Daily Current Affairs 17th May 2023: Your guide for daily General Knowledge Preparation
Dear Readers,
This post contains important current affairs of 17th May 2023. It includes all Major National, International, Business and Sports related current affairs of 17th May 2023. A brief explanation of every current affair is provided to further enhance your general knowledge. Once you have gone through these current affairs we would recommend to you to try 17th May 2023 Current affairs test.
Defence
1. Flood Relief Drill ‘Exercise Jal Rahat’ Led by the Indian Army in Assam
- The Indian Army’s Gajraj Corps organized a Collective Flood Relief Operation named ‘Exercise Jal Rahat’ at the Hagrama Bridge on the Manas River in Assam.
- Purpose: The operation was designed to test combined routines and promote collaboration among various agencies for flood relief efforts.
- Participants: The Indian Army, SSB, NDRF, State Disaster Response Force, DDMA, and local police were among the participants.
- Focus: The exercise emphasized coordination and training sessions to rescue inhabitants from flood-stricken regions.
National News
2. Google’s $1 Million Investment in IIT-Madras for AI Research
- Google has pledged $1 million through grants to the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras.
- Recognition: Google is the lead ‘platinum consortium’ member of the newly formed Centre for Responsible Artificial Intelligence (CeRAI) at IIT Madras.
- Objective: CeRAI aims to produce significant research contributions, including esteemed journal articles, conference presentations, white papers, and patent applications.
- Focus: They intend to provide essential tools in Responsible AI, including globally relevant datasets, especially for India, software applications, and other resources.
National Affairs
3. UN’s Economic Growth Forecast for India in 2024
- The UN report, ‘World Economic Situation and Prospects as of mid-2023’, predicts India’s economic growth at 5.8% in 2023, increasing to 6.7% in 2024 due to strong internal demand.
- Challenges: Rising interest rates and subdued external demand might restrict investments and exports for India in the upcoming year.
- Inflation Forecast: Expected inflation in India might decrease to 5.5% in 2023, influenced by a potential drop in global commodity prices.
Appointments and Resignations
4. Vedanta Announces Sonal Srivastava as New CFO
- Appointment Date: Sonal Shrivastava will assume the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) role for Vedanta Limited from 1st June 2023.
- Past Experience: She was the CFO for the Asia Pacific, Middle East, and Africa regions at the Holcim Group.
- Background: With over 25 years in financial leadership across various sectors, she holds a chemical engineering degree from BIT, Sindri, and an MBA from the Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management Studies.
About Vedanta Limited
- Foundation Date: June 25, 1965
- Headquarters: Mumbai
- Founder: Dwarka Prasad Agarwal
- Current CEO: Sunil Duggal
- Vedanta’s Chairman: Anil Agarwal
- Description: A multinational mining company based in India with operations in states including Goa, Karnataka, Rajasthan, and Odisha.
Recent Appointments
- Director of CBI: Praveen Sood, succeeded Subodh Jaiswal
- Interim CEO & MD of NIIF: Rajiv Dhar
- MD for Puma India: Karthik Balagopalan
- Head of Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port: Rathendra Raman
- Chairman & MD of Larsen & Toubro: SN Subrahmanyan (effective from October 1, 2023)
5. Ravneet Kaur Becomes the New CCI Chairperson
- Appointment: The government has designated Ravneet Kaur as the Chairperson of the Competition Commission of India (CCI).
- Background: The competition authority was chair-less since Ashok Kumar Gupta’s term ended in October 2022. CCI Member Sangeeta Verma served as the interim chair during this period.
- Tenure: Kaur, a 1988 batch IAS officer from the Punjab cadre, will serve a five-year term from her commencement date or until the age of 65, whichever comes first.
About the Competition Commission of India (CCI)
- Formation: Established under the Competition Act of 2002.
- Affiliated Ministry: Ministry of Corporate Affairs.
- Mission: To promote market competition and counter practices negatively affecting competition.
- Functions: The CCI approves mergers and acquisitions, ensuring post-merger market dominance is justly achieved.
- Main Office: New Delhi
- Current Chairperson: Ravneet Kaur
Significant Dates
6. World Telecommunication and Information Society Day, 2023 – May 17
- Annually on May 17, the World Telecommunication and Information Society Day is observed. It advocates the advantages of the Internet and other ICT mediums.
- 2023 Theme: “Enhancing the least developed nations through ICTs.”
- Background: The inaugural World Telecommunication Day was celebrated in 1969, commemorating ITU’s foundation and the 1865 signing of the first International Telegraph Convention.
7. Observance of World Hypertension Day 2023 – May 17
- On May 17, World Hypertension Day is also commemorated to raise awareness about the effects of hypertension or high blood pressure and its prevention and management methods.
- Initiation: The World Hypertension League (WHL) began this observance in 2005.
- 2023 Theme: “Accurate Blood Pressure Measurement, Effective Management, Prolonged Life.”
- Statistics: According to WHO data, approximately a billion people worldwide have hypertension, causing over 7.5 million deaths annually due to related complications.
