TNPSC BITS

❖ Telangana has unveiled the world's first 3D-printed temple, in Burugupally,

Siddipet district.
❖ Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has been ranked number 1 in service delivery
quality and commercial competitiveness in Spain.
❖ The Global Digital Public Infrastructure Repository and a Social Impact Fund
aimed at promoting the development of Social Impact Fund to advance Digital
Public Infrastructure (DPI) in the Global South was launched during the G20
Leaders’ Summit.
❖ An Army Medical Corps Officer Col Sunita BS becomes the first woman to assume
the role of Commanding Officer at Armed Forces Transfusion Centre, Delhi Cantt.
❖ The Nepal Army and Indian army is participating in the 17th edition of Joint
Military Exercise SURYA KIRAN at Pithoragarh, Uttarakhand.
❖ The 9th National Level Pollution Response Exercise (NATPOLREX-IX) was
conducted by the Indian Coast Guard in Gujarat.
❖ REC Limited received the “Best Employer for Policies in Diversity & Inclusion”
Award at the 4th Diversity & Inclusion Excellence Awards and Conclave
organized by Assocham.
❖ The book, titled 'Pranab, My Father: A Daughter Remembers' is authored by
Sharmishtha Mukherjee, daughter of Pranab mukharjee.
❖ IndiGo airlines launched its AI chatbot, 6Eskai to elevate its customer service
experience.
❖ Anish Shah has been elected as President for 2023-24 of Federation of Indian
Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI).
❖ Indian shooter Anish Bhanwala won the bronze medal in the men’s 25m rapid
fire pistol event at the ISSF World Cup Final 2023 in Doha, Qatar.
o It was also the first medal for India in the men’s 25m rapid fire pistol event in
the ISSF World Cup Final history.
❖ The first three of a series of eight anti-submarine warfare shallow water crafts
being built by Cochin Shipyard Ltd for the Navy were launched.
o The ships are to be named as INS Mahe, INS Malvan and INS Mangrol.
❖ The 28th conference of Parties or COP-28 member countries agreed to make
operational a Loss and Damage (L&D) Fund meant to compensate countries
already dealing with climate change.
❖ Outdoor air pollution from all source’s accounts for 2.18 million deaths per year
in India, second only to China according to a modelling study published in the
BMJ.

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 o The research found that air pollution from using fossil fuels in industry, power
generation, and transportation accounts for 5.1 million extra deaths a year
worldwide.
❖ Despite a tangible growth downturn in the farm and services sectors as well as
consumer spending, India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew at a higher-than-
expected 7.6% in the July-September 2023 quarter, as per initial estimates from
the National Statistical Office.
❖ Former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger has died at the age of 100.
o He was behind the US bombing of Cambodia during the Vietnam War, the
US’s involvement in the 1973 Chilean military coup, the US’s tacit support to
Argentina’s military junta, and notably, the US support for Pakistan during
the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971.
❖ Nepal becomes first South Asian nation to register same-sex marriage.
o Taiwan is the only other country to legalise same-sex marriage in Asia
❖ Kerala's Responsible Tourism (RT) Mission has made it to the Global List of Case
Studies of the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO).
o Maharashtra’s Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve project was the only Indian
representatives on this list.
❖ Spread across 10% of Dubai’s land, Al Marmoom Desert Conservation Reserve is
UAE’s largest unfenced nature reserve.
o It invites visitors to explore the sandy landscapes, embark on cycling
adventures through the dunes, and indulge in wild picnics.
❖ Kanchan Devi became the first Woman Director General of the Indian Council of
Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE).
o ICFRE, established in 1986 and the largest organization responsible for
forestry research in India, is operating under the Union Ministry of
Environment, Forest, and Climate Change.
❖ Captain Geetika Koul becomes First Woman Medical Officer Deployed at Siachen,
the world's highest battlefield.
o This follows the deployment of Captain Shiva Chouhan, from the Corps of
Engineers, at the same location almost a year ago.
❖ Commander Prerna Deosthale from Mumbai will be the First Lieutenant of the
Naval warship INS Chennai.
o She is the first lady Observer on Tupolev Tu-142, a maritime reconnaissance
aircraft as well as a stint on the P8I, also a reconnaissance aircraft.
❖ Sandra Day O’Connor, the first female Supreme Court Justice of the USA, has
passed away at the age of 93 recently.

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 o She was nominated by President Ronald Reagan in 1981 to the US supreme
court.
❖ Uganda from Africa for the first time qualified for the 2024 men's T20 World Cup
to be held at USA and West Indies.
o It will feature 20 teams for the first time ever.
❖ Akshata Krishnamurthy is a woman working at NASA.
o She has become the first Indian citizen to operate a Mars rover.
❖ Cybersecurity firm Promon has identified a novel Android malware named
FjordPhantom.
o It is a new malware that employs virtualization to elude detection and target
applications.
❖ A scientist from the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) recently
discovered a new plant species of ‘wild okra’.
o It was discovered in a moist deciduous forest in Keonjhar district, Odisha.
❖ The Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX), the flagship initiative of the
Department of Defence Production, has achieved a significant milestone by
signing its 300th contract.
❖ Operation Nanhe Farishte is a Railway Protection Force (RPF) initiative to
reconnect children who have been lost or separated from their families.
❖ Uber announced the launch of its global flagship electric vehicle service Uber
Green in Bengaluru, Karnataka.
o It marks our second stop in the country for Uber Green, with operations
already running in Mumbai.
❖ Oxford University Press has unveiled "Rizz" as its Word of the Year, reflecting the
linguistic choices of Generation Z.
o The term is used to describe someone’s ability to attract or seduce another
person.
❖ Bharti Airtel becomes the 8th company to surpass Rs.6 lakh crore of market cap
in India.
o The others are Reliance Industries, TCS, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, HUL
(Hindustan Unilever Limited), Infosys and ITC (India Tobacco Company).
❖ Bajaj Group has become the fifth business house to cross the Rs 10-lakh-crore
mark in market cap.
o Earlier, Tata Group, Mukesh Ambani Group (Reliance Industries), HDFC
Bank and Adani Group have achieved this milestone.

