NATIONAL UPDATES:
1. South Delhi’s Anang Tal site to be centrally protected: Recently, the Anang Tal Lake in South
Delhi has been declared a monument of national importance through a gazette
notification by the Ministry of Culture. The Anang Tal lake in South Delhi is
believed to have been built a thousand years ago. As per the website of the
National Mission on Monuments and Antiquities, Tradition ascribes this tank to
a Tomar King, Anang Pal II, the builder of Lal Kot.
The Archaeological Survey of India gave a two-month notice for its
intention to declare the site to be of national importance under the Ancient
Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958. According to the
notification, the total area of the site was 10.599 acres which was primarily
owned by the Delhi government. Located near the Qutub Minar complex and Sanjay
Van, the protected area would be 42,894 square metres.
Monuments of National Importance: The Monuments of National Importance are designated
by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). The union government of India is
authorised to maintain, protect and promote the Monuments of National
Importance. Once declared to be of
national importance, the site would be protected by the ASI and incur
restrictions on construction activity in its vicinity. It is said to have been
a place of a general resort but now it is dried up and used for cultivation.
Note: Archaeological Survey of India Director General: V. Vidyavathi;
Archaeological Survey of India Founder: Alexander Cunningham; Archaeological
Survey of India Founded: 1861; Archaeological Survey of India Headquarters: 24
Tilak Marg, New Delhi.
2. India’s 1st 3D Printed Post Office to soon come up
in Karnataka: India’s first 3D-printed post office is slated to come up in
Bengaluru, Karnataka and will cost around one-fourth of the amount spent on a
traditional building. The new post office building in Cambridge Layout in
Halasuru, Bengaluru will be built using 3D printing and is likely to be completed
within the next month. The Post Office building is being constructed by Larsen
& Toubro, which is the only company currently in India utilising 3D
printing technology for construction.
3D printing can significantly reduce the cost and expedite construction
which would otherwise take months to complete. 3D printing of the new post
office which will be a three-storied building has been given clearance by the
Building Materials and Technology Promotion Council of the Ministry of Housing
and Urban Affairs and IIT-Madras.
3. EAC-PM to launch the India@100 roadmap: The
Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM) on the 30th of this
month in New Delhi will be unveiling the Competitiveness Roadmap for India@100.
The India@100 document by the EAC-PM serves as a roadmap for India’s ascent to
its centenary year and will inform and direct the country’s path to higher
income status by 2047. Key Points:
a) The EAC-PM in order to further move India’s economy
toward sustainability and resilience, rooted in social progress and shared
prosperity, recommends policy goals, concepts, and methodologies in India@100.
b) The EAC-PM document (India@100) will be made public
in the presence of Sherpa G-20 Amitabh Kant, Member EAC-PM Sanjeev Sanyal, and
Chairman EAC-PM Dr. Bibek Debroy.
c) The Institute for Competitiveness, led by Dr. Amit
Kapoor, Professor Michael E. Porter, and Dr. Christian Ketels from Harvard
Business School collaborated to create “The Competitiveness Roadmap.”
Note: EAC- PM Chairman: Dr Bibek Debroy
4. J&K Govt
announce Village Defense Guards Program, 2022: Village Defence Guards Scheme
2022 (VDGS-2022), is a programme with a defence component that was only
recently introduced for the state of Jammu & Kashmir (J&K). The Azadi
ka Amrit Mahotsav has already started a number of initiatives, and this
programme was also introduced at that time with the primary objective of
enhancing security in Jammu’s border regions. Key Points:
a)
On August 14, a new programme, Village
Defence Guards Scheme 2022 in the field of defence was unveiled for the state
of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K).
b)
According to the authorities, starting
on August 15th, the village defence card will be responsible for securing
communal installations and infrastructure facilities inside the boundaries of
their village as per Village Defence Guards Scheme 2022.
c)
The people who will be subject to the
system day and night for the sole purpose of protecting their areas from
terrorists in particular are the chosen ones.
d)
The J&K Police will separate VDGs
(as in Village Defence Guards Scheme 2022) into two groups: those with valid
arms licences and weapons, and those with valid licences and weapons or who are
prepared to buy guns on their own, as described in Village Defence Guards
Scheme 2022.
