Title Capsule & Quiz

Monthly Current Affairs

Title2019
August

Foreign Ministers from South East Asia attend
52nd ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting
Foreign Ministers from South East Asia are attending
the 52nd ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting in
Bangkok, Thailand.
• The annual meeting opened with a call from
the host Thailand for deeper integration to
expand trade and bolster prosperity in the
region amid rising global challenges.
• The meeting takes place in the shadow of
rising security tension on the Korean
Peninsula, China's aggressive territorial
claims in the South China Sea and the US-
China trade war.
Cabinet approves ISRO Technical Liaison Unit
at Moscow
Cabinet has given nod to the setting up of ISRO
Technical Liaison Unit (ITLU) at Moscow in Russia.
• The unit will collaborate with Space agencies
and industries in Russia and neighbouring
countries for mutually synergetic outcomes.
• ITLU will also support the ongoing bilateral
programmes of cooperation in space
technology and act on behalf of ISRO.
• The Cabinet also approved MoU between
ISRO and the Bolivian Space Agency on
Cooperation in the exploration and use of
outer space for peaceful purposes.
London named world’s best student city
The UK capital London has been named as the
world’s best city for students for the second
consecutive year.
• The ‘QS Best Student Cities Ranking’
compiled by global education consultancy
QS Quacquarelli Symonds highlights each
city’s performance.
• According to the rankings, India’s best
student city is Bengaluru (81st), followed by
Mumbai (85th), Delhi (at 113) and Chennai
(at 115) out of a total of 120 cities ranked in
the list.
The US decries Chinese disruption of Mekong
River
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has expressed 11th Annual General Meeting of Indo-Lanka
concern over Chinese activities on the Mekong River Chamber of Commerce & Industry held in
in Southeast Asia, calling them troubling trends. Colombo

• Pompeo's concerns include the building of

upstream dams, plans to blast river beds and
the staging of river patrols outside Chinese
borders.
• China has built 10 dams along the upper
stretch of the Mekong, the part it calls the
Langcang.
• Critics have long warned that these actions
can have disruptive environmental and
economic effects downstream.
The 11th Annual General Meeting of the Indo-Lanka
Chamber of Commerce & Industry was held in
Points to Remember
Colombo.
• The Mekong is a trans-boundary river in
• Chief guest High Commissioner of India to
Southeast Asia.
Sri Lanka Mr. Taranjit Singh Sandhu
• It originates from the Tibetan Plateau and
appreciated the contribution of Indo-Lanka
runs through China's Yunnan Province,
Chamber towards strengthening of India- Sri
Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, and
Lanka bilateral relations.
Vietnam.
• He also enumerated the efforts made by the
Indo-Lanka Chamber in further
The US withdraws from Intermediate-Range
strengthening bilateral economic relations.
Nuclear Forces Treaty with Russia
Model village built with Indian assistance
inaugurated in Sri Lanka

The US has formally withdrawn from Intermediate-

Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF) with Russia.
• The INF was signed by then US President
Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail
Gorbachev in 198
• It banned missiles with ranges between 500
and 5,500 km.
• But earlier this year the US and NATO
accused Russia of violating the pact by
deploying a new type of cruise missile, which
Moscow has denied.
The Gandhi Nagar model village built in Sri Lanka
with Indian assistance was inaugurated and the
completed houses handed over to the beneficiaries.
• It is the second of the 100 model villages
being built with Indian assistance and is
named after Mahatma Gandhi, in his 150th
birth anniversary.
• Government of India has partnered with the
Sri Lankan government to build 100 model
villages with a total of 2,400 houses all across
 Sri Lanka under Indian grant assistance of
120 crore rupees.
The United States designates China a "currency
manipulator"
The United States has designated China a "currency
manipulator", a move that could escalate the tense
trade relations between the two nations.
• During the 2016 presidential elections,
Donald Trump had promised to label China
as a currency manipulator.
• Treasury Department announced that
Secretary Steven Mnuchin, under the
auspices of President Trump, has determined
that China is a 'Currency Manipulator'.
• Mnuchin, after this decision, will engage with
the International Monetary Fund to eliminate
the unfair competitive advantage created by
China's latest actions.
Points to remember
• "Currency manipulator" is a term used by
governmental authorities such as the United
States Department of the Treasury to
designate countries that engage in a certain
degree of currency intervention, a monetary
policy in which a central bank buys or sells
foreign currency in exchange for domestic
currency, generally with the intention of
influencing the exchange rate and
commercial policy.
Bangladesh - Russia sign deal for a lifetime
supply of Nuclear fuel
Bangladesh signed a deal with Russia for the supply
of uranium for its 2400 MW Rooppur Nuclear Power
Plant (RNPP).
• Under the deal, Russia will supply the nuclear
fuel needed for the plant during its entire life
cycle.
• Work on the two units of the plants, each
producing 1200 MW of electricity is
scheduled to be completed in 2022 and 2024
respectively.
• The two countries have also signed 'spent fuel
sent back’ agreement in 2017 for
management of the nuclear waste of Rooppur
Nuclear Power Plant (RNPP).
Reconstruction of 380 earthquake affected
cultural and heritage sites completes in Nepal
In Nepal reconstruction of 380 earthquake affected
cultural and heritage sites have been completed.
• More than 12 billion Nepali rupees spent on
reconstruction of 96 World Heritage
monuments and 284 other archaeological and
cultural sites.
• Over 150 heritage sites are scheduled to be
reconstructed in the current financial year.
• Besides the Government of Nepal many other
countries including India, China, USA,
Switzerland, Sri Lanka and Japan are
providing financial assistance for the
reconstruction of quake-affected heritage
monuments.
 • A total of 891 sites of archaeological and
cultural importance were damaged in Nepal
due to the devastating earthquake in 201
World Biofuel Day: 10th August
World Biofuel Day is observed every year on the
10th of August to create awareness about the
importance of non-fossil fuels as an alternative to
conventional fossil fuels.
• Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas is
organising World Biofuel Day on 10th
August 2019 at Vigyan Bhavan, New Delhi.
• This year the theme of the World Biofuel Day
is “Production of Biodiesel from Used
Cooking Oil (UCO)”.
• Food Safety and Standards Authority of India
(FSSAI) is implementing a strategy to divert
UCO from the food value chain and curb
current illegal usage.
International Youth Day: 12 August
The United Nations' (UN) International Youth Day
is celebrated on August 12 each year to recognize
efforts of the world's youth in enhancing global
society.
• It is meant as an opportunity for governments
and others to draw attention to youth issues
worldwide.
• 2019 Theme: ‘Transforming education’
Points to remember
• National Youth Day : 12 January
Flying unauthorized drone in Dhaka banned
In Bangladesh, flying of drones without permission
from the authority has been banned in Dhaka.
• Dhaka Metropolitan Police said that flying
drone or any remote-controlled devices
without authorization is a punishable offence
as it creates panic among people.
• People in Dhaka are flying drones for the
purposes of recreation or capturing a photo or
unknown reasons without seeking permission
from the due authorities which is illegal.
World Humanitarian Day: 19 August
World Humanitarian Day is an international day
observed every year on 19 August.
• The day aims to recognize humanitarian
personnel and those who have lost their lives
working for humanitarian causes.
 • This year’s focus salutes the efforts of
women humanitarian workers across the
world who rally to people in need and are
often the first to respond and the last to leave.
• The world humanitarian day 2019 theme is
‘Women Humanitarians’.
World Photography Day: 19 August
August 19 is observed as World Photography Day.
• The day is observed so that people around the
world can communicate their feelings and
express themselves through the art of
photography.
• The prelude to this announcement was that on
January 9, 1839, where the French Academy
of Sciences proclaimed the Daguerreotype
process.
• The daguerreotype was the first
commercially successful photographic
process (1839-1860) in the history of
photography.
Iceland's Okjokull glacier commemorated with a
plaque
In Iceland, people gathered to commemorate the loss
of the glacier Okjokull, which was officially declared
dead in 2014 at the age of 700.
• The glacier was officially declared dead by
the Icelandic Meteorological Office when it
was no longer thick enough to move.
• What once was glacier has been reduced to a
small patch of ice atop a volcano.
• The plaque reads "Okjokull is the first
Icelandic glacier to lose its status as a
glacier”.
• Iceland loses about 11 billion tonnes of ice
per year, and scientists fear that all of the
island country's 400-plus glaciers will be
gone by 2200.
5th Meeting of India-Nepal Joint Commission to
be held in Kathmandu
The 5th Meeting of India-Nepal Joint Commission
will be held in Kathmandu on 21- 22 August.
• Minister for External Affairs of Dr S.
Jaishankar and Nepal’s Minister of Foreign
Affairs Pradeep Kumar Gyawali will co-chair
the meeting and lead their respective
delegations.
• The Joint Commission Meeting will review
the overall state of bilateral relations and
various areas of cooperation.
• India-Nepal Joint Commission was
established in June 198
• Its meetings are held alternately in Nepal and
India. The last meeting of the Commission
was held in New Delhi on October 201
International Day for the Remembrance of the
Slave Trade and its Abolition: 23 August
International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave
Trade and its Abolition is observed every year on 23
August.
 • The day designated by UNESCO to
memorialize the transatlantic slave trade.
• The day provides a chance to think about the
historic causes and the consequences of the
slave trade.
UN chief Guterres says 'deeply concerned' by
Amazon fires
Russia launched a rocket carrying life-sized robot to
the International Space Station (ISS) from Baikonur
cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
• The robot, named Fedor is the first-ever sent
into space by Russia.
• In order to test a new emergency rescue
system, the robot was the Soyuz rocket's only
passenger.
• During its 10 days at the ISS, Fedor will learn
new skills such as connecting and
disconnecting electric cables, using standard
items from a screwdriver and a spanner to a
fire extinguisher.

FATF Asia-Pacific Group blacklists Pakistan

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that he

was "deeply concerned" by wildfires that have
devoured large sections of the Amazon rainforest,
blanketing several Brazilian cities in thick smoke.