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❖ The 6th World Congress on Disaster Management was held Dehradun,
Uttarakhand under the theme of 'STRENGTHENING CLIMATE ACTION &
DISASTER RESILIENCE'.
o It has emerged as the largest global conference on disaster management
outside the United Nations system.
❖ Tata Motors has opened its fourth Registered Vehicle Scrapping Facility (RVSF)
in Chandigarh.
o Tata Motors already has three RVSFs in Jaipur, Bhubaneshwar, and Surat.
❖ LIC (503$ billion reserve) has become the fourth largest insurer in the world in
2022, ahead of US-based MetLife and Prudential Financial Inc.
o Top three insurers are Allianz SE (Germany), China Life Insurance, and
Nippon Life Insurance (Japan).
❖ Taylor Swift, an American woman singer-songwriter, has been named Time
Magazine’s Person of the Year for 2023.
❖ The football player Lionel Messi of Argentina has been named as Times
magazine's Athlete of the Year for 2023.
o It comes after Messi won the 2023 Ballon d'Or for a record-extending eighth
time.
❖ Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has given approval for the
establishment of the country's inaugural Telecom Center of Excellence in
Saharanpur.
o It is to be situated at the Saharanpur campus of IIT Roorkee.
❖ President of India Droupadi Murmu, launched the 'New Education for New India'
campaign by Brahma Kumaris, Sambalpur, in Sambalpur, Odisha.
o This campaign is envisaged to inculcate values and uplift the consciousness
of the students for better society.
❖ Olympian M. Sreeshankar (long jump) has been honored with the prestigious
35th Jimmy George Foundation Award for emerging as the best sportsperson of
Kerala.
o The Jimmy George Foundation Award is a distinguished accolade in Kerala’s
sporting community.
❖ Indian para-archer Sheetal Devi from Jammu and Kashmir clinched the title of
Best Youth Athlete at the Asian Paralympic Committee (APC) awards ceremony
during the fourth edition of the Asian Awards in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
o The Asian Awards, organized by the Asian Paralympic Committee, is a
ceremony dedicated to honour outstanding achievements of Asian para-
athletes and officials.

16
❖ The Vijayawada Railway Station of Andhra Pradesh has been awarded the
prestigious platinum rating by the Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) for its
commitment to environmental sustainability and eco-friendly practices.
o It is based on six environmental categories including sustainable station
facility, health, hygiene and sanitation, energy efficiency, water efficiency,
smart and green initiatives and innovation and development.
❖ Power Grid Corporation of India Limited (PGCIL), a Maharatna Public Sector
Undertaking. under Ministry of Power, has been conferred the prestigious SKOCH
Gold Award 2023.
o The SKOCK Gold Award 2023 acknowledges the outstanding contributions
and technological advancements.
❖ Meghalaya’s Lakadong turmeric has been granted the prestigious Geographical
Indication (GI) tag.
o Three more products from Meghalaya were honoured with the GI tag: Garo
Dakmanda (traditional dress), Larnai pottery, and Garo Chubitchi (alcoholic
beverage).
❖ Bengaluru airport is to be first in India to phase out gadgets-in-tray security
check system.
o Kempegowda International Airport begin passenger trials of CTX machines,
integrated with Automatic Tray Retrieval System and full-body scanners.
❖ The Hamfest India 2023, was inaugurated by Devusinh Chauhan, the Minister
of State for Communications at Ahmedabad, Gujarat.
o It serves as a comprehensive platform for amateur radio enthusiasts.
❖ OneWeb India, backed by Bharti Group, has received authorizations from IN-
SPACe to launch commercial satellite broadband services in India.
o It is the first company in India to receive these approvals, making it the sole
satellite broadband services provider.
❖ The lower house of the Indian Parliament has successfully passed the Central
Universities (Amendment) Bill, 2023.
o The primary focus of this bill is the establishment of the ‘Sammakka Sarakka
Central Tribal University’ in Telangana
❖ Punjab-origin writer Meira Chand (81) was among the three Singaporeans
conferred the Cultural Medallion, the city-state’s most prestigious arts accolade.
o She shared this with novelist Suchen Christine Lim and Malay dance veteran
Osman Abdul Hamid.
❖ Bihar garnered global recognition for its afforestation efforts under the Jal-
Jeevan-Hariyali Abhiyan at the COP28 Climate Summit in Dubai.

