CURRENT AFFAIRS CAPSULE AUGUST 2016

Awards and Honours

 Padma Sachdev gets Saraswati Samman
o Poet and novelist Padma Sachdev (76) was awarded the prestigious Saraswati
Samman for the year 2015 for her autobiography 'Chitt-Chete' in Dogri language.
o She was felicitated by Delhi's Lt Governor Najeeb Jung in New Delhi.
o Novelist's autobiography, published in 2007, was shortlisted from 22 works
written in as many languages.
o Born in Jammu, she is 1st modern woman poet of Dogri language.
 Four athletes get RG Khel Ratna award
o Four athletes, including Olympic silver medallist P.V. Sindhu, gymnast Dipa
Karmakar, shooter Jitu Rai and Olympic bronze medallist Sakshi Malik received
the Rajiv Khel Ratna award.
o Fifteen sportspersons were honoured with the Arjuna Award and three with the
Dhyan Chand Award.
o President Pranab Mukherjee presented the awards at a sports awards ceremony
in New Delhi.
 Ronaldo Crowned UEFA Best Player
o Real Madrid superstar Cristiano Ronaldo has won the UEFA Best Player in
Europe Award.
o Ronaldo received the accolade for the second time in his career after finishing
ahead of Real team-mate Gareth Bale and Atletico Madrid's Antoine Griezmann.
o The award was voted for by journalists from each of UEFA's 55 member
associations.
o Norway striker Ada Hegerberg won the women's award.
 2 Ind-American Named White House Fellows
o Two Indian-American women have been selected for the prestigious White
House Fellow programme.
o Astrophysicist Anjali Tripathi from California & physician Tina R Shah from
Chicago are appointed among the 16 White House Fellows .
o It offers first hand experience of working at the highest levels of the US federal
govt.
o The White House Fellows Program was created in 1964 by President Lyndon B
Johnson
 National Sports Awards 2016 -3
o Fifteen sportspersons have been chosen for Arjuna Award & three with the
Dhyan Chand Award.
o The Punjabi University of Patiala will be awarded the Maulana Abul Kalam Azad
(MAKA) Trophy 2015-16.
o The Selection Committee for the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award & the Arjuna
Award was headed by Justice S.K. Agarwal, retired Delhi High Court Judge.
o The awards will be distributed by President on Aug 29.
 National Sports Awards 2016 -2
o Six sports coaches will be honoured with Dronacharya Awards
o They are Nagapuri Ramesh for Athletics, Sagar Mal Dhayal for Boxing, and Raj
Kumar Sharma, Cricket.
o Dipa Karmakar's coach Bishweshwar Nandi will receive the award for
Gymnastics.

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 o The Dronacharya Award for Lifetime contribution will be given to S. Pradeep
Kumar for Swimming & Mahabir Singh for Wrestling.
 National Sports Awards 2016 Announced
o Olympic Medalists P V Sindhu and Sakshi Malik will get Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna
Awards.
o Shooter Jitu Rai and Gymnast Dipa Karmakar have also been selected for the
top national sports award.
o Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award is given for the spectacular and most outstanding
performance in the field of sports by a sportsperson over a period of four years.
 IOA President Ramachandran Awarded
o President of the Indian Olympic Committee N Ramachandran was awarded the
Olympic Order for his outstanding services to the Olympic movement.
o The President of the IOC, Thomas Bach, formally presented the award to
Ramachandran.
o The Olympic Order is the highest award of the Olympic Movement.
o It is awarded for particularly distinguished contributions to the Olympic
Movement.
 ExRBI Dy Guv Named Senior Fellow at Yale
o RBI’s former Deputy Governor Rakesh Mohan has been named senior fellow at
the prestigious Yale University’s institute.
o He will join the 2016-2017 class of 15 Senior Fellows at The Yale Jackson
Institute for Global Affairs.
o Senior Fellows are leading practitioners in various fields of international affairs
who spend a year or semester at Yale teaching courses and mentoring students.
 Kamal Haasan Chosen for Chevalier Award
o Actor Kamal Haasan has been chosen for the coveted French honour of
Chevalier Award.
o The order of merit is awarded to recognize eminent artists & writers.
o The award also recognizes people who have contributed significantly to furthering
the arts in France and throughout the world.
o He is the second Tamil star after Sivaji Ganesan to be honoured with the French
award.
 BEL Head Bags Top Award
o SK Sharma, Chairman and Managing Director, BEL, has been awarded as the
Most Enterprising CEO in Electronics Sector by the Indo Global Business Council
(IGBC).
o IGBC is a policy think-tank based in New Delhi.
o Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) is an state-owned aerospace & defence
company.
o It is owned primarily manufactures advanced electronic products for the Indian
Armed Forces.
 Sankhachil Selected for Montreal Fest
o Director Goutam Ghosh's National award-winning film Sankhachil has been
selected for the coveted 40th Montreal World Film Festival.
o Sankhachil essays the pain & anguish of people living on both sides of the border
following the partition of Bengal.
o Sankhachil is an Indo-Bangla production.
o The goal of the Montreal Film Festival is to encourage cultural diversity
& understanding between nations,
 Sunita Jain Conferred Vyas Samman
o Hindi scholar and writer Sunita Jain was awarded the prestigious 25th Vyas
Samman 2015 for her poetry collection "Kshama".
o West Bengal Governor K N Tripathi conferred the award on the scholar.
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 o The award instituted by the K K Birla Foundation carries a cash prize of Rs 2.50
lakh.
o It is given annually to outstanding literary work in Hindi authored by an Indian
citizen.
 Rahman Honoured with Tamil Ratna Award
o Oscar-winning music maestro A.R. Rahman has been honoured by the America
Tamil Sangam with its Tamil Ratna Award.
o Allah-Rakha Rahman is an Indian composer, singer-songwriter, music producer,
musician & philanthropist.
o The previous recipients of its Ratna award include Tamil movie director Bharathi
Raja; Bharatha Natyam exponent Kamala Lakshman; Srinivasa Varadhan.
 CLRI Scientist Bags Abdul Kalam Award
o Central Leather Research Institute's Principal Scientist P Shanmugam has
bagged the Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Award
o He was awarded for meritorious services in the Higher Education Dept of Tamil
Nadu.
o The Chief Minister's Best Practices Award was presented to Thanjavur District
Collector N Subbaiyan & Superintendent of Police Mayilvahanan.
o These awards are presented by the Government of Tamil Nadu.
 Pathankot NSG Martyr gets Shaurya Chakra
o The Govt has conferred Shaurya Chakra posthumously to Lt. Col. E.K. Niranjan
of the National Security Guard.
o He was killed while defusing a grenade at the scene of the terror attack at
Pathankot IAF base in Jan.
o The brave officer had sanitised two bodies & was working on the third when the
fatal blast claimed his life.
o The Shaurya Chakra is the 3rd highest peacetime gallantry medal of the country
 Hangpan Dada Honoured with Ashok Chakra
o Havildar Hangpan Dada has been posthumously honoured with Ashok Chakra on
the eve of Independence Day
o He belonged to the Assam Regiment/35th Battalion of the Rashtriya Rifles.
o Dada had shown exemplary courage, devotion & gallantry beyond the call of duty
during an encounter with a group of terrorists in J&K.
o Ashoka Chakra is the country's highest award for gallantry during peace time.
 Sonam, Nawazuddin Win Top Awards
o Bollywood actors Sonam Kapoor & Nawazuddin Siddiqui bagged the best actress
& best actor awards at the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne 2016.
o Sonam was awarded for her performance in Neerja & Nawazuddin won for his
role of psycho serial killer in Raman Raghav 2.0.
o Sonam dedicated her award to the Bhanot family.
o Rishi Kapoor was honoured with the lifetime achievement award.
 Chef Aarthi Wins US-based Culinary Show
o Indian chef Aarthi Sampath has won the American competition-based reality
show “CHOPPED”.
o She is the head chef of Vikas Khanna’s Junoon Restaurant in New York.
o Chopped is a cooking completion where four chefs compete to create a three-
meal course using random ingredients provided to them.
o She has studied from Institute of Hotel Management, Jaipur.
 Researchers win Albany Medical Prize

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 o Three researchers whose work with cell proteins has implications for Alzheimer's
disease, cancer will share one of the largest awards in medicine & science in the
U.S.
o The Albany Medical Center Prize in Medicine & Biomedical Research will be
shared by F. Ulrich Hartl ,Arthur Horwich & Susan Lee Lindquist.
o They will be awarded for their complementary discoveries about protein folding.
 Singer Shubha to Get RG Sadbhavana Award
o Singer Shubha Mudgal will be awarded the Rajiv Gandhi National Sadbhavana
Award.
o She will get Award for her outstanding contribution towards the promotion of
communal harmony, peace and goodwill.
o She is a well-known Indian singer of Hindustani classical music.
o The Rajiv Gandhi National Sadbhavana Award is given on the occasion of the
birthday of Rajiv Gandhi.
 Artist Anita Gopalan Gets PEN/Heim Grant
o Translator and artist Anita Gopalan has been awarded the 2016 PEN/Heim
Translation Fund Grant.
o She was awarded for her English translation of Hindi novel “ Simsim ” by Geet
Chaturvedi.
o Ms. Gopalan is the second Indian translator to be selected for the grant.
o Her translations have appeared in several international journals.
o PEN America is a renowned literary organisation of the United States.
 Teen Choice Awards 2016 Winners
o Pop star Selena Gomez & hit TV series Pretty Little Liars were big winners at the
2016 Teen Choice Awards.
o Pretty Little Liars picked up six surfboard trophies including Choice TV drama,
o Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez claimed the choice male & female music artists.
o Justin Timberlake accepted the “Decade Award” from ex-Laker Kobe Bryant.
o The awards were voted on by viewers aged 13 through 19.

Books and Authors

 Harry Potter & the Cursed Child Launched

 Harry Potter and the Cursed Child book was launched globally.
 The book based on the script of the play 'Harry Potter & the Cursed Child'.
 This is JK Rowling’s eighth Harry Potter story written along with Jack Thorne & John
Tiffany.
 Thorne scripted the two-part play based on the original story, which begins 9 years
after 'Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows' was published in 2007.

Business and Economy

 NPCI launches Bharat Bill Payment System
o National Payments Corporation of India has launched the pilot project for Bharat
Bill Payment System (BBPS) with 26 Operating Units.
o It will allow payments for everyday utility services such as electricity, water, gas,
telephone, and DTH in its first phase.
o The BBPS is an RBI-mandated system to provide interoperable bill payment
services, both online and offline.
 Sony buys Ten Sports for $385 million
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 o Sony Pictures Networks India (SPN) announced it has entered into definitive
agreements to acquire TEN Sports Network from Zee Entertainment Enterprises
Ltd (ZEE) for $385 million.
o TEN Sports channels include TEN 1/2/3, TEN 1 HD, TEN Golf HD, TEN Cricket &
TEN Sports.
o TEN Sports holds broadcast rights to major cricket boards (South Africa,
Pakistan, Sri Lanka, West Indies & Zimbabwe).
 Mobikwik joins hand with 12 elec. boards
o MobiKwik, digital payment company, announced its tie ups with 12 state
electricity boards.
o The move comes as a part of MobiKwik's expansion plan to set up a national
base for utility payments.
o The state electricity boards that have been roped in by MobiKwik are in Bihar,
Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Tripura, Meghalaya, Calcutta, Rajasthan and union
territories of Daman and Diu.
 Canara Bank launches UPI app ’empower’
o Canara Bank has launched customer-centric digital initiative which enables ‘any
Bank customers to link and operate their various Bank accounts using a single
app’.
o Mobile app was launched by T N Manoharan, Chairman, & Rakesh Sharma, MD
& CEO.
o The app facilitates the bank customers to Pay & Collect Money from anyone
without disclosing their account information.
 PFS to give clean energy project loans
o PTC India Financial Services (PFS) has tied up with banks that will provide loans
to companies engaged in renewable energy production.
o These banks, based on letter of comfort (LOC) issued by PFS, will issue letter of
credit to companies in the renewable space with diligence on certain parameters.
o Under this new arrangement, LC can be opened in much shorter time on a case-
to-case basis.
 Centre raises Govt. employee min wage
o Govt. has accepted the advisory board recommendations and raised the
minimum wage from Rs 246 to Rs 350 for non-agricultural.
o Arun Jaitley also announced that Central Govt. employees will get their 2years
bonus.
o Centre has doubled the minimum wage to Rs 18,000.
o The trade unions have been demanding much higher than the figure proposed by
the government.
 EU orders Apple to pay $14.5 billion
o E.U. antitrust regulators ordered Apple to pay up to €13 billion ($14.5 billion) in
taxes to the Irish government.
o Apple, has already said it will appeal the decision, paid a tax rate on European
profits of between 0.005 and 1 per cent.
o Ireland's Finance Ministry said its position remained that the full amount of tax
was paid and no favourable tax treatment to Apple.
 Amazon launches online Telugu book store
o Amazon.in has announced the launch of a dedicated online Telugu book store
with a wide-range of over 10,000 Telugu titles.
o Readers can also get Telugu translations of English bestsellers in the store.

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 o Telugu will be the eighth dedicated language book store on Amazon
India. Currently, Amazon caters to Hindi, Tamil, Kannada, Marathi, Malayalam,
Gujarati and Bengali languages.
 India: 77th on 2016 World Risk Index
o India has been ranked 77th among the 171 countries in the 2016 World Risk
Index (WRI).
o World Risk Report 2016 released by the United Nations University Institute for
Environment (UNUIE) & Human Security (UNU-EHS).
o The index has assessed the disaster risk of countries through analysis of natural
hazards such as floods, cyclones, or earthquakes & societal vulnerabilities.
 Doha Bank opens branch in Kerala
o Qatar's based Doha Bank has opened a branch, the Kerala’s Chief Minister
Pinarayi Vijayan inaugurated the branch.
o Doha Bank is one of the largest commercial banks in the State of Qatar. It was
incorporated in 1978.
o It commenced its domestic and international banking services in Doha, Qatar on
March 15, 1979.
 China launches aircraft engine maker
o China has set up a state-owned aircraft engine maker with registered capital of
50 billion yuan ($7.5 billion).
o The new company, called China Aero-Engine Group and with 96,000 employees,
will focus on designing, manufacturing & testing of aircraft engines.
o China’s cabinet, Beijing municipal govt., the Aviation Industry Corp of China
(AVIC) & Commercial Aircraft Corp of China are investors.
 2.5 kg gold hidden in AI flight
o 2.5 kg gold hidden in AI flight toilet seized at Goa Airport.
o The Flight was coming from Dubai which was held by customs officials at Goa
Airport.
o The expected worth of the Gold is Rs 70 Lakh.
o The airlines staff is under the scanner, he said, adding that investigators are also
going through the list of passengers who flew in the flight.
 FSSAI's new standards for frozen product
o Food regulator FSSAI has proposed new standards for frozen vegetables and
processed fruit products, including commonly used canned tomatoes, frozen
peas and jams.
o The standards relate to limits for metallic contaminants in these products.
o Similarly, for schools, it will prepare a negative list of high fat, sugar and salt
foods (junk food), seeking to ensure food safety and nutrition.
 DGCA approves Air India's proposal
o Saving significant fuel costs and time, Air India will soon start flying over the
Pacific Ocean region for its lucrative direct services to San Francisco from New
Delhi.
o Air India would also be the first Indian carrier to operate on the Pacific region
route.
o Officials said the route would be a "win-win situation" for the carrier as well as
passengers.
 CBDT to write to 2.59 lakh taxpayers
o The I-T Department will soon write to over 2.59 lakh taxpayers asking them to
avail the one-time dispute resolution scheme to settle their cases.
o As per I-T department data, there were 73,402 appeals with tax effect above Rs
10 lakh.
o With this scheme, 2,59,260 appellants will be eligible for the benefit.

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 o Besides, the CBDT will soon come out with FAQs based on the queries it has
received.
 India ranks 77th on World Risk Index
o India has been ranked 77th on the World Risk Index, topped by Island state of
Vanuatu.
o The World Risk Report 2016 published by the UNU Institute for Environment
& Human Security.
o The Index ranks 171 countries according to their risk of becoming a victim of a
disaster as a result of natural hazards.
o Pakistan ranks 72th while Sri Lanka and Bangladesh at 63rd and 5th position
respectively.
 Forbes List Of Most Innovative Comp
o Forbes has released a list of 100 ‘The World’s Most Innovative Companies’.
o These 100 companies ranked on the list are based on their creative disruption,
potential for innovation and investor interest.
o Tesla Motors tops Forbes’ sixth annual list of The World’s Most Innovative
Companies.
o Asian Paints at number 18 is the highest-ranked Indian company on Forbes's list.
 Maharashtra to Tie up with Corporates
o The Maharashtra govt has announced a public-private partnership model for their
initiative ’mission transform’ of 1,000 most backward villages across the state.
o The corporate sector & non government organisations (NGOs)& the state
govt will come together under a trust.
o It will have its own corpus and be listed under the Companies Act.
o The state government will provide 50 per cent of the funds.
 HDFC to Issue NCDs Worth Rs. 500 cr
o HDFC Ltd will issue bonds worth Rs. 500 crore to meet its long-term capital
requirements.
o HDFC will issue secured redeemable non-convertible debentures on a private
placement basis.
o The object of the issue is to augment the long-term resources of the corporation.
o The proceeds of the present issue would be utilised for financing the housing
finance business requirements of the corporation
 Karnataka Bank Launches UPI App
o Karnataka Bank has launched ‘KBL-SMARTz’, a mobile app.
o It was built on the unified payments interface (UPI) platform of the National
Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).
o Fund transfer can be done through this app without revealing personal details.
o Customers across UPI member banks to pay & collect money from their
smartphones without entering any bank account information.
 SBI, ICICI Bank are Too Big to Fail: RBI
o State Bank of India (SBI) & largest private sector lender ICICI Bank continue to
be domestic systemically important banks.
o The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) classification means their collapse could have a
cascading impact on the entire financial system and the economy.
o This is a repeat of a similar classification for both these lenders, made by the
central bank in August last year.
 Huawei Sets Up Project Support Centre
o Chinese telecom gear maker Huawei has launched its largest global service
centre (GSC) in India.
o It was set up with an initial investment of Rs 136 crore.

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 o The facility will handle the highest number of projects compared to its other three
GSCs in China, Romania and Mexico.
o Huawei has hired over 1,000 engineers to work at this centre.
 World Bank Sanctions Rs 980 cr to Desilt
o The World Bank has sanctioned Rs 980 crore to dredge the Brahmaputra.
o It is an initiative to develop waterways to Bangladesh and to other South East
Asian countries in a bid to boost trade and industry in the Northeast.
o It will lead to a reduction in the cost of transportation of goods and will ultimately
result in Assam becoming a export hub for the South East Asian countries.
 RBI Asks Banks to Provide Loans to Women
o RBI has asked banks to provide loans to women self-help groups in rural areas at
7 per cent per annum.
o This was as per the government's revised guidelines for the current financial
year.
o Women self-help groups (SHGs) will be eligible for interest subvention on credit
up to three lakh rupees at 7 per cent per annum.
o They will be provided under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana in 250 districts.
 NPCI's UPI app goes live
o National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has said that the Unified
Payments Interface (UPI) is live and currently available for customers of 21
banks.
o UPI is a payment solution which empowers a recipient to initiate the payment
request from a smartphone.
o It facilitates virtual payment address for sending and collecting money and works
on single click 2-factor authentication.
 RBI Prescribes Norms For Large Borrowers
o RBI has came out with prudential norms on enhancing credit supply to large
borrowers through market mechanism.
o This has been in order to mitigate the risk of high exposure of banking system to
any single borrower.
o As per the new norms, exposure of banking system to a specified borrower
beyond normally permitted lending limit will be deemed to carry higher risk which
will be recognised.
 Monsanto challenges Centre on royalty
o Monsanto has challenged the Centre’s proposals to cap royalty for genetically
modified (GM) seeds on crops like cotton.
o Domestic cotton output has risen manifold since farmers started using Bt seeds
— from 13.6 million bales in 2002-03 to 30.1 million bales in 2015-16.
o Currently, 90% of India’s cotton area of 11.8 million hectares is under Bt (GM)
cover.
 Monsanto Withdraws GMO Cotton Seed
o Monsanto has withdrawn its application seeking approval for its next-generation
of genetically modified cotton seeds from India.
o India is Monsanto's largest market, outside the Americas.
o Monsanto is objecting to a proposal by India's government that it share its
technology with local seed companies.
o India first approved Monsanto's Bollgard I cotton in 2002, and Bollgard II in 2006.
 JNPT Signs Agreement with SBI, BoS
o Jawaharlal Nehru Port in Navi Mumbai, has signed an 400 Million US Dollar
agreement with SBI bank & Development Bank of Singapore for External
Commercial Borrowing, ECB.
o the agreement was signed by JNPT Chairman Anil Diggikar in the presence of
the Shipping Secretary Rajive Kumar in Mumbai.
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 o The ECB of 400 Million Dollar will be primarily utilised for expansion of JNPT’s
existing road network.
 Revised DTAA b/w India & Cyprus Gets Nod
o The Union Cabinet gave its nod for signing of revised double taxation avoidance
agreement (DTAA) with Cyprus.
o Revised DTAA provides for source-based taxation of capital gains on transfer of
shares, instead of residence based taxation.
o India will have the right to tax capital gains arising in India
o The revised DTAA will be instrumental in the fight against tax evasion.
 SBI to Raise up to Rs 11,000 crore
o SBI has said it will raise up to Rs 11,000 crore through Basel III compliant debt
instruments on a private placement basis.
o The Committee of Directors for Capital Raising has authorised the bank to raise
up to Rs 11,100 crore.
o A debt instrument is a paper or electronic obligation that enables the issuing party
to raise funds by promising to repay a lender in accordance with terms of a
contract.
 India has 7.4 crore Taxpayers:CBDT Chief
o India’s income taxpayer base has touched 7.4 crore .
o This was said by CBDT Chairperson Rani Singh Nair at the 13th International
Tax Conference organised by Assocham.
o PM Modi had in June this year urged the income tax department to aspire for a
taxpayer base of 10 crore.
o Nair counted both income-tax return filers and those covered under tax deduction
at source (TDS) to put the figure at 7.4 cr.
 Ujjivan Financial Ties up with CRMNEXT
o Ujjivan Financial Services has become the first organisation in its category to
adopt CRMNEXT’s integrated Assisted Bank-in-a-Box Edition.
o It is designed to empower small finance bank (SFBs) to achieve faster growth.
o CRMNEXT’s is designed to provide out-of-box solutions for all customer
management need
o Ujjivan has recently received an approval from the RBI to set up a Small
Finance bank,
 India's Growth To Tick Up To 7.8%
o Ind-Ra, india Ratings & Research has revised upwards India's economic growth
forecast to 7.8% for the ongoing fiscal.
o It has revised its gross domestic product estimate for 2016-17 upwards to
7.8% from its earlier forecast of 7.7%.
o The upward revision has been prompted by the progress of monsoon.
o It said the positive impact of monsoon on agriculture will support the overall GDP
growth.
 Microsoft Buys AI Startup Genee
o Microsoft has acquired artificial intelligence (AI)-based scheduling service Genee.
o The start-up, which was founded in 2014, will shut down its service on September
1.
o Genee specializes in using machine smarts to handle the time-sucking task of
scheduling meetings.
o Genee’s expertise could be used across Microsoft’s Office 365 suite of products.
 India on 10 Wealthiest Country List
o India has figured among the top 10 wealthiest countries in the world .

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 oAccording to a report by New World Wealth, India was ranked 7th ahead of
Canada , Australia & Italy which came in at 8th,9th & 10th.
o India has a total individual wealth of $5,600 billion while the United States topped
the chart.
o The US total individual wealth held is $48,900 billion.
o China stood second and Japan third.
 SBI Merger Exempt from CCI Approval
o SBI will not need Competition Commission of India (CCI)’s approval for merging 5
associates & Bhartiya Mahila Bank (BMB) with itself.
o It will create a global sized bank with an asset base of Rs. 30 lakh crore.
o The acquisition is exempt from the approval of CCI under the Competition Act
2002.
o As per the amendment consolidation in the banking sector space is exempt from
the approval of CCI.
 India, Germany Sign Pact
o India & Germany has signed an agreement that aims to improve workplace-
based vocational training in India's industrial clusters.
o Under the pact, German technical assistance will be used to enhance industry
institute partnerships between Indian & German org.
o The agreement was signed between the Ministry of Skill Development
& Entrepreneurship (MSDE) & German International Cooperation (GIZ).
 India World’s 3rd Largest Tech Start-up
o India is home to the third largest number of technology driven start-ups in the
world.
o US & the UK occupying the top two positions according to a study.
o The study was done by Assocham in association with Thought Arbitrage
Research Institute.
o Bengaluru is host to the largest share of technology start-ups in the
country followed by Delhi NCR.
o India’s tech start-ups numbered around 4,200 up to 2015.
 SARFAESI Coverage Expanded to NBFCs
o The Finance Ministry has allowed large non-banking finance companies (NBFCs)
to take recourse to the SARFAESI law to recover bad loans.
o NBFCs with asset base of ₹500 cr or above could use the SARFAESI law to
demand repayment of defaulted loan.
o It has also notified the names of the 196 NBFCs who could avail this recovery
tool.
o NBFCs cannot avail the SARFAESI law in respect of loans less than ₹1cr.
 Doha Bank Set to Open Branch in Kerala
o Doha Bank is formally inaugurating its first branch in Kerala on August 27.
o The branch offers all banking products to corporate and retail customers.
o It will mainly cater to the needs of the large NRI population, both in Kerala and
the Gulf.
o It will be formally inaugurated by the State Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
o Doha Bank is one of the prominent banks in Qatar.
 Alibaba Launches ‘Million Books’ Drive
o Online commerce major The Alibaba Group along with Crossword & Ratna Nidhi
Charitable Trust has launched ‘Mission Million Books’.
o It is a pan-India initiative inviting Indian citizens to donate educational material for
the underprivileged
o The Alibaba Group would donate over 50,000 books to the campaign.
o The collected material will be distributed to more than 2,500 educational
institutions.
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  Andhra Bank Teams up with Geojit
o Andhra Bank has launched a three-in-one online investment & trading platform in
association with Geojit BNP Paribas Financial Services.
o The account, christened AB eTrade, integrates savings & demat accounts with
online trading.
o AB eTrade is a secure customer-friendly product and it features easy trading.
o The customers will have the convenience of the bank settling trades online.
 India Ranks 39th in Asia Pacific
o India ranks a low 39th in terms of fixed broadband adoption among Asia Pacific
countries.
o With just 1.3% Indians subscribing to such a service in 2015.
o This was according to a study by the United Nations Economic and Social
Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP).
o Hong Kong, New Zealand & Japan& Macao topped the list of 53 countries
covered in the report.
 PNB Makes Locker Visiting Facility Free
o In a customer-friendly move, public sector lender Punjab National Bank (PNB)
has made locker visiting facility free for its customers.
o Earlier, the customers were allowed 12 free visits at lockers in an year.
o Now, the PNB locker holders can make any number of visits in an year without
paying any additional cost.
o The new rule has been put in place so as to encourage customers.
 PFC Gets Shareholders’ Nod
o Power Finance Corp (PFC) has got shareholders’ approval for raising up to ₹
55,000 crore via issue of securities.
o PFC is one of the leading lenders to the power sector.
o The company has got shareholders’ nod to raise ₹ 5,000 crore by issuance of
bonds for Power Ministry
o PFC’s shareholders also approved the proposal to increase the authorised share
capital from ₹2,000 crore.
 RBL Bank IPO Opens
o The initial public offer (IPO) of private sector bank RBL Bank, erstwhile Ratnakar
Bank, opens for bidding.
o It is the first private lender IPO in a decade aims to raise over Rs 1,200 crore
through IPO
o The bank proposes to utilize the proceeds of the fresh issue to augment Tier-I
capital base to meet its future capital requirements.
o It, will give the bank a valuation of over Rs 12,000 crore.
 SBI to gain $120 billion from takeover
o State Bank of India (SBI), the nation's biggest lender by assets, will gain $120
billion in assets following its merger with associate banks and Bharatiya Mahila
Bank.
o SBI's board has approved share swap ratio for the proposed takeover of five units
and Bharatiya Mahila Bank.
o The merer would expand SBI’s assets by 36 percent to about $447 billion.
 NITI Aayog looks at construction
o In order to revive the ailing construction sector, NITI Aayog is set to come out
with a series of policy measures to revive the sector.
o NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant said that measures are being taken to give fresh
life to the construction sector projects.

