03rd-05th June, 2023

1. Shri Hardeep S. Puri, Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs and Petroleum and Natural Gas organized an event at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi to celebrate the completion of the 3 successful years of the Prime Minster Street Vendor’s AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (PM SVANidhi) Scheme.
2. Ministry of Jal Shakti has launched the unified registration portal for the Galvanizing Organic Bio-Agro Resources Dhan (GOBARdhan) scheme.
3. 3rd Employment Working Group (EWG) meeting under the G20 Indian Presidency was held at the International Labour Organization (ILO) headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland.
4. Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has approved the changes in clauses of model concession agreements for Engineering, procurement and construction (EPC), Hybrid Annuity Mode (HAM), and Build Operate Transfer (BOT) contracts.
5. French railway company Alstom, has won the ₹30,000 crore contract for the manufacturing and maintenance of 100 aluminium body Vande Bharat trains.
6. India and Vietnamese officials held the third Maritime Security Dialogue in New Delhi.
7. India will import 10,000 MW of power from Nepal in the next 10 years.
8. Rural Development Ministry has announced that about 88% of the wage payment has been made through Aadhaar Based Payment Bridge System (ABPS) till May 2023.
9. In March, Maharashtra announced that the farmers in the state would be able to insure their crops by paying just Rs 1.
10. NTPC Green Energy has signed an MoU with UP Rajya Vidyut Utpadan Nigam to collaborate in the development of renewable energy parks and projects and to facilitate the energy transition in the state.
11. Guidance Tamil Nadu has signed six MoUs with Japanese companies and their Indian joint venture partners to cumulatively attract investments of close to Rs 820 crore.
12. Maharashtra govt has launched a new portal called ‘Mahalabharthi’ to make government schemes available at the doorstep of the common man by enlisting all the state govt schemes on this one portal.
13. Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has announced that Ahmednagar city would be renamed Ahilyanagar.
14. Uttar Pradesh government launched a 15-day registration campaign for MSMEs in all 75 districts across the state till June 15.
15. The Disha Mobile App has created a record with more than 17 crore registrations in the State for safety and security of women.
16. A state-of-the-art Integrated Command and Control Centre (ICCC) has been set up on the outskirts of Srinagar city under the Smart City Mission.
17. Strategic Forces Command carried out a successful training launch of a Medium-Range Ballistic Missile, Agni-1.
18. Sapta Shakti Command of the Indian Army conducted exercise ‘Sudarshan Shakti 2023’ along the western borders in Rajasthan and Punjab from May 22 to 25.
19. Indian Navy and Indian Maritime University have signed an MOU for Technical Collaboration.
20. The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India’s (ICAI) Central Council has approved the renewal of the existing mutual recognition agreement (MRA) with CPA Canada and CPA Ireland.
21. Allies Finland and Norway and Partner Sweden host the multinational Arctic Challenge Exercise (ACE) from 29 May to 9 June 2023.
22. International Renewable Energy Agency (HQ- UAE) has released the “Low-Cost Finance for the Energy Transition” report.
23. The Times Higher Education Impact Ranking, which assesses universities against the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), has been released for 2023.
24. Kerala-based Manappuram Finance Ltd has launched Ma-Money, a new digital lending platform, to provide customers with all the financial products offered by Manappuram Finance under one umbrella.
25. mooPay, the fintech arm of Stellapps, has collaborated with IBISA Network, HDFC ERGO, and Gramcover to introduce an innovative insurance plan – mooMark – for farmers based on the Heat Index.
26. Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited, in partnership with Myntra, has launched its first-of-its-kind co-branded digital fashion and lifestyle credit card.
27. According to the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation’s payroll reporting data analysis, 39 crore people found new formal jobs in India in FY23.
28. Tata Group signed an agreement with the Gujarat state government to set up a giga-factory for manufacturing lithium-ion cells, with an estimated initial investment of around Rs 130 billion ($1.6 billion).
29. Karbon Card has launched Card++, a mobile-based expense management card, for businesses and individuals wherein it offers its users uncapped cashback of upto 1%.
30. RBL Bank has introduced a new fixed deposit scheme – ACE Fixed Deposit.
31. IRDAI has identified SBI Life Insurance to acquire the business of Sahara India Life Insurance (SILIC) to protect the interest of 200,000 policyholders.
32. SEBI has released guidelines for stock exchanges to conduct trade of corporate bonds through Request for Quote (RFQ) platform.
33. According to the data released by the Controller General of Accounts (CGA), the govt’s fiscal deficit for 2022-23 amounts to 6.4% of the GDP.
34. The High Court of Karnataka has upheld constitutional validity of Section 37A of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), 1999.
35. Ministry of Finance has announced that India’s gross GST revenue collection in the month of May stood at Rs 1,57,090 crore, registering a rise of 12% on a year-on-year basis.
36. According to the data released by the S&P Global Market Intelligence, India’s manufacturing activity, measured by the Purchasing Managers Index (PMI), reached a 31-month high in May at 58.7.
37. RBI has proposed a framework for overall information security with an emphasis cyber resilience to improve the safety and security of the payment systems operated by payment system operators (PSOs).
38. IRDAI has released the draft guidelines for ‘Bima Vahaks’ to establish a dedicated distribution channel at the level of Gram Panchayats.
39. J.P. Morgan has its forecast for India’s annual growth by 50 basis points to 5.5% for fiscal 2024.
40. National Statistical Office has increased its GDP forecast for fiscal 2022-2023 to 7.2% from 7%, as compared to 9.1% growth in fiscal 2021-2022.
41. Dennis Francis (Ambassador of Trinidad and Tobago) has been elected as the President of the 78th session of the UN General Assembly (scheduled for September 5-19, 2023 in New York).
42. Celeste Saulo (Former Director of the National Meteorological Service of Argentina) has been appointed as the first female Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO).
43. Dr Abdulla Al Mandous (from UAE) has been elected as the new President of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) for a four-year term from 2023 to 2027.
44. June 2 – International Sex Workers’ Day / International Whores’ Day; Theme – Decriminalization and Empowerment
45. June 2 – Telangana’s statehood (10th anniversary)
46. June 3 – World Bicycle Day; Theme – Riding Together for a Sustainable Future
47. ‘Bank of Baroda Rashtrabhasha Samman’ Award 2023 (1st edition) will recognize literary works in Indian languages and the translation of these into Hindi, and will be presented to both the original author and the translator.
48. India has defeated Pakistan in the Men’s Junior Asia Cup 2023 here in Salalah, Oman.
49. Indian cyclist Esow Alben (from Andaman and Nicobar Island) won the bronze medal in the elite men’s keirin event at the Finale Bahnen-Tournee 2023 cycling competition in Dudenhofen, Germany.
50. The 3rd Khelo India University Games was organized in Uttar Pradesh. The Games were held across nine venues in four cities of UP namely Lucknow, Varanasi, Gorakhpur and Gautambuddh Nagar.
51. Ghanaian writer and feminist Ama Ata Aidoo passed away

