NATIONAL AND STATES AFFAIR

1•MoE – launched “Capacity Building on Design and Entrepreneurship (CBDE)” program for Higher
Education Institutes

•30 HEIs have been selected through a process, anchored by IIITDM Kancheepuram

•Nodal center for the program – Malaviya Mission Teacher Training Center (MMTTC)

•Minister of Education: Dharmendra Pradhan | Constituency – Madhya Pradesh

•MoS in Ministry of Education: Subhas Sarkar

2•Government plans to introduce the draft “Explosives Bill, 2024”, to replace the “Explosives Act,
1884”

•DPIIT has proposed raising fines for violation of regulations & enhancing the efficiency of licensing
procedures

•PESO (under DPIIT) – is the regulatory body responsible for issuing licences for the manufacture,
possession, use, sale, import, and export of any explosive material

•Under the provisions of the draft bill:

-if a licensee engages in manufacturing, importing, or exporting in violation of any regulations, they
may face imprisonment for up to 3 years, a fine of Rs 1,00,000, or both

-if someone is found in possession, using, selling, or transporting any explosive in violation of the
regulations, they may face imprisonment for up to 2 years, a fine of Rs 50,000, or both

•HQs of DPIIT – New Delhi | Director – Pratima Singh | Founded in – 1995 (Functions under Ministry
of C&I)

3•Bajaj Auto – to launch world’s first CNG-powered motorcycle (in June’24)

•HQs of Bajaj Auto – Pune, Maharashtra | CEO – Rajiv Bajaj

4•DoT – organised first-of-its-kind “Telecom Design Collaboration Sprint” at IIIT Bangalore

•Primary objectives: Leveraging collective strengths, Fostering holistic solutions & Creating market
opportunities

•Minister of Communications: Ashwini Vaishnaw | Constituency – Odisha

MoS in Ministry of Communications: Devusinh Chauhan

5•Ministry of Tourism – took part in the “Arabian Travel Mart 2024”, held in Dubai, UAE

•Ministry of Tourism – launched the “Cool Summers of India” campaign to attract tourism in the
Middle East

•Minister of Tourism: G. Kishan Reddy | Constituency – Secunderabad, Telangana

6•Nearly 70,000 hectares (ha) – brought under farming under ‘INROAD’ project in 3 years

•INROAD – Indian Natural Rubber Operations for Assisted Development | Undertaken by – Ministry
of Commerce
•INROAD is a project for supporting development of 2 lakh hectares of rubber plantations in the
North-East

•Automotive Tyre Manufacturers Association + Rubber Board = collaborated for this project

•In first 3 years of INROAD project, nearly 70,000 ha or 86% of project is achieved, against the target
of 80,000 ha

•The industry has committed Rs 1,000 Cr towards a new plantation of 2 lakh hectares for the project

•Minister of Commerce & Industry: Piyush Goyal | Constituency – Maharashtra

•MoS in Ministry of Commerce & Industry: Anupriya Singh Patel & Som Parkash•MoS in Ministry of
Tourism: Shripad Yesso Naik & Ajay Bhatt

7•Dept. of Consumer Affairs – issued a warning regarding “Drip Pricing”

•Drip Pricing: a pricing technique in which firms advertise only part of a product’s price & reveal
other charges later as customer goes through buying process

•Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution: Piyush Goyal | Constituency –
Maharashtra

MoS in Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution: Ashwini Kumar Choubey & Sadhvi
Niranjan Jyoti

8•CDSCO (Union Govt) – became sole authority for issuing manufacturing licences for new drugs for
exports

•It withdrew this power from State Govts, amid heightened global scrutiny of Indian made drugs

•HQs of CDSCO – New Delhi | DGCI – Dr. Rajeev Singh Raghuvanshi

9•Infosys – certified with ‘ISO 42001:2023 Certification’, world’s first international standard on AI
management systems

•TUV India – certifies standard on AI management systems

•Infosys – among first IT services companies globally to have earned certification to implement an
AIMS framework

•AIMS framework is a part of ‘Infosys Topaz Responsible AI Suite’

•HQs of Infosys – Bengaluru, Karnataka | MD & CEO – Salil Parekh | Chairman – Nandan Nilekani |
Founded – 1981

10•Krishikalpa – launched an accelerator programme designed specifically for FPOs in Bengaluru,

Karnataka

•It is supported by – NABARD | Claimed to be the country’s first ever such initiative

•Aim: To transform FPOs into sustainable rural businesses, driving positive change in agricultural
ecosystem

•HQs of Krishikalpa – Bengaluru, Karnataka | Director – Ashok Kumar Meda

•HQs of NABARD – Mumbai, Maharashtra | Chairman – Shaji K. V. | Founded in – 1982

11•DERC – granted regulatory approval to India’s 1st commercial Battery Energy Storage System
(BESS) project

•Developed with = IndiGrid + BSES Rajdhani Power Ltd

•Supported by – Global Energy Alliance for People & Planet’s concessional loan (amounting to 70%
of total cost)

•It is a 20 MW/40 MWh BESS project to be installed at BRPL’s 33/11 kV Kilokari substation

•GEAPP is targeting 1 GW of BESS commitments in India by 2026 (India’s goal of deploying 47 GW of

BESS by 2032)

•HQs of GEAPP – London, UK | CEO – Woochong Um | VP – Saurabh Kumar

12•Tamil Nadu – to denotify boundaries of the Pulicat Bird Sanctuary, which includes 13 revenue
villages

•The sanctuary is located in – Andhra Pradesh

•Pulicat Lake (AP & TN) – 2nd largest brackish water lagoon in India | Largest – Chilika (Odisha)

•This bird sanctuary was notified under Section 18 of the ‘Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972’ in 1980

•Tamil Nadu: Capital – Chennai | CM – Muthuvel Karunanidhi Stalin | Governor – Ravindra Narayan
Ravi

13•Google Arts & Culture + MoAFW = launched a new digital exhibit, “Millets: Seeds of Change”

•Director of Google Arts & Culture – Amit Sood

•Minister of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare: Arjun Munda | Constituency – Khunti, Jharkhand

MoS in Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare: Shobha Karandlaje & Kailash Choudhary

14•IAF – tested “BHISHM” portable cubes at Agra for airdrops from aircraft to cater to emergencies
anywhere

•BHISHM – Bharat Health Initiative for Sahyog, Hita and Maitri

•It is a part of “Project BHISHM,” tailored to treat up to 200 casualties, emphasising rapid response &
care

