Current Affairs 10th March 2023

Chinese Parliament elected President Xi Jinping for third time

• China’s Parliament unanimously endorsed an unprecedented third five-year term for President Xi Jinping.
• He has become first Chinese leader after the party founder Mao Zedong to continue in power beyond the two five-year terms.
• China’s legislature, the National People’s Congress (NPC) voted on ratifying Xi’s third term.

West Bengal urges Centre to allow poppy cultivation

• West Bengal Chief Minister urged the Centre to allow poppy cultivation in the State.
• Delicacies prepared with poppy seeds are integral to the Bengali cuisine and poppy seeds are costly as it is cultivated only in a few States.
• At present, opium poppy cultivation is permitted in Selected Tracts in three States namely Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan.​

Global Greenhouse Gas Monitoring Infrastructure introduced

• The World Meteorological Organization introduced Global Greenhouse Gas Monitoring Infrastructure, which aims to provide standardized and real-time tracking of greenhouse gases
• Platform integrates space-based and surface-based observing systems.
• Platform offers faster and more precise data on atmospheric changes.
• Provide information and support for implementing the Paris Agreement​.

Megha-Tropiques-1 successfully de-orbited

• The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) successfully de-orbited a satellite.
• Megha Trophiques-1 was brought down as it disintegrated and burned up in the skies
• Megha-Tropiques-1 was launched into Low Earth Orbit (LEO) in 2011, as a joint mission of ISRO and the French space agency, CNES, for tropical weather and climate studies​

SonicWall devices infected with persistent malware

• Devices from SonicWall, an American cybersecurity company that sells internet appliances, were found to be infected by persistent malware.
• The malware was found to be able to steal hashed credentials from logged-in users which would later be retrieved to be cracked online.
• Originating from a suspected Chinese hacking campaign, the attack involves maintaining long-term persistence.

Power Minister launches portal to ensure availability of of power

• Union Power Minister launched a portal to ensure greater availability of power during the peak demand season at a price higher than the ceiling 
• The Central government has launched a High Price Day Ahead Market (HP-DAM) and Surplus Power Portal (PUShP).
• HP-DAM will aid gas and coal-based power plants to generate and sell expensive power to meet the high peak demand in summers.

India and US sign MoU on semiconductor supply chain

• India and the United States have signed an MoU on semiconductor Supply Chain and Innovation Partnership following the Commercial Dialogue 2023.
• The MoU seeks to establish a collaborative mechanism between the two governments on Semiconductor Supply chain resiliency and diversification in view of the US’s CHIPS and Science Act and India’s Semiconductor Mission. 

Anurag Singh Thakur inaugurates Khelo India Dus Ka Dum Tournament

• Youth Affairs and Sports Minister Anurag Singh Thakur inaugurated the Khelo India Dus Ka Dum Tournament in New Delhi on 10 March 2023.
• In the run-up to the International Women’s Day 2023 celebrations, the Youth Affairs and Sports Ministry is organizing the Khelo India Dus Ka Dum tournament from 10-31 March.
• Nearly 15,000 women athletes will participate in the contest that features 10 sports.

CISF Raising Day: 10 March

• The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) Raising Day is observed every year on 10 March.
• The CISF was set up in 1969 under the act of the Parliament of India.
• It works under the Union Ministry of Home Affairs and its headquarter is located in New Delhi.
• CISF was made an armed force of India by the Act of Parliament passed on 15 June 1983.
• Director General: Sheel Vardhan Singh

MoS Rajkumar Ranjan Singh attends 19th BIMSTEC ministerial meeting

• MoS for External Affairs Rajkumar Ranjan Singh participated in the 19th the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) Ministerial Meet on 9 March 2023.
• The meeting was chaired by Thailand’s Deputy Prime Minister Don Pramudwinai.
• BIMSTEC was formed as a regional grouping in June 1997 with the signing of the Bangkok Declaration.

Ram Chandra Paudel elected as new Nepal President

• Nepali Congress senior leader Ram Chandra Paudel has been elected the new President of Nepal on 9 Mar 2023.
• The President is elected by an Electoral College consisting of the members of the Federal Parliament and the Provincial Assembly.
• He will succeed Bidya Devi Bhandari as Nepal’s Head of State.
• He is a former Speaker of the Pratinidhi Sabha, the lower house of the Parliament of Nepal. 

Col Geeta Rana becomes first woman officer to command EME unit

• Colonel Geeta Rana of the Corps of Electronics and Mechanical Engineers became the first woman officer to take over command of an independent field workshop in the Ladakh Sector.
• She took over the command of the EME independent workshop after the Army cleared 108 vacancies for women officers for taking command of independent units in the Corps of Engineers, Ordinance, EME, and other branches.