• Amazon, the world's largest rainforest and a

bulwark against climate change, has been
The Asia-Pacific Group of the global watchdog for
ravaged by thousands of fires in the last
terror financing and money laundering, Financial
week.
Action Task Force (FATF) has put Pakistan in the
• The smoke from the resulting fires hangs at
Enhanced Expedited Follow Up List (Blacklist) for
the horizon like a fog.
its failure to meet its standards.
• About 73,000 fires have been detected by
Brazil's space research centre. It's a record
• Pakistan was non-compliant on 32 of the 40
number - and an 85% increase compared to
compliance parameters of terror financing
last year.
and money laundering.
• Points to remember
• On 11 effectiveness parameters of terror
• Amazon forest location: Brazil, Peru,
financing and money laundering, Pakistan
Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia,
was adjudged as low on
Guyana, Suriname, France (French Guiana)
• Pakistan could not convince the 41-member
plenary to upgrade it on any parameter.
Russia launches a rocket carrying life-sized robot
to International Space Station
World leaders gather for G7 Summit in France

French President Emmanuel Macron welcomes the G

7 leaders to kick off the G 7 summit in French coastal
town Biarritz.
 • Macron has set up the agenda of defence,
democracy, gender equality, education and
environment for the G7 meeting.
• The annual meet is being attended by the
leaders of seven member states -- France,
Italy, Canada, United States, Japan, Germany
and the United Kingdom.
• The theme of 2019 summit is 'Fighting
Inequality'
Scarlett Johansson Tops Forbes List Of Highest-
Paid Actresses
For the second consecutive year, Hollywood star
Scarlett Johansson has topped the Forbes’ list of
highest-paid female actors in the world.
• Spurred by the success of her Marvel film
Avengers: Endgame, the 34-year-old actor’s
earning reached USD 56 million.
• At number two is Modern Family star Sofia
Vergara with USD 41 million earnings.
• All the earnings of the actors were calculated
between the period of June 1, 2018, and June
1, 201
NASA Honours Rolling Stones by naming rock
on Mars after the band
NASA announced that it has named rock on Mars in
honour of the iconic English band, The Rolling
Stones
• The "Rolling Stones Rock" was a stone that
was sent rolling after NASA's InSight lander
touched down on the Mars' surface.
• When NASA Insight touched down on the
Red Planet, its engines sent a rock rolling
across Mars' surface.
• The popular band, which consists of Mick
Jagger, Keith Richards, Charlie Watts and
Ronnie Wood, were delighted to hear the
news.
NASA investigating a first crime committed in
space
The US space agency NASA is reported to be
investigating a claim that an astronaut accessed the
bank account of her estranged spouse from the
International Space Station.
• This is the first such allegation of a crime
committed in space.
• The Astronaut Anne McClain is accused of
identity theft and improperly accessing her
estranged spouse's private financial records
while on a sixth-month mission aboard the
International Space Station.
Iran to let women attend football World Cup
qualifier
In Iran, women fans will now be allowed as
spectators into the stadium for next football World
Cup qualifier match in October.
• FIFA has been stepping up pressure on Iran
to ensure entry of women to watch the match.
• Iran barred women spectators at matches
since the 1979 Islamic revolution, with
clerics arguing that women must be protected
from the masculine atmosphere.
• The authorities have allowed foreign women
to go to matches in the country in the past.
Pakistan, China engage in joint air force exercise
‘Shaheen VIII’
 Bangladesh HC allows setting up factories in
‘Ecological Critical Area’ around Sundarbans

The air forces of Pakistan and China are taking part

in joint exercise ‘Shaheen-VIII’ in the Chinese city
of Holton, close to the Indian border near Ladakh.
High Court in Bangladesh has allowed setting up of
factories near the Ecologically Critical Area (ECA)
• The annual joint training is the eighth of its
of Sundarbans.
kind between the two countries since it was
first launched in March 200
• The court asked the government to provide
• The Indian Air Force (IAF) is keeping a close
environmental clearance to three companies
eye on the Pakistan-China aerial exercise in
for setting up LPG bottling plants in Mongla
which both the countries have deployed the
industrial area near the Sundarbans.
latest fighter jets.
• An area of 10 kilometres within the world's
• Pakistan is one of the biggest recipients of the
largest mangrove forest at Sundarban was
Chinese military, which includes missile
declared Ecologically critical area by the
technology, fighter planes and warships.
government in 1999 but many industries have
come up in this area over a period of time.
Russian humanoid robot Fedor arrives at
• Sundarban is the world's largest mangrove
International Space Station
area spread over 10 thousand square
kilometres of which 60 per cent falls in
Bangladesh and 40 per cent in India.
• The UNESCO has declared three sanctuaries
in the Sundarbans as World Heritage Site in
199

French govt moves a bill to shrink the country's

parliament by 25 %
An unmanned spacecraft carrying Russia’s first
humanoid robot Fedor be sent into orbit successfully
docked at the International Space Station.

• Fedor can be operated manually by ISS

astronauts wearing robotic exoskeleton suits.
• Fedor stands 180 cm tall and weighs 160 kg.
• The name Fedor was an acronym standing for
Final Experimental Demonstration Object French President Emmanuel Macron's government
Research. moves a bill to shrink the country's parliament by 25
• The robot will enable Russian astronauts to per cent as part of an overhaul of country's
perform risky space experiments from a institutions.
remote location.
 • The government introduced a draft law that
would reduce the number of seats in the lower
house of parliament, the National Assembly,
from 577 to 43
• The Senate would go from 348 to 261
members.
• The bill also allows for 20 per cent of seats to
be based on party lists instead of individual
candidates.
International Day of the Victims of Enforced
Disappearances: 30 August
TheInternational Day of the Victims of Enforced
Disappearances is observed every year on August 30
of every year.
• This day is created to draw attention to the
fate of individuals imprisoned at places and
under poor conditions unknown to their
relatives and/or legal representatives.
DoT allocates two additional frequencies for
Community Radio
The Department of Telecommunications has
allocated two additional dedicated frequencies for
running Community Radio - 86 and 90.0 MHz.
• On the lines of the recent hike in
advertisement rates for print and electronic
media, the advertisement rates for
Community Radio will be revised by the
Bureau of Outreach and Communication
within two months.
• Information and Broadcasting Ministry will
establish Community Radio Stations in every
district of the Country.
Yogesh Bhattarai becomes Minister for Culture,
Tourism and Civil Aviation in Nepal
Nepal's Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has inducted
Yogesh Kumar Bhattarai as a new Minister for
Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation.
• Mr. Bhattarai is a ruling Nepal Communist
Party (NCP) lawmaker from Taplejung.
• President Bidya Devi Bhandari administered
the oath of office and secrecy to newly
appointed minister in Kathmandu.
• The post of Culture, Tourism and Civil
Aviation Minister was lying vacant after
Rabindra Adhikari died in a helicopter crash
in February this year.
Culture Minister announces to include Nepali,
Santhali in fellowships for Artistes
Culture Minister Prahlad Singh Patel has announced
to include Nepali and Santhali languages in
fellowships for Artistes.
• They are the remaining 02 languages from
the 8th Schedule of the Indian Constitution in
the Sub-Field of Literature for the award of
 Senior or Junior Fellowships to Outstanding
Artistes.
• The Ministry of Culture administers a scheme
component namely Award of Senior or Junior
Fellowships to Outstanding Artistes in the
Fields of Culture.
Birth anniversary of Premchand celebrated
The birth anniversary of a great novelist and
celebrated storyteller Munshi Premchand is observed
every year on 31 July.
• He was born on 31st July 1880 in Lamhi
Village near Varanasi.
• Premchand's stories confront the truth of this
society underlining the importance of truth,
justice and loyalty.
• His stories 'Kafan', 'Namak Ka Daroga',
'Panch Parmeshwar', 'Poos Ki Raat', 'Budhi
Kaki', 'Idgah' and novels 'Godan', 'Seva
Sadan', 'Rangbhoomi' are timeless and ever
relevant.
Senior IAS officer Rajiv Kumar to be new
Finance Secretary
Senior IAS officer Rajiv Kumar will be the new
Finance Secretary.
• The approval was given by the Appointments
Committee of the Cabinet.
• Mr Kumar, a 1984 batch Indian
Administrative Service officer of Jharkhand
cadre, is presently serving as Secretary in the
Department of Financial Services.
India extends $500,000 assistance to the Gambia
President Ram Nath Kovind extend assistance of
USD 500,000 in support of skill development and
cottage industry projects in the West African
country.
• India also received an instrument of
ratification of the International Solar Alliance
Framework Agreement from the Gambia.
• The two sides also signed and exchanged a
Memoranda of Understanding on
Cooperation in the field of Traditional
Systems of Medicine and Homeopathy.
Points to remember
• Capital of Gambia: Banjul
• President: Adama Barrow
KABIL set up to ensure the supply of critical
Minerals to the Indian domestic market
A joint venture company Khanij Bidesh India
limited, KABIL has been set up with the
participation of three Central Public Sector
Enterprises, CPSEs to ensure supply of critical
Minerals to Indian domestic market.
• These CPSEs are National Aluminium
Company Limited, Hindustan Copper
Limited and Mineral Exploration Company
limited.
• The company will ensure the supply of
Lithium and Cobalt which is available in less
quantity in the country.
BIS to set up Pashmina testing centre in Leh
Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) would set up a
Pashmina testing centre in Leh, in partnership with
the lab of Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development
Council (LAHDC), Leh.
• Setting up of a lab in Leh would take two
months time.
• The standards testing will have lab, machines
and scientists to check the quality of
pashmina collected.
• BIS would train the locals, with the
cooperation of Leh Hill Council, in marking
of the standards to save the time and money.
MIB launches a competition for designing
Postage Stamp
Ministry of Information & Broadcasting has
launched a competition for designing a Postage
Stamp along with the First Day Cover to
commemorate Golden Jubilee edition of
International Film Festival of India (IFFI).
• The contest is open on MyGov platform from
1st August 2019 to 15th August 201
• The winner will receive a Certificate of
appreciation and travel and hospitality for 2
nights and 3 days to become a part of 50th
IFFI which is organised by the Directorate of
Film Festivals, Ministry of Information &
Broadcasting in collaboration with
Entertainment Society of Goa (ESG),
Government of Goa.
• An interested person may log in to
www.mygov.in to participate in the
competition.
President Kovind inaugurates exhibitions on
Mahatma Gandhi and Khadi in the Gambia
President Ram Nath Kovind inaugurated exhibitions
on Mahatma Gandhi and Khadi at the Ebunjan
Theatre in The Gambia.
• Vice President of Gambia, Isatou Touray
received the President at exhibitions.
• These exhibitions will be held till 2nd
October.
• Khadi samples for the exhibitions have been
provided by the Khadi and Village Industries
Commission (KVIC), while that for the
Gandhi exhibitions have been sent by the
Gandhi Smriti.
One Nation-one Ration Card scheme
implemented on a pilot basis in four States

