First in News 2023

Air India’s first Flying Training Organisation (FTO)

• Set to be established at Belora airport in Amaravati, Maharashtra.
• Will be the largest FTO in South Asia.
• Partnership with Maharashtra Airport Development Company (MADC).
• Expected to commence operations by mid-2026.

World's First AI Dress

• Named Medusa dress, featuring robotic snakes.
• Created by Christina Ernst, a Google engineer and founder of She Builds Robots.

First International Conference on Steel Slag Road

• Organized by CSIR-Central Road Research Institute (CRRI) and PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI) in New Delhi.
• India's inaugural Steel Slag Road was constructed in Hazira, Surat.

Indigenous Chip-Based 4G Mobile Base Stations

• First such stations named Sahyadri LTE base stations, developed by Signalchip.
• Procured through the government e-marketplace portal from Bangalore-based Signaltron.

World's First CNG Motorcycle

• Named Bajaj Freedom 125.

Special Campaign for Redressal of Family Pension Grievances

• Launched by Department of Pension and Pensioners' Welfare for one month.
• Targets 1,891 pension-related grievances across 46 departments.
• Involves use of the Centralized Pensioners Grievance Redress And Monitoring System (CPENGRAMS).

Advanced Professional Programme in Public Administration (APPA)

• Recently conducted its 50th edition; founded in 1975.
• A 10-month course aimed at senior officers of Deputy Secretary rank or above.
• Offers a degree from Punjab University upon completion.

Post Office Act 2023

• Repeals the Indian Post Office Act of 1898.
• Introduces regulations for private courier services.
• Aims to create a simplified legislative framework for service delivery.

Lokpath Mobile App

• Launched in Madhya Pradesh to report road issues.
• Aims to resolve reported problems within seven days.

Karnataka Platform-based Gig Workers Bill

• Similar legislation enacted in Rajasthan.
• Establishes penalties ranging from Rs 5,000 to Rs 1 lakh.

46th session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee

• India to chair and host this event for the first time in New Delhi.
• Project PARI launched to beautify public spaces, inspired by World Heritage Sites.

Conference on 'Port of the Future'

• Organized by Mormugao Port Authority and Directorate General of Lighthouses and Lightships.
• Aims to roadmap Indian ports for implementing 5G technology.

AI Initiatives in Gujarat

• MoU between Gujarat government and IBM focuses on creating an AI Cluster at GIFT City.
• Collaboration extends to educational institutions for training on deep technology.

C-DAC MoU with MosChip & Socionext

• Aim is to develop an indigenous High-Performance Computing Processor SoC based on Arm architecture.
• HPC Processor named AUM, to be produced using TSMC 5nm technology.

Collaboration Between Ministry of Rural Development and Ministry of MSME

• Focuses on formalizing and strengthening SHG women-led rural enterprises.

BPCL and Indian Olympic Association Partnership

• BPCL partners with IOA to support Olympic events from 2024 to 2028.

Parbati-Kalisindh-Chambal River Linking Project

• Agreement between Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan to benefit 13 districts in Rajasthan.

HDFC Life’s 'Bridge the Gap' Initiative

• Aims to raise public awareness about life insurance and reduce coverage gaps in India.
• Collaborates with ET NOW for informative programming.

Citibank Credit Card Migration to Axis Bank

• Axis Bank acquired Citibank's consumer operations in India.

Introduction of New Yen Banknotes by Japan

• Features advanced anti-counterfeiting technology; first new design in two decades.

SBI’s Fifth Infrastructure Bond Issuance

• Raised Rs 10,000 crore; has a tenure of 15 years and coupon rate of 7.36%.

MSME Sahaj Initiative by SBI

• Provides end-to-end digital invoice financing process in 15 minutes for loans against GST-registered sales invoices.

Sapphiro Forex Card by ICICI Bank

• Targets students studying abroad and supports 15 currencies.

India-Mongolia Joint Military Exercise NOMADIC ELEPHANT

• 16th edition held in Umroi, Meghalaya; previous edition was in Mongolia.

Aditya-L1 Mission

• Completed a halo orbit around the Sun-Earth Lagrange 1 point.
• India's first solar mission, launched on September 2, 2023.

Google Translate Expansion

• Includes 110 new languages, utilizing the AI model PaLM 2.
• Part of a 1,000-language initiative, now totals 243 languages including Indian dialects.

Discovery of New Horned Frog Species

• Named Xenophrys apatani, located in Tale Wildlife Sanctuary, Arunachal Pradesh.

Paris Olympics 2024

• Gagan Narang named Chef-de-Mission for India; flag bearers are PV Sindhu and Sharath Kamal.