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 oKant also said that India is passing through a window of demographic transition
and this is the biggest opportunity to be capitalised
 India Inc Voices Concern On GST rules
o Indian industry chambers has raised concerns on the draft Goods and Services
Tax (GST) law at a meeting with Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia.
o The concern involves issues like dual administrative control vested and wide
discretionary powers for tax authorities.
o The GST Bill was passed by Parliament earlier this month. Three states, Assam,
Bihar and Jharkhand have also ratified the Bill.
 AskMe shuts down, 4,000 jobs lost
o The consumer internet search platform AskMe has shut down its operations,
laying off remaining of its staff.
o The Gurugram based company probably took the decision because of severe
cash crunch.
o AskMe.com was started as a classified portal in 2010. The company launched its
online shopping portal Askmebazaar in 2012
 Minimum broadband speed to jump 4 times
o Centre is looking to mandate a four-fold increase in the minimum broadband
speed.
o It will be 2 mbps (megabits per second) from 512 kbps (kilobits per second)
o Experts and industry analysts say that the present speed is "abysmally slow" and
is inadequate to match up with the fast-developing app eco-system
 Drugs for malaria, cancer get cheaper
o The central drug regulator National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) has
capped prices of 22 essential medicines with immediate effect.
o This would make some commonly used cancer drugs, anti-retrovirals and
medicines to treat malaria cheaper by up to 45 per cent.
o Currently, around 20% of the over Rs 1 lakh crore domestic pharmaceutical
market is under price control.
 Mauritius treaty to tax quasi equity
o The govt. is likely to tax quasi-equity instruments, if these are converted into
equity after April 1, 2017.
o Private equity (PE) investors and venture capital (VC) funds from Mauritius might
have to negotiate terms to advance the dates of conversion of their instrument.
o These changes are suggested under the revised India-Mauritius double taxation
avoidance agreement (DTAA).
 Forex reserve at record $365.82 billion
o Country's forex exchange reserves surged by $73.2 million to touch a life-time
high of $365.82 billion in the week to August 12.
o In the previous week, the reserves had increased by $253.6 million to touch
$365.75 billion.
o Foreign currency assets (FCAs), a major portion of the overall reserves increased
by $81.6 million to $340.36 billion. Gold reserve remain unchanged at $21.58
billion.
 India Post Payment Bank to Start in 2017
o India Post Payments Bank has received the certificate of incorporation from the
Registrar of Companies.
o It would pave the way for the postal department’s bank to begin operations in
2017 as announced.
o This will be the first public sector undertaking under the Department of Posts.
o The new bank is expected to commence operations by March 2017.
 Federal Bank, Chillr Tie Up

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 o
Federal Bank has announced its partnership with Chillr, a mobile banking
application, to provide cashless transactions.
o Chillr is the India's first and only multi-bank mobile application.
o It allows users to connect seamlessly with multiple bank accounts and manage all
their banking needs on a single platform
o The facility is already available to all customers of Federal Bank.
 ICICI Bank Introduce 'iMobile SmartKeys'
o ICICI Bank has unveiled a payment service dubbed as iMobile SmartKeys that
uses smartphone keyboard to make quick & secure payments.
o The service allows users to transfer money to their registered beneficiaries, pay
their utility bills as well as recharge their mobile numbers.
o This will enable users to make payments without having to exit the current
application and launching another tab.
 Moody’s Retains India’s GDP Forecast
o Moody's Investors Service has retained India's growth forecast at 7.5% for 2016.
o It has revised upwards estimates for China to 6.6 % citing strong fiscal and
monetary support.
o It said emerging markets have stabilised on account of the modest recovery in
commodity prices.
o China growth would have minimal impact on its forecasts for the rest of the world
as imports to China continue to fall.
 SBI Board Approves Merger of 5 Associate
o SBI board has approved merger of its five associate banks & BMB.
o The board of directors approved the merger of State Bank of Bikaner & Jaipur,
State Bank of Mysore, State Bank of Travancore & Bharatiya Mahila Bank(BMB).
o Merger aims to create a global-sized bank with assets worth over Rs 37 lakh
crore.
o The board also finalised the share swap ratio for three of the listed subsidiaries &
BMB.
 DBS to Launch 'Bank Conversationally'
o Development Bank of Singapore (DBS) is set to roll out its latest banking
innovation in India by end of this year.
o It will enable customers to “bank conversationally”from their preferred mobile
messaging app.
o The Artificial Intelligence (AI) based innovation will allow access banking services
quickly on Facebook Messenger.
o In April, DBS launched had “digibank”, India’s first mobile-only bank.
 China Launches $30 billion VC Fund
o China's state council has approved a $30.19 billion venture capital fund to invest
in innovative technology & industrial upgrading projects.
o China has been encouraging its industrial firms to rise up the value chain through
technical innovation.
o It aims of creating globally competitive conglomerates.
o The main sponsor & controlling shareholder is China Reform Holdings Corp Ltd,
 Indians Online to Hit 730 mn by 2020
o The number of Internet users in India is likely to more than double to 730 million
by 2020.
o This was according to a new report‘The Future of Internet in India’,compiled by
Nasscom and Akamai Technologies.
o There were about 330 million Internet users in the country as of December 2015.

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 o
India has an Internet user base next only to China & will remain the fastest
growing market.
 Ola Ends Rides at TaxiForSure
o India’s largest cab aggregator Ola has said it was shutting down operations at
TaxiForSure (TFS).
o The decision comes 17 months after Ola has acquired its rival for Rs.1,200
crore in a cash & equity deal.
o TaxiForSure was founded in 2011 by two Indian Institute of Management-
Ahmedabad alumni Raghunandan G & Aprameya Radhakrishna.
o Ola has completed the integration of TFS to its Ola app.
 SBH Opens Platinum Branch
o State Bank of Hyderabad (SBH) has opened its ‘Platinum’ branch at Jubilee Hills,
Hyderabad to cater exclusively to the NRI & HNI clients.
o The branch is fully mechanised with Wi-Fi facility, mobile& internet banking.
o It has dedicated relationship executives to offer a range of services including
forex, services, conference facility for business meetings.
o The branch will work 7 days a week.
 GoAir Gets Nod to Fly to 9 Nations
o Mumbai-based carrier GoAir has got the government’s nod to fly to nine countries
beginning next March.
o It would make it the fifth Indian airline to fly abroad.
o The airline has been granted rights to operate to Iran, China, Vietnam, Maldives,
Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Qatar & Saudi Arabia.
o The no-frills carrier Go Air has launched domestic operations in November 2005.
 BBB Should Appoint Executives at Banks
o Outgoing RBI governor Raghuram Rajan has stressed the need to improve
governance at public sector banks.
o He said the task of appointing top executives should be left to the Bank Board
Bureau (BBB).
o At present, the Centre appoints the top executives.
o His suggestion is in line with the proposals of the P.J. Nayak committee set up by
the RBI to look into the issue of governance in Indian banks.
 S&P, BSE Liquid Rate Index Launched
o Asia Index, a joint venture between S&P Dow Jones Indices & BSE has launched
a new index to measure the performance of Collateralised Borrowing & Lending
Obligation (CBLO) rate.
o The index is designed to measure the returns from a daily rolling deposit at the
CBLO rate.
o CBLO facilitates borrowing and lending for various tenors from overnight up to a
maximum of one year.
 Tata Power Solar Comm 100 mw Project
o Tata Power Solar has commissioned a 100 mw solar project for NTPC in
Anantapur, Andhra Pradesh,
o It is the biggest solar project commissioned using domestically manufactured
solar cells and modules.
o The plant is expected to generate nearly 160 million units of energy per year
o It will help offset approximately 110,000 tonnes of CO2 in the first year.
 Hike Messaging App Raises $175 million
o Hike, a messaging app has raised $175 million in a round led by China’s Tencent
and Foxconn,
o Its existing investors SoftBank Group, Bharti Enterprises& Tiger Global also
participated in the fourth round.
o It has so far raised $250 million overall in four rounds of investment.
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 o
Hike messaging platform has 100 million users in India..
o
Its biggest competitor in India is Facebook Inc owned WhatsApp.
 Global Innovation Index 2016 Released
o Switzerland,Sweden & UK have been placed at the top 3 in the Global Innovation
Index, 2016.
o The index was released by Cornell University,INSEAD & the World Intellectual
Property Org.
o China joins the ranks of the world’s 25 most-innovative economies.
o India rises to 66th position from 81 last year.
o India scored high on tertiary education ,the quality of its universities & scientific
publications.
 1st Facility to Produce Nickel Launched
o Hindustan Copper Limited (HCL) has inaugurated the country's first facility to
produce nickel.
o The new facility- Nickel, Copper and Acid Recovery Plant is located at the
company's Indian Copper Complex (ICC) at Ghatshila in Jharkhand.
o The facility was inaugurated by Balvinder Kumar, secretary, ministry of mines.
o The metal is primarily used to make stainless steel.
 Exports Better in Goods Diversification
o India's exports are better placed in terms of product diversification.
o India top ten export products account for 58% of total shipments, says a study.
o The study analysed concentration of top 10 export products for major
economies including Hong Kong (89 %),Korea (86 %) & Japan (77 %).
o Higher the percentage of the country, the more it is concentrated to exports of
few products.
 Microsoft Xbox Acquires Beam
o Microsoft’s Xbox group has announced that it has acquired Seattle-based
interactive game streaming service Beam.
o Xbox is a video gaming brand created and owned by Microsoft.
o Beam has been acquired for an unspecified sum by Microsoft.
o Beam was launched 8 months ago by an 18-year-old Matt Salsamendi.
o Beam interactive game streaming service that lets viewers play along with
streamers as they watch.
 Govt Forms Body on Trade Facilitation
o Govt has constituted a National Committee on Trade Facilitation (NCTF).
o It will play lead role in developing the pan-India road map for trade facilitation.
o It has been constituted in line with the World Trade Organisation (WTO’s) Trade
Facilitation Agreement (FTA), which India also has ratified.
o The Committee comprises will be headed by Cabinet Secretary of India Pradeep
Kumar Sinha.
 Gold Import Plunges 52.5% to $4.97 b
o Gold imports more than halved to $ 4.97 billion in the first 4 months of the current
fiscal.
o Gold imports stood at $ 10.47 billion in April-July of 2015.
o The contraction in imports helped narrow trade deficit to $ 7.76 billion last month
as against USD 13 billion in July 2015.
o India is one of the largest gold importers & the imports mainly take care of
demand of the jewellery industry.
 NSE to Delist 14 Companies from Aug31
o Top bourse NSE is delisting as many as 14 companies from its platform from
Aug 31.
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 o
Prudential Capital Markets, SIV Industries,SMZS Chemicals & Vibrant Investment
are among the companies on the list.
o NSE is delisting these entities are in the process of winding up their respective
businesses.
o Under compulsory delisting, these firms would cease to be listed & would move
to the dissemination board.
 UBI Launches USSD Based Mobile App
o Union Bank of India has launch an Unstructured Supplementary Service Data
(USSD) based *99# mobile application for their customers.
o It was launched in partnership with National Payments Corporation of India
(NPCI),
o The application provides basic banking facilities like checking account balance.
o It can be used even without any internet connection as it does not require any
data.
 Kotak Bank Starts Innovation Lab
o Kotak Mahindra Bank has started an 'Innovation Lab' in Bengaluru.
o It aims to tap into the best technology that impacts its operations & is open to
investing in startups.
o The initiatives being undertaken by them include launching dedicated funds to
invest in startups.
o It will working with startups in the artificial intelligence, analytics, biometric or iris
scanning & machine learning space.
 Yes Bank to Raise $1 bn via QIP
o Yes Bank plans to raise Rs.6,885 crore through QIP in the next 7 months.
o It has started engagement with large investors across geographies.
o Yes Bank has reported a 32.8 % rise in net profit to Rs.731.8 cr during the first
quarter ended June 30.
o Qualified institutional placement (QIP) is a capital-raising tool whereby a listed
company can issue equity shares,fully & partly convertible debentures.
 RBI may not meet Inflation Target: IMF
o An IMF paper has raised question marks over the ability of RBI to target inflation
through monetary measures.
o IMF has said the size of formal financial sector is small in India and may
undermine the effectiveness of interest rate changes on aggregate demand.
o the RBI has recently implemented an inflation-targeting regime.
o RBI will be required to meet retail inflation target of 4%,plus or minus 2%,
 Pipeline to Connect B’desh,Myanmar,India
o The govt has ambitious plan to lay 6,900 km of gas pipelines linking Bangladesh,
Myanmar, most north-eastern states & West Bengal.
o As part of Hydrocarbon Vision 2030 for North-eastern region pipelines would be
laid connecting Sitwe (Myanmar),Chittagong (B'desh),most north-eastern states,
Siliguri & Durgapur.
o Thirteen routes with a total length of about 6,900 km of pipelines have been
proposed.
 ONGC Sets up Fund for Start-ups
o Oil & Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) has set up a Rs. 100-crore start-up fund to
nurture new ideas related to the sector.
o The initiative, christened ONGC Start-up is in line with the Centre’s ‘Start-up
India’ initiative.
o ONGC will provide the support chain for start-ups including seed capital
& mentoring
o The aim of is to increase the contribution of fresh implementable ideas in the oil
& gas sector.
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  Axis Bank, Suvidhaa Infoserve Tie Up
o Axis Bank & payments company Suvidhaa Infoserv have launched 'Nano Credit’.
o It is a pre-approved, instant & unsecured loans for the urban low-income
customer.
o The max loan amount is Rs 15,000 & is available to existing customers of
Suvidhaa.
o It is only for those customers who have been transacting with Suvidhaa for one
year.
o The offering seeks to benefit the unbanked & digitally excluded people.
 SBI,Korea Development Bank Join Hands
o Country’s largest public sector lender State bank of India & Korea Development
Bank have signed a MoU to enhance business synergies.
o The agreement was signed between SBI chairman Arundhati Bhattacharya
& chairman and CEO of Korea Development Bank (KDB), Lee Dong Geol.
o The agreement outlines the plan to enhance cooperation in areas including
corporate finance, project finance & asset finance.
 NCML Sign Pact with Syndicate Bank
o National Collateral Management Services has tied up with Syndicate Bank to
provide funding for farmers & traders against their commodities stored at its
warehouses.
o NCML works in partnership with over 60 leading banks & financial institutions in
11,000 warehouses.
o The objective is to assist industries, traders and farmers in financing their capital
requirements at all stages of the supply chain.
 SIB,SBI Card Launch Credit Cards
o South Indian Bank (SIB) & SBI Card, a credit card issuer has announced their
collaboration to launch co-branded credit cards for the customers of South Indian
Bank.
o The card will launch two variants of credit card on VISA platform.
o It will be namely SIB Platinum SBI card & SIB SimplySave SBI card.
o South Indian Bank Platinum SBI card has been designed keeping in mind the
premium customers.
 RBL Bank IPO to Open on Aug 19
o RBL Bank (the erstwhile Ratnakar Bank) will open its initial public offer (IPO) on
August 19.
o The bank is planning to raise over Rs 1,200 crore.
o It will be the nation's first bank IPO since 2010.
o The shares would be listed on the BSE and the NSE.
o The aim is to augment its capital base as per Basel III norms besides funding
future business growth.
 Govt Notifies Revised Tax Treaty
o Gov has notified the revised tax treaty with Mauritius.
o Under the revised tax treaty India will impose capital gains tax on investments
routed through Mauritius from April 1.2017 in a bid to curb tax evasion.
o The protocol amending the agreement b/w India & Mauritius was signed on Aug
24, 1982.
o The prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income was signed at
Mauritius on May10,2016.
 Nasscom Begins Startup Warehouse
o The apex IT industry body Nasscom has launched operations of its startup
warehouse at Sunrise Startup Village at Rushikonda in Visakhapatnam,

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 oThis is the first Nasscom Startup Warehouse in AP & the 9th under its 10,000
startup initiative by 2020.
o The warehouse would provide affordable co-working space with incubation for
6 months.
o The initiative nurtures startups to get proper mentoring.
 Retail Inflation Tops 6%
o Retail inflation rose to a nearly 2 year high of 6.07 per cent in July this year.
o Rural India recorded a higher retail inflation at 6.7% as against 5.4% in urban
areas.
o Retail inflation, measured by the Consumer Price Index had stood at 5.77% in
June this year & 3.69% in July last year.
o The govt has retained the inflation target of 4% (plus/minus 2%) for the next five
years.
 SBI Group Q1 Net Dips 78%
o SBI group has reported 78% plunge in consolidated net profit at Rs 1,046 crore in
April-June.
o SBI Chairman Bhattacharya attributed the lower numbers to the massive
provisioning the five subsidiary banks have done
o Total income during the 3 month period rose to Rs 69,415 cr against Rs 63,164.5
cr in April-June, 2015-16.
o On a standalone basis, net profit of the SBI declined 32% to Rs 2,521 crore.
 N-Suppliers Insurance Policy Launched
o The country’s first Nuclear Suppliers’ insurance policy was unveiled by India
Nuclear Insurance Pool (INIP).
o The policy was unveiled by Atomic Energy Commission chairman Sekhar Basu in
Mumbai.
o New India Assurance Co & INIP will issue the policy & administer the claims.
o The pool provides capacity for insurance coverage to operators & suppliers for
any nuclear liability towards third party.
 Times, HDFC Bank Launch Debit Card
o Times Internet,the digital arm of The Times of India group,in association with
HDFC Bank has launched an exclusive co-branded debit card ‘Times Points
HDFC Bank Debit Card’.
o This debit card offers customers discounts & rewards on online shopping.
o The users can club points earned from consuming, creating & sharing digital
content on Times Internet sites with the points made from online shopping.
 Ikea Lays Foundation Stone for 1st Store
o Swedish furniture maker Ikea has laid the foundation in Hyderabad for its first
store in India.
o The 4 lakh square feet facility will entail an investment of Rs 700 crore & will be
operational by 2017.
o The ceremony was attended by Ikea India chief executive officer Juvencio
Maeztu .
o The company plans to have 25 stores in India in 10 years in cities like Mumbai,
Delhi & Bengaluru.
 RBI Sets Customer Liability Norms
o RBI has issued a draft circular on Customer Protection - Limiting Liability of
Customers in Unauthorised Electronic Banking Transactions.
o It has proposed that customer will not be liable to make the payment if the
fraud is on part of the bank.
o In these cases customer liability will be limited to a max of Rs 5,000.
o If reports beyond 7 days,liability will be determined based on bank's policy,
 DST Partners Intel to Incubate Start-ups
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 oDept of Science & Tech (DST), Intel Tech & SINE, IIT Bombay have set up a new
collaborative incubation program to support hardware & systems-based start-ups.
o Society for Innovation & Entrepreneurship (SINE ) is the business incubator at IIT
Bombay which supports start-ups.
o Under this program, industry, academia & the govt together will support
hardware based start-ups through mentoring,
 Jaitley Launch Data Bank Portal of MSMEs
o FM Arun Jaitley has launched a data bank Portal of micro,small & medium
enterprises, MSME.
o The portal aims to gather information about micro, small & medium enterprises.
o MSME Minister Kalraj Mishra said a census of MSMEs online will be carried out
for the first time through the data bank.
o An Online Finance Facilitation Web Portal was also launched to provide collective
funding options for MSMEs.
 Intel Buys AI Startup Nervana Systems
o The Intel has acquired California-based deep learning start-up Nervana Systems
run by an Indian-origin entrepreneur.
o The acquisition will help develop Intel's artificial intelligence portfolio.
o Nervana Systems is led by former Qualcomm researcher Naveen Rao & has
reportedly raised $25 million in venture funding.
o Intel is one of the world's largest & highest valued semiconductor chip makers.
 Aditya Birla Nuvo to Merge with Grasim
o Aditya Birla Nuvo Ltd will merge with Grasim Industries Ltd in an attempt to
create a stronger entity.
o The merger will create an entity with yearly revenue of Rs.59,766 crore, net profit
of Rs.4,245 crore.
o Aditya Birla Nuvo emerged in 2005 after the Aditya Birla Group decided to
rename Indian Rayon & Industries Ltd.
o The transaction is expected to be completed by the fourth quarter of this year.
 RBI Retains Growth Projection at 7.6%
o The RBI has retained the growth projection for the fiscal FY17 at 7.6%.
o It has cautioned that sluggishness in global economy may neutralise India's
momentum which has been built up by good monsoon and uptick in rural
demand.
o RBI said the momentum of growth is "expected to be quickened" by the normal
monsoon and rural demand.
o Business expectations remained optimistic on better economic conditions.
 Govt Notifies ECCE Policy
o Government has notified the national 'Early Childhood Care and Education'
(ECCE) policy.
o The policy aims to achieve holistic development of children below six years of
age.
o The ECCE is one of the six free services provided through Anganwadi centres
located across the country.
o It is provided under the Integrated Child Development Service (ICDS) scheme of
Ministry of Women and Child Development.
 PFRDA Slashes Minimum Contribution
o The PFRDA has decided to slash the minimum annual contribution for National
Pension System (NPS) subscribers to ease flow of contributions.
o Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) slashed the
minimum annual contribution under Tier-I account from Rs 6,000 to Rs 1,000.

19 | P a g e
 oFor Tier-II accounts, PFRDA has decided to waive the requirement of maintaining
minimum balance of Rs 2,000.
 Govt to Review FDI Rules for E-commerce
o The govt has decided to set up a committee to look into all issues including
foreign direct investment norms pertaining to e-commerce industry in the country.
o The committee will be headed by the NITI Aayog CEO.
o The other members in the panel include officials from Comm & Industry Ministry
& Dept of Electronics & IT.
o The committee would suggest ways to further promote the growth of the sector.
 Tata Chemicals Sells Urea Business
o Norway’s Yara International has entered into an agreement to acquire the Tata
Chemicals Babrala urea plant in Uttar Pradesh for Rs 2,670 crore.
o The plant has an annual production of 0.7 million tonnes ammonia & 1.2 million
tonnes urea.
o The plant was commissioned in 1994 & is one of the most energy efficient plants
in India.
o This is the first time that Yara is investing money in an asset in India.
 Cabinet Liberalises FDI norms for NBFCs
o The Cabinet has approved changes in norms for foreign direct investment (FDI)
for non-banking financial companies (NBFCs).
o It will enable inflow of foreign investment via automatic route in “other financial
services”.
o Present regulations stipulate that FDI would be allowed on automatic route for
only 18 specified NBFC activities.
o Now as much as 100% foreign investment can come into these services
 Commerce Ministry Starts E-marketplace
o Commerce minister Nirmala Sitharaman has launched the government e-
marketplace.
o It has been launched online purchase of goods and services by various central
govt ministries & departments.
o The e-marketplace is expected to bring transparency and improve governance.
o To begin with common use items in 26 categories like computers, office
equipments have been placed on the portal.
 Syndicate Bank Launches Project Ananya
o Syndicate Bank has launched “Project Ananya" aimed at large-scale
transformation of its branches.
o The first Ananya branch was opened by MD & CEO Arun Srivastava at
Indiranagar, Bengaluru.
o Project Ananya aims to upgrade the products,services of the Bank to cater to the
fast changing customer needs
o It will provide customers with best services while improving and modernising the
whole bank.
 1.36 cr Non-Filers Identified under NMS
o Government has identified 1.36 crore non-filers with potential tax liability under
the Non-Filers Monitoring System (NMS).
o Minister of State for Finance Santosh Kumar Gangwar said about 1.36 crore non-
filers with potential tax liability have been identified under NMS.
o The total number of the Income Taxpayers in the country for the last financial
year was over five crore 24 lakh.
 NPA of Banks Increased by Around 4%
o The Govt has announced that the Non-Performing Assets (NPA) of commercial
banks have increased by around 4% in the last one year.

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 o
The NPA of banks was 5.43% in March 2015 which has risen to 9.32 % in March
2016.
o The high incidences of NPAs are mainly related to power,road, steel & other
sectors
o NPAs are loans made by a bank on which repayments or interest payments are
not being made on time.
 TCS Ranked 58th Most Valuable US Brand
o Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) from India was ranked 58th most valuable
brands in the US.
o This was according to a survey, titled 'Top 500 U.S. Brands', by Brand Finance.
o The Brand Finance study evaluates the financial value of a company's brand
name, intellectual assets & trademark.
o TCS is one of only four global IT Services companies recognised as a Top 100
Brand in the US
 Randstad to Buy Job Ads Site Monster
o Dutch human resources and recruitment firm Randstad has announced that it is
acquiring US-based jobs portal Monster.
o It will acquire the international job-hunting site for $429 million in an all-cash
transaction.
o Monster will retain its brand and work as an independent entity after the
purchase.
o Randstad hopes to complete the acquisition in the fourth quarter of 2016.
 RBI Keeps Policy Rate Unchanged
o The RBI has kept the policy rate unchanged at 6.5% in the third bi-monthly policy
review.
o This is Governor Raghuram Rajan's last monetary policy statement of his current
term.
o The RBI keeps the cash reserve ratio (CRR) of scheduled banks unchanged at
4% .
o The reverse repo rate under the LAF will remain unchanged at 6%.
o Repo rate is the rate at which the RBI lends money to commercial bank.
 Syndicate Bank Launches New Products
o Syndicate Bank has launched new products to ease customer transactions.
o Arun Shrivastava, MD & CEO,Syndicate Bank has launched fund transfer based
on Aadhaar Number through NUUP.
o National Unified USSD platform(NUUP) will transfer using an ordinary mobile
phone without internet connection.
o The bank also launched Fund Transfer through IMPS at any branch for
instantaneous credit to any bank account.
 DST Launch Programme to Support Startups
o The Department of Science & Technology has launched a Rs 100-crore
programme to support startups.
o The programme is called National Initiative for Developing & Harnessing
Innovations (NIDHI) .
o It is aimed at helping startups across the country in terms of both funding and
incubation support.
o A number of schemes will be taken up under NIDHI, including NIDHI Prayas.
 Spectrum Auction to Start on 29 Sept
o Bidding rounds for the country's biggest-ever spectrum auction will begin from
29th of next month.

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 o
In these auction mobile airwaves worth 5.63 lakh crore rupees at the base price
value will be put up for sale.
o It includes about 197 Mhz of frequencies in 1800 Mhz band & 37.5 Mhz in 800
Mhz band.
o The govt expects to raise at least 64,000 cr rupees from the auction of about
2,354.55 Mhz of spectrum.
 Ponzi Schemes Not Under Our Purview:SEBI
o The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has told the Supreme Court
that banned Ponzi schemes do not fall under its regulatory purview.
o It has said only the state govts concerned can control them.
o It also said banned activities cannot be regulated by any regulator, except to stop
the same if made aware of it.
o A Ponzi scheme is a fraudulent investing scam promising high rates of return.
 HDFC Life,Max Life Boards Approve Merger
o The boards of HDFC Life & Max group companies have approved the merger of
the two life insurance entities.
o The merger will create the largest private sector life insurance company in the
country.
o It will have assets under management of Rs.1.1 lakh crore with seven million
customers.
o In the private life insurance space, only ICICI Prudential Life Insurance had
reported AUM of Rs 1 lakh crore.
 RBI Governer's last monetary policy
o RBI Guv Raghuram Rajan in his last monetary policy tomorrow may keep interest
rate static as retail inflation continues.
o This is going to be the last bi-monthly monetary policy to be decided by the
central bank Governor.
o In conjunction with naming its 3 members on the Monetary Policy Committee, the
government is also likely to name a successor to Dr Rajan sometime this month.
 Karnataka emerges as investors favourite
o Gujarat was ranked first among all States in 2015 for attracting maximum
‘investment intentions’ in value terms.
o It has lost its position to Karnataka halfway through this calendar year.
o The investment intentions received by Karnataka in the first six months of 2016
was more than what Gujarat had attracted in the whole of 2015.
 TRAI to issue proposal on free data
o TRAI is expected to issue its final recommendations in a month’s time on the
issue of free data, which has been opposed by telecom providers and some
internet content providers.
o It is said that the exercise was aimed to increase the overall consumption of data
among telecom subscribers expanding the pie of data use in the country.
o TRAI stands for Telecom Regulatory Authority of India.
 US Jobs Growth Beats Forecasts
o The US economy added a stronger-than-expected 255,000 jobs in July.
o The figure was below June's upwardly revised figure of 292,000 jobs, but was far
higher than analysts' forecasts of between 175,000 & 180,000.
o The US unemployment rate remained unchanged at 4.9%.
o The US Fed recently signalled that it was on course to increase interest rates this
year as such slowing employment receded.
 IRDA Caps CEOs Salary at Rs 1.5 cr
o Insurance regulator IRDAI has put a cap of Rs 1.5 crore on the annual salary of
Chief Executive, which could be paid from the policyholders’ fund.

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 oIn case the annual remuneration of the MD/CEO/Whole Time Directors exceeds
Rs 1.50 crore such excess shall be borne by shareholders’ account.
o No revision in remuneration shall be permitted till the expiry of one year from the
date of earlier approval.
 IDBI Bank to Raise Rs 4,000 cr
o IDBI Bank plans to raise Rs 2,000 crore through infrastructure bonds & similar
amount by issuing Basel III compliant tier-II bonds.
o Rating agency Crisil has assigned AA/Negative rating to both instruments.
o In March 2016, Crisil had downgraded the ratings on IDBI Bank's debt
instruments.
o Asset quality deterioration is evident from the sharp increase in gross NPAs to
10.98% as on March 31, 2016.
 Trai Issues Consultation Paper
o The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) has come out with a new
consultation paper, which seeks to rework the process of assessing quality of
service provided by the telecom companies.
o Trai is looking to re-define parameters that are used to measure quality of service
(QoS).
o The regulatory body also explored the idea of monitoring the benchmarks at sub-
service area level.
 Apple Buys Machine Learning Startup Turi
o Apple has acquired Seattle-based machine learning startup Turi for nearly $200
million.
o Turi offers tools that are meant to let developers easily scale machine learning
applications.
o Apple has recently bought some machine learning & AI startups like VocalIQ &
Perceptio
o Apple has recently been making a push into artificial intelligence through Siri
personal assistant and related technologies.
 S&P Global Affirms ‘BBB-’Rating on ICICI
o S&P Global Ratings has affirmed its ‘BBB-‘ long-term rating and ‘A-3’ short-term
rating on ICICI Bank.
o ICICI credit profile has been lowered to ‘bbb-‘ from ‘bbb’ eariler.
o About 53% of the bank’s loans on a standalone basis are to the corporate and
small & midsized enterprise segments.
o The rising stress in these exposures has led to an increase in the bank’s gross
non-performing loan (NPL) ratio.
 Sebi Proposes Framework for Algo Trading
o SEBI has proposed a new framework for super-fast algorithmic trading & co-
location facility.
o Algorithmic trading or algo refers to orders generated at a super-fast speed by
use of advanced mathematical models.
o It involved automated execution of trade & co-location involves setting up servers
on the exchange premises.
o Sebi has sought public comments on the proposal till August 31.
 Forex Reserves Hit Life-Time High
o Country’s foreign exchange reserves rose by USD 2.81 billion to reach a life-time
high of USD 365.49 billion in the week to July 29.
o Foreign currency assets are a major component of the overall reserves.
o It rose USD 2.79 billion to USD 341.04 billion.
o Gold reserves remained unchanged at USD 20.58 billion.

