03rd-05th March, 2023

1. According to the Department of Pharmaceuticals’ data, the Pradhan Mantri Bharatiya Janaushadi Pariyojana has achieved sales of more than Rs. 1100 Crore in 2022-23 which has further led to savings of approximately Rs. 6600 Cr. to the citizens.
2. G20 Foreign Ministers Meeting (FMM), which is scheduled to take place in physical format from March 1-2, 2023 in New Delhi under India’s Presidency is “one of the largest gatherings of foreign ministers hosted by any G20 Presidency”.
3. Supreme Court has formed an expert committee headed by former apex court judge, Justice Abhay Manohar Sapre, to investigate the causes of regulatory failure which led to investors losing crores following Hindenburg Research’s report.
4. Ministry of Home Affairs has cancelled the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) licence of the Centre for Policy Research (a prominent public think tank).
5. President Droupadi Murmu inaugurated the 7th International Dharma Dhamma Conference, organised by the India Foundation in collaboration with the Sanchi University of Buddhist-Indic Studies, in Madhya Pradesh’s capital Bhopal.
6. Hindustan Samachar was awarded a new contract to provide news content in 12 languages to Doordarshan and AIR for a period of 25-and-a-half months.
7. The 8th Raisina Dialogue was held in New Delhi on the theme of “Provocation, Uncertainty, Turbulence: Lighthouse in the Tempest”.
8. The Atomic Minerals Directorate for Exploration and Research (AMD) has conducted the preliminary surveys in Karnataka and found lithium reserves in the Madhya district.
9. Over 25 crore health records have been successfully linked to the Ayushman Bharat Health Accounts (ABHA consist of 14-digit numbers).
10. Tamil Nadu government has signed an MOU with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) for implementing Urban Cooling Programme in the state to meet the objectives under the Tamil Nadu State Action Plan on Climate Change.
11. Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu launched the Unified Payment Interface (UPI) and ‘Swadhan-e-pension-Gov’ services for Kangra Central Cooperative Bank.
12. Garcinia pedunculata, a medicinal plant commonly called ‘Borthekera’ in Assam, has been found to protect from heart diseases.
13. Union Cabinet approved the acquisition of 70 HTT-40 basic trainer aircraft from Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) for ₹6,828.36 crore.
14. IIT-Guwahati has signed an MoU with Samagra Shiksha, Assam, (SSA) under the Rashtriya Avishkar Abhiyan to develop scientific temper and strengthen students’ ability to handle challenging environments.
15. NASA and SpaceX have launched Crew-6 spacecraft to the International Space Station.
16. United States has approved the sale to Taiwan of $619 million in munitions for F-16 fighter jets.
17. According to the annual World Bank report, the UAE scored 82.5 out of 100 for enacting legislation and regulations that support women’s rights and workplace roles.
18. The Atacama Large Millimetre/submillimetre Array (ALMA) — a radio telescope comprising 66 antennas located in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile — is set to get software and hardware upgrades that will help it collect much more data and produce sharper images than ever before.
19. Japan has launched the Senior Mission Leaders’ (SML) course to prepare senior personnel for future roles and responsibilities as mission leaders in United Nations (UN) peacekeeping operations, enabling them to plan, manage, and lead such missions.
20. Windsor Framework has been adopted by Northern Ireland and UK to veto any EU regulations that may adversely impact the region.
21. “Indian States’ Electricity Transition (SET)” report has been released by Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA).
22. Axis Bank has completed the acquisition of the consumer businesses of Citibank India and its non-banking finance arm, Citicorp Finance (India), for a cash consideration of Rs 11,603 crore.
23. Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) has signed an MoU with ShowReel for developing an online digital platform for providing handholding support to aspiring innovators with practical-based hand holding demonstration and equity funding to channelise ideas offering solutions to multitude of problems.
24. IRCTC has partnered with the HDFC Bank to launch the “IRCTC HDFC Bank Credit Card”, which will be in a single variant exclusively available on NPCI’s Rupay network.
25. SEBI has allowed the National Stock Exchange (NSE), the largest stock exchange in India, to introduce futures contracts for NYMEX WTI Crude Oil and Natural Gas (Henry Hub) in its Commodity derivatives section.
26. Bajaj Finserv Limited has received final approval from SEBI to start its mutual fund operations under Bajaj Finserv Mutual Fund.
27. Olectra Greentech Limited, a group company of Megha Engineering & Infrastructures Limited (MEIL), has developed Olectra e-tipper, which is India’s first certified heavy-duty electric tipper engineered and manufactured indigenously.
28. According to the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) data, India’s unemployment rate rose to 45% in February 2023 from 7.14% in the previous month.
29. State-owned power giant NTPC has commissioned India’s first air-cooled condenser at North Karanpura super critical thermal plant in
30. SEBI has imposed a penalty of Rs 6 lakh on Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) for violating regulations pertaining to data entries of Sikkim-based clients.
31. The GST collections have risen by 12% to Rs 1.49 lakh-crore in February 2023.
32. Vo Van Thuong has been elected as the new President of Vietnam.
33. Rajesh Malhotra has been appointed as the Principal Director General of the Press Information Bureau.
34. March 1 – World Seagrass Day
35. March 3 – World Wildlife Day; Theme – Partnerships for Wildlife Conservation
36. 2023 Sportstar Aces Awards have been announced.
37. Union Health and Family Welfare Ministry has received the Porter Prize 2023 for managing COVID-19, also the approach, and involvement of various stakeholders especially involvement of ASHA workers in the industry to create PPE Kits.
38. Star all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin has surpassed World Cup-winning skipper Kapil Dev to become the third-highest wicket-taker for India in international cricket.
39. Govind Kumar Sahani has won the silver medal in men’s 48 kg at the Strandja Memorial Boxing Tournament 2023 at Sofia, Bulgaria.
40. “The Book of Bihari Literature” – collection of short stories – has been edited by Abhya K.
41. Chandrashekhar Dasgupta (former Indian diplomat and Padma Shri awardee) has passed away.
42. Just Fontaine, the French soccer star who scored a record 13 goals at the 1958 World Cup, has passed away.
43. Kol community is mostly concentrated in central India, especially in the northern districts of Madhya Pradesh. Members of this community are also settled in Uttar Pradesh, Odisha and Maharashtra.
44. Tourette Syndrome is a nervous disorder, which develops during childhood or adolescence. It is characterised by multiple repetitive movements, coughing, blinking, sniffing, throat clearing, and facial movements.
45. Thomas Sankara’s (aka “Africa’s Che Guevara”) remains were buried again in Burkina Faso.

