Daily Current Affairs and GK | 23 May 2024

Topic: Awards and Prizes

1. POWERGRID received ATD BEST Awards 2024 for the third time.

• A Maharatna Central Public Sector Enterprise, Power Grid Corporation of India Limited (POWERGRID), has been conferred the prestigious ATD BEST Awards 2024.
• It has received the ATD BEST Awards 2024 for its strategic approach to talent development, driving business results.
• It is the third time that POWERGRID has received the ATD BEST Award. Earlier, it was conferred the ATD BEST Awards in 2021 and 2023.
• The award was received by Director (Personnel), Dr Yatindra Dwivedi and CGM (HRD), Shri Bipin Kishor Mundu, on behalf of POWERGRID.
• NTPC has achieved a milestone by securing the 3rd rank globally at the ATD BEST Awards 2024.
• NTPC becomes the only PSU to receive the award seven times in the last eight years.
• ATD BEST Awards:
  • It was established by the Association for Talent Development (ATD), USA.
  • It is one of the most esteemed international recognitions in the field of learning and development (L&D).

Topic: Personality in News

2. Jyoti Ratre has become oldest Indian woman to climb Mount Everest.

• She is 55 years old. She was aided by climbing guides Lakpa Nuru Sherpa, Ming Nuru Sherpa, and Pasang Tenzing Sherpa.
• This was her 2nd attempt to climb the highest peak in the world.
• In 2023, she returned from 8,160 mt because of harsh weather.
• This year, she stayed at Lhotse Camp at 7,800 metres altitude for four nights because of high winds.
• She conquered Mount Everest as part of a 15-member expedition team of 8K Expeditions.
• The team was led by Bolivian climber David Hugo Ayaviri Quispe.
• Six years ago, Sangeeta Bahl became the India’s oldest woman to climb Mount Everest at the age of 53.
• Jyoti Ratre is an entrepreneur from Madhya Pradesh. She has climbed the highest peaks on five continents.
• These peaks include Island Peak, Elbrus, Kilimanjaro, Mount Aconcagua, and Kosciuszko.
• Her aim is to summit Mount Vinson in Antarctica and Denali, also called Mount McKinley, in North America.
• She aims to do so to fulfil her dream of conquering the highest peaks on all seven continents.

Topic: Indian Economy

3. RBI will transfer Rs 2.11 lakh crore (Rs 2,10,874 crore) surplus to government for 2023-24.

• This transfer is 141% more over the Rs 87,416 crore, which was the last year’s (2022-23) dividend.
• The 608th meeting of the Central Board of Directors of Reserve Bank of India was held at Mumbai and this decision to surplus transfer was taken during the meeting.
• The government planned to provide for a dividend of Rs 1.02 lakh crore from the central bank, state-run banks, and other financial institutions in the interim budget projections for the fiscal year 2024–2025.
• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) often uses its excess revenue from assets, valuation adjustments on its dollar holdings, and currency printing fees to distribute dividends.
• The devaluation of the rupee in relation to the dollar influences the surplus transfer as well.

Topic: Summits/Conferences/Meetings

4. 16^th Joint Working Group meeting between India and UK on Counter Terrorism held in New Delhi.

• The meeting was led by the Joint Secretary for Counter-Terrorism in the Ministry of External Affairs, K D Dewal and Head of Counter Terrorism Network for Asia and Oceania, Government of United Kingdom Chris Felton.
• During the meeting they discussed the ongoing anti-terrorism cooperation between the two countries.
• Both countries stressed the need to strengthen international cooperation to combat terrorism in a comprehensive and sustained manner.
• Both sides shared their assessments of terrorist and extremist threats in their respective areas and regions, including threats posed by globally recognized terrorist entities and individuals.
• The 17th Joint Working Group meeting between India and UK on Counter Terrorism will be held in UK.

