TOP NEWS OF THE DAY:              

                                                                               DATE:21/03/2024

.  Space startup Agnikul Cosmos is on the verge of conducting a test launch of its rocket named Agnibaan SOrTeD on March 22. This rocket features a unique engine that is manufactured using 3D printing technology, an innovative approach that the ISRO is currently in the process of perfecting.

Agnikul Cosmos, an Indian private space startup, is poised to conduct a test launch of its rocket named Agnibaan SOrTeD (Suborbital Tech Demonstrator) on 22 March. 

2.  Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) has developed SAKHI, a revolutionary app aimed at aiding astronauts during the Gaganyaan space flight mission. SAKHI, or Space-borne Assistant and Knowledge Hub for Crew Interaction, offers indispensable support across various critical aspects of the mission.

3.  Ladakh’s Kargil town observed a shutdown and hundreds of locals came out in support of activist Sonam Wangchuk, whose climate-related fast in sub-zero temperature and under the open skies entered the 15th day on Wednesday, in a bid to press the Centre to grant Statehood and Sixth Schedule status to the four-year-old Union Territory (UT).

4.  The Centre on Wednesday notified the fact check unit under the Press Information Bureau (PIB) to monitor online content pertaining to the government for accuracy. The fact check unit will be the nodal agency to tackle or alert about all fake news or misinformation related to the central government.

5.  Danish Ali, the suspended Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) leader and Lok Sabha MP from Uttar Pradesh's Amroha constituency, officially joined the Congress party in Delhi on Wednesday. 

6.  BJP MP Varun Gandhi is likely to contest the upcoming Lok Sabha Elections 2024 independently, if the saffron front denies him a ticket this time. The reports added that BJP top brass may field a new face from the Pilibhit seat in Uttar Pradesh this time to deal with anti-incumbency.

7.  The Election Commission of India has made a significant decision regarding the leadership of the West Bengal police force. Vivek Sahay has been replaced by Sanjay Mukherjee as the new Director General of Police (DGP) for the state of West Bengal. 

8.  Jharkhand Governor CP Radhakrishnan has been given the additional responsibility as the in-charge governor of Telangana. This comes after Tamilisai Soundararajan resigned from her constitutional post as the Telangana Governor.

9.  Earth Sciences Minister Kiren Rijiju on Wednesday took additional charge as the Union Minister of Food Processing Industries.

10.  Tamil Nadu's DMK party released its manifesto for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections on Wednesday, with state CM MK Stalin, DMK MP Kanimozhi, and other party leaders present. The party also announced its first list of candidates for the General Election.

11.  Paatali Makkal Katchi, an influential political party in northern Tamil Nadu with considerable influence among dominant Vanniyars, was on Tuesday allotted 10 Lok Sabha seats by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for the April 19 general elections.

12.  Spiritual leader Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev underwent an emergency brain surgery at a private hospital in New Delhi after suffering "life-threatening" bleeding in the skull and is now recovering well, a senior doctor said on Wednesday.  The surgery was carried out on March 17 to remove bleeding in the skull. 

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LEGAL REPORT:

#Chief Justice of India:

Shri Dhananjaya Y. Chandrachud

#Minister Of Law & Justice : Arjun Ram Meghwal

#International Court Of Justice Prz. :  Nawaf Salam

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1.  Islamic State of Iraq and Syria-India head Haris Farooqi and his aide have been arrested in Assam’s Dhubri. The duo was nabbed after they crossed over from Bangladesh. 

2.  A special court in Mumbai on Wednesday stayed the execution of a bailable warrant issued against Bharatiya Janata Party Lok Sabha MP Pragya Singh Thakur, an accused in the 2008 Malegaon blast case of Maharashtra, after it was informed that she had taken ill and admitted in a hospital in Mumbai for treatment.

3.  The investigation into the problems related to design, construction, and maintenance of the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme’s barrages picked up pace with the team of experts from the National Dam Safety Authority beginning a second round of meetings with Telangana irrigation department officials.

4.  The Supreme Court has agreed to hear a public interest litigation (PIL) on Thursday, challenging the practice of political parties promising freebies during elections. The development comes as the country gears up for General Elections starting on April 19. The PIL also called for the Election Commission to exercise its authority to freeze election symbols and revoke the registration of parties engaging in such practices.

5.  Central government seeks report on Moosewala’s mother.  India’s law doesn’t permit IVF after age 50:   The Union Ministry of Health has asked the Punjab Government to determine the truth behind media reports stating that late Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala’s mother Charan Kaur delivered a baby boy through in vitro fertilisation (IVF) this Sunday at an age of 58 years.

Under Indian law, a woman has to be aged 21 to 50 years to access assisted reproductive technology (ART) services of which IVF is a part.

