Latest Current Affairs - June 2023

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  1. June 1 - World Milk Day. It has been marked by Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), observed since 2001.
    1. Nov 26 is observed as National Milk Day In India, to commemorate birth anniversary of Dr. Verghese Kurien, father of India’s White Revolution. India is top Milk Producer Nation, followed by US.
      1. Notably, India ranks 1st in milk production, contributing 24% of global milk production.
    2. June 1 is also observed by United Nations as Global Day of Parents.
  2. GST revenue collected in May 2023 stood at 157090 crores (CGST 28411 crores, SGST 35828 crores, IGST 81363 crores & cess is 11489 crores).
  3. Sarasa Venkatanarayana Bhatti has been named Chief Justice of Kerala High Court.
  4. Amarendu Prakash has been appointed as new CMD of Maharatna PSU Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL).
  5. Misc. Economy / Financial News (June 2023) -
    1. Notable Penalties imposed by RBI -
      1. J&K Bank - 2.5 Crores
      2. Indian Overseas Bank - 2.20 Crores
      3. Bank of Maharashtra - 1.45 Crores
    2. RBI revoked banking license of Dharwad (Karnataka) based Mahalaxmi Cooperative Bank, and allowed it to operate as a non-banking institution.
    3. RBI inaugurated Sub-office in Kohima (Nagaland), to expand its presence in north-eastern region.
    4. Govt initiated disbursement of pending dues of employees at Ministry of Textiles' PSU British India Corporation (BIC), as per a Union Budget 2023-24 announcement.
      1. BIC is a historic textile enterprise dating back to 1876, headquartered in Kanpur. It operates two woolen mills - Lalimli (Kanpur) & Dhariwal (Punjab). It ceased manufacturing in 2005 but still employs 1800 people.
    5. Govt authorized State Bank of India (SBI)'s designated branches for issuing and encashing Electoral Bonds in July 2023.
    6. Maharatna PSU REC Limited announced assistance of 3045 crores for Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation (BMRCL), for development of Phase-II project of Bangalore Metro.
    7. Fino Payments Bank partnered with Fintech startup Hubble to launch India’s first spending account, allowing customers to conveniently park their funds, make purchases across various categories, and also make additional savings.
    8. As per govt data, India topped globally in number of digital payments in 2022, with 89.5 million digital transactions.
    9. Indian GDP Growth Forecasts (June 2023) -
      1. JP Morgan - 5.5% for FY24 (2023-24).
      2. S&P Global Ratings - 6 % for FY 24 (2023-24).
      3. Fitch - 6.3% for FY24 (2023-24).
      4. As per World Bank Global Economic Prospects (June 2023) -
        1. Indian GDP Growth is expected to be 6.3 % in FY24 (2023-24), 6.4 % in FY25 (2024-25) & 6.5 % in FY26 (2025-26).
        2. Global growth is expected to be 2.1% in 2023, 2.4% in 2024 & 3.0% in 2025.
    10. Govt sold 3 % of its stake in Maharatna PSU Coal India, fetching 4185 Crores. This has brought down govt's holdings in Coal India to 63.13 %.
    11. Fintech firm Razorpay introduced Turbo UPI one-step UPI payments solution, in collaboration with Axis Bank. It will allow payments directly without being redirected to a third-party UPI app during checkout.
    12. As first such micro-marketing initiative in banking, Federal Bank launched I am Adyar, Adyar is me campaign in Tamil Nadu, to celebrate local culture by transforming a bank branch into a museum of local stories.
    13. IRDAI granted life insurance business licence to Go Digit Life Insurance Limited, making it 26th insurer in life insurance segment.
    14. Facebook parent Meta launched a new Mixed Reality programme in India under its Presence platform, with an award of $250000 for upto 5 homegrown new companies to construct applications.
    15. Indian IT Firm Infosys acquired $454 million deal from Danish Firm Danske Bank, to accelerate bank’s digital transformation goals.
    16. Indian IT Firm TCS acquired £840 million deal from UK’s National Employment Savings Trust (NEST), to digitally transform NEST’s administration services over 10 years. Contract is extendable to 18 years, with value reaching £1.5 billion.
    17. As per Randstad Employer Brand Research (REBR) 2023, Tata Power has been named India’s most attractive employer brand, followed by Amazon and Tata Steel.
    18. UK's Lloyds Banking Group announced to establish a technology centre in Hyderabad, to enhance group’s digital capabilities.
  6. Misc. Sports News / Events (June 2023) -
    1. 1st Tribal Sports Festival (जनजातीय खेल महोत्सव) organized at KIIT Bhubaneswar (Odisha).
    2. Swedish Footballer Zlatan Ibrahimovic announced his retirement from football.
    3. Pakistani Female cricketer Nahida Khan announced retirement from international cricket.
    4. Goa CM Pramod Sawant launched mascot named Moga for upcoming 37th National Games to be held in Goa later this year.
    5. Portugese Footballer Cristiano Ronaldo has set a Guinness World Record after reaching 200 international caps for Portugal.
  7. Misc. Defence News / Events (June 2023) -
    1. DRDO tested New Generation Ballistic Missile Agni Prime, with operational range 1000 - 2000 KM.
    2. Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh inaugurated Integrated Simulator Complex (ISC) Dhruv at Southern Naval Command (Kochi), to enhance practical training in Indian Navy.
    3. Indigenously developed Naval Airfield Integrated Security System (NAISS) and Naval Anti-Drone System (NADS) have been inaugurated at naval air station INS Dega (Visakhapatnam), both developed by Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL).
    4. Indian Navy launched outreach program Julley Ladakh (Hello Ladakh) to increase awareness about Navy and engage with youth and civil society in Ladakh.
      1. A 5000 km Motorcycle Expedition was flagged off from National War Memorial, as part of this initiative.
  8. Misc. MoUs (June 2023) -
    1. Between PSU NHPC Limited and State Govts of Maharashtra & Odisha, for development of Pumped Storage schemes and other Renewable Energy Source projects in Maharashtra & Odisha.
      1. Maharashtra - Includes development of 4 Pumped Storage Projects with total capacity 7350 MW - Kalu (1150 MW), Savitri (2250 MW), Jalond (2400 MW) & Kengadi (1550 MW).
      2. Odisha - Includes setting up Self-identified Pumped Storage Projects of at least 2000 MW and Renewable Energy Projects (Ground-Mounted / Floating ) of at least 1000 MW.
    2. Between Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) & Amazon Kisan, to guide farmers on scientific cultivation of different crops for optimum yield and income.
    3. Between Agriculture Ministry & Pixxel Space India Pvt Ltd, to develop various geospatial solutions for Indian Agriculture Ecosystem using Pixxel’s hyperspectral dataset.
    4. Between Ministry of Culture and Canara Bank, for disbursal of financial assistance to veteran artists under the Scheme for Financial Assistance for Veteran Artists.
      1. Under it, Assistance of 6000 / month is provided to artists and scholars above age of 60 years who have contributed significantly in their specialized fields of performing arts and culture.
    5. Between Indian Railways & United States Agency for International Development (USAID), for working to reduce its carbon footprints, to achieve target of Net Zero Carbon Emission by 2030.
    6. Between United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM), for empowering women to make well-informed entrepreneurial choices.
    7. Between IT Firm Microsoft & Directorate General of Training (Ministry of Skills Development and Entrepreneurship), to train students and educators at government-led Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) and National Skills Training Institutions (NSTIs).
      1. Under it, Microsoft will offer wide range of courses including training in AI, cloud computing, web development and cybersecurity skills for nearly 6000 students and 200 faculty.
    8. Between Tata Group's Agratas Energy Storage Solutions and Gujarat govt, to set up a lithium-ion cell factory in Sanand with investment of 13000 crores ($1.58 billion), to help India's efforts to create its own electric vehicle supply chain.
      1. It will have initial manufacturing capacity of 20 Gigawatt hours (GWh), to be doubled in 2nd phase.
    9. Between IT Firm Microsoft & Rural Internet connectivity solutions provider Airjaldi, under program titled Contentful Connectivity, which aims to advance access to high-speed internet and build solutions for broadband adoption and digital transformation, benefitting underserved communities in India's hinterlands.
    10. Between Maharatna PSU Indian Oil Corp and US Based sustainable fuels technology firm LanzaJet, to set up an 80000 tonnes sustainable aviation fuel plant in Haryana.
    11. Between Larsen & Toubro (L&T) and Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), to develop Indigenous Air Independent Propulsion (AIP) System for submarines of Indian Navy, beginning with Kalvari Class submarines.
    12. Between Paytm Payment Services Limited (PPSL) and Arunachal Pradesh Innovation and Investment Park (APIIP), to boost startup ecosystem in state.
  9. Obituaries (June 2023) -
    1. Hardwar Dubey - Serving Member of Parliament (MP) from Uttar Pradesh and former state cabinet minister.
    2. Sulochana Latkar - Noted Marathi and Hindi actress.
    3. Cormac McCarthy - Noted American writer and Pulitzer Awardee.
    4. Aamir Raza Husain - Noted theatre Artist, and Padma Shri Awardee.
    5. Ved Kumari Ghai - Noted Sanskrit scholar from Jammu and Kashmir.
    6. Ama Ata Aidoo - Noted Ghanaian writer & Activist.
    7. Sudhi Das (Kollam Sudhi) - Noted Malayalam Actor.
    8. John Bannister Goodenough - Noted American scientist. He was co-inventor of Lithium-ion batteries, and also a co-winner of 2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
    9. S Rama Rao - Noted Tollywood (Telugu) choreographer, known as Rakesh Master.
  10. Misc. Appointments (June 2023) -
    1. Bidyut Bihari Swain has been named Member (UPSC).
      1. Notably, Manoj Soni was recently named Chairman of UPSC.
    2. India-based Airline IndiGo's CEO, Pieter Elbers has been elected as chair-elect of International Air Transport Association (IATA) Board of Governors.
    3. V Anantharaman has been named as chairman of credit bureau TransUnion CIBIL.
    4. Nirmala Lakshman has been named Chairperson of Publishing House The Hindu Group.
    5. Govt named Sanjay Swarup as CMD of Railways PSU Container Corporation of India (CONCOR).
    6. Govt named Ajay Bhatnagar as Special Director in Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
      1. Notably, Govt had recently named Praveen Sood as new director of Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
    7. Rohit Jawa has been named MD & CEO of FMCG major Hindustan Unilever.
    8. Hasmukh Adhia has been named Chairman of GIFT City (Gujarat International Finance-Tec City).
    9. UK named Jane Marriott as its first female High Commissioner to Pakistan.
    10. Bangladesh origin person Nusrat Chowdhury has been named as first Muslim female federal judge in US history.
    11. India's Aalok Kumar (NEC Corporation) has been named as member of Asian Development Bank's (ADB) High-level Advisory Group on Digital Technology for Development.
    12. BRICS Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BRICS CCI) named India's Ruby Sinha (SheAtWork founder) as president of its women’s vertical BRICS CCI WE.
