Dear Readers, Here we have given the list of Important Weekly Current Affairs of Apr 22nd to 30th Apr 2023. Candidates those who are preparing for Upcoming SBI Clerk 2023 and other competitive exams can make use of it.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : IMPORTANT DAYS

• Every year April 22nd is celebrated as Earth Day & the theme is "Invest in our planet".
• Every year World Book and Copyright Day is celebrated on April 23 and it is also known as World Book Day. & the theme is “Indigenous Languages.
• In India 24th April is designated as National Panchayati Raj Day.
• World Malaria Day is observed on April 25 all over the world & the theme is“Time to deliver zero malaria: invest, innovate, implement.”
• Every year April 26 is celebrated as World Intellectual Property Day & the theme is Women and IP: Accelerating Innovation and Creativity.
• Every year April 29th is celebrated as International Dance Day also known as World Dance Day.
• World Veterinary Day 2023 is celebrated on 29th April every year all over the world & the theme is 'Promoting Diversity, Equity, and Inclusiveness in the Veterinary Profession'.
• Labour Day, also known as May Day or Worker's Day, is celebrated on May 1 to recognize and appreciate the invaluable contributions made by the labour class.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : NATIONAL NEWS

• Government approved National Quantum Mission with a budget outlay of Rs 6003.65 Crores.
• The Jal Shakti Ministry’s National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) cleared eight projects worth ₹638 crore under the Namami Gange Programme.
• The 5th edition of International Exhibition & Conference on Steel Industry – ‘INDIA STEEL EXPO 2023’ is being organized by the Ministry of Steel, Government of India along with the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) from April 19-21, 2023 at Bombay Exhibition Centre, Mumbai, India.
• West Bengal has the highest number of ponds & reservoirs while Andhra Pradesh has the highest number of tanks.
• The Ministry of Health in association with the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs urged States and Union Territories to develop 100 food streets in 100 districts across India.
• To make Aadhaar people-friendly, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has proposed rules to enable Aadhaar authentication by entities other than Government Ministries and Departments.
• New ₹100 commemorative coin will be released by the government for the 100th episode of Mann Ki Baat.
• FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization) has released a report titled- “The Status Of Women In Agrifood Systems” highlighting the importance of Gender Equality in the Agricultural Sector.
• Jakson Green announced that the company is developing a Green Hydrogen fuelling station at Badarpur, New Delhi for a major power company in India.
• The Prime Minister of India praised “Abhilekh Patal” , a portal with over 1 Crore Pages of Historical Records of the National Archives.
• Following the four successful rounds of bidding, the Ministry of Civil Aviation has launched the 5th round of the Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS) – Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik (UDAN) to further enhance the connectivity to remote and regional areas of the country and achieve last mile connectivity.
• Nearly two weeks after the launch of the Sakshi portal for digitising the fund flow architecture in the Members of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS), data provided by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) in Parliament earlier this month shows that more than a third of the Rs 3,965 crore budgeted under MPLADS for 2022-23 (FY23) remain non-disbursed.
• Union Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Shri Narendra Singh Tomar launched the SATHI Portal and Mobile App.
• The Union Minister for Jal Shakti, Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat today lauded the achievement of a fivefold increase in ODF Plus villages in India under the Swachh Bharat Mission – Grameen, Phase – II, in just one year, with more than 40 percent of India’s inhabited villages having declared themselves ODF Plus.
• The Union Cabinet recently approved the Cinematograph (Amendment) Bill 2023, which has provisions to curb the transmission of pirated film content on the Internet.
• Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), NITI Aayog, and the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) recently launched a whitepaper aimed at making India a global leader in agritech innovation.
• The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has undertaken to translate the Food Safety and Compliance System (FOSCOS) into Hindi, followed by all the regional languages.
• India's External Affairs Minister Mr Jaishankar co-chaired the 4th India-CARICOM ministerial meeting with his Jamaican counterpart.
• Around 10,000 kilometres of Optic Fibre Cables (OFC) infrastructure across India will be developed by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) by the fiscal year 2025.
• PM Modi inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of different projects in the Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu.
• The new features in e-Shram Portal have been launched by Union Minister for Labour, Employment, Environment, Forest and Climate Change Shri Bhupendra Yadav.
• The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, as the precursor of World Malaria Day, has organised the Asia Pacific Leaders' Conference for Malaria Elimination in partnership with the Asia Pacific Leaders' Malaria Alliance (APLMA) in New Delhi.
• The Ministry of Railways will start the Puri-Gangasagar Divya Ka shi Yatra from Pune under “Dekho Apna Desh” and “Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat” Scheme.
• The Rural Development Ministry recently announced that ULPIN has been adopted by 26 states and union territories so far.
• The Border Roads Organisation has put up a signboard at the entrance of Uttarakhand's Mana village on the India-China border reading 'India's first village'.
• Union Home Minister Shri Amit Shah launched IFFCO’s liquid nano Di-Ammonia Phosphate (DAP).
• The Supreme Court modified its order of maintaining eco-sensitive zones around national parks or wildlife sanctuaries.
• The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs launches 'City Beauty Competition' portal.
• Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi inaugurated 91 new FM Transmitters, which is expected to give a further boost to radio connectivity in the country.
• Central government employees will now get 42 days special casual leave for organ donation.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : INTERNATIONAL NEWS

