NATIONAL UPDATES:
1.
Indian Railways Constructing World’s first electrified double-stack container
tunnel near Haryana: The
Indian Railways is constructing the world’s first electrified double-stack
container tunnel, between the Aravalli hills, on the railway’s Western
Dedicated Freight Corridor near Haryana’s Sohna. Once operational, a
double-stack container goods train will be able to run at a speed of more than
100 km from within this one-km-tunnel. The Dedicated Freight Corridor
Corporation of India Limited (DFCCIL) is the implementing agency of the
project. The D-shaped tunnel is one of the biggest Railway tunnels in India in
terms of cross-sectional area, measuring 150 square metres. One end of the
tunnel is near Rewari while the other end of the tunnel is at Dadri. The tunnel
connects the Mewat and Gurugram district of Haryana.
2.
HRD Ministry forms committee on retaining students in India, to be headed by
UGC chairman D. P. Singh: The Union Ministry of Human Resource Development has
set up a “Stay in India and Study in India” committee to form guidelines and
recommend measures to make sure that more students study in India and there is
a smooth transition for students returning from abroad due to COVID-19
situation. The committee will be headed by chairman of the University Grants
Commission (UGC), Prof. D. P. Singh. This initiative is a part of Governments
plan to retain aspiring students, who wants to study abroad, by providing appropriate
opportunities for education in premier Indian institutions and addressing
concerns of students returning from abroad, due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Note: HRD Minister: Ramesh Pokhriyal
'Nishank'
3.
IIM-Kozhikode develops ‘Veli Band’ for ensuring social distancing: The Indian
Institute of Management Kozhikode based incubated startup Qual5 India Pvt.Ltd
has developed a wearable hand band Known as the “Veli Band”. The band will help
in maintaining social distancing by sending out an alarm in case of proximity
with another person. The band momentarily vibrates, sounds buzzer, and flashes
LED simultaneously to notify wearers that another band is within 3 feet (1
metre), reminding them of the need to maintain social distance. The device, to
be worn on the wrist, can anonymously keep track of interactions with other
devices and thus not only help in maintaining a safer workplace but also aid in
tracking employee movements in real-time.
Note: Chairman of IIM-K: A. Vellayan; IIM-K
Headquarters: Kozhikode, Kerala.
4.
CRPF Observes 82nd Raising Day on 27 July: The 82nd Raising Day of Central
Reserve Police Force was observed on 27 July 2020. The CRPF was founded as
Crown Representative’s Police on July 27, 1939 and became the Central Reserve
Police Force (CRPF) on the enactment of the CRPF Act on December 28, 1949. CRPF
is India’s largest Central Armed Police Force, under the authority of the
Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). Its headquarter is located in New Delhi. CRPF
has the mandate to secure internal security scenario and is at the forefront to
keep our nation safe. The first battalion of the force was raised on July 27,
1939, as the Crown Representative’s Police (CRP) under the British in Neemuch
town of Madhya Pradesh.
Note: Director General of Central Reserve
Police Force: AP Maheshwari.
5.
Delhi Govt launches ‘Rozgar Bazar’ for job seekers and recruiters: Delhi government has launched the portal named
as “Rozgar Bazar”, a sort of marketplace for job seekers and the people
recruiters. The portal will proved to be a boon for the employers as well as
the job seekers. The recruiters can visit the website and update their
requirements, similarly job seekers are also required to visit the portal and
update their qualification, experience and requirement. The “Rozgar Bazar”
portal is an effort of the Delhi Government to revive the lockdown-hit economy
of Delhi. There are many people who want jobs and there are traders,
businessmen, professionals, contractors who are not getting the right person
for their work. This portal will fill the gap by bringing them together on one
platform.
Note: Chief Minister of Delhi: Arvind
Kejriwal; Governor of Delhi: Anil Baijal.
6.
J&K LG announces launch of ‘Macadamisation Program’: Lieutenant Governor, Girish Chandra Murmu has
announced the launch of a ‘Macadamisation Program’ for the improvement of roads
across Jammu and Kashmir. Murmu has approved a program for 100 percent
Macadamisation of all roads in the Union Territory including 11,000 km of
fair-weather roads. Meanwhile, Lieutenant Governor also announced a release of
Rs 200 Crores to the Public Works Department as the first tranche so that the
Macadamisation work on priority roads can commence. The prioritization criteria
will include when a road was last macadamized, whether it was part of the
grievances presented before Lieutenant Governor during his outreach tours, the
present quality of the road and other similar factors.
7.
Riva Ganguly Das appointed next Secretary (East) in External Affairs Ministry: The Modi administration
announced the appointment of Riva Ganguly Das as the next Secretary (East) in
the Ministry of External Affairs. Ms. Das, a 1986-batch Indian Foreign Service
officer, is presently High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh. She will take
over as Secretary (East) from October. She will replace Vijay Singh Thakur, who
is due for superannuation on September 30.
8.
Rajesh Bhushan appointed as new Health Secretary: Rajesh Bhushan, IAS
officer of 1987 Batch, Bihar Cadre has been appointed as the new Health
Secretary in the Union Health Ministry.
In another major reshuffle Ajay Tirkey has
been appointed as Secretary, Department of Land Resources in the Ministry of
Rural Development. Ram Mohan Mishra will take over as Secretary in the Ministry
of Women and Child Development.
Sushil Kumar has been appointed as
Secretary, National Commission for Scheduled Castes in the Ministry of Social
Justice and Empowerment.
Anil Kumar Jain has been given additional
charge as Secretary, Mines along with his post of Secretary in the Coal
Ministry.
INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:
1.
