Daily Current Affairs – 03 & 04 April 2023

This post contains the current affairs for 03 & 04 April 2023. These current affairs are important for banking exams, insurance exams and other competitive exams like IBPS PO and Clerk, SBI PO and Clerk, RBI Assistant and Grade B, etc. You can also attempt our Current Affairs Quiz after reading our daily current affairs.

National

PM Modi addresses 5th International Conference on Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (ICDRI) 2023 through video conferencing

• The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi virtually addressed the 5th International Conference on Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (ICDRI) 2023.
• The fifth edition of the flagship conference has been organised in a hybrid format from 4-5 April 2023 in New Delhi.
• The theme of the conference is ‘Delivering Resilient and Inclusive Infrastructure: Pathways for Risk Informed Systems, Practices and Investments’.
• The Member Countries, organizations, institutions and infrastructure actors and stakeholders of Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI) will come together at this annual conference to discuss solution for disaster and climate resilient infrastructure.

Ministry of Rural Development launches ‘Captive Employment’ initiative under Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY)

• The Union Ministry for Rural Development has launched a unique initiative named ‘CAPTIVE EMPLOYMENT, under the Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY).
• The Captive Employer scheme aims to bridge the gap between job seeker and job provider by fulfilling job needs of rural poor and improve their standard of living. This program shall also contribute to sustainable development goals.
• Union Minister Giriraj Singh also onboarded 19 Captive Employers, who will train Rural Poor Youth and provide employment to trained youth in their company or subsidiary. 
• The training to rural poor youth will be given in their respective industries, namely, hospitality, apparel & textiles, manufacturing, IT/ITeS, telecom, retail, Power etc.
• Through this initiative, more than 31,000 jobs are expected to be provided to rural poor youth.

Kiran Nadar conferred with highest French Civilian Award ‘Knight of the Legion of Honour’

• Philanthropist and art collector Kiran Nadar, (wife of Shiv Nadar, the founder of HCL Technologies), has been conferred with the highest French civilian award “Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur” (Knight of the Legion of Honour).
• The award was conferred upon Kiran Nadar by French Ambassador to India Emmanuel Lenain, for her outstanding contribution in the field of art, her commitment to providing greater access to culture both nationally and internationally, and her leading role in fostering Indo-French cultural ties.
• Kiran Nadar is the chairperson of the Kiran Nadar Museum of Art (KNMA), a philanthropic initiative in art, and a trustee of the Shiv Nadar Foundation.

Eravikulam National Park gets a Fernarium

• A fernarium has been set up inside the Eravikulam National Park (ENP) in Kerala.
• It is for the first time that a fern collection is being set up in the hill station.
• Already 52 varieties of ferns are planted in the new fernarium.

Science-20 Conference under India’s G20 presidency begins in Agartala

• The Science-20 conference has been organised at the Hapania International Fair Ground in Agartala, Tripura from April 03 to 05, 2023.
• This science conclave is organised as a part of the G20 meetings, being held under India’s presidency.
• The theme of the 3 day conference is ‘Clean Energy for Greener future’.
• The inaugural address at the conclave was made by the Principal Scientific Advisor to the Government of India, Mr. Ajay Kumar Sood.
• Read more here

International

NASA names four Astronauts for Artemis II Moon Mission

• The American space agency, NASA and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) announced the names of four astronauts, who will venture around the Moon for science and exploration under Artemis II mission.
• The Artemis II mission is the first crewed voyage around the moon in more than 50 years. The previous human flight to lunar surface was the Apollo program in 1972.
• The Artemis II crew members consists of three from NASA and one from CSA.
• They are Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Hammock Koch, from NASA and Jeremy Hansen from CSA.
• Out of these four, Christina Hammock Koch is the first ever female, Victor Glover is the first ever African American and Jeremy Hansen is the first ever Canadian and first non- American to be sent on a lunar mission.
• The Artemis II will mark the debut crewed flight, but not the first lunar landing.

Twitter’s iconic ‘BLUE BIRD’ logo changed with ‘DOGE’ Meme of Dogecoin cryptocurrency

• The classic blue bird logo of the social media giant Twitter, has been replaced with the “doge” meme, which is also the logo of the Dogecoin cryptocurrency.
• The ‘doge’ meme has the face of a Shiba Inu. 
• Twitter CEO Elon Musk, who took control of the social media giant in October 2022 under $44 billion deal, confirmed the change in logo from Blue Bird to Doge via his Twitter account on April 04, 2023. 
• However, the change will be only visible on the web version of Twitter and not on the Twitter app.