  11. Misc. Science News (June 2023) -
    1. India conducted Asia's first demonstration of performance-based navigation for helicopters, for a flight from Juhu to Pune using GAGAN (GPS Aided GEO Augmented Navigation) satellite technology.
      1. GAGAN is a space-based augmentation system for providing best possible navigational services over Indian FIR (Flight Information Region),with capability of expanding to neighbouring FIRs. It was jointly developed by Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and Airports Authority of India (AAI).
    2. As per a new research, Homo naledi, an ancient human species with brains about one-third the size of modern humans, engaged in burial practices and created engravings deep within a cave system in southern Africa around 300000 years ago. This challenge the assumption that larger brains are directly linked to higher intelligence.
      1. These new claims are made by American-South African  Paleoanthropologist Lee Berger, known for his initial discovery of Homo naledi in 2013 within Rising Star cave system near Johannesburg.
    3. Archaeologists discovered 1000 years old Dwarapala (door keeper of Lord Vishnu) sculptures in Malyala village in Siddipet district (Telangaga), as biggest such findings reported so far.
    4. IIT Madras Researchers developed a low-cost mobile air pollution monitoring framework under Project Kaatru.
      1. Traditional method of measuring air quality through monitoring stations needs improvement as air pollution can vary within a few hundred meters, and also at different times of the day.
      2. Under new IoT-based mobile air pollution monitoring technology derived by IIT Madras, pollution sensors mounted on public vehicles can dynamically monitor air quality of an extended area at high spatial and temporal resolution.
  12. Misc. / Industrial Awards (June 2023) -
    1. 12 start-ups have been named winners of 5th Edition of Youth Co:Lab National Innovation Dialogue India 2022, making them eligible for receiving seed funding up to $5000.
      1. Youth Co:Lab was created in 2017 by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Citi Foundation, to establish a common agenda for countries in Asia-Pacific region to empower youth. In India, Youth Co:Lab was launched in 2019 in partnership with NITI Aayog's Atal Innovation Mission (AIM).
    2. President Droupadi Murmu conferred National Florence Nightingale Awards for 2022 and 2023 to 30 nursing professionals, for their service to the community.
    3. Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar presented 4th National Water Awards to 41 winner in 11 categories. Notable Awardees -
      1. Best State - Madhya Pradesh
      2. Best District - Ganjam District (Odisha)
      3. Best Village Panchayat - Jagannadhapuram (Telangana)
      4. Best Urban Local Body - Chandigarh Municipal Corporation
      5. Best Industry - NTPC Barauni Thermal Power Station (Bihar)
    4. Indian PSU NTPC has been recognized as Team Marksmen’s Most Preferred Workplace of 2023-24.
    5. Noted Indian Singer & Musician Shankar Mahadevan has been awarded an honorary doctorate from Birmingham City University (UK), for his services to music and the arts.
    6. As first such honor for India, 5 buildings/structures from Telangana have been selected for International Green Apple Awards for Beautiful Buildings, by London-based The Green Organisation.
    7. Music industry's top honor Grammy Awards will introduce three new categories from next edition onwards - Best African Music Performance, Best Pop Dance Recording, and Best Alternative Jazz Album.
  13. June 2 is Statehood Day of Telangana, which was formed in 2014 as India's 29th State.
    1. Also, Govt. observed 350th anniversary of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s Coronation Day, on June 02, 2023.
  14. 3rd Khelo Indian University Games (KIUG) 2022 organized in various cities across Uttar Pradesh.
    1. Overall Top 3 -
      1. Panjab University (Chandigarh)
      2. Guru Nanak Dev University Amritsar (GNDU)
      3. Jain University (Karnataka)
    2. Notably,
      1. Number of sports disciplines to feature in this edition is 21 (highest ever). Rowing sport was introduced for the first-time.
  15. Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat launched Unified Registration Portal for GOBARdhan (Galvanizing Organic Bio-Agro Resources Dhan), as a one stop repository to assess investment and participation in Biogas/CBG sector at pan India level and streamline setting up CBG/Biogas plants in India.
  16. 2023 Men's Hockey Junior Asia Cup (Hosted in Salalah, Oman) -
    1. India won the title (their 4th), defeating Pakistan in final.
  17. As per govt data, Govt met its fiscal deficit target of 6.4% of gross domestic product (GDP) for FY 23 (2022-23), due to robust tax revenue.
    1. In FY24 (2023-24), govt aims to bring fiscal deficit down to of 5.9 % of GDP.
  18. N Muthamizh Selvi became first woman from Tamil Nadu to scale Mount Everest.
  19. World’s fourth-largest economy and Europe’s largest, Germany entered into recession after its GDP recorded second consecutive quarterly contraction.
    1. German economy fell by 0.3 % in Jan-Mar 2023 quarter, and earlier by 0.5 % in Oct-Dec 2022 Quarter.
    2. Notably -
      1. 2 consecutive quarters of decline constitute a technical recession.
      2. New Zealand’s economy has also slipped into recession, with GDP falling 0.1 % in Jan-Mar 2023 quarter and earlier by 0.7 % in Oct-Dec 2022 quarter.
  20. Govt has invited new applications for setting up of Semiconductor Fabs and Display Fabs in India, under Modified Semicon India Programme, implemented by India Semiconductor Mission -
    1. Under it, Fiscal Incentive of 50 % of project cost is available to firms for setting up of Semiconductor Fabs (any node) / Display Fabs in India. Application window of is open till December 2024.
    2. Govt had launched Semicon India Programme in December 2021 with outlay of 76000 crores, for development of semiconductors and display manufacturing ecosystem in India.
  21. June 3 - World Bicycle Day, declared by United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in 2018. It promotes use of Bicycle for its environmental and health benefits.
  22. Book The Power of One Thought: Master Your Mind, Master Your Life, authored by BK Shivani has been released.
  23. Book Ringside, written by Vijay Darda (Lokmat Media) has been released.
  24. Maharashtra govt launched Namo Shetkari Mahasanman Yojana, under which over 1 crore farmers in state will be paid Rs 6000 annually.
    1. Notably, This will be in addition to Rs 6000 being paid annually to farmers by Central govt under Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojana.
  25. Edgars Rinkēvičs has been named new President of European Nation Latvia.
  26. US Department of Labor honored Chennai based Child Rights Advocate Lalitha Natarajan with 2023 Iqbal Masih Award for the Elimination of Child Labor.
  27. June 4 is observed by UN as International Day of Innocent Children Victims of Aggression
  28. Red Bull's Dutch-Belgian F1 Racer Max Verstappen won Spanish Grand Prix 2023.
    1. F1 Season 2023 -
      1. Grand Prix Winner Race date
        Bahrain Grand Prix Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian) 5 March
        Saudi Arabian Grand Prix Sergio Pérez (Mexico) 19 March
        Australian Grand Prix Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian) 2 April
        Azerbaijan Grand Prix Sergio Pérez (Mexico) 30 April
        Miami Grand Prix Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian) 7 May
        Monaco Grand Prix  Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian) 28 May
        Spanish Grand Prix  Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian) 4 June
        Canadian Grand Prix   18 June
        Austrian Grand Prix   2 July
        British Grand Prix   9 July
        Hungarian Grand Prix   23 July
        Belgian Grand Prix   30 July
        Dutch Grand Prix   27 August
        Italian Grand Prix   3 September
        Singapore Grand Prix   17 September
        Japanese Grand Prix   24 September
        Qatar Grand Prix   8 October
        United States Grand Prix   22 October
        Mexico City Grand Prix   29 October
        São Paulo Grand Prix   5 November
        Las Vegas Grand Prix   18 November
        Abu Dhabi Grand Prix   26 November
  29. 2023 FIBA 3x3 World Cup (Vienna, Austria) -
    1. US stayed at top of Table with 2 medals (1 Gold & 1 Silver).
    2. Serbia won Gold in Men's category, while US won Gold in Women's.
    3. About -
      1. 3x3 basketball is a variation of basketball played three-a-side, with one backboard and in a half-court setup.
  30. Book Kathakali Dance Theatre: A Visual Narrative of Sacred Indian Mime, authored by KK Gopalakrishnan has been released.
  31. Celeste Saulo (Argentina) has been appointed as first female Secretary-General of Geneva (Switzerland) based World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
    1. Also, UAE's Abdulla Al Mandous has been elected as President of World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
  32. Author Shantanu Gupta launched his graphic novel Ajay to Yogi Adityanath, based on life of Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath.
  33. June 5 - World Environment Day, designated by United Nation General Assembly (UNGA) in 1972. It was first observed in 1973. 2023 theme is Beat Plastic Pollution.
    1. 2023 marks 50th observance of World Environment Day, hosted in 2023 by Côte D'Ivoire.
    2. On this occasion -
      1. Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav launched Meri LiFE mobile app, inspired by concept of Mission LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment).
        1. Mission LiFE was envisioned by PM Narendra Modi at COP 26 (Glasgow 2021), which emphasizes mindful and deliberate utilization instead of mindless and wasteful consumption.
        2. Meri LiFE app will help in creating a structured way to track progress being made on Mission LiFE.
        3. Also, Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep S. Puri launched campaign Meri LiFE, Mera Swachh Shehar, to champion RRR’s of waste management- Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle.
      2. PM Narendra Modi launched two schemes - Amrit Dharohar and MISHTI (Mangrove Initiative for Shoreline Habitats and Tangible Incomes), aimed at reviving country's wetlands (Ramsar sites) and mangroves.
      3. Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) released its annual report State of India’s Environment 2023 -
        1. Telangana ranked at top in terms of overall environmental performance, based on 4 parameters - environment, agriculture, public health, and infrastructure.
    3. June 5 is also observed by UN as International Day for the fight against Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated fishing.
  34. Global Financial Innovation Network (GFIN) launched its first Greenwashing TechSprint (hosted on FCA’s Digital Sandbox), to run between June 5 - Sep 05, aiming to develop a solution that can help regulators in effectively tackling risks of greenwashing in financial services.
    1. TechSprint will bring together 13 international regulators (Including India's RBI), with aim of addressing GFIN’s priority on environmental, social and governance (ESG) and sustainable finance.
    2. About -
      1. GFIN is a group of over 80 international organisations committed to supporting financial innovation in interest of consumers, currently chaired by UK's Financial Conduct Authority.
      2. Greenwashing is when a company makes an environmental claim about something it is doing that is intended to promote a sense of environmental impact, that doesn't exist.
  35. RBI launched Financial Inclusion Dashboard named ANTARDRISHTI, which will provide required insight to monitor progress of financial inclusion by capturing relevant parameters.
    1. It will also enable to gauge extent of financial exclusion at granular levels across country, so that such areas can be addressed.
  36. RBI Committee for Review of Customer Service Standards in RBI Regulated Entities (REs) submitted its report, under Chairmanship of BP Kanungo (former RBI Deputy Governor).