In a major boost to national food security
government launched the One Nation-One Ration
Card scheme on a pilot basis in Telangana, Andhra
Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat.
• Families who have food security cards can
buy subsidized rice and wheat from any
ration shop in these states.
• Their ration cards should be linked with
Aadhar Number to avail this service.
• The white Ration Cardholders in Telangana
have been getting the portability facility,
enabling them to buy their subsidized rice
and other food grains from any Fair Price
Shop in the state.
West Bengal launches ‘Save Green, Stay Clean’
campaign
The West Bengal Government has launched an
awareness campaign for preserving the greenery and
keeping the environment clean.
• The State Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee
launched the campaign named as ‘Save
Green, Stay Clean’ in Kolkata.
• The Chief Minister informed that during her
8 years ruling, the percentage of tree
plantation has gone up to 19 per cent from 11
per cent of Left Regime.
WCD Ministry observes World Breastfeeding
Week
The Women and Child Development Ministry is
observing the World Breastfeeding Week with a
focus on protection, promotion and support of
breastfeeding.
• The week, which is being observed till 7th of
the month, aims to create awareness among
parents about breastfeeding, the importance
of initiation, exclusive breastfeeding, and
adequate and appropriate complementary
feeding.
• The ministry is organizing a number of
activities on the theme “Empower Parents,
Enable Breastfeeding”.
“Aadi Perukku” festival celebrated in Tamil
Nadu
In Tamil Nadu, the “Aadi Perukku” festival was
celebrated.
• People performed puja’s on the banks of
larger water bodies including sea coasts,
lakes and rivers.
• The festival is to show reverence by the
public to rivers, as the traditional season of
sowing of seeds for the next crops.
 • At the Hogenakkal Waterfalls in Dharmapuri,
tourists and pilgrims participated in the “Aadi
Perukku” festival.
• Aadi is the name of the current Tamil month,
and Perukku is the term for the flooding of
waters.
Gujarat CM launches ‘Vhali Dikri Yojna’
Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani has launched
the ‘Vhali Dikri Yojna’ from Rajkot.
• The scheme for the welfare of the girl child
has been launched to mark the 63rd birthday
of Chief Minister.
• It is a statewide cash incentive scheme for
every girl child born in Gujarat, with a view
to raising the female birthrate at par with
male to achieve gender equality.
• The State Government will pay Rs. 4,000 to
every girl child at the time of admission to
Standard 4th, Rs. 6,000 at the time of taking
admission to Standard IX, Rs. 1 lakh at the
time of taking admission for higher education
at the age of 18 and another Rs. 1 lakh at the
time of marriage.
Maharashtra to get world’s first ultra-fast
Hyperloop project
Maharashtra has granted infrastructure project status
for a $10 billion plan to establish the world’s first
ultra-fast hyperloop project.
• The projects aim to link Mumbai with the
neighbouring city of Pune.
• Hyperloops use magnets to levitate pods
inside an airless tube, creating conditions in
which the pods can shuttle people and freight
at speeds of up to 1,200 km per hour.
• The status could help fast-track land
acquisition for the project over a 115 km
stretch that will shuttle people between the
cities in about 35 minutes.
SBI becomes 1st Indian bank to link up with
China's National Advance Payment System
The State Bank of India's Shanghai branch is now
connected to China's National Advance Payment
System (CNAPS), becoming the first Indian Bank to
operationalise it.
• The CNAPS, launched in 2008 by People's
Bank of China (PBOC) provides real-time
settlement services for all payments cleared
in mainland China, as well as in all clearing
banks in offshore yuan centres, such as Hong
Kong.
• The CIPS already has participants from
multiple countries across the globe.
India test-fires Surface to Air-Missile from
Chandipur in Odisha
India successfully test-fired its all-weather tracked-
chassis Quick Reaction Surface-to-Air Missile (QR-
SAM) from a mobile launcher at launch complex III
of the Integrated Test Range at Chandipur in Odisha.
 • It was the second developmental trial of the
missile in this year from the same test range.
• Earlier, the surface-to-air missile was tested
successfully on Feb 26, 201
• Jointly developed by Defence Research and
Development Organisation (DRDO) and
Bharat Electronics Ltd, the QR-SAM weapon
system is a quick reaction, network-centric
missile system capable of search-on-the-
move.
• QR-SAM system can also engage multiple
targets within a range of around 25 to 30 km
with two vehicle configuration for area air
defence.
AP Home Minister flags off riot control vehicle
'Vajra'
Arunachal Pradesh State Home Minister Bamang
Felix flagged of Five Anti-Riot police vehicle, also
known as ‘Vajra’, from Police Headquarter in
Itanagar.
• This is the first set of anti-riot vehicles
introduced in the state police department.
• These vehicles come with special features for
quick response, automatic multi-barrel
launchers for tear gas, with a capacity of 12
persons and a battery backup for long hours
stuck in the rioting crowd.
• Vajra is a protected vehicle used by the police
forces during riots and civil unrest.
HRD Minister inaugurates Technology Expo at
IIT Delhi
Human Resources Development Minister Ramesh
Pokhriyal Nishank inaugurated Technology Expo at
IIT Delhi to showcase the latest innovation in the
field of science and technology.
• He asked students and researchers to bring
back India's glory in the field of science and
education.
• Over 80 latest innovations and 90 research
posters by institutions from across the
country are showcasing the prototypes
developed by the investigators in the day-
long exhibition.
July 2019 confirmed as the hottest month ever
recorded
According to scientists at the European Union's
Copernicus Climate Change Service, July 2019 was
the warmest month on record for the planet.
• Citing the Climate Change Programme,
which analyses temperature data from around
the planet, CNN reported that July was
around 0.56 ℃ warmer than the global
average temperature between 1981-20
• That is slightly hotter than July 2016, when
the world was on the receiving end of the El
Nino effect.
• The effects of El Nino are characterised by
warming of the ocean waters in the Pacific
Ocean and have a pronounced warming effect
on the Earth's average temperature.
Article 370 and 35-A revoked from Jammu &
Kashmir
The government revoked Article 370 which gave
special status to Jammu and Kashmir and proposed
that the state be bifurcated into two union territories,
Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
• Union Home Minister Amit Shah moved a
resolution in the Rajya Sabha that Article
370, which allowed Jammu and Kashmir to
have its own Constitution, will no longer be
applicable.
• Shah also moved a bill proposing bifurcation
of the state of Jammu and Kashmir into two
union territories -Jammu and Kashmir
division and Ladakh.
• The union territory in Ladakh will have no
legislature like Chandigarh. The other union
territory of Jammu and Kashmir will have a
legislature like Delhi and Puducherry.
Bill to increase the number of SC judges passed
in Lok Sabha
The Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment
Bill was passed in the Lok Sabha.
• The bill proposes an increase in the number
of judges in Supreme Court from 30 to 33
excluding the Chief Justice of India.
• It seeks to address the rising pendency of
cases in the apex court.
• The Judges will also be entitled to the use of
the rent-free official residence.
International Army Scout Masters Competition
kicks off in Jaisalmer
The fifth edition of "International Army Scout
Masters Competition" was kicked off in Jaisalmer.
• Jaisalmer military station is hosting the
competition, which is happening as part of
the international Army games.
• A total of eight countries comprising of
China, Russia, Belarus, Armenia,
Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Sudan are
participating in the event including the Indian
Army team.
• The event commenced on August 5 and will
continue till August 16, 201
2nd All India annual conference of IIS officers
held in New Delhi
2nd All India Annual Conference of Indian
Information Service Officers was held in New
Delhi.
• Over 150 senior IIS officers from across the
country attended the conference.
• The conference discussed integrated
communication approaches, regional
expansion of social media, and impact
assessment of Govt communication.
• IIS Officers are the eyes and ears of the
government.
Points to remember
 • Union I&B Minister: Prakash Javadekar • The system, which was devised by the
students over three years of intensive
Lalit Kala Akademi celebrates 65th Foundation research, was in the test trial phase for the last
Day eight months before its final launch.
• The system uses existing CCTV cameras to
gather live traffic video feed, and
automatically evaluates the traffic density
using Artificial Intelligence, and sets the
signal timers accordingly.

World's thinnest '2D' gold measures just two

atoms

National Academy of Art, Lalit Kala Akademi,

celebrated its 65th Foundation Day in New Delhi on
4 August 201

• The event was inaugurated by Culture and

Tourism Minister Prahlad Singh Patel.
• Lalit Kala Akademi or National Academy of
Art was established in New Delhi in 1954 by
the government to promote and propagate
understanding of Indian art, in and outside the
country.
• The Academy provides scholarships,
fellowship programmes and organizes art-
related exhibitions in India and overseas.
Mohali gets a first 3-D traffic signal
Scientists have developed '2D' gold so fine that even
a human fingernail is thicker in comparison.
• The scientists at the University of Leeds,
England have created the world's thinnest
gold measuring two atoms thick or million
times thinner than a fingernail.
• In its 2D form, gold becomes flexible that
adds to its potential of being used more
efficiently such as in bendable screens,
electronic inks, medical diagnostic tests, and
water purification systems.

India contributes USD 5 million to UN Palestine

refugee agency

In a first-of-its-kind initiative in the country, Mohali

traffic police have launched 3-D Smart Traffic Signal
devised by the students of a Chandigarh university.

• The wireless system, called 'Intelights', has

been installed at the traffic crossing near the
Airport Road.
• The system will regulate traffic signals with
a smart bird's eye view wireless sensor
system.
India contributed USD 5 million to the UN Palestine
refugee agency and called for ensuring sustained
financial support for the organisation's work.
• India increased its annual financial assistance
to the UNRWA by four-fold, from USD 25
million to USD 5 million, when Prime
Minister Narendra Modi visited Palestine in
February 2018, the first-ever visit by an
Indian Premier to Ramallah.
• The UNRWA has been providing health,
education, relief and social services, as well
as emergency humanitarian assistance, across
its five areas of operations in Jordan,
Lebanon, Syria, West Bank, and the Gaza
Strip since 1950.
Mountaineering team to hoist Indian flag atop
Mount Elbrus on Independence Day
Union Minister of State for Defence Shripad Yesso
Naik flagged off an expedition team of mountaineers
to Mount Elbrus in Russia.
• The team is aiming to hoist the Indian
national flag atop the mountain on Aug 15, on
the occasion of the 73rd Independence Day of
India.
• The team will also perform 'asanas' atop the
mountain in an attempt to showcase the
importance of Yoga to the international
community.
Points to remember
• Mount Elbrus is a dormant volcano in
Southern Russia.
• It is considered the highest mountain in
Europe with an elevation of 5,642 m.
Rajasthan Assembly passes bills to curb honour
killings and Mob Lynching
Rajasthan legislative assembly passed two important
bills to curb honour killings and Mob Lynching in the
state.
• 'The Rajasthan Protection from Lynching
Bill, 2019' and ‘The Rajasthan Prohibition of
Interference with the Freedom of
Matrimonial Alliances in the Name of
Honour and Tradition Bill, 2019’ was passed
by the assembly.
• Rajasthan has become the second state after
Manipur which passed a law to curb lynching
cases.
• Provision of Life term imprisonment and a
fine up to Rupees 5 lakh to convicts in cases
of mob lynching has been made in the bill.
• The government told during the debate that
87 per cent of the total incidents took place
across the country were recorded in the state
during the last five years.
Andhra Pradesh govt all set to launch
Navodayam scheme for MSMEs
The Andhra Pradesh government is all set to launch
Navodayam, a complete outreach programme for
thousands of ailing Micro, Small and Medium
Enterprises (MSMEs) in the state.
 • In AP, MSMEs generate maximum
employment after agriculture.
• About 86,000 MSMEs in the state have been
identified for restructuring under Navodayam
with an outlay of Rs 3,900 crore.
• Navodayam will provide a lifeline to stressed
MSMEs by ensuring that all eligible units are
permitted for the one-time restructuring of
accounts up to March 31, 2020.
Udaipur set to host India's largest education
Brainstorm
• The World Resources Institute's Aqueduct
Water Risk Atlas ranked water stress,
drought risk.
• Qatar, Israel, Lebanon, Iran, Jordan, Libya,
Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Eritrea, UAE, San
Marino, Bahrain, India, Pakistan,
Turkmenistan, Oman and Botswana made up
the top 1
• The Middle East and North Africa are home
to 12 of the most stressed countries, while
India, which is ranked 13, has more than three
times the population of the other 1

