1. UN blacklists Nigeria's Islamist terror outfit Boko Haram.
- The al-Qaeda-linked group recently hit the zenith of infamy after abduction of over 270 schoolgirls from its citadel of Northern Nigeria.
- The sanction will subject it to an arms embargo and asset freeze.
- The group, which demands the creation of an Islamic state in mainly Muslim northern Nigeria, has recently escalated its campaign of attacks that have left thousands dead since 2009.
2. India's oldest living test cricketer 'Madhav Mantri' is no more.
- The former India wicketkeeper played just four Tests for the country in the 1950s.
- He, uncle of Sunil Gavaskar, had captained Bombay to three Ranji titles.
3. Hiroshi Naka (Japan) to take over as Vice President and Auditor General of the World Bank from July 2014.
- He has over 25 years of experience working with the Japanese Ministry of Finance and multilateral organisations, where he specialised in issues such as economic sanctions, anti-money laundering and supervision of financial institutions.
4. The project Mobile Seva under Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DeitY) clinches 2nd prize in the United Nations Public Service Award 2014 .
- The award is given for the Asian and Pacific Region in category of promoting whole of government approaches in Information Age.
- It is the only project from India to win any award this year.
- The first rank was achieved by Republic of Korea for its initiative Social Security Information System (SSIS) under Korea Health and Welfare Information Service.
5. World Turtle Day 2014 is observed across the globe on May 23.
- The day is celebrated to raise efforts and awareness towards preservation of turtles and tortoise.
- Turtles are considered to be the oldest living species (approx 200 million years old) in the world.
- They even predate ancient creatures like mammals, birds, snakes and lizards.
6. The 21st annual joint naval exercise, SIMBEX 14, between Indian and Singapore Navies is underway in Andaman Sea.
- The week long drill is in operation from May 22-28.
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