IMPORTANT DAYS

World Press Freedom Day observed on 3rd May

 3rd May is celebrated as World Press Freedom Day. The day acts as a reminder for the government to
uphold the right to freedom of expression. In 1993, 3 May was declared World Press Freedom Day. This
declaration came after a recommendation was made in 1991 at the 26th General Conference session of
UNESCO.
 The theme for this year is 'Journalism under Digital Siege', focusing on the digital era‟s impact on freedom
of expression, the safety of journalists and access to information.

World Hand Hygiene Day observed on 5th May

 World Hand Hygiene Day is annually observed across the world on 5th May to maintain global promotion,
visibility, and sustainability of hand hygiene in health care. World Health Organisation (WHO) launched the
“Save Lives: Clean Your Hands” global annual campaign in 2009.
 The theme of this year is “Unite for safety: clean your hands”. This theme focuses on encouraging people
across the planet to clean their hands using the correct products at the right times. Doing this can help
achieve a higher quality of global safe care.

World Athletics Day observed on 7th May

 World Athletics Day is celebrated every year globally on 7th May to raise awareness about the importance
of fitness and encourage them to play sports, especially athletics. The basic objective of World Athletics
Day is to boost the participation of youths in athletics.
 In 1996, World Athletics Day was started by the then International Amateur Athletic Federation President
Primo Nebiolo.

World Red Cross Day observed on 8th May

 World Red Cross Day also known as Red Crescent Day is celebrated on 8th May every year. This date
marks the birth anniversary of Henry Dunant, who is the founder of the International Committee of the
Red Cross (ICRC). He is also the recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize.
 The day is celebrated by the Red Cross society across all the countries. It works for the welfare of people.
World Red Cross Society provides for food shortages, natural disasters, wars as well as diseases and
epidemics. The theme of World Red Cross Day 2022 is „BeHumanKind‟.

National Technology Day observed on 11th May

 National Technology Day is observed every year on 11th May across the country. This day is
commemorated as an achievement of India‟s technical advances, since on May 11, 1998, the country
successfully tested nuclear weapons in Pokhran.

1 MAY 2022
  The theme for National Technology Day 2022 is “Integrated Approach in Science and technology for
sustainable future”. The theme was launched by Union Minister Jitendra Singh.

International Nurses Day observed on 12th May

 International Nurses Day is observed on May 12 to honour nurses and appreciates their extraordinary
contribution. Nurses play an important role in the medical sector and have been crucial Covid warriors,
fighting at the forefront of the pandemic since 2020.
 May 12 was chosen as the day to commemorate nurses' contribution because of the splendid work carried
out by Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing. Florence Nightingale was a British nurse and
social reformer and is revered as “The Lady with the Lamp”.

International Museum Day observed on 18th May

 International Museum Day is celebrated on May 18. Museums help in promotion of cultural heritage and
preservation of historical artefacts, besides acting as source of entertainment with academic value. The
International Council of Museums (ICOM) has been celebrating this day since 1977.
 The theme of International Museum Day 2022 is „The Power of Museums‟. The theme helps museums
across the world organise events primarily around one idea, bringing harmony to the celebration.

Anti-Terrorism Day observed on 21st May

 Anti-Terrorism Day is observed on 21st May in India every year. The objective behind observance of this
day is to wean away the youth from terrorism and the cult of violence by highlighting the suffering of
common people and showing how it is prejudicial to the national interest.
 It was on this day in the year 1991 that former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated. This
year commemorates Rajiv Gandhi‟s 30th death anniversary as India observes Anti-Terrorism Day.

International Day of UN Peacekeepers observed on 29th May

 International Day of UN Peacekeepers is observed globally on 29th May. The International Day of United
Nations Peacekeepers also offers a chance to honor around 4,200 peacekeepers that lost their lives serving
under the UN flag since, including 135 who lost the battle last year.
 UN Secretary-General António Guterres said that this year, the focus is on the Power of Partnerships. The
theme for this year‟s Day is “People. Peace. Progress. The Power of Partnerships.”

World No Tobacco Day observed on 31st May

 World No Tobacco Day is observed on 31st May across the globe. The main aim of the day is to raise
awareness amid the global citizens about not only the dangers of using tobacco but also the business
practices of tobacco companies, what WHO is doing to fight the tobacco epidemic and what people
around the world can do to claim their right to health and healthy living and to protect future generations.
 This year, the theme of the World Tobacco Day is “Threat to our environment.” In 1987, the World
Health Assembly passed Resolution WHA40.38, calling for 7th April, 1988, to be “a world no-smoking day”
and in 1988, Resolution WHA42.19 was passed, calling for the celebration of World No-Tobacco Day,
every year on 31st May.

2 MAY 2022
 INDIAN AFFAIRS
Prime Minister inaugurated India‟s first Semicon India Conference 2022
 Prime Minister Narendra Modi virtually inaugurated India's first Semicon conference in Bengaluru saying
that the country has shown the real meaning of business and now it depends on the industry leaders to
make India a "vibrant semiconductor ecosystem".
 Union Ministers, semiconductor industry business leaders, investors, academics and diplomats were among
those present on the occasion.

Chief Minister of Bihar inaugurated India‟s first Greenfield grain-based ethanol plant
 Chief Minister of Bihar, Nitish Kumar inaugurated the country‟s first Greenfield grain-based ethanol plant in
Purnea, Bihar. Ethanol production will help reduce the cost of petrol and generate employment.
 The Rs 105-crore plant by Eastern India Biofuels Private Limited is the first one developed since the Centre
gave a go-ahead to Bihar‟s ethanol production and promotion policy-2021.

Law Minister informed to establish Judicial Infrastructure Development Authority

 Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju has informed Judicial Infrastructure Development Authority will be formed
at state level to strengthen the judicial infrastructure of the country.
 The resolution regarding this was passed during the Joint Conference of Chief Ministers of the States and
Chief Justices of High Courts in New Delhi.

India's first cable-stayed bridge- Anji Khad Bridge to be completed by December 2022
 Konkan Railways Project Officer, Sanjay Kumar informed that India's first cable-stayed bridge- Anji Khad
Bridge will be complete by December this year in Reasi district of the Union Territory of Jammu and
Kashmir. Anji Khad Bridge is situated over the Anji River.
 It will connect the Katra-Reasi section at the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla route. The 272-kilometer long
Udhampur-Baramulla Railway Line will be a game-changer for the Union Territory and 80 percent of the
work on the project has been completed.

Government of Chhattisgarh opened store to promote local products

 The government of Chhattisgarh has opened the C-Mart store in Raipur with the aim to promote local
products and rural entrepreneurship. C-Mart has been established to provide a marketplace for the local
products of Chhattisgarh made by women of self-help groups.
 The store not only provides a platform for selling the products made by the women of self-help groups but
also makes people aware of the local products of Chhattisgarh.

3 MAY 2022
 Sarbananda Sonowal announced to build India‟s first home made Hydrogen-fuelled electric vessel
 Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Sarbananda Sonowal announced that the Ministry of
Ports, Shipping and Waterways would develop and build India‟s first indigenous hydrogen-fueled electric
vessels at Cochin Shipyard Limited, kicking off the country‟s efforts toward green shipping.
 At a session titled Green Shipping in India 2022, organised by the Ministry in collaboration with the
shipyard and The Energy and Resources Institute, he also revealed the government‟s intention for
developing such vessels in order to stay up with the Global Maritime Green Transitions.

IRCTC announced to run its first Bharat Gaurav Tourist train

 IRCTC announced to run its first Bharat Gaurav Tourist train in June 2022, which would include a stop at
Nepal's Janakpur. This train will run on the Ramayana Circuit identified under Swadesh Darshan scheme
covering prominent places associated with life of Lord Shri Rama.
 The proposed 18-day Bharat Gaurav Tourist train tour has its first stop at Ayodhya, the birthplace of Lord
Rama, where tourists will visit Shri Ram Janmabhumi temple and Hanuman temple

India‟s first case of Omicron XE variant confirmed by INSACOG

 India's first case of Omicron mutant variant XE has been confirmed by the Indian SARSCoV2 Genomics
Sequencing Consortium (INSACOG).
 The XE variant is a “recombinant" virus that contains the mutations found in BA.1 as well as BA.2 variants
of Omicron and was first discovered in the UK in January 2022. XE shows a slightly higher transmission
rate and also a higher growth rate above that of BA.2.

ISRO decided to launch India's first Venus Mission Shukrayaan in December 2024
 The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) plans to launch India's first Venus Mission 'Shukrayaan-I' in
December 2024 window. The Shukrayaan mission is a planned orbiter to Venus to study the planet's
surface and atmosphere.
 Shukrayaan will be India's first orbiter mission to Venus after sending similar missions to the Moon and
Mars. The mission aims to study the surface of the hottest planet in our solar system and unravel the
mysteries under the Sulfuric Acid clouds enveloping it.

India‟s first-ever unique kind of Flow Chemistry Technology Hub opened in Hyderabad
 A Flow Chemistry Technology Hub (FCT Hub) was opened in Hyderabad. This is the first of its kind in our
country and an enabler for the pharma business in India. It is located at Dr. Reddy‟s Institute of Life
Sciences (DRILS), Hyderabad. The hub is initiated by the government of Telangana.
 “Flow chemistry”, also known as “continuous flow chemistry” is the process of performing chemical
reactions in a tube or pipe. Here, a chemical reaction is run in a continuously flowing stream rather than in
batch production.

Food Processing Industries Minister launched three 'One District One Products' brands
 Food Processing Industries Minister Pashupati Kumar Paras launched three 'One District, One Product'
brands under the Pradhan Mantri Formalisation of Micro-Food Processing Enterprises Scheme.
 The scheme aims to enhance the competitiveness of existing individual micro-enterprises in the
unorganized segment of the food processing industry and to promote formalization of the sector and
provide support to Farmer Producer Organizations and Self-Help Groups.

4 MAY 2022
 Union Minister Anurag Singh Thakur announced world‟s largest film restoration project
 Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting Anurag Singh Thakur have announced that the world‟s
largest film restoration project with a budget of Rs 363 crores was awarded by the Ministry.
 It was launched under the National Film Heritage Mission (NFHM). Under NFHM, approximately 2,200
films will undergo restoration.

Maharashtra launched „Jivhala‟ scheme to offer credit to jail inmates

 Maharashtra Department of Prisons has launched a loan scheme named „Jivhala‟ for the inmates who are
serving sentences in various jails across Maharashtra.
 The scheme, implemented by the Department of Prisons and Maharashtra State Cooperative Bank, has
been started in Pune‟s Yerawada Central Jail. Bank and prison officials believe the credit scheme could be
the first of its kind in India for inmates who are still serving their sentences.

Rajasthan became first state to surpass 10 GW of cumulative large-scale solar installations

 According to Mercom‟s India Solar Project Tracker, Rajasthan became the first state in India to reach 10
GW of cumulative large-scale solar installations. Solar is the most common energy source, accounting for
roughly 36 percent of total capacity and 64% of renewables.
 The state has a total installed power capacity of 32.5 GW, with renewables accounting for 55%, thermal
energy for 43%, and nuclear energy accounting for the remaining 2%. Rajasthan has a total of 32.5 GW of
installed power capacity.

NCRTC received India‟s first Regional Rapid Transit System train set at Salvi
 The very first trainset of India‟s first Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) corridor was handed over to
National Capital Region Transport Corporation.
 100% of these state-of-the-art RRTS trainsets are being manufactured in the country at the Alstom‟s
factory in Savli, Gujarat. The full corridor of the RRTS corridor will be commissioned by 2025.

Government of Odisha initiated India‟s first tribal health observatory

 The Government of Odisha has initiated the process for the establishment of India‟s 1 st Tribal Health
Observatory” for ensuring equity in tribal health in Odisha. The Tribal Health Observatory (TriHOb) is the
“first in the country”, and designed to be an effective, evidence-based and a policy-oriented center.
 Also a MoU was signed in this regard between the ST and SC Development Department and the RMRC, a
regional centre of the Indian Council of Medical Research.

Boeing and Air Works collaborated on Indian Navy's P-8I fleet

 Air Works is partnering with the Boeing Company to conduct heavy maintenance checks on three Indian
Navy P-8I long-range maritime patrol aircraft at Air Works, Hosur, demonstrating the success of the
government‟s Atmanirbhar Bharat campaign.
 The partnership between Boeing and Air Works has resulted in quicker turnaround times and increased
operating capability for important defence platforms in India.

RPF signed MoU with Nobel laureate Kailash Satyarthi‟s Children Foundation
 Railway Protection Force (RPF) has signed a MoU with Association for Voluntary Action (AVA) for a
trafficking free nation. A joint action by both stakeholders under the framework of MoU will definitely

5 MAY 2022
 enhance the scale, reach and effectiveness of “Operation AAHT” (Action against Human Trafficking)
launched by RPF across the nation.
 With a view to work together with a common goal of making the nation trafficking free, Sanjay Chander,
DG/RPF had initiated detailed deliberations with Rajni Sibal, CEO of Kailash Satyarthi Children‟s
Foundation (KSCF) in presence of Kailash Satyarthi in April 2022.

Aaditya Thackeray inaugurated India's first bio-gas powered EV charging station in Mumbai
 Maharashtra Minister of Minister of Tourism and Environment, Aaditya Thackeray inaugurated the India‟s
first organic waste-powered EV charging station at Keshavrao Khadye road in Mumbai.
 The station, a first-of-its-kind, will generate 220 units of electricity from food waste collected from its
nearby areas, mostly from bulk generators like hotels and offices. Along with powering street lights, this
energy plant will now charge electric vehicles too.

Amit Shah announced digitisation of census, to be linked with birth, death register
 Union Home Minister Amit Shah announced that with digitalisation of the census process, a 100%
enumeration can be expected in the next counting exercise which has been delayed due to the Covid
pandemic.
 This means that the census will be updated automatically after every birth and death in the country. The
home ministry has also decided to add modern techniques to make the census process more scientific.

Union Ministry of Home Affairs granted security clearance to Jet Airways

 The Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has granted security clearance to the new Jet Airways
promoters. The security clearance will pave the way for the relaunch of the Jet airways‟ operations.
 Jet airways‟ operation was closed in 2019 due to financial constraints. Last week, Jet Airways conducted its
first test flight from Hyderabad to Delhi. After the test flight, Jet Airways has to conduct proving flights
after which it will get an air operator certificate.

India elected a new Chair of the Association of Asian Election Authorities for 2022-24
 India has been unanimously elected as the new Chair of the Association of Asian Election Authorities for
2022-2024 at the meeting of the Executive Board and General Assembly in Manila, Philippines.
 Commission on Elections, Manila was the current chair of AAEA. The new member of the Executive Board
now includes Russia, Uzbekistan, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Taiwan and the Philippines.

