- National:
- The Indian Army successfully conducted the inaugural test firing of rockets and turret guns from its Light Combat Helicopter (LCH), Prachand. The test was carried out at the Air Force station in Likabali, Arunachal Pradesh.
- RailTel Corporation of India Ltd., a Miniratna PSU under the Ministry of Railways, has set up a Centre of Excellence (CoE) for Railway Signalling and Telecommunications Training.The centre was inaugurated by Shri Sanjai Kumar, CMD of RailTel Corporation of India Ltd.
- The Union Minister of Education, Govt. of India, Sh. Dharmendra Pradhan, announced the opening of a new CBSE Regional Office in UAE on 2nd November 2023.
- Union Minister of State for Skill Development & Entrepreneurship and Electronics & IT, Shri Rajeev Chandrasekhar, attended the inaugural FIND Festival ’23 and the launch of Ekya Nava.
- Shiv Nadar, the founder of HCL Technologies, has indeed retained his position as India’s top philanthropist in 2023. He donated a whopping Rs 2,042 crore, showing a significant increase of 76% compared to 2022.
- International:
- The Philippines has indeed announced its exit from China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). This decision was made following a collision between a Philippine boat and a Chinese coastguard vessel in the South China Sea.
- Banking:
- Zurich Insurance Group has announced a strategic alliance with Kotak Mahindra Bank, India’s third largest private sector bank by market capitalization, through the proposed acquisition of a 51% stake in Kotak Mahindra General Insurance Company Limited (Kotak General Insurance) for USD 488 million.
- The Russian Government has recently simplified the process for Indian nationals to open bank accounts and deposit funds with Russian financial institutions..
- India’s first 50-year Government Security (G-Sec) was fully sold. The government sold 100 billion rupees ($1.2 billion) of the 2073 bond at a cutoff yield of 7.46%, which was lower than the 7.48% forecast.
- AU Small Finance Bank and ixigo have indeed launched a premium co-branded travel credit card. This card is designed to offer a seamless, rewarding, and memorable travel experience across all travel verticals, including flights, trains, buses, and hotels.
- ICICI Bank has announced that it has enabled millions of customers to pay to any merchant QR code by using the Bank’s digital rupee app named ‘Digital Rupee by ICICI Bank’. The Bank has made it possible by making its digital rupee app UPI (Unified Payments Interface) interoperable.
- The Election Commission of India has designed an in-house software called ENCORE for complete Candidate and election management. The term ENCORE stands for Enabling Communications On Real-Time Environment.
- Mous:
- Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) and Gas Authority of India (GAIL) have signed a 15-year contract for the supply of propane, which is a critical petrochemical feedstock. The contract is estimated at a value of over Rs 63,000 crore.
- Sports:
- Mohammed Shami has indeed become the highest wicket-taker for India in ODI World Cup history. He achieved this milestone during the India vs Sri Lanka match at the 2023 World Cup match in Mumbai.
- Awards & Honors:
- Deenanath Rajput, a former software engineer turned social worker, has been awarded the 2nd Rohini Nayyar prize for his significant contributions to the empowerment of tribal women in Bastar, Chhattisgarh.
- The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has announced the winners of the 2023 Champions of the Earth award. The winners are: Josefina Belmonte, Fundação Ellen Macarthur, Blue Circle, José Manuel Moller, Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR).
- Appointments:
- Former Delhi High Court Chief Justice Rajendra Menon has been re-appointed as Chairman of the Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT) for a four-year term. This marks his second consecutive term as Chairman, having initially been nominated for the position in 2019.
- The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) has indeed appointed nodal officers to receive complaints against piracy. The nodal officers appointed by MIB are: Prithul Kumar, Joint Secretary (Films) at MIB, Armstrong Pame, Director (Films)/Deputy Secretary (Films), Ravinder Bhakar, the CEO of Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), Regional officers of CBFC from Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai, and Cuttack.
Questions:
Q.1 Who has been re-appointed as Chairman of the Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT)?a. Justice Dipak Misra
b. Justice Rajendra Menon
c. Justice Ranjan Gogoi
d. Justice Sharad Arvind Bobde
Q.2 Which prize was Deenanath Rajput awarded for his contributions?
a. 1st Rohini Nayyar prize
b. 2nd Rohini Nayyar prize
c. 3rd Rohini Nayyar prize
d. 4th Rohini Nayyar prize
