The Indian Railways has introduced the ‘Ideal Train Profile’ to maximize capacity utilization and revenue generation in reserved mail express trains by analysing the demand pattern of each individual train on a regular basis.
The ‘Ideal Train Profile’ is a decision support tool for seat capacity optimization.
The project has been started on a pilot basis in 7 Zonal Railways: Eastern, Central, Northern, Southern, South Central, Western and West Central Railways.
This project has been implemented in more than 200 trains so far.
This facility is anticipated to improve confirmed seat availability and boost train occupancy by 5 percent.
The Union Budget 2023-24 has been presented by Nirmala Sitharaman, Union Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs in the Parliament on 1st February 2023 and has outlined the Vision for Amrit Kaal which reflects an empowered and inclusive economy. Vision for Amrit Kaal – an empowered and inclusive economy:
The strong & stable macro-economic environment.
To provide strong impetus to growth and job creation.
To facilitate ample opportunities for citizens, especially the youth, to fulfil their aspirations.
Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal has inaugurated the National Logistic Portal (marine) (NLP) in New Delhi.
The NLP is a project of national importance, as envisaged by the Ministry of Ports Shipping Waterways and the Ministry of Commerce & Industry.
The NLP will be a single window for all trade processes of the logistics sector spread across the country covering all modes of transport in the waterways, roadways, and airways along with an E-marketplace to provide a seamless end-to-end logistic service coverage.
The activities of NLP Marine are categorized into four distinct verticals viz. i. Carrier, ii. Cargo, iii. Banking and Finance and iv. Regulatory Bodies and Participating Government Agencies (PGAs). Features of NLP:
Single Platform to perform all core activities of the Importer / Exporter / Customs Broker / Freight Forwarder
End-to-end functionality to perform self-clearance digitally Online transaction with custodians
Providing a level playing field to relevant stakeholders (large & small) thus increasing the competition
Complete domestic tracking of the shipment with notifications on each stage Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 4 info@practicemock.com 9319314079
Real time information of the activities which are generally not in reach of Importer / Exporter / Customs Broker
Enhanced transparency in Government to Business relations and Ease of doing Business
Document Management System to store all the important documents securely on Cloud Storage
Reduced costs and timeframes for execution of trade and logistics operations
Paper-less transaction, for all the stakeholders along with BI reporting and data analytics Note: NLP (marine) is an “open platform” developed to fulfil the mission of PM Gati Shakti.
The Indian Railways is set to introduce the “Bharat Gaurav Deluxe AC tourist train” to showcase the cultural & spiritual heritage of Gujarat under the “Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat” government scheme. The tourist train is set to take its first “Garvi Gujarat” tour on February 28 from Delhi Safdarjung railway station. The state-of-the-art Bharat Gaurav Deluxe AC tourist train will run an 8-day all-inclusive tour. Bharat Gaurav Deluxe AC tourist train:
The train consists of four 1-AC coaches, two 2-AC coaches, one well-equipped pantry car, and two rail restaurants.
It can accommodate at least 156 tourists onboard.
The train can be boarded or deboarded at Gurugram, Rewari, Ringas, Phullera, and Ajmer Railway Stations. “Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat”: The initiative ‘Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat’ was announced by Hon’ble Prime Minister on 31st October 2015 on the occasion of the 140th birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. It is an initiative of the Ministry of Education. Through this innovative measure, the knowledge of the culture, traditions, and practices of different states & UTs will lead to an enhanced understanding and bonding between the states, thereby strengthening the unity and integrity of India.
During the Union Budget 2023-24, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has announced that the Permanent Account Number (PAN) will be used as the common identifier for all digital systems of specified government agencies. This will help in further promoting ease of doing business in the country. Note: PAN is a 10-digit alphanumeric number allotted by the income tax department to a person, firm or entity. As per the Economic Survey 2022-23: Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 5 info@practicemock.com 9319314079
India has declared the Net Zero Pledge to achieve net zero emissions goal by 2070.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has auctioned two tranches of Rs.4,000 crore Sovereign Green Bonds (SGrB). SGrB framework was issued in November 2022.
National Green Hydrogen Mission to enable India to be energy independent by 2047.
Green hydrogen production capacity of at least 5 MMT (Million Metric Tonne) per annum to be developed by 2030. Cumulative reduction in fossil fuel imports over Rs.1 lakh crore and creation of over 6 lakh jobs by 2030 under the National green Hydrogen Mission. Renewable energy capacity addition of about 125 GW and abatement of nearly 50 MMT of annual GHG emissions by 2030.
Dr Mukesh Aghi is the President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the US- India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF) has launched the US-India Alliance to boost the number of women in the Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), workforce in India.
The launch of the US-India Alliance for Women’s Economic Empowerment STEM Collaborative has been announced during the US-India Alliance Shatter Summit.
US-India Alliance for Women’s Economic Empowerment STEM Collaborative aims to identify barriers and create opportunities for advancing women and girls in STEM in India.
The US-India Alliance for Women’s Economic Empowerment is a public-private partnership between the State Department, USAID, USISPF, and George Washington University
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been named the world’s most popular leader for the second time in a row by Morning Consult, a US-based global leader approval tracker. The survey showed PM Modi had an approval rating of above 75 percent of India’s adult population. He is followed by Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and Swiss President Alain Berset among others.
The Ministry of Law and Justice has formed a working committee for the drafting of rules and standards for mediation in India. The newly formed Committee will be headed by former Law Secretary, (Chairperson) P. K. Malhotra. Roles and Responsibilities of the committee: The committee will provide drafts of the rules and regulations as envisaged under the Mediation Bill/Act. The committee will provide suggestions regarding the setting of various standards including, certifications, accreditation, grading, criteria etc., for various stakeholders under the Mediation Bill. The Committee will suggest a comprehensive way forward for the online conduct of mediation as per subordinate legislation and related matters such as a secure platform, etc. The Committee will provide a roadmap regarding the implementation of the provisions of the Mediation Bill/Act. Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 6 info@practicemock.com 9319314079 Background: The Mediation Bill, 2021 was introduced in the Rajya Sabha on December 20, 2022. Subsequently, the Bill was referred to the Department-related Parliamentary Standing Committee (DRPSC) on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice. The Committee had presented its 117th report on the Mediation Bill, 2021 to the Chairman of Rajya Sabha on July 13, 2022 which is under active consideration. Note: The Bill also provides for the establishment of the Mediation Council of India.
Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas, Hardeep Singh Puri has recently rededicated Oil and Natural Gas Corporation’s (ONGC) iconic drilling rig Sagar Samrat as a mobile offshore production unit (MOPU) at a ceremony held at Sagar Samrat, Mumbai.
Sagar Samrat was a jack-up drilling rig that was converted into a Mobile Offshore Production Unit (MOPU).
The MOPU is designed to handle a total 20,000 BOPD (barrels of oil per day) with maximum export gas of 2.36 mmscmd (mmscmd means million Standard Cubic Meters of Gas per day). Mobile Offshore Production Unit (MOPU): A Mobile Offshore Production Unit (MOPU) is considered any type of portable structure that can be reused when procuring oil and gas from the seabed. A fire protection system is essential to the operation and safety of a MOPU rig and automatic control valves are a key component of that system. Note: India is the world’s fastest-growing large economy and the world’s third-largest consumer of energy, crude oil, fourth largest refiner, the sixth largest importer of petroleum products, and seventh largest exporter of petroleum products.
The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MoI&B) has recently instructed TV channels to share details about obligatory ‘public service’ content with the effect from 1st March 2023. Key guidelines:
MoI&B has instructed channels to show at least 30 minutes of ‘public service’ content every day, and 15 hours of content monthly.
The ministry has also directed broadcasters to submit a monthly report on the ministryrun Broadcast Seva Portal in the first week of every month.
The guidelines have exempted foreign channels downlinking in India and channels broadcasting predominantly sports, devotional, spiritual, and yoga content from furnishing the monthly reports on the Broadcast Seva Portal.
The theme for the broadcasting should comprise national importance and social relevance, including education and spread of literacy, agriculture and rural development, health and family welfare, science and technology, welfare of women, the welfare of the Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 7 info@practicemock.com 9319314079 weaker sections of the society, protection of the environment and of cultural heritage, and national integration.
The ministry has revealed that its subordinate wing Electronic Media Monitoring Centre will keep a record of the content telecast for a period of 90 days.
The first “G20 International Financial Architecture Working Group Meeting” under the G20 Indian Presidency has been held in the Union Territory of Chandigarh on January 30 – 31, 2023. The “International Financial Architecture Working Group” is focused on addressing ways to strengthen international financial architecture, improve finance for development, and address vulnerabilities in the global financial system. Key Highlights:
The meeting has been inaugurated by Union Minister Narendra Singh Tomar, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare (MoA&FW), and Union Minister Pashupati Kumar Paras, Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI).
Nearly 100 participants from G20 member countries, invitee countries, and international organizations attended the meeting.
The two-day meeting has been co-led by the Ministry of Finance (MOF) and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), as well as France and South Korea, who are co-chairs of the International Financial Architecture Working Group.
The meeting reviewed a range of topics, including the strengthening and reform of Multilateral Development Banks.
In light of the growing debt situation, it explored strategies to overcome the implementation challenges associated with the G20 Common Framework for Debt Treatments beyond the Debt Service Suspension Initiative (DSSI). About Group of Twenty (G20): The G20 or Group of Twenty is an intergovernmental forum comprising 19 countries and the European Union. It works to address major issues related to the global economy, such as international financial stability, climate change mitigation, and sustainable development. It was founded on 26 September 1999. Note: India assumed the G20 Presidency for a year, from 1st December 2022 to 30th November 2023.
Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has announced that India will get its first hydrogen train by December 2023 which will be completely indigenously manufactured. It will initially be run on heritage circuits like Kalka-Shimla.
Union Railway Minister has also said that Vande Metro, a mini version of the Vande Bharat Express trains is also being developed.
