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Current Affairs Pocket PDF – April 2024

Table of Contents
NATIONAL AFFAIRS ...................................................................................................................................................... 7
PARLIAMENT .............................................................................................................................................................. 7
STATEWISE NATIONAL NEWS ................................................................................................................................. 7
LAUNCHES & INAUGURATION ................................................................................................................................. 7
OTHER NATIONAL NEWS ......................................................................................................................................... 9
GOVT SCHEMES ............................................................................................................................................................ 14
CENTRAL GOVT SCHEMES ...................................................................................................................................... 14
INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS ......................................................................................................................................... 15
BANKING & FINANCE .................................................................................................................................................. 16
RBI IN NEWS ............................................................................................................................................................. 16
SEBI ............................................................................................................................................................................ 19
LOANS ISSUED BY BANKS....................................................................................................................................... 20
AGREEMENTS & MoUs SIGNED.............................................................................................................................. 20
OTHER BANKING NEWS ......................................................................................................................................... 24
FINANCE NEWS......................................................................................................................................................... 26
ECONOMY & BUSINESS ............................................................................................................................................... 30
GDP & GROWTH RATE ............................................................................................................................................ 30
ECONOMY NEWS ...................................................................................................................................................... 31
BUSINESS NEWS ....................................................................................................................................................... 31
MoU’s & AGREEMENTS ............................................................................................................................................... 32
MoU’s WITH COUNTRY ........................................................................................................................................... 32
MoU’s BETWEEN ORGANIZATION ........................................................................................................................ 33
OTHER MoU’s IN CONTENT FORMAT ................................................................................................................... 37
APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS .......................................................................................................................... 38
APPOINTMENTS....................................................................................................................................................... 38
NATIONAL ................................................................................................................................................................. 38
INTERNATIONAL ..................................................................................................................................................... 44
BRAND & CAMPAIGN AMBASSADORS ................................................................................................................. 47
RESIGNATIONS ......................................................................................................................................................... 47
OTHER APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS ........................................................................................................ 48
AWARDS ........................................................................................................................................................................ 48
AWARDS IN THE FIELD OF SPORTS ..................................................................................................................... 48

OTHER IMPORTANT AWARDS .............................................................................................................................. 50

AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS IN CONTENT FORMAT .......................................................................................... 53
SUMMITS, EVENTS & CONFERENCE.......................................................................................................................... 54
EVENTS ...................................................................................................................................................................... 54
COMMITTEES & MEETINGS........................................................................................................................................ 55
COMMITTEES............................................................................................................................................................ 55
INDEX ............................................................................................................................................................................. 56
RANKING ................................................................................................................................................................... 56
REPORTS ................................................................................................................................................................... 59
ACQUISITION & MERGERS ......................................................................................................................................... 64
DEFENCE........................................................................................................................................................................ 66
EXERCISE ................................................................................................................................................................... 66
TESTING .................................................................................................................................................................... 67
ARMY, NAVY & AIR FORCE NEWS ......................................................................................................................... 67
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY ........................................................................................................................................... 69
SATELLITES LAUNCHES .......................................................................................................................................... 69
NATIONAL ................................................................................................................................................................. 70
INTERNATIONAL ..................................................................................................................................................... 70
SPORTS .......................................................................................................................................................................... 72
BADMINTON & TENNIS........................................................................................................................................... 72
BOXING, WRESTLING & WEIGHTLIFTING ........................................................................................................... 75
ARCHERY & SHOOTING .......................................................................................................................................... 75
OTHER SPORTS NEWS ............................................................................................................................................ 76
BOOKS & AUTHORS ..................................................................................................................................................... 77
OBITUARY ..................................................................................................................................................................... 78
NATIONAL ................................................................................................................................................................. 78
INTERNATIONAL ..................................................................................................................................................... 78
IMPORTANT DAYS ....................................................................................................................................................... 79
APPS & WEB PORTAL ................................................................................................................................................. 90
ENVIRONMENT............................................................................................................................................................. 91

NATIONAL AFFAIRS
PARLIAMENT
Finance Ministry notifies a new FDI limits for satellite related activities under FEMA
The Ministry of Finance notified the amendment to Foreign Exchange Management (Non-Debt
Instruments) Rules 2019 to operationalise the new foreign direct investment (FDI) limits for satellite-
related activities. The new rules will be known as Foreign Exchange Management (Non-Debt
Instruments) (3rd Amendment) Rules, 2024.
✓ The new rules will come into effect from 16th April, 2024. Under the amended FDI Policy, 100%
FDI is allowed in the space sector.
✓ For manufacturing of components and systems or sub-systems for satellites, ground segment and
user segment, up to 100% FDI is allowed under the automatic route.
✓ For Satellites-Manufacturing and Operations; Satellite Data Products; and Ground Segment and
User Segment up to 74% FDI is allowed under automatic route and FDI over 74% will require
government approval.
STATEWISE NATIONAL NEWS

Assam
Ravi Kota IAS Takes Charge as New Chief Secretary of Assam
Ravi Kota, Senior Indian Administrative Service (IAS)Officer took charge as the new Chief Secretary of
Assam, succeeding Paban Kumar Borthakur.
Bihar
Bihar Postal Circle Released a Special Cover to Commemorate 250 years of ‘Copper Ticket’
The Department of Posts in Bihar has released a ‘Special Cover’ to commemorate 250 years of the
release of ‘Copper Ticket’, the world’s first postal ticket from Patna, Bihar. It was released by Anil
Kumar, Chief Postmaster General of Bihar Postal Circle.
Note: The Copper ticket was first issued from Azimabad, Patna (Bihar) in March 1774
Maharashtra
Hinduja Group’s CELERITYX and MAFCOCS Deploys ‘OneX’ to improve Maharashtra’s Bank
Connectivity
CELERITYX, the enterprise networking solutions business of OneOTT Intertainment Limited (OIL)
announced its collaboration with Maharashtra State Cooperative Credit Societies Federation
(MAFCOCS) for the deployment of OneX platform across 40,000 bank branches in Maharashtra
LAUNCHES & INAUGURATION

UNICEF India with IIHMR Delhi & IIT Mumbai Launches ‘Digital Health Enterprise Planning
Course’ to Bridge Tech-knowledge Gaps
The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) India, International Institute of Health Management
Research (IIHMR) Delhi, and the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay (Mumbai, Maharashtra)
have jointly launched, ‘Digital Health Enterprise Planning Course’, a comprehensive 10-week health
course.
➢ The course aims to enhance healthcare delivery by utilising digital technologies in line with the
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the GIDH.

➢ The Startup Incubation and Innovation Centre (SIIC) at the IIT-Kanpur (Uttar Pradesh-UP), inked a
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) agreement with Gliders India Limited, a Public Sector
Undertaking (PSU), under the Ministry of Defence(MoD), to spearhead innovation in the
healthcare sector.
Central Coalfields Limited Unveils New Logo

The Central Coalfields Limited (CCL) unveiled its official brand-new logo with the tagline “Fuelling
Sustainable Growth.” CCL, formerly National Coal Development Corporation Ltd., is a Category-I Mini-
Ratna Central Public Sector Undertaking (CPSU) company situated in Ranchi, Jharkhand.
Experimental Licence Module for 100 5G Labs virtually launched at IIT Madras
“Experimental Licence Module for 100 5G Labs” was virtually launched by Dr. Neeraj Mittal,
Secretary, Department of Telecommunication(DoT), Ministry of Communications during a 5G workshop
at the Indian Institute of Technology(IIT)-Madras, Chennai, Tamil Nadu(TN).
✓ The DoT has introduced a simplified mechanism for the issuance of licenses through a specific
Approval Type “Experimental Licence for 100 5G Labs” on NSWS portal.
NTPC Launches New Edition of Girl Empowerment Mission

NTPC Limited (formerly National Thermal Power Corporation) launched the latest edition of the Girl
Empowerment Mission (GEM), its flagship Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative. The new
GEM will add around 3000 underprivileged children at 42 locations of NTPC. With this, the mission will
expand to benefit a total of 10,000 girls.
Sany India Launches SKT105E, India’s 1st Locally-Made Electric Mining Truck
Sany Heavy Industry India Private Limited(SANY India), a construction and mining equipment
manufacturer, launched the SKT105E, India’s first locally manufactured fully electric opencast mining
truck.
NexCAR19: President Murmu Launched India’s 1st Indigenous CAR-T Cell Therapy
On April 4, 2024, the President of India Droupadi Murmu launched India's first home-grown Chimeric
Antigen Receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy namely 'NexCAR19 (Actalycabtagene autoleucel)’ for cancer
treatment during the event held at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay in Mumbai,
Maharashtra.
✓ India is now one of the first developing countries to have its indigenous CAR-T and gene therapy
platform.
✓ It developed through collaboration between IIT, Bombay and Tata Memorial Hospital (TMH),
Mumbai in association with industry partner Immunoadoptive Cell Therapy Private Limited
(ImmunoACT).
PM Modi Inaugurated 2550th Bhagwan Mahaveer Nirvan Mahotsav on Mahaveer

Jayanti
On April 21, 2024, i.e. on the occasion of Mahavir Jayanti, the Prime Minister (PM) of India Narendra
Modi inaugurated the 2550th Bhagwan Mahaveer Nirvan Mahotsav at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi,
Delhi.
PM Modi also released a commemorative stamp and coin to mark the 2550th Bhagwan Mahaveer
Nirvan Mahotsav.

The coin with denomination Rs 100 weigh 35 grams. The reverse of the coin features the image of the
Nalanda Pawapuri Jal Mandir and "Bhagwan Mahaveer 2550th Nirvan Kalyanak" in both Devanagari
script and English with year 2023 at the bottom
SJVN Limited inaugurates India’s 1st Multipurpose Green Hydrogen Pilot Project
Geeta Kapur, Chairman and Managing Director(CMD) of SJVN Limited(formerly known as Satluj Jal
Vidyut Nigam) inaugurated India’s 1st multipurpose(combined Heat and Power) green hydrogen pilot
project at the 1,500 megawatt (MW) Nathpa Jhakri Hydro Power Station (NJHPS) in Jhakri, Himachal
Pradesh(HP).
OTHER NATIONAL NEWS

India lost 2.33 million hectares of tree cover since 2000: Global Forest Watch
According to the Global Forest Watch (GFW) monitoring project data, India has lost 2.33 million
hectares (Mha) of tree cover since 2000 which is equivalent to a 6% decrease in tree cover during
2001-2023.
✓ Assam saw the most tree cover loss at 3,24,000 hectares(324kha) compared to average of 66.6kha,
followed by Mizoram(312kha), Arunachal Pradesh(262kha), Nagaland(259kha) and
Manipur(240kha).
✓ Arunachal Pradesh had the most tree cover at 6.11million hectares(6.11Mha) compared to an
average of 957 kha, then followed by Assam(2.57Mha), Chhattisgarh (2.28 Mha), Kerala(2.28Mha)
and Odisha(1.92Mha).
Adani Green Energy Becomes India’s First Company to Surpass 10,000 MW of

Renewable Energy
Adani Green Energy Limited (AGEL) has become the country's first company to surpass 10,000
megawatts (MW), or 10 gigawatts (GW), of renewable energy capacity in its operational portfolio. AGEL
has achieved this feat after it commissioned 2,000 MW of solar capacity at Khavda in Kutch, Gujarat.
IIT Madras Launches India's 1st Mobile Facility for Medical Devices Calibration
Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras (Chennai, Tamil Nadu) launched India's 1st medical
devices calibration facility on wheels, developed by IIT Madras under its 'Anaivarukkum IITM' (IITM
for all) Initiatives. The mobile facility aims to provide affordable, quality calibration services
nationwide; bridging the healthcare gap between urban and rural areas;
India, Mauritius amends Double Tax Avoidance Agreement

The Government of the Republic of India and the Government of Mauritius have amended the India-
Mauritius Double Tax Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) to focus on preventing tax evasion instead of
promoting bilateral investment flows.
✓ In February 2024, the Mauritius Cabinet of Ministers approved an amendment to the DTAA with
India to align with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)’s
proposal on Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS).
✓ Aim: To exclude encouragement of mutual trade and investment and to include the intention of
not providing treaty benefit that creates a situation of reduced taxation or non-taxation.

MoA&FW Introduced ‘CDP-SURAKSHA’, a Digital Platform to Disburse Subsidies to

Horticulture Farmers
The Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare (MoA&FW) introduced a digital platform called CDP-
SURAKSHA (Cluster Development Programme – System for Unified Resource Allocation, Knowledge,
and Secure Horticulture Assistance) to disburse subsidies to horticulture farmers under the CDP.
The CDP-SURAKSHA will allow an instant disbursal of subsidies to farmers in their bank account by
utilising the e-RUPI (electronic rupee/e-Rupee) voucher from the National Payments Corporation of
India (NPCI).
UP’s 13 Products Including Tirangi Barfi & Banaras Metal Casting Craft Gets GI Tag
The Government of India’s (GoI) Geographical Indication Registry granted Geographical Indication (GI)
tags to 13 new products of Uttar Pradesh (UP). This includes Banaras Tirangi Barfi and Banaras Metal
Casting Craft. With this the total number of GI products from UP becomes 75. UP has retained its
position as the state with most number of GI tagged products in India.
List of New GI products of UP:
GI product Goods
Banaras Tirangi Barfi Food Stuffs
Banaras Lal Peda (Sweet)
Jaunpur Imarti (Sweet)
Banaras Metal Casting Craft Handi Crafts
Lakhimpur Kheri Tharu Embroidery
Bareilly Furniture
Bareilly Zardoji Craft
Pilkhuwa Home Furnishing
Banarasi Tabla (Musical Instrument)
Banaras Shehnai (Musical Instrument)
Banaras Mural Painting

Chiraigaon Karonda of Varanasi Agriculture
Banaras Lal Bharwamirch (Red Pickel Chilli)
More than 27% of identified Glacial Lakes in Himalayas Expanded since 1984: ISRO
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)’s long-term satellite imagery covering the catchments
of Indian Himalayan river basins from 1984 to 2023 shows that more than 27% of the identified glacial
lakes in the Himalayas have expanded since 1984.
Among the 2,431 lakes larger than 10 hectares identified during 2016-17, around 676 glacial lakes have
notably expanded since 1984.
GI Tags Awarded to 19 Goods from Assam; 2 from Tripura and 4 from Meghalaya
The Government of India’s (GoI) Geographical Indication Registry granted Geographical Indication (GI)
tags to 19 traditional crafts of Assam, 2 from Tripura, and 4 from Meghalaya.
✓ Assam Bihu Dhol, Assam Jaapi, Sarthebari Metal Craft, Assam Pani Mateka Craft, Assam Mising
Handloom Products, Assam Asharikandi Terracotta Craft.

✓ Thirteen other Assamese items, associated with the Bodo people, the state’s largest indigenous
population, have also been granted GI tags. These include,
✓ Dokhona (traditional attire), Eri Silk / Indi Silk (fabric of peace), Jwmgra (scarf), and Gamsa
(traditional dress for men).
✓ Among these 13 items, three are agricultural products viz. Gongar Dunjia, Keradapini – (Plant,
Shrub), and Khardwi while six are musical instruments viz. Kham, Serja, Thorkha, Jotha – Bodo
Musical Instrument, Gongona, and Sifung.
✓ Meghalaya secured 4 GI tags Meghalaya Garo Dakmanda Textile, Meghalaya Lyrnai Pottery,
Meghalaya Chubitchi, Lakadong Turmeric
✓ Tripura’s Pachra/Rignai Textile and Tripura Matabari Peda gets GI tag.
Maharashtra’s Miraj Tanpura and Miraj Sitar; UP’s Bundelkhand Kathiya Gehu got GI
Tag
The Chennai (Tamil Nadu)-headquartered Geographical Indications Registry under the Department for
Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), the Ministry of Commerce and Industry awarded
geographical indication (GI) tags to Miraj Tanpura and Miraj Sitar of Maharashtra and Bundelkhand
Kathiya Gehu (Wheat) of Uttar Pradesh (UP).
List of Goods received GI tags:
S.No GI Product State Goods
1 Miraj Tanpura Maharashtra Handi Crafts
2 Miraj Sitar
3 Bundelkhand Kathiya Gehu (Wheat) Uttar Pradesh Agriculture
Adani Group's Kutch Copper Limited Commences Phase-1 Operations in Mundra

Kutch Copper Limited, a subsidiary of Adani Enterprises Limited (AEL) led by Gautam Adani,
commissioned the first unit of its greenfield copper refinery project at Mundra, Gujarat, by
dispatching the maiden batch of cathodes to customers.
✓ Adani Enterprises invested nearly USD 1.2 billion to set up a 0.5 million tonnes per annum (MTPA)
copper smelter in the first phase.
✓ Upon completion of the second phase, capacity doubles (1 MTPA), making Kutch Copper the
world's largest single-location custom smelter, adhering to Environmental, social, and governance
(ESG) standards. The plant is set to achieve a full-scale capacity (1 MTPA) by Financial Year 2028-
29 (FY29) (March 2029).
MNRE Reimposes ALMM Order on Solar PV Modules from 1st April 2024
The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has re-imposed ALMM [Approved List of Models &
Manufacturers] for Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Modules with effect from 1st April 2024. MNRE issued the
Approved Models and Manufacturers of Solar PV Modules (Requirements for compulsory Registration)
Order (ALMM Order), 2019 on 2 January 2019.
NHAI's One Vehicle, One FASTag' Rules Come into Force on 1 April 2024
The National Highways Authority of India's (NHAI)'One Vehicle, One FASTag' norm to discourage the
practice of using a single FASTag for multiple vehicles or linking multiple FASTags to one vehicle has
come into force from 1 April 2024.

Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) announced a new
satellite-based toll collection system will be introduced to replace the existing toll collection system in
India.
ISRO launches ‘START’ Online Training Program for Space Science Enthusiasts
Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has launched ‘Space Science and Technology Awareness
Training (START)’, a new introductory-level online training programme to encourage youngsters to
choose the field of space science and technology.
RECPDCL Handed Over Kallam Transco Limited SPV to Indigrid & Jalpura Khurja Power
Transmission Limited SPV to Tata Power
REC Power Development and Consultancy Limited (RECPDCL), a wholly owned subsidiary of REC
Limited, handed over 2 project-specific Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) namely, Kallam Transco
Limited and Jalpura Khurja Power Transmission Limited to their successful bidders.
Three New Archaeological Sites Discovered in Telangana

A team of archaeologists have discovered a unique Iron Age Megalithic site at Ooragutta near Bandala
village in SS Tadvai mandal of Mulugu district, Telangana. The team has also discovered two new rock
art sites at Damaratogu Gundala mandal of Bhadradri Kothagudem district, Telangana.
✓ One of the sites known as “Devarlabanda Mula” has only depictions of animals and no humans. It
is believed that the paintings dated back to Mesolithic age (between 8000-3000 BCE) since no
weapons or domestic animals are shown.
MoRTH Constructed 12,349 km of National Highways in FY24, the 2nd highest so far
According to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), a total of 12,349 km of National
Highways(NHs) were constructed in the Financial Year 2023–24 (FY24). This is the 2nd highest figure
in the history of the construction of national highways. FY21 stands in first place with a length of
13,327km of national highways.
Pilot Program for Cashless Treatment of Road Accident Victims
The Government of India (GoI) launched a pilot program in March 2024 to provide cashless treatment
to the victims of road accidents due to the use of motor vehicles.
Significance: It aims to reduce fatalities due to road accidents by providing timely medical care
including golden hour. It provides legal mandate under section162 of Motor Vehicles Act, 1988.
India's Gem and Jewellery Sector Receives AEO Status from Finance Ministry
The Ministry of Finance (MoF) has assigned the Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) status to the
gem and jewellery sector. The AEO program was introduced as a pilot project in 2011 by the Customs
Department aimed at promoting ease of doing business, saving time, and reducing costs for export-
oriented industries.
Asian Star, a leading diamond and diamond jewellery manufacturer, became the 1st recipient of AEO
status in the Indian gem and jewellery industry.
MoHFW Mandates Linking of CGHS Beneficiary ID with Ayushman Bharat Health

Account ID
The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) mandates the linking of the Central Government
Health Scheme (CGHS) beneficiary ID with the Ayushman Bharat Health Account(ABHA) ID, with effect
from 1st April 2024.

The MoHFW stated that all existing beneficiaries must complete the linking process within 30 days.
MCD Extends Deadline for Geo-tagging of Properties Till 30 June 2024

The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), a civic body of Delhi, has extended the last date for geo-
tagging of properties until 30th June 2024 to provide taxpayers another opportunity to register their
properties with MCD.
✓ It is a process that involves assigning a unique latitude-longitude coordinate to a property on a
Geographic Information System (GIS) map. This is done by associating the property's location with
a Unique Property Identification Code (UPIC).
Central Government Expands Committee for Drug and Medical Device Pricing Reforms
As per the official order of Department of Pharmaceuticals under the Ministry of Chemicals and
Fertilizers, Government of India (GoI) has approved the expansion of the committee formed to look into
pricing reforms for drugs and medical devices by admitting representatives from various industry
bodies.
India to Build First Strategic Petroleum Reserve with Private Company by 2029-30
India, the world’s third biggest oil importer and consumer, plans to build its first privately managed
Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) by 2029-30. Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves Ltd. (ISPRL), a
Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV), was created by the government of India under the Ministry of Petroleum
and Natural Gas in 2004 to maintain strategic petroleum reserves in the country.
It was set up in two phases : The first phase, ISPRL constructed a strategic petroleum reserve in three
locations: Visakhapatnam (1.33 million tonnes)Andhra Pradesh, Mangalore (1.5 million
tonnes)Karnataka, and Padur (2.5 million tonnes) Karnataka.
GoI to develop Plant for recycling LIBs & E-waste in Uttarakhand

The Technology Development Board (TDB), under the Department of Science and Technology (DST),
Ministry of Science and Technology (MoST), Government of India (GoI) entered into an agreement with
Remine India Private Limited to establish a commercial plant for recycling lithium-ion (Li-ion)
batteries (LIBs) and e-waste using indigenous technology in Sitarganj, Uttarakhand, with a total project
cost of Rs 15 crore
The new recycling plant will be set up at Eldeco in State Infrastructure & Industrial Development
Corporation Uttarakhand Ltd. (SIIDCUL) Industrial Area in Sitarganj, Udham Singh Nagar district.
India becomes Net Importer of Finished Steel in FY24: Ministry of Steel’s JPC
According To Provisional Government Data by Ministry of Steel's Joint Plant Committee (JPC), India was
a net importer of finished steel during the FY24 (April 2023 and March 2024). India imported 8.319
Million Metric Tons (MnT) of finished steel in FY24, up 38.1% from FY23 when it was 6.022 MnT amid
strong demand from construction and automotive sectors.
✓ Steel consumption in India jumped 13.4% to 136 million metric tons in FY24, reflecting buoyant
demand for the alloy.
✓ Finished steel exports from India increased to 7.48 MnT in FY24, up 11.5% from FY23.
IREDA & HUDCO granted ‘Navratna status’ by Department Of Public Enterprises

The Department of Public Enterprises (DPE), Ministry of Finance has granted Navratna status to Indian
Renewable Energy Development Agency Ltd (IREDA). The Department of Public Enterprises (DPE)
has also granted the Navratna Status to Housing and Urban Development Corporation Limited
(HUDCO).