• India and Canada have agreed to make defence an important pillar of the bilateral relationship.
• The Chennai, Tamil Nadu (TN) based Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras is set to establish its first International campus in Zanzibar, Tanzania with plans to start the classes by October 2023.
• The Jitgadhi festival is being observed in Butwal in the Rupandehi district of Lumbini Province. 
• Mongolia’s first oil refinery, built and funded with Indian assistance, will be completed by 2025.
• France's Constitutional Council approved an unpopular plan to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64, in a victory for President Emmanuel Macron after three months of mass protests over the legislation that has damaged his leadership.
• In a significant boost to reproductive rights, Japan’s Health Ministry has approved the country’s first abortion pill-Mefeego pill pack.
• The European Parliament has approved the world’s first set of comprehensive rules to bring largely unregulated cryptocurrency markets under the ambit of regulation by government authorities.
• Australia is set to host the third in-person Quad Leadership Summit on May 24, 2023 in Sydney
• An Odisha-born entrepreneur in the United Kingdom (UK), Biswanath Patnaik, has pledged about Rs 250 crores to a UK-based charitable organisation Shree Jagannatha Society (SJS) UK, working on constructing the UK’s first temple devoted to Bhagwan Jagannath in London.
• The World Health Organization (WHO) has launched a new Preparedness and Resilience for Emerging Threats (PRET) initiative to be better prepared for future outbreaks of a similar scale and devastation as the COVID-19 pandemic.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : STATE NEWS

• According to research conducted by Rajesh K Pillania, a professor of strategy at the Management Development Institute in Gurugram, Mizoram has been declared the happiest state in
• Nagaland Institute of Medical Sciences and Research (NIMSR) at Kohima will be the first medical college of
• Uttar Pradesh (UP) will become the first state which will have 100% electric vehicles in government departments.
• The first-ever census of Mangrove Pitta Bird was conducted by the Odisha forest officials in the Bhitarkanika wildlife sanctuary.
• The Chief Minister (CM) of Assam Shri Himanta Biswa Sarma and Arunachal Pradesh (AP) Chief Minister (CM) Shri Pema Khandu signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the settlement of an inter-state boundary dispute between the two States in New Delhi, Delhi.
• Himachal Pradesh (HP) has become the first Indian state to develop a DNA database for unidentified bodies.
• Meghalaya Chief Minister Shri Conrad K. Sangma inspected the ongoing renovation, upgradation and expansion of the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium at Polo in Shillong and it would be the largest multipurpose indoor stadium in the northeastern region.
• The Haryana Chief Minister (CM) Shri Manohar Lal Khattar launched 3 online initiatives-Pro-active Divyang Pension Service, ‘Tau se pucho’ WhatsApp chatbot and an online room booking facility at PWD (B&R) rest houses.
• The Kerala government launched the 'One Panchayat, One Playground’ project for reviving the sports culture in Kerala by opening quality playgrounds in every panchayat of Kerala.
• The Tamil Nadu (TN) Legislative Assembly, passed a bill amending the Factories Act, 1948, which extends the daily working hours from 8 to 12 hours for factory workers.
• The Rajasthan government is working to implement the Rajasthan Platform-based Gig Workers (Registration and Welfare) Bill, 2023.
• The Election Commission has for the first time introduced the Vote from Home option in Karnataka Assembly.
• Madhya Pradesh (MP) chief minister (CM) Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan announced that Gandhi Sagar Sanctuary will be developed as a second home for cheetahs within 6 months to retain the tag of cheetah MP.
• Manipur Chief Minister (CM) Shri N Biren Singh inaugurated the 5th edition of the state-level HUN Thadou Cultural Festival, at Thomas Ground in Kangpokpi district of
• Rajasthan Chief Minister (CM) Shri Ashok Gehlot inaugurated ‘Mehangai Rahat Camp’ at the Mahapura village of Sanganer in Jaipur district, Rajasthan.
• INOX Air Products (INOXAP), India’s largest manufacturer of industrial and medical gases, has commissioned a 3 MWp Open Access Captive Solar Power Plant at Bangarmau in Unnao, Uttar Pradesh (UP).
• Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for India's first third generation Digital Science Park being developed by the Kerala