17
❖ The R21/Matrix-M malaria vaccine developed by the University of Oxford and the
Serum Institute of India, has been recommended for use by the WHO.
o Earlier the RTS, S/AS01 vaccine received a WHO’s recommendation in 2021.
❖ Union Home Ministry launched a unique initiative named Mera Gaon Meri
Dharohar.
o The main objective of the project is to culturally map India's 6.5 lakh villages,
spanning 29 States and seven Union Territories.
❖ US President announced a high-speed rail project connecting Las Vegas and Los
Angeles.
o The high-speed rail project aims to reduce the travel time between Los Angeles
and Las Vegas from seven hours to just three hours.
❖ A 2,400-meter-deep physics laboratory in southwest China's Sichuan Province
became operational to pursue the invisible substance known as dark matter.
o This is the deepest and largest underground lab in the world.
❖ India's foreign exchange reserves increased to $604 billion after a gap of about
four months.
o The forex reserves were last above the $600 billion mark on August 11 this
year.
❖ Federal Bank, has been honored with the coveted title of “Bank of the Year (India)”
by The Banker, Newspaper.
❖ With poor air quality, Pakistan’s Lahore topped the worldwide pollution index.
❖ The National Mission for Clean Ganga and Mississippi River Cities and Towns
Initiative (MRCTI) signed a Memorandum of Common Purpose at the ongoing
COP28 in Dubai.
o It aims to collaborate on issues related to urban river management.
❖ ITC Limited surpassed British American Tobacco Plc (BAT) to become the third
most valuable tobacco company in the world.
❖ Nikhil Dey, an Indian social activist, has been named as the International Anti-
Corruption Champion by the US State Department.
❖ As per US-based consultancy firm ‘Morning Consult’, Prime Minister Narendra
Modi retained his position as the world's most popular leader with an approval
rating of 76 per cent.
o He is followed by Mexico President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and Swiss
Confederation President - Alain Berset.
❖ The 5G RAN technology developed by IIT Madras and Kanpur and the R&D arm
of MeiTY was formally handed over to an Indian tech company for advancement
and commercial applications.

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❖ The Indian Armed Forces contingent reached Hanoi, Vietnam to take part in the
fourth edition of Joint Military Exercise VINBAX-2023.
❖ International Animal Rights Day is observed on December 10 every year, to
highlight the connection between animal and human rights.
❖ FedEx Express, has collaborated with the Indian Institute of Technology Madras
to set up a Centre of excellence for smart and sustainable supply chains.
❖ Former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, and three distinguished diplomats,
was honored at the annual 'Diwali Power of One Awards.'
o This prestigious ceremony is often hailed as the 'Oscars of Diplomacy,'
❖ Prashant Agrawal, President of Narayan Seva Sansthan, was honoured with the
prestigious National Award for 'Best Personality- Empowerment of Differently-
abled' by President of India.
❖ Mercom Capital's recent rankings was placing Adani Green Energy in second
rank globally among the world's large-scale solar PV developers.
❖ Veteran actor Kabir Bedi was awarded the 'Order of Merit', the prestigious civilian
honour bestowed by Italy.
❖ The 33rd Vyas Samman 2023 will be conferred to notable Hindi-Writer Pushpa
Bharati.
o It is given annually to an outstanding work of Hindi literature by an Indian
citizen published in the last 10 years.
❖ Telangana launched Maha Lakshmi Scheme, under which girls, women and
transgender persons of all ages, who are domicile of Telangana, can travel free of
cost in TSRTC buses.
❖ A statue of Thiruvalluvar, regarded a cultural icon by Tamils, was inaugurated
in the French town of Cergy.
❖ Professor Savita Ladage from Mumbai has been named winner of the Royal
Society of Chemistry’s Nyholm Prize for Education in recognition of contributions
to chemistry education.
❖ The National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) has won two silver awards at
the Brandon Hall Group’s Excellence in Technology Awards 2023.
❖ Barracuda, India’s fastest solar-electric boat, was launched in Alappuzha, Kerala.
❖ Leander Paes and broadcaster and promoter Vijay Amritraj of India have become
the first Asian men to be inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame.
o Besides the duo, renowned journalist and writer Richard Evans have also
been elected in the Ultimate Honour in Tennis.
❖ International Finance Corporation (IFC) has recognised Federal Bank as the top
performer of the 2023 Climate Assessment for Financial Institutions (CAFI)
Awards for Climate Reporting.

19
❖ The Directorate General of Civil Aviation granted an aerodrome licence for the
Ayodhya’s Maryada Purshottam Shri Ram International Airport.
❖ India's Antim Panghal was named the women's Rising Star of the Year 2023 by
United World Wrestling (UWW).
❖ Shah Rukh Khan tops UK's Top 50 Asian Celebrities in the World list for 2023
followed by Alia Bhatt and Priyanka Chopra.
❖ India’s Department of Space now aims to build a Bharatiya Antariksha Station
(Indian Space Station) by 2035.
❖ The largest reading event with 3,066 people organised at Pune by the National
Book Trust made the Guinness Book of World Records.
o The previous record, held by China, stood at 2,884 simultaneous readers.
❖ The young entrepreneurs Kaivalya Vohra (21) and Aadit Palicha (22), founders of
Zepto app have claimed the top spots in the Hurun India Top 100 Under 30 List
2023.
❖ Tax Inspectors Without Borders (TIWB) is a joint initiative of the UNDP and OECD
launched a programme in Saint Lucia.
o India has been chosen as the Partner Administration and will provide Tax
Experts for this programme.
❖ International Tea Day is celebrated every year on 15 December.
o May 21 was also observed as International Tea Day to commemorate the
signing of the First International Tea Agreement in 2005.
❖ The Union Coal Ministry has allocated a North Dhadu (western part) Coal block
in Latehar district of Jharkhand to NLC India Ltd.
o Dhadu has reserves of 434.65 million tonnes and its peak rated capacity is
three million tonnes per annum.
❖ A single Akash surface-to-air (SAM) missile system engaged and destroyed four
unmanned aerial targets simultaneously during the Astrashakti exercise held by
the Indian Air Force.
❖ Indian Prime Minister launched the Surat Diamond Bourse (SDB) at Gujarat,
which is dubbed as the “world’s biggest workspace”.
❖ India’s first fully integrated school of sustainability was launched at the Indian
Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur in association with the Kotak Mahindra Bank
Limited.
❖ SGBS Unnati Foundation became the first entity to list on the social stock
exchanges (SSE).
❖ Real Vision Homes Pvt Ltd Chairman, Dr. Srinivas Naik Dharavath, was honored
with Visionary Leader Icon Award 2023 by AASRAA at 5th National Conventions
at Delhi.

