The Indian Air Force has selected Group Captain Shaliza Dhami to take over command of a frontline combat unit in the Western sector. She is the first woman to command any combat unit of IAF.

• Group Captain Dhami was commissioned in the year 2003 as a Helicopter pilot and has over 2800 hours of flying experience. A Qualified Flying Instructor, she has served as Flight Commander of a Helicopter Unit in the Western sector.
• Having been commended by the Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief on two occasions, the officer is presently posted in the Operations branch of a frontline Command Headquarters.

Election Commission will host the 3rd International Conference on the theme ‘Inclusive Elections and Elections Integrity’ in virtual format .

• ECI is leading the Cohort on Elections Integrity which was established as a follow up to the ‘Summit for Democracy’ held  in 2021.
• Over 46 Participants from 25 Countries as well as representatives from  International foundation for Electoral systems and Civil Society Organisations are expected to participate in the Conference.
• Chief Election Commissioner  Rajiv Kumar and Election Commissioners  Anup Chandra Pandey and Arun Goel will also address the Conference. .

Every year on 8 March, International Women’s Day is celebrated to commemorate and honour women's accomplishments, raise awareness about gender disparities and discrimination, as well as promote global support for women.

• The theme for International Women’s Day 2023 is DigitALL: Innovation and technology for gender equality.  
• Internationally, purple is taken as a colour to symbolise women’s day.
• International Women's Day has been observed since the early 1900s.

Yaoshang Festival is one of the premier festivals of Manipur. This festival is celebrated on the full moon day of Phalguna and is widely popular as the festival of colors. This festival lasts about five days and enjoy with full of enthusiasm. he five-day-long Yaoshang festival, Manipur’s version of Holi, has begun on Tuesday(07 March, 2023).

Filmmaker Satish Kaushik passed away at the age of 66 after suffering a heart attack. The well known actor had been in Delhi for Holi celebrations when he was rushed to the hospital after feeling unwell.

• He passed away enroute to the Fortis Hospital in Gurugram in the early hours of Thursday.
• According to reports quoting sources, the initial post mortem report suggests that no injury mark was found over the body. Cardiac arrest is believed to be the cause of death. 

India has proposed to launch a mega global alliance under its leadership to protect big cats and assured support over five years with guaranteed funding of $100 million (over Rs 800 crore).

• The proposed International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA) will work towards the protection and conservation of the seven major big cats — tiger, lion, leopard, snow leopard, puma, jaguar and cheetah.
• Membership to the alliance will be open to 97 “range” countries, which contain the natural habitat of these big cats, as well as other interested nations, international organisations, etc.

Thirteen photographers including senior photojournalist Sipra Das have been conferred with National Photography Awards in various categories at a function in New Delhi.

• Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Dr L Murugan today gave away the awards in presence of Secretary, Information and Broadcasting Apurva Chandra.
• Photojournalist Sipra Das has been honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award.
• Six photographers each were conferred in the category of  Award for Professional Photographers and Award for Amateur Photographers.

The National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) has launched the Integrated Teacher Education Programme (ITEP) in 57 Teacher Education Institutions (TEIs) throughout India.

• This flagship initiative is launched under NEP 2020.
• It was notified in 2021. It offers a 4-year dual-major undergraduate degree program, preparing teachers for the 4 stages of the new school structure i.e. the 5+3+3+4 structure of foundational, preparatory, middle and secondary schooling.

The Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment’s flagship program, Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan (NMBA), aims to raise awareness about substance abuse among youth in India, with a particular focus on higher education institutes, university campuses, schools, and community engagement.

• Recently, the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment and Brahma Kumaris inked a Memorandum of Understanding to make NMBA more effective and widespread.
• Substance abuse means excessive use of drugs and alcohol.
• The program, started in 2020 by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, was started with a target of 272 of the most vulnerable districts. 

The International Maritime Exercise/ Cutlass Express 2023 (IMX/CE-23), is currently underway in the Gulf region from February 26 to March 16, 2023 organized by the US-led Combined Maritime Forces ,a 34-nation naval group.

• The Indian warship INS Trikand has arrived in Bahrain for her first participation in the International Maritime Exercise. 
• The Captain of INS Trikand also called on Ambassador of India to Qatar, Piyush Srivastava.
• INS Trikand is taking part in theShe will participate in the exercise alongside participants from over 50 nations and international maritime agencies, with the common goal of improving maritime security and keeping the region’s sea lanes safe for maritime commerce.