May 2024 Daily News Current Affairs

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May 31, 2024
1. Loans approved by Several agencies for India (May 2024) -
  1. ADB (Asian Development Bank) -
    1. $148.5 million - Strengthen, modernize, and climate-proof distribution system to enhance reliability and quality of electricity supply in Sikkim.
2. Visits to India (May 2024) -
  1. Moosa Zameer - Minister of Foreign Affairs of Maldives.
  2. Golam Sarwar - Secretary General of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).
3. Visits from India (May 2024) -
  1. Health Secretary Apurva Chandra visited Geneva (Switzerland), to attend 77th World Health Assembly of WHO and BRICS Health Ministers’ Meeting.
    1. Notably, Russia has BRICS Presidency in 2024.
4. General News / Events (May 21-31, 2024) -
  1. European Nations Norway, Ireland and Spain formally recognised Palestine as a state, taking number of nations that recognize Palestine as a state to 146.
  2. Severe Cyclonic Storm Remal struck Bangladesh and Indian state of West Bengal.
  3. Central Council for Research in Ayurvedic Sciences (CCRAS) hosted Pharma Research in AyurGyan And Techno Innovation (PRAGATI-2024) at India Habitat Centre (New Delhi).
  4. Doordarshan Kisan launched AI anchors AI Krish and AI Bhoomi, becoming first government TV channel to do so. These AI anchors will inform farmers about every necessary information about agricultural research, in 50 languages.
5. Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI)'s National Statistical Office (NSO) released Provisional Estimates (PE) of Annual GDP for FY24 (2023-24) and Quarterly Estimates of GDP for Q4FY24 (January-March 2024).
  1. Real GDP or GDP at Constant (2011-12) Prices -
    1. GDP estimated at 47.24 lakh crores in Q4 FY24 (2023-24), as against 43.84 lakh crore in Q4FY23 (2022-23), showing growth of 7.8%
      1. GDP Growth for earlier 7 Quarters -
        Q3 FY 24 (2023-24) - 8.4 %
        
        Q2 FY 24 (2023-24) - 7.6 %
        
        Q1 FY 24 (2023-24) - 7.8 %
        
        Q4 FY 23 (2022-23) - 6.1 %
        
        Q3 FY 23 (2022-23) - 4.4 %
        
        Q2 FY 23 (2022-23) - 6.3 %
        
        Q1 FY 23 (2022-23) - 13.5 %
    2. For Whole FY24 (2023-24) -
      1. Real GDP or GDP at Constant Prices attained level of 173.82 lakh crores in FY24 (2023-24), against First Revised Estimates (FRE) of GDP for 2022-23 of ₹160.71 lakh crores, showing growth rate of 8.2% in FY24 (2023-24), compared to 7.0% in FY23 (2022-23) and 9.7% in FY22 (2021-22).
6. May 31 is Observed as No Tobacco Day, established by World Health Organization (WHO). 2024 theme is Protecting Children from Tobacco Industry Interference.
  1. WNTD is one of eight official global public health campaigns marked by WHO, Others are -
    1. World Tuberculosis Day - Mar 24
    2. World Health Day - Apr 7
    3. World Malaria Day - Apr 25
    4. World Immunization Week - Last week of April
    5. World Blood Donor Day - June 14
    6. World Hepatitis Day - July 28
    7. World AIDS Day - Dec 1

May 30, 2024

May 30, 2024 has been observed by UN as 1st ever International Day of Potato, to be observed annually. 2024 Theme is Harvesting diversity, Feeding hope.
1. May 30 is also Observed as -
  1. Statehood day of Goa. On this day in 1987, Goa became 25th state of India. It was a Union Territory along with Daman and Diu from December 1961 onwards when Goa was liberated from Portugese rule.
  2. Hindi Journalism Day in India. On May 30, 1826, Udant Martand was published in Calcutta, as first Hindi newspaper in India.
Notable customer centric directives issues by IRDAI -
1. All cashless claims be processed within 3 hours of receipt of discharge authorisation request from hospital.
2. Insurer shall have to decide on request for cashless authorisation within 1 hour of the receipt of the request.
3. In case of death of the insured, claim settlement request needs to be processed and mortal remains released from the hospital immediately.
India's Bengaluru-based National Institute of Mental Health & Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), an Institute of National Importance under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, has been awarded with Nelson Mandela Award for Health Promotion 2024 by World Health Organization (WHO).

RBI Annual Report for FY 24 (2023-24) -

Global -
1. Global growth decelerated to 3.2 % during 2023 from 3.5 % during 2022.
2. Global inflation fell to 6.8 % in 2023 from 8.7 % in 2022.

Indian Economy -

Indian economy expanded at 8.2 % in FY24 (2023-24), from 7.0 % in FY23 (2022-23).
Gross fiscal deficit (GFD) of govt declined from 6.45 % of GDP in FY23 (2022-23) to 5.9 % of GDP in FY24 (2023-24).
States budgeted a combined GFD of 3.1 % of GDP in FY24 (2023-24), within Centre’s limit of 3.5 % for the year.
General govt deficit and debt moderated to 8.6 % and 81.6 % of GDP respectively (in FY 24 (2023-24)), compared to 9.6 % and 82.5 % respectively, in FY23 (2022-23).
India’s merchandise exports rose from US$ 45 billion in 2000-01 to US$ 437.1 billion in FY24 (2023-24).
As per Provisional/Unaudited reports for Accounts of Government of India for FY24 (2023-24) -
1. Govt received ₹27,88,872 crore (101.2% of corresponding RE 2023-24 of Total Receipts) during FY24 (2023-24), comprising ₹23,26,524 crore Tax Revenue, ₹4,01,888 crore of Non-Tax Revenue and ₹60,460 crore of Non-Debt Capital Receipts. ₹11,29,494 crore has been transferred to State Governments as Devolution of Share of Taxes.
2. Expenditure incurred by Govt is ₹44,42,542 crore (98.9% of corresponding RE 2023-24), out of which ₹34,94,036 crore is on Revenue Account and ₹9,48,506 crore is on Capital Account. Out of Total Revenue Expenditure, ₹10,63,871 crore is on account of Interest Payments and ₹4,13,542 crore is on account of Major Subsidies.

Key Fiscal Indicators -

Year	Primary Deficit	Revenue Deficit	Primary Revenue Deficit	Gross Fiscal Deficit	Outstanding Liabilities (at currernt exchange rates)
2021-22	3.3	4.4	1.0	6.7	59.0
2022-23	3.0	4.0	0.5	6.4	58.0
2023-24 (RE)#	2.3	2.9	-0.7	5.9	58.7
2024-25 (BE)	1.5	2.0	-1.6	5.1	57.1

RBI Financials in FY24 (2023-24) -

RBI’s balance sheet grew by 11.08 % in FY24, to 70.48 Lakh crores.

Key metrices of RBI Financials -

(Amount in ₹ crore)
	2019-20	2020-21	2021-22	2022-23	2023-24
a) Income	1,49,672.46	1,33,272.75	1,60,112.13	2,35,457.26	2,75,572.32
b) Total Expenditure1	92,540.932	34,146.753	1,29,800.684	1,48,037.045	64,694.336
c) Net Income (a-b)	57,131.53	99,126.00	30,311.45	87,420.22	2,10,877.99
d) Transfer to funds	4.00	4.00	4.00	4.00	4.00
e) Surplus transferred to the Central Government (c-d)	57,127.53	99,122.00	30,307.45	87,416.22	2,10,873.99

RBI Assets -
1. Increase on assets side was due to rise in foreign investments, gold, and loans and advances by 13.90 %, 18.26 % and 30.05 %, respectively.
2. Domestic assets constituted 23.31 % while foreign currency assets, gold (including gold deposit and gold held in India) and loans and advances to financial institutions outside India constituted 76.69 % of assets.
3. As on March 31, 2024, gold held by RBI was 822.10 metric tonnes, compared to 794.63 metric tonnes as on March 31, 2023.
  1. Notably, During FY24 (2023-24), RBI brought back 100 tonnes of Gold from Vault of UK to India.
4. RBI’s holding of domestic securities decreased by 3.06 %, from ₹14,06,422.89 crore as on March 31, 2023 to ₹13,63,368.97 crore as on March 31, 2024.

FDI Inflows -

Source/Industry	2019-20	2020-21	2021-22	2022-23	2023-24 (P)
Total FDI	50.0	59.6	58.8	46.0	44.4
Country-wise Inflows
Singapore	14.7	17.4	15.9	17.2	11.8
Mauritius	8.2	5.6	9.4	6.1	8.0
US	4.1	13.8	10.5	6.0	5.0
Netherlands	6.5	2.8	4.6	2.5	4.9
Japan	3.2	1.9	1.5	1.8	3.2
Sector-wise Inflows
Manufacturing	9.6	9.3	16.3	11.3	9.3
Electricity and Other Energy Generation, Distribution & Transmission	2.8	1.3	2.2	3.3	5.5
Computer Services	5.1	23.8	9.0	5.6	4.9
Financial Services	5.7	3.5	4.7	6.8	4.4
Retail & Wholesale Trade	5.1	3.9	5.1	5.3	4.1

Govt debt -
1. General govt deficit and debt moderated to 8.6 % and 81.6 % of GDP respectively, in FY24 (2023-24), from 9.6 % and 82.5 % vrespectively, in FY23 (2022-23). These figures represent a decline from peak levels of 13.1% and 89.4% recorded in 2020-21, respectively.