CURRENT AFFAIRS : BANKING & FINANCE

• Federal Bank has entered into a Banking Correspondent agreement with Chennai-based KiVi, an agri fintech start-up operated by Agrosperity Tech Solutions, with a view to scaling and expanding its agri lending portfolio in Tamil Nadu (TN).
• Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has granted AU Small Finance Bank  (AU SFB) Licence to act as Authorised Dealer Category-I (AD-I) under section 10 of FEMA, 1999 to deal in foreign exchange.
• According to a report tabled by Worldline India, a payment solutions provider, Bengaluru (Karnataka) has topped the list of cities rampantly using digital transactions with a volume of 29 million and a value of Rs 6,500 crore of transactions.
• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) accepted bids worth Rs 5,500 crore at an auction for conversion and switching of 5 government of India (GoI) bonds against the notified amount of Rs 11,000 crore.
• The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) signed a host member agreement to officially open in Abu Dhabi the Bank's first overseas office, an Interim Operational Hub (the Hub).
• InPrime Finserv, a financial services start-up catering to the informal economy, has obtained a Certificate of Registration (COR) from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to operate as a Non-Banking Financial Company (NBFC).
• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has given a relaxation of 3 years for HDFC Bank to comply with the priority sector lending norms (PSL) following its merger with HDFC Ltd (HDFC).
• For the first time, Union Bank of India (UBI), secured 1st rank as per the report on Enhanced Access & Service Excellence (EASE) Reforms Index for Q3 FY 2022-23 published by Indian Banks’ Association (IBA).
• Canara Bank, in collaboration with Reserve Bank Innovation Hub (RBIH), has launched the "Digitalised Submission of Form 15G/15H" as one of customer friendly services adding to our pursuit of "Customer Delight".
• Mastercard announced its collaboration with M1xchange to offer a digital invoice discounting solution to farmers, farmer producer organisations (FPOs), and agri-Ministry of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) through Farm Pass, its cutting-edge agritech platform.
• ICICI Bank has introduced equated monthly instalment (EMI) facility for Unified Payment Interface (UPI) payments made by scanning QR code.
• Two of India’s largest private lenders, Axis Bank and HDFC Bank, have signed definitive agreements to acquire a 9.94% equity stake each in the Go Digit Life, the life insurance business of insurtech unicorn Go Digit, which is set to go public.
• Capital markets regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) came out with a procedure for vault managers to seek prior approval from the watchdog in case of a change in control.
• HDFC Ltd revealed that the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has granted its approval for the intended transfer of majority ownership in HDFC Asset Management Company Limited (HDFC AMC) to HDFC Bank, as a part of the amalgamation plan.
• The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe, or RBZ, plans to introduce a gold-backed digital currency as legal tender in Zimbabwe.
• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has cancelled the banking licence of Kerala-based Adoor Co-operative Urban Bank and has allowed it to function as a non-banking institution.
• Bajaj Finserv’s insurance subsidiary, Bajaj Allianz General Insurance Company has entered into a partnership with ai, the Singapore-headquartered enterprise under the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI), to offer insurance products to MSME (Ministry of Micro, Small & Medium enterprises) through their technology platform and the partner ecosystem across the Supply chain.
• Capital Market Regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) came out with a holistic regulatory framework for ESG disclosures by India Inc, investors, and rating agencies to facilitate a balanced approach to ESG.
• Emkay Global Financial Services has received in-principle approval from the capital markets regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to launch a mutual fund business in
• Nexus Select Trust, the retail-focused real estate investment trust sponsored by private equity firm Blackstone, has received the final observations, and go ahead from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) for its Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) initial public offering (IPO) of units.
• NPCI Bharat BillPay Ltd (NBBL) has launched the NOCS platform to provide reconciliation and settlement services for transactions undertaken on the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) network.
• In a bid to expand its portfolio beyond its core banking business, IndusInd Bank is planning to foray into mutual funds, insurance and broking sectors.
• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has aligned the Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) for International Financial Services Centres (IFSCs) set up under the International Financial Services Centres Authority Act, 2019, with that for other foreign jurisdictions.
• The National Stock Exchange (NSE) has come out with new norms to retain the demerged entity of an index constituent in the respective index.
• Reliance General Insurance has become the first general insurance company to accept Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI’s) Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) e-Rupee (e₹) for premium payments.
• Multilateral funding agency Asian Development Bank (ADB) committed USD 20.5 billion from its own resources in 2022 to help Asia and the Pacific as it continues its recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic despite fresh economic headwinds and crises.
• Razorpay, a fintech payments and banking platform for businesses, will join the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), a non-profit company set up by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) as an alternative for Internet shopping.
• India’s largest bank State Bank of India (SBI) has raised $750 million via a 5-year bond issuance at a coupon rate of 4.875%.
• SBI General Insurance has launched a new digital-only health product, Health Edge Insurance, where starting premium is less than Rs 5,500 per annum for a Rs 3 lakhs cover.
• WYLD, the world’s first social currency payment card has launched in Mumbai, Maharashtra.
• Markets regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) came out with an advertisement code for investment advisers and research analysts whereby they have been prohibited from issuing statements which may mislead investors as well as from using superlative terms in their advertisements.
• The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) and the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) are planning to set up an aggregator platform for eKYC (electronic know-your-customer).
• Neo banking startup Jupiter has secured a non-banking finance company (NBFC) licence from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), a development that will help it dole out credit from its books.
• Bank of India increased interest rates on special term deposits known as "Shubh Arambh Deposits" for 501 for deposits under Rs 2 crore.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS

• Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has approved the appointment of Kaizad Bharucha as Deputy Managing Director (MD) and Bhavesh Zaveri as Executive Director (ED) of the HDFC Bank for 3 years with effect from April 19, 2023.
• The WRI India has appointed Madhav Pai as the new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the institute & pai succeeds former CEO O P Agarwal.
• The Walt Disney Company-owned Star Sports has signed cricketer Rishabh Pant as its latest brand ambassador.
• JioCinema, owned by billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Viacom18, has signed up Rohit Sharma, captain of the men’s cricket India, as its brand ambassador.
• The British government named Oliver Dowden as deputy prime minister (PM) replacing Dominic Raab who resigned earlier in the day following a report into claims he bullied colleagues.
• Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh, Judge of the Jharkhand High Court (HC), was sworn-in as the 8th Chief Justice (CJ) of the Tripura High Court.
• Veteran freedom fighter, jurist and politician Mohammed (Md) Shahabuddin was sworn in as the 22nd President of Bangladesh in Dhaka, Bangladesh for a five-year term.
• The Government has appointed Arun Sinha as Chairman of the National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO).
• Shreekant M Bhandiwad has taken charge as the new Chairman of Karnataka Vikas Grameena Bank (KVGB).
• Senior IAS officer Rajesh Kumar Singh assumed the charge of secretary in the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT).
• Information technology (IT) industry body the National Association of Software and Service Companies (NASSCOM) has appointed President & Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Microsoft India Anant Maheshwari as its chairperson for 2023-24.
• The Association of National Exchanges Members of India (ANMI), a pan-India industry body representing market intermediaries and stock brokers, has appointed Vijay Mehta Chairman of Mefcom Capital Markets Ltd, as its 28th President for the year 2023-24.
• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has approved the re-appointment of N Kamakodi as Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive Director (CEO) of private sector bank City Union Bank (CUB).
• Britain named Anne Keast-Butler as the first female director of its intelligence communications agency GCHQ, tasked with protecting the country from terrorists, cyber-criminals and malign foreign powers.
• Vodafone Group Plc, a British multinational telecommunications company has appointed interim chief executive officer (CEO) Margherita Della Valle as the permanent CEO.
• Madhavarao is set to be next Chairman & Managing Director (CMD) of Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL), a public sector undertaking (PSU) under the Ministry of Defence (MoD).

