TODAYS TOP NEWS
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1. India Meteorological Department has forecast a fresh spell of heat wave to start over Northwest India from today including Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Haryana till the 18th of this month.
2. Southwest Monsoon is likely to arrive over Kerala around May 31, “This is not early; it’s close to the normal date,” IMD Director General Mrutyunjay Mohapatra said.
3. Election Commission reviewed preparedness for the 5th and 6th phase of Lok Sabha polls . Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar along with Election Commissioners Gyanesh Kumar and Sukhbir Singh Sandhu held video conference meeting with Observers being deployed in 49 Parliamentary Constituencies for 5th phase and 57 Parliamentary Constituencies in sixth phase of the General Elections 2024.
4. The fifth phase of Lok Sabha Polls will be held on 20th of this month and sixth phase will be held on 25 May.
5. PM Modi addressed an election rally at Dindori in the Nashik area of Maharashtra. Later he also held a roadshow in Mumbai.
6. PM Modi on Wednesday alleged the Congress during its previous rule wanted to allocate 15 per cent of the government budget for minorities and vowed not to allow splitting of budget or reservation in jobs and education on the basis of religion.
7. The first set of citizenship certificates after notification of Citizenship (Amendment) Rules 2024 were issued yesterday. Union Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla handed over citizenship certificates to 14 applicants in New Delhi.
8. Recently Chandrakant Satija, the renowned educationist and Founder/CEO of Chandra Admission Consultants, was honored with the Global Excellence Award 2024 in Mumbai.
9. The National Testing Agency (NTA) has postponed the Common University Entrance Test, CUET (UG) 2024 exam scheduled on 15 May 2024 for Delhi centres. The exam will now be held on 29 May 2024 for papers Chemistry (306), Biology (304), English (101), and General Test (501). The exam will be held as per the CUET 2024 date sheet in other states of India.
10. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday said that her Trinamool Congress would extend external support to the new government that I.N.D.I alliance would form at the Centre if it after the defeat of the Bharatiya Janata Party and its alliance in the Lok Sabha elections, but would not join it.
LEGAL REPORT
#Chief Justice of India:
Shri Dhananjaya Y. Chandrachud
#Minister Of Law & Justice : Arjun Ram Meghwal
#International Court Of Justice Prz. : Nawaf Salam
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1. Jharkhand Rural Development Minister Alamgir Alam was arrested by Enforcement Directorate (ED) after six hours of inquiry on the second day under Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
2. Congress has demanded repoll in eight booths under Baharampur Lok Sabha constituency in West Bengal. The West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee has written a letter to the Chief Electoral Officer highlighting false and proxy voting by the ruling party.
3. Punjab Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav said Tuesday a terror module operating in the state has been busted with the arrest of four of its members, including a key operative. The module was being operated by mastermind Iqbalpreet Singh alias Buchi.
4. The Arunachal Pradesh Police have arrested 21 people, including government officers, for their alleged involvement in an inter-state prostitution racket, and rescued five minors in the age group of 10-15 years, officials said on Wednesday.
The arrested government officers include a deputy superintendent of police and a deputy director of health services.
5. The Enforcement Directorate filed a prosecution complaint in the case of Atiq Ahmed and others before the special court (PMLA), Lucknow, UP, against Shaista Parveen, wife of late Atiq Ahmed, under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002, pertaining to a case involving a multi-crore extortion racket.
6. The Supreme Court on Wednesday declared the arrest of NewsClick founder Prabir Purkayastha as “invalid” and ordered his release. He was arrested under anti-terror law Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act for allegedly spreading Chinese propaganda.
7. A 20-year-old woman was brutally killed in front of her family on Wednesday morning in Hubballi. The victim, Anjali, was attacked allegedly by a man whose romantic advances she had spurned. The incident occurred in Veerapur Oni, in the 68th ward of the Hubballi-Dharwad City Corporation, represented by Neha Hiremath’s father, Niranjan Hiremath. (Neha Hiremath, 21, was allegedly stabbed to death by Fayaz Khodunaik on a college campus in Hubballi on April 18).