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❖ Rijul Maini, a medical student from Michigan, recently was crowned Miss India
USA 2023 in New Jersey.
o Saloni Rammohan and Sneha Nambiar secured Miss Teen and Mrs India USA
titles, respectively.
❖ Rio Tinto, a leading global mining and materials company celebrates its 150th
anniversary with a special stamp by the Indian Department of Posts.
❖ Founders of Kerala-based Genrobotic Innovations, one of India’s leading robotics
companies, have been featured in the prestigious ‘Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia 2023’
list.
❖ Aster Medcity, located in Kochi, Kerala has been ranked No.1 in the 'Best Multi-
specialty Hospital Emerging' category by The Week-Hansa Research 2023.
❖ The second edition of Kashi Tamil Sangamam was inaugurated at 'Namo Ghat' in
Varanasi.
o The event served as a platform to strengthen the emotional and creative ties
between the ancient city of Kashi and the southern state of Tamil Nadu.
❖ Prime Minister inaugurated the world's largest meditation centre Swarved Maha
mandir in Varanasi.
❖ Geologists have discovered 10 new species of trilobite in a relatively unstudied
area of Thailand.
o These extinct sea creatures were hidden for 490 million years and are helping
scientists create a new map of the animal life during the late Cambrian period.
❖ Haryana created history by winning their maiden Vijay Hazare Trophy 2023
against Rajasthan.
o It was originally known as the Ranji One-Day Cricket Trophy.
❖ Tamil Nadu has been recognised as the top performer in the Logistics Ease Across
Different States (LEADS) 2023 rankings in Coastal states Group.
❖ NHAI has introduced the ERS Mobile App to optimize dispatch information to on-
road units, ensuring swift responses to emergency calls for prompt assistance.
❖ All three Indian Armed Forces officers undergoing the Command and Staff Course
at Defence Services Command and Staff College in Sri Lanka have been awarded
the ‘Golden Owl’ for their outstanding performance.
o The three officers are ranked first amongst the foreign student officers in the
Air Force, Army and Navy wings respectively.
❖ Real Vision Homes Chairman, Dr. Srinivas Naik Dharavath, was conferred with
Global Icon Award at G20 Initiative Summit in Colombo, Sri Lanka
❖ The International Gender Equality Prize was awarded to the Afghan Women Skills
Development Center.

21
 o It works to promote and protect the rights of women in Afghanistan.
❖ Microsoft has released a new small language model—Phi-2, which has 2.7 billion
parameters and is an upgraded version of Phi-1.5.
❖ Accenture has launched a Generative AI Studio in Bengaluru, as part of the
company's broader strategy to harness advanced AI technology for business
optimisation.
❖ The Wireless Planning & Coordination Wing (WPC) and Wireless Monitoring
Organisation (WMO) celebrates the International Monitoring Station (IMS) Day on
December 19, 2023.
❖ WHO Regional Director (South-East Asia) Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh has been
awarded Bhutan’s National Order of Merit Gold Medal for her distinguished
services to the country.
o She is the first woman regional director of WHO South-East Asia region,
❖ IndiGo, carrier has created history by becoming the first Indian airline to carry
100 million passengers in a single calendar year.
❖ The International Monetary Fund has reclassified India’s exchange rate regime to
“stabilised arrangement” from “floating” for the period from December 2022 to
October 2023.
❖ The 18th session of the UNESCO-Intergovernmental Committee for the
Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage 2024 will take place in Kasane,
Republic of Botswana.
❖ Rajakannappan was re-designated as TN Minister for Higher Education and
Backward Classes Welfare.
❖ Robin Minz created history in the Indian Premier League (IPL) by becoming the
first tribal cricketer to ever participate in the tournament.
❖ The Centre informed that in 2022 a total of 112 deaths took place in the country
due to tiger attacks.
❖ The Gaja Capital Business Book Prize 2023 has been jointly won by Against All
Odds: The IT Story of India by Kris Gopalakrishnan, N Dayasindhu and Krishnan
Narayanan, and Winning Middle India: The Story of India’s New-Age
Entrepreneurs by TN Hari and Bala Srinivasa.
❖ USV Pvt Ltd and Biogenomics announced the launch of INSUQUICK, India’s first
biosimilar insulin aspart.
o It will improve access for people with diabetes.
❖ This year marks the 20th anniversary of the United Nations Convention against
Corruption.
o The Convention was signed on December 9, 2003 in Mexico and is the only
legally binding multilateral international anti-corruption treaty.

