Daily GK Update: 5th May 2023

 Sports

1. Dubai to host the inaugural edition of the Global Chess League

• Dubai (UAE) will host the inaugural edition of the Global Chess League (GCL) from June 21 to July 2, 2023.
• The chess league will be held in association with Dubai Sports Council, the hosting partner of the league.
• It will feature six teams with six players each, including a minimum of two female players and one icon player per team.
• The six teams will compete in a round-robin format where each team will play 10 matches.
• GCL is a joint venture of FIDE and Tech Mahindra

 National Affairs

2. The National Manufacturing Innovation Survey 2021-22 released

• According to a National Manufacturing Innovation Survey (NMIS) 2021-22, conducted by the Department of Science and Technology and UNIDO, Karnataka has topped the ranking of the most innovative state in manufacturing, followed by Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, and Haryana.
• The survey also highlighted that Karnataka has the highest number of companies in manufacturing that carry out innovations.
• Bottom: Northeastern states (excluding Assam), followed by Bihar.

 Banking & Finance

3. RBI, BIS launch global technology competition ‘G20 TechSprint’

• RBI and the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) have jointly launched the fourth edition of the G20 TechSprint, a global technology competition.
• Focus: On developing innovative technology solutions for cross-border payments
• Shortlisted teams will be invited to develop their solutions over a six-week period and each team will be eligible for a stipend of eight lakh rupees.
• The winners for each problem statement will receive an award of forty lakh rupees.

 Summits & Conferences

4. UAE govt launches ‘Machines Can See 2023’ Summit

• The UAE government has launched the ‘Machines Can See 2023’ Summit, taking place at the Museum of the Future in Dubai.
• It is one of the international conferences in Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the whole region.
• It is organized in partnership between Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy, Remote Work Applications Office and the ‘Machines Can See’ company.
• Aim: To bring together experts from around the world to discuss the future of AI and its potential

 International Affairs

5. USFDA approves world's first RSV vaccine for older adults

• The United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) has approved the world's first Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) vaccine for older adults.
• However, this vaccine still needs approval from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, before its launch in Public.
• The vaccine was approved for people aged 60 and older.
• RSV is a common respiratory virus that usually causes mild, cold-like symptoms.
• It can be serious, especially for infants and older adults.

 National Affairs

6. India to launch its own heat index next year

• India will launch its own heat index in 2024 to quantify the impact of heat on its population and generate impact-based heatwave alerts for specific locations.
• IMD started issuing an experimental heat index for different parts of the country.
• It includes various parameters like wind, temperature, humidity, duration of exposure, etc.
• Impact of Heat waves: It has an immense impact on human health, causing cramps, exhaustion, stress, and heat stroke.

 Banking & Finance

7. RBI updates KYC instructions on wire transfers for banks, institutions

• RBI has updated instructions in the Master Direction on KYC related to wire transfers and aligned the same with the relevant recommendation of the FATF.
• The Banks and other financial institutions ensure cross-border as well as domestic wire transfers contain complete information about the originator and beneficiary.
• Wire Transfer: It is an electronic transfer of funds via a network that is administered by banks and transfer service agencies around the world

 Banking & Finance

8. RBI announces 6.97% interest rate on Floating Rate Bond 2024

• RBI has announced the interest rate of 6.97% on the Floating Rate Bond 2024, for the half year from May 7 to November 6, 2023.
• Floating Rate Bonds are securities that do not have a fixed coupon rate.
• They have a variable coupon rate which is re-set at preannounced intervals
• The FRB bonds carry a coupon with a base rate equivalent to a weighted average yield of the last three auctions of 182-day Treasury Bills (T-Bill) plus a fixed spread decided by way of auction

 National Affairs

9. Govt sets foodgrain production target of 332 MT for 2023-24

• Union Agriculture Minister, Narendra Singh Tomar inaugurated National Conference on Agriculture for Kharif Campaign 2023-24.
• During the conference, he announced that the Ministry of Agriculture has set a target of a record 3,320 lakh tonnes (332 million tonnes) production of foodgrains for the year 2023-24.
• In 2022-23, 3,235 lakh tonnes were produced.
• The target for the production of Pulses is fixed at 292.5 lakh and for oilseeds at 440 lakh tonnes in 2023-24.

 Banking & Finance

10. Axis Bank, India Shelter Finance partner for co-lending small loans

• Axis Bank and India Shelter Finance Corporation Ltd (IndiaShelter) have signed a strategic partnership under the co-lending model to offer secured MSME loans to middle and low-income borrowers in semi-urban areas
• Axis Bank will bring deep financial expertise, while IndiaShelter will provide loan processing technology to assess borrowers' credit profiles
• This partnership will strengthen the mortgage segment and help the bank augment its priority sector lending portfolio

 Obituaries

11. Three-time Olympic medalist Tori Bowie passed away

• Former 100m world champion sprinter from the United States of America, Tori Bowie passed away at 32 in Orlando, Florida.
• She was crowned world champion in 2017 and won three Olympic medals at the Rio Games in 2016.
• She won the Olympic Gold with the USA relay team at the Rio Olympics in 2016.
• She was born and raised in Mississippi.
• She played basketball before her talent on the track became apparent.

 Banking & Finance

12. HDFC Bank plans to expand its presence in semi-urban, rural locations

• HDFC Bank has launched its retail banking program ‘Vishesh’ for customers in semi-urban and rural geographies wherein it plans to onboard around 1 lakh new customers.
• The bank plans to add more branches and launch tailor-made products and financial solutions for this market segment.
• They will look to add 675 branches in semi-urban and rural geographies in FY24.
• Presently, 52% of the bank’s 7,821 branches are in rural and semi-urban locations.

 Agreement

13. India, Israel sign MoU to further collaboration in high technology areas

• India and Israel have signed an MoU on Industrial Research and Development Cooperation.
• Aim: To collaborate in high technology areas such as Artificial Intelligence, Quantum, and semiconductors, synthetic biology, etc.,
• The MoU was signed between CSIR and the DDR&D, Ministry of Defense of Israel.
• It enables cooperation in the industrial R&D programs in mutually agreeable industrial technology fields through the implementation of specific projects.