8. The Home Ministry has advised the people to be aware of the fraudsters posing as officials of Police, Central Bureau of Investigation, Narcotics Department, Reserve Bank of India, Enforcement Directorate and other Law Enforcement Agencies.
According to the Ministry, a number of complaints are being reported on National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal regarding intimidation, blackmail, extortion and digital arrests by cyber criminals posing as government officials. Cybercrime helpline number 1930
9. Andhra Pradesh hit by post-poll clashes, the police placed three MLAs and several other leaders under house arrest to control the situation on Wednesday. The Palnadu district authorities imposed ban orders under Section 144 following violence in the last two days.
“”””””””””” MISHAPS “””””””””
Hindustan Copper Limited’s chief vigilance officer Upendra Kumar Pandey died after a lift collapsed at a mine in Rajasthan’s Neem Ka Thana. Fourteen others were pulled out and sent to a hospital in Jaipur.
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FINANCE
#Minister: Nirmala Sitharaman.
#Commerce & Industry : Piyush Goyal
#RBI Gvrnr: Shaktikanta Das
#President of the World Bank : Ajay Banga
#IMF MD: Kristalina Georgieva
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💰USD ₹ 84 (Approx)
💷 GBP ₹105(Approx)
€ Euro : ₹ 90(Approx)
🇨🇳 Yuan ¥ : ₹ 12
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GDP(PPP ) :
purchasing power parity (PPP)
$13.119 trillion
GDP (nominal)
: $3.73 trillion
(Nominal means total market value of all goods and services produced in a country’s economy) .
GDP growth : 8.4% (Q3 2023-24)
India is the fifth largest economy in the world.
Inflation rate : Retail Inflation 5.69% in Dec 2023
Population : 143.86 cr
(17.7% of the total world population).
Unemployment : 10.09% (Oct2023)
Per capita: This income is also known as average income as it is calculated by dividing the total income of the country by the total population of the country.
GDP per capita
$2,845 (Nominal; 2024)
$9,983 (PPP; 2024)
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BSE SENSEX
72,987.03 −117.58 (0.16%)🔻
NIFTY
22,200.55 +52.65 (0.24%)🌲
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Rates in Financial Capital Mumbai
GOLD : ₹ 73,250/10gm (24 krt)
SILVER : ₹ 86,400/KG
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⛽ FUEL in DELHI
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PETROL : ₹ 95/Ltr
DIESEL : ₹ 88/Ltr
CNG : ₹ 74/Ltr
LPG : ₹ 803/14.2 Kg
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⛽ FUEL in MUMBAI
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PETROL : ₹ 104/Ltr
DIESEL : ₹ 93/Ltr
Auto Gas : ₹ 60/Ltr
CNG : ₹ 74/Kg
LPG : ₹ 803/14.2 Kg
1. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) showed that retail inflation in India slowed down a bit in April. The rate went down a little from 4.85% in March to 4.83%, according to the National Statistical Office.
2. Multiple banks, including the Reserve Bank of India, are actively urging people who receive government-direct benefit transfers (DBTs) to use the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) for their transactions.
3. Tata Consultancy Services Ltd (TCS), India’s largest IT services exporter, has announced plans to establish a unique ‘human-centric’ artificial intelligence (AI) Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Paris. The announcement is as per strategic expansion of TCS into European markets.
4. HDFC Bank introduces Pixel Play, the nation’s inaugural virtual credit card partnered with Visa, offering personalized benefits and seamless digital management through the PayZapp mobile app.
5. Microsoft Corp. has announced plans to invest a staggering €4 billion (approximately $4.3 billion) in building cloud and AI infrastructure in France.
6. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has granted approval to Quant Mutual Fund (MF) to increase its stake in RBL Bank to 9.98% by May 12, 2025. This approval, subject to conditions and provisions under the Banking Regulation Act, 1949, was disclosed in a regulatory filing.