National News

1. According to the Department of Pharmaceuticals’ data, the Pradhan Mantri Bharatiya Janaushadi Pariyojana has achieved sales of more than 1100 Crore in 2022-23 which has further led to savings of approximately Rs. 6600 Cr. to the citizens.
   • During the financial year 2021-22, PMBJP has achieved sales of Rs. 893.56 crores (at MRP).
   • Under the scheme, generic medicines available are priced 50-90% lower than branded offerings. Product basket has also been increased to 1,759 drugs (generic) and 280 surgical instruments.
   • 1st March to 7th March – Jan Aushadhi Week
   • At present, the 9,082 Janaushadhi Kendras are operatal under the Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana (PMBJP). The target is to increase the numbers to 10,000 by December 2023.
2. G20 Foreign Ministers Meeting (FMM), which is scheduled to take place in physical format from March 1-2, 2023 in New Delhi under India’s Presidency is “one of the largest gatherings of foreign ministers hosted by any G20 Presidency”.
   • It will be under the chairmanship of External Affairs Minister, S Jaishankar.
3. Supreme Court has formed an expert committee headed by former apex court judge, Justice Abhay Manohar Sapre, to investigate the causes of regulatory failure which led to investors losing crores following Hindenburg Research’s report.
4. Ministry of Home Affairs has cancelled the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) licence of the Centre for Policy Research (a prominent public think tank).
   • CPR, a non-profit organisation, which also receives grants from the Indian Council for Social Science Research (ICSSR), is a recognised institution of the Department of Science and Technology.
5. Quad Foreign Ministers meeting was held in New Delhi.
   • The Foreign Ministers of Quad member countries (India, US, Japan, and Australia) have reaffirmed their commitment to supporting a free and open Indo-Pacific, which is inclusive and resilient.
   • The meeting was attended by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Japan foreign minister Yoshimasa Hayashi and Australian foreign minister Penny Wong.
6. President Droupadi Murmu inaugurated the 7th International Dharma Dhamma Conference, organised by the India Foundation in collaboration with the Sanchi University of Buddhist-Indic Studies, in Madhya Pradesh’s capital Bhopal.
7. Hindustan Samachar was awarded a new contract to provide news content in 12 languages to Doordarshan and AIR for a period of 25-and-a-half months.
8. The 8th Raisina Dialogue was held in New Delhi on the theme of “Provocation, Uncertainty, Turbulence: Lighthouse in the Tempest”.
9. The Atomic Minerals Directorate for Exploration and Research (AMD) has conducted the preliminary surveys in Karnataka and found lithium reserves in the Madhya district.
   • They indicate the presence of some 1,600 tonnes of the resource in pegmatite rocks.

