards
Head of State? [d] Squash
[a] New Zealand [e] Tennis
[b] Canada
[c] Australia Q.43) Which bank has signed a co-lending
[d] Solomon Islands agreement with India Shelter Finance Corporation
[e] Chile Ltd (IndiaShelter), a Gurgaon based Housing
Finance Company?
Q.39) Which of the following countries co-chaired [a] Axis Bank
the 14th edition of Petersberg Climate Dialogue [b] ICICI Bank
(PCD) along with Germany? [c] HDFC Bank
[a] UAE [d] Dhanlakshmi Bank
[b] Finland [e] Bandhan Bank
[c] Norway
[d] Moldova Q.44) Which bank has launched ‘Global
[e] Bahrain Collections’, an international collection service for
exporters, in collaboration with Cashfree
Q.40) The ____ bomber, also known as the Payments?
Blackjack in NATO countries, is a supersonic, [a] Bank of Baroda
variable-sweep wing, strategic bomber developed [b] Yes Bank
by Russia in the 1980s. It is one of the largest [c] Canara Bank
and heaviest military aircraft ever built, and its [d] Bank of India
impressive size has earned it the nickname [e] Union Bank of India
"White Swan." Recently, it has been used by
Russia in Ukraine War. Q.45) What is the theme of the World Athletics
[a] Su-34 Day 2023?
[b] Tu-160 [a] Training for life
[c] Tu-95 [b] Sports for Peace and Development
[d] Pe-8 [c] Athletics for All – A New Beginning
[e] SB [d] Stay active, stay healthy, stay connected
[e] Athletic for a better world
Q.41) Asian Development Bank will organize the
18th Asia Clean Energy Forum (ACEF) from 13– Q.46) ‘Vishesh’ is retail banking programme to
16 June 2023 in Manila, Philippines. ACEF 2023 onboard around 1 lakh new customers from semi-
will be guided by the theme "Navigating Toward a urban and rural areas of ____ bank?
pg. 5
[Type here]

[a] ICICI Bank 2) It was established on 16 July 1929 in

[b] HDFC Bank pursuance of the report of the Royal Commission
[c] Axis Bank on Agriculture
[d] Bank of Baroda 3) It was formerly known as Imperial Council of
[e] Indian Bank Agricultural Research

Q.47) Mir cards is the card-network of which [a] Only 1

country? [b] Only 1, 2, and 3
[a] Netherlands [c] Only 2 and 3
[b] Belgium [d] Only 1 and 3
[c] Saudi Arabia [e] Only 1 and 2
[d] Russia
[e] Germany Q.52) Which of the following programs has been
launched by ISRO for post-graduate and final-
Q.48) When did Capital Small Finance Bank Ltd year undergraduate students of physical sciences
(CSFB) started operations as India’s first Small and technology?
Finance Bank? [a] START
[a] 2016 [b] YUVIKA
[b] 2014 [c] ERA
[c] 2018 [d] SHINE
[d] 2013 [e] YUKTI
[e] 2018
Q.53) Which IIT hosts the recently inaugurated
Q.49) Which of the following is the theme of the Renewable Grid Integration Laboratory and
4th edition of “G20 TechSprint 2023”? Green Hydrogen Laboratory?
[a] Retail Payments [a] IIT Roorkee
[b] Central Bank Digital Currency [b] IIT Kanpur
[c] Cross border payments [c] IIT Kharagpur
[d] Regulatory compliance [d] IIT Calcutta
[e] Green and sustainable finance [e] IIT Madras

Q.50) Last year, the HDFC Bank agreed to take Q.54) Which city is setting up Asia’s largest bio-
over HDFC Ltd in a deal valued at about USD 40 gas plant?
billion. The proposed entity will have a combined [a] Surat
asset base of around ___? [b] Mumbai
[a] Rs 10 lakh crore [c] Vadodara
[b] Rs 23 lakh crore [d] Chennai
[c] Rs 20 lakh crore [e] Ahmedabad
[d] Rs 18 lakh crore
[e] Rs 15 lakh crore Q.55) Which state has launched the “School
Health Program” for preparing the digital health
Q.51) Which of the following statement(s) is/are report card for children - the first in India?
correct about the Indian Council of Agriculture [a] Telangana
Research? [b] Madhya Pradesh
1) ICAR is a statutory organisation under the [c] Gujarat
aegis of Department of Agricultural Research and [d] Uttar Pradesh
Education (DARE) [e] Maharashtra

pg. 6
[Type here]