Currency management -

Value and volume of banknotes in circulation increased by 3.9 % and 7.8 % respectively, during 2023-24.
During 2023-24, share of ₹500 banknotes increased in value terms whereas that of ₹2000 banknotes declined sharply, reflecting withdrawal of ₹2000 banknotes.
1. Of ₹3.56 lakh crore of ₹2000 banknotes in circulation as on May 19, 2023 when the withdrawal was announced, 97.7 % had returned to banking system up to March 31, 2024.
In volume terms, ₹500 denomination constituted the highest share of the total banknotes in circulation (41 %), followed by ₹10 denomination banknotes (17 %).
In value terms, ₹500 denomination constituted the highest share of the total banknotes in circulation (86.5 %), followed by ₹100 denomination banknotes (5.9 %).

e₹ in Circulation -

Live pilot of e₹-R was launched on December 1 2022.

e₹ in Circulation
e₹	Denomination (₹)	Volume (pieces in lakh)		Value (₹ crore)
e₹	Denomination (₹)	2023	2024	2023	2024
	0.5	2.7	18.4	0.01	0.09
		(16.1)	(7.7)	(0.2)	(0.04)
	1	3.8	37.3	0.04	0.37
		(22.2)	(15.7)	(0.7)	(0.2)
	2	2.8	27.1	0.06	0.54
		(16.2)	(11.4)	(1.0)	(0.2)
	5	2.4	27.3	0.12	1.37
		(13.9)	(11.5)	(2.1)	(0.6)
	10	1.5	21.4	0.15	2.14
		(8.8)	(9.0)	(2.6)	(0.9)
	20	1.2	19.7	0.23	3.94
		(6.8)	(8.3)	(4.1)	(1.7)
	50	0.8	17.0	0.39	8.49
		(4.6)	(7.1)	(6.9)	(3.6)
	100	0.8	20.7	0.83	20.73
		(4.8)	(8.7)	(14.5)	(8.9)
	200	0.6	16.0	1.16	32.01
		(3.4)	(6.7)	(20.4)	(13.7)
	500	0.5	32.9	2.71	164.36
		(3.2)	(13.8)	(47.5)	(70.2)
	2000	-	-	-	-
Total e₹-R		17.1	237.8	5.70	234.04
Total e₹-W		…	…	10.69	0.08
Total e₹				16.39	234.12

Scheduled commercial banks (SCBs) -
1. Aggregate Deposits of Scheduled Commercial Banks increased 12.9 % during FY24, compared to 9.6 % during FY23.
2. Bank Credit of Scheduled Commercial Banks increased 16.3 % during FY24, compared to 15 % during FY23.

May 29, 2024
1. May 29 is observed as International Everest Day. On this day in 1953, Tenzing Norgay (Nepal) and New Zealand's Edmund Hillary climbed Mt. Everest, as first humans to achieve this feat.
  1. Nepal decided to observe the day as International Everest Day in 2008 when the legendary climber Hillary passed away.
  2. May 29 is also observed as International Day of UN Peacekeepers, with 2024 theme Fit for the future, building better together.
2. World Economic Forum (WEF) Travel & Tourism Development Index 2024 -
  1. Top 5 - US (1), Spain (2), Japan (3), France (4), Australia (5)
  2. India ranked 39th in list.
  3. Neighbors - China (8), Bangladesh (109), Sri Lanka (76), Pakistan (101)
3. NASA announced its plans build FLOAT (Flexible Levitation on a Track) in 2030s, as first lunar (Moon) railway system.
  1. It will provide reliable, autonomous, and efficient payload transport on the Moon.
  2. FLOAT system employs unpowered magnetic robots that levitate over a 3-layer flexible film track.
4. As per report by economic think tank Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI), China remained India's largest trading partner in FY24 (2023-24), with $118.4 billion two-way trade, narrowly edging past US ($118.3 billion).
  1. US was India's top trading partner during last 2 Financial Years.
  2. India's exports to China rose by 8.7 % to $16.67 billion in FY24 (2023-24), while Imports from China increased by 3.24 % to $101.7 billion.
  3. India's exports to US dipped by 1.32 % to $77.5 billion in FY24 (2023-24), while Imports from US decreased by 20% to $40.8 billion.
5. University of Tokyo inaugurated Atacama Observatory (TAO), built on summit of Cerro Chajnantor in Antofagasta Region (Chile), as highest observatory in the world at 5640 meters above sea level. It also houses a 6.5-meter optical-infrared telescope, which will focus on understanding the nature of universe.
May 28, 2024
1. Maharashtra Govt observes May 28, the birth anniversary of freedom fighter Shri Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, as Swatantrya Veer Gaurav Diwas in state.
2. NATO's Steadfast Defender 2024 exercise held throughout Trans-Atlantic region, as largest NATO maneuver since end of Cold War.
3. IIT Madras-incubated start-up Agnikul Cosmos launched world’s first rocket with a single piece 3D printed engine, from Sriharikota (Andhra Pradesh).
  1. Named Agnibaan - SOrTeD (Sub-Orbital Technology Demonstrator), the rocket has been launched from India's first private launch pad called Dhanush, established by Agnikul.
  2. It is also India's first semi-cryogenic engine-powered rocket launch.
4. S&P Global Ratings raised its outlook for India to positive from stable, while affirming lowest investment grade sovereign credit rating (BBB-).
  1. Fitch and Moody’s (Other 2 of Big Three credit ratings agencies), have a stable outlook for India with lowest investment grade sovereign rating.
5. RBI launched 3 notable initiatives - PRAVAAH portal, Retail Direct Mobile App and a FinTech Repository.
  1. PRAVAAH (Platform for Regulatory Application, VAlidation and AutHorisation) portal will make it convenient for any individual or entity to apply online for various regulatory approvals in a seamless manner.
  2. Retail Direct Mobile App will provide retail investors a seamless and convenient access to retail direct platform and provide ease of transacting in government securities (G-Secs).
  3. Fintech Repository will contain information on Indian FinTech Sector for a better understanding of the sector from a regulatory perspective and facilitate in designing appropriate policy approaches.

May 27, 2024

ITC Chairman Sanjiv Puri has been elected as President of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) for 2024-25 term.
India won 12 Medals at 3rd Elorda Boxing Cup 2024 in Astana (Kazakhstan), including 2 Gold medals (Minakshi (48 kg women) & Nikhat Zareen (52 kg women)).
European Council approved artificial intelligence act, as a new law aiming to harmonise rules on artificial intelligence.
1. It follows a risk-based approach, which means the higher the risk to cause harm to society, the stricter the rules.
2. It is first of its kind AI law globally, aiming to foster development and uptake of safe and trustworthy AI systems.

2024 World Para Athletics Championships (Kobe, Japan) -

Medal Table -

Rank	Nation	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
1	China	33	30	24	87
2	Brazil	19	12	11	42
–	Neutral Paralympic Athletes	8	13	17	38
3	Uzbekistan	7	4	2	13
4	Great Britain	7	2	3	12
5	United States	6	13	5	24
6	India	6	5	6	17

India ranked 6th with 17 medals (6 Gold, 5 Silver and 6 Bronze). Indian Gold Medalists -
1. Deepthi Jeevanji (women’s 400m T20), with world record timing of 55.20s.
2. Sachin Khilari (men’s shot put F46)
3. Mariyappan Thangavelu (men’s high jump T42)
4. Sumit Antil (men’s javelin throw F64)
5. Ekta Bhyan (women’s club throw F51)
6. Simran Sharma (women’s 200m T12)

GDP growth-projections As per United Nations' World Economic Situation and Prospects 2024 (May 2024 Update) -

Region	2023	2024	2025
Global	2.7	2.7	2.8
USA	2.5	2.3	1.7
India	7.5	6.9	6.6
China	5.2	4.8	4.5
European Union	0.4	1.0	1.6
Least developed countries (Notably, UN SDGs have set 7.0 % growth target for LDCs)	4.2	4.8	5.3

May 26, 2024

7th edition of biennial India- France Joint Military Exercise SHAKTI held at Umroi Joint training node (Meghalaya).
India has been named chair of regional grouping Colombo Process for the first time, since its inception in 2003.
1. Colombo Process is a regional consultative forum comprising 12 Asian member nations.
2. Secretariat of the Colombo Process is hosted by International Organisation for Migration (IOM), with its headquarters in Geneva.

2024 Youth World Weightlifting Championships (Lima, Peru) -

Medal Table (As per Ranking by all medals: Big (Total result) and Small (Snatch and Clean & Jerk)) -

Rank	Nation	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
1	Venezuela	3	1	1	5
2	India	2	2	2	6
3	Colombia	2	1	1	4
3	Kazakhstan	2	1	1	4
5	Uzbekistan	1	1	2	4

India stood 2nd with 6 medals (2 Gold, 2 Silver and 2 Bronze). Indian Medalists -
1. Gold -
  1. Bedabrat Bharali (Men's 73 KG)
  2. Priteesmita Bhoi (Women's 40 KG)
2. Silver -
  1. Jyoshna Sabar (Women's 40 KG)
  2. Payal (Women's 45 KG)
3. Bronze -
  1. Sanjana (Women's 76 KG)
  2. Babulal Hembrom (Men's 49 KG)

Ferrari's Monacan F1 Racer Charles Leclerc won Monaco Grand Prix 2024.