GoI grants medical assistance worth about USD 1Mn to DPRK: Government of India has extended medical
assistance worth about USD 1 million in the form of anti-tuberculosis medicines
to North Korea. The medical assistance was extended in response to a request
received from the World Health Organisation (WHO) and was granted under the
aegis of an ongoing WHO anti-tuberculosis programme in the Democratic People’s
Republic of Korea (DPRK). The consignment of anti-tuberculosis medicines was
handed over by Indian Ambassador to DPRK Atul Malhari Gotsurve to DPRK authorities
in the presence of a WHO representative.
Note: Supreme Leader of North Korea: Kim
Jong-un; Capital of North Korea: Pyongyang; Currency: North Korean won.
2.
Sahil Seth appointed as the adviser to BRICS CCI committee: Sahil Seth has been
appointed as an honorary adviser to BRICS Chamber of Commerce and Industry
(CCI) young leaders steering committee for 2020-2023. He is presently serving
as the Deputy Commissioner of Mumbai Customs. BRICS CCI promotes commerce and
industry in the BRICS nations and is a support system for the MSME segment of
businesses and young entrepreneurs from across all different geographies.
Note: BRICS: Brazil, Russia, India, China,
South Africa. HQs: Shanghai, China
OTHER UPDATES:
SPORTS
1.
Haryana to host 4th Khelo India Youth Games in 2021: Haryana will host
the fourth edition of the Khelo India Youth Games in 2021, in Panchkula. The
games will be held after the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, which is scheduled to take
place from July 2021. The announcement was made by the Haryana’s chief minister
Manohar Lal Khattar and Union sports minister Kiren Rijiju via video
conference. Haryana has done well in all three editions of KIYG. While they
came second in both 2019 and 2020 editions (200 medals in 2020 and 159 medals
in 2019) Haryana won it in 2018 with 102 podium finishes (38 gold, 26 silver,
38 bronze). Usually the Khelo India Youth Games take place in January every
year, however, this time owing to the pandemic, the games have been postponed
to a later date (yet to be decided).
Note: Governor of Haryana: Satyadeo Narayan
Arya; Chief Minister of Haryana: Manohar Lal Khattar.
2.
Sri Lankan Bowler Sripali Weerakkody retires from international cricket: Sri Lankan woman
medium-pace bowler, Sripali Weerakkody has announced to retire from
international cricket with immediate effect. The 34-year-old Sripali
Weerakkody, represented Sri Lanka in 89 Women’s One Day Internationals and 58
Women’s Twenty20 Internationals. Weerakkody was also a member of the 2014 Asian
Games bronze medal winning Sri Lankan team.
BANKING AND FINANCE
1.
RBI signs $400 mn currency swap with Sri Lanka: The Reserve Bank of
India (RBI) has signed an agreement for extending a $400-million currency swap
facility to Sri Lanka. This currency swap is used to boost the foreign reserves
and ensure the financial stability of the country, which is badly hit by the
COVID-19 pandemic. The currency swap arrangement will remain available till
November 2022. Sri Lanka was set to enter into an agreement with the RBI for a
currency swap worth $400 million under the South Asian Association for Regional
Cooperation (SAARC) framework. In the swap arrangement, a country provides
dollars to a foreign central bank, which, at the same time, provides the equivalent
funds in its currency to the former, based on the market exchange rate at the
time of the transaction. The parties agree to swap back these quantities of
their two currencies at a specified date in the future, which could be the next
day or even two years later, using the same exchange rate as in the first
transaction. Sri Lanka’s forex reserves were at $ 6.7 billion in June 2020
while India’s forex reserves were at $ 517.63 billion till July 17.
Note: Governor of RBI: Shaktikanta Das;
Headquarters: Mumbai; RBI Founded: 1 April 1935, Kolkata; President of Sri
Lanka: Gotabaya Rajapaksa.
Prime Minister of Sri Lanka: Mahinda
Rajapaksa; Capital of Sri Lanka: Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte; Currency of Sri
Lanka: Sri Lankan rupee.
2.
Naveen Tahilyani Appointed as MD & CEO of Tata AIA Life Insurance: Tata AIA Life
Insurance has appointed Naveen Tahilyani as the new Chief Executive Officer
& Managing Director. Tahilyani will take over from current Chief Executive
Officer, Rishi Srivastava, who is moving to Group Agency Distribution, AIA
Group, Hong Kong as Chief Executive Officer. This is the second time that
Naveen Tahilyani is being appointed as MD & CEO. Prior to this, he was the
CEO and Managing Director of Tata AIA from the year 2015 to 2018. Naveen Tahilyani
was the CEO, Group Partnership Distribution at AIA Hong Kong till 2019.
Note: Tata AIA chairman: Saurabh Agrawal
AWARDS AND HONOURS
1.
Kannan C S Warrier receives 2019 National Award of Excellence for Outstanding
Research in Forestry: Coimbatore-based Kannan Warrier, , Senior principal of
Institute of Forest Genetics and Tree Breeding (IFGTB) scientist gets Indian
Council of Forestry Research and Education’s National Award of Excellence for
outstanding research in forestry, including conservation of endangered sacred
groves in the Alappuzha district of Kerala. The award also recognises his
research on three productive clones of casuarina, known as kattadi and savukku.
Warrier has 27 years of forestry research experience and has published 232
research articles.
OBITUARIES
1.
Tanzania’s Former President Benjamin Mkapa passes away: Tanzania’s Former President, Benjamin Mkapa
passed away. He served as the third president of the country, from 1995 to
2005, before handing over power to the fourth president Jakaya Kikwete. He held
several cabinet posts, such as foreign minister and information minister and
also served as ambassador to the United States before he was elected president.
Note: President of Tanzania: John Magufuli; Capital of Tanzania: Dodoma; Currency of Tanzania: Tanzanian shilling.
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