NATIONAL UPDATES:
1.
Kerala’s 1st-ever Dragonfly Festival: WWF-India Kerala State Office is joining
hands with the Society for Odonate Studies (SOS) and Thumbipuranam for the
first-ever state “Dragonfly Festival” in Kerala, christened ‘Thumbimahotsavam
2020’. This is part of the National Dragonfly Festival organised by WWF India,
Bombay Natural History Society and Indian Dragonfly Society in association with
National Biodiversity Board, UN Environmental Programme, UN Development
Programme and IUCN-CEC. About Dragonfly Festival:
Dragonfly Festival, a series of events will
be rolled out in the coming months to reach out to various sections of the
society. The official mascot of the festival is “Pantalu” which is the genus of
dragonfly in the family Libellulidae commonly known as rain pool gliders. A
‘Dragonfly Backyard Watch’ has also been announced to enhance the participation
of people and improve their observation skills. A field guide on ‘Common
Dragonflies of Kerala’ and a ‘Children’s Dragonfly Coloring & Activity
Book’ is also under development.
Note: Kerala Capital: Thiruvananthapuram;
Kerala Chief Minister: Pinarayi Vijayan; Kerala Governor: Arif Mohammad Khan.
2.
Nitin Gadkari inaugurates 45 Highway projects worth around Rs 11,427 cr in
Madhya Pradesh: The
Union Minister for Road Transport, Highways and MSMEs Nitin Gadkari virtually
inaugurated 45 highway projects in Madhya Pradesh on 25 August 2020. These
projects includes construction of 1,361 km of Road, two over bridges and six
bridges at an estimated cost of Rs 11,427 crore. The implementation of these projects
will create tourism and employment opportunities in the state, as well as help
in the development of entire Madhya Pradesh including backward areas. Part from
this, Nitin Gadkari also announced his plan to open a driving training school
in every district of the country.
3.
Indian Energy Exchange MD & CEO Rajiv Srivastava resigns: Indian Energy
Exchange (IEX), Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Rajiv Srivastava
has resigned from the post. The Board of Directors of Indian Energy Exchange (IEX)
accepted his resignation. He was relieved from his position with immediate
effect from 24th August 2020. Satyanarayan Goel, the current non-executive
chairman of the board of IEX was given additional charges as the interim MD and
CEO of the company.
Note: Indian Energy Exchange MD & CEO:
Satyanarayan Goel (Interim); Headquarters of Indian Energy Exchange: New Delhi;
Indian Energy Exchange Founded: 27 June 2008
4. Indian
Satellite ‘AstroSat’ Detects UV Light From Galaxy 9 Billion Light Years Away: India’s first
multi-wavelength satellite, AstroSat, has detected an extreme ultraviolet (UV)
light from a galaxy, called AUDFs01. This galaxy is 9.3 billion light-years
away from Earth, in the Hubble Extreme Deep field. The discovery was made by an
international team of astronomers led by Dr Kanak Saha, associate professor of
astronomy at the Pune-based Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and
Astrophysics (IUCAA). This research was published on August 24, 2020, by Nature
Astronomy. AstroSat is India’s first multi-wavelength satellite, which has five
unique X-ray and ultraviolet telescopes working in tandem.
5.
Ahmedabad Railway Division launches Baggage Sanitization & Wrapping
machine: Baggage
Sanitization & Wrapping machine has been launched by the Ahmedabad Railway
Division at Ahmedabad Railway Station, Gujarat. The machine is a first of its
kind across the Indian Railways. The recently launched machine aims to ensure
safe travel amid the pandemic. It uses ultraviolet radiation for 360 degree
sanitization of the luggage. The Baggage Sanitization & Wrapping machine
has been installed in around 69-sq metre space on Ahmedabad Railway Station in
order to provide safe journey to the passengers travelling by the Railways amid
the pandemic. According to the Ahmedabad Railway Division, the UV rays used by
the machine will not have any harmful effects on tiffins, food, vegetables or
water kept in the baggage.
6.
