Current Affairs Quiz - May, 2023

Notes:
The University Grants Commission (UGC) launched two user-friendly portals, UTSAH (Undertaking Transformative Strategies and Actions in Higher Education) and PoP (Professors of Practice).
Through the UTSAH portal, universities can access detailed information about UGC’s initiatives. PoP portal aims to bridge the gap between academia and the industry by facilitating the recruitment of experienced professionals.

Notes:
The ‘Spring 2023 Economic Forecast’ was released recently by the European Commission. It revised the 2023-24 growth outlook of 20 countries with the Euro as their currency to 1.1 percent from the previous estimate of 0.9 percent.
As per the report, lower energy prices, abating supply constraints and a strong labour market supported moderate growth in the first quarter of 2023.

Notes:
During the Kharif 2022-23 season, the Odisha state government has procured some 600,000 quintals of ragi or finger millet under Odisha Millet Mission.
The crop was procured at an MSP of Rs 3,578 per quintal. The Mission is an initiative of state’s department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare to revive millets in collaboration with WSHGs, FPOs, NCDS, WASSAN and local NGOs.

Notes:
In Thailand, voters have favoured Pita Limjaroenrat’s Move Forward party. The party is set to win 151 of the 500 seats in the lower house.
Voters rejected a decade of army-backed rule, handing more seats and votes to Move Forward than any other party.

Notes:
Non-kinetic warfare, also known as the contactless warfare, is the action against an adversary without a direct conventional military action.
Defence Rajnath Singh said the concept of non-kinetic warfare has highlighted the need for advanced technology in the defence sector.

Notes:
The Ministry of Heavy Industry is planning to increase the outlay for the FAME-II (Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric Vehicles in India) scheme this financial year.
The Ministry recently held a stakeholder consultation with e2-W manufacturers to deliberate the proposed changes to the scheme.

Notes:
South Africa is set to manufacture a cost-effective and generic variant of the long-acting cabotegravir (CAB-LA) drug, used for HIV prevention, marking the first time the country produces this medication.
The move is significant as the majority of medicine production on the African continent is limited to only 38 countries, resulting in less than 40% of medicines being manufactured locally.

Notes:
The Securities Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has recently proposed a regulatory framework to respond to unexplained suspicious trading pattern around the presence of material non-public information.
The framework would deal with malpractices by market participants, who use new-age technologies by way of encrypted or vanishing messages, and modus operandi to evade the law.

Notes:
The SEBI has proposed major changes to the mutual fund fees to address the issue of mis-selling and minimize costs of investing in mutual funds.
According to this recommendation, the total expense ratio, which refers to the annual fee collected by asset managers from unitholders, should be standardized across different scheme categories like equity or debt in mutual funds.

Notes:
The Central Government has recently introduced the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (Amendment) Ordinance, 2023 to create the National Capital Civil Service Authority (NCCSA).
It is a new statutory authority that will be headed by the Chief Minister of Delhi in addition to the Chief Secretary and the Principal Secretary of the Home department.