F1 Season 2024 -

Round	Grand Prix	Winner	Race date
1	Bahrain Grand Prix	Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian)	2 March
2	Saudi Arabian Grand Prix	Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian)	9 March
3	Australian Grand Prix	Carlos Saint Jr. (Spanish)	24 March
4	Japanese Grand Prix	Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian)	7 April
5	Chinese Grand Prix	Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian)	21 April
6	Miami Grand Prix	Lando Norris (British-Belgian)	5 May
7	Emilia Romagna Grand Prix	Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian)	19 May
8	Monaco Grand Prix	Charles Leclerc (Monaco)	26 May
9	Canadian Grand Prix		9 June
10	Spanish Grand Prix		23 June
11	Austrian Grand Prix		30 June
12	British Grand Prix		7 July
13	Hungarian Grand Prix		21 July
14	Belgian Grand Prix		28 July
15	Dutch Grand Prix		25 August
16	Italian Grand Prix		1 September
17	Azerbaijan Grand Prix		15 September
18	Singapore Grand Prix		22 September
19	United States Grand Prix		20 October
20	Mexico City Grand Prix		27 October
21	São Paulo Grand Prix		3 November
22	Las Vegas Grand Prix		23 November
23	Qatar Grand Prix		1 December
24	Abu Dhabi Grand Prix		8 December

2024 Indian Premier League Cricket (17th edition) -
1. Kolkata Knight Riders won the title (their 3rd), defeating Sunrisers Hyderabad in final.
2. Notable Players -
  1. Most valuable player - Sunil Narine (Kolkata Knight Riders)
  2. Most runs - Virat Kohli (Royal Challengers Bengaluru) (741)
  3. Most wickets - Harshal Patel (Punjab Kings) (24)
3. Notably -
  1. Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) created new IPL record of 287 runs during IPL 2024 match against Mumbai Indians.
    1. It is also 2nd highest T20 score ever, after Nepal's 314 against Mongolia during Asian Games 2023.
  2. Australia's Mitchell Starc became most expensive IPL player ever, with KKR's 24.75 crores bid on him for IPL 2024.

May 25, 2024
1. May 25, 2024 has been observed by UN as 1st ever World Football Day, to be observed annually.
2. 10th World Water Forum 2024 held in Bali (Indonesia).
  1. On the occaison, World bank report titled Water for Shared Prosperity was released.
3. Lawrence Wong has been named new (4th) Prime Minister of Singapore, succeeding Lee Hsien Loong.
4. Notable Awardees at 2024 Cannes Film Festival -
  1. Palme d'Or (Best Film) - Anora by Sean Baker
  2. Grand Prix - All We Imagine as Light by Payal Kapadia (Indian Filmmaker)
  3. Jury Prize - Emilia Pérez by Jacques Audiard
  4. Best Director - Miguel Gomes for Grand Tour
  5. Best Actor - Jesse Plemons for Kinds of Kindness
  6. Notably, Sunflowers Were the First Ones to Know by India's Chidananda S Naik (FTII Pune) won in Cinéfondation (or La Cinéf) section, with a €15,000 grant.
5. Income tax department notified Cost Inflation Index (CII) for FY25 (2024-25), for calculating long-term capital gains arising from sale of immovable property, securities and jewellery.
  1. CII is used by taxpayers to compute gains arising out of sale of capital assets after adjusting inflation.
  2. CII for FY25 (2024-25), relevant to assessment year 2025-26, stood at 363. Earlier, CII was 348 for FY224 (2023-24) & 331 for FY23 (2022-23). Increase of 15 points in CII for FY25 (2024-25) corresponds to annual inflation rate of approx 4.3 %.
  3. CII is useful to adjust the capital gains for inflation, so that the taxpayers are taxed on real appreciation of the assets and not the gains due to inflation.
  4. CII is notified annually under Income-tax Act 1961, used to calculate indexed cost of acquisition, while calculating capital gains at the time of sale of any capital asset. Normally, an asset is required to be retained for more than 36 months (24 months for immovable property and unlisted shares, 12 months for listed securities) to qualify as long-term capital gains.
May 24, 2024
1. May 24 - Commonwealth Day in India. It is globally observed on Second Monday of March. However, in some nations Including India, it is observed on May 24.
  1. May 24 is Birth Anniversary of Queen Victoria (1819), who was Queen of United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. On 1 May 1876, she adopted additional title of Empress of India.
  2. May 24 is also observed by UN as International Day of the Markhor, celebrated for the first time in 2024.
    1. Markhor species is native to South Asia and Central Asia, mainly within Pakistan, India, Karakoram range, parts of Afghanistan, and Himalayas. It is listed on the IUCN Red List as Near Threatened.
2. Spain become 99th member of India-led International Solar Alliance (ISA), after Spain handed over Instrument of Ratification for the same.
  1. Gurugram (Haryana) based International Solar Alliance (ISA) is First India-based treaty-based international organisation. It aims to promote solar power as a sustainable transition to a carbon-neutral future, and aims to unlock US$ 1 trillion of investments in solar by 2030.
  2. India and France jointly launched International Solar Alliance (ISA) during COP21 in Paris in 2015.
3. Mahamat Déby has been named as new President of Chad (North-Central African Nation).
  1. Also, Allamaye Halina has been named Prime Minister of Chad.
4. Asian Football Confederation (AFC) confirmed Australia and Uzbekistan as hosts of 2026 and 2029 editions of AFC Women’s Asian Cup Football.
  1. Notably, Men's 2027 AFC Asian Cup will be hosted by Saudi Arabia.
5. World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) member nations approved new Treaty related to intellectual property (IP), genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge.
  1. Upon entering force, The Treaty will establish in international law a new disclosure requirement for patent applicants whose inventions are based on genetic resources and/or associated traditional knowledge. It will safeguard biodiversity and will increase transparency in patent system and strengthen innovation.
May 23, 2024
1. May 23 is observed as World Turtle Day.
  1. May 23, 2024 is also observed by UN as Global Vesak Day, as most sacred day to Buddhists around world. In India, it is observed as Buddha Purnima.
2. Total market capitalization of all BSE-listed companies reached $5 trillion mark, 6 months after reaching $4 trillion mark in November 2023.
  1. Earlier milestones - $1 trillion (May 2007), $2 trillion (July 2017), $3 trillion (May 2021), $4 trillion (November 2023).
  2. Other than India, only US, China, Japan and Hong-Kong have total market capitalization of over $5 trillion.
3. 2nd edition of India – Australia – Indonesia Trilateral Maritime Security Workshop held at INS Dronacharya (Kochi).
4. Indian Fintech firm PhonePe partnered with Sri Lanka's LankaPay, to enable UPI payment acceptance across LankaQR merchant points in Sri Lanka.
5. To Lam has been elected as new President of Vietnam.
May 22, 2024
1. May 22 is observed as UN International Day for Biological Diversity.
2. 2024 Thailand Open Badminton -
  1. Men's singles - Lee Zii Jia (Malaysia)
  2. Women's singles - Supanida Katethong (Thailand)
  3. Men's doubles - India's Satwiksairaj Rankireddy & Chirag Shetty
  4. Women's doubles - Thailand's Jongkolphan Kititharakul & Rawinda Prajongjai
  5. Mixed doubles - China's Guo Xinwa & Chen Fanghui
3. HDFC Bank launched new virtual credit card called PIXEL (on Visa platform), in two variants – PIXEL Play and PIXEL Go, as an end-to-end mobile app-based customizable credit card range, to fit one's specific needs.
4. L&T Technology Services inaugurated Simulation Centre of Excellence for Airbus, at LTTS state-of-the-art campus in Bangalore.
  1. It is Designed to bolster engineering support for Airbus aircraft structural simulation activities across its diverse business units in Europe spanning France, Germany, UK, and Spain.
5. Indian Army inducted its first Hermes-900 drones (also known as Drishti-10 drones), to boost surveillance capabilities along Pakistan border.
  1. To develop these drones, Adani Defence & Aerospace had signed a deal with Israeli firm Elbit for transfer of technology. The drones have been developed with 70 % indigenised material.
  2. Notably, Israeli Elbit Hermes 900 drones have been used extensively globally. While Drishti-10 Starliner is an Indian medium-altitude long-endurance UAV manufactured by Adani Defence and Aerospace for Indian Armed Forces, based on Israeli Elbit Hermes 900.

