NATIONAL UPDATES:
1. Bengaluru’s Siddhartha Aggarwal becomes oldest Indian to swim across English Channel solo: Siddhartha Agarwal, a 49-year-old swimmer from Bengaluru, has made history by becoming the oldest Indian to swim across the English Channel. Agarwal successfully navigated the 42-km stretch between England and France, completing the grueling swim in an impressive 15 hours and six minutes. Agarwal’s quest in the freezing waters of the English Channel first began in 2018 when he crossed the Channel as part of an eight-member relay team. Incidentally, this was the same year when Srikaanth Viswanathan, also from Bengaluru, entered the Limca Book of Records for becoming the oldest to swim the English Channel solo at the age of 46. Six years later, Agarwal, affectionately known as “Sid” in the swimming community, surpassed his compatriot’s record. The final 10 km of his swim presented the greatest challenge, as he battled rigid conditions and high tides, exacerbated by winds reaching approximately 25 miles per hour. Despite these obstacles, Agarwal successfully completed the swim, solidifying his place in the record books.
2. Giriraj Singh launches India’s first fashion forecasting initiative ‘VisioNxt’: Union Minister of Textiles, Giriraj Singh has launched the ‘VisioNxt Fashion Forecasting Initiative’ of the National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT), a bilingual web portal, and the India-specific Fashion Trend Book ‘Paridhi 24×25’. VisioNxt initiative will foster healthy global competition and elevate Indian culture and design to new heights on the global stage. The fashion industry will benefit from Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Emotional Intelligence (EI) based trend insights offered by VisioNxt. NIFT VisioNxt is India’s first-ever initiative that combines AI and EI to generate fashion trend insights and forecasts. Its mission is to identify, map, and analyse geo-specific trends, reflecting the positive plurality, cultural diversity, and socio-economic nuances of India while collating comprehensive trends and insights.
3. IRDAI asks insurance companies to integrate IT systems with Digilocker: The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India has asked insurance companies to enable their IT systems to interact with Digilocker, allowing policyholders to use the service effectively. Both life and general insurers are mandated to provide an essential summary of important information at different stages of the insurance contract. In its Master Circular on Protection of Policyholders’ Interests under the Irdai (Protection of Policyholders’ Interests, Operations, and Allied Matters of Insurers) Regulations, 2024, replacing 30 circulars, the regulator consolidated policyholder entitlements into a single reference document and emphasised measures towards providing a seamless, faster, and hassle-free claims settlement experience to a policyholder and enhance service standards to foster a climate of trust and transparency within the insurance sector. This includes guidance for prospects, policyholders, and customers prior to sale, at the proposal stage, upon receiving policy documents, during the policy’s term.
INTERNATIONAL UPDATES:
1. Ministry of Panchayati Raj and UNICEF signed Letter of Intent to strengthen Systems for Social Change: The Ministry of Panchayati Raj and UNICEF India signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) to collaborate on strengthening systems and engaging communities for social change. This partnership aims to set up and institutionalize mechanisms for effective communication between the Ministry, Elected Representatives & Field Functionaries of Panchayati Raj Institutions and Rural Communities. The collaboration will help accelerate progress on localized Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by enabling better communication with citizens, particularly women and children and improving the delivery of services to rural citizens.
2. Sharath Kamal named first Indian ambassador of ITTF Foundation: Ace paddler Sharath Kamal has been named the first Indian ambassador of the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) Foundation. The announcement was made during day 11 of the Ultimate Table Tennis (UTT) season five at Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium. Sharath was elected to the ITTF’s Athlete’s Commission in November 2022. He will promote table tennis for development, especially among children from underprivileged backgrounds. He holds the record for the most medals in Commonwealth Games history for table tennis, including 13 medals with three golds at the 2022 Birmingham Game.
3. President Emmanuel Macron appoints Michel Barnier as new French PM: French President Emmanuel Macron appointed Michel Barnier, the European Union’s former Brexit negotiator, as his new prime minister. Michel Barnier led the EU’s talks with Britain over its exit from the bloc from 2016-2021. Prior to that, the conservative politician held roles in various French governments and was also EU Commissioner. At 73, Barnier is the oldest prime minister in France’s modern political history, taking over from Gabriel Attal, who was the youngest.
OTHER UPDATES:
DEFENCE
1. Indian Navy and South African Navy sign agreement to enhance submarine rescue support cooperation: The navies of India and South Africa have signed an implementation agreement to enhance submarine rescue support cooperation that ensures the “safety of the South African Navy’s submarine crew in times of distress or accident.” Under this agreement, the Indian Navy will provide assistance by deploying its Deep Submergence Rescue Vehicle (DSRV) when required, further strengthening the collaborative ties between the two navies. The agreement was signed by Indian Navy Chief Admiral Dinesh K. Tripathi and Vice Admiral Monde Lobese, Chief of the South African Navy. The DSRV is designed for ease of transportation in case of any exigency. For this purpose, the entire system has been divided into 24 components which can be easily transported by road, sea or air. The system is attached to a mother ship INS Sabarmati of the Ship Building Corporation, or it can also be transported by heavy transport aircraft like IL-76 and C-17.
