Introduction
The article CA August 2018 One Liners includes One Liners with an explanation, analysis and issues of current events, including political or industrial controversy or public policy issues in the month of August.
Aug 2018
1. International News
- INS Sahyadri entered the Port of Darwin, Australia to participate in Exercise KAKADU 2018. The exercise is held biennially in Darwin and the Northern Australian Exercise Areas (NAXA). Exercise KAKADU derives its name from Kakadu National Park, which is in Australia.
- The Minister will participate in the meeting consisting of 10 ASEAN countries and six ASEAN FTA partners namely, India, China, Japan, Korea, Australia and New Zealand.
- Union Minister of Commerce& Industry and Civil Aviation, Suresh Prabhu, is leading the Indian delegation for the 6th RCEP Trade Ministers’ Meeting which has begun in Singapore.
Static GK:
2. National News
- ASEAN stands for Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
- ASEAN is amongst the fastest growing markets in the world and presents substantial trade and investments opportunities for India.
- ASEAN has emerged as the second largest trade partner of India in 2017-18 with bilateral trade valued at US$ 81.33 billion, comprising 10.58% of India’s total trade with the world.
- India has invited Pakistan to visit sites of the Pakal Dul and Lower Kalnal hydroelectric projects on the Chenab.
- To promote a culture of innovation and research in higher education, the Union government has introduced Atal Ranking of Institutions on Innovation Achievements (ARRIA), Union HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar announcement.
- Mumbai airport has been renamed as Chhatrapati Shivaji ‘Maharaj’ International Airport.
- Stone laid for Sri Venkateswara Institute of Cancer Care and Advanced Research (SVICCAR), a joint venture of Tata Trusts, TTD in Tirupati.
- In a significant verdict, the Supreme Court today held that a member of an SC/ST community from one state cannot claim the benefit of reservation in government jobs or admission in another state, if his or her caste is not notified there.
- First-ever National Skill Training Institute(NSTI)’s Mancheswar Campus, Bhubaneswar was inaugurated by Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas and Minister of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship.
- Census 2021 to collect data on OBCs
- Census 2021 will for the first time collect data on Other Backward Classes (OBC)
- The growth cemented India’s position as the fastest growing major economy, clocking higher expansion rate than China’s 6.7 in the same quarter.
- The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has allowed Yes Bank CEO Rana Kapoor to continue in his present position till further notice just a day before his current three-year term was about to end.
- Asian Games 2018: Arpinder Singh Wins Gold In Men's Triple Jump
- Asian Games 2018: Jinson Johnson wins gold in men’s 1500m event
- Asian Games 2018: Vikas Krishan settles for bronze after being declared medically unfit Defending champion Seema Punia on Thursday settled for a bronze in the women's discus throw event at the Asian Games in Jakarta.
- India clinched three medals in sailing with Varsha Gautham and Sweta Shervegar won silver in the women’s event; Harshita Tomar won bronze and Varun Thakkar and K.C. Ganapathy won bronze.
- Asian Games 2018: Saurav Ghosal settles for bronze in record haul in squash for India.
- Vikas Krishan was declared medically unfit to compete in the semifinal match against Kazakhstan's Amankul Abilkhan and had to settle for Bronze medal.
- Asian Games: India women claim silver in hockey after 1-2 loss to Japan. Neha Goyal’s field goal in the 25th minute was the lone strike for India
- Srinivasan Venkatakrishnan – CEO Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Vedanta Resources Plc. (Vedanta)
- United Kingdom-based Vodafone Group and Aditya Birla Group have appointed Balesh Sharma as the chief executive officer (CEO) of the merged entity to be created as the local units of the two telecom majors come together for the India market.
- The government of India and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) signed a $375 million loan agreement to contribute to double farming incomes in Madhya Pradesh by expanding irrigation networks and system efficiency.
- The Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Ministry of Science and Technology, and the International Energy Agency (IEA) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Enhancing Innovation for Clean Energy Transition.
- The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Government of India today signed a $346 million loan to finance improvement of over 400 kilometers (km) of state highways that will enhance connectivity and access to economic centers across 12 districts in Karnataka.
- The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday approved the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Insurance Regulatory, Development Authority of India (IRDAI) and the Federal Insurance Office, USA.
- The World Bank and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) will co-finance a project to raise the Karachi Water Supply Board’s operational capacity to deliver safe and reliable water service on a sustainable and predictable basis to all its customers in the provincial capital
- Google has launched a platform for Indian language publishers to digitize their content, at the annual Google for India event held in New Delhi
- Union Minister of Commerce & Industry and Civil Aviation Suresh Prabhu is leading the Indian delegation for the 6th RCEP Trade Ministers' Meeting which begins in Singapore
- NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Dr.Rajiv Kumar, and Chief Executive Officer Shri. Amitabh Kant, today unveiled a series of events to take place in the ‘Mobility Week’ from 31 August to 6 September 2018, in the run-up to MOVE: The Global Mobility Summit 2018on 7 and 8 September 2018 at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi.
- The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has given its ex-post facto approval for the trade cooperation framework between India and Rwanda.
- The INS Sahyadri was deployed in the South China Sea and the Pacific Ocean for over four months, which included representing the Navy in multinational exercises MALABAR 18 at Guam and RIMPAC 18 at Hawaii.
- University of California researchers are feeding seaweed to dairy cows in an attempt to reduce methane emissions & make cattle more climate-friendly.
1. International News
- The First South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Agri Cooperative Business Forum began in Kathmandu.
- The maiden two-plus-two dialogue between India and the United States scheduled in New Delhi next week is an indication of the deepening strategic partnership between the two countries.
- Shri Arun Jaitley, Union Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs inaugurated the new office building of Competition Commission of India (CCI).
- Union Minister for HRD, Shri Prakash Javadekar and Union Minister of State for HRD, Dr. Satya Pal Singh launched the Innovation Cell and Atal Ranking of Institutions on Innovation Achievements (ARIIA) at AICTE, New Delhi.
- The National Sports Day is celebrated every year on August 29 on the birth anniversary of Indian hockey legend Major Dhyan Chand.
- Krishna Kutir, a home for 1000 widows to be inaugurated by Smt Maneka Sanjay Gandhi and Shri Adityanath Yogi at Vrindavan, Mathura, Uttar Pradesh.
- Union HRD Minister launches the 3rd edition of World’s Biggest Open Innovation Model - ‘Smart India Hackathon- 2019’
- The World Bank will provide a $250 million loan facility to Rajasthan for improving the performance of its electricity distribution sector.
- The Government of India, the Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) and the World Bank signed a $220 million Loan Agreement and a $80 million Guarantee Agreement for the India Energy Efficiency Scale-Up Program.
- The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has reportedly established a new unit to strengthen their intellectual capital to tackle new technologies like blockchain, cryptocurrency and artificial intelligence
- Asian Games 2018: Swapna Barman becomes first Indian heptathlete to win Asiad gold, makes plea for customised shoes
- Manjit Singh won the gold in the men's 800 meters event while Jenson Johnson clinched the silver medal in men's 800 meters.
- 4x400m relay women team of Hima Das, M.R. Poovamma, Saritaben Gayakwad and Vismaya won the gold
- 4x400m relay men team of Kunhu Muhammed, A. Dharun, Muhammed Anas and Arokia Rajiv won silver
- Pincky Balhara and Malaprabha Yallappa Jadhav claim silver and bronze respectively in Women’s 52kg
- Ruchi Ghanashyam, an Indian Foreign Service officer of 1982 batch, has been appointed as the next High Commissioner of India to the United Kingdom.
- Chanda Kochhar has been reappointed as a director on the board of ICICI Securities with ICICI Bank, which has a 79.22% stake in the broking and investment banking entity, voting in favour of the reappointment.
- The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Government of lndia signed a $346 million loan to finance improvement of over 400 kilometers of state highways that will enhance connectivity and access to economic centers across 12 districts in Karnataka.
- Government of India and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) signed a $375 million loan agreement to contribute to double farming incomes in Madhya Pradesh by expanding irrigation networks and system efficiency.
- Indian Railways and GAIL (India) Limited sign an MoU for Use of Natural Gas in Railway Workshops and Production Units.
- MoU signed between Department of Biotechnology and International Energy Agency on Enhancing Innovation for the Clean Energy Transition.
- A 21-member committee has been set up to advise Prime Minister Narendra Modi on science, technology, and innovations.
1. International News
- The autonomous robot named Keeko has been a hit in several kindergartens, telling stories and challenging children with logic problems.
- The water commissioners of Pakistan and India are required to meet twice a year and arrange technical visits to projects' sites and critical river head works, but Pakistan had been facing a lot of problems in timely meetings and visits.
- China’s second aircraft carrier, Type 002, being built at Dalian shipyard, has started the second phase of sea trials.
- The United States hopes to strike a quick bargain with Canada after reaching an agreement with Mexico this week on continent-wide trade
- Alibaba Cloud India (ACI) signed an MoU with the A.P-Economic Development Board (AP-EDB) for leveraging the Chinese company’s ET (Extreme Tech) City Brain solutions in diverse sectors like real-time governance, smart city and integrated traffic management, small and medium enterprises and skill upgrading.
- The 400 kv Gas Insulated Switchgear (GIS) sub-station, established as part of the sixth package of Kaleshwaram project at Nandi Medaram in Peddapally district, was commissioned.
- Monitoring of nutrition and health-related services in the Anganwadi centres will go hi-tech in Rajasthan during September, which will be observed as a “nutrition month”.
- Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Monday launched the 'Mu Hero Mu Odisha' (I am hero, I am Odisha) campaign that aimed at identifying agents of change and recognising their contribution to the state.
- The Punjab Assembly on Tuesday unanimously passed Bills for an amendment to the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) to make desecration of all religious texts punishable with life imprisonment.
- Foreign Direct Investment to India decreased to 40 billion dollars last year from 44 billion dollars in 2016 while outflows from India, the main source of investment in South Asia, more than doubled, according to a new trade report by the UN.
- Punjab National Bank (PNB) today said a Department of Financial Services report has rated it as number one state-owned bank in terms of digital transactions.
- DBS named world's best bank in nod to its digital innovation.
- Google India on Tuesday said it has rebranded its Indian payments app Tez as Google Pay and is partnering four banks to provide instant loans for the app’s users.
- The Supreme Court on Monday issued notice to the centre and messaging service provider WhatsApp after a plea sought direction to restrain the app from proceeding with its payments systems unless it fully complies with RBI''s provisions.
- Foreign direct investment in India grew by 23 percent to $12.75 billion during the April-June quarter of 2018-19.
- Neeraj Chopra became the first Indian javelin-thrower to win an Asian Games gold medal as he shattered his own national record by clearing a distance of 88.06m in Jakarta
- PV Sindhu clinched a historic silver medal in Women's Singles Badminton event as she became the first Indian to finish second on the podium in the Asian Games.
- The 2019 Asian Youth and Junior Weightlifting Championships will be held in the North Korean capital Pyongyang, a signal that the secretive country may be coming in from the sporting cold.
- Indian women’s compound team signed off with a silver medal after losing to South Korea in the finals at the 18th Asian Games in Jakarta.
- Veteran Indian long-distance runner Sudha Singh clinched a silver in women's 3000m steeplechase event at the 18th Asian Games being held in Jakarta, Indonesia.
- Neena Varakil gave India another silver medal from the athletics arena after she came second in the women’s long jump event at the ongoing Asian Games in Jakarta
- Japan defeated Spain in the final of the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup France 2018 to claim the title just 15 days after losing 1-0 to the same opponents in the group stage.
- India's Dharun Ayyasamy clinched a silver in men's 400m hurdles in national record time as athletics continued to swell India's medal tally in the Asian Games.
- Educationist Meena Muthiah, social activists Mythily Sivaraman and Ranjini Murugan, were presented with awards at the Madras Week celebrations.
- Meghalaya CM and National People’s Party president Conrad K. Sangma on Monday won the South Tura bypoll, defeating his nearest Congress rival Charlotte W. Momin by over 8,421 votes.
- The 8th meeting of India-Kenya Joint Trade Committee was held in Nairobi, Kenya, from 22nd – 25th August, 2018.
- A Memorandum of Understanding(MoU) was signed between the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) and National Health Agency (NHA) here today, to provide capacity building for Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana(PMJAY) to ensure effective rollout and continued quality implementation.
- The Centre today signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the six Upper Yamuna basin states for the construction of Lakhwar multi-purpose project in Uttarakhand. The states are Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana, and Delhi.
- The Indian Institute of Technology - Madras (IIT-M) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Continental, for a joint research in high computing platforms and cyber security for powertrain applications.
- The third in the series of seven Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPV) indigenously made here was launched at the L&T Shipyard, Kattupalli.
1. International News
- In Sri Lanka, the fourth Asian electoral stakeholders forum (AESF-IV) will begin in Colombo tomorrow to discuss the state of elections and democracy in the region.
- A team of scientists from the U.S.-based Geotechnical Extreme Events Reconnaisance (GEER) Association is arriving on September 3 to investigate the impact of the torrential rains that wreaked havoc across Kerala.
- Iran demanded the UN’s top court to suspend U.S. nuclear-linked sanctions against Tehran, accusing Washington of plotting its “economic strangulation”.