✓ Navratna status is granted by the Indian government to top-tier Public Sector Undertakings
(PSUs), allowing them to make investments up to Rs 1,000 crore without central approval.
MEA Approves Taking Over the Operations of Sittwe Port in Myanmar

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has approved a proposal for India Ports Global Limited (IPGL)
to take over the operations of the Sittwe port located on the Kaladan River estuary in Rakhine,
Myanmar. It was the second foreign port operated by India, following the Chabahar Port in Iran.
Govt extends Deadline for Linking ABHA ID with CGHS ID

The Ministry of Health & Family Welfare (MoHFW) has extended the dealine for linking the Ayushman
Bharat Health Account (ABHA) ID with the Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS) Beneficiary ID
to 120 days with effect from 30th June 2024. The deadline for creating ABHA ID has been extended for a
time period of 90 days w.e.f. 30th June 2024.
MoA&FW Notifies Specifications of IFFCO's Nano Urea Plus

The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare(MoA&FW), Government of India notified
specifications of a new product Nano Urea (liquid) 16 (Nano Urea Plus) fertiliser to be manufactured
by Indian Farmers Fertilizer Cooperative Limited (IFFCO) in India for a period of 3 years with effect
from 15th April 2024.
✓ Nano Urea Plus is a new version of nano urea meant for meeting crop nitrogen requirements at
critical growth phases.
DPE granted Navratna status to National Fertilizers Limited

On 18th April 2024, the Department of Public Enterprise(DPE) under the Ministry of Finance has
granted the Navratna status to National Fertilizers Limited(NFL). The upgradation of NFL from
Miniratna-I to Navratna status was done under Regulation 30 read with schedule III of SEBI(Listing
Obligations and Disclosure Requirements(LODR))Regulations, 2015.
GOVT SCHEMES
CENTRAL GOVT SCHEMES
GoI Introduced new EMPS 2024 scheme from 1st April, after FAME-II
The new Electric Mobility Promotion Scheme 2024(EMPS 2024) under Ministry of Heavy Industries,
Government of India came into effect on 1st April, 2024 and will continue till the end of July 2024.
Meanwhile, the 2nd phase of FAME-II (Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles in India)
scheme ends on 31st March, 2024.
✓ The scheme has set the budget outlay of Rs500 crore and will replace FAME-II scheme. As of now,
the scheme will be implemented for 4 months i.e. from 1st April,2024 to 31st July,2024.

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS
WHO Launches CoViNet, a Network of Laboratory to Monitor Emerging Coronaviruses
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has launched the Coronavirus Network (CoViNet), a global
network which will ensure timely detection, monitoring, and assessment of coronaviruses of public
health importance.
✓ CoViNet includes 36 laboratories from 21 countries across all 6 WHO regions. This includes 3
Indian laboratories.
✓ Council of Scientific and Industrial Research-National Environmental Engineering Research
Institute (CSIR-NEERI), Chennai, Tamil Nadu.
✓ Indian Council of Medical Research-National Institute of Virology (ICMR-NIV), Pune, Maharashtra.
✓ Translational Health Science and Technology Institute (THSTI), Faridabad, Haryana.
Saudi Arabia Chosen to Chair UN Women's Rights Commission despite Rights Concerns
The United Nations(UN) Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) has unanimously appointed Saudi
Arabia to chair its 69th session in 2025.
✓ Abdulaziz Alwasil, Permanent Representative of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to the UN, has been
elected as the chair of the CSW, succeeding the outgoing chair, Antonio Manuel Lagdameo,
Permanent Representative of the Philippines to the UN.
UNHCR launches Climate Resilience Fund to Shield Refugees and Displaced People from
Climate Shocks
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) launched the UNHCR Climate
Resilience Fund, aiming to raise USD100 million by 2025 for protecting refugees and displaced
communities from climate change impacts and promoting their inclusion in climate-related measures.
✓ It will also support a range of activities in line with UNHCR’s Focus Area Strategic Plan for Climate
Action 2024-2030. Contributions to the Fund will extend UNHCR’s climate action to countries
grappling with conflict-related displacement, including Bangladesh, Chad, Ethiopia, Kenya, and
Mozambique.
Romania & Bulgaria Partially Join Europe's Schengen Travel Zone

Romania and Bulgaria became the newest Member States to partially join the Schengen area, the
Europe’s ID-check-free travel zone. With this any person crossing the internal air and sea borders will
no longer be subject to checks. With this, the Schengen area now has 29 members.
Zimbabwe Launches New Gold-Backed Currency “ZiG”; Replaces Zimbabwe dollars

The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe(RBZ) has launched the new currency “Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG)” backed
by gold and foreign currencies to replace its local currency Zimbabwe dollars(ZW$)- Real Time Gross
Settlement (RTGS) dollar. ZiG is backed by a composite basket of foreign currency and precious metals,
mainly gold.
Sweden Becomes 38th Signatory to the Artemis Accords

Sweden officially became the 38th nation to sign the National Aeronautics and Space
Administration(NASA)’s “Artemis Accords” which establish a practical set of guidelines for peaceful
space exploration and use of outer space. Switzerland became the 37th country to sign the Artemis
Accords.

✓ The Artemis Accords was jointly launched by National Aeronautics and Space Administration
(NASA) and US Department of State in 2020 with an aim of advancing bilateral and multilateral
space cooperation between the signatories.
BANKING & FINANCE

RBI IN NEWS
Highlights of RBI's 1st Bi-monthly Monetary Policy of FY25; India’s real GDP to grow at
7% in FY25
The Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) met on April 3-5, 2024, and
released 1st Bi-monthly Monetary Policy of FY25 i.e. 'Monetary Policy Statement, 2024-25 Resolution of
the MPC' which kept India’s real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth at 7% for FY25 (2024-25) with
FY25’s Q1 (April-June) at 7.1%, Q2 (July-September) at 6.9%, Q3 (October-December) at 7%, and Q4
(January-March) at 7%.
✓ RBI kept the repo rate unchanged at 6.5% for 7th consecutive time.
✓ Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation or retail inflation is projected at 4.5% (unchanged vis-a-vis
February 2024 projection) for FY25, with FY25’s Q1 at 4.9%, Q2 at 3.8%, Q3 at 4.6%, and Q4 at
4.5%.
✓ RBI has decided to allow Small Finance Banks (SFBs) to use permissible rupee interest derivative
products. At present, SFBs are permitted to use only Interest Rate Futures (IRFs) for proprietary
hedging.
✓ With a view to facilitating wider non-resident participation in Sovereign Green Bonds (SGrBs), a
scheme for investment and trading in these bonds is available at the IFSC (International Financial
Services Centre) in Gandhinagar, Gujarat.
✓ RBI would launch a mobile app for accessing the Retail Direct portal to widen the reach of the RBI
Retail Direct Scheme which was launched in November 2021.Click here to read full News
RBI Cancels CoR of 4 NBFCs; Imposes fine on IDFC First Bank & LIC Housing Finance
The Reserve Bank of India(RBI) has cancelled the Certificate of Registration(CoR) of Four Non-Banking
Financial Companies (NBFCs) in the exercise of powers conferred on it under Section 45-IA (6) of the
RBI Act, 1934.
✓ The 4 NBFCs are, Kundles Motor Finance Private Limited (Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh-UP), Nithya
Finance Limited (Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu-TN), Bhatia Hire Purchase Private Limited (Bathinda,
Punjab) and Jiwanjyoti Deposits and Advances Limited (Hamirpur, Himachal Pradesh).
✓ RBI has imposed a monetary penalty of Rs 1 crore on IDFC First Bank Limited for non-compliance
with certain directions issued by RBI on ‘Loans and Advances – Statutory and Other Restrictions’.
✓ RBI has imposed a monetary penalty of Rs 49.70 lakhs on LIC Housing Finance Limited for non-
compliance
RBI: Reserve assets surge by USD34.8 billion, net claims of NRI declined by USD12.2
billion
As per the latest data released by RBI, India’s International Investment Position (IIP) as of December
2023 showed a decline in net claims of Non-Residents on India by USD12.2 billion during the period
from October to December 2023 to USD370.4 billion as the end of December 2023.

RBI to set up Digital India Trust Agency to Check Illegal Lending Apps
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will establish a Digital India Trust Agency (DIGITA) to combat the
proliferation of illegal lending apps. DIGITA would serve as a crucial checkpoint to tackle the issue of
illegal lending apps.
✓ Apps lacking the 'verified' mark from DIGITA would be deemed unauthorized for law enforcement
purposes. The agency aims to vet digital lending apps for compliance and maintain a public
register of verified apps.
PM Modi addresses RBI@90 Programme; RBI marks 90 years

Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi addressed the opening ceremony of RBI@90, as the Reserve Bank
of India (RBI) marked its 90th year on April 1, 2024. The ceremony took place at National Centre for the
Performing Arts in Mumbai, Maharashtra.
✓ A special Rs 90 coin was unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to commemorate 90 years of
RBI. RBI was established on 1st April,1935, based on the recommendation of Hilton Young
Commission (formed in 1926).
RBI Delays Currency Derivative Regulations to Curb Speculative Trading to May 3, 2024
On 4th April 2024, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has deferred the implementation of Exchange
Traded Currency Derivatives (ETCD) regulations by a month to May 3, 2024 to curb speculative
trading. This is in view of the feedback received from the market and the recent developments.
As per the regulations, only traders with underlying forex exposure are permitted to trade in currency
derivatives, such as futures contracts, aiding companies in hedging against currency risk.
CAMS Receives RBI’s Nod to Operate as an Online Payment Aggregator

Computer Age Management Services Ltd (CAMS), India's largest mutual fund transfer agency, has
received a Certificate of Authorisation from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to operate as an online
payment aggregator.
RBI raises Minimum Capital Requirements for ARCs to Rs 300cr; Deputy Governor T.
Rabi Sankar gets 1-Year Extension
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued Master Direction – Reserve Bank of India (Asset Reconstruction
Companies) Directions, 2024 in exercise of its powers conferred by Sections 3, 9, 10, 12 and 12A of the
Securitization and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest
(SARFAESI) Act, 2002 (54 of 2002) which came into effect from April 24, 2024.
✓ Under this, RBI raised the Minimum Capital Requirement for ARCs from Rs 100 crore to Rs 300
crore. As per the directions, ARCs by March 31, 2024, to reach a minimum NOF of Rs 200 crore,
and Rs 300 crore by March 31, 2026.
✓ As per the provision of Section 10(2) of the SARFAESI Act, 2002, ARCs with a minimum NOF of Rs
1,000 crore will be eligible to act as Resolution Applicants under Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code
(IBC), 2016 of India.
✓ Every ARC must maintain a capital adequacy ratio of at least 15% of its total risk-weighted assets.
RBI Deputy Governor T. Rabi Sankar Granted One-Year Extension
The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) has re-appointed T. Rabi Sankar as Deputy Governor
of RBI for a period of one year w.e.f. May 03, 2024, or until further orders, whichever is earlier.

RBI restricts Kotak Mahindra Bank from Adding New Customers Online and Issuing
New Credit Cards
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in exercise of its powers under Section 35A of the Banking Regulation
(BR) Act, 1949, barred Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited from onboarding of new customers through its
online and mobile banking channels and issuing fresh credit cards.
RBI lays out Framework for Voluntary Transition of Small Finance Banks(SFBs) to
Universal Banks(UBs)
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) laid out a framework in the form of eligibility conditions for the voluntary
transition of Small Finance Banks(SFBs) to Universal Banks(UBs). RBI issued these instructions in
exercise of the power given under Section 22(1) of the Banking Regulation Act 1949.
Eligibility Criteria for conversion of SFBs into UBs:
✓ SFBs should have a minimum net worth of Rs1000 crore as at the end of the previous
quarter(audited).
✓ Interested SFBs should have scheduled status with a satisfactory track record of performance for a
minimum period of 5 years.
✓ It should meet the prescribed Capital to Risk-Weighted Assets Ratio (CRAR) requirements of 15%
of SFBs.
✓ SFB should have Gross Non-Performing Asset(GNPA) and Net Non-Performing Asset(NNPA) of
less than or equal to 3% and 1% respectively in the last 2 financial years. Click here to read full
News
RBI Directs all REs to Provide KFS to Borrowers w.e.f 1st October 2024
The Reserve Bank Of India(RBI) has mandated all Regulated entities (REs) (banks and financial
institutions) to provide comprehensive key facts statements (KFS) to all new retail and Micro, Small &
Medium Enterprises (MSME) borrowers with effect from 1st October 2024. This is a part of RBI’s
effort to increase lending practices’ transparency.
✓ KFS will include a computation sheet of the annual percentage rate (APR) and the loan's
amortisation schedule over the loan tenor.
RBI Kept FPI Investment Limit in G-Sec Unchanged at 6% of Outstanding Stock For FY25
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced that the investment limit by Foreign Portfolio
Investors(FPI) in Government Securities(G-Sec) will remain unchanged at 6% of outstanding security
stocks for FY25(2024-25).
The FPI limits for investment in the state government securities (SGSs) and corporate bonds are
maintained at 2% and 15% respectively, of outstanding security stocks for FY25.
RBI Directs Talkcharge to Stop PPI, Wallet Issuance & Refund Balances
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has directed to Gurugram(Haryana)-based fintech firm Talkcharge
Technologies Private Limited(Talkcharge) to stop the issuance and operations of its Prepaid Payment
Instruments(PPIs) or wallets and refund the balances held in the wallets within 45 days (by May 17,
2024).

SEBI
SEBI launches SCORES 2.0 to Strengthen Complaint Redressal System
Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) launched the new version of SCORES (SEBI Complaint
Redressal System), i.e., SCORES 2.0. This will enhance investor complaint resolution in the securities
market by auto routing and auto escalation, monitoring by designated bodies, and reducing timelines.
✓ The website URL for SCORES 2.0 from April 01, 2024 is http://scores.sebi.gov.in
✓ Note -SCORES is an online system where investors in securities market can lodge their complaints
through web URL and an App.
✓ It establishes uniform timelines for complaint resolution across the securities market: 21
calendar days from complaint receipt.
SEBI gets ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Certification for Information Security Management

Systems
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has received the International Organization for
Standardization/International Electrotechnical Commission(ISO/IEC) 27001:2022 certification for its
✓ Information Security Management System(ISMS) at the Primary Data Centre,
✓ ISMS at the Disaster Recovery site, and
✓ Security Operations Control (SOC) and Network Operations Control (NOC) Operations.
Sebi received this certification following an audit by the certification body under the accreditation of
the National Accreditation Board for Certification Bodies (NABCB), a member of the International
Accreditation Forum(IAF).
SEBI allows AIFs to Pledge Equity Shares of Investee Companies in Infrastructure Sector
Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has notified a framework for Category I and Category II
Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs) in the infrastructure sector to raise debt by pledging the equity of
their investee companies.
✓ Category I and Category II AIFs can create encumbrances on investee companies’ equity in the
infrastructure sector to facilitate debt raising, under Regulation 16(1)(c) and 17(c) of AIF
Regulations, subject to compliance with RBI regulations.
Sebi Notified BSE to Pay Regulatory Fee on Options Contract
✓ SEBI has notified BSE (formerly Bombay Stock Exchange) to pay regulatory fees based on
notional value rather than premium value for options contracts.
Groww Mutual Fund receives SEBI approval to launch India’s 1st Nifty Non-Cyclical
Consumer Index Fund
Groww Mutual Fund, an asset management company (AMC), has received approval from the Securities
and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to launch India’s inaugural Nifty Non-Cyclical Consumer Index
Fund.
✓ Fund Objective: It aims for long-term capital growth by investing in securities mirroring the Nifty
Non-Cyclical Consumer Index's performance with minimal tracking errors.
CRISIL ESG Ratings Gets SEBI nod to Offer ESG ratings

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has approved CRISIL ESG Ratings & Analytics
Limited (CRISIL ESG Ratings), a wholly owned subsidiary of CRISIL Ratings Ltd (CRL), as a Category 1
provider of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) ratings.

✓ ESG ratings process includes the analysis of more than 500 unique data points across ESG aspects
for each company. It will help the investors to measure and monitor ESG risks and enable them to
identify investment opportunities considering long-term sustainability of business.
LOANS ISSUED BY BANKS

LOANS RECEIVED BY AMOUNT KEY NOTES
ISSUED BY
Servizi REC Limited(formerly Japanese Yen REC Limited(formerly Rural Electrification
Assicurativi del Rural Electrification (JPY) 60.536 Corporation Limited) has secured a green loan
Commercio Corporation Limited) (~Rs 3250 of Japanese Yen (JPY) 60.536 (~Rs 3250
Estero (SACE) crore) crore) from Servizi Assicurativi del Commercio
Estero (SACE), an Italian export credit agency,
to finance green projects in India.
The loan facility is a first-of-its-kind
collaboration between Indian entity REC and
SACE. It also marks SACE’s 1st JPY-
denominated loan transaction and 1st green
loan transaction in India.
AGREEMENTS & MoUs SIGNED

BANKS SIGNED WITH KEY NOTES
Abu Dhabi Investment Prestige Group Strategic deal worth Rs 2,001 crore to develop
Authority(ADIA) and residential projects in prominent locations across
Kotak AIF(Alternative 4 cities in India.
Investment Fund) ü The investment will be made in developing
Greenfield residential projects across cities
like Bengaluru, Mumbai, Goa and Delhi
NCR(National Capital Region) with a
combined Gross Development Value(GDV)
of over Rs 18,000 crore.
PhonePe Star Health and Allied To offer customers health insurance with a
Insurance Company Ltd. monthly and annual payment option.
(Star Health Insurance), This will enable users to avail ‘Star
India’s largest retail health Comprehensive Insurance Policy’ on the
insurance Company PhonePe app with coverage up to Rs 1 Crore.
Jammu & Kashmir Bank Paymart India Pvt Ltd To launch an innovative Virtual Automated Teller
Limited (J&K Bank) Machine (ATM)(VATM) facility. The collaboration
aims to introduce cardless cash withdrawals for
the Bank’s customers through local merchants in
the neighbourhood.

Small Industries Bengaluru (Karnataka) To use its technology platform KarmaLife for a
Development Bank of based fintech startup pilot to offer micro-loans for gig workers.
India (SIDBI) Onionlife Private Limited KarmaLife platform will enable gig workers to
access micro-loans through a mobile app,
eliminating extensive paperwork.
Canara Bank Society for Innovation and To empower startups across India. Under the
Entrepreneurship (SINE) at Canara Bank's Start-Up Scheme, financial
the Indian Institute of assistance at an attractive return on investment
Technology (IIT) Bombay, (ROI) will be provided for establishment,
Mumbai (Maharashtra) promotion, and modernization.
Artemis Medicare International Finance To raise funds of Rs 330 crores in the form of
Services Limited (AMSL) Corporation (IFC), a Compulsorily Convertible Debentures (CCDs).
member of the World Bank
Group
PhonePe Singapore Tourism Board Signed a two-year Memorandum of Understanding

(STB), a lead development (MoU) to promote Unified Payments Interface
agency for tourism, (UPI) for Indians travelling in Singapore.
Singapore
ICICI Lombard General Insurance platform To provide a comprehensive product portfolio of
Insurance Company Policybazaar ICICI Lombard to the wide user base of
Limited Policybazaar. Policybazaar will distribute ICICI
Lomard's products across various platforms,
including policybazaar.com for retail audiences, PB
for Business for corporates, and PB Partners for
channel partners.
Bengaluru (Karnataka)- eSewa, a digital wallet To promote digital payments through Unified
based Fintech company service of Nepal and the Payments Interface (UPI) on the Nepal payment
PhonePe Hotel Association of Nepal processor Fonepay Network.
(HAN)-Pokhara (a regional This partnership is a part of the 19th Fewa New
association of HAN, Nepal) Year Festival which will be held in Nepal from
11th to 14th April 2024.
Karnataka Bank Ltd, a FISDOM To offer stock broking services and 3 in 1

leading private sector Accounts (Savings, Demat, and Trading accounts)
Bank through the "KBL Mobile Plus", the mobile banking
app of Karnataka Bank.
PayU, a leading online PayPal, an American The strategic partnership aims to improve the
payment solution multinational fintech cross border payment experience for Indian
company merchants.

Jio Financial Services BlackRock, Inc. and Signed an agreement to form 50:50 Joint Venture
(JFS), the financial BlackRock Advisors (JV) to set up a wealth management and broking
services arm of Reliance Singapore Pte business in India.
Industries Ltd (RIL) ü 50:50 JV was established by the companies
to introduce asset management services
in India, with each committing an initial
investment of USD 150 million.
Bank of India (BOI), an India Mortgage Guarantee To provide mortgage guarantee-backed home loan
Indian Public Sector Corporation (IMGC) products in the affordable housing segment. The
Bank (PSB) agreement aims to promote financial inclusion and
make homeownership more accessible for
borrowers in India.
Jana Small Finance Kotak Mahindra Life To offer life insurance products to the customers of
Bank(SFB) Limited Insurance Company Limited Jana SFB. The life insurance products will include
long-term savings and retirement solutions.
Small Industries Jeevika, Bihar State Rural To extend Prayaas scheme to Self-Help
Development Bank of Livelihoods Mission(SRLM) Group(SHG) individual women through Cluster
India(SIDBI) in and UMED, Maharashtra- Level Federations(CLFs).
association with SRLM During the pilot phase of project, SIDBI will
Women’s World partner with 35 to 40 CLFs across Bihar and
Banking(WWB) Maharashtra with a target of providing affordable
credit up to Rs 2 lakh to 5,000 women
entrepreneurs. The project will receive financial
support from MetLife Foundation.
Airtel Payments Bank National Payments To introduce eco-friendly NCMC (National

Corporation of India Common Mobility Cards) debit and prepaid cards.
(NPCI) These cards are powered by RuPay and are crafted
from environmentally sustainable e-PVC material.
This is in line with Airtel Payments Bank’s
commitment to India’s One Nation, One Card
vision.
Amazon Pay National Payments As per the report by Financial Express, Amazon
Corporation of India (NPCI) Pay in partnership with National Payments
Corporation of India (NPCI) is set to introduce its
credit services on the Unified Payments Interface
(UPI). This initiative aims to improve customer
experience and value propositions.

South Indian Bank Ashok Leyland Limited, a For financing dealers under the bank’s dealer
commercial vehicle maker finance program. This arrangement is mutually
beneficial for vehicle manufacturers, dealers and
South Indian Bank.
Razorpay Software Airtel Payments Bank Razorpay Software Private Limited (Razorpay),
Private Limited online instant payment company launched its own
(Razorpay), online Unified Payments Interface (UPI) infrastructure
instant payment with “UPI Switch”, a next-generation cloud based
company innovation, in partnership with Airtel Payments
Bank. UPI Switch is powered by Technology
Service Providers (TSPs) for banks.
Indian Bank, an Indian Tata Power Solar Systems To promote solar energy adoption by providing
public sector bank(PSB) Limited (TPSSL) financial support to residential consumers for
installations.
This strategic partnership aims to provide financial
support under Pradhan Mantri (PM) Surya Ghar
Muft Bijli Yojana for installations of solar rooftop
up to 3 KiloWatt (KW) and extend support for
installations ranging from 3 to 10 KW under the
regular scheme.
National Bank for Reserve Bank Innovation To develop a system that will help speed up the
Agriculture and Rural Hub (RBIH), a wholly- process of agricultural loans.
Development (NABARD) owned subsidiary of the ü According to the agreement, NABARD will
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) integrate its electronic Kisan Credit Card
(e-KCC) loan origination system portal
with Public Tech Platform for Frictionless
Credit(PTPFC) of RBIH.
HDFC Life, one of India’s Peerless Financial Products This partnership would enable PFPDL to distribute
leading insurers Distribution Ltd. (PFPDL) HDFC Life's life insurance products to its
customers.
Ericsson India Foundation for Innovation At the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur,
& Research in Science & Uttar Pradesh(UP) have signed a 2-year
Technology (F.I.R.S.T) partnership to boost innovation in Mobile
Financial Services (MFS) and Fintech solutions.

State Bank of India (SBI) HCLSoftware The State Bank of India (SBI) has entered into a
five-year agreement with HCLSoftware, the
software business unit of HCLTech, to digitally
transform its customer interaction framework by
utilising the HCL Unica platform.
OTHER BANKING NEWS

ADB Pledged USD23.6 billion in 2023 to Help Asia and Pacific Progress on Sustainable
Development
Asian Development Bank(ADB) pledged USD 23.6 billion from its own resources in 2023 which also
include USD 9.8 billion for climate action, to help Asia and Pacific progress on sustainable
development. The amount is raised through loans, grants, equity investments, guarantees and technical
support provided to governments and private sector.
✓ ADB also raised an additional USD16.4 billion in co-financing through its strong partnerships.
Karnataka Bank Raises Rs 600 cr Through Qualified Institutional Placement

Karnataka Bank has approved the allotment of shares pursuant to the Qualified Institutional
Placement (QIP), at a price of Rs 227 per equity share, which includes premium of Rs 217 per share.
This amounts to an aggregate of up to Rs 600 crores.
Canara Bank launches Loan Products to meet Hospitalization Expenses

On 3rd April 2024, Canara Bank launched a range of innovative products aimed at enhancing financial
inclusivity and addressing healthcare needs.
Details of the New Products:
✓ Canara Heal: A healthcare loan product to cover hospitalization expenses beyond insurance
limits, available at competitive interest rates.
✓ Canara Angel: A custom savings account for women with unique features like cancer care policy
✓ Canara ReadyCash, a pre-approved personal loans
✓ Canara MyMoney, an online loan against term deposit product.
UBI Raises Rs 4,200 Crore from DIFC To Fund Overseas Business

The Union Bank of India (UBI), has raised USD 500 million (about Rs 4,200 crore) from foreign
markets to fund overseas business growth. The fund was arranged by Dubai International Financial
Centre (DIFC), Dubai Branch, United Arab Emirates (UAE).
SBI & Standard Chartered Bank carried out the First Credit Default Swap Trade under
new RBI Guidelines
The State Bank of India (SBI) and Standard Chartered Bank India carried out the Credit Default Swap
(CDS) trade worth Rs 25 crore. This marks the 1st CDS transaction since the Reserve Bank of India
(RBI) issued revised CDS guidelines in 2022. The trade involved a 1-year rupee CDS featuring REC.
IPPB Introduces Aadhaar ATM Service for Convenient Cash Withdrawals

The India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) has introduced the Aadhaar ATM service facility for its users. It
works on the principle of the Aadhaar Enabled Payment System (AePS), which was introduced by the
National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).

