• The concept of ‘Glycemic Index’ was first proposed by David Jenkins of the University of Toronto in 1981.
• The glycemic index (GI) of a food refers to the property of the food to increase the blood glucose level and is a measure of the ‘quality’ of carbohydrates.
• Glucose or white bread is used as the comparator. The GI of glucose is taken as 100 and the GI of other foods is given as a percentage of this. Thus, the GI of foods is classified as low GI (less than 55), medium GI (56- 69) and high GI (over 70).
• The GI multiplied by the amount of the carbohydrate consumed, determines the glycemic load (GL).
• Examples of diets with low GI include brown rice, steel cut oats, legumes, pulses and beans, fruits like apple and guava, and vegetables like spinach, lettuce, brinjal, broccoli, tomatoes, paneer, soya, nuts and seeds.
• Diets with high GI include sugar and sweets, white rice, Maida, potato, white bread, sweetened drinks, jaggery, cornflakes and cookies.
• If diets with high GI, i.e., the ‘bad’ carbohydrates, are replaced with ‘good’ carbs which have low GI and this is combined with adequate physical activity (exercise), it could help to curb the growing incidence of premature cardiovascular disease in India.

• India’s net direct tax collections grew 7% in 2023-24 to hit ₹19.58 lakh crore, marginally surpassing the revised estimates for the year, thanks to a surge in personal income tax whose share of the tax kitty rose to 53.3% from 50.06% in the previous year while corporate taxes’ contribution dipped to 46.5% from 49.6%.
• PIT and STT receipts also grew at almost double the pace of corporate taxes last year.
• In the beginning of March, net direct taxes had risen 88% to ₹18.9 lakh crore, with PIT and STT accounting for 51.4% of the receipts and corporate tax yielding ₹9.14 lakh crore.
• By the end of march, PIT and STT inflows had increased by ₹73,000 crores, lifting their full-year tally to ₹10.44 lakh crore.
• Although gross corporate tax collections increased from ₹10.98 lakh crore as of March 17 to ₹11.32 lakh crore by the close of the financial year, the net tax receipts from corporates, calculated after adjusting for refunds, dropped from ₹9.14 lakh crore on March 17 to ₹9.11 lakh crore.
• The gross direct tax kitty for 2023-24 stood at ₹23.37 lakh crore, reflecting a growth of 18.5% over the ₹19.72 lakh crore tally in 2022-23.

• The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has removed the age limit for purchasing health insurance policies, with effect from April 1.
• Earlier, there was an age limit of 65 years to buy new health insurance policies. The IRDAI’s latest move is aimed at bringing in extended health benefits to senior citizens.
• The move will enhance the accessibility and affordability of healthcare coverage across all age groups.

ABOUT IRDAI: –

• The IRDAI is an autonomous and statutory body responsible for managing and regulating India’s insurance and reinsurance industry.
• Nodal Ministry: – Ministry of finance.
• Composition: – 10 Member body, five full-time and four part-time members appointed by the government of India.
• Chairperson: – Debasish Panda
• Headquarter: – Hyderabad

• The Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA) has set up an office in Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City), Gandhinagar, to provide foreign currency-denominated debt financing for green hydrogen and renewable energy manufacturing projects.
• This move is particularly crucial in the context of India’s ambitious National Green Hydrogen Mission, which aims to produce over 5 million metric tons per annum (MTPA) of hydrogen by 2030.

ABOUT IRDEA

• IREDA is a mini ratna company under the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE).
• It was set up in 1987 as a specialized non-banking finance agency for the renewable energy sector.
• IREDA plays a key role in renewable energy project financing which gives confidence to the financial institutions/banks to lend in the sector.

• Complete 100% FDI under automatic route is permitted to manufacture components and systems/ sub-systems for satellites, ground segment and user segment.
• At present, satellite manufacturing and operation, satellite data products and ground and user segment can get a 74% FDI. Beyond this, government route will be applicable.
• Up to 49% FDI is allowed in the creation of spaceports for launching and receiving spacecraft through automatic routes. Beyond this, government route is applicable on these activities.
• Elon Musk expected to announce the launch of Star link and investments worth $2-$3 billion.