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 The country’s special drawing rights increased by USD 8.5 million to USD 1.48
o
billion.
 RBI Set up Committee on Household Fin
o The RBI has set up a committee to look at the various facets of household
finance in India.
o The Committee will be chaired by Tarun Ramadorai, Professor of Financial
Economics, University of Oxford.
o It will have representation from other financial sector regulators.
o The committee will benchmark the current depth of household financial markets
in India vis-a-vis those in other major world.
 RBI Ease Norms in Cheque Dishonour Cases
o The RBI has relaxed cheque-book norms leaving it to the lender's discretion on
whether to issue fresh cheque-books or not in cases of dishonour of 1 cr rupees
& above.
o As per the existing directive, banks are not allowed to issue fresh cheque books
in the event of cheque dishonour valuing 1 cr rupees & above.
o Also, in such cases the bank may consider closing the current account at its
discretion.
 BoE Cuts Rates for First Time Since 2009
o The Bank of England has cut interest rates for the first time since 2009.
o It cut its main lending rate to a record low 0.25% from 0.5%, in line with market
expectations.
o It also launched two new schemes, one to buy 10 billion pounds of high-grade
corporate bonds.
o The central bank said it expected the economy to stagnate for the rest of 2016
& suffer weak growth throughout next year.
 RBI Launches 'Sachet' Portal
o The RBI has launched a portal known as Sachet to curb illegal collection of
money by companies.
o The Sachet website will enable public to obtain information regarding entities who
accept deposits & lodge complaints.
o One can also share information regarding illegal acceptance of deposits,
o The website would also help enhance coordination among regulators and state
government agencies.
 Cabinet Approves 3 percent SUC
o The Cabinet has approved 3 percent annual usage charge for the spectrum to be
sold in upcoming auction.
o The government expects to raise at least Rs 64,000 crore from the auction of
about 2,300 Mhz of spectrum and Rs 98,995 crore from various levies.
o As per the decision, spectrum to be sold in the different bands will attract SUC at
the rate of 3% of the Adjusted Gross Revenue.
 Infosys Invests in Start-up Cloudyn
o IT services major Infosys has invested $4 million in Cloudyn.
o Israeli-based Cloudyn is a start-up that enables corporates to monitor their cloud
computing usage & optimise its usage.
o Cloudyn supports multiple infrastructure services including Amazon Web
Services & Microsoft Azure.
o This is part of CEO Vishal Sikka strategy to take the company towards the $20
billion target by 2020-21.
 NTPC Raises Rs 2,000 crore
o NTPC became the second Indian company to raise funds selling masala bonds.
o The company raised Rs 2,000 crore by selling bonds that will pay overseas
investors interest in rupees at an yield of 7.48%.
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 o
Masala Bonds are rupee-denominated borrowings by Indian entities in overseas
markets.
o Bonds will mature in five years.
o Mortgage lender HDFC has kick-started the masala bonds raising Rs 3,000
crore.
 SBI to Offer OD to 7L Jan Dhan Holders
o SBI has identified 7 lakh accounts,which were opened under the Pradhan Mantri
Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) for providing overdraft facility.
o Amount of loans depends up on account holder's turnover.
o This is basically for the people who have sufficient turnover in their accounts to
get an overdraft
o People who are belonging to low-income group & have opened accounts under
PMJDY are eligible.
 Tata Trusts, Global Fund Join Hands
o Tata Trusts & the Global Fund have joined hands to launch India Health Fund
(IHF).
o It is aimed at addressing key health challenges in the country - starting with
malaria & tuberculosis.
o The fund plans to support programmes & projects that develop new products or
strategies for innovative business models.
o The Global Fund is a 21st-century partnership against diseases such as AIDS
& tuberculosis.
 Japan Cabinet Approves Stimulus Package
o Japan's cabinet has approved an economic stimulus package worth more than 28
trillion yen or $275bn.
o It is the latest attempt by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to kick-start the world's third-
largest economy and boost growth.
o The package includes 7.5tn yen in new spending for the national & local govts
over the next two years.
o More than half of that sum has been earmarked for the current fiscal year.
 ICICI Bank, Apollo Tie up for Bad Loans
o ICICI Bank & America's Apollo Global Management have come together to set up
a firm that aims to make money by recovering from bad loans purchased from
banks.
o The partners are looking at setting up an asset reconstruction company (ARC), a
fund and an operations and management company.
o In terms of the agreement between the two will apply for a licence to set up an
ARC with the RBI.
 ICICI Bank Reduces Lending Rate by 0.05%
o India’s largest private sector lender ICICI Bank Ltd has announced a 0.05%
reduction in its marginal cost of funds-based lending rate (MCLR).
o The overnight MCLR will be 8.90% under the revised rate structure.
o The one-year MCLR, to which the home loans are linked, has moved down to
9.10%.
o MCLR has replaced the previous 'base rate' that was being used previously.
 Govt Announces Plan to Launch New ETF
o The govt has invited bids from asset management companies (AMCs) for the
launch of a new exchange traded fund (ETF).
o It will comprise of shares of listed central public sector enterprises (CPSEs).
o The proposed new ETF will be in addition to the existing CPSE ETF launched in
March 2014.

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 oThe new ETF will serve as an additional mechanism for the government to
monetize its shareholdings.
 Citi keep FY17 Growth at 7.7% on Monsoon
o India’s GDP is expected to expand at 7.7% this financial year says a Citigroup
report.
o The pace of growth of activity indicators like commercial vehicle sales,power
demand among others,slackened in April-May.
o The report further noted that it is comfortable holding on to its 7.7% 2016-17 GDP
growth forecast for now because of rural economy boost from a better monsoon.
 BSE Roll Out New Services on MF Platform
o Leading stock exchange BSE has said it has introduced two new services.
o It has introduced Systematic Transfer Plan and Systematic Withdrawal Plan on
its mutual fund trading platform.
o The exchange has a mutual fund trading platform -- BSE StAR MF.
o The exchange had introduced a host of new services on its mutual fund platform,
including digital non-demat transactions.
 India's Trade Deficit with China Jumps
o India's trade deficit with China has swelled to US $52.68 billion in 2015-16.
o Increasing trade deficit with China can be attributed to the relative demand for
imports.
o The major imports from China include telecom instruments,hardware,fertilizer &
electronic component.
o Trade deficit is the amount by which the cost of a country's imports exceeds the
value of its exports.
 IRCTC's App Ties-up with Mobikwik
o Mobile payments company MobiKwik and Indian Railway Catering and Tourism
Corporation (IRCTC) have announced an exclusive partnership.
o MobiKwik will power e-cash payments on IRCTC's e-catering app, Food on
Track.
o The app allows passengers to book & get food delivered right at their train
coaches.
o Transacting with MobiKwik wallet on the move is fast and convenient.
 SBI Unveils Cheaper Home Loans
o SBI has launched home loan schemes for defence & other govt employees.
o It will offer two new home loan products 'SBI Privilege Home Loan' for
government employees.
o Other loan product SBI Shaurya Home Loan' for defence personnel without any
processing fee.
o The launch of loan products is timed with the notification of 7th Pay Commission
recommendations.
 China's Didi Acquire Uber in $35 billion
o Chinese ride-sharing giant Didi will take over Uber's China business, in a deal
worth USD 35 billion.
o Uber will take a 5.89 per cent stake in Didi. Didi did not disclose the stake it will
take in Uber.
o Uber's founder Travis Kalanick and Didi founder Cheng Wei will sit on each
other's company boards.
o The two companies have been locked in a bitter battle for customers in China.
 RBI Issues On-Tap Bank Licence Norms
o RBI has released the much-awaited guidelines for on tap universal banking
licence.
o It excluded large industrial houses as eligible entities from the purview, though
they can invest in banks up to 10 per cent.
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 o As per the guidelines for on tap the initial minimum paid-up voting equity capital
for a bank should be Rs 500 crore.
o The foreign shareholding in the bank would be as per the existing FDI.
 Finance Minister calls for more FDI
o Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has called for more Foreign Direct
Investment (FDI).
o He has also emphasized on stable and credible tax system.
o He was delivering 1st memorial lecture at Dr A P J Abdul Kalam Memorial
Lecture in New Delhi.
o His lecture focused on the vision of the man whom the country fondly
remembered as people's president.
 NRIs/PIOs can now send Funds Online
o NRIs & Persons of Indian Origion (PIOs) will now be able to make monetary
contributions online for government's flagship programmes .
o It include like Swachch Bharat& Clean Ganga among other social sector projects.
o This was said by external affairs min Sushma Swaraj while chairing a meeting of
the India Development Foundation of Overseas Indians.
o It is a not-for-profit trust established by Govt.
 ICICI,Axis Join Swift Payment Initiative
o ICICI and Axis bank have become the first Indian banks to join global payment
network Swift's cross-border payment innovation initiative.
o Swift's initiative already involves 70 other banks worldwide.
o The initiative aims to enhance cross-border payments by leveraging Swift's
messaging platform.
o In the first phase, the initiative will focus on business-to-business payments.
 Sebi's New Enterprise Portal Goes Live
o Markets regulator Sebi has initiated the first phase of its new enterprise portal to
facilitate accurate and timely dissemination of information.
o The new portal would replace the regulator's existing portal in a phased manner.
o The portal provides an e-Platform to communicate in secure,transparent
& paperless.
 Exim Bank Raises $1bn from Overseas
o Export-Import Bank of India (Exim Bank) has said it has raised $1 billion via a 10-
year bond issue at a coupon rate of 3.375%.
o The funds raised will be used to support Indian project exports.
o Initially announced for $500 million, the issue was upsized to $1 bn based on
strong demand from the investors.
o Exim Bank is a government-owned export finance institution& had commenced
operations in 1982.

Days and Events

 Velankanni Basilica annual fest starts
o Velankanni our lady of health basilica 11 day long annual feast started with the
hoisting of flag in Tamil Nadu.
o Rev. Fr. A. M. Prabakar, Rector, & other priests of the shrine were present.
o The illuminated colourful car procession carrying the idol of Our Lady of Health
would be held on Sept 7 & the lowering of Our Lady’s flag on Sept 8.
 Nation Celebrates 70th Independence Day
o The nation is celebrating its 70th Independence Day with patriotic fervor and
gaiety.
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 o
President Pranab Mukherjee in his message bowed to the heroes of
independence struggle who sacrificed their lives for the freedom.
o The PM Modi called upon the countrymen to come forward with the commitment
for Surajya.
o He said Surajya is a qualitative & positive change in the lives of the citizen of
India.
 12-Aug: World Elephant Day
o World Elephant Day is an international annual event observed every year on
August 12 .
o The day is dedicated to the preservation and protection of the world's elephants.
o The goal of World Elephant Day is to create awareness of the urgent plight of
African and Asian elephants.
o African elephants are listed as "Vulnerable"& Asian elephants as "Endangered"
on the IUCN Red List of threatened species.
 Int Day of the World Indigenous Peoples
o The United Nations’ (UN) International Day of the World's Indigenous People is
observed on August 9 each year.
o It aims to promote and protect the rights of the world’s indigenous population.
o On December 23, 1994, the UN General Assembly decided that the International
Day of the World’s Indigenous People should be observed on August 9.
o This year’s theme is devoted to the right to education.
 Japan Mark Hiroshima Bombing Anniversary
o Japan marked the 71st anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima.
o About 50,000 people attended the ceremony at Hiroshima’s Peace Park near the
bomb’s epicenter.
o The Aug. 6,1945, bombing killed 140,000 people in Hiroshima.
o Another atomic bombing three days later in Nagasaki killed more than 70,000
people.
o Obama in May embraced survivors as he made his visit to the city.
 7-Aug: National Handloom Day
o The second National Handloom Day celebrated all over the country on Aug7,
2016.
o The objective to generate awareness about the importance of handloom industry
and to promote handlooms.
o The date Aug 7 has been chosen due to its special significance in India’s
freedom struggle.
o It was on this day in 1905 that the Swadeshi Movement was formally launched at
a massive meeting in the Calcutta Town hall.
 PM to Kick Off Exercise to Mark I Day
o PM Modi will kick off a 15-day exercise to mark the nation’s 70th year of
Independence by visiting revolutionary leader Chandrashekhar Azad’s birth place
in Madhya Pradesh.
o Modi will attend an event on Aug 9 at Bhabhra in the tribal-dominated Alirajpur
district in M.P where Azad was born.
o The Govt has lined up a number of events, including a week-long cultural events
at Rajpath for the occasion.

Defence
 1st military heritage website launched
o India's first military heritage website, coloursofglory.org was launched by Glory
Foundation.
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A veteran of the 1971 Indo Pak war, Captain D.P. Ramachandran is
the executive trustee of the foundation.
o The Foundation will conduct various awareness programs across the country,
commencing with major metros, to educate the people about our military history
and heritage.
 Govt to Buy C-130 J Super Hercules
o The Defence Ministry has approved the buying of one C-130 J Super Hercules
aircraft, worth about Rs. 900 crore.
o It will replace the one that had crashed in 2014.
o The decision to purchase a new one was taken by the Defence Acquisition
Council (DAC), chaired by Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar.
o The IAF had inducted six C-130J Super Hercules aircraft which were bought from
the US in 2010.

Govt. Policies and Schemes

 Centre proposes a unique ID for health
o Centre has proposed another set of unique identification numbers to track the
beneficiaries of the National Health Protection Scheme (NHPS)
o NHPS aims to provide Rs 1 lakh cover to people below the poverty line (BPL).
o The scheme is meant primarily to take care of in-patient expenditure through
empanelled hospitals, including private hospitals and will cover close to 1,600
treatment procedures.
 India's no to foreigners for babies
o New legislation would lock foreigners out of the country's fertility clinics & limit
surrogacy to Indian couples who have been married for more than five years and
are unable to have children.
o Foreign minister Sushma Swaraj told reporters that the proposed law would stop
foreigners and gay couples hiring Indian surrogates.
o India is a top destination for foreign medical tourists seeking surrogates
 Govt Extends Export Benefits on Onion
o Govt has decided to extend export duty benefits to onion to arrest steep fall in
onion prices.
o The duty benefits for export of onions will be available till Dec
o Maharashtra & M.P. are among leading onion-producing states.
o They have taken to distress sale of the bulb due to higher supply.
 Union Cabinet Clears Surrogacy Bill
o The Union Cabinet has cleared the Surrogacy (Regulation) Bill, 2016, banning
commercial surrogacy in India.
o The Bill also bars foreigners,homosexual couples, people in live-in relationships
& single individuals.
o The bill allows only childless,straight Indian couple married for a min of 5 years
eligible for surrogacy.
o The Bill also prohibits couples who already have biological or adopted children.
 Cabinet Raises Compensation for Victims
o The cabinet has approved the Central Scheme for Assistance to Civilian Victims.
o The scheme enhances the grant of compensation to the civilian victims of terror
attacks, communal violence from Rs 3 lakh to Rs 5 lakh.
o For the first time,civilian victims of cross-border firing will be given a
compensation of Rs 5 lakh.

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The same Rs 5 lakh will also be given to those who sustain 50% or more
disability
 Cabinet Okays ₹24000-cr Rail Projects
o The Cabinet has approved ₹24,374 crore of rail projects.
o The investment will be in nine projects & seeks to construct 1,937.38 km of tracks
across nine States.
o Over 27% of the rail investment will go to two projects connecting Uttar Pradesh
& Madhya Pradesh.
o A rail line between Mathura & Jhansi in U.P & another between Jhansi & Bina
(M.P.) will be developed at a cost of ₹6,650.97 crore.
 Cabinet Approve ASA Between India & Fiji
o The Union Cabinet gave its nod for the signing of a new Air Services Agreement
(ASA) between India & Fiji.
o The agreement is for updation of the existing agreement which was signed in
1974.
o The updation is as per latest ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organisation)
template
o The proposed agreement allows airlines to take decision freely on tariffs in
respect of the agreed services.
 Govt Allow Refugees to Open Bank A/c
o Govt has issued notification allowing the Long Term Visa (LTV) holders of
minority communities of Afghanistan, Bangladesh & Pakistan to open bank
account and purchase property.
o It also decided to issue driving licence, PAN card and Aadhar number to them.
o These communities are Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis & Christians.
o Their free movement within states have also been allowed.
 Govt Allows e-KYC for Mobile Connection
o The govt has issued e-KYC guidelines to make the online process of
validation & activation new mobile connections faster.
o The move is intended to cut down time for SIM activation as KYC is verified
instantly.
o In e-KYC, a customer through her Aadhaar number will online authorise UIDAI to
provide demographic details to the mobile operator.
o Earlier, the entire verification process lasted 8-10 hrs
 RS Passes Bill to Extend Maternity Leave
o The Rajya Sabha has passed The Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Bill, 2016,
which increases maternity leave from present 12 weeks to 26 weeks.
o The measure seeks to increase maternity benefit from 12 to 26 weeks for two
surviving children.
o It that would benefit about 1.8 million women in the organised sector.
o The law is applicable to all establishments employing 10 or more persons.
 LS Clears Taxation Laws (Amendment) Bill
o The Lok Sabha has passed the Taxation Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2016.
o The bill seeks to amend the Income Tax Act, 1961 & Customs Tariff Act,1975.
o FM Arun Jaitley said the new bill will address various issues of demerger of
companies.
o The bill seeks to widen the scope of definition of demerger under the Income Tax
law to include the splitting up of or the reconstruction of a public sector company.
 The Motor Vehicle Bill introduced in LS
o The Motor Vehicle (Amendment) Bill 2016 was introduced in the Lok Sabha.
o The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi had given its
approval to the Bill last week.
o The Amendment aims to address the issue of road safety .
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The important provisions include increase in compensation for Hit & Run cases
from Rs. 25000 to Rs. 2 lakhs.
o The Bill also proposes insertion of 28 new sections.
 Rajya Sabha Passes Loan Recovery Bill
o Parliament has passed a bill which empowers banks to confiscate security in the
case of loan default with Rajya Sabha giving its approval.
o The bill was approved by Lok Sabha last week .
o The Enforcement of Security Interest & Recovery of Debts Laws & Miscellaneous
Provisions (Amendment) Bill,2016 will not apply to loans for farm land.
o Jaitley said if loan has been taken it must be repaid.
 Prez Nod for Uniform Admission Test
o There will be single test-National Eligibility cum Entrance Exam (NEET) for
admissions to medical & dental courses across the country.
o President Pranab Mukherjee has given nod to two bills recently passed by
Parliament in this regard.
o He has given assent to Indian Medical Council Amendment Bill 2016 & Dentists
Amendment Bill 2016.
o These Bills aims to stop exploitation of students in counselling.
 RS Passes Bill Decriminalising Suicide
o Rajya Sabha has passed the Mental Health Care Bill, which decriminalises
attempt to suicide.
o The bill also provides for medical care for those making such attempts.
o At present, attempt to suicide is a criminal offence under Section-309 of IPC.
o Health minister J P Nadda termed the bill as humane & progressive.
o He said 6-7% of the country’s population had some kind of mental illnesses.
 LS Unanimously Passes GST Amendment Bill
o Parliament has passed 122nd Constitution Amendment Bill with Lok Sabha
approving the amendments made by the Rajya Sabha.
o The bill was passed by 443 votes in favour and none voting against.
o The bill will pave the way for the roll out of Goods and Services Tax, GST regime
across the country.
o The bill will help curtail black money and traders will be compelled to give proper
bills.
 Centre Launches Breast Feeding Programme
o Health Minister J P Nadda has launched a nation-wide breast feeding programme
MAA - Mothers’ Absolute Affection.
o The goal of the programme is to enhance optimal breastfeeding practices.
o The Ministry has allocated 30 crore rupees for the Programme.
o MAA aims to ensure that mothers,husbands & families receive adequate
information and support for promotion of breastfeeding.
 Govt Introduces Employees Comp Bill
o A bill seeking to raise the cap on disputed amount of compensation for appeal in
high courts was introduced in Lok Sabha.
o Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya introduced the Bill in the lower house of
Parliament.
o Section 30 of the Employees' Compensation Act 1923 provides for appeal in high
courts whenever the compensation is more than Rs 300.
o The bill seeks to raise this to Rs 10,000.
 Govt Sets Inflation Target at 4%
o The govt has set an inflation target of 4% for the next five years.

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Monetary Policy Committee to be set-up soon & will have to adhere to the target
till March 31, 2021.
o The govt & RBI had last year reached an agreement that had set the inflation
target at 4%, plus or minus 2%.
o Once the Committee is set-up, it will set policy interest rate with the objective of
keeping inflation in this range.
 Cabinet Approves Signing of ASA with Lao
o The Union Cabinet has given its approval for signing of new Air Services
Agreement (ASA) between India & Lao.
o It will provide enabling environment for enhanced & seamless connectivity.
o Under the agreement, the designated airlines of the two countries shall have fair
& equal opportunity to operate the agreed services on specified routes.
o ASA is the basic legal framework for any air operation.
 Centre Aims to Roll Out GST from April 1
o The Govt has set the target of 1st April next year for roll out of the Goods
& Services Tax, GST.
o Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has unveiled a detailed road map for GST
implementation.
o Once implemented, the GST will subsume various taxes including excise,
services tax, octroi & other levies.
o The proceeds will be shared between the Centre & states
o The Bill was cleared by the Rajya Sabha recently.
 Cabinet Gives Nod to Road Safety Bill
o The govt has approved the Motor Vehicle (Amendment) Bill, 2016.
o The bill proposes hefty penalties for violation of traffic norms including up to
Rs.10,000 fine for drunken driving.
o The bill also has provision of up to Rs.10 lakh compensation in case of road
fatality.
o The provisions also include that guardian/owner will be deemed to be guilty in
case of road offence by juveniles.
 LS Pass Bill to Fast Track Debt Recovery
o The Lok Sabha has passed a law empowering banks to take possession of
collateral in the case of loan default.
o The Enforcement of Security Interest & Recovery of Debts Laws & Miscellaneous
Provisions (Amendment) Bill, 2016 seeks to amend 4 laws — the Sarfaesi Act,
the DRT Act, the Indian Stamp Act & the Depositories Act.
o Jaitley said the banks must be empowered to take effective legal action.
 GST Bill Passed in Rajya Sabha
o The Rajya Sabha has passed the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Constitutional
Amendment Bill which the Lok Sabha had already approved last year.
o The legislation was approved by the Rajya Sabha with 203 votes in favour and
none against.
o The main objective of the GST is to eliminate excessive taxation.
o GST is a uniform indirect tax levied on goods and services across a country.
 Benami Transactions Bill gets RS Nod
o Parliament has passed the Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Amendment Bill,
2015.
o It will pave the way for a comprehensive legislation to tackle black money.
o The bill provides for confiscation of benami properties assets held in the name of
another person or under a fictitious name to avoid taxation.
o The bill was passed by the Lok Sabha last week.
 Parliament Passes Medical Council Bill

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 o The Rajya Sabha has passed The Indian Medical Council (Amendment) Bill,2016
& the Dentists (Amendment) Bill,2016.
o The Lok Sabha has already passed it.
o The bills seek to replace the ordinances that were promulgated in May
o The Bills provide for conduct of uniform entrance examination for admission to all
medical educational institutions at the undergraduate and post-graduate courses
from next year.

International Affairs
 Turkey launches Op Euphrates Shield
o The Jarabulus offensive, code named by Turkey Operation Euphrates Shield is a
cross-border battle in and around the Syrian border town of Jarabulus.
o This battle is by Free Syrian Army and allied rebel groups backed by the Turkish
Special Forces as well as other armed units.
o The forces on opposite side are Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) as well
as the Syrian Democratic Forces.
 Pakistan foreign debt at Rs 74 trillion
o Pakistan's foreign debt and liabilities touched the highest ever figure of over Rs
74 trillion
o It showed an increase of about Rs 11.15 trillion in the last four years.
o Pakistan's foreign debt and liabilities in July 2013 stood at $61.9 billion, which
was the first financial year of the present government.
 Pakistan to host 19th SAARC Summit
o Pakistan is going to host the 19th SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional
Cooperation) Summit in Islamabad & Murree on November 9-10, 2016.
o The 18th SAARC Summit was held in Kathmandu, Nepal in November 2014.
o The SAARC Summit Cell is headed by Ambassador Amjad Sial, who is a senior
diplomat and nominee of the Government of Pakistan as the next Secretary
General of SAARC.
 China’s cargo train to Russia
o China launched a cargo train service from Guangzhou city to Russia to boost
trade as part of its multi-billion dollar project to revive ancient silk routes.
o The train will travel 11,500 km over 14 days.
o Its cargo includes garments, shoes, hats, cloth, lamps & lanterns, electrical
appliances, & electronics.
o New cargo train service saves 30 days compared with shipping services.
 6th Tokyo International Conference
o Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) is a conference
with the objective “to promote high-level policy dialogue between African leaders
& development partners.
o Japan is a co-host of these conferences.
o It will be the 1st-ever TICAD Summit to be held outside Africa in its history of 20
years.
o TICAD plan to discuss issues like Industrialization, Health, & Social stability.
 Sri Lanka's New Constitution by November
o Sri Lanka’s new draft Constitution could be presented in Parliament before the
next budget which would be announced by mid-November this year.
o The Maithripala Sirisena government has set in the process of making a new
Constitution since January this year.

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 oThe aim is to replace the existing 1978 constitution. In the new Constitution, the
Prime Minister will hold the supreme executive power.
 Gaston regains hurricane strength
o According to "US National Hurricane Center" reports tropical Storm Gaston,
churning in the Atlantic southeast of Bermuda, strengthened and regained
hurricane status.
o Gaston on thursday became the third named hurricane of the Atlantic season.
o The center of Gaston was located 655 miles east-southeast of Bermuda and was
moving towards the northwest at a speed of eight miles per hour.
 British PM to trigger EU Pull-Out
o Prime Minister Theresa May wants to trigger Britain's withdrawal from the
European Union without a vote in parliament.
o May's government already faces a legal challenge to prevent it beginning the
process of leaving the EU without an act of parliament.
o Most members of parliament's lower House of Commons, including May,
campaigned for Britain to remain in the EU.
 Tunisia Gives Vote of Confidence
o Tunisia parliament has passed a confidence vote in the Government of National
Unity.
o The government of PM Youssef Chahed was supported by 167 of the 217
members of parliament.
o Chahed was appointed to the post of Prime Minister by Tunisian President Beji
Caid Essebsi.
o The move came after the majority of lawmakers in the Tunisian parliament
passed a vote of no confidence in premier Habib Essid.
 Italy Declares State of Emergency
o Italy has declared a state of emergency in the regions worst hit by earthquake.
o The Italian Council of Ministers approved a state of emergency for the regions
affected by the earthquake.
o Prime Minister Matteo Renzi has pledged €50m (£42m) in funds for rebuilding.
o At least 268 people are now known to have died and 400 were injured.
o Teams have continued to search the rubble of toppled buildings.
 France's To Examine Plea on Burkini Ban
o France's highest administrative court will examine a request to overturn a ban on
the burkini in the wake of the controversy over the Islamic swimsuit.
o The burkini bans has triggered a fierce debate in France and elsewhere about the
wearing of the full-body swimsuit, women's rights and secularism.
o The vague wording of the prohibitions on Burkini has caused confusion.
 Striking miners kill minister in Bolivia
o Striking miners in Bolivia kidnapped and beat to death the country's deputy
interior minister Illanes.
o Illanes, whose formal title is vice minister of the interior regime, was "savagely
beaten" to death by the striking miners.
o Illanes had gone to Panduro, south of the Bolivian capital La Paz, to open a
dialogue with the striking miners, who had blockaded a highway there since
Monday.
 Strong aftershocks again rattle Italy
o Strong aftershocks rattled residents and rescue crews in Italy as hopes of
firefighters finding any more survivors dimmed further.
o The aftershock was preceded by more than a dozen weaker ones overnight and
was followed by another nine in the subsequent hour.
o The U.S. Geological Service said it had a magnitude of 4.7, while the Italian
geophysics institute measured it at 4.8.
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  Iraqi forces reclaim Mosul from ISiS
o Iraqi forces have pushed the Islamic State group from Qayyarah, a northern town
considered strategic for any future offensive against the jihadists' last stronghold
of Mosul.
o Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi hailed the victory as a key step in the fight against
IS.
o However, hours later, PM suffered yet another political setback when lawmakers
impeached his defence minister.
 N-Korea holds Military First celebration
o N-Korea marked its “Military First” holiday with mass dancing, outdoor concerts
and also did a submarine-launched ballistic missile test.
o It hopes that the test will serve as a warning to Washington and Seoul to stop
holding joint military exercises.
o The North has attempted two such launches before, but neither was seen as
successful by outside experts.
 Myanmar Names Kofi Annan to Head Panel
o Myanmar’s govt has set up an advisory panel headed by Kofi Annan to find
lasting solutions to the conflict in Rakhine state.
o Rakhine state is on the western coast of Myanmar & is home to many minority
groups that have faced human rights violations & abuses.
o The council will comprise 3 international & 6 national experts.
o Kofi Annan was the U.N. chief from 1997 to 2006 & was replaced by Ban Ki-
moon
 World's Largest Aircraft Crashes
o The world's largest aircraft, the Airlander 10 has crashed and suffered damage
on its second test flight.
o The crash happened in Bedfordshire, central England.
o Airlander 10 is the 92-metre-long part-plane, part-helicopter, part airship.
o It uses helium to become airborne & travels at speeds of up to 92mph
o The Airlander has successfully completed its first test flight without incident on
August 17.
 34kg Pearl Found in Philippines
o Philippine officials believe they may have recovered the biggest natural giant
clam pearl in the world - weighing a whopping 34kg
o The pearl was found 10 years ago by a fisherman who was unaware of its value.
o The priceless pearl measures a staggering 1ft foot wide and 2.2 feet long.
o The current record holder is Pearl of Allah was also found off Palawan in the
Philippines in 1934.
 U.S. Postal to Issue Diwali Stamp
o The U.S. Postal Service said it will issue a Diwali postage stamp.
o The Diwali stamp is being issued as a “Forever” stamp.
o The stamp design, unveiled by the U.S. Postal Service (USPS), is a photograph
featuring a traditional diya oil lamp lit in a sparkling gold background.
o Hinduism was the only major world religion, for which the USPS had not issued a
postage stamp.
 North Korea Test Fires Ballistic Missile
o North Korea has test fired a new ballistic missile.
o It was launched from a submarine in the Sea of Japan, off North Korea's eastern
coast.
o The test comes one day after the United States and South Korea launched joint
military exercises on the peninsula.