•It also integrates AI & data analytics to facilitate effective coordination, real-time monitoring &
efficient management of medical services in field | Whole unit contains 72 easily transportable
components

•HQs of IAF – New Delhi | Chief – Air Marshal Vivek Ram Chaudhari | Vice Chief – Air Marshal Amar
Preet Singh

International Affairs
15•Nepal – announced to print a new Rs 100 currency note featuring map including Indian territories
of Lipulekh, Limpiyadhura & Kalapani

•Lipulekh, Kalapani & Limpiyadhura – included in India’s Nov 2019 map

•Nepal asserted its claim on these territories based on ‘Sugauli Treaty’ of 1816
-As per it, all territories east of Kali (Mahakali) river (including Limpiyadhura, Kalapani & Lipulekh)
belong to Nepal

•According to India: ‘1950 Treaty of Peace & Friendship’ between India & Nepal annulled the ‘Sugauli
Treaty’

•Nepal – Kathmandu – Nepalese Rupee | President – Ram Chandra Poudel | PM – Pushpa Kamal
Dahal ‘Prachanda’

16•US – formed a new strategic alliance, “Squad”, to counter China in the Indo-Pacific region

•‘Squad’ consists of – US, Japan, Australia & Philippines

•US – Washington, D.C. – US Dollar | 46th President – Joe Biden | 49th VP – Kamala Harris

17•Climeworks – opened world’s largest operational Direct Air Capture & Storage (DAC+S) plant,
“Mammoth”, in Iceland

•It is opened to suck carbon dioxide out of atmosphere & store it underground as rocks

•Capacity – 36,000 metric tons of CO2 a year | It will be fully complete by end of 2024

•It is Climeworks’ 2nd commercial project | First – “Orca” plant in Iceland (capacity - 4,000 tons a
year)

•HQs of Climeworks – Zürich, Switzerland | CEOs – Christoph Gebald & Jan Wurzbacher | Founded in
– 2009

•Iceland – Reykjavik – Krona | PM – Bjarni Benediktsson

18•IPGL (India) + Port & Maritime Organisation (Iran) = a 10-year contract to develop & operate
Iran’s Chabahar Port

•Financial outlay – $370 million | IPGL’s investment – $120 million

•Iran – Tehran – Rial | President – Ebrahim Raisi | Supreme Leader – Ali Khamenei

19•Japan – launched a missile-intercepting system, “Glide Phase Interceptor Project” in collab with
US

•Investment made by Japan – $1 billion | US – $2 billion

•Aim: To attain full operational capability for the system by 2032

•Japan – Tokyo – Yen | PM – Fumio Kishida

•US – Washington, D.C. – US Dollar | 46th President – Joe Biden | 49th VP – Kamala Harris

20•EU – adopted first law to tackle violence against women, including action against forced
marriages, female genital mutilation & online harassment

•It also criminalises cyber violence against women

•As per new law, these crimes will be punishable by prison sentences ranging from at least 1 to 5
years

Banking, Finance, Insurance & Economic Affairs

21•SIB + Northern Arc Capital = an MoU to explore & maximise commercial prospects by combining
efforts in loan origination, underwriting, disbursement, collection & reconciliation procedures

•It will allow SIB to use nPOS, Northern Arc’s unique technology platform

•HQs of Northern Arc Capital Ltd – Chennai, Tamil Nadu | MD & CEO – Ashish Mehrotra | Established
in – 1989

•HQs of South Indian Bank – Thrissur, Kerala | MD & CEO – Murali Ramakrishnan

22•IRDAI – imposed a penalty of Rs 1 crore on Go Digit General Insurance

•For: Non-disclosure of a change in the conversion ratio of Compulsorily Convertible Preference

Shares (CCPS)

•The ratio was changed from ‘1 CCPS for 2.324 equity shares’ to ‘2.324 CCPS for each equity share’

•HQs of Go Digit General Insurance – Bengaluru, Karnataka | MD & CEO – Jasleen Kohli | Chairman –
Kamesh Goyal

•HQs of IREDA – New Delhi | CMD – Pradip Kumar Das | Motto – “Energy for Ever” | Founded – 1987

23•SEBI – introduced framework for administration & supervision of Research Analysts (RAs) &
Investment Advisers (IAs)

•Stock Exchanges can now be recognised as Research Analyst Administration & Supervisory Body
(RAASB), and Investment Adviser Administration & Supervisory Body (IAASB)

•Eligibility to be recognized as RAASB & IAASB, an entity must have:

-Minimum 15 years of existence as a recognised stock exchange

-Minimum net worth of Rs 200 Cr & have nation-wide terminals

-A capacity for investor service management gauged through reach of at least ISCs in at least 20 cities

•This circular will become effective on – July 25, 2024

•HQs of SEBI – Mumbai, Maharashtra | Chairman – Madhabi Puri Buch | Established in – 1992

24•Setu + Sarvam AI = developed “Sesame”, India’s first Large Language Model (LLM) specifically
designed for BFSI sector

•HQs of Setu – Bengaluru, Karnataka | CEO – Anand Raisinghani

•HQs of Sarvam AI – Bengaluru, Karnataka | Co-founder – Pratyush Kumar

25•RBI – asked NBFCs to strictly adhere to cap of Rs 20,000 in cash loans, aiming to deter cash
transactions

•Recently, RBI directed IIFL Finance to immediately halt its gold loan operations for new customers

•NBFCs are required to maintain a LTV ratio not exceeding 75% for loans granted against collateral of
gold jewellery

•HQs of RBI – Mumbai, Maharashtra | Governor – Shaktikanta Das (25th) | Established on – 1st April,
1935
26•DBS Bank India – recognised as a “Best Employer 2023” by Kincentric (4th consecutive year)

•For: Exceptional employee experiences and a strong culture of engagement

•The bank’s employees have access to a flexible wellness wallet, ‘iFlex’, to customise their benefits
package

•MD & India Market Leaders for Kincentric India – Anurag Aman

•HQs of DBS Bank India – Mumbai, Maharashtra | MD & CEO – Surojit Shome

•HQs of DBS Bank – Singapore | CEO – Piyush Gupta

27•IREDA – incorporated a wholly-owned subsidiary “IREDA Global Green Energy Finance IFSC Ltd” in
GIFT City, Gujarat

•Recently, REC Ltd also received an NOC from RBI for setting up a subsidiary in GIFT City

•HQs of IREDA – New Delhi | CMD – Pradip Kumar Das | Motto – “Energy for Ever” | Founded – 1987