✓ This IPPB Online Aadhaar ATM facility will enable customers to avail cash without visiting a bank
or an Automated teller machine (ATM) and simply avail cash at their doorsteps with the help of a
postman/gramin dak sevak.
✓ NPCI has set a maximum transaction amount of Rs. 10,000 on a single AePS financial transaction.
S&P Global: 3 Indian Banks Among Top 50 lenders in Asia-Pacific by Assets

Three Indian Banks namely, the State Bank of India (SBI), HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank are featured in the
list of top 50 largest banks in Asia-Pacific Region by Assets - 2024 released by The S&P Global Market
Intelligence. China’s Industrial and Commercial Bank of China limited retained its position as the largest
bank in Asia pacific as well as in world in 2023.
Ranking of Indian Banks on the list:
Rank Name of the Bank Headquarter
20 SBI Mumbai, Maharashtra
33 HDFC Bank Mumbai, Maharashtra
48 ICICI Bank Mumbai, Maharashtra
10 Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) Launched new “Global Collaborative Co-

Financing” Platform
On the sidelines of the 2024 International Monetary Fund(IMF) and World Bank Spring meetings which
took place in Washington D.C.(U.S.A.) on 20th April 2024, 10 Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs)
jointly launched the Global Collaborative Co-financing platform.
The 10 MDBs are: Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank(AIIB), World Bank Group(WBG), African
Development Bank(AfDB), Asian Development Bank(ADB), Council of Europe Development
Bank(CEB), European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), European Investment
Bank(EIB), Inter-American Development Bank(IDB), Islamic Development Bank(IsDB), and New
Development Bank(NDB).
American Express Launches New Metal Corporate Platinum Card

On April 5 2024, American Express launched the new Metal Corporate Platinum Card, designed to
meet the changing needs of business owners and entrepreneurs in India. The card offers best-in-class
advantages including Taj Epicure Plus Membership and Gold Elite Status at Marriott Bonvoy
NABARD releases Climate Strategy 2030 to promote green financing

National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) released its Climate Strategy 2030
document. The document was released by Shaji K.V., Chairman, NABARD on the occasion of World
Earth Day (22nd April, 2024). The main objective of this strategy document is to promote and boost
green financing in India.
✓ To achieve a cumulative total of over USD 2.5 trillion by 2030, India requires an estimated USD
170 billion annually.

Axis Bank & Shoppers Stop Launched a New Co-branded Credit Card "Axis Bank
Shoppers Stop Credit Card"
Axis Bank Limited collaborated with Shoppers Stop Ltd to launch “Axis Bank Shoppers Stop Credit
Card", a co-branded Credit Card, to enhance the shopping experience for cardholders, both online and
offline at an event at the Shoppers Stop Malad store, in Mumbai, Maharashtra.
NBBL and SBI introduce NCMC recharge on Bharat BillPay

NPCI Bharat BillPay Ltd. (NBBL), a wholly owned subsidiary of the National Payments Corporation of
India (NPCI), in association with the State Bank of India (SBI), has onboarded the SBI National Common
Mobility Card (NCMC) on its Bharat BillPay platform for the convenience of travellers.
Revolut India Gets in-principle Nod for PPI Licence from RBI
Revolut India, a neobank backed by Tiger Global and Softbank, has received in-principle approval
from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to issue Prepaid Payment Instruments (PPIs) including prepaid
cards and prepaid wallets. The new license complements Revolut India’s existing licenses from the RBI,
allowing it to function as a Category-II Authorised Money Exchange Dealer (AD II).
FINANCE NEWS
GoI approved Bonus for PLI & RPLI Scheme for FY25
The Government of India (GoI) has approved a simple reversionary bonus for the Postal Life Insurance
(PLI) Scheme and Rural Postal Life Insurance (RPLI) Scheme for the fiscal year 2024-25 (FY25) without
changing the bonus rate. The rates of bonus for the FY25 will be applicable from 1st April 2024.
For Whole Life Assurance (WLA/Suraksha), the rate of bonus will be at Rs.76 per thousand of sum
assured.
IRDAI Announces Final Rules on Surrender Value from April 1 2024

The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) announced final rules on
surrender value for traditional endowment policies effective from April 1, 2024.
Surrender value %:
The proposed slabs for the surrender value percentages are:
✓ 30% of total premiums paid if surrendered during the second year.
✓ 35% of total premiums paid if surrendered during the third year
✓ 50% of total premiums paid if surrendered between the fourth and seventh years
✓ 90% of total premiums paid if surrendered during the last two years.
Bajaj Auto, Tata Motors and Coal India among Top 5 Index Performers in FY24
Indian financial markets finished the Financial year 2023-24(FY24) on a positive note with domestic
equity indices: Nifty50 and Sensex achieving their most robust performance in three fiscal years. Bajaj
Auto, Tata Motors and Coal India Limited emerged as the Top 3 Index Performers in FY24.
✓ The top 5 best performers in largecaps for FY24 are, Zomato, TATA Motors - DVR Ltd, Adani
Power, Punjab National Bank & Delhi Land & Finance (DLF Limited).
NIIF Invests USD 200 mn in iBus to Boost Digital Infrastructure in India

National Investment and Infrastructure Fund Limited (NIIF) has invested USD 200 million(about Rs
1660 crores) in iBus Network And Infrastructure Pvt Ltd(iBUS), a Bengaluru(Karnataka)-based Digital
Infrastructure Solutions Company, to support the growth of the digital infrastructure in India.
✓ The investment, in line with India’s Digital India Mission, was made through NIFF’s Master Fund.

AmpIn Energy Gets 25 million euro Funding from OeEB, Development Bank of Austria
AmpIn Energy Transition Private Limited received 25 million Euro investment from OeEB -
Oesterreichische Entwicklungsbank AG (Development Bank of Austria) in a long term financing to
support the energy expansion plans of AmpIn Energy. This will also support the AmpIn to establish a
local 1-Gigawatt(GW) solar cell and module production facility in Odisha.
L&T Finance Holdings Renamed as “ L&T Finance Limited”

L&T Finance Holdings Ltd (LTFH), a subsidiary of Larsen & Toubro (L&T) Limited, has received
approval from Registrar of Companies (RoC) to change its name to “L&T Finance Limited(LTF)” with
effect from 28th March 2024.
✓ In December 2023, LTFH(now LTF) completed the merger of its subsidiaries, namely L&T Finance
Ltd., L&T Infra Credit Ltd., and L&T Mutual Fund Trustee Ltd., with itself to creates a "Single
Lending Entity".
Aegon Life Insurance Renamed as Bandhan Life by BFHL

Bandhan Financial Holdings Limited (BFHL), the promoter of Bandhan Bank, has renamed Aegon Life
Insurance as Bandhan Life. The new logo (growing ‘bud’) and the tagline 'Bharat Ki Udaan, Bandhan
Se' also unveiled. BFHL completed the acquisition of Aegon Life Insurance from Aegon India Holding
B.V. and Bennett, Coleman & Company Limited(BCCL) in February 2024.
CRED Receives in-principle Approval from RBI for Payment Aggregator Licence
CRED, a Bengaluru (Karnataka) based fintech unicorn company, has received in-principle approval
from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for the payment aggregator (PA) licence. Payment aggregators
provide secure online payment systems and solutions to merchants.
TATA AIG General Insurance Company Introduces 'Travel Guard Plus' Insurance
Product
TATA AIG General Insurance Company Limited, a leading general insurance provider, has launched
“Travel Guard Plus“, a comprehensive travel insurance product aimed at redefining complete coverage
for travellers. Customers can choose from 3 add-on bundles: Cruise Bundle, Travel Plus Bundle, and
Accident Bundle, catering to specific needs.
Tata Mutual Fund Introduces 6 Index Funds, 3 are Industry-First

Tata Mutual Fund/Tata Asset Management Private Limited launched six index funds offering a new
investment opportunity with a minimum investment of Rs 5,000 during the New Fund Offer (NFO)
period, which runs from April 8 to April 22, 2024.
✓ The new index funds are Tata Nifty Auto Index Fund, Tata Nifty Realty Index Fund, Tata Nifty
Financial Services Index Fund.
✓ The other three are industry first viz. Tata Nifty MidSmall Healthcare Index Fund, Tata Nifty
500 Multicap India Manufacturing 50:30:20 Index Fund, and Tata Nifty 500 Multicap
50:30:20 Infrastructure Index Fund.
General Insurance industry grows 12.78% in FY24: GIC Data

According to data released by the General Insurance Council (GIC), the General Insurance industry
experienced a growth of 12.78% in the Fiscal Year 2023-24 (FY24) reaching their Gross direct premium
underwritten to Rs 2,89,731 crore from Rs 2,56,894 crore in FY23.
✓ Premiums of general insurers grew by 14.24% Year-on-Year (Y-o-Y) to Rs 2.45 trillion in FY24.

✓ Public sector general insurers held 31.18% of the overall market share in FY24, down from
32.27% in FY23, while private insurers’ market share increased to 53.52%.
NPS Assets under Management record 30.5% YoY growth in FY24: PFRDA Data
As per the latest data from the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA), the
National Pension System (NPS) Assets Under Management (AUM) experienced 30.5% year-on-year (Y-
o-Y) growth during the Fiscal Year 2023-24 (FY24), reaching Rs 11.73 lakh Crore in FY24 from Rs 8.98
lakh crore in FY23.
SBI Life Introduces IdeationX to Inspire Insurance Innovations amongst Young Minds
State Bank of India Life Insurance Company Limited (SBILIFE), one of the leading private life
insurance companies in India has launched its 1st edition of IdeationX, a groundbreaking initiative that
aims to transform the future of the insurance industry.
✓ After the screening test, around 320 students got selected, and the final round had eight finalist
teams, out of which XIME-Bengaluru emerged victorious, clinching the title of SBI Life Ideation X
winner.
IRDAI Celebrates Silver Jubilee on 19th April 2024

The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI), the statutory body of insurance
companies and intermediaries in India, marked the celebration of its Silver Jubilee(25 year) on 19th
April 2024. IRDAI was formed as a statutory body under the IRDAI Act, 1999 and was incorporated on
19th April 2000.
✓ IRDAI has removed the age cap on buying health insurance policies, effective from 1st April 2024.
Now anyone, regardless of age, is eligible to purchase new health insurance. Prior to this,
individuals aged above 65 years were restricted from purchasing new insurance policies.
AU SFB launches Suite of Financial Products including Banking Industry’s first ATM
Insurance
On 23rd April 2024, AU Small Finance Bank (AU SFB) introduced a suite of financial products aimed at
enhancing customer satisfaction.
✓ This included two new credit cards, the AU SPONT Rupay Credit Card and the Secured Credit
Card – NOMO (No Missing Out) and ATM (Automated teller machine) Insurance.
✓ AU SFB has also launched AU 0101 Business App and AU 0101 Version 2.0.
IndusInd Bank Becomes 1st Bank to Successfully Execute RBI’s Programmable CBDC
Pilot
IndusInd Bank Limited became the 1st bank to successfully execute the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI)
programmable Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) pilot, to compensate farmers for carbon credits.
This pilot project is executed in collaboration with Circularity Innovation Hub India Private Limited
(CIH), as an alternate form of CBDC.
Macquarie Launches USD 1.5 bn EV Fleet Financing Platform 'Vertelo' in India

Macquarie Asset Management, part of Australia’s diversified financial giant Macquarie Group has
launched an electric vehicle (EV) financing and end-to-end solution platform ‘Vertelo’. Vertelo pledges
a substantial USD 1.5 billion investment aimed at electrifying fleets of buses and cars in India.


BharatPe Launches India’s first all-in-one Payment Device BharatPe One

BharatPe launched BharatPe One, India’s first all-in-one payment product that integrates POS (point
of sale), QR code, and speaker into one device. It is designed to simplify transactions for merchants,
offering payment acceptance options including dynamic and static QR code, tap-and-pay, and debit and
credit cards.
PayU gets RBI’s approval to operate as Payments Aggregator

PayU Payments Private Limited(PayU), a leading payments solution provider, has received in-principle
approval from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to operate as a payment aggregator (PA).
SBI Card launches its 1st core Travel credit card 'SBI Card Miles' with 3 variants
SBI Cards and Payment Services Limited (SBI Card) introduces its first travel-focused credit card, 'SBI
Card MILES,' featuring three variants: SBI Card Miles Elite, SBI Card Miles Prime, and SBI Card
Miles. The cards are available on Mastercard and RuPay networks,
Hitachi Payment Services launches India’s first Upgradable ATM

Hitachi Payment Services Private Ltd, a 100% subsidiary of Hitachi Ltd., launched India’s first
upgradable Automated Teller Machine (ATM) that can be converted to a cash recycling machine (CRM)
as and when a bank needs it, eliminating the need for a separate CRM.
✓ These upgradable machines feature UPI-enabled cash deposits and withdrawals. CRM enables
customers to make cash deposits and withdrawals in the same machine.
Cred Launches Offline QR Code-based ‘Scan and Pay’ Service

Fintech company Cred has launched an offline Unified Payments Interface (UPI)-based ‘Scan and Pay’
service that enables users to scan QR codes for payments directly from their bank accounts.
ECONOMY & BUSINESS

GDP & GROWTH RATE
ORGANIZATION YEAR RATE
Asian Development FY25 (2024-25) 7%
Bank (ADB) On April 11, 2024, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in
its 'Asian Development Outlook (ADO) April 2024' raised
India's Gross domestic product (GDP) growth forecast for
FY25 (2024-25) to 7% from 6.7% amid robust growth
which will be driven by public and private sector
investment demand and gradual improvement in
consumer demand.
For 2025, the ADB has projected India's growth at 7.2%.
India's inflation will be 4.6% in 2024 and 4.5% in 2025.

United Nations 2024 6.5%

Conference on Trade According to the report released by the United Nations
and Development Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the
(UNCTAD) Indian economy is expected to grow by 6.5 per cent in
2024 as compared to 6.7 percent in 2023.
Ø UN Conference on Trade and Development
(UNCTAD) report has projected the global
economy to grow at 2.6 percent in 2024
from 2.5 percent projected earlier.
PHDCCI (PHD Chamber FY25 8-8.3%

of Commerce and PHDCCI (PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry) in its
Industry) report on 'Viksit Bharat @2047' projects India's economy
to grow at 8-8.3% in FY25, with a forecasted Gross
Domestic Product (GDP) of USD 34.7 trillion by 2047 and
a per capita income of USD 21,000. India's economy to
reach USD 7 trillion by 2030.
National Institute of FY25 7.1-7.4%

Public Finance and The National Institute of Public Finance and Policy
Policy (NIPFP) (NIPFP) released its 'FY 2023-24: Year End Macroeconomic
Review' during a seminar at its campus in New Delhi, Delhi.
It has estimated India's Gross Domestic Product (GDP)
growth at 7.1-7.4% for FY25 (2024-25), using high-
frequency models.
ECONOMY NEWS
IREDA setup new office in GIFT City to promote renewable energy projects in foreign
currencies
The Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency(IREDA) has established a new office in GIFT City
(Gujarat International Finance Tec-City) in Gandhinagar, Gujarat. This new initiative will play pivotal
role in the implementation of National Green Hydrogen Mission of India which aims to produce
hydrogen of more than 5 million Metric Tonnes Per Annum (MTPA) by 2030.
BUSINESS NEWS
RVNL-Salasar JV Bags Rs 60 crore Transmission Project in Rwanda
A Joint Venture (JV) between the Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL) and Salasar Techno Engineering
Limited (STEL), the private steel manufacturer, has bagged “Rwanda Transmission System
Reinforcement and Last Mile Connectivity project (TSRLMC)”, a transmission project of Rwanda in
Central Africa.
Note: RVNL owns 51% stake in the joint venture, while STEL owns the remaining 49%.
JSW Neo Energy Limited Secures 700-MW Solar Project from NTPC
JSW Neo Energy Limited (JSW Neo), a wholly-owned subsidiary of JSW Energy Limited, one of India’s
leading private sector power-producing companies received a Letter of Award (LoA) for setting up 700

megawatts (MW) Inter-State Transmission System (ISTS)-connected solar power project from NTPC
Limited.
GoI Raises Rs 16,500 Cr by Selling Stakes in Companies in FY23-24

In the fiscal year 2023/24, the Indian government has raised Rs. 16,500 crores through stake sales in
about 10 state-run companies. This amount however fell short by about 9% compared to the internal
target of Rs 18,000 crore.
Note: The government has not set a target for the current financial year (2024–25) as of April 1, 2024,
marking a departure from usual practice.
NTPC Shuts 220 MW Barauni Thermal Power Station Stage-I Project in Bihar
NTPC Limited (formerly known as National Thermal Power Corporation), India's leading power utility,
officially declared the permanent closure of its Barauni Thermal Power Station Stage-I (2x110
megawatt (MW)) in Bihar from March 31, 2024
MoU’s & AGREEMENTS

MoU’s WITH COUNTRY
COUNTRY MoU’s WITH FIELD / PURPOSE
SatCom Industry Association Brazilian Association of Satellite To boost advancement in the space sector.
of India (SIA-India) Telecommunications ü The MoU will explore new market
Companies (ABRASAT - dynamics, infrastructure
Associação Brasileira das development, technological
Empresas de Telecomunicações advancements, entrepreneurship,
por Satélite) funding sources, and private
investments.
India European Union (EU) Launched an Expression of Interest (EOI)

for startups working in Electric Vehicles
(EVs) Battery Recycling to take part in
the matchmaking event taking place under
the India-EU Trade and Technology
Council (TTC).
ü This aims to promote cooperation
between European and Indian
Small and Medium-sized
Enterprises (SMEs) start-ups in the
clean and green technologies
sector.

Bill Nelson, National Japan’s Minister of Education, Signed an agreement to advance

Aeronautics and Space Culture, Sports, Science and sustainable human exploration of the
Administration (NASA) Technology (MEXT) Masahito Moon at the NASA Headquarters in
Administrator Moriyama Washington, United States of America
(USA).
Under the agreement, the USA will send
two Japanese astronauts to the moon
surface on its lunar mission. Out of two
Japanese astronauts, one will become the
first non-American ever to land on the
moon.
HSE University (officially University of Delhi (DU) in New Signed an agreement on strategic
the National Research Delhi, Delhi (India) cooperation and joint actions. Under this
University Higher School of agreement, a large research hub will begin
Economics), a public operating at DU in India.
research univerisity in St ü The agreement was formalized
Petersburg, Russia during the Indo-Russian Education
Summit, held in New Delhi, Delhi
from April 11 to 13.
The Comptroller and Auditor Bulgarian National Audit Office To foster international cooperation. To
General of India (CAG) (BNAO) in Sofia, Bulgaria enhance collaboration and exchange of
expertise in the field of auditing between
India and Bulgaria.
Department of Ministry of Civil Service, To strengthen bilateral exchange and
Administrative Reforms and Cambodia cooperation in the field of Human
Public Grievances (DARPG) Resource Development (HRD) in Civil
under the Ministry of Service over the next 5 years.
Personnel, Public Grievances
and Pensions (MoPPGP)
International Financial Capital Markets Authority To share information regarding

Services Centres (CMA) of Kuwait technologies and innovation within the
Authority(IFSCA) of India financial and regulatory ecosystem.
MoU’s BETWEEN ORGANIZATION

ORGANIZATION MoU’s WITH FIELD / PURPOSE
Mahindra Airbus Atlantic group Signed multi-year deal worth USD 100 million.
Aerostructures Private entity As per the deal, Mahindra Aerostructures will
Limited (MASPL) supply nearly 2300 varieties of metallic
components to Airbus Atlantic in France from its
manufacturing unit in India.
The contract between MASPL and Airbus Atlantic
aligns with “Make in India” initiative of Government
of India(GoI), which aims to transforms India into a
global manufacturing hub.

State-owned refiner Japan's Panasonic Energy Signed a binding term sheet for a proposed joint
Indian Oil Corporation Co. Ltd., a Panasonic venture (JV) to manufacture cylindrical lithium-ion
Ltd (IOCL) Group company cells in India for 2-and 3-wheel vehicles and energy
storage systems.
National Power Training PTC India Ltd. To establish a Centre of Excellence (CoE) for
Institute (NPTI), under Research & Development (R&D) in the Energy
the Ministry of Power Domain.
The collaboration aims to address pressing
challenges in the energy domain while aligning with
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Hindustan Aeronautics Cochin Shipyard Limited Signed a contract worth Rs 1,173 .42 crore to supply
Limited (HAL) (CSL), Kochi(Kerala) 6 sets of LM2500 gas turbines (GT) and GT
Auxiliaries (GTAE), spares, tools for Indian Navy’s
Next Generation Missile Vessel (NGMV) project.
Quality Council of India Laghu Udyog Bharati To enhance the awareness and participation in the
(QCI) (LUB) Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME)
Competitive Lean Scheme (MCLS) among the
members of LUB.
The MoU lays out a roadmap for joint activities,
encompassing awareness campaigns, training
sessions, state and district level consultations, with
the aim of promoting the implementation of lean
concepts and sustainable practices among LUB
members.
Meta Platforms, Inc. Press Trust of India (PTI), To establish a dedicated fact-checking unit. Under
(formerly Facebook, India’s largest news this partnership PTI will identify, review, and rate
Inc.) agency, under its third- content for misinformation across Meta platforms.
party fact-checking ü With this collaboration, Meta now has 12 fact-
program in India checking partners in India, the highest in any
country, covering 16 Indian languages
(besides English) through existing fact-
checking partners.
The Indian Institute of HP India To launch the “HP Future Impact Leaders - IICA
Corporate Affairs (IICA) Certified Environmental – Social - Governance (ESG)
Professional Programme” to promote sustainability
and empower corporate social responsibility (CSR)
professionals to emerge as leaders in navigating the
intricacies of ESG frameworks.