22
❖ Maharashtra bagged women's and Airport Authority of India (AAI) won the men's
title at the 75th Inter State-Inter Zonal Badminton Championship 2023 in
Guwahati.
❖ India's total debt, or the total outstanding bonds which are being traded in the
market, rose to $2.47 trillion (Rs 205 lakh crore) in the September quarter.
❖ Vita Dani has become the first Indian to be inducted as a governing board
member of the International Table Tennis Federation's (ITTF) Foundation.
❖ The sixth edition of the Rabindranath Tagore Literary Prize was awarded to poet-
critic Sukrita Paul Kumar for her book, 'Salt & Pepper: Selected Poems'.
❖ NTPC Kanti Thermal Power Plant has won the 11th Edition of the FICCI Water
Award 2023 in the category “Industrial Water Use Efficiency”.
❖ IREDA CMD Pradip Kumar Das bagged 'CMD of the Year' Award for the Second
Consecutive Year.
❖ The Former chair of the National Commission for Women and Padma Bhushan
awardee Dr. V Mohini Giri passed away recently.
o She started the War Widows Association in 1972, after the Indo-Pak war of
1971.
❖ The Ministry of Textiles has launched “Paat-Mitro” mobile application to provide
important information about MSP and agronomy to jute farmers.
❖ Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has been awarded Leif Erikson Lunar
Prize for the remarkable success of its most recent lunar mission,
Chandrayaan-3.
o This is the first time that ISRO has received this award.
❖ The Union Home Ministry has approved the deployment of the Central Industrial
Security Force (CISF) in the Parliament complex for its protection.
❖ The President of France Emmanuel Macron will be visiting India as the Chief
Guest for the 75th Republic Day celebrations.
❖ The grand finale of Smart India Hackathon (Software)-2023 was organised at IES
College of Technology nodal centre at Bhopla, in which team 'Go Green' of IES
College emerged victorious.
o Smart India Hackathon (SIH) is a nationwide initiative by the innovation cell
of the ministry of education.
❖ The International Gita Mahotsav – 2023 was held in Kurukshetra, Haryana.
❖ The SASTRA-Ramanujan Awards for 2022 and 2023 were presented, respectively,
to Yunqing Tang and Ruixiang Zhang, both mathematicians at the University of
California in Berkeley.

23
❖ Sheikh Mishal Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah takes constitutional oath as Kuwait's
new emir.
❖ The Colorado Supreme Court disqualified former President Donald Trump from
the ballot in the state's presidential election next year over his role in the 2021
attack on the U.S. Capitol by his supporters.
❖ The International Basketball Federation (FIBA) celebrates the first World
Basketball Day on December 21, 2023.
❖ The World Health Organization added the R21/Matrix-M malaria vaccine,
developed by Oxford University and manufactured by Serum Institute of India, to
its list of prequalified vaccines.
❖ Invest India Agency hosted the 27th World Investment Conference (WIC) in New
Delhi.
o This year’s conference is themed "Empowering Investors: IPAs Pioneering
Future Growth".
❖ ‘Viksit Bharat @2047: Voice of Youth’ initiative was launched to provide a
platform to the youth of the country to contribute ideas to the vision of Viksit
Bharat @2047.
o Viksit Bharat @2047 is the vision to make India a developed nation by 2047,
the 100th year of independence.
❖ International Day of Epidemic Preparedness is observed on December 27 to raise
public awareness on epidemics on all levels and prepare for future outbreaks.
❖ President Draupadi Murmu on December 25 gave her assent to 3 new laws — the
Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita and the
Bharatiya Sakshya Act.
o They will replace the Indian Penal Code, the Code of Criminal Procedure and
the Indian Evidence Act of 1872.
❖ India’s Mines Ministry has recognized around 22 critical mineral blocks under
exploration across 9 states for possible future auctions.
o These blocks contain cobalt, titanium, gallium, vanadium, tungsten, lithium,
and rare earth elements reserves.
❖ IndusInd Bank has launched ‘IndusInd Bank eSvarna’, India’s first Corporate
Credit Card.
❖ India recorded their maiden victory against Australia in a women's test match at
Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
o This is India's first victory against Australia in 11 tests since the team’s first
clashed in the format in 1977.
❖ NITI Aayog, in partnership with the International Development Research Centre
(IDRC) and the Global Development Network (GDN), published a report, 'A Green
and Sustainable Growth Agenda for the Global Economy'.

24
 ❖ Crompton Greaves Consumer Electricals Ltd. (CGCEL), has been conferred with
the prestigious National Energy Conservation Award 2023.
o It is awarded in the category of the Most Energy Efficient Appliance of the
Year 2023 for its storage water heater.
❖ The Government of India has unveiled a video that captures ten extraordinary
moments when India left an indelible mark on the global stage in 2023.
o It includes Chandrayaan 3’s Historic Landing, Digital Payments Leadership
and World’s Largest Office Building at Surat.
❖ The 8th edition of Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS) Conclave of Chiefs
(CoC) was conducted by Royal Thai Navy at Bangkok, Thailand.
❖ On December 25, Former Indian Prime Minister Atal Vihari Vajpayee’s birthday
is observed as "Good Governance Day" since 2014.
❖ The Veer Bal Diwas is observed in December 26 to commemorate the sacrifice of
the two youngest sons of the 10th Guru, Guru Gobind Singh, in 1705.
❖ NASA has launched a campaign called “Message in a Bottle” and invited the
public to send their names that will travel to Jupiter's moon along with a poem
dedicated to Europa Clipper mission.
❖ Gujarat topped in the rooftop solar capacity with 10.4 GW as of November this
year.
❖ PM Modi's personal YouTube Channel reaches two crore subscribers.
o He became the first world leader whose personal YouTube Channel has
reached two crore subscribers.

TAMIL NADU

Elephant Death Audit Framework in Tamil Nadu

❖ This framework started in the year 2022 by the Forest Department from its
Elephant Death Audit Framework.
❖ In Tamil Nadu, an elephant has a higher chance of dying of electrocution than of
old age and starvation.
❖ Data shows that 1,505 elephant deaths have been recorded since 2010 and 159
of them, or 10.5% of all mortalities.
❖ Elephants are among the most long-living mammals, with a life expectancy of
around 50 years in the wild with a generation length of 22 years.