May 21, 2024

May 21 is observed by UN International Tea Day, observed since 2020.
1. May 21 is also observed as -
  1. World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development (UNESCO).
  2. National Anti-Terrorism Day in India, marking death anniversary of Former PM Rajiv Gandhi.
German author Jenny Erpenbeck won International Booker Prize 2024, for his Novel Kairos. It has been translated into English by Michael Hofmann.
1. About -
  1. International Booker Prize (formerly Man Booker International Prize) is an international literary award hosted in UK.
    1. Background -
      1. Introduction of International Prize to complement Man Booker Prize was announced in 2004. Between 2005 - 2015, the award was given every two years to a living author of any nationality for work published in English or generally available in English translation.
      2. Since 2016, the award has been given annually to a single book translated into English and published in UK/Ireland, with £50,000 prize for winning title, shared equally between author and translator.
  2. Notably -
    1. International Booker Prize is different from Booker Prize, Earlier called Man Booker Prize, which is a literary prize awarded each year for best novel written in English and published in UK / Ireland.
Brazil has been named host of 2027 FIFA Women’s Football World Cup, becoming first South American country to host the tournament.
1. Notably, 2026 FIFA Men's Football World Cup will be jointly hosted by 3 North American countries - Canada, Mexico, and USA.

2024 Asian Men's Artistic Gymnastics Championships (Tashkent, Uzbekistan) -

Medal Table -

Rank	Nation	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
1	China	6	7	2	15
2	Philippines	5	0	0	5
3	Kazakhstan	3	4	2	9
4	Japan	2	1	2	5
5	Iran	1	0	2	3

India did not win any medal at the event.

2024 Asian Women's Artistic Gymnastics Championships (Tashkent, Uzbekistan) -

Rank	Nation	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
1	China	5	6	1	12
2	Japan	4	3	3	10
3	Philippines	1	0	2	3
4	South Korea	1	0	1	2
5	India	1	0	0	1

With One Gold Medal, India ranked 5th. It was won by Dipa Karmakar (in Vault event), as India's first gold medal at Asian Senior Gymnastics Championships.

May 20, 2024
1. May 20 is observed by UN as World Bee Day.
  1. May 20 is also observed as World Metrology Day. 2024 theme is Sustainability. It marks anniversary of signing of the Metre Convention in 1875.
2. General News / Events (May 11-20, 2024) -
  1. Geneva-based United Nations-linked Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (GANHRI) deferred accreditation of National Human Rights Commission-India (NHRC) for 2nd year in a row, which could affect India’s ability to vote at the Human Rights Council and some UNGA bodies.
  2. Karnataka govt made 33% reservation for women mandatory in contract govt jobs (jobs that are being outsourced by various government departments / organisations).
3. Govt increased maximum limit of Retirement Gratuity and Death Gratuity from 20 Lakh to 25 Lakh, on reaching Dearness Allowance Rates to 50%, as per recommendations of 7th CPC.
4. India's Reliance Industries and Tata Group have been named on TIME magazine's List of 100 World's Most Influential Companies for 2024.
5. Gitanas Nausėda has been re-elected as Lithuania’s President, for his 2nd term.

May 19, 2024

2024 Italian Open Tennis -
1. Men's singles - Alexander Zverev (Germany)
2. Women's singles - Iga Świątek (Poland)
3. Men's doubles - Marcel Granollers (Spain) & Horacio Zeballos (Argentina)
4. Women's doubles - Sara Errani (Italy) & Jasmine Paolini (Italy)
Govt proposed new draft Digital Competition Bill, to better regulate digital services firms. Key features include -
1. Predictive regulation -
  1. Due to ever-growing and complex nature of digital markets, regulating for market abuse after it takes place is not optimal. Instead, a forward-looking and preventive law (an ex ante framework), which foresees potential harms and prescribes pre-determined no-go areas, is more suitable.
  2. Notably, this clause has faced resistance from big tech companies and several industry bodies, which state that an ex ante framework could lead to significant compliance burden, and shift focus from innovation to ensuring that companies do not presumptively engage in an anti-competitive practice.
  3. Currently, India follows an ex post antitrust framework under Competition Act 2002, which regulates after incidence of market abuse. By the time the offending company gets penalised, market dynamics change to rule out smaller competitors.
2. Significant entities -
  1. Bill proposes that for certain core digital services (like search engines, social media sites), Competition Commission of India (CCI) should designate companies as Systematically Significant Digital Enterprise (SSDE), depending on various parameters -
    1. If in last 3 financial years, turnover in India is over 4000 crores, or global turnover over $30 billion, or
    2. Gross merchandise value in India over 16000 crores, or
    3. Global market capitalisation over $75 billion, or
    4. Core digital service provided by these companies should also have at least 1 crore end users, or 10000 business users, or
    5. Any other entities which CCI might believe to have a significant presence in any given core digital service.
  2. Such Entities will be prohibited from engaging in practices such as self-preferencing, anti-steering, and restricting third party applications. If they violate these requirements, they can be fined up to 10% of their global turnover.
3. Associate Digital Enterprises -
  1. As data collected by one company of a major technology group can play in benefitting other group companies, the Bill proposes to designate associate digital enterprises (ADEs), which will have same obligations as SSDEs depending on their involvement with core digital service offered by the main company.
As per World’s Wealthiest Cities Report 2024 by Henley & Partners -
1. Top 5 Cities for Millionaires - New York City (USA), The Bay Area (USA), Tokyo (Japan), Singapore, London (UK).
2. Mumbai and Delhi are Indian cities named in top 50 cities globally, ranked 24th & 37th respectively.
As per Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2024 -
1. Top 5 - New York (USA), London (UK), San Jose (USA), Tokyo (Japan), Paris (France).
2. Delhi is best ranked Indian city (ranked 350th globally), followed by Bengaluru (411), Mumbai (427), Chennai (472). 36 Indian cities were named in top 1000 cities globally.

Red Bull's Dutch-Belgian F1 Racer Max Verstappen won Emilia Romagna Grand Prix 2024.

F1 Season 2024 -

Round	Grand Prix	Winner	Race date
1	Bahrain Grand Prix	Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian)	2 March
2	Saudi Arabian Grand Prix	Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian)	9 March
3	Australian Grand Prix	Carlos Saint Jr. (Spanish)	24 March
4	Japanese Grand Prix	Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian)	7 April
5	Chinese Grand Prix	Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian)	21 April
6	Miami Grand Prix	Lando Norris (British-Belgian)	5 May
7	Emilia Romagna Grand Prix	Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian)	19 May
8	Monaco Grand Prix		26 May
9	Canadian Grand Prix		9 June
10	Spanish Grand Prix		23 June
11	Austrian Grand Prix		30 June
12	British Grand Prix		7 July
13	Hungarian Grand Prix		21 July
14	Belgian Grand Prix		28 July
15	Dutch Grand Prix		25 August
16	Italian Grand Prix		1 September
17	Azerbaijan Grand Prix		15 September
18	Singapore Grand Prix		22 September
19	United States Grand Prix		20 October
20	Mexico City Grand Prix		27 October
21	São Paulo Grand Prix		3 November
22	Las Vegas Grand Prix		23 November
23	Qatar Grand Prix		1 December
24	Abu Dhabi Grand Prix		8 December

May 18, 2024
1. May 18 is Observed as International Museum Day. 2024 Theme is Museums for Education and Research.
  1. May 18 is also observed as -
    1. International Day for Women in Maritime, established in 2021 by UN's International Maritime Organization (IMO).
    2. World AIDS Vaccine Day.
May 17, 2024
1. May 17 - World Telecommunication and Information Society Day. It marks establishment of International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and also signing of first International Telegraph Convention in 1865 in Paris.
  1. On this occasion -
    1. C-DOT (India's premier Telecom R&D Centre of the Department of Telecommunications) launched Initiatives NIDHI & STAR, for development of indigenous telecom technologies.
      1. NIDHI -
        Applications under NIDHI are open to DPIIT recognized startups led by women.
        
        Top 10 selected startups will be provided necessary support including funding and assistance, including initial grant of 10 lakh INR each, access to well-furnished office space for 6 months, access to tools & Lab facilities and mentorship from C-DOT.
      2. STAR -
        Through STAR Program, C-DOT offers scholarship to PhD student one each from top 20 NIRF (National Institute Ranking Framework) ranking engineering institute.
        
        It offers a scholarship amount of INR 6 Lakh per annum, for up to 4 years, along with mentorship from C-DOT and access to lab facilities.
  2. May 17 is also observed as World Hypertension Day.
May 16, 2024
1. May 16 Statehood Day of Sikkim. Sikkim Joined Indian Union as 22nd state on May 16, 1975.
  1. May 16 is also observed as -
    1. UN International Day of Living Together in Peace.
    2. International Day of Light (by UNESCO). It marks anniversary of first successful operation of laser in 1960 by physicist Theodore Maiman.
    3. National Dengue Day in India.
    4. World Agri Tourism Day.

May 15, 2024

May 15 is observed by UN as International Day of Families. 2024 theme is Families and Climate Change.

