Daily GK Update: 21st April 2023

 Defense

1. Indian Air Force will participate in exercise INIOCHOS-23 held in Greece

• The Indian Air Force (IAF) has informed that it will take part in Exercise INIOCHOS-23, which will be held at the Andravida Air Base in Greece from April 24 to May 4.
• It is a multi-national air exercise hosted by the Hellenic Air Force.
• The Indian Air Force will participate with four Su-30 MKI and two C-17 aircraft.
• Other Nations: Cyprus, Italy, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Slovenia, Spain, Austria, and the USA.
• Aim: To enhance international cooperation and interoperability

 Science & Technology

2. IIT Madras to set up its first international campus in Tanzania

• Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras will set up its first International campus in Zanzibar, Tanzania in October 2023.
• In February 2023, a team of five professors from IIT Madras visited Tanzania and held discussions with various officials on starting the campus.
• It will be the first IIT campus in Africa and classes are to start from October.
• This information was shared by IIT Madras Director V Kamakoti at IIT Madras’ 64th Institute Day.

 National & International Organizations

3. Tier 2, 3 Indian cities saw 162% growth in loan applications in 2022

• According to Prodigy Finance’s Study Abroad Insights Report 2022, its services have received significant growth in Tier 2 and Tier 3 regions in India, where they saw an uptick of 162%.
• Cities like Hyderabad, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Delhi, and Chennai have the highest number of loan applications in 2022.
• In Tier 1 cities, Delhi saw a massive increase of 237% followed by Hyderabad.
• Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities witnessed a growth of an average of 53% and 109% respectively.

 National & International Organizations

4. India shown more confidence in children's vaccines: UNICEF Report

• According to a report published by UNICEF, India is among the three countries out of 55 studied for popular perception of the importance of vaccines for children that have shown improvement.
• The other two countries are China and Mexico.
• The data was collected by The Vaccine Confidence Project (London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine).
• Countries showed low confidence: The Republic of Korea, Papua New Guinea, Ghana, Senegal, and Japan

 Honours & Awards

5. Asha Bhosle to receive Lata Deenanath Mangeshkar Puraskar

• Legendary singer Asha Bhosle will be felicitated with the Lata Deenanath Mangeshkar award on April 24, the Memorial Day of theatre-music veteran Deenanath Mangeshkar.
• The family and the trust have instituted the award in memory of Lata Mangeshkar, who died on February 6, 2022.
• This award was aimed to honor people from various fields such as music, drama, art, medicine, and social work.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi was its first recipient

 Important Dates

6. National Civil Services Day 2023: 21 April

• India has observed National Civil Services Day every year on April 21 to honour the contributions of the officers who work for the nation’s numerous public service departments.
• On this day, the PM will award the officers from the central and state governments for their outstanding contributions to public administration
• On April 21, 1947, Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel (Home Minister) gave a speech to the first group of civil servants in Independent India at the Metcalf House

 National & International Organizations

7. AIM, NITI Aayog, and UNCDF Team Up to Make India a Global Agri-tech leader

• Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), NITI Aayog, and the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) jointly launched a whitepaper to make India a global leader in Agri-Tech innovation.
• They also aimed at expanding these innovations to the least developed countries in Asia and Africa.
• The whitepaper offers actionable steps to overcome challenges faced by Agri-Tech start-ups and facilitate their growth at national and international levels.

 Banking & Finance

8. Federal Bank sign with KiVi as Banking Correspondent

• Federal Bank has signed with an agri fintech start-up, KiVi as Banking Correspondent.
• Aim: To scale and expand its agri-lending portfolio in Tamil Nadu.
• Federal Bank launched the instant KCC platform in September 2022 and claimed to be the first of its kind in agriculture lending, it offers farmers convenience and turnaround time.
  • Aim: At providing small loans to small and marginal farmers, and to facilitate efficient credit flow to underserved rural populations

 Banking & Finance

9. Royal Sundaram launches add-on covers for vehicle insurance policies

• Royal Sundaram General Insurance Co. Ltd has introduced three add-on covers for its vehicle insurance policies - Smart Save, Roadside assistance, and Return-to-invoice.
• Smart Save: This is for private cars, comes at a zero cost and will help the customer to get an upfront discount in OD insurance premium, for repairing their vehicles at Royal Sundaram’s identified repair shops.
• Roadside Assistance: It is for two-wheeler policies and will cover 11 emergency services.

 Science & Technology

10. ISRO, Moon Village Association tie up for Chandrayaan-3 outreach

• The Moon Village Association (MVA) and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) have joined hands for global outreach activities in connection with the proposed Chandrayaan-3.
• Aim: To increase the impact of Isro’s lunar program at a global level and ensure further international cooperation
• It will focus on the global aspect of lunar exploration and identify communication, and encourage the youth to focus on the benefits of every lunar mission.

 State Affairs

11. Haryana CM Khattar launches 3 online services

• Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar has launched three online services to digitally empower people.
• These online services are Pro-active Divyang Pension Service, ‘Tau se Poochho’ WhatsApp chatbot, and online booking of government rest houses.
• The Pro-active Divyang Pension Service for the physically challenged is committed to delivering all services for them at their doorsteps.
• The Haryana Parivar Pehchan Authority has created a WhatsApp Chatbot Tau Se Poochho.

 State Affairs

12. Kerala launches 'One Panchayat, One Playground'

• The Kerala government has launched a project 'One Panchayat, One Playground' project to revive the sports culture in the State by opening quality playgrounds in every panchayat.
• It was inaugurated by Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan at Kallikkad.
• For the first phase of the project, the state government has prepared a list of 113 panchayats.
• Each playground would cost around Rs 1 crore, half will be paid by the Sports department and the rest would be raised from other sources

 Sports

13. Harmanpreet Kaur named among Wisden’s Five Cricketers of the Year

• In the 2023 edition of the Wisden Cricketer's Almanack, New Zealand wicketkeeper-batter Tom Blundell, England wicketkeeper-batter Ben Foakes, India Women captain Harmanpreet Kaur, NZ all-rounder Daryl Mitchell and England pacer Matthew Potts have been named Wisden’s Five Cricketers of the Year.
• Harmanpreet is the first India Women’s cricketer to be named a Wisden Cricketer of the Year.
• She was chosen primarily for her ODI century against England at Canterbury.