28•IFSC Authority – granted permission to Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) to issue ‘Derivative
Instruments’ in GIFT-IFSC

•Derivative: an instrument whose value is derived from the value of one or more underlying assets

•Entity is mandated to furnish requisite information to the Clearing Corporations in GIFT-IFSC in the
prescribed format by the 10th day of every month

•HQs of IFSCA – Gandhinagar, Gujarat | Chairman – K. Rajaraman | Established – 2020

29•ICICI Bank – surpassed Rs 8-trillion market cap, becoming 2nd largest bank after HDFC Bank

•It also entered into league of top 5 companies by market value

•Most-valued Indian company with m-cap – Reliance Industries (Rs 19.8 tn)

-2nd – TCS (Rs 14 tn) | 3rd – HDFC Bank (Rs 11.6 tn) | 4th – SBI (Rs 7.4 tn) | 5th – ICICI Bank (Rs 8.14
tn)

•HQs of ICICI Bank – Mumbai | MD & CEO – Sandeep Bakhshi | Taglines – “Hum Hain Na!” & “Khayal
Apka”

30•HDFC Bank – announced winners of its “Parivartan Start-up Grants Programme” for FY24

•41 incubators & accelerators in field of social impact entrepreneurship will receive grants of Rs 19.6
Cr to support 170 start-ups working across specific focus areas

•It was undertaken in partnership with – Atal Innovation Mission (NITI Aayog)

•The largest number of start-ups receiving grants are from – Maharashtra

•HQs of HDFC Bank – Mumbai, MH | MD & CEO – Sashidhar Jagdishan | Tagline – “We understand
your World”

31•Keki Mistry – appointed as Chairman of HDFC Life by IRDAI

•HQs of HDFC Life Insurance – Mumbai, Maharashtra | MD & CEO – Vibha Padalkar | Chairman –
Keki Mistry
32•Yes Bank + Ebanx = partnership to enable cross-border e-commerce payments from India

•HQs of Yes Bank – Mumbai, Maharashtra | MD & CEO – Prashant Kumar | Tagline – “Experience our
Expertise”

•HQs of Ebanx – Centro, Brazil | CEO – Joao Del Valle | Established in – 2012

33•R. Lakshmi Kanth Rao – appointed as ED of RBI w.e.f. May 10, 2024 (in the place of Deepak
Kumar)

•As an ED, he will handle DICGC, Right to Information Act & Department of Communication

•HQs of RBI – Mumbai, Maharashtra | Governor – Shaktikanta Das (25th) | Established on – 1st April,
1935

Total Deputy Governors (4) – S. Janakiraman | T. Rabi Sankar | Michael D. Patra | M. Rajeshwar Rao

34•NPCI – launched “RuPay - Link it, Forget it” campaign during IPL | Created by – DDB Mudra Group

•Aim: To raise awareness about RuPay Credit cards enabling secure & convenient payments

•HQs of NPCI – Mumbai | Chairman – Ajay Kumar Choudhary | MD & CEO – Dilip Asbe | Established
in – 2008

•HQs of DDB Mudra Group – Mumbai | Chairman – Madhukar Kamath | CEO – Aditya Kanthy |
Founded in – 1980

35•Zeta – launched digital credit-as-a-service product for banks based on NPCI’s ‘Credit Line on UPI’

•NPCI’s ‘Credit Line on UPI’ – uses UPI network to turbo-charge credit issuance in India

•According Zeta: Transaction volume on this scheme will exceed $1 trillion by 2030

•HQs of Zeta – Mumbai, Maharashtra | Founders – Bhavin Turakhia & Ramki Gaddipati | Founded –
2015

36•As per the data released by NSO (MoSPI):-IIP growth rate slowed to 4.9% in March 2024, as
against 5.7% in February 2024

•Growth in different sectors in Mar 2024: Manufacturing – 5.2% | Mining – 1.2% | Power – 8.6%

•Cumulative IIP’s growth during FY24 – 5.8%

•HQs of NSO – New Delhi | Chairperson – Bimal Kumar Roy

37•Thomas Cook (India) – launched a new digital service, “TCPay”

•Aim: To bring ease & efficiency to international money transfers

•HQs of Thomas Cook (India) – Mumbai, Maharashtra | CEO – Mahesh Iyer

38•As per the data published by Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI):

•China – became largest trading partner of India with $118.4 billion bilateral trade in FY24
(surpassing US)

-India’s exports to China – rose by 8.7% to $16.67 billion

-India’s imports from China – rose by 3.24% to $101.7 billion

•In FY24, India’s trade with US: Exports – dipped by 1.32% to $77.5 billion | Imports – dipped by 20%
to $40.8 billion

•MoC&I data: China was India’s top trading partner from FY14 till FY18 & also in FY21

•UAE was India’s largest trading partner before China | US – largest partner in FY22 & FY23

39•SBI – first bank to become a trading-cum-clearing (TCM) Member of IIBX at the GIFT City in
Gujarat

•It enables SBI IBU Gift City to conduct trades on IIBX platform & settle them on behalf of its clients

•HQs of SBI – Mumbai, Maharashtra | Chairman – Dinesh Kumar Khara

MDs – Challa Sreenivasulu Setty | Alok Kumar Choudhary | Ashwini Kumar Tewari | Vinay M. Tonse

40•Aurm + Tata AIG General Insurance = to provide comprehensive insurance coverage to its
customers for their valuables

•Aurm’s vaults will be fully insured for up to – Rs 25 lakh

•HQs of Aurm – Bengaluru, Karnataka | Co-founder – Suraj HS

•HQs of Tata AIG Gen Ins – Mumbai, Maharashtra | MD & CEO – Neelesh Garg

41•India’s total exports in Apr 2024 – estimated to be $64.56 billion (6.88% y-o-y growth)

•India’s total imports in Apr 2024 – estimated to be $71.07 billion (12.78% y-o-y growth)

•In Apr 2024: Merchandise exports – $34.99 bn | Merchandise imports – $54.09 bn

•In Apr 2024: Services exports – $29.57 bn | Services imports – $16.97 billion

•Trade deficit in Apr 2024 – rose to $6.51 bn (from $2.62 bn) | Trade deficit in FY24 – rose to $75.6
bn

•In FY24, India registered exports of $778 bn & imports of $853.8 bn

42•India’s annual retail inflation rate for April – decreased to 4.83% (from 4.85% in March)

•This is 8th consecutive month where inflation has stayed within RBI’s acceptable range of 4%
(tolerance band of 2-6%)

•Annual rate of inflation based on all India WPI number – 1.26% (Provisional) for April 2024

