Current Affairs 14th & 15th March 2021| Current Affairs News

 

CURRENT AFFAIRS: IMPORTANT DAYS

International Day of Mathematics – Observed on Mar 14

• The International Day of Mathematics is 14 March.
• It is also known as the Pi Day, because the mathematical constant π can be rounded up to 3.14.
• UNESCO’s 40th General Conference decided Pi Day as the International Day of Mathematics in November 2019.
• This year, the themeof the International Day of Mathematics is “Mathematics for a Better World”.
• On the occasion of International Day of Mathematics 2021, Audrey Azoulay, Director-General of UNESCO in an official statement said, “Mathematics, with its many technical applications, now underpins all areas of our lives.

World Consumer Rights Day – Observed on Mar 15

• Consumers International is the membership organization for consumer groups around the world.
• The World Consumer Rights Day 2021 themeis to gather all the consumers in a fight to “Tackle Plastic Pollution”.
• Founded on 1 April 1960, it has over 250 member organizations in 120 countries.
• Its head office is based in London, England, with regional offices in Latin America, Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: NATIONAL NEWS

Centre announces new scheme for tourist vehicle operators 

• The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has announced a new scheme for tourist vehicle operators.  
• Any tourist vehicle operator may apply for an All India tourist authorization and permit through online mode.
• It will be issued, after relevant documents are submitted and fees deposited, within 30 days of submission of such applications. 

About the new scheme:

• The new set of rules, to be known as, All India Tourist Vehicles Authorization and Permit Rules, 2021, will be applicable from 1st April this year.
• All existing permits shall continue to be in force during their validity.
• The new rules for permits are expected to go a long way in promoting tourism across the states.
• It will also consolidate a central database and fees of all such authorization which might give a sense of tourist movements, scope for improvement and promotion of tourism.

Govt announces linking of OTPRMS certificates with DigiLocker 

• Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank has announced linking of Online Teacher Pupil Registration Management System, OTPRMS certificates with DigiLocker. 
• This has been done in order to ensure hassle free access to verified OTPRMS Certificates.
• The issued certificates will automatically be transferred to DigiLocker and the same may be traced at the website of National Council for Teacher Education and DigiLocker.
• The Minister also informed that the registration fee of 200 rupees payable for obtaining OTPRMS Certificates, issued by NCTE has been waived off.
• This will enable all stakeholders across India to be digitally empowered facilitating ease of doing business.

I&B Minister inaugurates Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav exhibitions at 6 places 

• Information and Broadcasting Minister, Prakash Javadekar inaugurated the exhibition to commemorate 75 years of India’s Independence, Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav at six places in the country virtually.
• The six places where Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav exhibitions were inaugurated are Jammu, Imphal, Patna, Bhubaneshwar, Pune and Bengaluru.

About Exhibition:

• Javadekar said, Independence was achieved after a lot of sacrifices by the freedom fighters.
• He said through exhibition people will come to know about the freedom struggle.
• He also said that the basis of the objective to celebrate Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav by the Prime Minister is to connect people and make them aware of the freedom struggle.
• Secretary Information and Broadcasting, Mr. Amit Khare, Principal Director General of Bureau of Outreach, Mr. Satyendra Prakash, and Principal Director General of PIB, Mr. Jaideep Bhatnagar and other senior officials were present on the occasion.

India’s first centralised AC railway terminal in Bengaluru to operational soon

• India’s first centralised air-conditioned (AC)railway terminal has been built at Baiyappanahalli in Bengaluru.
• Named after ‘Bharat Ratna Sir M Visvesvaraya’one of the foremost civil engineers, the AC railway terminal is set to become operational soon.
• It has been built at an estimated cost of Rs 314 crore.
• The Byappanahalli terminal is the third coach terminal named after Bharat Ratna Sir M Visvesvaraya, sanctioned in 2015-16.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: INTERNATIONAL NEWS

World’s fastest supercomputer “Fugaku’ introduced

• The world’s most powerful supercomputer named “Fugaku”,developed by Japanese scientific research institute RIKEN and Fujitsu, has been made available for research work.
• The development of the machine was started about six years ago in 2014 and was completed in May 2020.
• 74 research projects have already been selected by Japan’s Research Organization for Information Science and Technology (RIST) and will be implemented from April 2021.