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 o
Pyongyang had warned against the drills, threatening to launch a preemptive
nuclear strike
 Sarkozy to Run for French President
o Nicolas Sarkozy has announced his candidacy for the 2017 French presidential
elections.
o He is expected to lead a campaign based on hardline ideas on immigration &
security in a country.
o Sarkozy lost the presidential election to Socialist Francois Hollande in 2012 after
his first term.
o The French presidential election will take place in two rounds in April and May
next year.
 Historic ICC Trial over Timbuktu Shrine
o A suspected Islamist militant is to become the first person to go on trial at the
International Criminal Court (ICC) over the destruction of cultural heritage.
o Ahmad al-Faqi al-Mahdi faces charges of destroying nine shrines & a mosque in
Timbuktu, Mali.
o These shrines were centre of Islamic learning between the 13th and 17th
centuries & was added to the Unesco world heritage list in 1988.
 Myanmar to Support Silk Road, BCIM
o Myanmar has officially announced to support for China’s One Belt & One Road
(OBOR) connectivity initiative along the ancient Silk Road.
o It was announced in the joint statement released by both countries during official
state visit of Myanmar’s State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi to China.
o It also supported the Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar (BCIM) economic
corridor meant to industrialise a stretch.
 China Opens World's Longest Glass Bridge
o The world's highest and longest glass bridge has opened to visitors in central
China.
o The 430-metre long, 6-metre wide glass-bottomed walkway hangs 300 metres
above a canyon in the Tianmenshan National Forest Park in Hunan province,
central China.
o It has been paved with 99 panes of three-layered transparent glass.
o The bridge has set 10 world records for design and construction.
 Afghan Prez speaks on India's role
o Afghan President Hamid Karzai spoke on India’s role in meeting the defence
needs of Afghanistan.
o He said that India should be a lot bolder in meeting the military needs of
Afghanistan and should take bold steps, and put caution behind, to bolster
Afghan defence capabilities.
o It has been nearly two years since Hamid Karzai completed his second and last
term as President of Afghanistan.
 US, Ukraine to end tensions with Russia
o US Vice President Joe Biden and Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko urged a
speedy resolution to the conflict with pro-Russian separatists.
o Kiev and the West accuse Russia of supporting the separatist rebels in eastern
Ukraine and deploying troops across the border.
o Putin also visited Crimea to boost security measures in the Black Sea peninsula
since annexing it from Ukraine
 UN Chief Offers Help In Kashmir Dialogue
o UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon decried the deaths in the current unrest in
Jammu and Kashmir.
o He has also offered UN office to facilitate dialogue between India and Pakistan.

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 o
Nearly 70 people have been killed and thousands more injured in the Kashmir
Valley in clashes after the killing of Hizbul terrorist Burhan Wani on July 8.
 Bangladesh seeks details from Zakir Naik
o Bangladesh has sought details from India about controversial Islamic Preacher
Zakir Naik’s operations.
o Visiting Bangladeshi Information Minister Hasanul Haq Inu told media in New
Delhi that his country has cracked down on Naik’s Peace TV by banning its
broadcast.
o The Minister said he has asked India to take their position and give necessary
information.
 China Set to Open Longest Glass Bridge
o The world's longest & highest glass bottom bridge is set to open soon in China.
o It connects two mountain cliffs known as the Avatar mountains in Zhangjiajie,
Hunan province.
o The bridge is designed by architect Haim Dotan & is 430 metres long, six metres
wide and nearly 300 metres above the bottom of the canyon.
o The bridge will be able to hold up to 800 people at a time.
 Zambian President Lungu Re-elected
o Zambia's President Edgar Lungu has been re-elected.
o Mr Lungu had secured 50.35% vote, just over the 50% threshold needed to avoid
a second round under a new electoral system.
o His main rival, Hakainde Hichilema who alleges electoral fraud won 47.67%.
o Mr Lungu defeated Mr Hichilema, by less than 200,000 votes.
o He served in Mr Sata's government as minister for justice & defence
 China,ASEAN Agree to Form SCS Framework
o China & ASEAN countries have agreed to form a framework for a code of
conduct to ease tension in the disputed South China Sea (SCS).
o The two sides agreed to get the framework for the code of conduct done by mid-
2017.
o They also agreed to set the sea rules & guidelines for a hotline for use during
maritime emergencies.
o Association of Southeast Asian Nations [ASEAN] is the grouping of ten countries.
 Australia to Close PNG Refugee Centre
o Australia & Papua New Guinea (PNG) had agreed to close a controversial
Australian-funded asylum seeker detention centre on Manus Island.
o Under Australian law, anyone intercepted trying to reach the country by boat is
sent for processing to camps on the tiny Pacific island of Nauru or to Manus
Island off Papua New Guinea (PNG).
o They are never eligible to be resettled in Australia.
 Russia Uses Iran as Base to Bomb Syria
o Russia used Iran for the first time as a base from which to launch air strikes
against Syrian militants.
o Russian Tupolev-22M3 bombers &Sukhoi-34 fighter bombers used Iran's
Hamadan air base to strike targets in Syria.
o It was the first time Russia has used the territory of another nation.
o Russia has launched a bombing campaign to support Syrian President Bashar al-
Assad in Sept last year.
 Statue of Sister Nivedita Unveiled
o In recognition of her great services, a statue was unveiled in her native town in
North Ireland.
o She devoted her life for emancipation of women.

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 o
She was a Scots-Irish social worker, author, teacher and a disciple of Swami
Vivekananda.
o Sister Nivedita met Swami Vivekananda in 1895 in London and traveled to
Kolkata in 1898.
o Swami Vivekananda gave her the name Nivedita (meaning "Dedicated to God").
 Pakistan Offers Nuclear Non-Testing Agmt
o Pakistan has offered India a bilateral arrangement for not conducting a nuclear
test.
o This was announced by the Pakistan Prime Minister Adviser on Foreign Affairs
Sartaj Aziz.
o The two countries have announced unilateral moratoriums on nuclear tests.
o Unilateral moratoriums are voluntary & legally non-binding.
o A bilateral arrangement would be legally binding and difficult to withdraw
unilaterally.
 A R Rahman Enthrals Audience at UN
o A R Rahman enthralled a packed audience at the iconic UN General Assembly
hall with his renditions of Indian Carnatic legend M S Subbulakshmi’s music.
o He became only the second Indian artist after Subbulakshmi to perform.
o The concert was organised by India’s Permanent Mission to the UN on India’s
Independence Day.
o Subbulakshmi was invited to perform at the General Assembly in Oct 1966.
 Trudeau Marches in Montreal Pride Parade
o Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau marched with thousands of people in
Montreal's annual Gay Pride parade.
o Government representatives from all of Canada's political parties joined Trudeau
in Montreal
o He made history in July when he became Canada's first sitting prime minister to
participate in Toronto's Gay Pride parade,
o He had also attended Vancouver's pride event.
 Obama Declares Emergency in Louisiana
o US President Barack Obama issued a disaster declaration for flood-devastated
Louisiana.
o The action makes emergency federal funding available to support rescue crews
working nonstop as deadly flooding ravages the state.
o Obama informed Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal of the emergency declaration
o The flooding has submerged large parts of the region.
 SL & China Sign Tripartite Agreement
o Sri Lanka & China have signed a tripartite agreement to proceed with the
construction of a mega multi billion dollar port city project in capital Colombo.
o The agreement was signed between SL Urban Development Authority, the
Ministry of Megapolis & the China Harbour Engineering Company.
o The project would transform Sri Lanka into an international financial hub in the
Indian Ocean region.
 Puerto Rico Declares State of Emergency
o The US government has declared a public health emergency in Puerto Rico as a
result of a Zika epidemic.
o The declaration allows the US Department of Health & Human Services to award
grants.
o The announcement came hours after Puerto Rico reported 1,914 new cases in
the past week.
o Zika has been tied to a severe birth defect known as microcephaly.
 Russian President Sacks Chief of Staff

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 oRussian President Vladimir Putin has dismissed his close ally and powerful chief
of staff Sergei Ivanov
o He has now been made a special representative for environmental & transport
issues.
o He was appointed Kremlin chief of staff in late 2011.
o Anton Vaino has been appointed as his successor.
o The change comes just over a month before nationwide parliamentary elections.
 Russia Deploys S-400 Missile System
o Russia has deployed its advanced S-400 air defence missile system to annexed
Crimea.
o Moscow also announced exercises in Crimea next week to simulate an attack by
weapons of mass destruction (WMD).
o The announcement comes after clashes between Russian forces & Ukrainian
saboteurs in northern Crimea.
o Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014.
 Thailand EC Certifies Referendum Results
o Thailand Election Commission (EC) has certified results of a referendum that
backed a controversial constitution proposed by the Thai military junta.
o The EC confirmed that 61% had voted in favor of Thailand’s 20th constitution in
84 years.
o Supporters say it will restore stability but critics say it will entrench military control.
o Thailand's political parties have rejected the constitution
 Pakistan Passes ‘Draconian’ Cyber Law
o Pakistan’s Parliament has adopted a “draconian” legislation to deal with cyber
crimes in the country.
o The National Assembly passed The Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act without
any amendment.
o The law includes a total of 21 offences related to misuse of Internet.
o The law suggests 14 years jail for those using internet for committing terrorism
& 7 years for promoting violence through hate speech.
 Russia, Turkey Agree to Restore Ties
o Russian President Vladimir Putin has agreed to work toward restoring full
relations with Turkey.
o He said after meeting with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan in Saint Petersburg.
o Both the leaders pledged to restore close economic relations.
o The two countries agreed to restore their yearly bilateral trade target of $100
billion & speed up the resumption of charter flights from Russia to Turkey.
 US Approves Sale of Arms to Saudi Arabia
o The US State Dept has approved the potential sale of more than 130 battle tanks,
20 armored recovery vehicles & other equipment worth about $1.15 billion to
Saudi Arabia.
o This sale will increase the Royal Saudi Land Force's (RSLF) interoperability with
US forces.
o Lawmakers have 30 days to block the sale.
o The deal conveys U.S. commitment to Saudi Arabia’s security & armed forces
modernization.
 Brazil Senate Votes for Rousseff Trial
o The Brazilian Senate has voted to hold an impeachment trial of suspended
President Dilma Rousseff.
o The senate voted 59 to 21 in favour of going ahead with the trial against Ms
Rousseff.

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 oShe is accused of breaking the budget law.
oThe Senate suspended Ms Rousseff in May over alleged illegal accounting
practices.
o A two-thirds majority is needed in the final vote following the trial.
 Maldives Passes Defamation Law
o The Maldives' parliament has passed a new defamation bill.
o It was passed despite US-led international concern that it risked
undermining basic freedom.
o The parliament voted 47 to 31 in favour of the controversial bill that criminalises
defamation.
o The law criminalize defamatory speech, remarks, writings and other actions
against any tenet of Islam in the Muslim-majority country.
 Iran executes nuclear scientist
o Iran executed a nuclear scientist convicted of spying for the United States, an
official said on Sunday.
o Shahram Amiri defected to the U.S. at the height of Western efforts to thwart
Iran's nuclear program.
o This comes as an acknowledgment for the first time that the nation secretly
detained and tried a man who was once heralded as a hero.
 Blast in Pakistan’s hospital in Quetta
o At least 55 people were today killed in a powerful bomb blast through a
government-run hospital in Quetta in Pakistan.
o The blast came hours after unidentified gunmen shot dead president of
Balochistan Bar Association Bilal Anwar Kasi
o A heavy contingent of Frontier Corps and police arrived and cordoned off the
area.
 China 'Out-Of-Place' on THAAD: Korea
o South Korea urged Beijing to play a stronger role against North Korea's
provocations on the peninsula.
o China had criticised Seoul's move to host a Terminal High Altitude Area Defence
(THAAD) unit with the U.S. military.
o South Korea and the United States began discussions to deploy a THAAD unit in
the South after the North's fourth nuclear test in January and a long-range rocket
launch
 Referendum in Thailand
o Thais are voting for the first time since the army grabbed power in 2014, in a
referendum on a new military-drafted constitution.
o This new constitution will be Thailand's 20th since absolute monarchy was
abolished in the early 1930s.
o Thai constitutions tend to get torn up and rewritten whenever the power balance
shifts.
 Japan and China tensed on East China Sea
o Japan has raised objections after Chinese government vessels intruded into what
Tokyo considers its territorial waters near disputed islands in the East China Sea.
o Chinese activity near the Senkaku and Diaoyu islands has heated up prompting
repeated Japanese protests.
o The incidents come amid tensions after an arbitration court invalidated China's
sweeping claims in the South China Sea
 Tropical Storm off Mexico's coast
o Tropical Storm Javier formed in the eastern Pacific on Sunday and was expected
to bring heavy rains and high winds to southwestern Mexico
o The Miami-based National Hurricane Center said Javier was about 80km
southwest of Manzanillo, Mexico.
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 o A second tropical storm, Ivette, also was swirling in the eastern Pacific.
 B'desh Govt Blocks over 30 News Websites
o Bangladesh government has blocked over 30 online portals and news websites.
o The head of the national telecoms regulator Bangladesh Telecommunications
and Regulatory Commission, BTRC said the websites were shut down on govt
orders.
o The list of blocked news portals included Sheershanews.com & Amar Desh
online.
o These portals linked to a pro-opposition Bengali daily that the govt shut down in
2013.
 ANC Suffers Major Election Setback in SA
o South Africa's local elections delivered a sharp setback to the African National
Congress (ANC).
o As partial results showed the falling support for the party that ended apartheid.
o With about 80% of the vote counted,the ANC was ahead nationwide but it
recorded its worst electoral performance.
o The ANC has had the main share of the vote in SA since the end of apartheid
more than two decades ago.
 Jmaat-ur-Ahrar Designated a Terror Group
o The United States has added the Pakistani militant group Jamaat-ur-Ahrar to its
list of global terrorists.
o The US decision will trigger sanctions against a faction that has staged multiple
attacks on civilians & religious minorities.
o Jamaat-ur-Ahrar has claimed responsibility for at least five major attacks in
Pakistan since Dec.
o The group is a splinter faction of the Pakistani Taliban movement.
 Tunisian President Names New PM
o Tunisia's President Beji Caid Essebsi has named Youssef Chahed as prime
minister after parliament ousted Habib Essid in a vote of no-confidence,
o Habib was ousted because of his poor handling of economic reforms & security.
o Chahed is an agricultural sciences specialist and academic who has taught in
France and Tunisia.
 US Blocks $300 m Military Aid to Pak
o The US has blocked $300 million military aid to Pakistan.
o The decision comes after US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter declined to give a
certification to the Congress that Pakistan is taking sufficient action against the
dreaded Haqqani network.
o In the absence of Congressional certification, the Pentagon has blocked
disbursement of $300 million to Pakistan under Coalition Support Fund.
 Vietnam Assures India Support for UNSC
o Vietnam has assured that it will support India’s candidature for a permanent seat
at the UN Security Council (UNSC).
o The assurance came by Vu Hong Nam,Vice-Foreign Minister of Vietnam during
his meeting with Preeti Saran, Secretary, East, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).
o Both sides met for the 8th Foreign Office Consultations (FOC) and 5th Strategic
Dialogue in New Delhi.
 Prachanda Elected Nepal Prime Minister
o Maoist chief Prachanda was elected by lawmakers as Nepal’s Prime Minister for
a second time.
o He will take over as the 39th Prime Minister of Nepal

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 o
He was elected Prime Minister with 363 votes in favour & 210 against him,out of
the total 595 members,22 did not vote.
o He had pledged to lead the nation toward economic development
o He has also become the first communist leader to become the PM twice.
 SAARC Immigration Authorities Meet Held
o The 7th meeting of SAARC Immigration Authorities was held in Islamabad.
o Pakistan's Director General Immigration and Passports Usman A. Bajwa chaired
the meeting.
o It reviewed different areas to maximize the potential of visa exemption scheme
launched among the member countries in 1992.
o It also deliberated on development of security software for SAARC visa
exemption scheme and immigration matters.
 3 Indonesian Volcanoes Erupt
o Eruptions at three volcanoes in Indonesia have darkened skies & disrupted
some flights.
o Mount Rinjani on Lombok Island near Bali, the Sinabung volcano on Sumatra
Island & Mount Gamalama in the Moluccas chain of islands have all erupted.
o The 3 mountains are among about 130 active volcanoes in Indonesia.
o Indonesia is prone to earthquakes & volcanoes because it sits along the Pacific
Ring of Fire.
 North Korea Test-Fires Ballistic missile
o North Korea has launched a ballistic missile that landed in or near Japanese-
controlled waters for the first time.
o It was the latest in a series of launches by the isolated country in defiance of
United Nations Security Council resolutions.
o The main body of the missile landed in Japan's economic exclusion zone.
o Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe described the launch as a grave threat.
 Texas Allows Guns on University Campuses
o A new law has come into effect in US' Texas state that allows students to carry
guns onto the campuses of public universities across the state.
o The so-called state "campus carry" law allows people 21 & older with a concealed
handgun license to carry pistols in classrooms.
o The law took effect on the 50th anniversary of the clock tower massacre in which
a student gunman shot 49 people, killing 16.
 China Holds Live-Fire Navy Drills
o China's navy has fired dozens of missiles and torpedoes during exercises in the
East China Sea.
o The live-fire drills follow China's strident rejection of an international arbitration
panel's ruling.
o The East China Sea exercises were aimed at improving the intensity, precision,
stability & speed
o China's navy has been closing the gap with its U.S. rival in both ship numbers
and tech.
 Typhoon Nida Make Landfall Near HongKong
o Gale- force wind and heavy rain lashed Hong Kong after Typhoon Nida made
landfall near Dapeng Peninsula in China's Guangdong Province.
o The Hong Kong Observatory reported that Nida had generated winds up to 150
kilometers per hour.
o The government warned of flooding in low-lying areas.
o Hundreds of train routes and flights had already been canceled in cities across
southern China.
 IOM becomes Part of United Nations

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 o The UN General Assembly has unanimously adopted a resolution approving an
agreement to make the International Organisation for Migration part of the UN.
o It is declared that upon signature of the agreement on 19 Sept 2016, IOM will
become a related organization of the United Nations system.
o It was Founded in the wake of the World War II to resettle refugees from Europe
 New Horizons Pluto Stamp Earns Record
o United States postal service made history after a stamp was send to Pluto which
they placed on New Horizons spacecraft.
o The stamp had travelled 5,250,843,896 km becoming the stamp to travel longest
distance ever in history.
o After the arrival of spacecraft at Pluto, the stamp earned a Guinness World
records title.
o New Horizons spacecraft was launched from Cape Canaveral in Florida on 19
Jan 2006.
 Tokyo Elects First Woman Governor
o Former Defence Minister Yuriko Koike has been elected governor of Tokyo,the
first woman to lead Japan's capital.
o She received more than 2.9 million votes in election.
o One of her key challenges will be curbing the financial problems plaguing Tokyo's
preparations to host the 2020 Olympic Games.
o One of her first duties will be to travel to Rio de Janeiro to accept the Olympic flag
as the next host.

National Affairs
 Govt panel clears 16 highway projects
o Govt. cleared for bidding 16 highway projects worth Rs 7,456 crore in 11 states.
o These states are Uttarakhand, Maharashtra, Haryana, Gujarat, Assam,
Arunachal Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Sikkim, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, and
Odisha.
o These include Rs 248 crore and Rs 200 crore projects for Geometric
improvement and widening of stretches on NH 58.
 NABARD sanctions 204.67 cr for Haryana
o NABARD has sanctioned a loan of Rs 204.67 cr under Rural Infrastructure
Development Fund (RIDF) for rural infrastructure in Haryana.
o 147.18 Cr has been sanctioned to the state government under the 22nd tranche
of RIDF for construction of 3 rural bridges, the construction & upgradation of 26
rural roads.
o Rs 57.49 Cr was sanctioned for 10 MW Solar Power Plant at Panipat Thermal
Power Station.
 Mizoram ratifies GST Bill
o Mizoram Assembly ratified the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bill by adopting an
official resolution, becoming 13th state to have approved the legislation.
o The ratification of the bill by Mizoram & Telangana means that thus far, 13 states
have approved the legislation.
o These states include Assam, Bihar, Jharkhand, HP, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, MP,
Delhi, Nagaland, Maharashtra & Haryana.
 Haryana passes Sports Council Bill
o Haryana has unanimously passed the Haryana Sports Council Bill, 2016 to
constitute statutory sports councils at state, district, block & municipal levels.
o The Bill was tabled by the state Sports & Youth Affairs Minister Anil Vij.
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The Council will neither select sports persons nor send teams for competitions.
o
The Council is meant for promotion of sports, games, yoga & physical fitness.
 Nadda launches Mera Aspatal Initiative
o Union Health and Family Welfare Minister JP Nadda launched the ‘Mera
Aspataal’ (My Hospital) initiative.
o This move seeks to empower the patients by seeking their views on quality of
experience in a public healthcare facility.
o The ICT-based Patient Satisfaction System (PSS) is envisaged to empower the
patient by seeking his views on quality of experience in a public healthcare
facility.
 Odisha govt launches Municipal Cadre
o Odisha government has launched a new cadre for urban local bodies called the
Odisha Municipal Cadre.
o Chief minister Naveen Patnaik announced that 3,213 posts will be created in
eight areas under the Odisha Municipal Cadre.
o Accordingly, the government will appoint people in the areas of cleanliness,
health, e-governance and finance under the municipal cadre.
 2nd unit at KKNPP connected to Grid
o The second 1,000 MW capacity reactor of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power
Project (KKNPP) was successfully synchronised to the southern power grid.
o The total atomic power generation capacity of Nuclear Power Corp of India Ltd
(NPCIL) crossed 5,000 MW.
o The KKNPP is located in Tirunelveli district in Tamil Nadu, around 650 km from
Chennai. It is built under India-Russian Nuclear agreement of 1988.
 Gujarat distributed 2 Cr LED bulbs
o Gujarat has become the first state to distribute 2 Cr LED bulbs under the Centre’s
UJALA (Unnat Jyoti by Affordable LEDs for All) scheme.
o The state has reached the milestone in just 96 days & over 42 lakh households
have already benefited from the scheme.
o The scheme was launched on 1 May'15 replacing the “Bachat Lamp Yojana”.
o Govt. has set ambitious target to distribute 77 Cr LEDs by 2019.
 Telangana ratifies GST Bill
o Telangana Legislative Assembly and Legislative Council have unanimously
passed a resolution giving their nod to the proposed Amendment to the
Constitution to pass the GST.
o Telangana has become the 12th State/UT to ratify the Bill.
o The GST Bill was introduced by Deputy CM Kadiyam Srihari in the Council.
 Haryana Assembly ratifies GST Bill
o Haryana Assembly has unanimously ratified the Constitution Amendment Bill on
Goods and Services Tax (GST).
o The bill was introduced by state Finance Minister Capt Abhimanyu.
o Centre has set April 1, 2017 as target for rolling out GST, considered as the
biggest tax reform.
o GST Bill aims to have one indirect tax for the whole nation, which will make India
a unified common market.
 WB passes resolution for renaming state
o West Bengal Assembly has passed a resolution for renaming the state as
'Bangla' in Bengali and 'Bengal' in English.
o A proposal in this regard was put forward by CM Mamata Banerjee few weeks
ago.
o In 2011, the state government had sent a proposal to the Centre for renaming
West Bengal as "Paschim Bango", but that never got the green signal.
 Mumbai-Nagpur Super Comm. Expressway
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 oMaharashtra Government has unveiled ambitious Mumbai-Nagpur Super
Communication Expressway project in Mumbai.
o The 46,000-crore rupee ambitious project will be six-lane super communication
highway covering a distance of 750 km through 10 districts connecting entire
breadth of Maharashtra.
o It will be implemented by Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation
(MSRDC)
 Modi inaugurates Rs 12,000 cr project
o Narendra Modi inaugurated the first phase of SAUNI (Saurashtra Narmada
Avataran for Irrigation) project.
o It will enable10 dams and reservoirs of Rajkot, Jamnagar and Morbi to be filled
up with the water of Narmada river.
o Project was announced in 2012 when Modi was the chief minister of Gujarat.
o 10,22,589 acres of farming land would get benefit by this project.
 India, Myanmar signed four agreements
o India and Myanmar signed 4 MoU to enhance cooperation and bilateral relations.
o Pacts were inked after delegation-level talks between PM Narendra Modi &
visiting President of Myanmar U Htin Kyaw.
o 5 agreements signed include MoU on cooperation in the construction of 69
Bridges, construction / upgradation of the Kalewa – Yagyi Road Section,
Renewable Energy & Traditional Systems of Medicine.
 Madhukar Gupta Committee submits report
o Madhukar Gupta Committee on border protection submitted its report to the
Home Minister Rajnath Singh.
o Panel has made a detailed study on threat perception, field visits and made
detailed recommendations pertaining to strengthening of border protection on
Indo-Pakistan Border.
o It studied security and threats at Border States of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Punjab and
Jammu.
 India US sign LEMOA
o India and US have signed Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement
(LEMOA) that will enable both countries to use each other’s bases for repair &
replenishment of defence supplies.
o Agreement was signed after Indian Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar met his
US counterpart, Secretary of Defence Ashton Carter in Washington.
o Joint drills named Yudh Abhyas will take place in northern India on Sep'16.
 Javadekar inaugurates IIT in Dharwad
o Union Human Resource Development Minister Prakash Javdekar formally
launched IIT Dharwad chapter in Dharwad on Sunday.
o The inauguration, which was planned last month end, had to be postponed due to
the Kalasa Banduri agitation.
o Around 2000 students with Science and Maths background have been invited to
the inaugural function to sensitise them about the higher learning institute.
 Dana Majhi's story brings shame to India
o The images of Dana Majhi, a tribal man, carrying his wife's dead body on his
shoulders brings shame to India from abroad.
o Bahrain's PM Prince Khalifa Bin Salman Al Khalifa has sent a donation to help
Majhi and his family.
o Majhi reportedly decided to walk the entire 64 km stretch from a hospital in
Kalahandi to his village, after he was denied a hearse to carry his wife's dead
body.

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  Pak hand in Pathankot airbase attack: US
o US confirms Pakistan's hand in Pathankot airbase attack and gives evidence.
o On January 2, 2016, a heavily armed group attacked the Pathankot Air Force
Station, part of the India's Western Air Command, killing six Indian security
personnel.
o The US investigation has found that the Facebook groups accessed by the
friends of JeM handler Kashif Jaan were related to jihad and JeM.
 UP election big guns list for campaign
o As a part of its major outreach programme with the voters in Uttar Pradesh, the
Congress intends to deploy its big guns in campaign which will start on
September 5.
o Rahul Gandhi will begin his 40 day tour of Uttar Pradesh on September 5 to
outreach the voters.
o Rahul Gandhi will travel over 2500 kms by road covering at least 45 districts.
 PM holds talks with Myanmarese President
o Prime Minister Narendra Modi today held extensive talks with Myanmarese
President U Htin Kyaw to bring a new momentum in bilateral ties between the two
neighbours.
o This was the first top-level engagement between the two countries.
o He arrived in the Buddhist pilgrimage town of Gaya on Saturday where he visited
the Mahabodhi Temple
 All-party team to visit Kashmir
o An all-party delegation led by Home Minister Rajnath Singh will visit Jammu and
Kashmir on September 4.
o The delegation is expected to meet a cross section of people, individuals and
organisations in its efforts to bring peace in Kashmir Valley.
o The government has sounded out different political parties to convey the names
of their functionaries who will be part of the team.
 Power Grid to electrify rail tracks
o Power Grid to will 1,000 km of railway tracks in the country.
o The Power Ministry is looking to engage Power Grid Corp to Electrify the Railway
tracks in the country.
o The Project will be initially on Pilot basis.
o The electrification project will help the government cut down crude imports and
also ensure faster movement of trains on these tracks
 Fadnavis calls for use of Tech in courts
o Courts should use the latest technology in their work said Fadnavis on Sunday.
o This will help in speedy, transparent and impartial delivery of justice.
o CM Fadnavis was speaking at a function held to mark the 35th anniversary of the
Aurangabad bench of the Bombay High Court.
o CM Fadnavis also said that the National Law University would be established in
Aurangabad
 Modi govt's package for PoK refugees
o The government is all set to announce a Rs 2,000 crore package for displaced
people of Pakistan occupied Kashmir living in the country.
o The J&K government has already identified 36,348 families for distribution of the
package under which each family will get around Rs 5.5 lakh.
o The refugees from West Pakistan, mostly from PoK, got settled in different areas
of Jammu, Kathua and Rajouri districts.
 RBI unions writes against PDMA
o The employee unions of RBI have appealed to Member of Parliaments and State
Finance Ministers to prevent the proposed Public Debt Management Agency
(PDMA).
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 o
They said moving the function will cost the government dearly.
o
In Fiscal Budget 2016, Union FM Arun Jaitley proposed to divest the Public Debt
Management functions from the RBI by setting up a separate body under the
Finance Ministry.
 Modi calls CMs for anti Poverty agenda
o A committee for poverty alleviation has been constituted.
o The committee comprises the CM of MP Mr. Shivraj Singh Chauhan, CM of
Jharkhand Raghubar Das, CM of Maharashtra Devendra Fadnavis & BJP Vice
President Vinay Sahasrabuddhe.
o Modi said at least BJP ruled states should apply the Centre’s schemes for
poverty alleviation & other related schemes in an ideal way.
 Modi on Kashmir: Unity & love are mantra
o PM Modi said "Ekta" (unity) and "Mamata" (love) are the basic mantras for
addressing the Kashmir problem.
o He emphasised that if any life is lost in Kashmir "that loss is ours, of our own
country".
o He also slammed "those people who push small children to try to create unrest in
Kashmir", saying "some day, they will have to give answers to these innocent
children".
 PM gives a playground to a girl
o A student of class 9 in Mumbai decided to write letter to PM for a playground.
o Sakshi Tiwari, told PM Modi that her school, in the suburbs of Navi Mumbai
doesn't have a playground, and then asked for one.
o The Prime Minister's Office decided to write back to her and just like that, her
wish was granted.
o She wrote to Modi after knowing Modi's 'Mann Ki Baat' initiative.
 Karnataka says NO to Tamil Nadu: Cauvery
o Karnataka on Saturday said it was not possible for it to release Cauvery water to
Tamil Nadu.
o Karnataka government said "We are facing a severe distress year".
o In the Supreme Court, TN has sought directions to Karnataka to release 50.052
TMC ft of Cauvery water to irrigate farmland.
o After TN's plea for an urgent hearing, an apex court bench headed by CJ TS
Thakur has posted the matter for Sept 2.
 PM Modi to address the nation today
o Prime Minister Narendra Modi is all set to address the nation through the 23rd
installment of his monthly special–Mann Ki Baat.
o In the last Mann Ki Baat address, the Prime Minister had extended his best
wishes to the Indian contingent of the Rio Olympics.
o The big question remains, however, is whether Prime Minister Modi will speak on
the Kashmir issue.
 Thiruvananthapuram-Mangaluru Exp derails
o 13 coaches of Thiruvananthapuram-Mangaluru Express derailed.
o No one was injured in the incident, railway officials said.
o Train services in the State had been hit as railways have cancelled and regulated
many trains.
o The cause of the accident is yet to be known.
 Mehbooba's plan for peace in Kashmir
o Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti presented a “three-pronged
action plan” for bringing peace in the valley.
o She said every political party wants the end of bloodshed in Kashmir.