Static GK:
2. National News
- Sri Lanka Capitals: Colombo, Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte
- Sri Lanka Currency: Sri Lankan rupee
- Sri Lanka President: Maithripala Sirisena
- NASA Headquarters: Washington, D.C., United States
- NASA Founder: Dwight D. Eisenhower
- Iran Currency: Iranian rial
- Iran Capital: Tehran
- Iran Supreme leader: Ali Khamenei
- Iran President: Hassan Rouhani
- UN Headquarters: New York City
- U.S. Capital: Washington, D.C.
- U.S. President: Donald Trump
- The union steel ministry has launched a first-of-its-kind initiative through a Corporate Sports Policy for its Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs).
- “Atal Ji Ne Kaha” is the latest of the books on former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee launched by P.M. Modi.
- The Tamil Nadu government today laid the foundation stone for developing a Special Investment Region (SIR) in Krishnagiri district, as part of its efforts to boost economic growth in northern parts of the state.
- The Madhya Pradesh forest department has written to the National Tiger Conservation Authority to revive the plan to reintroduce cheetahs in the State’s Nauradehi sanctuary.
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch here on September 7 the second phase of the FAME India scheme offering incentives for mass adoption of electric vehicles with an outlay of Rs 5,500 crore .
- VCK leader Thol Thirumavalavan on Monday met Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami and presented him a three-point memorandum, including an appeal to provide police protection to party general secretary.
- A 10-member team from the Plan Formulation Wing of the Public Works Department (PWD) has begun a study at Mukkombu (Upper Anicut) to finalise the design of the new regulator across the Coleroon.
- Drones, their operators and pilots will have to be mandatorily registered on aviation regulator DGCA’s online portal, effective December 1.
- Punjab National Bank (PNB), which was recently hit by a multi billion dollar fraud by manipulation of its financial messaging -- Swift -- system, has been ranked as the best PSU bank in the overall digital transactions category in India.
- The Allahabad High Court on Monday refused to grant any relief on Reserve Bank of India’s revised framework on the resolution of stressed assets, a large part of which is in the power sector.
- The Indian men’s table tennis team comprising G. Sathiyan, Achanta Sharath Kamal and A. Amalraj settled for a historic bronze medal after losing 3-0 to South Korea
- India won silver in the mixed 4x400m relay through Muhammed Anas, M.R. Poovamma, Hima Das and Arokia Rajiv.
- India bagged two medals in Kurash, a form of wrestling indigenous to central Asia, with Pincky Balhara and Malaprabha Yallappa Jadhav winning silver and bronze
- Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami on Monday announced a cash reward of ₹20 lakh each to the three squash players from Tamil Nadu who won bronze medals in the ongoing Asian Games 2018 in Indonesia.
- Japan defeated Spain in the final of the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup France 2018 to claim the title just 15 days after losing 1-0 to the same opponents in the group stage.
- Reliance Power said its wholly-owned subsidiary Reliance Power Netherlands BV has won an international arbitration award of $56 million (Rs 390 crore) against Prestige Capital Holdings (a Seychelles-based company) and Kokos Jiang.
- India's Fouaad Mirza won a silver medal at the Equestrian Jumping Final at the Asian Games 2018 in Jakarta.
- Meghalaya CM and National People’s Party president Conrad K. Sangma on Monday won the South Tura bypoll, defeating his nearest Congress rival Charlotte W. Momin by over 8,421 votes.
- Ashok Dongre has taken over as the new managing director of the Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage board.
- The 8th meeting of India-Kenya Joint Trade Committee was held in Nairobi, Kenya, from 22nd – 25th August, 2018.
- The Committee, constituted by Government of India in July 2018 to review the existing framework dealing with offences under the Companies Act, 2013 and related matters and make recommendations to promote better corporate compliance.
- The third Indian Ocean Conference wrapped up in Hanoi on August 28 having reached an agreeable common perception of building a region of peace, stability, and prosperity.
- Gaganyaan – India’s First Indian human mission will be launched by Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) by 2022.
- NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope – which was initially scheduled for 2.5-year primary mission – has completed 15 years of space exploration.
- The Marathwada Statutory Development Corporation has come up with a plan to install solar panels in the backwater of two dams to generate electricity.
- Scientists have set a new Guinness World Record by creating the smallest medical robot – a device measuring just 120 nanometres that could assist in future cancer and Alzheimer’s treatments.
- Six years after tracking down the Higgs boson, the subatomic particle that confers mass on matter, physicists have “at long last” witnessed it decaying into tiny bits called “bottom quarks”.
- Former AIADMK Tourism Minister and Kadayanallur Member of Legislative Assembly, Nagoor Meeran, has died at the age of 55
1. International News
- An Indian Army contingent beat its Pakistani counterpart in the final of a friendly volleyball match organised on Sunday on the sidelines of a mega anti-terror drill being held in Russia.
- Julie Bishop has resigned from her post as Australian foreign minister after deciding not to take part in Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s cabinet.
- Pakistan has banned the VIP culture at airports for “influential people” including politicians, judges and military officials as part of the new government’s austerity plan.
- External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj inaugurated a ‘Jaipur Foot’ camp in Hanoi and met with 500 Vietnamese beneficiaries of the free India-made prosthetic limb.
- Emmerson Mnangagwa was officially sworn in as President of Zimbabwe on Sunday after winning a bitterly-contested election which was the country’s first since the ousting of strongman Robert Mugabe.
- The Odisha government has proposed to come up with a single revenue act by merging various revenue laws enacted at different point in times.
- The capital building process has increased the price of bananas, which are essential, during celebration on Vinayaka Chaviti. The soaring banana prices have burdened the public this festive season.
- The Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS), one of India’s premier avian research institutes, will start operating its regional centre on the campus of Wetland Research and Training Centre near Chilika Lake
- All coaches of the Indian Railways will now display the logo of the Swachh Bharat project and the national flag as part of the national transporter’s plans to celebrate the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.
- Public sector banks are in the process of closing or rationalising about 70 overseas operations as part of capital conservation exercise.
- The country’s largest lender State Bank of India (SBI) has asked its customers to get their ATM-cum-debit cards with magnetic stripe replaced with the one with EMV chip before December 31.
- Hiring activity in the non-banking financial companies (NBFC) sector is likely to expand by up to 35-40% in the next 12 months, driven by rising innovation and growth, according to industry experts.
- India's Tejinder Pal Singh Toor wins Gold medal in Men's Shot Put final at the 18th Asian Games in Indonesia
- India won two bronze medals from the debut sport of bridge in the Asian Games after the men’s and mixed teams lost their semifinal matches
- Sebastian Vettel trimmed Lewis Hamilton’s championship lead by seven points on Sunday as he steered his Ferrari to a convincing victory in a crash-hit Belgian Grand Prix.
- Winston-Salem - Danill Medvedev became the first Russian champion in Winston-Salem tournament history
- Four years ago, the hyperandrogenism issue forced her out of the Commonwealth Games and the Asian Games. But now, with the rules allowing her to run, Dutee Chand is back with a vengeance.
- Indian women outplayed Sri Lanka 3-0 in the team championship final of the fifth carrom World Cup
- Baby Rani Maurya was on Sunday sworn in as the new Governor of Uttarakhand.
- Reliance Naval and Engineering Ltd said Anil D. Ambani has resigned as director of the company.
- Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR) and the government Think Tank NITI Aayog is organizing India Banking Conclave in New Delhi.
- Malayalam film director K.K. Haridas died on Sunday following a heart attack at a hospital here, film industry sources said. Haridas, 52, started his career as an assistant in the 80s and since then has worked as an associate in 48 films before turning into a full time director.
- Former Bengal cricket captain Gopal Bose died following a cardiac arrest at a Birmingham hospital in the UK on Sunday.
- Prolific U.S. playwright Neil Simon, who won more combined Oscar and Tony nominations than any other writer, died on Sunday aged 91.
1. International News
- Iran's Parliament on Sunday voted to remove Economic Affairs and Finance Minister Masoud Karbasian amid the ongoing economic crisis in the country.
- The country which offered to provide Rs 700 crore as assistance to flood disaster relief in Kerala of United Arab Emirates
- A team of international archaeologists has discovered the 4,300-5,000-year-old cemetery 'Lothamam North Pillar Site' in the African country, which is being described as the earliest and largest graveyard in this region Kenya
- The fourth Asian electoral stakeholders forum (AESF-IV) will begin in Colombo to discuss the state of elections and democracy in the region.
- Former president Pranab Mukherjee launches Neta App, a tech platform that allows voters to rate MPs and MLAs
- The Congress on Saturday announced three crucial committees, including a nine-member core group to formulate the political strategy for the 2019 Lok Sabha election.
- The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has kicked off the process to set new standards to measure quality of services offered to consumers across different sectors, including telecom, aviation, e-commerce and healthcare
- The Department of Pre University Education (DPUE) on Saturday launched career guidance and counselling cells (CGCC) in government colleges to give students in government colleges an edge over their peers in private colleges.
- Former DGP N. Sambasiva Rao on Saturday met YSRCP president Jagan Mohan Reddy on Saturday ahead of joining the party.
- External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will begin a four-day tour of Vietnam and Cambodia on Monday, with an aim to deepen India’s strategic cooperation with the two key nations in the ASEAN region.
- India’s Largest Business Incubator Bhamashah Techno Hub Launched In Jaipur, And Its Services Are Free
- Veteran Indian women’s team pacer Jhulan Goswami on Thursday announced her retirement from T20 Internationals, effectively ruling her out for the ICC World T20 in West Indies
- Hima Das on Sunday became the first Indian sprinter since Manjit Kaur in 2006 to bag silver in the women's 400m event at Asian Games.
- Iran's Olympic champion Sohrab Moradi broke weightlifting's longest standing world record in the men's 94kg class by lifting 189kg in snatch at Asia 2018 on Saturday.
- India's Dutee Chand won a silver medal in women's 100m on Sunday at the 2018 Asian Games after clocking 11.32 seconds.
- Industry chamber Assocham appointed former bureaucrat Uday Kumar Varma as its new Secretary General. He succeeds DS Rawat who held the position for nearly 14 years.
- The Centre on Saturday appointed eminent scientist Dr. G. Satheesh Reddy as the Chairman of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).
- Solanki who has a good relation with RSS and BJP, was appointed as the new Governor of the state replacing the incumbent Governor Tathagata Roy recently.
- Myanmar’s Mizzima Media Group announces a forthcoming partnership agreement with India’s Public Service Broadcaster, Prasar Bharati.
- Exercise Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Peace Mission 2018, the latest in 'Peace Mission' series formally started on 24 August 2018 at Chebarkul, Russia.
- For the first time, India's only aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya will be fitted with a marine hydraulic system to boost the air operations of the ship.
- India’s Ministry of Defence today approved procurement for the Services amounting to approximately Rs. 46,000 crore
1. International News
- The South American country whose economic crisis has been triggered by U.S. sanctions on oil exports Venezuela
- Australian Finance Minister who has been elected as the new Prime Minister of the country and who will replace Malcolm Turnbull Scott Morrison
- In countering the Indo-Pacific strategy led by the U.S, China should forge closer ties with India, Japan and Australia.
- The board of directors of the Chennai Smart City and the top brass of Chennai corporation on Tuesday gave their approval to several civic and infrastructure projects mooted under the prestigious smart city project.
- Transport Minister M.R. Vijayabhaskar chaired a high-level meeting of transport officials and a C40 Cities Clean Bus Declaration team at the Secretariat.
- NITI Aayog has identified three major sectors -- health, education and children’s health -- as priority sectors for intervention, said NITI Aayog Vice-Chairperson Rajiv Kumar
- The Naveen Patnaik Government has initiated the parliamentary process of establishing a State Legislative Council (SLC) in its legislative structure.
- The report titled ‘The Urban Commute and How it Contributes to Pollution and Energy’, compiled by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE).
- Former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s ‘Asthi Kalasam’ will be consigned to River Krishna at its confluence with River Tungabhadra at Alampur village in Jogulamba Gadwal district.
- The South Central Railway said it would run special trains for the benefit of pilgrims for Velankanni festival.
- The Maharashtra government is likely to move its banking services to the newly-launched India Post Payments Banks (IPPBs).
- State Bank of India (SBI) chairman Rajnish Kumar on Friday said the bank has put its house in order and will like to pursue 10% growth in advances this fiscal, including through some good corporate lending opportunities.
- Japan’s top steelmaker Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corp. sees India as the most promising market and wants to become “an insider” to capitalise on growth of the world’s third-biggest steel market.
- The Indian quartet of Sawarn Singh, Dattu Bhokanal, Om Prakash and Sukhmeet Singh came up with a superb performance to win gold in the men’s quadruple sculls event.
- Heena Sidhu put behind a modest qualification to win her maiden Asian Games individual medal on Friday, her bronze in the women’s 10m air pistol taking India’s haul at the Jakabaring Shooting Range to nine.
- In a novel initiative, Kannada Development Authority (KDA) is bringing all Dravidian languages on one platform at the Dravida Bhasha Sammelana this November.