BEML Limited Bharat Electronics Limited To jointly develop an indigenous Train Control
(formerly Bharat Earth (BEL) Management System (i-TCMS). The partnership
Movers Limited) between BEML and BEL aims to promote innovation
and foster self-reliance in the domain of train
control management systems.
Indian Farmers ACME Cleantech Solutions For the purchase and supply of about 200,000
Fertiliser Cooperative Private Limited (ACME) Metric Ton (MT) of ammonia produced using
Limited (IFFCO), the renewable energy.
world’s largest fertilizer
cooperative
Indian Institute of To utilise the advanced geological models in
Technology Patna (IIT tunnelling projects of SJVN. Under this partnership,
Patna), Bihar predictive analytics algorithms leveraging
integrated geotechnical data will be developed. This
will predict potential risks and offer early warning
systems tailored for tunnelling projects.
Bayerische Motoren Tata Technologies Signed an agreement to form a Joint Venture (JV) to
Werke (BMW) Group Limited, a subsidiary of establish an Automotive Software and Information
Tata Motors Limited, Technology (IT) development Hub in
Pune(Maharashtra), Bengaluru (Karnataka) and
Chennai(Tamil Nadu).
ü The JV will supply automotive software,
including Software-defined Vehicle (SDV)
solutions for the premium vehicles in the
BMW Groups and digital transformation
solutions for its business IT.
Quality Council of India Ministry of Health and The Quality Council of India (QCI) and the Ministry
(QCI) Family Welfare (MoHFW) of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) has
initiated a five-year collaboration to transform the
Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS)
ecosystem and to enhance healthcare services for
all beneficiaries.
This aims to deliver a more robust, efficient, and
transparent CGHS system through a comprehensive
approach that will address several key areas.
Khanij Bidesh India Council of Scientific and For bolstering technical and knowledge cooperation
Limited (KABIL) Industrial Research - for Critical Minerals at the National Aluminium
Institute of Minerals and Company Ltd. (NALCO) Corporate Office in
Materials Technology Bhubaneswar, Odisha.
(CSIR-IMMT)

Tata-Group-owned Air Bangalore International To develop Bengaluru (Karnataka) as a premier

India Airport Ltd (BIAL) aviation hub for southern India. This agreement
aims to boost air travel connectivity to and from
India over the next few years.
Bharat Electronics Indian Institute of For cooperation in research and technology, product
Limited (BEL) Technology (IIT), Mandi, development in domains such as semiconductors,
Himachal Pradesh quantum technologies, and drones.
The Indian Institute of Blockchain For Impact Announced a strategic partnership, under the BFI-
Technology (IIT) (BFI), foundation in Biome Virtual Network Program to nurture
Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh Bengaluru (Karnataka) innovations and drive advancements in healthcare
in India.
ReNew Energy Global JERA Co. Inc., Japan’s Signed an initial agreement to assess a green
PLC (ReNew) largest power generation ammonia production project in Odisha. This is in
company line with with India’s ambitious National Green
Hydrogen Mission(NGHM) and Japan’s clean energy
transition goals.
ü ReNew, through its subsidiary ReNew E-Fuels
Private Limited, and JERA will jointly
evaluate a green ammonia production
project in Paradip, Odisha.
NTPC Green Energy Indus Towers Limited To address the need for pacing green energy
Limited (NGEL) (ITL) objectives and the Indian government's efforts
towards a carbon-neutral economy.
Council of Scientific & Bharat Heavy Electricals Signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for
Industrial Research- Limited (BHEL) Corporate developing technology on capturing and converting
Indian Institute of Research and carbon dioxide (CO2) to Dimethyl Ether (DME)
Chemical Technology Development (R&D) through direct catalytic conversion.
(CSIR-IICT)
Rail Vikas Nigam Limited M/s Turkish Engineering For partnership and collaboration in public
(RVNL) Consulting & Contracting - transportation projects and infrastructure projects
TUMAS India Private across India
Limited
Armed Forces Medical Indian Institute of For collaborative research and training.
Services(AFMS) under Technology(IIT) Delhi Under this MoU, IIT Kanpur will provide technical
the Ministry of Defence (New Delhi, Delhi) and IIT expertise to develop Artificial Intelligence (AI)
(MoD) Kanpur, Uttar diagnostic models, at Armed Forces Centre for
Pradesh(UP) Computational Medicine established in Armed
Forces Medical College (AFMC), Pune, Maharashtra.
Khanij Bidesh India Council of Scientific and For long-term collaboration in the field of
Limited (KABIL) Industrial Research – geophysical investigations.
National Geophysical

Research Institute (CSIR-

NGRI)
Alliance of Digital India Indian Institutes of To promote entrepreneurship and provide support
Foundation (ADIF) Technology to technology startups.
Guwahati(Assam)
Technology Incubation
Centre (IITG TIC)
National Skill International Society for To establish ECO villages inspired by Govardhan
Development Krishna Consciousness EcoVillage (GEV) in Maharashtra.
Corporation (NSDC) (ISKCON) Both entities will team up with Skill India Centers
for skilling youth, women from tribal and
marginalized communities in Uttar Pradesh (UP),
Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Madhya
Pradesh (MP), with future expansion to other
regions.
Hindustan Aeronautics Council of Scientific and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) has signed a
Limited (HAL) Industrial Research - Transfer of Technology (ToT) agreement with the
National Aerospace Council of Scientific and Industrial Research -
Laboratories (CSIR-NAL) National Aerospace Laboratories (CSIR-NAL) to
manufacture the Bismaleimide (BMI) Engine Bay
Door (EBD) for the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA)
Tejas Mk1A aircraft.
Tata-owned Air India, All Nippon Airways Signed a codeshare agreement connecting their
India’s leading global (ANA), the largest networks, enhancing flight selections, and
airline Japanese carrier simplifying the travel process between India and
Japan.
NTPC Limited (formerly Rashtriya Ispat Nigam For the supply of 9 lakh metric tonnes of limestone
National Thermal Power Limited (RINL) (lime chips - a by-product of the RINL) for the NTPC
Corporation) units across India for five years.
Centre for Development Indian Institute of Signed an agreement for “Automated Service
of Telematics (C-DOT) Technology (IIT) - Jodhpur Management in 5G and Beyond Networks Using AI”.
(Rajasthan) The agreement is signed under the Telecom
Technology Development Fund (TTDF) of the
Department of Telecommunications (DoT).
OTHER MoU’s IN CONTENT FORMAT

CBDT signs record number of 125 Advance Pricing Agreements (APAs) in FY24
In Financial Year 2023-24 (FY24), the CBDT set a record by signing 125 Advance Pricing Agreements
(APAs) with Indian taxpayers, comprising 86 Unilateral APAs (UAPAs) and 39 Bilateral APAs (BAPAs).

✓ This marks a 31% increase from 95 APAs in FY23 and the highest number of APAs signed in any
financial year since its inception, bringing the total to 641 comprising 506 UAPAs and 135 BAPAs.
✓ FY24 also saw the highest number of BAPAs signed to date, a result of Mutual Agreements with
seven of India's treaty partners viz. Australia, Canada, Denmark, Japan, Singapore, the United
Kingdom (UK) and the United States (US).
Tejas Networks and Telecom Egypt Announces Strategic Cooperation Projects in Egypt
Tejas Networks Limited signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Telecom Egypt (TE),
ITIDA (Information Technology Industry Development Agency), and NTI (National Telecom Institute) to
replicate its experience of implementing the Bharatnet (Rural Broadband Project) and NKN (National
Knowledge Network) projects in Egypt.
✓ The MoU also includes, Establishing local manufacturing and Research and Development (R&D)
facilities for Fibre-to-the Home (FTTH) products.
APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS

APPOINTMENTS
NATIONAL
PERSON NAME APPOINTED AS ENTITY / PLACE KEY NOTES
Sanjay Nayar President Associated Sanjay Nayar, the Founder and Chairman of
Chambers of Sorin Investment Fund has taken over as
Commerce and President of the Associated Chambers of
Industry of India Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM),
(ASSOCHAM) India’s oldest apex Industry chamber, for 2024-
25. Previously, he served as the Vice President of
ASSOCHAM.
Sanjay Nayar replaced Ajay Singh, Chairman &
Managing Director (CMD) of Spicejet, who served
as ASSOCHAM's President for 2023-24.
Rajeev Singhal Managing Tata The Tata International Limited (TIL), the global
Director (MD) International trading and distribution arm of Tata Group,
Limited (TIL) appointed Rajeev Singhal as its Managing
Director (MD). Rajeev Singhal succeeded Anand
Sen, who attained retirement on March 31, 2024.
He served as the Managing Director of Tata Steel
BSL Limited (Now Tata Steel, formerly known as
Bhushan Steel Limited).
Atul Mehra Managing Axis Capital Axis Capital Limited (Erstwhile ENAM Securities
Director (MD) Limited Private Limited) has appointed Atul Mehra as its
and Chief (Erstwhile ENAM Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive
Executive Securities Private Officer (CEO), succeeding Salil Pitale, who held
Officer (CEO) Limited) the interim MD & CEO position from 2018-2024.

Sheyphali B. Principal Press Sheyphali B. Sharan took charge as the Principal

Sharan Director Information Director General (PDG) of the Press Information
General (PDG) Bureau (PIB) Bureau (PIB) by succeeding Manish Desai, who
attained retirement on March 31, 2024.
Rakesh Mohan Member Economic World Bank has appointed Rakesh Mohan,
Advisory Panel of Former Deputy Governor (DG) of Reserve Bank of
World Bank India (RBI) as a member in Economic Advisory
Group (WBG) Panel of World Bank Group (WBG).
✓ Nicholas Stern, IG Patel Professor of
Economics and Government at the London
School of Economics, United Kingdom
(U.K.) will be the chairman of Economic
Advisory Panel of WBG
Indermit Gill, Chief Economist of the World Bank
Group (WBG) and Senior President for
Development Economics will co-chair the panel.
The panel members will have a tenure of two
years.
Justice Pratinidhi Presiding Securities The Ministry of Finance has appointed Justice
Srinivasacharya Officer Appellate Pratinidhi Srinivasacharya (PS) Dinesh Kumar,
(PS) Dinesh Tribunal (SAT) former Chief Justice (CJ) of Karnataka High
Kumar Court(HC) as the Presiding Officer of the
Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) for 4 years, or
until he attains the age of 70 years.
✓ PS Dinesh Kumar succeeds Justice Tarun
Agarwala, Who served as the Presiding
Officer of SAT from December 2018 to
Dheeraj Technical December 2023.
Bhatnagar Member ✓ Dheeraj Bhatnagar, former Principal
Chief Commissioner of Income Tax
(Delhi), was appointed as a Technical
Member of SAT for 4 years, or until he
attains the age of 60 years. Dheeraj
Bhatnagar succeeds Justice MT Joshi, who
served as member of SAT from March
2019 to February 2023.
Dr. Meenesh Chairman National Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of the
kumar Cooperative National Dairy Development Board (NDDB), Dr.
Champaklal Shah Dairy Federation Meenesh kumar Champaklal Shah has been
of India Ltd. unanimously elected as the Chairman of the
(NCDFI) National Cooperative Dairy Federation of India
Ltd. (NCDFI) in the Board elections held on 5
April 2024. He represents the Jharkhand Milk
Federation on the board.
Dr. Meenesh Shah replaced Mangal Jit Rai, who
served as Chairman of NCDFI for 2 terms from
2017 to 2024.

Bilquis Mir Jury member 2024 Summer Bilquis Mir, a Water sports promoter and athlete
Olympics (canoeist ) from Jammu and Kashmir(J&K), is set
to become the first woman from India to serve
as a jury member at the 2024 Summer Olympics
which is set to be held in Paris, France from 26th
July to 11th August 2024.
Manoj Panda Full-time 16th Finance The Government of India (GoI) has appointed
member Commission (FC) economist Manoj Panda, former Director of the
of India Institute of Economic Growth (IEG), as a full-time
member of the 16th Finance Commission (FC) of
India. He will hold the office with effect from the
date he assume office up to the date of submission
of Report or 31st October 2025.
✓ Panda was appointed to the 16th FC in
lieu of Niranjan Rajadhyaksha, Executive
Director at Artha Global.
Sushil Sharma Chairman and SJVN Limited Sushil Sharma, Director (Projects), SJVN Limited
Managing has been selected for the post of Chairman and
Director (CMD) Managing Director (CMD) of SJVN Limited at a
Public Enterprise Selection Board (PESB)
selection panel meeting held on 8 April 2024.
He replaces Mrs. Geeta Kapur, Director
(Personnel) of SJVN Ltd, who assumed the
additional charge of CMD on 1st February 2024
after the relieving of Nand Lal Sharma, the
previous CMD of SJVN Ltd.
Srinivas (Srini) Chief Executive Wipro Limited Srinivas (Srini) Pallia was appointed as the
Pallia Officer (CEO) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Managing
and Managing Director (MD) of Wipro Limited, effective from
Director (MD) 7th April 2024. Srinivas Pallia succeeds Thierry
Delaporte, who served as the CEO and MD from
June 2020 to April 2024.
Jagjit Pavadia Member International India’s Jagjit Pavadia was re-elected as a

Narcotics Control member of the International Narcotics Control
Board (INCB) Board (INCB) for the third term from 2025 to
2030. She previously served as a member of INCB
for two terms: 2015–2020 and 2020–2025. She
also served as President of the INCB for 2021–
2022.
India was also elected as a member of the
following UN bodies:
✓ Commission on the Status of Women
(CSW) for the term 2025-2029;
✓ Executive Board of the United Nations
Children’s Fund (UNICEF) for the term
2025-2027.


Development Programme (UNDP), United
Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), and
United Nations Office for Project Services
(UNOPS) for the term 2025–2027.
Entity for Gender Equality and the
Empowerment of Women (UN Women)
for the term 2025-2027.
Executive Board of the World Food Programme
(WFP) for the term 2025-2027.
Ajith Kumar KK Managing Dhanlaxmi Bank The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has approved
Director (MD) the appointment of Ajith Kumar KK as the
and Chief Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive
Executive Officer (CEO) of Dhanlaxmi Bank for 3 years
Officer (CEO) with effect from the date of taking charge. Ajith
Kumar KK is set to succeed J.K.Shivan, whose
term was scheduled to conclude on 29 January
2024.
Keki M Mistry Chairman of the HDFC Life Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority
board Insurance of India (IRDAI) approves the appointment of
Company Limited Keki M Mistry as the new Chairman of the board
(HDFC Life) of HDFC Life Insurance Company Limited (HDFC
Life). The appointment follows the resignation of
Deepak Parekh as the Chairman and Non-
Executive Director of HDFC Life.
Note: In 2006, the Government of India (GoI)
honoured Deepak S. Parekh with the Padma
Bhushan for the category of Trade and
Industry.
Manoj Mittal Chairman and Small Industries The Financial Services Institutions Bureau (FSIB)
Managing Development has recommended Manoj Mittal for the post of
Director (CMD) Bank of India Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of the
(SIDBI) Small Industries Development Bank of India
(SIDBI). He will replace Sivasubramanian
Ramann, who has been serving as CMD of SIDBI
since April 2021.
✓ FSIB has appointed Sanjay Shukla as the
MD of the National Housing Bank
Sanjay Shukla MD National Housing
(NHB), the apex regulatory body for the
Bank (NHB)
overall regulation and licensing of housing
finance companies in India. He is
currently serving as the MD&CEO of
Centrum Housing Finance Limited (CHFL).
He will succeed Sarada Kumar Hota, who
has been serving as MD of NHB since
2019.

Ashish Kumar Members University Grants Department of Higher Education, Ministry of

Chauhan Commission Education has notified the appointment of Ashish
(UGC) Kumar Chauhan, Managing Director (MD) and
Chief Executive Officer(CEO), National Stock
Exchange (NSE) and Sridhar Vembu, CEO, Zoho
Corporation as members of the University Grants
Commission(UGC) for a period of 3 years.
✓ It has also appointed Retd. Professor
Sachidananda Mohanty, Former Vice
Sridhar Vembu
Chancellor(VC), Central University of
Odisha.
✓ Professor Shashikala Gulabrao Wanjari,
VC of National Institute of Educational
Planning and Administration(NIEPA),
New Delhi, Delhi as members of UGC for
tenure of 3 years or till further orders
Tarun Bajaj Chair United States Tarun Bajaj, Former Revenue and Economic
(US)-India Tax Affairs Secretary, Ministry of Finance,
Forum Government of India, was appointed as the Chair
of the United States (US)-India Tax Forum of the
United States-India Strategic Partnership Forum
(USISPF). USISPF is a not-for-profit institution
dedicated to strengthening partnerships between
the United States of America (USA) and India.
Dinesh Kumar Chief of the Indian Navy Government of India (GoI) has announced the
(DK) Tripathi Naval Staff appointment of Vice Admiral Dinesh Kumar (DK)
(CNS) Tripathi as the 26th Chief of the Naval Staff(CNS)
of the Indian Navy. He is currently serving as Vice
Chief of the Naval Staff. He will take charge from
Admiral Radhakrishnan Hari Kumar, the present
CNS who is set to retire on 30th April 2024.
Nalin Prabhat Director- National Security The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet
General (D-G) Guard (NSG) (ACC) has approved the appointment of Nalin
Prabhat as the Director-General (D-G) of National
Security Guard (NSG) till the date of
his superannuation (31st August 2028). He will
Sapna Tiwari Special Director Intelligence succeeds Daljit Singh Chaudhary.
Bureau (IB) ACC has also approved the appointment of Sapna
Tiwari as the Special Director in Intelligence
Bureau(IB) for 2 years from the date of
assumption of charge or up to the date of her
superannuation(30th April 2026).
Narpat Singh Railway Adviser High Commission The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet
of India (ACC) has approved the appointment of Narpat
Singh as the Railway Adviser in the High
Commission of India in Dhaka, Bangladesh. He
was appointed with diplomatic status as a

Counsellor for a period of three years from the

date of assumption of charge of the post.
Amitabh Singh Managing Axis Bank The board of Axis Bank Limited has approved
Chaudhry Director(MD) Limited the re-appointment of Amitabh Singh Chaudhry
and Chief as its Managing Director(MD) and Chief Executive
Executive Officer(CEO)for further period of 3 years with
Officer(CEO) effect from 1st January 2025 up to 31st December
2027.
This mark’s his 2nd extension of 3 years. His
previous extension came into effect from 1st
January 2022.
Hardayal Prasad Managing Srei The board of Srei Infrastructure Finance Limited
Director (MD) Infrastructure (SIFL), managed by the National Asset
and Chief Finance Limited Reconstruction Company Limited (NARCL), has
Executive (SIFL) appointed Hardayal Prasad as its new Managing
Officer (CEO) Director (MD) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO).
✓ Previously, he served as MD & CEO of SBI
Cards & Payment Services Ltd and PNB
Housing Finance Ltd.
Narsingh Chairman 7 member Former Indian Wrestler Narsingh Pancham

Pancham Yadav Athletes' Yadav was elected Chairman of the 7 member
Commission of Athletes' Commission of the Wrestling
the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI), the governing body of
Federation of wrestling in India. In 2012, He secured the gold
India (WFI) medal in the men's freestyle 74 kg category at the
2010 Commonwealth Games hosted in New
Delhi(India) and was honoured with the Arjuna
Award in Wrestling.
A Ganesh Kumar Members National Ministry of Statistics and Programme
and Debasis Statistical Implementation (MoSPI) has appointed A Ganesh
Kundu Commission Kumar and Debasis Kundu as members of the
(NSC) National Statistical Commission (NSC). Now, the
total strength of members of the commission
including chairman is 5.
About National Statistical Commision (NSC)
was constituted by Government of India(GoI)
through a resolution dated 1st June, 2005 based
on the recommendations of the panel headed by
C.Rangarajan (Former RBI Governor).

INTERNATIONAL
PERSON NAME APPOINTED AS ENTITY / PLACE KEY NOTES
Ousmane Sonko Prime Minister Senegal The Senegal President Bassirou Diomaye Faye
appointed Ousmane Sonko as the Prime
Minister(PM) of Senegal in his first act as
President. Ousmane Sonko replaced Sidiki Kaba as
the new prime minister. Sidiki Kaba was appointed
as the prime minister by former President Macky
Sall in March 2024.
Judith Suminwa Prime Minister Democratic Felix Tshisekedi, President of the Democratic
Tuluka Republic of the Republic of the Congo (DRC), appointed Judith
Congo (DRC) Suminwa Tuluka as the first woman Prime
Minister of the DRC. She succeeded Jean-Michel
Sama Lukonde who served as the Prime Minister of
DRC since 2021.
Judith also served as the national expert in a
Community Support Project in Eastern DRC at the
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
Abdel Fattah Al- President Egypt Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi has taken oath as the
Sisi President of Egypt for the third term in the New
Administrative Capital of the country. The 69-year-
old former army chief will continue with his
presidential powers until 2030 that followed
constitutional amendments that extended
presidential terms to six years allowing him to
stand for a third election.
Peter Pellegrini President Slovak Republic Peter Pellegrini, former Prime Minister (PM) of
Slovakia, is set to become the President of the
Slovak Republic. He won the Slovakia presidential
election 2024 defeating Ivan Korčok, a former
diplomat, with 53% of the vote. Pellegrini will
succeed Zuzana Caputov, the first female President
of Slovakia.
Bjarni Prime Minister Iceland Bjarni Benediktsson, chairman of Iceland’s
Benediktsson Independence Party took office as Prime Minister
(PM) of Iceland on 9 April 2024. He succeeds
Katrín Jakobsdóttir, who resigned as PM of
Iceland to run for President of Iceland.
He has previously served as PM of Iceland from
January to November 2017. He has been serving as
the Minister for Foreign Affairs since October
2023.
Sheikh Ahmad Prime Minister Kuwait Kuwait's Emir, His Highness Sheikh Meshal Al-
Abdullah Al- (PM) Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah has issued an Emiri
Ahmad Al- decree appointing Kuwaiti Economist Sheikh
Sabah Ahmad Abdullah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah as Prime
Minister (PM) of Kuwait and authorised him to
nominate new cabinet members.

Sheikh Ahmad replaces former PM Sheikh Dr

Mohammed Sabah Al Salem Al-Sabah, who
submitted his resignation to the Emir, following
the new parliamentary election in April 2024.
Vo Thi Anh Interim Vietnam Vietnam’s Vice-President Vo Thi Anh Xuan (54
Xuan President years old) was appointed Interim President of
Vietnam on 21st March 2024. Vo Thi Anh Xuan
succeeds Vo Van Thuong, who resigned from the
post of President on 20th March 2024. He has been
serving as the President of Vietnam since March
2023.
In April 2021, she was elected as Vice President of
Vietnam. At the age of 51 becoming the youngest
Vice President of Vietnam.
Mohammed Deputy Prime Pakistan Mohammed Ishaq Dar, who is presently serving as
Ishaq Dar Minister (PM) the minister of foreign affairs, was appointed as
the deputy Prime Minister (PM). He was
appointed by Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif with
immediate effect.
He becomes the first Deputy PM of Pakistan since
Pervaiz Elahi, who served as Deputy PM from 2012
to 2013. The post has been vacant since 2013 to
2024
Kristalina Managing IMF The International Monetary Fund(IMF) Executive
Georgieva Director(MD) Board reappointed Bulgarian Economist
Kristalina Georgieva as Managing Director(MD)
of IMF for a 2nd five-year term starting on 1st
October 2024. She has been serving as the 12th
MD of IMF since 2019. Her current tenure is set
to end on 30th September 2024.
✓ She served as the Chief Executive
Officer(CEO) of the World Bank from
January 2017 to September 2019. She also
served as the interim President of WB from
February 2019 to April 2019.
✓ She served as the Vice-President of the
European Commission from November
2014 to December 2016.
She was named “European of the Year” and
“Commissioner of the Year” in 2010 by the
European Voice for her contribution in the EU’s
response to humanitarian crises.
Simon Harris Taoiseach Ireland Simon Harris (37 years old), leader of Fine Gael
(Prime Minister party, was elected as the New Taoiseach (Prime
of the Republic Minister of the Republic of Ireland) by the member
of Ireland) of the Dáil (Irish parliament). He succeeded Leo
Varadkar, who resigned as Fine Gael leader and
Taoiseach in March 2024.