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 o
The CM also targeted Pakistan and said it should stop supporting the people who
are instigating the youth to carry out attacks on police stations or army camps.
 Bengaluru to Host Pravasi Divas
o The 14th edition of Pravasi Bharatiya Divas will be held in Bengaluru.
o It will be organized between Jan 7 to 9, 2017 & around 3,000 people are likely to
participate in the event.
o There would also be a Youth Pravasi Bharatiya Divas on January 7.
o Pravasi Bharatiya Divas is celebrated in India each year to mark the contribution
of the overseas Indian community to the development of India.
 Mamata Unveils Mother Teresa’s Statue
o A life size bronze statue of Mother Teresa was unveiled on her 106th birth
anniversary by West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee at Archbishop’s House in
Park Street.
o The inauguration of the statue comes ahead of her Canonisation on September
4th.
o The statue has been donated by industrialist & philanthropist, Mr Namit Bajoria
who is the Designate Honorary Consul of Republic of Macedonia in Kolkata.
 POSCO e-box Launched to Protect Children
o Union Minister Maneka Gandhi has launched an online complaint box for
reporting child sexual abuse.
o The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) e-Box is an online
complaint management system for reporting sexual offences against children.
o The facility is available on the NCPCR website.
o Any child or adult who wants to complain about a child who is being molested can
avail of this.
 Nagaland Assembly Ratifies GST Bill
o The Nagaland Legislative Assembly has ratified the Goods and Services Tax
(GST) Constitution Amendment Bill.
o The bill was introduced Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Kiyanilie Peseyie.
o The ratification of the crucial GST bill has reached half way mark as eight states
ratifying.
o The bill needs to be ratified by the sixteen states before it can be sent for
president assent.
 Amnesty event not seditious, say cops
o The Bangaluru police has said that prima facie, no anti-India slogans were raised
at the Amnesty International event in Bengaluru on August 15.
o Police has not found anything seditious after watching the unedited version of the
video footage of the event.
o The slogans of "Azadi" were raised on an event organized by Amnesty on 15th,
after which a case was filed against the organization.
 Women allowed in Haji Ali Dargah
o Bombay high court has ruled that all women must be allowed into the inner
sanctum of Mumbai's Haji Ali Dargah.
o This comes after a petition was filed by the Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan
(BMMA) challenging the ban imposed by the Haji Ali Dargah Trust.
o While women are allowed to visit the shrine, they were barred access to the
Asthana, they were not allowed to touch the tomb.
 No Decision on GM Mustard yet: Env. Min.
o The Govt. has said that it has not taken a final call on whether to allow GM
Mustard’s cultivation, and added that it will seek public comments before moving
ahead.
o If allowed, it would be the first GM food crop in India, though GM cotton is being
grown in India since 2002.
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 o
The proposal to allow GM crops is opposed by environmentalists and RSS as
well.
 President to begin three-day visit
o President Pranab Mukherjee will begin his three-day tour to Bihar and Karnataka
from today.
o On Saturday, the President will address the first convocation of Nalanda
University and lay the foundation stone of its campus at Rajgir.
o On Sunday, He will address the 24th annual convocation of the National Law
School of India University, Bangalore.
 Secretary to attend SAARC Meet
o Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das will represent India in the two-day
SAARC Finance Ministers meeting beginning today in Islamabad.
o Mr. Das will be attending the meeting in place of the Finance Minister,
government sources said.
o The conference is scheduled on August 25-26 in Islamabad.
 PAVA shells to replace pellet guns
o With eye injuries caused by use of pellet guns in Kashmir turning into a major
controversy, an expert panel of the home ministry is looking for its replacements.
o The panel is exploring whether these can be replaced with newly-developed
PAVA shells, a chilli-based non-lethal munition.
o It temporarily incapacitates the targets and renders them immobile for several
minutes.
 Govt Launches Sugamaya Pustakalaya
o The Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities has launched
‘Sugamya Pustakalaya’.
o It is an online library for persons with print disabilities.
o It aims towards fulfilling the government’s Accessible India campaign centered
around achieving ‘universal accessibility’.
o The online library created in collaboration with National Institute of Visually
Handicapped (NIVH).
 IIT Council Clears Project Vishwajeet
o THE IIT Council has cleared project VISHWAJEET .
o The project aims to catapult 7 IITs into the global hall of fame- the global
academic rankings.
o Under this, seven IITs—Delhi, Bombay, Kanpur, Kharagpur, Madras, Roorkee
and Guwahati—will be assisted in breaking into the top 100 universities in the
global university ranking by 2018 and top 50 by 2020.
 Punjab CM Launch Mobile App for Farmers
o Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal has launched a mobile app 'Kisan
Suvidha' for farmers.
o The app will provide basic information on weather updates, crop prices and
expert advices.
o An additional tab directly connects the farmer with the Kisan Call Centre where
technical graduates answer their queries.
o The app developed by the Union government’s agriculture department.
 Madhya Pradesh Assembly Passes GST Bill
o The Madhya Pradesh Assembly has passed the Goods and Service Tax (GST)
Constitution Amendment Bill.
o MP became the seventh state in the country to ratify the historic tax amendment
bill.

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 o The historic tax reform bill will introduce a nationwide indirect tax on manufacture,
sale and consumption of goods and services.
o The GST bill requires approval from at least 15 state legislatures.
 Air Force to Build New Aerospace Museum
o The Indian Air Force is set to build new Aerospace Museum in New Delhi.
o The museum will focus on the nation's rich aviation history.
o A proposal for new Air Force Aerospace Museum was cleared by Ministry of
Defence and final financial sanction on the Detailed Project Report is awaited.
o After the approval, the new museum would be ready for the tourists within 3-5
years.
 IITs to Increase Intake to 1lakh by 2020
o IITs have decided to increase the number of seats in various courses for
admitting "non-resident students" with an aim to take their total intake to one lakh
by 2020.
o IIT Council headed by HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar has given in-
principle approval to the proposal for admitting non-resident students.
o The plan is to increase the number by 10,000 per year so that the number
touches 1L by 2020.
 Odisha Cabinet Approves Startup Policy
o Odisha Cabinet has approved the Odisha Startup Policy 2016 .
o The aim is to promote entrepreneurship for start-up ventures with provision of
govt incentives.
o The policy will chart out a roadmap to place Odisha among the top three
investment destinations in the country by 2020.
o It will constitute a 25cr rupees Startup Capital Infrastructure Fund to provide
monthly assistance to young entrepreneurs
 Azadi 70 Saal-Yaad Karo Qurbani Conclude
o Celebrations of 70 years of Independence -70 saal Azadi- Yaad Karo Kurbani
came to a close.
o The programme was aimed at re-instilling the spirit of freedom struggle.
o It was launched by PM Modi at the birthplace of freedom fighter Chandra
Shekhar Azad at Alirajpur in Madhya Pradesh.
o Union Ministers visited more than 150 places all over the country associated with
freedom movement during the period.
 Prez Launches Akashvani Moitree Channel
o The All India Radio has launched the Maitree Channel.
o President Pranab Mukherjee launched the radio service in Kolkata.
o The AIR channel also known as Akashvani Maitree will showcase Bangla culture
and heritage.
o The first-of-its-kind service can be heard both in India and Bangladesh.
o The service will provide a platform for content creation and sharing of cultural
heritage between the two countries
 Gujarat Assembly Ratifies GST Bill
o The Gujarat Legislative Assembly ratified the Constitution Amendment Bill on
Goods and Service Tax (GST).
o The Bill has been ratified unopposed by Gujarat Assembly.
o The bill needs to be ratified by at least 15 state legislatures before the President
can notify the GST Council.
o The government has set April 1, 2017 as target for rolling out GST.
 Mukhi Sworn in as Lt Gov of Andaman
o Prof. Jagdish Mukhi assumed office as the 12th Lieutenant Governor of Andaman
and Nicobar Islands.

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 o
Mr. Justice Girish Chandra Gupta, acting Chief Justice of Calcutta High Court
administered the Oath of Office.
o He took over from Lt General A K Singh (Retd) who was appointed in July 2013.
o He was a professor in Delhi University and has authored a book titled ‘Company
Law and Secretarial Practice’.
 Purohit Sworn in as Governor of Assam
o Banwarilal Purohit was sworn in as the Governor of Assam.
o Chief Justice of Gauhati High Court Ajit Singh administered the oath of office
& secrecy to Purohit at the Raj Bhavan.
o He succeeded Padmanabha Balakrishna Acharya, Governor of Nagaland who
was Governor in-charge of Assam.
o He was a three-time Lok Sabha MP from the Nagpur.
o He is also credited with revival of ‘The Hitavada’, an English daily.
 Badnore Takes Oath as New Punjab Gov
o VP Singh Badnore has sworn in as the new Governor Punjab and also as
Administrator of Chandigarh.
He was administered the oath of office by Punjab and Haryana High Court Chief
Justice SJ Vazifdar.
o He succeeds Kaptan Singh Solanki,who is the Governor of Haryana & was
holding additional charge of Punjab Governor & Administrator of Chandigarh
since Jan 2015.
o Badnore belongs to Bhilwara in Rajasthan
 Himachal Pradesh Ratifies GST Bill
o The Himachal Pradesh Assembly has unanimously ratified the Goods and
Services Tax (GST) Bill.
o The hill State is the fourth State after Assam, Bihar and Jharkhand to ratify the
GST Bill.
o The bill was introduced by Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, who also holds the
finance portfolio.
o It will help in boosting trade and commerce once it was implemented in the
country.
 PM Modi Inaugurate Renovated Stor Palace
o PM Modi & Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani has jointly tele-inaugurated the
restored stor Palace in Kabul.
o The stor Palace brings back to life a valuable landmark of Afghanistan's cultural
heritage.
o A tripartite agreement was signed in between the Aga Khan Development
Network, the Govt of Afghanistan & the Govt of India.
o It is located on the grounds of the Afghan Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
 Najma Heptulla Sworn in Gov of Manipur
o Dr Najma Heptulla was sworn-in as the 18th Governor of Manipur in Imphal Raj
Bhavan.
o Acting Chief Justice of Manipur High Court Rakesh Ranjan Prasad administered
the oath of office.
o Heptulla replaced Shanmuganathan who was holding the dual charge of
Governor of Manipur and Meghalaya.
o She had resigned as Minority Affairs Minister from the Union Cabinet.
 BRICS Conference of Women MPs Ends
o A two-day meeting of BRICS women parliamentarians will concludein Jaipur,
Rajasthan.

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 oSeveral issues related to climate change, gender equality, education and health
were discussed at the meeting.
o Parliamentarians of BRICS countries shared their experiences on these issues.
o Total 43 parliamentarians from BRICS countries including 28 MPs from Lok
Sabha & Rajya Sabha participated in the meeting.
 Pasighat Airfield Gets Operational
o The upgraded Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) at Pasighat in Arunachal
Pradesh was inaugurated by MoS for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju.
o The landing ground became operational with the first landing of the fighter jet Su-
30 MKI .
o It will facilitate air connectivity with rest of the country.
o The airfield is situated just 100 km from the China border
 All Homes in WB to have Power by 2017
o All households in Bengal will have electricity by March 2017.
o The state will achieve two years ahead of the centres deadline of 2019.
o This was said by West Bengal minister for power & non-conventional energy
sources, Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay in Kolkata .
o He was talking at an energy conclave organised by CII.
o As on today, 97% households in West Bengal have electricity.
 PM's Suit Makes Guinness Records
o The suit worn by Prime Minister Narendra Modi with his name woven into it in
gold pinstripes made it to the Guinness Book of World Records as the "most
expensive suit’ sold at auction
o The suit was bought by 62-year old Laljibhai Patel, a Surat-based diamond
merchant, for Rs. 4.31 crore.
o The tailored navy suit was worn by PM during US President Barack Obama's visit
in January this year.
 Suspended Legislators Hold Mock Session
o Two days after being suspended for creating ruckus inside the Tamil Nadu
assembly, 80 of the DMK's 89 legislators today held a 'model session' outside the
assembly premises.
o On Wednesday, speaker P Dhanapal had suspended 80 DMK legislators for
unruly behavior after they repeatedly interrupted the assembly session.
o Protesting legislators were led by MK Stalin who is the DMK treasurer
 Odisha to auction four iron ore blocks
o The Odisha government has lined up three iron ore blocks and one bauxite
deposit for auctions in January 2017.
o The state is also readying to auction five blocks- a mix of limestone and
manganese blocks for auctions.
o The state cabinet recently approved the formation of Odisha Mineral Exploration
Corporation as 100% subsidiary of its mining PSU- Odisha Mining Corporation
(OMC).
 PM pays tribute to Rajiv Gandhi
o Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday paid tribute to former premier Rajiv
Gandhi on his 72nd birth anniversary.
o Rajiv Gandhi, born on August 20, 1944, served as the sixth Prime Minister of
India from 1984 to 1989.
o He took office after the assassination of his mother, then Prime Minister Indira
Gandhi in 1984
 India, China Hold Meet On Cooperation
o China and India held their 8th high-level Financial and Economic Dialogue in
Beijing to strengthen trade and economic ties between the two economies.

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 o This year's dialogue is being held ahead of the G20 summit in China next month
and the BRICS summit in October in India.
o India's Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das held talks with his Chinese
counterpart, Shi Yaobin.
 VK Singh Visits Saudi to help Workers
o Minister of State for External Affairs VK Singh has again gone to Saudi Arabia to
help thousands of laid-off Indian workers.
o India aims to help them either to return or seek alternative employment in the
Gulf nation.
o Saudi is currently faced with severe economic slowdown that has forced
companies to retrench work force.
 Ranthambore tigress 'Machhli' Dies
o Legendary Ranthambore tigress 'Machhli' has died.
o Codenamed T-16 & also referred to as the Queen of Ranthambore
o Machhli was probably the world's most photographed tigress.
o She was named Machhli because of the marks on her face that resemble a fish.
o She had contributed more than $10 million a year to the economy of
Ranthambore over the last 10 years.
 IIT Kharagpur Presents Excellence Award
o The IIT,Kharagpur presented the Nina Saxena Excellence in Technology award
to ISRO scientist M. Jeen Britto.
o He was awarded for his exemplary innovation in the field of Cryogenics
Instrumentation & Automation.
o The award was handed during the premier institute's 66th foundation day
celebration.
o Distinguished professor Krishnendu Chakrabarty, was presented the
Distinguished Alumnus Award for 2014.
 India Inks Deal with Bangladesh
o India signed a short-term route agreement with Bangladesh to allow transport of
petroleum goods from Assam to Tripura through Bangladesh.
o The agreement was signed after heavy monsoon damaged roads and made the
transportation between the two states difficult.
o Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL) & the Roads and Highways Department of
the Government of Bangladesh (RHD) signed the deal.
 Govt Unveils Portal for Rating of Mines
o Ministry of Mines has launched Web Portal for Star Rating of Major Mineral
Mines.
o The Portal was launched by the Minister of State for Mines, Power, Coal and
New & Renewable Energy, Piyush Goyal .
o The Scheme of Star Rating will be a vital step for ensuring compliance of
environmental protection & social responsibility .
o Govt has given a deadline for Star Rating of all mines by 31st of Dec 2016.
 PM Lays the Foundation Stone of BJP HQ
o PM Modi laid the foundation stone of new BJP HQ building in New Delhi.
o The new state-of-the-art headquarters will be constructed at Deen Dayal
Upadhyay Marg near ITO.
o It will have wi-fi,conference halls,media facilities, library & other facilities.
o The new building is expected to be ready before the 2019.
o Present office at 11 Ashoka Road is consider small for party's expanded
activities.
 Initiatives Launched under Namami Gange

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The govt has launched new initiatives including setting up of a water purification
plant under Namami Gange in Mathura – Vrindavan.
o The projects were launched in presence of Ms Uma Bharti.
o Under the new projects a water recycling plant will be set up at Mathura Refinery
were contaminated Yamuna water will be recycled.
o An MoU was also signed between Water Resources Ministry & Petroleum
Ministry.
 J P Nadda Inaugurates AMRIT Outlets
o Health Minister J P Nadda has inaugurated Affordable Medicines and Reliable
Implants for Treatment (AMRIT) outlets in Shillong, Imphal and Jodhpur through
videoconferencing.
o These outlets are aimed at reducing the expenditure incurred by common
patients on treatment of cancer and heart diseases.
o With this the number of AMRIT outlets have reached at 12 across the country.
 4 New Governors Appointed
o Former Union Minister Najma Heptullah was appointed Governor of Manipur as
President announced new gubernatorial appointments for 3 States & a Union
Territory.
o Former Rajya Sabha MP V.P Singh Badnore was appointed Punjab Governor.
o Banwarilal Purohit, a three-time former member of Lok Sabha will be the
Governor of Assam.
o Prof. Jagdish Mukhi was made Lt. Governor of Andaman & Nicobar Islands.
 Under18 cannot Participate in Dahi Handi
o The Supreme Court has said that youth below 18 years of age cannot participate
in the Dahi Handi ritual.
o The height of the human pyramid for it cannot exceed 20 feet.
o The Dahi Handi ceremony is annually held on Janmasthami in Mahrashtra ,the
birthday of Lord Krishna.
o It involves forming a human pyramid and breaking an earthen pot filled with
buttermilk tied on a string at the top.
 Power Ministry Unveils Apps
o The Power Ministry has launched three mobile apps to enhance transparency in
the power transmission sector.
o The apps TARANG,e-Trans & DEEP have been developed.
o The TARANG app will monitor upcoming transmission projects & the progress of
Inter-State & Intra-State transmission system.
o The ‘e-Trans’ is for e-bidding & e-reverse auction for Tariff Based Competitive
Bidding in transmission projects.
 Jharkhand Become 3rd State to Ratify GST
o Jharkhand Assembly voted unanimously to ratify the Goods and Services Tax,
GST Bill.
o With this Jharkhand has become the third state after Assam and Bihar to ratify
the GST Bill passed by the Parliament.
o The GST Bill is described as India's biggest tax reform.
o The Bill needs to be ratified by at least half the state assemblies in the country
before it is sent to the President for approval.
 Maha Relaunches Majhi Kanya Bhagyashri
o Maharashtra government has relaunched its "Majhi Kanya Bhagyashri”.
o The objective of scheme is to improve the skewed girl child ratio in Maharashtra.
o This re launched move is an amalgamation of “Sukanya” scheme and the
Centre’s “Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao” scheme introduced last year.
o The government intends to take the scheme to the village level through massive
public awareness programme.
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  Bihar Becomes 2nd State to Ratify GST
o The Bihar state Legislature has unanimously ratified the constitution amendment
bill on Goods and Services Tax, GST.
o The bill was moved by the commercial taxes minister Bijendra Prasad Yadav.
o After passage of the bill by the state legislature, Bihar now became the second
state to ratify the GST.
o The Bill needs to be ratified by 16 of the 29 state assemblies to become law.
 Haryana to Tap Yamuna Water
o Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar has announced projects to make the water of
the Yamuna river available to the state.
o Govt is preparing five projects to utilize the surplus water of the Yamuna during
the monsoon,
o Govt has already allocated Rs 1,657 cr for the implementation of Swaran
Jayanti scheme.
o Projects will cost of Rs 2,000 cr to make available 5,000 cusecs of water to the
people
 Govt to Build Museums
o PM Modi in his I- Day speech has said museums will be built in several states to
glorify the role of lesser-known people from tribal communities who contributed to
the freedom struggle.
o This will help India's young generation to know about tribal history
o He said the contribution of tribals has not been highlighted as much.
o He also announced to increase 20% hike in pension of Freedom fighters.
 Govt Releases Postage Stamp on Tourism
o Minister of State Manoj Sinha has released a commemorative postage stamp on
Tourism in India on the occasion of 70th Independence day.
o The theme tourism was selected on account of tourism sector being an
economically important and rapidly growing industry.
o Tourism is fast emerging, as one of the major sectors of the economy.
o It is generating huge employment opportunity across the country.
 Rhino Horn Verification Process Starts
o The Assam Government has launched Rhino horn verification process for
verifying rhino horns stored in various treasuries of Assam since 1980.
o The process will be responsible for verifying the genuineness of the rhino horns.
o The process of verification will be conducted by 12-member Rhino Horn
Verification Committee.
o The committee is headed by former forest officer Mohan Chandra Malakar.
 Pradhan Launches PMUY in West Bengal
o Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has launched the
'Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana' (PMUY) in West Bengal.
o PMUY scheme entailed providing free connection to women of BPL households.
o The government had earmarked Rs. 8,000 crore for its rollout across the country.
o The ambitious social welfare scheme of the Narendra Modi Government was
launched on May 1 at Ballia in Uttar Pradesh.
 J’khand Govt Introduces e-POS in State
o Jharkhand government has introduced the e-POS (electronic point of sale)
system.
o The system would enable genuine beneficiaries to get grains by taking their
finger prints.
o Jharkhand has become only 3rd State in country to have their PDS system
digitised.

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Chief Minister Raghubar Das this biometric system would help not only the
beneficiaries, but also curb corruption.
 1st BIO-CNG Project in India Inaugurated
o The first ever BIO-CNG project in India was inaugurated in Pune.
o The project was inaugurated, by Transport Min Nitin Gadkari & Manohar Parrikar.
o This plant will use agricultural residue to generate CNG.
o The process of generation of CNG from agricultural waste involves treating the
waste with a special bacterial solution,after which the gas so generated is
cleaned & compressed for use in vehicles.
 No Rail Budget from Next Fiscal
o The 92-year-old practice of presenting a separate Rail Budget is set to come to
an end from the next fiscal.
o The Finance Ministry accepted Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu’s proposal to
merge it with the General Budget.
o The Finance Ministry has now constituted a five-member committee to work out
the modalities for the merger.
o The committee has been asked to submit its report by August 31.
 Chinese Foreign Minister Meets Modi
o Visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met PM Modi in New Delhi.
o Mr. Wang is visiting India for holding talks with External Affairs Minister Sushma
Swaraj on various issues of mutual interest.
o He also met Goa CM Laxmikant Parsekar to review the logistics & security
arrangements for Chinese President Xi Jinping’s proposed visit in Oct to Goa for
the BRICS summit.
 Nagaland Govt to Grant 33% Reservation
o The Nagaland Govt has decided to grant 33% reservation to women in Urban
Local Bodies.
o The decision was taken during a cabinet meeting held in Kohima.
o Nagaland chief minister T.R. Zeliang announced the decision of the Cabinet.
o The Cabinet decided go ahead with the elections to the urban local bodies/town
councils under Nagaland Municipal Act, 2001 by granting 33 per cent reservation
for women.
 Smart Ganga City Programme Launched
o Union Ministers M Venkaiah Naidu & Uma Bharti jointly launched 'Smart Ganga
City' programme in 10 cities.
o These cities are located along Ganga to set up Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs)
& improve drainage network.
o Haridwar, Rishikesh, Mathura, Varanasi, Kanpur, Allahabad, Lucknow, Patna,
Sahibganj & Barrackpore are the cities where the programme will be
implemented in the first phase.
 Nadda Inaugurates AMRIT Outlet
o The Union Health Minister, Shri J P Nadda has inaugurated the Affordable
Medicines and Reliable Implants for Treatment (AMRIT) outlet at Safdarjung
Hospital.
o The AMRIT retail outlets will sell drugs at highly discounted rates.
o Nine AMRIT Pharmacies have been set up and Safdarjung Hospital is the 10th of
this kind.
o The project has been floated in a tie-up with govt-owned HLL Lifecare Ltd (HLL).
 M J Akbar to Ring NASDAQ Bell
o Minister of State for External Affairs M J Akbar will ring the closing bell at the
NASDAQ stock exchange in the heart of the popular Times Square to mark
India's 70th Independence Day.

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India's Independence Day has been marked annually at NASDAQ for several
years now
o The NASDAQ exchange is the second-largest exchange in the world by market
capitalisation,behind only the New York Stock Exchange.
 Encephalitis to Made Notifiable Disease
o The government has announced that the dreaded vector-borne disease
Encephalitis will be made a notifiable disease.
o Encephalitis claims hundres of lives in the eastern part of the country every year.
o A notifiable disease is required by law to be reported to authorities.
o The spread of information allows authorities to monitor the disease and provide
early warning of possible outbreaks.
 Conf. of Investigating Agencies Started
o The Union Home Minister Shri Rajnath Singh has inaugurated the first National
Conference of investigating agencies in New Delhi.
o The two-day conference is being organised by the Bureau of Police Research &
Development (BPR&D) in coordination with National Investigation Agency.
o The conference aims to discuss how to improve coordination & quality of
investigations being done by various agencies.
 Gadkari Lays Foundation of New Terminal
o Union Shipping Minister Nitin Gadkari has laid the foundation stone for a multi-
modal terminal at Varanasi.
o He also flags off the trial run of two vessels carrying Maruti Suzuki cars &
construction material, as a part of National Waterway-1 development.
o The terminal is part of Rs 4,200-crore Jal Marg Vikas project to enable
commercial navigation of vessels on river Ganga from Varanasi to Haldia.
 SC Lifts Ban on 2000cc Diesel Cars
o Supreme Court has lifted its order on banning registration of diesel-run SUVs &
high-end cars with engine capacity of 2000 CC & above in Delhi & NCR.
o Manufacturers will have to pay 1% green cess to the government.
o The apex court had on Dec 16 last year banned registration of diesel-run sports
utility vehicles till March 31.
o Later, the ban on registration was extended till further orders.
 Bharat Parv’ Inaugurated by Parrikar
o Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar inaugurated a week-long cultural
extravaganza, Bharat Parv, at the Rajpath Lawns.
o Bharat Parv is being organized as part of Independence Day celebrations.
o The prime objective of organizing the event is to generate a patriotic mood&
promote the rich cultural diversity.
o It will include performances by the Armed Forces Bands ,crafts mela & cultural
performances.
 Govt Nod to Upgrade Tech for Power Plant
o Govt has approved Rs 1,554 cr R&D project to develop advanced ultra super
critical (AUSC) technology for thermal power plants.
o A consortium of three govt entities -- Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL), Indira
Gandhi Centre of Atomic Research (IGCAR) & NTPC have proposed a R&D
project for development of AUSC tech.
o The tech will help in reduced coal consumption as well as Carbon Di-
Oxide emission.
 Assam Becomes 1st to Ratify GST Bill
o Assam has become the first state in the country to ratify the constitution
amendment bill on the Goods and Services Tax (GST).

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 o
The Constitution (122nd Amendment) Bill for GST was passed by the parliament.
o
The GST constitution amendment Bill needs to be ratified by at least 16 of the 31
state assemblies.
o The new regime seeks to subsume all central indirect levies.
 Gujarat Land Acquisition Bill Approved
o President has given approval to The Gujarat Land Acquisition Bill 2016 that
dilutes the Centre stringent provisions of the Land Acquisition Act 2013.
o It will be implemented by the state from Independence Day.
o The Bill has done away with social impact assessment & consent clauses for
acquiring land for public projects.
o It was passed by the state govt in the Assembly during the last budget session.
 M.P & Puducherry Join UDAY Scheme
o Madhya Pradesh & the Union Territory of Puducherry have signed the MoU with
the Ministry of Power to join the UDAY scheme.
o The total number of states and union territories who are a part of UDAY has risen
to 16,
o Puducherry is the first union territory to join UDAY.
o Ujwal DISCOM Assurance Yojana (UDAY) is the financial turnaround and revival
package for electricity distribution companies.
 Women’s Safety App I Feel Safe Launched
o Mobile Standards Alliance of India & the Nirbhaya Jyoti Trust launched a mobile
app.
o Launched at Delhi University“I Feel Safe”is a personal safety application.
o It has a panic button and the user has to press it 5 min to raise an alarm.
o It works even if the screen of the phone is locked & the SIM card has been
removed.
o It places an automatic call to the number 100.
 Javadekar Inaugurate IIT in Chhattisgarh
o Union Human Resource Development Minister Prakash Javadekar has
inaugurated the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in Chattisgarh.
o The minister inaugurated the IIT, Bhilai at its temporary campus at the Govt
Engineering College at Sejbahar.
o The IIT Bhilai is the first IIT in Chhattisgarh and 23rd in the country.
o IIT students can undertake research projects right from their hostel room.
 CCTNS to be Operationalised by March 31
o The Crime and Criminal Tracking Networks & System (CCTNS) project will be
operationalised by 31st of March next year.
o The project aims to connect all police stations in the country with the objective of
tracking crime & criminals related data on real time.
o CCTNS project will digitise data related to FIR registration, investigation & charge
sheets in all police stations.
 Kudankulam Unit Dedicated to Nation
o PM Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin & Tamil Nadu CM J Jayalalithaa
jointly dedicated the Unit 1 of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KNPP) to
the nation through video conferencing.
o Built with Russian technology,this Unit has been functional since 2014 & is
connected to the Southern grid.
o The 1,000-MWe Kundankulum1 unit is the largest single unit of electrical power
in India.
 Niti Aayog Signs Deal with US EIA
o Niti Aayog has inked a pact with US energy information administration (EIA).
o It is working to develop India’s energy data agency.

