Important Days:
1. Aug 8 - 76th anniversary of Quit
India movement was observed this year. On this day in 1942,
Mahatma Gandhi (father of the nation) had gave clarion call of Do or Die to all
Indians to drive away Britishers from the country.
2. Aug 10 – World Bio Fuel day is
observed every year to create awareness about the importance of non-fossil
fuels i.e. Green Fuels or Bio-fuels an alternative to conventional fossil
fuels. On this day in 1893, Sir Rudalph Diesel (inventor
of the diesel engine) for the first time successfully ran mechanical engine
with Peanut Oil.
3. Aug 12- International Youth Day is
observed every across the world to draw
attention to give set of cultural and legal issues surrounding youth. The theme for this year is ‘Safe Spaces
for Youth’.
4. Aug 12 - The World Elephant Day
is observed every year to create awareness of urgent plight of African and
Asian elephants. In India, cultural event Gaj
Mahotsav was organised by Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) and Ministry of
Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC) on this occasion of this day.
The first International Elephant Day was held on August 12, 2012.
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National:
1. To boost research in traditional
medicine and streamline hospital care facilities in the country a MoU with IIT
Delhi has been signed by All India Institute of Ayurveda (AIIA), a premier
institute of Ayurveda under the AYUSH Ministry.
Under this partnership, projects developed will be given scientific validation
to ancient medical science and integrate it with technology. Under it, the
faculties of IIT Delhi and AIIA will work together in projects to look at ways
to integrate technology with Ayurveda.
2. Khangchendzonga Biosphere
Reserve in Himalayan state of Sikkim becomes the 11th Biosphere Reserve from
India. It was included in UNESCO designated World Network of Biosphere Reserves
(WNBR). It is one of the highest ecosystems in the
world, reaching elevations of 1, 220 metres above sea-level. It includes range
of ecolines, varying from sub-tropic to Arctic (tundra), as well as natural
forests in different biomes, that support an immensely rich diversity of forest
types and habitats.
3. Delhi High Court has declared 25
sections of Bombay Prevention of Begging Act, 1959 which have been extended to
Delhi, as “unconstitutional”. The court’s order
came on PILs which had sought decriminalisation of begging in capital and
beggar by challenging provisions of the Bombay Prevention of Begging Act.
4. Homoeopathy Central Council
(Amendment) Bill, 2018 has passed by Parliament to replace Ordinance
promulgated by President in May 2018. The Bill amends
1973 Act to provide for supersession of Central Council with effect from May
18, 2018. The Council will be reconstituted within 1 year.
5. Union Cabinet
has approved the extension of term of
Commission till November 2018 to examine the issue of Sub-categorization of
Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in Central List. The five member Commission
headed by former Chief Justice of Delhi High Court Justice (Retd) G. Rohini was
constituted under article 340 of Constitution in October, 2017 with approval of
President.
6. Representation of the People
(Amendment) Bill, 2017 has passed by Lok Sabha by voice vote to extend the
facility of ‘proxy voting’ to overseas Indians, on the lines of service voters.
The Bill seeks to amend Representation of People Act (RPA), 1950 and
Representation of People Act (RPA), 1951 to allow for proxy voting and make
certain provisions of these Acts gender-neutral. The Bill replaces the term
‘wife’ with ‘spouse’ in both Acts. It replaces wife with spouse of a person
holding service qualification to vote. It amends RPA, 1951 to permit overseas
voter to cast their vote in person or by proxy in constituency where elections are
being conducted.
7. Union
Cabinet has given approval for raising
of four additional battalions of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF).
The objective of raising four additional battalions is to reduce response time
keeping in view vast geographic area of the country. These four battalions will
initially be raised as two battalions in Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and
one battalion each in Assam Rifles (ARs) and Border Security Force (BSF). Later
these four battalions will be converted into NDRF battalions.
8. Under Price Support Schemes
(PSS), the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved release of
pulses to States/UTs at discounted rate to be utilized for various Welfare
Schemes. Under this approved Scheme, States/UT
Governments will be offered to lift 34.88 lakh MT of pulses at discounted rate
over prevailing wholesale market price of sourcing state on first come first serve
basis. Government will spend Rs. 5,237 crore for implementation of this Scheme.