National News

1. Shri Hardeep S. Puri, Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs and Petroleum and Natural Gas organized an event at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi to celebrate the completion of the 3 successful years of the Prime Minster Street Vendor’s AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (PM SVANidhi) Scheme.
   • PM SVANidhi Scheme was launched on 01 June, 2020, aiming to restore Swarozgar, Svavlamban, Swabhimaan (Self Employment, Self-Sustenance, and Self-Confidence) within street vendors.
   • The Minister launched a PM SVANidhi mobile app for street vendors, to ease the loan application process and provide various information to Street Vendors regarding the Scheme.
   • A facility for ‘Udyam’ registration and obtaining ‘Udyam Assist’ certificate for Street Vendors on PM SVANidhi portal was also launched with the help of Ministry of MSME, to provide easy access to vendors for obtaining Udyam Registration Certificate for promotion of their business.
   • The Lending Institutions which have performed good in this scheme were felicitated.
   • Banks – State Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, and Union Bank of India
   • RRBs – Andhra Pradesh Grameen Vikas Bank
   • State Cooperative Banks – Stree Nidhi Credit Cooperative Federation Ltd.

2. Ministry of Jal Shakti has launched the unified registration portal for the Galvanizing Organic Bio-Agro Resources Dhan (GOBARdhan) scheme.
   • GOBARdhan is an umbrella initiative which aims at promoting the conversion of organic waste like cattle dung/ agri-residue etc. to biogas/ CBG/ Bio CNG.
   • Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation, Ministry of Jal Shakti is the coordinating department for GOBARdhan.
   • 500 new ‘waste to wealth’ plants under GOBARdhan (Galvanizing Organic Bio-Agro Resources Dhan) initiative will be established for promoting circular economy.
   • These will include 200 compressed biogas (CBG) plants, including 75 plants in urban areas, and 300 community or cluster-based plants at total investment of Rs 10,000 crore.
     Source: Gobardhan portal
3. 3rd Employment Working Group (EWG) meeting under the G20 Indian Presidency was held at the International Labour Organization (ILO) headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland.
   • The fourth and final meeting of the Employment Working Group and the Labour and Employment Ministers Meeting is scheduled for 19th –21st July, 2023 in India at Indore.
     Source: PIB
4. Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has approved the changes in clauses of model concession agreements for Engineering, procurement and construction (EPC), Hybrid Annuity Mode (HAM), and Build Operate Transfer (BOT) contracts.
   • The centre has tweaked contracts issued for making highway and ropeways, allowing bidders to furnish e-bank guarantees and surety bonds.
     Source: ET
5. French railway company Alstom, has won the ₹30,000 crore contract for the manufacturing and maintenance of 100 aluminium body Vande Bharat trains.
   • The Indian Railways is aiming at rolling out the first Vande Bharat sleeper train by the first quarter of 2024.
   • The Railways has awarded contracts for the manufacture of 102 Vande Bharat chair trains and 200 Vande Bharat sleeper trains, so far.
   • Prime Minister Narendra Modi had planned to run 75 Vande Bharat trains by August 2024. However, the achievement of this target seems to be a little difficult with the current speed of manufacturing and deliver of these trains.
     Source: LiveMint
6. India and Vietnamese officials held the third Maritime Security Dialogue in New Delhi.
   • The second India-Vietnam Maritime Security Dialogue was held in April 2021 in virtual format following the first round held in Hanoi in March 2019.
     Source: ANI
7. India will import 10,000 MW of power from Nepal in the next 10 years.
   • MOUs signed between India and Nepal –
   • Treaty of Transit between the Government of India and the Government of Nepal
   • MoU between the Government of India and the Government of Nepal for cooperation in the field of Petroleum Infrastructure
   • MoU between Sushma Swaraj Institute of Foreign Service (SSIFS) and the Institute of Foreign Affairs, Nepal
   • MoU between the Government of India and the Government of Nepal for the development of infrastructure at Dodhara Chandani check post along Indo-Nepal Border
   • Project Development Agreement of Lower Arun Hydroelectric Project between M/S SJVN and Investment Board of Nepal
   • MoU between NHPC and VUCL, Nepal for the development of Phukot Karnali Hydroelectric Project
   • MoU between NPCIL and NCHL, Nepal for cross border payments
     Source: ET
8. Rural Development Ministry has announced that about 88% of the wage payment has been made through Aadhaar Based Payment Bridge System (ABPS) till May 2023.
   Source: News on Air

State News

1. In March, Maharashtra announced that the farmers in the state would be able to insure their crops by paying just Rs 1.
   • Besides, the government also decided to extend assistance to farmers from the State Disaster Relief Fund for crop loss in cases that do not meet the criteria of the crop insurance scheme.
   • At present, Maharashtra has announced that the state will fund the farmer’s share of 2% premium.
   • The state has also announced that an area of 25 lakh hectares in the state will be brought under organic farming in the next three years, to promote natural farming.
   • The scope of Dr Panjabrao Deshmukh Organic Farming Mission will be expanded by establishing 1,000 bio-input source centres. It was also announced in the state budget in March.
     Source: Indian Express, TOI
2. NTPC Green Energy has signed an MoU with UP Rajya Vidyut Utpadan Nigam to collaborate in the development of renewable energy parks and projects and to facilitate the energy transition in the state.
   • NTPC Green Energy Limited (NGEL) is NTPC’s fully owned subsidiary.
     Source: India Blooms
3. Guidance Tamil Nadu has signed six MoUs with Japanese companies and their Indian joint venture partners to cumulatively attract investments of close to Rs 820 crore.