  37. Education Minister Rajkumar Ranjan Singh (MoS) Released India Rankings 2023 of higher educational institutes, which implements National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) drafted in 2015 -
    1. Overall -
      1. IIT Madras (5th consecutive year)
      2. IISc Bengaluru
      3. IIT Delhi
    2. University -
      1. IISC Bengaluru
      2. JNU
      3. Jamia Millia Islamia
    3. Research -
      1. IISc Bengaluru
      2. IIT Madras
      3. IIT Delhi
    4. Engineering -
      1. IIT Madras
      2. IIT Delhi
      3. IIT Bombay
    5. Management -
      1. IIM Ahmedabad
      2. IIM Bangalore
      3. IIM Kozhikode
    6. Medical -
      1. AIIMS Delhi
      2. PGIMER Chandigarh
      3. CMC Vellore
    7. Law -
      1. National Law School of India University Bangalore
      2. NLU Delhi
      3. Nalsar University of Law (Telangaga)
    8. Agriculture -
      1. IARI
      2. ICAR - NDRI (Haryana)
      3. PAU Ludhiana
    9. Innovation -
      1. IIT Kanpur
      2. IIT Madras
      3. IIT Hyderabad
  38. China completed construction of most powerful wind tunnel in world, in mountainous Huairou district of northern Beijing.
    1. The wind tunnel, called JF-22, has a diameter of 4 metres and can generate airflow speeds of up to 10 kilometres per second, making it capable of simulating hypersonic flight conditions up to Mach 30 (30 times speed of sound).
  39. June 6 is observed as UN Russian Language Day, established by United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
    1. June 6 is also observed as World Pest Day or World Pest Awareness Day.
    2. June 6 is also observed as BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) Day.
  40. Algeria, Guyana, Republic of Korea (South Korea), Sierra Leone and Slovenia have been elected to United Nations Security Council as non-permanent members for 2-year term starting January 2024.
    1. UNSC has 15 members (5 permanent and 10 temporary) -
      1. Permanent members - China, France, Russia, United Kingdom, United States.
      2. Non-permanent - Albania, Brazil, Gabon, Ghana, UAE, Ecuador, Japan, Malta, Mozambique & Switzerland.
        1. Note that after latest election, Albania, Brazil, Gabon, Ghana, and UAE will be replaced by newly elected Algeria, Guyana, Republic of Korea (South Korea), Sierra Leone and Slovenia.
  41. ISSF Junior World Cup 2023 (Suhl, Germany) -
    1. Medal Table -
      1. Rank Country Gold Silver Bronze Total
        1 India 6 6 3 15
        2 Korea 6 5 1 12
        3 USA 5 4 0 9
        4 Italy 4 0 3 7
        5 France 3 2 2 7
      2. Notable Indian Gold Medalists -
        1. Dhanush Srikanth – Men’s 10m Air Rifle
        2. Sainyam – Women’s 10m Air Pistol
        3. Amanpreet Singh – Men’s 25m Air Pistol
  42. Ports & Shipping Minister Sarbananda Sonowal flagged off India's 1st International Cruise Vessel - MV Empress, from Chennai to Sri Lanka.
  43. Kerala-based startup Farmers Fresh Zone (FarmersFZ) has been named among 12 agri-food startups selected from across globe, for Accelerator Programme by Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of UN.
    1. FarmersFZ connects over 300000 consumers and 2000 farmers in Kerala, delivering pesticide-free fresh produce straight from fields to table within 24 hours of harvest.
  44. Indian short film When climate change turns violent (Directed by Vandita Sariya) has been named winner in Special Prize Climate Change and Health Film category, at 4th Annual Health for All Film Festival 2023, held at WHO Headquarters in Geneva.
  45. June 7 is observed by UN as World Food Safety Day, Observed since 2019.
    1. On this occasion, Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya released 5th State Food Safety Index. This year -
      1. Among larger states, Kerala secured the top ranking, followed by Punjab and Tamil Nadu.
      2. Among smaller states, Goa secured the top ranking, followed Manipur and Sikkim.
      3. Among UTs,  Jammu and Kashmir, Delhi and Chandigarh are top 3.
  46. 2023 Asian U20 Athletics Championships (Hosted in Yecheon (South Korea)) -
    1. Medal Table -
      1. Rank Nation Gold Silver Bronze Total
        1 Japan 14 4 5 23
        2 China 11 5 3 19
        3  India 6 7 6 19
        4 Uzbekistan 4 4 1 9
        5 Chinese Taipei 3 4 6 13
      2. India Gold Medalists -
        1. Men -
          1. Siddharth Choudhry (Shot put)
          2. Bhartpreet Singh (Discus throw)
          3. Sunil Kumar (Decathlon)
        2. Women -
          1. Rezoana Mallick Heena (400 metres)
          2. Laxita Sandilea (1500 metres)
          3. 4×400 m Relay (Team Event)
  47. Cabinet Approvals (June 07, 2023) -
    1. General -
      1. Approved Metro Connectivity Between New Gurugram & Old Gurugram (HUDA City Centre to Cyber City with Spur to Dwarka Expressway), covering 28.50 km having 27 stations. 
        1. This 5452 crores project will be implemented by Harayana Mass Rapid Transport Corporation Limited (HMRTC), which will be set up as a 50:50 Special Purpose Vehicle by Central & Haryana State Govt.
      2. Approved 3rd revival package for telecom PSU BSNL with outlay 89047 crores, including allotment of 4G/5G spectrum for BSNL through equity infusion, and increasing authorized capital of BSNL from 1.5 lakh crores to 2.1 lakh crores.
        1. With concerned spectrum allotment, BSNL will be able to -
          1. Provide pan India 4G and 5G services.
          2. Provide Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) services for high-speed internet.
          3. Provide services/spectrum for Captive Non-Public Network (CNPN).
        2. Background -
          1. Government had approved first revival package for BSNL/MTNL in 2019, worth 69000 Crores.
          2. In 2022, Govt approved second revival package for BSNL/MTNL amounting to 1.64 Lakh Crores.
          3. As a result -
            1. BSNL's revenue from operations surged to 20699 crore in FY23, up from 18595 crore in FY21. Revenue target set by Govt is 28476 crore by FY 26.
            2. BSNL also started earning operating profits since FY 22, with debt reduced from 32944 to 22289 Crores.
    2. CCEA -
      1. Approved continuation of Central Sector Scheme of Exploration of Coal and Lignite scheme, with expenditure of 2980 crores between 2021-22 to 2025-26 (co-terminus with 15th Finance Commission cycle).
        1. Under it, exploration for Coal and Lignite is conducted in two broad stages - Promotional (Regional) Exploration and Detailed Exploration in Non-Coal India Limited blocks.
        2. Approval will provide 1650 crores for Promotional (Regional) Exploration (1300 sq km) and  1330 crores for Detailed Drilling in Non-CIL areas (650 sq km).
      2. Approved increase in Minimum Support Prices (MSP) for all mandated Kharif Crops for Marketing Season 2023-24.
        1. Increase in MSP for Kharif Crops is in line with Union Budget 2018-19 announcement of fixing MSP at a level of at least 1.5 times of All-India weighted average Cost of Production. Margin for farmers over cost of production is to be highest for bajra (82%).
  48. 1st edition of Joint India, France and UAE Maritime Partnership Exercise held in Gulf of Oman.
  49. Book Nalanda, written by Poet-Diplomat Abhay K has been released.
  50. As per Global 500 Ranking 2023 by Brand Finance, listing world's 500 strongest brands -
    1. Top 5 - Amazon ($299 Billion), Apple ($297 Billion), Google ($281 Billion), Microsoft ($191 Billion), Walmart ($113 Billion).
    2. Tata Group retained its title of India’s most valuable brand, with brand value of $26.4 billion, ranking 69th globally.
      1. Among Indian Brands, Tata group is followed by Infosys (150th), LIC (212th).
  51. Uttar Pradesh state govt launched Nand Baba Milk Mission scheme with cost 1000 crores, aimed at boosting milk production in state.
    1. It will enable milk producers to sell their milk at a reasonable price in villages, through dairy co-operative societies.
    2. Under it, Dairy farmer producer organisations (Dairy FPO) will be formed to facilitate sale of milk in producers' villages itself.
  52. June 8 is observed by UN as  World Oceans Day. 2023 theme is Planet Ocean: tides are changing.
  53. Ministry of Power and Ministry of New and Renewable Energy jointly launched Mission on Advanced and High-Impact Research (MAHIR), as National Mission to identify emerging technologies in power sector and develop them indigenously. MAHIR has been Planned initially for 5 years (2023-24 to 2027-28).
    1. Mission will have a two-tier structure - a Technical Scoping Committee and an Apex Committee.
      1. Technical Scoping Committee (chaired by Chairperson of Central Electricity Authority), will identify emerging research areas globally, recommend potential technologies for development, provide research outlines, and conduct periodic monitoring of approved research projects.
      2. Apex Committee, chaired by Union Minister for Power & New and Renewable Energy will deliberate on technology and products to be developed and approve research proposals.
  54. Govt named Janardan Prasad as new Director General of Geological Survey of India (GSI).
  55. Financial Services Institution Bureau (FSIB) named N Ramaswamy as CMD of General Insurance Corporation of India (GIC Re) & M Rajeswari Singh as CMD of National Insurance Company (NICL).
  56. Trinidad and Tobago's Permanent Representative to the UN, Dennis Francis has been named President of 78th session of UN General Assembly (UNGA).
    1. He will take over from Hungary's Csaba Kőrösi (President of 77th UNGA), from Sep 2023 onwards.
  57. English Author Paterson Joseph has been named winner of 2023 Royal Society of Literature (RSL) Christopher Bland Prize for his debut novel'The Secret Diaries of Charles Ignatius Sancho.
    1. RSL Christopher Bland Prize was strated by Royal Society of Literature to encourage work of older writers, awarded annually to an author who was first published when aged 50 or over. It carries prize of £10000.
  58. UK and US signed a new Atlantic Declaration, for greater cooperation on pressing economic challenges in key areas like artificial intelligence, critical minerals, clean energy and security.
  59. June 9 is observed as World Accreditation Day.
    1. June 9 is also observed as -
      1. Coral Triangle Day, to raise awareness of ocean conservation and protection, especially on Coral Triangle, which are world's epicenter of marine biodiversity.
      2. International Archives Day.
        1. On this occasion, exhibition titled Hamari Bhasha, Hamari Virasat organized at National Archives of India.
  60. Under vision of Sahkar Se Samridhi, govt ann0uced several initiatives to strengthen 1514 Urban Co-operative Banks (UCBs) across country -
    1. Urban Cooperative Banks (UCBs) can now open new branches, up to 10% (maximum 5 branches) of number of branches in previous financial year, without RBI's prior approval.
    2. UCBs can also do technical write-offs / One Time Settlement at par with Commercial Banks.
    3. RBI has extended timeline for UCBs to achieve Priority Sector Lending (PSL) targets by two years (March 31,2026).
    4. RBI has notified a nodal officer, to meet long pending demand of cooperative sector for closer coordination and focused interaction.
  61. India’s Murali Sreeshankar Won Bronze Medal by finishing 3rd in men’s long jump event at Paris Diamond League 2023, with 8.09 meters jump.