Axis Mutual Fund appoints B Gopkumar as MD and CEO

• Axis Mutual Fund appointed B Gopkumar as its new managing director and chief executive officer (MD & CEO) on 9 March 2023.
• Gopkumar takes over from Chandresh Nigam who has stepped down as the CEO of the company.
• The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) barred Axis Mutual Fund’s former fund manager Viresh Joshi from the securities market in May 2022.

Harsha Razdan appointed CEO of South Asia for Dentsu

• Advertising and public relations agency Dentsu Asia Pacific has appointed Harsha Razdan as the chief executive officer (CEO) for its South Asia office.
• He replaced its former CEO, Anand Bhadkamkar, who quit in September 2021.
• Razdan has about 25 years of experience and has worked in various organizations like PepsiCo and Unilever.
• He has also been with consulting practices like Accenture.

A book titled ‘Mundaka Upanishad: The Bridge to Immortality’ released

• Vice President, Jagdeep Dhankhar released the book ‘Mundaka Upanishad: The Bridge to Immortality’ on 9 March 2023.
• The book is authored by former Parliamentarian Dr Karan Singh.
• Karan Singh is an Indian politician and philosopher.
• He is the son of the last ruling Maharaja of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, Sir Hari Singh.
• He was the prince regent of Jammu and Kashmir until 1952.

MoHUA launches 1st Edition of Women Icons Leading Swacchata Awards

• The Union Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs, Hardeep Singh Puri launched the ‘Women Icons Leading Swachhata’ (WINS) Awards 2023 in March 2023.
• The award aims to recognize celebrate and disseminate inspiring and exemplary initiatives in urban sanitation and waste management by women led organizations and individual women.
• The applications are open from 8th March to 5th April 2023.

Centre launches portal for women scientists for research grants & fund

• Union minister Jitendra Singh on 9 March 2023, announced the launch of an exclusive portal for research grants and funds for women scientists by Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) council under CSIR-ASPIRE programme.
• The portal will be functional from 1 April 2023.
• Only women scientists across the country will be eligible to apply for research grants.

India wins Golden & Silver Star at ‘Golden City Gate Tourism Awards’

• The Ministry of Tourism, Government of India , has bagged  Golden & Silver Star at The International ‘Golden City Gate Tourism Awards 2023’ at the Internationale Tourismus-Börse (ITB Berlin) 2023 in Germany.
• It has awarded in ‘TV/Cinema Commercials International and Country International’ category.
• The Golden City Gate Tourism Awards are given annually in the Tourism and Hospitality sectors.

Pune to host the fourth Y20 Consultation Meeting on 11 March

• The fourth Y20 consultation meeting will be held in Pune, Maharashtra on 11 March 2023.
• It will be held at the Symbiosis International University (SIU), Lavale in collaboration with the Ministry of Sports.
• Union Minister Anurag Singh Thakur will be the Chief Guest at the event.
• The theme for the fourth Y20 Consultation is ‘Peace building and Reconciliation: Ushering in an Era of No War’.

Assam creates Guinness World Records of largest handwritten notes

• Assam entered on 9 March 2023, the Guinness World Records Hall of Fame for the largest number of handwritten notes.
• It was presented to Assam Govt as the world’s largest photo album of handwritten essays on the great warrior of the Ahom Dynasty Lachit Borphukan.
• A portal was launched by the state govt on Lachit Divas where the essays on Lachit Borphukan were submitted by students

CRPF women ‘daredevils’ embark on bike rally from Delhi to Chhatisgarh

• The 75 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) women ‘Daredevils’ on March 9, 2023, embarked on a 1,848 km bike rally from India Gate in New Delhi to Jagdalpur in Chhattisgarh.
• The rally will culminate on March 25 at Jagdalpur where the CRPF Day Parade will be held in presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
• The rally was flagged off by the MoS for Ministry of External Affairs Meenakshi Lekhi.

Former PM of Malaysia Muhyiddin Yassin arrested on corruption charges

• The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission on 9 March 2023, arrested former Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin on the charges of corruption.
• He was the PM from 2020-11, and will be charged under laws related to abuse of power and money laundering.
• He is also the president of Bersatu, a leading opposition party in Malaysia.
• He would be the 2nd former PM to be charged after Najib Razak.

Download Bharat Affairs for daily and monthly current affairs 

Only Available on Google Play Store.