CURRENT AFFAIRS : AWARDS & HONOURS

• Wing Commander Deepika Mishra made history by becoming the first female officer in the Indian Air Force to be honoured with a gallantry award.
• PM Gati Shakti’s national master plan initiative received the award for excellence in public administration.
• Former German chancellor Angela Merkel received the highest order of Merit of Germany.
• Synergy Group, which operates a fleet of more than 560 vessels, has won the GREEN4SEA Tanker Operator award for its ‘leadership role in global tanker management.’
• The 1959 Ramon Magsaysay Award was presented to Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama after 64 years.
• Karnataka has bagged the national award for the best implementation of Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY), a crop subsidy insurance scheme, for the year 2022-23.
• The Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) used legendary Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar's 50th birthday celebrations to unveil gates at the iconic Australia venue that are named after the India legend and fellow cricketing great Brian Lara from West Indies.
• Tata Sons' Chairman Emeritus Ratan Tata has been conferred with Australia’s highest civilian honour, the country’s High Commissioner to India Barry O’Farrell announced.
• Neeli Bendapudi, the Indian American president of Penn State University, will receive this year’s prestigious Immigrant Achievement Award for her contributions to higher education in the US.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : BUSINESS NEWS

• Tata Steel has been recognised as 2023 Steel Sustainability Champion by the World Steel Association.
• Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) made an announcement of a new digital platform for customers residing in Bangalore state.
• According to the quarterly report on debt management for October-December released by the finance ministry, the government raised ₹3,51,000 crore through dated securities as against the notified amount of ₹3,18,000 crore in the borrowing calendar.
• WayCool, a Chennai-based food and agri-tech platform announced the launch of a wholly-owned subsidiary ‘BrandsNext’ to exclusively focus on its fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) business.
• India accounts for one-fifth of private equity inflows into the Asia-Pacific.
• Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. plans to split its $220 billion empire into six units that will individually raise funds and explore initial public offerings, the biggest overhaul of China’s online commerce leader since its inception more than two decades ago.
• State-run Indian Oil Corporation (IOCL) has approved setting up a petrochemical complex at Paradip in Odisha at an estimated cost of ₹61,077 crore.
• The National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) has revised the eligibility criteria for SMEs looking to switch from its SME platform to the main board.
• The average ticket size of loans under PMMY has almost doubled as per the State Bank of India’s economic research department (ERD).

CURRENT AFFAIRS : MOU & AGREEMENTS

• NTPC Ltd, the largest power-generating utility in India, and Chempolis India, a Fortum group associate company and a Finnish bio-refining technology provider, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to explore the feasibility of setting up a bamboo-based bio-refinery in Assam's Bongaigaon.
• Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee (IIT Roorkee) and the National Science and Technology Centre for Disaster Reduction (NCDR), Taiwan have signed an agreement with an aim to develop technology solutions to natural hazards, including earthquakes, landslides, floods, debris flow, and compound disasters.
• The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), New Delhi and Oil India Ltd. (OIL), a Navaratna NOC inked an umbrella Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to pursue technological partnership in select domains across the Energy value chain.
• Mitsubishi Electric India has signed an agreement with Mahindra Industrial Park Chennai Ltd, a joint venture between Mahindra World City Developers and Japan’s Sumitomo Corporation, to set up an air-conditioners and compressors manufacturing plant at Origins by Mahindra, Chennai, Tamil Nadu.
• India and Thailand have agreed to explore mutual recognition/ cooperation arrangements (MRAs) in nursing, accounting, audio-visual and medical tourism, in a meeting of the India Thailand Joint Trade Committee (JTC) in New Delhi.
• Bharti Airtel (Airtel) has partnered with Secure Meters for deploying narrow band (NB-IoT) services that will power 1.3 million homes in Bihar through a smart meter solution.
• Air India announced a new multi-year global distribution services partnership with US-based Sabre Corporation.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : APPS & PORTALS

• The Bluesky app, a Twitter alternative by Jack Dorsey, has been recently launched for Android beta.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : ACQUISITIONS & MERGERS

• The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has granted its approval for the stake acquisition in climate technologies' business of Emerson Electric Co by BCP Emerald Aggregator LP.
• HDFC Bank stated that the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has given approval for the merger of HDFC Investments Limited and HDFC Holdings Limited with parent HDFC Ltd.
• Hinduja Group, Promoters of India’s IndusInd Bank have received in-principal approval from the country’s central bank Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to increase their stake in IndusInd Bank.
• Godrej Consumer Products Limited (GCPL) will acquire the FMCG business of Raymond Consumer Care Limited (RCCL) for ₹2,825 crore.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : DEFENCE NEWS

• India is planning to buy 250 more Pralay ballistic missiles for the services to strengthen them on the northern borders, further boosting the firepower of the defence forces.
• The Indian Air Force (IAF) will be participating in Exercise INIOCHOS-23, a multi-national air exercise hosted by the Hellenic Air Force.
• The 8th Defense Dialogue between India and Thailand was held in Bangkok.
• The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Indian Navy (IN) successfully conducted a maiden flight trial of sea-based endo-atmospheric Ballistic Missile Defence (BMD) interceptor missiles off the coast of Odisha in the Bay of Bengal.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

