Today's Current Affairs 2nd March 2023

INTERNATIONAL

NASA And SpaceX Launch Crew-6

NASA's SpaceX Crew-6 was launched into space on March 2, 2023, at 5:34 UTC (11:04 am IST), for a long-duration mission on the International Space Station (ISS). Crew-6 includes NASA astronauts Stephen Bowen and Warren "Woody Hoburg", United Arab Emirates (UAE) astronaut Sultan AlNeyadi, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev. They were launched to the ISS aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft, atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39-A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

NATIONAL

Prime Minister Narendra Modi to inaugurate Raisina Dialogue in New Delhi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi to inaugurate the eighth edition of the Raisina Dialogue in New Delhi . Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni will join the inaugural session as the Chief Guest. The three-day Raisina Dialogue is India’s flagship conference on geopolitics and geo-strategy. It is organized by the Ministry of External Affairs in collaboration with Observer Research Foundation. The theme of the 2023 Edition is "Provocation, Uncertainty, Turbulence: Lighthouse in the Tempest.”

PM Narendra Modi Announces Establishment Of 'Startup Bridge' To Boost Strategic Partnership Between India & Italy

In a bid to boost their bilateral ties to a strategic partnership, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday announced the establishment of a ‘startup bridge’ between India and Italy.

Addressing the media after a meeting with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, PM Modi said new opportunities were opening up in India in the sector of co-production and co-development, such as renewable energy, green hydrogen, semiconductors, telecom and space, which can be beneficial for both the countries.

NTPC COMMISSIONS INDIA’S FIRST AIR COOLED CONDENSER AT NORTH KARANPURA SUPER CRITICAL PLANT IN JHARKHAND

The project has been envisaged with Air Cooled Condenser (ACC) which has almost 1/3rd water footprint as compared to a conventional Water Cooled Condenser (WCC). This would result in water saving of around 30.5 mcm annually thus fulfilling the needs of around 1.5 million people in the region annually.

NTPC has already taken a series of measures across its plant locations on sound water management. NTPC will further imbibe the 3 R’s (reduce, reuse, recycle) for water conservation and management while carrying out its core business activity of power generation. NTPC Ltd, is a signatory to the prestigious UN Global Compact’s CEO Water Mandate.

In a f irst, Uttarakhand to set up ‘mother milk bank’

There’s hope for children whose mother dies during childbirth: the Uttarakhand health department plans to set up a ‘mother milk bank,’ the first such facility in the state. “The facility can bring nutritional elements of mother’s milk to the newborn to a great extent,” Health Minister Dr Dhan Singh Rawat said

 SUMMIT'S & MOU's

Tamil Nadu signs MoU with UNEP for implementing urban cooling programme in the State

The Tamil Nadu government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) for implementing Urban Cooling Programme in the State to meet the objectives under the Tamil Nadu State Action Plan on Climate Change.

The collaboration between the State government and UNEP will aim address the rapidly increasing demand for cooling in cities while supporting implementation of initiatives to adapt and counteract rising heat.

AWARDS & RECOGNITION

India Wins GSMA Government Leadership Award 2023 for Telecom Policy Implementation

India has been awarded the Government Leadership Award 2023 by Groupe Speciale Mobile Association (GSMA) for implementing best practices in telecom policy and regulation. The GSMA represents more than 750 mobile operators and 400 companies in the telecom ecosystem and recognizes one country every year. India was declared the winner in the ceremony held at Mobile World Congress Barcelona.

BANKING AND ECONOMY

HDFC Bank, IRCTC launch India's most rewarding co-branded travel credit card

Indian Railway-backed catering services provider, IRCTC tied up with the largest private sector lender HDFC Bank on Wednesday to launch one of India’s most rewarding co-branded travel credit cards. The co-branded card will be called "IRCTC HDFC Bank Credit Card" and will be in a single variant exclusively available on NPCI’s Rupay network.

IRCTC HDFC Bank credit card will leverage HDFC Bank’s expertise as the market leader in card issuance in the country, offering its best-in-class rewards programme, and IRCTC’s unmatched services on train travel.

Axis Bank completes acquisition of Citibank’s India consumer business

Axis Bank has completed the acquisition of the India consumer business of the Citigroup-owned foreign bank Citibank for Rs 12,325 crore prior to evaluation of the closing position of Citibank India's assets, assets under management, and liabilities as of January 31, 2023. Post evaluation, the deal is valued at around Rs 11,603 crore. As per this deal, Axis Bank has acquired Citibank’s India consumer business from Citibank N.A. or CBNA and the non-banking financial company (NBFC) consumer business from Citicorp Finance (India) Limited or CFIL, according to a recent exchange filing by Axis Bank. The filing - “We now wish to inform you that completion of the acquisition of Citibank's India consumer business from CBNA and the NBFC consumer business from CFIL as going concers, without values being assigned to individual assets and liabilities for either business shall happen on March 1, 2023.”

Axis Bank further said the amount to acquire Citibank India's consumer business is based on the closing position of the latter's assets, assets under management (AUM), and liabilities as of January 31, 2023. The filing added the acquisition of the consumer business of Citibank India is in accordance with the requirements and terms of the agreed contractual documentation and settlement of consideration.