Delhi High Court delivered split verdict on marital rape criminalization

 The Delhi High Court's divisional Bench delivered a split verdict in the marital rape case regarding the
validity of Exception 2 to Section 375 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). This very exception and its validity
were challenged before the Delhi High Court.
 The verdicts of the two judges, Justices Rajiv Shakdher and C Hari Shankar differed on the matter. While
Justice Shakdher struck down the provision as unconstitutional, Justice Shankar upheld it.

Prasar Bharati and ORTM signed MOU on cooperation and collaboration in Broadcasting
 Prasar Bharati, India‟s national broadcaster has signed a MoU with Madagascar‟s official ORTM (Office de la
Radio et de la Television) for broadcasting cooperation and collaboration. Indian Ambassador Abhay Kumar
and ORTM Director General Jean Yves signed a Memorandum of Understanding.

6 MAY 2022
  The MoU intends to exchange programmes, investigate co-production of programmes, and exchange
persons. Both sides will look into co-production prospects in areas of mutual interest, and TVM
professionals will be trained in India.

Ministry of MSME decided to open India‟s first Khadi Centre of Excellence in Delhi
 The Ministry of MSME has created a Centre for Experimentation, Innovation, and Design for the Khadi
Village and Industries Commission with the goal of empowering Khadi Institutions across the country.
 The Center‟s mission is to create clothing, home goods, and fashion accessories that appeal to individuals
of all ages. The goal of the Khadi Centre of Excellence (CoEK) is to make Khadi a worldwide, classic, and
value-driven brand.

India's first ever „Amrit Sarovar‟ inaugurated in Uttar Pradesh

 India‟s first Amrit Sarovar was inaugurated in Rampur, Uttar Pradesh by the Union Minister for Minority
Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi and Swatantra Dev Singh, Uttar Pradesh Jal Shakti Minister.
 The Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi also acknowledged the participation and cooperation of the
common people, villagers and District Administration who played an important role in the opening of
India‟s first Amrit Sarovar in Uttar Pradesh.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched Madhya Pradesh Startup Policy

 Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the Madhya Pradesh Startup Policy and spoke to the startup
community via video conferencing at the Madhya Pradesh Startup Conclave in Indore.
 The event will be attended by Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, as well as key officials and
entrepreneurs. According to the official, Madhya Pradesh has 1,937 start-ups recognised by the Union
government, with women running 45 percent of them.

NITI Ayog launched National Data and Analytics Platform

 NITI Aayog launched the National Data and Analytics Platform. The platform aims to democratize access
to public government data by making data accessible, interoperable, interactive and available on a user-
friendly platform. The platform was launched by Vice Chairman of NITI Aayog Suman Bery.
 Conceived in 2020, the platform aims to standardise data across government sources and provide flexible
analytics, making it easy for users to analyse information using multiple datasets.

Telecom Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw launched GatiShakti Sanchar portal

 Telecom Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw launched GatiShakti Sanchar portal that will centralise and speed up
approvals for laying of fibre and tower installations, boosting upcoming 5G roll out and a legal backing for
the Right of Way (RoW) will be in place by December.
 The GatiShakti Sanchar portal will enable centralised right of way approvals for telecom infrastructure
projects and can be used by industry players to apply for RoW approvals, including for 5G services.

Chhattisgarh became first state to restore old pension scheme

 Chhattisgarh has become the first state in the country to restore the old pension scheme in order to
provide assured income to retired employees. The old pension scheme gives 50% of the employee's salary
as pension.

7 MAY 2022
  The state government has sent a proposal to the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority
(PFRDA) for the withdrawal of Rs 17,000 crore accrued under the National Pension Scheme since
November 2004.

Devasahayam Pillai became 1st Indian layman to be declared saint by Pope

 Devasahayam Pillai, who embraced Christianity in the 18th century, became the first Indian layman to be
declared a saint by Pope Francis during an impressive canonisation ceremony at the Vatican.
 Devasahayam was recommended for the process of Beatification by the Vatican in 2004, at the request of
the Kottar diocese, Tamil Nadu Bishops‟ Council and the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India.

Ministry of Rural Improvement, Amazon signed MOU for online marketing of SHG products
 A MoU was signed between the Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD) and Amazon Seller Services Pvt
Ltd (Amazon). Amazon will help market and promote products listed by SHGs through the Saheli
Storefront, Social media, Events and Onsite merchandising.
 The MoU was signed by Charanjit Singh, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Rural Development and Sumit Sahay –
Director, IN Marketplace Business, and Amazon Seller Services.

Rajasthan's Ramgarh Vishdhari Sanctuary became India's 52nd tiger reserve

 Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Bhupender Yadav has announced that
Ramgarh Vishdhari Tiger Reserve in Rajasthan has been notified as the 52nd Reserve of India.
 It will help to conserve biodiversity and bring ecotourism and development to the area. The newly notified
tiger reserve includes the tiger habitat between Ranthambore Tiger Reserve and Mukundra Hills Tiger
Reserve.

India became first 'country of honour' at Cannes Film Market

 India has been named as the first ever official 'country of honour' at Marche du Film, the business
counterpart of the Cannes Film Festival. India is also a „country of honour‟ at the 'Cannes Next', under
which five new start-ups would be given an opportunity to pitch to the audio-visual industry.
 Six Indian movies will be screened at the Market selected by the Indian Ministry of Information and
Broadcasting, and are not part of the Cannes' official selections.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh launched INS Surat and INS Udaygiri
 Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh launched INS Surat and INS Udaygiri, two new India-made warships
in Mumbai. Indian Navy Destroyer INS Surat is the fourth and last stealth destroyer under the 'Project 15B'
programme. INS Udaygiri is an Indian Naval frigate of 'Project 17A' programme.
 The two ships will undergo trials before being commissioned into the Indian Navy. Both 15B and P17A
ships have been designed in India by the Directorate of Naval Design (DND).

Greenko group announced to set up world‟s largest RE storage plant in Andhra Pradesh
 Greenko Group, India‟s largest renewable energy storage and Transition Company, is planning to increase
its renewable capacity to 100 GWh by 2027 with an investment of $10 billion.
 The company started work on the world‟s largest 5,230 MW integrated pumped hydel storage-cum-wind-
solar project. The Kurnool project will include 1,680 MW of pumped hydroelectricity which will have
storage for six hours, equivalent to 10,800 MWh (10.80 GWh) of capacity.

8 MAY 2022
 Manish Sisodia inaugurated East Delhi‟s first residential EV charging station
 Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi, Manish Sisodia inaugurated the EVRE Infinity EV Charger at Nagarjuna
Apartments at Mayur Vihar. EVRE, India‟s leading EV charging Infratech player set-up the first dedicated EV
charging station within a residential society in East Delhi.
 This is EVRE's first EV charging facility in a residential society in East Delhi. Currently, EVRE operates
around 700 charging stations in different cities.

First Incredible India International Cruise Conference organized

 The first Incredible India International Cruise Conference was organized. It is a two-day event jointly
organized by the Union Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways and the Federation of Indian Chambers
of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) in Mumbai, Maharashtra.
 Strategies for developing India as a cruise hub, port infrastructure, and the potential of river cruise tourism
in India were some of the issues focused on at the conference. Eight MoUs were also signed.

SC ordered to release of AG Perarivalan after 31 years in Rajiv Gandhi assassination

 Invoking the powers under Article 142 of the Constitution, a Supreme Court bench comprising Justices L
Nageswara Rao and BR Gavai ordered the release of AG Perarivalan, who is a convict in the Rajiv Gandhi
assassination case.
 Article 142 deals with the enforcement of decrees and orders of the Supreme Court and orders as to
discovery, etc. there is a scope of judicial review due to the delay by the Tamil Nadu governor in exercising
his powers under Article 161 of the Constitution.

Rajasthani singer Mame Khan became first folk artist to open Cannes Red Carpet for India
 Rajasthan singer Mame Khan has become the first folk artist from India to walk the Red Carpet at Cannes
Film Festival 2022. Mame Khan was a part of the official Indian contingent at Cannes led by the Union
Minister of Information and Broadcasting Anurag Thakur.
 Prasoon Joshi, Rickey Rej, Shekhar Kapur, R Madhavan, Nazazuddin Siddiqui, Anurag Thakur represented
India at Cannes 2022 Red Carpet. The Rajasthani Folk Singer was dressed in a traditional Rajasthani attire
on the red carpet. His outfit was designed by Anjuli Chakraborty.

Government of India announced formation of Cotton Council of India

 The Union Government has announced the formation of the Cotton Council of India under the
Chairmanship of renowned veteran cotton man Suresh Bhai Kotak.
 The Council will have representation from Textiles, Agriculture, Commerce, and Finance Ministries along
with Cotton Corporation of India and Cotton Research Institute.

Prime Minister inaugurated country‟s first 5G testbed

 Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the country‟s first 5G testbed that will enable start-ups and
industry players to test their products locally, thereby reducing dependence on facilities abroad. The
testbed has been set up at a cost of around Rs 220 crore.
 The Prime Minister stated that the 5G testbed is an important step for self-reliance in the direction of
critical and modern technologies. 5G technology will contribute $450 billion to India‟s economy in the next
decade and a half.

9 MAY 2022
 Government of Kerala announced to launch India's first state-owned OTT platform
 The government of Kerala will launch a state-owned over-the-top (OTT) platform on November 1,
offering film lovers an array of movies, short films and documentaries of their choice.
 Kerala will become the first state in India to have a state-owned OTT platform. Minister for Cultural Affairs
Saji Cheriyan revealed the name of the OTT platform as CSPACE. CPSACE is an initiative of Kerala State
Film Development Corporation (KSFDC) on behalf of the state government.

Union Health Minister announced to introduce “made in India” skin test for TB
 Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya has announced to launch of a newly approved skin test for
tuberculosis (TB) diagnosis called c-TB in the country while addressing the 35th board meeting of the Stop
TB Partnership through video-conferencing.
 This TB Kit will be cost-effective and provide immense benefit to other high burden countries as well. He
also announced to launch of a new initiative “Adopt people with TB”.

Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw made India's first 5G call at IIT Madras
 Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw made the first 5G call on a trial network set up at IIT Madras using
indigenously-developed technology. The government expects the commercial roll-out of 5G services to
start in the country by August-September this year.
 The advent of 5G and new services would usher, and spawn fresh job opportunities in the market,
requiring suitable skilling of manpower in new technologies.

Government of Karnataka reserved 33% quota for women in outsourced government jobs
 The Karnataka government has reserved 33% for outsourced women employees in all the departments.
At present, out of 7.2 lakh sanctioned posts in Karnataka with 4.6 lakh employees, there are 1.5 lakh
outsourced staff. So now, at 50,000 posts will be reserved for women employees.
 The 33% reservation is applicable for all autonomous bodies, universities, urban local bodies, and other
government offices. The state government recruits data entry operators, housekeeping staff and other
group D employees, drivers through outsourcing.

Maharashtra partnered with WEF in the fight against plastic pollution

 Maharashtra joined World Economic Forum's Global Plastic Action Partnership (GPAP) at its Annual
Meeting 2022 in Davos in order to advance regional efforts to fight plastic pollution. By joining the Global
Plastic Action Partnership, Maharashtra, aims to enhance its commitment to curbing plastic pollution, raise
its ambition, and ensure accountability and inclusivity throughout the value chain.
 The announcement follows the fifth United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA 5), where a resolution
was adopted in March 2022 that will hold member nations legally accountable for their contributions to the
global plastic pollution crisis.

Uttarakhand became 1st Indian state to roll out drone in healthcare

 Uttarakhand has become the first Indian state to roll out drones in the healthcare sector. Redcliffe Labs, a
unit of Redcliffe Lifetech in the U.S., has come up with its first commercial drone flight in the country‟s
healthcare sector.
 The company has recently opened its commercial drone corridor between Uttarkashi and Dehradun. The
project was a part of Redcliffe and Skye Air tie-up and in the past three months they have done 40
successful trials in North India.

10 MAY 2022
 Jammu & Kashmir‟s first National Film Festival, DIPR and NFDC signed MoU
 The National Film Festival of Jammu and Kashmir is quickly approaching, and the J&K Department of
Information and Public Relations has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the National
Film Development Corporation Limited.
 The agreement was signed in the presence of Nitishwar Kumar, Principal Secretary to the Lt Governor, by
Akshay Labroo, Director, Department of Information and Public Relations, Jammu & Kashmir, and D.
Ramakrishnan, General Manager, NFDC.

India‟s First Olympic Values Education launched in Odisha

 The Olympic Values Education Programme (OVEP) of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) was
launched in Odisha by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, in collaboration with the Abhinav Bindra Foundation
Trust (ABFT).
 The OVEP is a practical set of resources aimed at introducing young people to the Olympic values of
excellence, respect and friendship. It will be a values-based curriculum, to be implemented initially in 90
schools in Rourkela and Bhubaneswar, catering to about 32,000 children.

Captain Abhilasha Barak became first woman officer to join Army Aviation Corps
 Captain Abhilasha Barak has become the first woman to join the Army Aviation Corps as Combat Aviator.
Abhilasha Barak was awarded the coveted wings along with 36 Army Pilots by the Director-General and
Colonel Commandant of Army Aviation.
 Army Aviation Corps is the component of the Indian Army which was established in 1986. It was
immediately inducted into „Operation Pawan‟ which was a crucial test for the newly formed corps.

Kolkata became first metro city to get its biodiversity register

 Kolkata is the first metro city in the country to prepare a detailed register of biodiversity. Kolkata Municipal
Corporation released the People‟s Biodiversity Register (PBR), a document with details about the floral and
faunal varieties in the city as well as its land use and human activities.
 The document is prepared by the Biodiversity Management Committee (BMC) of the civic body under the
supervision of the state biodiversity board and with help from NGOs. Chandigarh and Indore are other
important cities which have prepared the document.

Prime Minister inaugurated India‟s biggest Drone Festival at Pragati Maidan

 Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated India's biggest Drone Festival - Bharat Drone Mahotsav 2022 at
Pragati Maidan. More than 70 exhibitors will display various use cases of drones at the exhibition.
 Over 1600 delegates comprising government officials, foreign diplomats, armed forces, central armed
police force, drone startups and more are expected to participate in the festival. The festival is being held
amid the government's push for extensive use of drones in various fields, including agriculture.

Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh inaugurated India‟s „First Lavender Festival'
 Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh inaugurated India‟s „First Lavender Festival' in Bhaderwah, Jammu &
Kashmir. The Lavender Festival 2022 is being conducted under Union Government's Aroma Mission 2.
 The country‟s first National Institute of High Altitude Medicine is also being built in Bhaderwah. The
minister described Bhaderwah in the Doda district as the birthplace of India‟s purple revolution.