About “Fugaku” supercomputer:

• Fugaku will help the Japanese government to achieve its vision to establish an ultra-smart Society 5.0,where all people live safe and comfortable lives.
• Fugaku computer has 100 times the application performance of K supercomputer and is developed to implement high-resolution, long-duration and large-scale simulations.
• A portion of Fugaku’s research is said to be dedicated to COVID-19 related projects.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: STATE NEWS

J&K govt sanctions interest-free loan worth two lakh rupees for PMAY-U beneficiaries 

• Jammu and Kashmir government has approved a proposal to provide interest-free loan up to 2 lakh rupees to the urban homeless economically weaker section beneficiaries under Beneficiary Led Construction (BLC) component of the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Urban (PMAY-U). 
• J&K Administrative Council, which met under the chairmanship of Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, approved the proposal of the Housing and Urban Development Department.
• The beneficiaries under the BLC component of PMAY-U have experienced the difficulty in mobilising their contribution as they come from economically weaker sections.
• As a result of which the construction of dwelling units under this component of PMAY-U could not achieve the desired targets.
• The beneficiaries of this component have demanded enhancement of assistance in their favour so that they can complete their houses within the targeted date of the mission.

About The scheme PMAY-U:

• Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana is an initiative by the Government of India in which affordable housing will be provided to the urban poor with a target of building 20 million affordable houses by 31 March 2022.
• Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana – Urban (PMAY-U), a flagship Mission of Government of India being implemented by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), was launched on 25th June 2015.
• The Mission addresses urban housing shortage among the EWS/LIG and MIG categories including the slum dwellers by ensuring a pucca house to all eligible urban households by the year 2022, when Nation completes 75 years of its Independence.

Covid Tracker helpline launched in Mumbai

• The coronavirus cases in Maharashtra including Mumbai have been witnessing a sharp spike since last few days.
• In order to make the testing convenient for citizens, the Covid Tracker helpline is enabling Mumbaikars to do Covid testing at home without going to the hospital.
• ‘Covid Tracker’ helpline has been launched for the citizens of Mumbai.

About the helpline:

• Through this helpline, citizens are being provided guidance on Covid -19 and various tests are being made available at home.
• Citizens are getting advice from expert doctors by contacting the helpline.
• Further tests, medications and treatments are also being provided at the patient’s home if required. 
• Critically ill patients are being assisted through government agencies for further treatment.
• All these facilities are being provided at government rates and as per the standards of the World Health Organization.
• This initiative by the Udan Foundation is expected to reduce the stress on the government medical system to some extent.

Mizoram paired with Bihar through Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat campaign

• A country wide Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat campaign, which highlights the age-old tradition of our country – unity in diversity. 
• The campaign portrays the very common principle of cultural harmony of the people though we are living in different geographical areas with diversity of language, food, custom and costumes.
• Exchange of different languages, food habits, and similarly paying respect to others’ culture, music, dances and customs are in fact the mantra of Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat.
• Under this Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat campaign, each state is paired with another state and highlights the milieu of mutual exchange of cultures.
• Mizoram is paired with Bihar on Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat campaign.
• Mizoram is endowed with serene landscape and rich natural resources.
• Many people from other states frequently visit Mizoram for occupational and travel purposes.
• Many of them talk about the culture, peaceful behaviour and law-abiding nature of the Mizo people. 
• Also, many Mizo people who have visited Bihar still remember their good experiences.
• Recalling the ethos of culture, customs and heritage of Bihar, many people of Mizoram observed that Bihari people are very cooperative and they live a simple life.
• According to them, Bihar is a mix of Hindu, Islam, Buddha, Jain and Christians.
• A Sizable population belongs to tribal communities.
• Terming the Holi in Bihar as very joyous, they also found that Chhath festival is indigenous to people of Bihar.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BUSINESS NEWS