- Thomas Mar Athanasios (80), head of the Chengannur diocese of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church, died on Friday after he fell off a moving train near Kochi,
- The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) on Friday granted environmental clearance for setting up the missile test launch facility by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) in the heart of the Krishna Wildlife Sanctuary (KWS) in Krishna district.
1. International News
- SCOTT Morrison has been leader-in-waiting for years, and today he was elected as leader of the Liberal Party and will become Australia’s prime minister.
- The Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) has emerged as the second fastest growing airport in the world in the first half of 2018
- Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje will tomorrow inaugurate the Bhamashah Techno Hub that will provide free space, easier funding avenues and mentorship to startups
- The international water colour festival, starting tomorrow here, aims to bring local artists in touch with the international art and promote the rich art and culture of Jharkhand.
- India's largest e-commerce marketplace Flipkart announced the launch of '2GUD', its first-ever independent platform for refurbished goods.
- The ICOMOS, a global monument conservation body, has launched an initiative to assess the damage to the rich cultural and built heritage in flood-devastated Kerala and set up an emergency response platform.
- The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has directed the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) to submit an action plan on e-waste management within three months.
- The government has imposed a restriction on import of biofuels including ethyl alcohol and other denatured spirits, biodiesel, petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous minerals other than crude, through an amendment in import policy.
- Chennai Metro Rail will run a locomotive all the way from the AG-DMS to Washermanpet Metro station.
- Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami on Thursday lauched the free cycle scheme for this year, that will benefit students of Classes XI and XII.
- Reliance Industries became the first company to cross Rs 8 trillion in terms of market capitalisation (market-cap), becoming the country's most valued firm
- Union Minister Arun Jaitley has resumed duty as the Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister after a gap of three months during which he underwent kidney transplant.
- The Indian economy is expected to grow by about 7.5% in 2018 and 2019 as it is largely resilient to external pressures like those from higher oil prices, Moody’s Investors Service said.
- Indian companies are investing more on securing their data rather than pumping money into technology as they try to build comprehensive solutions to prevent hackers from attacking their networks
- India bagged two bronze medals in rowing through Rohit Kumar and Bhagwan Singh in lightweight double sculls after Dushyant started the day with a third-place finish in lightweight single sculls at the Asian Games in Palembang.
- Fifteen-year-old Shardul Vihan became the youngest Indian shooter to win a medal at the Asian Games after he finished second in the men’s double trap here, extending the sensational run of teen aged shooters from the country.
- Heena Sidhu won bronze in the women’s 10m air pistol, her maiden Asian Games individual medal
- Indian rower’s team comprising Sawarn Singh, Dattu Bhokanal, Om Prakash and Sukhmeet Singh won the gold medal in men’s quadruple sculls
- Aleksander Čeferin has called David Beckham "a true football icon of his generation" after selecting the former Manchester United and Real Madrid midfielder to receive the 2018 UEFA President's Award.
- Senior BJP leader from Uttar Pradesh Lalji Tandon was sworn in as Bihar Governor on Thursday. He replaced Satya Pal Malik, who was appointed Governor of Jammu and Kashmir
- Chief Justice S.J. Vazifdar – Head a committee constituted by the tribunal to decide on Vedanta Ltd’s by the National Green Tribunal (NGT)
- Former India opener Lalchand Rajput has been appointed as the head coach of Zimbabwe national cricket team.
- Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) Chairperson Dr. M. S. Sahoo inaugurated one-day refresher programme for insolvency professionals supported by Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana.
- The President of India Shri Ram Nath Kovind inaugurated the “International Buddhist Conclave (IBC), 2018” here today. The Minister of State (Independent charge), Shri K.J. Alphons presided over the inaugural function.
- Veteran journalist and former Rajya Sabha member Kuldip Nayar passed away at 12.30 a.m. on Thursday after a brief illness. He was 95.
1. International News
- The oldest and strongest sea ice in the Arctic has begun to melt and break up, a result of prolonged warm temperatures in the region north of Greenland.
- The Quad grouping is one of the many avenues for interaction among India, Australia, Japan and the U.S. and should not be seen in an exclusive context, a senior Japanese diplomat said.
- NIRF ranking criteria to undergo assessment. The parameters for working out the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) scores of higher educational institutions in India may be tweaked a bit in 2019
- Facebook Inc, Twitter Inc and Alphabet Inc collectively removed hundreds of accounts tied to an alleged Iranian propaganda operation on Tuesday, while Facebook took down a second campaign it said was linked to Russia.
- Richest Indian Mukesh Ambani's telecom unit Reliance Jio has been ranked as the top company globally on Fortune's 'Change The World' list that ranked companies using the profit motive to help the planet and tackle social problems.
- Govt unveils draft scheme for extending affordable air travel programme UDAN to international circuits
- Embroiled in a controversy after his recent visit to Pakistan, cricketer-turned politician Navjot Singh Sidhu has said he went to Pakistan as a “goodwill ambassador.”
- In a span of seven months, mortality due to trauma and non-trauma at the emergency department of Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital (RGGGH) has dropped.
- A portion of the regulator across the Coleroon river at Mukkombu (Upper Anicut) was washed away. Meghalaya bypolls a race to become single-largest party
- A national effort is needed to develop and produce advanced materials to drive the future space programme, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chairman K. Sivan has said.
- Maersk Line said one of its container vessels named after Mumbai set a ‘world record’ by achieving a load of 19,038 TEU, the highest-ever load so far, surpassing the 19,000-mark for the very first time — not only for a Maersk vessel, but also any vessel in the world.
- In a stern warning to bankers, the finance ministry has asked chief executives of public sector banks (PSBs) to check all NPA accounts exceeding ₹50 crore for fraud, else face criminal conspiracy charges.
- Non-life insurance firms registered a 20% growth in their gross direct premium at ₹11,714.87 crore in July 2018, according to IRDAI.
- The country’s GDP is expected to grow by 7.7% in the April-June quarter on the back of a pick-up in leading indicators like cement production, sale of vehicles and bank credit, SBI said in a report.
- The West Bengal government has signed pacts with BSE and NSE to raise awareness among the State’s MSMEs to tap the capital market as an alternate funding source.
- Ujjivan Small Finance Bank, a subsidiary of Ujjivan Financial Services Ltd., has announced the nationwide roll out of overdraft (OD) facility for micro and small enterprise (MSE) customers.
- Rahi Sarnobat of India won the gold medal for India in 25m pistol shooting event at the Asian Games.
- Football’s world governing body FIFA has taken control of the Uruguayan Football Association (AUF) after the organisation was plunged into chaos following the sudden resignation of president Wilmar Valdez last month.
- It took 86 years but when the Indian men’s hockey team walked off the turf here on Wednesday, it had broken its own record of the biggest victory margin ever with a 26-0 mauling of Hong Kong.
- Divya Kakran added the first bronze to India’s wrestling tally at the 18th Asian Games, beating Taipei’s Chen Wenling in the third-place play-off bout for the 68kg category.
- Serena, who finished runner-up at Wimbledon this year after losing to Germany’s Angelique Kerber in the final, is ranked 26th in the world, nine places below the seeding she has been awarded.
- India today clinched a maiden Asian Games medal in Sepaktakraw despite its men’s regu team losing to defending champion Thailand here.
- Incumbent Haryana Governor Kaptan Singh Solanki has been named as the new Governor of Tripura, the Rashtrapati Bhavan
- The swearing in took place at 11 a.m at the lawns of the Raj Bhawan. The warrant of appointment of Mr. Malik was read out by J&K's Chief Secretary B.V. R. Subrahmanyam and J&K High Court Chief Justice Justice Gita Mittal administered the oath of office.
- Container Corporation of India (CONCOR) has inked a pact with KICTPL for providing rail access to container services.
- Tamil Nadu’s Health and Family Welfare Department has entered into a pact with the Government of Victoria, Australia. This statement of intent will pave the way for efficient trauma system governance, creation of trauma registry and improvement in trauma care quality and research.
- Senior Congress leader and former Union minister Gurudas Kamat died in Delhi after suffering a heart attack early on Wednesday, family sources said.
1.International News
- Spin legend Shane Warne will talk about his extraordinary cricketing career and his life off the pitch besides unveiling several unknown facts in his autobiography which will be published this October.
- In Sri Lanka, the ten-day festival of the historic Esala Maha Perehera began In Kandy last evening with a grand procession. The procession set off from the biggest Buddhist temple in Sri Lanka, Sri Dalada Maligawa at an auspicious time.
- Google has honoured eminent Urdu writer Ismat Chughtai with a doodle on her 107th birth anniversary. Iran unveils first domestic fighter jet.
- Veteran cricketer VVS Laxman, known for the suppleness of his wrists, will now bring his expertise into play as he picks up the pen to write his tell-all book, which will hit the stands on November 20.
- After a cabinet meeting in Raipur, Raman Singh announced that along with renaming of Naya Raipur, the Bilaspur University, a medical college, state capital expressway and the under-construction Central Park will be named after Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
- Southern States are outshining the rest of India in mobile banking adoption in savings accounts, according to a report by The Boston Consulting Group (BCG).
- The Centre on Tuesday ruled out a national ban on firecrackers and suggested the production of “green crackers,” community fireworks events in major cities and a freeze on the production of series crackers or laris as alternative measures to curb pollution during Diwali.
- ‘Peace for Children,’ an initiative of Shree Dayaa Foundation, was launched in the city on Tuesday, with an aim to focus on the welfare and protection of children.
- Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami will inaugurate ‘India's tallest film studio’ built by Federation of Film employees Union of South India on August 26 in Kalaignar city, Paiyanur, situated 1.5 km off OMR.
- The Supreme Court on Monday issued notice to Centre, state governments and Union Territories on a PIL seeking directions to make sports a part of the Fundamental Rights as well as promotion of sports education in the country.
- M.S. Sahoo, chairperson of Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) talks about the success of the IBC process, challenges and the way forward
- Tennis players make up the majority of the world's highest-paid female athletes, according to an annual list published by Forbes on Tuesday ahead of next week's US Open
- Vinesh Phogat won India a gold medal when she beat Yuki Irie of Japan on Monday in the final of the women's wrestling at the Asian Games 2018.
- Former West Bengal Governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi was conferred with 2018 Rajiv Gandhi National Sadbhavana Award. He was presented award in New Delhi
- Saurabh Chaudhary, all of 16, on Tuesday became only the fifth Indian shooter to claim a gold in the Asian Games history, beating a field of multiple World and Olympic champions in the 10m air pistol finals here.
- Chhattisgarh Government has appointed Justice (Retired) TP Sharma, former Judge of Chhattisgarh High Court, Bilaspur as ‘Pramukh lokayut of Chhattisgarh lok Ayog, from the date he assumes office.
- The payments major has claimed to store consumer data locally in servers located only in India while conforming to the highest security and privacy standards.
- The National Nutrition Week will be observed throughout the country from 1st to 7th September. The theme of the National Nutrition Week for 2017 is "Optimal Infant & Young Child Feeding Practices: Better Child Health".
- The first-ever joint air exercise involving the Indian Air Force and the the Royal Malaysian Air Force commenced today at Subang Air Base in Malaysia, officials said.
- INS Khanjar a Missile Corvette of Indian Navy was on a three-day visit to Yangon, Myanmar to undertake operational turn around (OTR) and as part of goodwill visit from 18 to 20 Aug 18.
1. International News
- Greece has successfully exited its final, three-year bailout program, agreed in August 2015 to help it cope with the continued fallout from a debt crisis, the euro zone’s ESM rescue fund
- The Union Ministry of Earth Sciences is proposing to set up a Cyclone Warning Centre in Thiruvananthapuram within a month.
- The Indian Institute of Technology-Hyderabad (IIT-H) has launched Fabless Chip Design Incubator (FabCI) with the aim to boost the Indian chip design sector.
- Pension Fund and Regulatory Development Authority (PFRDA) has set up a standing committee to suggest steps to deal with cybersecurity challenges to protect the interest of subscribers.
- For the first time since the opening of underground services, Chennai Metro Rail has now brought in mobile connectivity for a section of commuters.
- A petition filed before the Bench of the Madras High Court on Monday sought a direction to recover damages from the Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) in relation to the attack on government buses by party cadre in the wake of the death of PMK leader Kaduvetti Guru.
- The finance ministry has proposed amendments in the Income Tax rules for obtaining 'no deduction of tax' certificate electronically, a move aimed at minimising human interface and reducing compliance burden.
- The International Labour Organisation said India needs strong wage policies to promote inclusive growth as inequality, informality and gender wage gap still persists in India.
- Australian cricketer Mitchell Johnson said Sunday he was retiring from all forms of cricket as his body was 'starting to shut down', almost three years after he stepped down from the international game.
- Bajrang Punia handed India their first gold at Asian Games with 11-8 win over Daichi Takatani in the final of 65kg.
- Rishabh Pant on Saturday became the first Indian batsman to open his Test cricket account with a six.
- Former world number one Novak Djokovic became the first player to win all nine Masters 1,000 tournaments with victory over Roger Federer in Cincinnati.
- Indian shooter Deepak Kumar claimed the silver medal in men’s 10m air rifle event after producing excellent scores at crucial junctures, pipping fancied teammate Ravi Kumar at the 18th Asian Games here on Monday.