11 MAY 2022
 Piyali Basak became 1st Indian to scale Mt. Everest without oxygen support
 West Bengal‟s Piyali Basak became the first Indian woman to scale Mt. Everest without supplementary
oxygen. In October of 2021, Piyali also became the first woman to climb Mt. Dhaulagiri (8167 meters)
without any oxygen support.
 She has also represented India in an international expedition to Mt. Annapurna 1(8091m). Mt. Annapurna 1
is the 10th highest peak in the world and it is a technical and challenging peak to conquer.

Iconic inverted rifle, helmet at India Gate shifted to National War Memorial
 The iconic inverted helmet and rifle, which were a part of the Amar Jawan Jyoti war memorial at the India
Gate in Delhi, was moved to the National War Memorial.
 The National War Memorial is situated less than a kilometre away on the same stretch as the Amar Jawan
Jyoti. The memorial was inaugurated by Prime Minister in 2019. The move came 4 months after the
ceremonial flame of the Amar Jawan Jyoti was extinguished for the first time since it was lit in 1972.

Prime Minister inaugurated world's first nano urea liquid plant in Gandhinagar
 Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Nano Urea (Liquid) Plant constructed at IFFCO, Kalol in
the Gandhinagar. The plant will produce about 1.5 lakh bottles of 500 ml capacity per day. The
cooperative sector of Gujarat has been a role model for the entire nation.
 There are more than 84,000 societies in the state in the cooperative sector and about 231 lakh members
are associated with these societies. More than 7,000 representatives from various cooperative institutions
of the state participated in the seminar.

INS Gomati, oldest warrior of Western Fleet, decommissioned after 34 years

 The Indian Navy has decommissioned INS Gomati after 34 years in service. The warship was inducted in
April 1988. The ship is the third of the Godavari class guided-missile frigates and is the oldest warrior of
the Western Fleet.
 INS Gomati has guarded India's maritime borders for the last 34 years and, at the Naval Dockyard in
Mumbai, it was decommissioned at sunset. INS Gomati was named after the River Gomati and was
inducted by former Union defence minister KC Pant at Mazagon Dock Limited, Bombay.

Government withdrawn notification caution on Aadhaar photocopies

 The government has withdrawn the notification cautioning people against sharing a photocopy of their
Aadhar card, claiming that it could be misinterpreted. UIDAI was created to issue Unique Identification
numbers (UID), named as "Aadhaar", to all residents of India.
 UIDAI is a statutory authority established under the provisions of the Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of
Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act, 2016. It has been established under the
administrative control of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).

North India's first biotech park inaugurated in Jammu & Kashmir‟s Kathua
 Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha and Union minister Jitendra Singh inaugurated
the north India‟s first Industrial Biotech Park constructed at Ghatti near Kathua.
 The Industrial Biotech Park at Kathua will transform the economy and enable scientists to tackle the
challenges of climate change. The enabling infrastructure will fuel a new wave of innovation and impact
various sectors, from health and agriculture to cosmetics and materials.

12 MAY 2022
 Rajasthan became 1st state to create health accounts in association with WHO
 Rajasthan became the first state in the country to institutionalize health accounts which will help in
estimating the amount spent on the health sector and its impact with the help of the World Health
Organization (WHO).
 The state began registration for Mukhyamantri Chiranjeevi Swasthya Bima Yojana under which each family
in the state can claim up to Rs five lakh a year for medical expenses.

India Post delivered parcel using drone in Gujarat under pilot project
 India's postal department delivered mail using a drone as a part of the pilot project in the Kutch district of
Gujarat for the first time in the country. The drone covered 46 kilometers in 25 minutes.
 The mail was dispatched using the drone from Habay village in Bhuj taluka and was delivered to Ner village
in Bhachau taluka of the Kutch district by the postal department under the guidance of the Union Ministry
of Communication.

Chief Minister of Odisha inaugurated cyber security operation centre

 Chief Minister of Odisha, Naveen Patnaik inaugurated a state-of-the-art Next Generation Cyber Security
Operation Centre (CSOC) as part of the government‟s resolve the cyber security mechanism in the State.
 The centre will help protect data, applications and ICT infrastructure of the state from security threats.
The CSOC has been set up by the state Electronics & IT Department & Odisha Computer Application
Centre. It is an independent infrastructure and more IT setups can be integrated in future.

Chief Minister of Karnataka has Launched AAYU App

 Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai has launched a new health and wellness app AAYU to address
and help heal chronic diseases and lifestyle disorders through yoga.
 AAYU app was developed by the joint efforts of the Swami Vivekananda Yoga Anusandhana Samsthana (S-
VYASA) and RESET TECH. The App would provide users with personalised wellness solutions and offer
doctor consultations based on an individual‟s personal history and monitor its progress enabling them to
accelerate healing and recovery.

13 MAY 2022
 INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS
India-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement entered into force
 The India-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) officially entered into force that
was signed in February 2022. BVR Subrahmanyam (Secretary, Department of Commerce) has flagged off
the first consignment of goods comprising Jewellery products from India to UAE.
 The agreement is expected to escalate the total value of bilateral trade in goods and trade in services to
over US$100 billion and US$ 15 billion respectively, within five years.

NATO Exercises‟ Defender Europe 2022 and Swift Response 2022 began
 North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) exercise, Defender Europe 2022 (DE22) and Swift Response
2022 (SR22) aimed at building preparedness and interoperability between Allies and partners of the United
States (US) and NATO.
 DEFENDER-Europe 22 demonstrates the United States‟ unshakable commitment to NATO and is a prime
example of our collective capabilities. It shows that NATO‟s allies and partners are stronger together.

Nepal‟s Kami Rita Sherpa climbed Mount Everest for 26th time to set new world record
 Nepal‟s legendary climber Kami Rita Sherpa has climbed the Mount Everest, the tallest peak in the world
for the 26th time to set a new world record. Leading an 11-member rope fixing team, Kami Rita and his
team reached the summit yesterday, breaking his own previous world record.
 Born in 1970 in Solukhumbu district, he first climbed the Everest in May 1994. His father was among the
first professional Sherpa guides after Everest was opened for foreign mountaineers in 1950. His brother,
also a guide, scaled Everest 17 times.

Agricultural imports from India suspended by Indonesia

 Indonesia has stopped imports of agricultural products from India, citing a failure by New Delhi officials to
register laboratories that evaluate food safety and issue certificates of analysis (COA), causing worry among
cereal exporters.
 In an order to the head of its Agricultural Quarantine Centre, the Indonesian Ministry of Agriculture stated
that its authority to accredited laboratories for testing the safety of fresh food from India and issuing the
COA has been revoked.

Ministry of Tourism participated in Arabian Travel Market, Dubai -2022

 The Ministry of Tourism under its 'Incredible India' brand line is participating in the Arabian Travel Market
(ATM), Dubai-2022. It is aimed to promote India as a „Must See, Must Visit‟ destination.
 The India Pavilion is showcasing India as a '365-Day Destination' and was inaugurated in the presence of
Uttarakhand Tourism Minister Satpal Maharaj.

14 MAY 2022
 Marilyn Monroe Portrait became most expensive 20th century artwork sold
 A painting of actor Marilyn Monroe by pop art icon Andy Warhol was auctioned for about $195 million to
an unknown buyer at Christie‟s in New York, making it the most expensive piece of 20 th century art ever
sold, and the most expensive American artwork to date.
 Titled „Shot Sage Blue Marilyn‟, the painting beat the American artwork record of $110.5 million set by
Jean-Michel Basquiat‟s Untitled (1982) painting of a skull at a Sotheby‟s New York auction in 2017.

Vietnam opened world‟s longest glass-bottomed bridge

 World‟s Largest Glass Bottom Bridge was opened in Vietnam. It is called Vietnam‟s Bach Long pedestrian
bridge, which is 632m (2,073ft) long and located 150m (492ft) above a huge jungle. The Bach Long
pedestrian bridge means „white dragon‟ in Vietnamese.
 As per the reports, the Asian country has opened a glass-bottomed bridge suspended above a lush jungle.
It surpasses a 526m Glass Bottom Bridge in Guangdong; China.The Bridge was inaugurated coincidentally
on the 47th anniversary of the end of the Vietnamese war.

South Korea became 1st Asian country join NATO Cyber Defence Group
 South Korea became the first Asian country join in North Atlantic Treaty Organization Cooperative Cyber
Defence Centre of Excellence. South Korea‟s National Intelligence Service is joined as a contributing
participant in the NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence.
 The total NATO CCDCOE has 32 countries as its official members which include 27 NATO member
countries and 5 five non-NATO states as contributing participants.

Bangladesh became 7th highest recipient of foreign remittance

 Bangladesh was the 7th highest recipient of remittance from abroad in 2021, According to the World Bank
report on migration and development published. It received over USD 22 billion as remittance last year
which marked an increase of 2.2% over the year 2020.
 India topped the list in the world receiving USD 89 billion in remittance followed by Mexico at USD 54
billion, and China at USD 53 billion last year. Among the eight South Asian nations, Bangladesh laid claim to
the 3rd highest remittance inflow after India and Pakistan.

Kenton Cool became first foreigner to scale Mount Everest 16 times

 Kenton Cool from Gloucestershire, South West England has scaled the world's highest mountain for the
16th time and becomes the first foreigner to climb the most Mt Everest summits.
 Kenton climbed the summit with his fellow guide Dorji Gyalzen Sherpa. Kenton also holds a record as the
first British mountaineer who has climbed Mt Nuptse, Mt Everest and Mt Lhotse in a season in 2013. Kami
Rita, a Sherpa holds the record to climb Everest for the 26th time.

China proposed to launch World's First Search for Habitable Planets through Space Telescope
 Chinese scientists have proposed a project to hunt for habitable Earth-like planets outside our solar system
through a space telescope. This is will be the world's first space mission specially designed to search for
habitable planets in the universe.
 The proposed project will involve surveying the sky through a space-borne telescope to hunt for habitable
planets about 32 light-years from Earth. The project is named Closeby Habitable Exoplanet Survey
(CHES), it will observe about 100 Sun-like stars 32 light-years away on a long-term survey.

15 MAY 2022
 NatGeo installed World‟s Highest Weather Station on Mount Everest
 National Geographic Society has installed the “world‟s highest weather station” on Mount Everest at an
altitude of 8,830 meters to automatically measure various meteorological phenomena.
 Nepal‟s Department of Hydrology and Meteorology (DHM) said the automatic weather station was
installed a few meters below the summit point last week as the snow and ice on the summit are not
suitable for fixing equipment.

Belgium became first country to introduce compulsory monkeypox quarantine

 Belgium has become the first country in the world to make 21-day quarantine compulsory for the
Monkeypox patients. The decision came after four cases of the disease were reported last week in the
country.
 The Belgian Institute of Tropical Medicine said that the risk of a larger outbreak in the country is low. A
case of Monkeypox was confirmed in England. The patient had traveled recently from Nigeria.

WEF formed Indian CEOs' alliance to supercharge race to 'net-zero'

 The World Economic Forum (WEF) announced a new “Alliance of CEO Climate Action Leaders India” that
will work towards fast-tracking decarbonisation pathways along India‟s net-zero journeys.
 The Alliance brings together chief executives from India‟s leading businesses. It is part of the Forum‟s
Climate Action Platform and will build upon learning‟s from global projects such as the Alliance of CEO
Climate Leaders and the First Movers Coalition.

UNICEF-WHO released first Global Report on Assistive Technology

 The World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children‟s Fund (UNICEF) have released
the first Global Report on Assistive Technology (GReAT).
 Around the world, 2.5 billion people require assistive technology. According to the estimate, by 2050, the
population will have grown to 3.5 billion people. The gaps between low- and middle-income countries and
high-income countries in terms of access to assistive technology are disturbing.

Kuwait oil ministry decided to start building world's largest petroleum research centre
 The oil ministry of Kuwait announced to start building the world's largest petroleum research centre by the
end of the year. The Middle East Economic Digest said the project had stalled because of budget pressure,
estimating its cost at $120 million.
 The centre, to be built in al-Ahmadi, south of Kuwait City, will have 28 laboratories. It will seek to develop
improved production and refining techniques that can be used by the industry for different applications
including the extraction of heavy crude and non-associated gas.

16 MAY 2022
 BANKING & FINANCE
Union Bank became first public sector bank to go live on Account Aggregator framework
 Union Bank of India became the first public sector bank to go live on the Account Aggregator (AA)
ecosystem. The framework facilitates sharing of financial information on a real-time basis between
regulated entities.
 AAs are licensed by the Reserve Bank of India to enable the flow of data between Financial Information
Providers (FIPs) and Financial Information Users (FIUs).

HDFC Life joined the United Nations as a signatory

 HDFC Life has joined the UN-backed Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI), demonstrating its
commitment to long-term value creation and sustainable growth. HDFC Life is dedicated to the
Responsible Investment principles (RI).
 The Group feels that it is its moral duty as an active asset manager for policyholders who have entrusted
their funds to HDFC Life to deliver maximum risk adjusted returns in the long run.

Indian Bank launched Digital Broking Solution „E-Broking‟

 Indian Bank, a public sector bank, has introduced its digital broking solution – „E- Broking‟, as a strategic
move toward comprehensive digitalisation of its customer products. The E-Broking initiative will assist the
bank in increasing its CASA (Current Account Savings Account).
 E-Broking, an instant and paperless demat & trading account opening service is now available through the
bank‟s mobile banking app, IndOASIS. The product was introduced in collaboration with Fisdom, the
bank‟s financial technology partner.

HDFC Bank launched „Xpress Car Loan‟ industry first digital new car loan
 HDFC Bank has introduced 30-minute „Xpress Car Loans‟, an end-to-end digital new car loan solution for
both existing and non-customers. The facility will be offered at all of the bank‟s branches, dealerships, and,
eventually, on third-party aggregator platforms.
 The bank has integrated its lending application with automobile dealers throughout India. It is the industry‟s
first automotive lending experience, and it is expected to change the way automobile financing is done in
India.

SpiceJet partnered with Axis Bank to launch co-branded credit card

 SpiceJet and Axis Bank has partnered to launch the most rewarding co\branded credit card, powered by
Visa that will offer a host of privileges and benefits to customers.

17 MAY 2022
  The card comes in two variants C SpiceJet Axis Bank Voyage and Voyage Black, and is aimed at facilitating a
superlative travel experience for flyers through SpiceClub, the first frequent flyer program by a low cost
carrier in India.