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FINANCE:

#Minister: Nirmala Sitharaman.

#Commerce & Industry : Piyush Goyal

#RBI Gvrnr: Shaktikanta Das

#President of the World Bank : Ajay Banga

#IMF MD: Kristalina Georgieva

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💰 USD  ₹  83

💷 GBP  ₹ 106

€  Euro : ₹ 91

 🇨🇳 Yen ¥ : ₹ 12

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 GDP(PPP ) :

purchasing power parity (PPP)

 $13.119 trillion 

 GDP (nominal) 

: $3.73 trillion 

(Nominal means total market value of all goods and services produced in a country's economy) . 

 

 GDP growth :  7.6%

India is the fifth largest economy in the world. 

 Inflation rate :  Retail Inflation 5.69% in Dec 2023

 Population : 143.86 cr  

(17.7% of the total world population).

 Unemployment : 6.8%

 Per capita: This income is also known as average income as it is calculated by dividing the total income of the country by the total population of the country.

 GDP per capita 

 $2,845 (Nominal; 2024) 

 $9,983 (PPP; 2024)

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 BSE SENSEX 

72,101.69 +89.64 (0.12%)🌲

 NIFTY

21,839.10 +21.65 (0.099%)🌲

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 Rates in Financial Capital Mumbai 

 GOLD : ₹ 65,600/10gm (24 krt) 

 SILVER : ₹ 77,000/KG

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 ⛽ FUEL in DELHI 

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 PETROL : ₹ 95/Ltr

 DIESEL : ₹ 88/Ltr 

 CNG  : ₹ 76/Ltr

 LPG : ₹ 903/14.2 Kg 

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 ⛽ FUEL in MUMBAI 

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 PETROL  : ₹ 104/Ltr

 DIESEL   : 93/Ltr

 Auto Gas : ₹ 60/Ltr

 CNG    : 76/Kg

 LPG    : ₹ 903/14.2 Kg 

1.   In a significant move aimed at enhancing transparency and safeguarding investor interests, the Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI) has directed asset management companies (AMCs) to conduct monthly liquidity stress tests for their small and mid-cap mutual fund schemes. 

2.  YES Bank collaborates with the Indian Olympic Association for Paris Olympics 2024, launching the 'Milkar Jitayengey' campaign. Introducing the 'YES Glory Debit Card' and 'YES Glory' savings account.

3.  Leading FMCG company P&G India has announced the appointment of Kumar Venkatasubramanian as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO), effective from 01 May 2024.

4.  Poonawalla Fincorp, a leading non-banking financial company (NBFC), has appointed Arvind Kapil as its new Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer.

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DEFENCE:

Supreme Commander of Armed Forces: The President

#Def Minister: Rajnath Singh

#Def Minister of State :

Ajay Bhatt

#Union Home : Amit Shah

#National Security Advisor : Ajit Doval

#Chief of Defence Staff:  

Gen Anil Chauhan, PVSM UYSM AVSM SM VSM

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1.  Defence Secretary Giridhar Aramane met with senior officials of BEML after inaugurating the test firing of 1500 HP prototype engine for main battle tanks, in Mysore on Wednesday.  The indigenous 1500 HP prototype engine developed by public sector BEML. 

2.  India-Russia Defence Deal: Russia to deliver remaining S-400 Air Defence Systems to India by August 2026.

A deal was signed between Russia and India for the procurement of five squadrons of the S-400 air defence system, of which three have already been delivered. However, due to the evolving situation arising from the Russia-Ukraine war, the delivery of the remaining two squadrons has been postponed. 

3.  ISRO is gearing up to conduct the second landing test of the RLVISRO to Conduct Second Landing Experiment of Pushpak: After the successful first landing experiment LEX-01 of Pushpak (RLV-TD). 

4.  The Indian and United States (US) navies have commenced a bilateral Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) exercise called “Tiger Triumph-24” on India’s eastern seaboard. The week-long exercise, which began on 18 March 2024.

5.  The Raksha Mantri Trophy for the Best and Second Best Command Hospitals of the Armed Forces Medical Services (AFMS) for the year 2022 was awarded on 19th March 2024 in New Delhi.

The Command Hospital (Southern Command), Pune was judged as the Best Command Hospital, while the Command Hospital (Central Command), Lucknow was the Second Best for 2022.

The trophies were presented by Lt Gen Daljit Singh, Director General Armed Forces Medical Services and Senior Colonel Commandant, Army Medical Corps.

