NATIONAL:
1. India-Bhutan Satellite
Why in news - The ground station of the jointly developed India-Bhutan satellite has been inaugurated in Thimpu.
Key Points –
• Inaugurated by - Dr Somanath, ISRO chairman.
• Bhutan would receive data from BhutanSat pertaining to its territory.
• BhutanSat (INS-2B) was launched on ISRO's PSLV C54 rocket on November 26, 2022.
• Parabolic antennae in Ground stations communicate with satellites by transmitting and receiving radio waves.
• In 2017, ISRO launched the SAARC satellite (geostationary satellite) meant for communications and meteorological purposes for South Asia region.
2. Statue of Knowledge
Why in news - The Maharashtra government has given approval for a 75-feet tall `Statue of Knowledge’.
Key Points –
• Dedicated to - Dr B. R. Ambedkar in Latur city.
• The ground-breaking ceremony to be performed on April 14, Dr Ambedkar's birth anniversary.
INTERNATIONAL:
1. Warrant for Vladimir Putin
Why in news - The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for war crimes of President Vladimir Putin.
Key Points –
• It also issued a warrant for Maria Lvova-Belova, Russia’s commissioner for children’s rights.
• Reason - Putin bears individual criminal responsibility for deportation of Ukrainian children.
About ICC (1998) –
• Built under the Rome Statute.
• Entered into force on July 1, 2002.
• Headquarter – Hague, Netherlands.
• World’s first permanent international criminal court.
• USA, Russia, China and India are not members.
• The court has no power to arrest sitting heads of state or bring them to trial.
• Previously, UN Nations Security Council had established ad hoc tribunals to address atrocities in former Yugoslavia and Rwanda.
2. Afghanistan Earthquake
Why in news - Northern India felt strong tremors of an earthquake that occurred in northeastern Afghanistan.
Key Points –
• Magnitude- 6.5. (originated 187 km below the surface)
• North-eastern Afghanistan (Hindu Kush ranges) is an earthquake-prone area.
• Deep earthquakes are also generally weaker. They are unlikely to be followed by aftershocks.
Why earthquake here –
• Hindu Kush region in Afghanistan experiences unique tectonic forces.
• One side - Indian tectonic plate getting under the Himalayas.
• Other side - Eurasian plate is subducting into the Pamir mountain ranges.
• In addition, there are local faultlines as well.
3. Fumio Kishida's India Visit
Why in news - Prime Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan paid a visit to Delhi on 19 and 20 March, 2023.
Key Points –
• PM Kishida extended a formal invite to PM Modi to attend the G7 Hiroshima Summit in May 2023.
GOVERNMENT SCHEMES:
1. “Catch the Rain-2023” Campaign
Why in news - President Droupadi Murmu launched the “Catch the Rain-2023” for water conservation.
Key Points –
• Aim - to turn conservation of water into a mass campaign in the run-up to the monsoon season.
• Theme – “Source Sustainability for Drinking Water”.
APPS & PORTALS:
1. ‘Call Before u Dig’ (CBuD) App
Why in news - PM Narendra Modi launched the ‘Call Before u Dig’ (CBuD) app.
Key Points –
• By - Ministry of Communications (Department of Telecommunications).
• Aim - to prevent damage to underlying assets like optical fibre cables that occurs because of uncoordinated digging and excavation.
• It would connect excavators and asset owners through SMS/Email notifications and click-to-call.
AWARDS & HONOURS:
1. Partnership for Healthy Cities Award 2023
Why in news - Bengaluru was honoured with the award for efforts in tobacco control, specifically, reducing smoking in public places.
Key Points –
• Other awardees - Montevideo (Uruguay), Mexico City (Mexico), Vancouver (Canada) and Athens (Greece).
• It was given at the inaugural Partnership for Healthy Cities Summit held in London.
• The summit was convened in London by Bloomberg Philanthropies, the WHO and Vital Strategies.