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 oThe web portal will host all the data related to energy sector including oil & gas,
coal & solar etc.
o Niti Aayog also inked a SOP with US agency for international development
(USAID) & UK’s dept of energy & climate change (DECC) for collaboration in
energy research.
 Maha Govt Launches Quit India Movement 2
o Govt of Maharashtra has launched the Quit India Movement 2 against various
social ills in the presence of Venkaiah Naidu.
o The launch took place at August Kranti Maidan in Mumbai from where Mahatma
Gandhi had given the clarion call of Quit India in 1942.
o Naidu said the country must make illiteracy, discrimination, disunity, disharmony
& terrorism quit India.
o CM Devendra Fadnavis was also present.
 PM Modi Launch Yaad Karo Kurbani Celeb
o PM Modi has kick started the Yaad Karo Kurbani celebrations at the birthplace of
freedom fighter Chandra Shekhar Azad at Alirajpur in Madhya Pradesh.
o The celebrations were launch to mark 70 years of Independence.
o All the Union Ministers will visit 150 places all over the country associated with
Indian freedom movement.
o Rajnath Singh will visit the birthplace of Birsa Munda in Jharkhand.
 PM Modi Launches Mission Bhagiratha
o PM Modi has launched phase-1 of 'Mission Bhagiratha'.
o It is a flagship project of Telangana government aimed at providing piped drinking
water to every household in the state.
o This is the Prime Minister's maiden visit to Telangana after formation of the state
in June 2014.
o PM also laid the foundation stone for the Rs. 10,599-crore 1600 MW NTPC super
thermal power plant to come up in Ramagundam.
 India to attend SAARC conference
o A three-member Parliamentary delegation would be travelling to Islamabad to
attend the first SAARC Young Parliamentarians Conference (YPC)
o The theme of the conference is ‘Peace and Harmony for Development’ and would
be held from August 16 to 18 in Islamabad
o The YPC intends to offer young Parliamentarians’ narrative as a prelude to the
19th SAARC Summit that Pakistan will be hosting in November
 GST bill in Lok Sabha today
o GST Bill which was passed by the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday will be tabled in
the Lok Sabha on Monday.
o BJP has cracked the whip on its MPs to be present in the House to ensure its
smooth passage.
o The Bill is expected to sail through the Lok Sabha, where the BJP-led NDA has a
commanding majority.
o The GST is aimed at bringing uniform tax regime in the country.
 Inauguration of IIT Jammu Campus
o Human Resource Development Minister Prakash Javadekar has inaugurated the
transit campus of Indian Institute of Technology at Jammu.
o Jammu is among the six cities of the country where new IITs were sanctioned
o Ninety students have been enrolled at IIT, Jammu for the first academic session.
o The construction of transit campus spread over 25 acres within the actual site will
start soon.
 PM Modi Launches PMO App

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 oPM Modi has launched the PMO App at the Town Hall meeting on completion of
2 years MYGov.in.
o The app can be used by citizens for discussions & direct submission of
grievances to the PM's office.
o The proceeds from the sales of merchandise on this app will go to the Ganga
cleanliness programme.
o The MyGov portal was launched by the PM on 26 July 2014 as a part of the
govt’s Digital India campaign.
 Venkaiah Launches Swachh Survekshan
o Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu has launched Swachh
Survekshan or Sanitation Survey 2017 of 500 cities in New Delhi.
o He launched a web portal Swachhata App & Swachhta Helpline 1969.
o The survey will assess & rank 500 cities based on levels of sanitation & efforts
made to capture progress towards achieving Open Defecation Free status.
 Talgo’s Delhi-Mumbai 130 kmph Trial
o Talgo’s train has finally completed its Delhi to Mumbai run in 12 hours 36 minutes
beating Rajdhani Express.
o Rajdhani Express normally takes around 15 hours and 50 minutes.
o The maximum speed that attained during trial was 130 kmph.
o Now, for the August 9 trial a maximum speed of 140 kmph will be tried, with the
objective of taking 12 hours and 4 minutes.
 Festival of Films Focuses on Disability
o The 13th edition of the We Care Film Festival on Disability Issues was concluded
in New Delhi.
o Films were divided into four categories based on their run time of under 1-min, 5-
min, 30-min & 60-min.
o Iranian films Here, Fish and I & Our Little Circle won the first prize respectively
under 1, 5 & 60 min category.
o Indian film The Deep Rising' won the first prize in the 30 min category.
 Railways Launches Rail Geet
o Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu has launched Rail Geet.
o It is a 3-minute song with moving trains visuals, to enthuse railwaymen &
establish a connect with general public.
o It was composed by noted music director Shravan & sung by acclaimed singers
Udit Narayan & Kavita Krishnamurti.
o The song “Indian Railways, we love Indian Railways” will be played now at the
beginning of every railway function.
 Tata to Rejuvenate Rajasthan River
o Tata Projects Ltd & Shanghai Urban Construction Group have joined hands to
rejuvenate the Dravyawati River in Rajasthan.
o The 47-km-long river is located between Jaisalya village on the foothills of the
Nahargarh fort and the river Dhund.
o Its condition has deteriorated over the past 100 years.
o The Rajasthan government has awarded a Rs. 1,676-crore contract to the
consortia to revive the river.
 Telangana To Tie Up With ISRO
o Telangana state irrigation department will sign a memorandum of understanding
(MoU) with Indian Space Research Organisation.
o The MoU will be sign for setting up Telangana Water Resources Information
System (TWRIS).
o The system will keep eye from sky on state's water resources.
o ISRO will update the system with new satellite imagery of all water bodies every
fortnight.
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  Govt to Electrify all Villages by 2016
o The Centre has said all the villages in the country will be electrified during the
current year except few villages in naxal affected area.
o Power Minister Piyush Goyal said,out of 18,452 un-electrified villages in the
country, out of which, 9,326 villages have been electrified during last 15 months.
o He said electrification of the villages is a time bound programme.
 LG is Administrative Head of NCT : HC
o The Delhi High Court has held that the Lt. Governor is the administrative head of
the National Capital Territory.
o The court said the AAP govt's contention that the LG is bound to act on the
advice of the Council of Ministers is without any substance.
o The High Court dismissed the AAP Government's plea challenging the Centre's
notification giving absolute powers to LG in appointing bureaucrats.
 Gujarat HC Quashes 10% Quota for EBCs
o Gujarat high court has quashed the state govt's notification granting
10% reservation for the economically backward classes -EBCs.
o The Court termed this notification as unconstitutional, which was issued by
state govt.
o The state govt has granted 10% quota for EBCs in higher educational institutions
& govt jobs.
o The state govt's decision was challenged in the Gujarat high court by a social
worker.
 Railways Tops in Corruption Complaints
o Railways has topped a list of govt organisations against which complaints of
alleged corruption.
o This was according to CVC in its annual report for 2014 which was tabled in
Parliament recently.
o As many as 12,394 complaints of alleged corruption were received against
railway employees followed by 5,363 against bank officials.
o Of the total complaints, 38,192 were disposed of & 17,912 were pending.
 BJP Accepts Anandiben's Resignation
o The BJP Parliamentary Board has accepted the resignation of Gujarat Chief
Minister Anandiben Patel.
o The body has authorised party president Amit Shah to look for a replacement for
Ms.Patel.
o Party leaders Nitin Gadkari & Saroj Pandey have been appointed as observers
for electing the new Gujarat CM.
o Ms. Patel has offered to resign at a time when the party is facing unrest & rising
anti-incumbency.
 Rajnath Singh to Attend SAARC Summit
o Home Minister Rajnath Singh will visit Pakistan to attend the7th SAARC Home
Ministers’ conference.
o During the two-day Saarc meet, Singh is expected to raise New Delhi’s concerns
about Islamabad’s support for terror groups.
o He will reach Islamabad on Wednesday & return to New Delhi the next day.
o India has ruled out a meeting between Singh and his Pakistani counterpart or
other leaders.
 Resolution Passed On Renaming Madras HC
o The Tamil Nadu Assembly has passed a unanimous resolution that the Madras
High Court be renamed as Tamil Nadu High Court &
o The centre has proposed to rename as High Court of Chennai.

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 o
The Bill was introduced in Lok Sabha with an aim to modify the names of the
High Court’s (HCs) of Bombay, Calcutta & Madras.
o Madras City was renamed as Chennai in 1996 by an Act.
 Ministry of Comm Launches Twitter Sewa
o Minister of Communications Sh.Manoj Sinha has launched Twitter Sewa for
addressing the complaints &concerns of common man in the telecom &postal
sectors.
o The twitter handle will be @manojsinhabjp.
o Users-public can tweet their grievances & complaints to the minister's Twitter
handle.
o These tweets will then be classified & sent from the minister's handle as open
tickets to the various dept.
 WB to Change Name to Banga or Bangla
o The Mamata Banerjee cabinet finally gave a nod to change West Bengal's name
to either Banga or Bangla.
o The need for a change of name was essentially for practical reasons of state’s
administration.
o The proposal would be discussed at an all-party meeting & then special session
of Bengal Assembly will been convened.
o Following that, the matter would be put before the Parliament for consideration
 Odisha Govt to Recruit Transgenders
o The Odisha govt has decided to recruit members of transgender community as
warders in jails of the State.
o Members of transgender community could apply for 185 warders’ posts in jails.
o The physical standards for transgender will be same as prescribed for women
candidates.
o This is for the first time the state govt will mention the third gender as a separate
category in any recruitment process.
 Goel, Mary Kom Launch Campaign
o Sports Minister Vijay Goel & five-time world champion MC Mary Kom has
launched a Digital Campaign of Wishes for the Indian contingent.
o In order to promote awareness about the Olympic Games,Goel inaugurated Wall
of Wishes at India Gate Lawn.
o This year India is sending its largest ever contingent in the Olympic.
o This initiative comes after the Run for Rio event organised by Sports Ministry.
 Talgo Train Reaches Mumbai in 15 hours
o The high speed Talgo train arrived in Mumbai from Delhi in 15 hours
o It has slowed down in Gujarat because of heavy rain and flooding on the track.
o Talgo aims to cut the travel time between Delhi and Mumbai to 12 hours from 16
hours.
o The Spanish-made Talgo started its final round of trials from Delhi to Mumbai
aiming at a maximum speed of 130 km per hour.
 Rajasthan Launches SMS Monitoring System
o Rajasthan govt has launched an SMS-based system through which meal data will
be sent everyday by schools to a toll free number that will be monitored at the
state-level.
o The unique initiative is aim to remove corruption from mid-day meal scheme.
o The in-charge has to report everyday about the type of school, the students'
attendance status,& the quantity of food items used.
 IIT Goa Campus Inaugurated
o Union Minister of Human Resource Development Prakash Javdekar inaugurated
Indian Institute of Technology in Goa.
o He also laid the foundation stone for IIT Goa students' hostel.
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 o The newly set up IIT Goa shall function from temporary campus at Goa
Engineering College, Farmagudi.
o The Union minister assured that new & permanent campus for the IIT Goa will
come into being within 1000 days.
 Gange Projects Worth Rs. 400 cr Approved
o National Ganga River Basin Authority (NGRBA) has approved several projects to
be develop along river Ganga.
o It includes development of ghats, crematoria & riverfront costing around Rs 400
crore.
o The projects were cleared by the Empowered Steering Committee, that includes
secretaries of ministries of water, environment, power & urban & chief
secretaries of the 5 states of the river’s basin.
 India's Power Gen Crosses 300 GW Mark
o India's total installed power generation capacity has crossed the 300-Gw mark.
o It also includes 42 Gw of renewable energy sources, including solar and wind.
o Private sector's cumulative installed power generation capacity was 1,24,995.51
Mw as on June 30, 2016
o Central plants account for 76,296.76 Mw & state capacities 101,825,94 Mw.
o The target from clean sources in 2015-16 was 70 billion units.
 Study First, Pay Later: IIT-Kharagpur
o IIT Kharagpur has found a new way to raise funds through a "Learn-Earn-Return
Fund" scheme.
o In this scheme students will get a fee waiver if they pledge to donate money after
getting a job.
o It will be launched from this new academic session,
o The scheme will help students to learn without burden and shape their career to
earn and give back to their alma mater.
 Centre Relaxes Norms For Visiting Ladakh
o The Centre has decided to relax the requirement of a Protected Area Permit for
foreigners visiting various parts of Ladakh including the Nubra valley.
o The notification has been issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs in this regard.
o At the intervention of J&K Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti, Union Ministry of Home
Affairs has decided to relax the Protected Area Permit for foreigners.

Persons in News
 Painter Dinanath Pathy passes away
o Famous painter, writer & art historian Dinanath Pathy passed away following a
cardiac arrest at a hospital in Bhubaneshar.
o Pathy was a former secretary of Lalit Kala Akademi, New Delhi and
Bhubaneswar & is regarded as the pioneer of the art movement in Odisha
o The distinguished painter dedicated his life to the promotion of Odia art across
the globe through his art work, poetry and teaching.
 Bolt named Digicel's Chief Speed Officer
o Jamaica based Digicel Caribbean Ltd named the world’s fastest man, Usain Bolt,
as its Chief Speed Officer.
o Usain Bolt, created history at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio when he achieved
the ‘Triple Triple’, 3 gold medals at 3 consecutive Olympic Games.
o Digicel Group is a communications & entertainment provider with operations in 33
markets in the Caribbean, Central America & Asia Pacific.
 AK Pradhan: Chief General Manager of SBT
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 o
Ashok Kumar Pradhan has taken over as its Chief General Manager of State
Bank Of Travancore.
o Pradhan is from Cuttack in Orissa, started his Banking career in 1985 as a
Probationary Officer in SBBJ.
o State Bank of Travancore (SBT), is a subsidiary of the State Bank Group, but
also has private shareholders.
o SBT is premier bank of Kerala, where it handles the majority of its business.
 CRPF appoints PV Sindhu as Commandant
o Olympic silver medal-winning Indian shuttler, PV Sindhu has been appointed as
an honorary Commandant of the CRPF.
o A Commandant rank in the CRPF is equivalent to the position of a
Superintendent of Police (SP) and such an officer commands a battalion of about
1,000 personnel, when posted in field operations.
o Sindhu will also be made the brand ambassador of the force.
 17-year-old Mumbai girl makes it to MIT
o Malvika Raj Joshi has made it to the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of
Technology (MIT), thanks to her programming talent.
o She doesnt have a class X or XII certificate.
o She has been provided scholarship by MIT for B.Sc degree after getting a seat
for being a three-time medal winner (two silver & a bronze) at International
Olympiad of Informatics or commonly known as Programming Olympiad.
 SN Subrahmanyan: Next L&T chief
o Larsen & Toubro's head AM Naik said that SN Subrahmanyan, who is currently
deputy managing director and President, will take over as his successor from
October 1, 2017.
o The appointment announcement of Subrahmanyan has come in the 71st annual
general meeting.
o Subrahmanyan is a management graduate also holds Civil Engineering in his
curriculum besides being the youngest member on L&T’s board
 Indonesian may be world’s oldest person
o An Indonesian man who claims to be an incredible 145 years old may be the
oldest person in the world ever.
o According to the documents recognised by Indonesian officials, Mbah Gotho from
Sragen in central Java was born on December 31, 1870.
o If the papers are true, that would make him much older than the verified oldest
person - Jeanne Calment, 122, of France .
 Srinivasan and Piramal at Tata Sons
o Venu Srinivasan, chairman of TVS Motor, and Ajay Piramal, chairman of both the
Piramal Group and Shriram Group have been appointed to the BoD of Tata Sons.
o Industrialist Nusli Wadia is still a non-executive director of Tata Steel.
o Tata Sons is chaired by Cyrus Mistry, while Ratan Tata is its chairman-emeritus.
o Tata Sons is the holding company of the $103-billion Tata conglomerate.
 Sakshi Brand Ambassador for Beti Bachao
o Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal has honoured Rio bronze medal winner
Sakshi Malik at Bahadurgarh.
o Chief Minister announced Sakshi as Haryana's brand ambassador for Beti
Bachao, Beti Padao campaign.
o The programme aims to empower the girl child and reduce rates of female
foeticide in districts with low child sex ratio.
o Malik hails from the Mokhra Khas village in the state’s Rohtak district.
 Catholic Syrian Bank MD Quits
o Anand Krishnamurthy, managing director and chief executive of Catholic Syrian
Bank(CSB)has resigned.
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 o
Krishnamurthy had been associated with the bank for the past one year.
o
The CSB is an Indian private sector bank with
its headquarters at Thrissur, Kerala, India.
o It is one of the oldest banks in India.
o CSB was founded on 26 November 1920 & opened for business on January 1st,
1921.
 Padukone Enter Top 10 Highest-Paid List
o According to the Forbes magazine list of world's highest-paid female actors,
Deepika Padukone is the only Indian actor in the top 10 highest-paid Hollywood
female actors' list.
o She is ranked 10th with total earnings of USD 10 million.
o Jennifer Lawrence is the world`s highest-paid actress in 2016 with earnings of
over USD 46 million.
o She is followed by Melissa McCarthy.
 Former President of Singapore Dies
o Former President of Singapore,SR Nathan has passed away.
o He held office from 1999 to 2011 & was the longest-serving president of
Singapore
o Prior to becoming President, Nathan held key positions in the civil service, as well
as in security & foreign affairs.
o He was appointed as Singapore's High Commissioner to Malaysia in 1988 & later
Singapore's Ambassador to the USA from 1990 to 1996.
 Legendary journalist George E Curry Dies
o George Curry, the legendary columnist, commentator and champion of black
journalists has passed away.
o He served two stints as editor-in-chief of the National Newspaper Publishers
Association, a news service for black papers.
o He mainly reported on racism, poverty and national politics for newspapers.
o His syndicated column was carried in more than 200 African American-owned
newspapers.
 Ashok Chawla Named Part-Time Chairman
o Former head of the Competition Commission of India (CCI) Ashok Chawla will
take over as the non-executive part-time chairman of YES Bank.
o He was appointed as the Chairman of the CCI for the period 2011-2016.
o YES Bank is the country's fifth-largest private sector bank.
o He will take charge with effect from Oct 30 for a period of three years .
 Smallpox Eradication 'Giant' Dies
o US doctor & epidemiologist Donald Henderson,who led a successful campaign to
wipe out smallpox worldwide has died.
o He was hailed as a "giant" in the field of public health for his work in the 1960s
and 70s.
o Smallpox is a highly infectious virus that kills 30 percent of its victims.
o He received the nation's highest civilian honor the Presidential Medal of Freedom
in 2002.
 Big B Hits 22m Followers on Twitter
o Megastar Amitabh Bachchan has scored 22 million followers on Twitter.
o He retains his position of the most followed Indian actor on the micro-blogging
site.
o He is neck-and-neck with PM Narendra Modi, who too has 22 million Twitter
followers.

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 oHe is ahead of superstars like Shah Rukh Khan (20.8 million) & Salman Khan
(19 million).
o He has joined Twitter in 2010.
 Vistara Appoints Deepika Padukone
o Vistara has appointed Deepika Padukone as its brand ambassador.
o It is a joint venture between Tata Sons Ltd and Singapore Airlines,commenced
operations on 9 Jan 2015 with its inaugural flight between Delhi & Mumbai
o With this initiative, the airline also intends to make brand Vistara a household
name just like its parent company brands.
o Deepika Padukone had earlier endorsed Kingfisher Airlines.
 RS Sodhi Appointed on Board of IPPB
o Amul Managing Director RS Sodhi has been appointed as independent director
on the board of India Post Payment Banks (IPPB).
o IPPB is the payments bank arm of postal department.
o He is one of the five independent members to be appointed on the board IPPB.
o IPPB came into existence after it received certificate of incorporation from the
Registrar of Companies on August 17.
 Indian-American Inducted in Hall Of Fame
o Renu Khator,Indian-American woman academic will be inducted into the Texas
Women Hall of Fame.
o She will be inducted for making significant contribution for the benefit of the US'
second largest state.
o She is the first Indian-American to lead a major research university in the US,
o She is also the president of University of Houston main campus.
o She was born in Uttar Pradesh's Farrukhabad district.
 Indo-Canadian 1st woman Leader of House
o Indo-Canadian Sikh MP Bardish Chagger has been named as the new Leader of
the government in Canada's House of Commons.
o She becomes the first woman to hold the post in the country's history.
o She was sworn in as Minister of Small Business and Tourism & will retain her title
as the Ministe.
o She is one of the four Sikh Canadians inducted into PM Trudeau's Cabinet.
 Sunil Mittal Re-appointed Chairman
o Sunil Bharti Mittal has been re-appointed as the Chairman of telecom giant Bharti
Airtel for another five year.
o Mittal is the Founder of Bharti Enterprises.
o It is India's one of largest conglomerates with diversified interests in telecom,
insurance, real estate, agri and food, besides other ventures.
o The Group also has joint ventures with global leaders like
Singtel,SoftBank,AXA amongst others.
 Urjit Patel Appointed 24th RBI Governor
o Urjit R Patel has been appointed as the new governor of Reserve Bank of India
(RBI).
o Patel will assume office as the 24th RBI governor for three years on September
5.
o Patel’s primary duty is to keep prices stable and ensure credit flow to companies
and individuals.
o The RBI regulates banks, prints money and prevents volatility in the foreign
exchange market.
 Odia Filmmaker, Actor Govind Tej Dies
o Noted Odia filmmaker,actor & director Govind Tej passed away.
o He started his career as an Actor in films Kedar Gouri in 1954.

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 oHe was conferred with Jaydev Samman- the highest award by the state
government in the field of films in 1986.
o He received Odisha State Film Awards for best director for movies like
Kaberi, School Master,Tunda Baida & Gare Sindura Dhare Luha.
 Tanden is Co-Chair of Hillary Team
o Indian-American Neera Tanden was named co-chair of the transition team of
Hillary Clinton.
o The transition team usually prepares an incoming President to take over the reins
the day he or she is sworn in.
o The new President will have to appoint not only Cabinet members but also fill
nearly 4000 posts at various levels.
o The transition team organises these efforts.
 Malayalam scriptwriter T A Razzaq Dies
o Noted Malayalam scriptwriter T A Razzaq passed away.
o He started his career as a scriptwriter in 1991 for Mohanlal-starred
"Vishnulokam",
o As a scriptwriter, his notable films include Kanakinavu, Ghazal,
Perumazhakalam, Aayirathil Oruvan and Thalolam.
o He is a recipient of the Kerala State Film Award for best story thrice -
Kanakkinavu (1996), Aayirathil Oruvan (2002) & Perumazhakalam (2004).
 First Speaker of Delhi Assembly Dies
o Charti Lal Goel, the first Speaker of Delhi Assembly and father of Union Sports
Minister Vijay Goel has passed way.
o He was one of the founding members of Bharatiya Jan Sangh.
o He became the first Speaker of Delhi Assembly in 1993& continued in the post till
1998.
o He has also served as the deputy mayor of Delhi and was among the political
leaders imprisoned during the Emergency in 1975.
 Noted Punjabi Writer Gurdial Singh Dies
o World famous prominent Punjabi writer, novelist and short story writer Gurdial
Singh passed away.
o The award-winning Punjabi film, ‘Anne Ghore Da Daan’ (Alms of the Blind
Horse), was also based on his Punjabi novel .
o He rose to popularity with the publication of his novel ‘Marhi Da Deeva’ in 1964.
o He was the recipient of honours such as Padma Shri, Jnanpith Award & Sahitya
Akademi Award.
 Former FIFA President Havelange Dies
o Former Fifa president Joao Havelange has passed away.
o Havelange ,the Brazilian was predecessor to Sepp Blatter at world football's
governing body, serving from 1974 to 1998.
o He was an International Olympic Committee (IOC) member from 1963 until 2011.
o As Fifa president he led the World Cup's expansion from 16 to 32 teams, with six
competitions held under his tenure.
 Spiritual Guru Pramukh Swami Dies
o Head of Boachasanvasi Akshar Purushottam Sanstha (BAPS), Pramukh Swami
Maharaj has passed away.
o He has large number of followers across the world.
o Swami Maharaj and his institution- BAPS was remarkable in the field of
education, health and other social services.
o He became the spiritual guru of BAPS in 1971 after Yogiji Maharaj, the fourth
spiritual successor of BAPS passed away.

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  Lyricist Na Muthukumar Passes Away
o National Award winning lyricist Na Muthukumar (41) passed away.
o He won two national awards for the songs Ananda Yazhai Meetukiral in Thanga
Meengal and Azhage Azhage in Saivam.
o He is the only Tamil writer who wrote 103 songs in single year (2012).
o He has written songs for more than 1000 films.
o He has also written several novels & poems & has a great fan following among
Tamil readers.
 Manjula Named new CJ of Bombay HC
o Manjula Chellur, chief justice of the Calcutta High Court, has been appointed
Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court with effect from August 24.
o She will be only second woman Chief Justice of the Bombay HC,after Sujata
Manohar in 1994.
o Her appointment follows retirement of D H Waghela as Chief Justice of the
Bombay HC on August 10.
o Waghela held the post for a brief six months.
 Sriram Appointed MD of Microsoft Lab
o Microsoft has announced the appointment of Sriram Rajamani as new managing
director of its India lab.
o He will responsible for research, innovation & collaboration with the scientific
community.
o Prior to joining the India lab, he headed the Software Productivity Tools group
within Microsoft.
o He will replace Chandu Thekkath, who was the managing director of the lab for
two years.
 Azim Premji, Shiv Nadar In Forbes List
o Wipro Chairman Azim Premji & HCL co-founder Shiv Nadar are the only two
billionaires from India in Forbes' list of the world's 100 richest people in
technology.
o The list has been topped by Microsoft founder Bill Gates with an estimated
fortune of USD 78 billion.
o Mr Premji ranks 13th on the list with a networth of USD 16 billion.
o Mr Nadar comes on the 17th spot with USD 11.6 billion of net worth.
 Dinesh Kumar Khara Appointed SBI's MD
o Dinesh Kumar Khara was appointed Managing Director of State Bank of India
(SBI).
o He is presently working as MD & Chief Executive Officer of SBI Funds
Management Pvt Ltd.
o The Appointments Committee of Cabinet (ACC) has appointed Khara for a period
of three years.
o Ashok Kumar Garg & Raj Kamal Verma have been appointed as ED of Bank of
Baroda & Union Bank of India respectively.
 Duke of Westminster Dies
o U.K Billionaire landowner the Duke of Westminster Gerald Cavendish Grosvenor
has passed away.
o He was one of the UK's richest landowners, with a fortune estimated at
$10.8bn Forbes magazine.
o That would make him the world's 68th richest person and the UK's third.
o He held the rank of Major-General in the Territorial Army.
o He was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath by Queen Elizabeth II.
 Actor & Dancer Jyothi Lakshmi Dies
o Popular southern actor Jyothi Lakshmi has passed away.

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 o
She made her cinematic debut with the 1963 Tamil film Periya Idathu Penn at the
age of 10.
o She acted in over 300 southern films, Telugu and Tamil films such as Pilla
Pidagu, Bangara Babu and Gandharva Kanya.
o Her last onscreen appearance was in last year’s Tamil adult comedy Trisha Illana
Nayanthara.
 Former Arunachal CM Kalikho Pul Dies
o Former Arunachal Chief Minister Kalikho Pul has passed away.
o He held the CM’s post for about five months & had left office last month after a
Supreme Court ruling ordered removal of his govt.
o He was with the Congress till late 2015 when he rebelled along with a large
section of legislators from the party against then CM Nabam Tuki.
o He became chief minister with the backing of the BJP.
 MS Subbulakshmi to be Honoured at UN
o Legendary carnatic vocalist M. S. Subbulakshmi will be honoured at the United
Nations on India’s 70th Independence Day.
o She will be honoured by Oscar-winning composer A.R. Rahman at the world
body’s iconic General Assembly.
o Through his performance, Rahman will pay homage to Subbulakshmi, the first
musician ever to be awarded India’s highest civilian honour Bharat Ratna.
 Irom Sharmila Ends her 16-year Long Fast
o Manipuri human rights activist Irom Sharmila has ended her 16-year-long fast
and expressed desire to enter politics.
o She had been on a hunger strike since 2000 demanding the removal of the
Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act [AFSPA].
o She said that she will remove the Act from Manipur when she becomes Chief
Minister of the state.
o She is also called the Iron Lady of Manipur.
 Pawan Munjal Reappointed Hero Moto CMD
o The Board of Directors at Hero MotoCorp has reappointed Pawan Munjal as the
Chairman, Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer of the company.
o He has been appointed for a period of five years.
o His current tenure comes to an end on 30th of September 2016.
o The company has also elevated its Head of Operations & Supply Chain Vikram
Kasbekar as a Director on the company’s board.
 Yoga Guru TKV Desikachar Passes Away
o Yoga master T. K. V. Desikachar, son of legendary Indian yoga master T.
Krishnamacharya, passed away.
o He is the son & student of T Krishnamacharya, popularly known as 'the father of
modern yoga'.
o TKV Desikachar quit his job as an engineer and embarked on a journey in yoga.
o In 1976 he founded Krishnamacharya Yoga Mandiram which revolutionised the
yoga practice.
 Australian Surfing Champ Bernard Dies
o Australian surfing champion Bernard Farrelly,best known as Midget has passed
away.
o He won the first official surfing world championship at Sydney's Manly Beach
in 1964,
o He dominated the sport as it gained popularity during that decade.
o He was the first Australian to win a major surfing title in the 1963 Hawaiian
championship.