4. Maharashtra govt has launched a new portal called ‘Mahalabharthi’ to make government schemes available at the doorstep of the common man by enlisting all the state govt schemes on this one portal.
   • Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde launched the ‘Shasan Aplya Dari’ (government at your doorstep) initiative with an aim to provide benefits of government schemes at one place.
     Source: Indian Express
5. Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has announced that Ahmednagar city would be renamed Ahilyanagar.
   • Ahilyabai Holkar was the Maratha warrior queen who ruled Malwa in the 18th century. The announcement was made on the 298th birth anniversary of the queen.
   • This is the third city in Maharashtra to be renamed in a year. This february, the state government formally approved a proposal to rename Aurangabad as Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and Osmanabad as Dharashiv.
     Source: The Print
6. Uttar Pradesh government launched a 15-day registration campaign for MSMEs in all 75 districts across the state till June 15.
   • Purpose – to provide a platform for the active MSMEs in the state to so that they can benefit from the schemes implemented by the Yogi government for MSMEs
   • The campaign aims at covering around 14 lakh such MSMEs that are not yet registered with the MSME Udyam portal, and providing them all the benefits of the schemes of the state government.

7. The Disha Mobile App has created a record with more than 17 crore registrations in the State for safety and security of women.
   • Launched three years ago, Disha app aims to help the women and citizens in an emergency.
     Source: The Hindu

8. A state-of-the-art Integrated Command and Control Centre (ICCC) has been set up on the outskirts of Srinagar city under the Smart City Mission.
   • It will be responsible for GIS mapping and will have a digital address for all the properties in the city.
   • The ICCC will also have a traffic management system, early warning system, location-based targeted surveillance and messaging service.
   • A portal, as well as an app, have been set up that will serve as a platform for the people to avail of the services provided by the Srinagar Municipal Corporation.
   • The city is likely to get 50 smart poles this year with cameras, LED screens and electric vehicle chargers as part of the smart city project.
     Source: News on Air and ET

Defence News

1. Strategic Forces Command carried out a successful training launch of a Medium-Range Ballistic Missile, Agni-1.
   • Features of this missile –
   • It is a single-stage, solid-fuel missile, which makes it easier to maintain and deploy.
   • It has a range of 700–900 km, which gives it the ability to strike targets in Pakistan and China.
   • It can carry a nuclear warhead.
     Source: Financial Express
2. Sapta Shakti Command of the Indian Army conducted exercise ‘Sudarshan Shakti 2023’ along the western borders in Rajasthan and Punjab from May 22 to 25.
   • Purpose – to validate operational plans in a network-centric environment with elements of combat power, combat support and logistic support
     Source: TOI

Memorandum of Understanding

1. Indian Navy and Indian Maritime University have signed an MOU for Technical Collaboration.
   Source: PIB
2. The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India’s (ICAI) Central Council has approved the renewal of the existing mutual recognition agreement (MRA) with CPA Canada and CPA Ireland.
   • The Central Council has also renewed MRA/MoUs with –
   • South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA),
   • Bahrain Institute of Banking and Finance (BIBF),
   • National Board of Accountants and Auditors (Tanzania) and,
   • Qatar Financial Centre Authority
   • The Union Cabinet had also recently approved an MoU between ICAI and CA Maldives.
   • In April, ICAI and the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) renewed their MoU for cooperation.
   • Earlier this week, ICAI has inaugurated its new Chapter in Seattle, USA. With this, ICAI now has nine chapters in the US.
     Source: HBL

International News

1. Allies Finland and Norway and Partner Sweden host the multinational Arctic Challenge Exercise (ACE) from 29 May to 9 June 2023.
   • The ACE was launched in 2013 and is held every second year.
   • Participants – NATO countries (31 total) and 14 other nations
   • In total, the exercises will be conducted from four bases: Ørland in Norway, Kallax in Sweden as well as Rovaniemi and Pirkkala in Finland.
   • The USS Gerald R. Ford is the largest warship ever built. It will also participate in the exercise.
     