Inflation and Trade Data for April 2024 -

Inflation -
1. Wholesale price Index (WPI) based (wholesale inflation) -
  1. WPI based inflation increased to 1.26 % in April 2024 (16 months high).
  2. WPI Inflation in last 12 months -
    1. March 2024 - 0.53 %
    2. February 2024 - 0.20 %
    3. January 2024 - 0.27 %
    4. December 2023 - 0.73 %
    5. November 2023 - 0.26 %
    6. October 2023 - (-) 0.52 % (Negative)
    7. September 2023 - (-) 0.26 % (Negative)
    8. August 2023 - (-) 0.52 % (Negative)
    9. July 2023 - (-) 1.36 % (Negative)
    10. June 2023 - (-) 4.12 % (Negative) (lowest in 8 years)
    11. May 2023 - (-) 3.48 % (Negative)
    12. April 2023 - (-) 0.92 % (Negative)
2. Consumer Price Index (CPI) Based (retail inflation) -
  1. CPI-based inflation rate for April 2024 decreased marginally to 4.83 % (11 month low).
  2. CPI Inflation in Last 12 Months -
    1. March 2024 - 4.85 %
    2. February 2024 - 5.09 %
    3. January 2024 - 5.1 %
    4. December 2023 - 5.69 %
    5. November 2023 - 5.55 %
    6. October 2023 - 4.87 %
    7. September 2023 - 5.02 %
    8. August 2023 - 6.83 %
    9. July 2023 - 7.44 % (15 Month High)
    10. June 2023 - 4.81 %
    11. May 2023 - 4.25 % (25 Month Low)
    12. April 2023 - 4.7 %

Trade -

Trade in April 2024 (Amount in Billion USD) -

		April 2024	Same Month Last Year (April 2023)	Previous Month (Mar 2024)
Merchandise	Exports	34.99	34.62	41.68
Merchandise	Imports	54.09	49.06	57.28
Services	Exports	29.57	25.78	28.54
Services	Imports	16.97	13.96	15.84
Overall Trade (Merchandise +Services)	Exports	64.56	60.40	70.21
	Imports	71.07	63.02	73.12
	Trade Balance	-6.51	-2.62	-2.91

Trade During Previous Financial Year (FY24 (2023-24)) -

		2023-24 (USD Billion)	2022-23 (USD Billion)
Merchandise	Exports	437.06	451.07
Merchandise	Imports	677.24	715.97
Services*	Exports	339.62	325.33
Services*	Imports	177.56	182.05
Overall Trade (Merchandise+ Services)*	Exports	778.20 (NEW RECORD)	776.40
	Imports	854.80	898.01
	Trade Balance	-76.60	-121.62

May 14, 2024
1. May 14, 2024 marks 250th Foundation Day of Shipmaker Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders (MDL), which was set up as a small dry dock in 1774 and incorporated later in 1934. A commemorative coin was also released on this occasion.
2. India extended budgetary support of $50 million to Maldives, in form of a roll-over of $50 million Treasury Bill for an additional year, through State Bank of India.
  1. These treasury bills are subscribed by SBI under government-to-government, a unique arrangement at zero cost (interest-free) to Government of Maldives.
May 13, 2024
1. World Hydrogen Summit 2024 held in Rotterdam (The Netherlands), including a pavilion set up by India for the first time.
  1. Notably, India launched National Green Hydrogen Mission in January 2023 with outlay of 19744 crores, and an ambitious target to achieve green hydrogen production capacity of 5 MMT (Million Metric Tonnes) by 2030.
2. Indian Army & IAF Jointly carried out Gagan Strike-II exercise, at multiple locations in Punjab, to refine processes and validate employment of attack helicopters in support of mechanised operations in developed terrain.
3. UK's Whitley Fund for Nature (WFN) honored India's Purnima Devi Barman with Whitley Gold Award 2024 for her work to save the Greater Adjutant Stork (known locally as Hargila), whose numbers have quadrupled in Assam to more than 1800, after her efforts.
  1. Each year a previous Whitley Award winner is selected to receive Whitley Gold Award, for their outstanding contribution to conservation. Award is worth £60,000 in project funding for up to 2 years. Notably, Purnima had earlier won Whitley Award in 2017.
  2. Whitley Awards are held annually by WFN, to recognise effective grassroots conservation leaders across Global South. The award carries £40000 in project funding over 1 year.
4. IndiaSkills 2024 held at Yashobhoomi (New Delhi), as India’s biggest skill competition, to allow participants to showcase their diverse skills and talent on a national platform across 61 skills.
  1. Winners of IndiaSkills 2024 will represent India at WorldSkills 2024, to be held in Lyon (France) in September 2024.
5. Airports Authority of India (AAI) initiated implementation of Project ISHAAN (Indian Single Sky Harmonized Air Traffic Management), to unify its 4 airspace regions into one.
  1. It aims to consolidate India's four Flight Information Regions (FIRs) into one airspace centered in Nagpur. It will benefit airlines through more seamless operations and increased flight handling capacity. Passengers will also be benefitted, with reduced congestion and flying times.
  2. Indian airspace is currently controlled through four flight information regions (FIRs) at Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, and Chennai, and a sub-flight information region at Guwahati.
May 12, 2024
1. May 12 - International Nurses Day.
  1. It is observed on Birth anniversary of Florence Nightingale, noted British social reformer and founder of modern nursing. She was born on May 12, 1820. 2024 Theme is Our Nurses. Our Future.
  2. Also, UN Observes May 12 as International Day of Plant Health, to raise awareness on importance of protecting plant health.
2. India's Ramcharitmanas, Panchatantra and Sahdayaloka-Locana have been included in UNESCO's Memory of the World Asia-Pacific Regional Register, which aims to boost global cultural preservation efforts.
3. Indian IT Firm Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) announced creation of a Global Artificial Intelligence (AI) Centre of Excellence in French capital Paris.
  1. New AI centre will be based in upcoming TCS PacePort in the La Défense area of Paris, as 7th addition to TCS’ global Pace network.
4. International Organization for Migration (IOM) released World Migration Report 2024, from Dhaka (Bangladesh) -
  1. Over 650 % increase has been recorded in international remittances between 2000 to 2022 (from USD 128 billion to USD 831 billion), sent by over 281 million international migrants.
  2. Top 10 Remittance Receivers -
    2. Notably, with total inward remittances exceeding $111 billion in 2022, India became first country to exceed $100 billion received as remittances.
  3. Top 10 Remittance Sources -
5. Indian-American Srinivas R. Kulkarni has been awarded Shaw Prize in Astronomy 2024, for his groundbreaking discoveries on millisecond pulsars, gamma-ray bursts, supernovae, and other transient astronomical phenomena.
  1. Other Winners of Shaw Prize 2024 -
    1. Life Sciences & Medicine - Stuart H. Orkin & Swee Lay Thein (US), for For their discovery of genetic and molecular mechanisms underlying fetal-to-adult hemoglobin switch, making possible a highly effective genome-editing therapy for sickle cell anemia and β thalassemia.
    2. Mathematical sciences - Peter Sarnak (USA), For development of arithmetic theory of thin groups and affine sieve, by bringing together number theory, analysis, combinatorics, dynamics, geometry and spectral theory.
  2. About -
    1. Shaw Prize refers to three annual awards presented by Shaw Prize Foundation in the fields of astronomy, medicine and life sciences, and mathematical sciences. It was Established in 2002 by Hong Kong entertainment mogul and philanthropist Run Run Shaw. The prize has been described as Nobel of the East. Each award consists of USD$1.2 million monetary reward.
May 11, 2024
1. May 11 - National Technology Day in India.
  1. It marks anniversary of Pokhran Nuclear Tests (Operation Shakti) of 1998. It was coined by late PM Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee, as a reminder of India’s technological advancements.
  2. May 11 also marks flight of Hansa-3, India’s first indigenous aircraft which was developed by National Aerospace Laboratories.
  3. On this occasion -
    1. ISRO announced updated plan for its proposed Mars Orbiter Mission 2 (Mangalyaan-2), the successor of Mangalyaan Mission 2015 (MOM). Against earlier plan of an Orbiter-only mission, MOM2 will now include a rover, helicopter, sky crane and a supersonic parachute. It is proposed to be launched in Late 2024.
  4. May 11, 2024 is also observed as World Migratory Bird Day. It is observed on second Saturday in May and in October.
2. Japan won 2024 Sultan Azlan Shah Cup Hockey (their 1st title), defeating Pakistan in final (hosted by Malaysia).
3. India signed 10-year contract with Iran, to develop and operate Iranian port of Chabahar.
  1. India developed Chabahar port on Iran's south-eastern coast along Gulf of Oman, as a way to transport goods to Iran, Afghanistan and central Asian countries, bypassing Pakistani ports of Karachi and Gwadar.
4. Hanooman AI has been launched by Seetha Mahalaxmi Healthcare (SML) & BharatGPT ecosystem led by IIT Bombay, as India's own large language model (LLM).
  1. Keeping Indian demographic into consideration, this AI model has been designed with support for 12 Indian languages and 98 global languages.
  2. It has been developed under partnership of Reliance Industries & 9 Indian Institutes of Technology(IITs).
5. Govt notified Inter-Services Organisations (Command, Control and Discipline) Act, as a step towards creation of unified theatre commands.
  1. Notable points from Inter-Services Organisations (Command, Control & Discipline) Bill 2023, which was passed in Monsoon session 2023 -
    1. It seeks to empower Commander-in-Chief or Officer-in-Command of Inter-services Organisations to exercise administrative control over service personnel under their command, irrespective of their service.
    2. Key features -
      1. Inter-services Organisation -
        Existing Inter-services Organisations will be deemed to have been constituted under the Bill, including Andaman and Nicobar Command, Defence Space Agency, and National Defence Academy.
        