WHAT IS STARLINK ?

• Starlink has a constellation of 4,000 low earth orbit satellites. Starlink is a satellite internet constellation operated by Starlink Services, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of American aerospace company SpaceX, providing coverage to over 70 countries.

• The conference, held on the first anniversary of Sudan’s civil war, features representatives from its neighbors, Gulf states and western powers, all brought together to collect donations for an underfunded UN humanitarian aid appeal.
• France is seeking contributions from the international community, and attention to what officials say is a crisis crowded out of the global conversation by ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza.
• The ambassador of France to Sudan- The Ambassador of France to the Republic of the Sudan is Ms Raja Rabia. The Ambassador of the Sudan in France is Mr Omar Bachir Manis.

• Rohit Sharma has played his 250th Indian Premier League match, becoming only the second player to do so after MS Dhoni.
• Rohit reached this milestone in a match against Punjab Kings in Mullanpur, Chandigarh.
• Rohit Sharma through his IPL career has racked up 6472 runs at an average of 30.1 and strike rate of 131.22. He has hit 42 half-centuries and scored 2 tons in his IPL career. This makes him the fourth highest run-scorer in the tournament’s history just behind the likes of Virat Kohli who is at the top followed by Shikhar Dhawan and David Warner respectively.

Most Matches Played in IPL

• 256 – MS Dhoni (Chennai Super Kings & Rising Pune Supergiant)
• 249 – Rohit Sharma (Deccan Chargers & Mumbai Indians)
• 249 – Dinesh Karthik (Delhi Capitals, Mumbai Indians, Kolkata Knight Riders, Punjab Kings, Royal Challengers

Bengaluru & Gujarat Lions)

• 244 – Virat Kohli (Royal Challengers Bengaluru)
• 232 – Ravindra Jadeja (Rajasthan Royals, Chennai Super Kings & Gujarat Lions)

• Meta announces its new AI assistant, Meta AI, powered by the advanced language model, Llama 3. This AI is being integrated across all major Meta apps and will soon be accessible on Meta’s VR headset and smart glasses.

FEATURES OF META AI

• Meta AI is an artificial intelligence laboratory owned by Meta Platforms Inc. (formerly known as Facebook, Inc.).
• Meta AI develops various forms of artificial intelligence, including augmented and artificial reality technologies. Meta AI is also an academic research laboratory focused on generating knowledge for the AI community.
• Basically, Meta AI is a free virtual assistant which can be used “to do everything from research, planning a trip with your group chat, writing a photo caption and more,”

ABOUT LIMA 3

• It is the most advanced AI model, capable of understanding and generating human-like responses to a wide range of queries and prompts. The model runs on powerful chips designed by NVidia, enabling it to process and analyze large volumes of data efficiently.

• The Armed Forces Medical Services (AFMS) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for collaborative research and training with Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur.
• The MoU was signed by Director General Armed Forces Medical Services Lt Gen Daljit Singh and Officiating Director, IIT Kanpur Prof. S. Ganesh.
• AFMS and IIT Kanpur will team up to undertake research and develop new technologies to address health problems faced by soldiers in difficult terrains.
• IIT Kanpur will also provide technical expertise for developing AI diagnostic models, at Armed Forces Centre for Computational Medicine established in Armed Forces Medical College, which is first of its kind amongst medical colleges in India.
• The faculty exchange program, joint academic activities and development of training modules will also be planned.

• Hindustan Zinc Limited, a Vedanta group company, became the third-largest silver producer globally, according to the World Silver Survey 2024 conducted by ‘The Silver Institute’, USA.
• According to the Survey, the company’s Sindesar Khurd Mine (Rajasthan) was now the world’s second-largest silver-producing mine, moving up from last year’s fourth position.
• Mexico-based Fresnillo is the world’s largest silver producer. It has silver and gold mining operations across Mexico.
• Polish miner KGHM Polska Miedz is the second-largest producer of silver in the world.
• Hindustan Zinc, a Vedanta Group company in zinc, lead and silver businesses, is the world’s second largest integrated zinc producer and now the third largest silver producer.
• Chairperson of Hindustan Zinc – Priya Agarwal Hebbar