Q.56) Where is the Sorsan conservation reserve

located? Q.62) Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
[a] Telangana launched the third phase of Thalassemia Bal
[b] Rajasthan Sewa Yojana (TBSY) to commemorate World
[c] Andhra Pradesh Thalassemia Day. Thalassemia Bal Sewa Yojana
[d] Assam Portal was also launched. Which company is
[e] West Bengala supporting the initiative as part of its Corporate
Social Responsibility (CSR)?
Q.57) Where was the mutual firefighting exercise [a] HDFC Bank
named AGNI DAMAN-23 conducted? [b] SAIL
[a] Assam [c] Coal India
[b] West Bengal [d] SBI
[c] Maharashtra [e] NTPC
[d] Tamil Nadu
[e] Odisha Q.63) Which portal is hosting the ‘YUVA
PRATIBHA - Culinary Talent Hunt’ of the Institute
Q.58) Which has become the first general of Hotel Management, Pusa?
insurance company to accept RBI’s Central Bank [a] https://www.india.gov.in/
Digital Currency (CBDC) e-Rupee (e₹) for [b] https://data.gov.in/
premium payments? [c] https://innovateindia.mygov.in/
[a] General Insurance Corporation of India [d] https://www.digilocker.gov.in/
[b] Reliance General Insurance [e] https://www.investindia.gov.in/
[c] SBI General Insurance
[d] Bharti AXA General Insurance Q.64) Which state has recently announced
[e] New India Assurance financial support of Rs 10 lakhs for the patients
suffering from Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy
Q.59) Where is the Adoor Co-operative Urban (DMD)
Bank located? [a] Rajasthan
[a] Kerala [b] Odisha
[b] Tamil Nadu [c] Tamil Nadu
[c] Andhra Pradesh [d] Telangana
[d] Odisha [e] Madhya Pradesh
[e] West Bengal
Q.65) ‘Apuni Sarkar Portal’ belongs to which
Q.60) When is the World Thalassemia Day state/UT?
observed? [a] Delhi
[a] May 8 [b] Jammu and Kashmir
[b] May 22 [c] Uttarakhand
[c] May 12 [d] Himachal Pradesh
[d] May 17 [e] Punjab
[e] May 19
Q.66) Which state has introduced India’s State
Q.61) Which state does the Tagin community Robotics Framework?
belong to? [a] Telangana
[a] Arunachal Pradesh [b] Maharashtra
[b] Sikkim [c] Odisha
[c] Karnataka [d] Karnataka
[d] Assam [e] Punjab
[e] Nagaland
pg. 7
[Type here]

Q.67) Which ship is participating in the 50th Q.72) How much is the authorized capital of Rail
edition of Cape to Rio Race 2023 from India? Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL)?
[a] Tarini [a] Rs. 1500 crores
[b] Shivalik [b] Rs. 3000 crores
[c] Talwar [c] Rs. 1000 crore
[d] Pralaya [d] Rs. 800 crores
[e] Trikand [e] Rs. 5000 crores

Q.68) Which country has issued the world's Q.73) Under the Swachh Bharat Mission Gramin,
largest "debt-for-nature" swap on record? an ODF Plus village is one which has sustained
[a] Namibia its Open Defecation Free (ODF) status along with
[b] Brazil implementing either solid or liquid waste
[c] Peru management systems. As of date, more than 2.96
[d] Ecuador lakh villages have declared themselves ODF
[e] France Plus, which is a significant step towards achieving
the SBM-G phase II goals by 2024-25. As per the
Q.69) Identify the incorrect statement(s) with recently released data, ____ percent of villages
regards to IRDAI’s State Insurance Plan? have achieved the ODF Plus status under phase
[a] In March 2023, IRDAI has announced to roll II of the Mission. _____ is the top performing
out the insurance plans for all States along with state in terms of percentage of ODF Plus villages
identifying a lead insurer for each district. in the larger states category with 100% coverage.
[b] A state level co-ordination committee, How much amount has been allocated under the
consisting of insurers, state government officials Swachh Bharat Mission Grameen in the Union
and representatives of the IRDAI, will monitor the Budget 2023-24?
implementation of the state insurance plans. [a] 60%; Madhya Pradesh; Rs 60,102 crore
[c] IRDAI aims to enable insurance for all by 2047 [b] 50%; Telangana; Rs 52,137 crore
[d] There will be two leading Insurers in each [c] 75%; Gujarat; Rs 78,092 crore
district for both life and non-life sectors. [d] 43%; Maharashtra; Rs 65,980 crore
[e] Max Life is the appointed lead insurer for the [e] 25%; Uttar Pradesh; Rs 67,890 crore
state of Madhya Pradesh under IRDAI’s State
insurance plan. Q.74) Union Minister for Women and Child
Development Smriti Irani launched the Centre’s
Q.70) Who is the Managing Director & CEO of the flagship programme ‘Poshan Bhi, Padhai Bhi’ to
City Union Bank? focus on Early Childhood Care and Education
[a] Madhav Gupta (ECCE) at Anganwadis across the country. How
[b] Keshav Ramakrishna much amount has been allocated for the training
[c] N Kamakodi of anganwadi workers to implement the ECCE?
[d] Suraj Bhatia [a] Rs 450 crore
[e] Nikhil Paigude [b] Rs 200 crore
[c] Rs 500 crore
Q.71) Where are the manufacturing facilities of [d] Rs 600 crore
Nano DAP established? [e] Rs 350 crore
[a] Kalol
[b] Wanakbori Q.75) Which state has launched Geeta Karmikula
[c] Sikka Bima scheme for extending an insurance cover of
[d] Kutch Rs.5 lakh to toddy tappers?
[e] Sindhudurg [a] Telangana
[b] Maharashtra
[c] Tamil Nadu
pg. 8
[Type here]