•In April 2024:

-WPI Food Index – increased to 183.6 (from 180.1 in March)

-Rate of inflation based on WPI Food Index – increased to 5.52% (from 4.65% in March)

-Primary Articles index – increased by 1.97% to 186.7

-Fuel & Power group index – declined by 0.26% to 154.8

-Index for Manufactured Products group – increased by 0.50% to 140.8

43•PhonePe + LankaPay – enabled UPI payment acceptance in Sri Lanka

•PhonePe users can scan LankaQR code to make quick payments without cash or calculating
currency conversions

•In 2023, 100 billion transactions valued at Rs 2 trillion were made via UPI

•HQs of PhonePe – Bangalore, Karnataka | MD & CEO – Sameer Nigam | Founded in – 2015

•Sri Lanka – Colombo/Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte – Sri Lankan Rupee

•PM – Dinesh Gunawardena | President – Ranil Wickremesinghe

44•Tata AIG General Insurance – introduced India’s first “Satellite In-Orbit Third-Party Liability
Insurance”

•This cover caters to growing needs of satellite manufacturers & operators in the Indian space sector

•India targets a five-fold increase in its global launch market share, projected to reach $47.3 billion
by 2032

•HQs of Tata AIG Gen Ins – Mumbai, Maharashtra | MD & CEO – Neelesh Garg

45•22nd Periodic Labour Force Survey (January to March 2024) – released by NSSO

•Unemployment rate for people (aged 15 years & above) in urban areas – 6.7% (male - 6.1% | female
- 8.5%)

•LFPR in Current Weekly Status in urban areas (aged 15 years & above) – 50.2%

•Worker Population Ratio for persons of age 15 years & above: Male – 46.9% | Female – 23.4%

•NSSO launched PLFS in April 2017

•HQs of NSSO – New Delhi | DG – Geeta Singh Rathore (under Ministry of Statistics & Program
Implementation)

•MoS I/C of Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation: Rao Inderjit Singh | Constituency –
Gurgaon

Defence Affairs
46•US – approved sale of 31 “MQ-9B” armed drones to India (estimated cost - $3.99 billion)

•India will get 31 High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) UAVs, of which:

-Indian Navy will get 15 ‘SeaGuardian’ drones

-Army & Indian Air Force will get 8 each of land version, ‘SkyGuardian’

•HALE drones – capable of remaining airborne for over 35 hours & can carry 4 Hellfire missiles &
around 450 kg bombs

•US – Washington, D.C. – US Dollar | 46th President – Joe Biden | 49th VP – Kamala Harris

47•Indian Army + IAF = conducted a 3-day joint exercise, “Gagan Strike-II” in Punjab

•HQs of Indian Army – New Delhi | Chief – General Manoj Pande | Vice Chief – Lt. Gen. Upendra
Dwivedi
•HQs of IAF – New Delhi | Chief – Air Marshal Vivek Ram Chaudhari | Vice Chief – Air Marshal Amar
Preet Singh

48•Keel laying ceremony of 8th Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft (ASW SWC) – held at
GRSE, Kolkata

•GRSE + MoD = contract for indigenous design & construction of 8 ASW SWC (in April 2019)

•These ‘Arnala’ class of ship – will replace in-service ‘Abhay’ class ASW Corvettes of Indian Navy

•HQs of Indian Navy – Delhi | Chief – Admiral Dinesh K. Tripathi | Vice Chief – Vice Admiral Krishna
Swaminathan

•Ministry of Defence: Rajnath Singh | Constituency – Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh

MoS in Ministry of Defence: Ajay Bhatt

49•MoD – notified “Inter-Services Organisations (Command, Control & Discipline) Act”, w.e.f. May
10, 2025

•Govt seeks to integrate capabilities of Army, Air Force & Navy, and optimally utilise their resources
for wars & operations

•Ministry of Defence: Rajnath Singh | Constituency – Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh

MoS in Ministry of Defence: Ajay Bhatt

50•Kadet Defence Systems + DRDO = developed India’s first Loitering Aerial Munitions (LAM)

•Aim: Enhancing the operational efficacy of the Indian Armed Forces

•KDS has received a contract for the delivery of over 50 systems by the end of 2024

•HQs of KDS – Bengaluru, Karnataka | Co-Founder & CEO – Avdhesh Khaitan | Established in – 2011

•HQs of DRDO – New Delhi | Chairman – Samir V. Kamat | Established in – 1958

51•7th edition of India-France Joint Military Exercise, “SHAKTI” – commenced at Umroi, Meghalaya
from May 13-26, 2024

•It is a biennial training event conducted alternatively in India & France | Last edition – in France
(Nov 2021)

•Indian contingent – represented by a Battalion of the RAJPUT Regiment, comprising 90 personnel

•France – Paris – Euro | President – Emmanuel Macron | PM – Gabriel Attal

52•SML India + 3AI Holding = launched India’s homegrown multilingual GenAI platform, “Hanooman”

•It is launched in 98 global languages (12 Indian languages)

•SML India also announced its partnership with HP, NASSCOM & Yotta

•SML India – collaborated with Telangana & DARPG to facilitate seamless translation between English
and Telugu

•HQs of SML India – Telangana | Co-Founder & CEO – Vishnu Vardhan

•HQs of 3AI Holding – Abu Dhabi, UAE | MD – Arjun Prasad

53•Indian Army – to receive first “Hermes-900” Starliner drone (Drishti-10 drone) from Adani
Defence Systems

•Indian Army will deploy these drones at – Bhatinda base | First Hermes-900 – delivered to Indian
Navy in Jan 2024

•Adani Defence + Elbit (Israel) = have signed a deal for transfer of technology for these drones

•HQs of Indian Army – New Delhi | Chief – General Manoj Pande | Vice Chief – Lt. Gen. Upendra
Dwivedi

Persons in News
65•Kami Rita (Nepal) – broke his own world record by climbing Mount Everest 29 times

•Mount Everest – world’s highest peak, with a height of 8,848.86 metres or 29,031.69 feet

•He first conquered the Everest peak in 1994 & has been climbing it almost every year (twice in
2023)

•First person to climb Mount Everest in May 1953 – Sir Edmund Hillary of New Zealand (with Tenzing
Norgay)

•First Indian woman to climb Mount Everest – Bachendri Pal (in 1984)

Science & Technology

66•IN-SPACe – released norms, guidelines & procedures (NGP) for implementation of “Indian Space
Policy, 2023”

