Daily GK Update: 30th April 2023

Sports

A retired naval officer, Commander Abhilash Tomy has become the first Indian to complete the prestigious Golden Globe Race 2022.
He finished second in the race, a solo around-the-world sailing race.
This race was started at Les Sables-d'Olonne in France on Sep 4, 2022.
South African sailor, Kirsten Neuschafer also become the first woman to win the Golden Globe Race (GGR), a solo, non-stop circumnavigation of the globe without using any modern technological aids.

International Affairs

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has unveiled a statue of Maratha warrior king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in Mauritius.
The sculpture was created in India by a Delhi-based artist and sent to Mauritius in a container ship.
During his visit, an MoU was signed between the Economic Development Board of Mauritius and the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation to establish a platform for investment between the Western State and the island nation.

National & International Appointments

Bhabha Atomic Research Centre director, Ajit Kumar Mohanty has been appointed as the chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission and the secretary of the Department of Atomic Energy for a tenure up to the age of 66 years (till 10.10.2025).
He has replaced K N Vyas.
He was appointed as the BARC director in March 2019.
In 1983, he joined the Nuclear Physics Division of the BARC after graduating from the 26th batch of the BARC Training School.

National Affairs

According to the Kpler report, India has become Europe's largest supplier of refined fuels, surpassing Saudi Arabia.
Europe’s reliance on Indian crude oil products has grown since the ban on Russian oil.
It also showed that Europe's refined fuel imports from India are set to surge above 360,000 barrels a day.
Russia was the largest exporter of crude oil to India by value in February in spite of the Western price cap of USD 60 per barrel.

Important Dates

India observed Ayushman Bharat Diwas every year on April 30 to promote the Ayushman Bharat Yojana values.
In 2018, PM Modi announced the Ayushman Bharat Yojna to give healthcare coverage to all Indians who cannot afford basic medical services.
This initiative was established along the lines of universal health care to satisfy one of the United Nations' SDGs - "leave no one behind."
This scheme covers all expenses of patients.

Books & Authors

At the 100th episode of ‘Mann Ki Baat’, a book called ‘Collective Spirit, Concrete Action’ was launched.
This book was written by the former CEO of Prasar Bharati Shashi Shekhar Vempati.
According to the author, ‘Mann Ki Baat’ is a combination of the power of radio and the vision of a nation’s leader.
Over the course of 15 chapters, the book special also offers insights and perspectives from grassroots change-makers and iconic personalities.

International Affairs

The Russian-based company Sberbank launched its own AI chatbot GigaChat to compete with OpenAI’s ChatGPT
It was initially designed to support multimodal interaction and communicate in Russian more intelligently.
The GigaChat architecture is based on the neural network ensemble model called NeONKA (Neural Omnimodal Network with Knowledge-Awareness).
It includes several neural network models along with supervised fine-tuning and reinforcement learning with human feedback.

Banking & Finance

HDFC Bank has introduced a Digital Distribution Platform, 'Smart Saathi' for its agents and business correspondents to sell services, especially in rural areas.
HDFC Bank Smart Saathi provides a secure and user-friendly experience to its users.
The newly launched feature will use advanced technology solutions to connect Business Correspondents/Business Facilitators to the bank.
Aim: To boost financial inclusion by taking banking products and services to the last mile

Arts & Culture

The Kondh tribe of Nayagarh district in Odisha celebrates Bihan Mela, which refers to a seed festival.
The event is participated by farmers from as many as 40 villages in Dasapalla block, surrounded by hills and forests.
The preparations begin as soon as farmers have harvested Kharif crops, which include both hybrid and indigenous varieties of paddy, millets, maize, and sorghum.
Kondh tribes are a tribal group found in the hills and jungles of Orissa in eastern India.

National Affairs

The Army Southern Command and some civil agencies conducted a day-long firefighting exercise called ‘Agni Daman - 23’.
The excise was conducted with 56 teams at the 29 Field Ammunition Depot (FAD), Dehu Road.
Aim: To enhance synergy among firefighters to work together in the event of major fire incidents
The exercise was a landmark endeavor in synergizing all the firefighting resources available with the military and civil establishment in Pune.