Quit India Movement Day: 08 August

The third edition of India's largest education

brainstorming event, the ScooNews Global
The Quit India Movement was a movement launched
Educators Fest (SGEF) will be held on August 09 and
at the Bombay session of the All-India Congress
10 in Udaipur- the City of Lakes.
Committee by Mahatma Gandhi on 8 August 194
• It will bring together over 500 educators to
• On this day the Congress adopted the historic
discuss the way towards establishing India as
'Quit India Resolution' which declared among
the next global education powerhouse.
other things that the immediate ending of the
• The theme for this year's fest is 'Education for
British rule in India was an urgent necessity.
Sustainability: Moving on from conformity
• On the same Gandhi made a call to Do or Die
to creativity'. in his Quit India speech delivered in Bombay
at the Gowalia Tank Maidan.
Quarter of the world's population facing extreme
• It is also known as August Movement or
water stress August Kranti.

President Kovind gives assent to AERA

(Amendment) Bill- 2019

Nearly a quarter of the world's population lives in 17

countries facing extremely high water stress, close to
"day zero" conditions when the taps run dry.
President Ram Nath Kovind has given his assent to
The Airports Economic Regulatory Authority of
India, AERA (Amendment) Bill- 201
• A Gazette Notification to this effect has been
issued.
• The Parliament had passed the bill on 2nd of
this month.
• The bill increases the threshold of annual
passenger traffic for major airports from 15
lakh to over 35 lakh passengers.
• Earlier, the Airports Economic Regulatory
Authority of India Act, 2008 defined a major
airport as one with annual passenger traffic
over 15 lakh, or any other airports as notified
by the central government.
Two-day 22nd National Conference on e-
Governance 2019 inaugurated in Shillong
Dr Jitendra Singh inaugurated the 22nd National
Conference on e-Governance 2019 (NCeG), the first-
ever in North East region, in Shillong, Meghalaya.
• The Conference is being attended by senior
government officers from across India,
researchers and eminent personalities from
the IT industry.
• The conference will be held with the theme
“Digital India: Success to Excellence”.
• The conference will provide a platform to
disseminate knowledge on effective methods
of designing and implementing sustainable e-
Governance initiatives to provide end-to-end
Digital services.
Union HRD Minister to launch ‘Samagra
Shiksha-Jal Suraksha’ Drive
Union HRD Minister Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal
‘Nishank’ launched ‘Samagra Shiksha-Jal Suraksha’
drive.
• The drive aims to create awareness about
Water Conservation among all school
students in the country.
• The drive will organise water conservation
activities for School Students so that they can
become competent, conscientious and
committed water citizens of our nation.
Govt sanctions over 5,000 electric buses under
the second phase of FAME India scheme
Government has sanctioned five thousand 595
electric buses in 64 cities for intracity and intercity
operations under the second phase of FAME India
scheme.
• The objective of the scheme is to encourage
faster adoption of electric and hybrid vehicle
by way of offering upfront incentives on the
purchase of electric vehicles.
• The Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of
Hybrid & Electric Vehicles (FAME) India
was launched in 2015 under National Electric
Mobility Mission (NEMM).
Manipur tops in Breastfeeding, Infant & Young
Child Feeding Practices
Manipur has topped the rankings in Breastfeeding
and Infant and Young Child Feeding Practices in the
country.
• Health and Family Welfare Minister Dr
Harsh Vardhan released a report on
Breastfeeding in New Delhi.
• Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Bihar are at the
bottom positions in the report card.
• The Breastfeeding report card has been
developed by devising a composite score
based on three indicators namely early
initiation of breastfeeding, exclusive
breastfeeding for six months and
complementary feeding at 6-8 months of
child's age.
India's first underwater train to be launched in
Kolkata
India's first underwater train project in Kolkata is
almost complete and the metro will soon be
operational soon.
• An example of impeccable engineering, this
train is proof of the progress made by Indian
Railways.
• The 16-kilometre long Kolkata Metro project
will connect Salt Sector 5 with Howrah
Maidan.
• The tunnel is provided with four-layers of
protection to shield the tunnel from the water
of Hubli river.
IIT Madras partners with NIOT to harness
electricity from ocean waves
Researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology
(IIT) Madras and National Institute of Ocean
Technology (NIOT) are developing turbines that can
harness the power of ocean waves to generate
electricity.
• The research is being headed at IIT Madras
by Abdus Samad of Department of Ocean
Engineering, who specialises in extracting
energy from the ocean waves.
• The institute has been working since 1993 to
make wave energy a reality.
• The research team comprises four professors
from IIT-Madras, including Samad, and three
scientists from NIOT.
Environment minister Prakash Javadekar
launches a website for COP14
Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar
launched a website 'unccdcop14india.gov.in, which
contains all the information related to COP1
• The 14th Session of the Conference of the
Parties to the United Nations Convention to
Combat Desertification (COP14), will take
place on 2-13 September 2019 at the India
Expo Centre & Mart, Greater Noida, Delhi
NCR.
• Over 3,000 participants from all over the
world are expected to participate in COP1
• The agenda includes Reversing land
degradation and its outcomes while
accelerating positive achievements for people
and for ecosystems with a view to delivering
on Sustainable Development Goals.
Uttar Pradesh approved 'Mukhyamantri
Nirashrit Besahara Govansh Sahbhagita Yojana'
The Uttar Pradesh cabinet approved 'Mukhyamantri
Nirashrit Besahara Govansh Sahbhagita Yojana'.
• The scheme seeks people's participation in
the protection of the stray cattle by providing
Rs 30 per animal every day.
• Rs 1050 crore has been sanctioned for this
scheme.
• The 2012 census indicated that there were
around 2066 lakh bovines across the state.
3rd International Electric Vehicle Conclave held
in Manesar, Gurugram
The Minister of State for Heavy Industries and Public
Enterprises, Arjun Ram Meghwal, inaugurated the
3rd International Electric Vehicle (EV) Conclave at
the International Centre for Automotive Technology
(ICAT) in Manesar, Gurugram.
• The Conclave was held to create a
knowledge-sharing platform to ensure the
flow of information at all levels in the
automotive sector.
• The EV Conclave organized by ICAT in
association with India Energy Storage
Alliance (IESA) has grown and transformed
itself into a global event since its inception in
201
• The Conclave was attended by more than 200
delegates from more than 80 organizations.
VP launches 'Mukhya Mantri Krishi Aashirvad
Yojna' in Jharkhand
Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu launched the
Jharkhand government's 'Mukhya Mantri Krishi
Ashirwad Yojana'.
• Under this money will be directly transferred
into the bank accounts of farmers in the state.
• Under the scheme, beneficiaries having
farmland of less than one acre to five acres
will get 5,000 to 25,000 rupees in their bank
accounts.
• Under the Mukhya Mantri Krishi Ashirwad
Yojana, approximately 35 lakh farmers will
benefit and by October 3,000 crore rupees
will be sent in the accounts of the
beneficiaries.
UP govt creates a world record by planting over
22 cr saplings in one day
To mark the 77th anniversary of Quit India
movement, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi
Adityanath launched ‘Vriksharopan Mahakumbh’.
• The drive has created a world record after
planting more than 22 crore saplings.
• The state also entered the Guinness World
Records’ for distributing 76,823 saplings
simultaneously in six hours across the state.
MHA, Tripura Govt & NLFT(SD) sign
agreement
A memorandum of settlement was signed by the
Union Home Ministry, the Tripura state government
and the National Liberation Front of Tripura (SD).
• The agreement amongst three parties was
signed after 5 years of negotiations.
• After the agreement, 88 members of the
organisation will surrender on 13th August.
• 24 members of the NLFT (SD), currently in
jail will also surrender to the authorities.
• The agreement will give an impetus to the
continued peaceful situation in the North
East.
Google remembers Vikram Sarabhai on birth
anniversary
Google dedicated a doodle to mark the 100th birth
anniversary of Indian scientist Vikram Sarabhai.
• The doodle, illustrated by Mumbai-based
guest artist Pavan Rajurkar, had a blue and
white portrait of the renowned physicist
along with moon, rocket and stars, outlining
his association with space programs.
• Sarabhai, often known as the Father of India's
Space Programme,had established the Indian
National Committee for Space Research in
1962, which was later renamed as the Indian
Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
• Sarabhai was born on August 12, 1919, in
Ahmedabad, Gujarat.
• Remembered as the founding father of the
Indian space programme, Sarabhai set up the
Physical Research laboratory in his
hometown in Ahmedabad in 1947 which was
a precursor to the ISRO.
15-km long national flag unfurled in Raipur
In Chhattisgarh, thousands of students and members
of several social organisations unfurled a 15-km long
national flag by forming a human chain in Raipur
ahead of the Independence day.
• The event, organised by Vasudhaiv
Kutumbakam Foundation, entered the
 Champions Book of World Records (for the
longest tricolour).
• Thousands of people, including those
belonging to 35 social organisations across
the state, and students from various schools
created a human chain while holding the 15-
km long tricolour from Amapara Chowk to Pt
Ravishankar Shukla University.
Punjab govt to provide 28000 agro-machines to
farmers to prevent stubble burning
With a view to making Punjab a ‘zero stubble
burning state’, the Punjab Agriculture Department
has initiated a massive drive to provide more than
28000 agro-machines/farm equipment to farmers.
• Subsidy component of 278 crore rupees will
be provided for the scheme during the current
fiscal year under the first phase for in-situ
management of paddy residue.
• Subsidy ranging from 50 per cent to 80 per
cent is being provided to the farmers under
the scheme with 80 percent subsidy to
cooperative societies and farmers groups
while 50 percent for individuals.
• The Agriculture Department has fully geared
up to complete the task of distribution of this
equipment before September 1
CRPF 'Madagaar' Helpline number restored in
Jammu and Kashmir
The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF)
announced that its 'Madadgaar Helpline' number
14411 was restored after it went inactive due to
communication disruption in Jammu and Kashmir.
• In the tweet, CRPF also mentioned that
people can also seek help on its Twitter and
Facebook handles @CRPFmadadgaar.
• People can contact the helpline number for
Medical Assistance, Pilgrimage Tourist
assistance, Public Safety and Security,
Domestic Violence and Eve Teasing, Public
Utilities, Natural Calamities, Assistance to
Poor, Sports Assistance, Educational
Assistance, Civic Action Programme and
Recruitment and other information.
• CRPF had launched the 24×7 helpline
'madadgaar' (14411) in June 2017 to help any
Kashmir Valley resident in distress.
Army launches ‘Mission Reach Out’ in Jammu
The Army has launched ‘Mission Reach Out’ in
Jammu to ensure basic necessities and essential
services are available in the region.
• A high-level Mission Reach Out conference
to review the prevalent situation in the region
was held in the Nagrota Military Station was
chaired by White Knight Corps Commander
Lt Gen Paramjit Singh.
• The Corps commander lauded the absolute
synergy between the Army, civil
administration and other security
establishments in maintaining peace,
harmony and a conducive environment.
NGT directs govt to submit a report on standards
for lead in PVC pipes
The National Green Tribunal has directed the Centre
to submit a report on standards of lead and to phase
out lead as a stabiliser in Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC)
pipes that are commonly used in most buildings.
 • A bench headed by NGT chairperson Justice • The Ladakh UT will have two districts that
Adarsh Kumar Goel expressed concern that are Leh, and Kargil while the rest 12 districts
the notification has not been finalised despite will remain with J&K UT.
its direction.
• It directed the Ministry of Environment and Air India first flight over North Pole from Delhi
Forests to submit a report before October 2 to San Francisco on August 15
• The green panel in March had directed the
Centre to finalise within two months the
standards for using lead in PVC pipes.
• The NGT was earlier informed that water
passing through PVC pipes commonly used
in most buildings may contain toxic materials
like lead, which has a hazardous effect on
human health.