New mobile app ‘BolSubol’ on poll stats launched for Assembly Elections

• Ahead of the assembly elections in four states and a union territory, a startup firm has unveiled a mobile application with poll statistics and data on the country’s economy to help voters take fact-based decisions before exercising their franchise
• The startup – Demokratika- launched the application, BolSubol, which has economic and political information about all the constituencies in India for over 60 years on average, they claimed.
• “Except the election commission’s efforts, not much seems to be done by political parties to empower voters.
• Hence, the app is rolled out.
• It will offer a powerful microblogging tool,” Ritesh Verma, one of the directors of the company.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: APPOINTMENT NEWS

Kia Motors India appointed Hardeep Singh Brar as the new National Head-Sales & Marketing

• Kia Motors India, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Kia Corporation, has appointed Hardeep Singh Brar as National Head of Sales and Marketing. 
• Brar will be responsible for enhancing Kia’s leadership position in the Indian market and for enabling the next wave of growth, a release issued by the company stated.
• Brar has over two decades of experience in the automotive industry and was most recently working at Great Wall Motors as Director Marketing & Sales.
• Prior to this, Brar has held senior leadership positions across sales, network, and marketing functions at Maruti Suzuki, Volkswagen, General Motors & Nissan.
• He holds a Mechanical Engineering degree from Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology, Punjab and is also an alumnus of Harvard Business School, according to the company release.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: AWARDS AND HONOUR

Mani Shankar Mukhopadhyay bags Sahitya Academy Award 

• Eminent author Mani Shankar Mukhopadhyay, better known as Shankar, is set to receivethe Sahitya Academy Award this year for his Memoirs ‘Eka Eka Ekasi‘.
• Sponsored by Sahitya AcademyGovernment of India, India’s National Academy of letters, the award comprises a plaque and a cash prize of 1 lakh.

Kerala author V Krishna Vadyar honoured Kendra Sahitya Akademi Award 

• For V Krishna Vadhyar, based at Irinjalakuda, the Kendra Sahitya Akademi Award for Best Children’s book is recognition of his work towards promoting Konkani language.
• But these awards hardly make a difference to him as he continues to pursue writing, be it in Malayalam or Konkani.
• Born in Alappuzha, Vadhyar, who retired as a senior superintendent from the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB), has authored a handful of novels.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: DEFENCE NEWS

Indian Navy extends technical assistance to stranded merchant vessel at sea

• The Indian Navy provided technical assistance to a stranded merchant vessel at sea.
• It was done by seven Indian crew members
• INS Talwar deployed in the Gulf of Oman received a broadcast call from the ship requesting for technical assistance.
• The cargo ship was drifting at sea since March 9 owing to failure of its propulsion, power generation and navigational systems.
• The naval teams worked continuously for seven hours on board MV Nayan to operationalise her key equipment such as generators, steering pump, sea water pump, compressor and main engine.
• The naval team also assisted in operationalising navigation equipment such as GPS and navigation lights before MV Nayan could proceed for her next port.

About Indian Navy :

• Founded: 26 January 1950
• Vice Chief of the Naval Staff (VCNS): Vice Admiral Ashok Kumar
• Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff (DCNS): Vice Admiral S. Pawar
• Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS): Admiral Karambir Singh
• Commander-in-Chief: President Ram Nath Kovind

CURRENT AFFAIRS: SUMMIT & CONFERENCES

First Quad Leaders Summit held Virtually

• On March 12, 2021, the first historic virtual summit of Quadrilateral leaders
• The virtual summit was attended by the leaders of India, Japan, US and Australia
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi, President Biden (US), Prime Minister Scott Morrison (Australia) Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga (Japan) addressed the first Quad leaders virtual summit.
• In November 2017, India, Japan, the US and Australia gave shape to the long-pending proposal of setting up the Quad to develop a new strategy to keep the critical sea routes in the Indo-Pacific free of any influence.