With this, Harris becomes the youngest PM of the

Republic of Ireland. He received the seal of office
from President of Ireland Michael D Higgins and
was officially installed as Taoiseach on 9th April
2024.
Shiny Member of the Asian Athletics Former Indian track and field athlete Shiny
Kurisingal Athletic Association Kurisingal Abraham Wilson was nominated as a
Abraham Commission (AAA) member of the Athletic Commission of the Asian
Wilson Athletics Association (AAA) for four years (2024–
2028). She was nominated as a member in a virtual
meeting led by the Chairman of the Athletic
Commission, Mohammad Suleiman (Qatar).
✓ Shiny Wilson won a silver medal in the
women’s 400m race event at the 1986
Asian Games in Seoul, South Korea. In
the same tournament, she won the gold
medal in the women’s 4x400m relay
event, along with P.T. Usha, M. D.
Valsamma, and Vandana Rao.
Shiny Wilson was awarded the Padma Shri in
1998 in the field of sports. She also received the
Arjuna Award in 1985.
Astrid Executive Convention on António Guterres, Secretary-General (SG) of the
Schomaker Secretary Biological United Nations (UN), appointed Astrid
Diversity (CBD) Schomaker of Germany as the 8th Executive
Secretary of the Secretariat of the Convention on
Biological Diversity (CBD). With this appointment,
She becomes the CBD’s first Executive Secretary
from Germany.
David Cooper of the United Kingdom (UK), Acting
Executive Secretary of CBD (since February 2023),
will continue his role until Schomaker assumes her
functions.
Ingmar De Vos President Association of Ingmar De Vos from Belgium, the President of the
Summer Olympic International Equestrian Federation (FEI), was
International unanimously elected as the President of the
Federations Association of Summer Olympic International
(ASOIF) Federations (ASOIF) during the 48th ASOIF
General Assembly.
✓ He was elected for a 4 year term,
starting on 1st January 2025. He will
replace Francesco Ricci Bitti of Italy,
whose 3rd term as President of ASOIF
is set to end on 31st December 2024.
Gita Sabharwal United Nations Republic of She succeeded Valerie Julliand of France, who
(UN) Resident Indonesia held the post since October 2020.
Coordinator (UN Note: She was appointed as UN RC of Indonesia by
RC) the UN Secretary-General António Guterres with

prior approval from the government of

Indonesia(host).
BRAND & CAMPAIGN AMBASSADORS

PERSON NAME BRAND / CAMPAIGN KEY NOTES
Dame Valerie Adams International Event New Zealand's shot putter Dame Valerie Adams, a 4-
Ambassador time World Champion, and 2-time Olympic Gold medallist
has been named the International Event Ambassador
for the “16th edition of Tata Consultancy Services' (TCS)
World 10K Bengaluru (Karnataka)” to be held on 28th
April 2024.
Usain Bolt Ambassador The International Cricket Council (ICC) named Jamaican
sprinter Usain Bolt, an eight-time Olympic gold medallist,
as the ambassador of the 9th edition of ICC Men’s T20
World Cup 2024 which will be played in West Indies and
the United States of America (USA) from June 1 to 29,
2024.
Yuvraj Singh Ambassador International Cricket Council (ICC) has named former
Indian Cricketer Yuvraj Singh as the ambassador of the
9 ICC Men’s Twenty20 International (T20I) World
th
Cup 2024 which is set to be hosted by the United States

of America(USA) and the West Indies from 1st to 29th
June 2024.
ü Yuvraj Singh joins West Indies cricketer Chris
Gayle, and Jamaican Athlete Usain Bolt (8-time
Olympic Gold Medallist) as the first ambassadors
of the 2024 T20 World Cup.
Sana Mir, Former Pakistan women’s cricketer, has been
named the ambassador of the ICC Women’s T20 World
Cup Qualifier 2024, being held in Abu Dhabi, the United
Arab Emirates(UAE) from 25th April to 7th May 2024.
RESIGNATIONS
PERSON RESIGNED AS ENTITY / PLACE
NAME
Anirudhha Judge of Justice Anirudhha Bose retired from the Supreme Court (SC) of India. He
Bose Supreme Court has been serving as the SC Judge since 2019. He was appointed as Director of
(SC) of India the National Judicial Academy (NJA) which offers training programmes to
aid the judges in their judging role and in performance of court
administration work.

OTHER APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS

MCA Appoints Two Part-Time Members to IBBI Governing Board
The Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has appointed M.P. Ram Mohan, a Professor at the Indian
Institute of Management (IIM) Ahmedabad(Gujarat), and Dinabandhu Mohapatra, a Non-Executive
Independent Director at Indiabulls Housing Limited, as part-time members of the Governing Board of
the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI).
AWARDS
AWARDS IN THE FIELD OF SPORTS
AWARD AWARD FIELD KEY NOTES
NAME WINNER
Hockey India Hardik Singh Hockey Indian Field Hockey Player & Vice- captain of the
Balbir Singh Indian Hockey men’s team, Hardik Singh was
Sr. Award for honored with the Hockey India Balbir Singh Sr.
Player of the Award for Player of the Year 2023 (Men) at the
Year 2023 Hockey India 6th Annual Awards 2023 event held in
(Men) New Delhi, Delhi.
✓ Indian field hockey player Salima Tete
was honoured with Hockey India Balbir
Singh Sr. Award for the Player of the year
2023 ( women).
✓ Ashok Kumar won the prestigious
Hockey India Major Dhyan Chand
Lifetime Achievement Award, with a cash
prize of Rs 30 Lakh and a trophy.
Wisden Australia’s Cricket The 2024 edition of the Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack
Cricketers of Mitchell Starc, has revealed its Five Wisden Cricketers of the Year,
the Year 2024 Usman highlighting exceptional performances in the world
Khawaja, and of cricket. They are Australia’s Mitchell Starc,
Ash Gardner, Usman Khawaja, and Ash Gardner, and, England’s,
and, England’s, Harry Brook and Mark Wood.
Harry Brook ✓ Usman Khawaja: His stellar performance in
and Mark the 2023 Ashes series in England earned him
Wood this recognition. He lead the run charts with
496 runs.
✓ Mitchell Starc: In 2023 Ashes series, he
emerge as the leading wicket-taker with 23
wickets at an average of 27.08, including a
crucial five-wicket haul in the third Test at
Headingley Cricket Ground, Leeds, United
Kingdom (UK).
✓ Ash Gardner: She attained a remarkable 12-
wicket haul in Women’s Ashes at Trent
Bridge in Nottingham, England in June 2023.
This marked the second-best match figures

ever in a women’s Test match, securing

crucial points for Australia in the multi-
format series. Gardner took 23 wickets
across the series
✓ Harry Brook: His notable innings in the
men’s Ashes series, particularly his standout
performance at Headingley, where he made
75 runs off 93 balls, earned him recognition.
Mark Wood: Despite playing only the final three
Ashes Tests, he took 14 wickets, but his most
memorable spell was his first at Headingley when he
took five wickets.
Laureus Novak Djokovic Tennis Novak Djokovic, the World No.1 tennis player (as of
World 22 April 2024) from Serbia, was honoured with the
Sportsman of Laureus World Sportsman of the Year 2024 award
the Year 2024 at the Laureus World Sports Awards 2024.
Winner of the Laureus World Sports Awards
2024:
Category Winner Sport
Laureus World Novak Tennis
Sportsman of Djokovic
the Year (Serbia)
Laureus Aitana Bonmatí Football

Sportswoman of (Spain)
the Year
Laureus World Spain’s Football
Team of the Women’s
Year Football Team
Laureus World Jude Football
Breakthrough of Bellingham
the Year (United
Kingdom)
Laureus World Simone Biles Gymnastics
Comeback of (United States
the Year of America)
Laureus World Diede De Groot Wheelchair

Sportsperson of (Netherlands) Tennis
the Year with a
Disability
Laureus World Arisa Trew Skateboarding

Action (Australia)
Sportsperson of
the Year

Laureus Sport Fundación Rafa Global

for Good Nadal (Spain)
OTHER IMPORTANT AWARDS

AWARD NAME AWARD WINNER FIELD KEY NOTES
WOW World Mamta G. Sagar Kannada poet, A renowned Kannada poet, writer, and an
Literary Prize writer, and an activist Mamta G. Sagar won the WOW
activist World Literary Prize from the World
Organization of Writers (WOW) for her
contributions to the world of literature. She
is a facilitator at the Srishti Manipal Institute
of Art, Design, and Technology, Bengaluru
(Karnataka).
ü The award ceremony was held as part
of the VII World Literary Festival
“WOW-LIFFT-2024” held in
Nigeria, Abuja from April 4-6, 2024.
“WOW World Literary Prize” was
established by the WOW as the successor to
the literary prize “Golden LIffT” (presented
from 2016 to 2023).
15th CIDC SJVN Limited SJVN Limited, a hydroelectric power
Vishwakarma generation company, received the
Awards (VKA) Achievement Award for Creating Social
(2024) Development and Impact at the 15th CIDC
Vishwakarma Awards (VKA) (2024)
instituted by the Construction Industry
Development Council(CIDC).
- ü SJVN also received the CIDC Partners
in Progress Trophy 2024.
Complete list of winners of 15th CIDC VKA
(2024) & Complete 15th CIDC VKA - List of
Partner In Progress
2024 John L Chandrayaan-3 Chandrayaan-3 mission team of Indian
“Jack” Swigert Jr. mission team space agency, ISRO(Indian Space Research
Award Organisation) has received the 2024 John L
“Jack” Swigert Jr. award for Space
Exploration. DC Manjunath, Consul General
of India(CGI) in Houston, United States of
-
America(U.S.A.), received the award on the
behalf of ISRO’s Chandrayaan-3 team.
South Asian Avantika Vandanapu The Indian-American actress Avantika
Person of the Vandanapu was honored the ‘South Asian
Year Person of the Year' by the South Asian
Association (SAA) at Harvard University,

- Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA (United

States of America).
She was recognised for her achievements
and significant impact in both the
international and Indian entertainment
industries.
Global Energy Dr Sultan Ahmed Al- For his leadership Dr Sultan Ahmed Al-Jaber, President of
Transition Jaber in advancing energy 28th Conference of the Parties (COP28) to
Impact Award transition the UN Framework Convention on Climate
Change (UNFCCC) won the Global Energy
Transition Impact Award for his
leadership in advancing energy transition.
The awards was presented as a part of the
inaugural World Energy Leadership Awards
(2024) presented by the World Energy
Council (WEC).
Other Winners of World Energy
Leadership Awards 2024:
ü Energy Systems Luminary Award -
Vaclav Smil, Distinguished
Professor Emeritus in the Faculty of
Environment at the University of
Manitoba, Canada
ü Humanising Energy Award -
Barefoot College International
(BCI) headquartered in Miami,
Florida
World Energy Visionary Leadership
Award - Bestowed posthumously on Daniel
Nicol Dunlop, pioneer of the first World
Power Conference in 1924 and the de-facto
founder of the WEC.
John Dirks Gagandeep Kang For her The Toronto (Canada) based Gairdner
Canada Gairdner achievements in Foundation honoured Indian microbiologist
Global Health global health and virologist Gagandeep Kang with the
Award 2024 research John Dirks Canada Gairdner Global
Health Award 2024 for her achievements
in global health research. She is the first
Indian woman to get this award.
She was honoured for her extensive cohort-
based epidemiological, environmental and
clinical trial research on enteric diseases in
children and their effects on life course, with
a significant impact on vaccine development
and health policy in India and
internationally
2023 ACM A.M. Avi Wigderson The Association for Computing Machinery
Turing Award (ACM) has named Israeli mathematician

and computer scientist Avi Wigderson as

the recipient of the 2023 ACM A.M. Turing
Award, which is often called the “Nobel
Prize of Computing”. The award carries a
cash prize of USD 1 million.
He was recognised for foundational
contributions to the theory of computation,
- including reshaping the understanding of
randomness in computation and
mathematics, and for his intellectual
leadership in theoretical computer science.
Aryabhata Pavuluri Subba Rao Former ISRO Pavuluri Subba Rao, former ISRO scientist
Award scientist and and Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Founder and Chief (CEO) of Ananth Technologies Limited
Executive Officer (ATL) has been conferred the prestigious
(CEO) of Ananth Aryabhata Award by the Astronautical
Technologies Society of India (ASI). He was also
Limited (ATL) presented with the “Distinguished Fellow”
title by ASI.
He received the honor in recognition of his
outstanding lifetime contribution to the
promotion of astronautics in India.
KISS Ratan Tata Ratan Tata, Chairman Emeritus of the Tata
Humanitarian Group, received the esteemed Kalinga
Award for 2021 Institute of Social Sciences (KISS)
- Humanitarian Award for 2021 at his
residence in Mumbai, Maharashtra. This
recognition underscores his dedication to
social progress and exemplary corporate
leadership.
CIDC Puravankara Creating Social Puravankara Limited, a renowned real

Vishwakarma Limited Development and estate developer in India, has been
Awards (VKA) Impact honoured with the Achievement Award
for Creating Social Development and
Impact at the 15th edition of CIDC
Vishwakarma Awards (VKA) (2024),
organised by the Construction Industry
Development Council (CIDC).
The Award recognises Puravankara's efforts
in driving positive change through its
impactful campaigns, notably the "Million
Wells for Bengaluru" in collaboration with
Biome Environmental Trust
Human Indian student Indian student teams from the Delhi
Exploration teams from the National Capital Region (NCR) area and
Rover Challenge Delhi National Mumbai (Maharashtra) have won awards
Capital Region from NASA's (National Aeronautics and

(HERC) 2024 (NCR) area and Space Administration) 30th Human

Award Mumbai Exploration Rover Challenge (HERC)
(Maharashtra) 2024.
- ü The Krishna Institute of Engineering &
Technology (KIET) Group of
Institutions, Delhi-NCR has won
the “Crash and Burn” award;
The Kanakia International School from
Mumbai won the “Rookie of the Year”
award.
AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS IN CONTENT FORMAT

MoPSW Awarded Sagar Samman Awards on National Maritime Day 2024
On the occasion of the 61st National Maritime Day (5th April 2024), the Ministry of Ports, Shipping
and Waterways (MoPSW) awarded the Sagar Samman Awards acknowledging exemplary
contributions within the maritime sector.
Winners of Sagar Samman Awards:
Category Winner Contribution
Sagar Samman Dhirendra Kumar Highest honour for outstanding and sustained
Varun Award Sanyal contributions to the Indian maritime sector
Sagar Samman Captain Kamal Kant Recognises consistently excellent contributions to the
Award for Choudhary maritime sector
Excellence
Sagar Samman Captain Subir Saha Honours acts of gallantry by Indian Seafarers, encouraging
Award for and emulation of their exemplary conduct.
Gallantry Captain OM Dutta
8 Indian Origins Featured in the Annual TIME100: Most Influential People in the World
2024
TIME, the 101-year-old global media brand has revealed the 21st edition of annual “TIME 100 most
influential people 2024” in the world. The list features a total of 8 people of Indian Origins namely
Alia Bhatt, Dev Patel, Sakshi Malik, Satya Nadella, Ajaypal Singh Banga, Jigar Shah, Asma Khan, and
Priyamvada Natarajan.
The TIME100 list, compiled by the American magazine TIME, recognises the impact, innovation, and
achievement of the world’s most influential individuals.
INS Sharda Awarded ‘On The Spot Unit Citation 23-24’ For Anti Piracy Operations
On April 8 2024, during his visit to Southern Naval Command(SNC), Kochi(Kerala), Admiral R Hari
Kumar, Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS), awarded 'On the Spot Unit Citation 23-24' to Indian Naval Ships
(INS) Sharda for successful conduct of antipiracy operations.
✓ The ship was involved in the safe release of all 19 crew members (11 Iranian and 08 Pakistani) of
Iranian fishing vessel Omari which was held hostage by pirates off the East coast of Somalia on 2nd
February 2024.

CNS R. Hari Kumar presented Gallantry, Distinguished Service Awards to Naval

personnel
Admiral Radhakrishnan Hari Kumar, Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS), presided over a Naval Investiture
Ceremony at INS Hansa (Indian navy’s air station), Goa, presenting Gallantry and Distinguished Service
awards to Naval personnel on behalf of President of India Droupadi Murmu.
The CNS Trophy for Best Green Practices 2023 was awarded to Naval Dockyard, Mumbai,
Maharashtra and INS (Indian Naval Ship) Valsura.
Goenka among Seven Indians Named in ‘Young Global Leaders Community: The Class
2024’ by WEF
World Economic Forum (WEF) released the 20th edition of “Young Global Leaders Community: The
Class 2024” in Geneva, Switzerland. This year, a total of 11 members were named in the South Asia
category, of which 7 were Indians.
✓ Arjun Bhartia, Director,Jubilant Group in the “Business”category.
✓ Priya Agarwal Hebbar, Non-Executive Director, Vedanta Limited, and also the Chairperson of
Hindustan Zinc, are named in the “Business Category."
✓ Adwaita Nayar, Chief Executive Officer(CEO), FSN E-Commerce Ventures Private Limited in the
“Business” category. She is CEO of Nykaa Fashion and is Co-Founder of Nykaa.
✓ Sharad Vivek Sagar, Founder and CEO, Dexterity Global in the “Social Entrepreneur” category.
✓ Bhumi Pednekar, Actress in the “Arts, Culture and Sports” category.
✓ Richa Bajpai, Founder and CEO, Campus Fund. It is India’s first and only Dorm Room Fund. She was
named under the “Social Entrepreneur” category.
SUMMITS, EVENTS & CONFERENCE

EVENTS
EVENTS VENUE KEY POINTS
Meghayan-24 Meghayan-24, the Meteorological and Oceanographic
(METOC) seminar was organised by the School of Naval
Oceanology and Meteorology (SNOM) and the Indian Naval
Meteorological Analysis Centre (INMAC) at the Southern
Naval Command.
✓ The seminar, organised as a part of the World
Meteorological Day (WMD) 2024, was based on the
theme “At the Frontline of Climate Action” (the
theme of WMD 2024).
✓ The seminar witnessed the launch of INDRA
- (Indian Naval Dynamic Resource for Weather
Analysis), an indigenous mobile application
developed by BISAG (Bhaskaracharya National
Institute for Space Applications and Geo-
informatics).
The aim will disseminate weather-related information and
forecasts empowering optimal & quick decision making
The app was developed in coordination with Directorate of
Naval Oceanology and Meteorology, Indian Navy.

World Energy Congress Rotterdam, The The 26th edition of the World Energy Congress was held in
Netherlands Rotterdam, The Netherlands, from April 22–25, 2024,
under the theme 'Redesigning energy for people and
planet'.
✓ It was hosted by World Energy Council (WEC) and
WEC Netherlands, and hosted by Ministry of
Economic Affairs and Climate Policy of the
Netherlands, City of Rotterdam, and Port of
Rotterdam.
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) confirmed its
commitment to a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and
sustainable Asia-Pacific through Strategy 2030, focusing
on seven priorities viz. Education, Energy, Finance,
Health, Transport, Urban, and Water; and enhancing
private sector involvement, financial resources, and
knowledge services
COMMITTEES & MEETINGS

COMMITTEES
COMMITTEES HEAD KEY POINTS
Seven-Member Panel Vijay Kumar The government has set up a seven-member panel headed by
Saraswat Vijay Kumar Saraswat to propose legislative measures and
promote the commercially viable extraction of critical
minerals found in limited quantities.
✓ The main objective of the panel is to provide judicial
measures to ensure cost-effective and scientific mining
of deeply embedded mineral deposits like copper,
gold and diamond which are typically developed in the
shape of veins and can only be exploited through
underground mining.
Standing Committee The International Financial Services Centres Authority
(IFSCA) constituted a standing committee to prepare a
framework for launching climate finance products. The
committee aims to transform GIFT City (Gujarat International
Finance Tec-City) into a climate finance hub.
- IFSCA is set to launch climate finance products from GIFT City.
This could be an Alternate Investment Fund, transition bond,
transition insurance, etc. Apart from banks and the bond
market, more climate funds are scheduled to be launched in
GIFT City.
6-Member Committee The Ministry of Law and Justice (MoL&J) has constituted a 6-
member committee to examine various issues relating to the
queer (LGBTQIA+ - Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender,
Intersex, Queer/Questioning, and Asexual) community. The
Committee is headed by the Cabinet Secretary, Rajiv Gauba.
-

✓ The committee will formulate measures to ensure that

the queer community does not face discrimination in
accessing goods, services, and social welfare schemes.
INDEX
RANKING
INDEX / SURVEY RELEASED BY / KEY NOTES
NAME CONDUCTED BY
Forbes World’s Forbes Forbes released its 38th annual World's Billionaires list - ‘Forbes
Billionaires List: The World’s Billionaires List: The Richest in 2024' in partnership with
Richest in 2024 J.P. Morgan Bank. Bernard Arnault (France), Chief Executive
Officer (CEO) of LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton (LVMH )
topped the list with a net worth of USD 233 Billion.
✓ He is followed by Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla Motors with a
net worth of USD 195 Billion and Jeff Bezos, founder &
Former CEO of Amazon with USD 194 Billion at 3rd place.
✓ Mukesh Ambani, Chairman And Managing
Director(CMD) of Reliance Industries Limited (RIL),
ranked 9th globally with a net worth of USD 116 Billion,
becomes the richest man in India. He is the only Indian
to feature among the top 10.
✓ Gautam Adani became the 2nd richest Indian with a net
worth of USD 84 billion followed by Shiv Nadar as 3rd
richest with a net worth of USD 36.9 billion.
Business Economist The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) released its Business
Environment Intelligence Unit Environment Rankings (BER) 2024, assessing 82 countries across
Rankings (BER) (EIU) 91 crucial indicators across 11 categories to determine the best
2024 places for conducting business. Singapore retains its top position
for the 16th consecutive year, followed by Denmark and the
United States (US) at 2nd and 3rd place respectively in the world
to conduct business. India ranked 51 in the list with a score of
1.08.
List of Top 5 Countries to Conduct Business
Rank Country Score
1 Singapore 8.56
2 Denmark 8.41
3 US 8.4
4 Germany 8.35
5 Switzerland 8.33
51 India 1.08
Greece, Qatar, and India have made significant strides in
providing favorable business environments globally. India ranks
third among the most improved business environments globally,

projecting strong economic growth and heightened foreign

investment.
Economic and United Nations As per the report, India is expected to lose approximately 5.8% of
Social Survey of Economic and daily working hours due to increasing temperatures by 2030.
Asia and the Pacific Social This would lead to decrease in productivity and lower collection
2024: Boosting Commission for of fiscal revenues.
Asia and the
affordable and
Pacific
longer-term
(UNESCAP)
financing for
Governments
Global Unicorn Index Published by According to the 6th edition of “Global Unicorn Index
2024 Hurun Institute 2024”report,
India is ranked at 3rd position in the index with 67
unicorns(down to 1 compared to 2023). United States of
America(U.S.A.) continued to be at top position with 703
unicorns which accounted for 48% of world total number of
unicorns.
✓ India was ranked 3rd with 67 unicorns led by on-demand
food delivery start-up Swiggy (USD8 billion) followed by
Dream11(USD8 billion) and Razorpay (USD7.5
billion). While, Indian Ed-tech giant Byju’s and
PharmEasy were dropped out from the index.
Top 5 Countries with most number of unicorns:
Rank Country Number of Up/down
Unicorns compared to
2023
1 U.S.A. 703 37
2 China 340 34
3 India 67 -1
4 United 53 4
Kingdom(U.K.)
5 Germany 36 0
World University Quacquarelli The Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) released the 14th edition of QS
Rankings by Subject Symonds (QS) World University Rankings by Subject 2024 which marked
2024 Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi, Delhi as India’s
highest-ranked in Development Studies (20th globally).
✓ Harvard University of United States (US) topped the 4
broad subjects.
✓ JNU is also India’s top-ranked University in the subjects of
Geography, History, Modern Languages, Politics,

Anthropology, English Language & Literature and

Linguistics.
✓ 69 Indian universities featured in the 2024 QS World
University Rankings by Subject, with 424 entries, marking
a 19.4% increase from 2023.
✓ In the broader Asian context, India became the second
most represented country in Asia after China whose 101
institutions were on the list.
The Indian Scenario:
Subject University Indian Global
Rank Rank
Development JNU 1 20
Studies
Business & IIM (Indian Institute of 1 22
Management Management)
Studies Ahmedabad, Gujarat
Engineering- IIT (Indian Institute of 1 25

Mineral & Mining Technology)-Bombay,
Maharashtra
Engineering- IIT-Madras, Tamil 1 29

Petroleum Nadu (TN)
Click Here for full List of Subjects
Top 10 Busiest Airports Council Delhi Airport (Indira Gandhi International Airport - IGIA)
Airports Worldwide International securing the 10th spot in 2023. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta
for 2023 (ACI) World International Airport (ATL), United States (US) regains title as
world's busiest.
Passengers*
Rank Airport Rank
(2023) (2022)
1 Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta 1
International Airport, US
2 Dubai International Airport 5
3 Dallas/Fort Worth International 2

Airport, US
4 London Heathrow, UK 8
5 Tokyo Haneda International Airport, 16
Japan
10 New Delhi’s Indira Gandhi 9