        Govt may constitute an Inter-services Organisation which has personnel belonging to at least 2 of the 3 services, which may be placed under command of an Officer-in-Command.
      2. Control of Inter-services Organisations -
        Bill empowers Commander-in-Chief or the Officer-in-Command of an Inter-services Organisation to exercise command and control over personnel serving in or attached to it.
        
        Central govt may notify any force maintained in India to which the Bill will apply, in addition to army, navy, and air force personnel.
      3. Bill provides for a Commanding Officer who will be in command of a unit/ship/establishment. The officer will also perform duties assigned by Commander-in-Chief or Officer-in-Command of the Inter-services Organisation.
May 10, 2024
1. May 10 is observed by UN as International Day of Argania.
  1. Argan tree is a native species of the sub-Saharan region of Morocco, which is resilient to a harsh environment under water scarcity, risk of erosion and poor soils.
2. India contributed $500000 to UN counter-terrorism trust fund, taking India's cumulative financial support to trust fund to $2.55 million.
3. Indian javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra (Reigning Olympic and world champion) stayed at second-place at Doha Diamond League 2024 (Qatar), with a throw of 88.36m (2cm short of Czechia’s Jakub Vadlejch).
4. Hero MotoCorp become first auto company in India to integrate with Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), established by Govt's Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) to develop open e-commerce.
  1. With this integration, Hero MotoCorp aims to enhance reach and provide an easily accessible digital mode to customers, to buy two-wheeler parts, accessories and merchandise conveniently.
5. Dubai Crown Prince Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum launched Dubai Program for Gaming 2033, which seeks to Position Dubai among top 10 cities in global gaming industry and Generate 30000 new jobs in gaming sector.
  1. Sheikh Hamdan also approved launch of Metaverse Alliance, Metaverse Guidelines and Metaverse Pioneers as part of Dubai Metaverse Strategy, which aims to consolidate Dubai’s position as a world leader in metaverse development.
May 09, 2024
1. Supreme Court prohibited Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana and Delhi from granting new mining leases and renewals in vulnerable ecosystem of the Aravallis, India's oldest mountain range.
  1. The Aravali range serves as a crucial barrier against encroachment of the Thar desert into northern plains.
2. Researchers unveiled true extent of Mexico's Taam Ja' Blue Hole at 1380 feet (420 meters) below sea level, now officially known as deepest blue hole on Earth.
  1. This blue hole surpasses the previous record holder, the Sansha Yongle Blue Hole (also known as Dragon Hole) in South China Sea, by 480 feet.
3. ICICI Bank launched a facility to enable non-resident Indian (NRI) customers in India to utilise international mobile numbers for instant UPI transactions.
  1. Earllier, NRIs were required to link an Indian mobile number to their bank accounts to facilitate UPI payments across 10 countries - USA, UK, UAE, Canada, Singapore, Australia, Hong Kong, Oman, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia. However, with ICICI Bank's new offering, NRI customers in these nations can make UPI payments without switching to an Indian mobile number.
4. Oxford Bookstores named Bhavi Mehta as winner of 9th edition of Oxford Bookstore Book Cover Prize 2024, for her work The Book Beautiful, authored by Pradeep Sebastian.
5. Pine Labs Group fintech firm Setu unveiled Sesame, as India’s first Large Language Model (LLM) specifically designed for the banking, financial services, and insurance (BFSI) sector.
  1. It has been Developed in collaboration with indigenous AI research firm Sarvam AI.
May 08, 2024
1. May 8 - World Red Cross Day, also known as Red Crescent Day. It commemorates birth anniversary of Henri Dunant (born on 8 May 1828), the founder of Red Cross and International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). May 8 is also observed as -
  1. Victory in Europe Day, Marking formal end of World War II in Europe, when allied powers defeated German leader Adolf Hitler and his Nazi Forces, On May 8, 1945.
    1. Notably, May 8 - 9 every year is also observed by UN as Time of Remembrance for Those Who Lost Their Lives during Second World War.
  2. World Thalassemia Day.
2. John Ramsay Swinney has been named new First Minister of Scotland, succeeding Humza Yousaf who resigned recently.
  1. Pakistani National Humza Yousaf was Scotland’s first Muslim First Minister.
  2. First minister of Scotland is Keeper of the Scottish Seal, as head of Scottish Government.
3. 2024 Thomas & Uber Cup Badminton (Chengdu, China) -
  1. China were winners in both Men's (Thomas Cup) & Women's (Uber Cup) championships. Chinese teams defeated Indonesian Teams in finals of both Men's and women's titles.
  2. About -
    1. It was 33rd edition of Thomas Cup (Men's) and 30th edition of Uber Cup (Women's), the biennial badminton championship contested by BWF member associations.
    2. India were defending champions for the men's team (Thomas Cup), but lost to China in quarter-finals in 2024 edition.
4. Annual Petersberg Climate Dialogue 2024 held in Berlin (Germany), to prepare for UN Climate Change Conference 2024 (also called COP29) in Baku (Azerbaijan), to be held in Nov 2024.
5. Notable Pulitzer Prize Winners 2024 -
  1. Books, Drama, and Music -
    1. Fiction - Night Watch, by Jayne Anne Phillips
    2. Drama - Primary Trust, by Eboni Booth
    3. History - No Right to an Honest Living by Jacqueline Jones
    4. Biography - King: A Life by Jonathan Eig
    5. Autobiography - Liliana’s Invincible Summer by Cristina Rivera Garza
    6. Poetry - Tripas: Poems by Brandon Som
    7. Music - Adagio (For Wadada Leo Smith) by Tyshawn Sorey
    8. General Non-fiction - A Day in the Life of Abed Salama by Nathan Thrall
  2. Journalism -
    1. Public Service - ProPublica
    2. Breaking News Reporting - Staff of Lookout Santa Cruz, California
    3. Investigative Reporting - Hannah Dreier of The New York Times
    4. Explanatory Reporting - Sarah Stillman of The New Yorker
    5. Local Reporting - Sarah Conway of City Bureau and Trina Reynolds-Tyler of the Invisible Institute
    6. National Reporting - Staff of Reuters & Staff of Washington Post
    7. International Reporting - Staff of The New York Times
  3. About -
    1. Pulitzer Prize is administered by Columbia University for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within US. It was established in 1917 by provisions in will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made his fortune as a newspaper publisher.
    2. There are 23 Pulitzer categories. In 22 of those categories, winners receive a $15,000 cash award.
May 07, 2024
1. May 07 is observed annually as World Athletics Day, by World Athletics.
  1. May 7 is also Birth Anniversary of India’s first Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore. His birth anniversary is also known as Pochise Boishakh.
2. New strategic alliance dubbed SQUAD has been formed to counter Chinese aggression in the South China Sea and growing concerns over Taiwan. It consists of United States, Japan, Australia, and Philippines.
3. Russian President Vladimir Putin re-appointed Mikhail Mishustin as Prime Minister of Russia.
4. José Raúl Mulino has been elected as Central American Nation Panama’s New president.
5. Forbes' World’s Highest-Paid Athletes 2024 -
  1. Top 5 -
    1. Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugese Footabller) - $260 Million
    2. Jon Rahm (Spanish Golfer) - $218 Million
    3. Lionel Messi (Argentina Footabller) - $135 Million
    4. LeBron James (American Basketballer) - $128.2 Million
    5. Giannis Antetokounmpo (Greek Basketballer) - $111 Million
May 06, 2024
1. As per govt data, India's goods and services exports in FY24 (2023-24) stood at all-time high of $778.2 billion, slightly up from $776.4 billion in FY23 (2022-23).
2. Sanjaya Kumar Mishra has been named 1st President of New Delhi based GST Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT), a crucial body set up for resolving GST-related disputes.
3. Annual multi-national air exercise INIOCHOS-24 hosted by Hellenic Air Force (Greece), with participation of 9 countries.
4. Kyren Wilson (England) won World Snooker Championship 2024 at Sheffield (England), defeating Jak Jones (Wales).
5. German-Israeli philosopher Omri Boehm has been Awarded 2024 Leipzig Book Prize for European Understanding, for his book Radical Universalism. Beyond Identity.
  1. Leipzig Book Award for European Understanding is a prominent literature prize in Germany, with prize money of 20,000 euros.

May 05, 2024

May 5 is observed as -
1. World Hand Hygiene Day.
2. International Day of the Midwife.
3. World Portuguese Language Day (UN).
2024 Madrid Open Tennis (Madrid, Spain) -
1. Men's singles - Andrey Rublev (Russia)
2. Women's singles - Iga Świątek (Poland)
3. Men's doubles - Sebastian Korda (US) & Jordan Thompson (Australia)
4. Women's doubles - Cristina Bucșa (Spain) & Sara Sorribes Tormo (Spain)
2024 Open Aix Provence Men's Tennis (France) -
1. Singles - Alejandro Tabilo (Chile)
2. Doubles - Luke Johnson (UK) & Skander Mansouri (Tunisia)
YES Bank launched two digital-only co-branded credit cards - Pi and Phi, in partnership with Bengaluru-based ANQ.
1. Pi Credit Card is digital-only, and Phi is in physical format.