• Partnership for Healthy Cities (2017) is a global network comprising 70 cities working together to prevent noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) and injuries.
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY:
1. Bharat’s 6G Vision Document
Why in news – PM Narendra Modi has unveiled a vision document for the rollout of 6G technology in India by 2030.
Key Points –
• Prepared by - Technology Innovation Group on 6G (TIG-6G).
• To be implemented in two phases.
• Recommended the creation of a corpus of Rs 10,000 crore to facilitate various funding instruments such as grants, loans etc. for the next 10 years
• PM Modi formally launched 5G services in October 2022.
What is 6G?
• Internet speeds up to 100 times faster than 5G.
• Ultra-low latency with speeds up to 1 terabits per second.
• It uses higher frequency bands e.g., 450-470 MHz, 526-612 MHz, 31-31.3 GHz, etc.
• Uses –
(a) Remote-controlled factories
(b) Constantly communicating self-driven cars
(c) Smart wearables taking inputs directly from human senses.
2. ITU Area Office and Innovation Centre
Why in news – PM Narendra Modi inaugurated the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Area Office and Innovation Centre.
Key Points –
• Location - Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DoT) building, New Delhi.
• It would serve India, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Afghanistan and Iran.
• He also launched the 6G R&D Test Bed.
About ITU –
• United Nations’ specialized agency for information and communication technologies (ICTs).
• Headquarter – Geneva.
SUMMITS & CONFERENCES:
1. India-UAE Investment Summit
Why in news – J&K Lt Governor Manoj Sinha addressed the summit at Srinagar.
Key Points –
• First FDI in J&K - 10 lakh sq ft mall (cost - Rs 500 crore) by Emaar in Srinagar.
ENVIRONMENT:
1. Lion Translocation
Why in news – The Gujarat government has planned to translocate 40 adult and sub-adult lions to the Barda Wildlife Sanctuary (WLS) in the state.
Key Points –
• Barda WLS is about 100 kilometres away from Gir National Park (only home).
• Asiatic lions are currently found in nine districts of Gujarat, including Junagadh and Gir-Somnath.
• Members of the Maldhari community would also be relocated along with the big cats through incentivized voluntary relocation of forest villages.
• Maldharis are local pastoral communities settled within Gir Protected Areas and the Barda WLS.
• The report entitled “Lion at 2047: A Vision for Amrutkal” is prepared by the Wildlife Institute of India (WII).
• As per lion census 2020, there are 674 lions in the state.
• Asiatic Lion IUCN status – Endangered.
BIHAR:
1. Bihar Diwas
Why in news – A program was organized on the occasion of Bihar Day at the Consulate General of India in New York.
Key Points –
• Hosted by - Bihar Foundation of USA (East Coast). (Chairman – Alok Kumar).
• 3 persons from Bihar were honored with the “Bihar Vishwa Gaurav” award –
(a) Dr Vindeshwar Pthak
(b) Ajay Singh
(c) Lalit Jha.
• In Dubai (UAE), it was organised by India positive.
• March 22 has been observed as Bihar Diwas or Bihar Day since 2010.
POINTERS:
• World Consumer Rights Day is observed every year on which day - March 15.
• Which country became the first NATO member to give MiG-29 aircraft to Ukraine – Poland.
• Where will India's first behavioural laboratory be set up – Jaipur.
• India and which country has recently inaugurated the 'Geoffrey Bawa' exhibition in New Delhi - Sri Lanka.
• Who became No.1 bowler as per ICC Test rankings - Ravichandran Ashwin.
• Who is organizing the third edition of exercise ''La Perouse' - French Navy.
• Who became the National Blind Chess Champion for the 7th time - Kishan Gangoli.
• Who became the new MD & CEO of IT company Tech Mahindra - Mohit Joshi.
• Who has been appointed as Chairman of Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) - Deepak Mohanty.
• The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) approved the merger of which two entities - HDFC Ltd and HDFC Bank.