16th-18th December, 2023

1. Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change has launched the Indian Forest & Wood Certification Scheme (IFWCS).
2. Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur (IIT-K) and the Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited have launched India’s first fully integrated school of sustainability at IIT Kanpur.
3. Saint Lucia has launched Tax Inspectors without Borders (TIWB) programme in partnership with India.
4. Fastest solar electric boat of India ‘Barracuda’ has been launched in Alappuzha, Kerala.
5. Parliament has passed a bill giving nod to the establishment of ‘Sammakka Sarakka Central Tribal University’ in Telangana.
6. China has launched an uncrewed reusable ‘Long March 2F’ carrier rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Northwest China’s Gobi Desert.
7. China has unveiled world’s deepest physics lab on Earth in Sichuan.
8. IDFC FIRST Bank, LIC Cards and Mastercard have collaborated to launch a co-branded credit card to meet the Financial Needs of India.
9. Cashfree Payments has launched ‘FlowWise’ India’s first self-hosted payments orchestration platform for Indian businesses.
10. Reliance Industries has partnered with DBS Bank India for a financing program for Compressed Bio Gas (CBG) plants.
11. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has revealed the issue price for the next Sovereign Gold Bond (SGB) series III.
12. Ola CEO Bhavish Agarwal has launched new Artificial Intelligence model ‘Krutrim AI’
13. National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER) and Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) have released report ‘Logistics Cost in India: Assessment and Long-Term Framework’.
14. World Health Organisation (WHO) has released 5th Global Status Report on Road Safety 2023.
15. Coal demand of India will grow at 3.5% annually till 2026 as per International Energy Agency (IEA) report ‘Coal 2023- Analysis and forecast to 2026’.
16. HC Robotics of Hyderabad has partnered with French company Merio to produce advanced gimbals for Indian Armed Forces.
17. Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has successfully tested an indigenous high-speed flying-wing Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) under project ‘Ghatak’.
18. Indian Armed Forces officers have been awarded ‘Golden Owl’ for outstanding performance at Defence Services Command & Staff College (DSCSC) in Sapugaskanda, Sri Lanka.
19. Music conductor Daniel Barenboim and peace activist Ali Abu Awwad on have been jointly awarded the Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development 2023.
20. 53rd Vijay Diwas
21. Leander Paes and broadcaster and promoter Vijay Amritraj of India have become the first Asian men to be inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame.
22. Novak Djokovic and Aryna Sabalenka have won ITF World Champion awards for 2023.
23. Indian Wrestler Antim Panghal has been named as the women’s Rising Star of the Year 2023 by United World Wrestling (UWW).
24. NITI Aayog and International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) have signed a 5-year Statement of Intent (SoI) to strengthen policy frameworks for agricultural transformation and rural development.
25. Indian candidate, Uma Sekhar has been elected to the Governing Council of the International Institute for the Unification of Private Law (UNIDROIT) with in the first round at the elections held in Rome.
26. Rijul Maini, a medical student from Michigan has been recently crowned Miss India USA 2023 in New Jersey.

National News

1. Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change has launched the Indian Forest & Wood Certification Scheme (IFWCS).
   • More about IFWCS–
     • It offers voluntary third-party certification designed to promote sustainable forest management and agroforestry in the country.
     • It includes-
       • Forest management certification,
       • Tree outside forest management certification, and
       • Chain of custody certification
     • It provides market incentives to various entities that adhere to responsible forest management and agroforestry practices in their operations.
     • Certification consists of 8 criteria, 69 indicators and 254 verifiers, which is an integral part of the National Working Plan Code 2023
     • Overseeing body–
       • Indian Forest and Wood Certification Council
     • Scheme operating and management agency–
       • Indian Institute of Forest Management, Bhopal National Accreditation Board for Certification Bodies under the Quality Council of India will accredit the certification bodies
       • Certification Bodies will carry out independent audits and assess adherence of various entities on the standards prescribed under the scheme.
         Source: PIB
2. Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur (IIT-K) and the Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited have launched India’s first fully integrated school of sustainability at IIT Kanpur.
   • Key points–
     • It will be known as Kotak School of Sustainability (KSS).
     • It will run both undergraduate and postgraduate academic and skill-building programs in different themes of sustainability.
     • KSS will be funded by Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programme ‘Kotak Karma’.
       Source: ET
3. Saint Lucia has launched Tax Inspectors without Borders (TIWB) programme in partnership with India.
   • What is Tax Inspectors without Borders (TIWB)-
     • It is a joint initiative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) which provides expert assistance and transfer of tax audit knowledge to developing countries.
   • India has been chosen as the Partner Administration and will provide Tax Experts for this programme.
   • This is the seventh TIWB programme which India has supported by providing Tax Experts.
     Source: PIB

