NEWS 18-10-2023. News For 20th-Oct (Friday) *Monthly News Sept* *National* 1. Santiniketan has become the 41st UNESCO World Heritage Site in India and the 3rd in West Bengal, after the Sundarbans National Park and the Darjeeling Mountain Railways. Also, the Hoysala temples in Karnataka became the 42nd UNESCO World Heritage Site in India. 2. Govt approved the Women Reservation Bill, which mandates a 33% reservation for women in both the Lok Sabha and state assemblies of India. This legislation aims to ensure equal representation for women in the highest legislative bodies of the country. 3. India has launched the *global biofuels alliance* at the G20 summit in New Delhi. The Global Biofuel Alliance is an India-led Initiative to develop an alliance of governments, International organizations, and Industry to facilitate the adoption of biofuels. 4. Govt has announced the *Samudrayaan Mission( MATSYA 6000)*, India’s first 3-manned mission to explore the deep ocean, at 6000m depth. 5. ISRO has launched India's first solar observatory mission *'Aditya L1'* from PSLV. It will take 125 days to reach the designated point L1. 6. India introduced the world's first mobile hospital, the *Arogya Maitri Cube*. It can be airlifted and consists of 72 cube. 7. The largest domestically constructed 700 MW nuclear power plant, situated in Kakrapar, Gujarat, has initiated operations at its full capacity. *International* 1. PM Narendra Modi has invited U.S. President Joe Biden to be the chief guest at India’s Republic Day celebrations on January 26 in 2024. 2. India has become Bangladesh’s largest export partner. Bangladesh's export to India is $2 billion. 3. India has announced the project *India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC)*, including shipping and railway links, Involving India, UAE, Saudi Arabia, EU, France, Italy, Germany, and the US. This will boost trade. 4. The 18th G20 Summit was successfully conducted in New Delhi with a *34-page Delhi Declaration*. India handed over the Presidency to Brazil. 5. India and Saudi Arabia have signed a cooperation agreement in the field of energy. The MoU will support India’s efforts for energy transition. 6. PM Narendra Modi was awarded with the second-highest civilian honour of Greece *'The Grand Cross of the Order of Honour'*. 7. India has handed over the G20 presidency to Brazil to host G20 in 2024. *Sports* 1. The Indian cricket team defeated Sri Lanka by 10 Wickets to win the Asia Cup 2023 in Colombo. 2. Novak Djokovic created history by winning the 24th Grand Slam title in the US Open 2023 Men's Singles by defeating Daniil Medvedev of Russia. 3. Germany won their first-ever FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 title. 4. Virat Kohli broke Sachin Tendulkar’s record and became the fastest batter to score 13000 runs in ODI. 5. The Indian Men's Hockey team beat Pakistan to win the Men's Hockey Asia Cup 2023 in Salalah, Oman. 6. Magnus Carlsen, won his first Chess World Cup Title, by defeating India's chess grandmaster Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa in a tie-breaker. *Defence* 1. IAF has acquired its first Airbus C-295 aircraft. A total of 56 Airbus C-295 aircraft will replace the IAF AVRO fleet. 40 of them will be manufactured in India. 2. The BRO has initiated the construction of the world's highest fighter airfield in Nyoma - Ladakh. 3. Phase II of the bilateral exercise between the Indian and French Navy Varuna-23 was conducted in the Arabian Sea. 4. The 7th Ship of project 17-A *" INS Mahendragiri"* was launched in Mumbai. 5. The Indian Army has signed contracts for the procurement of 130 tethered drones and 19 tank-driving simulators under Emergency Procurement (EP) from Bengaluru-based firm NewSpace. < < Back