9. The continuation and revision of
Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Post Matric Scholarship for Other Backward
Classes Students for studying in India (PMS-OBC) has approved by the Cabinet
Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA). The revision in
PMS-OBC scheme aims to ensure effective implementation and better monitoring of
the schemes. Under revised PMS-OBC, annual parental income ceiling has been
increased from Rs. 1 lakh to Rs. 1.5 lakh. Now onwards, 30% of funds will be
earmarked for girl students and 5% for students with disabilities. Disbursement
of scholarships will be now through Aadhaar seeded bank accounts.
10.
The Insolvency
and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Bill,
2018 to bring relief to home buyers and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises
(MSMEs) has passed by Parliament. The Bill recognises home buyers as
financial creditors in the real estate project and giving them due
representation in the Committee of Creditors (CoC), thus providing significant
relief to home buyers.
11.
The
Arbitration and Conciliation (Amendment) Bill, 2018 to help India become hub
for domestic and global arbitration for settling commercial disputes has passed
by the Lok Sabha. The Bill establishes ACI as an
independent body for promotion of arbitration, mediation, conciliation and
other alternative dispute redressal mechanisms. It seeks to amend e Arbitration
and Conciliation Act, 1996 which contains provisions to deal with domestic and
international arbitration and defines law for conducting conciliation
proceedings.
12.
Operation
Madad, - a major rescue and relief
operation in flood-hit Kerala has launched by Indian Navy. Indian Army also has
launched Operation Sahyog to rescue people in flood-hit Kerala. Both operations
will support rescue and relief efforts of civil administration and National
Disaster Relief Force (NDRF). The Operation
Madad was launched to assist state administration and undertake disaster
relief operations due to unprecedented flooding in many parts of Kerala
following incessant rainfall and release of excess water from Idukki and other
dams. Operation Sahyog - Indian Army has deployed its men and machinery into
disaster relief and rescue operations at Kannur, Kozhikode, Wayanad and Idukki
after incessant rain and landslides hit various northern districts of the
state. Karnataka and Kerala Sub area Headquartered at Bangalore was controlling
the “Operation Sahyog” in Kerala.
13.
Union
Government aims to create more employment opportunities for women and announced
50% reservation for women in upcoming recruitment of 9500-10000 jawans for the
Railway Protection Force (RPF). It was announced by
Union Railways Minister Piyush Goyal in Patna, Bihar. He also announced
13,00,00 jobs are also coming up in Indian Railways in which there will be
computer-based test and no interviews.
14.
Under
Indian Housing Project in Plantation Areas in Sri Lanka, India has handed over
its first lot of houses (404 houses)
built for Indian-origin people in Sri Lanka’s tea plantation areas at
Dunsinane Estate in Nuwara Eliya city. Under this project
close to 47,000 houses so far have been completed out of total 60,000. With
grant of over US $350 million, it is India’s largest assistance project in any
country.
15.
Union
Civil Aviation Ministry has given in-principle approval to set up water
aerodromes in the country. To start with it has identified
five states: Odisha, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Assam for
development of water aerodromes. In the first phase of the project, Chilka Lake
(Odisha), Sabarmati River Front and Sardar Sarovar Dam (Gujarat) have been
identified for the development of such facilities.
16.
Union
Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has notified rules
for utilisation of more than Rs 66,000 crore afforestation funds by states/UTs
and for setting up authorities to monitor its use for afforestation and
conservation. The fund is accumulated amount which
user agencies have been depositing as compensation for diverting forest land
for non-forest purposes such as setting up industries or creating
infrastructure, over the past 10 years.
17.
Pune
(Maharashtra) ranked first among 116
cities (with population of 1 million plus) in Ease of Living Index released by
Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA). Besides, two more
Maharashtra cities — Navi Mumbai and Greater Mumbai — figure in the second and
third spots respectively. Chennai ranked 14th rank, Ahmedabad 23rd, Hyderabad
27th, Varanasi 33rd, Bengaluru 58th and Delhi 65th.Top 10 cities are (rank
order) are Pune, Navi Mumbai, Greater Mumbai, Tirupati, Chandigarh, Thane,
Raipur, Indore, Vijaywada and Bhopal. Rampur in Uttar Pradesh was ranked worst
on the scale and also Kohima and Patna on bottom two and three ranks while. Kolkata
was excluded from index, as West Bengal Government had refused to participate
in rankings.
18.
Third
Party Survey Report on Station Cleanliness was released by the Union Railway
Ministry. It ranked 407 railway stations including 75 A1
category stations, 332 A category stations on basis of cleanliness performance.