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INTERNATIONAL AND WORLD NEWS:

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#External affairs Minister:  S Jaishankar

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1.  President Droupadi Murmu on Wednesday received a phone call from her Bulgarian counterpart, Rumen Radev, during which the latter expressed his gratitude for the successful rescue operation of hijacked Bulgarian vessel MV Ruen by the Indian Navy.Hailing the naval operation 'Sankalp', which resulted in the rescue of seven Bulgarians. 

2.  PM Modi had a telephone conversation on Wednesday with Ukarine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in which he reiterated India's people-centric approach and called for dialogue and diplomacy as the way forward in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

3.  India will bring in and prosecute 35 Somali pirates its navy captured on a hijacked ship off Somalia, the captured pirates are due to arrive in India on Saturday and will be handed over to the law enforcement agencies. 

Indian navy commandos managed to release the Malta-flagged commercial ship MV Ruen, which had been hijacked 450 nautical miles east of Socotra in the northern Arabian Sea by Somali pirates on 14 Dec.

4.  PM Modi was scheduled to be in the Himalayan nation Bhutan for a state visit today. PM Modi's Bhutan visit has been postponed "due to ongoing inclement weather conditions over Paro airport. 

5.  India has again rejected the "absurd claims" and "baseless arguments" made by China on Arunachal Pradesh, asserting that the northeast State is an "integral and inalienable part of India."The Ministry of External Affairs in an official statement noted that the people of Arunachal Pradesh will "continue to benefit" from India's development programmes and infrastructure projects. 

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🌎 WORLD NEWS 🌍

UNO Gen. Secy : António Guterres. 

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1.  The Gwadar port authority complex in Pakistan's Balochistan province was attacked on Wednesday, resulting in the deaths of all eight militants. The attack was claimed by the Majeed Brigade, which is affiliated with the banned Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA). 

2.  Ireland's Indian-origin Prime Minister Leo Varadkar on Wednesday sent shockwaves across the country by announcing his sudden resignation from the post and party leadership citing "personal and political" reasons.

Varadkar was born in Ireland to a Mumbai-born father and Irish mother and has led the Fine Gael party since 2017, when aged 38 he became the country's youngest and first openly gay prime minister, and has served as taoiseach twice since.

3.  The International Monetary Fund (IMF) reached a staff-level agreement with Pakistan on Wednesday, on the final review of a USD 3 billion bailout, paving the way for the nation to receive the last tranche of USD 1.1 billion after approval from the Fund's Executive Board. 

4.  Forced labour is a widespread issue that affects millions of people worldwide. According to a study by the International Labour Organization (ILO) released in Geneva, forced labour generates illegal profits worth $36 billion per year. 

5.  Vaughan Gething Becomes First Black Leader of a European Country_30.1

Vaughan Gething, who currently serves as the Economic Minister of Wales, has been elected as the new leader of the Welsh Labour Party. His victory marks a historic milestone as he becomes the first ever Black person to lead a European country.

6.  Earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 5.3 has affected East Japan. 

SPORT:

#Minister: Anurag Singh Thakur

#BCCI president: 

Roger Binny 

#Hockey India President:

Dilip Tirkey

#16th President of the Indian Olympic Association : P. T. Usha

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1.  Russians and Belarusians will not take part in the parade of athletes at the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics in July, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said. The athletes from the two countries who qualify for the Games will be competing as independents without their flags and anthems following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

2.  Former champion Kidambi Srikanth and in-form Lakshya Sen produced impressive performances to progress to the men's singles second round of the Swiss Open super 300 badminton tournament in Basel on Wednesday.

3.  Indian shuttlers Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand advanced to the women's doubles second round of the Swiss Open Super 300 with a straight game win over USA's Annie Xu and Kerry Xu in Basel.

4.  Bolstered by the return of Jeakson Singh and Anwar Ali, the Indian football team will renew its quest for a maiden entry into the third round of FIFA World Cup Qualifiers when it faces a weakened Afghanistan in Abha, Saudi Arabia on Thursday. 

5.  Indian tennis player Sumit Nagal failed to make the main draw of the Miami Open on debut after losing his final qualifying round match to Hong Kong's Coleman Wong in Miami on Tuesday.

6.  Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) will ensure that Sports Code is followed in the upcoming state association elections in Gujarat, Telangana and Uttarakhand and is set to resume National Camp from 27 March.

7.  Cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu will be a part of the upcoming Indian Premier League 2024, as commentator, Star Sports Network announced via social media platform X. 

 

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MAHARASHTRA : MUMBAI

Winter Capital : Nagpur

District : 36

State of Bombay : 1950-1960

Formation : 01 May 1960

 Governor : Ramesh Bais

Chief Minister : Eknath Shinde

STATE SYMBOLS 

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Bird : Yellow footed Green pigeon

Fish : Silver Pomfret

Flower : Jarul

Tree : Mango tree

 

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