International Airport, India

2024 Skytrax World Skytrax Doha’s (Qatar) Hamad International Airport (HIA) has been
Airport Awards named the World’s Best Airport 2024 in the 2024 Skytrax
World Airport Awards, held at Passenger Terminal EXPO in
Frankfurt, Germany on 17th April 2024.
ü The 2023 Airport of the Year and 12-times previous winner,
Singapore Changi Airport (Singapore) secured 2nd
place, winning Best Airport in Asia and the World’s Best
Airport Immigration Service.
ü Tokyo Haneda Airport has been declared the World’s and
Asia’s Cleanest Airport for 2024.
Click here for Top 100 Airports
REPORTS
REPORT NAME SUBMITTED BY KEY NOTES
Interwoven Lives, United Nations Population According to the report released by the United
Threads of Hope: Fund's (UNFPA) Nations Population Fund's (UNFPA) State of the
Ending Inequalities World Population, titled "Interwoven Lives,
in Sexual and Threads of Hope: Ending Inequalities in Sexual
and Reproductive Health and Rights".
Reproductive Health
✓ The report also stated that India is the
and Rights
global leader in terms of the population with
an estimated population of 1.44 billion
ahead of China at 1.425 billion.
✓ The UNFPA report highlighted that an
estimated 24% of India’s population is aged
0-14 while 17% lies within the range of 10-
19 years.
Small Island Digital United Nations Development Highlighting the transformative potential of digital
States: How Digital Can Programme (UNDP) for Small Island Developing States (SIDS). The
Catalyse SIDS report emphasises the pivotal role of digitalization
Development in the development of SIDS.
SIDS is a distinct group of 39 States and 18
Associate Members of the UN regional commissions
that face unique social, economic, and
environmental vulnerabilities
Synchronizing IIM-A (Indian Institute of Launched during a meeting held in New Delhi,
Energy Transitions Management- Ahmedabad) Delhi. It was launched by Prof. Ajay Kumar
Toward Possible Net Gujarat under the sanction Sood, Principal Scientific Adviser (PSA) to the
Zero for India: of the Office of the Principal GoI.
Scientific Adviser to the
Affordable and Clean Ø The report aims to analyze the energy transition
Government of India (GoI)
Energy for All necessary for achieving a net-zero energy
basket for India. More Details
India Digital Worldline The Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transactions
Payments Report H2 volume in the second half (H2) of 2023 (July 2023 -
2023 December 2023) increased by 56% to 65.77 billion
from 42.09 billion in H2 2022. The value of

transactions increased by 44% from Rs 69.36 Lakh

Crore to Rs 99.68 lakh crore.
The payments acceptance infrastructure channels
have developed between July 2022 and December
2023, Point of Sale (PoS) terminals grew by 26% to
8.56 million while Bharat QR (BQR)s grew by 32%
to 5.96 million and UPI QR transactions grew by
57% to 317 million.
Click here to read full News
South Asia World Bank Stated that India’s economy is projected to grow by
Development Update 7.5% in 2024, a revision of 1.2% from 6.3%
April 2024 - Jobs for estimated in the October 2023 report. India's output
Resilience growth is forecasted to reach 7.5% in FY 2023-24
(FY24) before moderating to 6.6% in FY25,
primarily due to a deceleration in investments.
The WB in its semi-annual economic outlook titled
'East Asia and Pacific April 2024 Economic Update,
April 2024: Firm Foundations of Growth' projected
East Asia and Pacific’s (EAP) growth to ease to 4.5%
in 2024 from 5.1% in 2023, with developing EAP
excluding China expected to pick up to 4.6% from
4.4% in 2023.
Synchronizing AK Mohanty, Chairman of On the sidelines of launch of the report titled

energy transitions Atomic Energy Commission “Synchronizing energy transitions towards
towards possible (AEC) possible Net-Zero for India: Affordable and
Net-Zero for India: Clean Energy for All”, AK Mohanty, Chairman of
Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) mentioned that
Affordable and Clean
India aims to produce 100 GigaWatt(GW) of
Energy for All
nuclear power by 2047.
✓ The Department of Atomic Energy(DAE) is
preparing a vision document for “Amrit
Kaal” which aims to achieve a nuclear
capacity of about 1 lakh MegaWatt (MW)
by 2047.
✓ The report was prepared by Indian
Institute of Management (IIM)
Ahmedabad, Gujarat.
Global Hepatitis World Health Organisation ‘Global Hepatitis Report 2024: Action for access in
Report 2024 (WHO) low- and middle-income countries‘ during the
World Hepatitis Summit (WHS) 2024, organized by
World Hepatitis Alliance with the support of the
Ministry of Health of Portugal, in Lisbon, from April
9–11, 2024, on the theme ‘Integrate, Accelerate,
Eliminate’.
✓ This is the first consolidated WHO report
on viral hepatitis epidemiology, service

coverage and product access, with improved

data for action.
✓ It was developed by the WHO Department
of Global HIV, Hepatitis and Sexually
Transmitted Infection (STI) Programmes
(HHS) jointly with the Department of Health
Product Policy and Standards (HPS),
Department of Immunization, Vaccines and
Biologicals and Department of Regulation
and Prequalification.
10 Countries viz. Bangladesh, China, Ethiopia,
India, Indonesia, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines,
Russian Federation, and Vietnam collectively
account for nearly two-thirds of the global burden
of hepatitis B and C.
Global Trade Outlook World Trade Organization According to the “Global Trade Outlook and
and Statistics: April (WTO) Statistics: April 2024” report released by the
2024 World Trade Organization(WTO), the global
merchandise trade volume is projected to grow by
2.6% in 2024 and 3.3% in 2025 as demand for
traded goods rebounds following a contraction in
2023.
✓ In terms of value, world merchandise trade
fell 5% in 2023 to USD 24.01 trillion. The
decline was offset by a strong increase in
commercial services trade, which rose 9% to
USD 7.54 trillion.
✓ As per the report, India’s merchandise
export for 2023 was USD 432 billion which
is 5% lower than 2022. India’s imports fell
7% to USD 673 billion.
✓ In 2023, India’s share of global goods
exports was 1.8% and imports was 2.8%.
Financing for United Nations Department The 9th edition of the report on the theme
Sustainable of Economic and Social 'Financing for Development at a Crossroads'.
Development Report Affairs (UN DESA) ✓ This report is a joint product of the
2024 (FSDR 2024)- members of the Inter-agency Task Force
Inter-agency Task on Financing for Development (IATF),
Force on Financing for comprised of more than 60 UN agencies and
Development international organizations.
✓ Only four countries viz. Luxembourg,
Sweden, Norway, and Germany met the
0.7% of gross national income (GNI) target
for aid in 2022.
“Plastic Overshoot Day- EA Earth Action India is among the top 12 nations that contribute to
September 5, 2024” around 60% of world's mismanaged plastic waste.

✓ The 12 countries are China, India, Russia,

Brazil, Mexico, Vietnam, Iran, Indonesia,
Egypt, Pakistan, the United States of America
(USA) and Türkiye.
ü India's per capita plastic waste production stands at 8
kg per capita per year, one of the world's lowest.
Tracxn Geo Quarterly Market intelligence platform First quarter (Q1) of Calendar Year (CY) 2024
Report Tracxn (Q1CY2024), Indian fintech startups raised USD
550.8 million across 33 deals, marking a 59%
increase from Q4 2023's USD 346.7 million raised in
53 deals.
✓ India ranked 3rd globally in fintech
funding, behind the United States (US) and
China.
✓ Bengaluru, Karnataka topped the fintech
funding in Q1 2024, followed by Mumbai,
Maharashtra and Hyderabad, Telangana
showcasing their importance as fintech
hubs.
City-wise Fintech Funding Trends in Q1CY2024
Top 5 cities Funding Percentage
Bengaluru, Karnataka 44%
Mumbai, Maharashtra 35%
Hyderabad, Telangana 13%
Gurugram, Haryana 3%
Noida, Uttar Pradesh (UP) 2%
APAC Outlook: Moody’s Analytics India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is expected to
Listening Through decrease to 6.1% in 2024 from 7.7% growth
the Noise recorded in 2023.
✓ The report estimated that overall
APAC(Asia-Pacific) region will show a
growth of 3.8% in 2024 whereas global
economy will show the growth of 2.5%.
As per the report, India’s Consumer Price inflation
rate is around 5% which is close to inflation target
range of 2% to 6% set by Reserve Bank of
India(RBI). It shows no sign of a trend towards
slowing price pressures.
Trends in World Stockholm International According to the report, the total global military
Military Expenditure, Peace Research Institute expenditure increased for the 9th consecutive year
2023 (SIPRI) to an all-time high of USD 2443 billion in 2023, an
increase of 6.8% in real terms from 2022. This is the
steepest year-on-year increase since 2009.

✓ The top 5 military spenders in 2023 are the

United States of America(USA)(1st),
China(2nd), Russia(3rd), India (4th) and
Saudi Arabia(5th), which together
accounted for 61% of world military
spending.
With a military expenditure of USD 83.6 billion in
2023, India was the 4th largest spender globally.
India’s military spending has increased by 4.2%
from 2022 and 44% from 2014.
Economic Research State Bank of India (SBI) The total amount of deposits in senior citizen
Department (ERD) accounts increased by 143% to Rs 34.367 lakh
report crore at the end of December 2023 from Rs 13.724
lakh crore in 2018.
✓ The report revealed that senior citizens
term deposit accounts increased by about
81% to around 7.4 crore in December 2023
from 4.1 crore in 2018.
The report estimated that at least 7.3 crore of these
accounts have a balance of over Rs 15 lakh and
fetching interest of 7.5% on these deposits.
World Economic International Monetary According to the report IMF has raised India’s
Outlook(WEO) - Steady Fund (IMF) GDP(Gross Domestic Product) growth forecast by
But Slow: Resilience 30 basis points(bps) to 6.8% for fiscal year
Amid Divergence (April 2025(FY25) and retained the forecast for FY26 at
2024) 6.5%.
✓ India’s GDP grew by an impressive 7.8% in
FY 2024(2023-2024), higher than the 6.7%
predicted in IMF’s January 2024 report.
✓ Global growth, estimated at 3.2% in 2023, is
projected to continue at the same pace in
2024 and 2025, up by 0.1% from the
January 2024 WEO Update.
Ensuring safety and International Labour Annually 22.85 million occupational injuries, 18,970
health at work in a Organisation(ILO) deaths and 2.09 million disability-adjusted life years
changing climate (DALYs) are reported due to excessive heat.
The report estimates that over 70% of all workers
(~2.41 billion workers) are exposed to excessive
heat. The exposure to excessive heat has increased
by 34.7% from 2000 to 2020.
State of the Climate in World Meteorological The World Meteorological Organization's (WMO)
Asia 2023 Organization's (WMO) unveiled its 4th edition of the 'State of the Climate in
Asia 2023', highlighting Asia's vulnerability to
weather and climate-related hazards. Year 2023
was recorded as the warmest year across six
globally averaged datasets, with the years from
2015 to 2023 ranking as the nine warmest years in

all datasets. This made it the disaster capital in

2023.
The fourth quarterly United Nations Conference India's service exports increased by 11.4% to USD
(Q4) report for 2023 on Trade and Development 345 billion in 2023, amid uncertainty in the global
(UNCTAD) economy
✓ As per the report, World services export
increased at 8.9% to USD 7.9 trillion in
2023. The world services exports increased
to 8.0% in Q4 2023.
ACQUISITION & MERGERS

CCI approvals on 2nd April 2024
The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has approved the following proposals on 2nd April 2024.
✓ Acquisition of shares of MG Motor India Private Limited by IndoEdge India Fund- Large Value Fund
(LVF) scheme.
✓ Acquisition of CCPS in Northern Arc Capital Limited by International Finance Corporation (IFC).
✓ Acquisition of Nagarjuna Fertilizers and Chemicals Limited (NFCL) Assets and 100% shareholding of
Greenko ZeroC Private Limited (ZeroC) by AMG India.
✓ Acquisition of 10.39% of Annapurna Finance and subscription to its certain debentures by Piramal
Alternatives Trust.
✓ Acquisition of 100% equity stake of Sharekhan Limited and Human Value Developers Pvt. Ltd
collectively by Mirae Asset Capital Markets (India) Pvt. Ltd. and Mirae Asset Securities Co. Ltd.
respectively.
✓ Subscription of CCPS of Pritam International Pvt. Ltd. by India Advantage Fund S5 I, HCL Corp, Mirabilis
Investment Trust, Aashil Apurva Shah and Ansh Ashit Shah.
✓ Subscription to 14,25,79,161 equity shares of Max Life Insurance Company Limited by Axis Bank
Limited.
F1 owner Liberty Media acquires MotoGP owner Dorna Sports

The Liberty Media Corporation(Liberty Media) has signed an agreement to acquire approximately
86% of Dorna Sports, S.L.(Dorna), the exclusive commercial and television rights holder of
MotoGP(Grand Prix motorcycle racing), from Bridgepoint and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board
(CPP Investments).
Hinduja Group Firm Gets SEBI Approval for Ownership Change of Reliance Wealth
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has given its approval to Hinduja Group-owned
Asia Enterprises for a change of control in Reliance Wealth Management Limited under SEBI's
regulations governing investment advisers and portfolio managers.
✓ SEBI also approved an application for a proposed change in control at Reliance Securities under
regulations governing research analysts and investment advisors.

IndusInd International Holdings Acquires 60% Stake in Invesco Asset Management

India
IndusInd International Holdings Limited (IIHL), the Mauritius-based Investment Holding Company of the
Hinduja Group, has acquired a 60% stake in Invesco Asset Management India (IAMI).
✓ This acquisition is part of the agreement to form a Joint Venture(JV) in which IIHL will hold 60% and
IAMI will hold 40% and both will have sponsor status.
Larsen & Toubro Concludes Divestment of its Entire Stake 51% in L&T IDPL
On April 11 2024, Larsen & Toubro (L&T) has announced the completion of divestment of L&T
Infrastructure Development Projects Limited (L&T IDPL), a joint venture between Larsen & Toubro
Limited and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments) holding 51% and 49%
shares respectively
Bain Capital Sells 1.08% Stake in Axis Bank for Rs 3,575 crore
The private equity firm Bain Capital sold the remaining 1.08% stake in Axis Bank for Rs 3,575
crores via an open market transaction. The transaction involved the sale of 33.37 million shares at Rs.
1,071 per share on the BSE (formerly Bombay Stock Exchange).
CCI Approvals on 16th April 2024

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) approved the following proposed combinations on 16th
April 2024.
✓ Acquisition of stake in PAMP Technologies (India) Private Limited(PAMP Technologies) and
MMTC PAMP India Private Limited(MMTC PAMP) by PAMP Ventures SA (PAMP Switzerland).
Acquisition of shareholding of Thyssenkrupp Industries India Private Limited by Protos
Engineering Company Private Limited (Protos) and Paharpur Cooling Towers Limited
(Paharpur).
BNP Paribas to Buy Fosun's 9% Stake in Belgian Insurer Ageas for about 730 Million
Euros
BNP Paribas, the largest bank in the eurozone, has agreed to acquire 9% shareholding in Belgian
insurer Ageas from China's Fosun Group for about 730 million Euros . BNP Paribas Cardif, the
insurance division of BNP Paribas financial group, spearheads the acquisition. With this BNP Paribas
will become the biggest shareholder of Ageas
CCI approves Subscription to CCDs of Napino Auto and Electronics by IFC

On 23rd April 2024, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) approved the subscription to
Compulsory Convertible Debentures (CCDs) of Napino Auto and Electronics Limited (Napino) by the
International Finance Corporation (IFC).
ATC Telecom Infrastructure Sells Entire 2.87% Stake in Vodafone Idea for Rs 1,840 Cr
ATC Telecom Infrastructure Pvt Ltd sold its entire 2.87% stake in telecom operator Vodafone Idea
Limited (Vi) for Rs. 1,840 crore through an open market transaction. Citigroup Global Markets
Mauritius acquired over 49.12 crore shares, constituting a 0.98% stake in Vi, at an average price of
Rs 12.70, amounting to Rs 623.88 crore.
Vi raised Rs 18,000 crore through an FPO, subscribed 6.36 times, with strong global institutional
investor demand.

DEFENCE
EXERCISE
EXERCISE NAME VENUE / KEY NOTES
PARTICIPATING
COUNTRIES
Gagan Shakti-2024 The Indian Air Force (IAF) has launched a 10-day
war exercise named 'Gagan Shakti-2024' from
April 1 to April 10, 2024, to display its prowess in
- executing high-intensity operations across India.
The Pokhran Field Firing Range in Jaisalmer,
Rajasthan; Bhuj in Gujarat; Ladakh, Arunachal
Pradesh; and other locations nationwide will host
the exercise.
Sagar Kavach 01/24 Lakshadweep Sagar Kavach 01/24, a two-day coastal security
exercise involving all maritime security agencies
was conducted in the Union Territory (UT) of
Lakshadweep from 1st to 2nd April 2024. The
assets of the Indian Navy (IN), Indian Coast Guard
(ICG), Marine Police, Fisheries, Customs and other
security agencies were involved in the exercise.
Anti-Tank Guided Missile Sikkim The Indian Army's Trishakti Corps conducted a
(ATGM) training exercise of Anti-Tank Guided Missile
(ATGM) at a super-high altitude area of 17,000 feet
in Sikkim. The exercise was conducted with the aim
of “Ek Missile Ek Tank” and highlighted the accuracy
and effectiveness of the ATGM system in high-
altitude environments.
Exercise Poorvi Lehar Indian Navy conducted Exercise Poorvi Lehar

(XPOL) 2024 (XPOL) 2024 on East Coast. XPOL aims to validate
procedures and to assess Indian Navy’s
preparedness to meet the maritime security
challenges in the region.
-
The exercise was conducted in multiple phases
which include - Tactical Phase: Combat training in
realistic situations.
and Weapon Phase: Successful conduct of different
firings.
DUSTLIK 2024 India-Uzbekistan The 5th edition of the India-Uzbekistan Joint
Military Exercise ‘DUSTLIK 2024’, is being
conducted from 15th to 28th April 2024 in Termez
District, the Republic of Uzbekistan. Exercise
DUSTLIK 2023, 4th edition of the exercise between
India and Uzbekistan was held from 20th February

to 5th March 2023 at the Foreign Training Node,

Pithoragarh in Uttarakhand (India). The first edition
of Exercise DUSTLIK was held in Uzbekistan in
November 2019.
The Chief of Army Staff(CAS) of the Indian Army
General Manoj Pande has inaugurated a State-of-
the-Art Information Technology (IT) Laboratory
at the Uzbek Academy of Armed Forces during his
four-day visit to Uzbekistan from 15th to 18th April
2024.
Maritime Partnership Indian Navy’s To improve interoperability and strengthen
Exercise indigenous stealth maritime cooperation between India and U.K.
frigate, United
Kingdom(UK) Littoral
Response Group
South(LRGS)
comprising British
Royal Navy’s Royal
Fleet Auxiliary(RFA)
Argus and RFA Lyme
Bay at Sea
TESTING
MISSILES TESTING FEATURES
NAME LOCATION
Agni-Prime Dr. APJ Abdul Strategic Forces Command (SFC) and Defence Research and
(Agni-P) Kalam Island off the Development Organisation (DRDO)successfully conducted the flight test
coast of Odisha of the New Generation Ballistic missile Agni-Prime (Agni-P) from Dr. APJ
Abdul Kalam Island off the coast of Odisha.
It is a two-stage surface-to-surface, canisterised solid propellant ballistic
missile. It has a range between 1000km to 2000km.
ARMY, NAVY & AIR FORCE NEWS

Defence exports touch record Rs.21,083 crore in FY24: MoD
As per the data released by Ministry of Defence (MoD), Indian defence sector has recorded the highest
ever defence exports of Rs21,083 crore i.e. approximately USD2.63 billion in FY (2023-2024). The data
shows the growth of 32.5% compared to last fiscal (FY2022-2023), when defence export was recorded
Rs15,920 crore.
Indian Army begins Induction of Akashteer Control & Reporting Systems

The Indian Army has commenced the induction of the indigenous 'Akashteer Control & Reporting
Systems' to enhance its air defence capabilities. this will enable the Indian Army’s defence units to
operate in an integrated manner.
✓ The project was developed by Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) under the Atmanirbhar Bharat
initiative.

India gets 24 Igla-S Anti-Aircraft Missiles from Russia

The Indian Army has acquired the first batch of 24 Russia-made Igla-S Man Portable Air Defence
Systems (MANPADS) along with 100 missiles, as part of an agreement involving domestic production in
India. This will bolster the Indian Army’s Very Short Range Air Defence (VSHORAD) capabilities.
✓ Igla-S include a firing range of 500-6000 m, target altitude from 10-3500m, and capability to
engage various types of targets.
IAF Receives First Indigenous Crash Fire Tender

On 3rd April 2024, The Indian Air Force (IAF) received the delivery of the first indigenously designed
and developed Crash Fire Tender (CFT). It was manufactured by a Noida(Uttar Pradesh-UP)-
based Indian Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME) firm, against the contract worth Rs 291
crores. The CFT was delivered within 14 months of contract.
DRDO Develops Lightest Bulletproof Jacket in India

The Defence Research and Development Organisation(DRDO) has developed India’s lightest
Bulletproof Jacket for protection against 7.62 x 54 R API(Armour Piercing Incendiary) ammunition,
highest threat Level 6 of Bureau of Indian Standards(BIS) 17051.
IAF Successfully Tests Crystal Maze-2 missile
Indian Air Force (IAF) successfully test fired the new version of an air-launched medium-range ballistic
missile known as ROCKS or Crystal Maze-2 from a Su-30 MKI fighter jet in the Andaman and Nicobar
Islands.
DRDO & Indian Army Successfully Conducted Flight Trials of MPATGM Weapon System
The Indian Army and the Defence Research and Development Organisation(DRDO) successfully
conducted the warhead flight trials of the Man Portable Anti-tank Guided Missile (MPATGM) Weapon
System at the Pokhran Field Firing Range(PFFR) in Jaisalmer district, Rajasthan.
MPATGM was indigenously designed and developed by DRDO in partnership with Hyderabad,
Telangana based VEM Technologies Private Limited.
DRDO Hands Over Indigenous Flight Control Systems for HAL’s LCA Tejas Mk1A
The Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) of the Defence Research and Development Organisation
(DRDO) has handed over the first batch of the indigenous Leading Edge Slat Actuators and Airbrake
Control Module to Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) for using it in LCA Tejas Mk1A fighter
aircraft.
ADA developed these components in collaboration with Research Centre Imarat (RCI), Hyderabad,
Telangana, and Central Manufacturing Technology Institute (CMTI), Bengaluru, Karnataka.
DRDO Chairman Inaugurates SPACE, a Testing Hub for Sonar Systems for Indian Navy in
Kerala
Dr. Samir V Kamat, Secretary, Department of Defence (Research and Development) and chairman of
Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) inaugurated a state-of-the-art Submersible
Platform for Acoustic Characterisation and Evaluation (SPACE) at Underwater Acoustic Research
Facility in Kulamavu in Idukki district, Kerala.
It was established by the Naval Physical and Oceanographic Laboratory (NPOL) of DRDO.

India delivers First Batch of BrahMos Supersonic Missiles to Philippines

India delivered the first batch of BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles to the Philippines. This delivery
marks a significant milestone in defense cooperation between the two nations, following a USD 375
million deal signed in January 2022.
✓ BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles is produced by BrahMos Aerospace Pvt Ltd which is a joint
venture (JV) between the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the
Russian Federation's NPO Mashinostroyeniya.
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

SATELLITES LAUNCHES
SATELLITE COUNTRY PURPOSE
NAME
TSAT-1A India Tata Advanced Systems Limited's (TASL) TSAT-1A, India’s first private
sector-built sub-meter-resolution Earth Observation Satellite, was
launched on board the Space Exploration Technologies Corporation’s
(SpaceX’s) Falcon 9 rocket from the National Aeronautics and Space
Administration's (NASA) Kennedy Space Center in Florida, United States
of America (USA), on April 7, 2024. This was one of the 11 satellites
launched as a part of the ‘Bandwagon-1’ Mission, SpaceX’s first rideshare
mission to LEO at inclinations of about 45 degrees.
✓ TASL built TSAT-1A at its Vemagal facility (Karnataka) in
collaboration with Satellogic, a leading provider of high-
resolution satellite imagery.
Angara-A5 space Russia Russian space agency Roscosmos State Corporation for Space
rocket Activities(ROSCOSMOS) successfully launched the 1st Angara-A5
space rocket from the launch pad in Vostochny Cosmodrome in the far
eastern Amur region, Russia. This will replace Proton M as Russia's
heavy-lift rocket, which has been in operation since the mid-1960s.
Indigenous India Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully
Technology conducted flight-test of Indigenous Technology Cruise Missile (ITCM)
Cruise Missile from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) located at Chandipur off the coast
(ITCM) of Odisha.
✓ The missile is developed by DRDO’s laboratory Aeronautical
Development Establishment (ADE) based in Bengaluru,
Karnataka, along with contribution from other laboratories and
Indian industries.
Electron rocket Rocket Lab Rocket Lab USA, Inc.'s (Rocket Lab) ‘Electron’ rocket launched the
USA, Inc.'s National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Advanced
(Rocket Lab) Composite Solar Sail System (ACS3) and South Korea’s ‘NEONSAT-1’
under the ‘Beginning of the Swarm’ mission from Rocket Lab Launch
Complex 1 in Mahia, New Zealand.
✓ NEONSAT-1, an Earth observation satellite, equipped with a high-
resolution optical camera designed to monitor the natural
disasters along the Korean Peninsula by pairing its images with
Artificial Intelligence(AI).

