Aug 23, 2024 | Current Affairs for UPSC, State PCS & other Govt. Exams

For the first time in recent history, the 51st Fighter Wing at Osan Air Base in South Korea is combining its regular readiness exercise with Ulchi Freedom Shield 24, a larger military exercise. The 51st Fighter Wing's readiness exercise began on August 19, 2024, and will continue until August 23, 2024. The annual Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises comes amid heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula. U.S. and South Korean fighters, including F-16s, A-10s, F-15Ks, FA-50s, and KF-16s, will fly for five days straight in Ulchi Freedom Shield.

Govindrajan Padmanabhan, a renowned biochemist and former director of the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, was honored with the inaugural Vigyan Ratna Puraskar, India's highest science award.

NPCI's new 'UPI Circle' feature allows primary UPI users to delegate payment responsibilities to trusted secondary users. A UPI user (primary) can establish a secure link with trusted secondary users on their UPI app for partial or full payment delegation.

The inaugural National Space Day - 23rd August - embraces the theme "Touching Lives while Touching the Moon."

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Jay Shah is all set to replace the incumbent Greg Barclay as the new chairman of the International Cricket Council (ICC).

In July 2024, India surpassed China to become the world's largest importer of Russian oil. Russian crude accounted for a record 44% of India's total oil imports. Russia is now India's top oil supplier, followed by Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.

Rohit Sharma was bestowed with the coveted CEAT International Cricketer of the Year Award. Virat Kohli received the award for the Best ODI Batter of the Year. The Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Rahul Dravid.