BIAL partnered with Kotak Mahindra Bank, Phi Commerce to facilitate one-stop payment solution
 Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) has partnered with Kotak Mahindra Bank and digital
payment firm Phi Commerce to facilitate a one-stop omnichannel payment solution at Kempegowda
International Airport.
 Designed specifically for the airport, the solution will enable a secure, scalable, and unified payment
experience. It will power B2B and B2C payments across channels - both online and offline.

Union Bank of India launched cross border trade finance service

 Union Bank of India has launched 'Trade nxt', a cross-border trade finance service for Indian exporters and
importers. It will enable corporates as well as MSMEs to transact all cross-border export-import
transactions.
 The online platform offers seamless entry and processing of letters of credit (LC), bank guarantees, export
and import bills, disbursement of export credit, etc.

Paytm Mall 99.5% valuation declined as China‟s Alibaba, Ant Financial exit the firm
 Paytm Mall, which is the e-commerce business of One97 Communications has seen a nearly 99.5%
valuation decline with its lead investors Chinese internet giant, Alibaba and investment firm, Ant Financial
taking an exit from the firm.
 Paytm Mall confirmed in a statement that both Alibaba and Ant Financial are exiting the firm. Paytm Mall
according to the Hurun Unicorns lists 2022 was valued at slightly below $1 billion, losing its unicorn
valuation status from a reported $3 billion in 2020.

ICICI Lombard launched Professional Indemnity insurance for doctors

 ICICI Lombard has launched professional indemnity insurance for doctors. This policy has been curated to
provide support to medical practitioners against the scope of various human errors that can happen while
rendering professional services to patients.
 Professional Indemnity insurance supports doctors both legally and financially in the event of a law suit, as
per the company.

PNB MetLife launched India‟s first dental health insurance plan

 PNB MetLife India Insurance Company has launched India‟s first dental health insurance plan. This is the
first insurance plan in India that covers fixed-benefit outpatient expenses and provides financial assistance
with costs related to overall dental health.
 This launch reinforces PNB MetLife leadership in the industry with this one-of-a-kind, standalone, the
dental health insurance plan that covers major dental procedures without the hassles of hospitalisation.

RBI announced public sector banks‟ frauds down 51% to Rs 40,295 crore in FY22
 The Reserve Bank of India has announced that public sector banks reported over a 51% fall in the amount
involved in frauds to Rs 40,295.25 crore during the financial year 2021-22 (FY22).

18 MAY 2022
  As many as 12 Public Sector Banks (PSBs) had reported frauds worth Rs 81,921.54 crore in the preceding
fiscal 2020-21. However, the number of fraud cases didn‟t fall at the same pace as a total of 7,940 frauds
reported by the PSBs in 2021-22, against 9,933 incidents reported in FY21.

RBL Bank and Amazon Pay partnered to offer UPI payment

 RBL Bank, Amazon Pay, and Amazon Web Services (AWS) have partnered together to deliver universal
payments interface payments, which will include peer-to-peer and peer-to-merchant transactions.
 The bank has partnered with Amazon Pay to offer peer-to-peer and peer-to-merchant transactions. With
this integration, Amazon Pay will issue NPCI‟s allocated UPI ID to RBL Bank. The partnership will allow the
bank to tap Amazon Pay‟s growing customer base and transaction volumes,

HDFC Bank announced carves out rural banking as separate vertical

 HDFC Bank announced that it has carved out rural banking as a separate vertical and will be opening 1,060
branches in mofussil areas and semi-urban pockets as part of the increased focus in FY23.
 Earlier, rural banking was a part of the wider retail branch banking vertical, and the bank has appointed Anil
Bhavnani, who has been working with it for 19 years, to head the newly-carved rural banking vertical. Axis
Bank had last year announced the „Bharat Banking‟ initiative aimed at the same market.

State Bank of India launched Xpress credit on Yono for salaried person
 The State Bank of India (SBI) has announced the launch of Real Time Xpress Credit on its Yono platform
which allows eligible customers to get personal loans of up to ₹35 lakh.
 It is a flagship personal loan product for salaried customers (Xpress Credit), now has a digital avatar and
customers can now avail of it through Yono. It would be a 100% paperless and digital experience and an
end-to-end eight step journey.

Tata Capital introduced Digital „Loan against Shares‟

 The Tata Capital Limited has launched „Loan against Shares‟ an end-to-end integrated digital financial
offering. The main aim to provide customers with an easy and seamless experience
 Through this facility the customers can avail loans up to ₹5 crores by simply pledging their dematerialized
shares online, facilitated by NSDL. The loan amount can be customized based on the value of shares in the
portfolio of the customer.

MUFG Bank of Japan received approval to open a branch at GIFT City

 Japanese lender MUFG Bank will establish a branch at the Gujarat International Financial Tec City (GIFT
City) in Ahmedabad for foreign currency-denominated lending business. This will be its 6th branch in India.
 MUFG can support its domestic as well as global clients with an expanded suite of financial services. At
present it has presence in Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai and Neemrana.

FIEO launched first-of-its-kind B2B digital marketplace for exporters, MSMEs and farmers
 The Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) has launched the first-of-its-kind online marketplace
for Indian exporters and foreign buyers.
 The marketplace – Indian Business Portal – will act as a B2B digital marketplace to help micro, small and
medium enterprises (MSME) exporters, artisans and farmers to identify new markets for their products
and grow their sales globally.

19 MAY 2022
 Northern Arc Capital signed strategic partnership with Indian Bank
 Northern Arc, one of India‟s diversified financial services platforms, announced that it has entered a
strategic partnership with Indian Bank.
 The partnership will help both institutions leverage synergies and offer customer-centric financial solutions
to retail borrowers. The customers will be served through a completely online and seamless journey,
helping them experience high-quality service.

RBI‟s Banknote Survey revealed Rs 100 currency notes, Rs 5 coin most preferred in India
 Reserve Bank of India‟s Banknote Survey of Consumers findings has revealed that ₹100 was the most
preferred banknote while ₹2,000 was the least preferred denomination.
 Among coins, ₹5 denomination was the most preferred whereas ₹1 was the least preferred. The
watermark of Mahatma Gandhi‟s image followed by a windowed security thread was the most recognized
security feature as per the survey.

PSBs doubled their Net Profit in FY22

 Public sector banks (PSBs) more than quadrupled their net profit in the fiscal year 2021-2022. During the
financial year 2021-22, the aggregate profit of 12 state-owned banks was Rs 66,539 crore, up 110 percent
from Rs 31,816 crore in the previous year. For the first time in years, all 12 state-owned banks made a
profit. However, two PSBs also declared losses in FY21.
 Increase in profitability has is mainly a result of the conclusion of the bad loan clean-up and economies of
scale gained through the merger of ten state-owned banks. Other factors include the RBI‟s cheap liquidity
and growth categories such as retail lending.

20 MAY 2022
 BUSINESS & ECONOMY
Department of Posts started providing NPS services through online mode
 Department of Posts has started providing the National Pension Scheme, NPS, services through online
mode. Any Citizen of India in the age group of 18 to 70 years can avail this online facility by visiting the
website under the menu head “National Pension System – Online Services.”
 Facilities like new registration, initial or subsequent contribution and SIP options under NPS Online are
available to the customers at minimum charges and NPS service charge is amongst the lowest.

Vodafone Idea Limited and ICRIER signed MoU to set up policy research centre
 Vodafone Idea has partnered with Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations
(ICRIER) to set up a telecom Centre of Excellence. The centre has been named InViCT (ICRIER and
Vodafone Idea Centre for Telecom), which will drive research advisory and policy support efforts.
 It will be set up with the objective to facilitate research advisory and policy support for the telecom sector,
and contribute to Digital India Mission.

ITC partnered IIT Delhi to support research on sustainability

 ITC Limited has signed a MoU with IIT Delhi, to back research that will help India achieve its Sustainable
Development Goals. Both will support research in identified Science, Technology, Engineering and
Mathematics (STEM) areas.
 Currently, the areas identified for research are energy storage, low carbon cold transportation, and plastic
bio degradation.

India's largest IPO of LIC opened for public subscription

 The largest initial public offering (IPO) in India, Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) opened for subscription.
The IPO's price range is Rs 902-949, with policyholders receiving Rs 60 discount and retail investors and
employees receiving Rs 45 discount.
 The government's 3.5% share in LIC will be sold in an initial public offering (IPO) to raise Rs 205 billion.
The IPO is wholly a government offer-for-sale of 221,374,920 equity shares, with the government
receiving the entire profits.

Aviation Ministry granted rights to GMR Group to operate Hyderabad airport for 30 more years
 The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) has granted rights to the GMR Group to operate the Hyderabad
international airport for 30 more years. The GMR Group had the rights to operate the Hyderabad airport
till 22 Mar 2038.
 The airport was inaugurated in March 2008. The concession agreement was signed between the MoCA
and the GMR Hyderabad International Airport Limited in 2004.

21 MAY 2022
 Pfizer inaugurated global drug development centre in IIT Madras
 Pharmaceutical company Pfizer has set up a global drug development centre at the IIT Madras Research
Park in Tamil Nadu's Chennai. Pfizer inaugurated a global drug development centre in IIT Madras Research
Park campus.
 Tamil Nadu Health Secretary J Radhakrishnan informed that this is first of its kind in Asia. Through this,
students, scientists & leading industry start-ups will foster great collaboration b/w industry & academy.

Apple, Google, Microsoft joined hands to accelerate adoption of passwordless logins

 Apple, Google and Microsoft, three of the world‟s biggest tech companies, announced a collaborative
effort to adopt cross-platform compatibility for logging in to sites and services without the need to enter
unique passwords everywhere.
 Through this move, the companies stated that they would begin supporting industry standards for
passwordless logins set by industry body, Fast Identity Online (FIDO) Alliance, and the World Wide Web
Consortium (W3C), to accelerate adoption of passwordless logins.

Adani Wilmar became India‟s largest FMCG Company surpassing HUL

 Adani Wilmar Limited became the largest Fast Moving Consumer Goods Company (FMCG) in India
beating Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL), after the announcement of its Quarter Four results for the
financial year 2022 (Q4FY2022).
 AWL has reported total operating revenue of Rs 54,214 crores in the Financial Year 2022 whereas HUL
reported revenue of Rs 51,468 crores in the Financial Year (FY) 2021-22.

Reliance became 1st Indian company to cross $100 billion revenue

 Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries Limited reported a 22.5% rise in net profit for the quarter ended
March on the back of bumper oil refining margins, steady growth in telecom and digital services and strong
momentum in the retail business.
 The oil-to-retail-to-telecom conglomerate's consolidated net profit rose to Rs 16,203 crore in the quarter
ended March 2022 from Rs 13,227 crore. Net profit, however, fell 12.6% sequentially breaking a six-
quarter chain of quarter-on-quarter improvement.

Neeraj Chopra and YouTube India partnered to create short film

 Indian javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra and YouTube India have tied up together to create a film for the
platform. JSW Sports, which backs Chopra, has facilitated the partnership between the two.
 It is aimed at taking the story of his meteoric rise, from a village in Khandra, Haryana to the top of the
Olympic podium at the Tokyo2020 Olympics.

Bharat Biotech partnered with CEPI to develop 'variant-proof‟ COVID-19

 Bharat Biotech along with an international multidisciplinary consortium will receive funding of $19.3 million
to support the development of a „variantproof‟ coronavirus vaccine candidate.
 The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations announced the latest award under its $200 million
programme to advance the development of vaccines that provide broad protection against SARS-Cov-2
variants.

22 MAY 2022
 Saudi Aramco became as world‟s most valuable company
 Saudi Aramco has replaced Apple Inc. to become the world‟s most valuable company, underscoring the
recent surge in oil prices that have boosted the energy giant this year.
 Aramco traded near its highest level on record, with a market capitalization of about $2.43 trillion,
surpassing that of Apple for the first time since 2020. The iPhone maker fell 5.2% to close at $146.50 per
share, giving it a valuation of $2.37 trillion.

Indian Oil, BPCL, HPCL signed tripartite deal for ethanol plants
 Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL), and Hindustan
Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) have entered into a long-term purchase agreement for upcoming
dedicated ethanol plants across India.
 The first set of tripartite was signed among OMCs, project proponents, and banks of the respective
ethanol plant projects. State Bank of India, Indian Overseas Bank, and Indian Bank are three banks that are
involved in this tripartite agreement with OMCs and project proponents.

Toyota signed MoU to invest $624 million to make EV parts in India

 Toyota Kirloskar Motor and Toyota Kirloskar Auto Parts signed a MoU with the southern state of
Karnataka to invest 41 billion rupees. The rest will come from Toyota Industries Engine India.
 Toyota Group plans to invest 48 billion rupees ($624 million) to make electric vehicle components in India,
as the Japanese carmaker works toward carbon neutrality by 2050.

Hyundai partnered with Tata Power to set up fast charging EV infrastructure

 Tata Power has entered into a strategic partnership with Hyundai Motor India Limited (HMIL). It will build
a robust EV charging network and accelerate the adoption of EVs across India.
 Under the partnership, Tata Power will install Tata Power EZ Charge fast chargers (DC 60 kW) at HMIL's
existing 34 EV dealer locations across 29 cities.

Vedanta, NHAI signed long-term contract to build roads with fly-ash in Odisha
 Vedanta Aluminium has entered a long-term contract with NHAI (National Highways Authority of India) to
construct greener roads with fly-ash in Odisha.
 Fly-ash, which is a by-product of thermal power generation using coal, finds usage in the cement,
construction and infrastructure industries. Every tonne of fly-ash can help save around 700-800 kg of
carbon emissions and 341 litres of water.

India recorded highest annual FDI Inflow of $83.57 billion in FY21-22

 India recorded the highest-ever annual FDI inflow of USD 83.57 billion in the Financial Year 2021-22,
overtaking last year's FDI by USD 1.60 billion. India's FDI inflow has witnessed a 23% rise post-COVID-19
outbreak despite lockdowns and Russian military operations in Ukraine.
 India's FDI inflows have increased by almost 20-fold since Financial Year 2003-2004 and almost doubled
since FY 2014-15. India's FDI inflow stood at just USD 45.15 billion in FY 2014-2015. India has been
emerging as a preferred country for foreign investments in the manufacturing sector.

Saudi Tourism signed MoU with EaseMyTrip to drive Inbound Tourism

 The Saudi Tourism Authority and EaseMyTrip have signed a MoU to boost inbound tourism to Saudi
Arabia by leveraging the company‟s travel network.

23 MAY 2022
  Through this MoU, the two will explore opportunities to collaborate on key initiatives and undertake
various activities to promote and develop quality tourism experiences in Saudi Arabia and expand its
presence in the Indian market.