- Delhi government official wins WHO World No Tobacco Day Award as Delhi fights back tobacco
- United States Government has awarded Legion of Merit (Degree of Commander) to General Dalbir Singh Suhag (Retired) of Indian Army.
- The stage is set for the election of DMK working president M.K. Stalin as the president of the party on August 28 when the DMK general council is slated to meet.
- DMK working president M.K. Stalin, who is set to be elected the party president, filed his nomination for the post at Anna Arivalayam
- EAM Sushma Swaraj inaugurates Panini Language Laboratory at Mahatma Gandhi Institute in Mauritius
- Uri Avnery, a trailblazing Israeli journalist and peace activist and one of the first to openly advocate for a Palestinian state, died Monday at the age of 94.
- World Mosquito day is observed on 20th August 2018.
- The exercise had started with cross training period involving familiarization training between two armies to evolve drills and procedures involved in counter insurgency & counter terrorist operations in urban, rural and jungle terrain under United Nations.
- NEW DELHI: Indigenously designed and developed guided bombs Smart Anti Airfield Weapon (SAAW) and anti-tank guided missile Helina were successfully tested at separate firing ranges in Rajasthan.
- As the flying operations for Exercise Pitch Black 2018 came to an end on Saturday, the Indian Air Force (IAF) team commenced preparations for de-induction. The IAF contingent is, currently, heading back to India, staging through Malaysia.
- The Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA), India’s next indigenous fighter, is expected to make its first flight by 2032. Development work on the jet is under way.
1. International News
- Russian President Vladimir Putin and German Chancellor Angela Merkel discussed the conflicts in Ukraine and Syria, as well as Iran and a gas pipeline project that has drawn U.S. ire during talks outside Berlin that ended with no clear-cut progress.
- Sri Lanka’s former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, who served two consecutive terms in office from 2005 to 2015, appears keen on a third, despite legislation barring him from contesting.
- China’s military must resist the ”corrosion” of corruption and ensure the fight against graft is deepened, President Xi Jinping told senior officers, state media said on Sunday, offering a renewed warning against a deep-seated problem.
- U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is likely to visit Pakistan in the first week of September to hold talks with Prime Minister Imran Khan.
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced today an immediate financial assistance of Rs 500 crore to the rain-battered Kerala
- In a few days from now, Chennai Metro Rail will roll out an affordable cab service exclusively for its commuters to reach the nearest station.
- The police department has formed a committee to enquire into complaints of sexual harassment at the workplace and redress the grievances of such victims.
- The United Arab Emirates has formed an emergency committee under the leadership of the Emirates Red Crescent to help victims of the floods in Kerala.
- With memories of the 2014 floods still fresh in their minds, scores of volunteers and groups in the Kashmir Valley have launched relief exercises for the marooned population in Kerala.
- A parliamentary committee looking into the issue of mounting non-performing assets (NPAs) has asked former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan to appear before it and brief on the matter.
- More than half the agricultural households in the country have outstanding debt, and their average outstanding debt is almost as high as the average annual income of all agricultural households, according to a recent survey by the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD).
- India’s current account deficit (CAD) will widen to 2.5% of the GDP in the current fiscal due to the higher oil prices that has been accentuated by rupee depreciation, Moody’s and other experts said.
- India’s economic growth seems to be back on a recovery path and the country will be on a firm 7.5%-plus growth track this fiscal, former Chief Economic Adviser (CEA) Arvind Virmani said on Sunday.
- India U-15 girls won the SAFF U-15 Championship after beating defending champion Bangladesh 1-0 in the final played at the Chang limithang Stadium
- The Indian shooters preparing for the Tokyo Olympics will have top-class competition at home as the International Shooting Federation (ISSF) has awarded a World Cup in principle to India in 2020.
- For the first 76 seconds, Bajrang Punia made it look ridiculously easy. The final of the 65kg freestyle wrestling
- Five-time World champion Viswanathan Anand got off to a good start holding USA’s Hikaru Nakmura to an easy draw in the first round of the Sinquefield Cup, a part of the Grand Chess tour here.
- Indian girls, on Sunday, clinched the SAFF Under-15 title after defeating defending champion Bangladesh by a solitary goal in the final here.
- een cyclist Esow Alben has ed history by claiming India's first ever medal - a silver- at the UCI Junior Track Cycling World Championships in Aigle, Switzerland.
- The 2018 UCI Junior Track Cycling World Championships was the annual Junior World Championship for track cycling hold at the World Cycling Centre in Aigle, Switzerland from 15 to 19 August 2018.
- India opened its account in the 18th Asian Games with a bronze medal after Apurvi Chandela and Ravi Kumar cracked under pressure to finish third in the rifle mixed team shooting event here on Sunday.
- Infosys (NYSE: INFY) announced that the Board of Directors at its meeting today accepted the resignation of M.D. Ranganath as the Chief Financial Officer and a key managerial personnel.
- Indiabulls Housing Finance (IBHFL) the country’s second-largest housing finance company, appointed Mr. S.S. Mundra, former Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank of India, as an independent director on the board of the company.
- International Conference on Recent Advances in Food Processing Technology (iCRAFPT) gets underway at IIFPT, Thanjavur
- World Humanitarian Day observed on 19th August 2018
- In an attempt to strengthen bilateral relations with Fiji, an Indian Naval Ship (INS) Sahyadri which was on a good will visit to the island nation entered the Port of Suva there on Monday.
- Former member of the Lok Sabha Patlolla Manik Reddy passed at Hyderabad on Sunday morning. He was 88. He had represented the Telugu Desam party in the Lok Sabha winning from Medak in 1984 elections.
1. International News
- Scarlett Johansson tops Forbes' list of top female earners with $40.5 million in pretax earnings between June 1, 2017 and June 1, 2018.
- The Governor of Manipur, Dr. Najma A. Heptulla inaugurated the project ‘Development of North East Circuit: Imphal & Khongjom’ implemented under the Swadesh Darshan Scheme of Ministry of Tourism, Government of India at a function held at the historic Kangla Fort in Imphal, Manipur
- The Madras High Court has held that the community mentioned by a candidate in the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) application is final and cannot be altered.
- Telecom service provider Aerovoyce has launched a unique family pack plan, where a customer can pay for one SIM card and get three SIM cards free.
- The Directorate General of Civil Aviation has asked domestic airlines to operate more flights to Kerala.
- The Directorate of Collegiate Education (DCE) in Tamil Nadu has issued a circular asking all arts, science and other colleges, coming under its purview, to ban use of cellphones by students on the premises of the institutions.
- Chairman of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister Bibek Debroy on Saturday stressed the need to rediscover the rich civilisational history of the country.
- A spectacular pyrotechnic show, including a simulated volcanic eruption, lit up the Jakarta skyline on Saturday night as Indonesia rolled out the red carpet for the continent’s elite athletes in the opening ceremony for the 18th Asian Games.
- The decks were finally cleared for the Asia Cup as BCCI officially handed over its hosting rights to the Emirates Cricket Board.
- Amandeep Drall carded a three-over 75 in the final round of the 11th leg of the Hero Women’ Pro Golf Tour here on Friday to clinch back-to-back titles on the circuit.
- Teen cyclist Esow Alben has scripted history by claiming India's first ever medal -- a silver at the UCI Junior Track Cycling World Championships in Aigle, Switzerland.
- The 11th World Hindi Conference has started in Port Louis the capital of Mauritius. A two-minute silence was observed in the beginning to pay tribute to former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
- Microsoft India and Apollo Hospitals on Friday launched the first-ever Artificial Intelligence (AI)-powered heart disease risk score API (application programme interface).
- The Indian Army plans to scale the fifth highest mountain peak in the world, Mount Makalu (8485 metres), the government said on Monday.
- Former United Nations Secretary General and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Kofi Annan died at the age of 80 on Saturday after a short illness, his foundation announced.
1. International News
- Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is forming a dedicated group to coordinate and run U.S. policy toward Iran as the Trump administration moves ahead with efforts to force changes in the Islamic Republic's behavior after withdrawing from the Iran nuclear deal.
- Mario Abdo Benitez took office Wednesday as Paraguay's new president, four months after playing down close family ties with the South American country's late dictator to win a tight election race.
- Israeli Navy to procure Barak 8 missile defence system, jointly developed by India, Israel; will be used to protect economic zones, strategic facilities
- China will send a rover to the far side of the Moon in December Imran Khan was voted as Pakistan’s Prime Minister on Friday in a one-sided election in the National Assembly.
- The Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, Radha Mohan Singh on August 16, 2018 wrote to Jose Graziano da Silva, the Director General of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (UNFAO)
- The Ministry of Railway has launched digital screens to spread awareness among public about the heritage of Indian Railways.
- Last weekend's ambitious launch of the $1.5 billion Parker Solar Probe by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to get closer than any human-made object in history to the centre of our solar system created ripples across the space community, and further boosted the United States' commanding authority on space exploration.
- India's first Humboldt penguin was born Wednesday night at Mumbai's Veer Jijamata Udyan.
- The Southern Railway is developing an app which will be a worthy replacement for all the ‘unofficial’ apps available currently for checking the timings of suburban services and obtaining information about long-distance trains.
- SEBI today allowed investors to place multiple bids in a private placement issue on debt basis and permitted depositories to act as facilitators.
- Markets regulator SEBI today drastically cut the timeline for listing of debt securities to six days from 12 days at present, in order to make the existing process of issuance of such securities simpler and cost effective.
- Tata Consultancy Services today pipped Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) to regain the crown of India's most valued company in terms of market capitalisation.
- Qatar pledged $15 billion (Dh55.09 billion) of investment in Turkey that will be channeled into Turkish financial markets and banks, a government source told Reuters yesterday.
- India's football team have jumped one spot higher to take the 96th spot in the latest FIFA World Rankings.
- The Mithali Raj-led India Blue side notched up its first win with an eight-wicket defeat of India Red in the Women's Senior Challenger Trophy at the Alur ground
- Oscar-winning director Ang Lee will be one of the recipients of the annual Directors Guild of America (DGA) honours at its ceremony.
- Madras High Court ordered the suspension the Commission of Inquiry headed by retired judge R. Ragupathi that was probing alleged irregularities in the construction of the new Secretariat complex, the latter has submitted his resignation to the Chief Secretary.
- The World Congress of Philosophy is organized every five years by the International Federation of Philosophical Societies (FISP) in collaboration with one of its member societies.
- Russia has identified about 19 companies in India to manufacture defence products and provide spares and components of Russian platforms currently being used by India’s defence forces, Defence Production secretary Ajay Kumar said
1. International News
- A 12th-century statue of Buddha stolen from India nearly 60 years ago is to be returned to the country after it was discovered at a trade fair in the UK.
- China will hold a fresh round of trade talks with the United States in Washington later this month.
- U.S. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin warned that it would levy more sanctions on the troubled Turkish economy if Ankara does not soon release a jailed American pastor.
- Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita won a landslide victory in a run-off against Opposition rival Soumaïla Cissé.
- Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Wednesday launched Dial 100 Mobile app, which will help the needy at the time of emergency.
- As part of its crackdown on misuse of social media, the government has started an advocacy drive based on 'learning material' offered by WhatsApp to create awareness among students, government officials and others around the issue of fake news.
- Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar today dedicated the state's first civil airport at Hisar to the people of Haryana, saying it would open the possibilities of creating an economic corridor and vibrant industrial ecosystem.
- Telangana today celebrated the 72nd Independence Day was celebrated by launching two major schemes - free eye screening for all citizens and life insurance for farmers.
- A forest genetic resource tree park, developed on 20 acres of land near Vandalur, was inaugurated by Minister for Forests Dindigul C. Sreenivasan.
- The State government on Thursday told the Madras High Court that it had issued an order on August 1 transferring all idol theft cases from the Idol Wing CID to Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), not to divert the ongoing investigations as alleged by a PIL petitioner, but only to ensure a fair, independent and effective investigation.
- Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) has launched BSNL WINGS a VOIP based service. In WINGS, there is no SIM or cable wiring as is a VOIP service through an app.
- Leading stock exchange BSE will launch liquidity enhancement scheme on monthly single stock options and index options from next month.
- The RBI on August 1 retained its forecast for GDP growth in the current fiscal year at 7.4% and projected the pace at 7.5% for the first quarter of 2019-20.
- India’s crude oil import bill is likely to jump by about $26 billion in 2018-19 as rupee dropping to a record low has made buying of oil from overseas costlier, government officials said.
- The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has upgraded the unified payments interface (UPI) with enhanced security features and overdraft facilities.
- India Ratings and Research (Ind-Ra) has revised its FY19 economic growth forecast down to 7.2% from 7.4% earlier.
- Indonesia time, the Indian presence at the 18th Asian Games was formally recognised with the Indian flag officially going up at the Athletes Village in Jakarta
- Hikaru Nakamura of the United States completed a fine double on Wednesday when he lifted the blitz title, with 22.5 points, at the St. Louis tournament after winning the rapid event.
- Saul Niguez and Koke scored in extra time as Atletico Madrid beat Real Madrid 4-2 to win the UEFA Super Cup on Wednesday.
