Ministry of Culture administers ‘Financial Assistance to Veteran Artists’ scheme

• The Ministry of Culture administers a Scheme by the name of ‘Financial Assistance for Veteran Artists’ (erstwhile ‘Scheme for Pension and Medical Aid to Artistes’) to provide financial assistance to veteran artists of the country of the age of 60 years and above in the form of monthly artists’ pension.

A new initiative called ‘beggar-free city’ started in Maharashtra

• A new project known as "beggar-free city" has been launched in Nagpur, Maharashtra.
• The Nagpur City Commissioner of Police, Amitesh Kumar, announced that notification 144 CrPC has been issued in this regard.
• The Nagpur Municipal Corporation's (NMC) social welfare division and the Nagpur City Police are partners in this effort. The NMC has developed specific provisions to accommodate homeless people in its shelters.

LIC appoints Tablesh Pandey and M Jagannath as new MDs

• Tablesh Pandey and M. Jagannath have been appointed as the Life Insurance Company's managing directors (LIC). M. Jagannath will begin working on March 13, 2023, and Tablesh Pandey will take over on April 1, 2023.
• Raj Kumar and BC Patnaik are the two managing directors that left the company this week. LIC currently has four managing directors.

H3N2 Influenza: Signs and symptoms

• According to the World Health Organization (WHO), H3N2 is a variant of the common flu.
• Seasonal influenza is an acute respiratory infection caused by influenza viruses that circulate in all parts of the world, says WHO.
• These are classified into various subtypes. Currently circulating in humans are subtype A (H1N1) and A (H3N2) influenza viruses.

Women’s World Boxing Championships 2023: MC Mary Kom, Farhan Akhtar named brand ambassadors

• From March 15 to 26, the IBA Women's World Boxing Championship 2023 will be held at the Indira Gandhi Sports Complex in New Delhi.
• The Boxing Federation of India (BFI) has named Mahindra as the competition's title sponsor, with MC Mary Kom and Bollywood actor Farhan Akhtar serving as brand ambassadors.
• India is the host country for the third time in history. The appearance of Mary kom and Bollywood superstar Farhan Akhtar will greatly aid the BFI's goal of encouraging female boxing participation.

World Consumer Rights Day

• Every year on March 15, the International Consumer Rights Day is observed with the goal of promoting consumer protection and increasing global knowledge of consumer rights.
• Additionally, the day is used to bring attention to imbalances in global markets. the annual celebration of global consumer movement cooperation.
• On this day, consumers everywhere promote their fundamental rights, call for their protection and observance, and denounce unfair trade practices.

International Day to Combat Islamophobia

• In 2022, the United Nations established the International Day to Fight Islamophobia, which is observed annually on March 15 across 140 nations.
• March 15 was selected as the date because it marks the anniversary of the Christchurch Mosque massacres, which left 51 people dead.

India’s WPI inflation eases to 3.85 per cent in February

• According to Ministry of Commerce and Industry data, India's Wholesale price index (WPI)-based inflation fell below 4% in February and was 3.85%.
• The WPI inflation rate was 4.73 percent in January. This is the lowest level of WPI inflation since January 2021, when it was 2.51 percent.

Denmark, the first country to import CO2 and bury it undersea

• The CO2 graveyard, where the carbon is injected to prevent further warming of the atmosphere, is on the site of an old oil field.
• Led by British chemical giant Ineos and German oil company Wintershall Dea, the “Greensand” project is expected to store up to eight million tonnes of CO2 per year by 2030.

SpaceX launches 40 OneWeb internet satellites, lands rocket

• SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station with 40 more internet satellites for rival OneWeb, followed by the landing of the rocket’s first stage booster back at the Florida spaceport.

Uttarakhand become India’s first state to start insurance scheme for sericulturists

• The state's agriculture minister, Ganesh Joshi, stated that Uttarakhand implemented the nation's first "Resham Keet Bima" program to protect its scientists.
• In the initial phase of the pilot project, which began in Uttarakhand, 200 sericulturists from five blocks in four districts—Dehradun, Haridwar, Udham Singh Nagar, and Nainital—were provided with insurance.
• They were shielded from climate change, water scarcity, and other threats by this insurance.

Amitava Mukherjee assumes additional charge as NMDC CMD

• Amitava Mukherjee, NMDC Director (Finance), has been given the additional responsibility of Chairman-Cum-Managing Director.
• Mukherjee, an Indian Railway Accounts Service (IRAS) officer from the 1995 batch, has a Master’s in Commerce from Guru Ghasidas Vishwavidyalaya in Bilaspur and is also a Cost Accountant.
• His leadership enabled the timely completion of NMDC Steel Ltd’s demerger from NMDC Ltd. His areas of expertise are project management, digital initiatives, and policy formulation.