    1. Notably -
      1. This is first ever medal for India in long jump at Diamond League events.
      2. National Long jump record in India is 8.42 m (Jeswin Aldrin), who went past Murali Sreeshankar's earlier record of 8.36 m.
      3. Also, This is 2nd Medal for India in 2023 Diamond League Meets, after Neeraj Chopra's Gold in Doha Diamond League, with throw of 88.67 meters.
  62. Govt announced to allow 2000 Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) across country to open Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Jan Aushadhi Kendras, to increase income of PACS, create employment and make medicines available at affordable prices to the people.
    1. Some other notable decisions to boost PACS were also taken -
      1. PACS which are not functioning as fertilizer retailers will be encouraged to function as retailers on the basis of feasibility.
      2. PACS which are not functioning as Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samridhi Kendras (PMKSK) will be brought under ambit of PMKSK.
      3. PACS will be connected with marketing of organic fertilizers.
      4. PACS can also be employed as Drone entrepreneurs for spraying fertilizers and pesticides.
  63. Abu Dhabi (UAE) has been named host of Next World Conservation Congress, to be held in 2025.
    1. Held every 4 years, IUCN World Conservation Congress brings together decision-makers, with goal of conserving environment and harnessing solutions nature offers to global challenges.
    2. Most recent World Conservation Congress was hosted in 2021 in Marseille (France).
  64. World Bank approved $148 million loan for India, to support West Bengal in harnessing surface and ground water through better irrigation practices.
  65. General News / Events (Jun 1-10, 2023) -
    1. Extremely Severe Cyclonic Storm Biparjoy (East-Central Arabian Sea) struck Indian States of Gujarat & Rajasthan, with speeds upto 195 KMPH.
    2. Ministry of Law and Justice launched Nyaya Vikas Portal, for Monitoring of Centrally Sponsored Scheme for Development of Infrastructure for Judiciary, to facilitate better delivery of judicial infrastructural projects.
    3. Shipping & Ports Minister Sarbananda Sonowal launched SAGAR SAMRIDDHI online dredging monitoring system, to accelerate Waste to Wealth initiative.
    4. National Commission for Women (NCW) & Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDII) launched 100 Entrepreneurship Awareness Programmes (EAPs) for potential women entrepreneurs across country, at Vikram University (Ujjain, MP).
    5. PM Narendra Modi inaugurated 1st National Training Conclave, at Pragati Maidan (New Delhi), to foster collaboration among training institutes and strengthen training infrastructure for civil servants.
    6. India-EU Connectivity Conference held in Shillong (Meghalaya), under India-EU Connectivity partnership (launched in 2021).
    7. Maharashtra govt renamed Ahmednagar district to Ahilyadevi Nagar, to honor 18th-century warrior-queen Ahilyadevi Holkar.
    8. AIIMS Nagpur became first among AIIMS institutions in country, to receive accreditation from National Board for Hospitals (NABH).
  66. 2nd Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) Ministerial Meeting held in Detroit (US), attended virtually by Piyush Goyal (Minister for Commerce and Industry) on India's behalf.
    1. IPEF was launched in May 2022 jointly by USA and 13 other partner countries of Indo-Pacific region, to strengthen economic engagement among partner countries.
    2. Framework is structured around 4 pillars relating to Trade (Pillar I), Supply Chains (Pillar II), Clean Economy (Pillar III) & Fair Economy (Pillar IV). India had joined Pillars II to IV of IPEF while it has an observer status in Pillar-I.
  67. Gujarat Govt released State’s First District Good Governance Index, in collaboration with Centre for Good Governance (Hyderabad), as first such state DGGI for a large Indian State.
    1. Similar District Good Governance Index was released for Arunachal Pradesh too, as first DGGI for a north-eastern Indian state.
    2. About -
      1. GGI helps to identify impact of various government interventions at District-level and provides a futuristic roadmap for improving District-level governance and service delivery with targeted interventions.
      2. 1st DGGI in India was prepared for UT of Jammu & Kashmir.
  68. Bank of Baroda (BoB) announced facility to withdraw cash from its ATMs via Unified Payments Interface (UPI), in line with RBI's recent order to offer Interoperable Cardless Cash Withdrawal option.
  69. Kerala govt launched its flagship project Kerala Fibre Optical Network (KFON), to decrease digital divide and ensure high-speed broadband internet access across state.
    1. KFON is an optical fibre cable network of 30000 km, with 375 Points-of-Presence across state.
    2. Notably, Kerala was first state to declare right to internet as a basic right.
  70. June 11 is observed as Green Mizoram Day in Mizoram State.
  71. 2023 FIFA U-20 Football World Cup (Hosted by Argentina) -
    1. Uruguay won the title (their 1st), defeating Italy in Final. Israel & South Korea remained at 3rd & 4th places respectively.
  72. 2023 Women's Hockey Junior Asia Cup (Kakamigahara, Japan) -
    1. India won the title (their 1st), defeating South Korea in Final.
  73. 2023 French Open Tennis (Paris, France) Winners -
    1. Men's singles - Novak Djokovic (Serbia). He defeated Casper Ruud (Norway) in final.
      1. This was Novak Djokovic's 3rd French Open title and his record-breaking 23rd men's singles major title overall, surpassing record previously held jointly with Rafael Nadal.
    2. Women's singles - Iga Świątek (Poland). She defeated Karolína Muchová (Czech Republic) in final.
      1. This was Iga Świątek's 4th grand slam title.
    3. Men's doubles - Ivan Dodig (Croatia) & Austin Krajicek (US)
    4. Women's doubles - Hsieh Su-wei (Chinese Taipei) & Wang Xinyu (China)
    5. Mixed doubles - Miyu Kato (Japan) / Tim Pütz (Germany)
    6. Boys' singles -Dino Prižmić (Croatia)
    7. Girls' singles - Alina Korneeva (Russia)
  74. Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) approved changing its membership status with International Social Security Association (ISSA) from associate member (since 1962) to affiliate member now.
    1. This will enable EPFO to access guidelines and expert knowledge from ISSA for its pension subscribers, while gaining international recognition as a full administrative social security institution.
  75. June 12 is observed by UN as World Day against Child Labour. 2023 theme is Social Justice for All. End Child Labour.
  76. Annual Joint Army exercise Ex Ekuverin between Indian Army & Maldves National Defence Force held at Chaubatia (Uttarakhand).
  77. India signed $130 million loan agreement with Asian Development Bank (ADB), to increase agricultural productivity, improve irrigation and promote horticulture agribusinesses in Himachal Pradesh.
  78. As per Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) Yearbook 2023 on state of global nuclear arsenals -
    1. 9 nuclear-armed Nations (US, Russia, China, UK, France, India, Pakistan, North Korea and Israel) possess 12512 nuclear warheads as of Jan 2023.
    2. Top 3 - Russia (5889), US (5244), China (410).
    3. India's nuclear arsenal expanded from 160 in 2022 to 164 in 2023, and that of Pakistan increased from 165 to 170 in the same period.
  79. Germany hosted Air Defender 23 exercise, as NATO's biggest air deployment exercise.
  80. As per govt data on Steel Sector -
    1. India is 2nd Largest Producer of Crude Steel, surpassing Japan in 2018.
    2. Also, in FY 23 (2022-23), India remained net exporter of steel, witnessing export of 6.72 MT of finished steel against import of 6.02 MT.
    3. India aims at total crude steel capacity of 300 MTPA (154 MTPA currently) and total crude steel demand/production of 255 MTPA by 2030-31.
  81. June 13 is observed by UN as International Albinism Awareness Day. 2023 Theme is Inclusion is Strength.
  82. Sanshodhak, 4th of four ships of Survey Vessels (Large) (SVL) Project, being built by GRSE for Indian Navy, has been launched.
    1. Other 3 ships under this project are - Sandhayak, Nirdeshak, Ikshak.
  83. Indian Navy launched Anjadip (built by GRSE Kolkata), as 3rd of 16 anti-submarine warfare vessels being built under Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft project.
    1. Under this project, 8 ships are being made by each of Cochin Shipyard (CSL) and Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE). 1st ship to be launched under this project was Arnala.
    2. ASW SWC project consists 16 planned ships, with over 80% indigenous content.
  84. As per 2023 Mercer Cost of Living Ranking -
    1. Top 3 Costliest cities - Hong Kong, Singapore, Zurich (Switzerland)
    2. Mumbai is India's costliest city, ranked 147th globally. It is followed by Delhi (169), Chennai (184).
  85. As per Forbes' The Global 2000 List 2023 -
    1. Top 5 Firms globally -
      1. JPMorgan Chase (US)
      2. Saudi Aramco (Saudi Arabia)
      3. ICBC (China)
      4. China Construction Bank (China)
      5. Agricultural Bank of China (China)
    2. Indian Firms in List -
      1. Total 55 Indian Firms are in List.
      2. Top 5 Indian Firms in List (with global ranks) -
        1. Reliance Industries (45)
        2. State Bank of India (77)
        3. HDFC Bank (128)
        4. ICICI Bank (163)
        5. ONGC (226)
  86. As per Global Skills Report 2023 by Coursera -
    1. Top 3 - Switzerland (1), Spain (2), Germany (3)
    2. India ranked 60th on the list.
    3. Neighbors - China (34), Pakistan (92), Bangladesh (73), Sri Lanka (79)
  87. June 14 is observed as World Blood Donor Day.
  88. Govt in consultation with RBI, has issued details for Sovereign Gold Bonds (SGBs), to be issued in 2 tranches for FY 24 (2023 - 24) (in June & Sep 2023) -
    1. Item Details
      Issuance To be issued by RBI on behalf of Government of India, through through Scheduled Commercial banks (except SFBs, Payment Banks and RRBs), Stock Holding Corporation of India (SHCIL), Clearing Corporation of India (CCIL), designated post offices and recognised stock exchanges.
      Tenor Tenor of SGB will be for 8 years with an option of premature redemption after 5th year, to be exercised on date on which interest is payable.
      Limits Permissible investment will be between 1 gram to 4 Kg for individual, 4 Kg for HUF and 20 Kg for trusts and similar entities per fiscal year (April-March).
      Price

      Price (Issue & Redemption) will be fixed on the basis of simple average of closing price of gold of 999 purity, published by India Bullion and Jewellers Association Limited (IBJA).

      Issue price will be less by ₹50 per gram for online payments. Payment will be through cash (upto ₹20000) or demand draft or cheque or electronic banking.

      Interest rate Investors will get fixed rate of 2.50 % per annum payable semi-annually.
      Usability SGBs can be used as collateral for loans. SGBs shall also be eligible for trading.
      Commission Commission for distribution of SGB shall be paid at rate of 1 % of total subscription received by receiving offices and receiving offices shall share at least 50 % of commission with agents for business procured through them.
  89. RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das has been named Winner of Governor of the year Award at Central Banking Awards 2023 (London).
    1. Also, National Bank of Ukraine has been named Central Bank of the year.
  90. Haryana Govt announced monthly pension of ₹10000 for Padma awardees from the state.
  91. United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) passed a resolution piloted by India, to establish a new memorial wall at United Nations Headquarters for fallen peacekeepers.