7. India’s total exports of merchandise and services in April 2024 is estimated to be 64.56 billion dollars against 60.40 billion dollars in April 2023.
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ENTERTAINMENT NEWS
#Information and Broadcasting Minister: Shri Anurag Singh Thakur
#Chairman of The Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) :
R Madhavan
#Chairman of Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC): Prasoon Joshi
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1. Bollywood actor and BJP’s Lok Sabha candidate from Mandi, Himachal Pradesh, Kangana Ranaut, who filed her nomination on May 14, declared assets worth Rs 91 crore in her election affidavit.
2. The Indian government-run broadcaster Prasar Bharati wants to start its own over-the-top (OTT) streaming service by August. The service will offer material that shows Indian culture and society while still being family-friendly.
3. Single screen cinema theatre owners in Telangana have decided to temporarily stop film screenings in view of losses due to absence of patronage. The total number of single screen theatres in Telangana is approximately 450. State film exhibitors association president Vijayender Reddy said.
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DEFENCE
#Supreme Commander of Armed Forces: The President
#Def Minister: Rajnath Singh
#Def Minister of State :
Ajay Bhatt
#Union Home : Amit Shah
#National Security Advisor : Ajit Doval
#Chief of Defence Staff:
Gen Anil Chauhan, PVSM UYSM AVSM SM VSM
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1. India has expressed grief over the demise of Security Coordination Officer in the UN Department of Safety and Security (DSS) in Gaza, Colonel Waibhav Anil Kale.
2. The United Nations has launched an investigation into an unidentified strike on a UN car in Rafah on Monday that killed its first international staff in Gaza since 7 October 2023.
3. The Indian Army has set up two armoured vehicle maintenance and repair facilities near the China border in Nyoma and the DBO Sector in that region to at altitudes of over 14,500 feet in the area, which is the world’s highest battlefield for tanks and infantry combat vehicles along the LAC in Eastern Ladakh.
4. As part of the Indian Coast Guard’s three-day ‘Regional Level Pollution Response Exercise-2024’ between May 13 and 15, ships and aircraft engaged in the exercise off the Chennai coast.
The exercise was held as part of annual training programme with participation from the Coast Guard, ports, oil handling agencies, State Disaster Management Authority, Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board and Greater Chennai Corporation.
5. The seventh edition of the joint military exercise ‘Shakti’ between India and France began in Umroi in Meghalaya. A modern ‘foreign training node’ has been established at the venue. The exercise, which will continue till May 26.
6. Indian Army has taken a monumental leap forward with the introduction of its latest innovation: a hexacopter drone armed with a machine gun. This cutting-edge technology, developed under the ‘Make in India’ initiative, heralds a new era in tactical operations and promises to revolutionize soldier safety and bolster the nation’s security apparatus.
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In Bharat there are 28 states and 8 Union territories.
Population of Bharat:
142 cr (2023)
President of Bharat ,
Smt Droupadi Murmu
Vice President
Shri Jagdeep Dhankhar
Prime Minister : Shri Narendra Modi
Speaker Lok Sabha :
Shri Om Birla (BJP)
Rajyasabha Seats : 245 (233 Elected + 12 Nominated)
Loksabha : 550 members (530 States 20 Union Territories)
Chief Election Commissioner:
Shri Rajiv Kumar
16 May (Thursday)
Vedic Ritu/ Vasant Ritu
Drik Ritu : Grishma (Summer)
पक्ष :: Shuklapaksh
Vikram Samvat – 2081
Shaka Samvat – 1946
Month : Vaisakha 08 (Amanta) Vaisakha 23 (Purnimanta) Nakshatr:Magha (up to 6:14 pm) Purva Phalguni
Tithi : Ashtami (up to 6:23 am)Navami
Rahu : 02:01 PM – 03:40 PM
Yamaganda 05:49 AM – 07:27 AM
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