Viswanathan Anand’s Victory

• Won the Leon Masters Chess Tournament for the 10th time, defeating Spanish competitor Jaime Santos Latasa.

Indian Deaf Cricket Team Success

• Achieved a 5-2 victory against England in a bilateral series.

Golden Peacock Award

• Awarded to L&T Metro Rail (Hyderabad) Ltd for excellence in occupational health and safety.

Appointments

• Dr. BN Gangadhar appointed chairperson of the National Medical Commission for four years.
• Hemant Soren sworn in as Chief Minister of Jharkhand for a third term.

Obituaries

• Bhupinder Singh Rawat, former Indian footballer, and Ismail Kadare, Albanian novelist, among notable figures who passed away.

National Doctors Day

• Observed on July 1, commemorating Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy's contributions to medicine and politics.

International Plastic Bag Free Day

• Observed on July 3, supporting the EU's ambition to phase out single-use plastics by 2030.

New MA Course in Bhagavadgita Studies

• Launched by Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU).### Education and Teacher Preparation
• Program designed to prepare teachers for Foundational, Preparatory, Middle, and Secondary stages in alignment with NEP2020.
• ITEP norms and standards introduced in 2021.

Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) Agreement

• India to sign the BBNJ Agreement focused on marine biological diversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction (High Seas).
• Agreement reached in March 2023; open for signature until September 2025.
• Legally binding 120 days after the 60th ratification; as of June 2024, 91 countries signed and 8 ratified.
• Part of UNCLOS; third implementation agreement after the 1994 and 1995 agreements.
• Supports several Sustainable Development Goals, particularly SDG14 (Life Below Water).

Sampoornata Abhiyan Campaign

• NITI Aayog launching the campaign from July to September 2024.
• Aims to achieve saturation in 6 indicators across 112 Aspirational Districts and 500 Aspirational Blocks.
• Indicators include Antenatal Care (ANC) registrations, screenings for Diabetes and Hypertension, nutritional intake for pregnant women, Soil Health Cards, and functional schools.

SEHER Program

• Launched by Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP) and TransUnion CIBIL for women entrepreneurs.
• Aims to provide credit education to enhance access to financial tools for business growth.
• Part of WEP’s Financing Women Collaborative (FWC).

Global IndiaAI Summit 2024

• Hosted by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology to advocate responsible AI development.
• India leads the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI) and will promote safe AI practices.
• IndiaAI Mission launched with a budget of ₹10,371.92 crore over 5 years for various AI initiatives.

International Cooperative Day

• Celebrated on July 6, 2024, with the theme "Cooperatives Build a Better Future for All."
• Scheme launched for 50% assistance on nano-fertilizer purchases.
• Aim for every Panchayat to establish Primary Agriculture Credit Societies (PACS) by 2029.

Cabinet Committees Reconstitution

• Government reformed 8 Cabinet Committees, with the Prime Minister heading 6.
• Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs the largest with 14 members, including the Prime Minister.

Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC)

• India participated in the 86th Executive Committee session focusing on standards for spices and food safety.
• Established by FAO and WHO in 1961 to develop international food standards.
• Comprises 189 members, including India since 1964.

15th Finance Commission Grants

• Government has released ₹5,337 crore grants to Panchayats in Kerala for 2020-21 to 2026-27.
• Grants are categorized into Untied and Tied for rural local bodies.

Consumer Protection (Direct Selling) (Amendment) Rules, 2023

• New rules mandate direct sellers to provide clear, accurate offer terms to consumers.
• Aims to safeguard against misleading practices in the direct-selling industry, involving approximately 8.6 million self-employed individuals.

EU Council Presidency

• Hungary begins its rotating presidency of the EU Council, focusing on "Make Europe Great Again."
• Responsibilities include setting agendas and coordinating EU policies.

Belarus Joins Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO)

• Belarus officially became the 10th member of the SCO during the 2024 Summit.

GST Collection in June 2024

• GST collection reached ₹1.74 trillion, reflecting a year-on-year growth of 7.7%.

Sebi (Stock Brokers) (Amendment) Regulations, 2024

• SEBI directed stockbrokers to prevent fraud through internal control mechanisms.
• New regulations come into effect between 2024 and 2026 based on the number of unique client codes.

Project Nexus

• RBI collaborates with ASEAN nations for an instant cross-border retail payments platform.
• Aims to link fast payment systems to reduce costs of small cross-border transactions, expected to operationalize by 2026.

Test your knowledge on the latest significant events, including Air India's new flying training organization, the world's first AI dress, and the inaugural international conference on steel slag road. Stay updated with current affairs and discover key facts about these topics.