[d] Nagaland following institutes was founded by

[e] Assam Gopalakrishnan?
[a] Indian Statistical Institute
Q.76) Kerala has launched the Kerala Institutional [b] Indira Gandhi Institute of Development
Ranking Framework (KIRF), modelled on the lines Research
of the National Institutional Ranking Framework [c] All India Institute of Speech and Hearing
(NIRF), to assess the quality of higher education [d] Indian Institute of Scientific Heritage
institutions in the State. Identify the parameters [e] Indian Institute of Chemical Biology
that are not to be used in the rankings.
[a] Teaching, Learning and Resources Q.81) Which country hosts the global celebrations
[b] Knowledge Dissemination and Research of the World Environment Day 2023?
Excellence [a] Côte d'Ivoire
[c] Graduation Outcome [b] Namibia
[d] Outreach and Inclusivity [c] Paraguay
[e] Research Output [d] Brazil
[e] Chile
Q.77) Recently, RBI has lifted limitations on
individuals creating interest-earning Foreign Q.82) Recently, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister
Currency Accounts (FCA) to make India's Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu launched ‘Him Data
International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) Portal’ to integrate data of all government wings
more appealing. RBI has abolished the for the delivery of welfare schemes. Which
requirement that any funds remaining idle in the institute has developed the portal for the state?
FCA account for up to ____ days be repatriated. [a] Indian School of Business
[a] 60 days [b] Indian Statistical Institute
[b] 10 days [c] Indian Institute of Space Science and
[c] 30 days Technology
[d] 15 days [d] Indira Gandhi Institute of Development
[e] 50 days Research
[e] Indian Institute of Technology, Madras
Q.78) Which company has won gold award in
CSR category at the Green World Award 2023? Q.83) Where is Batam city located?
[a] Power Grid Corporation of India [a] Indonesia
[b] NTPC [b] Japan
[c] NextEra Energy [c] Thailand
[d] ExxonMobil [d] Philippines
[e] Iberdrola [e] Singapore

Q.79) How many gold medals did India win at the Q.84) By which year does WHO aim to achieve
Moscow Wushu Stars Championship 2023? the global target to halve anaemia prevalence in
[a] 23 women of reproductive age?
[b] 17 [a] 2025
[c] 16 [b] 2027
[d] 27 [c] 2029
[e] 30 [d] 2030
[e] 2028
Q.80) Recently, N. Gopalakrishnan, former
scientist at the Council of Scientific and Industrial Q.85) Which ministry has secured the 2nd
Research (CSIR), has passed away. Which of the position in the Data Governance Quality Index
assessment for 2022-2023 Q3?
pg. 9
[Type here]

[a] Ministry of Electronics and IT [c] May 19

[b] Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways [d] May 29
[c] Ministry of Home Affairs [e] May 1
[d] Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and
Pensions Q.90) Recently, the National Technology Awards
[e] Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate 2023 were announced by the Technology
Change Development Board (TDB) of the Ministry of
Science & Technology. The categories of awards
Q.86) Which of the following statement(s) is/are are Main, MSME, Startup, Translational Research
correctly states the purpose of RBI’s ‘100 Days and Technology Business Incubator. The National
100 Pays’ campaign? Technology Award (Main) has been won by
1) It aims to trace and settle the top 100 _______ having a prize money of ______.
unclaimed deposits of every bank in every district [a] Mylab Discovery Solutions; Rs 25 lakhs
within 100 days [b] Ideaforge Technology Limited; Rs 15 lakhs
2) It aims to resolve the grievances of customers [c] Electronics Devices Worldwide; Rs 10 lakhs
of banks through Ombudsman with 100 days [d] XIOTZ Private Limited; Rs 15 lakhs
3) It aims to double the network of Point-of-sale [e] Sascan Meditech Private; Rs 25 lakhs
terminals in semi-urban and rural areas within 100
days Q.91) In October 2022, the Prime Minister
4) It aims to ensure inclusion of women led launched the Mission DefSpace during the 12th
MSMEs into the formal credit sector by spreading DefExpo in Gandhinagar, Gujarat. The Mission
awareness within 100 days aimed at boosting innovation on certain launch
[a] Only 1 and 3 systems for the Indian Armed Forces. How many
[b] Only 1 challenges are covered in this mission?
[c] Only 2 [a] 75
[d] Only 3 and 4 [b] 66
[e] Only 1, 3, and 4 [c] 50
[d] 41
Q.87) Who chairs the IRDAI’s recently constituted [e] 27
committee on matters related to mental health
and insurance? Q.92) The Innovations for Defence Excellence
[a] Director of IIM-Indore (iDEX) framework, launched in April 2018,
[b] Chairperson of CII primarily aims at creation of an ecosystem to
[c] CEO of FIEO foster innovation and technology development in
[d] Director of NIMHANS Defence and Aerospace in India by engaging
[e] Director of IIM-Jodhpur industries including MSMEs, Startups, Individual
Innovators, R&D Institutes & Academia, and
Q.88) Who has been appointed as global providing them grants/funding and other support
ambassador for Gucci? to create product and services for future adoption
[a] Alia Bhatt for Indian defence and aerospace needs. Under
[b] Michelle Yeoh. which Act is the organization established?
[c] Margot Robbie [a] Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP) -2016
[d] Deepika Padukone [b] Works of Defence Act, 1903
[e] Rachel McAdams [c] Companies Act, 2013
[d] Essential Defence Services Act, 2021
Q.89) When is the International Day of Plant [e] Defence of India Act, 1962
Health observed?
[a] May 12
[b] May 17
pg. 10
[Type here]

