NATIONAL UPDATES:
1. IAF
to hold multi-national exercise 'Tarang Shakti' with world's top air: The Indian Air Force (IAF) will hold its first-ever multi-national air
exercise 'Tarang Shakti', in October 2023, the biggest air exercise to be
conducted in India. The exercise intends to strengthen military cooperation
between the air forces. Out of 12, Six air forces will participate in the
exercise, while the rest will attend the aerial drills as observers. The air
forces of the US, the UK, France and Australia are among those likely to take
part in the exercise.
2. India's
first long-range revolver "Prabal" to be launched: India's first long-range revolver 'Prabal' is to be launched in August
2023 manufactured by Advanced Weapons and Equipment India (AWEIL). About Prabal
The Prabal revolver boasts a firing range of up to 50 metres, more than twice
the reach of other revolvers. The Prabla revolver is light in weight and
equipped with a side swing cylinder. It weighs 700 grams (without cartridges)
in weight and its barrel length is 76 m, while its overall length is 177.6 mm.
3. Central
Water Commission launches Flood Watch mobile App:
Chairman of Central Water Commission Kushvinder Vohra launches FloodWatch
mobile app for real-time flood forecast situations across the country in New
Delhi Aim: To disseminate information related to the flood situation and
forecasts for up to seven days on a real-time basis. It utilizes advanced
technologies such as satellite data analysis and real-time monitoring to
deliver accurate and timely flood forecasts and make it easy to stay informed
and minimized risk
4. ‘India’s
first village atlas’ is of Mayem in Goa: Mayem
has become the first village in Goa to have a biodiversity atlas, a 250-page
document with maps detailing the floral and faunal biodiversity of the village.
The atlas was prepared based on the People’s biodiversity register (PBR)
prepared by the village Biodiversity management committee There are huge funds
to be tapped for villages that have registered biodiversity atlases. For every
lake, the government of India is ready to give Rs 10 crore to maintain it.
5. Chennai-based
Agnikul Cosmos begins integration of its first satellite: Chennai-based space tech startup Agnikul Cosmos has launched its first
small satellite rocket, named Agnibaan SOrTeD, with its private launchpad at
the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota. The rocket is driven by
Agnikul’s patented Agnilet engine, which is a 3D-printed, single-piece, 6 kN
semi-cryogenic engine. These flight events have been configured to validate key
technologies integral to the success of the company’s upcoming orbital flights.
6. Country’s
first 3D-printed post office coming up in Bengaluru: India's first 3D-printed post office is coming up at Cambridge Layout
in Bengaluru 3D printing is a process of making three-dimensional solid objects
from a digital file. In this process an object is created by laying down
successive layers of material until the object is created. Each of these layers
can be seen as a thinly sliced cross-section of the object. 3D printing enables
you to produce complex shapesusing less material than traditional manufacturing
methods.
7. Maharashtra scored top position in fiscal health
report: Based on the FY23 revised budget
estimates Maharashtra secured the top position as the best state in
overall fiscal health in a report conducted by a foreign brokerage firm. Chhattisgarh,
one of the poorest states in the country, is in 2nd position followed by
Telangana and Jharkhand, while the bottom 3 are Bengal, Punjab, and Kerala In
contrast, Bengal fares the worst, followed by Punjab, Bihar, Rajasthan and UP,
Kerala moving out of the worst five; while Andhra’ ranking has dropped to 11th
in FY23 from eighth in FY22, and Gujarat has slipped to the seventh rank from
fifth. The report on the fiscal health of the key 17 states is based on the
four key fiscal parameters–fiscal deficit; own tax revenue, state debt levels,
all as a percentage of their individual gross state domestic product; and
finally, the interest payment to revenue receipts. Based on these four
parameters, Punjab, Bengal, Bihar, Rajasthan and Kerala, are and will remain
the most vulnerable to debt sustainability risks given their weak fiscal and
debt metrics even prior to the pandemic, says the report, adding a June 2022
report by the Reserve Bank had also warned these states.