Jodhpur (Rajasthan) was ranked first in survey A1 category stations, Marwar
(Rajasthan) first in A category stations and North Western Railway first among
all Zonal Railways. This was third such audit cum cleanliness survey conducted
by Indian Railways to increase level of cleanliness under Swachh Bharat Abhiyan
by identifying unclean spots, improve cleanliness standards and propel healthy
competition among railway stations.
International:
1. Pakistan and Russia have signed
contract on admission of service members of Pakistan in Russia’s Military
Training Institutes at the conclusion of first meeting of Russia-Pakistan Joint
Military Consultative Committee (JMCC) held in Rawalpindi, Pakistan. This
agreement is considered as sign of further strengthening defence ties between
Russia and Paksitan. This will be for first time, Pakistani soldiers will
undergo training at Russian military institutes.
Science and Technology:
1.
The
Union Minister
for Electronics & Information Technology Ravi Shankar Prasad has released
the Digital North East Vision 2022 in Guwahati, Assam. First electronics
manufacturing cluster in northeastern region was also inaugurated in Guwahati,
Assam. The vision document emphasizes on leveraging digital technologies to
transform lives of people of north east and enhance ease of living. It
identifies eight digital thrust areas namely, Digital Infrastructure, Digital
services, Promotion of Electronics Manufacturing, Digital empowerment, Promotion
of IT and ITes including BPOs, Digital Payments, Innovation & Startups and
Cyber security.
Defence:
1.
Fateh
Mobin (Bright Conqueror) –the next generation short-range ballistic missile
capable of striking targets on land and sea has unveiled by Iran.
Fateh-110 missile is 100% domestically made in Iran. It was unveiled as part of
Iran’s thrust to further boost its defence capabilities at time of rising
tensions with United States.
2.
Defence
Acquisition Council (DAC) chaired by Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman
approved procurement of six indigenously designed and manufactured Next
Generation Offshore Patrol Vessels (NGOPVs) for Indian Navy.
NGOPVs will be built in indigenous shipyards at approximate cost of Rs. 4941
crore. They will be fitted with state-of-the-art sensor suite with increased
endurance. These platforms will strengthen maritime security by undertaking a
multitude of operational roles both in blue water and littorals.
First in
state/India/International:
1.
Iris
Scan Authentication feature for Aadhaar-based transactions through its micro
ATM tablets has been introduced in the country by Axis Bank.
Thus it becomes the first bank in the country to introduce this facility.
Axis Bank is presently running pilot program of iris-based
Aadhaar authentication for its customers at eight branches in rural segment
largely covering areas of Punjab, Haryana, Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh.
2. India’s first all-woman Special
Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team for anti-terrorist operations has inducted by
Delhi Police. The all-woman SWAT team is the
brainchild of Delhi Police Commissioner Amulya Patnaik. It comprises 36 women
commandos from northeastern states (13 members from Assam, 5 from Arunachal
Pradesh, 5 from Sikkim, 5 from Manipur, 4 from Meghalaya, 2 from Nagaland and 1
from Mizoram and Tripura each). The all-woman SWAT team was inducted after
rigorous training of around 15 months from specialists all across India and
abroad. They have undergone training to handle urban situations as well as
jungle operations.
3. India’s first genetic resource
bank - National Wildlife Genetic Resource Bank was inaugurated at Centre for
Cellular and Molecular Biology’s (CCMB) Laboratory of Conservation of
Endangered Species (LaCONES) facility in Hyderabad, Telanagana.
The genetic material will be stored here for posterity which will further the
cause of conservation of endangered and protected animals.
Economy:
1. To decide on 16-member Regional
Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) negotiations, a four-member Group of
Ministers (GoM) headed by Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Suresh Prabhu
has constituted by Union Government. It was
constituted to advise Prime Minister on whether to continue with or withdraw
from RCEP negotiations.
2. Multi
Option Payment Acceptance Device (MOPAD)
for digital payments convenience of merchants and consumers has launched by SBI
on all SBI PoS terminals in a phased manner. It will allow customers to
make payments through cards, Bharat QR, UPI and SBI Buddy (e-wallet) on single
Point–of–Sale (PoS) terminal. It will help merchants to integrate different
kinds of transaction through one PoS machine, which will help in eliminate
their operational inconvenience and streamline cash flow. This multipurpose
initiative will also enhance digital ecosystem and help bank in driving economy
towards a less-cash society.