    1. UNGA also adopted Bangladesh's flagship resolution on Culture of Peace.
  92. June 15 is observed by UN  as World Elder Abuse Awareness Day.
  93. June 15 is observed as Global Wind Day.
    1. As per govt Data, Rajasthan achieved highest wind capacity addition during FY 23 (2022-23) and Gujarat achieved highest wind capacity addition through open access.
    2. India's Energy Sector at a Glance -
      1. India aims at 500 GW by 2030 from renewable sources (up from Approx 170 GW Currently), which includes installation of 280 GW of solar power and 140 GW of wind power.
      2. Current Energy Sector Scenario (At end of Mar 2023) -
        1. Source Installed Capacity (MW) % of Share in Total Global Rank
          Fossil Fuels (Total) 237,269 57.7%
          Coal 205,235 49.3%
          Lignite 6,620 1.6%
          Gas 24,824 6.0%
          Diesel 589 0.1%
          Non-Fossil Fuels (Total) 178,790 43%
          Hydro [RE] 46,850 11.3% 5
          Wind [RE] 42,633 10.2% 4
          Solar [RE] 66,780 16.1% 4
          Bio Mass Power/Cogen [RE] 10,248 2.5%
          Waste to Energy [RE] 554 0.1%
          Small Hydro [RE] 4,944 1.2%
          Nuclear 6,780 1.6% 12
          Total Installed Capacity 416,059   3

  94. Monthly Trade and Inflation Data (May 2023) -
    1. Inflation and Trade Data for May 2023 -
      1. Wholesale price Index Based (WPI) -
        1. WPI based inflation fell to (-) 3.48 % (Negative) in May  2023, which is lowest in 3 years.
        2. WPI Inflation in last 12 months -
          1. April 2023 - (-) 0.92 % (Negative)
          2. March 2023 - 1.34 %
          3. February 2023 - 3.85 % 
          4. January 2023 - 4.73 %
          5. December 2022 - 4.95 %
          6. November 2022 - 5.85 %
          7. October 2022 - 8.39 %
          8. September 2022 - 10.07 %
          9. August 2022 - 12.41 %
          10. July 2022 - 13.93 %
          11. June 2022 - 15.18 %
          12. May 2022 - 15.88 % (30 Year High)
      2. Consumer Price Index (CPI) Based (retail inflation) -
        1. CPI-based inflation rate for May  2023 fell to 4.25 % (25 Month Low).
        2. CPI Inflation in Last 12 Months -
          1. April 2023 - 4.7 %
          2. March 2023 - 5.66 %
          3. February 2023 - 6.44 %
          4. January 2023 - 6.52 %
          5. December 2022 - 5.72 %
          6. November 2022 - 5.88 %
          7. October 2022 - 6.77 %
          8. September 2022 - 7.41 %
          9. August 2022 - 7.01 %
          10. July 2022 - 6.71 %
          11. June 2022 - 7.01 %
          12. May 2022 - 7.04%
      3. Trade -
          1. Overall Trade in May  2023 (Merchandise + Services) -
            1. Overall Imports - 70.64
            2. Overall Exports - 60.29
            3. Overall Trade Deficit - 10.35 Billion USD
          2. Compared to Last Month (April 2023)
            1. Overall Imports - 66.40
            2. Overall Exports - 65.02
            3. Overall Trade Deficit - 1.38 Billion USD (21 month low)
          3. Notable facts about India’s Trade during Previous Financial Year (FY 23 (2022-23)) -
            1. Exports stood at highest ever USD 770.18 billion during FY 2022-23, growing 13.84 % over FY 2021-22.
              1. Out of this, Merchandise exports stood at USD 447.46 billion & Services exports at USD 322.72 billion, both a new annual record.
              2. US and UAE retained first and second places respectively as India's largest export destinations, during FY 2022-23. Netherlands rose to third place, replacing China.
            2. In terms of overall trade too (exports + imports), US remained India's top partner in 2022-23, with $128.55 Billion Trade (Exports $78.31 billion & imports $50.24 billion).
  95. Govt launched Vaishvik Bhartiya Vaigyanik (VAIBHAV) fellowships programme to be implemented by Department of Science and Technology (DST), to connect Indian STEMM diaspora with Indian academic and R&D institutions for collaborative research leading to sharing of knowledge, and best practices in frontier areas of science & technology.
    1. Under it, 75 selected fellows would be invited to work in 18 identified knowledge verticals.
  96. India's Jagdish Bakan (Wildlife Warden and Director of Gulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve) has been awarded biennial Michel Batisse Award for Biosphere Reserve Management, for introducing green jobs and microcredit, to stimulate community-led efforts to conserve biodiversity in Gulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve in India.
    1. He received US$12,000 award as part of the honor, under UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere (MAB) Programme.
  97. June 16 is observed by UN as International Day of Family Remittances.
  98. Govt renamed Nehru Memorial Museum and Library Society as Prime Ministers’ Museum and Library Society.
    1. Earlier in 2016, NMML approved construction of Museum of all Prime Ministers in Teen Murti Estate, which was opened to the public in April 2022.
  99. NITI Aayog (India) and UN signed India-United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework 2023-2027.
    1. It represents  UN development system’s collective offer to Government of India, in line with national vision for development, achievement of UN Sustainable Development Goals, promoting gender equality, youth empowerment and human rights.
  100. World Bank launched its first dedicated road safety project in South Asia, with a USD 358 million financing agreement signed with Bangladesh.
  101. American Novelist Barbara Kingsolver won UK's Women’s Prize for Fiction 2023 for her novel Demon Copperhead. The award carries grant of £30000.
    1. Earlier, she won the Women’s Prize for Fiction in 2010 for her novel The Lacuna. This makes her the first author to win the award twice.
    2. About -
      1. Women’s Prize for Fiction is an annual award given to best novel written by a woman in previous year, and published in Ireland and the UK.
      2. Notably, Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction has been established in 2023, as a sister prize to Women's Prize for Fiction. It will first be awarded in 2024, also carrying a grant of £30000.
  102. June 17 is observed by UN as World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought. 2023 theme is Her land. Her rights.
  103. Gandhi Peace Prize for 2021 has been conferred on Gita Press (Gorakhpur).
    1. Gandhi Peace Prize is awarded annually (to Institutions / Individuals) since its inception by govt in 1995, on occasion of 125th Birth Anniversary of M K Gandhi. It carries Prize money of Rs 1 crore.
    2. Gita Press is world's largest publisher of Hindu religious texts, located in Gorakhpur (Uttar Pradesh). It completed 100 years of existence on 3 May, 2023.
  104. Noted Indian historian Ramachandra Guha's book Rebels Against the Raj: Western Fighters for India’s Freedom won Elizabeth Longford Prize for Historical Biography 2023.
    1. This award was established in memory of British author & historian Elizabeth Longford, carrying £5,000 monetary grant.
  105. Book A Life Well Spent – Four Decades in the Indian Foreign Service, authored by Indian Diplomat Satish Chandra has been released.
  106. Book Master Residential Real Estate, authored by Ashwinder R Singh, has been released.
  107. Red Bull's Dutch-Belgian F1 Racer Max Verstappen won Canadian Grand Prix 2023.
    1. F1 Season 2023 -
      1. Grand Prix Winner Race date
        Bahrain Grand Prix Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian) 5 March
        Saudi Arabian Grand Prix Sergio Pérez (Mexico) 19 March
        Australian Grand Prix Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian) 2 April
        Azerbaijan Grand Prix Sergio Pérez (Mexico) 30 April
        Miami Grand Prix Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian) 7 May
        Monaco Grand Prix  Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian) 28 May
        Spanish Grand Prix  Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian) 4 June
        Canadian Grand Prix Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian) 18 June
        Austrian Grand Prix   2 July
        British Grand Prix   9 July
        Hungarian Grand Prix   23 July
        Belgian Grand Prix   30 July
        Dutch Grand Prix   27 August
        Italian Grand Prix   3 September
        Singapore Grand Prix   17 September
        Japanese Grand Prix   24 September
        Qatar Grand Prix   8 October
        United States Grand Prix   22 October
        Mexico City Grand Prix   29 October
        São Paulo Grand Prix   5 November
        Las Vegas Grand Prix   18 November
        Abu Dhabi Grand Prix   26 November
  108. 2023 Intercontinental Football Cup (Hosted in Bhubaneswar (India)) -
    1. India won the Title (Their 2nd), beating Lebanon in the final.
    2. Other 2 teams in 4 nations tournament were Vanuatu, Mongolia.
  109. India gifted Indian Navy's in-service missile corvette INS Kirpan to Vietnam.
    1. INS Kirpan is 3rd indigenously built Khukri class missile corvette. Other corvettes in class are Khukri, Kuthar & Khanjar.
  110. June 18 is observed by UN as International Day for Countering Hate Speech, observed since 2022. 2023 theme is Hate speech: Turning the tide.
    1. June 18 is also observed as -
      1. Sustainable Gastronomy Day (UN).
      2. Autistic Pride Day.
  111. 2023 Indonesia Open Badminton -
    1. Men's singles - Viktor Axelsen (Denmark)
    2. Women's singles - Chen Yufei (China)
    3. Men's doubles - Satwiksairaj Rankireddy & Chirag Shetty (India)
    4. Women's doubles - Baek Ha-na & Lee So-hee (South Korea)
    5. Mixed doubles - Zheng Siwei & Huang Yaqiong (China)
  112. June 19 is observed by UN as International Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict.
    1. June 19 is also observed as -
      1. World Sickle Cell Day.
      2. National Reading Day in India, to honour father of Library Movement in Kerala, P.N. Panicker whose death anniversary falls on June 19.
  113. Indian Army participated in Multinational Peacekeeping Exercise Ex Khaan Quest 2023, held in Mongolia.
  114. As per Global Slavery Index 2023 released by Walk Free Foundation -
    1. Top 3 (Slavery Most prevalent) - North Korea (1), Eritrea (2), Mauritania (3)
    2. Bottom 3 (Slavery Least prevalent) - Switzerland (160), Norway (159), Germany (158)
    3. Approx 50 million people worldwide lived in modern slavery in 2021, with 11 million in India.
  115. Govt has set up an expert panel led by former law secretary T K Vishwanathan to recommend reforms in Arbitration and Conciliation Act, to reduce burden on courts.
  116. Siddaramaiah-led Newly elected Karnataka govt launched several initiatives, as part of poll promises made by Congress party in Karnataka for assembly elections 2023 -
    1. Shakti scheme - It will facilitate Free bus travel for women in Karnataka.
    2. Gruha Jyoti scheme - It will provide free electricity upto 200 units, to every household in Karnataka.
    3. Other poll promises which have been approved and are awaiting implementation -
      1. Rs 2,000 monthly assistance to the woman head of every family (Gruha Lakshmi)
      2. 10 kilograms of rice free to every member of a below poverty line (BPL) household (Anna Bhagya)
      3. Rs 3,000 every month for unemployed graduate youth and Rs 1,500 for unemployed diploma holders aged 18-25 for two years (YuvaNidhi)
    4. Notably, these schemes will cost over 50000 crores annually to the state govt.
  117. June 20 is observed by UN as World Refugee Day. 2023 Theme is Hope Away from Home.
  118. Govt named Amit Agrawal as CEO of Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI).
  119. General News / Events (Jun 11-20, 2023) -
    1. Hyderabad-based Geological Survey of India Training Institute (GSITI) functioning under Ministry of Mines, has been awarded with accreditation by National Accreditation Board of Education and Training (NABET), with grading of Athi Uttam, in recognition of its services and high standards maintained in field of earth science training.