25
Statue of Iyothee Thass Pandithar
❖ Tamil Nadu chief minister M K Stalin unveiled the statue of anti-caste activist
Iyothee Thass Pandithar at Gandhi Mandapam in Chennai.
❖ Iyothee Thasar born in then Teynampet-Thousand Lights area in the former
Madras Presidency on May 20, 1845.
❖ He learned Tamil, English, Pali and Sanskrit.
❖ He was the first person who made the words Tamizhan and Dravidan as political
identity.
❖ Iyothee Thass Pandithar is also known as the “Dravida Peroli” and ‘Father of
Social Reforms in South India’.
❖ He launched ‘Dravida Pandian’ magazine in 1885 along with John Rathinam and
in 1907.
❖ He launched ‘Oru Paisa Tamizhan’, a Tamil newspaper.
❖ He established the ‘Sakya Buddhist Society’ in Madras in 1898.
❖ He also started Dravida Mahajana Sabha in 1891 and Advaidananda Sabha in
1876.

Madras University as category I institution

❖ In the recent round of accreditation by the National Assessment and Accreditation
Council, the university secured a score of 3.59, an improvement from 3.32.
❖ The UGC came up with a regulation for graded autonomy around five years ago.
❖ The main benefit is that category I universities can start programmes without the
UGC’s approval, and they need to only report it to the UGC.
❖ The UGC (Categorisation of universities for grant of graded autonomy regulations)
2018 Committee recognised 60 institutions across the country that year as
category I.

R. Vaishali – Chess Player from Tamilnadu

❖ She became only the third woman from India to get the Grandmaster (GM) title.
❖ She completed the final requirement – 2,500 Elo points – during the ongoing
Llobregat Open tournament in Spain.
❖ Her younger brother R. Praggnanandhaa had got the GM title in 2018, when he
was just 12.
❖ Vaishali and Praggnanandhaa make history as the first-ever brother-sister duo
to become Grandmasters

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 ❖ Koneru Humpy was the first.
❖ She was the world’s youngest female player ever, when she became a GM in 2002,
at the age of 15.
❖ The other Indian female GM is Dronavalli Harika.

Sparsh Bharati

❖ Sparsh Bharati is an offshoot of Bharati script developed by IIT Madras professor.

❖ This ‘Indian Braille’ can be used across Indian languages.
❖ In the original Braille, every word fits into six dots.
❖ But Sparsh Bharati is using a combination of lines and dots.
❖ Sparsh Bharati is intuitive and visual.

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Demand for electricity in T.N 2023
❖ The energy demand in Tamil Nadu increased by more than 7.5%, in the 10-month
period from January to October this year.
❖ Chennai city, which accounts for one-fourth of the energy consumed in the State,
also reported an increase in demand by more than 8%.
❖ The consumption increased by 6.38% in the State, and 7.76% in the city.

Kalki Subramaniam
❖ Transperson activist Kalki Subramaniam has been named the representative
from the Southern region in the National Council for Transgender Persons
❖ The Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment is the ex-officio
chairperson of the panel.
❖ Shraddha A. Joshi (West region) Shobha Thakur (North region), Vidya (East
region), and Rituparna Neog (North East region) are the other representatives
from the transperson community in the panel.
❖ Five experts Abhina Aher, Ravina Bariha, Sadhana Mishra, Aparna Lalingkar,
and Giti Thadani are also in the panel.

Cyclone Michaung
❖ It was named by Myanmar.
❖ The IMD (the Indian Meteorological Department) had initially predicted that
Michaung would remain a ‘tropical cyclone’ (wind speeds of 62 kph to 87 kph)
until it crossed the Andhra Pradesh coast.
❖ But later the IMD upgraded it to the intensity of a ‘severe’ storm (wind speeds of
88 kph to 166 kph)
❖ It crossed the south Andhra Pradesh coast, close to Bapatla.
❖ It is between the cities of Nellore and Machilipatnam in Andhra Pradesh.

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 ❖ After crossing the Andhra coast, the system is expected to continue to move
northwestward towards southern Odisha.
❖ Here, the IMD has issued an ‘orange’ alert
❖ Climatologically, about five cyclones develop in the North Indian Ocean basin —
comprising the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea — every year.
❖ Of these, an average of four cyclones develops over the Bay of Bengal and one
over the Arabian Sea.

Impatiens karuppusamyi

❖ The researchers of Botanical Survey of India (BSI) have discovered a new species
of plant from Kalakad Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve, Tamil Nadu.
❖ The species is named after Dr. S Karuppusamy (Madhura College, Tamil Nadu)
for his significant contributions to the taxonomy of south Indian angiosperms.

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 ❖ Impatiens is a widespread genus with over 1,000 species worldwide, with more
than 280 found in India.
❖ It is prevalent in tropical Africa, Madagascar, India, Sri Lanka, and China.
❖ The discovered species are differed from all known species of Impatiens.
❖ It shares similarities with Impatiens Bicornis but differs in terms of leaf size,
flower count, scape length, and flower size.

Memorial stone for Bipin Rawat

❖ A memorial stone, Smritika, was installed at Nanjappa Chatram, Coonoor,
Tamilnadu.
❖ It is the site of helicopter crash in which General Bipin Rawat, the then Chief of
Defence Staff (CDS), died along with 13 others, in 2021.
❖ It was constructed by the Madras Regimental Centre, Wellington, Ooty.

Integrated Urban Flood Management activities for Chennai Basin Project

❖ The Union Government has sanctioned an ambitious urban flood mitigation

project for Chennai under the National Disaster Mitigation Fund (NDMF).
❖ It will be India's first project to tackle urban floods after Chennai deluge.

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Chennai rainfall in 2023
❖ In 2023, Chennai has received the highest amount of rainfall since the rain and
subsequent floods in 2015.
❖ Nungambakkam and Meenambakkam observatories recorded 53cm and 52cm of
rain between December 2 and 4, 2023.
❖ Chennai recorded a total of 46cm of rain between December 3 and 5.
❖ On December 1 2015, the city was heavily flooded after receiving 494 mm of
rainfall in a span of 24 hours.
❖ Chennai was declared a disaster zone on December 2, 2015.
❖ In November 2015, the city had received an overall rainfall of 1049.3 mm, making
it the highest amount of rain received since 1918.