Vande Metro aims to help people living around big cities to travel to and from in comfort between their place of work and hometowns. Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 8 info@practicemock.com 9319314079 Note: India’s Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has announced Rs 2.4 lakh crore for the Indian Railways in the Union Budget 2023-24. This is the highest-ever capital outlay for railways to date.
STATES AFFAIRS
Recently, India has issued a notice to Pakistan seeking a review and modification of the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) citing Pakistan’s intransigence in resolving disputes over the Kishanganga River and Ratle (on Chenab River) hydropower projects, both in Jammu and Kashmir. India and Pakistan signed the IWT in September 1960 after nine years of negotiations, with the World Bank being a signatory to the pact. The treaty allocates Western Rivers (Indus, Jhelum, Chenab) to Pakistan and Eastern Rivers (Ravi, Beas, Sutlej) to India.
Meghalaya Governor BD Mishra has announced that Shillong, the capital of Meghalaya, will host the Space20 programme of G20 on 17th and 18th April 2023. The programme will discuss the contribution of the space partnerships to the economy of the countries. Group of 20 (G20): It is an intergovernmental forum of the world’s major developed and developing economies. It comprises Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, the UK, the US, and the European Union (EU).
The Chief Minister of Delhi Arvind Kejriwal has launched mechanisms such as a ‘super site’ and a mobile air quality management van to collect pollution data in real-time to identify factors that are responsible for increasing air pollution at any place in Delhi. Through this initiative, Delhi has become the first city to get a real-time source segmentation of air pollution. The project has been initiated by the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) in collaboration with IIT Kanpur, IIT Delhi, and TERI (The Energy and Resources Institute).
PVR Cinemas has launched its 5-screen property at PVR Aerohub in Chennai International Airport, Chennai, Tamil Nadu. Key Points:
This is India’s First Multiplex housed within an airport complex.
Passengers can watch movies at the theatre during their layover time.
The five-screen property at the airport has a seating capacity of 1155 and is equipped with 2K RGB+ laser projectors, digital stereoscopic projection and advanced Dolby Atmos highdefinition immersive audio. Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 9 info@practicemock.com 9319314079
PVR Cinemas will have 12 locations in Chennai with 77 screens after this launch, and it will strengthen its position in TN with 88 screens spread across 14 properties.
A new law called the ‘New Delhi International Arbitration Centre (Amendment) Act, 2022′ has now come into force that will rename the New Delhi International Arbitration Centre to the India International Arbitration Centre. The Act came into force on 27th January 2023. Key points:
The Act has amended the New Delhi International Arbitration Centre Act, 2019.
The Act provides for setting up the New Delhi International Arbitration Centre and designates it as an institute of national importance.
The Act has replaced the International Centre for Alternative Dispute Resolution.
The Act amends Section 15(a) of the principal Act and facilitates the conduct of arbitration and other forms of alternative dispute resolution mechanism, both international and domestic, in the manner as may be specified by the regulations.
The Act allows the central government to provide for removing any difficulties in implementing the Act up to two years from the date of commencement of the Act. The Act extends this time period to 5 years.
Exercise TOPCHI 2023, the annual firepower demonstration and training exercise of the Regiment of Artillery, has been conducted by the Indian Army at the School of Artillery in Devlali, Nashik, Maharashtra.
The exercise aims to demonstrate the coordinated use of firepower and surveillance assets, including guns, mortars, rocket launchers, drones, and aviation assets.
The exercise has showcased the firing by indigenously manufactured Artillery equipment viz. K-9 Vajra, Dhanush, Indian Field Gun (IFG) I Light Field Gun (LFG) System and Pinaka Multi Barrel Rocket Launchers.
The training exercise has also involved the SWATHI radar system and remotely-piloted vehicles.
The ‘Mero Rukh Mero Santati’ initiative has been launched by Sikkim Chief Minister Shri Prem Singh Tamang. The ‘Mero Rukh Mero Santati’ is a novel green initiative that entails planting 100 saplings per child born in the State. This initiative aims to strengthen and reinforce the connection between parents, children, and nature by planting trees to commemorate childbirth while catering to the commitment of the State toward the conservation of the environment.
Researchers have recently discovered 92 nesting sites containing a total of 256 fossil eggs of Titanosaurs, which were among the largest dinosaurs to have ever lived, in the Lameta Formation, Narmada Valley, Madhya Pradesh. The discovery of these fossilized eggs reveals intimate details about the lives of titanosaurs in the Indian subcontinent. Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 10 info@practicemock.com 9319314079
Recently, a new swallowtail butterfly has been spotted in Andhra Pradesh. It is named ‘Noble Helen’. Its origin is in China, Laos, Myanmar, Vietnam, and Cambodia. The butterfly has been disappearing in these countries and has recently been spotted in India.
The Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, Shivraj Singh Chouhan has recently launched a new scheme “Ladli behna” to provide Rs 1000 per month to all women belonging to Below Poverty Line, Lower Income Group, and Middle-Income Groups. The objective of this scheme is to support women’s empowerment by providing monthly financial assistance, irrespective of religion, caste, colour, and community. Madhya Pradesh government has decided to spend 60,000 Crore for the scheme over the period of 5 years.
Recently, Pashmina (Cashmere) Shawl of Kashmir has been used as canvas for contemporary art at a French exhibition. Pashmina Shawl: It is known for their signature intricate buta or paisley patterns. It is made from Pashm – fleece of Changthangi Goat, native to Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh.
Geological Survey of India (GSI), under the Ministry of Mines, will be organizing the 62nd Central Geological Programming Board (CGPB) meeting at ICAR, Pusa, New Delhi on 9th February 2023. Union Minister of Coal, Mines and Parliamentary Affairs Shri Pralhad Joshi will be the Chief Guest and Shri Raosaheb Patil Danve, Minister of State for Mines, Coal and Railways will be the Guest of Honor.
The Prime Minister Narendra Modi has inaugurated the India Energy Week (IEW) 2023 in Bengaluru, Karnataka. The Prime Minister has also launched the uniforms under the ‘Unbottled’ initiative of Indian Oil. These uniforms are made of recycled PET bottles. Key Highlights:
He also dedicated the twin-cooktop model of the Indian Oil’s Indoor Solar Cooking System and flagged off its commercial roll-out.
He has launched E20 fuel at 84 retail outlets of Oil Marketing Companies in 11 States/UTs along the lines of the ethanol blending roadmap. Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 11 info@practicemock.com 9319314079
He also flagged off the Green Mobility Rally where vehicles running on green energy sources will participate and help create public awareness for green fuels. E20 fuel: The number “20” in “E20” refers to the percentage of ethanol in the gasoline blend. The higher the number, the higher the percentage of Ethanol in the gasoline. India’s current ethanol-to-petroleum mix is 10%, the highest it has ever been.
The Indian Armed Forces and Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) have conducted a joint training exercise called “Exercise Trishakri Prahar” in North Bengal from 21st to 31st January 2023. The aim of the exercise is to practice battle preparedness of the Security Forces using the latest weapons and equipment in a networked, integrated environment, involving all arms and services of the Army, the Indian Air Force and CAPFs.
Manish Sisodia, Deputy Chief Minister of the Government of Delhi has recently launched a WhatsApp chatbot, ‘Bal Mitra’, for enabling communication between people and the Delhi Commission for Protection of Child Rights (DCPCR).
The chatbot’s features include complaint registration, tracking complaint status, and seeking information on various child rights issues.
DCPCR plans to improve the chatbot by adding more features. It will be used to send customized nudge-based messages to parents, children, Anganwadi workers, etc.
Minister of Tourism Madhya Pradesh (MP), Usha Thakur has inaugurated the “Gandhisagar Floating Festival 2023”, Asia’s first floating festival, in Mandsaur, Madhya Pradesh (MP). About Gandhisagar Floating Festival 2023:
The festival is organized by the Madhya Pradesh Tourism Board (MPTB) to promote Gandhisagar as a tourist destination in both the domestic and international markets.
The Gandhisagar Floating Festival is operated and managed by LJS, Ahmedabad, Gujarat Gandhi Sagar Dam:
Gandhi Sagar Dam is one of the 4 major dams constructed on the Chambal River in the Mandsaur district of Madhya Pradesh.
The Gandhi Sagar Dam is a masonry gravity dam standing 62.17 meters high with a gross storage capacity of 7.322 billion cubic metres from its catchment area.
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has recently launched a Heli-Tourism service in Panaji. According to the Union Ministry of Tourism Ministry, its Swadesh Darshan Scheme has contributed vitally to the execution of this project. The helipad at Dauji-Ella in Old Goa has been constructed under the scheme. Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 12 info@practicemock.com 9319314079
Indore Municipal Corporation has launched secured redeemable non-convertible debentures (NCDs) of face value of ₹1000 each, aggregating up to Rs 122 crore, with an option to retain over-subscription of up to Rs 122 crore, taking the total issue size to Rs 244 crore. The issue will open on 10 February and will close on 14 February. Debenture: A debenture is a type of bond or other debt instruments that is unsecured by collateral. Since debentures have no collateral backing, they must rely on the creditworthiness and reputation of the issuer for support. Both corporations and governments frequently issue debentures to raise capital or funds.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy has announced that Visakhapatnam will become the new capital of Andhra Pradesh. He has also announced that Andhra Pradesh will be organizing Global Investors Summit on the 3rd & 4th of March in Visakhapatnam.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah has laid the foundation stone of a Rs 450-crore Nano urea plant and township of the Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative (IFFCO) in Deoghar, Jharkhand. Key Points:
The plant will be constructed at a cost of Rs 300 crore and the township at a cost of Rs 150 crore.
The plant is scheduled to be commissioned in December 2024.
This will be India’s fifth Nano urea plant.
Nano urea will benefit farmers and it is already being exported to five countries. Nano urea improves crop productivity, soil health, and nutritional quality of produce and aims to address the imbalanced and excessive use of conventional urea. Note: The world’s first Nano urea plant was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Gujarat.
