CURRENT AFFAIRS OF 16th AUGUST, 2023

CURRENT AFFAIRS OF 16^th AUGUST, 2023

1. In a significant stride towards indigenous manufacturing and innovation, the state-owned company Advanced Weapons and Equipment India Limited (AWEIL), based in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, is all set to unveil India’s first long-range revolver ‘Prabal’ on 18 August, 2023.
2. Indian Ecologist, Scientist and Asian elephant expert Raman Sukumar has been elected as Vice Chair of Working Group II (WGII) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) bureau for the 7^th Assessment Report (AR7) cycle.
3. The Railways Ministry is embarking on a significant endeavor aimed at establishing Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Kendras (PMBJKs) at railway stations throughout the country. The primary objective of this initiative is ensuring the availability of top-notch medicines to the public, all while maintaining an affordable price point.
4. Raj Chetty, an Indian-American economist, and Michael Springer, a biologist, have been awarded Harvard University’s George Ledlie Prize for their groundbreaking work in their respective fields.
5. The President of Guyana, Dr. Mohammed Irfaan Ali, has agreed to the purchase of two Dornier 228 aircrafts from Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), Kanpur.
6. Karunanidhi Memorial International Marathon 2023 officially became the Asia’s largest marathon event, and it has been officially approved and recorded in the Guinness World Record.
7. Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dhananjaya Yeshwant Chandrachud launched ‘SuSwagatam’, a web-based and mobile-friendly application which enables advocates, visitors, interns and others to register themselves online and get e-passes to enter the Supreme Court of India.
8. The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has introduced the third edition of its UPI Safety Awareness Campaign named ‘UPI Chalega’ which aims to emphasize the ease, safety, and swiftness of using the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) for transactions.
9. The Indian Air Force has inducted its latest Heron Mark 2 drones, which have strike capability and can carry out surveillance along the borders with both China and Pakistan in a single sortie itself.  
10. The team of National Automated Fingerprint Identification System (NAFIS) of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) won the Gold Award in the Excellence in Government Process Re-engineering for Digital Transformation Category-1.
11. Union Minister of Steel and Civil Aviation Jyotiraditya M. Scindia unveiled the new logo of National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC) in New Delhi.
12. Jayesh Saini has been honoured with the Global Leader Award 2023 for his work expanding healthcare services in East Africa.
13. Prarthana Thombare has clinched the doubles title at the women’s tennis hardcourt event in Barcelona, Spain.
14. In a significant development for international students aspiring to study in Canada, the country’s Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has officially sanctioned the use of Pearson’s PTE Academic test as an English language proficiency assessment.
15. India’s HS Prannoy finished runner-up at the Australian Open Super 500 badminton tournament after losing a three-game thriller to China’s Weng Hong Yang in the men’s singles final.
16. Former India captain and legendary footballer Mohammed Habib passed away on 15 August 2023, at the age of 74 in Hyderabad, Telangana.