8. Parminder Chopra appoints as CEO of Power Finance
Corporation: Power Finance Corporation
Limited (PFC) has appointed Parminder Chopra as Chairman and Managing
Director (CMD), becoming the first woman to lead the company. Previously,
she was holding the additional charge of Chairman and Managing Director (CMD)
since 1 June 2023 and was Director (Finance) PFC since 1 July 2020. With over
35 years of experience in power and finance, Chopra led India’s largest NBFC to
the highest net profit, highest net worth and lowest NPA levels during her time
as Director. She headed key finance functions like resource mobilization
(domestic & international markets), banking, treasury, asset liability
management and stressed asset resolution Parminder Chopra was conferred with
the ‘Icon of the Year’ and ‘Finance Leader of the Year’ award for making
significant contributions to the realms of business, finance, society, and the
nation.
9. President launches advanced frigate Vindhyagiri in
Kolkata: President Droupadi
Murmu has launched ‘Vindhyagiri’, an advanced stealth frigate,
at Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd’s (GRSE) facility on
the banks of Hooghly River, Kolkata. This is the sixth of seven ships built
under ‘Project 17 Alpha’ for the Navy. The first five ships of the project were
launched between 2019 and 2022. This is the third and last stealth frigate that
the Kolkata-based warship maker was contracted to build for the Navy under the
project. 75 percent of orders for equipment and systems of P17A ships are from
indigenous firms, including micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). P17A
ships are guided missile frigates, each of which is 149 metres long, with the
displacement of approximately 6,670 tonnes and a speed of 28 knots. These are
capable of neutralizing threats in all three dimensions of air, surface, and
sub-surface Earlier in the day, the president launched ‘My Bengal, Addiction
Free Bengal’ campaign under the ‘Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyan’ organized by Brahma
Kumaris at the Raj Bhavan.
INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:
1. World
Humanitarian Day is celebrated on 18th August 2023: World
Humanitarian Day is observed on the 19th August. Aim: To bring partners from
across the humanitarian system together and work collectively for survival,
well-being and dignity of people affected by crises.
World
Humanitarian Day 2023 theme is: NoMatterWhat. It is the day when 22 colleagues
were killed at the United Nations Office in Baghdad, It is an opportunity to
pay tribute to colleagues who have lost their lives in humanitarian service
OTHER UPDATES:
SPORTS
1. Priya
Malik bagged Gold medal at Under20 World Wrestling Championships 2: Indian wrestler Priya Malik clinched a Gold medal at the 2023 U20 World
Wrestling Championships (women's 76kg freestyle) in Jordan by defeating Laura
Celine Kuehn of Germany. She became just the second woman wrestler from India
to be crowned U20 world championship. Antim Panghal had been the first woman
from India to win a junior world title in wrestling at last year's edition. She
has now won both the U17 2021 and 2022 and U20 world titles.
2. India
gets first-ever night street racing circuit in Chennai: Tamil Nadu government partnered with Racing Promotions Private Limited
to launch India's first-ever night street racing circuit in India and South
Asia that will be hosting a night race RRPL is also the promoter of the
Indian Racing League and F4 Indian Championship As for the track, it is a 3.5km
layout, located around the Island Grounds that resides in the heart of the
city. Minister for Youth Welfare and Sports Development Udhayanidhi Stalin has
launched the circuit
3. Seema Bisla handed 1-year ban for whereabouts failure:
2021 Asian Wrestling Championships bronze medalist and Olympian, Seema
Bisla has been handed a year-long ban for whereabouts failure by
the Anti-Doping Disciplinary Panel (ADDP) of the NADA. The athlete’s ban
began on May 12 of this year, according to the most recent list of athletes
sanctioned by the ADDP. Seema Bisla was a part of the NADA’s Registered Testing
Pool from April to June of 2024. Seema had won a bronze in women’s freestyle
50kg class in the 2021 Asian Championships in Almaty, Kazakhstan.