State News

1. Fastest solar electric boat of India ‘Barracuda’ has been launched in Alappuzha, Kerala.
   • Designed by– Navalt Solar and Electric Boats
   • Key points–
     • It can be deployed even in the rough seas as a workboat to ferry up to 12 passengers and cargo.
     • It can attain a top speed of 12.5 knots (23 kmph) and it has a range of seven hours on a single charge.
       Source: The Hindu
2. Parliament has passed a bill giving nod to the establishment of ‘Sammakka Sarakka Central Tribal University’ in Telangana.
   • More about Tribal university–
     • It aims to provide higher education and research facilities primarily for the tribal population.
     • Estimated cost of setting up of the university would be around ₹900 crore.
       Source: livemint

International News

1. China has launched an uncrewed reusable ‘Long March 2F’ carrier rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Northwest China’s Gobi Desert.
   Source: chndaily
2. China has unveiled world’s deepest physics lab on Earth in Sichuan.
   • More about lab–
     • It is known as Deep Underground and Ultra-low Radiation Background Facility for Frontier Physics Experiments (DURF)
     • It is located beneath Jinping Mountain in Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture.
     • It has a total room capacity of 330,000 cubic metres.

   • What is the purpose of lab?
     • It will help in studying new frontiers in deep-earth experiments as the extreme depth will help the scientists by blocking most cosmic rays that mess with the observation.
     
     
     
     
   • Built by–
     • Tsinghua University and Yalong River Hydropower Development Company, Ltd.
       Source: WION
     
     
     
     
   
   
   
   
   
   

Banking and Economy

1. IDFC FIRST Bank, LIC Cards and Mastercard have collaborated to launch a co-branded credit card to meet the Financial Needs of India.
   • Key features–
     • Card has many benefits such as no joining and annual fees.
     • It has low interest rates starting from 9% p.a.
     • It is designed to bring value to consumers of varied age groups across the country.
     • It comes with Rs. 50,000 covers for lost card liability and a personal accident insurance cover of up to Rs. 5 lakhs.
     • Card has two variants- LIC Classic and LIC Select
       Source: Print

   
   
2. Cashfree Payments has launched ‘FlowWise’ India’s first self-hosted payments orchestration platform for Indian businesses.
   • Objective–
     • To facilitate Indian businesses in managing diverse payment systems through a single setup.
   • Key features–
     • It allows instant payments to different partners based on specific needs.
     • It simplifies the complexity of using multiple Payment Gateways for businesses, offering a plug-and-play experience without complex coding.
   • What is an orchestration platform?
     • An orchestration platform is like a conductor for computer tasks, making sure different software works together smoothly, automating processes for efficiency.
       Source: ET
     
     
3. Reliance Industries has partnered with DBS Bank India for a financing program for Compressed Bio Gas (CBG) plants.
   • Objective–
     • To create an ecosystem for vendor partners to supply agricultural residue for Reliance’s CBG production.
   • Key points–
     • It is designed to enhance the competitiveness of the CBG supply chain through financial support.
     • It aligns with strategic goals for sustainable energy practices, emphasizing CBG production from agricultural residue.
       Source: ET

4. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has revealed the issue price for the next Sovereign Gold Bond (SGB) series III.
   • More about SGB issue–
     • Subscription period- December 18-22, 2023
     • Issue Price- Rs 6,199 per gram
     • Interest rate- Government has set a fixed interest rate of 2.5% with no compounding of interest.
     • Discount- Discount of Rs 50 per gram less than the nominal value to investors who register online and pay for the application using digital means.

   
   

5. Ola CEO Bhavish Agarwal has launched new Artificial Intelligence model ‘Krutrim AI’.
   • More about Krutrim AI–
     • It is launched by Krutrim SI Designs, an AI venture by Ola co-founder Bhavish Aggarwal.
     • It has introduced a family of multilingual AI models named Krutrim, designed for the unique requirements of the Indian ecosystem.
   • Model Sizes–
     • Base model: Krutrim trained on 2 trillion tokens and unique datasets.
     • Larger model: Krutrim Pro, launching next quarter, for advanced problem-solving and task execution.

   • Language Capabilities–
     • It understands 22 Indian languages and it can generate content in about 10, including Marathi, Hindi, Bengali, Tamil, Kannada, Telugu, Odia, Gujarati, and Malayalam.
     • It is trained on over two trillion tokens of data for Indian languages, with the base model having around 20 times more Indic tokens than any other existing model.
       Source: Hindu BusinessLine

Reports and Indices

1. National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER) and Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) have released report ‘Logistics Cost in India: Assessment and Long-Term Framework’.
   • Key finding–
     • Logistic costs of India ranged between 7.8% and 8.9% during 2021-22, down from 8.7-9.9% during 2011-12.
     • It saw a dip during 2014-15 to 2016-17, from 8.3-9.4% to 7.8-8.8%.
   • Reason for decline in logistic cost–
     • Logistic cost reduced due to a faster growth in nominal GDP than in logistic costs, and a fall in fuel prices compared to the earlier period.
       Source: livemint
2. World Health Organisation (WHO) has released 5th Global Status Report on Road Safety 2023.
   • Key observation–
   • Global Road Traffic Fatalities Trends (2010-2021)–
     • Despite a 13% increase in the global population, road traffic fatalities have decreased by 5% in absolute numbers.
     • Global road fatality rate per 100,000 people has declined from 18 in 2010 to 15 in 2021, representing a 16% reduction.
   • Regional Distribution of Road Traffic Deaths–
     • WHO’s South-East Asia Region has the highest share, with 28% of global road traffic deaths.
     • Other significant contributions were from the Western Pacific (25%), African (19%), Americas (12%), Eastern Mediterranean (11%), and European Regions (5%)
   • Road Traffic Fatalities in India (2010-2021)–
     • India has experienced a concerning trend with a 15% increase in road traffic fatalities.
     • Total number of deaths rose from 1.34 lakh (134,000) in 2010 to 1.54 lakh (154,000) in 2021.
     • This increase underscores challenges in road safety measures and highlights the need for targeted interventions in the country.