The Asian Waterbird Census 2023 has been conducted in the union territory of Ladakh between 17th and 19th January 2023. The census has been organized by the Himalaya project and the Department of Wildlife Protection of Ladakh in collaboration with the Ladakh Biodiversity Council, a statutory body of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC).
Himalaya project is a joint project by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and MoEFCC. Asian Waterbird Census-2023: Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 13 info@practicemock.com 9319314079
The Project has been organized around two important hot springs of eastern Ladakh, Chumathang and Puga, along with other important birding sites like Tso Kar and along the banks of the Indus River in Shey and Phey villages.
A total of 52 bird species were observed during the survey (11 species were sighted in Chumathang, 10 in Puga, 21 in Shey, and 10 in Phey along the Indus River).
The observations were recorded on the eBird app, which is an online database of bird observations providing scientists, researchers, and amateur naturalists with real-time data about bird distribution and abundance.
The total number of species recorded across all the birding sites were 35, out of which 13 species were waterbirds.
Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh (UP), Yogi Adityanath has launched the “Aarohini Initiative Training Programme” for the safety and security of girls in all 746 Kastuba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas (KGBV) in UP.
Under the newly launched campaign, the Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan will work to ensure the safety and security of girls in all 746 KGBV.
It aims to make the daughters of the underprivileged section capable and self-reliant. It also aims to enable the girls to raise their voices for their rights. Aarohini Initiative Training Programme:
The Aarohini Initiative was established in 2011. It is a girl’s empowerment and education program rooted firmly in the philosophy that girls and boys must receive an education.
The initiative was initially introduced in 946 KGBVs, government-run residential girls’ schools, across UP and Rajasthan.
The programme will be implemented in 3 phases. o In the first phase, teachers will be trained. After receiving training, two teachers at every KGBV will educate girl students. o The institution will also groom the girls through debates and other activities along with the teachers. o In the third phase, the campaign will be run at the community level.
The Maharashtra Cabinet headed by Chief Minster (CM) Eknath Shinde has designated “Jai Jai Maharashtra Maza” as the state song, which will now be played along with the National Anthem at all government events from 19th February. The state song will play at all government programmes after the National Anthem, which will remain supreme. All schools will also play the state anthem in addition to the daily prayer and National Anthem.
‘Jai Jai Maharashtra Majha, Garja Maharashtra Majha’, which means ‘Glory to Maharashtra’, is penned by Raja Badhe.
The music is composed by Shrinivas Khale.
The song has been sung by Balladeer Krishnarao Sable, popularly known as Shaheer Sable. Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 14 info@practicemock.com 9319314079
It is for the first time since the establishment of Maharashtra as a state in 1960 that the government has declared an official state song.
Minister of Tourism Madhya Pradesh (MP), Usha Thakur has inaugurated the “Gandhisagar Floating Festival 2023”, Asia’s first floating festival, in Mandsaur, Madhya Pradesh (MP). Gandhisagar Floating Festival 2023:
The festival is organized by the Madhya Pradesh Tourism Board (MPTB) to promote Gandhisagar as a tourist destination in both the domestic and international markets.
The Gandhisagar Floating Festival is operated and managed by LJS, Ahmedabad, Gujarat Gandhi Sagar Dam:
Gandhi Sagar Dam is one of the 4 major dams constructed on the Chambal River in the Mandsaur district of Madhya Pradesh.
The Gandhi Sagar Dam is a masonry gravity dam standing 62.17 meters high with a gross storage capacity of 7.322 billion cubic metres from its catchment area.
Red Headed vulture has been spotted in India after a gap of 2 decades. It has been spotted in the Bhatti mines area of Delhi. Red-headed vulture (Sarcogyps calvus): It is also known as Asian King Vulture or Pondicherry Vulture. It was extensively found in the Indian Subcontinent but their population was drastically reduced by diclofenac poisoning. IUCN Status: Critically Endangered Species.
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (Meity) and Meta have announced the list of 120 startups and innovators for the Extended Reality (XR) Startup Programme in New Delhi, Delhi.
The Programme includes an Accelerator and a Grand Challenge, aiming towards boosting the emerging Tech ecosystem in India.
The programme will discover, nurture, and accelerate XR Technology startups and innovators across India.
The programme supports 40 early-stage start-ups working in XR technologies with a grant of Rs 20 lakh each.
Among the selected startups, more than 30% are from Tier II or Tier III cities across Indi and women-led or co-led Startups and Innovators form over 20% of the cohort.
American space agency NASA and Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) have been working together on a joint mission ‘NISAR’ to build a state-of-the-art Earth observation satellite. The space agencies will give the close-up look at changes in Earth’s crust using advanced radar imaging. The NISAR observatory will be launched from Indian Soil in the first quarter of the year 2024.
NISAR is a joint Earth-observing mission between NASA and the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO).
INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS
Urban floods as seen in Acuklad, New Zealand recently could be avoided by implementing “sponge city concept”. Sponge city: It is a city that is designed to passively absorb, clean, and use rainfall in an ecologically friendly way that reduces dangerous and polluted runoff. Chinese architect Kongjian Yu created the concept of “sponge city” in early 2000s.
SpaceX launched 53 of its Starlink internet satellites to orbit on its Falcon 9 rocket on 2nd February, marking the 200th flight of the workhorse rocket. The Falcon 9 rocket topped with 53 Starlink craft lifted off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, USA.
REPORTS & INDICES
The Ministry of Education (MoE), Government of India has released the All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) 2020-2021. For the first time, in AISHE 2020-21, the Higher Educational Institutions (HEIs) have filled data using entirely online data collection platform through the Web Data Capture Format (DCF) developed by the Department of Higher Education through the National Informatics Centre (NIC). Key highlights of the survey:
The total enrolment in higher education has increased to nearly 4.14 crore in 2020-21 from 3.85 crore in 2019-20. Since 2014-15, there has been an increase of around 72 Lakh in the enrolment (21%).
The Female enrolment has increased to 2.01 crore from 1.88 crore in 2019-20. There has been an increase of around 44 Lakh (28%) since 2014-15.
The percentage of female enrolment to total enrolment has increased from 45% in 2014- 15 to around 49% in 2020-21.
As per 2011 population projections for 18-23 years age group, GER has increased to 27.3 from 25.6 in 2019-20.
Gender Parity Index (GPI), the ratio of female GER to male GER, has increased from 1 in 2017-18 to 1.05 in 2020-21.
The enrolment of SC students is 58.95 Lakh as compared to 56.57 Lakh in 2019-20 and 46.06 Lakh in 2014-15.
The enrolment of ST students has increased to 24.1 Lakh in 2020-21 from 21.6 Lakh in 2019-20 and 16.41 Lakh in 2014-15. Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 16 info@practicemock.com 9319314079
The enrolment of OBC students has also increased by 6 lakh to 1.48 crore in 2020-21, from 1.42 crore in 2019-20.
The total Student Enrolment in North East States is 12.06 Lakh in 2020-21 as compared to 9.36 Lakh in 2014-15.
The enrolment in Distance Education is 45.71 Lakh (with 20.9 Lakh Female), an increase of around 7% since 2019-20 and 20% since 2014-15.
Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka and Rajasthan are the top 6 States in terms of number of student enrolled.
The enrolment in Institute of National Importance (INIs) has increased by nearly 61% during the period 2014-15 to 2020-21.
During 2020-21, the number of Universities has increased by 70, and the number of Colleges has increased by 1,453.
The Institutes of National Importance (INIs) have almost doubled from 75 in 2014-15 to 149 in 2020-21.
Highest number of Universities is in Rajasthan (92), Uttar Pradesh (84) and Gujarat (83).
States with Highest college density: Karnataka (62), Telangana (53), Kerala (50), Himachal Pradesh (50), Andhra Pradesh (49),Uttarakhand (40), Rajasthan (40), Tamilnadu (40).
Top 8 Districts with Highest number of Colleges: Bangalore Urban (1058), Jaipur (671), Hyderabad (488), Pune (466), Prayagraj (374), Rangareddy (345), Bhopal (327) and Nagpur (318).
Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat are top 8 States in terms of number of colleges.
The total number of faculty/teachers are 15,51,070 of which about 57.1% are male and 42.9% are female.
The female per 100 male faculty has improved to 75 in 2020-21 from 74 in 2019-20 and 63 in 2014-15. AISHE: It has been conducted since 2011 by the MoE covering all higher educational institutions located in country. It collects detailed information on different educational parameters.
India’s solar module manufacturing capacity is expected to reach approximately 95 gigawatt (GW) by the end of the calendar year (CY) 2025, according to the newly released report ‘State of Solar PV Manufacturing in India’ by Mercom India Research. Highlights of the Report:
Indian PV (photovoltaic) manufacturers are strategically poised to expand their production capacities and adopt new technologies in the coming years on the back of government incentive programmes.
States are promoting domestic solar manufacturing through fiscal and non-fiscal incentives under industrial, electronics, and solar policies.
India has Installed solar cell manufacturing capacity as of September 2022 was about 4.7 GW and could increase seven-fold by the end of CY 2024. Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 17 info@practicemock.com 9319314079
In September 2022, the Cabinet approved a Rs 19,500-crore production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme on a ‘national programme on high-efficiency solar PV modules with an aim to attract Rs 94,000 crore investment in the sector. Note: India’s Bhadla Solar Park is the largest solar power park in the world. Bhadla Solar Park is located in Bhadla, a dry and sandy region in Rajasthan, and spans 14,000 acres. There are over 10 million solar panels at the park, which contribute to an operational capacity of 2245MW.
As per the Economic Survey 2022-23, the Gross Tax Revenue has registered a YoY growth of 15.5 percent from April to November 2022, and the Net Tax Revenue to the Centre after the assignment to states grew by 7.9 percent on a YoY basis.