Purpose :

• To ensure a free and open Indo-Pacific region and to cooperate on maritime, cyber and economic security, issues vital to the four democracies in the face of challenges from china.
• This agenda, covering Covid-19 vaccines
• To enhance cooperation and raise mutual ambition as they address accelerating climate change.
• The four countries plan to establish a series of working groups that will focus on climate change; critical and emerging technologies, including working to set technology standards and norms and jointly developing some of the critical technologies of the future

About Quad :

• Quad is an informal strategic forum comprising India, the United States, Japan, and Australia.
• The idea of QUAD was first brought up by the then Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe back in 2007. 
• QUAD is also known as the Asian NATO.  
• This was the first-ever meeting between the national heads of the QUAD countries.

About US :

• President: Joe Biden
• Capital: Washington, D.C.

About Australia :

• Prime minister: Scott Morrison
• Capital: Canberra

About Japan :

• Prime minister: Yoshihide Suga
• Capital: Tokyo
• Currency: Japanese yen

About India :

• President: Ram Nath Kovind
• Capital: New Delhi
• PM : Narendra Modi

PM Modi inaugurate Global Ayurveda Festival Virtually

• On March 12, 2021, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the fourth edition of the Global Ayurveda Festival through video conference.
• This festival will be held virtually between March 12 and March 19.
• Union Sports and Youth Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, Union Minister V Muraleedharan, the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) President Uday Shankar and former FICCI President Dr Sangita Reddy will also be present at the event.
• Muraleedharan is the Chairman of the Organizing Committee of the festival
• Note : The festival, which was scheduled to be held in Angamaly in May 2020, was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
• The second edition of the Global Ayurveda Festival had also been inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Kozhikode.

About the Festival :

• It is the largest Ayurvedic event across the world
• It witnesses the largest gathering of experts, stakeholders and business explorers from the field of Ayurveda.
• The festival will include international seminars, a global exhibition and business meet.
• The festival will hold an all-time record in the number of delegates, the number of scientists presenting papers and the number of participating countries and institutions.
• It will feature lectures by 35 internationally renowned scientists and more than 150 Indian scientists.
• It was Led by the Centre for Innovation in Science and Social Action (CISSA), the Ayurveda Medical Association of India (AMAI), the Ayurveda Hospital Management Association, the meet is organised in collaboration with 14 organisations

About FICCI :

• Chairman : V Muraleedharan ( Union Minister of State for External Affairs and Parliamentary Affairs).
• Founded: 1927
• Headquarters location: New Delhi
• Secretary General: Dilip Chenoy
• President : Uday Shankar
• Founders: Purshottamdas Thakurdas, Ghanshyam Das Birla

CURRENT AFFAIRS: ARTS & SCIENCE

J&K celebrates festival of Shivratri ‘Herath’

• The Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, Celebrates the festival of Shivratri ‘Herath’.
• It is a three day festival starting from March 10, 2021 to March 12, 2021.
• Festival Mahashivratri locally known as Herath in Kashmir is being celebrated across J&K by Kashmiri Pandit Community with religious fervour by offering “Watak Nath Pooja”.

Purpose :

• This festival symbolizes the values of devotion and harmony, which are the hallmarks of glorious tradition & cultural ethos of Jammu and Kashmir.
• The festival assumes colossal importance among the Kashmiri Pandit Community who celebrate it to mark the wedding of “Lord Shiva with Goddess Parvati

Significance of Maha Shivratri 

• Maha Shivratri marks the union of Shiva and Shakti.
• Shiva here symbolises Purusha (mindfulness), while Parvati epitomises Prakriti (nature).
• Maha Shivratri was celebrated when the Linga form of Lord Shiva first came into being.