3. A MoU on Sustainable Development
Goals (SDGs) was signed during Government and Business Partnership Conclave
held in New Delhi by NITI Aayog and Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).
This partnership focuses on specific activities that seek to develop vision and
action agenda for businesses and industries to contribute to SDGs, annual
status reports and sector-specific best practise documents.
4. Niryat Mitra mobile application
for exporters and importers of the country has launched by the Union Ministry
of Commerce and Industry. The app
provides wide range of information required to undertake international trade
right from policy provisions for export and import, applicable GST rate,
available export incentives, tariff, preferential tariff, market access
requirements – SPS and TBT measures. The app developed by Federation of Indian
Export Organisations (FIEO), the largest exporters organisation of the country.
Presently, app has data of 87 countries. It is available both on Android and on
IOS platforms.
5. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI)
has transferred surplus (dividend) of Rs. 50,000 crore to Government for year
ended in June 2018, over 63% more than Rs 30,659 crore which it transferred in
2017. Earlier in 2017, RBI had slashed surplus in the
wake of demonetisation as its expenditure shot up largely because of sharp rise
in provisions and cost of printing currency notes.
6. The International Monetary Fund
(IMF) in its report has projected India’s GDP growth 7.3% in the 2018-19 fiscal
and 7.5% in 2019-2020. Current account deficit (CAD)
is projected to widen further to 2.6% of GDP on rising oil prices and strong
demand for imports.
7.
The
factory output measured in terms of Index of Industrial Production (IIP) had 7%
in June 2018 ie. five month high according to the data released by Central
Statistics Office (CSO). This was on account of higher
output in mining, manufacturing and power generation segments.
Schemes:
1. Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana
(PMGSY) has approved by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) to be continued
beyond 12th Five Year Plan period ((2012–2017)).
For this, fund sharing pattern between centre and states will be same (Thus,
central government share will be Rs 54,900 crore and states’ share is Rs 30,034
crore. Initially targets of PMGSY were to be achieved by March 2022, however,
sunset date of achievement of PMGSY-I was pre-poned to March, 2019, with
enhanced fund allocation and changed funding pattern.
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Appointments/
Resignations:
1. Chartered Accountant Swaminathan
Gurumurthy and businessman Satish Kashinath Marathe have been appointed as
another non-official director on Central Board of Reserve Bank of India (RBI)
for a period of 4 years. It has been approved by the
Appointments Committee of Cabinet (ACC). RBI’s business is overseen by Central
Board of Directors. It comprises RBI Governor, Deputy Governors (maximum 4),
four non-official Directors which are nominated by Central Government (each
Non-official director represents the local Boards located in Delhi, Chennai,
Kolkata and Mumbai representing 4 regions of India). 10 Non-official Directors
nominated by RBI itself (These are persons having expertise in various segments
of Indian Economy). Besides, there is one representative (usually Financial
Services Secretary) of Central Government nominated under Section 8 (1) (d) of
the RBI Act.
2. Rekha Sharma (54) was appointed
as chairperson of the National Commission for Women (NCW).
It is apex national level organization of India the mandate of protecting and
promoting the interests of women.
3. Former Chilean president
Michelle Bachelet (66) was appointed as next United Nations High Commissioner
for Human Rights. She was nominated by UN Secretary
General Antonio Guterres and her appointment was approved by UN General
Assembly.
4. Justice Manjula Chellur took
oath as Chairperson of Appellate Tribunal for Electricity (ATE), Ministry of
Power. She has been appointed for a period of 3 years
or until further orders, whichever is earlier.
5. Senior bureaucrat Ashish Kumar
Bhutani was appointed as the Chief
Executive Officer (CEO) of Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) by the
Government of India. PMFBY is farmers’ welfare scheme launched in 2016
to ensure faster insurance services or reliefs to farmers. It was formulated in
line with One Nation–One Scheme theme by replacing earlier two schemes National
Agricultural Insurance Scheme (MNAIS) and Modified National Agricultural
Insurance Scheme (MNAIS) by incorporating their best features and removing
their inherent drawbacks (shortcomings).
Deaths:
1. Former
Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee
(89) passed away following multi-organ failure in Kolkata, West Bengal. He
was Speaker of Lok Sabha (House of the People) in first five-year term
(2004-2009) of United Progressive Alliance Government. He was born in 1929 in
Tezpur, Assam.
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