•It states that any entity carrying out space activities to or from Indian territory or within jurisdiction
of India needs authorization from IN-SPACe

•HQs of IN-SPACe – Ahmedabad | Chairman – Dr. Pawan Goenka | Works under – Department of
Space

67•HyImpulse (Germany) – launched a candle wax-powered rocket, “SR75” | Lifted off from –
Koonibba, Australia

•It is capable of carrying commercial satellites (up to 250kg) on a test suborbital flight into space for
first time

•It is capable of carrying satellites to an altitude of up to 250km & is fuelled by paraffin (candle wax)
& liquid oxygen

•HQs of HyImpulse – Neuenstadt am Kocher | CEO – Dr. Mario Kobald | Established in – 2018

68•Mindgrove Technologies – launched India’s 1st commercial high-performance SoC (system on

chip), “Secure IoT”

•Mindgrove Technologies is backed by Peak XV Partners & incubated at IIT Madras

•It is India’s first indigenously-built microcontroller semiconductor that can offer a cheaper option to
consumers

•HQs of Mindgrove Technologies – Chennai, Tamil Nadu | CEO & Co-founder – Shashwath T. R.
69•Pakistan + China = launched its first-ever lunar mission, “iCube-Qamar”, from Hainan (as part of
‘Chang’e-6’)

•It was launched aboard a Chinese rocket ‘Long March5 Y8’

•Institute of Space Technology (Pakistan) + Shanghai University (China) + SUPARCO (Pakistan) =

jointly developed iCUBE-Q or CubeSat

•Pakistan – Islamabad – Pakistani Rupee | PM – Shehbaz Sharif | President – Asif Ali Zardari

•China – Beijing – Renminbi | President – Xi Jinping | PM – Li Qiang

70•ISRO – successfully completed the first ignition test on the Semi Cryogenic Pre-Burner Ignition
Test Article

•It was tested at – IPRC, Mahendragiri, Tamil Nadu | engine capacity – 2,000 kN

•Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre – Lead centre for the development of semi-cryogenic propulsion
systems

•HQs of ISRO – Bengaluru, Karnataka | Director – S. Somanath | Formed on – August 15, 1969

71•DRDO + IIT Bhubaneswar = collaborated for AI driven surveillance & other projects

•This will enhance sustainability of defence research programmes & will be part of eco-system for
nation building

•HQs of DRDO – New Delhi | Chairman – Samir V. Kamat | Established in – 1958

•Director of IIT Bhubaneswar – Prof. Shreepad Karmalkar

72•Google Deepmind + Isomorphic Labs = unveiled 3rd major version of AlphaFold3, “AlphaFold3” AI
model

•It is designed to help scientists design drugs & target disease more effectively

•HQs of Google – California, US | CEO – Sundar Pichai | Founded in – 1998

•HQs of Isomorphic Labs – London, UK | CEO – Demis Hassabis | Founded in – 2021 | Parent
organisation – Alphabet

73•TCS – announced creation of a “Global AI Centre of Excellence” in Paris, during ‘Choose France
Summit’

•It will be 7th such facility in TCS’ global Pace network, after Amsterdam, London, New York,
Pittsburgh, Toronto, & Tokyo

•HQs of TCS – Mumbai, Maharashtra | CEO – K. Krithivasan | Founded in – 1968

•France – Paris – Euro | President – Emmanuel Macron | PM – Gabriel Attal

74•Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum – launched a “Gaming Visa” to attract 30,000
game developers by 2033

•Applicant must be at least 25 years old

•UAE – Abu Dhabi – Dirham | President – Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan

75•ISRO – successfully conducted a 665-second hot test of a liquid rocket engine manufactured using
3D printing

•Testing conducted at – ISRO’s Propulsion Complex in Mahendragiri, Tamil Nadu | Engine

manufactured by – Wipro 3D

•This engine is intended for use in ‘PS4’, the upper stage of ISRO’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle
(PSLV)

•ISRO redesigned PS4 engine to make it compatible with additive manufacturing techniques, known
as Design for Additive Manufacturing (DfAM)

•HQs of ISRO – Bengaluru, Karnataka | Director – S. Somanath | Formed on – August 15, 1969

Appointments & Resignations

76•Andrej Plenkovic (HDZ party) – re-elected as PM of Croatia for the 3rd term

•Croatia – Zagreb – Euro | PM – Andrej Plenkovic | President – Zoran Milanovic

77•R. Shankar Raman – elevated as President of L&T & will also hold the position of Whole-time
Director & CFO

•HQs of L&T – Mumbai, Maharashtra | CEO & MD – S. N. Subrahmanyan | President – R. Shankar

Raman

78•N Chandrasekaran (Chairman of Tata Sons) – appointed as Chairman of Tata Electronics

(succeeding - Banmali Agrawala)

•HQs of Tata Electronics – Bengaluru, Karnataka | MD & CEO – Randhir Thakur | Chairman – N
Chandrasekaran

79•Dileep Sanghani – re-elected as Chairman of IFFCO for 2nd consecutive term

•Balvir Singh – re-elected as Vice-Chairman of IFFCO for 2nd consecutive term

•HQs of IFFCO – New Delhi | Chairman – Dileep Sanghani | Established in – 1967

80•V Adm Sanjay Bhalla – assumed charge of Chief of Personnel of Indian Navy

•He is awarded with – Ati Vishisht Seva Medal, Nao Sena Medal & Commendations

•HQs of Indian Navy – Delhi | Chief – Admiral Dinesh K. Tripathi | Vice Chief – Vice Admiral Krishna
Swaminathan

81•Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno – elected as President of Chad for another 6 years (defeating - Succes
Masra)

•Chad – N’Djamena – Central African CFA franc | PM – Succes Masra | President – General Mahamat
Idriss Deby Itno

82•Lawrence Wong – sworn in as 4th PM of Singapore (succeeding - Lee Hsien Loong)

•Singapore – Singapore – Dollar | PM – Lawrence Wong | President – Tharman Shanmugaratnam

Awards, Rewards, Recognition & Prizes

83•President Droupadi Murmu conferred 132 Padma awards (5 Padma Vibhushan, 17 Padma
Bhushan & 110 Padma Shri)

• Some important Padma Shri awardees (out of 110):

-Pran Sabharwal (an eminent theatre artist from Punjab)

-Sano Vamuzo (a social worker from Nagaland)

-Kiran Labhshanker Vyas (a yoga guru)

-Charlotte Chopin (a 101-year-old French yoga teacher)

-Joden Lepcha (a famous bamboo craftsman from Sikkim)