- Oscar-winning director Ang Lee will be one of the recipients of the annual Directors Guild of America (DGA) honours at its ceremony.
- James Allison, Ph.D., Carl June, M.D., and Steven Rosenberg, M.D., Ph.D., are the 2018 Recipients of America’s Most Distinguished Prize in Medicine
- Food Corporation India Retired All Cadre Employees Welfare Association held its first anniversary celebrations and felicitated A. Elisarani, zonal secretary, south, Food Corporation of India Executive Staff Union.
- IAS officer K S Srinivas has taken over as the Chairman of the city-based Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA),
- Indian scientist-academician, N Raghuram, has been elected Chair of the International Nitrogen Initiative (INI), a global policy making initiative.
- International Conference on Recent Advances in Food Processing Technology (iCRAFPT) got underway at Indian Institute of Food Processing Technology, Thanjavur in Tamilnadu.
- Bharti Axa Life Insurance and Airtel Payments Bank on Thursday entered into an alliance to offer the ‘Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana’ (PMJJBY), a government-backed life insurance scheme.
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that women officers in India's armed forces would now have the option to take up permanent commission through the Short Service Commission.
- Aretha Franklin, the undisputed “Queen of Soul” who stood as a cultural icon around the globe, has died at age 76 from pancreatic cancer.
- Former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee passes away at 93.
1. International News
- Christine Hallquist won the Democratic gubernatorial nomination in the U.S. State of Vermont on Tuesday, moving a step closer to becoming the nation’s first transgender Governor, U.S. media projected.
- Pakistan’s newly-elected Parliament on Wednesday voted an ally of Imran Khan as the Speaker of its lower house, kicking off the process of transition and handing over of powers to the new government.
- Twitter has been warned by Pakistan's telecom authority that the micro-blogging site could be banned in the country for not complying with its directive to block objectionable content, according to a media report.
- Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik launched Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana, a health for all scheme, on the occasion of the 72nd Independence Day.
- Rajasthan will observe September as the "month of nutrition" to create awareness among people living in the state.
- The Centre today proposed a new financial model for building greenfield airports aimed at making air travel more affordable and addressing concern of disputes related to tariff.
- The AYUSH Ministry introduced a new central sector scheme for monitoring of the safety aspects of Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani and Homoeopathy drugs and documenting their adverse effects.
- The West Bengal government has widened the reach of its flagship women welfare scheme ‘Kanyashree’ by lifting the ceiling on annual family income.
- The Chennai Rail Museum (CRM) has made an addition in the form of a mini theatre to enthral the visitors.
- The Government of India has released 470 million Nepali rupess grant for Terai roads project in Nepal. Indian Ambassador to Nepal Manjeev Singh Puri handed over a cheque of grant to Secretary, Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport of Nepal
- Urea production is likely to increase 1.6 per cent to 24.4 million tonne (MT) in 2018-19 financial year on smooth functioning of units, a senior Fertiliser Ministry official said today.
- Long jumper V. Neena has cleared the Athletics Federation of India’s (AFI) confirmatory trial for the Asian Games but her Kerala statemate Nayana James will have to wait for the selectors’ approval before going to Jakarta. The Indian flag was hoisted by members of the contingent at the Athletes Village of the Asian Games at both Jakarta and Palembang, marking the country’s 72nd Independence Day
- Major Aditya Kumar, who was embroiled in a controversy after his unit fired on a stone-pelting mob in South Kashmir’s Shopian in January
- President has awarded one President's Tatrakshak Medal for Distinguished Service, five Tatrakshak Medal for Gallantry and two Tatrakshak Medal for Meritorious Service on the occasion of Independence Day this year to Indian Coast Guard personnel.
- Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami on Wednesday presented the Kalpana Chawla Award for Courage and Daring Enterprise for the year 2018 to I. Muthumari, a tea plantation worker, who saved her daughter from a leopard by single-handedly counter-attacking the animal.
- Former India spinner Ramesh Powar was today named head coach of the women’s national team till the ICC World T20, scheduled to be held in November.
- The first project under the central government's Swadesh Darshan Scheme, 'North East Circuit: Imphal and Khongjom', will be inaugurated by Manipur Governor Najma Heptulla tomorrow, according to a Tourism Ministry statement today.
- State-run Rural Electrification Corporation today said it has inked a loan agreement with German bank KfW for EUR 200 million facility that would be used to finance clean energy projects in India.
- Bharti Axa Life Insurance and Airtel Payments Bank entered into an alliance to offer the ‘Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana’ (PMJJBY), a government-backed life insurance scheme.
- Prime Minster Narendra Modi today asked the Defence Ministry to further step up relief and rescue operations across Kerala which is facing a severe flood situation.
- The Indian and Singapore navies will conduct joint exercises next month to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the maritime bilateral exercise between the two countries.
- The Indian Army and its Chinese counterpart today expressed mutual desire to maintain peace and improve relations at the functional-level along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), a defence official said.
- Defence Public Sector Undertakings have taken the lead in investing heavily in the Uttar Pradesh Defence Industrial Corridor which saw the launching of projects.
- Former India captain Ajit Wadekar, who led India to its first win in England in 1971 passed away at the age of 77 on Wednesday after a prolonged illness.
- Poet Chemmanam Chacko, 92, died at his residence at Padamugal, near Kakkanad, here around 11.30 p.m. on Tuesday.
1. International News
- A lobbying group, which pushes for greater curbs on Britain’s immigration regime, has accused multinational IT companies, “typically based in India”, of exploiting a “gaping” loophole in Britain’s immigration system, and has called for the system to be overhauled.
- President Recep Tayyip Erdogan today said Turkey would boycott US electronic goods in retaliation for punitive sanctions by Washington against Ankara over the detention of an American pastor.
- Delhi will be the first police force in the country to have an all-women SWAT team. Home minister Rajnath Singh has formally inducted the unit in Delhi Police
- The Union Home Minister Shri Rajnath Singh has said the rollout of the Smart City projects will help New Delhi emerge as a world class city.
- The Uttarakhand high court on Monday said it would act as the legal guardian of cows in the state, and issued 31 directions to the state government ,including setting up a cow shelter
- The survey, prepared by Kotak Wealth-Hurun, features Smitha Crishna, the third generation heir of the Godrej empire, as the wealthiest Indian women with net worth of Rs 37,570 crore.
- Haryana will launch its pilot health project Ayushman Bharat Haryana from August 15 in 22 district hospitals, one ESI and one medical college.
- Five years after it was first announced by the then Jayalalithaa-led AIADMK government, the Transport Department has started to roll out the GPS-fitted auto rickshaw meters in the city.
- Gram sabhas across Harur and Paapireddy patty have proposed to pass resolutions against the 8-lane Salem-Chennai Green Corridor project.
- Chief Justice Dipak Misra inaugurated the apps along with Union Law and Justice Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, who also holds the portfolio for Information Technology, and Justices Madan B. Lokur and A.M. Khanwilkar
- The Ayushman Bharat-National Health Protection Scheme (AB-NHPS), likely to be launched, aims to provide a medical coverage of ₹5 lakh a family every year.
- Country’s largest lender State Bank of India (SBI) is considered to be the most patriotic brand, according to a survey, followed by Tata Motors, Patanjali, Reliance Jio and BSNL.
- The government today dismissed Usha Ananathasubramanian, who was three months ago divested of her powers as MD and CEO Allahabad Bank following the country's biggest bank fraud allegedly carried out by Nirav Modi and associates at PNB
- State-owned Mazgon Dock Shipbuilders has received markets regulator Sebi's go ahead to float an initial public offering.
- The centre is likely to extend the tenure of Bank of Baroda’s (BoB) managing director (MD) and chief executive officer (CEO) P.S. Jayakumar, whose three-year term is set to expire in September
- Viraj Madappa carded a four-under 67 in the fourth and final round to claim his maiden title on the Asian tour at the Take Solutions Masters in Bengaluru.
- Sri Lanka pulled off a close three-wicket win in the only Twenty20 match against South Africa on Tuesday after the team’s spinners dismissed the tourists for their lowest score in the format.
- Prestigious President’s medal for distinguished service TamilNadu :
- 1) ADGP (Tamil Nadu Police Housing Corporation) M.N. Manjunatha
- 2) IG (South Zone) K.P Shanmuga Rajeswaran
- 3) ASP (Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption) S. Thirunavukarasu
- Senior bureaucrat Ashish Kumar Bhutani has been appointed Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY), according to an order issued by the Personnel Ministry today.
- The first project under the central government's Swadesh Darshan Scheme, 'North East Circuit: Imphal and Khongjom', will be inaugurated by Manipur Governor Najma Heptulla tomorrow, according to a Tourism Ministry statement today.
- State run Rural Electrification Corporation has inked a loan agreement with German bank KfW for EUR 200 million facility that would be used to finance clean energy projects in India.
- Chhattisgarh Governor Balramji Dass Tandon died at a hospital in Raipur today, an official said. He was 90.
- Asian Games gold medallist athlete Hakam Singh today passed away at a private hospital in Sangrur, Punjab.
1. International News
- India today handed over the first lot of houses built under a USD 350 million project for Indian-origin people, mostly Tamils, in Sri Lanka's tea plantation areas.
- The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will have an year-long Vikram Sarabhai centenary celebration starting in August 2019 to honour the visionary scientist and its legendary founding father.
- India rejected a proposal by the UK to use DNA sampling to establish the nationality of illegal migrants living there citing “privacy issues.”
- Bhubaneswar railway station bagged 9th rank among 75 A1 category stations in the country in cleanliness survey conducted by a third party, Quality Council of India.
- Santhali has become the first Indian tribal language to get a Wikipedia edition in its own script after the Santhali Wikipedia went live earlier this month.
- The pioneering scientist who was the first person to win two Nobel prizes, has topped a poll asking which woman has had the most significant impact on world history.
- India's crude steel output grew six percent to 8.73 million tonne (MT) during July 2018, according to an official data.
- The Maharashtra government has expanded the scope of the loan waiver scheme by extending the benefits to every member of the farmer's family in case of a separate loan account and issued an official order to this effect.
- Chennai is ranked number 2 among cities with over 4 million population, Tiruchi tops in health parameter
- The Kerala High Court on Monday turned down a plea for a directive to arrest Franco Mulakkal, Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Jalandhar, in connection with the case of the rape of a nun.
- Three cities in Maharashtra — Pune, Navi Mumbai and Greater Mumbai — top the first Ease of Living Index brought out by the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.
- Axis Bank has become the first bank in the country to introduce Iris Scan Authentication feature for Aadhaar-based transactions through its micro ATM tablets
- Country’s first genetic resource bank, which could have far reaching implications in conservation and revival of extinct and endangered species in the near future, was inaugurated at Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology’s (CCMB)
- Retail inflation eased to a nine-month low of 4.17% in July as food inflation cooled to its lowest level since July 2017, according to official data released on Monday.
- India's second largest software services firm Infosys todaysaid it will set up a new software development centre in Kolkata with an investment of Rs 100 crore.
- Electric mobility solutions provider Ultraviolette Automotive said it had received ₹6 crore funding from TVS Motor Company.
- The top-seeded Nadal was always in command, but Tsitsipas did put up a fight in the second set before going down 6-2, 7-6 (7-4) in one hour and 42 minutes in his first ATP Tour Masters final.
- James Anderson removed Murali Vijay for a duck again to take his 100th wicket at the Lord's Cricket Ground on Sunday.
- The Indian U-15 Women’s National Team progressed to the semi-finals of the SAFF U-15 Championship after defeating hosts Bhutan 1-0 at the Changlimithang Stadium in Thimphu, Bhutan.
- Greek 20-year-old Stefanos Tsitsipas broke into the world top 20 on Monday following his giant-killing run at the Toronto Masters.
- Rafael Nadal held off a late surge from birthday boy Stefanos Tsitsipas to claim the 80th title of his career with victory at the Toronto Masters.
- The Argentine led his team to a 2-1 win over Sevilla to win the Supercopa de Espana, Messi’s 33rd title during his time at the Camp Nou, one more than Andres Iniesta.
- Vice-chairman and Director of Paediatric Ophthalmology Sankara Netralaya T.S. Surendran recently received the Life Time Achievement award at the annual conference of the Tamil Nadu Ophthalmic Association.
- Former Chief Justice of Bombay High Court, Justice Manjula Chellur has been appointed as the Chairperson of the Appellate Tribunal for Electricity (APTEL) for a period of three years or until further orders.
- The Centre on Friday notified the appointment of Rajasthan High Court judge, Justice Kalpesh Satyendra Jhaveri as the Chief Justice of Orissa High Court
- The newly sworn-in Chief Justice of Madras High Court Vijaya Kamlesh Tahilramani on Monday said it was a matter of “great pride, prestige and honour” to be appointed as Chief Justice of the famed High Court.
- The Indian Banks’ Association has appointed Egon Zehnder International as a ‘Knowledge Partner’ to the Banks Board Bureau to design, implement and institutionalise a flagship leadership development strategy for public sector banks in India.
- Trade ministers of RCEP member countries, including India and China, will hold a crucial meeting in Singapore on August 30-31.