Two new UTs, in J&K, will come into effect on

Oct 31 Air India will soon become the first Indian airline to
fly over the North Pole while connecting New Delhi
and North America.

• The inaugural flight over the Polar region

will take flight on the nation's Independence
Day, August 15, 2019 and will fly from New
Delhi to San Francisco.
• According to the airline, passengers will
benefit from the reduced flight times, the
airline by conserving fuel, reduce travel
With the President's assent to the newly passed times, improve aircraft utility and reduce
Jammu and Kashmir Re-organisation Act comes into carbon emission.
effect, the two newly created Union Territories • Currently, the route that the New Delhi to San
Jammu &Kashmir and Ladakh will officially come Francisco flight takes goes over Bangladesh,
into existence on October 3 Myanmar, China and Japan before crossing
the Pacific Ocean to enter the United States
• October 31 happens to be the birth of America.
anniversary of the country's first Home
Minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, who was Hardeep Singh Puri launches Swachh
instrumental in the merger of about 565 Survekshan 2020
princely states into the Union of India
following Independence.
• The Parliament has given its nod to the J&K
Re-organisation Bill on August 6 turned the
militancy-hit state in two separate
administrative units as Union Territories.
• According to the new Act, UT J&K will have
Assembly while Ladakh will be UT without
a Legislature.
• Each UT will be governed by a separate
Lieutenant Governor.
Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for CBI should be given statutory status equal to
Housing and Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri CAG, says CJI
launched the Swachh Survekshan 2020 (SS 2020).

• It is the fifth edition of the annual cleanliness

survey conducted by the Ministry of Housing
and Urban Affairs (MoHUA).
• Alongside, the Swachh Survekshan 2020
Toolkit, SBM Water PLUS Protocol and
Toolkit, Swachh Nagar - an integrated waste
management app and AI enabled mSBM App
were also launched.
• The Swachh Survekshan 2020 Toolkit
launched by the minister contains the detailed Chief Justice of India, Justice Ranjan Gogoi said
survey methodology and component Central Bureau of Investigation should be given
indicators with scores to help cities to prepare statutory status equal to Comptroller and Auditor
themselves for the survey. General.
• SS 2020 will be conducted in January 2020.
• Justice Gogoi said, CBI is the premier federal
Prakash Javadekar releases patriotic song investigating agency in the country and it has
‘Watan’ in run up to Independence Day discharged its duty with honour and
distinction during its more than five decades
of existence.
• CAG: Rajiv Mehrishi
• CJI : Ranjan Gogoi
• CBI Director General : Rishi Kumar Shukla

Former PM Manmohan Singh files Rajya Sabha

nomination from Rajasthan

Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash

Javadekar released a patriotic song ‘Watan’ in New
Delhi in the run up to the Independence Day.

• The special song has been produced by

Doordarshan
• The song highlights several path-breaking
initiatives of the government including the
determination and vision behind the recent Former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh filed
successful launch of Chandrayaan nomination papers as a Congress candidate for the
• The song also pays tribute to the bravery and
by-poll to Rajya Sabha from Rajasthan.
valour of the armed forces and the martyrs of
the country. • Dr. Singh filed four sets of nomination papers
• The song has been sung by famous
in the chamber of Returning Officer in the
Bollywood singer Javed Ali. It has been
Rajasthan Assembly.
penned by lyricist Alok Shrivastav and music
• This seat fell vacant in June this year after
composed by Dushyant. demise of BJP Member Madan Lal Saini.
 • Rajasthan Assembly has 200 seats but
currently there are 198 MLAs and two seats
are vacant.
• Congress has 100 MLAs and also enjoys the
outside support of 12 out of 13 independents
and the legislators of BSP.
• The summit will also provide an opportunity
to allay fears and apprehensions in the minds
of outside trade and the business community.
Aadhaar-enabled payment system crosses 200
million transactions in July

Legislative Party of Sikkim Democratic Front

merges with BJP

The umbrella body for digital transactions, NPCI,

said that Aadhaar enabled Payment System crossed
the milestone of over 200 million transactions during
July this year.
The legislative party of Sikkim Democratic Front
(SDF) merged itself with Bharatiya Janta Party.
• AePS is a bank led model which allows
basic banking transactions at point of sale.
• Out of 13, 10 MLAs of the SDF joined BJP
• In July 2019, the transaction count of AePS
in the presence of party general secretary
stood at 220 million.
Ram Madhav in New Delhi.
• AePS empowers a bank customer to use
• Senior SDF leader Dorjee Tshering Lepcha
Aadhaar as identity to access respective
said, they want to work under the leadership
Aadhaar enabled bank account and perform
of Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the
basic banking transactions like cash
development of the state.
withdrawal, intrabank or interbank fund
transfer and balance enquiry.
Global investors summit to be held in Srinagar
from October 12
PM announces Jal Jeevan Mission to ensure safe
drinking water to all households

