Today's Current Affairs 16th March 2023

INTERNATIONAL

Singapore Changi Airport is named the World’s Best Airport 2023 : Skytrax World Airport Award

Singapore Changi Airport has been named as the World’s Best Airport in 2023 in the World Airport Awards held at Passenger Terminal EXPO in Amsterdam, Changi Airport also won the awards for the World’s Best Airport Dining and World’s Best Airport Leisure Amenities.

The Hamad International Airport, Doha, in 2nd place and Tokyo Haneda Airport ranked 3rd.

NATIONAL

Indian Navy To Participate In US Anti-Submarine Warfare Exercise Sea Dragon 23

The Indian Navy’s P8I aircraft will be participating in the US-led anti-submarine warfare exercise (ASW), called the ‘Sea Dragon’, from March 15-30. The exercise will see more complex drills compared to the previous editions. The P8I aircraft of the Indian Navy arrived at Guam, US on March 14. Along with this aircraft, the multilateral ASW will also witness participation from P8A of the US Navy, P1 from the Japanese Maritime Self Defence Force, CP 140 from the Royal Canadian Air Force and P3C from the Republic of Korea Navy (RoKN).

This year, the ‘Sea Dragon 23’ exercise will test the capabilities of participating aircraft in tracking simulated and live underwater targets and simultaneously share mutual expertise, the Indian Navy

AAHAR 2023: Asia’s biggest International Food and Hospitality Fair begins in Delhi

Aahar 2023 organized with the support of the Union Ministry of Food Processing Industries, Agriculture and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), and other bodies, will focus on unveiling the potential of the hospitality sector and exhibiting technologies, products and services to domestic and international buyers. Aahar is India’s largest four-day culinary show where hoteliers and restauranteurs, caterers and distributors come to source the best in culinary, hospitality and equipment and also guage the market trends.

SPORTS

Ashleigh Gardner, and Harry Brook, seal ICC Player of the Month awards for February

Australia's Ashleigh Gardner won the award in the women's category. She was instrumental in Australia's triumph in the recent Women's T20 World Cup and received the player of the tournament,

England's Harry Brook was voted the best men's player for the month of February after his amazing run of form. The English batter received his second POTM award after winning it earlier in December 2022.

Gianni Infantino re-elected FIFA president till 2027,

Gianni Infantino was re-elected as FIFA president until 2027 by acclamation, after highlighting his strong financial performance as a reason for keeping a CEO in their position for life. The decision was made by the congress of 211 member federations, who have seen their annual funding from FIFA increase from $250,000 to $2 million since Infantino’s first win in 2016. Following the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, FIFA now has $4 billion in reserves, and it conservatively predicts a record revenue of at least $11 billion from the 2026 men’s World Cup, which will be hosted in North America.

 OBITURY

Actor Sameer Khakhar who played role of Khopdi in 'Nukkad', Passed away at 71

Actor Sameer Khakhar, best known for playing the lovable drunk Khopdi in the classic 1980s TV serial "Nukkad", died at a hospital here in the early hours of Wednesday due to multiple organ failure.

The actor, who was most recently seen in the Prime Video series "Farzi" and moved to the US in the 1990s for a few years to become a software developer, was 71.  Sameer Khakhar was admitted to MM Hospital in Borivali in suburban Mumbai on Tuesday morning following respiratory issues,

 APPOINTMENS & RESIGNATIONS

Honeywell (HON) Appoints Veteran Vimal Kapur as New CEO

Honeywell International HON announced that company veteran and current president and chief operating officer, Vimal Kapur, will succeed Darius Adamczyk as the new chief executive officer ("CEO"), effective Jun 1.  Mr, Kapur was named the president and chief operating officer of Honeywell last July. As COO, he oversaw the Honeywell Accelerator program, which uses certain frameworks and toolkits to improve end-to-end processes, digital transformation and business outcomes. As CEO, Kapur will focus on “the incorporation of Accelerator and standardization of global business models to enable maximal performance in each business segment."

Indian-American Ravi Chaudhary to be the new Assistant Secretary of US Air Force

The United States Senate has confirmed Indian-American Ravi Chaudhary as the Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Air Force, one of the top civilian leadership positions in the Pentagon.  He previously served as a Senior Executive at the US Department of Transportation where he was Director of Advanced Programs and Innovation, Office of Commercial Space at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). He was responsible for the execution of advanced development and research programs in support of the FAA's commercial space transportation mission. While at the transportation department, he also served as the executive director of the regions and centre operations, where he looked over the integration and support of aviation operations in nine regions.

IMPORTANT DAYS

National Vaccination Day or National Immunization Day.

Every year, National Vaccination Day or National Immunization Day is observed in India on March 16 with an aim to spread awareness about the importance of vaccines in the healthcare system. The day is observed to create awareness regarding how effective vaccinations are to prevent deadly diseases.

It was first observed on 16 March 1995 when the first dose of Oral Polio Vaccine was given. It is an attempt to increase awareness for the eradication of polio from the planet earth

Every year, the day is celebrated under a specific theme. In 2022, the theme was, 'Vaccines Work For Everyone'. However, the theme for this year is not announced yet

SUMMIT'S & MOU's

RBI and Central Bank of the UAE sign MoU to promote innovation in financial products and services

The Reserve Bank of India  and the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates signed a Memorandum of Understanding  in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday to promote innovation in financial products and services.

As per the MoU, both central banks will work together to explore Central Bank Digital Currencies and investigate interoperability between the CBDCs of CBUAE and RBI. They will conduct proof-of-concept  and pilot tests of bilateral CBDC bridge to facilitate cross-border transactions of remittances and trade. This collaboration is expected to increase efficiency and reduce costs in cross-border transactions, furthering the economic ties between India and UAE. The MoU also includes technical collaboration and knowledge sharing on matters related to Fintech and financial products and services.

This collaboration will help both central banks enhance their capabilities and contribute to the development of a robust financial ecosystem. The collaboration between RBI and CBUAE is a significant step towards promoting innovation and collaboration in the field of FinTech.