CURRENT AFFAIRS OF 4th MAY, 2023

CURRENT AFFAIRS OF 4^th MAY, 2023

1. International Firefighters Day is annually observed across the globe on 4 May to recognize and honour the incredible work done by the firefighters while protecting the life and property of people.
2. Air Marshal Saju Balakrishnan took charge as the 17^th Commander-in-Chief of the Port Blair-based Andaman and Nicobar Command, which is India’s only tri-services command. He has succeeded Lt Gen Ajai Singh.
3. According to the latest Forbes’ 2023 list, International soccer stars Cristiano Ronaldo ($136 million), Lionel Messi ($130 million) and Kylian Mbappe ($120 million) are the top three highest-paid athletes.  
4. The United States Food and Drug Administration has approved the world’s first Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) vaccine.
5. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and his Maldivian counterpart Mariya Didi on 3 May, 2023 laid the foundation of a harbour for the Maldives National Defence Forces (MNDF) Coast Guard ‘Ekatha Harbour’ at Sifavaru to boost its maritime security capabilities.
6. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on 3 May 2023, laid the foundation stone for Vizag Tech Park a subsidiary of Adani Group company in Visakhapatnam.
7. HDFC Bank, one of India’s leading private sector banks, has introduced its digital distribution platform, HDFC Bank Smart Saathi, to connect business correspondents and business facilitators to the bank.
8. Meera Syal, a renowned actor and writer of Indian origin based in the UK, is set to receive the prestigious BAFTA Fellowship, the highest honour awarded by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts.
9. Vodafone Group announced that Della Valle has been named as permanent Chief Executive Officer of the company.
10. South African fast bowler Shabnim Ismail, the fastest bowler in women’s cricket, has announced her retirement from international cricket on 3 May, 2023.
11. The Indian Government on 29 April, 2023 appointed Rajneesh Karnatak as the Managing Director (MD) of the Bank of India (BOI).
12. Vantika Agrawal became 11^th woman in India to achieve International Master Title 2023 in chess.
13. According to the latest report from global media watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF), India has slipped 11 places and ranked 161^st out of 180 countries in the 2023 World Press Freedom Index.
14. Luca Brecel beated Mark Selby by 18-15 to win the World Snooker Championship on 1 May, 2023.
15. Indian Armed Forces conducted ‘Buland Bharat’, an integrated surveillance and firepower training exercise, at the newly operationalised High Altitude Artillery Ranges of Eastern Theatre located in the West Kameng and Tawang districts of Arunachal Pradesh.
16. On 2 May 2023, American track and field athlete Tori Bowie, who won 3 medals in the Olympic Games, passed away in Florida, USA at the age of 32.