McLaren's British-Belgian F1 Racer Lando Norris won Miami Grand Prix 2024.

F1 Season 2024 -

Round	Grand Prix	Winner	Race date
1	Bahrain Grand Prix	Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian)	2 March
2	Saudi Arabian Grand Prix	Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian)	9 March
3	Australian Grand Prix	Carlos Saint Jr. (Spanish)	24 March
4	Japanese Grand Prix	Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian)	7 April
5	Chinese Grand Prix	Max Verstappen (Dutch-Belgian)	21 April
6	Miami Grand Prix	Lando Norris (British-Belgian)	5 May
7	Emilia Romagna Grand Prix		19 May
8	Monaco Grand Prix		26 May
9	Canadian Grand Prix		9 June
10	Spanish Grand Prix		23 June
11	Austrian Grand Prix		30 June
12	British Grand Prix		7 July
13	Hungarian Grand Prix		21 July
14	Belgian Grand Prix		28 July
15	Dutch Grand Prix		25 August
16	Italian Grand Prix		1 September
17	Azerbaijan Grand Prix		15 September
18	Singapore Grand Prix		22 September
19	United States Grand Prix		20 October
20	Mexico City Grand Prix		27 October
21	São Paulo Grand Prix		3 November
22	Las Vegas Grand Prix		23 November
23	Qatar Grand Prix		1 December
24	Abu Dhabi Grand Prix		8 December

May 04, 2024
1. May 4 is observed as International Firefighters' Day, established in 1999, after deaths of five firefighters in a bushfire in Australia.
2. P Santhosh has been named MD & CEO of National Asset Reconstruction Company (NARCL), also called bad bank.
3. Uttarakhand govt launched Pirul Lao-Paise Pao Mission in State, to curb incidents of forest fire across state.
  1. Under this, to prevent forest fires, the Pirul (leaves from the Pine Tree) lying in forest will be collected by local villagers and stored at designated Collection Centre. According to the weight, the amount will be immediately sent online to the bank account of that person at the rate of Rs 50 per kg.
4. Hinduja Group’s IndusInd International Holdings (IIHL) received Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India’s approval for acquisition of Reliance Capital.
  1. Acquisition will include takeover of Reliance Capital’s insurance arms - wholly-owned subsidiary Reliance General Insurance and Reliance Nippon Life Insurance (51:49 JV with Nippon Life).
  2. Earlier in Dec 2023, Hinduja group firm Indusind International Holding (IIHL) acquired Reliance Capital for 9651 crores, under insolvency process. Of this, IIHL was to pay 2750 crores as equity and planned to raise the rest as debt, to be paid to lenders.
5. As per TIME Top EdTech Companies 2024 list -
  1. India based EdTech firm Emeritus (part of Eruditus Group) topped the list. It offers online courses from over 80 universities across world, and recently shifted its headquarters from Singapore to India. 14 Other Indian EdTech firms have been named in List. Miko and Unacademy are placed at 26th and 54th Place respectively.
  2. Other 4 EdTech firms in Top 5 - Memrise (UK), Afya (Brazil), Knowbox (China), Vitru Education (Brazil).
May 03, 2024
1. May 3 - World Press Freedom Day. 2024 Theme is A Press for the Planet.
  1. Annually, UNESCO confers UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize on this day.
    1. Palestinian journalists covering Gaza have been named as laureates of the 2024 UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize.
  2. On this occasion, Global Press Freedom Index 2024 was released by Reporters Without Borders -
    1. Top 3 - Norway (1), Denmark (2), Sweden (3)
    2. Bottom 3 - Eritrea (180), Syria (179), Afghanistan (178)
    3. India ranks 159th, compared to 161st rank last year.
    4. Neighbors - China (172), Sri Lanka (150), Pakistan (152), Bangladesh (165)
2. China launched Chang'e-6 lunar probe atop Long March-5 Y8 carrier rocket.
  1. The misison is set to collect samples from far side of the moon (not visible from the Earth). China also aims to send a crewed lunar mission by 2030.
  2. The mission also carried 4 international payloads, notably including iCube-Qamar (Pakistan's first satellite mission to the moon).
3. 2024 AFC U-23 Asian Cup Football (Qatar) -
  1. Japan won the title (their 2nd) defeating Uzbekistan in final.
4. Mumbai City FC won Indian Super League (ISL) 2023-24 Football season title (their 2nd title), defeating Mohun Bagan Super Giant in Final.
5. Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) hosted 46th Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting (ATCM 46) and 26th Meeting of the Committee for Environmental Protection (CEP 26) in Kochi (Kerala).
  1. It was hosted through National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR).
  2. Convened annually under Antarctic Treaty System, these meetings serve as forums for Antarctic Treaty Consultative Parties and other stakeholders to address Antarctica's pressing issues.
    1. Antarctic Treaty (signed in 1959) established Antarctica as a region dedicated to peaceful purposes, scientific cooperation, and environmental protection. It has 56 countries as parties.
    2. CEP was established under Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty (the Madrid Protocol) in 1991. CEP advises ATCM on environmental protection and conservation in Antarctica.
    3. Notably, India operates two year-round research stations in Antartica - Maitri (1989) and Bharati (2012).
May 02, 2024
1. May 2 is observed by UN as World Tuna Day.
2. Vice Admiral Krishna Swaminathan assumed charge as Vice Chief of Indian Navy.
  1. Also, Sanjay Bhalla has been named new Chief of Personnel of the Indian Navy.
3. India's NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL), the international arm of National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), partnered with Bank of Namibia (BoN), to support them in developing an instant payment system like Unified Payment Interface (UPI) for Namibia.
  1. India and Ghana also agreed to operationalise linking of India’s Unified Payment Interface (UPI) with Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement Systems (GHIPSS), within 6 months.
4. RBI Approved Atanu Chakraborty’s re-appointment as part-time Chairman of HDFC Bank for 3 years.
5. UNICEF India named Actor Kareena Kapoor Khan as UNICEF’s National Ambassador, to support UNICEF India in furthering every child’s right to early childhood development, health, education and gender equality.

May 01, 2024

Misc. Appointments (May 2024) -
1. RBI appointed R. Lakshmi Kanth Rao as an Executive Director (ED).
  1. Notably, RBI board currently has 16 EDs.
2. Sanjay Bhalla has been named new Chief of Personnel of the Indian Navy.
3. New Indian Ambassadors -
  1. Ravi Shankar - Ukraine.
  2. Harsh Kumar Jain - Philippines.
  3. Manish Chauhan - Jordan.
4. Jetha Ahir has been named Chairman of National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED).
5. Dileep Sanghani has been elected as Chairman of IFFCO (Indian Farmers Fertilizer Cooperative Limited).
6. Ujjivan Small Finance Bank named Sanjeev Nautiyal as its MD & CEO.
7. Idashisha Nongrang has been named Meghalaya's state police chief, becoming first woman to hold the post.
Misc. Defence News / Events (May 2024) -
1. India’s first indigenous bomber UAV aircraft FWD-200B has been unveiled in Bengaluru, developed by Flying Wedge Defence.
  1. FWD-200B has a payload capacity of 100 kgs and endurance capacity of 12-20 hours, with max speed of upto 370 kmph.
2. Indian army announced to stop all import of ammunition from next financial year (FY26 (2025-26)), as domestic industry has ramped up its capacity to meet all demands.
3. Keel laying of first NGOPV (Next-Generation Offshore Patrol Vessel) held at Goa Shipyard Ltd, under contracts for indigenous construction of 11 NGOPV, which were signed in Mar 23.
  1. Under the project, 11 ships will be seven will be manufactured (7 by GSL and 4 by GRSE), at cost 9781 crores.
4. Constitution Park has been jointly developed by Indian Army and Punit Balan Group in Pune, showcasing Fundamental Rights and Fundamental Duties bestowed upon Indian citizens by Constitution of India.
5. DRDO successfully flight-tested RudraM-II air-to-surface missile from Integrated test range Odisha, with range 300 KMs.
6. Kohima Peace Memorial has been inaugurated in Kohima (Nagaland capital), developed with aid from Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
  1. During WW2, Nagas were forced by the British to join the Allied Forces and fight against Japanese soldiers during Battle of Kohima in 1944. It was won by British Allied Forces.
Misc. MOUs (May 2024) -
1. Between Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) & Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd, to conduct two Pilot Projects under Drone Didi Yojana.
  1. The scheme aims to train 15,000 women to operate drones for agricultural purposes, creating new livelihood opportunities for women through imparting skills.
2. Between Ministry of Fisheries' Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying (DAHD) & United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) India, on Digitalization of Vaccine Cold Chain Management & Capacity Building.
3. Between Google & Foxconn (Taiwan-based electronics manufacturer), to begin making Google Pixel smartphones at an existing Foxconn facility in Tamil Nadu. Google will also later manufacture drones in state.
4. Between India's National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) & International Labour Organization (ILO), to advance skill development and lifelong learning in India and globally.
5. Between India's Adani Group and Sri Lanka govt, for development of 484 megawatts capacity wind power stations in Mannar and Poonerin, at cost $442 million.
  1. Sri Lanka govt also signed a power purchase agreement for 20 years, under which the company will be paid 8.26 cents per kilowatt-hours (kWh).
6. Between Airbus Helicopters and Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI), for financing the purchase of Airbus’ helicopters in India.