3. Coal demand of India will grow at 3.5% annually till 2026 as per International Energy Agency (IEA) report ‘Coal 2023- Analysis and forecast to 2026’.
   • Key observations–
     • Indian Coal Demand will reach 1397 million tonnes by 2026, with an 8% increase in 2023.
     • India is aiming for 50% non-fossil fuel power by 2030 but it may require additional coal capacity to meet growing demand and ensure supply security.
     • Global Coal Demand is anticipated to rise by 1.4% in 2023, reaching an all-time high of 8536 million tonnes but it is expected to decrease further by 2.3% by 2026.

Source: IEA

Defence News

1. HC Robotics of Hyderabad has partnered with French company Merio to produce advanced gimbals for Indian Armed Forces.
   Source: ET
2. Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has successfully tested an indigenous high-speed flying-wing Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) under project ‘Ghatak’.
   • More about UAV–
     • It is called Autonomous Flying Wing Technology Demonstrator (FWTD).
     • It is developed by DRDO’s Aeronautical Development Establishment.
     • It utilized on-board sensor data fusion with indigenous satellite-based augmentation using GPS Aided GEO Augmented Navigation (GAGAN) receivers for improved accuracy and integrity of GPS navigation.

3. Indian Armed Forces officers have been awarded ‘Golden Owl’ for outstanding performance at Defence Services Command & Staff College (DSCSC) in Sapugaskanda, Sri Lanka.
   • Award presented by–
     • Sri Lankan President and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, Ranil Wickremesinghe

   • Awardees–
     • Major Rohit (Indian Army)
     • Lieutenant Commander Sunnay Sharma (Indian Navy)
     • Wing Commander S Mahajan (Indian Air Force)
       Source: ANI

Awards

1. Music conductor Daniel Barenboim and peace activist Ali Abu Awwad on have been jointly awarded the Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development 2023.
   • Why the two were awarded?
     • They were awarded for effectively bringing together Israeli and Arab youth through music and peaceful initiatives, fostering dialogue, understanding, and cooperation for a non-violent resolution of the Israel-Palestine conflict

   
   
   
   

Source: Indian Express

Important Days

1. December 16– 53rd Vijay Diwas
   • It is observed to celebrate victory of India in 1971 war with Pakistan during Bangladesh liberation war.
     Source: Indian Express

Sports

1. Leander Paes and broadcaster and promoter Vijay Amritraj of India have become the first Asian men to be inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame.
   • More information–
     • Renowned journalist and writer Richard Evans have also been elected in the International Tennis Hall of Fame.
     • Leander Paes is an 18-time Grand Slam champion in doubles and mixed doubles.
     • Leander Paes has been selected in the player category.
     • Vijay Amritraj and United Kingdom’s Richard Evans are inducted into the contributor category.

2. Novak Djokovic and Aryna Sabalenka have won ITF World Champion awards for 2023.
   • Winners in different category-

3. Indian Wrestler Antim Panghal has been named as the women’s Rising Star of the Year 2023 by United World Wrestling (UWW).
   Source: olympics.com

Memorandum of Understanding

1. NITI Aayog and International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) have signed a 5-year Statement of Intent (SoI) to strengthen policy frameworks for agricultural transformation and rural development.
   • More about SoI–
     • IFPRI will support NITI Aayog’s Agriculture Vertical in crucial areas.
     • IFPRI will provide policy analytics and support to NITI Aayog in mutually identified areas within the broader realm of food systems transformation.
     • It will initially focus on-
       • Agriculture
       • Rural development
       • Trade
       • Climate change policies in India

Source: PIB

Appointments

1. Indian candidate, Uma Sekhar has been elected to the Governing Council of the International Institute for the Unification of Private Law (UNIDROIT) with in the first round at the elections held in Rome.
   • More about appointment–
     • India will be the member of governing council for the period of 2024-28.
     • Governing council consists of 25 positions which are held by distinguished legal expert
   • What is the role of Governing Council of UNIDROIT?
     • It studies needs and methods for modernising, harmonising and co-ordinating private and in particular commercial law as between States and groups of States.
       It formulates uniform law instruments, principles and rules to achieve those objectives.

    

Source: ET

Miscellaneous

1. Rijul Maini, a medical student from Michigan has been recently crowned Miss India USA 2023 in New Jersey.
   Source: ET

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