About J&K :

• Governor : Manoj Sinha
• Capital : Jammu (Winter) Srinagar (Srinagar)

Union Culture Minister Prahlad Singh inaugurated digitization of 4.5 Crore pages of Records

• On March 11, 2021, Union Culture Minister Prahlad Singh Patel inaugurated Digitisation of 4 crore 50 lakh pages of Records and Exhibition on Mahatma Gandhi & the Non-Cooperation Movement.
• On the occasion of 131st foundation day of the National Archives of India Mr. Patel launched the process of digitisation
• The exhibition on ‘Mahatma Gandhi and the Non-Cooperation Movement’ is based on the original documents.
• This exhibition will run till 15 April 2021.
• The National Archives currently has a collection of over 00 crore pages, about 4 crore 50 lakh pages will be digitised in the first phase which is expected to get over in the next three years.
• Public records include files recognized by the President of India, volumes, maps, bills, treaties, rare manuscripts, ancient records, personal papers, cartographic records, important collections of gazettes and gazetteers, census records, Parliamentary and Assembly debates, literature, travelogue etc.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

ISRO Launches RH-560 To Study attitudinal variations

• On March 12, 2021, The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) launched a sounding rocket (RH-560) from Andhra Pradesh’s Sriharikota-based Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC).
• It is mainly for studying the attitudinal variations in the neutral winds and plasma dynamics.
• ISRO currently has three different versions of sounding rockets, namely RH-200, RH-300-Mk-II and RH-560-Mk-II
• The  three different versions of sounding rockets are capable of carrying 8 to 100 kilogram of payload to an altitude varying between 80 to 475 kilometres from the ground.

About ISRO :

• Founder: Vikram Sarabhai
• Founded: 15 August 1969
• Director: Kailasavadivoo Sivan
• Headquarters : Bangalore

About Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) :

• Founded: 1 October 1971
• Director: Arumugam Rajarajan

Fugaku: Finally The fastest supercomputer in the world is at full operational status

• Researchers at Japan’s RIKEN institute have announced Fugaku is fully operational and ready to prove itself as the world’s most powerful supercomputer.
• Japan’s Research Organization for Information Science and Technology (RIST) has already selected 74 research projects that will be implemented from next month.
• Aim : making the device core of the computing infrastructure of Japan.

About Fugaku :

• Fugaku is a key national technology, and that will manage it responsibly with the goal to achieve research results that will help build a long-lived and healthy society, disaster mitigation, and better energy use,
• The ultimate goal to establish the government’s vision of an ultra-smart Society 5.0
• Fugaku has topped the Top500 list, a supercomputer benchmark index, for two consecutive years. 
• The computer has 100 times the application performance of K supercomputer and is developed to implement high-resolution, long-duration and large-scale simulations.

About RIKEN :

• President : Hiroshi Matsumoto
• Founded: March 1917, Tokyo, Japan
• Headquarters: Wako, Saitama, Japan

About Japan :

• Capital : Tokyo
• Currency : Japanese Yen
• PM : Yoshihide Suga

CURRENT AFFAIRS: ENVIRONMENT

Hemiandrus jacinda New insect Species named after New Zealand PM

• A newly discovered Hemiandrus jacinda cricket has been named after New Zealand’s prime minister, Jacinda Ardern, making it the fourth insect to be named in her honour.
• Steven Trewick, the scientist named and formally described the insect.

About Steven Trewick :

• Trewick, a professor in evolutionary ecology at Massey University in New Zealand
• Steven Trewick, the scientist named and formally described the insect, informed the name had struck him for reflecting traits of the prime minister

About Hemiandrus jacinda :

• The species of wētā, a giant and flightless cricket, native to the Oceanic country has been called Hemiandrus jacinda apparently.
• The cricket is red in colour and long-limbed, something which is similar to Ardern’s Labour party colour and symbol.

About Jacinda Arden :

• Jacinda Kate Laurell Ardern is a New Zealand politician and she has been serving as the 40th prime minister of New Zealand
• She has been the  leader of the Labour Party since 2017.
• First elected to the House of Representatives as a list MP in 2008
• She has also been the member of Parliament (MP) for Mount Albert since March 2017.