5. Indian scientist
Samir V Kamat appointed as DRDO Chairman: According to a Personnel Ministry
order, distinguished scientist Samir V Kamat was appointed as Secretary of the
Department of Defence Research and Development and Chairman of the Defence
Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). Kamat, who is Director General,
Naval Systems & Materials, at the DRDO will succeed G Satheesh Reddy who
has been named as scientific adviser to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh.
The ACC also approved
the appointment of Reddy as scientific adviser to the defence minister. Reddy
was appointed as DRDO chief in August 2018 for two years. He was given two
years extension in the post in August 2020.
INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:
1. South Korea breaks
its own record for the world’s lowest fertility rate: South Korea has once
again shattered its own record for the world’s lowest fertility rate. South
Korean women were estimated, based on 2021 data, to have an average of just
0.81 children over their lifetimes, down from 0.84 a year earlier. The number
of newborns declined in 2021 to 260,600, which equates to about 0.5% of the
population.
According to the
United Nations’ global population projections and World Bank’s data, the report
further stated that Korea is the world’s fastest-ageing nation among economies
with a per capita GDP of at least $30,000. By 2100, its population will fall by
53% to 24 million, up from a 43% decline forecast in 2019.
In fact, Korea is
behind all OECD (The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development)
member countries in fertility rates at 0.8 babies per woman. The report reveals
that a reducing workforce is one of the major factors impacting its growth
rate. The working-age population maxed out at 37.3 million in 2020 and is now
expected to drop by almost half by 2070, according to Statistics Korea.
Note: South Korea
Capital: Seoul; South Korea Currency: South Korean Won; South Korea Prime
Minister: Han Duck-soo; South Korea President: Yoon Seok-youl.
2. GoI named former
CEA K Subramanian as Executive Director for India at IMF: Former Chief Economic
Adviser, KV Subramanian was appointed as the Executive Director for India at
the International Monetary Fund (IMF). His term will begin from November and
will continue for a period of three years or until further orders, whichever is
earlier, by curtailing the tenure of eminent economist Surjit S Bhalla as ED
(India), IMF up to 31 October 2022.
Note: IMF Formation:
27 December 1945; IMF Headquarters: Washington, D.C., United States; IMF Member
Countries: 190; IMF MD: Kristalina Georgieva.
OTHER UPDATES:
SPORTS
1. 14th Asian U-18
Championship: Indian men’s volleyball team won bronze medal: Indian men’s
volleyball team has won the bronze medal by defeating Korea 3-2 in the 14th
Asian U-18 Championship in Tehran, Iran. In the preliminary league match too,
India defeated Korea but lost to Iran in the semifinal. The Indian U-18 team
has qualified for the FIVB World U-19 Men’s Volleyball Championship. Japan
clinched the gold after beating Iran in the final match. China finished fifth
and Chinese Taipei was placed sixth at the end of the competition.
2. Grandmaster Arjun
Erigaisi wins 28th Abu Dhabi Masters: In the 28th Abu Dhabi, Masters Chess
Tournament Grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi defeated David Anton Guijarro from Spain
in the ninth and final round. Grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi won the 28th Dhabi
Masters Chess Tournament with 7.5 points. Grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi is in the
third position in the live rating list and has gained an impressive 35 Elo
rating points after the recent Chess Olympiad in India. In the 28th Dhabi,
Masters Chess Tournament Grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi won six matches and drew
three other games. The third place was taken by Dutchman Jorden Van Forest,
followed by Ray Robson from the USA, Nihal Sarin was in 6th place, and players
including Sethuraman, Karthikeyan Murali, Samant, and Aryan Chopra are in the
top 10.
BANKING AND FINANCE
1. RBI Report: Bank credit
rise expedites 14.2% in the June 2022 quarter: The Bank credit growth increased
from 6% in the quarter that ended in June 2021 to 14.2% in the quarter that
concluded in June 2022 as per the data released by the Reserve Bank of India.
The Bank credit has increased by 10.8% in the three months that ended in March
2022. The last five quarters have seen a consistent 9.5 to 10.2% annual growth
in aggregate deposits.