• The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) and the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) have jointly developed the NISAR (NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar) satellite.
• Biofire Technologies, a Colorado-based company, has launched the world's first-ever biometric handgun, the Biofire Smart Gun.
• Solar Industries India Limited, Nagpur, Maharashtra had bagged an order to supply the 400 unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) 'Nagastra'-I to the Indian Army, beating competitors from Israel and Poland.
• China successfully launched Fengyun-3G into space, its first satellite dedicated to measuring precipitation, especially heavy rainfalls during catastrophic weather in global regions of low- and mid-latitude, which could provide a powerful tool for monitoring and forecasting of global meteorological disasters.
• The Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) successfully launched the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle C55 (PSLV-C55) mission carrying 2 Singaporean satellites TeLEOS-2 and Lumelite-4 from Satish Dhawan Space Center at Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh (AP) into a low-earth orbit.
• SpaceX's Starship Spacecraft created history, as the most powerful & biggest rocket ever built lifted off on its first test flight.
• Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology-Madras (IIT-M) developed a device called ‘ARTSENS’ to assess the health and age of blood vessels and thereby provide early screening for cardiovascular diseases.
• The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) scientists have successfully extracted oxygen from simulated lunar soil.
• Japanese start-up, ispace inc, is preparing to land its Hakuto-R Mission 1 (M1) spacecraft on the moon in what would be the world's first lunar landing by a private company if it succeeds.
• Hyundai Motor will develop a moon-exploration mobility "Rover" as it seeks to morph into a future mobility solutions provider.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : RANKING & REPORTS

• New York City topped a new list of the world’s wealthiest cities in 2023, with Japan’s Tokyo and Silicon Valley’s Bay Area claiming the second and third spots.
• India has retained its 3rd spot as the country with the highest number of unicorns worldwide after the US and China.
• India will overtake China as the world's most populous nation by the middle of this year.
• India has improved its ranking in the World Bank's Logistic Performance Index 2023 by 6 places, owing to significant investments in both soft and hard infrastructure as well as technology, which has led to an improvement in the country's port performance.
• Tata Consultancy Services has emerged as the top company in a list, which showcases the best places to work and grow careers, for 2023.
• As per Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) global report India is the third largest military spender after the United States and China, with the expenditure going up by 0.9 per cent from 2020 to $76.6 billion.
• The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) published the Global Food Policy Report, 2023 which said that investing in early warning systems is essential to save lives, livelihoods and money.
• India, which has sharpened its focus on building its defence capabilities and strengthening military infrastructure along the China border, was the fourth biggest military spender in the world in 2022 after the United States, China and Russia.
• For the third year in a row, Tamil Nadu has topped the list of States with highest market borrowings.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : BOOKS & AUTHORS

• Bureaucrat Ashish Kundra’s new book ‘A Resurgent Northeast: Narratives of Change’ launched in New Delhi.
• Amitav Ghosh authored a book titled 'Smoke and Ashes', which will be released on 15 July 2023.
• Union Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman launched ‘Reflections’, a book authored by former ICICI Bank chairman Shri Narayanan Vaghul, in Mumbai.

CURRENT AFFAIRS : SPORTS NEWS

• The Men’s Hockey Asian Champions Trophy will take place in Chennai from August 3 to 12, 2023.
• HSBC India has roped in Indian cricketer Virat Kohli as their Brand Influencer.
• Spain's Carlos Alcaraz defeated Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas and won the Barcelona Open

CURRENT AFFAIRS : OBITUARIES

• Veteran politician and former Jagatsinghpur Member of Parliament (MP) Trilochan Kanungo passed away at the age of 83 in Bhubaneswar, Odisha.
• Renowned Pakistan-born Canadian columnist and famous television personality Tarek Fatah passed away at the age of 73 in canada.
• Tripura's first Padmashree awardee and Former Indian Administrative Services (IAS) Officer, in Tripura government Himangshu Mohan Choudhury Passed away at the age of 84 in Agartala, Tripura.
• Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) veteran leader and 5-time chief minister (CM) of Punjab Parkash Singh Badal passed away at the age of 95 in Mohali, Punjab.
• Arjuna Awardee and Padma Shri boxing champion Kaur Singh passed away at the age of 74 in Haryana's Kurukshetra.
• Noted scientist and orator Dr N Gopalakrishnan passed away at the age of 68 in Kerala