Q.93) Which state is implementing the [e] Canada

'Mukhyamantri Sikho Kamao Yojana' ('Learn and
Earn scheme')? Q.97) How much amount has been approved by
[a] Madhya Pradesh the World Bank to set up an integrated road
[b] Nagaland safety enforcement system in India?
[c] Tripura [a] Rs 51 crore
[d] Andhra Pradesh [b] Rs 16 crore
[e] Gujarat [c] Rs 78 crore
[d] Rs 43 crore
Q.94) Which is set to become the first state to [e] Rs 37 crore
have a welfare fund for Mahatma Gandhi Rural
Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) Q.98) Recently, Amy E. Pope has been elected as
workers? the next Director General of the International
[a] Mizoram Organization of Migration (a specialised
[b] Kerala organization of UN). The International
[c] Tamil Nadu Organization for Migration (IOM), or as it was first
[d] Telangana known, the Provisional Intergovernmental
[e] Madhya Pradesh Committee for the Movement of Migrants from
Europe (PICMME), was born in 1951 out of the
Q.95) Recently, the North Eastern Handicrafts chaos and displacement of Western Europe
and Handlooms Development Corporation Ltd. following the Second World War. When was this
(NEHHDC) and the Indian Institute of Packaging organization named as International Organization
(IIP) have signed an MoU to enhance the for Migrants?
packaging and branding of handloom and [a] 1989
handicraft products from the North Eastern [b] 1967
region, promote the use of eco-friendly and [c] 1959
sustainable packaging, and to increase their [d] 1999
visibility and marketability. Indian Institute of [e] 1995
Packaging (IIP) is an autonomous body which
was set up in _____ by the packaging and allied Q.99) As per a newspaper report published in
industries under the ______ for improving the May 2023, the central government has appointed
packaging standards in the country? the former Coal Secretary Anil Kumar Jain as the
[a] 2016; Ministry of Textiles chairman of the Petroleum and Natural Gas
[b] 1967; Ministry of Finance Regulatory Board (PNGRB). Which type of
[c] 2008; Ministry of Defence organization PNGRB is?
[d] 2013; Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer [a] Autonomous body
Welfare [b] Statutory organization
[e] 1966; Ministry of Commerce and Industry [c] Departmental Undertaking
[d] Government Agency
Q.96) Vast, a space habitation technologies [e] PSU
company, has announced its plans to launch the
world’s first commercial space station, called Q.100) Which colored ribbon is used for
Haven-1, on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket to low- spreading awareness about the World AIDS
Earth orbit in 2025. Which country does the Vaccine Day?
company belong to? [a] Red
[a] USA [b] Gold
[b] Denmark [c] Blue
[c] France [d] Green
[d] Netherlands [e] Yellow
pg. 11
[Type here]

Q.101) With which country has India launched the Q.105) Recently, Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh has
“50 start-ups exchange programme”? become the first city in India to adopt the
[a] Bangladesh localization of the United Nations-mandated
[b] Germany sustainable development goals (SDG). Identify
[c] Denmark the correct pair of SDGs from th0e options given
[d] Netherlands below.
[e] United Kingdom 1) SDG 1 – Gender Equality
2) SDG 7 – Zero Hunger
Q.102) Which of the following portals aims to 3) SDG 4- Clean and Affordable Energy
prevent frauds such as identity theft, forged KYC, 4) SDG 3 – Quality Education
banking frauds? 5) SDG 9 – Life Below Water
[a] Vistar Saathi 6) SDG 12 – Reduced inequalities
[b] Sanchar Saathi [a] Only 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6
[c] Seva Saathi [b] Only 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6
[d] Sampark Saathi [c] Only 1, 4, 5, 6, and 7
[e] Prasaran Saathi [d] None of those given as options
[e] Only 1, 3, 4, and 6
Q.103) Recently, the ‘City Beauty Competition’
portal (https://citybeautycompetition.in) has been Q.106) Which of the following exercise do India
launched by the Ministry of Housing and Urban and UK hold together?
Affairs to encourage and recognize the [a] Vajra Prahar
transformational efforts made by cities and wards [b] Ajeya Warrior
across the country to create beautiful, innovative [c] VINBAX
and inclusive public spaces. Under this [d] Yudh Abhyas
competition, wards and public spaces in cities [e] Ekuverin
would be judged against five broad pillars. Which
of the following is not among the pillars of this Q.107) With which bank has Zomato collaborated
assessment. to launch its very own unified payments interface
1) Accessibility (UPI) offering called Zomato UPI, for some of its
2) Amenities users?
3) Sustainability [a] ICICI Bank
4) Aesthetics [b] HDFC Bank
5) Ecology [c] Bank of Baroda
[a] Only 1 [d] Bank of India
[b] Only 1, 2, and 3 [e] Central Bank of India
[c] Only 3
[d] Only 3 and 5 Q.108) Which company has launched India's first
[e] Only 2 and 5 mutual fund focused on defence sector?
[a] UTI
Q.104) Which state has launched the [b] HDFC
Mukhyamantri Krishak Byaaj Maafi Yojana 2023 [c] Zillion
to waive the loans of up to Rs 2 lakh (including [d] SBI
the principal and interest) for defaulting farmers? [e] Axis
[a] Madhya Pradesh
[b] Gujarat Q.109) SBI Capital Markets, BoB Capital Markets
[c] Assam and IDBI Capital Markets and Securities have
[d] Maharashtra been chosen as the merchant bankers (nodal
[e] Punjab agencies) for conducting the initial public offer
pg. 12
[Type here]