Law Officers to the High Court

❖ The Madras High Court said merit must be the sole criterion for law officers’
appointments.
❖ The rule of vertical/horizontal reservation need not be followed in the
appointment of such appointments.

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 ❖ The government is duty-bound to engage only the most proficient, competent and
capable lawyers to represent it before the courts of law.
❖ The relationship between the government and the law officer is purely
professional and not that of a master and a servant.
❖ Since law officers engaged by the government do not hold a civil post, Article 16(4)
of the Constitution will not be applicable.

Cauvery River Biodiversity & Hydrological Status

❖ The paper, titled “Cauvery River: Land Use Dynamics Biodiversity & Hydrological
Status” was published by scientists and researchers at the Indian Institute of
Science (IISc), Bengaluru.
❖ Natural vegetation on nearly 12,850 sq. km of land in the Cauvery basin was lost
in the 50 years between 1965 to 2016.
❖ Karnataka has lost much more than any other State in the basin.
❖ It accounts for three-fourths of the lost cover, while Tamil Nadu’s share is around
one-fifth.
❖ Natural vegetation cover went down by around 46% all these years.
❖ The quantum of reduction of dense vegetation was 35% (6,123 sq. km) and that
of degraded vegetation, 63% (6,727 sq. km).
❖ The extent of area under irrigation rose from 6,556 sq. km in 1928 to 20,233 sq.
km now.

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 ❖ In Karnataka, it was from 1,193 sq. km to 8,497 sq. km. Consequently, the water
demand of the two States increased.

Tamil Nadu Unlimited 2023

❖ ‘Tamil Nadu Unlimited’, is an one-day summit organised by The Hindu in
association with Guidance Tamil Nadu.
❖ It highlighted the potential of the different sectors in developing Tamil Nadu into
a preferred growth destination.
❖ As many as eight districts in Tamil Nadu contribute almost 50% of Gross State
Domestic Product (GSDP).
❖ In comparison, two to three districts in Karnataka and Maharashtra contribute
major chunk of their respective GSDP.
❖ 15 districts contributed to over 50% of Tamil Nadu’s urbanisation.
❖ The Hosur belt had emerged as a electric vehicle hub, while Thoothukudi would
emerge as a green hydrogen hub.

Tamil Nadu’s own tax revenue 2023

❖ The Reserve Bank of India released a report titled ‘State Finances: A Study of
Budgets of 2023-24’.
❖ The contribution of State’s own tax revenue (SOTR) to Tamil Nadu’s overall tax
revenue has been stable at over 70%.
❖ As per data, SOTR accounted for 78.8% of Tamil Nadu’s total tax revenue during
the pre-GST period of 2015-16 to 2016-17.

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 ❖ During the post-GST and pre-COVID period of 2018-19-2019-20, the share of
SOTR stood at 79.1%.
❖ Post-COVID, the SOTR share was 78.9%.
❖ The SOTR is more than 70% of total tax revenue in Haryana, Maharashtra,
Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala and Punjab.
❖ Less than 50% is in Bihar and Jharkhand.
❖ Uttar Pradesh share of SOTR is ranged from 45.6%-54%, while that of Madhya
Pradesh, it was around 50-51%.

FDI inflow in to Tamil Nadu

❖ Cumulative Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflow in to Tamil Nadu has touched
nearly $10 billion in the last four years from the period between October 2019
and September 2023.
❖ Up to September of the current fiscal, the State attracted FDI worth $1.3 billion.
❖ For the fiscal 2022-23, the State attracted FDI worth $2.17 billion, which was
lower than $3 billion that came in the previous year.

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 ❖ Tamil Nadu ranks fourth in attracting FDI in the period between Oct 2019 and
September 2023, after Maharashtra, Karnataka and Gujarat.
❖ The tiny states of Haryana and Telangana are close behind Tamil Nadu.
❖ Tamil Nadu Global Investors Meeting scheduled to take place on January 7 and
8, 2024 in Chennai.

T.N.’s outstanding liability from bonds

❖ Tamil Nadu had an outstanding liability of about ₹5.38 lakh crore at the end of
March 2023 on funds raised through the issue of bonds.
❖ About 38.5%, or ₹2.07 lakh crore, of the outstanding amounts are coming up for
repayment in 1-5 years.
❖ 28.6% of the outstanding amount was coming up for repayments in 5-10 years.
❖ Of the outstanding liability from the issue of bonds at the end of March 2023,
16.4% matures after 20 years, 9.7% between 10-20 years and 6.9% within a year.
❖ At the end of March 2023, the total outstanding liabilities stood at ₹7.41 lakh
crore.

Makkaludan Mudhalvar scheme

❖ Tamil Nadu Chief Minister launched 'Makkaludan Mudhalvar', a scheme.
❖ It is aimed at disposing off grievances or petitions filed by people on merit within
30 days.
❖ The special camps will be conducted in phases in all 38 districts in the state to
collect petitions from people concerning various departments and issues.
❖ The first phase will cover the rain-hit districts of Chennai, Tiruvallur,
Kanchipuram, and Chengalpattu.