Topic: National News

5. Over 7,000 cyber crime complaints reported in India in 2024, with key locations identified in South East Asia.

• India is facing a surge in cyber crime, with an average of more than 7,000 complaints registered daily by May 2024.
• Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Center (I4C) CEO Rajesh Kumar highlighted that many cyber fraudsters targeting India are operating from key locations in Southeast Asia.
• It includes Pursat, Koh Kong, Sihanoukville, Kandal, Bavet, and Poipet in Cambodia, and Myawaddy and Shwe Kokko in Myanmar.
• The increasing trend in cyber crime is clear, with complaints increasing by 113.7% from 2021 to 2022 and 60.9% from 2022 to 2023.
• The number of complaints has increased steadily over the years:

• In 2024, most of the cyber fraud incidents involved fake trading apps, loan apps, gaming apps, dating apps and algorithm manipulation.
• The I4C received 4,599 complaints of digital theft totaling Rs 1,203.06 crore between January and April.
• Besides, 20,043 business scams totaling Rs 14,204.83 crore, 62,687 investment scams totaling Rs 2,225.82 crore and 1,725 dating scams totaling Rs 132.31 crore were reported.
• Law enforcement agencies have filed 10,000 First Information Reports (FIRs) in response.

Topic: International News

6. The British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced the holding of national elections on July 4.

• The announcement was made on the same day that official data revealed the UK's inflation rate had dropped to 2.3%, the lowest level in over three years.
• The prime minister of the United Kingdom called an early election months before it was expected.
• The polls could have been held at any time until December.
• Since 2010, the Conservative Party has ruled the country.
• They are widely known as Tories. They will fight elections against Labour Party. 
• It is expected that Sunak will lead his party into the election.
• The leader of the Labour Party, Keir Starmer, will be his main rival.
• All 650 members of the House of Commons will be chosen by voters of the United Kingdom for terms of up to five years.
• The next government will be led by the party with the most seats in the Commons, either alone or in coalition, and party’s leader will be Prime Minister.
• The economy, immigration, healthcare and the environment are the issues that matter in the United Kingdom.

Topic: International News

7. Spain becomes the 99th member of the International Solar Alliance (ISA).

• Meeting of Ambassador José María Ridao Domínguez of Spain was held with the Head of Depository, Joint Secretary in the External Affairs Ministry Abhishek Singh in New Delhi on 22 May 2024.
• During the meeting, Spain handed over the International Solar Alliance Instrument of Ratification.
• ISA was conceptualized on the sidelines of the 21st Conference of Parties (COP21) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change held in Paris in 2015.
• India and France jointly launched the International Solar Alliance (ISA) on 30 November 2015 at COP21 in Paris, France.
• ISA is an intergovernmental organization whose headquarters is located in Gurugram, Haryana.
• International Solar Alliance is working to increase access to affordable solar energy for communities around the world.

Topic: State News/West Bengal

8. Calcutta High Court issued an order to cancel five lakh OBC certificates in West Bengal.

• Five Lakh Other Backward Classes (OBC) certificates issued in West Bengal since 2010 have been cancelled by the Calcutta High Court.
• This judgment has been given by a division bench comprising Justices Tapabrata Chakrabarty and Rajasekhar Mantha.
• The Court clarified that persons who had already secured employment using these certificates would not be affected by this order.
• The Bench struck down some portions of the West Bengal Backward Classes (other than Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes) (Reservation of Vacancies in Services and Posts) Act, 2012.
• The court removed sub-classified categories OBC-A and OBC-B from Schedule I of the Act.
• The executive orders of the state government had classified 66 classes of OBC.
• The opinion and advice of the Backward Classes Commission are binding on the state legislature under the National Commission for Backward Classes Act, 1993.

Topic: Awards and Prizes

9. Indian-Origin US Scientist Shrinivas R Kulkarni wins Prestigious Shaw Prize.

• Indian-origin professor of astronomy, Shrinivas R Kulkarni, wins Shaw Prize.
• Shaw Prize in Astronomy has been given to him for his ground-breaking discoveries about millisecond pulsars, gamma-ray bursts, and supernova.
• Shrinivas R Kulkarni has done MS from the Indian Institute of Technology in 1978 and PHD from University of California in 1983.
• He was also the director of Caltech Optical Observatories from 2006 till 2018.
• The Shaw Prize is given in three fields: Astronomy, Life sciences and Medicine, and Mathematical Sciences.
• The award comprise a monetary award of USD 1.2 million.