Source: Euronews, NORDEFCO, NATO

Reports and Indices

1. International Renewable Energy Agency (HQ- UAE) has released the “Low-Cost Finance for the Energy Transition”
   Source: Official Report
2. The Times Higher Education Impact Ranking, which assesses universities against the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), has been released for 2023.
   • Total – 1,591 universities from 112 countries/regions
   • Parameters – research, stewardship, outreach and teaching
   • Top ranked – Western Sydney University (Aus), followed by University of Manchester (UK), and Queen’s University (Canada)
   • India’s top ranked – Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, Coimbatore (52nd)
   • Other Indian institutions that are in the top 300 (in overall rankings) are —
   • Lovely Professional University (Punjab) placed in 101 and 200 bracket,
   • Shoolini University of Biotechnology and Management Sciences (Himachal Pradesh) also placed in 101 and 200 bracket
   • KIIT University (Odisha) ranked between 201 and 300
   • Specific SDG rankings –

Source: Indian Express and THE

Banking and Economy

1. Kerala-based Manappuram Finance Ltd has launched Ma-Money, a new digital lending platform, to provide customers with all the financial products offered by Manappuram Finance under one umbrella.
   • The app is primarily targeted at customers in tier 2 and tier 3 cities.
   • Managing Director and CEO of Manappuram Finance – V P Nandakumar
     Source: TOI
2. mooPay, the fintech arm of Stellapps, has collaborated with IBISA Network, HDFC ERGO, and Gramcover to introduce an innovative insurance plan – mooMark – for farmers based on the Heat Index.
   • Purpose – to compensate mooMark dairy farmers for income loss resulting from decreased milk productivity during summer heat waves
   • It provides coverage to farmers if temperatures exceed specified limits for a predetermined number of days during a 60-day period starting from May 1st, taking into account region-specific parameters.
   • Each insured cattle is eligible for a maximum coverage of Rs 2000. Currently, the insurance cover is limited to one cattle per household.
   • Initially, mooMark is covering approximately 7000 farmers across 5 districts in 4 states, with a total sum assured exceeding Rs 1.3 crore.
   • Awareness about this program is being spread through village-level collection centers and Stellapps’ smartFarms app.
     Source: Krishi Jagran

3. Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited, in partnership with Myntra, has launched its first-of-its-kind co-branded digital fashion and lifestyle credit card.
   Source: CNBC
4. According to the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation’s payroll reporting data analysis, 39 crore people found new formal jobs in India in FY23.
   • This is a 13% increase compared to FY22.
   • EPFO assesses the firms which employ at least 20 people.
   • According to the data of Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy, the unemployment rate has lowered to 7.6% in FY23, compared to the previous two financial years — 8% in FY22 and 10% in FY21.
   • Maharashtra witnessed the highest job creation in the formal sector, accounting for 22% of the new jobs — 30.28 lakh payroll additions — across age groups and sectors.
   • Tamil Nadu is in second place, with 14.05 net new payroll additions in FY23. Karnataka, Haryana and Gujarat bagged the third, fourth and fifth positions, respectively.
     Source: HBL

5. Tata Group signed an agreement with the Gujarat state government to set up a giga-factory for manufacturing lithium-ion cells, with an estimated initial investment of around Rs 130 billion ($1.6 billion).
   • This plant will have an estimated initial investment of around Rs.13,000 crore and will have a production capacity of 20 GWh.
   • For this, an MoU has been concluded between the Government of Gujarat and the Tata Group in Gandhinagar.
   • This MOU is an outcome of the newly formulated Gujarat Electronics Policy 2022-28.
     Source: LiveMint
6. Karbon Card has launched Card++, a mobile-based expense management card, for businesses and individuals wherein it offers its users uncapped cashback of upto 1%.
   • Karbon provides banking services specifically for Indian companies.
     Source: Financial Express and Karbon
7. RBL Bank has introduced a new fixed deposit scheme – ACE Fixed Deposit.
   • Deposit range of FD – Rs 50 lakh to Rs 2 crores
   • Tenure of FD – 12 to 240 months
   • RBL Bank has also revised its fixed deposit interest rates effective from June 1, 2023.
     Source: ET

8. IRDAI has identified SBI Life Insurance to acquire the business of Sahara India Life Insurance (SILIC) to protect the interest of 200,000 policyholders.
   • Sahara India Life Insurance was granted a certificate of registration in 2004.
   • The company has been accused of fund diversion, poor governance, etc.
     Source: Indian Express

9. SEBI has released guidelines for stock exchanges to conduct trade of corporate bonds through Request for Quote (RFQ) platform.
   • Objective – to increase the liquidity on Request for Quote (RFQ) platform of stock exchanges and to enhance the transparency and disclosure pertaining to trading in secondary market in corporate bonds
   • SEBI has asked stock brokers to undertake at least 10% of their total secondary market trades by value through RFQ platforms.
   • This will be increased to at least 25% of their total secondary market trades by April 2024.