During April-November 2022, the government’s gross tax revenue stood at Rs 17.81 lakh crore or 64.6 percent of the full-year target of Rs.27.58 lakh crore.
Of this, direct tax collection is Rs.8.67 lakh crore and indirect tax collection is Rs.8.91 lakh crore. The survey has highlighted that high imports have led to a 12.4 % YoY growth in the customs collection from April to November 2022. The excise duty collection has declined by 20.9 % from April to November 2022 on a YoY basis. GST Collection: The GST Tax payers have doubled to 1.4 crore from 70 lakhs in 2022. The gross GST collections from April to December 2022 is Rs.13.40 lakh crore. Thus, implying a YoY growth of 24.8 % with an average monthly collection of Rs.1.5 lakh crore
A new report titled “Asia-Pacific Overview of Food Security and Nutrition 2022: Urban Food Security and Nutrition” states that an increasing number of people in Asia lack enough to eat as food insecurity rises with greater prices and worsening poverty. This joint flagship report is published by 4 specialized agencies of the United Nations (UN):
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)
The World Food Programme (WFP)
The World Health Organization (WHO) Key Points:
The 5F crisis, which refers to a lack of food, feed, fuel, fertilizer, and finance, is driving millions of people in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region, which is home to the majority of the world’s population, into hunger and poverty.
The report highlighted that a healthy diet is unaffordable in most countries of Asia and the Pacific for nearly two billion inhabitants. Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 18 info@practicemock.com 9319314079
Globally, the prevalence of food insecurity increased from 21% in 2014 to over 29% in 2021.
According to the Global Payments Report by Worldpay FIS, India’s e-commerce market has been projected to grow at 18 percent annually through 2025. The Government EMarketplace (GeM) attained an annual procurement of Rs.1 lakh crore within FY22, representing a 160% growth compared to last FY. Initiatives taken by the Government for the promotion of e-Commerce, including the Digital India program, UPI, One District – One Product (ODOP) initiative, Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) etc., have been major contributory factors to the growth of E-commerce in recent years.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) has declared in its country report titled “LIFE lessons from India -The benefits of advancing the Lifestyle for Environment (LIFE) initiative through the G20” that LiFE initiative would save consumers globally around USD 440 billion in 2030 through both lower consumption and lower prices, corresponding to around 5% of total fuel spending across the global economy that year. Key Points:
According to the IEA’s modelling, the adoption worldwide of the kinds of actions and measures targeted by LiFE – including behavioural changes and sustainable consumer choices would reduce annual global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by more than 2 billion tonnes (Gt) in 2030.
This is about one-fifth of the emissions reductions needed by 2030 to put the world on a pathway to net zero emissions. Lifestyle for Environment (LiFE) initiative: The Lifestyle for Environment (LiFE) initiative was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at COP26 in Glasgow in November 2021 to encourage the adoption of sustainable lifestyles to tackle the environment and climate crisis. The initiative was further developed and formally launched in October 2022 by Prime Minister Modi and the UN Secretary-General António Guterrez as Mission LiFE, a global mass movement led by India to nudge individual and community behavioural change in order to reduce emissions, protect the environment and conserve resources.
As per the Economic Survey 2022-23: The performance of the agriculture and allied sector has been buoyant over the past several years.
Private investment in agriculture increases to 9.3% in 2020-21.
MSP for all mandated crops fixed at 1.5 times of all India weighted average cost of production since 2018. Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 19 info@practicemock.com 9319314079
The institutional credit to the Agricultural Sector has continued to grow to 18.6 lakh crore in 2021-22
The foodgrains production in India stood at 315.7 million tonnes in 2021-22.
Free foodgrains to about 81.4 crore beneficiaries under the National Food Security Act for one year from January 1, 2023.
About 11.3 crore farmers were covered under the PM Kisan Scheme in its April-July 2022- 23 payment cycle.
Rs.13,681 crores sanctioned for Post-Harvest Support and Community Farms under the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund.
Online, Competitive, Transparent Bidding System with 1.74 crore farmers and 2.39 lakh traders put in place under the National Agriculture Market (e-NAM) Scheme.
Organic Farming being promoted through Farmer Producer Organisations (FPO) under the Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY).
India stands at the forefront to promote millets through the International Year of Millets 2023 initiative.
As per the Economic Survey 2022-23, India has projected GDP growth of 6.0 per cent to 6.8 per cent in 2023-24, depending on the trajectory of economic and political developments globally. The survey has projected a baseline GDP growth of 6.5 percent in real terms in FY24, compared to 7% this fiscal and 8.7% in 2021-22.
India’s unemployment rate has declined by 7.14% in January 2023 from 8.30% in December 2023, according to the data from the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE). Key highlights:
The unemployment rate was 8.03% in November 2022, 7.92% in October 2022 and 6.43% in September 2022.
Rural unemployment was 6.48% in January 2023, and urban unemployment was 8.55%.
Jammu and Kashmir had the highest unemployment rate among the states with 21.8%, followed by Haryana (21.7%), and Rajasthan (21.1 %).
Unemployment in Delhi in January was at 16.75, in Goa (16.2%), Assam (16.1%) and Tripura (16%).
Chhattisgarh is the lowest unemployment rate among the states with 0.5%, followed by Odisha (1.5%), Tamil Nadu (1.8%), and Madhya Pradesh (1.9%). Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE): The Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) is an independent private limited entity that serves both as an economic think-tank as well as a business information company. CMIE was founded by Narottam Shah on 13 April 1976.
GOVERNMENT SCHEMES & PROGRAMMES
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The Employees’ Provident Fund Organization (EPFO) has launched a massive district outreach program, ‘Nidhi Aapke Nikat 2.0’, in all districts of the country. This programme has been e-launched by Secretary, Ministry of Labour & Employment, Government of India, Arti Ahuja on 27th January 2023.
Nidhi Aapke Nikat 2.0 will be conducted on the 27th of every month at all district headquarters of EPFO (starting from January 2023) to reach out to all the districts of the country on the same day.
EPFO organized camps in 685 districts of the country to create participatory awareness among all stakeholders and provide a grievance redressal platform. Note: In the year 2015, Bhavishya Nidhi Adalat was rechristened as Nidhi Aapke Nikat.
The Union Budget 2023-24 has announced that ‘PM-PRANAM’ scheme will be launched to incentivize States and Union Territories to promote alternative fertilizers and balanced use of chemical fertilizers.
PM-PRANAM stands for PM Programme for Restoration, Awareness, Nourishment, and Amelioration of Mother Earth.
It will be launched under the GOBAR (Galvanizing Organic Bio-Agro Resources Dhan) Scheme.
PM Vishwakarma Kaushal Samman (PM VIKAS): The Union Budget 2023-24 has announced a new scheme for the traditional artisans and craftspeople, generally referred to as Vishwakarma. The new scheme will:- (a) Enable them to improve the quality, scale and reach of their products, integrating them with the MSME value chain (b) Include not only financial support but also access to advanced skill training, knowledge of modern digital techniques and efficient green technologies, brand promotion, linkage with local and global markets, digital payments, and social security (c) Greatly benefit the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, OBCs, women and people belonging to the weaker sections.
As stated in the Annual Budget 2023-24, 500 new “waste to wealth” plants will be established under the GOBAR (Galvanizing Organic Bio-Agro Resources Dhan) Scheme. Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 21 info@practicemock.com 9319314079
These will include 200 compressed biogas (CBG) plants, including 75 plants in urban areas, and 300 community or cluster-based plants at total investment of Rs.10,000 crore.
All the natural and bio-mass marketers should include at least 5% of Compressed Bio Gas from now on.
The Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS), a flagship scheme under the Startup India initiative has been implemented with effect from 1 st April 2021. Under the Scheme, Rs. 477.25 crore has been approved to 133 incubators of which Rs. 211.63 crore has been disbursed as on 31st December 2022 as per the statement made by Minister of State for Commerce and Industry, Shri Som Parkash.
The flagship schemes under the Startup India initiative namely, Fund of Funds for Startups (FFS), Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS), and Credit Guarantee Scheme for Startups (CGSS) extend support to startups at various stages of their business cycle.
The Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS) has been approved with a corpus of Rs. 945 crore for the period of 4 years starting from 2021-22.
Under SISFS, as per provisions of the Scheme, the Government has constituted an Experts Advisory Committee (EAC) which is responsible for the overall execution and monitoring of the SISFS.
The EAC evaluates and selects incubators for the allocation of funds under the Scheme. Startup India initiative: The Government with an intent to build a strong ecosystem for nurturing innovation, startups, and encouraging private investments in startup ecosystem of the country has launched the Startup India initiative on 16th January 2016.
BUSINESS & ECONOMY
The Society for Applied Microwave Electronics Engineering & Research (SAMEER), India’s premier R&D Institute of Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY), has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Siemens Healthineers, a Germany-based Healthcare company, to ensure the availability of low-cost Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) Technology in India. This MoU will provide quality, and affordable healthcare and diagnostic access for every Indian.
Tamil Nadu-based Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) has started the export of its first Special Aviation Fuel (SAF) for small aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), AVGAS (aviation gasoline) 100 LL, blue aviation gasoline with a high octane number, to Papua New Guinea from GTI Terminal of Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust. The shipment consisted of 16 KL (Kilolitre) of AVGAS packed in 80 barrels. Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 22 info@practicemock.com 9319314079 AVGAS 100 LL is an aviation fuel used in training aircraft.
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has been included in the 25th edition of FORTUNE magazine’s list of the “World’s Most Admired Companies” for 2023.
Apple has topped the list for the 16th consecutive year. Amazon and Microsoft tied for second.
The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Engineers India Limited (EIL) to develop Waste to Energy and bio-methanation projects in cities with a population of million plus as a part of furthering the ‘Green Growth’ agenda. The MoU was signed in the presence of Manoj Joshi, Secretary, MoHUA, and Vartika Shukla, (CMD of EIL). In the first phase, cities with a 25 million-plus population will be selected for developing largescale process plants.
Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare (DA&FW) under the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare has entered into a partnership with the Development Innovation Lab (DIL) at the University of Chicago to explore the opportunities to harness innovation to improve food security, address climate change, and allow farmers to increase their incomes. During the signing of the MoU, the DIL was represented by the University of Chicago trust in India. This MoU has been signed in New Delhi, Delhi.
The Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Rolls Royce Solutions of Germany to locally manufacture Rolls Royce’s high-quality marine diesel engine in India. Under this MoU, GRSE and Rolls Royce Solutions will co-operate in the licence production and localisation of the technologically advanced MTU S4000 governmental marine engines.
The Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC) has recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Nalsoft for Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) implementation. TSRTC is the first State Road Transport Corporation undertaking in India to commission and implement ERP.
AZAD Engineering Private Limited, a Hyderabad-based market leader in Precision Engineering has signed a long-term supply agreement with GE Steam Power for the supply of Nuclear Turbines parts.
AZAD is the first Indian company to supply critical rotating parts for Nuclear Turbines. Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 23 info@practicemock.com 9319314079
The first set of critical parts has now been delivered and will be assembled on Nuclear Turbines manufactured in Belfort, France.
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and IBM (International Business Machines Corporation) have collaborated to develop Artificial Intelligence (AI) based models that will make it easier to mine vast datasets to advance scientific knowledge about Earth and help the world to adapt to a changing environment.
Under this collaboration, NASA and IBM will create AI foundation models to analyze petabytes of text and remote-sensing data to make it easier to build AI applications tailored to specific questions and tasks.
The collaborative work will apply AI foundation model technology to NASA’s Earthobserving satellite data for the first time.
Eminent Air Private Limited, a drone start-up, has showcased India’s first one-of-its-kind drone with a Parachute Integrated system as part of an event to mark its inaugural flight. The inaugural flight was a part of a live demonstration to highlight the drone’s capabilities and features. Features:
The drone comes with a “Parachute Integrated System” as part of this promise, which ensures safe and dependable delivery of items and eliminates any potential risk during the operation.
The variable lifting capability of the drone allows it to carry a payload in multiple configurations using multiple batteries.
The payload compartment of the drone is equipped with an ‘Insulated Vaccine Carrier’ that keeps temperature-sensitive items like vaccines and medicines, safe. Eminent Air Private Limited: Eminent Air Private Limited is a Private Company incorporated on 10 Mar 2022. Its registered office is in New Delhi, Delhi, India. It’s a company limited by shares having an authorized capital of Rs 10.00 lakh and a paid-up capital of Rs 1.00 lakh.
To ensure stability in the supplies of soil nutrients four Indian fertilizer firms, state-run National Fertilisers Limited and Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilisers Limited and Chambal Fertilisers and Chemicals Limited and Paradeep Phosphates Limited have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Morocco’s OCP Group for annual imports of 1.75 million tonnes (MT) of phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) fertilizers at Rabat, Morocco. As per the MoU, one MT of diammonium phosphate (DAP), 0.7 MT of triple superphosphate (TSP), and 0.05 MT of murate of potash (MOP) will be imported to meet the domestic requirements of the soil nutrients varieties for the next one year. Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 24 info@practicemock.com 9319314079
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI), a major American energy and defence corporation, has started three significant projects in India in the field of artificial intelligence (AI), drones and semiconductors following the establishment of a landmark India-US initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology (ICET). Partnerships:
GA-ASI has entered into a partnership with Bharat Forge Limited (BFL). Bharat Forge is one of the leading forging companies in India.
In order to create the next generation AI technologies, GA-ASI has partnered with 114ai, an Indian AI company.
In the field of semiconductors, GA-ASI has partnered with the Indian start-up 3rdiTech. Note: 114ai is an information technology company that manages data with the use of AI across Industries.
Mahanadi Coalfields Limited (MCL), the premier Central Public Sector Enterprise (CPSE) under the Ministry of Coal has introduced drone technology in coal mines by launching a web-based portal “VIHANGAM” along with a drone and ground control system. Features of Portal:
The portal allows an authorized person to access real time drone video from the mine through a dedicated 40 Mbps internet lease line near the mines.
There is a control station that flies the drone and the system can be operated through the portal from anywhere. This pilot project is at present operational at Bhubaneswari and Lingraj opencast mines of Talcher Coalfields. MCL is making use of drone technology for environmental monitoring, volume measurement, and photogrammetric mapping of mine for digitInitiativesof mining process. Other Initiative by MCL: MCL has recently introduced Robotic Nozzle Water Sprayer in its coal stockyard. Coal companies use Robot-assisted firefighting and dust suppression advanced technology to carry out difficult and dangerous jobs.
The equipment can spray water up to 70 meters in the form of mist.
The nozzle also termed as swivel nozzle, is installed on a water tanker of 28 kilolitres capacity. Note: Engaged in coal mining activities in Sundergarh, Jharsuguda and Angul districts of Odisha, Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd (MCL) contributes more than 20 % of the total coal produced in India.
Electronics and Radar Development Establishment (LRDE), a Bengaluru lab of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has developed an UnFurlable Reflector Antenna (UFRA), one of the major subsystems of space radar. Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 25 info@practicemock.com 9319314079
The UFRA has a significant role in both Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the Military.
LRDE has developed the UFRA system which consists of a rim truss-based deployable mechanism, primary arm, reflector mesh, tension ties, nets, and motor.
A cable is routed through the diagonal members of the rim truss elements. Electronics and Radar Development Establishment: Electronics and Radar Development Establishment (LRDE) is a laboratory of the Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO), India. It is located in C.V. Raman Nagar, Bengaluru, Karnataka. Its primary function is the research and development of radars and related technologies.
Nagaland government and Patanjali Foods Limited have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for development and area expansion under palm oil cultivation and processing for Zone-II (Mokokchung, Longleng and Mon districts) of Nagaland under the National Mission on Edible Oils-Oil Palm (NMEO-OP).
The MoU was signed by the Director of Agriculture, Nagaland, M Ben Yanthan, and Patanjali Foods Ltd Head-NE Region, Oil Palm Subhas Bhattacharjee at the Directorate of Agriculture, Kohima, Nagaland.
This will certainly bring a big boost for the oil palm growers in the state of Nagaland and the region. Note: Patanjali Foods Ltd is already working in the states of Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam and Tripura in the North East.
Drone Destination (DD) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Patna to open Bihar’s first government-approved drone training hub. Drone Destination (DD):
Drone Destination (DD) is the drone training partner of Indira Gandhi National Flying Academy (IGRUA) under the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) and has several centres across India.
Drone Destination has become the first Drone Training Organisation to certify over 1,200 DGCA-certified Drone Pilots in the country along with IGRUA and Sanskardham.
The Ministry of Cooperation, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), and CSC e-Governance Services India Limited have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to enable Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) and provide services offered by Common Service Centres (CSCs) in New Delhi, Delhi. Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 26 info@practicemock.com 9319314079
The MoU was signed in the presence of Amit Shah, Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation, and Ashwini Vaishnaw, Union Minister of Electronics and Information Technology. Primary Agricultural Credit Society: A Primary Agricultural Credit Society is a basic unit and the smallest cooperative credit institution in India. It works on the grassroots level. Common Service Centres: Common Service Centres are physical facilities for delivering Government of India e-Services to rural and remote locations where the availability of computers and Internet was negligible or mostly absent CSCs are the access points for the delivery of essential public utility services, social welfare schemes, healthcare, financial, education and agriculture services to citizens in rural and remote areas of the country.
Founder: Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology
Founded: 16 July 2009
Headquarters: New Delhi
The Australian Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade) has recently signed a Memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) to collaborate on Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) programmes. The MoU will focus on Australian training standards and delivery in sectors ranging across automotive, allied health, mining, IT, cyber security, renewable energy, logistics, supply chain, and water management.
Austrade’s Australia-India Future Skills Initiative team in India will execute these actions with CII.
The Australia-India Future Skills Initiative is the Australian Government’s flagship program to support India’s workforce and skills development through partnerships with Australian vocational education, training, and skills providers. Other MoU: Austrade has also signed an MoU with the Leather Sector Skill Council (LSSC) to collaborate on Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) programmes and introduce Australian training standards in the leather sector in India.
BANKING & FINANCE
The Union Budget 2023-24 has announced the establishment of the ‘UIDF’ for the use of priority sector lending shortfall.
UIDF stands for Urban Infrastructure Development Fund (UIDF). Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 27 info@practicemock.com 9319314079
This will be managed by the National Housing Bank.
This will be used by public agencies to create urban infrastructure in Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities, for which Rs.10,000 crore will be allocated annually.
RailTel Corporation of India has received a work order from the State Bank of India (SBI) for providing 4G LTE connectivity to 15,000 offsite ATMs spread across India.
The project also entails the operations and maintenance of the entire network for a period of 5 years.
The estimated total value of the project awarded to RailTel is Rs 253.35 crore.
The project also includes the establishment of a Network Operations Centre (NOC), backhaul connectivity to the Data centre & Disaster Recovery centre (DC-DR) of SBI, a live dashboard for SLA monitoring, 24X7 helpdesk, etc.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is the sixth minister in independent India to present five consecutive budget. The Union Budget for the fiscal year starting April 2023 is her fifth straight since 2019. Other ministers who have presented five straight annual financial statements include Arun Jaitley, P Chidambaram, Yashwant Sinha, Manmohan Singh and Morarji Desai. Note: Former Prime Minister Morarji Desai holds the record for presenting the maximum number of Budgets, including two Interim Budgets. He tabled the Union Budget 10 times from 1959 to 1963.
IDFC Limited has announced that it is investing Rs 2,200 crore in IDFC First Bank to increase its stake in the bank to 40 percent from 36.38 percent currently. The IDFC board has also declared a special interim dividend of Rs 11 per share, due to which the Government of India, the largest shareholder in IDFC, would receive a payout of Rs 287 crore.
