Table of Contents:
1. Nicola Fox - First Woman Science Chief of NASA 
2. Rajesh Malhotra – The New Principal Director General of the Press Information Bureau 
3. India Wins GSMA Government Leadership Award 2023 
4. Manchester United won the Carabao Cup title 2023
5. 1300 Year Old Buddhist Stupa Found in Odisha 

Nicola Fox - First Woman Science Chief of NASA 
 

For the first time, the American space agency NASA has appointed a woman as the Science Chief. Nicola Fox was a leading researcher on the Parker Solar Probe project, which explored the sun. Previously she was the Director of NASA's Heliophysics Science Division and also served as the Science and Operations Coordinator for the International Solar-Terrestrial Physics Science Initiative. Fox will lead NASA’s science directorate, a unit with an annual budget of roughly $7 billion. 

NASA 

• NASA: National Aeronautics and Space Administration  

• An independent agency of the U.S. federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. 

• Formed on: 29th July 1958  

• Headquarters: Washington, United States. 

• Founder: Dwight D. Eisenhower 

• Preceding agency: National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics 

• Motto : Exploring the secrets of the universe for the benefit of all 

Rajesh Malhotra – The New Principal Director General of the Press Information Bureau

Senior Indian Information Service (IIS) officer Rajesh Malhotra was appointed as the Principal Director General of the Press Information Bureau. Malhotra, a 1989 batch officer, succeeds Satyendra Prakash, who superannuated on Tuesday.Rajesh Malhotra was elevated to a higher grade of IIS in June last year and appointed as the Principal Director General of the Central Bureau of Communication. He continued to look after the publicity of the Ministry of Finance in the Press Information Bureau. 

The Information and Broadcasting Ministry also named Priya Kumar as the Director General of Doordarshan News (DD News). She succeeds Mayank Agrawal. 

PBI 

• PBI: Press Information Bureau 

• Formed in: 1919 

• Headquarters: National Media Centre, New Delhi 

• Responsible ministry: Ministry of Information and Broadcasting 

• Principal Director General: Rajesh Malhotra 

• Minister for the Ministry of I&B: Anurag Singh Thakur 

India Wins GSMA Government Leadership Award 2023 

GSM Association (GSMA) has conferred Government Leadership Award 2023 to India for implementing best practices in telecom policy and regulation. GSMA, which represents more than 750 mobile operators and 400 companies in the telecom ecosystem, recognizes one country every year. India was declared winner in the ceremony held at Mobile World Congress Barcelona on 27 Feb, 2023. 

Following the ‘Digital India’ vision, Government brought in structural and procedural reform in September 2021. Thereafter, several initiatives were carried out such as licensing reforms, creation of PM Gati Shakti Sanchar Portal, streamlining Right of Way (RoW), spectrum reforms, satellite reforms etc. 

GSMA 

• GSM Association: Global System for Mobile Communications 

• Formed in: 1995 

• Headquarters: London, UK 

• Type: Industry Trade Body 

• Purpose: Representing mobile network operators 

• Three broad pillars of GSMA are: Industry Services and Solutions, Connectivity for Good, and Outreach 

Manchester United won the Carabao Cup title 2023 
 

The Carabao cup is also known as the EFL cup, is an annual knockout competition and major trophy in men's domestic football in England. Manchester United defeated Newcastle to win the Carabao Cup title in 2023 after six years. Newcastle is a Saudi Arabia-backed club. The competition was open to all clubs participating in the Premier League and the English Football League. Liverpool is the most successful club in the competition and has won more than nine championships. 

• Organising body: English Football League 

• Founded in: 1960 

• Region: England 

• Number of Participating Teams: 92 

• Current champions: Manchester United (6^th title) 

• Most successful club: Liverpool (9 titles) 

1300 Year Old Buddhist Stupa Found in Odisha 

The Archaeological Survey of India recently discovered a 1,300-year-old Buddhist stupa near Jagannath temple located in Puri. The stupa was discovered during a mining operation. Khondalite stone is mined here. It is a metamorphic rock and was used in the construction of the Puri Jagannath temple. 

Features: 

• The discovered stupa is 4.5m tall 

• It belongs to the 7^th or 8^th century 

• Located in the Prabhadi site 

The stupa was discovered in the Prabhadi site of Odisha. The prabhadi site is located near Lalitagiri, a major Buddhist complex. Lalitagiri has many stupas, Buddha images, and monasteries. 

Khondalite Stone 

• Considered to be metasedimentary rocks formed during Archaean era  

• In India, it is also called Bezwada Gneiss and Kailasa Gneiss. 

• It was named after the Khond tribe of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh 

• It is used in construction of buildings and temples. It is used in Konark Sun Temple