    2. India participated in France's Annecy International Animation Festival (AIAF) for the first time in 2023.
    3. PSU Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA) participated in Intersolar Europe 2023 exhibition in Munich (Germany).
    4. As part of broader vision of One Nation One Helpline, govt announced to integrate Women Helpline, Child Helpline (1098) with ERSS-112 (Emergency Response Support System).
    5. Education and Skill Development Minister Dharmendra Pradhan flagged off Central African Nation Gabon’s first Agri- SEZ project, to be implemented by India's AOM group with Centurion University as technical and knowledge partner.
    6. New curated collection DAKSHTA (Development of Attitude, Knowledge, Skill for Holistic Transformation in Administration) For Young Professionals has been integrated on iGOT Karmayogi Platform, which has been developed as an integral part of Digital India stack for capacity building of all government employees.
    7. First Hindu-American Summit held at US Capitol Hill (Washington DC).
    8. American Chipmaker Giant Intel and German government signed agreement to set up a chip manufacturing unit in Magdeburg (Germany), with investment over $33 billion.
    9. Guwahati Railway Station (Assam) became first under North East Frontier Railway to receive Eat Right Station certification by FSSAI, in recognition of providing high-quality, nutritious food to passengers.
    10. Uttar Pradesh govt notified Jails in state to be called Reform Homes (Sudhaar Grah), in line with recently formed Model Prisons Act 2023 by central govt, which is aimed at addressing gaps in existing colonial-era Prisons Act 1894.
    11. NHAI launched Knowledge Sharing platform, to enable experts / citizens to share knowledge and insights related to road design, construction, road safety and environment sustainability.
  120. Russian bank Sberbank enabled facility to open accounts in Indian rupees (INR), expanding range of foreign currencies available, to reduce dependency on US dollar and euro.
  121. Noted India-born British-American author Salman Rushdie has named winner of Peace Prize of the German Book Trade 2023 (Friedenspreis des Deutschen Buchhandels), carrying grant of €25000.
  122. June 21 - UN International Yoga Day, being Observed Since 2015. 2023 Theme is Yoga for Vasudhaiv Kutumbakam.
    1. On this occasion -
      1. Main event of 9th edition of International Day of Yoga 2023 held at Jabalpur (Madhya Pradesh).
      2. Indian Navy deployed its ships on various ports in Indian Ocean region under initiative Ocean Ring of Yoga, to strengthen harmony among nations.
      3. Yoga Day event organised in Surat (Gujarat) has set a new Guinness World Record for largest gathering for a yoga session at one place, with 1.53 lakh people joining.
      4. Oman became First Foreign Government to Promote its Country through Yoga, under Soulful Yoga, Serene Oman initiative, in association with Indian Embassy in Oman.
    2. Other Observations on June 21 -
      1. World Music Day. First all-day musical celebration on the day of the summer solstice was celebrated in Paris in 1982.
      2. Summer Solstice day. Summer Solstice is longest day of year which marks official start of summer season in Northern hemisphere.
        1. International Day of Celebration of the Solstice was proclaimed by UN General Assembly in 2019.
      3. World Hydrography Day, Proclaimed by International Hydrographic Organization in 2005.
  123. Petteri Orpo has been named Finland's new prime minister.
  124. Ravi Sinha has been named new chief of India’s external intelligence agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW).
  125. Indian author Arundhati Roy has been awarded European Essay Prize for lifetime achievement 2023 for French translation of her book Azadi, by Charles Veillon Foundation.
  126. As per Hurun India's 2022 Burgundy Private Hurun India 500 list -
    1. Mukesh Ambani led Reliance Industries stayed at top, as most valuable private company in India. It is followed by Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), and HDFC Bank.
  127. As per Global Gender Gap Report 2023 by World Economic Forum (WEF) -
    1. Top 3 - Iceland (1), Norway (2), Finland (3)
    2. Bottom 3 - Afghanistan (146), Chad (145), Algeria (144)
    3. India ranks 127th.
    4. Neighbors - China (107), Pakistan (142), Sri Lanka (115), Bangladesh (59)
  128. Archaeologists discovered a 4000-year-old sanctuary made up of ditches and burial mounds, in Netherlands.
    1. It is believed to have served a similar purpose as Stonehenge (England), which was built to align with the sun on the solstices.
  129. June 22 is observed as World Rainforest Day.
  130. Ministry of Power released report National Energy Data: Survey and Analysis 2021-22 preparerd by Bureau of Energy Efficiency, including granular information about energy supply and consumption patterns across various sectors of Indian economy.
    1. It includes data compiled for last 6 years (FY 2016-17 to FY 2021-22), along with analysis of fuel-wise energy consumption in major end-use sectors.
    2. It also provides overview of impact of various energy conservation policies and their associated CO2 emission reduction and monetary savings.
  131. Govt amended Electricity (Rights of Consumers) Rules 2020, to introduce Time of Day (ToD) Tariff system -
    1. Under it, Tariff during 8 specified solar hours shall be 10%-20% lesser than normal tariff, while tariff during peak hours will be 10 -20 % higher.
    2. ToD tariff would be applicable for Commercial consumers from 1st April 2024 and for all other consumers (except agricultural) from 1st April 2025.
  132. Telangana CM K Chandrasekhar Rao inaugurated India's largest private rail coach factory in Kondakal village (Rangareddy district), built by Medha Servo Drives Pvt Ltd. It has production capacity of 500 coaches and 50 locomotives per year.
  133. Indian Airline IndiGo made a record order for 500 Airbus A320 aircrafts, the largest single purchase agreement by any airline in commercial aviation history. The deal worth $55 Billion was announced during Paris Airshow 2023.
    1. Also, Tata Group owned Air India also finalized order for total 470 aircrafts with Airbus (250) and Boeing (220), during Paris Airshow 2023. It was announced earlier in feb 2023.
  134. Sahitya Akademi Awards 2022 announced for 24 languages. It contains prize money of 1 Lakh INR. Awardees -
    1. Language Title and Genre Name of the Author
      Assamese Bhool Satya (Short Stories) Manoj Kumar Goswami
      Bengali Birbal (Novel) Tapan Bandopadhyay
      Bodo Sansrini Modira (Poetry) Rashmi Choudhury
      Dogri Chhe Roopak (Drama) Veena Gupta
      English All The Lives We Never Lived (Novel) Anuradha Roy
      Gujarati Gher Jatan (Autobiographical Essays) Gulam Mohammad Shaikh
      Hindi Tumadi Ke Shabd (Poetry) Badri Narayan
      Kannada Bahutvada Bhaarata mattu Bouddha Taatvikate (Collection of Articles) Mudnakudu Chinnaswamy
      Kashmiri Zael Dab (Literary Criticism) Farooq Fayaz
      Konkani Amrutvel (Novel) Maya Anil Kharangate
      Maithili Pen-Drive Me Prithvi (Poetry) Ajit Azad
      Malayalam Ashaante Seethayanam (Literary Criticism) M. Thomas Mathew
      Manipuri Leironnung (Poetry) Koijam Shantibala
      Marathi Ujavya Sondechya Bahulya (Novel) Praveen Dashrath Bandekar
      Nepali Saino (Drama) K.B. Nepali
      Odia Dayanadi (Poetry) Gayatribala Panda
      Punjabi Main Aynghosh Nahi (Short Stories) Sukhjit
      Rajasthani Alekhun Amba (Play) Kamal Ranga
      Sanskrit Deepmanikyam (Poetry) Janardan Prasad Pandey ‘Mani’
      Santali Sabarnaka Balire Sanan’ Panjay (Poetry) Kajli Soren (Jagannath Soren)
      Sindhi Sindhi Sahit Jo Mukhtasar Itihas (Literary History) Kanhaiyalal Lekhwani
      Tamil Kaala Paani (Novel) M. Rajendran
      Telugu Manodharmaparagam (Novel) Madhuranthakam Narendra
      Urdu Khwab Saraab (Novel) Anis Ashfaq
    2. Sahitya Akademi also announced -
      1. Sahitya Akademi Bhasha Samman 2022, on Dr Udaya Nath Jha (Central Sanskrit University Puri). It carries prize of Rs 1 Lakh.
      2. Bal Sahtiya Puraskar 2023 on 22 writers & Yuva Puraskar 2023 on 20 writers, each carrying prize money of 50000.
  135. June 23 is observed by UN as Public Service Day.
    1. June 23 is also observed as -
      1. International Olympics Day.
      2. International Widows' Day (UN).
      3. From 2023 onwards, All India Football Federation (AIFF) declared June 23 (birth anniversary of Noted Former Indian footballer Pradip Kumar Banerjee), as AIFF Grassroots Day.
  136. Union Bank of India launched 4 niche bank account schemes targeting women, women entrepreneurs and professionals, pensioners and cooperative housing societies.
    1. Unnati - Current account specifically designed for women entrepreneurs and professionals.
    2. Samriddhi - Tailored to empower women by providing them with a safe and convenient savings and financial management avenue.
    3. Samman - Savings account aimed at pensioners.
    4. SBCHS - Acknowledges significance of co-operative housing societies.
  137. 2023 Asian Fencing Championships (Wuxi, China)
    1. Medal Table -
      1. Rank Nation Gold Silver Bronze Total
        1  Japan 4 1 4 9
        2  South Korea 3 5 4 12
        3  China 2 3 6 11
        4  Hong Kong 1 1 6 8
        5  Iran 1 1 1 3
      2. India ranked 9th, winning 1 Bronze Medal.
        1. Medal was won by C A Bhavani Devi, making her first Indian fencer to win a medal at Asian Fencing Championships.
  138. Noted poet and Sahitya Akademi Award recipient Acharya N. Gopi has been selected for First Prof. Kothapalli Jayashankar Award instituted by Bharat Jagruthi, the extended arm of Bharat Rashtra Samithi (Telangana).
  139. As per Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU)'s Global Liveability Index 2023 -
    1. Top 5 most liveable cities -
      1. Vienna (Austria)
      2. Copenhagen (Denmark)
      3. Melbourne (Australia)
      4. Sydney (Australia)
      5. Vancouver (Canada)
  140. June 24 is observed by UN as International Day for Women in Diplomacy. It was proclaimed in 2022.
  141. Power Ministry has set up a dedicated Centre of Excellence to accelerate industry adoption of clean technologies and scale up India’s contribution to global energy transition, Named UTPRERAK (Unnat Takniki Pradarshan Kendra).
    1. The Centre, named otherwise as Advanced Industrial Technology Demonstration Centre (AITDC), has been set up at Badarpur (New Delhi) campus of National Power Training Institute (NPTI).