Endeavor Group acquires WWE to merge with UFC under $21 billion deal 

• The pro wrestling giant World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and the mixed martial arts (MMM) franchise Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) are soon going to merge to form a new entity.
• UFC owner Endeavor Group will buy WWE and form a new sports entertainment company, worth around $21 billion.
• The deal will value WWE at $9.3 billion and UFC at $12.1 billion.
• Upon the completion of this deal, Endeavor will own a 51% stake in the new company, while WWE shareholders will hold remaining 49%.

World’s first hydrogen-powered ferry, MF Hydra, begins operation 

• The world’s first liquid hydrogen-powered ferry, MF Hydra, became operational on April 04, 2023 in Norway after the Norwegian Maritime Administration granted MF Hydra the clearance to sail, following rigorous development and testing.
• The MF Hydra has been launched by the Norwegian shipping company Norled.
• This 82.4-meter-long MF Hydra ferry will cover zero-emission journey on a triangular route in Norway between Hjelmeland, Skipavik, and Nesvik.

GDP

World Bank projects India’s GDP growth at 6.3% in FY24

• The World Bank report titled, India Development Update, has estimated India’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth at 6.3 percent in FY24, beginning April 01, 2023. Earlier, it was estimated at 6.6 percent.
• A moderate decline in GDP prediction is due to shrinkage in consumption on the back of slower income.

ADB projects India’s GDP growth at 6.4% in 2023 and 6.7% in 2024

• The Manila, Philippines-based Asian Development Bank (ADB) released its latest update, Asian Development Outlook April 2023, on April 04, 2023.
• In this report, ADB has projected a strong economic growth in Asia, with 4.8 percent each in 2023 and 2024, as against 4.2 percent for 2022.
• India’s GDP rate is estimated to grow at slow pace, with 6.4 percent in 2023 and 6.7 percent in 2024.

Defence

10th India-Sri Lanka Bilateral Maritime Exercise, SLINEX 2023 begins in Colombo

• The 10th edition of the annual India – Sri Lanka Bilateral Maritime exercise, SLINEX-2023, will be held from April 03, 2023 in Colombo.
• The exercise SLINEX-2023 will be conducted in two phases – the Harbour Phase and Sea Phase – of three days each.
• The Indian Navy will be represented by INS Kiltan and INS Savitri, in addition to Indian Navy Chetak helicopter and Dornier Maritime Patrol Aircraft 
• The Sri Lanka Navy will have SLNS Vijayabahu and SLNS Samudura, Sri Lanka Air Force Dornier and BEL 412 helicopters.
• SLINEX-2023 will enhance inter-operability, improve mutual understanding and exchange best practices and procedures in multi-faceted Maritime operations between both Navies. 

Appointment

RBI appoints Neeraj Nigam as new Executive Director (ED)

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has appointed Neeraj Nigam as the new Executive Director (ED) with effect from April 03, 2023.
• As Executive Director of RBI, Mr Nigam will handle
  • Consumer Education and Protection Department
  • Financial Inclusion and Development Department
  • Legal Department
  • Secretary’s Department
• Prior to this, Nigam was the Regional Director of the RBI’s Bhopal Regional Office.

Sports

Daniil Medvedev wins maiden Miami Open Tennis title

• Russian Tennis star Daniil Medvedev beat Jannik Sinner, 7-5, 6-3, to claim his first title at the Miami Open.
• This was Medvedev’s fourth title of the year, 5th ATP Masters 1000 title and 19th ATP title overall.
• Complete Overview of Result
  • Men’s Single – Daniil Medvedev
  • Women’s Single – Petra Kvitova (Czech Republic)
  • Men’s Double – Santiago Gonzalez (Mexico) and Édouard Roger-Vasselin (France)
  • Women’s Double – Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula of USA

Important Days

International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action 2023: 04 April

• The United Nations’ International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action is celebrated every year on 4th of April 4.
• 2023 Theme – “Mine Action Cannot Wait”
• The day was declared by the UNGA on 8 December 2005, to raise awareness about landmines and progress toward their eradication.
• The celebrations is led by United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS)- Headquarter- New York, United States.

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