The Union Budget 2023-24 has announced the introduction of the revamped version of the Credit Guarantee Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE) scheme from 1 April 2023 through the infusion of Rs.9000 crore in the corpus. This will enable additional collateral-free guaranteed credit of Rs.2 lakh crore. The cost of the credit will be reduced by about 1 percent. It has been announced that a National Financial Information Registry will be set up to serve as the central repository of financial and ancillary information.
This will facilitate efficient flow of credit, promote financial inclusion, and foster financial stability.
A new legislative framework will govern this credit public infrastructure, and it will be designed in consultation with the RBI. Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 28 info@practicemock.com 9319314079 CGTMSE scheme: It was launched in August 2000. The scheme provides guarantees to help small businesses access loans. The guarantees provided by the scheme ranges from 75-85% of the loan.
The maximum deposit limit for the Senior Citizen Savings Scheme (SCSS) has been increased from Rs.15 lakh to Rs.30 lakh in the Union Budget 2023-24. The maximum deposit limit for Monthly Income Account Scheme will be enhanced from Rs.4.5 lakh to Rs.9 lakh for single account and from Rs.9 lakh to Rs.15 lakh for joint account.
As of end-November 2022, India is the sixth largest foreign exchange reserves holder in the world according to data compiled by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). India’s forex reserves augmented to USD 562.7 billion as of December-end of 2022 covering 9.3 months of imports. India’s foreign exchange reserves was USD 577 billion during April-December 2020 while it was USD 607 billion during April-December 2021. India has relatively low levels of total debt as a percentage of Gross National Income and short-term debt as a percentage of total debt.
In the recently published Economic Survey 2023, the Gross Non-Performing Asset (GNPA) ratio of scheduled commercial banks (SCBs) has decreased from 8.2% in March 2020 to a seven-year low of 5.0% in September 2022, while Net Non-Performing Assets (NNPA) have dropped to a ten-year low of 1.3% of total assets. The gross GNPA’s will likely to drop 4.9 percent by March 2023. The survey has stated that the Capital-to-Risk Weighted Assets Ratio (CRAR) remains healthy at 16.0 and well above the regulatory requirement of 11.5.
As per the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE), the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) has emerged as the 3rd largest exchange in the world in the equity segment by the number of trades (electronic order book) in 2022, up from 4th in 2021. According to the Futures Industry Association (FIA), a derivatives traded body, the NSE has again emerged as the world’s largest derivatives exchange in 2022, in terms of the number of contracts traded in 2022. This is the fourth consecutive year when NSE earned the top spot.
Edelweiss Mutual Fund has launched India’s first passive short-duration fund. The scheme, Edelweiss CRISIL IBX 50:50 Gilt Plus SDL Short Duration Index Fund, will invest in a diversified portfolio of Indian government bonds and state development loans (SDL). The scheme will invest 50 percent in Indian government bonds and 50 percent in SDLs. This fund offers better predictability on asset allocation, credit quality, and duration, and is a low-cost substitute over other active funds for short-term investments. Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 29 info@practicemock.com 9319314079
As per the latest “World Economic Outlook Update of January 2023” by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), India’s economic growth will slow down to 6.1% during 2023 as compared to 6.8% in 2022 before picking up to 6.8% in 2024. Global growth is projected to fall from an estimated 3.4 percent in 2022 to 2.9 percent in 2023, then rise to 3.1 percent in 2024.
According to the Economic Survey 2022-23, India is the largest recipient of remittances in the world receiving US$ 100 billion in 2022. Remittances are the second largest major source of external financing after service export. India is followed by Mexico (USD 60 billion) & China (USD 51 billion).
India’s forex reserves augmented to USD 562.7 billion as of December-end of 2022 covering 9.3 months of imports.
India’s foreign exchange reserves was USD 577 billion during April-December 2020 while it was USD 607 billion during April-December 2021.
India has relatively low levels of total debt as a percentage of Gross National Income and short-term debt as a percentage of total debt.
The Union Budget 2023-24 has made the new tax regime the default option for every taxpayer. However, citizens will continue to have the option to avail the benefit of the old tax regime. Under the simplified tax regime (STR), income slab and tax rates for individuals have been reduced to five slabs from the existing six slabs leading to an effective tax saving of Rs.49,400 (considering standard deduction of Rs.50,000 and including the education cess) for income up to Rs.15 lakh.
TaxRate
ProposedIncome slab
Nil
Up to Rs.3 lakh
5%
Rs.3 lakh to Rs.6 lakh
10%
Rs.6 lakh to Rs.9 lakh
15%
Rs.9 lakh to Rs.12 lakh
20%
Rs.12 lakh to Rs.15 lakh
30%
Above Rs.15 lakh
IndusInd International Holdings Limited (IIHL), a subsidiary of the Hinduja Group, has received preliminary approval from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to increase its ownership in IndusInd Bank to 26%. As a result, the Hinduja Group will contribute more than Rs. 10,000 crore to IndusInd Bank. With this, IndusInd Bank has become the first bank to have its promoter increase its shareholding to 26%. Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 30 info@practicemock.com 9319314079
Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited (KMBL) has announced that it has implemented the first phase of the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) Digital Rupee (eRs). KMBL is among the eight banks shortlisted by RBI to implement a pilot project for the issuance of Digital Rupee, a legal tender that is similar to banknotes and coins, issued in a digital form by RBI. Key Points:
The bank will launch the Digital Rupee pilot in Mumbai, Delhi and Ahmedabad.
KMBL customers will be sent an email/SMS invite to download the Digital Rupee app.
The digital rupee wallet operates in a similar fashion as a physical wallet but in a digital form, and will be accessible for download on Android operating system smartphones.
Infibeam Avenues Limited’s flagship brand, “CCAvenue” has become India’s first payment gateway player to process Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) or Digital Rupee transactions for online retail merchants, among payment gateway players. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has identified 8 banks for phase-wised participation in the retail pilot project for CBDC.
The first phase includes four banks, namely the State Bank of India, the ICICI Bank, the Yes Bank, and the IDFC First Bank.
In the second phase, the pilot will be carried out by Bank of Baroda, Union Bank of India, HDFC Bank and Kotak Mahindra Ban The company hasalso launched the CCAvenue Mobile App – the world’s most advanced omnichannel payment platform with the revolutionary TapPay solution. Payment Aggregator license from RBI Infibeam Avenues Limited recently received the Payment Aggregator license from RBI, followed by a perpetual license to operate as Bharat Bill Payment Operating Unit (BBPOU) under the Bharat Bill Payment System (BBPS) from RBI. CCAvenue: CCAvenue is a payment gateway service that enables businesses to process online payments. It supports a wide range of payment methods, including credit cards, debit cards, and net banking. Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 31 info@practicemock.com 9319314079
New India Assurance (NIA) has launched a ‘Pay as You Drive’ (PAYD) policy, which offers a comprehensive motor insurance policy that charges a premium based on the usage of the vehicle. The policy has two components – third-party cover and own-damage cover. New India Assurance (NIA): The New India Assurance Company Limited, is a central public sector undertaking under the ownership of the Ministry of Finance, Government of India. It is based in Mumbai, Maharashtra. “It is the largest nationalized general insurance company of India on the basis of gross premium collection inclusive of foreign operations”.
CMD: Neerja Kapur
Founded: 23 July 1919, Mumbai
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has strengthened the framework for green bonds by introducing the concept of ‘blue’ and ‘yellow’ bonds as new modes of sustainable finance. Blue bonds relate to water management and the marine sector, while yellow bonds pertain to solar energy. These are sub-categories of green debt. These are sub-categories of green debt securities. Green Debt Security: SEBI broadly defines green debt security as one that is issued for the purpose of raising capital to be used for the cause of sustainable development or furthering energy efficiency. Sustainable finance: Sustainable finance is the set of financial regulations, standards, norms and products that pursue an environmental objective. It allows the financial system to connect with the economy and its populations by financing its agents while maintaining a growth objective.
Mobicule, a niche player and expert in debt collection has announced the launch of the mCollect Repossession module, an industry first for banks and Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs). The revolutionary Asset Repossession Solution is a comprehension solution that maps all the complex processes in the repossession of an asset, as a part of its debt collection and recovery product.
RBI IN NEWS
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has partially relaxed the restrictions it recently imposed on SBM Bank (India) Ltd by allowing ATM/POS transactions under Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) through KYC-compliant internationally active debit cards issued by the bank. Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 32 info@practicemock.com 9319314079 The relaxation is up to March 15, 2023 or till the further order by RBI. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on January 23, 2023 had directed SBM Bank (India) Ltd to stop, with immediate effect, all transactions under Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) till further orders. The order was based on certain material supervisory concerns observed in the bank. Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS):
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) for any permissible current or capital account transaction or a combination of both.
Further, resident individuals can avail of foreign exchange facility for the purposes mentioned in Para 1 of Schedule III of FEM (CAT) Amendment Rules 2015, dated May 26, 2015, within the limit of USD 2,50,000 only.
The Scheme was introduced on February 4, 2004, with a limit of USD 25,000. The LRS limit has been revised in stages consistent with prevailing macro and micro economic conditions.
It is mandatory for the resident individual to provide his/her Permanent Account Number (PAN) for all transactions under LRS made through Authorized Persons.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has been publishing a composite Reserve Bank of India – Digital Payments Index (RBI-DPI) since January 1, 2021, with March 2018 as the base to capture the extent of digitization of payments across the country.
The index for September 2022 stands at 377.46 as against 349.30 for March 2022.
The RBI-DPI index has increased across all parameters driven by significant growth in payment infrastructure and payment performance across the country over the period.
The index series since its inception is as under:
Period
RBI–DPIIndex
March 2018 (Base)
100
March 2019
153.47
September 2019
173.49
March 2020
207.84
September 2020
217.74
March 2021
270.59
September 2021
304.06
AWARDS & RECOGNITION
The Indian Institutional Ranking Framework (IIRF) has released the Top Management and Business School 2023.
The Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Ahmedabad is the top government college in India for pursuing the Master of Business Administration (MBA) course.
IIM Bengaluru, and IIM Kolkata are ranked second and third, respectively, after IIM Ahmedabad.
IIM Lucknow climbed from 5th to 4th place in 2022, overtaking the Faculty of Management Studies of the University of Delhi, which was 4th in 2022. Private Colleges: Among private colleges, the Xavier Labour Relations Institute (XLRI), Jamshedpur has been ranked first, followed by the Management Development Institute (MDI), Gurugram, and Symbiosis Institute of Business Management, Pune, Maharashtra. Top Colleges in other categories:
The Indian School of Business (ISB), Hyderabad has topped the list for “School of Eminence of Employability”. It is followed by XLRI and MDI.
Symbiosis Institute of Business Management, Pune, Maharashtra has topped the list of the “Top-10 B-schools under University Programs in India 2023”.
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has announced the best marching contingents and tableaux of the Republic Day Parade 2023 in two separate results, one selected by the 3 member Expert Committee of the Ministry of Defence and the other through an online public vote conducted by the MyGov platform. On the basis of the assessment of the panels, the results are as under:
Best Marching Contingent among the three services
Punjab Regiment Centre Contingent
BestMarchingContingent among CAPF/other auxiliaryforces
CRPFMarchingContingent
Best three Tableaux (States/UTs)
First – Uttarakhand (Manaskhand) Second – Maharashtra (Sade Tin Shaktipithe & Nari Shakti) Third – Uttar Pradesh (Ayodhya Deepotsav)
Best Tableau (Ministries/Departments)
Ministry of Tribal Affairs (Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRSs))
Special Prize
Central Public Works Department (Biodiversity Conservation) ‘Vande Bharatam’ Dance Group.
Dr Manmohan Singh, former Prime Minister of India, has been honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Honour at the 2023 edition of the prestigious India-United Kingdom (UK) Achievers Honours for his contribution to economic and political life. It was a first-of-its-kind celebration of the UK’s Indian alumni, held on 25th January 2023 in London, UK.
British Indian peer Lord Karan Bilimoria has received the Living Legend Honour. Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 35 info@practicemock.com 9319314079
Virendra Sharma MP from Ealing Southall, who chairs the Indo-British All Party Parliamentary Group, has also been bestowed with the Living Legend Honour. Dr Manmohan Singh: Manmohan Singh is an Indian politician, economist and statesman who served as the 13th Prime Minister of India from 2004 to 2014.
He is also the third longest-serving Prime Minister after Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi.
A member of the Indian National Congress, Manmohan Singh was the first Sikh Prime Minister of India.
He was also the first Prime Minister since Jawaharlal Nehru to be re-elected after completing a full five-year term.
Ministry of Culture has presented awards for the winners of the Unity in Creativity Competition in a celebration filled with art, culture, and music. The event was organized under the aegis of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav on 5 th February at Nehru Park, New Delhi. The event was graced by the presence of Shri Arjun Ram Meghwal, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs & Culture, Smt. Meenakshi Lekhi, Minister of State for External Affairs and Culture, and dignitaries from the Ministry of Culture.
A grand total of 4760 winners were selected for the three competitions on the national, state, and district levels.
BOOKS & AUTHORS
Indian-born naturalised British economist Meghnad Desai has authored a book titled “The Poverty of Political Economy: How Economics Abandoned the Poor”. The book highlights how the discipline of economics, since the time it evolved from the late 18th century, systematically kept the interests of the poor at the periphery. The book is published by HarperCollins Publishers India.
The Ambassador of Spain Jose Maria Ridao has announced that India will be invited as the focal country at the Madrid International Book Fair in 2025.
This announcement was made during the event held at the Spain Pavilion at the 46th International Kolkata Book Fair (IKBF 2023) at Salt Lake, Kolkata, West Bengal.
Spain is the theme country at the 46th International Kolkata Book Fair here, which is being held from 31st January 2023 to 12th February 2023. A football dictionary of Spanish to Bengali will be launched at the Kolkata Book Fair, containing terms and phrases used in the Spanish league. Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 36 info@practicemock.com 9319314079
Golden Book Awards 2023 has been organised by Wings Publication International, a leading independent publisher in India. This prestigious event recognizes and celebrates the best book in literature. There were more than 75,000 books published in India and nominees include a diverse mix of literary genres, including fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and children’s books. List of winners of the Golden Book Awards of the year 2023:
Author
WinningBook
Namita Thapar
The Dolphin and the Shark: Stories on Entrepreneurship
Ashneer Grover
Doglapan
Kamlesh Patel
The Wisdom Bridge
DeepakChopra
TheSevenSpiritualLawsof Success
RuskinBond
HowToLiveYourLife
Gaur Gopal Das
Energize Your Mind
Bhupender Singh Raathore
The Magic of Thinking Rich
RajShamani
BuildDon’tTalk
Sneh Desai
Ultimate Secrets to Wealth
Dr. Jagroop Singh
Sondhara
Ivy Emmanuel Thomas
The wheel spins to your will
Osama Regaah
Travel and Thoughts
Vaishali
Khudgarziyan
Smita Goswamy
Family Run to Family Led
Shubneet kaur
Flight Feathers
Hindi, translation, books on business, environment, sports, lifestyle, biography/autobiography, children’s books, and emerging trends, among others. The winner will be felicitated and awarded during the annual Kalinga Literary Festival (KLF) which is scheduled to be held in Bhubaneswar from February 24-26. List of Kalinga Literary Festival (KLF) Book Awards 2022:
KLFNon-fictionBookAward2022
English
·Sanjeev Sanyal – ‘Revolutionaries: The Other Story of How India Won its Freedom’ (HarperCollins) ·Akshaya Mukul- ‘Writer, Rebel, Soldier, Lover: The Many Lives of Agyeya’ (Penguin)
·JADUNAMA: Javed Akhtar’s Journey (English) by Arvind Mandloi Translated by Dr. Rakhshanda Jalil- (Amaryllis; Manjul) ·The Bride: The Maithili Classic Kanyadan By Harimohan Jha Translated by Lalit Kumar (HarperCollins)
KLFBhashaBook Award2022
·Nepali: Ranjana Niraula- Anubhuti Ko Awataran – Kathmandu- Nepal (Shikha Books) ·Maithili: Mahendra Malangia’s- Dak, Ghagh aa Bhaddari (Malangia Arts), New Delhi
Kalinga Literary Festival: The Kalinga Literary Festival (KLF) is a literary festival which takes place annually in the Indian city Bhubaneswar, Odisha. Rashmi Ranjan Parida is the founder director of the festival. The festival confers three literary awards, which are Kalinga Literary Award, Kalinga International Literary Award, Kalinga Karubaki Award, annually to noted Indian writers. The festival was started in 2014 with the aim of promoting Odia language, literature, and culture.
Palagummi Sainath (P Sainath) has authored a new book titled “The Last Heroes- Foot Soldiers of Indian Freedom” which broadly deals with the history of India’s freedom struggle written from the perspective of common people.
The book has been published by India Viking, an imprint of Penguin Random House.
The book highlights the spirit of common people’s resistance and heroic activities against British rule and the feudal elements working as its collaborators. Palagummi Sainath: Palagummi Sainath is an Indian columnist and author of the acclaimed book “Everybody Loves a Good Drought”. He founded the People’s Archive of Rural India (PARI) in 2014, an online platform that focuses on social and economic inequality, rural affairs, poverty, and the aftermath of globalization in India.
PERSON IN NEWS
Petr Pavel, the former Chairman of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) military committee, has been elected as the new President of Czech Republic. He has become the 4th President of Czech Republic. He will succeed Milos Zeman who steps down in March 2023 at the end of his 2nd term. Unilever, the British multinational consumer goods company, has appointed Hein Schumacher, as its next Chief Executive Officer (CEO).
He has replaced Alan Jope.
He will take over as the CEO of Unilever on 1st July 2023.
Morgan Stanley has appointed Arun Kohli as the new Country Head for India. He has replaced Sanjay Shah. Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 39 info@practicemock.com 9319314079 Morgan Stanley: Morgan Stanley is an American multinational investment management and financial services company headquartered at New York City, United States. It was founded on 5 September 1935.
Equatorial Guinea President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo has appointed Manuela Roka Botey as Prime Minister of the country.
She has become the first woman in the country to hold the position.
She has replaced former premier Francisco Pascual Obama Asue, who has been in the position since 2016.
Nutella, the hazelnut cocoa spread brand of Ferrero, has signed actor Ranveer Singh as its brand endorser for the Indian market. Ranveer Singh will promote the Nutella brand across digital and offline marketing channels as well as be a part of their campaigns.
OBITUARIES
National Award-winning legendary playback singer Vani Jairam has passed away recently in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. She was conferred with the Padma Bhushan award in 2023.
Vani Jairam was born as Kalaivani in Vellore in Tamil Nadu.
Vani Jairam’s career started in 1971 and has spanned over five decades.
She did playback for over one thousand Indian movies recording over 10,000 songs. National Film Awards received by her:
1975 – Best Female Playback Singer Tamil
1980 – Best Female Playback Singer Telugu
1991 – Best Female Playback Singer Telugu
Veteran film director K Viswanath has recently passed away at age of 92 in Hyderabad, Telangana. He was popularly known as ‘Kalatapasvi’. He was born in February 1930 in Andhra Pradesh.
He became the 48th recipient of the Dadasaheb Phalke award, the highest recognition in Indian cinema. He was conferred with the award for the year 2016.
He was also felicitated with Padma Shri in 1992, five National Awards, 20 Nandi Awards (given by the Andhra Pradesh government), and 10 Filmfare trophies, including the Lifetime Achievement award.