  142. Odisha Govt & Quality Council of India launched Odisha Gunvatta Sankalp (Odisha Quality Mission) at Bhubaneswar, in collaboration with several industry associations, to promote and prioritize quality across various sectors in state.
  143. Fisheries Minister Parshottam Rupala launched Nandi (NOC Approval for New Drug and Inoculation System) portal, to facilitate regulatory approval process with transparency.
    1. It will enable better assessment of veterinary product proposals, through integration with SUGAM portal of Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO).
  144. Journalist Ashok Kumar Bhattacharya's new book India’s Finance Ministers: From Independence to Emergency (1947-1977), has been released.
  145. As per Global Startup Ecosystem Report 2023 (GSER) by Starup Genome -
    1. Top 3 -
      1. Silicon Valley (US) (1)
      2. London (UK) & New York City (US) (Tied at 2nd place)
    2. India's Bengaluru ranks 20th, jointly with Sydney (Australia). Bengaluru is followed by Delhi (24), Mumbai (31).
  146. Swaminathan Janakiraman has been named as new Deputy Governor of RBI, for a term of 3 years.
    1. Other 3 RBI Deputy Governors are M D Patra, M Rajeshwar Rao & T Rabi Sankar.
  147. 2023 Special Olympics World Summer Games (H0sted in Berlin, Germany) -
    1. India won 202 medals at 2023 Special Olympics World Summer Games (including 76 gold, 75 silver and 51 bronze).
    2. Perth (Australia) will host next Special Olympics World Summer Games in 2027.
    3. Notably, Actor Ayushmann Khurana was named as Goodwill Ambassador for Special Olympics Bharat, which is official programme of Special Olympics International which operates in India.
  148. June 25 is observed as International Day of Seafarer.
    1. June 25 is also observed as World Vitiligo Day.
  149. Kyriakos Mitsotakis has been elected as new Prime minister of Greece, for his 2nd term.
  150. Book The Yoga Sutras for Children, authored by Roopa Pai, has been released.
  151. World Competitiveness Index 2023 by International Institute for Management Development (IMD) -
    1. Top 3 - Denmark (1), Ireland (2), Switzerland (3)
    2. India ranked 40th.
    3. Neighbors - China (21).
  152. June 26 is observed by UN as International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking.
    1. June 26 is also observed as International Day in Support of Victims of Torture.
  153. World Bank approved $1.5 billion loan for India, to accelerate India’s development of low-carbon energy, by scaling up renewable energy, developing green hydrogen, and stimulating climate finance for low-carbon energy investments.
  154. World Bank approved $150 million loan for India, to support Resilient Kerala Program to strengthen Kerala’s preparedness against natural disasters, climate change impacts, and disease outbreaks.
  155. World Bank approved $200 million loan for India, to facilitate power sector reforms in Himachal Pradesh, and increase share of renewable energy in state’s electricity generation.
  156. World Bank approved $300 million loan for India, to help expand and improve quality of education in government-run schools in Chhattisgarh, to benefit over 4 million students from poor and vulnerable communities.
  157. World Bank approved USD 255.5 million loan for India, to support enhancement of technical education in government-run institutions across India, benefitting over 350000 students each year.
  158. June 27 is observed by UN as International MSME Day (Micro Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Day).
    1. On this occasion, MSME Minister launched several initiatives including CHAMPIONS 2.0 Portal and MSME Idea Hackathon 3.0 for women entrepreneurs.
    2. Also, on June 27, Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (DEPwD) observed Helen Keller Day, to commemorate Helen Keller, noted American author and disability rights advocate, who was born deaf and blind.
  159. Department of Expenditure (Ministry of Finance) approved capital investment proposals of 56415 crores in 16 States, under scheme Special Assistance to States for Capital Investment 2023-24, which was announced in Budget 2023-24.
    1. Under this, special assistance is being provided to States in form of 50-year interest free loan up to an 1.3 lakh crores during FY 24 (2023-24).
    2. The scheme has 8 parts, Part-I being largest with allocation of 1 lakh crores, allocated amongst States in proportion to their share of central taxes & duties as per award of 15th Finance Commission. Other parts of scheme are either linked to reforms or are for sector specific projects.
  160. Canada announced its first-ever Tech Talent Strategy, aimed at using immigration to strengthen its tech sector.
    1. Under it, Canada govt will launch several new initiatives to attract top tech talent to Canada.
  161. As per Energy Transition Index 2023 released by World Economic Forum (WEF) -
    1. Top 3 - Sweden (1), Denmark (2), Norway (3)
    2. Bottom 3 - Yemen (120), DR Congo (119), Tanzania (118)
    3. India ranks 67th.
    4. Neighbors - Bangladesh (113), Pakistan (107), Sri Lanka (66), China (17)
  162. Indian-origin satellite industry expert Aarti Holla-Maini has been named Director of United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
    1. UNOOSA works to promote international cooperation in peaceful use and exploration of space for sustainable economic and social development.
  163. Assam govt announnced to develop State's first underwater tunnel between Numaligarh and Gohpur at cost 6000 crores, under Brahmaputra river.
  164. Environment Ministry notified draft Green Credit Programme Implementation Rules 2023, to help combat climate change & achieve net zero targets.
    1. It proposes launch of a national level Green Credit programme, to leverage a competitive market-based approach for Green Credits and to incentivise voluntary environmental actions.
    2. This is in line with govt's LiFE- Lifestyle for Environment movement which seeks to combat climate change and incentivise environment-friendly activities.
  165. June 28 is observed as National Insurance Awareness Day in India.
  166. Cabinet Approvals (Jun 28, 2023) -
    1. CCEA -
      1. Approved Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP) of sugarcane for sugar season 2023-24 (October - September) at 315/qtl, for a basic recovery rate of 10.25%.
        1. This is against cost of production of sugarcane for sugar season 2023-24 at 157/qtl. FRP is higher by 100.6% over production cost.
        2. For mills sugar mills where recovery is below 9.5% -
          1. Farmers will get 291.975/qtl for sugarcane in ensuing sugar season 2023-24, against 282.125/qtl in current sugar season 2022-23.
      2. Approved a unique package for farmers with total outlay of 370129 crores, focused at overall betterment of farmers by promoting sustainable agriculture.
        1. Package includes -
          1. Commitment of 368677 Crores for urea subsidy for 3 years (2022-23 to 2024-25), to enable farmers to purchase urea at subsidized price of 242 per 45 kg bag of urea, whereas actual cost of bag comes around 2200.
            1. Notably, this is apart from recently approved Nutrient Based Subsidy of 38000 Crore for Kharif season 2023-24.
          2. Market Development Assistance (MDA) incentive scheme of Rs 1500 per MT to support marketing of organic fertilizers.
            1. Organic fertilizers includes Fermented Organic Manures (FOM)/Liquid FOM/Phosphate Rich Organic Manures (PROM) produced as by-product from Bio- gas Plants/Compressed Biogas (CBG) Plants set up under umbrella GOBARdhan initiative.
            2. This will facilitate implementation of Budget announcement of establishing 500 new waste to wealth plants under GOBARdhan scheme for promoting circular economy, by increasing viability of these BG/CBG plants.
          3. Sulphur coated Urea (Urea Gold) is being introduced in country for the first time.
            1. It is more economical and efficient than currently used Neem coated urea, and will address Sulphur deficiency in soil.
        2. Other notable progress in Fertilizer sector -
          1. By 2025-26, eight Nano urea plants with production capacity of 44 Crore bottles equaling to 195 LMT of conventional urea will be commissioned. Application of Nano Urea has demonstrated increase in crop yield.
          2. Setting up and revival of 6 urea production plants has helped increase indigenous production of urea from 225 LMT during 2014-15 to 250 LMT during 2021-22. These along with Nano Urea Plants will reduce India's import dependency in urea and help in govt's target to make India self-sufficient in urea by 2025- 26.
          3. Also, PM Programme for Restoration, Awareness Generation, Nourishment and Amelioration of Mother – Earth (PMPRANAM) was announced in budget 2023-24, to incentivize States/ UTs to promote alternate fertilizers and balanced use of chemical fertilizers.
    2. General -
      1. Approved ratification of Headquarters Agreement (HQA) between Government of India and Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI), signed in August 2022. It will provide CDRI an independent and international legal persona, so that it can carry out its functions internationally, more efficiently.
        1. Notably, New Delhi-based CDRI was launched by India during UN Climate Action Summit in Sep 2019, as a major global initiative to strengthen global discourse on disaster and climate resilient infrastructure.
      2. Approved introduction of National Research Foundation (NRF) Bill 2023 in Parliament, to establish NRF that will seed, grow and promote Research and Development (R&D) and foster a culture of research and innovation throughout India’s universities, colleges, research institutions, and R&D laboratories.
        1. The bill will also repeal Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB) established in 2008, and will subsume it into NRF, which has an expanded mandate and covers activities over and above activities of SERB.
  167. Mines Ministry released first ever report on Critical Minerals for India, which identifies list of 30 critical minerals for India, taking into account requirements of various key sectors.
  168. TS Singh Deo has been named first deputy chief minister of Chhattisgarh.
  169. As per QS World University Rankings 2024 -
    1. Top 5 -
      1. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (US)
      2. University of Cambridge (UK)
      3. University of Oxford (UK)
      4. Harvard University (US)
      5. Stanford University (US)
    2. Indian universities in list -
      1. IIT Bombay is best ranked Indian university, ranked 149th. It is followed by IIT Delhi (197), IISC Bengaluru (225).
      2. Total 45 Indian universities are featured in list of world's best 1500 universities.
  170. June 29 is observed as National Statistics Day in India, marking Birth anniversary of India’s eminent statistician, Late Prof Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis. 2023 theme is Alignment of State Indicator Framework with National Indicator Framework for Monitoring Sustainable Development Goals.
    1. On this occasion -
      1. International Statistical Institute named Arup Bose (From ISI Kolkata) as winner of Mahalanobis International Award 2023.
        1. Government of India sponsors Mahalanobis International Award, which is presented in alternate years at International Statistical Institute World Statistics Congress.
        2. Notably,
          1. Indian Govt also confers PC Mahalanobis National Award in Official Statistics (setup in 2020) and PV Sukhatme National Award for life time contribution in statistics (setup in 2000), to honor noted statisticians at national level.
          2. These awards are also conferred in alternate years (other year than the one in which Mahalanobis International Award is conferred).
      2. RBI launched its next generation data warehouse Centralised Information Management System (CIMS).
  171. June 29 is observed by UN as International Day of the Tropics, proclaimed by UN in 2016.
  172. Taking note of India's measures to protect children, UN removed India from its annual report on impact of armed conflict on children.
    1. India was included in the list in 2010, amid allegations of recruitment of young boys by armed groups in J&K and detainment of boys by security forces on grounds of association with armed groups.
  173. England's MCC (Marylebone Cricket Club) World Cricket Committee added 3 new former players as members - Heather Knight (England), Eoin Morgan (England) & Jhulan Goswami (India).