35
Record rainfall in south Tamil Nadu in 2023
❖ The southern districts of Tamil Nadu recorded with an unprecedented amount of
rainfall on Sunday, December 17, 2023.
❖ As many as 39 regions witnessed extremely heavy rainfall.
❖ Kayalpattinam in Thoothukudi district received a whopping 95 cm of rainfall.
❖ Tiruchendur and Srivaikuntam in Thoothukudi district received 69 cm and 62
cm respectively.
❖ Manjolai in Tirunelveli district got 55 cm and Moolaikaraipatti recorded 61 cm.
❖ This is the second-highest rainfall of since Kakkachi (Manjolai) received 96.5 cm
in 1992.
❖ Rainfall over and above 21 cm is graded as extremely heavy.
❖ Between 12 and 20 cm, it is very heavy and from 7 to 11 cm heavy.

Conviction based disqualification

❖ The Madras High Court convicted Tamil Nadu Higher Education Minister K.
Ponmudy in one of the multiple disproportionate asset cases.
❖ According to Section 8(1) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, a
legislator convicted of an offence under the Prevention of Corruption Act (PCA)
should be disqualified for a period of six years, from the date of conviction, if the
punishment is limited to a fine.
❖ However, if a legislator is sentenced to any term of imprisonment under the PCA,
then he or she should be disqualified from the date of conviction till the entire
period of imprisonment and also for a further period of six years from the date of
release.
❖ The disqualification can be avoided only if the conviction, and not just the
sentence, gets stayed or set aside.

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 ❖ He is third T.N. legislator to face disqualification in past 10 years.
❖ The first legislator to be disqualified was Jayalalithaa in September 2014,
followed by then Sports and Youth Welfare Minister P. Balakrishna Reddy in
2019.

Own Tax Revenue impacts - Tamilnadu

❖ Tamil Nadu’s Own Tax Revenue, which accounts for over 70% of total revenue, is
likely to be affected by the floods in Chennai and the Southern districts.
❖ For 2023-24, the State’s Own Tax Revenue (SOTR) is projected to be ₹1,81,182
crore, as per the Budget estimates.
❖ It is a 20.61% growth from 2022-23.
❖ The SOTR accounts for 78.9% of Tamil Nadu’s total revenue.

❖ So far in 2023-24 (Till October 2023), Tamil Nadu’s Own Tax Revenue was
₹84,930.9 crore.

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 ❖ This constitutes around 46.88% of the Budget estimates.

Ennore Creek oil spill 2023

❖ Massive oil spill from Chennai Petroleum Corporation Limited (CPCL) resulted in
a sheet of oil spreading into Buckingham Canal and Ennore Creek.
❖ Ennore Creek, an arm of the Kosathalaiyar River, is demarcated as Coastal
Regulation Zone IV.
❖ Inadequate stormwater management at CPCL, led to overflowing of oil mixed
water amid floods triggered by cyclone Michaung.
❖ Section 356J of the Merchant shipping Act, 1958, describes the power to give a
notice to the owner, etc, of polluting ship when the central government is satisfied
the ship is not as per the prescribed rules.
❖ Section 356K of the same Act states that if a person, after being served the notice
under section 356J, fails to comply, the central government can convict the
person of an offense.

1923 Rainfall
❖ The 1923 Tamirabharani floods was caused by over 42.3 cm of rain spread over
two days in composite Tirunelveli then.
❖ It had caused damage to Tirunelveli similar to that faced by south Tamil Nadu
now.
❖ Around the same time, a century ago, Srivaikundam railway station and some
other stations were flooded for four days.
❖ In 1923, Tirunelveli and Kadayam had received 44.2 cm and 43.4 cm of rains
respectively in one week.

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 ❖ Similarly, Palayamkottai (37.8 cm) and Tenkasi (37.2 cm) were among the
locations that received heavy rain.
❖ This year, Kayalpattinam received nearly 118 cm of rain on December 17 and
December 18.
❖ Kulasekarapattinam had recorded 10 cm or more of rain 44 times between 1901
and 1970.
❖ Similarly, Tiruchendur had recorded over 10 cm of rain 47 times between 1914
and 1970.

6th Khelo India Youth Games

❖ The 6th Khelo India Youth Games will be held from 19 to 31 January 2024 in
Tamil Nadu.
❖ Union Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports and Tamil Nadu Sports Minister
released the mascot for the 6th Khelo India Youth Games in Chennai.
❖ The official logo, jersey, torch and theme song for the 6th Khelo India Youth
Games were also launched on the occasion.
❖ The mascot of the games is Veeramangai Velu Nachiyar.
❖ For the first time, Squash will be included in these games.

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Climate Resilient Urban Development Program

❖ The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors has approved the $300 million
Tamil Nadu Climate Resilient Urban Development Program.
❖ It will provide around 2 million people with more and better access to water and
sewerage services in cities.
❖ It will help 21 Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) update their delivery systems and
provide quality and efficient water supply and sewerage services to consumers.
❖ IBRD will use the blended financing instrument of Program-for-Results (PforR)
with Investment Project Financing (IPF) to link disbursement of funds directly to
the achievement of results while providing technical assistance.
❖ The Program loan has a maturity of 32 years with a grace period of 7 years.

3D-printed face implants

❖ Indian Institute of Technology Madras have developed 3D-printed face implants
for patients affected by black fungus.
❖ The condition is prevalent among COVID-19 patients, persons with uncontrolled
diabetes, HIV/AIDS and other medical conditions.

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 ❖ Black fungus disease, also known as mucormycosis, can cause devastating
effects, with the affected person losing their defining facial features.
❖ Around 60,000 mucormycosis cases were registered in India after the pandemic.
❖ In severely affected persons, the fungus invaded the tissues of the face, causing
necrosis and disfigurement.

Welfare board for Gig Workers

❖ The labour welfare and skill development department has constituted the Tamil
Nadu Platform Based Gig Workers Welfare Board.
❖ It will cater to workers in e-commerce services including online food delivery and
cab aggregators.
❖ The labour department expects more than one lakh workers to register in the
welfare board.

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