Misc. Economy / Financial News (May 2024) -

Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency Ltd. (IREDA) incorporated its new subsidiary in International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) located in GIFT City(Gujarat), named IREDA Global Green Energy Finance IFSC Limited.
1. Notably, Maharatna PSU REC Limited also received NOC from RBI, for setting up a wholly owned subsidiary in IFSC GIFT City (Gujarat).
Indian IT Firm Infosys has been fined CAD 134822 (₹82 lakh) by Canadian government, for underpayment of employee health tax for fiscal year ending December 31, 2020.

Indian GDP Growth Forecasts (May 2024) -

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) - 6.6% for FY25 (2024-25).
As per Asian Development Outlook (ADO) April 2024 -
1. India’s GDP growth forecast for FY24 (2023-24) has been revised to 7% (increased from 6.7%) and 7.2% in FY25 (2024-25).
India Ratings and Research - 7.1% for FY25 (2024-25).
Moody’s - 6.6% for FY25 (2024-25).

GDP growth-projections As per United Nations' World Economic Situation and Prospects 2024 (May 2024 Update) -

Region	2023	2024	2025
Global	2.7	2.7	2.8
USA	2.5	2.3	1.7
India	7.5	6.9	6.6
China	5.2	4.8	4.5
European Union	0.4	1.0	1.6
Least developed countries (Notably, UN SDGs have set 7.0 % growth target for LDCs)	4.2	4.8	5.3

Notable Penalties put by RBI (May 2024) -
1. SBM Bank (India) - 88.70 lakh
2. HSBC Limited - 36.38 Lakh, for violation of RBI instructions on reporting requirements under Liberalised Remittance Scheme of FEMA 1999
3. Yes Bank - 91 lakh
4. ICICI Bank -1 Crore
South African Reserve Bank imposed penalty of 10 million rand (₹4.5 crore) on State Bank of India’s South Africa branch, for non-compliance with certain provisions of country’s Financial Intelligence Centre Act.
Indian IT Firm Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) partnered with Kuwait’s commercial Burgan Bank, to help modernise its core banking technology, using TCS BaNCS Platfiorm.
RBI imposed business restrictions on Mumbai based Edelweiss Group's lending and asset reconstruction arms on concerns over evergreening of loans.
1. RBI asked ECL Finance Ltd to cease and desist from undertaking any structured transactions in respect of its wholesale exposures, other than repayment and/or closure of accounts.
Govt has cut its windfall tax on petroleum crude to 8400 Indian rupees ($100.66) a metric ton from 9,600 rupees with effect from May 1, 2024.
1. Earlier on Apr 16, govt had raised windfall tax on petroleum crude to 9,600 rupees a metric ton from 6,800 rupees.
Adani Green Energy Ltd (AGEL) secured USD 400 million financing for its under-construction 750 MW solar projects in Rajasthan and Gujarat, by a consortium of five international banks (Netherlands' Cooperative Rabobank UA, Singapore's DBS Bank, Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo S.p.A. and Japan's MUFG Bank and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation).
1. Projects include a 500 MW capacity project in Rajasthan and other project with 250 MW capacity being implemented at world’s largest RE cluster at Khavda in Gujarat.
ICICI Bank became 5th Indian firm and 2nd Indian bank to surpass 8 lakh crore market capitalisation.
1. Reliance Industries, TCS, HDFC Bank, Infosys and Bharti Airtel are other Indian firms to have crossed 8 lakh crore market capitalisation milestone so far.
Yes Bank launched Yes Grandeur, as an exclusive banking programme designed to address financial needs of India's Emerging Affluent segment.
NBFC Fusion Micro Finance received $25 million loan from United States International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), to be used to grow its business operations, to enable financial inclusion for women entrepreneurs in rural India.
Maldives announced to launch India’s RuPay service across nation, to boost Maldivian Currency Rufiyaa.
LIC has been granted a 3 year extension (upto May 16, 2027) by Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), to achieve a 10 % public shareholding.

Goods and Services Tax (GST) collections in April 2024 stood at highest-ever 2.10 lakh crores, comprising of CGST 43846 crores, SGST 53538 crores, IGST 99623 crores & Cess 13260 crores.
May 1 is Formation day of Gujarat and Maharashtra. Both states were formed on May 01, 1960, when Bombay state was split.
1. Also, May 1 is observed in Maharashtra as Marathi Official Language Day.
  1. Notably, Similar sounding Marathi Language Pride Day is observed on 27th February.
May 1 - Labour Day, also known as International Worker's Day and May Day.
1. In India, first celebration of the Labour Day was organised in Madras by Labour Kisan Party of Hindustan on May 1, 1923.
2. Labour Day commemorates happenings of May 4, 1886, the Haymarket affair (Haymarket Massacre) in the Chicago. It was a big event as workers were on the general strike for their eight-hour workday, with protests getting violent.
Misc. Sports News / Events (May 2024) -
1. Phase 1 for 1st National Women's Hockey League 2024-2025 held in Ranchi (Jharkhand), with participation by top 8 teams at 14th Hockey India Senior Women's National Championship (which was won by Haryana, by defeating Maharashtra in final).
2. India won 43 medals at Asian U-22 and Youth Boxing Championships in Astana (Kazakhstan), including 12 gold, 14 silver, and 17 bronze medals.
3. Paris Saint-Germain won Ligue-1 2023-24 season French domestic football league title. It was record-extending 12th Ligue-1 title for Paris Saint-Germain.
4. Real Madrid won La Liga 2023-24 season Spanish domestic football league title. It was record-extending 36th La Liga title for Real Madrid.
5. Kenyan marathon distance runners Peter Mwaniki & Lilian Kasait won men’s & women’s titles in 16th edition of Tata Consultancy Services World 10K Bengaluru.
6. International Cricket Council (ICC) banned West Indies player Devon Thomas for 5 years, for breaching multiple anti-corruption codes.
7. India will host BWF World Junior Championships 2025 at National Centre of Excellence in Guwahati (Assam).
  1. It will mark return of BWF Junior World Championships to India after last hosting in 2008 in Pune.
8. New Zealand Cricketer Colin Munro announced retirement from international cricket.
9. Noted Indian Footballer Sunil Chhetri announced his retirement from international football.
  1. He is 4th highest international goalscorer, and India's all-time top goalscorer.
10. United World Wrestling (UWW) suspended Indian wrestler Bajrang Punia until December 31, 2024, following his suspension by National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA).
11. P Shyaamnikhil from Tamil Nadu became India’s 85th Grandmaster, during 2024 Dubai Police Masters Chess Tournament.
Misc. Science News / Events (May 2024) -
1. Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) organized Space Science and Technology Awareness Training (START) 2024, with Gujarat Council on Science and Technology (GUJCOST) as Nodal Centre.
  1. START is an introductory-level online training in space science and technology, for UG/PG students of physical sciences and technology.
2. IT Firm Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) & IIT Bombay Partnered to develop India’s first Quantum Diamond Microchip Imager, to unlock new levels of precision in examination of semiconductor chips, reduce chip failures and improve energy efficiency of electronic devices.
3. Argentinain Palaeontologists announced discovery of a new medium-sized herbivorous dinosaur, which was a fast runner and lived about 90 million years ago in Late Cretaceous period in present day Patagonia. Named Chakisaurus nekul, it was found in Pueblo Blanco Natural Reserve. It was estimated to be upto 3 meters long and 70 centimeters high.
Obituaries (May 2024) -
1. Ebrahim Raisi - Serving Iranian President, died in a helicopter crash (along with serving foreign minister Hossein Amirabdollahian).
2. Kamla Beniwal - Noted INC politician and Former Governor of Mizoram, Gujarat & Tripura.
3. Uma Ramanan - Noted Tamil playback singer.
4. Srinivasa Prasad - Former Union Minister, from Karnataka.
5. Shaikh Abdussalam Abdurrazzaq - Noted Urdu litterateur.
6. Sangeeth Sivan - Noted Malayalam and Hindi director.
7. Malti Joshi - Padma Shri awardee Hindi & Marathi novelist and writer.
8. Surjit Patar - Padma Shri awardee Punjabi language writer and poet.
9. Alice Munro - Nobel Prize awardee Canadian short story writer.
Persons in News (May 2024) -
1. Jyoti Ratre became oldest Indian woman to summit Mount Everest, at 55 years age.
2. Nepali mountaineer Kami Rita Sherpa conquered Mount Everest for record 30th time.
Misc. / Industrial Awards (May 2024) -
1. Social worker Pawan Sindhi has been conferred Global Pride of Sindhi Award 2024.
2. Noted Indian scientist Soumya Swaminathan (served as WHO’s Chief Scientist) has been named among 10 recepients of honorary degrees from Canada's McGill University.

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