BANKING AND FINANCE
1. RBI
appointed PR Seshadri as MD and CEO of South Indian Bank: The Reserve Bank of India appointed PR Seshadri as MD & CEO of
South Indian Bank and he will serve for a period of three years. He is
currently mentoring businesses both at an operating level as well as at the
board level at various companies. He has served as Managing Director & CEO
of The Karur Vysya Bank Limited. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical
Engineering from the Delhi College of Engineering and a PG Diploma in
Management from the IIM Bangalore.
2. Wipro
launches center of excellence on generative AI at IIT Delhi: Indian IT services company Wipro introduces the launch of a new Center
of Excellence on Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) in partnership with
IIT Delhi. Aim: To foster accelerated innovation in some of the most exciting
emerging areas of technology. Objective: To enhance our research &
development capabilities in emerging regions, such as generative AI. Teams will
jointly work on building innovative solutions using AI, ML, and other
technologies.
3. Reserve
Bank of India launched a centralized Web portal, UDGAM: The Reserve Bank of India launched a centralized Web portal, UDGAM
(Unclaimed Deposits Gateway to Access Information), for searching unclaimed
deposits across multiple banks. Aim: To identify their unclaimed deposits and
accounts and enable them to either claim the deposit amount or make their
deposit accounts operational at their respective banks. The 7 banks include
State Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, Central Bank of India, South Indian
Bank and Dhanlaxmi Bank
4. ADB approves USD 40.5 mn loan for childhood
development in Meghalaya: The Asian Development
Bank (ADB) has approved a USD 40.5 million loan for integrated
early childhood development and maternal mental health in the northeastern
state of Meghalaya. The Meghalaya government is contributing USD 15.27 million
to the project. The project is expected to strengthen home-based childcare
(children 0-1.5 years) and center-based childcare (1.5-6 years) through daycare
(Anganwadi) centers in Meghalaya. The project aims to improve access to
nurturing care, including a component of maternal mental health care and
group-based parenting programs to enable the inclusion of fathers in
caregiving. ADB’s assistance will also improve nutrient adequacy by adding eggs
to the diet of pregnant and lactating women and children 0.5-6 years of age. ADB
is committed to supporting the state government’s efforts to mainstream (early
childhood development) ECD and in adopting this innovative project design that
can be scaled up across the country.
AWARDS AND HONOURS
1. Indian-American Economist Raj Chetty awarded top
Harvard University Prize: Indian-American economist
Raj Chetty has been awarded Harward University’s coveted George
Ledlie Prize 2023 for wielding big data to break myths about who
achieves the American Dream. Along with Chetty, Biologist Michael Springer,
professor of systems biology at Harvard Medical School, who created a better,
faster COVID test system to help deal with the spread of COVID, was also
honoured with the coveted Harvard University’s George Ledlie Prize Chetty,
Professor of Economics at Harvard University is also director of Opportunity
Insights, a group of economists based at Harvard who study inequality The award
is given every two years to a member of the Harvard community who has made the
most valuable contribution to science or in any way for the benefit of mankind.
2. Five Indian youths named among International Young Eco-Hero award 2023: Five youths from India have been named among 17 teen environmental activists from across the globe to receive the 2023 International Young Eco-Hero Award who have taken initiatives to tackle the world’s most pressing environmental challenges. The young eco-warriors who were recognized for their efforts by the US-based non-profit organization, “Action For Nature”, are Eiha Dixit, Manya Harsha, Nirvaan Somany, Mannat Kaur, and Karnav Rastogi. The International Young Eco-Hero Awards programme recognizes and encourages children and teens from ages 8 to 16 who have taken action towards solving the most critical environmental issues. The awardees are eco-conscious youth who took crucial steps to solve tough environmental problems. Winners of the International Young Eco-Hero Award are selected by a panel of independent judges, including experts in environmental science, biology, and education. For the past 20 years, “Action For Nature” has recognised 339 Eco-Heroes from 27 countries and 32 US states, a media release on Tuesday said. Dixit, who won first place in this year’s competition has been growing saplings to protect the environment since she was 4. Manya Harsha who won second place in the 8–12-year-old category has embarked on a mission to raise awareness about environmental issues and climate action
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