•‘Padma Awards 2024’ includes – 30 women, 8 people from the category of Foreigners/NRI/PIO/OCI,
& 9 posthumous

84•Hemant Khatri (CMD of HSL) – honored with “PSU Samarpan Award” by Gov Connect (in ‘Other
PSU’ category)

•For: his exemplary leadership in driving transformation of Shipyard & inspiring countless individuals
within industry

•Other awardees:

-‘Navratna’ category: Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd & IRCON International Ltd

-‘Miniratna’ category: Braithwaite & Co Ltd, Bridge & Roof Company (India) Ltd, HSCC (India) Ltd,
KIOCL Ltd, Instruments Ltd, Consultants India Ltd & WAPCOS

85•‘Sahṛdayaloka-Locana’, ‘Panchatantra’ & ‘Ramcharitmanas’ – included in “UNESCO’s Memory of

the World Asia-Pacific Regional Register”

•Authors:-‘Sahṛdayaloka-Locana’ – Acharya Anandvardhan

-‘Panchatantra’ – Pt. Vishnu Sharma

-‘Ramcharitmanas’ – Goswami Tulsidas

•10th meeting of Memory of the World Committee for Asia and the Pacific (MOWCAP) – held in
Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

•IGNCA presented these 3 entries from India

•HQs of UNESCO – Paris, France | DG – Audrey Azoulay | Founded in – 1945 | Members – 193
Countries

Schemes & Initiatives

86•Kerala – to become part of the Centre’s “Scheme for Modernisation and Reforms through
Technology in Public Distribution System (SMART-PDS)”

•‘SMART-PDS’ is envisaged to prevent food grain leakage and increase the efficiency of the
distribution chain

•Estimated outlay of the scheme for the period from 2023-2026 – Rs 349.9 crore
•The cost of the scheme will be born by the Central & State Govt in the ratio of – 60:40

•Kerala: Capital – Thiruvananthapuram | CM – Pinarayi Vijayan | Governor – Arif Mohammad Khan

87•Manipur – launched “School on Wheels” initiative (Implementing Body - Vidya Bharati’s Shiksha
Vikash Samiti)

•Aim: To impart education to students sheltered in relief camps in the state, following the year long
ethnic strife

•Manipur: Capital – Imphal | CM – N. Biren Singh | Governor – Sushri Anusuiya Uikye

Meetings, Conferences and Summits

88•Praveen Sood – led Indian delegation at 19th “Interpol Conference of Heads of National Central
Bureaux” at Lyon, France

•Conference’s aim: To strengthen operational cooperation among the NCBs of Interpol to combat
transnational crimes

•NCB in each country is Nodal organisation responsible for coordination with Interpol | Designated
NCB in India – CBI

•HQs of Interpol – Lyon, France | President – Ahmed Naser Al-Raisi | Founded on – Sep 7, 1923

•HQs of CBI – New Delhi | DG – Praveen Sood | Motto – “Industry, Impartiality, Integrity

89•MoT – participated in “IMEX 2024” held in Frankfurt, Germany

•Aim: To showcase the strengths of India as a leading MICE destination to the global market

•MoT identified MICE as a niche sector to address issue of seasonality & showcase India as a 365-
days destination

•MICE – Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions

•MoT introduced ‘Meet in India,’ a specialized sub-brand within the ‘Incredible India’ campaign

•Minister of Tourism: G. Kishan Reddy | Constituency – Secunderabad, Telangana

MoS in Ministry of Tourism: Shripad Yesso Naik & Ajay Bhatt

90•“World Hydrogen Summit 2024” – held in Rotterdam, Netherlands

•India – for the first time, set up its pavilion at this Summit by MNRE

•India – launched its ‘National Green Hydrogen Mission’ in Jan 2023 | Financial outlay – Rs 19,744 Cr

•India – set target to achieve a Green Hydrogen production capacity of 5 million tonnes by the end of
2030India aims to reduce emissions intensity of GDP by 45% | India commits to net-zero emissions
by 2070

•India’s energy requirements: at present, 44% come from non-fossil sources & is likely to reach 65%
by 2030

Ranks, Reports & Surveys

91•India’s fossil fuel-based power generation capacity – increased 2.44% to 243.22 GW in FY24 (from
237.27 GW in FY23)

•Non-fossil fuel based capacity – rose to 190.57 GW in FY24 (up 10.79%)

•Nuclear power capacity – rose to 8.18 GW in FY24

•India’s total power generation capacity – rose to 441.97 GW in FY24 (up 6.22%)

•Renewable Energy sources capacity – rose to 143.64 GW in FY24 (up 14.76%)

92•“World Migration Report, 2024” – released by UN’s IOM

•India – origin of largest number of international migrants, nearly 18 mn, with large diasporas in
UAE, US & Saudi Arabia

•In 2022, India received $111 billion in all, first country to reach & even surpass the $100-billion
mark

•Top remittance recipient countries in 2022 – India, Mexico, China, Philippines, France & Pakistan

•Migrants sent an estimated $831 billion in international remittances globally in 2022

•Mexico-to-US corridor – the largest in world at nearly 11 million people | India-UAE corridor – 4th
largest

•Indians abroad: 3.47 million in UAE, 2.7 million in US & 2.5 million in Saudi Arabia

• HQs of IOM – Geneva, Switzerland | Director General – Amy E. Pope

93•“Global Electricity Review” – published by Ember (London, UK)

•India – overtook Japan to become world’s 3rd largest solar power generator in 2023

•Top 5 solar power-generating countries in 2023: China, USA, India, Japan & Germany

•Electricity produced from solar in 2023: Global – 5.5% | India – 5.8%

•India – saw world’s 4th largest increase in solar generation in 2023 (+18 terawatt hour or TWh)

-1st – China (+156 TWh) | 2nd – United States (+33 TWh) | 4th – Brazil (+22 TWh)

•According to IEA’s “Net Zero Emissions” scenario, solar would increase to 22% of global electricity
generation by 2030

94•“India Invests” report – released by Wealth 360 One

•Total money flow for FY24 in terms of private equity investments (PE funds) in India:

-Top 5 states to attract substantial investments: Maharashtra, Karnataka, Haryana, Delhi & Tamil
Nadu

•Leading city for PE funds: 1st – Mumbai ($7.3 billion) | 2nd – Delhi NCR | 3rd – Bengaluru | 4th –
Chennai | 5th – Pune

•As per Ministry of Commerce & Industry data, India houses 1.7 lakh registered startups