(IPO) of state-run Indian Renewable Energy Q.112) Recently, IIT-Madras has established the
Development Agency (IREDA). The draft red ‘Center of Water Technology’ (CoWT) in Water
herring prospectus (DHRP) for the IPO is Resources Management and Water Technologies.
expected to be submitted to SEBI within next six The Centre aims to build human capacity to
months. Considering this, which of the following ensure water security for the country. MASHAV,
contents would not be a part of IREDA’s DHRP? ____ Agency for International Development
1) Information on IREDA’s business operations, Cooperation, will provide assistance to the CoWT
promoters, financials, and its standing within its for the ‘AMRUT’ Mission for achieving its overall
industry targets. Fill in the blank.
2) Information on IREDA’s listed or unlisted peers [a] Israel
3) IREDA’s purpose of raising the money through [b] Netherlands
IPO, utilization of the fund, and risks involved in [c] Germany
investment [d] Denmark
4) DHRP will contain the details of the issue size [e] Finland
of IREDA.
5) Information about the prices of shares to be Q.113) Which state has launched the SAHAS
issued by IREDA initiative for making workplaces safer for women?
[a] Telangana
[a] Only 2 and 5 [b] Madhya Pradesh
[b] Only 1, 2, and 3 [c] Uttar Pradesh
[c] Only 2, 4, and 5 [d] Maharashtra
[d] Only 5 [e] Chhattisgarh
[e] Only 2, 3 and 4
Q.114) Which district has launched the first-of-its-
Q.110) How much is the global inflation projection kind initiative named Niramaya Health Insurance
for 2023 by the UN’s World Economic Situations scheme for children suffering from autism,
and Prospects 2023 report? cerebral palsy, mental retardation, multiple
[a] 5.2% disabilities, and others?
[b] 6.2% [a] Goalpara district
[c] 4.8% [b] Araria district
[d] 4.5% [c] Darrang district
[e] 7.1% [d] Visakhapatnam district
[e] Changlang district
Q.111) Recently, the University Grants
Commission (UGC) has launched ‘NEP Q.115) Which state has announced to create a
SAARTHI- Student Ambassador for Academic 'repository' of satellite imagery of different time
Reforms in Transforming Higher Education in periods of the state on the Rajdhara platform?
India’ to involve students in the implementation of [a] Punjab
the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. How [b] Rajasthan
many students will be chosen from each Higher [c] Haryana
Education Institutions (HEIs) as their nominations [d] Chhattisgarh
for NEP SAARTHIs? [e] Jharkhand
[a] Three
[b] Seven Q.116) INS ‘Vaghsheer’ is the ____ Scorpene
[c] Eight Submarine of Project-75, Yard 11880, Indian
[d] Ten Navy’s Kalvari class, delivered by the Mazagon
[e] Nine Dock Shipbuilders Limited?
[a] Fourth
[b] Sixth
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[c] Seventh [c] Jawaharlal Nehru Port and Visakhapatnam

[d] Fifth Port
[e] Second [d] Mumbai Port and Syama Prasad Mookerjee
Port
Q.117) How much was the production of defence [e] Karaikal Port and Chennai Port
goods in India in FY23, as per the Ministry of
Defence’s data? Q.122) Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry
[a] $12 billion has extended the deadline of its Smart Cities
[b] $5 billion Mission from June 2023 to June 2024 to enable
[c] $4 billion all 100 smart cities to not only complete their
[d] $7 billion projects but also document and disseminate the
[e] $10 billion learnings from the mission. How many are the
small cities with less than 1 million population?
Q.118) Who is the first Saudi woman to go in [a] 95
space? [b] 66
[a] Fatima Ali [c] 50
[b] Amal Hadi [d] 100
[c] Rayyanah Barnawi [e] 80
[d] Munira Ahmad
[e] Amani Mustafa Q.123) Which state has launched the ‘Pahal’
initiative to increase the level of education?
Q.119) Recently, the National Payments [a] Uttar Pradesh
Corporation of India (NPCI) has introduced the [b] Maharashtra
CVV (Card Verification Value) free facility for its [c] Jharkhand
Rupay debit, credit and prepaid cardholders who [d] Odisha
have tokenized their cards on the merchant [e] West Bengal
application. When did Rupay launch the Card on
File Tokenization facility? Q.124) Under which scheme has the Central govt
[a] 2021 appointed L&T Engineering Limited to augment
[b] 2019 infrastructure in tourism spots of the UT of
[c] 2016 Puducherry?
[d] 2020 [a] PRASAD
[e] 2017 [b] USTAAD
[c] Swadesh Darshan
Q.120) Which of the following company has [d] CBSP Scheme
launched India's first recycled PVC Rupay card? [e] Brand India
[a] Tide
[b] Leads Hub Q.125) Which of the following causes does the
[c] G. S J Solution CSR initiative - Infosys Springboard aim to serve?
[d] Cached Solutions [a] Women Empowerment
[e] Data Home [b] Reduction in Maternal Mortality
[c] Reduction in Child Marriages
Q.121) Which of the following ports will be [d] Employment of Rural Youth
developed as Green Hydrogen Hub under the [e] Skilling of women and students from rural
Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways’ areas
‘Panch Karma Sankalp’?
[a] Deendayal Port and VO Chidambaranar Port Q.126) Which company has launched the GAINS
[b] Mundra Port and Paradip Port 2023 to support the start-up ecosystem in India?
GAINS aims to address present and emerging
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challenges in the ship design and construction [d] Punjab National Bank > Punjab and Sind Bank
industry, and aims at achieving the objectives of > Bank of India > Canara Bank > UCO Bank
Atmanirbhar Bharat. [e] Bank of Baroda > Bank of India > Bank of
[a] MDL Maharashtra > Central Bank of India > State Bank
[b] GSL of India
[c] GRSE
[d] L&T Q.131) Which of the following Indian
[e] GIL supercomputers has secured the 75th position in
the prestigious Top 500 Global Supercomputing
Q.127) Which is the only Indian company to List?
feature in the BCG’s top 50 companies’ list in [a] PARAM Siddhi-AI
2023, being the most innovative company in their [b] Pratyush
operations? [c] Mihir
[a] Reliance [d] PARAM Brahma
[b] Tata Group [e] AIRAWAT
[c] HDFC
[d] Infosys Q.132) Where is the Tok Pisin language spoken?
[e] IOCL [a] Papua New Guinea
[b] New Zealand
Q.128) Which is the first PSU bank to offer live [c] Australia
video chat and live web chat services to its [d] Philippines
customers? [e] Vietnam
[a] Bank of Baroda
[b] Indian Bank Q.133) Which edition of the Forum of India-
[c] State Bank of India Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC) Summit was
[d] Union Bank of India recently conducted?
[e] Central Bank of India [a] Seventh
[b] Fourth
Q.129) How much amount has been transferred [c] Second
by RBI to the Central Govt as dividend in 2022-23 [d] Third
as against the Centre’s expectation of ______ [e] Fifth
(including the other banks’ dividend)?
[a] Rs 98,765 crore and Rs 76,578 crore Q.134) By which year does the G7 Partnership for
[b] Rs 87,416 crore and Rs 48,000 crore Global Infrastructure and Investment (PGII) aim to
[c] Rs 67,705 crore and Rs 89,012 crore mobilize $600 billion in global infrastructure
[d] Rs 78,555 crore and Rs 62,598 crore investments?
[e] Rs 88,987 crore and Rs 98,089 crore [a] 2027
[b] 2024
Q.130) Identify the correct order of banks in [c] 2029
accordance with their profit growth percentage in [d] 2030
FY23? [e] 2025
[a] Bank of Maharashtra > UCO Bank > Bank of
Baroda > Union Bank of India > State Bank of Q.135) By what percentage has the airfare been
India cut under the UDAN 5.1 to make flying in
[b] State Bank of India > Bank of India > Central helicopters more affordable for passengers?
Bank of India > UCO Bank > Indian Bank [a] 25%
[c] Indian Overseas Bank > Bank of India > State [b] 10%
Bank of India > Bank of Maharashtra > Central [c] 15%
Bank of India [d] 35%
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[e] 20% [a] India