    1. Also, former England Cricketer Alastair Cook stepped down from Committee.
  174. Times Higher Education (THE) Asia University Rankings 2023 -
    1. Top 5 -
      1. Tsinghua University (China)
      2. Peking University (China)
      3. National University of Singapore
      4. University of Hong
      5. Nanyang Technological University (Singapore)
    2. Indian Universities in List -
      1. IISC Bengaluru is best ranked Indian university, ranked 48th. It is followed by JSS Academy of Higher Education and Research (68) & Shoolini University of Biotechnology and Management Sciences (77).
      2. Total 101 Indian universities have been featured in list of Asia's best 928 universities.
  175. Indian Origin World Bank president Ajay Banga has been recognised on Carnegie Corporation of New York's annual Great Immigrants list, for his efforts in enriching America and its democracy.
  176. Notable Awardees at 5th UK-India Awards 2023 (London) -
    1. Global Indian Icon - Mary Kom (India’s first Olympic medallist in women’s boxing).
    2. Lifetime Contribution to UK-India Relations - Shekhar Kapur (Filmmaker)
  177. June 30 is observed annually as International Asteroid Day. It marks event anniversary of Tunguska event in 1908, when an asteroid leveled about 2,150 square kilometres forest in Siberia.
    1. June 30 is also observed as UN International Day of Parliamentarism.
    2. June 30 is also observed as World Social Media Day.
  178. Visits from India (June 2023) -
    1. Notable Points from PM Narendra Modi's Visit to USA & Egypt -
      1. USA -
        1. This was PM Narendra Modi's 1st State visit to the US. He became 3rd Indian leader to make a State visit to US, after former President Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan and former PM Manmohan Singh.
          1. About -
            1. A state visit is made by any nation's head of government or state at the invitation of US president. A leader can receive just one such invite during a US president's 4 year term.
        2. PM Narendra Modi Addressed Joint Session of US Congress, becoming first Indian PM to address US Congress twice (his first address came in June 2016).
        3. Agreements / Launches during the visit -
          1. Space Exploration -
            1. NASA and ISRO will jointly develop a strategic framework for human spaceflight cooperation by end of 2023.
              1. NASA will provide advanced training to Indian astronauts at Johnson Space Center in Houston (Texas), under a planned joint mission to International Space Station in 2024.
            2. India also signed Artemis Accords, a US-led international agreement to cooperate with NASA on peaceful, safe, sustainable, and transparent space exploration.
              1. Artemis Accords is a US led effort to return humans to Moon by 2025, and to expand and deepen space exploration.
          2. Semiconductors -
            1. MoU signed on Semiconductor Supply Chain and Innovation Partnership.
            2. US Firm Micron Technology will invest up to $825 million to build a new semiconductor assembly and test facility in Gujarat.
            3. Lam Research will also train 60000 Indian engineers through its Semiverse Solution virtual fabrication platform to accelerate India’s semiconductor sector.
            4. Applied Materials will invest $400 million to establish a collaborative engineering center in India.
          3. Launched two Joint Task Forces on advanced telecommunications, focused on Open RAN and research and development in 5G/6G technologies.
            1. Public-private cooperation between vendors and operators will be led by India’s Bharat 6G Alliance and US Next G Alliance.
          4. India-United States Defence Acceleration Ecosystem (INDUS X) launched during event India and USA: Skilling for Future held at National Science Centre in Washington DC.
            1. INDUS X factsheet was released for operationalising Defence Innovation Bridge under Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET). INDUS X will facilitate joint defense technology innovation, and co-production of advanced defense technology between respective industries.
            2. Notably, India and US agreed to establish a regular monitoring group to track progress in deepening cooperation in bilateral high-tech trade and technology partnership, during recently held First India-US Strategic Trade Dialogue (IUSSTD) held under India-US initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET).
          5. MoU signed between General Electric and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited for manufacture of GE F-414 jet engines in India, for HAL Light Combat Aircraft Mk 2.
          6. India announced to procure General Atomics MQ-9B HALE UAVs (drones) from US, to enhance ISR capabilities of India’s armed forces.
            1. As part of this, General Atomics will establish a Comprehensive Global MRO facility in India.
          7. MOU signed between Indian Railways and US Agency for International Development (USAID), to support Indian Railways’ target to become a net-zero carbon emitter by 2030.
          8. India announced to join US-Led Mineral Security Partnership (MSP), a strategic grouping of 13 member states, which aims to catalyse public and private investment in critical mineral supply chains globally.
          9. Establishment of a joint Indo-U.S. Quantum Coordination Mechanism to facilitate collaboration among industry, academia, and government.
            1. $2 million grant program lauched under India - US Science and Technology Endowment fund for joint development and commercialization of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and quantum technologies.
      2. Egypt -
        1. Egypt govt conferred highest Egypt state honor on PM Narendra Modi, 'The Order of Nile Award.
    2. Notable points from President Draupadi Murmu's visit to Suriname & Serbia (Her first state visit as President of India) -
      1. Suriname -
        1. MoUs were signed -
          1. MoU between Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation of India (CDSCO) and Ministry of Health of Suriname,for cooperation in field of medical products regulation.
          2. MoU between Ministries of Health of India and Suriname for extending recognition to Indian pharmacopeia.
          3. Joint Work plan for period 2023-27 in Agriculture and Allied sectors.
        2. President Droupadi Murmu was honored with Suriname’s highest honor, the Grand Order of the Chain of the Yellow Star.
      2. Serbia -
        1. India and Serbia agreed to enhance target for bilateral trade from present 3.5 Million Euros to 1 billion euros by 2030.
    3. External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar visited South Africa and Namibia.
      1. Participated in BRICS foreign ministers‘ meet in Cape Town (South Africa).
      2. Inaugurated India-Namibia Centre of Excellence in Information Technology (INCEIT) in Windhoek (Namibia).
  179. Visits to India (June 2023) -
    1. Chrysoula Zacharopoulou, French Minister of State for Development, Francophonie and International Partnerships, visited India.
    2. German Minister of Defence Boris Pistorius visited India.
    3. Vietnam's Defence Minister Gen Phan Van Giang visited India.
      1. During the visit, India announced to gift Indian Navy's in-service missile corvette INS Kirpan to Vietnam.
      2. INS Kirpan is 3rd indigenously built Khukri class missile corvette. Other corvettes in class are Khukri, Kuthar & Khanjar.
    4. Prime Minister of Nepal, Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda visited India. Notable agreements signed during visit -
      1. Finalised Agreement for Long-Term Power Trade, to increase export of power from Nepal to India to 10000 MW within 10 years.
      2. India's NHPC Limited and Nepal's Vidhyut Utpadan Company Limited (VUCL) signed MoU for development of Phukot Karnali Hydro Electric Project (480MW) in Nepal. 
      3. Project Development Agreement signed for development of 669 MW Lower Arun between Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam (SJVN) and Investment Board of Nepal (IBN).
        1. Notably, 1st SJVN project in Nepal is already under-construction 900-MW Arun -III hydroelectric project, on Arun River.
      4. To enhance digital financial connectivity, MoU was signed between NPCI (India) and NCHL (Nepal), for facilitating cross-border digital payments.
    5. Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi (Minister of State for Foreign Trade of UAE) visited India, to attend 1st Meeting of Joint Committee of India-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), which was signed in Feb 2022.
      1. During the meet, India and UAE have set target to boost non-oil bilateral trade from USD 48 billion to USD 100 billion by 2030.
  180. General News / Events (Jun 21-30, 2023) -
    1. Home Minister Amit Shah laid foundation stone of Balidan Stambh in Srinagar, to commemorate martyrs of Jammu and Kashmir Police.
      1. Notably, He also laid foundation stone of Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) in Samba, and inaugurated Vitasta-The Festival of Kashmir, in Srinagar.
    2. Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) launched 4th and final quarter of field assessment for 8th edition of world’s largest urban sanitation survey, Swachh Survekshan 2023.
      1. SS 2023 was Rolled out in May 2022, having completed 3 Quarters of surveying and fourth quarter is now being launched from 1 July 2023, to be completed within a month. It will Assess 4500+ cities across 46 indicators.
      2. Swachh Survekshan 2023 champions Waste to Wealth and is curated towards processing and scientific management of waste.
    3. Department of Telecommunications launched 5G & Beyond Hackathon 2023, aimed at shortlisting India-focused cutting-edge ideas that can be converted into workable 5G & beyond products and solutions.
      1. 100 winners of the hackathon will share a total prize pool of 1 crore.
    4. Fisheries Minister Parshottam Rupala launched Report Fish Disease mobile app developed under National Surveillance Programme for Aquatic Animal Diseases (NSPAAD).
      1. It will enable farmers to connect directly to district fisheries officers and scientists, which will reduce their losses due to diseases.
    5. Song Abundance in Millets performed by Grammy Award-winning Indian-American singer Falguni Shah has been released, to promote benefits of millets and their potential to alleviate world hunger. The song also features PM Narendra Modi.
    6. World Mining Congress 2023 hosted in Brisbane (Australia).
    7. Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) published Standard IS 18267: 2023 for Agri By-Product Utensils, aimed at reducing plastic pollution and promoting sustainability.
    8. Shipping & Ports Minister Sarbananda Sonowal launched Ministry's new Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) guidelines named Sagar Samajik Sahayyog, empowering ports to undertake CSR activities directly.
    9. Hemis Festival observed in Ladakh, marking birth anniversary of Lord Padmasambhava.
    10. Geographical Indication (GI) Registry recognised 7 Handicrafts products from Uttar Pradesh with Geographical Indication (GI) Tags.
    11. 8th Global Pharmaceutical Quality Summit 2023 organized in Mumbai.
    12. Raja Parba (Mithuna Sankranti) womanhood festival observed in Odisha.
    13. Arunachal Pradesh police launched Arunpol mobile app, to enable citizens to register complaints online, along with emergency assistance feature.
    14. Estonia legalized same-sex marriage, becoming first central European nation to do so.
    15. As per Railways Ministry, Indian Railways will start operating 35 Hydrogen Trains as part of Hydrogen for Heritage initiative, to reduce carbon emissions.
      1. Field trials of first prototype hydrogen train will take place on Jind-Sonipat section of Northern Railway, by March 2024.
  181. Department of Economic Affairs has permitted eligible Scheduled Banks (Public/Private) to implement Mahila Samman Savings Certificate Scheme (MSSC) 2023, to enhance access to scheme for girls/women, which was announced in Budget 2023-24.
    1. Notably, MSSC scheme has been in operation since April 1 2023 through Department of Post. Now, it will also be available through eligible Scheduled Banks.
    2. Features -
      1. Account can be opened under this scheme on or before 31 March 2025, for a tenure of two years.
      2. Deposits will be in range of 1000 - 200000, bearing interest at the rate of 7.5% per annum.
  182. India's external debt position at end of FY 23 (2022-23) -
    1. External debt stood at US$ 624.7 billion, compared to US$ 619.1 billion at end of FY 22 (2021-22).
    2. External debt to GDP ratio declined to 18.9 % from 20 %, during the same period.

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