ONGC became 1st gas producer to trade on Indian Gas Exchange

 Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) on Monday said it has become the first gas producer to trade
domestic gas on the Indian Gas Exchange, trading unspecified volumes from its eastern offshore KG-DWN-
98/2 block.
 ONGC has become the first exploration and production (E&P) company in India to trade domestic gas on
Indian Gas Exchange. The first online trade was made by ONGC Director (Onshore) & In-charge
Marketing Anurag Sharma

Coinbase became first Crypto Company to enter Fortune 500 list

 Coinbase has become the first crypto firm to enter the prestigious Fortune 500 list. After posting revenue
of over $7.8 billion (₹60,728 crores) in fiscal 2021 it has grabbed the 437th position.
 Despite the recent downside amidst a widespread crypto crash, Nasdaq-listed Coinbase's market value
surged to $41,670 in March 2022 and recorded a 513% growth in its year-on-year revenue with profits
shooting up by 1024%.

Adani Green Energy arm commissioned India‟s first wind-solar hybrid plant in Rajasthan
 Adani Green subsidiary Adani Hybrid Energy Jaisalmer One Limited has commissioned a 390 MW wind-
solar hybrid power plant at Jaisalmer.
 The plant will be India's first wind and solar hybrid power generation plant. The new plant has a Power
Purchase Agreement (PPA) with the Solar Energy Corporation of India with tariff at Rs. 2.69 per kWh.

US surpassed China as India's biggest trading partner in FY22 at $119.42 billion

 According to the Commerce Ministry, the US surpassed China to become India's top trading partner in
2021-22, reflecting strengthening economic ties between the two countries. The bilateral trade between
the US and India stood at $119.42 billion as against $80.51 billion in 2020-21.
 Exports to the US increased to $76.11 billion in 2021-22 from $51.62 billion in previous fiscal year, while
imports rose to $43.31 billion as compared to about $29 billion in 2020-21. During 2021-22, India's two-
way commerce with China aggregated at $115.42 bn as compared to $86.4 bn in 2020-21.

L&T signed up with start-up to develop submarine launched UAVs

 A new range of submarine-launched drones to meet Indian Navy requirements will be developed by
Larsen & Toubro. Larsen & Toubro (L&T) signed a MoU with NewSpace Research & Technologies (NRT)
at the 'Drone Mahotsav'.
 Submarine-launched Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) are a relatively new concept with few nations
around the world having the capability to operate such systems.

24 MAY 2022
 MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS
L&T Infotech, Mindtree announced merger to create country's fifth-largest IT services provider
 Larsen & Toubro (L&T) announced the merger of its two software companies, Larsen & Toubro Infotech
(LTI) and Mindtree. The combined entity will be known as “LTIMindtree”. The transaction regarding the
LTI and Mindtree merger is subject to shareholder and regulatory approvals.
 It was announced that Mindtree CEO Debashis Chatterjee will lead the combined entity of "LTIMindtree",
while L&T Infotech CEO and MD Sanjay Jalona resigned due to personal reasons.

Swiggy acquired Dineout from Times Internet for $120 million

 Swiggy has signed definitive agreement with Times Internet to acquire restaurant tech and dining out
platform Dineout. Dineout will continue to operate as an independent app after the acquisition.
 The largely all-stock deal is worth about $120 million, or about Rs 930 crore, and is expected to close over
the course of the next month.

Adani group announced to acquire Ambuja Cements, ACC for $10.5 billion from Holcim
 The Adani Group entered into definitive agreements to acquire Swiss cement major Holcim's stake in
Ambuja Cements and its subsidiary ACC in a $10.5 billion deal. The Adani Group may spend $3-3.5 billion
to buy public shareholders' shares.
 The Gautam Adani-led conglomerate has offered Rs 385 per share for Ambuja Cements while that for
ACC at Rs 2,300. Holcim held 63.19 percent stake in Ambuja Cements and 54.53 percent in ACC.

Capgemini acquired Chappuis Halder to boost financial services biz

 Technology services major Capgemini announced that it has acquired Chappuis Halder & Cie (Chappuis
Halder), a global strategy and management consulting firm, for an undisclosed sum.
 Headquartered in Luxembourg in Europe, Chappuis Halder is a nearly 150-people consulting firm, with
main offices in North America, Europe, and South-East Asia, with reputation for its financial services
leading expertise. The transaction is expected to be completed within the coming months.

UAE-based Emirates Telecom acquired 9.8% stake in Vodafone for $4.4 billion
 Emirates Telecommunications Group Company PJSC “e&" (Etisalat Group) announced the acquisition of
approximately 2,766 million shares in Vodafone Group Plc aggregating to $4.4 billion.
 The shares represent 9.8% of Vodafone's issued share capital. The transaction is in line with e&‟s ambition
to be a global player in telecom and technology and to increase its exposure to international markets.

25 MAY 2022
 Ruchi Soya acquired food business of Patanjali Ayurved for Rs 690 crore
 Ruchi Soya has announced it‟s acquiring the food business of Patanjali Ayurved for around Rs 690 crore.
This is expected to fast-track Ruchi Soya‟s shift to the fast-moving consumer goods category.
 The name of Ruchi Soya Industries Ltd will be changed to Patanjali Foods Ltd after regulatory approvals.
The acquired food business consists of 21 products including ghee, honey, spices, juices and flour.

PhonePe announced to acquire WealthDesk, OpenQ for about $70 million

 Walmart-owned digital payments firm PhonePe is set to acquire wealth management firms WealthDesk for
about $50 million and OpenQ for around $20 million, according to people familiar with the matter.
 Earlier this year, PhonePe applied to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) for a mutual fund
(MF) licence, joining rivals in the race to set up an asset management company (AMC). PhonePe confirmed
that it is acquiring WealthDesk and OpenQ, but didn‟t reveal the value of the transaction.

TOTAL France decided to acquire 20% stake in Adani Green Energy for $2.5 billion
 Global energy major Total will pick up a 20 per cent stake in Adani Green Energy Ltd (AGEL), the
renewable power company of the Adani group, by way of acquiring shares held by the promoter group.
This is the third partnership between Total and the Adani group.
 Along with the minority stake, the French firm will acquire 50% in a 2.35-gigawatt portfolio of operating
solar assets owned by AGEL in a deal worth $2.5 billion (about Rs 18,000 crore), said a statement by
AGEL. Total will also have a seat on the AGEL board.

GIC announced to acquire 7.5% stake in Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail
 GIC (sovereign wealth fund) announced to acquire 7.5% equity stake in Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail
(ABFRL) for Rs 2,195 crore. The investment will be made by way of preferential equity and warrants.
 In the first tranche, the GIC will invest Rs 770 crore, while the rest amount of Rs 1,425 crore would be
infused within 18 months. After the investment, Aditya Birla Group will hold a controlling stake of 51.9%
in the company.

Tata Motors signed MoU for potential acquisition of Ford India‟s Sanand plant
 Tata Passenger Electric Mobility Limited (TPEML), a subsidiary of Tata Motors Ltd, and Ford India Private
Limited (FIPL), has today signed a MOU with the Government of Gujarat (GoG) for the potential
acquisition of FIPL‟s Sanand vehicle manufacturing facility.
 The acquisition will include land, buildings, vehicle manufacturing plant, machinery, equipment and transfer
of all eligible employees of FIPL Sanand‟s vehicle manufacturing operations, subject to the signing of
definitive agreements and receipt of relevant approvals.

Adani acquired 50% stake in drone start-up General Aeronautics

 Adani Enterprises‟ subsidiary, Adani Defence Systems and Technologies Ltd has signed a definitive
agreement to acquire 50% stake in General Aeronautics Private Ltd.
 General Aeronautics provides commercial robotic drones and drone-based solutions for crop protection,
crop health, precision farming, and yield monitoring using artificial intelligence and analytics for the
agricultural sector.

26 MAY 2022
 APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS
CIA appointed Indian-origin Nand Mulchandani as first-ever Chief Technology Officer
 The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), the first line of defense for the United States, last week announced
the appointment of Nand Mulchandani as its first-ever Chief Technology Officer (CTO).
 The announcement was made by CIA Director William J Burns. Mulchandani has over 25 years of expertise
working in Silicon Valley. Prior to his new role as CIA‟s Chief Technology Officer, Mulchandani served as
the CTO and Acting Director of DoD‟s Joint Artificial Intelligence Center.

Lt Genenral BS Raju appointed as Vice Chief of Indian Army

 The Indian Army‟s Director General of Military Operations, Lieutenant General Baggavalli Somashekar Raju
has been appointed as the Vice Chief of the Army Staff. He was an alumnus of Sainik School Bijapur and
National Defence Academy and commissioned in the Jat Regiment in December 1984.
 He had commanded a battalion during Operation Parakram in the Western Theatre and J&K. He has been
awarded the Uttam Yudh Seva Medal, Ati Vishisht Seva Medal, and Yudh Seva Medal.

IRS officer Sangeeta Singh given additional charge as Chairman of CBDT

 Sangeeta Singh, a 1986 batch Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer has been given additional charge of
Chairman, Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), after incumbent JB Mohapatra retired as the head of
the direct taxes administration body.
 Mohapatra, a 1985-batch IRS officer of the Income Tax department, was appointed as the full-time
Chairman in September 2021. Singh is currently holding charge of Audit and Judicial. She is also holding
additional charge of Income Tax and Revenue and Tax Payers services.

Tarun Kapoor appointed as advisor to Prime Minister

 Former petroleum secretary Tarun Kapoor has been appointed as an advisor to Prime Minister Narendra
Modi. Senior bureaucrats Hari Ranjan Rao and Atish Chandra have been appointed as additional secretaries
in the Prime Minister Office (PMO).
 Kapoor, a 1987-batch IAS officer of the Himachal Pradesh cadre, superannuated as the secretary of the
Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas in November 2021.

IndiGo appointed Venkataramani Sumantran as Chairman of the Board

 InterGlobe Aviation appointed Venkataramani Sumantran, an independent non-executive Director since
May 2020, as Chairman of the IndiGo Board, succeeding Meleveetil Damodaran.

27 MAY 2022
  He is currently the Chairman and Managing Director of Celeris Technologies, a strategic advisory firm
engaged in the domains of automotive, mobility, digital transformation, and technologies. Sumantran is a
business leader, technocrat and academic, having worked in the USA, Europe, and Asia.

IBM Chairman Arvind Krishna elected to the Board of Federal Reserve Bank of New York
 IBM Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Arvind Krishna have been elected to the Board of Directors of
the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
 The Federal Reserve Bank of New York informed that Krishna will fill the vacancy in the office for the
remaining portion of a three-year term ending December 2023.

Google India appointed Archana Gulati as Head of Public Policy

 Internet major Google has appointed former Joint Secretary at NITI Aayog Archana Gulati as Head of
Public Policy in India. Gulati was looking after digital communications policy matters at the government
think tank and took voluntary retirement in April 2021.
 Gulati also headed the combinations division at the Competition Commission of India and advised the
commission on competition issues arising from mergers and acquisitions.

Karine Jean-Pierre became first Black woman as White House Press Secretary
 United States President Joe Biden appointed Karine Jean-Pierre as the next White House Press Secretary.
Jean-Pierre is the first Black woman to hold the post. She would also be the first openly LGBTQ person to
serve as Press Secretary.
 Jean-Pierre will be replacing Jen Psaki. Jean-Pierre will also act as Biden's assistant. At present,
Jean-Pierre is the White House‟s deputy press secretary and also deputy assistant to the US
President.

Sudarshan Venu appointed as Managing Director of TVS Motor Company

 Sudarshan Venu has taken over as the Managing Director of TVS Motor Company. He was the Joint
Managing Director of the company. His elevation coincides with the appointment of Prof Sir Ralf Dieter
Speth as the Chairman of the company.
 Venu Srinivasan has now become the Chairman Emeritus of the company. This is the first time that the
chairmanship of the company has gone to a non-family member.

President appointed Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia, JB Pardiwala as Supreme Court judges

 President Ram Nath Kovind has appointed Chief Justice of Gauhati High Court Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia
and Judge in Gujarat High Court Justice Jamshed Burjor Pardiwala as Judges of the Supreme Court.
 Senior-most puisne Judge of the Gauhati High Court Justice Nongmeikapam Kotiswar Singh will perform
the duties of the office of the Chief Justice of Gauhati High Court with effect from the date Justice
Sudhanshu Dhulia relinquishes the charge.

Pushp Kumar Joshi took over as Chairman and MD of HPCL

 Pushp Kumar Joshi took over as the new Chairman and Managing Director of India's third largest oil
refining and fuel marketing company Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL).
 Prior to this Dr Joshi was Director-HR of the Corporation from August 2012. Joshi, the senior-most
Director on the HPCL board appointed by the government to replace Mukesh Kumar Surana.

28 MAY 2022
 Yoon Suk-yeol sworn in as President of South Korea
 Yoon Suk Yeol was sworn in as President of South Korea. Ushering in the country's first conservative
government in five years. Yoon, a former prosecutor, won the election in March 2022.
 Predecessor Moon Jae-in pursued a policy of engagement with the North holding a summit with Kim in
2018. He also brokered two summits between Kim and then-United States President Donald Trump.

Rajiv Kumar appointed as next Chief Election Commissioner

 The Union Ministry of Law and Justice announced Rajiv Kumar, the current Election Commissioner, will
take over as the next Chief Election Commissioner (CEC). Kumar will take charge from CEC Sushil
Chandra, who is due to retire.
 Kumar took charge as the Election Commissioner of the Election Commission of India (ECI) in September
2020. Prior to assuming charge in the Election Commission, Kumar had been the chairman of the Public
Enterprises Selection Board. He joined as the PESB chairman in April 2020.

Tata Group appoints Campbell Wilson as MD & CEO of Air India

 The Tata Group has appointed Campbell Wilson as Air India‟s new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and
Managing Director (MD). The newly-appointed Wilson was the CEO of Scoot, a low-cost subsidiary of
Singapore Airlines.
 Former Vistara CEO Leslie Thng will replace Wilson at Scoot. Campbell Wilson‟s appointment has also
come months after the former Turkish Airline Chairman Ilker Ayci declined TATA Sons‟s offer to be the
CEO and MD of Air India.

Deepika Padukone became 1st Indian brand ambassador of Louis Vuitton

 Actress Deepika Padukone has become the first-ever Indian brand ambassador of luxury brand Louis
Vuitton. The news was announced by the French brand. The brand unveiled the role of Bollywood actress
during their new handbag campaign.
 She has been also named as a part of an eight-member jury presided by French actor Vincent Lindon at 75th
Cannes Film Festival. She has also received the first Time 100 Impact Awards for creating awareness about
mental health.