10. According to the data released by the Controller General of Accounts (CGA), the govt’s fiscal deficit for 2022-23 amounts to 6.4% of the GDP.
    • The absolute value of the fiscal deficit is at Rs 17.33 lakh crore.
    • Total receipts for fiscal 2023 stood at Rs 24.56 lakh crore, while overall expenditure was at Rs 41.89 lakh crore.
    • The FY23 capital expenditure exceeded the government’s revised target of Rs 7.28 lakh crore by Rs 8,551 crore.
    • Finance Ministry has set a target to further narrow the deficit for 2023-24 to 5.9%, and 4.5% of the GDP by 2025-26.
    • According to CGA data, the direct tax collection stood at Rs. 16.61 lakh crore in the last fiscal year, which was higher than the revised target of Rs 16.5 lakh crore.
    • Gross GST collection in the FY23 increased by 22% to Rs 18.10 lakh crore and the average gross monthly collection for the full year was Rs 1.51 lakh crore.
      Source: Business Today
11. The High Court of Karnataka has upheld constitutional validity of Section 37A of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), 1999.
    • It empowers the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to seize in India assets equivalent to any foreign exchange, foreign security or any immovable property held outside India in violation of FEMA.
      Source: The Hindu
12. Ministry of Finance has announced that India’s gross GST revenue collection in the month of May stood at Rs 1,57,090 crore, registering a rise of 12% on a year-on-year basis.
    • In April, India saw a record-high GST collection of Rs 1.87 lakh crore.
      Source: ET
13. According to the data released by the S&P Global Market Intelligence, India’s manufacturing activity, measured by the Purchasing Managers Index (PMI), reached a 31-month high in May at 58.7.
    Source: HT
14. RBI has proposed a framework for overall information security with an emphasis cyber resilience to improve the safety and security of the payment systems operated by payment system operators (PSOs).
    • The framework is part of the draft paper on Cyber Resilience and Digital Payment Security Controls for non-bank PSOs.
    • The large non-bank PSOs will be required to comply with the norms from April 2024, medium PSOs from April 2026 and small PSOs from April 2028.

• PSOs are required to formulate a Cyber Crisis Management Plan and define Key Risk Indicators (KRIs) to identify potential risk events and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to assess the effective of security controls.
• PSOs will need to undertake a cyber risk assessment for the launch of new products, services, technologies or any major changes to the infrastructure or processes of existing products and services.
• They will also need to develop a Business Continuity Plan (BCP) on different cyber threat scenarios, which will be reviewed annually.

15. IRDAI has released the draft guidelines for ‘Bima Vahaks’ to establish a dedicated distribution channel at the level of Gram Panchayats.
    • These guidelines are focused on enhancing insurance inclusion and creating awareness in every Gram Panchayat and to address the local needs within every Gram Panchayat and village.
    • The guidelines propose Corporate Bima Vahaks and Individual Bima Vahaks for the distribution channel.
    • Corporate Bima Vahak would be legal persons registered in accordance with the respective laws and engaged by an insurer.
    • Individual Bima Vahak could be any individual appointed by an insurer or appointed by a Corporate Bima Vahak.
    • The Bima Vahaks, both corporate and individual, would be authorised to undertake activities like the collection of proposal information, and KYC documents and coordinate claims-related services.
    • Bima Vahaks should be encouraged to adopt electronic payment processes facilitated by the insurers to enable direct remittance of premiums.
      Source: ET

GDP Forecasts

1. P. Morgan has its forecast for India’s annual growth by 50 basis points to 5.5% for fiscal 2024.
   • For FY23 – 7.2%
     Source: Reuters
2. National Statistical Office has increased its GDP forecast for fiscal 2022-2023 to 7.2% from 7%, as compared to 9.1% growth in fiscal 2021-2022.
   • Fourth Quarter of 2022-23 – 6.1%

Source: The Wire, ET, and BT

Appointments

1. Dennis Francis (Ambassador of Trinidad and Tobago) has been elected as the President of the 78th session of the UN General Assembly (scheduled for September 5-19, 2023 in New York).
   • Vision for the 78th session – ‘Peace, Prosperity, Progress and Sustainability’
   • Thematic Report to the 78th session of the UN General Assembly “The rights to water and sanitation as a tool for peace, prevention and cooperation” was released.