Highlights of the RBI
Report:
a)
The “Quarterly Statistics on Deposits
and Credit of SCBs for June 2022” were published by the Reserve Bank of India
(RBI Report).
b)
All scheduled commercial banks (SCBs),
including small financing banks (SFBs), regional rural banks (RRBs), and
payments banks, provide this information (PBs).
c)
The last five quarters have seen a
consistent 9.5 to 10.2% annual growth in aggregate deposits.
d)
Metropolitan branches continue to
account for more than half of all bank deposits, and during the past year,
their share has slightly increased.
e)
The statistics of RBI Report showed
that the credit-deposit (C-D) ratio has increased as credit growth has recently
outpaced deposit growth.
f)
In June 2022, the C-D ratio for all of
India was 73.5% (up from 70.5% the year before), and it was 86.2% for
metropolitan bank branches (up from 84.3% the year before), according to the
RBI Report.
BUSINESS AND ECONOMY
1. MCA accepts the
merger of BPCL and Bharat Gas: Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) the 100%
subsidiary, Bharat Gas Resources Ltd (BGRL), has merged with the parent
company. The Corporate Affairs Ministry (MCA) issued the decree authorising
this merger. According to the terms of the merger proposal, the authorised
share capital of BOCL is combined with the authorised share capital of BGRL. Key
Points:
a)
Bharat Gas Resources Ltd (BGRL)’s
principal line of business is gas sourcing and selling. In order to simplify
the corporate structure and combine the assets and liabilities of Bharat Gas
Resources Ltd (BGRL) and BPCL, it was created to develop city gas distribution
networks in various geographic locations.
b)
There is no listing of Bharat Gas
Resources Ltd (BGRL)’s equity shares on any stock exchanges.
c)
The total authorised share capital of
Bharat Gas Resources Ltd (BGRL) as of today is amalgamated with the authorised
share capital of BPCL per the conditions of the merger plan of BPCL and Bharat
Gas Resources Ltd (BGRL).
DEFENCE
1. INS Vikrant to be commissioned
on Sept. 2: The first indigenous carrier which has been constructed by Cochin
Shipyard Ltd, will soon be commissioned as INS Vikrant on 2nd September.
The warship will play the role of ensuring peace and stability in the
Indo-Pacific region. The aircraft landing trials on board INS Vikrant will
begin in November and will be completed by mid-2023. INS Vikrant will be
commissioned in Cochin in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Adding
the equipment for the aircraft carrier has been manufactured in 18 states and
union territories.
Need of the Aircraft
Carrier: The Navy has been pitching for three aircraft
carriers to deal with China’s growing influence over the Indian Ocean. At
present, India has only one aircraft carrier — INS Vikramaditya — which was
bought from Russia in 2014. Alongside INS Vikramditya, the Navy will then
operate two 44,000-tonne carriers. The Navy is in the process of procuring 26
deck-based aircraft and it has narrowed down on Boeing’s F/A-18 Super Hornet and
French aerospace major Dassault Aviation’s Rafale aircraft. With the
construction of ‘Vikrant’, India has joined a select group of nations such as
the US, the UK, Russia, China and France, having the niche capability to
indigenously design and build an aircraft carrier.
Key Things about
Vikrant:
a)
The INS Vikrant has over 2,200
compartments, designed for a crew of around 1,600 people, including specialised
cabins to accommodate women officers.
b)
Vikrant has a top speed of around 28
knots and a cruising speed of 18 knots with an endurance of about 7,500
nautical miles.
c)
The warship is 262 metres long, 62
metres wide and it has a height of 59 metres. Its construction began in 2009.
d)
The Navy said the ship is powered by
four gas turbines totalling 88 MW power.
2. DRDO Successfully Tests Pinaka Extended Range Rocket in Pokharan: The Pinaka extended range rocket trials developed by the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) were carried out in firing ranges of Pokhran, Rajasthan. Multiple successful Pinaka extended range rocket trials firings were conducted in Pokhran. The Pinaka extended range is developed by the Defence Research and Development Organization, DRDO, and is produced by a private sector firm. The trials were conducted in the presence of Army officials and DRDO officials. The 15 feet long missile of Advance Navigation and Control System destroyed the target as per the standard.
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