E-auction portal rolled out to promote trading of ‘Kashmir Saffron’: The Agriculture
Department of Jammu and Kashmir has set up an e-auction portal to enhance
trading of GI-tagged ‘Kashmir Saffron’. The portal has been launched with the
primary objective of assuring buyers to have access to quality ‘Kashmir
Saffron’. The Departmnent, under the aegis of India International Kashmir
Saffron Trading Centre (IIKSTC) has established the portal in partnership with
NSE-IT. The Saffron growers of Kashmir valley as well as the buyers across
India have been appealed to get themselves registered as sellers and buyers for
E- trading on the portal. The portal will ensure free e-Trading between
registered growers and buyers.
INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:
1.
World Health Organization certifies Africa free from wild Polio: The Africa Regional
Certification Commission (ARCC), an independent body set up by the World Health
Organization (WHO), has certified the African continent free from wild Polio
virus. The landmark feat related to public health has been achieved by the
continent after decades of work along with international health bodies,
national and local governments, community volunteers and survivors. According
to the previous records, about 75,000 children in Africa were paralysed by
polio in year 1996. The last case of Polio was recorded four years ago in the
northern Nigeria. In this fight of Africa with the polio virus, the World
Health Organization played a central coordinating role within the Global Polio
Eradication Initiative, and local leaders working with Unicef, the Bill and
Melinda Gates Foundation, Rotary International as well as the US Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention.
Note: Director-general of World Health
Organization: Tedros Adhanom; Headquarters: Geneva, Switzerland; Founded: 7
April 1948
2.
International Conference on ‘Aerosol Air Quality, Climate Change and Impact on
Water Resources and Livelihoods in the Greater Himalayas’ to be held at ARIES,
Nainital in September 2020: The International Conference on Aerosol Air
Quality, Climate Change and Impact on Water Resources and Livelihoods in the
Greater Himalayas is set to be held from September 14 to 16. The three-day
conference will be organised by the Aryabhatta Research Institute of
Observational Sciences (ARIES), Nainital in association with Hemvati Nandan
Bahuguna Garhwal University. The international conference will be held on
online platform. The conference will deliberate on topics such as rapid
increase in the air pollution associated with industrialisation, urbanisation
and its resultant impact on regional and global air quality, visibility degradation,
cloud formation, and atmospheric chemistry, radiation budget, ecosystem,
Himalayan climate, and glaciology, cryosphere, monsoon patterns, water
availability, and human health.
3.
Women’s Equality Day 2020: 26th August: The 100th anniversary of the Women’s
Equality Day is being observed in the United States on August 26, to
commemorate American women getting the constitutional right to vote. Women’s
Equality Day is now often observed across the world to encourage and spread
awareness about women’s empowerment.
The 19th Amendment to the US Constitution
was adopted in 1920. The law prohibits denying citizens, of the United States,
the right to vote on the basis of gender. Women’s Equality Day was first marked
in 1972. It is proclaimed each year by the President of the United States.
President Richard Nixon had issued the first official proclamation. Since then,
every US president has issued a proclamation designating August 26 as Women’s
Equality Day.
OTHER UPDATES:
SPORTS
1.
Indian Table Tennis star Poulomi Ghatak announced retirement: Indian Table
Tennis star, Poulomi Ghatak has announced retirement. She had represented India
at the Commonwealth Games in 2006 and Commonwealth championships between 2000
and 2008. She entered the Olympics in Sydney for the first time when she was
16. The achievements and medals won by Poulomi are as follows:
In 2006, she won the gold medal in Women’s
doubles at the SAF Games.
She also won bronze at the Commonwealth in
2006.
In 2007, she won bronze at the Commonwealth
Champions.
In 2010, she won silver at the
Commonwealth.
She had also made till quarter-finals in
Asian Games, 2012.
BANKING AND FINANCE
1.
ICICI Bank uses satellite data to assess creditworthiness of farmers: ICICI Bank uses
satellite data to assess the creditworthiness of farmers. ICICI Bank has become
the 1st bank in India to use such a technique to measure an array of parameters
related to the land, irrigation and crop patterns and use it in combination
with demographic and financial parameters to make quick lending decisions for
farmers. Advantages of using Satellite Data:
(1) The satellite data with demographic and
financial details provides strong information on the land asset of the farmers.