Topic: International Appointments

10. On May 22, Vietnam's parliament elected public security minister To Lam as the country's President.

• Lam replaced Vo Van Thuong, who resigned in March following a major anti-corruption campaign. Lam got 472 out of 473 votes.
• The election of Lam followed the appointment of former deputy Tran Thanh Man as the new chairman of Vietnam’s National Assembly on May 20.
• Led by the General Secretary of the Communist Party, Vietnam has a four-person leadership structure that also includes the President, the Prime Minister, and the head of the National Assembly.
• Lam has been minister of public security since 2016 and has taken a tough stance on human rights movements in the communist country.
• The National Assembly elects the President by secret ballot, after which delegates approve the results.

Topic: Awards and Prizes

11. On May 21, the portal for nominations for the National Award to Teachers (Higher Education) 2024 launched.

• It was launched by Shri Sanjay Murthy, Secretary, Department of Higher Education, along with Shri T. G. Sitaram, Chairman, AICTE.
• Apart from this, the Higher Education Department of the Ministry of Education has also issued guidelines regarding enrollment.
• This award will be presented to exemplary teachers/faculty members of technical and non-technical higher education institutions and teachers of polytechnic institutions.
• There will be three sub-categories under the first category based on the following broad topics:
  • Engineering & Technology, Architecture
  • Pure Sciences including Mathematics, Physical Sciences, Biological Sciences, Chemical Sciences, Medicine, Pharmacy
  • Arts and Social Sciences, Humanities, Languages, Legal Studies, Commerce, and Management
• The last date for submitting nominations for this award is June 20, 2024.
• The selected award winners will be honored on 5th September (Teacher's Day) to commemorate the birth anniversary of Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, former President of India and renowned teacher.
• The National Award to Teachers 2024 in Higher Education Institutions aims to recognize and honor outstanding faculty members for their dedication, hard work and contribution to teaching and pedagogy who have enhanced the quality of higher education and enriched the lives of students.
• The eligibility criteria for the award:

Topic: International News

12. Spain, Norway and Ireland have decided to recognize Palestine as a separate state.

• The formal recognition of Palestine state by Ireland, Norway, and Spain will come into force on May 28.
• Israel accused these nations of “rewarding” Hamas for its brutal attack on October 7.
• Palestinian statehood has been recognized by more than 130 member states of the United Nations.
• The formal recognition of Palestine is a step towards a two-state solution and will ensure peace for both the Israeli and Palestinian people.
• More than 35,000 Palestinians have been killed and nearly 80,000 wounded during the Israeli assault on Gaza.
• The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), the main representative of the Palestinians, was the first to declare the establishment of the State of Palestine in 1988.

(Source: DD News)

Topic: Space and IT

13. India's AstroSat made a fascinating discovery about a black hole system.

• A team of scientists using the Indian space observatory AstroSat has made a discovery about a black hole system called Swift J1727.8-1613.
• A team of astrophysicists from U R Rao Satellite Centre (URSC) along with other stakeholders reported this finding in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society (MNRAS).
• AstroSat first observed Swift J1727.8-1613 on September 2, 2023, and it continuously monitored it until September 14, 2023.
• AstoSat observed unusual behaviour in high-energy X-rays from the black hole Swift J1727.8-1613 during a rare outburst.
• This behaviour is called aperiodic modulation. This is the first time such a pattern has been observed in this system.
• A black hole is a region in space where the gravitational pull is so strong that even light cannot escape from it.
• A black hole is created when a massive star collapses under its gravity at the end of its life cycle.
• A black hole and its companion star are gravitationally bound in the black hole X-ray binary system (BH-XRB).