Sanjiv Bajaj assumed charge as President of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII)

 Sanjiv Bajaj, Chairman and Managing Director of Bajaj Finserv Limited, has assumed office as the President
of CII for 2022-23. He takes over from T V Narendran, CEO and MD of Tata Steel Limited.
 Hero MotoCorp Limited‟s Chairman & CEO Pawan Munjal is the CII President-Designate for 2022-23,
whereas TVS Supply Chain Solutions Executive Vice Chairman R Dinesh takes over as CII Vice President.

Sri Lankan President appointed Ranil Wickremesinghe as news Prime Minister

 Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa appointed former PM Ranil Wickremesinghe as Prime Minister.
He was sworn in as the PM to steady the nation‟s economy which is debt-ridden and to end the ongoing
political turmoil.
 Wickremesinghe has replaces former PM Mahinda Rajapaksa who had recently resigned from this post.
Ranil Wickremesinghe had already served as the nation‟s Prime Minister four times and this will be his fifth
time in office.

29 MAY 2022
 American Tourister roped in Virat Kohli as brand ambassador
 American Tourister roped in Virat Kohli as its brand ambassador in 2016 and since then has come up with
various innovative campaigns. This year, American Tourister is back with yet another intriguing campaign
to tickle your wanderlust bone.
 The digital campaign #UndeniableLeave incorporates a simple yet powerful activation in which a leave
application is submitted on behalf of the employees. The company encourages individuals to return to
work, but more importantly, to return to travelling and exploring safely.

Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan elected as President of UAE

 The Supreme Council of the United Arab Emirates elected Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan as the
President of the country. He has replaced Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who died recently.
 Mohammed bin Zayed, the former President's half-brother, has been the de facto ruler of the UAE for
years now, particularly after Khalifa suffered a stroke in 2014.

BSE Limited appointed S S Mundra as a Chairman

 Stock exchange BSE has approved the appointment of S. S. Mundra, Public Interest Director as the
Chairman of the board of directors of the company, subject to the approval of SEBI.
 He retired as Deputy Governor of Reserve Bank of India in July 2017 after completing a stint of three
years. Prior to that, the last position held by him was as Chairman and MD of Bank of Baroda.

Eicher Motors appointed B Govindarajan as new CEO of Royal Enfield

 Eicher Motors has appointed B Govindarajan as the Chief Executive Officer of Royal Enfield. He will also
serve as the Whole time Director of the Board of Eicher Motors Limited.
 Royal Enfield is an Indian multinational motorcycle manufacturing company headquartered in Chennai,
Tamil Nadu. The company is the oldest global motorcycle brand in continuous production and operates
manufacturing plants in Chennai in India.

IndiGo appointed KLM‟s Pieter Elbers as Chief Executive Officer

 IndiGo announced the appointment of a new Chief Executive Officer in Pieter Elbers; he will replace
Ronojoy Dutta, 71, who will retire in September 2022. Elbers, is the President and Chief Executive Officer
of KLM Royal Dutch Airlines since 2014.
 He is also a member of the Executive Committee of the Air France – KLM Group. The Board of Directors
of IndiGo‟s parent company, InterGlobe Aviation Limited, approved his appointment subject to regulatory
clearances.

UNICEF reappointed Sachin Tendulkar as Goodwill Ambassador for 20th year

 Sachin Tendulkar will continue as UNICEF‟s „Goodwill Ambassador‟ for a record 20th year, working for
the welfare of underprivileged children.
 The iconic cricketer has been associated with UNICEF for long for various causes. In 2003, he was chosen
to take lead in the initiative to create awareness and promote polio prevention in India.

Gyanesh Bharti appointed commissioner of unified Municipal Corporation of Delhi

 The Union Government appointed 1998 batch IAS officer Gyanesh Bharti as the new commissioner of
unified Municipal Corporation of Delhi. Under the rules, he will take over the role of elected councilors
and municipal committees till the fresh civic polls are held.

30 MAY 2022
  The Centre merged the three civic bodies into a single MCD with Parliament passing the Delhi Municipal
Corporation (Amendment) Act, 2022

Vinai Kumar Saxena appointed as new Lieutenant Governor of Delhi

 Vinai Kumar Saxena was appointed as new Lieutenant-Governor of Delhi. He is the Chairman of the Khadi
and Village Industries Commission (KVIC). He will be succeeding Anil Baijal, who resigned from the post
citing "personal reasons" after serving for five years and four months.
 Vinai Kumar Saxena is the first corporate person to be selected for such a post. He is a well-known name
in the Indian Corporate and Social sector with over three decades of experience.

Rajesh Bhushan appointed as Chairperson of Committee B at 75th World Health Assembly

 Union Health Secretary, Rajesh Bhushan has been appointed as the chairperson of the Committee B at the
75th World Health Assembly (WHA). Committee B primarily discusses administrative and financial matters
of the World Health Organization (WHO).
 Each year, the World Health Assembly has a long and complex list of health challenges and responses to
review and the Assembly functions through two committees A and B.

Anwar Hussain Shaik has been appointed as the Chairperson of WTO committee
 Anwar Hussain Shaik has been appointed as the Chairperson of the Committee on Technical Barriers to
Trade under Council for Trade in Goods at the World Trade Organisation. He is the first Indian
representative to chair the committee after 10 years.
 The WTO Councils and committee officially elect their own chairperson and each committee has its own
procedures. The Council for Trade in Goods directly appoints the Chairperson of the Working Party on
State Trading Enterprises.

Tokyo Bronze Medallist Lovlina Borgohain elected as IBA‟s Athletes‟ Committee Chair
 Tokyo Bronze Medallist, Lovlina Borgohain was elected as IBA‟s Athletes‟ Committee Chair. Further,
Indian boxer Shiva Thapa has also been elected as a member of the IBA Athletes Committee following the
election held during the 2021 IBA Men‟s World Championships.
 International Boxing Association (IBA) announced that Indian boxer and Tokyo Olympics Bronze medallist
Lovlina Borgohain has received the highest number of votes during the election held at the 2022 Women‟s
World Championships and thus has been elected as the Chair.

NARCL appoints Natarajan Sundar as CEO

 National Assets Reconstruction Company Ltd (NARCL) has informed that Natarajan Sundar has assumed the
charge of MD and CEO of the Rs 6,000-crore bad bank.
 Prior to this, Sundar was Deputy Managing Director and Chief Credit Officer of SBI. He retired on April 30,
2022. NARCL has also appointed Karnam Sekar as the independent director and non-executive chairman of
the board.

31 MAY 2022
 RANKINGS
India ranked 21st in estimated Crypto gains in 2021
 United States topped the charts with an estimated realized acquire of $49.95 billion, adopted by the
United Kingdom (UK) with estimated realized gains of $8.16 billion. India ranked 21st place with an
estimated realized acquire of $1.85 billion, lagging behind to Turkey, South Korea and even Vietnam.
 Germany ($5.82 billion), Japan ($5.51 billion) and China ($5.06 billion) have been different names in the
highest 5 nations in estimated realized gains, the information instructed. In 2021, China‟s complete
estimated realized cryptocurrency gains have been $5.1 billion, up from $1.7 billion in 2020

World Press Freedom Index 2022, released

 The 2022 edition of the World Press Freedom Index has been published by the Reporters without Borders
(RSF) assessing the state of journalism in 180 countries and territories. India's ranking in the World Press
Freedom Index has fallen down to 150th position from last year's 142nd rank.
 This year, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Estonia and Finland grabbed the top positions. While North Korea
remained at the bottom of the list of the 180 countries and territories followed by China Iran, Cuba, and
Myanmar.

State of the World's Forests Report 2022, released

 The State of the World‟s Forests (SOFO) 2022 report has been released by the Food and Agriculture
Organisation (FAO). The report observed that the world has lost 420 million hectares, approximately
10.34% of its total forest area in the last 30 years (between 1990 and 2020) due to deforestation.
 Though the rate of deforestation was declining, 10 mha of forests were lost every year between 2015 and
2020. This poses severe risks for the 68% of mammal species, 75% of bird species, and 80% of amphibian
species that inhabit forests.

India‟s Civil Registration System Report, released

 According to the recently released annual report on Vital Statistics based on the 2020 Civil Registration
System Report (CRS), the Union Territory of Ladakh recorded the highest sex ratio at birth in the country
in 2020. The report was published by the Registrar General of India.
 In 2020, it is reported by Ladakh (1104) followed by Arunachal Pradesh (1011), Andaman & Nicobar
Islands (984), Tripura (974), and Kerala (969). The Lowest Sex Ratio at Birth in 2020 are Manipur (880),
followed by Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu (898), Gujarat (909), Haryana (916) and Madhya
Pradesh (921).

Lionel Messi topped Forbes Highest-Paid Athletes list 2022

 Lionel Messi has topped the list of Forbes Highest-Paid Athletes 2022 with a reported income of $130
million, followed by Basketball player, Lebron James with $121.2 million while Cristiano Ronaldo was third
with $115 million. The 2nd time the Argentine sits atop Forbes' list, the last time coming in 2019.

32 MAY 2022
  Messi had moved from Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain in August 2021 and Cristiano Ronaldo rejoined
Manchester United from Juventus in the same month. Forbes calculates the estimates based on prize
money, salaries and bonuses, and sponsorship deals.

RIL top-ranked Indian company on Forbes Global 2000 list

 Billionaire Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries Limited climbed two spots to No. 53 on Forbes' latest
Global 2000 list of public companies worldwide. Reliance is the top-ranked Indian firm on the list, followed
by State Bank of India at No. 105, HDFC Bank at No. 153 and ICICI Bank at No. 204.
 Forbes Global 2000 ranks the largest companies in the world using four metrics: sales, profits, assets and
market value, Forbes said releasing the 2022 ranking of the world's top 2,000 companies.

India surpassed Germany to become 4th largest vehicle market

 According to the report released by Organisation Internationale des Constructeurs d‟Automobiles (OICA),
India has surpassed Germany to become 4th largest vehicle market in the world. The 1st was occupied by
China, followed by the United States and Japan.
 India sold 3,759,398 vehicles in 2021 as compared to 2,973,319 vehicles in Germany. This is almost 26% of
growth and the only country to register double-digit growth among the top 5 countries. It was in 2019
when India had first grabbed the 4th spot and was expected to become the 3rd largest by 2025.

Global Air Powers Ranking of 2022, released

 The World Directory of Modern Military Aircraft (WDMMA) has published the Global Air Powers Ranking
of 2022, a report that has placed the Indian Air Force (IAF) above the People's Liberation Army Air Force,
also known as the Chinese Air Force.
 Not just China, but IAF has been placed above Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF), Israeli Air Force and
French Air and Space Force as well. The Global Air Powers Ranking (2022) report has given the highest
TvR score to the United States Air Force (USAF).

TIME Magazine released list of 100 Most Influential People of 2022

 Gautam Adani, Supreme Court lawyer Karuna Nandy and Kashmiri Human Rights Activist Khurram Parvez
have been named among the 100 most influential people of 2022 by Time Magazine. The list also includes
an Indian American, Bela Bajaria, who is currently the head of the Global TV at Netflix.
 Top global leaders include US President Joe Biden, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Ukraine President
Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Chinese President Xi Jinping. Some of the Titans include Apple CEO, Tim Cook,
US television show host Oprah Winfrey and Indonesian Michelle Yeoh.

Elon Musk became world‟s highest paid CEO in 2021

 According to the Fortune 500, the world‟s richest man, Elon Musk was the top-paid chief executive officer
(CEO) in 2021. He has received a salary of around $23.5 billion.
 Tim Cook, Apple with USD 770.5 Million placed at second followed by Jensen Huang, NVIDIA (USD 561
Million); Reed Hastings, Netflix (USD 453.5 Million); Leonard Schleifer, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals (USD
452.9 Million). Microsoft CEO, Satya Nadella with USD 309.4 Million placed at seventh position.

33 MAY 2022
 AWARDS & HONOURS
DD National Pet Show won ENBA Award 2021
 TV series based on pet care „Best Friend Forever' on Doordarshan has been awarded at the 14th edition of
the Exchange4media News Broadcasting Awards (ENBA).
 Best Friend Forever is a half-an-hour weekly live phone-in show on DD National, wherein two pet experts
guide people on how to take care of their pets. ENBA Awards celebrate remarkable work done by leaders
in the media industry.

\Cameroonian activist wins Wangari Maathai Forest Champions Award 2022

 Activist Cécile Ndjebet, of Cameroon, won the 2022 Wangari Maathai Forest Champions Award. She was
awarded in recognition of her outstanding contribution to preserving forests and improving the lives of
people who depend on them.
 It was presented by the Collaborative Partnership on Forests (CPF) which is chaired by the Food and
Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO).

Priyanka Mohite became first Indian woman to scale five peaks above 8,000 meters
 Priyanka Mohite from Satara in western Maharashtra has become the first Indian woman to scale five peaks
above 8,000 metres after she climbed Mount Kanchenjunga.
 Priyanka, the recipient of Tenzing Norgay Adventure Award 2020, successfully completed her expedition
to Mount Kanchenjunga (8,586 m), the third highest mountain on the planet.

NASA‟s climate research scientist Cynthia Rosenzweig won World Food Prize
 A senior research scientist and Head of the Climate Impacts Group at NASA‟s Goddard Institute for Space
Studies (GISS) in New York City, Cynthia Rosenzweig has received the 2022 World Food Prize from the
World Food Prize Foundation.
 Rosenzweig was selected for the award for her research to understand the relationship between climate
and food systems and forecast how both will change in the future. The World Food Prize is a prestigious
international award conceived as the “Nobel Prize for Food and Agriculture”.

Four photographers won Pulitzer Prize 2022

 Four Indian photographers from Reuter‟s news agency, the late Danish Siddiqui, Adnan Abidi, Sanna Irshad
Mattoo and Amit Dave won this year's Pulitzer Prize for feature photography for their coverage of the
Covid-19 crisis in India.
 The award is named after Joseph Pulitzer who in the late 1860s joined the German-language daily
newspaper Westliche Post. By 25 he had become a publisher. In 1978, he became the owner of St Louis
Post-Dispatch.

34 MAY 2022
 Guruswamy Krishnamoorthy received British Honour „MBE‟ for his service during COVID-19
 Guruswamy Krishnamoorthy, CEO of Penlon, a world-class British medical technology firm, is likely to
receive The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (Civil Division) Award 2022 Honorary Member of
the Order of the British Empire recognition from the Queen at Buckingham Palace, London.
 Guruswamy Krishnamoorthy hails from Madurai, Tamil Nadu. The British Honorary Awards are awarded
twice a year, first during the New Year and again in June.