- The leaders of the five states bordering the resource-rich Caspian Sea signed a landmark deal on its legal status on Sunday in the Kazakh city of Aktau, easing regional tensions and potentially facilitating lucrative oil and gas projects.
1. International News
- Hours ahead of the pro-Khalistan rally in London, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj announced on Sunday that all Indian diplomatic missions would celebrate the 550th birth anniversary of the founder of Sikh faith Guru Nanak.
- The United States urged Britain on Sunday to ditch its support for the Iran nuclear deal and instead join forces with Washington to counter the global threat it says Tehran poses.
- Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday conducted an aerial survey of flood-ravaged Kerala and announced an immediate relief of ₹100 crore as the State braced for another spell of heavy rain after a fresh low pressure area developed in the Bay of Bengal.
- The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will have an year-long Vikram Sarabhai centenary celebration starting in August 2019 to honour the visionary scientist and legendary founding father.
- The problem of drug abuse in Punjab over the years has largely been focused on men, but experts and studies point out that the number of women addicted to drugs is rising “alarmingly” in the State.
- India's second moon mission Chandrayaan-2 will now be launched in the January-March window in 2019 instead of later this year as the design was changed to enable it land on the lunar surface.
- The Central government has unlocked more than 66,000 crore rupees to increase the forest cover across the country.
- On the Multi Commodity Exchange of India (MCX), crude oil options contracts have seen a steady rise since the debut in mid-May, while the turnover of gold contracts rose almost 10 times since the start of the year, partly also due to the exchange’s liquidity enhancement scheme (LES).
- Union Minister for Electronics & Information Technology Ravi Shankar Prasad will release the document ‘Digital North East Vision 2022’ this afternoon in Guwahati. The Vision Document will be released in the presence of Chief Ministers and IT Ministers of North East States
- Cape Town - Sri Lanka have won the toss and elected to bat in the fifth and final ODI against the Proteas in Colombo on Sunday.
- Nitin Thiruvengadam (Dena Bank) beat V. Abinay (CTTF) 4-2, from 2-2, in the final to clinch the men’s title, while Amrutha Pushpak (RBI) beat T. Reeth Rishya (IOC) 4-0 to emerge the women’s champion
- India has another winner on the European Tour after 21-year-old Sharma won the Joburg Open by three shots.
- Young Indian IM P. Iniyan caused a flutter, defeated highly rated GM Sjugirov Sanan in the fifth round of the Abu Dhabi Masters chess.
- Sunishka Kartik – Community Award in the Junior NBA World Basketball Championship.
- Annie Zaidi for her play Untitled-1 – The Hindu Playwright Award 2018.
- NASA on Sunday launched a $1.5 billion spacecraft toward the Sun on a historic mission to protect the earth by unveiling the mysteries of dangerous solar storms.
- US space agency Nasa has launched its mission to send a satellite closer to the Sun than any before.
- Justice Vijaya Kamlesh Tahilramani was sworn in as the Chief Justice of the Madras High Court by Governor Banwarilal Purohit at a ceremony at the Raj Bhavan.
- The State government has constituted a panel of officers with expertise in e-office administration to assist the one-man Staff Rationalisation Committee (SRC).
- Nepal-India Literature Festival 2018 has begun in Birgunj, Nepal. Inaugurating the festival Chief Minister of Province 2 Mohammad Lalbabu Raut said that it will play an important role in further strengthening Indo-Nepal ties.
- Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL) has signed an agreement with Hayre Group Ltd. to operate a Vivanta hotel at Heathrow Airport in London.
- India has signed a multilateral cooperation agreement with member development banks of BRICS to undertake “collaborative research” in distributed ledger/blockchain technology.
- Vidiadhar Surajprasad Naipaul, the Trinidad-born Indian-origin author and Nobel laureate known for his critical commentary on colonialism, religion and politics, died aged 85 on Saturday.
- Former Lok Sabha Speaker and veteran communist leader Somnath Chatterjee passed away at the age of eighty-nine in Kolkata today morning following multiple organ failure.
1. International News
- Indian travellers to visit Israel, Embassy of Israel has opened a visa application centre in the city for tourists from West Bengal and the north eastern states.
- Intelligence (AI) system that can help reduce toxic chemotherapy dosing for the most aggressive form of brain cancer, potentially improving the quality of life for patients.
- France plans to introduce a penalty system that would increase the costs of consumer goods with packaging made of non-recycled plastic, as part of a pledge to use only recycled plastic nationwide by 2025.
- Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman met her South Korean counterpart Young-Moo Song and discussed ways to strengthen bilateral ties in security and strategic spheres.
- Pakistan Navy's sophisticated maritime security ship 'Kashmir' will arrive at Sri Lanka's Colombo Port on a four-day goodwill visit.
- Minister of state for Culture (I/C), Dr Mahesh Sharma, released 3 books: ‘Jewellery’, ‘Ghats of Banaras’ and ‘Untold Story of Broadcasting’, at IGNCA (Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts), in New Delhi.
- In an interim order, the Madras High Court on Saturday directed the government to stop sand mining in the Puzhal and Kannigaiperu lakes.
- AIIMS Stars Long duty hours, coupled with the need to complete extensive academic work and deal with a hostile work environment where emergencies happen round-the-clock
- India is getting water aerodromes and the very first ones in the country are slated to come up in Chilika Lake in Odisha, Sardar Sarovar Dam and Sabarmati River Front in Gujarat.
- Messi, who has been at Barcelona since the age of 13, is one of four players to be given new responsibilities by the Catalan club. Sergio Busquets, Gerard Pique and Sergi Roberto will also wear the armband when required
- India’s Ajay Jayaram made the final of the Vietnam Open badminton tournament after defeating Japan’s Yu Igarashi in straight games.
- Barcelona defender Gerard Pique has confirmed that he is stepping down from international football following a disappointing World Cup for Spain.
- Indian shuttler Ajay Jayaram had to be content with a runner-up at the Vietnam Open after losing the final to Shesar Hiren Rhustavito of Indonesia in Ho Chi Minh City.
- The Tamil Nadu Physical Education and Sports University has got a new woman vice-chancellor in Sheila Stephen.
- Gita Mittal Is First Woman Chief Justice Of Jammu And Kashmir High Court Justice V.K. Tahilramani sworn-in Chief Justice of Madras HC.
- A special meeting of Senior Officials of the Bay of Bengal Initiatives for Multi-Sectoral, Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) was held in Kathmandu.
- Trinidad-born British author VS Naipaul, who won the Nobel Prize for literature in 2001, has died at his home in London aged 85.
1. International News
- Pakistan is likely to boost its role in SAARC under the Imran Khan government which will assume charge soon as Pakistan hopes to host SAARC summit in Islamabad.
- U.S. President Donald Trump said that he had doubled steel and aluminium tariffs on Turkey, adding to the pressure on the nation’s troubled economy amid a diplomatic row with .
- Pakistan's World Cup cricket hero Imran Khan will be sworn in as prime minister next week, his party said on Friday, announcing it has the numbers to form a coalition government in the lower house of parliament.
- University Grants Commission is drafting a training programme for senior professors to be appointed as Vice Chancellors.
- Tamil Nadu has the dubious distinction of topping in terms of value of banking-related crimes so far this financial year, data presented on the last day of the monsoon session of Parliament revealed.
- The Khangchendzonga Biosphere Reserve (KBR) of Sikkim, the highest biosphere reserve in the country that includes the third highest mountain peak in the world, Kanchenjunga (8,586 m), has been included in the UNESCO’s World Network of Biosphere Reserves (WHBR).
- The Union science ministry’s communication wing, Vigyan Prasar, has launched the India Science Technology and Innovation portal.
- India will triple its ethanol production over the next four years till 2022 and this will save ₹12,000 crore in the country’s oil import bill, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday, which is being celebrated as World Biofuels Day.
- Dr. Mahesh Sharma, today released 3 books ‘Jewellery’ by Dr. Gulab Kothari, ‘Ghats of Banaras’ by Dr. Sachidanand Joshi and ‘Untold Story of Broadcasting’ by Dr. Gautam Chatterjee at IGNCA, New Delhi.
- Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath will launch a defence industrial corridor in Aligarh tomorrow as part of the government's efforts to develop specialised zones dedicated to defence production in the state.
- Growth in industrial activity picked up to a five-month high of 7% in June, driven by an across-the-board acceleration in growth rates including in sectors such as manufacturing, electricity, infrastructure, and capital and consumer goods.
- State Bank of India (SBI), the country’s largest lender, reported a ₹4,876 crore loss for the quarter ended June.
- HDFC Bank’s deputy managing director Paresh Sukthankar has decided to put in his papers, ending a 24-year-long career in the second-largest private sector lender.
- Axis Bank has become the first bank in the country to introduce Iris Scan Authentication feature for Aadhaar-based transactions through its micro ATM tablets.
- Opener Yashasvi Jaiswal struck an unbeaten hundred as India U-19 cruised to an eight-wicket victory over Sri Lanka to win the five-match one day series 3-2 .
- The six-nation Kabaddi Masters men’s tournament, held in Dubai a little over a month ago, was viewed as an ideal preparation for the Asian Games.
- Owing to their poor run of form at the World Championships, Saina Nehwal dropped out of the top 10 while K. Srikanth slipped two places to eighth in the latest BWF rankings. Saina lost a place to be 11th.
- Ajay Jayaram and Mithun Manjunath progressed to the semifinals with contrasting wins at the $75,000 Vietnam Open Super Tour 100 tournament .
- The Hindu Playwright Award 2018 went to Annie Zaidi for her play Untitled-1. Big Heart (Zervan up) won the Leading Stud Cup, the main event of the concluding day’s races .
- University Vice Chancellor M.K. Surappa said Mr. Kumar was appointed as former Registrar S. Ganesan had sought to be relieved from the post. Though Mr. Ganesan’s tenure had ended long back.
- Justice Rajendra Menon was sworn in as Chief Justice of Delhi High Court in a ceremony held at the Raj Niwas in Delhi.
- ‘Pioneering’ former Chilean President Michelle Bachelet officially appointed new UN human rights chief.
- The Minister of State for Culture (Independent Charge) and Minister of State for Environment Forest and Climate Change, Dr. Mahesh Sharma inaugurated an exhibition entitled ‘Prathibandhit Sahitya mein Swatantrata.
- Sangram’ (Freedom Movement through Proscribed Literature) in the premises of National Archives of India, in New Delhi.
- President Ram Nath Kovind today inaugurated 'One District One Product' (ODOP) Summit organised by the Uttar Pradesh government to promote traditional industries in every district of the state.
- Bajaj Allianz General Insurance has entered into a bancassurance deal with Vijaya Bank. MoHFW and Ministry of Tribal Affairs sign an MoU for extending services of School Health Programme to schools supported by MoTA.
- As part of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) initiatives, SCO Peace Mission Exercise is conducted biennially for SCO member states.
1. International News
- Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau refused to apologise for calling out Saudi Arabia on its human rights record, after Riyadh said it was considering further punitive measures against Ottawa over its criticisms of the kingdom.
- Argentina’s senators voted against legalising abortion in the homeland of Pope Francis, dashing the hopes of women’s rights groups after the Bill was approved by the legislature’s Lower House months earlier.
- U.S. Vice-President Mike Pence on Thursday unveiled details of plans to build a U.S. Space Force that would become the sixth branch of America’s massive military, saying the “time has come” to prepare for “the next battlefield.”
- GoAir is expected to launch its international operations and connect Kannur in Kerala with Dammam in Saudi Arabia
- The National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Thursday granted permission to Vedanta to access the administrative section at the Sterlite Copper plant in Thoothukudi.
- The Rajya Sabha on Thursday unanimously cleared the amendments to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, overturning a March 2018 Supreme Court judgment pertaining to safeguard against the arrests under the Act.
- The National Sports University Bill and the Homoeopathy Central Council (Amendment) Bill were passed in the Rajya Sabha
- Venezuela’s crude shipments to India, its third largest export market after the U.S. and China, fell 21% in the first six months of the year, but the country’s Ambassador in Delhi has said plans are on to boost production at home and that oil trade with India will continue unabated despite U.S. sanctions.
- The Union Cabinet gave its approval for raising four more battalions of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) at an estimated cost of ₹637 crore.
- The government approved the continuation of the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) beyond the 12th five year plan period.
- HDFC Bank, the second largest private sector lender in the country, is yet to sign the Inter-Creditor Agreement (ICA) — an understanding among lenders to resolve stressed assets quickly.
- The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has emerged as the top source of inward remittances, while Kerala has received the maximum funds sent from abroad, according to the Reserve Bank of India’s survey of inward remittances for 2016-17.
- ‘Taiwan’s Wistron to invest ₹1,150 crore in Karnataka’Sundram Fasteners Limited (SFL), part of the $7.2 billion TVS Group, posted a 17.8% increase in standalone net profit for the first quarter ended June 30, 2018, at ₹106.18 crore, from ₹90.17 crore in the year earlier, aided by a pick up in the commercial vehicle (CV) segment.
- From the pits of despair in Paris, record-setting Novak Djokovic now eyes a third US Open title in New York where for the first time since Wimbledon last year, the sport’s ‘Big Four’ will be reunited.