Former Union Law Minister and veteran lawyer Shanti Bhushan has passed away recently after a brief illness. Shanti Bhushan: Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 40 info@practicemock.com 9319314079
He served as the Law Minister of India from 1977 to 1979 in the Morarji Desai Ministry.
As the Law minister, he introduced the 44th Amendment of the Constitution of India, which repealed many provisions of the 42nd Amendment of the Constitution of India passed by the Indira Gandhi ministry.
In 1980, he founded the famous NGO ‘Centre for Public Interest Litigation’, which has filed several important PILs in the Supreme Court.
He was a senior advocate of the Supreme Court of India.
Former India footballer Parimal Dey has recently passed away at the age of 81 in Kolkata after a prolonged illness.
He was born on 4 May 1941 in West Bengal.
He was conferred with the Banga Bhushan title by the Government of West Bengal in 2019.
At the domestic level, he won the Santosh Trophy twice in 1962 and 1969.
He played as a forward for East Bengal, he netted 84 goals and also captained the club in 1968.
He holds the distinction of winning the Calcutta Football League and IFA Shield double thrice in 1966, 1970, and 1973, and has etched his name in Indian Football folklore by scoring in two IFA Shield finals against BNR (1966) and Iranian side PAS Club (1970), which still stands today as the fastest goal scored by a player after coming on as a substitute in the competition.
SPORTS
Indian U19 Women’s cricket team, led by Shafali Verma, has won the maiden ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup 2023 by defeating England by 7 wickets in T20 World Cup final held at Senwes Park Stadium in South Africa. This is India’s first World Cup win in the women’s section.
Player of the match (final): Titas Sadhu (India)
Player of the series: Grace Scrivens (England)
Most runs: Shweta Sehrawat (297) (India)
Most wickets: Maggie Clark (12) (Australia)
French footballer Raphaël Xavier Varane has announced his retirement from international football to focus on his career with Manchester United. He was a part of the France national Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 41 info@practicemock.com 9319314079 football team that won the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) world cup in 2018 and was a runner-up in 2022.
NHPC Limited has won the ‘Maitri Cup 2023’ T20 Cricket tournament held at Vijay Yadav Residential Cricket Academy, Faridabad from 27th to 28th January 2023. In the final match of the tournament NHPC defeated CVPPPL (Chenab Valley Power Projects Pvt. Ltd.) by 5 wickets. A total of three teams including NHPC, NHDC (A Joint Venture of NHPC & Govt. of Madhya Pradesh) and CVPPPL (Joint Venture Company of NHPC & JKSPDC) have participated in the tournament.
Veteran Indian cricketer Murali Vijay, hailing from Chennai, Tamil Nadu, has announced his retirement from international cricket at the age of 38. He made his international debut representing India in the final Test of the 2008-09 Border Gavaskar Trophy in Nagpur replacing Gautam Gambhir. He has played 61 Tests, 17 One Day Internationals (ODIs), and 9 T20Is since 2008.
Indian pacer Joginder Sharma has announced retirement from all formats of cricket on February 3, 2023. The cricketer is known for his exceptional bowling in the T20 World Cup 2007 Final, where India defeated Pakistan to grab the prestigious trophy.
Joginder Sharma played his first international match in an ODI against Bangladesh in Chattogram in 2004.
Joginder Sharma is currently serving as a Deputy Superintendent of police in the Haryana Police.
Union Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports Anurag Thakur and the LG of Jammu and Kashmir Manoj Sinha have recently launched the 3 rd edition of the Khelo India Winter Games mascot, theme song, and jersey.
The Winter Games are scheduled to be held from the 10th to the 14th of February 2023.
1500 athletes across the country will participate in the games that will take place in Gulmarg, Jammu and Kashmir.
The 2023 mascot is the snow leopard, which depicts the vibrant heritage of the Himalayas and it also reiterates the administration’s commitment towards their conservation Note: The Khelo India Winter Games started in 2020.
The 15th edition of the 2023 Men’s FIH Hockey World Cup has been held at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar and at the 20,000 seat Birsa Munda International Hockey Stadium in Rourkela, Odisha from 13 to 29 January 2023. Mascot: Olly: an Olive Ridley Sea Turtle wearing a blue jersey and cap Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 42 info@practicemock.com 9319314079
Germany has won the 2023 Men’s FIH Hockey World Cup title by defeating Belgium in the final match.
This marks Germany’s 3rd hockey World Cup title, earlier they won the world cup in 2002 and 2006.
Runner-ups: Belgium (2nd), Netherlands (3rd), and Australia (4th).
Award
Player
Best Player
Niklas Wellen (Germany)
Best Goalkeeper
Vincent Vanasch (Belgium)
Top Scorer
Jeremy Hayward (Australia)
Best Team Goal Celebration Award
South Korea
Fan’s Choice Award
Christopher Ruhr (Germany)
Fair Play Award
Belgium
Maximum Team Goals Award
Netherlands (32 goals)
Best Defender of the Tournament Award
Jeremy Hayward (Australia)
Best Forward of the Tournament Award
Niklas Wellen (Germany)
Best Midfielder of the Tournament Award
Victor Wegnez (Belgium)
Best Junior Player
Mustapha Cassiem (South Africa)
The 111th edition of the 2023 Australian Open has been held at Melbourne Park in Melbourne (Victoria), Australia. Men’s Singles: Novak Djokovic of Serbia has won the men’s singles title by defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece. This is his 10th Australian Open title and 22nd major title overall. He levels Rafael Nadal with his 22nd Grand Slam title. Women’s Singles: Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus has won the women’s singles title by defeating Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan.
Category
Winners
Runner-Up
Men’sSingles
Novak Djokovic (Serbia)
Stefanos Tsitsipas (Greece)
Women’sSingles
Aryna Sabalenka (Belarus)
Elena Rybakina (Kazakhstan)
Men’sDoubles
Jason Kubler & Rinky Hijikata (Australia)
Hugo Nys (Monaco) & Jan Zieliński (Poland)
Women’sDoubles
Barbora Krejčíková & Katerina Siniaková (Czechia)
Shuko Aoyama & Ena Shibahara (Japan)
Mixed Doubles
Luisa Stefani & Rafael Matos (Brazil)
Rohan Bopanna & Sania Mirza (India)
NMDC Limited has signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) with World Boxing Champion and gold medal winner of Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, Nikhat Zareen to represent NMDC as its brand ambassador. She represents the strength, courage, agility and national pride that goes with the brand of the NMDC. Sports brand Puma India has announced Indian women’s cricket team captain Harmanpreet Kaur as its latest brand ambassador. As part of the partnership terms, Harmanpreet Kaur will endorse the brand’s footwear, apparel, and accessories throughout the year. Harmanpreet Kaur: Harmanpreet Kaur is an Indian cricketer who serves as the captain of the India Women’s National Cricket Team in all formats. She plays as an all-rounder for the Indian women’s cricket team; and was awarded the Arjuna Award for Cricket in the year 2017 by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.
In November 2018, she became the first woman for India to score a century in a Women’s Twenty20 International (WT20I) match.
In October 2019, during the series against South Africa, she became the first cricketer for India, male or female, to play in 100 international Twenty20 matches.
IMPORTANT DAYS
The Indian Coast Guard Day is celebrated on February 1 every year to honour organisations that look after maritime security.
This year 2023, India has celebrated the 47th Coast Guard Day.
The purpose of the day is to raise awareness about the Indian Coast Guard’s history and relevance. Note: The first Director General (DG) of the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) was Vice Admiral V. A. Kamath.
The United Nations (UN)’s World Wetlands Day is annually observed worldwide on 2 nd February to create awareness about the wetlands, a critically important ecosystem on the planet and their vital role in the lives of the people. Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 44 info@practicemock.com 9319314079 The day also marks the date of the adoption of the “Convention on Wetlands of International Importance” (Ramsar Convention), an intergovernmental treaty adopted on 2nd February 1971. The theme of World Wetlands Day 2023 is “It’s Time for Wetlands Restoration”. About Ramsar Convention on Wetlands: The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance Especially as Waterfowl Habitat is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of Ramsar sites. It is also known as the Convention on Wetlands. It is named after the city of Ramsar in Iran, where the convention was signed in 1971. Note: India currently has 75 sites designated as Wetlands of International Importance (Ramsar Sites).
World Cancer Day is observed annually on 4 th February to spread awareness, inspire change and reduce the global impact of cancer. The aim is to reduce misconceptions surrounding cancer and the prejudices associated with it, to help people in getting the right information about it. The day is an initiative of the Union of International Cancer Control (UICC). Theme 2023: “Close the Care Gap: Uniting our voices and taking action” The day came into existence on 4 th February 2000, during the World Cancer Conference for the New Millennium in Paris, France.
International Day of Female Genital Mutilation is observed annually on 6 th February to eradicate female genital mutilation. The day was first observed in 2003. It is a joint program by UNFPA-UNICEF to eliminate Female Genital Mutilation (FGM).
Theme 2023: “Partnership with men and boys to transform social and gender norms to end FGM”.
6 th February 2023 marks the 12th anniversary of the International Day of Female Genital Mutilation. Female Genital Mutilation (FGM): Female genital mutilation (FGM) refers to all procedures involving partial or total removal of the female external genitalia or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons. It is most often carried out on young girls between infancy and age 15. In every form in which it is practiced, FGM is a violation of girls’ and women’s fundamental human rights, including their rights to health, security and dignity.
World Interfaith Harmony Week is observed every year in the first week of February, from February 1 to 7. This observation has emerged from the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) Resolution that seeks a worldwide celebration of interfaith harmony. The World Interfaith Harmony Week was started in 2010 by HM King Abdullah II and HRH Prince Ghazi bin Muhammad of Jordan. The goal of the week-long celebration is to promote harmony Weekly Current Affairs February 2023 Week – 01 iia www.practicemock.com 45 info@practicemock.com 9319314079 between citizens of the world, regardless of their faith. It is a celebration of unity in diversity, and the divine connection between people and their faith.