About New Zealand :

• Capital: Wellington
• Prime minister: Jacinda Ardern
• Currency : Dollar

CURRENT AFFAIRS: OBITUARIES

French billionaire MP Olivier Dassault passed away

• Olivier Dassault, deputy of the Les Republicains (LR) conservative party and son of billionaire industrialist Serge Dassault, was killed in a helicopter crash.
• He was 69.

About Olivier Dassault :

• Olivier was the grandson of Marcel Bloch, a famed aeronautical engineer.
• He was the son of businessman and politician Serge Dassault.
• Olivier Dassault was considered the 361st richest man in the world, worth an estimated 6.3 billion euros ($7.3 billion).

About French :

• President : Emmanuel Macron
• PM : Jean Castex
• Capital : Paris

Former middleweight champion Marvin Hagler Passed away

• On March 13, 2021, Former undisputed middleweight world champion Marvelous Marvin Hagler has Passed away.
• He was 66.

About Marvin Hagler :

• He was an American dominated the middleweight division from 1979 until his controversial defeat by Sugar Ray Leonard in April 1987.
• Hagler fought 67 times during his 14-year professional career, winning 62.
• He triumphed on 52 occasions by knockout, while he drew two and lost just three times. Hagler made 12 successful title defences until his defeat by Sugar Ray Leonard by a split decision and he retired a year later.
• Hagler made 12 successful title defences until his defeat by Leonard by a split decision and he retired a year later.

Daily CA On March 13 :

• World Kidney Day is observed annually on the 2nd Thursday in March.The World Kidney Day Steering Committee has declared 2021 the year of “Living Well with Kidney Disease”.
• World Sleep Day is an annual event observed on March 13 organized by the World Sleep Day Committee of the World Sleep Society, formerly World Association of Sleep Medicine, since 2008.
• Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat will be chairing a Conference of States and UTs Ministers on Jal Jeevan Mission and review the progress made under the Mission.
• Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Shri Prakash Javadekar will inaugurate exhibitions at six places virtually.
• The first Meeting of the BRICS Contact Group on Economic and Trade Issues (CGETI) was held under India’s Chairship from 9th till 11th of this month.
• Indian Navy Ship (INS) Talwar, deployed in the Gulf of Oman, provided technical assistance to a stranded merchant vessel carrying seven Indian crew members.
• Five heads of state and heads of government from the South Asian region will participate in the ten-day-long celebrations being organised on the occasion of the centenary of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib and 50 years of liberation of Bangladesh. 
• In the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, the District Administration, Ramban has developed a mobile application named e-Suvidha, which shall bring many public delivery services and departments on the digital platform.
• The Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru now has India’s first dedicated Express Cargo Terminal exclusively for export and import of international couriers.
• Government will soon launch ‘Atma Nirbhar Niveshak Mitra’ portal for handholding and facilitation of domestic investors.
• Politician-writer M Veerappa Moily, poets Arundhathi Subramaniam and Anamika are among the twenty writers who will be conferred with the Sahitya Akademi Award 2020.
• Renowned writer Nikhileswar, and one among the six ‘Digambara Kavulu’ has been chosen for the Kendra Sahitya Akademi Award-2020 for his anthology of poems Agniswaasa penned in 2017.
• American TowerCorporation announced that Sanjay Goel has been appointed Executive Vice President and President, Asia-Pacific succeeding Amit Sharma.
• The Union Cabinet has approved to increase the foreign direct investment (FDI) limit to 74 percent.
• Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has Developed an important milestone in the development of Air Independent Propulsion (AIP) System by proving the land-based prototype.
• The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has completed the development of a radar for the joint earth observation satellite mission with the US space agency National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
• State-owned Indian Bank will divest stake in joint venture entity ASREC (India) Ltd as part of asset monetisation exercise.
• On March 12, 2021, Union Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution launched “Mera Ration” Mobile App for those ration card holders who migrate to new places in search of livelihood.
• The Indian Poet, cultural theorist Ranjit Hoskote released a poetry collection titled, ‘Hunchprose’.
• The readers’ editor of The Hindu S. Panneerselvan authored a book titled Karunanidhi: A Life.
• Actor, producer, director, writer Susmita Mukherjee’s new book of short stories ‘Baanjh: Incomplete Lives of Complete Women’ released in January 2021.
• The National Anti-Doping Agency’s (NADA) disciplinary panel imposed sanctions on weightlifter Madhavan R and boxer Ruchika for violation of its code.
• On March 12, 2021, Mithali Raj became the first Indian woman to score 10000 runs in international cricket across all formats.