Mamata Banerjee honoured with Special Bangla Academy Award

 Chief Minister of West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee received the Bangla Academy Award for her “relentless
literary pursuit”. The award, introduced this year by Sahitya Academy, was presented to Banerjee for her
book “Kabita Bitan”, which pays tribute to the best writers of West Bengal.
 The award will be given to those who constantly pursue literature even after working tirelessly in various
other fields. Mamata Banerjee‟s „Kabita Bitan‟ was launched at the 2020 Kolkata Book Fair. The book
contains 946 poems written by the TMC supremo.

B.V. Doshi conferred with Royal Gold Medal 2022

 Noted architect Balkrishna Vithaldas Doshi, 94, has been conferred with prestigious Royal Gold Medal
2022, which is considered as the world‟s highest honours for architecture.
 The president of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) Simon Allford presented the medal to the
renowned architect in person at his residence in Ahmedabad.

Kenyan nurse Anna Qabale Duba crowned world‟s best nurse

 Anna Qabale Duba, a Kenyan nurse stationed at the Marsabit County Referral Hospital, won the inaugural
Aster Guardian Global Nursing Award for endorsing education and campaigning against outdated cultural
practices like Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) in her community.
 Duba, who took home USD 250,000 (approx. Ksh.29 million) in prize money, was feted by Emirates CEO
Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum at an award ceremony held in Dubai, which commemorated the
International Nurses Day.

BTS created history with 3 wins at Billboard Music awards 2022

 BTS has overtaken Destiny‟s Child to become the group to win the most Billboard Music awards and have
won at every single Billboard Music Award since 2017. Destiny‟s Child‟s record for holding most awards
was unbeatable for 17 years.
 Their total awards tally goes up to 12, surpassing group Destiny‟s Child‟s record of 11 wins. BTS won
three out of the six awards for which they were nominated at the 2022 Billboard Music Awards.

Ajay Piramal received Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE)
 Chairman of the Piramal Group, Ajay Piramal has received an honorary Commander of the Order of the
British Empire (CBE) award from Queen Elizabeth II. He received the award for his services to the UK-
India trade relationship as the Indian Co-Chair of the UK-India CEO Forum.
 Piramal had contributed to the Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO) meeting in London in 2019,
the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in 2018, and the visit of the UK Prime Minister to India
in 2016.

35 MAY 2022
 Rhythm Mamani became youngest Indian mountaineers to summit the Everest Base Camp
 Rhythm Mamania, a 10-year-old skater from Mumbai as she became one of the youngest Indian
mountaineers to climb the Everest base camp. Rhythm, a resident of Worli, Mumbai.
 The national-level artistic skater completed the trek in 11 days. Her parents - Harshal and Urmi -
accompanied her during the trek earlier this month. The base camp is situated at 5,364 meters and it took
11 days for her to complete the expedition

WHO honoured India's ASHA workers for contribution to advancing global health
 India‟s one million all-women ASHA volunteers were honoured by the World Health Organisation for their
“crucial role” in providing direct access to healthcare facilities in rural areas and their indefatigable efforts
to rein in the coronavirus pandemic in the country.
 Accredited Social Health Activists or ASHA volunteers are Indian government‟s affiliated health-care
workers who are the first point of contact in rural India. Most of them gained spotlight during the peak of
the pandemic in India for conducting door-to-door checks to trace coronavirus patients.

Rolls-Royce India President Jayaraman received top British honour

 Kishore Jayaraman, President, India and South Asia for Rolls-Royce, has received an honorary Officer of the
Order of the British Empire (OBE) by Her Majesty the Queen, British Deputy High Commission.
 Jayaraman is a board member of the U.K.–India Business Council, which supports U.K. businesses set up in
India. He has also been instrumental in promoting bilateral ties by setting up a strategic ecosystem for
boosting manufacturing in India enabled by U.K.‟s technology.

Geetanjali Shree's 'Tomb of Sand' became first Hindi Novel to win Booker Prize
 Geetanjali Shree‟s „Tomb of Sand‟ has become the first Hindi novel to win the International Booker Prize.
The translated Hindi novel has become the first book written in an Indian language to win the prestigious
2022 International Booker Prize.
 „Tomb of Sand‟ which was originally published in Hindi as Ret Samadhi is translated into English by Daisy
Rockwell. „Tomb of Sand‟ by Geetanjali Shree, the winner of the International Booker Prize 2022, was
among the 13 long-listed novels

West Bengal bagged „Star of Governance-SKOCH Award in Education‟

 West Bengal has bagged the prestigious 'Star of Governance-SKOCH Award in Education'. The award will
be bestowed on the state at a function in New Delhi on June 18, 2022 as a part of 'India Governance
Forum'.
 SKOCH Awards, instituted in 2003, aims to recognize people, projects and institutions that go the extra
mile to make India a better nation.

'Triangle of Sadness' won Cannes Film Festival's Palme d'Or

 "Triangle of Sadness", a film by Swedish director Ruben Ostlund, won the Palme d`Or for Best Picture at
the 75th Cannes Film Festival. The festival also named Korean star Song Kang Ho best actor for his
performance in Japanese director Hirokazu Kore-eda‟s film, Broker.
 Best actress went to Zar Amir Ebrahimi for her performance as a journalist in Ali Abbasi‟s Holy Spider, a
true-crime thriller about a serial killer targeting sex workers in the Iranian religious city of Mashhad.

36 MAY 2022
 WHO selected Jharkhand for World No Tobacco Day Award-2022
 The World Health Organization (WHO) has selected Jharkhand for the World No Tobacco Day (WNTD)
Award-2022 to recognising its efforts in controlling tobacco consumption.
 Tobacco Control Programme (NTCP) was launched in Jharkhand in 2012 when the tobacco prevalence
rate in the state was 51.1%, of which 48% were smokeless users, according to the Global Adult Tobacco
Survey (GATS)-1 report.

37 MAY 2022
 SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Molecule discovered by IIT Mandi to treat diabetes
 The researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology (Mandi) have identified a drug molecule that can be
used to treat diabetes. The molecule called „PK2‟ is able to trigger the release of insulin by the Pancreas
and can potentially be used as an orally administered medicine for diabetes.
 The findings of the research have been published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry and have been
authored by Dr. Prosenjit Mondal, Associate Professor of School of Basic Sciences.

IIT Bombay signed MOU with IMD for developing user-friendly weather forecasting apps
 IIT Bombay has tied up with the India Meteorological Department (IMD) of the Ministry of Earth Sciences.
It will develop climate solutions for the stakeholder at the village, city, and district levels.
 The collaboration will help the institute to develop sensors and drone-based smart monitoring systems,
climate-smart agriculture technology for water and food security, etc.

Wipro, HFCL announced 5G product development partnership

 Wipro and Indian telecom equipment manufacturer HFCL Limited have entered into a partnership to
engineer a variety of 5G transport products. The products include cell site routers and centralized and
distributed unit aggregation routers.
 Wipro will leverage Tarang Labs, its product compliance and certification labs in Bangalore, for hardware
integration, validation, and precertification.

CUTS International, ARPI, IITB partnered to jointly work on ethics framework for 6G technology
 CUTS International has signed agreements with the Australian Risk Policy Institute and the International
Institute of Information Technology, Bangalore.
 They will develop an ethical framework for 6G technology. CUTS International has bagged a grant under
the second round of the Australia India Cyber and Critical Technology Partnership (AICCTP) programme
for its project 'Ethical 6G'.

India‟s first indigenous aircraft carrier INS Vikrant to be handed over to Navy in May
 The Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) will hand over India‟s first Indigenous Aircraft Carrier (IAC) which will
be named „INS Vikrant‟ to the Indian Navy. This was informed by CSL Director (Technical) Bejoy Bhasker
to announce the Shipyard‟s 50th anniversary.
 The second sea trials of India‟s first indigenous aircraft carrier Vikrant began, ahead of her anticipated
induction into the Indian Navy in August next year. In August, the 40,000-tonne aircraft carrier, India‟s
largest and most sophisticated warship, successfully conducted a five-day maiden sea cruise.

38 MAY 2022
 Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla launched one-of-a-Kind „Kalam Website‟
 Lok Sabha (LS) Speaker, Om Birla has launched the one-of-its-kind literary initiative Kalam website of the
Prabha Khaitan Foundation (PKF) to support and encourage vernacular literature.
 The aim of Kalam is to popularize Hindi literature and provide a platform for veteran and young authors
and poets to talk about their writings and love for vernacular literature. Kalam is in sync with the
philosophy of our nation – „Unity in Diversity which is reflected in the tagline of Prabha Khaitan Foundation
– „Aapne Bhasha Aapne Log‟.

First Image of Milky Way Galaxy Supermassive black hole released

 The first image of a massive black hole at the centre of our Milky Way galaxy was released from the
International Consortium behind the Event Horizon Telescope. The world got to see the first wild but
fuzzy image of the supermassive black hole.
 According to the astronomers, nearly all the galaxies, including our own, have these massive black holes at
their centre, where the light and matter cannot escape which makes it extremely difficult to get the images
of them.

Scientists successfully grown plants in moon soil for first time

 Scientists have for the first time grown plants in lunar soil brought back to Earth by astronauts in the Apollo
missions, a step towards producing food and oxygen on the Moon or during future space missions.
 The researchers at the University of Florida in the US showed that plants can successfully sprout and grow
in lunar soil. Their study, published in the journal Communications Biology, also investigated how plants
respond biologically to the Moon's soil, also known as lunar regolith, which is very different from soil found
on Earth.

ISRO successfully tested large human-rated solid rocket booster for Gaganyaan mission
 The Indian Space Research Organisation successfully completed the static test of a human-rated solid
rocket booster for the Gaganyaan programme at Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.
 The HS200 is the human-rated version of the S200 rocket booster of satellite launch vehicle GSLV Mk III,
popularly known as LVM3, the Bengaluru-headquartered space agency noted in a statement.

India's first Indigenously Developed Naval Anti-Ship Missile test fired by DRDO
 The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully conducted maiden test firing
of the indigenously developed Naval Anti-ship missile. The missile was launched aboard Seaking 42B Naval
Helicopter from Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Balasore in Odisha.
 The missile test was successful as it met all its objectives. This is the first indigenously-made air-launched
Anti-ship missile system for the Indian Navy. An anti-ship missile is a guided missile that is designed to
target ships and large boats.

HANSA-NG aircraft successfully completed Engine Relight test

 HANSA-NG 2 seater flying trainer aircraft has successfully completed in-flight engine relight test at
DRDO‟s Aeronautical Test Range (ATR) facility, Challaker.
 Flight test was carried out at an altitude of 7000-8000 feet with the speed range of 60 to 70 knots by Wing
Commander K V Prakash and Wing Commander NDS Reddy, Test Pilots from Aircraft and Systems
Testing Establishment (ASTE).

39 MAY 2022
 Skyroot successfully test fired space launch vehicle „Vikram-1‟ rocket stage
 Hyderabad-based start-up Skyroot Aerospace has successfully completed the full duration test-firing of its
Vikram-1 rocket stage. Vikram-1 is India‟s first-ever privately designed and developed rocket for
commercial missions.
 It has three solid fuel-powered stages. The third stage of it has been named „Kalam-100‟ after renowned
Indian rocket scientist and former president Dr APJ Abdul Kalam.

IIT-Kanpur & CSIS, USA signed to create a global „just transition‟ network
 Just Transition Research Centre (JTRC) at Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur has signed an agreement
with the Energy Security and Climate Change Program at the Center for Strategic and International
Studies, Washington D.C., to work on just energy transition globally including in India.
 Among Indian states, IIT- CSIS collaboration will engage with Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal,
Madhya Pradesh, and Telangana.

Indian Railways and IIT Madras partnered to develop India‟s first Indigenous Hyperloop
 The Ministry of Railways has announced that it‟s going to collaborate with IIT Madras for the development
of a made-in-India Hyperloop system. It has also announced that it‟ll be setting up a Centre for Excellence
for Hyperloop technologies at the aforementioned institution.
 IIT Madras‟s Avishkar Hyperloop which was formed in 2017 had been working on scalability and frugal
engineering concepts for the development of a Hyperloop based transportation system for India.

Param Porul supercomputer inaugurated at NIT Tiruchirappalli

 A supercomputer named Param Porul was inaugurated at NIT Tiruchirappalli under National
Supercomputing Mission (NSM). The NSM is a joint initiative of the Ministry of Electronics and Information
Technology (MeitY) and the Department of Science and Technology (DST).
 Param Porul supercomputing facility is established under phase two of the national supercomputing mission
to facilitate computational research.

IIT Madras develops algorithm to protect air traffic control

 IIT Madras researchers have developed an algorithm-powered novel strategy to mitigate disruptions in
critical networks such as air traffic control and power distribution during a targeted attack.
 The work has been published in "Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications". The algorithm is also
highly effective in increasing the robustness of canonical scale-free networks.

40 MAY 2022
 SPORTS
FIFA launched FIFA+ to bring free football entertainment to fans everywhere
 FIFA launched a new streaming video service, FIFA. FIFA plus is FIFA's new digital streaming platform that
will provide free live games, original documentaries, archived games and highlights. FIFA+ will be
streaming the equivalent of 40,000 live games per year by the end of 2022.
 FIFA plus will also include an archive of every World Cup and Women's World Cup match ever recorded
on camera. The first Indian sports documentary 'Maitanam – The Story of Football in Kerala' streamed on
FIFA+.

First-ever Kerala Olympic Games began in Thiruvananthapuram

 The first-ever Kerala Olympic Games were inaugurated by state Sports Minister V Abdurahiman at the
University Stadium. State Finance Minister K N Balagopal awarded the lifetime achievement award to
boxer Mary Kom. A rabbit named Neeraj is the mascot of the games.
 Athletes and teams participating in the Kerala Olympic Games were selected through district-level events.
More than 8,000 sportspersons are expected to participate in the Games.

Real Madrid won 35th Spanish League title

 Real Madrid clinched a record-extending 35th Spanish league title after its reserve squad comfortably
defeated Espanyol 4-0. Rodrygo scored twice and Marco Asensio and substitute Karim Benzema added a
goal each to give Madrid its second league title in three seasons, and third in six years.
 With the title, Carlo Ancelotti became the first coach to lift trophies in the top five European leagues. The
Italian manager won with AC Milan in Series A, Chelsea in the English Premier League, Paris Saint-Germain
in Ligue 1, and Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga.

Harshada Sharad became 1st Indian to win gold medal at IWF Jr. World Weightlifting Championship
 Harshada Sharad Garud scripted history by becoming the first Indian to win a gold medal at the IWF Junior
World Weightlifting Championships at Heraklion in Greece. She lifted 153-kilogram in the 45-kilogram
weight category, which included 70 kilograms in Snatch and 83 kilograms in Clean and Jerk to finish on top
of the podium.
 Garud left eight competitors behind as India bagged a medal on the opening day of the competition.
Turkey‟s Bektas Cansu bagged the silver medal while Moldova‟s Teodora-Luminita Hincu won the bronze
medal.