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 o He was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 1985.
 Vijay Rupani Sworn in as New Gujarat CM
o Vijay Rupani was sworn in as the Chief Minister while Nitin Patel as Deputy CM
of Gujarat.
o Governor O.P.Kohli administered the oath of post & secrecy.
o Rupani represents Rajkot West seat & joined Jan Sangh in 1971 & has been
associated with BJP since its formation.
o The new government was sworn in after former BJP CM Anandiben Patel
resigned last week.
 Takehiko Re-elected as ADB President
o The Asian Development Bank (ADB) Board of Governors has unanimously re-
elected Takehiko Nakao as President of ADB.
o He was re-elected for a further five years beginning November 24, 2016.
o He was first elected as president by the Board of Governors on April 28, 2013.
o The ADB is a regional development bank established on 19 Dec 1966 to promote
social and economic development in Asia.
 Assamese Litterateur Mahim Bora Dies
o Eminent Assamese litterateur Mahim Bora has passed away.
o He received Padma Shri in 2011 and the Assam Valley Literary award in 1998.
o He had received the Sahitya Akademi award for his most popular work ‘Edhani
Mahir Hanhi’ in 2001.
o His literary works include Kathanibari Ghat, Bohubhuji Tribhuj, Eai Nadir
Sonte,Mai Pippali Aru Puja, Rati Phula Phul & Putala Ghaiz.
 Vijay Rupani to be New CM of Gujarat
o Gujarat BJP President Vijay Rupani will be the new Chief Minister of Gujarat.
o State Health Minister Nitin Patel has been made Deputy CM of the state.
o This decision was taken in the meeting of BJP state legislative party.
o Union minister Nitin Gadkari announced the appointments after CM Anandiben
Patel resigned earlier in the week.
o The BJP has been in power in Gujarat for two decades.
 Anand Sinha Joins IDFC Bank Board
o Private sector lender IDFC Bank has appointed former Reserve Bank of India
deputy governor Anand Sinha on its board as an independent director.
o He will replace former Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) Vinod Rai & was
appointed with effect from Aug 1.
o Mr Rai was appointed as the Chairman of the Banks Board Bureau.
o IDFC had received approval from RBI to start operations as a bank in April 2014.
 CARE Ratings Names Mokashi MD
o The Board of Directors of Credit Analysis and Research Ltd (CARE Ratings) has
appointed Rajesh Mokashi as the Managing Director & CEO of the company.
o It will subject to approval at the ensuing Annual General Meeting.
o Mr Mokashi, who has been with the company since inception.
o CARE Ratings provides credit rating that helps the corporates to raise capital for
their various requirement.
 Egyptian Nobel Laureate Zewail Dies
o Nobel Prize-winning Egyptian-American scientist Ahmed Zewail passed away.
o He was born in Damanhour city of Egypt, Zewail & won the Nobel Prize in
Chemistry in 1999 for his pioneering work in femtochemistry.
o He was author of some 600 scientific articles and 16 books.
o He also is credited with developing a new research field dubbed four-dimensional
electron microscopy.
 Pramila Sweeps Washington Open Primary

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 o
Indian-American Pramila Jayapal has swept an open Congressional primary in
Washington State.
o She could make history as the first woman from the community to enter the U.S
Congress if she wins the US November general election.
o Washington has a ‘top-two primary’ system i.e, all candidates run & the top two
candidates in the primaryregardless of party affiliation move on to the general
election.
 Nita Ambani Elected as IOC Member
o Noted sports promoter & founder chairperson of Reliance Foundation, Nita
Ambani was elected as an individual member of International Olympic
Committee.
o She becomes the first Indian woman to join the prestigious body which governs
Olympic sports.
o She was elected by IOC members at the 129th Session of the world body.
o She is the only current active individual member of the IOC from India.
 4 PIOs Among US' Top Wealth Advisors
o Four persons of Indian-origin have been named among America's top wealth
advisors by Forbes on a list of 200 members.
o Raj Sharma and Ash Chopra, both of whom work in Merrill Lynch's Private
Banking & Investment Group, have been ranked 17th and 129.
o Sonny Kothari of Merrill Lynch Wealth Management has been ranked 176.
o Raju Pathak of Morgan Stanley Wealth Management is placed at 184th rank.
 Indian Origin Girl Named Child Genius
o Indian-origin girl has been crowned Britain's brightest child after she won a
popular television quiz competition in the UK.
o Rhea shot ahead in the final of ‘Child Genius 2016’ on Channel 4 with six correct
answers.
o She correctly spelled the word “eleemosynary”, meaning relating to charity,to
claim the title.
o She had moved to the UK with her family from the US six years ago.
 Prachanda all Set to Become Nepal PM
o Nepal Maoist chief Pushpa Kamal Dahal “Prachanda” is all set to become the
Prime Minister for the second time.
o He filed his nomination after receiving crucial backing from the agitating
Madhesis by signing a three-point pact.
o Nepali Congress & CPN Maoist Centre signed a three- point agreement with the
Madhesi Front.
o The election became necessary after K.P. Oli resigned last month.
 Katju Appointed Head of BCCI Legal Panel
o The BCCI has appointed Markandey Katju as the head of a 4 member legal panel
to help the Board understand the implications of the Justice Lodha Committee
reforms.
o Justice Katju has been a judge in the Supreme Court from 2006 to 2011.
o Lodha Committee reforms have been made binding.
o The committee is expected to help BCCI in implementing the reforms in the next
six months.
 Anandiben Patel Quits as Gujarat CM
o Anandiben Patel has offered to step down as Gujarat’s first woman chief minister.
o Citing examples of party members who have stepped down after attaining the
age of 75, Anandiben Patel said she was following the same.

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 o
She asked the Bharatiya Janata Party leadership to relieve her of the top
responsibility in the state.
o The BJP has accepted her offer & is expected to announce her replacement
soon.
 Anant to be Microsoft India President
o Software giant Microsoft has named former Honeywell top executive Anant
Maheshwari as the President of its India operations.
o Maheshwari will join Microsoft on Sept1& will take over operations of the
company from Microsoft India Chairman Bhaskar Pramanik with effect from Jan1,
2017
o He will be responsible for Microsoft's product, service, and support offerings
across India.
 Rani Nair set to be new CBDT Chairperson
o Senior Indian Revenue Service(IRS) officer Rani Singh Nair is set to be
appointed the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) chairperson, with incumbent
Atulesh Jindal retiring.
o Nair is a 1979-batch IRS officer & is presently working as member (legislation
and computerisation) in CBDT.
o CBDT is responsible for framing policy & administrative issues related to direct
taxes & the Income Tax dept.
 New CJ of Patna High Court Sworn In
o Justice Iqbal Ahmed Ansari was sworn in as the 39th Chief Justice of Patna High
Court.
o He was administered oath by Bihar Governor Ramnath Kovind at a function
herein Raj Bhawan.
o Justice Ansari had worked twice as Acting Chief Justice of Patna High Court
since December 2014.
o He did his B.Sc. from Darrang College, Tezpur & completed graduation in law
from Tezpur Law College.
 Prabhu Flag off Tripura Sundari Express
o Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu has flagged off maiden broad-gauge train
service between Agartala & Delhi.
o It will cover a distance of 2461 kms in 46 hours& 50 minutes.
o With the launch of the passenger train, the state of Tripura has now been
connected with the national capital via Guwahati.
o The RM will also lay the foundation stone of the Agartala-Akhaura International
Rail link Project.

Places in News
 Melbourne Wins Most Liveable City Award
o Melbourne has been named as world’s most liveable city for the sixth year
running according the Economist’s global liveability survey.
o Melbourne followed by Vienna, Vancouver & Toronto. Adelaide & Calgary in
Canada tied for fifth place.
o Ranking is determined by score across five broad categories of stability ,
healthcare , culture and environment , education & infrastructure .
 Narmada to be Open Defecation-Free
o The tribal district of Narmada is all set to become the first district in Gujarat to be
declared Open Defecation-Free (ODF).
o Currently, 500 villages out of 561 villages in the district have achieved 100
% ODF status.
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It will soon become India's third & Gujarat's first district where everybody will have
toilets.
o Narmada district authority also organized one of the biggest hand washing
activities.
 1st Wi-Fi Hotspot in Arunachal Launched
o Arunachal Pradesh CM Pema Khandu has launched the first free wi-fi hotspot in
the state at a government college.
o This pilot project has been launched in Dera Natung Govt College to bring
internet closer to the students.
o The govt has plans to make the twin towns of Itanagar & Naharlagun a free wi-fi
zone.
o The state govt would also in the future try to connect the villages with internet
facility.
 Mumbai Ranked Most Expensive City
o Mumbai has been ranked the most expensive city in the country according to a
report.
o Mumbai has been ranked second least expensive in the world to visit after Hanoi,
according to TripAdvisor's sixth edition of annual TripIndex Cities.
o Overall the report revealed that New York is the most expensive city
internationally.
o Capetown in South Africa has been ranked 3rd least expensive city to visit.

Science and Technology

 Mahindra to track vehicles information

o (M&M) announced Mahindra DiGiSENSE, a technology solution that connects
Mahindra range of pick up vehicles, tractors, trucks & construction equipment to
the cloud.
o It enables vehicle owners to access vital information about their vehicles on a
real-time basis sitting far away.
o Mahindra has become the first OEM in India to integrate its product line-up onto a
cloud-based technology platform.
 Scramjet Engine's successful launch
o ISRO on Sunday morning successfully tested its own scramjet or the air-
breathing engine.
o Two scramjet engines were tested during the flight.
o It was fired from Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.
o The scramjet engine will help in bringing down the launch cost by reducing the
amount of oxidiser to be carried along with the fuel.
 Japan Scientist Detect Rare Earth Tremor
o Scientists in Japan studying earthquakes have detected a rare deep-Earth
tremor, known as an S wave microseism, for the first time.
o The findings, published in the US journal Science, could help experts to improve
detection of earthquakes and oceanic storms.
o Microseisms are very faint tremors.
o S waves refer to secondary waves, which are slow and move only through rock,
not liquid.
 Nasa's Juno probe set for closest flyby

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 o
NASA has said that its Juno spacecraft, launched five years ago, will get closer to
Jupiter this Saturday than at any other time during its prime mission.
o At the moment of closest approach, Juno will be about 4,200 km above Jupiter's
clouds and traveling at 208,000 km/hour with respect to the planet.
o JUNO probe was launched in 2011 and is scheduled to end in February of 2018.
 China Releases Image of Mars Rover
o China is heading to Mars and to prepare for the journey in 2020, the country
released the proposed design of its Mars Rover.
o China's Mars probe is set to launch in 2020 and the country is committed to
making it happen as scheduled.
o Mars rover will be sent to the red planet using a lander and a probe capable of
carrying 13 payloads, a camera and radar lasting the three-month mission.
 Singapore Trials First Driverless Taxi
o The world's first driverless taxis went into operation in Singapore in a limited
public trial, beating giants like Uber in the race to roll out the revolutionary
technology.
o The "robo-taxi service"a is being tested at a small research campus well away
from the thrum of the Asian business hub.
o The six taxis will operate in a 2.5 square mile, with set pick-up and drop-off
points.
 Earth Like Planet Found
o Astronomers just discovered the closest possible Earth-like planet outside our
solar system.
o It orbits our closest neighboring star, Proxima Centauri.
o The planet is warm enough for liquid water & is almost certainly rocky and
terrestrial & could even have an atmosphere.
o The newly discovered planet has been temporarily named Proxima B by its
discoverers.
 World's 1st Self Driving Taxis Hit Roads
o The world's first self driving taxis to hit roads in Singapore.
o The service will start with small six cars & will have a fully self-driving taxi fleet in
Singapore by 2018.
o The cars are doing the driving themselves & the driver is only there to monitor
the performance.
o Each car is fitted with six sets of a detection system that uses lasers to operate
like radar.
 China's Unmanned Submersible Sets Record
o China's unmanned submersible has dived to a depth of 10,767 metres at the
world's deepest ocean point.
o The submersible named Haidou-1 set the record at the Mariana Trench in the
West Pacific.
o It will helps to enable it to explore ocean beds for minerals.
o This makes China the 3rd country after Japan and the US to have built
submersibles capable of reaching depths in excess of 10,000 metres.
 Scientist Predict Brain Activity Pattern
o Researchers have, for the first time, decoded and predicted the brain activity
patterns of word meanings within sentences.
o It may help brain injury and stroke patients communicate better.
o The study used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to measure
human brain activation.
o The study makes key advances towards understanding how information is
represented throughout the brain.
 Species of Eel Found in Bay of Bengal
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 o
Scientists have discovered a new species of eel, a snake-like fish, from the Bay
of Bengal.
o The species Gymnothorax indicus is slender-bodied, about one feet-long and
edible.
o Eels are found mostly at the bottom of rivers and seas.
o This species was found at a depth of 35 metres in the sea.
o Globally, about 1,000 species of eels have been identified & in India, the number
is around 125.
 World's first Leprosy Vaccine Developed
o The first exclusive vaccine for leprosy that was developed in India will be
launched in a few weeks.
o This was said Union Health Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda .
o Five districts in Bihar and Gujarat will be chosen for the pilot phase.
o The vaccine, mycobacterium indicus Pranii (MIP), will be administered as a
preventive measure for people living in close contact with those infected by the
bacteria.
 World's Largest Aircraft Gets Off Ground
o The world's largest aircraft has embarked on its maiden flight.
o The Airlander 10, part plane, part airship took to the skies at an airfield
in Cardington,central England.
o It was originally developed for the US army as a surveillance aircraft.
o The Airlander can fly at up to 4,880 metres & reach speeds of 148 km per hour.
o It can stay airborne for more than 2 weeks unmanned & up to 5 days if manned.
 Indian Origin Student Develops Drone
o An Indian-origin student in the United Kingdom has developed a drone that
provides communication immediately after the occurrence of a natural disaster.
o The potentially life-saving system called Exigency, was invented by Luqmaan
Patel, a student at Staffordshire.
o The drone provides such an area with temporary communications.
o It will facilitates victims to quickly contact family and rescue groups.
 China Launches 'Hack-Proof' Satellite
o China has launched the world's first quantum satellite
o It will help in establish "hack-proof" communications between space and the
ground.
o The satellite was launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in
northwestern Gobi Desert.
o Quantum communication boasts of ultra-high security as a quantum photon can
neither be separated nor duplicated.
 July 2016 was Earth’s Hottest in History
o July 2016 was the hottest month on record according to NASA reports.
o NASA revealed that temperatures in July peaked above the previous record set
five years ago.
o The previous record-holders were July 2015 and July 2011.
o Nasa calculated that July 2016 was 1.51 degrees Fahrenheit (0.84 degrees
Celsius) warmer than the 1950-1980 global average.
 SpaceX Lands Falcon9 Rocket After Launch
o SpaceX has successfully landed a reusable Falcon 9 rocket on a floating drone
ship at sea after the vehicle had sent a Japanese satellite into orbit.
o It carry its onboard satellite called JCSAT-16 into geostationary transfer orbit.
o This was part of its ongoing effort to re-use costly rocket parts.

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 oIt was also the fourth time SpaceX has landed a used Falcon9 rocket aboard a
floating platform.
 Venus May Have Once Been habitable
o Venus may have been habitable according to a new NASA study.
o It suggests that the planet had a shallow water ocean & cooler surface
temperatures for up to 2 billion years.
o The findings were obtained with a model similar to the type used to predict future
climate change on Earth.
o Measurements by NASA’s Pioneer mission to Venus in the 1980s first suggested
Venus originally may have had an ocean.
 China Launches SAR Imaging Satellite
o China has launched a new high-resolution Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR)
imaging satellite from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center.
o The Gaofen-3 satellite was launched off on the back of a Long March 4C rocket.
o It is China’s first SAR imaging satellite that is accurate to one meter in distance.
o It will be used for disaster warning, weather forecasting & water resource
assessments.
 NASA Selects 6 Firms to Develop Habitats
o NASA has selected six US companies to help develop prototypes & concepts of
deep space habitats for manned missions to Mars.
o Habitation systems provide a safe place for humans to live beyond Earth on our
journey to Mars.
o The selected companies are Bigelow Aerospace, Boeing, Lockheed Martin,
Orbital ATK, Sierra Nevada Corporation’s Space Systems & NanoRacks
 India Gets its First Tiger Repository
o The Wildlife Institute of India (WII) will house the India’s first repository on tigers,
under its new Tiger Cell.
o India’s first tiger cell was set up at the WII campus in Dehradun, Uttarakhand.
o MOU was signed between the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) &
WII.
o The cell will house a database of tigers and their DNA sampling from over 50
tiger reserves of the state.
 First-ever 'Pizza ATM' Opens in US
o First-ever 'pizza ATM' in the USA has been installed at a university campus.
o The pizza vending machine on the campus of Xavier University (XU) in Ohio can
hold seventy 12-inch pizzas & dispense them fresh & hot in just three minutes.
o French-based company Paline has developed the ATM.
o The cost of each pizza is around USD 10 &the ATM accepting credit & debit
cards.
 Word on Mercury’s Volcanoes
o A new research has shown that most volcanic activity on Mercury stopped
around 3.5 billion years ago
o Due to unavailability of physical samples from Mercury, researchers used
photographs of the solar system’s inner-most planet’s surface, taken by NASA’s
Messenger mission
o The research gives planetary scientists further insight into the effects of planets
cooling and contracting.
 NASA releases HDR video
o NASA has released a rocket motor test video in extreme slow motion
o The video offers a spectacular view of QM-2 test by company Orbital ATK
o It was captured using a High Dynamic Range Stereo X camera (HiDyRS-X)
o NASA has planned to use the SLS rocket to launch its new Orion spacecraft to
send astronauts on deep-space voyages to an asteroid, Mars and beyond.
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  Moon Express Cleared for Lunar Landing
o Moon Express has become the first private firm to win US approval for an
unmanned mission to the moon.
o The mission was given the go-ahead by the Federal Aviation Administration's
Office of Commercial Space Transportation.
o The plan is to send a lander to the moon in 2017.
o The lander will be carried on a rocket made by Rocket Lab, a start-up firm which
has not launched any commercial missions.
 China Launches Mobile Telecom Satellite
o China has successfully launched the first satellite for mobile telecommunication.
o The Tiantong-01 satellite was launched at southwestern China's Xichang Satellite
Launch Centre with the Long March-3B carrier rocket.
o It will establish a mobile network with ground facilities, providing services for
China, the Middle East & Africa.
o Tiantong-01 was designed by China Academy of Space Technology.
 China's Jade Rabbit Moon Rover Dead
o China's Jade Rabbit lunar rover has bid its final farewell and shut down after 31
months exploring the Moon.
o Jade Rabbit arrived on the Moon in December 2013 in the Chang'e-3 space
mission.
o The rover has lived a good long life, gathering data for almost three years,
much longer than its three month nominal mission.
o It made China the third country to reach the Moon after Russia and the US.
 China's Elevated Bus Hits the Road
o China has made world’s first Transit Elevated Bus.
o The first road test was made in North China Hebei Province in Qinhuangdao.
o China’s homemade Transit Elevated Bus is also named as “Straddling Bus” (TEB
– 1).
o The futuristic bus is 22 meters long, 4.8 meters high & 7.8 meters wide where
cars can go underneath of the elevated bus.
o The biggest advantage is that the bus will save lots of road space.
 China's Online Population Exceeds 700 m
o The number of Internet users in China has touched 710 million, more than half of
the total population of the country.
o China is already home to the world's largest number of web users.
o The country internet users accounting for 51.7 per cent of its total population
o The China Internet Network Information Centre (CNNIC) said that 92.5 % of
Internet users in China go online through their smartphones.

Sports
 Bhutan set to host Asian Tennis Tour
o Bhutan is set to become the 4th Asian country to host a tournament on the Asian
Tennis Tour (ATT) in Sept which will be country's 1st ever international tennis
tournament.
o India, Thailand & Iran have already hosted a series of tournaments, both men
and women, on ATT.
o Bhutan is scheduled to host its maiden event from Sept. 16 to 18.
o Performance on ATT is considered for the Asian rankings.
 Man Kaur, 100-year-old wins Gold Medal

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 oIndia’s 100-year-old athlete, Man Kaur, on 30 Aug 2016 won Gold medal at the
American Masters Games in the 100-met dash.
o Kaur from Chandigarh was the only female competitor in her age category at the
competition for older athletes.
o Kaur has now won more than 20 medals in Masters Games across the globe.
o World Masters Games is an international multi-sport event that takes place every
4 years.
 US  Open: Saketh Myneni loses 1st round
o India’s Saketh Myneni posted an inspired display but was beaten 6-7 (5), 6-4, 6-
2, 2-6, 5-7 against Czech Jiri Vesely in the first round of the US Open tennis
tournament.
o The marathon match stretched for three hours and 47 minutes.
o Myneni was the sole Indian in the men’s singles competition.
o He is the first Indian since Yuki Bhambri to enter the main draw of a Grand Slam
event.
 Yogeshwar's London bronze turns silver
o Indian wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt's bronze medal from the London Olympics has
been upgraded to silver.
o The silver medallist from the 2012 Games - deceased Besik Kudukhov of Russia
- has been stripped off his medal for using banned substance.
o Official confirmation is still awaited from the United World Wrestling (UWW) and
the International Olympic Committee.
 Nico Rosberg wins Belgian Grand Prix'16
o Nico Rosberg of Mercedes on 28 August 2016 won the 2016 Belgian Grand Prix
of Formula One.
o It was Rosberg’s 1st ever win at Spa and 6th of the 2016 season. This win has
narrowed the gap between Hamilton & him to 9 points in the championship
standings.
o Belgian Grand Prix is one of the most popular races of the F1 calendar, due to
the scenic and historic circuit being favorite of drivers & fans.
 India loses to west indies
o India lost the first of the two T20 match against the West Indies here on Saturday.
o India needed just eight runs from the final over.
o India fell short of one run.
o India thus failed to pull off the highest ever successful run chase which still
stands at 236 for 6 which the West Indies pulled off against South Africa in
January last year in Johannesburg.
 Sachin offers BMW to Olympic medalists
o Sachin Tendulkar gave BMW to Rio Olympics silver medallist PV Sindhu and
bronze winner wrestler Sakshi Malik.
o He also gifted the same car to gymnast Dipa Karmakar and badminton coach
Pullela Gopichand.
o Tendulkar, was a Goodwill Ambassador of the Indian team at Rio Olympics.
o The luxury cars were presented to them for their outstanding achievement in the
Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.
 Agnieszka won Connecticut Open title
o Top-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska completed a dominating week at the
Connecticut Open on Sunday, beating Elina Svitolina 6-1, 7-6 (3) in the final.
o Radwanska had never before made it past the quarterfinals in New Haven.
o She becomes the first top seed to win since Caroline Wozniacki did it in 2011.
o Svitolina, who beat Serena Williams in the third round at the Olympics, is now 4-1
in WTA finals.
 Task force to prepare India for olympics
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 o
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced to set up a task force to prepare
action Plan for the next three Olympics Games (2020, 2024 and 2028).
o The task force will prepare a comprehensive action plan for effective participation
of Indian sports persons in the coming Olympic Games.
o The 2020 Olympic Games will be held in Tokyo (Japan).
 Sri Lanka's Tillakaratne Dilshan Retires
o Sri Lanka's Tillakaratne Dilshan will quit international cricket after the ongoing
limited overs series against Australia.
o Dilshan will retire from the One-Day Internationals after the third match in
Dambulla.
o He made his one day debut against Zimbabwe in 1999 and has, so far, played
329 ODIs.
o He has amassed 10,248 runs that include 22 hundreds.
 Saina Nehwal Drops 4 Places to be 9th
o Ace Indian shuttler Saina Nehwal has dropped four places in the latest world
rankings to be at the number nine spot.
o PV Sindhu remained world number 10.
o Sindhu won India’s only silver medal in Rio after beating three higher-ranked
players.
o In the Men's rankings, Kidambi Srikanth, who lost to Lin Dan in the quarterfinals
at Rio, gained a place to break into the top 10.
 Bindra to head review committee on Rio
o Abhinav Bindra has been named as the Chairman of a five-member review
committee to probe the shooters' Rio Games debacle.
o The committee has been formed by National Rifle Association of India (NRAI)
examine and identify in a cold and ruthless manner, the causes behind shooting
not securing any medals at the Rio Olympics.
o Bindra is India's first and only individual Olympic gold-medallist.
 BCCI submits compliance report to panel
o BCCI has submitted the first compliance report to the Supreme Court authorised
Lodha Committee on Thursday.
o The report was submitted by Ajay Shirke, a top officer bearer of BCCI.
o The BCCI wasn't expected to submit this compliance report.
o Some members of the Board had suggested, off the record, that the Board would
instead wait for the review petition to be heard.
 Olympic Flag Arrives in Tokyo
o Tokyo governor Yuriko Koike brought the Olympic flag to Japan from Brazil.
o She was elected in July as Tokyo's first female governor after two predecessors
stepped down.
o The Games were awarded to Tokyo in 2013.
o It will be the second time the Summer Olympics are held in the Japanese capital,
which previously hosted the 1964 Summer Olympics.
 TNPL Twenty20 Tournament Kicks Off
o The Tamil Nadu Premier League was inaugurated at M.A. Chidambaram
Stadium.
o The tournament will witness established stars like R Ashwin, Murali Vijay
& Dinesh karthik, playing for their respective franchises.
o The main idea is to provide opportunities to the domestic players to showcase
their talent.
o The TNCA received a total franchise fee of Rs. 33.34 cr through the bidding
process of the 8 teams.

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  Crutchlow Wins Czech MotoGP
o Britain`s Cal Crutchlow on a Honda took his maiden MotoGP win at Brno in the
Czech Republic.
o He became Britain's first MotoGP winner in 35 years.
o Barry Sheene in 1981 was the last British rider to win an elite-class GP.
o Seven-time champion Valentino Rossi took second with championship leader
Marc Marquez of Spain in third.
o The result leaves Marquez at the top of the overall standings.
 India Men’s Hockey Team Slips to Sixth
o The Indian men’s hockey team slipped one place to sixth in the FIH rankings.
o The Indian men’s side crashed out of the Olympics in the quarterfinals.
o Australia, which finished sixth at Rio, remained on top while newly crowned
Olympic champion Argentina moved up five places to second.
o Indian women hockey team gained one position to be at 12th in the latest
rankings released.
 Russia's Paralympics Ban Confirmed
o Russia will not compete at next month’s Paralympics in Rio after losing an appeal
against a ban imposed .
o The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) upheld the International Paralympic
Committee's (IPC) ban on all Russian competitors.
o The IPC made the decision in light of the McLaren report, which detailed a state-
sponsored doping programme operated by Russia.
o The Paralympics begin on 7 Sept.
 Kabaddi World Cup to be Held in Gujarat
o The International Kabaddi Federation (IKF) has announced that the 2016 World
Cup will be held in Ahmedabad, Gujarat.
o The tournament is set to take place from October 7 to October 22.
o Gujarat will play host to 12 teams from around the world.
o It include including India, USA, Canada, UK, Australia, Iran, Poland, Pakistan,
Bangladesh, Korea, Japan and Kenya.
 2016 Rio Olympics Medal Standings
o The Rio Olympics has been dominated by the United States, Great Britain and
China.
o The United States finished the Olympics at the top of the medal table, with Great
Britain beating China for second place.
o US has won total 121 medals with 46 gold,37 silver & 38 bronze medals followed
by Great Britain with 67 medals (27 gold).
o India was placed at 67th position with one silver & one bronze.
 India Loses Top Test Rank
o India has lost its top test ranking despite a 2-0 series victory over West Indies.
o India had to win the last game of the four-match series to retain its No. 1 position,
but four days without play led to the match being declared a draw.
o Pakistan takes the top spot for the first time after its 2-2 test series draw with
England.
o India was top of the rankings for less than a week.
 Sania Mirza Top of WTA Doubles Rankings
o Indian tennis ace player Sania Mirza has move into the number one spot in the
latest WTA doubles rankings.
o Mirza & Strycova outclassed her Martina Hingis & Coco Vandeweghe in the
summit showdown clash in Cincinnati.
o She will move alone to the top of the rankings, after her and Swiss Hingis ended
their highly successful partnership last month.
o The dominant pairing claimed 14 titles.
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  Sania-Strycova Claim Cincinnati title
o India's Sania Mirza & her new partner Barbora Strycova of the Czech Republic
won the women’s double tennis title at Cincinnati open.
o The pair defeated Sania former partner Martina Hingis & Coco Vandeweghe 7-5,
6-4 in Cincinnati final.
o With this win Sania will move alone to the top of the doubles rankings.
o This was Sania's first title win with Strycova & her second title in Cincinnati.
 Cilic Win Men's Cincinnati Masters Title
o Marin Cilic from Croatia shocks Andy Murray to win first Cincinnati Masters title.
o He upset Murray 6-4, 7-5 to claim his maiden Masters title.
o The final loss brought to an end a 22-game run for Murray, the longest
undefeated stretch of his career.
o The Cincinnati Masters event started on September 18, 1899 & is the oldest
tennis tournament in the United States played in its original city.
 Karolina Wins Women's Cincinnati Title
o Czech Republic's Karolina Pliskova beat Angelique Kerber in straight sets to win
Cincinnati Open women's single tennis title.
o Pliskova upset Kerber 6-3, 6-1 to claim title.
o With this defeat Kerber failed to end Serena Williams' 183-week run as world
number one.
o Williams has been world number one since February 2013 & and is closing on
Steffi Graf's record of 186 consecutive weeks at the top
 Rio Olympics Comes to a Colourful End
o President of the International Olympic Committee, Thomas Bach declared the
official closing of the 31st Olympics games 2016 at Rio.
o The next Olympics is to be hosted by Tokyo.
o For India, the first female wrestling medalist, Sakshi Malik carried the Flag into
the stadium.
o India finished its Rio Olympics campaign with a Silver won by shuttler PV Sindhu
& a Bronze medal bagged by Sakshi Malik.
 Caster Semenya Wins 800m Gold
o South Africa's Caster Semenya won Olympic gold in the 800m.
o Semenya set a national record to win in one minute 55.28 seconds and
o She finish well clear of silver medallist Francine Niyonsaba of Burundi.
o She was cleared to compete by the International Association of Athletics
Federations in 2010 after being sidelined for 11 months.
o Kenya's Margaret Nyairera Wambui took the bronze medal.
 Chen Long Wins Gold in Singles Badminton
o China's Chen Long beats Malaysia's Lee Chong Wei 21-18, 21-18 in straight
games to win men's singles gold medal in Badminton at Rio Olympics.
o It was a first gold medal for world number two Chen.
o The Malaysian has never won a world or Olympic title.
o He lost the previous two Games finals to Chinese arch-rival Lin Dan.
 Dipika & Saurav Finish Runner Up
o Indian pair of Dipika Pallikal and Saurav Ghosal settled for silver medal in the
mixed doubles event of the World doubles squash championship.
o Dipika and Ghosal went down 8-11, 8-11 to Joelle and Paul in the final to miss
the gold medal.
o The other Indian mixed pair of Joshna Chinappa and Harinder Pal Sandhu along
with the doubles pair of Joshna and Dipika won a bronze medal.
 Brazil Win Maiden Football Gold