10. Over 25 crore health records have been successfully linked to the Ayushman Bharat Health Accounts (ABHA consist of 14-digit numbers).

State News

1. Tamil Nadu government has signed an MOU with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) for implementing Urban Cooling Programme in the state to meet the objectives under the Tamil Nadu State Action Plan on Climate Change.
   • It will facilitate comprehensive city and state-level planning for plastics waste management through scientific assessments and decision support systems, extended producers’ responsibility implementation frameworks, enforcement of single-use plastics bans, capacity building and awareness generation.
   • The State government is also setting up Tamil Nadu Green Climate Fund with a fund size of ₹1,000 crore.
2. Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu launched the Unified Payment Interface (UPI) and ‘Swadhan-e-pension-Gov’ services for Kangra Central Cooperative Bank.
3. Garcinia pedunculata, a medicinal plant commonly called ‘Borthekera’ in Assam, has been found to protect from heart diseases.
   • The plant is traditionally forbidden for raw consumption.
   • Scientists of Institute of Advanced Study in Science and Technology (IASST), an autonomous institute of the Department of Science and Technology (DST), explored this medicinal plant’s potential to prevent heart diseases.

Defence News

1. Union Cabinet approved the acquisition of 70 HTT-40 basic trainer aircraft from Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) for ₹6,828.36 crore.
   • The HTT-40 is a turbo-prop aircraft and is designed to have good low-speed handling qualities and provide better training effectiveness.
   • Union Cabinet approved signing of a contract with Larsen & Toubro Ltd (L&T) for acquisition of 3 cadet training ships, at an overall cost of ₹3,108.09 crore, under Buy (Indian-IDDM (Indigenously Designed, Developed and Manufactured)) category.
   • The delivery of ships is scheduled to commence from 2026.

Memorandum of Understand

1. IIT-Guwahati has signed an MoU with Samagra Shiksha, Assam, (SSA) under the Rashtriya Avishkar Abhiyan to develop scientific temper and strengthen students’ ability to handle challenging environments.
   • Under the Rashtriya Avishkar Abhiyan of the Ministry of Education, the institute is collaborating with other higher education institutes for mentoring higher secondary schools across Assam.

International News

1. NASA and SpaceX have launched Crew-6 spacecraft to the International Space Station.
   • The spacecraft consisted of NASA’s astronaut Stephen Bowen and Woody Hoburg, the United Arab Emirates’ Sultan Al Neyadi (1st Arab Astronaut), and Russian cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev.
2. United States has approved the sale to Taiwan of $619 million in munitions for F-16 fighter jets.
3. According to the annual World Bank report, the UAE scored 82.5 out of 100 for enacting legislation and regulations that support women’s rights and workplace roles.
   • The report covers 190 countries.
   • The report assesses countries across 35 sub indicators divided into eight major areas of the report: Mobility, Workplace, Pay, Marriage, Parenthood, Entrepreneurship, Assets, and Pension.
4. The Atacama Large Millimetre/submillimetre Array (ALMA) — a radio telescope comprising 66 antennas located in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile — is set to get software and hardware upgrades that will help it collect much more data and produce sharper images than ever before.
   • The upgrades would take around five years to finish and cost $37 million.

5. Japan has launched the Senior Mission Leaders’ (SML) course to prepare senior personnel for future roles and responsibilities as mission leaders in United Nations (UN) peacekeeping operations, enabling them to plan, manage, and lead such missions.
6. Windsor Framework has been adopted by Northern Ireland and UK to veto any EU regulations that may adversely impact the region.

Reports and Indices

1. “Indian States’ Electricity Transition (SET)” report has been released by Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA).
   • Karnataka and Gujarat are the Indian states making the most progress in overall preparedness and commitment in the transition to clean electricity.
   • The report analyses 16 Indian states, which together account for 90% of the country’s annual power requirement, across four dimensions.