[b] Nepal
Q.136) Recently, the Union Ministry of Fisheries, [c] Bhutan
Animal Husbandry and Dairying has announced [d] Bangladesh
the start of the Phase-V of the Sagar Parikrama [e] Sri Lanka
initiative. The aim is to spread information about
fisheries-related schemes and programs such as Q.140) Which organization has released the
the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana Transport Outlook 2023 report?
(PMMSY) and Kisan Credit Cards (KCC). The [a] WEF
scheme has already completed four phases in [b] ITF
___ locations and this phase will be launched in [c] WB
___ locations in ___ and ___ states. [d] IMF
[a] 19; 06; Maharashtra and Goa [e] WMO
[b] 20; 10; Goa and Karnataka
[c] 10; 5; Kerala and Tamil Nadu Q.141) Which bank has launched Future Bankers
[d] 19; 12; Andhra Pradesh and Odisha 2.0, a pan-India recruitment programme to
[e] 10; 5; Karnataka and Telangana transform young graduates into banking
professionals within one year?
Q.137) Recently, Prime Minister Narendra Modi [a] IDFC First Bank
released a special commemorative postage [b] HDFC Bank
stamp and a ₹75 coin to mark the inauguration of [c] Bank of Baroda
the new Parliament building. Considering this, [d] Axis Bank
identify the correct statement(s) from the options [e] State Bank of India
given below.
1) The responsibility for coinage vests with the Q.142) Which PSP has launched UPI SDK to
Government of India in terms of the Coinage Act, allow customers of online merchants to make UPI
2011 as amended from time to time. payments directly and in-line from the merchant's
2) Coins are minted at the four India Government mobile app without getting redirected during
Mints at Mumbai, Alipore (Kolkata), Saifabad checkout?
(Hyderabad), Cherlapally (Hyderabad) and [a] Amazon Pay
NOIDA (UP). [b] Google Pay
3) Coins can be issued up to the denomination of [c] Paytm
Rs.1000 as per the Coinage Act, 2011. [d] PhonePe
[a] Only 1 [e] Mobikwik
[b] Only 1 and 2
[c] Only 2 Q.143) Central Govt has cleared a prompt digital
[d] Only 2 and 3 reporting and communication mechanism under
[e] None are incorrect which the Central Economic Intelligence Bureau
(CEIB) will send a report digitally regarding
Q.138) Which state/UT celebrated the maiden borrowers to the PSU banks for a loan amount of
Sinthan Festival? _____ or higher at pre-approval stage within 15
[a] J&K days of request. The new system will require
[b] West Bengal banks to submit their requests to CEIB through
[c] Odisha dedicated emails in a specific format. In turn,
[d] Puducherry CEIB will exclusively send reports to banks via
[e] Nagaland email, maintaining a record of the timeline and
actions taken by the banks.
Q.139) ACCESS, RIVER, SMART, and BEST are [a] Rs 10 crore
the development projects of which country? [b] Rs 20 crore
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[c] Rs 15 crore (CCPs) from April 30, 2023. Under which Indian
[d] Rs 40 crore act are these CCPs governed?
[e] Rs 50 crore [a] Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007
[b] Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999
Q.144) Which of the following is the incorrect [c] Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010
statement(s) with regards to Liberalized [d] SARFAESI Act, 2002
Remittance Scheme? [e] Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002
1) Under the Liberalized Remittance Scheme, all
resident individuals, including minors, are allowed Q.148) Who has been appointed the new
to freely remit up to USD 2,15,000 per financial chairman of the Data Security Council of India
year (April–March) outside India. Beyond this (DSCI), effective April 1, 2023?
limit, the central bank's approval is required. [a] Sukant Vatsa
2) From now onwards, the purchases made by [b] Rajendra Singh
using the international credit cards (ICCs) by [c] Amarendra Singh
residents touring abroad will not be counted in the [d] Pramod Bhasin
Liberalized Remittance Scheme (LRS). [e] Kirti Gupta
3) The LRS scheme was introduced in 2004 with
a limit of USD 15,000. Q.149) When is the World Thyroid Day observed?
[a] Only 1 [a] May 11
[b] Only 2 and 3 [b] May 25
[c] Only 1 and 3 [c] May 13
[d] Only 1, 2, and 3 [d] May 29
[e] Only 3 [e] May 18