- India's hosting of the FIFA U-17 World Cup in 2017 had led to the Indian Super League being postponed to a late-November start last season, but the fifth edition of the tournament is set to begin in September.
- Tamara (Md. Asif Khan up) won the N.M. Lingaraju Memorial Trophy, the feature event of the races held here on Thursday (August 9). The winner is owned by Mr. H. Thambuswamy and trained by S. Britto.
- Spain’s Kepa Arrizabalaga became the most expensive goalkeeper in history on Wednesday after Chelsea confirmed his £71.6 million move from Athletic Bilbao.
- Ajay Jayaram, Rituparna Das and Mithun Manjunath were through to the quarterfinals of the USD 75,000 Vietnam Open Tour Super 100 tournament in Ho Chi Minh City on Thursday.
- The Vietnam Open is an international badminton tournament held in Vietnam since 1996 and is a part of the BWF Tour Super 100. After inaugural tournament was held in 1996,
- Star javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra was on Friday named the Indian contingent’s flag-bearer for the Asian Games opening ceremony to be held on August 18 in Jakarta.
- NCW member Rekha Sharma, who recently stoked a controversy by suggesting abolition of confessions in churches, has been appointed as the chairperson of the National Commission for Women.
- TRAI chief Ram Sewak Sharma, who set off a controversy recently by disclosing his Aadhaar number on social media, has been reappointed Chairman of Telecom Regulatory Authority of India for another two years.
- NITI Aayog will host an Investors’ Conference on August 10, 2018 at Pravasi Bharatiya Kendra for the Holistic Development of Islands.
- PayPal, a global technology platform and digital payments leader, has announced its strategic partnership with and HDFC Bank to offer safer, faster and convenient payment experiences for the bank's card holders.
- Australian golfer Jarrod Lyle has died after a long struggle with cancer. "He passed away peacefully at 8.20 p.m. last night having spent his final week among his family and close friends."
1. International
Saudi Arabia banned trade deals with Canada
- Saudi Arabia has frozen ties and banned new trade deals with Canada after Canada urged the release of jailed civil rights activists.
- Trump administration has announced new sanctions to punish Russia for a nerve agent attack in the U.K. on former spy Sergei Skripal.
- Washington would impose fresh sanctions on Russia after it determined that Moscow had used a nerve agent against a former Russian agent and his daughter in Britain.
- The President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind, hosted an ‘At Home’ reception for freedom fighters on the 76th anniversary of Quit India Day August 9, 2018 at Rashtrapati Bhavan.
- Non-Resident Indians cannot file Right to Information (RTI) applications to seek governance-related information from the Central government departments. Andhra Pradesh.
- Lixil, a Tokyo-based world leader in manufacturing building materials and housing equipment, had its first sanitary ware unit in India inaugurated in Andhra Pradesh.
- Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd., (MRPL), has begun preparatory work for the State’s first seawater reverse osmosis desalination plant land leased out by New Mangalore Port Trust (NMPT).
- The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has emerged as the top source of inward remittances, while Kerala has received the maximum funds sent from abroad, according to the Reserve Bank of India’s survey of inward remittances for 2016-17.
- Taiwan’s Wistron, a contract manufacturer of Apple iPhones in India, plans to invest Rs.1,150 crore in Karnataka.
- International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecasts India’s gross domestic product (GDP) is poised to grow by 7.3% in the 2018-19 fiscal and 7.5% in 2019-20.
- NDA candidate and JD(U) MP Harivansh was elected the Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha on Thursday, defeating Opposition candidate and Congress MP B.K. Hariprasad.
- The Union Cabinet has approved the signing the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Indonesia on health cooperation.
- The Union Cabinet has approved the extension of the term of the Commission to examine the issue of Sub-categorization of Other Backward Classes in the Central List till November, 2018.
- The Union Cabinet has approved the creation of two posts equivalent to Joint Secretary level in the Interpreters’ cadre of the Ministry of External Affairs.
- The Union Cabinet has approved the signing of the “Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)” between “Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI)” and “Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada (CPA Canada)”.
- The Union Cabinet gave its ex-post facto approval to the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Korea on Trade Remedy Cooperation.
- The Union Cabinet was apprised of joint issue of Postage Stamps on India-South Africa on the theme, “20 Years of Strategic Partnership between India and South Africa”.
- The Union Cabinet has approved a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Indonesia on Scientific and Technological Cooperation.
- The Union Cabinet has given the approval for raising of four (4) additional battalions of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) to strengthen the India’s disaster response set up at an estimated cost of Rs 637 crore.
- The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved the release of pulses to States/UTs at discounted rate to be utilized for various Welfare Schemes from the stock of pulses procured under Price Support Schemes (PSS).
- MoU signed between Ministry of Health and Ministry of Tribal Affairs for working in a cooperative partnership to improve the health and well-being of students in tribal schools.
- MoU signed between TRIFED (M/o Tribal Affairs) and National Medicinal Plant Board (M/o AYUSH) to promote Medicinal and Aromatic Plants forest produce for livelihood development among tribals.
- The government approved the continuation of Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) beyond the 12th five year plan period.
- The Union Cabinet approved the inclusion of provision of granting bail to men found guilty of giving instant triple talaq to their wives in the Muslim Women Protection of Rights on Marriage Bill.
- India and Myanmar operationalised the landmark Land Border Crossing Agreement. Delegations from both sides came to Tamu in Manipur to inaugurate check-points on both sides of the border.
- The Supreme Court finalised a new charter for the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) while rejecting the ‘one State one vote’ recommendation of the Justice R.M. Lodha Committee and altering the cooling-off period for cricket bosses.
1. International News
- Nicolás Maduro has weathered attempted rebellions, falling oil prices, isolation from neighbouring countries and threats of U.S. intervention.
- Trump administration’s policies as a diplomat especially over race and immigration, Sri Preston Kulkarni last December decided to quit his dream job at the US state department to run for Congress.
- India’s antitrust regulator has approved Walmart’s $16-billion purchase of Flipkart, despite protests from traders across the country over fears that the deal would drive several small retailers out of business.
- Finding it difficult to defend the Trump administration’s policies as a diplomat, Sri Preston Kulkarni last December decided to quit his dream job at the U.S. State Department to run for Congress.
- President Donald Trump has warned that countries doing business with Iran will "NOT be doing business with the United States" as his administration reimposed sanctions on Iran Tuesday.
- United States Ambassador to India Kenneth I. Juster on Tuesday met J&K Governor N.N. Vohra and former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah in Srinagar.
- The Maharashtra government cleared a proposal to rope in private landowners to collaborate with state-run housing agency MHADA to implement the Pradhan Mantri Aawas Yojana (PMAY) in urban areas.
- Soon after the Tamil Nadu government rejected the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam’s plea for space to bury the body of party president M. Karunanidhi on the premises of Anna Memorial at Marina Beach, armed police personnel took position at vital installations across the State.
- Home Minister Rajnath Singh informed the Lok Sabha on Tuesday that the Centre will issue advisories to States about the safety of children in shelter homes. It will also direct the Ministry concerned to ensure safety audit of all homes.
- The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has pulled up the UPA government for changing the parameters of the deal for the procurement of Long Range Maritime Reconnaissance Anti-Submarine Warfare (LRMRASW) aircraft to unduly favour Boeing of the U.S.
- The government introduced four Bills seeking to amend the Goods and Services Tax (GST) laws that will make return forms simpler and raise the turnover threshold for availing composition scheme to ₹1.5 crore.
- The Communist Party of India has said the ‘Sikh Referendum 2020,’ scheduled for August 12 in London, is an attempt to disturb the hard-earned peace in Punjab.
- The revised norms governing load carrying capacity of commercial vehicles will be applicable to existing vehicles and not just new ones, the Road Transport and Highways Ministry has clarified.
- The value of transactions made through mobile wallets touched a record ₹14,632 crore in June, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data released on Tuesday showed, rising 4.2% from ₹14,047 crore in May.
- Public sector non-life insurance firm United India Insurance Company has appointed S Gopakumar as its Director and General Manager with immediate effect.
- The Centre on appointed RSS ideologue S. Gurumurthy and Satish Kashinath Marathe as part time non-official directors on the central board of Reserve Bank of India for four years.
- Punjab National Bank suffered a net loss of ₹940 crore in the quarter ended June due to higher provisioning for the multi-crore Nirav Modi scam and NPAs, despite a recovery of ₹8,445 crore of bad loans.
- TVS Motor Company Ltd., has put electric vehicles on the back burner and will instead, roll out vehicles compliant with BS VI emission norms, said a top official.
- Public sector non-life insurance firm United India Insurance Company announced the appointment of S Gopakumar as its Director and General Manager with immediate effect.
- Indian banks reported a total loss of about ₹70,000 crore due to frauds during the last three fiscals up to March 2018.
- Striker Mario Gomez has decided to retire from international football. The German team exited in the first round at this year’s FIFA World Cup.
- India U20 team's 2-1 win over Argentina U20 is a vindication of long-standing efforts being channelled into youth football in the country.
- The Indian Women's Hockey team achieved their best-ever world ranking as they climbed up a spot to ninth place in the latest FIH World Rankings, updated on Tuesday.
- SpaceX Re-Launches 'Block 5' Rocket for 1st Time, Nails Landing Again. Forty-five new exoplanets discovered.
- The 3rd India-Nepal Coordination meeting will be held in New Delhi today. A seven-member delegation from Nepal, headed by Inspector General of Nepal Armed Police Force Shailendra Khanal will take part in the three-day meeting.
- Carolina Marin claimed a slice of history as the Spaniard became the first woman to win three badminton World titles with an emphatic victory over P.V. Sindhu of India on Sunday.
- A team of four Saudi women has won the first prize of ₹1.8 crore for their Android-only translation app Tarjuman at Hajj Hackathon 2018. The app aims to help Hajj pilgrims translate signboards to any language without an internet connection.
- Kalaignar, the moniker by which Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam patriarch M. Karunanidhi was affectionately called, was a title conferred on him by Pattukottai Alagiri, one of the leaders of the Dravidian Movement, for penning the play Thooku Medai (Gallows).
- PayU India announced entering into a strategic partnership with Reliance Money, leading NBFC brands in India, to offer instant app based personal loans, via LazyPay.
- A revised Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) has been signed yesterday amongst Govt. of India (through MoWR, RD & GR), NABARD and National Water Development Agency (NWDA) for funding of central share of 99 prioritized irrigation projects under Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY) through Long Term Irrigation Fund (LTIF).
- JP Morgan has committed $7 million to a $9.5-million fund to set up a financial inclusion lab to support fintech
- startups in association with IIM-Ahmedabad and the Dell and Bill Gates foundations NSE unveils new logo, sheds brown, takes on shades of marigold at 25
- In the passing of DMK president Muthuvel Karunanidhi at the age of 94 after a prolonged illness, Tamil Nadu has lost one of the tallest leaders of the Dravidian movement and the nation a veteran politician
1. International News
- The first set of U.S. sanctions against Iran that had been eased under the landmark nuclear accord went back into effect early Tuesday under an executive order signed by President Donald Trump, targeting financial transactions that involve U.S. dollars, Iran's automotive sector.
- The Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister, N Chandrababu Naidu, launched a high energy density storage device developed by Bharat Energy Storage Technology Pvt Ltd (BEST) at Praja Vedika at Amaravati.
- Pacific Endeavor-2018, a communication exercise under the Multinational Communications Interoperability Program (MCIP) started in Kathmandu, Nepal.
- National Commission for Backward Classes(NCBC) secured Parliament's approval today with the Rajya Sabha passing the measure that will give the panel full powers to safeguard the rights and interests of the Other Backward Classes(OBCs).
- The National Handloom Day is being observed every year on 7 August to honour the handloom weavers in the country and also carter an impetus to India's handloom industry. This year it was third edition of the National Handloom Day after it was instituted.
- The Indian government has extended e-visa facility for citizens of 165 countries at 25 airports and five seaports, the Lok Sabha was informed on Monday.
- The Government has approved the authorised equity capital expansion of Higher Education Financing Agency (HEFA) to Rs. 10,000 crore, with Government equity of Rs. 6000 crore.
- Indian women clinched the gold in the blitz event of the Asian Nations Cup Chess Tournament in Hamadan,Iran
- Joint platoon level military exercise Maitree 2018 between India and Thailand was conducted in Thailand from 6 to 19 August 2018.
- The fourth preview, called Beta 3, was released on July 2, 2018. The final beta of Android P was released on July 25, 2018. Android "P" was officially released on August 6, 2018
- A research team led by astronomers from the National Astronomical Observatories of China (NAOC), Chinese Academy of Sciences.
- NITI Aayog’s International Conference on “Sustainable Growth through Material Recycling: Policy Prescriptions” was inaugurated by the Union Minister of Road Transport, Highways & Ganga Rejuvenation, Nitin Gadkari at Pravasi Bharatiya Kendra in New Delhi.
- The Minister for Road Transport & Highways, Shipping, Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation Shri Nitin Gadkari launched Bidder Information Management System (BIMS) and Bhoomi Rashi and PFMS linkage
- Union Government has constituted four-member Group of Ministers (GoM) headed by Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Suresh Prabhu to decide on 16 member Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) negotiations.