NATIONAL
Microsoft and OpenAI forge USD 100bn plan for Stargate Supercomputer
Microsoft and OpenAI announce a joint plan for Stargate, an AI (Artificial Intelligence) supercomputer
data center project in the United States (US), estimated to cost over USD 100 billion and set for launch
in 2028.
✓ Microsoft and Open AI signed multibillion dollar partnership in 2019 and has steadily expanded as
part of Microsoft’s AI supercomputing collaboration. Microsoft and OpenAI are currently in the
middle of phase 3 of a five-phase plan for supercomputing development.
✓ Stargate will be the fifth phase of a supercomputer series, a smaller fourth-phase supercomputer
is in development and planned to launch in 2026.
ISRO develops lightweight Carbon-Carbon(C-C) Rocket Engine Nozzle

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)’s Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) based in
Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala has developed a light weight Carbon-Carbon(C-C) nozzle for rocket
engine. VSSC used advanced materials like C-C composites to create a nozzle divergent as they exhibit
unique properties such as: low density, high specific strength and high rigidity, capable of retaining
mechanical properties even at increased temperature.
✓ C-C composite has special anti-oxidation coating of Silicon Carbide (SiC) which extends its
operational limits in oxidizing environment. Thus, shows high corrosion resistance.
HAL Delivers Two Dornier 228 Planes To Guyana Defence Force

Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) delivers two Dornier 228 planes to Guyana Defence Force (GDF)
via Boeing C-17 Globemaster military transport planes at Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA). The
delivery follows Guyanese President Mohamed Irfaan Ali's visit to an HAL facility in India over a year
ago.
Gopi Thotakura Named Among 6 Crew Members to fly on Blue Origin’s NS-25 Mission
Gopi Thotakura, an entrepreneur and seasoned pilot from Andhra Pradesh has been selected among
6 crew members for Blue Origin’s New Shepard-25 (NS-25) space tourism mission. This mission will
be the 7th human flight for the New Shepard program and the 25th in its history.
He is now the 1st Indian space tourist and 2nd Indian to travel into space, following Wing Commander
Rakesh Sharma of the Indian Army in 1984.
INTERNATIONAL
WHO’s unveils S.A.R.A.H, its 1st AI-Powered Digital Health Promoter
The World Health Organization (WHO) unveiled S.A.R.A.H. (Smart AI Resource Assistant for Health), its
first digital health promoter prototype with enhanced empathetic response powered by generative
artificial intelligence (AI).
S.A.R.A.H., also known as Sarah, is supported by Biological AI technology of Soul Machines Limited.
‘FLEX’ lunar rover successfully tested in California's Mojave Desert by Venturi Astrolab
Inc
Venturi Astrolab Inc, a Los Angeles, United States (US)-based startup, has successfully tested a
groundbreaking lunar rover prototype, the Flexible Logistics and Exploration (FLEX) rover, in
California's Mojave Desert. It is designed for National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)’s
Artemis program.

NASA Launches 3 Sounding Rockets for APEP Mission from Wallops Flight Facility
during Solar Eclipse
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) launched 3 Black Brant IX sounding
rockets for the Atmospheric Perturbations around Eclipse Path (APEP) mission from NASA’s Wallops
Flight Facility in Virginia, the United States of America (USA).
The mission aims to study how Earth’s upper atmosphere reacts to the temporary dimming of sunlight
during the eclipse.
NASA Confirmed Dragonfly Rotorcraft Mission to Saturn’s Moon Titan

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has confirmed its Dragonfly rotorcraft
mission to Titan, the largest moon of Saturn, with a total lifecycle cost of USD 3.35 billion. The
mission is set to be launched in July 2028. The dragonfly rotorcraft is targeted to arrive at Titan in
2034.
Dragonfly is being designed and built under the direction of the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics
Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland, United States of America (USA) which manages the mission for
NASA. Elizabeth Turtle of APL leads as principal investigator.
Nigeria the 1st Country Globally to Launch Men5CV Meningitis Vaccine Recommended
by WHO
Nigeria has become the 1st country to launch a new vaccine called Men5CV, recommended by the
World Health Organization (WHO) to protect people against 5 strains of the meningococcus (Neisseria
meningitidis) bacteria (A, C, W, Y, and X), responsible for meningitis. Men5CV potentially paving the
way for the WHO's goal of eliminating meningitis by 2030.
✓ The new vaccine was a collaborative effort between PATH (formerly Program for Appropriate
Technology in Health), and the Serum Institute of India(SII). The vaccine and emergency
vaccination activities were funded by Gavi.
Korea’s 'Artificial Sun' Sets Record For Sustaining Plasma At 100 Million Degree Celsius
South Korea's superconducting fusion device, the Korea Superconducting Tokamak Advanced Research
(KSTAR), also known as the “artificial sun” at the Korea Institute of Fusion Energy (KFE), set a new
world record in the nuclear fusion experiment by sustaining a plasma loop to 100 million degrees
Celsius for 48 seconds.
China Launched 3 Member Shenzhou-18 Crew to its Space Station

China launched its Shenzhou-18 spacecraft, also known as the "Divine vessel”, aboard the Long March
2-F rocket with 3 astronauts to its space station “Tiangong space station”. The 3 member crew
of Shenzhou-18 are Mission Commander Ye Guangfu(43), and former fighter pilots Li Cong (34) and Li
Guangsu (36).
Intel Builds ‘Hala Point’, World’s Largest Neuromorphic System To Enable Sustainable
AI
Intel Corporation, an American technology company that manufactures semiconductor computer
circuits, has built the world's largest neuromorphic system code named 'Hala Point' to enable more
sustainable Artificial Intelligence (AI). It is initially deployed at Sandia National Laboratories, utilizes
Intel’s Loihi 2 processor.

Israel Deploys C-Dome Defence System for First time

Israel has deployed its ship-mounted defence system ‘C-Dome’ for the first time in Eilat, the
southernmost city of Israel. The C-Dome is a naval version of the Iron Dome air defence system used to
shield against rocket and missile attacks. The C-Dome Defence System was developed by the state-
owned defence company Rafael Advanced Defence Systems.
Bandwagon-1: SpaceX Launches First Rideshare Mission

Space Exploration Technologies Corporation (SpaceX) has launched the ‘Bandwagon-1’, the first
rideshare mission to low-Earth orbit at inclinations of about 45 degrees with a Falcon 9 rocket from
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Kennedy Space Center, Florida, United States
of America(USA).
✓ Bandwagon-1 carries 11 satellites, including KOREA’s 425Sat, HawkEye 360′s Clusters 8 & 9,
Tyvak International’s CENTAURI-6, iQPS’s QPS-Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR)-7 TSUKUYOMI-II,
Capella Space’s Capella-14 and Tata Advanced Systems Limited’s TSAT-1A.
✓ A ‘425 Project’ satellite for the military of South Korea was probably the largest of the 11 satellites
carried by Bandwagon-1.
SPORTS
BADMINTON & TENNIS
Badminton: India’s Anupama Upadhyaya Wins Women's Singles Title at Orlen Polish
Open 2024
India’s Anupama Upadhyaya defeats Tanya Hemanth (India) to win the women’s singles title of the
Orlen Polish Open 2024, held from 20th to 24 March 2024 in Wilanow Sports Centre, Warsaw, Poland.
✓ The Indian pair M.R. Arjun and Dhruv Kapila won the men’s doubles title by defeating Denmark's
William Kryger Boe and Christian Faust Kjær in the finals.
✓ Denmark’s Victor Ørding Kauffmann won the men’s singles title by defeating Jia Heng Jason Teh
(Singapore) in the finals. India’s Darshan Pujari lost in the semifinals against Jia Heng Jason Teh.
Tennis: Italy’s Jannik Sinner won the Men’s Singles title at Miami Open 2024
Italian tennis player Jannik Sinner won the Men’s Singles title at the Association of Tennis
Professionals (ATP) Miami Open 2024 by defeating Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria in the finals held at
the Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida, the United States of America(USA). He became the first
Italian to win the Miami Open.
Daniel Collins of the USA won the Miami Open 2024 Women’s singles title by defeating World No. 4
Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan.
India’s Rohan Bopanna and Australia’s Matthew Ebden won the 2024 Miami Open men’s doubles title
defeating Croatia’s Ivan Dodig and USA’s Austin Krajicek.
Winners & Runner-ups of Miami Open 2024:
Category Winner Runner-Up
Men’s Singles Jannik Sinner (Italy) Grigor Dimitrov (Bulgaria)
Women’s Singles Danielle Collins (USA) Elena Rybakina (Kazakhstan)

Men’s Doubles Rohan Machanda Bopanna Ivan Dodic (Croatia) and Austin Krajicik
(India) and Mathew (USA)
Ebden(Australia)
Women’s Doubles Sofian Kennis (USA) and Gabriela Dabrowski (Canada) and Erin
Bethanie Mattek-Sands (USA) Routliffe (New Zealand)
Badminton: India’s Anupama and Tharun Win Singles Titles at Kazakhstan

International Challenge 2024
India’s Anupama Upadhyaya and Tharun Mannepalli won the women’s and men’s singles titles,
respectively, at the Kazakhstan International Challenge 2024 Badminton tournament in Uralsk,
Kazakhstan, from 2nd to 6th April 2024.
Winners of Kazakhstan International Challenge 2024:
Championship Winner Runner
Men’s Singles Tharun Mannepalli (India) Soong Joo Ven (Malaysia)
Women’s Singles Anupama Upadhyaya (India) Isharani Baruah (India)
Men’s Doubles Lucas Corvee and Kakeru Kumagai and
Ronan Labar (France) Hiroki Nishi (Japan)
Women’s Doubles Kaho Osawa and Mai Tanabe Polina Buhrova and Yevheniia Kantemyr
(Japan) (Ukraine)
Mixed Doubles Wong Tien Ci and Lim Chiew Sanjai Srivatsa Dhanraj and Maneesha
Sien (Malaysia) K(India)
2024 Badminton Asia Championships: Christie and Wang Won men’s and women’s
singles Titles, Respectively
Indonesia’s Jonatan Christie bagged the men’s singles title and China’s Wang Zhi Yi has claimed the
women’s singles title at the Badminton Asia Championships 2024 held in Ningbo, China.
The Indonesian player Jonatan Christie won the gold medal in the men’s singles category defeating the
Chinese shuttler Li Shi Feng.

List of the Winners at the Badminton Asia Championships 2024:

Championship Winner Runner
Men’s Singles Jonatan Christie (Indonesia) Li Shi Feng (China)
Women’s Singles Wang Zhi Yi (China) Chen Yu Fei (China)
Men’s Doubles Liang Wei Keng and Wang Goh Sze Fei and Nur Izzuddin (Malaysia)
Chang (China)
Women’s Doubles Baek Ha-na and Lee So hee Zhang Shu Xian and Zheng Yu (China)
(South Korea)
Mixed Doubles Feng Yan Zhe and Huang Dong Seo Seung-jae and Chae Yu-jung (South
Ping (China) Korea)
Former World No. 1 Badminton Player Kento Momota announces Retirement

On 18th April 2024, former World No. 1 Badminton player Kento Momota of Japan announced that he
would retire from badminton after featuring in the 2024 Thomas & Uber Cup for Japan. The 29-year-old
Kento Momota is ranked 52nd in the Badminton World Federation (BWF) World Rankings as of 18th
April 2024.
Monte Carlo Masters 2024: Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas won his 3rd Monte-Carlo Singles
title
Greek tennis player Stefanos Tsitsipas won the Singles title at the Monte Carlo Masters 2024 by
defeating Norway’s Casper Ruud. This marks Stefanos Tsitsipas’ third Monte Carlo Masters title. He
previously won the title in 2021 and 2022.
✓ Belgian professional tennis players Alum Sander Gille and Joran Vliegan won the doubles title at
the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters 2024 by defeating Marcelo Melo of Brazil and Alexander Zverev of
Germany.
✓ Sumit Nagal, India’s emergffing tennis player, defeated Matteo Arnaldi of Italy and became the 1st
ever Indian to win a main draw match at the Monte Carlo Masters.
Former Tennis World No. 1 Garbine Muguruza of Spain Announces Retirement

Spanish women's tennis player Garbiñe Muguruza Blanco, a 2-time Grand Slam champion in singles
and former world No. 1 (in 2017), has announced her retirement from professional tennis at the age of
30. She became the 1st Spanish woman to win a Grand Slam singles title since Arantxa Sánchez Vicario
(Spain) won the 1989 French Open in Paris.

BOXING, WRESTLING & WEIGHTLIFTING

Indian Contingent Wins 26 Medals at Youth Boxing World Cup 2024
The Indian boxing contingent won 26 medals (5 gold, 9 silver, and 12 bronze) in the Youth World
Boxing Cup 2024 (33rd Adriatic Pearl tournament) held at the Hotel Splendid Conference & Spa
Resort in Budva, Montenegro, from 3rd to 11th March 2024.
✓ Russia topped the medal tally with eight gold medals. India finished second with five gold medals,
while Poland was in the third position with three gold medals. Click here to view full list of
Indian Medal Winners
Mirabai Chanu Becomes the Only Indian Weightlifter to Qualify for Paris Olympics
Saikhom Mirabai Chanu became the only Indian weightlifter to qualify for the Paris Olympics 2024 after
finishing third in Group B of the women’s 49kg division and 12th overall with a total lift of 184kg (81kg
snatch + 103kg clean and jerk) at the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) World Cup 2024.
Indian weightlifter Bindyarani Devi Sorokhaibam won a bronze medal in the non-Olympic women’s
55kg category at the IWF World Cup 2024.
India Wins 9 medals in Asian Wrestling Championships 2024

Indian wrestlers won a total of 9 medals (4 silver and 5 bronze) in the Asian Wrestling Championships
(Seniors) 2024 held in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan from 11th to 16th April 2024.
Indian Medal Winners:
Wrestler Category Medal
Udit men’s freestyle Silver
57kg
Radhika women’s 68kg
Anju women’s 53kg
Harshita women’s 72kg
Abhimanyou men’s freestyle Bronze
70kg
Vicky men’s freestyle
97kg
Shivanee Pawar women’s 50kg
Antim women’s 65kg

Manisha women’s 62kg
ARCHERY & SHOOTING

India Wins 8 Medals in 2024 Archery World Cup Stage 1 held in Shanghai
India topped the medal tally with 8 medals (5 Golds, 2 Silver,1 Bronze) at the 2024 Hyundai Archery
World Cup Stage 1 held in Shanghai, China from 23rd to 28th April 2024. South Korea and Spain
finished 2nd and 3rd with 7 medals and 2 medals, respectively.
Indian Gold Medal Winners:
Archer Event Medal
Jyothi Surekha Vennam Women’s Compound Individual Gold

Jyothi Surekha Vennam, Aditi Gopichand Swami and Women’s Compound Team
Parneet Kaur
Abhishek Verma, Priyansh, and Prathamesh Bhalchandra Men’s Compound Team

Fuge
Tarundeep Rai, Dhiraj Bommadevara, and Pravin Ramesh Men’s Recurve Team
Jadhav
Jyothi Surekha Vennam and Abhishek Verma Mixed Compound Team
OTHER SPORTS NEWS

Red Bull’s Max Verstappen Wins Japanese Grand Prix 2024
Belgian-Dutch driver Max Verstappen of Red Bull won the Formula 1 (F1) Japanese Grand Prix (GP)
2024 held at the Suzuka International Racing Course in Suzuka, Japan from 5th to 7th April 2024. Red
Bull’s Sergio Perez (Mexico) and Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz Jr. (Spain) won the second and third positions,
respectively.
Indian Athlete Aishwarya Mishra’s 400m Bronze at 2023 Asian Championships to be

Upgraded to Silver
The Indian athlete Aishwarya Mishra's bronze medal won during the women's 400 m sprint event of
the Asian Athletics Championships 2023 held in Bangkok, Thailand, is set to be upgraded to silver
medal after the original silver medalist Farida Soliyeva of Uzbekistan failed a dope test.
Soliyeva tested positive for meldonium, a substance added to the World Anti-doping Agency (WADA)
list of banned substances in 2016.
Gukesh Wins Candidates Tournament & Qualifies for World Chess Championship 2024
The 17-year-old chess Grandmaster (GM) Dommaraju Gukesh from Chennai (Tamil Nadu) has won
(Open category) the International Chess Federation (FIDE) Candidates 2024 held in Toronto, Canada,
by defeating Hikaru Nakamura of the United States to score 9 points.
✓ He will now be competing with Ding Liren of China in the World Chess Championship 2024.
✓ Gukesh has thus become the youngest challenger in history to qualify for the World Chess
Championship, breaking the record created in 1984 by the GM Garry Kasparov (Russia), when he
was 22.
✓ Tan Zhongyi (China) has won the candidates 2024 (Women’s category) and will face her
compatriot Ju Wenjun (China) in the Women’s World Chess Championship 2024.
Red Bull’s Max Verstappen Wins Chinese Grand Prix 2024

Belgian-Dutch driver Max Verstappen of Red Bull won the Formula 1 (F1) Chinese Grand Prix (GP)
2024 held at the Shanghai International Circuit in Shanghai, China on 21st April 2024. McLaren’s Lando
Norris(the United Kingdom(UK)) and Red Bull’s Sergio Perez (Mexico) finished in the second and third
positions, respectively.

BOOKS & AUTHORS

BOOK NAME AUTHOR KEY NOTES
The Idea of Satyanarayan Gangaram Padma Bhushan awardee, Satyanarayan Gangaram
Democracy Pitroda, aka Sam Pitroda Pitroda, aka Sam Pitroda, an Indian engineer and
entrepreneur, virtually launched his new book titled
“The Idea of Democracy”. The book was published
by Penguin Business, an imprint of Penguin Random
House India.
Maker of Goa: The Vijayadevi Rane A book titled “Maker of Goa: The Untold Story of
Untold Story of Pratap Singh Rane” is the biography of Pratap Singh
Pratap Singh Rane Rane, the former Chief Minister (CM) of the state of
Goa (then UT-Goa, Daman, and Diu), authored by
Vijayadevi Rane (Pratap’s wife) and published by
Rupa publications.
Knife: Meditations Salman Rushdie Salman Rushdie, Indian-born British-American
After an Attempted author, released his new memoir "Knife:
Murder Meditations After an Attempted Murder’’. The
memoir was published by Penguin Random House,
which describes how he survived the terrifying
experience of being 12 times stabbed during an Arts
gathering in New York, United States of America
(USA) in August 2022.
✓ He also received the Booker Prize for
Midnight’s Children in 1981.
Sabke Ram Published by Prabhat Prime Minister Narendra Modi was presented with a
Prakashan book titled "Sabke Ram" by Panchjanya editor
Hitesh Shankar and Managing Director of Bharat
Prakashan Arun Goyal. The book was published by
Prabhat Prakashan, which publishes "Panchjanya,” a
Hindi weekly magazine.
Heavenly Islands of Sreedharan Pillai Goa Governor Sreedharan Pillai’s new (221st) book
Goa titled “Heavenly Islands of Goa” was released by
Jagadguru Sri Sri Vidhushekhara Bharati Swami,
Shankaracharya of Dakshinamnaya Sri Sharada
Peetham, Sringeri (Karnataka), during a programme
held in New Durbar Hall in the Raj Bhavan in Dona
Paula, Goa
The Winner’s Shane Robert Watson Former Australian cricketer Shane Robert Watson
Mindset launched his new book titled ‘The Winner’s
Mindset’, published by HarperCollins Publishers. In
this self-help book, he shares his mental journey, the
lessons he has learned during his career, and the
lessons that he is now passing on to the next
generation as a highly sought-after coach

OBITUARY
NATIONAL
PERSON FIELD BORN PLACE KEY NOTES
NAME
KG Jayan Padma Shri Awardee Kerala A renowned Carnatic musician from Kerala
passed away at the age of 89 in Ernakulam
district, Kerala. He was born on 21st
November, 1934 in Kottayam, Kerala. K.G. Jayan
was honored with Padma Shri, India’s 4th
highest civilian award in 2019 in the field of
Art.
J F C Durai National Award winning Passed away at the age of 84 at his residence
veteran Tamil director Thiruvanmiyur, Chennai, Tamil Nadu(TN). His
- film “Pasi” won two National Film Awards in
1979 in the category of Best Feature Film and
Best Actor(Female). The film also won the
Tamil Nadu State Award under Best Film
category.
Venkataiah Bharatiya Janata Party Karnataka Passed away at the age of 76 in Bengaluru,
Sreenivasa (BJP)’s Member of Karnataka. He was born on 6th August 1947, in
Prasad Parliament (MP-Lok Ashokapuram, Mysuru, Karnataka.
Sabha) from
Chamarajanagar
constituency (Karnataka)
INTERNATIONAL
PERSON NAME FIELD BORN PLACE KEY NOTES
Tim McGovern Renowned Oscar USA Passed away at the age of 68 in Washington, the
winning United States of America (USA). He was born on
American Visual 24th June 1955 in Chicago, Illinois, USA.
Effects (VFX) Tim McGovern won the Academy Award (Oscar) –
pioneer Special Achievement Award (Visual Effects) in
1991 for the film ‘’Total Recall’’. He shared the
award with Eric Brevig, Rob Bottin and Alex
Funke.
Barbara Rush Veteran USA Passed away at the age of 97 in Los Angeles,
American actress California, the United States of America (USA). She
was born on 4th January 1927, in Denver,
Colorado, USA. She won a Golden Globe Award in
the ‘New Star of The Year’ (actress) category in
1954 for her role in 'It Came from Outer Space'.
Joseph Patrick Former Irish Ireland Who served as head coach of the Indian National
Kinnear (Joe footballer and Men's Football Team in 1983, passed away at the
Kinnear) manager

age of 77. He was born on 27th December 1946 in

Dublin, Ireland.
He served as Manager of Wimbledon Football
Club(FC) (1992-1999); Nottm Forest (2004), and
Newcastle United FC (2008 to 2009).
Peter Higgs Nobel prize- UK Passed away at the age of 94 in Edinburgh, United
winning British Kingdom (UK). He was born on 29 May 1929 in
Physicist the Elswick district of Newcastle upon Tyne, UK.
In 2013, he was jointly awarded the Nobel Prize
in Physics with Belgian Physicist François
Englert. he award was "for the theoretical
discovery of a mechanism that contributes to our
understanding of the origin of the mass of
subatomic particles".
In 2015, he won the world's oldest scientific
prize, the Royal Society's Copley Medal for his
work on the theory of the Higgs boson or “The god
particle”
Bernd Hölzenbein Former German Germany Who won the 1974 World Cup with West
footballer Germany, passed away at the age of 78. He was
born on 9 March 1946 in Runkel, Germany. He
was a part of the West Germany team that won
the Federation Internationale de Football
Association (FIFA) World Cup in 1974, held in
West Germany
IMPORTANT DAYS
OBSERVED DATE / DAYS KEY NOTES
WEEK
March 31, 2024 International International Transgender Day of Visibility (TDOV) is
Transgender Day of annually observed across the globe on 31 March to
Visibility celebrate transgender, nonbinary, and gender
expansive/gender non-conforming individuals and the
contributions of trans people and the nonbinary
community.
✓ The Day was created by Rachel Crandall
Crocker, an American transgender advocate, a
licensed psychotherapist, and the Executive
Director and co-founder of Transgender
Michigan, in 2009.
The 1st ever International Transgender Day of
Visibility was observed on 31 March 2009.
April 2, 2024 World Autism The United Nations (UN) World Autism Awareness
Awareness Day Day (WAAD) is annually observed across the globe on
2 April to raise awareness about Autism spectrum
disorder (ASD) and promote the realisation of human

rights and basic freedoms for autistic individuals on an

equal basis with others.
✓ The 2024 theme of WAAD is, "Empowering
Autistic Voices"
The first-ever World Autism Awareness Day was
observed on 2 April 2008. 2 April 2024 marks the
observance of the 17th annual World Autism
Awareness Day.
April 2, 2024 International Children's International Children's Book Day (ICBD) is annually
Book Day observed across the globe on 2 April, the birth
anniversary of Danish author Hans Christian
Andersen, known for his fairy tales, to foster a love for
reading among children and highlight the importance
of children's books.
April 3, 2024 260th Raising Day of Indian Army celebrated the 260th Raising Day of
the Army Medical Corps the Army Medical Corps (AMC), a specialist corps in
the Indian Army that provides medical services to all
serving and veteran army personnel, as well as their
families.
April 4, 2024 International Day for The United Nations (UN)’s International Day for
Mine Awareness and Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action is
Assistance in Mine annually observed across the globe on 4th April to
Action raise awareness and encourage the establishment and
development of national mine-action capacities in
affected countries.
✓ The theme for International Day for Mine
Awareness & Assistance in Mine Action 2024
is 'Protecting Lives, Building Peace.'
✓ The 1st ever International Day for Mine
Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action was
observed on 4th April 2006. 4th April 2024
marks the observance of the 19th International
Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in
Mine Action.
April 5, 2024 61st National Maritime National Maritime Day (NMD) is annually observed
Day across India on 5 April to highlight the significance of
the national maritime sector in the development of the
Indian economy, global trade, and economic exchange
across countries.
Theme: The theme of National Maritime
Day/Merchant Navy Week 2024 is “Sustainable
Shipping: Challenges and Opportunities.”
• The day also commemorates the maiden
voyage of SS Loyalty, India’s first Swadeshi
Ship(owned by Scindia Steam Navigation
Company) from Mumbai (Maharashtra) to
London (United Kingdom) on 5th April 1919.