-1st – Maharashtra (5801) | 2nd – Delhi NCR (3150) | 3rd – Karnataka (3032) | 4th – Tamil Nadu
(2810)
•HQs of 360 One Wealth – Mumbai, Maharashtra | CEO – Satheesh Krishnamurthy

95•“World’s Wealthiest Cities Report 2024” published by = Henley & Partners + New World Wealth

•World’s top 5 wealthiest cities: New York, The Bay Area (US), Tokyo, Singapore & London

•Mumbai & Delhi ranked 24th & 37th

•HQs of Henley & Partners – London, UK | CEO – Dr Juerg Steffen

96•“Recipe for a Livable Planet: Achieving Net Zero Emissions in the Agrifood System” – released by
World Bank

•Annual investments will need to increase to $260 billion a year to cut in half agri-food emissions by
2030 and reach Net Zero emissions by 2050

•World’s agri-food system emits about 16 gigatonnes of greenhouse gases (GHG) per year

•In India, 60% of emissions from agrifood systems come from the farm gate

•Top 10 agrifood system emitters: China, Brazil, India, US, Indonesia, Democratic Republic of Congo,
Russia, Canada, Pakistan and Argentina

•HQs of World Bank – Washington D.C., US | President – Ajay Banga | MD/CFO – Anshula Kant |
Members – 189

97•“Amplifying the Global Value of Earth Observation” report – released by WEF

•Global value of Earth Observation (EO) data – to rise from $266 billion to $703 billion by 2030

•EO – has potential to add $3.8 trillion contribution to global GDP between 2023 & 2030

•5 Key areas identified in report: Environmental monitoring, Early warning, Shipping route
optimisation, Precision agriculture & Supply chain monitoring

•Largest share of EO’s value – to be captured by Asia Pacific region by 2030 (reaching a potential
value of $315 billion)

•EO data – has potential to eliminate 2 gigatonnes of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions every year

•HQs of WEF – Cologny, Switzerland | Exe. Chairman – Klaus Schwab | President – Borge Brende |
Founded – 1971

98•As per CBRE Group Inc:•India – became the country with highest data center capacity of 950 MW
in Asia-Pacific region (excluding China)

-2nd – Japan (892 MW) | 3rd – Australia (773 MW)

•India – expected to record highest capacity addition of 850 MW during 2024-2026 period | 255 MW
added in 2023

•Total DC stock in 2023 – 16 mn. sq. ft. in India

•India secured investment commitments of more than $40 bn from both global & domestic
investors, between 2018-23

•Top states dominating cumulative investment commitments – Maharashtra, UP, West Bengal &
Tamil Nadu
•Chairman & CEO-India, South-East Asia, Middle East & Africa, CBRE – Anshuman Magazine

99•As per GTRI: India’s imports from its key FTA partners grew by – 38% totalling $187.92 billion in
FY24

•India’s overall imports grew by 31.4% to $675.45 billion in FY24

•Exports from FTA nations increased by 14.48% to $122.72 billion (total exports saw a 32% growth at
$437 billion)

•It includes India’s FTA with South Korea, Japan, Australia, UAE, Mauritius, ASEAN nations & South
Asian Free Trade Area

-These countries constituted 28% of India’s total trade (exports & imports) during FY24

•Exports to ASEAN countries – grew to $41.21 billion in FY24 (9.96% jump)

•Imports from ASEAN countries – grew to $79.67 billion in FY24 (34.3% jump)

Amount & Agreements

100•Sri Lanka + AGEL = a 20-year PPA to develop wind power stations in Mannar & Poonerin in Sri
Lanka

•AGEL – got approval in Feb 2023 to invest $442 mn towards development of 484 MW wind power
plants

•HQs of AGEL – Ahmedabad, Gujarat | CEO – Amit Singh

•Sri Lanka – Colombo/Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte – Sri Lankan Rupee

PM – Dinesh Gunawardena | President – Ranil Wickremesinghe

102•India – contributed $5,00,000 to U.N. Counter-Terrorism Trust Fund (CTTF)

•Ruchira Kamboj – handed over India’s voluntary contribution to Vladimir Voronkov (Under Secretary
General of UNOCT)

•With this contribution, India’s cumulative financial support to trust fund – $2.55 million

•HQs of UNOCT – New York, US | Under SG – Vladimir Voronkov | Founded in – 2017

MoUs, Collaborations & Partnerships

103•Fship + India Post = partnership to benefit Direct-to-Consumer (D2C) startups, SMBs & MSMEs
across India

•Indian logistics market is set to reach $484.43 billion by 2029 (with a CAGR of 8.8%)

•e-commerce market is set to reach $18.81 trillion by 2029 (with a CAGR of 15.80%)

•HQs of Fship – Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh | Founder & CEO – Ashutosh Bharti

•HQs of India Post – New Delhi | Works under – Dept. of Post | Minister responsible – MoS for
Communications

104•Jindal Steel & Power + ICG = an MoU for providing indigenous marine-grade steel to shipbuilding
industry
•Aim: To enhance indigenous content in India’s shipbuilding activities

•HQs of Jindal Steel & Power – New Delhi | Chairman – Naveen Jindal | MD – Bimlendra Jha

•HQs of ICG – New Delhi | DG – Rakesh Pal | Founded in – 1977

105•India + Moldova = signed a visa waiver agreement

•Moldova – Chișinau – Moldovan leu | PM – Dorin Recean | President – Maia Sandu

106 IRMRI + Emertech Innovations = successfully completed India’s 1st initiative to incorporate
blockchain innovations across the rubber sector

•HQs of Emertech Innovations – Mumbai, Maharashtra | Co-founder & CEO – Gaurav Somwanshi

•HQs of IRMRI – Mumbai, Maharashtra | Director – Dr. Rajkumar K.

