current affairs 01 April 2022

PM Narendra Modi virtually attends 5th BIMSTEC Summit Chaired by Sri Lanka.

• PM Shri Narendra Modi participated in the 5th Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) Summit on March 30, 2022 through virtual mode.
• The Summit was hosted by the Government of Sri Lanka, which was the chair nation of BIMSTEC.
• The theme of the Summit was Towards a Resilient Region, Prosperous Economies, Healthy People.
• At the conclusion of the Summit, Thailand took over as chair nation of BIMSTEC.
• 2022 marks the 25th year of the establishment of BIMSTEC.

Virat Kohli tops in Duff & Phelps Celebrity Brand Valuation Report 2021.

• A Celebrity Brand Valuation Report 2021 (7th Edition) titled Digital Acceleration 2.0. released by Duff & Phelps (Now Kroll).
• In which Indian cricketer Virat Kohli was ranked as the most valuable celebrity for the 5th time in a row in 2021.
• The brand value of Virat Kohli has dropped from USD 237.7 million in 2020 to USD 185.7 million in 2021.
• Alia Bhatt has ranked 4th with a brand value of USD 68.1 million and has become the most valued female celebrity.
• She is the youngest celebrity among the top 10 and she is the most valued brand amongst female Bollywood actors.

Maiden IONS Maritime Exercise 2022 (IMEX-22) concludes in Goa and Arabian Sea.

• The first edition of Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS) Maritime Exercise 2022 (IMEX-22) was held from March 26 to 30, 2022, in Goa and in Arabian Sea.
• The objective of the exercise was to enhance interoperability of the navies of member nations in Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) operations.
• The navies from 15 out of the 25 member nations of IONS, participated in the exercise.
• The Harbour Phase of IMEX – 22 was held at Marmugao port, Goa on March 26 and 27 while the Sea Phase took place in the Arabian Sea from March 28 to 30, 2022.

Cabinet approves USD 808-million programme for "Raising and Accelerating MSME Performance".

• The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, has approved a new scheme to improve the performance of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSME).
• The scheme called Raising and Accelerating MSME Performance (RAMP) is a World Bank assisted Central Sector Scheme and would commence in FY 2022-23.
• The total outlay for the scheme is Rs.6,062.45 crore (USD 808 Million).
• Out of the total outlay, Rs.3750 crore (USD 500 Million) would be a loan from the World Bank and the remaining Rs.2312.45 crore (USD 308 Million) would be funded by the Government of India (GoI).

Vice President Venkaiah Naidu releases book on noted Andhra Pradesh social worker late Shri Somepalli Somaiah.

• The Vice President of India Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu released a book titled Spoorthi Pradatha Sri Somayya.
• K Syam Prasad is the author of the book.
• VC Shri Naidu considers Shri Somayya as one of his foremost gurus and credits him for shaping his personality at a young age.