Current Affairs Quiz - April 2025

Notes:
Uttar Pradesh government has announced a dolphin safari in Varanasi to boost conservation and eco-tourism. The safari will be set up between Kaithi and Dhakhwa villages, home to the highest number of dolphins in the region. Dolphin Mitras have been appointed for Ganges River Dolphin conservation. The goals include increasing dolphin populations, protecting their habitat, promoting eco-tourism, and educating people on dolphin conservation.

Notes:
Researchers at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) have developed a bacteria-based technique to repair bricks for lunar habitats. Future lunar missions, like NASA’s Artemis programme, aim to establish permanent settlements on the Moon. Instead of transporting materials from Earth, astronauts will use lunar soil, or regolith, to build structures. IISc developed a method using the bacterium Sporosarcina pasteurii to create bricks from lunar and Martian soil simulants. The bacterium converts urea and calcium into calcium carbonate crystals, binding soil particles with guar gum. This method is eco-friendly and cost-effective compared to cement.

Notes:
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav launched the four-day School Chale Hum campaign in Bhopal on April 1, 2025. All CM RISE Schools in the state will be renamed Maharishi Sandipani Vidyalaya. The Education Portal 3.0 was launched to digitize school education processes. The campaign runs from April 1-4, 2025, aiming to improve enrollment, retention, and timely textbook distribution. 5.6 crore textbooks (Classes 1-12), 1.02 crore Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) workbooks, and 26 lakh Bridge Course books will be provided for free.

Notes:
The Indian Naval Sailing Vessel Tarini reached Cape Town, South Africa, in its final international stop of the Navika Sagar Parikrama II global circumnavigation. INSV Tarini is a 56-foot, indigenously built sailing vessel commissioned in February 2017 by the Indian Navy. It was built by Aquarius Shipyard Ltd., Goa, under the Make in India initiative. It has advanced navigation, satellite communication, and emergency steering for extreme conditions. It was named after the Tara-Tarini hill shrine in Odisha, historically revered by sailors. The expedition began on October 2, 2024, covering 23,400 nautical miles across three oceans and three major capes in eight months.

Notes:
The Rajya Sabha passed the Protection of Interests in Aircraft Objects Bill, 2025, to implement international agreements on aviation leasing. It aligns with the Convention on International Interests in Mobile Equipment (Cape Town Convention, 2001) and its Protocol on Aircraft Equipment. India signed these agreements in 2008. The bill secures rights over aircraft, helicopters, and engines, ensuring legal clarity. It empowers the central government to make rules and designates the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) as the registry authority for aircraft registration and de-registration, protecting creditors and aviation stakeholders under clear legal guidelines.

Notes:
The Indian Army’s Air Defence warriors from the White Tiger Division demonstrated their operational skills in a live missile-firing exercise using the 9K33 Osa-AK missile system. The 9K33 Osa-AK is a Russian-built, highly mobile, low-altitude, short-range tactical surface-to-air defence missile system. It was developed in the 1960s and fielded by the Soviet Union in 1972. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) designates it as “SA-8 Gecko.” The missile system has a length of 9.1 meters, a width of 2.78 meters, and weighs up to 18 tonnes. It integrates the transporter-erector-launcher and radar (TELAR) for independent detection, tracking, and engagement of aerial threats.

Notes:
The Minister of State for Heavy Industries and Steel informed Parliament about four Smart Advanced Manufacturing and Rapid Transformation Hub (SAMARTH) Centres. These centres were established under the Scheme for Enhancement of Competitiveness in the Indian Capital Goods Sector. SAMARTH Udyog Bharat 4.0 is an Industry 4.0 initiative by the Ministry of Heavy Industry and Public Enterprises. Industry 4.0 involves digital technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), and robotics to improve efficiency and decision-making. These centres assist industries, including Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), by training the workforce through workshops, consultancy, and incubation support for startups.

Notes:
Vibe coding became a trending term in Silicon Valley after being coined by OpenAI co-founder Andrej Karpathy. It refers to using Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) not just for coding assistance but to generate entire applications. Users communicate with Large Language Model (LLM)-based systems like ChatGPT in natural language to create apps. Andrej Karpathy, a founding engineer at OpenAI and former head of AI at Tesla, introduced the term. Vibe coding allows people to build tools, apps, and services without deep programming knowledge. However, it raises security concerns as AI-generated code may lack efficiency, scalability, and proper security frameworks. AI code generators might produce functional code but may not consider optimization, cost, or security risks.

Notes:
A rare set of copper plates from the early 15th century, during the reign of Devaraya I of the Sangama Dynasty, was unveiled in Bengaluru. Falcon Coins Gallery collaborated with the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to present these historical artifacts. The plates are inscribed in Sanskrit and Kannada using Nāgarī characters and were issued during the coronation of Devaraya I. Unlike the traditional Varaha insignia of the Vijayanagara Empire, the seal on these plates features Vamana. Dated to Saka 1328 (1406 CE), they confirm the coronation date of Devaraya I. The inscriptions detail the genealogy of the Sangama Dynasty, tracing lineage from Chandra, Yadu, and Sangama to rulers like Harihara, Kampa, Bukka, Mãrapa, and Muddapa.

Notes:
The ‘Kumbakonam Betel Leaf’ from Thanjavur and the ‘Thovalai Flower Garland’ from Kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu, have been granted a Geographical Indication (GI) Tag by the central government. With this recognition, Tamil Nadu now has a total of 62 GI-tagged products. The GI Tag prevents misuse of these names for commercial purposes and protects against forgery.