India became world's number one ranked T20 team

 India under new captain Rohit Sharma finished the 2021-22 season as the world's number one ranked T20
team in the annual Test rankings released by ICC.

41 MAY 2022
  New Zealand finished the last season as the world's No.1 ODI team. Pakistan has overtaken England to the
fifth position in the ICC Men's Test Team Rankings.

Ronnie O'Sullivan won record seventh World Snooker title

 Ronnie O'Sullivan won a record seventh World Snooker Championship crown after beating Judd Trump
18-13 in the final, in May 2022. With this title, O'Sullivan has equalled Stephen Hendry's modern-day
record of seven world titles.
 Hendry remains snooker's youngest ever world champion, winning in 1990 at the age of 21, and had
claimed an unprecedented five world titles in a row.

Khelo India mascot and logo launched at Panchkula in Haryana

 In Haryana, the mascot, logo, jersey, and theme song of Khelo India Youth Games were launched in a
special ceremony held at Indradhanush Stadium in Panchkula.
 More than 8,000 athletes will be participating in the event. The opening ceremony of the games will be in
June 2022. The games will be held at Panchkula, Ambala, Shahbad, Chandigarh, and Delhi.

Adani Group acquired franchise in upcoming UAE‟s T20 League

 India‟s Adani Sportsline, part of Adani Group had made a landmark foray into the franchise cricket by
acquiring the rights to own and operate a franchise in UAE‟s flagship T20 League. Licensed by Emirates
Cricket Board, the UAE T20 League is an annual event that will feature the six franchise teams.
 Top players from all the cricket-playing countries are expected to be in the lineup of different teams for
the tournament. The league in UAE will also provide a platform and exposure to the young cricketers.

Teenager Carlos Alcaraz became 1st player to beat Nadal and Djokovic at same clay-court event
 Carlos Alcaraz made it consecutive victories over tennis legends at the Madrid Open as the Spaniard
clinched a stirring 6-7(5), 7-5, 7-6(5) win over Novak Djokovic at the ATP Masters 1000 event.
 The Spanish sensation backed up his win over Rafael Nadal in quarter-finals in spectacular style on Manolo
Santana Stadium, recovering from the disappointment of losing a first-set tie-break to complete the biggest
win of his career against World No. 1 Djokovic.

Union Sports Minister Anurag Thakur launched mascot, logo and jersey of Khelo India Youth Games
 Union Sports Minister Anurag Thakur has launched the mascot „Dhakad‟ along with the official logo and
official jersey of the Fourth Khelo India Youth Games at Panchkula and lauded the effort of Haryana to host
the games.
 The competition is being organized by the Sports Authority of India and the state government of Haryana.
In this edition of the Khelo India Youth Games, over 8,500 athletes will be participating.

Max Verstappen won first-ever formula one Miami Grand Prix

 Red Bull‟s reigning champion Max Verstappen won the first-ever Miami Grand Prix after defeating Charles
Leclerc.
 Carlos Sainz Jr from Ferrari and Sergio Perz from Red Bull came third and fourth, respectively. The F1
season will continue when Barcelona will host the Spanish Grand Prix.

42 MAY 2022
 Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore named as hosts of future SEA Games
 The SEA Games Federation Council revealed the locations of the three editions at a meeting held in Hanoi
in Vietnam which is currently staging this year‟s delayed SEA Games.
 Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore have been named as the hosts of the respective 2025, 2027 and 2029
editions of the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games. Thailand staged the inaugural edition of the Games in 1959
and has since held the biennial event in 1967, 1975, 1985, 1995 and 2007.

India won first-ever Thomas Uber Cup after 3-0 wins over Indonesia
 India has become Thomas Cup Champions! India scripted history by beating 14-time champions Indonesia
3-0 in the Thomas Uber Cup Final 2022. This is the first time that India has become the Thomas Cup
Champion.
 Defending champions Indonesia ended up as the runner-ups. Japan and Denmark won the bronze medals.
The championship conducted once every two years since 1982. Indonesia has won the Thomas Uber Cup
a total of 14 times, followed by China which has won the cup 9 times.

Liverpool defeated Chelsea on penalties to win FA Cup title

 Liverpool has won the English FA Cup for the eighth time defeating Chelsea. After the game ended goalless
in regular time, Liverpool prevailed 6-5 in a penalty shootout at the Wembley stadium.
 Liverpool is now most successful club as Manchester United trophies compared after FA Cup win. After
their latest Wembley triumph, Liverpool‟s haul now consists of 19 league titles, eight FA Cups and nine
League Cups on the domestic front.

Cricketer Chris Gayle, Ab de Villiers inducted into the RCB Hall of Fame
 Legendary Cricketers AB de Villiers and Chris Gayle have become the first two players to be inducted into
the Royal Challengers Bangalore‟s Hall of Fame. The former Captain of Royal Challengers Bangalore Virat
Kohli announced the induction of his two dear mates.
 While AB de Villiers from South Africa had been an integral part of the RCB from 2011 to 2021, left-
handed batter Chris Gayle from West Indies was with the franchise for 6 years.

India‟s Sift Kaur Samra bagged Gold at ISSF Junior World Cup in Suhl, Germany
 India‟s Sift Kaur Samra won the individual women‟s 50 meter rifle 3 positions (3P) like Prone, the Standing
and the Kneeling positions, event to take India‟s gold medal tally to 10 at the ISSF Junior World Cup 2022
in Suhl, Germany.
 Sift Kaur Samra beat Norway‟s Julie Johannessen 17-9 in the final. India‟s Ashi Chouksey also won bronze in
the event. India now has a total of 25 medals including10 gold, 12 silvers and 3 bronze and sit atop the
medals table.

Jasprit Bumrah became first Indian pacer to take 250 T20 wickets
 Jasprit Bumrah became the first Indian pacer to pick up 250 T20 wickets. Bumrah achieved this feat in
match against Sunrisers Hyderabad in the on-going Indian Premier League at the Wankhede Stadium.
 Bumrah is the leading Indian wicket-taking pacer in the shortest format. Bumrah is followed by senior SRH
pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who has bagged 223 wickets in T20 cricket. Saurashtra star Jaydev Unadkat
has scalped 201 wickets in the same format.

43 MAY 2022
 Supreme Court appointed Committee of Administrators to manage AIFF
 The Supreme Court appointed a three-member Committee of Administrators (CoA) headed by former
top court judge A. R. Dave to manage the affairs of the All India Football Federation (AIFF) and adoption of
its constitution in line with the National Sports Code and model guidelines.
 It directed the CoA to forthwith take charge of the AIFF and assist the court by providing inputs to the
court in facilitating the adoption of the constitution by the AIFF in accordance with the National Sports
Code and model guidelines.

KL Rahul became first Indian batter to cross 500-run mark for 5th straight IPL season
 KL Rahul achieved the milestone of 500 runs in an Indian Premier League (IPL) season for the fifth
consecutive time. With this, he became the first Indian batter to cross the 500-run mark for the fifth
straight IPL season.
 The captain of Lucknow Super Giants achieved this feat during match number 66 of the ongoing Indian
Premier League 2022 between Lucknow Super Giants and Kolkata Knight Riders here at the Dr. DY Patil
Sports Academy in Navi Mumbai.

FIFA announced female referees to officiate men's FIFA World Cup for 1st time
 Female referees will make World Cup history this year by working games at a major men‟s tournament for
the first time in Qatar. French referee Stéphanie Frappart already worked men‟s games in World Cup
qualifying and the Champions League, after handling the 2019 Women‟s World Cup final.
 Three female referees and three female assistant referees were announced by FIFA among 129 officials
selected for World Cup duty, including one man who caused controversy when refereeing a chaotic
African Cup of Nations game in January while suffering with heatstroke.

Bangladesh held its first international professional boxing tournament

 The first ever professional international boxing tournament of Bangladesh was held in Dhaka. Professional
boxers from Bangladesh, India and Nepal competed in the one day event organised by the Bangladesh
Boxing Foundation (BBF) at the Shaheed Suhrawardy Indoor Stadium at Mirpur in Dhaka.
 A total of 14 boxers took part in the event including 11 from Bangladesh, two from Nepal and one from
India. The 1st match was played between Bangladesh‟s Mohammad Al-Amin and Nepal‟s Bharat Chand.

Australian swimmer Ariarne Titmus broken women‟s 400-meter freestyle world record
 Australian swimmer Ariarne Titmus has broken the women‟s 400m freestyle world record at the national
championships, according to Swimming Australia. Titmus‟s world record is the latest chapter in her
burgeoning rivalry with Ledecky, whom she beat in the 400m final at the Tokyo Olympics.
 Titmus, the reigning Olympic champion over 200 and 400m, finished the 400m freestyle in 3:56.40,
breaking the previous world record set by American Katie Ledecky in 2016 by 0.06 seconds.

Odisha won 12th Hockey India Senior Women‟s National Championship title
 Odisha women‟s team has won its first-ever gold in Senior Nationals as they defeat Karnataka 2-0 in the
final of the 12th Hockey India Senior Women‟s National Championship.
 The 12th Hockey India Senior Women‟s National Championship was held in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh.
However solid defensive performances from both sides ensured that the match went into the Halftime
with the score line reading 0-0.

44 MAY 2022
 Son Heung-min became first Asian to win Premier League's Golden Boot
 Tottenham Hotspur's Son Heung-min shares Premier League's Golden Boot for 2021-2022 with
Liverpool's Mohamed Salah. Heung-min also becomes the first Asian to achieve the award. Salah has 23
goals and 14 assists in 35 Premier League matches this season and this is his third Golden Boot.
 Son Heung-Min of Tottenham Hotspur shared the Golden Boot with as many goals, after his brace against
Norwich City in the final matchday. With this, Son Heung-Min who comes from South Korea became the
first Asian player to win the Premier League Golden Boot.

BCCI signed up NFT partner for Women‟s T20 Challenge

 The Indian cricket board has now decided to examine using non-fungible tokens (NFT). The Indian cricket
board has unveiled FanCraze as its official associate partner for the Women's T20 Challenge.
 FanCraze is also the ICC partner alongside being on board with West Indies cricket. The women's T20
challenge will feature three teams, the Supernovas, Trailblazers and Velocity and will compete at
Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) Stadium.

Real Madrid won 14th Champions League title

 Real Madrid defeated Liverpool to claim their 14th European Cup at the Stade de France in Paris as Vinicius
Junior scored in the second half. The Spanish giants claimed their fifth Champions League trophy in nine
seasons.
 The Spanish giants now have double the number of European Cups as the No. 2 on the list, AC Milan.
Liverpool remains on six. The player of the match was Thibaut Courtois, he made nine saves in total.

Gujarat Titans won 15thedition of Indian Premier League

 The Gujarat Titans (GT) won the trophy by defeating inaugural champions Rajasthan Royals (RR) at the
Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad. The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 was the 15th edition of the
professional Twenty20 cricket league.
 Hardik Pandya, captain of Gujarat Titans won the Man of the Match award while Rajasthan Royals' Jos
Buttler was named Most Valuable Player and Orange Cap for scoring 863 runs in the season.

IPL unveiled world‟s largest cricket jersey ahead of final

 Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 created the Guinness World Record for the unveiling world's largest
cricket jersey in the closing ceremony at Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad. The largest cricket jersey
was unveiled by former India head coach Ravi Shastri.
 It was a glittering ceremony as Bollywood superstar Ranveer Singh performed in front of a packed house.
The ceremony also featured a special performance by music maestro and Oscar winner AR Rahman. The
jersey had number 15 imprinted on it, representing the 15th edition of the Indian Premier League. It also
had the logo of the 10 teams that competed in the competition

India win first ever medal at the IBSA Judo Grand Prix, Kazakhastan
 In Nur Sultan, Kazakhstan, India earned its first-ever medal at the IBSA Judo Grand Prix. The Indian Blind and
Para Judo Association‟s Judoka Kapil Parmar deserves heartfelt praise for bringing medals to the country. It‟s
worth noting that 18 of the 21 countries that competed won medals.
 Several countries, including Iraq, Switzerland, and India, earned their first medals in the IBSA Grand Prix.
After two days of thrilling competition in Nur-Sultan, the 2022 IBSA Judo Grand Prix Kazakhstan came to a

45 MAY 2022
 close. More than a hundred judokas from 21 countries competed for gold, and Turkey, Iran, Uzbekistan,
Romania, Japan, Brazil, and Kazakhstan all ascended to the top of the podiums on the opening day.

46 MAY 2022
 BOOKS & AUTHORS
Rasheed Kidwai authored a book titled “Leaders, Politicians, Citizens”
 “Leaders, Politicians, Citizens: Fifty Figures Who Influenced India‟s Politics” authored by author-journalist
Rasheed Kidwai compiles stories of 50 personalities who influenced India‟s political landscape.
 The book is published by Hachette India. The foreword of the book is written by Shashi Tharoor, Member
of Parliament. The 50 personalities featured in the book include Teji Bachchan, Phoolan Devi, Indira
Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, Jayalalithaa, APJ Abdul Kalam, and Karunanidhi among others.

A book „INDO-PAK WAR 1971- Reminiscences of Air Warriors‟ released by Rajnath Singh
 Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has released a book titled „INDO-PAK WAR 1971- Reminiscences of Air
Warriors‟ at the 37th Air Chief Marshal PC Lal Memorial Lecture organised by the Air Force Association in
New Delhi.
 The book was edited by Air Marshal Jagjeet Singh and Group Captain Shailendra Mohan. The book features
50 Swarnim articles written by veterans narrating their experiences in detail.

A book titled “The Struggle for Police Reforms in India” by Ex-IPS Prakash Singh
 Vice President of India, M Venkaiah Naidu, released a book titled “The Struggle for Police Reforms in India:
Ruler‟s Police to People‟s Police” authored by a former IPS officer, Prakash Singh in New Delhi.
 The book is published by Rupa Publications India Pvt Ltd. The book provides the historical background to
the origin of the Indian Police and traces the evolution during British Rule and subsequently since
independence.

Ruskin Bond‟s book titled „Listen to Your Heart: The London Adventure‟ released
 A new book titled “Listen to Your Heart: The London Adventure” authored by Ruskin Bond, was
published by Penguin Random House India (PRHI) on Ruskin Bond‟s 88th birthday.
 Ruskin Bond, India‟s famous Children‟s book author, was born in Kasauli (Himachal Pradesh) and grew up
in Jamnagar (Gujarat), Dehradun (Uttarakhand), New Delhi and Shimla (Himachal Pradesh). The book
gives readers a peek into the four years he spent in the Channel Islands and England.

47 MAY 2022