” Notes:nigeria leads the global fight against meningitis, introducing the groundbreaking men5cv vaccine, endorsed by who, targeting five strains in one shot. this surpasses previous vaccines, vital as bacterial meningitis, prevalent in africa, poses serious health risks. africa’s “meningitis belt,” including nigeria, faces escalating cases, with a 50% rise reported last year by who. nigeria’s pioneering move sets a precedent for broader adoption worldwide, marking a significant stride in public health.”

” Notes:three-time world champion rashmi kumari secured her 12th national women’s singles title at the 51st national carrom championship, defeating k nagajothi 25-8, 14-20, 25-20. rashmi, employed at ongc, triumphed in the women’s final. in the men’s category, k srinivas clinched his fourth national singles title by defeating s aditya 25-0, 19-6, showcasing exceptional skills with seven white slams.”

” Notes:the himachal pradesh cricket association (hpca) stadium, himachal pradesh becomes the first bcci-accredited venue with a groundbreaking ‘hybrid pitch’ by netherlands-based sisgrass. this innovation combines natural turf with 5% polymer fiber, endorsed by the icc for t20 and 50-over matches. the pitch promises resilience, durability, and consistent bounce, easing maintenance burdens. the universal machine, employed in dharamshala, will replicate this technology in ahmedabad and mumbai, following successful installations at iconic english grounds like lord’s and the oval.”

” Notes:madhya pradesh is leading in implementing the green credit programme, with 500+ approved land parcels for tree plantation across 10 states in two months. 10,000 hectares of land are earmarked. mp has the highest approved degraded forest land (954 hectares), followed by telangana, chhattisgarh, gujarat, and assam. public sector undertakings will carry out plantations to earn green credits. the program focuses on ecosystem services, promoting non-carbon environmental actions, benefiting local soil, water, and ecosystems.”

” Notes:archaeologists in pompeii unearthed a black-walled banqueting hall adorned with vibrant frescoes depicting greek mythology. pompeii, a preserved ancient roman city near naples, italy, lies at the base of mount vesuvius. established in the bronze age, it thrived under roman rule, boasting a population of 10-12,000. buried by vesuvius in 79 ce, pompeii remained hidden until rediscovery in 1748. its remarkably preserved state offers profound insights into roman life, earning it unesco world heritage status.”

” On 11th april 2024, the toronto (canada) based gairdner foundation honoured indian microbiologist and virologist gagandeep kang with the john dirks canada gairdner global health award 2024 for her achievements in global health research. she is the first indian woman to get this award.i. this was a part of the 2024 canada gairdner awards which celebrates the world’s best biomedical and global health researchers.ii. recipients also collect canadian dollar (cdn) 100,000 each and a medal.”

” Bjarni Benediktsson, chairman of Iceland’s Independence Party took office as Prime Minister (PM) of Iceland on 9 April 2024. He succeeds Katrín Jakobsdóttir, who resigned as PM of Iceland to run for President of Iceland.i. He has been serving as the Minister for Foreign Affairs since October 2023.ii. He has previously served as PM of Iceland from January to November 2017.”

” Department of higher education, ministry of education has notified the appointment of ashish kumar chauhan, managing director(md) and chief executive officer(ceo), national stock exchange (nse) and sridhar vembu, ceo, zoho corporation as members of the university grants commission(ugc) for a period of 3 years.i. it has also appointed retd. professor sachidananda mohanty, former vice chancellor(vc), central university of odisha.ii. professor shashikala gulabrao wanjari, vc of national institute of educational planning and administration(niepa), new delhi, delhi as members of ugc for tenure of 3 years or till further orders.”

” India’s anupama upadhyaya and tharun mannepalli won the women’s and men’s singles titles, respectively, at the kazakhstan international challenge 2024 badminton tournament in uralsk, kazakhstan, from 2nd to 6th april 2024.i. tharun mannepalli of telangana defeated soong joo ven (malaysia) in the men’s singles final.ii. former junior world no. 1 anupama upadhyaya (uttarakhand) defeated isharani baruah in the all-indian women’s singles finals.iii. the indian pair sanjai srivatsa dhanraj and maneesha k clinched second place in the mixed doubles after they lost to malaysia’s wong tien ci and lim chiew sien. click here to read more.”

” Computer age management services ltd (cams), india’s largest mutual fund transfer agency, has received a certificate of authorisation from the reserve bank of india (rbi) to operate as an online payment aggregator.• cams obtained in-principle authorisation from rbi in february 2023.”

The association for computing machinery acm named israeli mathematician and computer scientist avi wigderson as the 2023 recipient of the acm am turing award which is often called the nobel prize of computing the award carries a cash prize of usd 1 million

The united nations (un) international day of human space flight 2024 observed across the globe on 12th april 2024 to celebrate the beginning of the space era for mankind and underscores the pivotal role of space science and technology in advancing sustainable development goals (sdgs) and enhancing the welfare of nations and individuals.i. it also emphasises the commitment to preserving outer space for peaceful purposes.ii. the 1st ever international day of human space flight was observed on 12th april 2011. click here to read more.

” Vietnam’s Vice-President Vo Thi Anh Xuan (54 years old) was appointed Interim President of Vietnam on 21st March 2024.• Vo Thi Anh Xuan succeeds Vo Van Thuong, who resigned from the post of President on 20th March 2024. He has been serving as the President of Vietnam since March 2023.i. She will serve as the acting president until the Vietnamese National Assembly (NA) elects a new president.”

” Israel has deployed its ship-mounted defence system ‘c-dome’ for the first time in eilat, the southernmost city of israel.i. the c-dome is a naval version of the iron dome air defence system used to shield against rocket and missile attacks.note: the c-dome defence system was developed by the state-owned defence company rafael advanced defence systems.”

” On april 9, 2024, ntpc limited (formerly national thermal power corporation) launched the latest edition of the girl empowerment mission (gem), its flagship corporate social responsibility (csr) initiative.i. the new gem will add around 3000 underprivileged children at 42 locations of ntpc. with this, the mission will expand to benefit a total of 10,000 girls.”