107•Marut Drones + IFFCO = entered into a strategic partnership to provide Drone as a Service
(DaaS)

-Marut will be engaged into drone operation of spraying fertilisers across 5 lakh acres of farmland in
Telangana & AP

•IFFCO + Drone Destination = collaborated for drone spray over an area of up to 30 lakh acres in 12
states

•HQs of IFFCO – New Delhi | Chairman – Dileep Sanghani

•HQs of Marut Drones – Hyderabad, Telangana | Founder – Prem Kumar Vislawath

•HQs of Drone Destination – New Delhi | MD & CEO – Chirag Sharma

108•Anandana + Hockey India – partnered for ‘National Women’s Hockey League 2024’ for 3 years

•1st Phase of tournament commenced on April 30 & concluded on May 9 2024, in Ranchi, Jharkhand

•“#SheTheDifference” – Anandana’ campaign to celebrate, uplift & support women

•HQs of Anandana – Gurugram, Haryana | Chairman – Justice Rajendra Mal Lodha

109•Springer Nature + DAE (India) = a landmark Transformative Agreement (TA) to promote open
access principles & remove barriers to the dissemination of scholarly research

•The agreement marks the first TA by any publicly funded department in India

•HQs of Springer Nature – Berlin, Germany | CEO – Frank Vrancken Peeters

110•ICG + Hindalco Industries = an MoU for manufacturing & supply of indigenous marine-grade
aluminium to Indian public & private shipyards for construction of ships

•ICG fleet – presently operating 67 ships with aluminium hull

•HQs of ICG – New Delhi | DG – Rakesh Pal | Founded in – 1977

•HQs of Hindalco Industries Ltd – Mumbai | Chairman – Kumar Mangalam Birla

111•MSDE + M&M = an MoU to conduct two Pilot Projects under the ‘Drone Didi Yojana’ at NSTI, in
Hyderabad & Noida
•15-day curriculum – approved by DGCA & will be delivered through Remote Pilot Training
Organisation instructors

•It represents a first-of-its-kind convergence of women, farming & technology

•M&M – will soon roll out Drone training for women at Zaheerabad (Telangana) & Nagpur
(Maharashtra)

•Drone Didi scheme – aims to train 15,000 women to operate drones for agricultural purposes

•HQs of M&M – Mumbai, Maharashtra | Chairman – Anand Mahindra | CEO – Anish Shah | Founded
– 1945

•Minister of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship: Dharmendra Pradhan | Constituency – Madhya

Pradesh

•MoS in Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship: Rajeev Chandrasekhar

112•Bharti Airtel + Google Cloud = a long-term collaboration to deliver cloud solutions to Indian
businesses

•Indian public cloud services market is expected to reach $17.8 billion by 2027

•HQs of Bharti Airtel – New Delhi | MD & CEO – Gopal Vittal | Chairman – Sunil Bharti Mittal

•HQs of Google – California, US | CEO – Sundar Pichai | Founded in – 1998

113•ReNew + Societe Generale (Europe) = an MoU for up to $1 bn financing as debt & advisory
solutions over next 3 years

•ReNew – has a clean energy portfolio of 15.6 GW on a gross basis (as of May’24)

•HQs of ReNew Power – Gurugram, Haryana | MD & Chairman – Sumant Sinha

Sports & Games

54•SLC – announced Amul as their sponsor for ‘T20 World Cup 2024’

•Sri Lanka – became 3rd team to gain sponsorship by Amul | 1st – South Africa | 2nd – USA

•Karnataka Milk Federation (Nandini brand of dairy products) – to sponsor Ireland & Scotland teams

•‘T20 World Cup 2024’ will be played across 3 venues in the USA – New York, Dallas & Florida • HQs
of AMUL/GCMMF – Anand, Gujarat | MD – Jayen Mehta (interim) | Chairman – Shamalbhai B. Patel

55. •Neeraj Chopra – finished 2nd in Javelin throw with a throw of 88.36m at the “Doha Diamond
League 2024” in Doha, Qatar

-1st – Jakub Vadlejch (Czech Republic) - 88.38m | 3rd – Anderson Peters (Grenada) – 86.62m

•Kishore Jena (India) – finished 9th with a throw of 76.31m

•Qatar – Doha – Riyal | PM – Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani

56. •Bajrang Punia – suspended till 2024-end by United World Wrestling (UWW)

•HQs of NADA – New Delhi | Director-General & CEO – Ritu Sain

•HQs of UWW – Corsier-sur-Vevey, Switzerland | President: Nenad Lalovic | Founded in – 1912

57. •Yuzvendra Chahal (RR) – became 1st Indian bowler to reach the milestone of 350 wickets in T20
cricket history

•He achieved the feat in his 301st appearance in the T20 format | 2nd – Piyush Chawla (MI, 310
wickets)

•Chahal – 5th spin-bowler to reach the milestone & 6th Asian bowler

•HQs of IPL – Mumbai, Maharashtra | Chairman – Arun Singh Dhumal | Founded by BCCI – in 2008

58. •Reliance Foundation – will host first-ever India House at ‘Paris Olympics 2024’ scheduled
between Jul 26-Aug 11, 2024

•Nita Ambani – first Indian woman to become an IOC member

•India – hosted 2nd IOC session in its history in Oct 2023 (after 40 years)

•HQs of Reliance Foundation – Mumbai | Chairperson – Nita Ambani

•HQs of IOC – Lausanne, Switzerland | President – Thomas Bach | Established in – 1894

59•‘National Federation Senior Athletics Competition 2024’ – held at Kalinga Stadium in

Bhubaneswar, Odisha

•Abha Khatua – set new national record to clinch gold medal in women’s shot-put event, with a
throw of 18.41m

60. •Manika Batra – became first Indian woman table tennis player to break into Top-25 in world
rankings

•She achieved this feat at ‘Saudi Smash 2024’ by defeating China’s Wang Manyu

•She jumped 15 spots in this tournament from 39th to 24th

61•P. Shyaamnikhil (Tamil Nadu) – declared as India’s 85th Chess Grandmaster (He became
International Master in 2011)

•Eligibility to be recognized as a GM (for a male):

-At least a FIDE 2500 Elo rating in classical or standard chess

-3 Grandmaster norms through international competition

•84th Indian GM – R Vaishali

62. •“Federation Cup 2024” championship – at Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar, Odisha

•Neeraj Chopra – won a gold medal with an 82.27-meter throw

•2nd – DP Manu (Karnataka) with 82.06-meter | 3rd – Uttam Balasaheb Patil (Maharashtra) with
78.39 meters

•HQs of AFI – New Delhi | President – Adille J. Sumariwalla | Secretary General – Ravinder Chaudhry

63. •Sunil Chhetri – announced his retirement from international football

•His final game for India – ‘FIFA World Cup Qualifier for 2026’ at Kolkata (on June 6)
•In terms of goals scored for country: 1st – Messi (Argentina) | 2nd – Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal) |
3rd – Sunit Chhetri

64. •Japan – won the “Sultan Azlan Shah Cup 2024” in Ipoh, Malaysia (defeating - Pakistan)

•India has won Sultan Azlan Shah Trophy 5 times in 1985, 1991, 1995, 2009, 2010 | It is an men’s
field hockey tournament

•India is ranked 6th globally | 1st – Netherlands

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