(2) Usage of this technology will help
farmers with existing credit to expand their eligibility and help new-to-credit
farmers to get better access to formal credit.
(3) It is also expected to cut the time of
providing credit, as land verification with the help of satellite data is done
in a non-contact manner, and credit assessments are made within a few days as
against the industrial practice of up to 15 days.
Note: ICICI Bank Headquarters: Mumbai,
Maharashtra; ICICI Bank MD & CEO: Sandeep Bakhshi
2.
Highlights of RBI Annual Report 2019-20; India’s Growth Projected at -4.5%: On August 25,
2020, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) released its Annual Report for 2019-20. It is
Report of the Central Board of Directors on the working of the Reserve Bank of
India (RBI) for the year ended June 30, 2020 submitted to the Central
Government in terms of Section 53(2) of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934. In
the report, RBI projected that India’s growth at minus 4.5% for 2020-21. It
will be (-) 3.7% in the single hit scenario and (-) 7.3% in the double hit
scenario in FY2020-21. On the global front, the growth is projected at (-) 6.0%
in the single hit scenario and (-) 7.6% in the double hit scenario in FY20-21.
Balance Sheet of RBI:
(1) The RBI’s balance sheet increased by
30%, or Rs 12,31,888 crore, from Rs 41,02,905 crore to Rs 53,34,793 crore.
(2) The gross total income for the year
2019-20 declined by 29% to Rs 149,672 crore as compared to Rs 193,036 crore in
2018-19.
(3) Its expenditure for the year 2019-20 is
Rs 92,540 crore compared to an expenditure of Rs 17,045 crore in 2018-19.
(4) The year ended with an overall surplus
of Rs 57,128 billion which was transferred to the government.
(5) On the liability side, the rise was due
to an increase in notes issued, other liabilities and provisions and deposits.
AWARDS AND HONOURS
1.
Neelakantha Bhanu Prakash bags Gold Medal in MCWC: Hyderabad’s,
Neelakantha Bhanu Prakash Jonnalagadda has bagged the first-ever Gold Medal for
India in Mental Calculations World Cup (MCWC) by Mind Sports Olympiad (MSO). He
has created a new All-Time Record and has beaten the records of Math Maestros
like Shakuntala Devi and Scott Flansburg. Bhanu Prakash had secured the gold
medal with a score of 167, Lebanese contender Mohammed El Mir secured the
Silver Medal with a score 102 and Asmita Pal from the UAE bagged the Bronze
medal with a score of 100 points. Twenty-Year old Neelakantha Bhanu Prakash is
a student of Mathematics (Honors) at Delhi University’s St Stephen College and
holds 4 World Records and 50 Limca records for being the fastest human
calculator in the world.
Note: The MSO is an international event
with over 60 different board game competitions ranging from classics like
Chess, Scrabble and 7 Wonders. It was first held in 1998.
DEFENCE
1.
IAF launches ‘MY IAF’ app to provide career-related information: The Chief of the
Air Staff, Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria has launched a mobile application named
‘MY IAF’ to provide career-related information and details to the aspirants who
wish to join the Indian Air Force (IAF). About “MY IAF” App:
The app launched as a part of the Digital
India initiative has been developed in association with the Centre for
Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC). The app serves as a single digital
platform where users can find the details of the selection procedure, training
curriculum, pay and perks etc for both officers and airmen in the IAF. The app
provides glimpses into the history and stories of valour in the IAF.
Note: Indian Airforce founded: 8 October
1932; Indian Airforce Headquarters: New Delhi.
OBITUARIES
1.
Former Congo President Pascal Lissouba passes away: Former President
of the Republic of Congo, Pascal Lissouba passed away. He became the minister
of agriculture in 1960 after Congo became an independent country. He served as
the president from 1992 to 1997. He served as the Prime minister under the
Presidency of Alphonse Massamba Debat. The high court of Justice in the
Republic of Congo sentenced Pascal Lissouba in absentia to 30 years forced
labour for treason and corruption in 2001.
Note: Note: The Republic of Congo President: Denis Sassou NguessoThe Republic of Congo Prime Minister: Clément Mouamba; The Republic of Congo Capital: Brazzaville.
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