Daily CA On Mar 14 & 15 :

• The International Day of Mathematics is 14 March. This year, the themeof the International Day of Mathematics is “Mathematics for a Better World”.
• World Consumer Rights Day Observed on Mar 15. The World Consumer Rights Day 2021 theme is to gather all the consumers in a fight to “Tackle Plastic Pollution”.
• The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has announced a new scheme for tourist vehicle operators.  
• Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank has announced linking of Online Teacher Pupil Registration Management System, OTPRMS certificates with DigiLocker. 
• Information and Broadcasting Minister, Prakash Javadekar inaugurated the exhibition to commemorate 75 years of India’s Independence, Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav at six places in the country virtually.
• India’s first centralised air-conditioned (AC)railway terminal has been built at Baiyappanahalli in Bengaluru.
• The world’s most powerful supercomputer named “Fugaku”,developed by Japanese scientific research institute RIKEN and Fujitsu, has been made available for research work.
• Jammu and Kashmir government has approved a proposal to provide interest-free loan up to 2 lakh rupees to the urban homeless economically weaker section beneficiaries under Beneficiary Led Construction (BLC) component of the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Urban (PMAY-U). 
• ‘Covid Tracker’ helpline has been launched for the citizens of Mumbai.
• A country wide Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat campaign, which highlights the age-old tradition of our country – unity in diversity. 
• The assembly elections in four states and a union territory, a startup firm has unveiled a mobile application with poll statistics and data on the country’s economy to help voters take fact-based decisions before exercising their franchise
• Kia Motors India, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Kia Corporation, has appointed Hardeep Singh Brar as National Head of Sales and Marketing. 
• Eminent author Mani Shankar Mukhopadhyay, better known as Shankar, is set to receivethe Sahitya Academy Award this year for his Memoirs ‘Eka Eka Ekasi‘.
• For V Krishna Vadhyar, based at Irinjalakuda, the Kendra Sahitya Akademi Award for Best Children’s book is recognition of his work towards promoting Konkani language.
• The Indian Navy provided technical assistance to a stranded merchant vessel at sea.
• On March 12, 2021, the first historic virtual summit of Quadrilateral leaders
• On March 12, 2021, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the fourth edition of the Global Ayurveda Festival through video conference.
• The Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, Celebrates the festival of Shivratri ‘Herath’.
• On March 11, 2021, Union Culture Minister Prahlad Singh Patel inaugurated Digitisation of 4 crore 50 lakh pages of Records and Exhibition on Mahatma Gandhi & the Non-Cooperation Movement.
• On March 12, 2021, The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) launched a sounding rocket (RH-560) from Andhra Pradesh’s Sriharikota-based Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC).
• Researchers at Japan’s RIKEN institute have announced Fugaku is fully operational and ready to prove itself as the world’s most powerful supercomputer.
• A newly discovered Hemiandrus jacinda cricket has been named after New Zealand’s prime minister, Jacinda Ardern, making it the fourth insect to be named in her honour.
• Olivier Dassault, deputy of the Les Republicains (LR) conservative party and son of billionaire industrialist Serge Dassault, was killed in a helicopter crash.
• On March 13, 2021, Former undisputed middleweight world champion Marvelous Marvin Hagler has Passed away.