• New Space India Limited (NSIL)launched GSAT-24, following the space reforms leasing the entire satellite’s capacity to Direct-to-Home (DTH) service provider Tata Play.
• This was the company’s first “demand-driven” communication satellite mission. The satellite, developed by the Indian Space Research Organization for NSIL, was successfully launched into geostationary orbit from Kourou in French Guiana by the Ariane 5 rocket (South America).

Key Points:

• GSAT-24 is a 4180 kg 24-Ku band communication satellite that provides pan-India coverage for DTH application requirements.
• The commercial arm of ISRO, NSIL was established in March 2019 and is a Central Public Sector Enterprise (CPSE) under the Department of Space (DOS).
• NSIL was required to carry out operational satellite missions on a “demand driven” model as part of the “space reforms” announced by the government in June 2020.
• Under this model, NSIL is responsible for building, launching, owning, and operating satellites as well as providing services to its devoted customer.
• The 15-year mission life of GSAT-24 is configured on ISRO’s tried-and-true I-3k Bus.
• To suit the needs of its devoted customer Tata Play, the DTH division of the Tata Group, the whole satellite capacity on board GSAT-24 will be leased.

• Former Australian cricketer, Lisa Sthalekar has become the first female president of the Federation of International Cricketers’ Association (FICA), the sport’s international players association.
• Sthalekar joins a shortlist of former cricketers including Barry Richards, Jimmy Adams and Vikram Solanki to have held the post of FICA president.

Career of Lisa Sthalekar:

• Sthalekar played 8 Tests, 125 ODIs and 54 T20Is for Australia between 2001 and 2013, finishing her career with a World Cup win.
• Last year, she was inducted into the Australian cricket hall of fame and has been a regular member of the broadcasting media around the world.
• She has also worked with the Australian Cricketers’ Association and has experience in player welfare.

• During the meeting, Heads of State discussed intra-BRICS cooperation in areas like trade, counter-terrorism, traditional medicine, health, environment, reform of multilateral institutions and combating covid-19 pandemic.

Theme of the BRICS Summit:

• BRICS Summit 2022 held under the theme of “Foster High-Quality BRICS Partnership, Usher in a New Era for Global Development.”

KEY POINTS:

• 14th BRICS Summit held in virtual mode in 2022.
• According to reports, a BRICS Plus virtual conference was held as part of the main meeting with ministers from countries, including the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Kazakhstan, Indonesia, Argentina, Nigeria, Senegal, and Thailand.
• BRICS Plus is a new phase in the expansion of BRICS – already known for its combined economic growth potential – that aims to welcome more countries and enhance economic conditions.

• ONGC Videsh Limited (OVL), the wholly owned subsidiary and overseas arm of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Ltd. (ONGC), has made an oil discovery in Llanos Basin, Colombia.
• ONGC Videsh has earlier discovered commercial oil in the Lower Sand pay in Mariposa and Indico fields in the block in 2017 and 2018 respectively, which are currently commercially producing @ 20,000 bbl oil per day.
• ONGC Videsh holds 70% participating interest (PI) in the block along with operatorship, remaining 30% is held by partner Geopark.
• ONGC Videsh has a significant presence in oil & gas sector in Colombia, with three other exploratory blocks in the country and joint ownership of the oil producing company Mansarovar Energy Colombia Ltd (MECL).

• The Luddar Mahadev Fair that was discontinued following Covid was organised after the permission of the High Court.
• According to president of the organizing committee, the HC had granted permission with certain conditions and a payment of Rs 11,000 to be deposited to the school welfare fund.
• More than 10,000 from nearby villages participated in the fair.
• This would help in preserving old traditions.

• In the Majathal wildlife area of ​​Solan district of Himachal Pradesh, a rare species of bird named Gray Cround Preenia has been found.
• The name of this bird is not recorded till date in the records of the Wildlife Department of Himachal Pradesh. This rare species of bird is found in Uttarakhand.
• The current threat to this bird is due to the fire in the pine leaves and this bird could be at risk of burns.
• Apart from this, the cement factory adjoining the forest also threatened this bird.

• Indian women’s Wrestling team has won five medals to claim Under-17 Asian Championship title with a total of eight gold at Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.
• India lifted the title with eight golds, one silver and one bronze.
• Japan came second and Mongolia finished third.
• Indian women including Ritika, Ahilaya Shinde, Siksha, Priya received gold in their respective weight category.

About Skalzang Rigzin:

• The 41-year-old Skalzang Rigzin has 23 years of experience in leading adventurous visitors in mountaineering in Ladakh.
• According to Skalzang Rigzin, fellow mountaineer and founder of Boots and Crampons Bharath Thammineni backed the Mt. Annapurna expedition, and Nepal’s Peak Promotion Company assisted in the ascent of the nearby  Lhotse.

KEY POINTS:

• Skalzang Rigzin, the first mountaineer from India to ascend Mount Annapurna ‘s top without the aid of oxygen was welcomed by Leh with open arms.
• With 16 days of gap between climb of Mt Annapurna on April 28 and Mt Lhotse on May 14, Skalzang Rigzin has set a record to conquer two summits without oxygen supplements.

• India ranked third globally for total renewable power capacity additions in 2021 with 15.4 GW, behind only China (136 GW) and the US (43 GW).
• According to a report, despite the Covid-19 pandemic’s promise of a global green recovery, this historic opportunity has been lost.
• According to REN21’s Renewables 2022 Global Status Report (GSR 2022),the world is unlikely to be able to achieve important climate goals this decade, this is because the global clean energy transition is not taking place.

Key Points:

• The largest energy crisis in modern history started in the second half of 2021,and it was made worse by the Russian Federation’s invasion of Ukraine in early 2022 and an unprecedented global commodities shock.
• The research states that India increased its hydroelectric capacity by 843 MW in 2021,bringing the total to 45.3 GW.
• India was the third-largest market globally and the second-largest market in Asia for new solar PV capacity (13 GW of additions in 2021).
• In terms of overall installations, it came in at number four (60.4 GW), passing Germany (59.2 GW) for the first time.
• India was in third place overall for installed wind power (40.1 GW), trailing only China, the US.
• In the energy industry, historic increases in generation (7,793 terawatt hours) and capacity (314.5 gigawatts, up 17% from 2020) were unable to keep up with the six percent growth in global electricity demand.

• Tamil Nadu replaced Bihar and West Bengal to become the largest state in terms of outstanding portfolio of microfinance loans.
• According to MFIN Micrometer Q4 FY21-22, a quarterly report published by Microfinance Institutions Network (MFIN), the gross loan portfolio (GLP) of Tamil Nadu as of March 31, 2022 stood at ₹36,806 crore.
• It was followed by Bihar (₹35,941 crore) and West Bengal (₹34,016 crore).
• At the end of Q3FY22, West Bengal topped the chart with the highest outstanding portfolio of loans at ₹32,880 crore, followed by Tamil Nadu (₹32,359 crore).
• The Top 10 States (based on total microcredit universe) constitute 82.4 per cent of total GLP of the industry. West Bengal was followed by Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra.
• According to the report, around 64 per cent of the microfinance portfolio is concentrated in the East, Northeast, and Southern regions.