2. Celeste Saulo (Former Director of the National Meteorological Service of Argentina) has been appointed as the first female Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO).
   • She will assume office on January 1, 2024 and succeeds Petteri Taalas, who completed his two-term term.
   • Prior to her appointment as the Secy-Gen, she was functioning as the first Vice-President of WMO.
   • During the 19th World Meteorological Congress in Geneva, India Meteorological Department (IMD) director general Mrutyunjay Mohapatra was elected as one of the three Vice Presidents of the WMO.
   • The other two being elected are Eoin Moran (from Ireland) as the second VP and Daouda Konate (from Cote d’Ivoire) as the first VP for the next four years.
     Source: ANI and TOI
3. Dr Abdulla Al Mandous (from UAE) has been elected as the new President of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) for a four-year term from 2023 to 2027.
   • The election took place during the 19th session of the World Meteorological Congress (Cg-19) held in Geneva, Switzerland.
   • He will replace Germany’s Prof Gerhard Adrian.
   • Under Dr Al Mandous’ leadership, WMO’s upcoming 77th Executive Council Session (EC-77) was chaired by the UAE in Geneva.
     Source: News on Air

Important Days

1. June 2 – International Sex Workers’ Day / International Whores’ Day; Theme – Decriminalization and Empowerment
   • As per an article of LiveMint, “Access to Justice” is the theme of this day.
   • March 3 – International Sex Worker Rights Day
   • September 14 – Sex Worker Pride
   • December 17 – International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers
     Source: The Statesman, LiveMint, Global Network for Sex Workers

2. June 2 – Telangana’s statehood (10th anniversary)
   Source: The Hindu
3. June 3 – World Bicycle Day; Theme – Riding Together for a Sustainable Future
   Source: The Quint

Awards

1. ‘Bank of Baroda Rashtrabhasha Samman’ Award 2023 (1st edition) will recognize literary works in Indian languages and the translation of these into Hindi, and will be presented to both the original author and the translator.
   • The jury is chaired by Booker Prize winner Geetanjali Shree. Other members of the jury include Arun Kamal (an Indian poet), Pushpesh Pant (an academic and historian), Anamika, (a contemporary Indian poet and novelist), and Prabhat Ranjan (a Hindi fiction writer and translator).
   • The author of the original work and the respective Hindi translator of the award-winning book will receive Rs 21 lakh and Rs 15 lakh respectively.
   • In addition to this, the authors and the Hindi translators of the next five shortlisted books will receive Rs. 3 lakh and Rs. 2 lakh each respectively.

Source: ET

Sports

1. India has defeated Pakistan in the Men’s Junior Asia Cup 2023 here in Salalah, Oman.
   Source: HT
2. Indian cyclist Esow Alben (from Andaman and Nicobar Island) won the bronze medal in the elite men’s keirin event at the Finale Bahnen-Tournee 2023 cycling competition in Dudenhofen, Germany.
   • Last year, Esow Alben became the first cyclist from India to participate in the UCI Champions League.
     Source: Olympics.com
3. The 3rd Khelo India University Games was organized in Uttar Pradesh. The Games were held across nine venues in four cities of UP namely Lucknow, Varanasi, Gorakhpur and Gautambuddh Nagar.
   • Winner – Panjab University (69 medals including 26 gold)
   • Runner-up – Guru Nanak Dev University
   • Water Sports made its debut at these games with the rowing competitions taking place in Gorakhpur. The shooting competition was held in Delhi.
     Source: News on Air

Miscellaneous

1. Ghanaian writer and feminist Ama Ata Aidoo passed away.
   • Her first work, “The Dilemma of a Ghost”, a play, was published in 1965, making her the first African woman to publish a play
     Source: Al Jazeera

Start Quiz of 03rd-05th June 2023 on Mobile

Start Quiz of 03rd-05th June 2023 on Desktop