Daily GK Update: 19th March 2023

Honours & Awards

Carnatic vocalist, Bombay Jayashri has been selected for the Sangita Kalanidhi award 2023 of the prestigious Music Academy, Chennai.
Initially, she was trained under her parents and later under T R Balamani and violin maestro Lalgudi G Jayaraman.
She was awarded the Padma Shri in 2021.
While the Nritiya Kalanidhi award 2023 will be conferred to Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi dancer, Vasanthalakshmi Narasimhachari.
The awards will be conferred to awardees in January 2023.

Summits & Conferences

The Civil20 India (C-20) Inception meeting will be hosted by Orange City, Nagpur, Maharashtra from 20th to 21st March 2023.
It is one of the empowered groups, which provides a platform for Civil Society Organisations to voice the people’s aspirations to the world leaders in G20.
The inaugural ceremony will be attended by Nobel Laureate Kailash Satyarthi and Spiritual leader Mata Amritanandmayi.
Focus issues: Health, Lifestyle for Environment, Art and Crafts

Banking & Finance

Sri Lanka’s Seylan Bank has opened an Indian rupee-denominated Nostro account in Indian Bank in Mumbai.
Aim: To help in setting cross-border transactions using the Indian rupee
It enables local customers to enter into transactions denominated in the Indian Rupee and eliminates the need to conduct Trade and Remittance transactions in US dollars.
Nostro account: It is a bank account held in a foreign country by a domestic bank, denominated in the currency of that country.

National Affairs

Japan's PM, Kishida Fumio will be on a two-day visit to India from 20th March 2023.
He will hold talks with PM Modi and also hold discussions on regional issues of mutual interest and priorities for their respective Presidencies of the G7 and G20.
Japan is the fifth largest investor in India
The bilateral trade stood at 20.75 billion dollars in 2022 (largest ever)
Defense and security cooperation has emerged as one of the most important pillars of the Special Strategic

National Affairs

Mos (IC) for MoSPI, Rao Inderjit Singh released the Women and Men in India 2022 report.
Highlights:
- India’s sex ratio is expected to improve from 943 in 2011 to 952 by 2036.
- The Labor Force Participation Rate (above 15 years) has been increasing since 2017-2018.
  - However, the rate was 77.2% for males and only 32.8% for females in 2021-22.
- It has also highlighted the gender disparity in wages, with men in rural areas earning more than women in urban areas.

International Affairs

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bangladesh counterpart Sheikh Hasina jointly inaugurated the India-Bangladesh friendship diesel pipeline.
The foundation stone for the construction of this pipeline was laid in September 2018.
Since 2015, Numaligarh Refinery Limited has been supplying petroleum products to Bangladesh.
IBFP is the first cross-border energy pipeline between India and Bangladesh with a capacity to transport 1 MMTPA of High-Speed Diesel to Bangladesh.

State Affairs

An Agri Legal Aid Clinic has been inaugurated in the Jangaon District of Telangana to provide benefits to the farmer community.
It was inaugurated by Supreme Court Judge Justice V. Ramasubramanian.
It is a Joint initiative of Telangana Legal Services Authority with technical support from NALSAR University of Law, and an NGO, Legal Empowerment and Assistance for Farmers Society.
Aim: To educate farmers on various agricultural legislations, Welfare Schemes, rights etc.

Banking & Finance

The Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA) has received approval from the Union Government for listing on the Stock Exchanges.
The CCEA decided to approve an Initial Public Offer (IPO) by the part sale of the Government’s stake in the CPSE.
Aim: To raise funds through the issue of fresh equity shares
Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) will drive the listing process.
It will help IREDA in raising a part of its capital requirement.

National & International Organizations

TIME Magazine has released its annual list of the 50 greatest places in the world for 2023.
Among the chosen destinations are two locations from India: Ladakh and Mayurbhanj.
Ladakh is a high-altitude region, which is famous for its breathtaking landscapes, crystal-clear lakes, and snow-capped mountains.
On the other hand, Mayurbhanj is a lesser-known destination located in the eastern state of Odisha.
The list also includes Willamette Valley; Río Grande etc.

National & International Organizations

According to the tenth Global Terrorism Index (GTI) report, Afghanistan remains the country most impacted by terrorism for the fourth consecutive year, despite the attacks and deaths falling by 75% and 58%, respectively.
Afghanistan followed by Burkina Faso, Somalia, Mali, and Syria.
Pakistan has climbed four spots to rank sixth on the index.
While India ranked 13th on the index.
South Asia remains the region with the worst average GTI score.