• Merchant Navy Week 2024 (National Maritime

Week) is celebrated alongside National
Maritime Day 2024 from 30th March 2024 to
5th April 2024.
• The 1st ever National Maritime Day was
observed on 5 April 1964. 5 April 2024
marks the observance of the 61st National
Maritime Day.
April 5, 2024 International Day of The United Nations (UN)’s International Day of
Conscience Conscience (IDC) is annually observed across the
globe on 5 April to raise awareness about the
importance of building a culture of peace with love
and conscience, through the customs of the local,
national, and regional communities.
✓ The 1st ever International Day of Conscience
was observed on 5 April 2020. 5 April 2024
marks the observance of the 5th International
Day of Conscience.
April 6, 2024 International Day of The United Nations (UN) International Day of Sport
Sport for Development for Development and Peace (IDSDP) is annually
and Peace observed across the globe on 6 April, to recognise the
positive roles of sport and physical activity in global
communities and the lives of people worldwide.
✓ The global theme for IDSDP 2024 is “Sport
for the Promotion of Peaceful and Inclusive
Societies”.
The 1st ever International Day of Sport for
Development and Peace was observed on 6 April
2014. 6 April 2024 marks the observance of the
11th edition of the IDSDP.
April 7, 2024 United Nations (UN)’s Annually observed across the globe on 7th April to
International Day of honour the memory of the victims, who perished
Reflection on the 1994 during the 1994 genocide.
Genocide against the ✓ 7th April 2024 marks the 30th anniversary
Tutsi in Rwanda of the genocide against the Tutsi in 1994 in
Rwanda. The first ever International Day of
Reflection on the Genocide in Rwanda was
observed on 7th April 2004, which marked
the 10th anniversary of the 1994 genocide in
Rwanda.
April 7, 2024 World Health Day The United Nations (UN) World Health Day is a global
health awareness day annually observed across the
globe on 7 April to draw attention to a specific health
topic of concern to people worldwide.

✓ The theme for World Health Day 2024 is ‘My

health, my right’. 7 April 2024 marks the 76th
anniversary of the founding of WHO in 1948.
On the occasion of World Health Day 2024 (7 April
2024), the National Medical Commission (NMC) and
the National Task Force on Mental Health and Well-
being of Medical Students (NTF) launched an
innovative initiative “My Health, My Rights”. This
initiative was coordinated by the NMC Anti-Ragging
Committee.
April 1 to 7, 2024 Prevention of Blindness Annually observed across India from 1st to 7th April
Week to create awareness about the factors contributing to
blindness and to highlight the importance of lifestyle
choices and regular eye examinations to mitigate the
risk of eye ailments. Prevention of Blindness Week
2024 was observed from 1st to 7th April.
April 8, 2024 International Romani Annually observed across the globe on 8 April to
Day celebrate Romani culture and history and raise
awareness of the challenges and discrimination issues
faced by Europe's largest ethnic minority community
worldwide.
April 9, 2024 59th Central Reserve The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) Valour
Police Force Valour Day Day also known as Shaurya Diwas is annually
observed across India on 9 April to commemorate the
extraordinary valour displayed by the CRPF soldiers
during the Battle of Sardar Post in the Rann of Kutch,
Gujarat, in 1965. 9th April 2024 marks the
observance of the 59th CRPF Valour Day.
April 10, 2024 World Homeopathy Day Annually observed across the globe on 10 April to
raise awareness about homeopathy, a therapeutic
system of Medicine, its principles, and its
contributions to global healthcare.
✓ The theme for World Homeopathy Day 2024 is
“Homeoparivar: One Health, One Family.”
✓ WHD also commemorates the birth
anniversary of Dr Christian Friedrich
Samuel Hahnemann, a German physician and
chemist, who is regarded as the founder of
homeopathy. 10th April 2024 marks the
269th birth anniversary of Dr Christian
Friedrich Samuel Hahnemann.
April 11, 2024 National Safe Annually observed across India on 11 April to raise
Motherhood Day awareness of the significance of maternal health and
wellness, promote maternal health, and reduce
maternal mortality rates in India.

NSMD was initiated by White Ribbon Alliance India

(WRA India), a grassroots organization that advocates
for the health and rights of women and newborns.
✓ The 1st National Safe Motherhood Day was
observed on 11 April 2003.
April 11, 2024 World Parkinson's Day Annually observed across the globe on 11 April to
raise awareness and advance research toward better
therapies and a cure for Parkinson’s disease (PD), also
known as "paralysis agitans". The day commemorates
the birth anniversary of English surgeon, Dr James
Parkinson (1755 – 1824) who was the first to describe
"paralysis agitans".
Symbol: Red tulip with a fringe of white is the
official symbol for Parkinson's.
The first World Parkinson's Day (WPD) was held in
April 1997. It was set up by the European Parkinson’s
Disease Association (now known as Parkinson’s
Europe) and co-sponsored by the World Health
Organisation (WHO).
April 12, 2024 International Day of The United Nations (UN) International Day of
Human Space Flight Human Space Flight is annually observed across the
globe on 12 April to celebrate the beginning of the
space era for mankind and underscores the pivotal
role of space science and technology in advancing
sustainable development goals (SDGs) and enhancing
the welfare of nations and individuals.
The 1st ever International Day of Human Space Flight
was observed on 12 April 2011.
April 12, 2024 International Day for The International Day for Street Children (IDSC) is
Street Children annually observed across the globe on 12 April to
raise awareness about the challenges faced by millions
of children living on the streets worldwide.
✓ The theme of International Day for Street
Children 2024 is, “Belonging.”
✓ The observance of IDSC is led by the
Consortium for Street Children (CSC). Each
year the CSC decides on a theme for IDSC to
promote the needs of street children globally.
✓ The 1st-ever International Day for Street
Children was launched by CSC on 12th April
2011.
April 13, 2024 40th Siachen Day Siachen Day is annually observed by the Indian Army
on 13 April to commemorate Operation Meghdoot
launched by the Indian Army on 13 April 1984.

✓ The Day honours the bravery and sacrifice of

the Indian Army soldiers serving at the highest
and coldest battlefield in the world, the
Siachen Glacier, a part of the Union Territory
(UT) Ladakh, located in the eastern Karakoram
range in the Himalayas.
✓ 13th April 2024 marks the 40th year of
Indian Army’s presence at Siachen Glacier.
April 13, 2024 105th Anniversary of 13th April 2024 marks the 105th Anniversary of
Jallianwala Bagh the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre (also known as the
Massacre Amritsar Massacre), held on 13 April 1919 in
Amritsar, Punjab, British India (now in Punjab).
✓ The Day aims to honour the victims of the
massacre and this tragic event also served as a
pivotal moment in India's fight for
independence.
April 14, 2024 World Chagas Disease World Chagas Disease Day (WCDD) is annually
Day observed across the globe on 14 April to raise
awareness about Chagas Disease (also known as
American trypanosomiasis), a neglected tropical
disease (NTD) that can cause serious heart and
digestive issues.
✓ The theme for WCDD 2024 is "Tackling
Chagas Disease: Detect Early and Care for
Life.”
✓ The first-ever World Chagas Disease Day was
April 14, 2024 National Fire Service Day Annually observed across India on 14th April and the
National Fire Service Week is annually observed
from 14th to 20th April to honour the firefighters
who lost their lives in the line of duty and to educate
the public and students about fire safety practices.
The theme of National Fire Service Day 2024/National
Fire Service Week 2024 is “Ensure Fire Safety,
Contribute towards Nation Building”.
14th April 2024 marks the 80th Anniversary of the
Bombay dock explosion
April 14, 2024 World Quantum Day Annually observed across the globe on 14 April to
raise public awareness and understanding of quantum
science and technology around the world. 14 April
2024 marks the observance of the 3rd World
Quantum Day. The first-ever global World Quantum
Day was observed on 14 April 2022.
Why April 14?

The World Quantum Day falls on April 14 (4/14 in

month/day format), a reference to 4.14, the rounded
first digits of Planck’s constant. Planck’s constant,
4.1356677×10^−15 electron volt second (eV.s) =
0.000 000 000 000 004 1356677 eV.s.
April 15, 2024 World Art Day (WAD) Annually observed across the globe on 15 April to
raise awareness of the variety of artistic expressions,
acknowledge the role of artists in sustainable
development, and strengthen the bond between
artistic creations and society. The first World Art Day
was observed on 15 April 2012.
The day is annually led by the International
Association of Art/Association Internationale des Arts
Plastiques (IAA/AIAP), in partnership with the United
Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organization (UNESCO).
April 16, 2024 World Voice Day World Voice Day (WVD) is a global campaign
annually observed across the globe on 16 April to
celebrate the phenomenon of voice. WVD also aims to
spread awareness of the importance of the human
voice and the preventive care it requires.
✓ World Voice Day 2024 campaign was
observed under the motto/theme, "Resonate.
Educate. Celebrate!"
April 17, 2024 World Hemophilia Day Annually observed across the globe on 17 April to
(WHD) raise awareness about Hemophilia, an inherited
bleeding disorder, and other bleeding disorders that
prevent blood from clotting properly.
✓ The theme of World Hemophilia Day 2024 is
“Equitable access for all: recognizing all
bleeding disorders”.
✓ World Haemophilia Day was started in 1989
by the World Federation of Hemophilia (WFH).
✓ The 1st ever World Haemophilia Day was
observed on 17 April 1989. 17th April marks
the birth anniversary of Frank Schnabel, the
founder of WFH.
April 18, 2024 International Day For International Day For Monuments and Sites (IDMS)
Monuments and Sites also known as World Heritage Day is annually
(IDMS) observed across the globe on 18 April to encourage
local communities and individuals across the world to
recognise the significance of cultural heritage in their
lives, identities, and communities.
✓ The theme for International Day for
Monuments and Sites 2024 is “Disasters &

Conflicts Through the Lens of the Venice

Charter.”
✓ The International Day for Monuments and
Sites (IDMS) was first established in 1982 by
the International Council of Monuments and
Sites (ICOMOS).
April 19, 2024 World Liver Day (WLD) Annually observed across the globe on 19 April to
raise awareness about the importance of liver health
and to prevent and manage liver diseases.
✓ The theme of World Liver Day 2024 is 'Be
Vigilant, Get Regular Liver Check-Ups and
Prevent Fatty Liver Diseases.'
April 20, 2024 United Nations (UN) Annually observed across the globe on 20 April to
Chinese Language Day promote and celebrate the Chinese language, one of
the 6 official languages of the UN.
On 20 April 2024, the UN celebrated the 15th annual
Chinese Language Day. The 1st ever UN Chinese Day
was observed on 12 November 2010 and since 2011,
the day has been observed on 20th April.
April 21, 2024 National Civil Services Annually observed across India on 21 April to
Day recognise and acknowledge the crucial role that civil
servants play in the nation's development.
21 April 2024 marks the observance of the 17th
National Civil Services Day. The 1st National Civil
Services Day celebrations were held in Vigyan
Bhawan, New Delhi (Delhi) on 21 April 2006.
April 21, 2024 United Nations (UN) Annually observed across the globe on 21 April to
World Creativity and raise awareness of the role of creativity and
Innovation Day (WCID) innovation in all aspects of human development.
Citizens and organisations in more than 50 countries
across the world observe 21 April of every year as
World Creativity and Innovation Day. WCID was first
commemorated on 21 April 2002. The 1st UN-
recognised WCID was observed on 21 April 2018.
April 22, 2024 United Nations (UN) Annually observed across the globe on 22nd April to
International Mother recognise the relationship between humans and
Earth Day (or Earth nature in the ecosystems.
Day) ✓ According to Earthday.org, the theme of Earth
Day 2024 is Planet vs. Plastics.
The first-ever International Mother Earth Day was
observed on 22nd April 2009.
April 23, 2024 UN English Language The United Nations (UN) English Language Day is
Day annually observed across the globe on 23 April to
promote the global significance of the English
language, one of the 6 official languages of the UN. The
day 23 April also commemorates the birth and death
anniversary of the English Playwright and Poet
William Shakespeare.

The 1st ever UN English Language Day was observed

in 2010 by the UN's Department of Global
Communications (DGC) as part of its initiative to
establish language days for each of the 6 UN official
languages. The 6 official languages are Arabic, Chinese,
English, French, Russian, and Spanish.
April 23, 2024 United Nations (UN)’s Annually celebrated across the world on 23rd April to
Spanish Language Day raise awareness among the UN staff about the history,
culture and use of Spanish as an official language.
✓ The Spanish Language Day observed on 23rd
April marks the death anniversary of Spanish
writer Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra.
Spanish is the 2nd most spoken language in the world
by number of native speakers after Mandarin Chinese.
Mexico is the largest Spanish-speaking country on the
planet.
April 23, 2024 World Book And Annually observed across the globe on 23 April to
Copyright Day promote the love of reading and the significance of
books. The annual observance of the Day is led by the
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organization (UNESCO).
Following the evaluation of the World Book Capital
(WBC) Advisory Committee, the Director-General of
UNESCO, Audrey Azoulay has designated Strasbourg
(France) as the World Book Capital for 2024.
April 23, 2024 Khongjom Day Annually observed in Manipur on 23 April to pay
homage to the martyrs of the 1891 Anglo-Manipur
War, the last battle fought between the erstwhile
Kingdom of Manipur and the British Empire. The
Anglo-Manipuri War of 1891 was a significant armed
conflict lasting from March 31 to April 27, 1891. 23
April 2024 marks the 133rd observance of
Khongjom Day.
April 24, 2024 Administrative Administrative Professionals Day, also known as

Professionals Day Secretaries Day, Admin Day, or Administrative
Assistant Day, is annually observed across the globe on
the Wednesday of the last full week in April to
celebrate and recognise the important role of
secretaries, assistants, receptionists, and other
administrative support professionals. Administrative
Professionals Day 2024 was observed on 24th April
2024.
Administrative Professionals Day coincides with
Administrative Professionals Week (APW), a week-
long celebration dedicated to secretaries and
administrative professionals in recognition of their
contributions to business and industries. APW is

celebrated annually every last full week in April. APW

2024 is observed from 21 to 27 April 2024.
April 24, 2024 National Panchayati Raj National Panchayati Raj Day (NPRD), (also known as
Day (NPRD) National Local Self-Government Day) is annually
observed across India on 24 April to recognise and
honour the establishment of the Panchayati Raj
System and its pivotal role in decentralised
governance at the grassroots.
24 April 2024 marks the observance of the 15th
National Panchayati Raj Day. The day commemorates
the institutionalisation of the Panchayati Raj in India
through the Constitution (73rd Amendment) Act,
1992, which came into force on 24 April 1993. The
first ever NPRD was observed on 24th April 2010.
April 24, 2024 World Day for Annually observed across the globe on 24th April as a
Laboratory Animals movement to end the suffering of the animals used for
testing in laboratories. World Day for Animals in
Laboratories 2024 was observed on 24th April 2024.
24th April marks the birth anniversary of Lord Hugh
Dowding, a British Air Chief Marshal who was an anti-
vivisectionist and a former president of NAVS.
International Day of promote the values of multilateralism and
Multilateralism and international cooperation, which are fundamental
Diplomacy for Peace principles of the UN Charter, and to achieve the 2030
Agenda for Sustainable Development.
The International Day of Multilateralism and
Diplomacy for Peace was 1st observed on 24th April
2019.
April 25, 2024 International Girls in Annually observed across the globe on the 4th
ICT (Information and Thursday of April to inspire and encourage girls and
Communications women to pursue studies and careers in ICT and
Technology) Day promote bridging the gender digital divide.
✓ The International Girls in ICT Day 2024 was
✓ The theme for International Girls in ICT Day
2024 is “Leadership”.
The Day is annually observed by the International
Telecommunication Union (ITU), the United Nations
(UN) specialised agency for ICTs. The 1st annual
International Girls in ICT Day was observed on 28
April 2011.
April 25, 2024 World Malaria Day Annually observed across the globe on 25 April to
(WMD) raise awareness of the global efforts to control and
eradicate malaria, a mosquito-borne disease caused by
Plasmodium parasites.
✓ The World Health Organisation (WHO) leads
the annual observance of WMD

✓ The theme of WMD 2024 is “Accelerating the

fight against malaria for a more equitable
world”.
✓ The 1st World Malaria Day was observed on
25 April 2008.
International Delegate’s raise awareness about the role of the representatives
Day and delegates of the Member States to the UN.
✓ The day marks the anniversary of the 1st day
of the San Francisco Conference, also known
as the UN Conference on International
Organisations.
✓ 25 April 2024 marks the observance of the 5th
International Delegate’s Day. The 1st ever
International Delegate’s Day was observed on
25 April 2020.
April 25, 2024 World Penguin Day World Penguin Day is annually observed across the
globe on 25 April to raise awareness about Penguin
and promote the preservation of these flightless birds
and habitats. There are 18 species in the penguin
family, of which 11 are listed by the IUCN Red List as
Globally Threatened.
April 26, 2024 International Chernobyl The United Nations (UN)’s International Chernobyl
Disaster Remembrance Disaster Remembrance Day is annually observed
Day across the globe on 26th April to commemorate the
anniversary of the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster.
26th April 2024 marks the 38th anniversary of the
Chernobyl nuclear disaster, which took place on 26th
April 1986. The 1st ever International Chernobyl
Disaster Remembrance Day was observed on 26th
April 2017.
April 26, 2024 World Intellectual Annually observed across the globe on 26 April to
Property Day (World IP raise awareness and understanding of intellectual
Day) property (IP) and the significance of IP in fostering
innovation and creativity globally.
✓ The theme of World IP Day 2024 is, "IP and
the SDGs: building our common future with
innovation and creativity".
The day also marks the anniversary of the
establishment of World Intellectual Property
Organization (WIPO). The 1st ever World IP Day was
April 27, 2024 World Veterinary Day Annually observed across the globe on the last
(WVD) Saturday of April to raise awareness about
veterinarians and recognise and celebrate the
contributions of veterinarians to the health of animals,

welfare, people, and the environment. World

Veterinary Day 2024 is observed on 27th April
2024.
The theme of World Veterinary Day 2024 is
“Veterinarians are essential health workers".
April 28, 2024 World Day for Safety and Annually observed across the globe on 28 April to
Health at Work raise awareness about creating safe and healthy work
environments and promote the prevention of
occupational accidents and diseases globally.
✓ The observance of World Day for Safety and
Health at Work 2024 on 28th April 2024 focus
on “Ensuring safety and health at work in a
changing climate”.
✓ The 1st ever World Day for Safety and Health
at Work was observed on 28 April 2003.
April 29, 2024 International Dance Day Annually observed across the globe on 29 April to
or World Dance Day celebrate the art of dance, and its universal appeal,
transcending political, cultural, and ethnic boundaries,
and uniting people through the universal language of
dance.
The Day also commemorates the birth anniversary of
the French dancer, and ballet master Jean-Georges
Noverre (1727-1810). He is considered the inventor of
ballet d’action or dramatic ballet.
APPS & WEB PORTAL

APP & WEB NAME LAUNCHED BY PURPOSE
Samman NMDC Limited NMDC Limited launched “Samman” a portal for its
former employees to manage medical claims, view
personal profiles, dependent details and application
status online. The portal is designed to ensure on-time
reimbursements and easy access to all services, bringing
comfort and convenience to the former employees.
myCGHS app Ministry of Health and Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW)
Family Welfare launched the myCGHS app for the iPhone Operating
(MoHFW) System (iOS) devices to advance in healthcare
accessibility for Central Government Health Scheme
(CGHS) beneficiaries. The myCGHS iOS app is developed
by the technical teams of the National Informatics Centre
(NIC) Himachal Pradesh and the NIC Health Team.
Aditya Birla Capital Aditya Birla Capital Aditya Birla Capital Limited, the financial services arm
Digital (ABCD) Limited of Aditya Birla Group, has launched the omnichannel
Direct-to-Consumer (D2C) Fintech App ‘Aditya Birla
Capital Digital (ABCD)’, offering various financial
products on a single digital platform.

Integrated Pensioners Department of This is in line with the efforts of DoPPW to integrate the
Portal of Bank of India Pension and Pension Portals of all 17 Pension Disbursing Banks
Pensioners Welfare with the Integrated Pensioners’ Portal of DoPPW to
(DoPPW) under the ensure Ease of Living of Pensioners.
Ministry of Personnel, With this integration, the pensioners of Bank of
Public Grievances & India(BOI) will have one stop services such as: pension
Pensions slip, status of submission of life certificate, due and
drawn statement, and Form-16 through the integrated
pensioners portal.
ENVIRONMENT
Impatiens neo-uncinata: New species of Balsam Discovered in Kerala
Researchers discovered a new species of genus Impatiens (family Balsaminaceae) named “Impatiens
neo-uncinata” during a floristic survey in the Agasthyamala biosphere reserve, in
Thiruvananthapuram district, Kerala.
Rare Butterfly Species ‘Neptis philyra’ Discovered in Arunachal Pradesh

A group of butterfly enthusiasts from Assam and other states discovered a rare butterfly species named
Neptis philyra, also known as a long-streak sailor, at Tale Valley Wildlife Sanctuary, Arunachal
Pradesh. The species was documented for the 1st time in India, representing a new record for India.
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STATEWISE NATIONAL NEWS

LAUNCHES & INAUGURATION

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Central Coalfields Limited Unveils New Logo

NTPC Launches New Edition of Girl Empowerment Mission

PM Modi Inaugurated 2550th Bhagwan Mahaveer Nirvan Mahotsav on Mahaveer

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OTHER NATIONAL NEWS

Adani Green Energy Becomes India’s First Company to Surpass 10,000 MW of

India, Mauritius amends Double Tax Avoidance Agreement

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MoA&FW Introduced ‘CDP-SURAKSHA’, a Digital Platform to Disburse Subsidies to

Banaras Shehnai (Musical Instrument)

Banaras Mural Painting

Banaras Lal Bharwamirch (Red Pickel Chilli)

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Adani Group's Kutch Copper Limited Commences Phase-1 Operations in Mundra

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Three New Archaeological Sites Discovered in Telangana

MoHFW Mandates Linking of CGHS Beneficiary ID with Ayushman Bharat Health

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MCD Extends Deadline for Geo-tagging of Properties Till 30 June 2024

GoI to develop Plant for recycling LIBs & E-waste in Uttarakhand

IREDA & HUDCO granted ‘Navratna status’ by Department Of Public Enterprises

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MEA Approves Taking Over the Operations of Sittwe Port in Myanmar

Govt extends Deadline for Linking ABHA ID with CGHS ID

MoA&FW Notifies Specifications of IFFCO's Nano Urea Plus

DPE granted Navratna status to National Fertilizers Limited

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Romania & Bulgaria Partially Join Europe's Schengen Travel Zone

Zimbabwe Launches New Gold-Backed Currency “ZiG”; Replaces Zimbabwe dollars

Sweden Becomes 38th Signatory to the Artemis Accords

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BANKING & FINANCE

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PM Modi addresses RBI@90 Programme; RBI marks 90 years

CAMS Receives RBI’s Nod to Operate as an Online Payment Aggregator

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SEBI gets ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Certification for Information Security Management

CRISIL ESG Ratings Gets SEBI nod to Offer ESG ratings

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