Current Affairs (18th April, 2023)

Every year on April 17^th, the world celebrates World Hemophilia Day, which marks the birth anniversary of Frank Schnabel, the founder of the World Federation of Hemophilia.
World Hemophilia Day serves as an opportunity to raise awareness and promote education about bleeding disorders, including hemophilia.
The first celebration of World Hemophilia Day dates back to 1989 and aimed to promote better diagnosis and accessible care for those affected by hemophilia.
In 2023, World Hemophilia Day's theme is "Access for All: Partnership, Policy, Progress - Involving Governments, Integrating Inherited Bleeding Disorders into National Policies."

Hemophilia is a condition that occurs rarely and is characterized by the insufficient production of certain clotting factors in the blood, leading to prolonged bleeding, which can be life-threatening in some cases.

SBI, the largest lender in the country, has extended the validity of its Amrit Kalash special fixed deposit (FD) scheme, which was launched as a retail term deposit programme. The scheme, which was initially valid from February 15, 2023, to March 31, 2023, has now been extended.
SBI announced on April 12, 2023, that it has extended the duration of its Amrit Kalash FD retail term deposit scheme until June 30, 2023.
As of April 12, 2023, the Amrit Kalash retail term deposit programme of SBI offers a special fixed deposit scheme with a specific tenor of "400 days" and an interest rate of 7.10%. Senior citizens are eligible for a higher interest rate of 7.60%.

The US has emerged as India's biggest trading partner in 2022-23 on account of increasing economic ties between the two countries.
Based on preliminary figures from the commerce ministry, the trade relationship between India and the US has seen a 7.65% increase, with the bilateral trade volume amounting to USD 128.55 billion in 2022-23, as compared to USD 119.5 billion in the previous year and USD 80.51 billion in 2020-21.
The data indicated that during 2022-23, exports to the US from India increased by 2.81% to reach USD 78.31 billion, compared to USD 76.18 billion in the previous year. In the same period, imports from the US to India grew by roughly 16% to USD 50.24 billion.
In contrast, the bilateral trade volume between India and China decreased by approximately 1.5% to USD 113.83 billion in 2022-23 from USD 115.42 billion in the previous year.

Nandini Gupta from Rajasthan won Femina Miss India World 2023 crown in a grand ceremony on Saturday. The 19-year-old has garnered much attention for her exceptional intellect and stunning appearance, becoming the talk of the nation.
In addition to Nandini, the nation's latest beauty queens were also crowned, with Shreya Poonja from Delhi being named the first runner-up and Thounaojam Strela Luwang from Manipur as the second runner-up.

India has been able to maintain its Category One rating in International Aviation Safety Assessment, indicating that the country meets the global aviation safety oversight standards.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of the US evaluated the Directorate General of Civil Aviation's (DGCA) performance in areas such as aircraft operations, airworthiness, and personnel licensing to award India with the Category One status.

Union Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying (FAHD), Parshottam Rupala, launched the 'Animal Pandemic Preparedness Initiative (APPI)' and the World Bank-funded 'Animal Health System Support for One Health (AHSSOH)' project under the aegis of National One Health Mission in New Delhi.
A collaborative project on the Animal Health System Support for One Health has been signed between the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying and the World Bank, with the goal of establishing an ecosystem for effective animal health management using the One Health approach.
According to the Ministry, the project has set its sights on 151 districts across five states where it will focus on enhancing 75 district and regional laboratories as well as improving 300 veterinary hospitals and dispensaries. Furthermore, it aims to train 9,000 para-veterinarians and diagnostic professionals alongside 5,500 veterinary professionals.

India's government and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to provide 10,000 metric tonnes of wheat to Afghanistan. The country is currently experiencing acute food insecurity, affecting almost 19 million people, which has been exacerbated by the recent earthquake in the eastern region in June.
In New Delhi, the Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India's Joint Secretary, PAI Division, J. P. Singh, and the World Food Programme's (WFP) Representative and Country Director in India, Bishow Parajuli, signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).
This MoU marks the fifth and final tranche of 50,000 metric tonnes of wheat that the Indian Government pledged to provide as humanitarian food assistance for Afghanistan in 2020.

Chennai Metro Rail Ltd launched the Singara Chennai Card (NCMC), which is the National Common Mobility Card, in collaboration with SBI, their banking partner.
The National Payments Corporation of India has developed the technology for the RuPay NCMC cards.
The card has a unique feature called the Stored Value Area, which enables offline mode ticket purchases and can store a maximum amount of Rs 2,000.
At present, the Singara Chennai cards are operational at Chennai metro stations and are also accepted by other metro systems that support RuPay NCMC cards, such as the MMRDA Mumbai Line 2A & 7, Bangalore Metro, Delhi Metro Airport Line, Kanpur Metro, as well as BEST Buses in Mumbai and Kadamba Transport Buses in Goa.

A pilot scheme aimed at improving financing terms in the electric vehicle space and strengthening the entire ecosystem has been launched by the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI).
In a statement, the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) announced the launch of the 'Mission 50K-EV4ECO' pilot scheme, which seeks to enhance the EV ecosystem by facilitating direct and indirect lending for two, three, and four-wheeler vehicles.
The pilot scheme, which is the precursor to EVOLVE scheme by SIDBI-World Bank, has two components -- direct lending and indirect lending.

Kumar Mangalam Birla, who is known for his successful consolidation of Aditya Birla Group since his early days, was awarded the 'Business Leader of the Decade Award' at the 13^th Managing India Awards ceremony by the All-India Management Association (AIMA).
He received the award for his significant contributions to the Indian industry in the past decade. The Tata Steel Chairman, T V Narendran, was also honored with the 'AIMA-JRD Tata Corporate Leadership' award.
Moreover, ABB India, a leading engineering services company, was presented with the 'MNC in India of the Year' award.