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 o
Brazil won its first Olympic gold medal in soccer with a penalty kick by Neymar to
defeat Germany.
o Neymar converted the decisive penalty in the shootout after Brazilian goalkeeper
Weverton stopped Nils Petersen's shot from the spot.
o Brazil had lost the Olympic final three times.
o The win means a unified Germany are now the only World Cup winners never to
have won the Olympic gold medal.
 Bolt completes treble with gold in 4x100
o Usain Bolt completed his triple-triple, anchoring the Jamaica 4x100-metre relay to
victory in the final to ensure three gold medals at three consecutive Olympics.
o He turned a close 4x100 relay race against Japan and the United States, helping
Jamaica cross the line in 37.27.
o Japan won the silver medal with U.S. finishing third but later, disqualified. Canada
was promoted to third.
 Sindhu wins silver for India at Rio
o PV Sindhu won silver at Rio Olympics making her the first Indian woman to win
silver at the Olympics.
o She went down fighting to Spain’s Carolina Marin in the gold medal match of the
badminton women’s singles on Friday.
o India has till now, two medals in her tally with one bronze and one silver won by
Sakshi Malik an PV Sindhu respectively
 Usain Bolt Wins 200m Gold
o Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt won the men's 200m to claim his second Rio 2016
gold.
o He has already won the 100m in Rio.
o He has now won a staggering 19 Olympic & world titles.
o He ran 19.78 seconds to come home ahead of Canada's Andre de Grasse and
France's Christophe Lemaitre.
o Britain's Adam Gemili clocked the same time as Lemaitre but was denied his first
Olympic medal in a photo finish.
 Ashwin Retain Second Spot in ICC Ranking
o India's offspinner Ravichandran Ashwin has retained his second position in the
International Cricket Council (ICC) Test bowlers' rankings.
o The bowlers' list is headed by England's James Anderson, who leads Ashwin by
12 points with 870 points.
o Dale Steyn is third,17 points behind the India off-spinner.
o Sri Lanka left-arm spinner Rangana Herath has returned among the top five of
the Test bowlers.
 Narsingh Banned for 4 years
o Indian wrestler Narsingh Yadav has been handed a four-year-ban by the Court of
Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
o The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) had appealed against the NADA all-clear
to Narsingh at CAS.
o The CAS Panel did not accept the argument of the athlete that he was the victim
of sabotage.
o This ruling marks the end of Narsingh Yadav’s attempt at competing at the 2016
Rio Olympics.
 Sindhu Enter Badminton Final at Olympics
o PV Sindhu has scripted history by becoming the first Indian Badminton player to
enter the Final at the Olympics.
o Her win assures at least a Silver medal for the country in the sport.
o She registered a 21-19, 21-10 victory over higher placed Nozomi Okuhara of
Japan to seal a place in the Rio Games Gold medal match.
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 o She will play for the Gold against world number one Carolina Marin of Spain.
 Simone Biles Wins 4th Gold Medal in Rio
o American gymnast Simone Biles won the gold medal in the women's floor
exercise.
o She scored a 15.966 in the floor exercise final with a series of difficult moves
executed to near-perfection,
o She has captured her fourth gold in the Olympics.
o She is now the fifth woman & first American woman to win four gymnastics gold
medals in a single Olympic Games.
 India Displace Aus as No. 1 Test Team
o The Indian cricket team has moved back to No 1 on the ICC table for Test teams.
o Australia has conceded their No.1 ranking to India after Sri Lanka made a 3-0
clean sweep of the 3 match test series.
o Pakistan has moved into the second position.
o To retain the number-one ranking, India will now have to win the fourth and final
Test of the four-Test series against the West Indies.
 Sri Lanka Beat Australia in Third Test
o Sri Lanka has clinched their first series 3-0 whitewash over Australia.
o Sri Lanka won the third & final Test against Australia by 163 runs, with spinner
Rangana Herath taking 7 wickets for 64 runs.
o It was the first time that Sri Lanka had ever recorded a clean sweep of a major
cricketing nation since they gained Test status in 1981.
o Sri Lanka had only beaten Australia once before in a Test match.
 Sakshi Malik Wins Bronze for India
o India’s Sakshi Malik from Rohtak, Haryana has won a bronze medal in the
wrestling 58kg category at Rio.
o She defeated Aisuluu Tynybekova 8-5 in the bronze medal bout.
o She became only the fourth woman athlete from India to win an Olympic medal.
o Weightlifter Karnam Malleshwari ,boxer MC Mary Kom & shuttler Saina Nehwal
were the only other women athletes from India to have won a medal in Olympics.
 Thiago da Silva Wins Gold in Pole Vault
o Brazil's Thiago Braz da Silva set an Olympic record of 6.03m to win a gold in the
men's pole vault in Rio.
o He failed in his first attempt at 6.03m but went clear with his second to win
Brazil's second gold of the Games.
o He gave the host country its first athletics gold medal of the Games.
o France Lauvillenie took silver & American Sam Kendricks sealed bronze with
5.85m.
 Andy Murray Wins Tennis Gold
o Andy Murray of Great Britain has won the gold medal in men’s singles tennis
category in Rio 2016 Olympic Games.
o He defeated Argentina's Juan Martin del Potro in the final.
o With the win, he retained the medal and became the first player to win two men's
singles tennis gold medals in Olympics.
o Del Potro had defeated world number one Novak Djokovic in the first round.
 PV Sindhu Stuns World No.2 Wang Yihan
o India’s PV Sindhu defeated world number two Wang Yihan of China to enter the
semi-finals of the Rio 2016 Olympics.
o She won in straight sets 22-20, 21-19 in the badminton women’s singles quarter-
finals.
o She is now a win away from assuring India a medal.

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 She became only the second Indian women’s player to reach the semi-final of
o
Olympic.
o Saina Nehwal had reached the same stage at the 2012 Games.
 Niekerk Smashes 400m World Record
o South African Wayde Van Niekerk smashed Michael Johnson's long-standing
world record .
o He stormed to Olympic gold in the 400m smashing Michael Johnson's legendary
17-year-old world record in the process.
o He win by yards in a new best time of 43.03 seconds, 0.15sec quicker than
Johnson’s previous world best .
o Kirani James of Grenada took silver in 43.76s& American Lashawn Merritt bronze
.
 Rahane Enters Top-10 in Batsman's List
o Indian batsman Ajinkya Rahane jumped three places to enter the top-10 in
batsman's list.
o Ravichandran Ashwin maintained top position among all-rounders in the latest
Test rankings released by the International Cricket Council (ICC).
o Rahane, who was 11th in the last list is currently 8th & top position is occupied by
Australian skipper Steve Smith.
o Virat Kohli dropped three places to 16th place.
 Vikas Krishan Bows out of Rio Olympics
o Vikas Krishan bowed out of the Rio Olympics after losing his quarter-final match.
o He was defeated by World No 3 Uzbekistan’s Bektemir Melikuziev in the men’s
75kg category.
o Shiva Thapa (56kg) and Manoj Kumar (64kg) already out, Vikas defeat drew the
curtains on the Indian boxing challenge in the Games.
o It is the second successive time that the male boxers failed to secure a medal.
 Sindhu,Srikanth Reaches Quarterfinals
o Shuttlers PV Sindhu & Kidambi Srikanth have stormed into the Singles
quarterfinals of Rio Olympics.
o Sindhu made it to the last-8 beating Tzu Ying Tai of Chinese Taipei, 21-13, 21-
15.
o Srikanth defeated Jan Jorgensen of Denmark, 21-19, 21-19.
o Sindhu & Srikanth need two more wins each to assure a medal.
o Both, Sindhu & Srikanth will face Chinese shuttlers in the last-8 stage.
 Klishina Wins Appeal to Compete in Rio
o The lone Russian track & field athlete Darya Klishina has won her appeal to
compete at the Rio.
o The Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled that long jumper Darya Klishina is eligible
to take part.
o CAS has overruled a last minute ban imposed on her by the International
Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF).
o Klishina was the only one of 68 Russians cleared to participate in Rio by the
IAAF.
 Saina Nehwal Suffers Shock Defeat at Rio
o India medal hope Saina Nehwal crashed out of the women’s singles badminton
title at Rio.
o The London Olympics bronze medallist and world no. 5 lost 18-21 19-21 to World
No. 61 Maria in a match that lasted 39 minutes.
o She had won the opening match against Brazil’s Vicente Lohaynny
o Nehwal cited an inflammation in her right knee as the reason which hampered
her on court movement.
 US Wins 1,000th Olympic Gold Medal
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 oThe U.S. earned its 1000th Olympic gold medal in summer Olympics after the
American women’s team won the 4×100 meter medley relay.
o The honor of reaching the milestone was shared by Kathleen Baker, Lilly King,
Dana Vollmer & Simone Manuel.
o Of the 1,000 gold medals, more than half have come from track and field (323)
and swimming (246).
o The U.S. team had arrived in Rio with 977 gold medals.
 Usain Bolt Wins 100m Gold
o Jamaica's speedster Usain Bolt has retained his coveted title "Fastest man alive
on the planet".
o Bolt won the 100m Final of Rio Olympics , to have the third Olympic Gold medal
in the event.
o In his Final appearance in an Olympic, he recorded his season best time of 9.81
seconds.
o American Justin Gatlin settled for a Silver with a time of 9.89 sec & Canada's
Andre De Grasse finishing 3rd.
 Dipa Karmakar Narrowly Misses Medal
o Dipa Karmakar missed a bronze medal by a whisker to finish 4th in the women's
vault finals in the Rio.
o She scored an average of 15.066 points, a mere 0.15 less than the eventual
bronze winner Giulia Steingruber (15.216) of Switzerland.
o She still created history by producing the best-ever performance by an Indian
gymnast in the Olympics history.
o The gold went to American Simone Biles (15.966).
 Russia's Only Track Athlete Banned
o Athletics world body, the IAAF, has banned long jumper Darya Klishina.
o The IAAF has already banned Russia team for doping.
o She was the only Russian track & field athlete due to compete at the Rio
Olympics.
o She was originally allowed to compete in Rio because she was based in the
United States & had regular testing outside Russia.
 Bangladesh Lifts Ashraful Ban
o Bangladesh's cricket authorities have partially lifted the ban on former captain
Mohammad Ashraful,
o He would be allowed to play in selected domestic cricket competitions.
o He would remain ineligible to represent the country in the international cricket
until atleast 2018.
o He had received an 8 year suspension in 2014 after he confessed to helping fix
matches.
o He has featured in 61 Tests & 177 ODIs.
 India Win Third Test Against West Indies
o Team India has won the St Lucia Cricket Test against the West Indies to clinch
the 4-match series, with one game still to go.
o Indian team taken an unassailable 2-0 lead in the 4 match series.
o This is the first time in over six decades that India has won more than one Test
match in the Caribbean islands.
o The fourth & final Test will be played at the Queen's Park Oval in Port of
Spain,Trinidad.
 Lalita Qualifies for Steeplechase Final
o India Lalita Babar has qualified for the women's 3000m steeplechase final at Rio.

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 o
She finished fourth in the qualifying heat 2 with a new national record time of 9
min, 19.76 sec.
o She became the first Indian woman to reach track final in Olympics since PT
Usha in 1984.
o She had won the bronze medal in the event in the Asian Games in Incheon,
South Korea, two years ago.
 Nadal & Lopez Win Gold in Men's Doubles
o Rafael Nadal and Marc Lopez of Spain won the Olympic men's doubles tennis
title.
o The pair defeated Romania's Florin Mergea and Horia Tecau 6-2 3-6 6-4 to won
gold medal at Rio Games.
o Nadal & Lopez claimed Spain's fifth overall medal.
o American duo Steve Johnson and Jack Sock beat Canada's Daniel Nestor and
Vasek Pospisil to clinch bronze.
 Chinese Chen Xinyi Fails Doping Test
o China's Chen Xinyi has become the first swimmer to fail a doping test at the Rio
Olympics.
o Chen Xinyi tested positive on August 7 for hydrochlorothiazide, a banned
substance.
o She has already competed in the 100-meter butterfly event & placed fourth in the
final.
o She rose to fame at the National Games in 2013.
o She won gold at the women's 100-meter butterfly at the 2014 Asian Games in
Incheon.
 Ayana Shatters 10,000 World Record
o Ethiopia’s Almaz Ayana smashed the World record by running 29:17.46 to win
the 10,000 metres title at Rio
o Her time was 14 seconds inside the 29:31.78 set by China's Wang Junxia in
1993.
o It was the first time in 7 years that a female athlete had run 10,000m in under 30
min.
o Kenya’s Vivian Cheruiyot had to settle for silver while Ethiopian Tirunesh
Dibaba grabbed bronze.
 Dipika Pallikal Wins PSA Australian Open
o India's top squash player Dipika Pallikal has won the PSA Australian Open in
Melbourne,
o Top seed Pallikal beat eighth seed Mayar Hany of Egypt 10-12, 11-5, 11-6, 11-4
in the 40-minute final for her first title of the year.
o Her previous title came in February 2015 when she won the Winnipeg Winter
Open in Canada.
o The win comes days before the start of World Doubles.
 Michael Phelps Wins 22nd Olympic Gold
o American Swimmer Michael Phelps bagged his 22nd Olympics Gold of his career
when he won the 200 metres medley event at the Olympics Aquatic Stadium in
Rio.
o This was Phelps' fourth Gold of the Rio Games.
o Kosuke Hagino of Japan claimed the Silver, while China's Wang Shun took the
Bronze.
o Indian tennis pair of Sania Mirza and Rohan Bopanna has advanced to the Mixed
Doubles quarterfinals.
 Ashwin Equals Kapil Dev's Mark

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 oRavichandran Ashwin has joined Kapil Dev & Bhuvneshwar Kumar as the third
Indian player to take two five wicket hauls & score two half-centuries in a Test
series.
o Kapil Dev has achieved it twice in his illustrious career.
o Bhuvneshwar Kumar achieved this in the five-Test series against England in
2014.
o Ashwin also scored his fourth hundred in just his eighth Test against West Indies.
 Legendary Batsman Hanif Muhammad Dies
o Pakistan’s legendary former captain & batsman Hanif Muhammad has passed
away.
o He was a member of Pakistan's first touring squad that went to India in 1954/55.
o He scored a memorable 337 runs against the WI in 1957/58.
o It remains the longest innings in Test history & stood as the longest in all first-
class cricket for over 40 yrs.
o In his 55-Test career,he amassed 3915 runs at an average of 43.98,
 Carlos Brathwaite Named WI T20 Captain
o Carlos Brathwaite has been named the captain of the West Indies Twenty20 side
for the upcoming two-match T20 series against India in Florida.
o Brathwaite will replace Darren Sammy, who was sacked as the T20I captain last
week.
o He has played a crucial role in West Indies' World T20 winning campaign in India
earlier this year.
o The change of guard brings an end to Sammy's six-year tenure at the helm.
 Taiwan Weightlifter Suspended for Doping
o Taiwan's former weightlifting world record holder Lin Tzu-chi has been
suspended from competing in the Rio Olympics after failing a dope test.
o She has been temporarily suspended from competing.
o She was one of the favorites for gold after raising the world record to 261kg in
winning the 2014 Asian Games.
o After Lin's withdrawal, Chinese weightlifter Deng Wei took gold in the women's
63kg category.
 Phelps Wins 21st Gold in Freestyle Relay
o American swimmer Michael Phelps claimed his second gold medal & the 21st of
his career as he won the men's 4x200 meters Olympic freestyle relay.
o The most successful Olympian of all time extend his career tally to a total of 25
medals, including two silver &two bronze.
o Earlier he had won gold number 20 with victory in the 200m butterfly.
o It was the 4th successive U.S. Olympic victory in the event.
 Ibtihaj Becomes1st Athlete to Wear Hijab
o Fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad makes U.S. history by being the first American athlete
to wear a hijab at the Olympics.
o She advanced to the round of 16 in sabre fencing with a 15-13 win over Ukrainian
athlete Olena Kravatska.
o She was eliminated a round later by French fencer Cecilia Berder.
o Muhammad made history, wearing her hijab to adhere to the tenets of her Muslim
faith.
 Rafaela Silva Wins First Gold for Brazil
o Host country Brazil won their first Gold of the Olympic Games when Judoka
Rafaela Silva won the women's 57kg judo gold.
o She overcame top seed Sumiya Dorjsuren of Mongolia to win gold.

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 oShe ended up in the Brazil team at the age of 15 & became a junior world
champion.
o She is the country's first female world champion in judo.
o Portugal's Telma Monteiro & Japan's Kaori Matsumoto won bronze.
 Sania Splits With Doubles Partner Hingis
o Sania Mirza & Martina Hingis have decided to end their partnership that took the
tennis world by storm last year when they won nine titles.
o Sania became world no.1 in partnership with Martina when they won the
Charleston event.
o The duo had performed poorly in recent time winning just one major tournament.
o The Indian will team up with Barbora Strycova while Hingis will join with Coco
Vandeweghe.
 Qingquan Smashes 16 yr-old World Record
o Long Qingquan from China has won a gold medal in men’s 56 kg weightlifting
after he lifted a staggering total of 307 kg during his last attempt at Rio.
o He previously won gold at the Beijing Games in 2008.
o He took first prize from Om Yun-Chol of North Korea, who lifted 303 kg.
o The Chinese weightlifter has broken a record that had previously stood for 16
years dating back to the 2000 Sydney Games.
 Manchester United to Re-sign Pogba
o Manchester United has made Paul Pogba the world’s most expensive footballer,
signing the France midfielder for around 105 million euros ($116 million).
o United will pay the Italian champions 105m euros for Pogba, plus 5m euros
(£4.5m) in performance-related bonuses.
o It surpasses Wales forward Gareth Bale's £85m move to Real Madrid from Spurs
in 2013 as the biggest transfer deal in history.
 Anderson Tops ICC Test Bowler Rankings
o James Anderson of England has reclaimed the No.1 spot from Ravichandran
Ashwin in the latest International Cricket Council Test rankings for bowlers.
o He sits at top of the rankings with 881 points while Ashwin has 869 points to his
name.
o Anderson has been an integral part of the England setup,having picked up 462
wickets.
o Among the batsmen,Australia Steve Smith remains at the top of the rankings.
 Abhinav Bindra Misses Medal
o Star Indian shooter Abhinav Bindra missed a medal in the final of the men's 10m
Air Rifle event at Rio Olympics.
o He qualified for the final of the event finishing seventh in the qualifying round.
o In the shootout, Bindra shot a 10 while Kulish got a score of 10.5 which made the
Ukrainian enter the medal rounds.
o Gagan Narang however crashed out finishing at a lowly 23rd position in the
qualifiers.
 Lodha Panel rejects BCCI’s request
o The Lodha panel declined the request of Board of Control for Cricket in India
(BCCI) to defer the scheduled meeting on Tuesday on implementation of reforms
within the next six months.
o BCCI official said that the move was a deliberate delaying tactics which BCCI
wanted to employ with an aim of getting a stay order on the July 18th verdict.
o RM Lodha panel was formed to revamp the BCCI structure.
 Iranian athlete makes history at Rio
o Archer Zahra Nemati became the first woman to lead the Iran contingent at the
Opening Ceremony of the Rio Games.

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 o
Arriving at the stadium in a wheelchair, wearing a green head covering, Nemati
was the flagbearer for a team made up mostly of men.
o She will also represent Iran in the World Paralympics next month.
 Abhijeet Keeps Crown
o Grandmaster and former World junior champion Abhijeet Gupta has added
another feather to his cap by retaining the Commonwealth Chess championship
crown in Colombo
o All the medals won in the senior category were won by Indian players.
o Grandmasters S.L. Narayanan and Deep Chakkravarthy got the silver and
bronze medals in the open section.
 Djokovic knocked out of Rio Olympics
o World number one Novak Djokovic was shocked after losing to Argentina’s Juan
Martin del Potro
o The Serbian faced an exit from Rio Olympics after the first round 7-6(4) 7-6(2)
loss to Argentinian.
o Djokovic has dominated the men’s game in recent years and had made it a
priority to win an Olympic gold medal.
 Phelps clinches 19th Olympic gold medal
o Michael Phelps continued his legacy as he clinched his 19th Olympic gold medal
after leading his country to a thrilling 4x100m freestyle relay win at Rio Olympics.
o The 31-year-old American is the most decorated Olympian in history.
o Phelps has now extended his medal tally to staggering 23 medals, which includes
two silvers and two bronzes.
 Dipa Karmakar qualifies for vault finals
o Indian gymnast Dipa Karmakar scripted history as she became the first Indian to
make the cut for the individual vault finals in her debut Olympic Games.
o Country's first woman gymnast to qualify for the Olympics managed to perform
her much-appreciated 'Produnova' vault cleanly to secure 14.850 points.
o Dipa hails from Tripura.
 Russians banned from Paralympics
o International Paralympic Committee on Sunday expelled Russia from its Games
for disabled athletes owing to the massive doping scandal.
o Russia said within minutes of the announcement that it would be appealing
against the ban at the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland, sport's highest
court.
o 2016 Paralympic games are scheduled to be held in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil in
September.
 Sri Lanka Clinch Historic Series
o Off-spinner Dilruwan Perera bagged six wickets to fashion Sri Lanka's historic
series win over Australia in Galle.
o Australia, which is the world's number one side suffered a humiliating 229-run
loss inside three days in the second Test in Galle.
o Australia chasing a challenging 413 for victory were bundled out for 183.
o Sri Lanka took an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series.
 Jitu Rai Finish 8th in 10m Air Pistol
o It was a disappointing start for the Indian shooters at the Rio Olympics .
o Jitu Rai finished a lowly eighth in the men's 10m Air Pistol final.
o He shot an overall 78.7 to finish eighth in the field of eight finalists to become the
first shooter to crash out of the final round.
o Apurvi Chandela and Ayonika Paul crashed out in the qualification round of their
respective events.

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  Thrasher Wins First Gold of Games
o America Virginia Thrasher won the first gold medal of the Rio 2016 Olympic
Games.
o She won the gold in women’s 10m air rifle event.
o She edged out China’s Du Li who won gold in Athens in 2004, with an Olympic-
record score of 208 in the sport’s new finals format.
o She is a NCAA champion at West Virginia competing in her first Olympics.
o China's Yi Siling took the bronze with a score of 185.4.
 France not to Host European Road Cycling
o The French city of Nice says it will not host the European Road Cycling
Championships for security reasons.
o The event was planned for 14th to 18th September.
o Mayor Philippe Pradal said the event required a large police presence, but the
southern city had not received any guarantees about their deployment.
o It is the latest event in France to be called off after July's lorry attack in Nice.
 Olympics Open with a Glittering Ceremony
o The 31st Summer Olympic Games opened in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro.
o Acting Brazil President Michel Temer declared the Games open.
o Following the tradition, Greece led the athletes' parade with the hosts country
Brazil coming last.
o India was led by flag-bearer Abhinav Bindra.
o Brazilian 2004 Athens Olympics marathon bronze winner Vanderlei de Lima lit
the Olympic cauldron.
 Rio Gets Ready for Olympics Games
o With just a few hours left for the 31st Summer Olympics to begin with the opening
ceremony at the Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janiero.
o Nearly 11,000 athletes from 205 countries will take part in 17-day extravaganza
featuring 306 events in 42 sport disciplines.
o India is fielding its biggest contingent with almost 120 athletes.
o Indian have appeared in every edition of the Summer Olympics since 1920.
 IOC Adds Five New Sports for Tokyo 2020
o The International Olympic Committee has added five new sports to the
programme for Tokyo 2020.
o It included baseball/softball, karate, skateboarding, sports climbing & surfing.
o The inclusion of the new sports will add 18 events & 474 athletes,
o The IOC considered a variety of factors when assessing the proposal, including
the impact on gender equality & the youth appeal of the sports.
 Sourav Ganguly Picks His all-Time XI
o Former Indian captain, Sourav Ganguly has revealed his all-time XI.
o Ganguly opted to go with the opening pairing of Matthew Hayden & Alastair
Cook.
o Rahul Dravid & Sachin Tendulkar come in next in the line-up.
o Jacques Kallis come in at 5 followed by Kumar Sangakara.
o Ricky Ponting was named the captain of the side at no.7, followed by Glenn
McGrath, Shane Warne, Muttiah Muralitharan & Dale Steyn.
 Brazil Kick off at Home with 3-0 Win
o Brazil got off to a winning start in South America's first Olympic Games when the
women's football team beat China 3-0 in host city Rio de Janeiro.
o Although the opening ceremony will takes place on Friday.
o The football competitions begin ahead of time.
o Brazil got off to the perfect start with a commanding performance in front of their
home crowd in at the Olympic stadium in Rio de Janeiro.
 India vs WI 2nd Test Ends in a Draw
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 oThe second Test match between India and the West Indies ended in a draw.
oWI Roston Chase hit his maiden Test hundred to lead the host fightback.
oChase came up with a resolute 137 off 269 balls and in the process raised three
match-saving partnerships with his teammates.
o He became only the fourth West Indies player to score a hundred & claim a five-
wicket haul in same match.
 Narsingh Yadav Gets Clearance From UWW
o Narsingh Yadav has got the go ahead of United World Wrestling (UWW) to
compete in the Rio Olympics.
o He was already cleared by the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA).
o The UWW has permitted Narsingh to participate in all international competitions.
o He has to wait for a WADA clearance as well.
o WADA can appeal against a decision of Anti-Doping Disciplinary Panel of any of
its member countries.
 Vijender Breaks into Top 10 WBO Ranking
o Vijender Singh broke into the World Boxing Organisation's (WBO) rankings at
10th.
o His rise in the rankings is due to his championship win over Kerry Hope for the
Asia Pacific super middleweight champion last month.
o Singh was unbeaten with six wins before facing Hope for the WBC European
champion last month.
o Currently, Vijender is unbeaten with seven wins, out of which six have been
knockouts.
 Shot Putter Inderjeet Fail B Sample Test
o Shot putter Inderjeet Singh's confirmatory B sample also returned positive for
banned substances.
o The reigning Asian champions now face the prospect of being banned for four
years under the new WADA Code.
o He is also virtually ruled out of the Rio Olympics which begins on August 5.
o He had claimed it was a conspiracy against him and his sample has been
tampered with.
 India, West Indies to Play T20s in U.S.
o The Indian cricket team for the first time will be playing international matches in
the United States of America.
o It will take on reigning World T20 Champions West Indies in a two-match T20
series in Florida.
o The two matches will be held on Aug 27 & 28 in Florida’s Fort Lauderdale.
o This is BCCI’s initiative to get into the untapped market in the US where there is a
big Indian diaspora.
 Walker Bags Title at PGA Championship
o American golfer Jimmy Walker pulled off an astonishing triumph at the PGA
Championship.
o Jimmy Walker became the fourth first-time major winner this season.
o He has also sealed his place in the US Ryder Cup team after a fine weekend at
Baltusrol Golf Club.
o The PGA Championship is an annual golf tournament conducted by the
Professional Golfers Association of America.
 Lehmann Extends Contract as Coach
o Cricket Australia has extended head coach Darren Lehmann's contract to cover
the Ashes & the World Cup in 2019.

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 oHe took over a team Australia coach in 2013 & was initially contracted to mid-
2017.
o Lehmann had played 27 Tests & 117 one-day internationals for Australia
o During Lehmann's tenure, Australia regained the No. 1 test match ranking.
o Australia also won the 2015 World Cup on home soil.
 Narsingh Yadav Gets NADA's Clean Chit
o The National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) has given a clean chit to wrestler
Narsingh Yadav from doping charges.
o He now can participate in Rio Olympics.
o He was tested positive for a banned steroid in an out of competition test
conducted by the the NADA.
o Following the doping storm, Parveen Rana was named as Narsingh’s
replacement in the 74kg category.
 Ashwin Joins Kumble in Record Feat
o Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin tormented the West Indies to claim a
second consecutive five-wicket innings haul.
o He dismisses the home side for 196 on the opening day of the second Test at
Sabina Park in Jamaica.
o He became just the third Indian bowler to have five-wicket innings hauls in
three consecutive Test.
o He now matches after fellow spinners Bhagwat Chandrasekhar & Anil Kumble.
 Djokovic Wins 4th Rogers CupTitle
o World number one Novak Djokovic has won in the men’s final of the Rogers Cup
in Toronto.
o He defeated third-seeded Japan's Kei Nishikori 6-3 7-5.
o Djokovic has seven singles titles this year and 66 overall, a record 30 in ATP
World Tour Masters 1000 events such as the Rogers Cup.
o He has 12 Grand Slam titles, winning this year in Australia and France
 Lewis Hamilton Wins German Grand Prix
o Mercedes rider Lewis Hamilton has won his fourth consecutive grand prix after
clinching victory in Germany
o He crossed the line 6.9 seconds ahead of Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo.
o The Red Bull of Daniel Ricciardo finished in second place, with teammate Max
Verstappen just behind him
o It was Hamilton's sixth victory in the last seven races and fourth in succession.
 Patna Pirates Lift Trophy for 2nd Time
o Patna Pirates beat Jaipur Pink Panthers in the season 4 in the Pro Kabaddi
League.
o Patna Pirates beat Jaipur Pink Panthers 37-29
o The Patna unit made history as they became the only team to lift the trophy twice
in the tournament’s history of four editions.
o Telugu Titans’ Rahul Chaudhari was awarded as the most successful raider in
the touranment with 146 points.
 Halep Wins Rogers Cup Women's Single
o Romanian Simona Halep beat out Madison Keys to win the final match of
Montreal’s annual Rogers Cup tennis tournament.
o She won 7-6 (7-2), 6-3 to claim her third title of the year.
o Halep has three singles titles this year and 14 overall.
o Halep walks away with the $2.4 million grand prize and will jump to third in WTA
rankings.
 India to Host Kabaddi World Cup in Oct
o India will host the Kabaddi World Cup this year, featuring 12 countries, in
October.
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 o USA, Canada, UK, Australia, Iran, Poland, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Korea, Japan
and Kenya will be playing in the event.
o Kabaddi became a part of Asian Games in the year 1990 and India have won all
the gold medals since.
o Star Sports was selected to broadcast the 2016 Kabaddi World Cup

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