Q.145) Recently, IRDAI has relaxed norms for Q.150) On whose birthday does the All-India
'surety bonds' to expand the surety insurance Football Federation celebrate ‘AIFF Grassroots
market by increasing the availability of such Day’?
products. To attain this goal, the new solvency [a] Pradip Kumar Banerjee
margin has been set. What is the new solvency [b] Santosh Kumar Gaund
margin requirement for these insurers? [c] Shyam Sunder
[a] 2X [d] Navin Kumar Rajak
[b] 1.85X [e] Kapendra Dubey
[c] 1.75X
[d] 1.5X Q.151) Which of the following statements
[e] 1.95X correctly describes the purpose of the
‘SAMARTH’ campaign, recently launched by the
Q.146) Which company has established its Union Minister for Rural Development and
Samadhan Centres, a one-stop solution centre, Panchayati Raj, Shri Giriraj Singh?
for providing assistance to farmers? [a] Promoting women led SHGs in rural areas
[a] CropIn Technology Solutions [b] Promoting digital transactions in 50,000-gram
[b] Godrej Agrovet panchayats
[c] Intello Labs [c] Promoting easy credit availability for the
[d] Agrostar MSMEs
[e] Crofarm [d] Promoting financial inclusion of the MSME
entrepreneurs
Q.147) The European Securities and Markets [e] Promoting digital skilling of women and youth
Authority (ESMA), the European Union (EU’s) in rural areas
financial markets regulator and supervisor, has
de-recognised six Indian central counterparties
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Q. 152) Recently, Union Health Minister Dr 1) Stunting affected an estimated 22.3% or 148.1
Mansukh Mandaviya inaugurated the 8th million children under 5 globally in 2022
International Conference on Pharma and Medical 2) Wasting affected 6.8% or 45 million children
Device Sector in Delhi. What is the theme of the under 5 globally in 2022
first day of the conference? 3) Overweight affected an estimated 5.6% or 37
[a] Sustainable MedTech 5.0: Scaling and million children under 5 globally in 2022
Innovating Indian MedTech [a] Only 1
[b] Indian pharma industry: Delivering Value [b] Only 2 and 3
through Innovation [c] Only 1, 2, and 3
[c] Revolutionizing Healthcare with Connected [d] Only 3
Medical Devices [e] Only 2
[d] Innovations in Minimally Invasive Medical
Devices Q. 157) Which bank has been empaneled as a
[e] Personalized Medicine: The Role of Diagnostic Clearing and Settlement Bank with the Indian
and Therapeutic Devices Clearing Corporation Ltd (ICCL)?
[a] Indian Bank
Q. 153) National Tiger Conservation Authority [b] HDFC Bank
(NTCA) has constituted a Cheetah Project [c] Union Bank of India
Steering Committee to review, progress, monitor [d] Bank of India
and advise on the Cheetah introduction to the [e] Central Bank of India
Madhya Pradesh Forest Department and NTCA.
Who heads this committee? Q. 158) Recently, two Maharashtra-based banks
[a] Uday Singh have been merged. It is a first of its kind merger
[b] Rajesh Gopal of a negative net worth bank with another bank,
[c] Krishan Kumar after RBI allowed the voluntary mergers and
[d] Sanjay Kumar Tiwari amalgamation between cooperative banks in
[e] Radhey Shyam Dwivedi March 2021. Identify the banks.
[a] The Greater Bombay Co Operative Bank Ltd
Q. 154) What is the production estimate for the and Citizen Credit Co-Operative Bank Ltd
oilseeds as per the Third Advance Estimates of [b] The Kapol Co Operative Bank Ltd and The
Production of Food Grains? Shamrao Vithal Co Operative Bank Ltd
[a] 409.96 Lakh tonnes [c] Abhyudaya Co-Operative Bank Ltd. And The
[b] 590.91 lakh tonnes Bharat Co-Operative Bank Ltd.
[c] 892.89 lakh tonnes [d] The Kopargaon Peoples Co-Op. Bank Ltd. And
[d] 121.87 lakh tonnes The Maharashtra State Co-Operative Bank
[e] 234.34 lakh tonnes Limited
[e] Maratha Sahakari Bank and The Cosmos
Q. 155) "Coming to a Storm Near You" and Cooperative Bank Ltd.
"Rocket Like a Hurricane" are the satellite launch
mission of NASA for _____ program? Q. 159) Recently, SEBI has set up a 21-member
[a] Clipper Intermediary Advisory Committee, chaired by
[b] Voyager ____ to advise on changes in legal framework
[c] Tropics and increasing transparency in the functioning of
[d] Messenger market intermediaries like stock exchanges,
[e] Pioneer depository participants, clearing corporations,
among others?
Q. 156) Which of the following is the correct [a] Abhinay Pratap Singh
observation made by the “Levels and Trends in [b] Sanjay Kumar Tiwari
Child Malnutrition” report? [c] Rishabh Yadav
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[d] S Ravindran Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore,