Jammu and Kashmir Administration will host a

three-day Global Investors Summit from 12th
October this year in Srinagar.
• The first-ever summit in the state will provide
J&K with an opportunity to showcase its
strengths, strategies and potential.
Addressing the nation from the Red Fort on the
occasion of Independence day, he announced 'Jal
Jivan' mission to make drinking water available to all
households.
 • The government will spend 5 lakh crore
rupees for the mission.
• He said that the movement towards water
conservation has to take place at the
grassroots level and it should not be limited
to mere a Government programme.
Inter-State Council reconstituted with PM Modi
as chairman
The government has reconstituted the Inter-State
Council and the Standing Committee of the Inter-
State Council.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi is the
Chairman of the Inter-State Council.
• Chief Ministers of all States and six Union
Ministers including Rajnath Singh, Amit
Shah and Nirmala Sitharaman are the
members of the Council.
• While ten Union Ministers including Nitin
Gadkari, Ravi Shankar Prasad, Ram Vilas
Paswan, S Jaishankar and Piyush Goyal are
the permanent invitees in the Council.
Jal Shakti Minister launches Swaccha
Survakshan Grameen
Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat
launched the country's largest sanitation survey
Swachh Survekshan Grameen-201
• The aim of this survey is to engage rural
communities in improvement of the
sanitation status of their districts and states
through the intensive campaign.
• The 45-day long survey will take place in 18
thousand villages of 698 districts.
• Swachhata activities have also been planned
at around 87 thousand public places where
community meetings will be organized.
• People can also directly give their feedback
through the mobile app.
RPF Launches “Operation Number Plate”
Railway Protection Force (RPF) of Indian Railways
launched a Special Drive with a Code Name -
Operation “Number Plate”.
• It has been launched to identify and verify all
vehicles parked in Railway premises,
circulating area, parking and even in the ‘No
Parking’ areas for a longer duration.
• The unidentified vehicles are considered as a
serious threat to the security and safety of
passengers and other stakeholders of
railways.
• 3943 Vehicles were found parked
unattended/unclaimed for more than 05 days
in the authorized parking lots of Railway
stations.
• A fine of Rs. 59000/- have been recovered as
the charges for unauthorized parking.
Mumbai all set to get first Indian Institute of
Skills
Mumbai is all set to get the first Indian Institute of
Skills - IIS, the foundation stone of which will be laid
next month.
 • Union Minister for Skill Development and
Entrepreneurship, Dr Mahendra Nath Pandey
announced that the institute is likely to be
operational by next year.
• Mr. Pandey informed that the project will be
executed on a Public-Private Partnership
basis, wherein Tata Educational and
Development Trust will build the
infrastructure and run the centre at an
investment of 300 crore rupees.
• The IIS will have a capacity to train 10,000
trainees in traditional as well as new-age
skills like factory automation, digital
manufacturing, cybersecurity, additive
manufacturing, data analytics, digital design,
smart mechatronics among others.
Panchamritham of Palani temple in Tamil Nadu
gets GI tag
The famous Panchamritham, an offering of the
Palani Dandayuthaswamy temple, in Tamil Nadu,
has been granted the Geographical Identity (GI) tag.
• This is the first temple offering - Prashad -
from Tamil Nadu - to be conferred this
honour.
• Earlier, the Tanjavoor Veenai, Madurai
Malligai, Neelgiri Tea leaves as well as
Turmeric from Erode from Tamil Nadu have
been bestowed with Geographical Identity
tags.
• The unique Panchamritam of Palani temple is
prepared using five sweet substances
including plantains, jaggery, grapes, forest
honey and ghee.
INS Tarkash participates in KONKAN bilateral
exercise
The 14th Edition of KONKAN series of annual
bilateral exercises between Indian Navy and Royal
Navy of Britain is currently underway off the South
Coast of UK.
• INS Tarkash, the Indian Navy's stealth frigate
is exercising with the Royal Navy's Daring
Class Destroyer, HMS Defender with integral
helicopter Wildcat.
• KONKAN-19 will involve Gunnery Shoots,
Manoeuvres, Cross Deck Flying, ASW
Screening and Air Defence exercise.
• The thrust of the KONKAN this year is on
Anti-Air warfare, Anti-Surface Warfare,
Flying Operations and Seamanship
Evolutions of varying complexities.
India’s first space museum inaugurated in
Hyderabad
India’s first Space Science Museum opened in
Hyderabad.
• It is a collaborative effort between the Indian
Space Research Organization (ISRO) and the
BM Birla Science Centre.
• The BM Birla Science Centre has given 9000
square feet of space in its Science Museum
building.
• This museum exhibits scale models of Indian
Launch vehicles GSLV Mark III, GSLV
 Mark II and PSLV, Chandrayaan-1, Mars
Orbiter spacecraft, APPLE, Aryabhata,
Bhaskara, Rohini RS-1 and a model of the
International Space Station (ISS).
• Among the biggest models on display would
be the giant GSLV Rocket which would be
approximately 60 feet tall.
Indian Army wins International Army Scout
Masters competition
The Indian Army won the 5th International Army
Scout Masters competition.
• The games were held at Rajasthan's
Jaisalmer's Military station under the aegis of
Southern Command of Indian Army.
• A total of eight teams from India, Russia,
China, Kazakhstan, Sudan, Uzbekistan,
Armenia, and Belarus participated in the
competition.
• This was the first time the Indian Army
participated in the competition.
Odisha CM announces 'Mo Sarkar' initiative for
transparency in governance
In a bid to ensure transparency in governance, Odisha
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik announced the "Mo
Sarkar" initiative during Independence Day
celebration in the state.
• The new initiative will commence from
October 2 on the occasion of Gandhi Jayanti.
• Under the new initiative, the chief minister
and other ministers will call common citizens
to seek their feedback on the kind of response
and service they received when they visited
the government facilities.
• The program, in its first phase, will be
implemented for all police stations and
district headquarters hospitals and will later
take up all other departments by March 5,
2020.
Finance Commission to visit Rajasthan
The 15th Finance Commission headed by Chairman,
N.K. Singh and including Members of the
Commission will visit the State of Rajasthan from
16th August to 19th August 201
• The Commission will hold the other meeting
with the representatives of the State’s
Panchayati Raj Institutions and Rural Local
Bodies, representatives of the Urban Local
Bodies and the representatives of the Political
Parties of the State.
• The Commission will also have a meeting
with the representatives of Trade and
Industry bodies in the State.
Prakash Javadekar announces the launch of a
campaign to make India free of single-use plastic
Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar has
announced that a massive campaign will be launched
to make India free of single-use plastic.
• In this regard, a series of meetings will be
held with all stakeholders including state
governments to chalk out a concrete plan to
make it a people's campaign to realise the
ultimate target.
• Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar
made this announcement at Sau Paulo in
Brazil, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi
in his Independence Day speech.
National tribal festival 'Aadi Mahotsav' begins in
Leh-Ladakh
Aadi Mahotsav, the national tribal festival, started at
Polo Ground in Leh-Ladakh.
• The nine-day event was inaugurated by the
Jammu and Kashmir Governor, Satya Pal
Malik.
• The theme of the festival is - A celebration of
the spirit of Tribal Craft, Culture and
Commerce.
• Around 160 Tribal artisans from more than
20 states across the country will actively
participate and showcase their masterpieces
in this event.
PM Modi announces the creation of Chief of
Defence staff post
Addressing the nation from the Red Fort on the
occasion of Independence Day, the Prime Minister
announced that the country will now have a Chief of
Defence Staff, CDS.
• CDS will ensure synergy among the three
Services and provide effective leadership to
them.
• The post of CDS was first recommended by
a Group of Ministers (GoM) set up to
examine the findings of the Kargil Review
Committee (KRC) in 2000.
• The CDS is meant to be a single-point
military advisor to the government who will
coordinate long-term planning,
procurements, training and logistics of the
three services.
• The CDS will also act as the military advisor
to the Prime Minister on nuclear issues.
Four New Products get GI Tag
The Geographical Indication (GI) under the
Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal
Trade has recently registered 4 new GIs.
• Palani Panchamirtham from Palani Town in
Dindigul District of Tamil Nadu State.
• Tawlhlohpuan and Mizo Puanchei from the
state of Mizoram.
• Tirur Betel leaf from Kerala are the latest
additions to the list of registered GIs.
• GI is an indication used on products that have
a specific geographical origin and possess
qualities or a reputation that are due to that
origin.
PM Modi and Bhutanese PM jointly inaugurated
720 Megawatt Mangdechu hydroelectric plant in
Thimphu
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bhutanese
counterpart Dr Lotay Tshering jointly inaugurated
the 720 Megawatt Mangdechu hydroelectric plant in
Thimphu.

• This is the fourth plant built by India in

Bhutan.
• They also inaugurated the Ground Earth
Station of South Asian Satellite, developed
by Indian Space Research Organization.
• The first phase of Rupay card was also
launched.
• India and Bhutan also signed 10
Memorandum of Understanding in science,
technology, engineering and maths and
judicial sectors.
Vice President embarks on a three-nation visit to
Lithuania, Latvia & Estonia
The Indian Navy would be hosting ‘MILAN’, a
multilateral naval exercise in Visakhapatnam in
March 2020.
• The MILAN series of biennial exercises,
which commenced in 1995 and conducted at
Andaman and Nicobar Command (ANC)
until last year.
• Last year’s edition was conducted for the first
time on the mainland at the eastern naval
command (ENC).

Vellore district to be trifurcated; Ranipet,

Tirupattur to become new districts

Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu has embarked on

a three-nation visit to Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia.

• He is accompanied by a high-level
delegation.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami
• Vice President's visit will be the first-ever
said that Vellore district will be trifurcated and two
high-level visit to the three Baltic countries.
new districts, Ranipet and Tirupattur, will be formed.
• The visit takes place in the context of
increasing political engagement, as well as
• Vellore will be the headquarters of these two
intensified trade and commercial ties.
new districts.
• The Chief Minister also announced that a
Points to remember
new taluk will be formed with K V Kuppam
as its headquarters.
• Lithuania Capital: Vilnius
• With the creation of two more districts, the
• Latvia Capital: Riga
total number of districts in Tamil Nadu
• Estonia Capital: Tallinn
mounts to 3
Navy to host multi-lateral exercise ‘MILAN’ in
Assam gets its first-ever CNG fuel station in
Visakhapatnam
Dibrugarh

Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal
inaugurated the first-ever CNG fuel station of the
state in Dibrugarh.
• With the inauguration of this clean and green
fuel station, it will reduce environmental
pollution.
• Mr. Sonowal has given much emphasis to
make the state free from pollution.
ANZ slashes forecast for India's GDP growth in
2019-20 to 2%
Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ)
slashed its forecast for India's economic growth to
2% in the financial year ending next March.
• The bank's estimate of gross domestic
product (GDP) growth is now well below the
expectations of other banks.
• The forecasts all badly lag the government's
longer-term target of getting the economy
humming at rates above 8%.
• India's quarterly GDP growth slowed to a
five-year low of 8% in January-March as a
result of sluggish domestic and global
demand and little growth in private
investment.
Points to remember
• The chief economist for Southeast Asia and
India at ANZ: Sanjay Mathur
President Ram Nath Kovind inaugurates
Bunker museum
President Ram Nath Kovind inaugurated the
underground 'Bunker Museum' at Raj Bhavan in
Mumbai.
• The 15,000 square feet underground bunker
museum has virtual reality booths in which
visitors can "time travel" to the 19th century.
• The bunker was created in the 19th century to
fire cannons at approaching enemy ships.
• Also, President unveiled the foundation stone
for the proposed reconstruction of Jal
Bhushan, the Governor's office-cum-
residential building.
HRD Minister inaugurates two-day international
conference on teacher education
Union Human Resource Development Minister
Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ inaugurated an
international conference on teacher education in New
Delhi.
• Speaking on the occasion, he said that India
has traditionally been known for leadership in
education and teacher preparation.
 • He said for thousands of years, Indian teacher
was considered as Vishwa Guru or world’s
teacher.
• The two-day event is being organized by the
National Council of Teacher Education as
part of silver jubilee celebration of its
establishment in 199
Gujarat to get the country's first chemical
engineering & technology institute
The country's first Central Institute of Chemical
Engineering & Technology (CICET) will be set up in
Gujarat to give a boost to the chemical industry.
• The CICET will come up either at
Ahmedabad or Surat.
• The proposed CICET will help the chemical
industry with research and innovations.
Five new fish species discovered in Arunachal
Pradesh
Researchers of the Rajiv Gandhi University in
Arunachal Pradesh have discovered five new fish
species in various districts of the state.
• The scientific names of the newly-discovered
fish species are Mystus prabini, found in
Sinkin and Dibang rivers in Lower Dibang
Valley district and Exostoma kottelati, found
in Ranga river in Lower Subansiri district.
• Other discovered species are
Creteuchiloglanis tawangensis, found in the
Tawangchu river in Tawang district, Garra
ranganensis, found in Ranga river and
Physoschistura harkishorei, found in Dibang
and Lohit rivers.
• Majority of the water bodies in remote areas
of Arunachal Pradesh are still not easily
accessible to the researchers due to a difficult
terrain that includes rain forests, steep hills
besides communication problems.
PM Narendra Modi to visit France, UAE,
Bahrain from Aug 22 to 26
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be on a three-
nation state visit to France, UAE and Bahrain from
22nd to 26th August.
• The Prime Minister's bilateral visit to France
will be between 22nd and 23rd of this month.
• On the second leg of the visit, Mr Modi will
be in the United Arab Emirates from 23rd to
24th of this month.
• Mr Modi will receive the Order of Zayed, the
highest civil decoration of UAE which was
conferred on him earlier this year in
recognition of Prime Minister's leadership for
giving a big boost to bilateral relations
between the two countries.
• Mr Modi will return to France to attend the
G7 Summit.
Points to remember
• The 45th G7 summit will be held on August
24-26, 2019, in Biarritz, France.
 ISRO successfully places Chandrayaan-2
spacecraft into lunar orbit
Indian Space Research Organisation has successfully
placed Chandrayaan-2 spacecraft into lunar orbit as
planned.
• After this, four more orbit manoeuvres will
be carried out till September 1st to bring it
closer to Moon’s surface in the proximity of
100 km of lunar orbit.
• Chandrayaan 2 was launched on July 22 by
GSLV Mark III-M1 launch vehicle.
• Lander Vikram and rover Pragyan soft-land
on the south pole of the moon on September
Nation pays homage to former PM Rajiv Gandhi
on 75th birth anniversary
The nation is paying homage to former Prime
Minister Rajiv Gandhi on his 75th birth anniversary
on 20 August 201
• Several programmes are being organised in
different parts of the country to mark the
occasion.
• Rajiv Gandhi served as Prime Minister from
1984 to 198
• This day is also observed as Sadbhavna
Diwas to promote national integration and
communal harmony among people of all
religion and languages.
NGT forms a panel to examine allegations of
illegal sand mining in River Yamuna
The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has formed a
committee to examine allegations of illegal sand
mining in the Yamuna River and sought a report
within a month.
• The NGT action follows a move by the Delhi
Jal Board which alleged illegal sand mining
in the Yamuna river.
• A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice
Adarsh Kumar Goel asked the panel
consisting of Delhi District Magistrate, Delhi
Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) and
Central Pollution Control Board to look into
the matter and take appropriate action.
Manipur CM launches ‘School Fagadaba’
scheme
Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh launched a
scheme to improve the infrastructure of government
schools in the state.
• The scheme named ‘School Fagadaba’
(Make education better) was launched at the
cabinet hall of Chief Minister’s Secretariat.
• The objective of the scheme is to ensure
better infrastructure, quality education and
 overall improvement of government schools
to make them model schools.
• The state government is also installing
biometric attendance machines in
government schools to ensure the presence of
teachers in their posting places.
Points to remember
• Capital: Imphal
• Governor: Padmanabha Acharya
Zambian President arrives in New Delhi
President of Zambia Edgar Chagwa Lungu arrived in
New Delhi on a three-day visit to India.
• Mr Lungu will meet President Ram Nath
Kovind and will hold delegation-level talks
with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
• The discussion is likely to focus on
cooperation in defence, security, geology and
mineral resources, energy, health, education,
infrastructure, culture, trade and investment-
related issues.
• The bilateral trade between India and Zambia
has grown steadily.
• With investments of over 5 billion US
dollars, India is one of the largest investors in
Zambia.
DRDO hands over the design of Mobile Metallic
Ramp to Indian Army
Defence Research and Development Organisation
(DRDO) handed over the design of Mobile Metallic
Ramp (MMR) to the Indian Army.
• With a load-bearing capacity of 70 metric ton
(MT), the MMR has been designed and
developed by DRDO’s premier research
laboratory, Centre for Fire, Explosive and
Environment Safety (CFEES).
• The ramp will provide the strategic mobility
for Armoured and Mechanized units and
formations of the Army.
• It is portable, modular in design, which can
be easily assembled or disassembled.
Railways' second double-decker Uday Express to
run between Visakhapatnam, Vijayawada
Railways' second double-decker Uday Express will
run between Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada to cater
to the busy route in the East Coast Railway zone.
• The first Uday or Utkrisht double-decker
Yatri Express was a specially-designed air-
conditioned chair car which started service
between Coimbatore and Bangalore in June
201
• They are equipped with WiFi facility, have
striking interiors, cushioned seating, and
display screens.
• Another Uday Express is proposed between
Bangalore City and Chennai Central.
• The train consists of nine double-decker
coaches and two power cars.
Hollongi Airport will be completed by March 31,
2022
Union Minister of Civil Aviation Hardeep Singh Puri
announced that the Hollongi Airport in Itanagar will
be completed by March 31, 202
• Mr Puri made the announcement while
reviewing the status of Civil Aviation in
Arunachal Pradesh through a video
conference with Chief Secretary Naresh
Kumar.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the
foundation stone for the construction of the
Greenfield Airport at Hollongi near Itanagar
on 9th of February this year.
Wipro inks pact with IISc for research in
robotics, 5G
Wipro announced a strategic partnership with the
Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru to
conduct advanced applied research in autonomous
systems, robotics and 5G space.
• The two organisations have jointly set up the
Wipro IISc Research and Innovation
Network (WIRIN), an industry-academia
collaboration unit.
• The institute would benefit from advancing
its research goal and capacity-building
besides the commercialisation of the research
outcome.
Railways directed all its units to enforce a ban on
plastic from October 2
Ministry of Railways has directed all its units to
enforce a ban on single-use plastic material, with less
than 50-micron thickness from October 2nd 201
• The move came in the wake of Prime
Minister Narendra Modi's clarion call to
eliminate single-use plastic in the country.
• The Railways has emphasised on making
necessary arrangements to minimize the
generation of plastic waste and its eco-
friendly disposal.
• All vendors and staff across will be
encouraged to use reusable bags to reduce
plastic footprint.
New health warnings on tobacco products pack
from Sep 1
Centre has notified new sets of health warnings for
all tobacco products by making an amendment in the
Cigarettes and other Tobacco Products (Packaging
and Labeling) Rules, 200
• The new warnings will come into effect from
1st September 201
• The text messages that will be printed on the
packs are - tobacco causes a painful death.
• A national toll-free number - 1800-11-2356
will also be printed on packs to assist the
users to quit.
• This helps in creating awareness among
tobacco users and gives them access to
counselling services to effect behaviour
change.
Kiren Rijiju, Baichung Bhutia flag off Delhi leg
of Op-Blue Freedom
Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju and former India
football captain Baichung Bhutia flagged off the
Delhi leg of Op-Blue Freedom.
 • This is an initiative in which a group of armed
forces veterans train sports enthusiasts in
survival training and self-defence.
• Op-Blue Freedom is also a nation-wide
adaptive scuba diving programme for people
with disabilities as well as the able-bodied.
• The program aims to train adventure
enthusiasts in special forces skills like
survival techniques, emergency first response
skills, unarmed combat, endurance and
fitness.
HRD Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’
launches Teachers Training Programme
NISHTHA
Human Resources Development Minister Ramesh
Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ launched the Integrated
Teachers Training Programme, NISHTHA in New
Delhi.
Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin
Gadkari have announced that FASTags will become
mandatory for all vehicles from December this year.
• FASTag enabled vehicles can cruise through
the dedicated FASTag lane without stopping
at toll plazas on National Highways.
• Launching the new website of his Ministry in
New Delhi, Mr Gadkari said, over 52 lakh
FASTags have been issued till date.
• FASTags are being issued by 22 certified
banks through various channels such as
Point-of-Sale at NH toll plazas and selected
bank branches.
• FASTag is an electronic toll collection
system in India, operated by the National
Highway Authority of India (NHAI).
Power Minister launches State Rooftop Solar
Attractiveness Index

• NISHTHA stands for National Initiative for

School Head’s and Teachers’ Holistic
Advancement.
• This integrated programme aims to build the
capacities of around 42 lakh participants
covering all teachers and Heads of the school.
• Through this initiative, teachers at the
elementary level will be able to acquire
scientific temperament and knowledge of
other important educational aspects and Power Minister R K Singh launched the State
transfer it to students. Rooftop Solar Attractiveness Index -SARAL in New
Delhi.
Govt to make FASTag mandatory for all vehicles
• Karnataka has been placed at the first rank in
from December 2019
the Index followed by Telangana and
Gujarat.
• The index evaluates states based on their
attractiveness for rooftop development.
 • SARAL encourages each state to assess the
initiatives taken so far and to improve its
solar rooftop ecosystem.
• The Ministry has set a target of 175 gigawatts
of renewable energy capacity by 2022, of
which 100-gigawatt solar power is to be
operational by March 202
SEBI announces a reward of Rs 1 crore to insider
trading informants
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI)
has announced a reward of up to one crore rupees for
informants willing to provide credible information
regarding insider trading cases.
• This will be a part of the detailed set of rules
for the new 'Informant Mechanism' under the
Prohibition of Insider Trading Regulations
that was approved by the SEBI board.
• The norms also propose a possible amnesty
or settlement for minor wrongdoings in return
for cooperation in the probe.
• SEBI will establish an Office of Informant
Protection, which will be responsible for the
receipt, registration and processing of the
disclosure form and also for ascertaining its
authenticity.
Government to launch ‘Bharatcraft’ portal to
help MSMEs
The government is planning to launch an e-
commerce project called 'Bharatcraft' for micro small
and medium enterprises (MSME).
• The proposed platform could generate a
turnover of Rs 10 trillion over the next few
years.
• MSME sector is likely to contribute 50 per
cent to the total GDP in the next five years.
• At present, the sector currently contributes 29
per cent to the country's GDP and employs
110 million people.
• The government had launched the 'Udyog
Mitra' portal to ease of access to MSMEs
financial and non-financial service needs.
Shripad Yesso Naik inaugurates two-day
National Conference on Varmam Science in
Chennai
Shripad Yesso Naik inaugurated the two-day
National Conference on Varmam Science, a part of
the Siddha system of medicine in Chennai.
• He said that all Indian traditional medical
systems are being promoted by the Centre to
ensure holistic health care.
• 'Varmam' is a constituent of the Siddha
system of medicine, that also doubles up as a
martial art.
• The national conference is being organized
by the National Institute of Siddha in
Chennai.
Amit Shah chairs 24th meeting of Western Zonal
Council in Goa

