Current affairs 19 August 2023

Reserve Bank of India launched a centralized Web portal, UDGAM.

• The Reserve Bank of India launched a centralized Web portal, UDGAM (Unclaimed Deposits Gateway to Access Information), for searching unclaimed deposits across multiple banks.
• Aim: To identify their unclaimed deposits and accounts and enable them to either claim the deposit amount or make their deposit accounts operational at their respective banks.
• The 7 banks include State Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, Central Bank of India, South Indian Bank and Dhanlaxmi Bank.

India’s first village atlas' is of Mayem in Goa.

• Mayem has become the first village in Goa to have a biodiversity atlas, a 250-page document with maps detailing the floral and faunal biodiversity of the village.
• The atlas was prepared based on the People’s biodiversity register (PBR) prepared by the village Biodiversity management committee.
• There are huge funds to be tapped for villages that have registered biodiversity atlases. For every lake, the government of India is ready to give Rs 10 crore to maintain it.

India gets first-ever night street racing circuit in Chennai.

• Tamil Nadu government partnered with Racing Promotions Private Limited to launch India's first-ever night street racing circuit in India and South Asia that will be hosting a night race.
• RRPL is also the promoter of the Indian Racing League and F4 Indian Championship.
• As for the track, it is a 3.5km layout, located around the Island Grounds that resides in the heart of the city.
• Minister for Youth Welfare and Sports Development Udhayanidhi Stalin has launched the circuit

India's first long-range revolver "Prabal" to be launched.

• India's first long-range revolver Prabal is to be launched in August 2023 manufactured by Advanced Weapons and Equipment India (AWEIL). About Prabal.
• The Prabal revolver boasts a firing range of up to 50 metres, more than twice the reach of other revolvers.
• The Prabla revolver is light in weight and equipped with a side swing cylinder.
• It weighs 700 grams (without cartridges) in weight and its barrel length is 76 m, while its overall length is 177.6 mm.

Wipro launches center of excellence on generative AI at IIT Delhi.

• Indian IT services company Wipro introduces the launch of a new Center of Excellence on Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) in partnership with IIT Delhi.
• Aim: To foster accelerated innovation in some of the most exciting emerging areas of technology.
• Objective: To enhance our research & development capabilities in emerging regions, such as generative AI.
• Teams will jointly work on building innovative solutions using AI, ML, and other technologies.