Daily Current Affairs- 26 May 2024

Daily Current Affairs- 26th May 2024

INTERNATIONAL

New plant of Indian pharmaceutical company inaugurated in Bangladesh

• Indian High Commissioner Pranay Verma and Private Industry & Investment Adviser of Bangladesh Prime Minister, Salman Fazlur Rahman, MP, jointly inaugurated a new plant of India's leading pharmaceutical company, Sun Pharma, at Meghna Industrial Economic Zone.
• Sun Pharma is the world’s fourth-largest specialty generic pharmaceutical company with operations in over 100 countries. This is the company’s second investment in Bangladesh with a production capacity of over 1 billion tablets and capsules per year. 

NATIONAL

Khelo India Sports Hostel, Army Girls Sports Company’s 1st Batch Inaugurated

• Khelo India Sports Hostel and the Army Girls Sports Company’s first batch were inaugurated at the Army Sports Institute in Pune, In the presence of Chief of Army Staff General Manoj Pandey, Director General of Sports Authority of India Sandeep Pradhan, and celebrated athlete Ms. Anju Bobby George. 

SPORTS

Simran Sharma Clinches Gold In Women’s 200 Meters T12 Category At Para-Athletics World Championship and more

• India’s Simran Sharma clinched the gold in the Women’s 200 meters T12 category at the Para-Athletics World Championship in Kobe, Japan. She also bagged the Paralympics quota with a Personal Best time of 24.95 seconds.
• In the Women’s 100 meters T35 category, India’s Preethi Pal won the bronze, her second medal of the Championship. Earlier, Preethi had won bronze in 200 meters in the same category. Another Indian, Navdeep also won the bronze medal in the Men’s Javelin Throw F41 category today, with his season-best performance of 42.82 meters.
• With these medals, India’s total medal count reached 17, the highest ever in the history of the competition. This includes six gold, five silver and six bronze medals. 

Goalkeeper Keylor Navas Announces International Retirement

• Costa Rica goalkeeper Keylor Navas announced his retirement from international football at the age of 37, putting an end to rumours that he would play in the next Copa America.
• Navas, who made his international debut in 2008, has made 114 appearances and played in three World Cups, the most notable being Brazil 2014, where he helped his side reach the quarter-finals.
• Having made his last appearance for his country in a friendly against Argentina in March, Navas’ announcement means he will not be taking part in the Copa America, which will be held in the United States from 20 June to 14 July. 

SCIENCE &TEHNOLOGY

SpaceX Launches First Satellites for New US Spy Constellation

• SpaceX launched an inaugural batch of operational spy satellites it built as part of a new U.S. intelligence network designed to significantly upgrade the country’s space-based surveillance powers, the first deployment of several more planned this year.
• The spy network was revealed in a pair of Reuters reports earlier this year showing SpaceX is building hundreds of satellites for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office, an intelligence agency, for a vast system in orbit capable of rapidly spotting ground targets almost anywhere in the world. 

APPOINTMENS & RESIGNATIONS

Vice Admiral Gurcharan Singh takes over as Commandant, National Defense Academy

• Vice Admiral Gurcharan Singh assumed the appointment of Commandant, National Defense Academy on 25 May 2024 from Vice Admiral Ajay Kocchar. An alumnus of the National Defence Academy (Khadakwasla), he was commissioned into the Indian Navy on 01 Jul 1990.
• The Flag Officer has held several appointments, both afloat and ashore. As a specialist in Gunnery and Missiles, he has served onboard Indian Naval Ships Ranjit and Prahar. He holds the distinction of being part of the commissioning crew of three Indian constructed warships, viz, INS Brahmaputra/ as Gunnery Officer, INS Shivalik/ as Executive Officer, and INS Kochi/ as Commanding Officer. 

Ashok Leyland Limited Appoints K M Balaji as Chief Financial Officer

• Based on the recommendation of the Nomination and Remuneration Committee, the Board of Directors at their meeting held on May 24, 2024 Ashok Leyland Limited has appointed Mr. KM Balaji as the Chief Financial Officer of the Company with effect from 1st June 2024.
• K.M. Balaji, currently Deputy Chief Financial Officer has held a distinguished career with Ashok Leyland for over 31 years where he has gained considerable experience in handling and managing different facets of Finance, such as MIS, Budget, Product Cost Engineering, Indirect Taxation, Treasury, Investor Relations, Payables and Receivables. 

Air India appoints Sanjay Sharma as CFO

• Air India appoints Sanjay Sharma as its new chief financial officer (CFO), effective June 10th. Sharma, with over 30 years of experience in finance across Tata Projects and Deutsche Bank, will succeed Vinod Hejmadi who is retiring after three decades at Air India.
• He was the CFO at Tata Projects Ltd. Earlier, he has served as the CFO at Tata Realty Infrastructure Ltd, and Managing Director, Head of Equity Capital Markets, at Deutsche Bank Group, among other roles. 

AWARDS & RECOGNITION

Film By FTII Student Bags ‘La Cinef’ Award At 77th Cannes Film Festival in France

• Sunflowers were the first ones to know – a film by Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) student Chidanand S Naik and his team, has won the ‘La Cinef’ Award at the 77th Cannes Film Festival.
• The winner was officially announced at the festival. The film has been directed by Chidananda S Naik, shot by Suraj Thakur, edited by Manoj V and sound by Abhishek Kadam.
• The Information and Broadcasting Ministry said this is a historic moment for the Indian Cinema. Indian films have been receiving accolades at international stage. 

Indian Filmmaker Payal Kapadia Makes History with Cannes Grand Prix Win

• Indian filmmaker Payal Kapadia etched her name in the annals of cinematic history at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival as her directorial debut drama, “All We Imagine as Light,” clinched the prestigious Grand Prix award.
• Kapadia’s film became the first Indian entry in three decades and the first ever by an Indian woman director to secure a spot in the festival’s main competition, let alone win the Grand Prix.