[e] Shiv Pratap Singh Rathore Thailand, and Vietnam as its members.
3) The 14 IPEF partners represent 55% of global
Q.160) How many high courts are operational in GDP and 38% of global goods and services trade.
India? [a] Only 1 and 3
[a] 28 [b] Only 3
[b] 26 [c] Only 1 and 2
[c] 21 [d] Only 2
[d] 25 [e] Only 2 and 3
[e] 20
Q. 164) Which of the following agencies has
Q. 161) Which ministry was the top buyer of launched the 2023-27 country partnership
goods from GeM portal in 2022-23? strategy (CPS) for India for accelerating structural
[a] Power Ministry transformation and job creation, promoting
[b] Electronics and IT Ministry climate-resilient growth, and deepening social
[c] Commerce and Industry Ministry and economic inclusiveness as key focus areas?
[d] Health Ministry [a] World Bank
[e] Tribal Affairs Ministry [b] European Investment Bank
[c] AIIB
Q. 162) The union government has recently [d] ADB
notified the Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) [e] International Monetary Fund
scheme 2.0 for IT hardware, worth ₹17,000 crore
and the window of applications under the scheme Q. 165) Which has emerged as the best bank in
will open from June 1. The scheme has ___ NPA reduction, with its net non-performing assets
categories of applicants? (NPAs) falling as low as 0.25% during FY23?
[a] Three [a] Bank of India
[b] Five [b] State Bank of India
[c] Seven [c] Central Bank of India
[d] Four [d] Bank of Baroda
[e] Two [e] Bank of Maharashtra

Q. 163) Recently, the negotiations for the Supply Q. 166) How much is the FDI inflow in India in
Chains (Pillar-II) Agreement were concluded FY23, according to the Department for Promotion
during the second in-person Indo-Pacific of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) data?
Economic Framework (IPEF) Ministerial Meeting [a] $46 billion
held in Detroit, US. The IPEF Supply Chains [b] $50 billion
(Pillar-II) Agreement is one of the fastest ever [c] $57 billion
concluded plurilateral economic cooperation [d] $96 billion
Agreements. Considering the above statement, [e] $16 billion
identify the correct statement from the options
given below. Q. 167) With which bank has Razorpay
1) In May 2022, the United States launched the collaborated to launch Turbo UPI?
Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity [a] ICICI Bank
(IPEF) to advance resilience, sustainability, [b] Axis Bank
inclusiveness, economic growth, fairness, and [c] Yes Bank
competitiveness for our economies. [d] IDBI Bank
2) It has Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Fiji India, [e] Bank of India
Indonesia, Japan, the Republic of Korea,

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Q. 168) Who has sworn in by President Droupadi [b] May 28

Murmu, as the Central Vigilance Commissioner? [c] May 27
[a] Kirti Gupta [d] May 16
[b] Mihir Kumar Jha [e] May 20
[c] Santosh Kumar Gaund
[d] Praveen Kumar Srivastava Q.170) Which sport is Prannoy HS related to?
[e] Navin Kumar Rajak [a] Tennis
[b] Badminton
Q. 169) When is the International Day of [c] Squash
Women’s Health observed? [d] Billiards
[a] May 30 [e] Cricket

1 B 51 C 101 A 151 B
2 D 52 A 102 B 152 A
3 A 53 A 103 C 153 B
4 E 54 B 104 A 154 A
5 D 55 D 105 D 155 C
6 A 56 B 106 B 156 C
7 A 57 C 107 A 157 A
8 D 58 B 108 B 158 E
9 A 59 A 109 D 159 D
10 A 60 A 110 A 160 D
11 B 61 A 111 A 161 A
12 B 62 C 112 A 162 A
13 D 63 C 113 A 163 C
14 B 64 B 114 D 164 D
15 D 65 C 115 B 165 E
16 E 66 A 116 B 166 A
17 D 67 A 117 A 167 B
18 E 68 D 118 C 168 D
19 A 69 E 119 A 169 B
20 A 70 C 120 A 170 B
21 D 71 A 121 A
22 D 72 B 122 B
23 D 73 B 123 A

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24 E 74 D 124 C
25 D 75 A 125 E
26 D 76 E 126 C
27 B 77 D 127 B
28 B 78 A 128 A
29 B 79 B 129 B
30 A 80 D 130 A
31 A 81 A 131 E
32 D 82 A 132 A
33 A 83 A 133 D
34 B 84 A 134 A
35 B 85 B 135 A
36 B 86 B 136 A
37 B 87 D 137 E
38 E 88 A 138 A
39 A 89 A 139 D
40 B 90 A 140 B
41 D 91 A 141 B
42 A 92 C 142 C
43 A 93 A 143 E
44 B 94 B 144 D
45 C 95 E 145 D
46 B 96 A 146 B
47 D 97 A 147 A
48 A 98 A 148 D
49 C 99 B 149 B
50 D 100 A 150 A

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