Banking and Economy

1. Axis Bank has completed the acquisition of the consumer businesses of Citibank India and its non-banking finance arm, Citicorp Finance (India), for a cash consideration of Rs 11,603 crore.
2. Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) has signed an MoU with ShowReel for developing an online digital platform for providing handholding support to aspiring innovators with practical-based hand holding demonstration and equity funding to channelise ideas offering solutions to multitude of problems.
   • The platform will be a one-stop-shop for innovators, providing access to training videos, market analysis, and mentorship, in addition to a virtual incubation program.
3. IRCTC has partnered with the HDFC Bank to launch the “IRCTC HDFC Bank Credit Card”, which will be in a single variant exclusively available on NPCI’s Rupay network.
4. SEBI has allowed the National Stock Exchange (NSE), the largest stock exchange in India, to introduce futures contracts for NYMEX WTI Crude Oil and Natural Gas (Henry Hub) in its Commodity derivatives section.
   • The approval would enable NSE to provide rupee-denominated derivative contracts for Indian investors in major international benchmarks.
5. Bajaj Finserv Limited has received final approval from SEBI to start its mutual fund operations under Bajaj Finserv Mutual Fund.
   • The Bajaj Finserv Asset Management Limited (BFAML) is the Investment Manager of this fund.
6. Olectra Greentech Limited, a group company of Megha Engineering & Infrastructures Limited (MEIL), has developed Olectra e-tipper, which is India’s first certified heavy-duty electric tipper engineered and manufactured indigenously.
   • The electric tipper is India’s first 6×4 heavy-duty electric truck.
7. According to the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) data, India’s unemployment rate rose to 45% in February 2023 from 7.14% in the previous month.
8. State-owned power giant NTPC has commissioned India’s first air-cooled condenser at North Karanpura super critical thermal plant in
   • This project has been envisaged with Air Cooled Condenser (ACC) which has almost 1/3rd water footprint as compared to a conventional Water-Cooled Condenser (WCC).
9. SEBI has imposed a penalty of Rs 6 lakh on Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) for violating regulations pertaining to data entries of Sikkim-based clients.
   • The matter relates to incorrect input of State code and City code as Sikkim by seven trading members of MCX in the UCC (Unique Client Code)
   • Sebi found that MCX imposed a penalty of Rs 10,000 per client on these trading members for wrong entries in June 2022.

10. The GST collections have risen by 12% to Rs 1.49 lakh-crore in February 2023.

Appointment

1. Vo Van Thuong has been elected as the new President of Vietnam.

2. Rajesh Malhotra has been appointed as the Principal Director General of the Press Information Bureau.

Important Days

1. March 1 – World Seagrass Day
2. March 3 – World Wildlife Day; Theme – Partnerships for Wildlife Conservation

Awards

1. 2023 Sportstar Aces Awards have been announced.

2. Union Health and Family Welfare Ministry has received the Porter Prize 2023 for managing COVID-19, also the approach, and involvement of various stakeholders especially involvement of ASHA workers in the industry to create PPE Kits.
   • The prize was announced during The India Dialog at Stanford University.

Sports

1. Star all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin has surpassed World Cup-winning skipper Kapil Dev to become the third-highest wicket-taker for India in international cricket.
   • The feat was achieved by Ashwin during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
2. Govind Kumar Sahani has won the silver medal in men’s 48 kg at the Strandja Memorial Boxing Tournament 2023 at Sofia, Bulgaria.

Miscellaneous

1. “The Book of Bihari Literature” – collection of short stories – has been edited by Abhya K.
2. Chandrashekhar Dasgupta (former Indian diplomat and Padma Shri awardee) has passed away.
3. Just Fontaine, the French soccer star who scored a record 13 goals at the 1958 World Cup, has passed away.
4. Kol community is mostly concentrated in central India, especially in the northern districts of Madhya Pradesh. Members of this community are also settled in Uttar Pradesh, Odisha and Maharashtra.
5. Tourette Syndrome is a nervous disorder, which develops during childhood or adolescence. It is characterised by multiple repetitive movements, coughing, blinking, sniffing, throat clearing, and facial movements.
   • Recently, Lewis Capaldi (a Scottish singer) has been diagnosed with this disorder.
6. Thomas Sankara’s (aka “Africa’s Che Guevara”) remains were buried again in Burkina Faso.
   • Thomas Sankara was an anti-colonial revolutionary who briefly headed the country.
   • President Thomas Sankara named the country as Burkina Faso or “Land of Upright Men”.

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