- A revised Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) has been signed yesterday amongst Govt. of India (through MoWR, RD & GR), NABARD and National Water Development Agency (NWDA) for funding of central share of 99 prioritized irrigation projects under Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana
- Ajay Data, Founder and CEO of Data XGen Plus, has become the first Indian to be appointed a member of the Country Code Names Supporting Organisation (ccNSO).
- Farm and construction equipment maker Escorts today appointed Nikhil Nanda as the chairman and managing director (MD) of the company to succeed his father Rajan Nanda who passed away earlier this week after a brief illness.
- Kannada writer Sumatheendra Nadig no more. Kannada writer and poet Sumatheendra Nadig, one of the proponents of the Navya literature movement.
1. International News
- The UK government has announced new plans to change the law for organ and tissue donation to address the urgent need for organs within the Indian-origin communities in the country.
- China on Monday announced that it has successfully tested its first cutting-edge hypersonic aircraft which could carry nuclear warheads and penetrate any current generation anti-missile defence systems.
- To fulfill the Governmentof India’s mission to promote the spirit of entrepreneurship in the country, Startup India launched the Startup Academia Alliance programme
- PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI) and Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to establish India-Nepal Centre.
- The iconic Mughalsarai Railway Junction in Uttar Pradesh has been renamed as Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Junction Railway station.
- A brilliant chip-in eagle at the 17th hole propelled Indian golfer Gaganjeet Bhullar to claim his maiden European Tour title with a one-stroke win over a charging Anthony Quayle of Australia at the Fiji International
- Ireland's first Women's World Cup field hockey final ended in defeat as the Netherlands retained the title with an emphatic 6-0 victory on Sunday.
- Two-time Grand Slam champion Svetlana Kuznetsova saved four match points and rallied to defeat Croatia's Donna Vekic and win her 18th career WTA title at the Washington Open.
- Defence India Startup Challenge unveiled by Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in Bengaluru, Karnataka.
- China has operationalised a prototype exascale computing machine, the next-generation supercomputer, according to the developers.
- The 51st ASEAN Foreign Ministers meeting in Singapore chaired by Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.
1. International News
- Japan ($6.17 trillion) has pipped China ($6.09 trillion) and ranked the world’s number two stock market.
- Bryce Carlson, a high school science teacher from Cincinnati, Ohio, has rowed solo across the Atlantic Ocean, setting a record for a west-to-east crossing – 38 days, six hours and 49 minutes.
- President Ram Nath Kovind has given assent to a law that will deter fugitive economic offenders to evade legal process in India and flee the country.
- MHRD, under the IMPRINT-2, has approved 122 new research projects at a cost of Rs. 112 crore. The projects that have been approved cover domains such as Energy, Security, Healthcare, Advanced Materials, ICT and Security/Defence domains.
- Amid a barrage of attacks over the Muzaffarpur sex scandal, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has launched an ambitious scheme which promises to provide ₹54,100 from the birth of a girl child till she graduates.
- PV Sindhu finished second best yet again in a major tournament final as she went down tamely to Carolina Marin in the World Championships' women's singles title clash, adding to the Indian's tale of woes here today.
- Kento Momota of Japan defeated Shi Yuqi of China 21-11, 21-13 in the men’s final at the badminton world championships on Sunday.
- India will host the first military exercise of the BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) group focussing on counter-terrorism in September.
- The launch of India’s second mission to the moon, Chandrayaan-2, may be delayed till January 2019, according to a top official.
- Indra Nooyi to step down in October after 12 years as PepsiCo CEO. Nooyi, 62, will leave the CEO role on October 3. Ramon Laguarta,
1. International News
- India was on August 3, 2018 elected as the President of the Asia-Pacific Institute for Broadcasting Development (AIBD) for a period of two years.
- Indian-origin US astronaut Sunita Williams is among the nine astronauts named by NASA today for its first human spaceflight programme since the retirement of the space shuttle in 2011.
- Chinese equities were worth $6.09 trillion, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. That compares with $6.17 trillion in Japan. The US has the world’s largest stock market at just over $31 trillion.
- Loksabha Speaker Smt Sumitra Mahajan here today handed over 5 croreth LPG connection under Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) to Smt Takrdiran of Delhi in the Parliament House.
- The Uttarakhand High Court on Friday banned the commercial use of elephants in Corbett Tiger Reserve besides restricting the number of vehicles entering its ranges in a day to 100.
- The Governor administered the oath of office to Justice Mittal as the Chief Justice of the Jammu and Kashmir High Court at an impressive ceremony at the Raj Bhavan
- Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur on Friday launched an awareness campaign named “Horn Not Ok” along with a statewide mobile app “Shor Nahin” or no noise.
- The ministry of tourism in collaboration with other central ministries, state governments and stakeholders is organizing a “Paryatan Parv” across the country from the 16th to 27th September 2018
- The National Sports University Bill, 2018 was introduced in Lok Sabha by Mr. Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports on July 23, 2018. It replaces the National Sports University Ordinance, 2018
- French company IDEMIA, a global leader in augmented identity, said it has become the first company to be given the certification to manufacture and personalise RuPay chip contact and contactless cards on the qSPARC v2 platform.
- “There is an urgent need to introduce professionalism in the urban cooperative banking sector if we wish to stand against the increasing competition.
- A Group of State Finance Ministers on GST discount, headed by Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Modi, on Friday gave its nod for incentivising digital payments through a cash back mechanism.
- India said on Saturday that delayed higher tariffs against some goods imported from the United States will go into force on September 18.
- Nepal's Rohit Kumar Paudel, at 15 years and 335 days, became the fourth youngest One-day International (ODI) debutant.
- Chinese scientists claimed to have created the first single-chromosome yeast while not affecting the majority of its functions, a breakthrough that could help in furthering research related to aging and diseases in humans.
- Haryana has been ranked amongst the four best states for business investment potential, according to the National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER)
1. International News
- Jongdari, which means skylark in Korean, is the 12th typhoon of the season arrived in the Chinese financial hub.
- President Emmerson Mnangagwa has won Zimbabwe's presidential election, according to the electoral commission.
- District officials in Assam have begun work to delete the names of ‘declared foreigners’ whose names had been included in the complete draft of the updated National Register of Citizens (NRC)
- Locals in Goa would be banned from playing in casinos from 2019 once the government appoints a gaming commissioner to regulate the operations.
- The integration of the Facial Recognition System (FRS) with TSCOP will aid in prevention of crime and identification of criminals across the State in real time.
- Karnataka has now joined the ranks of States that are using unmanned aerial systems (UAS) or drones in governance. The State launched a pilot project under which drones will be used in agriculture, urban development and policing.
- Yoga classes now a must in all Karnataka colleges, universities It will be mandatory for all colleges and universities across the State to ensure that yoga is taught in their institutions. This will apply to private colleges too.
- Following its release of record third-quarter 2018 earnings on Tuesday, Apple today became the first U.S. company to hit a $1 trillion market capitalization
- India's economy is expected to clock GDP growth of 7.5% in this financial year according to a Morgan Stanley report. The growth recovery will remain robust, supported initially by consumption and exports.
- Fino Payments Bank has been barred by the Reserve Bank of India from adding new customers since the end of May.
- The decision of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to take an unsecured loan of ₹25,000 crore from State Bank of India (SBI) has drawn flak from within the authority and also from experts.
- Virat Kohli became the fastest captain to reach 7000 international runs. Brian Lara was the fastest among the previous 14 players who scored 7000 International runs as captain.
- Scientists have created a sponge-like material using wood pulp and small bits of metal that can remove harmful dyes in water in a matter of seconds.
- External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj today held a comprehensive discussion with her Kazakhstan counterpart Kairat Abdrakhmanov
1. International News
- In a drastic cut-down, the US Congress has passed a defence spending bill on Thursday capping its security-related aid to Pakistan at $150 million per year, from the nearly $1.2 billion that was provided under the President Barack Obama administration.
- India and Pakistan are set to install new gates at the Attari-Wagah border, where people from both sides throng every evening to watch the lowering of the national flags.
- Alphabet Inc’s Google is planning a censored version of its search engine for China that will block websites and certain search terms. The project is a code named “Dragonfly”.
- Rajasthan has become the first Indian state to implement the national policy on biofuels unveiled by the centre in May this year. High-power Biofuel Authority approved this implementation.
- India and Germany today signed an agreement on financial and technical cooperation, with a focus on sustainable urban development and renewable energy.
- Ministries of Power and Textiles have joined hands under SAATHI (Sustainable and Accelerated Adoption of efficient Textile technologies to Help small Industries) initiative.
- Delhi celebrates its first ever dragonfly festival. This is First-ever festival for insects that help maintain ecosystem and is being organized from Aug to Sept jointly by WWF (World Wide Fund) India
- The Cabinet today approved GST laws amendments which included hiking threshold limit for availing composition scheme dealers to Rs 1.5 crore, among other things.
- IDBI Bank today said it has received approval to bring down the government stake to below 50 per cent and get acquired by insurance behemoth LIC.
- World Junior Squash Championships 2018 was held in Chennai, India. A total of 171 players including 116 men and 55 women from 28 countries took part in the World Junior Squash Championship. Cyrus Poncha was the tournament director.
- Lewis Hamilton has said how pleased he was to come away with a win at the Hungarian Grand Prix, having entered the weekend expecting to drop points to Sebastian Vettel and Ferrari.
- The Australian mathematician Akshay Venkatesh has won the Fields medal, the mathematics equivalent of the Nobel prize.
- The award was given to him at a function in New Delhi which was chaired by Academy vice chairman Vishnu Khare and inaugurated by Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia. The award includes a cash reward of Rs 5 lakh.
- Indigenously build advanced Air defence interceptor missile has been successfully test fired from Abdul Kalam Island.
- The Conference will be inaugurated by Shri. Amitabh Kant, CEO, NITI Aayog. It will attract investment for the sustainable development of eco-tourism projects in Andaman & Nicobar and Lakshadweep islands.
- A two-day Indo-US Military Cooperation Meeting began today in New Delhi as a prelude to 2 plus 2 Dialogue between the two countries scheduled next month.
- Andhra, Kerela, Maharashtra, Punjab, Rajasthan are the ‘Front runner’ in the Energy efficiency index.
1.International News
- The Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) opted to support Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), enabling it to form the federal government, Express News reported on Wednesday night
- The UAE launched a landmark three-month visa amnesty programme that will benefit hundreds of illegal foreign workers, including Indians, who are overstaying their permits
- E-Aksharayan is desktop software by Shri.Ajay Prakash Sawhney, Secretary, Ministry of Electronics and IT in New Delhi
- The National Health Agency (NHA) under the Health Ministry, which is the apex body for the implementation of Ayushman Bharat-National Health Protection Mission,
- Kerala will launch Sampushta Keralam, a national nutrition mission with the specific aims of improving nutrition, preventing obesity, and promoting breastfeeding in the State.
- The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has approved the first extension of Concessional Financing Scheme (CFS) to support Indian Entities bidding for strategically important infrastructure projects abroad.
- Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje approved a proposal to set up 55 courts under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act in the state.
- New ideas have started to emerge in sector of industries and business. To promote this, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had implemented the Start-Up India scheme.
- The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) resorted to a back-to-back interest rate hike for the first time in almost five years to curb inflation and pre-empt a rout of the rupee as the global trade war escalates.
- Industries (RIL) dislodged Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) as the country’s most-valuable company, while D-Mart parent Avenue Supermarts’ market capital isation rose to Rs 1.03 trillion, making it the 29th biggest company in the country in terms of market value.
- Bill for mergeing subsidiary banks with SBI passed in Parliament State Bank of Mauritius (SBM) becomes the first foreign bank to open a branch locally
- The digital payments market In India is expected to grow to US $ 1 trillion by 2023 led by growth in mobile payments
- India’s fiscal deficit at the end of the first quarter of the current financial year was 68.7% of the budgeted target for 2018-19, better than 80.8% a year ago.
- The World No.1 bounced back from his first missed cut of the year at The Open last week with a three-shot victory at Glen Abbey Golf Club in Oakville, Ontario - his 19th win on the PGA Tour.
- Former West Bengal Governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi has been chosen for this year’s Rajiv Gandhi Sadbhavana Award
- Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad, Trinamool Congress leader Dinesh Trivedi and BJD leader Bhratruhari Mahtab, former Rajya Sabha member Najma Heptullah chosen for the Outstanding Parliamentarian Award.
- Scientists observe a radioactive molecule in space that originates from an ancient stellar explosion
- The Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) launched a dedicated portal to connect cargo owners and shippers with real time data on availability of vessels.
- The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has approved the proposal for restructuring of Agricultural Scientists’ Recruitment Board (ASRB).
- The first Nepal-India Think Tank Summit has begun in Kathmandu to foster greater collaboration and knowledge-sharing among the think tanks of the two countries.
- India has jumped 22 places to 96th rank to break into the top 100 of the United Nation’s E-Government Development Index (EGDI) 2018
- The Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), has received top honours at Swachhta Pakhwada Awards.
- Seven Indian companies feature in the US magazine Fortune 500 list of the world's largest firms, with state-run Indian Oil Corp (IOC) remaining the top-ranked Indian company in the 2018 rankings