1) Prime Minister Modi chaired the 40th PRAGATI Interaction
•The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has urged infrastructure agencies to map their projects with the water bodies being constructed under the Amrit Sarovar. Mr Modi stated that this would be a win-win situation because the material needed for the Amrit Sarovars could be used by the agencies for public works. The Prime Minister presided over the 40th edition of PRAGATI, an ICT-based multi-modal platform for Pro-Active Governance and Timely Implementation that brings together the Centre and State governments.
2) Inter-State Council reestablished under PM Modi’s leadership
•The Inter-State Council has been formed, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi as Chairman and Chief Ministers of all States and six Union ministers as members. Ten union ministers will be permanent invitees to the Inter-State Council. The government has also reestablished the Inter-State Council’s standing committee, with Union Home Minister Amit Shah as its chairman.
3) Bharat Drone Mahotsav 2022: PM Modi inaugurated India’s biggest drone festival
•Prime Minister Narendra Modi has inaugurated India’s biggest drone festival here and interacted with Kisan drone pilots as well as witnessed open-air drone demonstrations. ‘Bharat Drone Mahotsav 2022’ is set to be a two-day event being held on May 27 and 28. The prime minister will interact with Kisan drone pilots, witness open-air drone demonstrations and interact with startups in the drone exhibition centre.
4) UNICEF-WHO release the first Global Report on Assistive Technology
•The World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) have released the first Global Report on Assistive Technology (GReAT). The paper, which was created in conjunction with UNICEF’s Office of Research – Innocenti, includes 10 important actionable suggestions for enhancing access to assistive technology for all children, as well as evidence-based best practise examples.
5) 26-year-old Abhilasha Barak becomes the Indian Army’s first woman combat aviator
•Haryana’s Captain Abhilasha Barak has become the first woman officer to join the Army Aviation Corps as a combat aviator after successfully completing her training. She was awarded the coveted wings along with 36 other army pilots by the DG and Colonel Commandant of Army Aviation in Nashik. She has been assigned to the second flight of the 2072 Army Aviation Squadron. She was commissioned into the Indian Army from the Officers Training Academy, Chennai in 2018.
6) Indian officer Anwar Hussain Shaik is new chair of WTO committee
•An Indian Government Officer, Anwar Hussain Shaik has been made the chair of the World Trade Organisation’s Committee on Technical Barriers on Trade. Mr. Shaik will take this role from Elisa Maria Olmeda de Alejandro from Mexico. WTO is a 164-member multilateral body which formulates rules for global exports and imports and adjudicates disputes between countries on trade-related issues. India is a member since 1995.
7) A new book titled ‘The India Story’ by Bimal Jalan
•Former RBI governor Bimal Jalan writes a new book titled ‘The India Story’. The book focuses on India’s economic history and aims to provide lessons for the future of India’s political economy.
•He traces India’s economic policies from 1991 to 2019 to offer insights on learning from the past, before moving ‘Beyond the Metrics of Economy’ to talk about the role of governance in implementing these policies. He also authored the books ‘India Then and Now’, ‘India Ahead’.
8) SC appoints 3-member Committee to oversee the functioning of AIFF
•The Supreme Court today appointed a three-member Committee of Administrators (CoA) to oversee the affairs of the All India Football Federation (AIFF) and the adoption of its constitution in accordance with the National Sports Code and model guidelines, led by former apex court judge AR Dave.
9) Moody’s cuts India’s economic growth forecast to 8.8% for 2022
•Moody’s Investors Service slashed India’s economic growth projection to 8.8 per cent for 2022 from 9.1 per cent earlier, citing high inflation. In its update to Global Macro Outlook 2022-23, Moody’s said high-frequency data suggest that the growth momentum from December quarter 2021 carried through into the first four months this year. However, the rise in crude oil, food and fertilizer prices will weigh on household finances and spending in the months ahead. Rate hikes to prevent energy and food inflation from becoming more generalized will slow the demand recovery’s momentum.
•Strong credit growth, a large increase in investment intentions announced by the corporate sector, and a high budget allocation to capital spending by the government indicate that the investment cycle is strengthening. For 2022 and 2023, it projected inflation to be around 6.8 per cent and 5.2 per cent, respectively.