SPORTS
1. Ajeet Singh clinches silver medal in javelin throw, Sundar Singh Gurjar wins bronze at Paris Paralympics: India’s Ajeet Singh and Sundar Singh Gurjar won the silver and bronze medals, respectively, in the men’s javelin throw F46 class at the Paris Paralympics 2024. Ajeet Singh, 30, won the silver medal with his penultimate throw of the night which measured 65.62m at the Stade de France. Sundar Singh Gurjar was in second position after his fourth throw landed at 64.96m but was pushed down to third after Ajeet Singh’s late comeback. Cuba’s Guillermo Varona Gonzalez hit the 66.14m mark on his second throw and went on to win the gold medal.
2. Praveen Kumar wins gold medal in Men’s High Jump T64 final: At the Paris Paralympic Games, star athlete Praveen Kumar bagged a gold medal in the Men’s High Jump T64 final.Praveen secured the top spot on the podium with a brilliant effort of 2.08m, setting a new Area record. In a tightly contested final, Praveen made seven successful jumps in a row to claim the number one position.Loccident Derek of the USA won the silver medal, while Giyazov Temurbek of Uzbekistan took home the bronze.
3. Hokato Hotozhe Sema on winning bronze medal in Men’s F57 shot put: Hokato Hotozhe Sema has won the bronze medal in the men’s F57 shot put event in Paris Paralympic 2024.The 40-year-old from Dimapur made himself the first-ever medallist from Nagaland to win a bronze at the Paralympic Games for shotput, with a career-best throw of 14.65 meters.Hokato, a Havildar with 9 Assam Regiment, reportedly lost his leg due to a landmine explosion during an operation at the Line of Control in 2002. Currently, he is ranked 7th in the world.
BANKING AND FINANCE
1. Suryoday Small Finance Bank partnered with Tarrakki to offer digital fixed deposits: Suryoday Small Finance Bank has partnered with Tarrakki, a new fintech platform, to develop and offer digital fixed deposits.Through this relationship, Tarrakki will assist in developing tech products that surpass older systems, allowing SSFB to swiftly onboard new customers and offer digital fixed deposit products.This collaboration will take the shape of software development kits (SDKs) and white-label services. Suryoday Small Finance Bank is a premier new-age digital bank in India, committed to digital products that improve client centricity.This next-generation platform, driven by Tarrakki, will reduce the cost and time necessary for product launches by the bank and its partners.
2. Kotak General Insurance rebrands as Zurich Kotak General Insurance: Kotak General Insurance has re-branded itself as Zurich Kotak General Insurance, following the Zurich Insurance Group’s acquisition of a majority stake in the insurer, which was completed on 18 June 2024.Reflecting the shared vision of the Zurich Kotakentity, the new brand symbolizes the collective commitment to trust, innovation, integrity, and customer excellence.The legal name of the entity changes from Kotak Mahindra General Insurance Company Limited to Zurich Kotak General Insurance Company (India) Limited.Zurich Kotak General Insurance is fully committed to fostering the development and expansion of India’s insurance sector in keeping with the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India’s (IRDAI) goal of achieving “Insurance for All” by 2047.MD and CEO of Zurich Kotak General Insurance – Suresh Agarwal
3. BOI launches 333-Day Star Dhan Vriddhi FD: Bank of India (BOI) has launched a fixed deposit scheme called ‘Star Dhan Vriddhi Fixed Deposit’ that will have a term limit of 333 days. These revised rates are effective September 1, 2024.The Star Dhan Vriddhi Fixed Deposit offers an interest rate of 7.90 per cent per annum for the so-called super senior citizens.Senior citizens can benefit from an interest rate of 7.75 per cent per annum, while the general public is offered a rate of 7.25 per cent per annum.Customers can also avail of additional benefits such as loans against fixed deposit and premature withdrawal facilities, adding to the flexibility of this investment option. Customers can open this fixed deposit through any Bank of India branch or via the BOI Omni Neo App and internet banking.
AWARDS AND HONOURS
1. President Murmu confers National Teachers Award 2024 to 82 teachers: President Droupadi Murmu conferred the ‘National Teachers’ Award to 82 educators from across institutions, during a ceremony held at Vigyan Bhavan on the occasion of Teacher’s Day.50 of the total 82 awardees are attached with schools, 16 (higher education), and 16 (Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship).Each award carries a certificate of merit, a cash award of 50 thousand rupees and a silver medal.Among the recipients is Urfana Amin from Jammu & Kashmir, who teaches at BHSS Soura, Hawal, Srinagar. Amin, an expert in English, Entrepreneurship, and teacher training, provided radio classes during the COVID-19 pandemic and developed educational materials such as FLN modules and e-content for DIKSHA.
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