Union Home Minister Amit Shah chaired the 24th
meeting of Western Zonal Council at Panaji in Goa.
• It is a forum for the Centre and states to
exchange ideas on issues like health, security
and social welfare.
• Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra
Fadnavis, Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay
Rupani, Goa Chief minister Pramod Sawant
and representatives from the Union
Territories of Daman and Diu, and Dadra and
Nagar Haveli attended the meeting.
• Resolution of Transfer of Land issues with
Maharashtra, Gujarat and UT of Daman Diu,
and Utilisation of funds for police
modernisation were discussed in the meeting.
Akshay Kumar 4th on Forbes highest-paid actors
list
National Award-winning actor Akshay Kumar has
made it to the fourth position on the Forbes
magazine's Worlds Highest-Paid Actors Of 2019 list.
• According to the list on forbes.com Akshay
has raked in $65 million.
• Hollywood star Dwayne 'Rock' Johnson tops
the Forbes list of the 10 highest-paid actors,
collecting $84 million between June 1, 2018,
and June 1, 201
• Australian actor Chris Hemsworth took the
second spot with $74 million.
WADA suspends the accreditation of NDTL for
six months
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has
suspended the accreditation of India's National Dope
Testing Laboratory (NDTL) for six months.
• It is understood that National Anti-Doping
Agency (NADA) can still carry on with
sample collection of blood and urine but will
have to get it tested by a different WADA
accredited laboratory outside India during the
suspension period of NDTL.
• This suspension has been imposed due to
non-conformities with the International
Standard for Laboratories (ISL).
• The suspension, which took effect on 20
August 2019, prohibits the NDTL from
carrying out any anti-doping activities,
including all analyses of urine and blood
samples.
Discovery, WWF tie up to preserve Sundarbans
To help save the world’s only mangrove tiger habitat,
Discovery India and WWF India have partnered with
the Forest Directorate, the government of West
Bengal and local communities in the Sundarbans.
• Its vision is to create climate-smart villages
in the Sundarbans.
• WWF India and Discovery India are working
with government agencies, civil society
partners and scientific institutions to build the
capacity of village panchayats helping secure
 livelihoods, biodiversity and ecosystem
services.
• The project will use technology to solve
several of the issues faced in the region.
President of India inaugurates the First World
Youth Conference on Kindness
The President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind,
inaugurated the first World Youth Conference on
Kindness in New Delhi.
• The first World Youth Conference on
Kindness is being organised by the UNESCO
Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for
Peace and Sustainable Development,
Ministry of Human Resource Development.
• The conference aims to impart critical
competencies (i.e. empathy, compassion,
mindfulness and critical inquiry) in global
youth to inspire, empower and enable them to
transform themselves and build long-lasting
peace in their communities.
• Youth leaders, representing over 27
countries, are participating in this conference.
MoU signed between AWHO and Tata Realty
A historic milestone was reached with the signing of
an MoU between the Indian Army and Tata Realty &
Housing.
• The MoU enables the personnel of Indian
Army to immediately take over dwelling
units in 13 ‘Ready to Move in’ projects of
Tata Realty pan India spread over 10 cities
including Gurugram, Chennai, Bengaluru,
Pune among others at a discount ranging
from 11% to 27%.
• This also heralds a new era for the Army
Welfare Housing Organization (AWHO),
which has always endeavoured to provide
quality housing for Army personnel who are
deployed in remote locations across the
country.
• AWHO will now facilitate the acquisition of
homes from reputed private builders at
discounted rather than building them for the
soldiers.
RTGS system to open at 7 AM from August 26 as
RBI extends operating hours
Transfer of funds through the high-value RTGS
system will be available from 7 am instead of 8 am
from August 2
• At present, the Real Time Gross Settlement
(RTGS) System is available for customer
transactions from 0800 hours to 1800 hours
and for inter-bank transactions from 0800
hours to 1945 hours.
• The extended customer transactions timing
will be applicable from August 2
• Earlier this month, the RBI had decided to
allow round-the-clock fund transfers through
the National Electronic Funds Transfer
 (NEFT) from December this year in order to
promote digital transactions.
PM Modi announced to celebrate September as a
month of nutrition
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced to
celebrate September as a month of nutrition.
• In his Mann Ki Baat programme, Mr Modi
laid emphasis on creating awareness to fight
malnutrition among children, particularly the
girl child.
• Last year, Gujarat Government launched a
pilot project, Poshan Abhiyan which is a
statewide mission to eradicate malnutrition
among children.
• Chief Minister Vijay Rupani had also
launched 'Purna' project to eliminate
malnutrition among the girls in the age group
of 14 to 1
• PURNA project is also known as Prevention
of under Nutrition and Reduction of
Nutritional Anaemia among Adolescent
Girls.
Harsh Vardhan inaugurates FSSAI's National
Food Laboratory in Ghaziabad
Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan inaugurated
FSSAI's National Food Laboratory (NFL) in
Ghaziabad.
• It was inaugurated on the occasion of 13th
anniversary of the Food Safety and Standards
Act, 200
• This national lab is a result of a Public-
Private-Partnership (PPP), the first-of-its-
kind in the food laboratory sector.
• It houses state-of-the-art collaborative
training centres, namely, The Food Safety
Solution Centre (FSSC) and the Centre for
Microbiological Analysis Training (C-
MAT).
Statue of Unity, Mumbai's Soho House among
Time's 100 greatest places in the world
The 597-ft tall 'Statue of Unity' in Gujarat and
Mumbai's Soho House have been featured by the
Time magazine in its second annual list of the 2019
World's greatest places.
• The 'Statue of Unity', the world's tallest
statue, is a tribute to Sardar Vallabhbhai
Patel, independent India's first home minister
as well as deputy prime minister.
• Mumbai's chic Soho House is located in an
11-storey building overlooking the Arabian
Sea.
• It houses a library, a cinema with 34 seats and
a rooftop bar and pool.
CVC constitutes a panel to examine bank fraud
The Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) has
constituted the Advisory Board for Banking Frauds
(ABBF) to examine bank fraud of over 50 crore
rupees and recommend action.
 • The panel in its previous avatar called the
Advisory Board on Bank, Commercial and
Financial Frauds.
• The ABBF is headed by former Vigilance
Commissioner T M Bhasin.
• The banks will refer all large fraud cases
above 50 crore rupees to ABBF and on
receipt of its recommendation, they
concerned will take further action in such Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa will
matter. embark on a three-day visit to Thailand.

G7 to finance fire-fighting aircraft for Amazon
G7 has agreed to spend 22 million US Dollars to
tackle the huge forest fires engulfing the world's
biggest Amazon rain-forest.
• This was stated by Presidents of France and
Chile at the G7 summit in the French town of
Biarritz.
• The G7 group comprising Britain, Canada,
France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United
States, has also agreed to support a medium-
term reforestation plan which will be
unveiled at the UN in September.
• The initiative was announced after G7 leaders
held talks on the environment, which focused
on the fires destroying chunks of the Amazon
rain forests.
• Nearly 80,000 forest fires have been detected
in Brazil since the beginning of the year a
little over half in the Amazon region.
Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa to embark on 3-
day visit to Thailand
• During his visit, he will attend the Indo
Pacific Chiefs of Defence Conference in
Bangkok, Thailand.
• The conference will provide perspectives on
common challenges faced by attending
nations and elicit open discussions on the
same.
• The Chiefs of Defence of over 33 countries
are scheduled to attend the Conference.
• The theme for the conference is
"Collaboration in a free and Open Indo -
Pacific”.
7th Community Radio Sammelan begins in New
Delhi
The 7th Community Radio Sammelan begins in New
Delhi.
• The three-day Sammelan, being organized by
Ministry of Information and Broadcasting,
will witness the participation of all
operational Community Radio Stations
across the country.
• The theme of this year’s event is ‘Community
Radio for Sustainable Development Goals
(SDGs)’.
• During the meeting, the participants will
discuss the experiences and possibilities of
 programming for better public awareness of
the Sustainable Development Goals.
HRD Ministry launches National Digital Library
of India
Human Resource Development Ministry under its
National Mission on Education through Information
and Communication Technology, NMEICT has
launched the National Digital Library of India
project.
• It will develop a framework of virtual
repository of learning resources with a single-
window search facility.
• As of now, there are more than 3 crore digital
resources available through the National
Digital Library.
• More than 50 lakh students have registered
themselves in the National Digital Library
with about 20 lakh active users.
• National Digital Library has been integrated
with UMANG App and users can register
through www.ndl.gov.in or through the
mobile app.
Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium in Delhi to be
renamed as Arun Jaitley Stadium
Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium in Delhi will be renamed
as Arun Jaitley Stadium in memory of its former
president who passed away.
• Delhi and District Cricket Association,
DDCA said that the renaming will take place
on 12th of September.
• Also, a stand at the Stadium will also be
named after India captain Virat Kohli.
• During his tenure at DDCA, Arun Jaitley is
credited with renovating Feroz Shah Kotla
Stadium into a modern facility, increasing its
capacity to accommodate more fans besides
constructing world-class dressing rooms.
Government slashes the price of sanitary napkins
to one Rupee
In a huge push for women hygiene, the government
slashed the price of sanitary napkins sold from Jan
Aushadhi Kendras to just one rupee per piece from
two-and-a-half rupees earlier.
• Minister for Chemicals and Fertilizers D.V.
Sadananda Gowda made the announcement.
• The Government had launched Jan Aushadhi
Suvidha Oxo-Biodegradable Sanitary Napkin
at 2 rupees 50 paise per pad on the eve of the
World Environment Day last year.
India to host COP14 of UN Convention in
September
India will host the Conference Of Parties, COP 14,
of the United Nations Convention to Combat
Desertification from 2nd to 13th September 201

• The event will be held at the India Mart and

Expo, in the Greater Noida area of New
Delhi.
• The event will see the participation of over
3000 representatives from over 200 countries
which will include Ministers from around
100 countries.
• India will take over from China this year as
host and President for 2 years.
• The Conference Of Parties will focus on
desertification and degradation of land.
Bimal Jalan panel recommends a review of
economic capital framework every five years
National Sports Day is celebrated in India on August
2
• It is celebrated to mark the birth anniversary
of Major Dhyan Chand, a legendary Indian
hockey player, who was also born on this day
in 190
• This auspicious day is celebrated across the
country to create and spread awareness about
the importance of sports in everyone’s life.
• On this occasion, PM Modi also launched the
‘Fit India Movement’ at the Indira Gandhi
Indoor Stadium, New Delhi.

Union HRD Minister launches Integrated Online

junction for School Education ‘Shagun’

The Bimal Jalan panel of the Reserve Bank has

recommended that the revised economic capital
framework will be reviewed every five years.
Union Human Resource Development Minister Shri
• The RBI, Under the revised framework,
Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ launched one of
decided to transfer 52,637 crore rupees
world’s largest Integrated Online Junction for School
excess provisions to the government.
Education ‘Shagun’ in New Delhi.
• The Central Board of the RBI has accepted
all the recommendations of the committee
• The app will provide all the details about the
headed by Jalan, a former central bank
education system in the country as well as
governor.
detailed information about schools with a
• Earlier, the board had approved the transfer
feedback procedure structured for the
of 76 Lakh crore rupees dividend and surplus
parents.
reserves to the government.
• The portal seeks to connect approximately 92
lakh teachers and 26 crores, students.
National Sports Day: 29 August
• He also announced the setting up of the
Integrated National School Education
Treasury (INSET) which envisages a fully
integrated, instantly accessible and seamless
information network for all parameters
 relating to the students, teachers, and schools
in the country.
IAF to get 'building blaster' Spice-2000 bombs by
mid-September
In a major boost for India's aerial firepower, the
Indian Air Force is set to receive the 'building blaster'
version of the Balakot air strike-fame Spice-2000
bombs by mid-September.
• The Spice-2000 bombs are scheduled to be
delivered to the Indian Air Force (IAF) from
Israel around mid-September along with the
Mark 84 warhead.
• The Indian Air Force had signed a contract
with Israel in June this year for acquiring
more than 100 Spice 2000 bombs under the
emergency procurement powers of the
services given by the Narendra Modi
government.
12 member delegation led by Attorney General of
Nepal is on a 7-day observation visit to India
A twelve-member delegation led by Attorney
General of Nepal, Agni Prasad Kharel is currently on
a 7-day observation visit to India.
• The delegation comprises of senior attorneys
from Federal Government and all Seven
Provincial Governments.
• The Attorney General of Nepal, Agni Prasad
Kharel also met the Attorney General of India
K. K. Venugopal.
• The basic objective of the visit is to study the
relationship between the Central and State
judicial systems in India including the
relationship between Attorney General of
India and Advocates General of States.
India first In the world to launch facial biometric
data based identity document
India has become the first country in the world to
issue Biometric Seafarer Identity Document, BSID,
capturing the facial biometric data of seafarers.
• Minister of State for Shipping Mansukh
Mandaviya launched the project in New
Delhi.
• He also handed over the new BSID cards to
five Indian seafarers.
• The new facial biometric technology is a
marked improvement over the two-finger or
iris-based biometric data, with modern
security features.
Govt permits 100% FDI in coal mining,
associated infrastructure
The Union Cabinet has relaxed Foreign Direct
Investment rule for foreign single-brand retailers and
also permitted foreign investment in contract
manufacturing and coal mining.
• Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush
Goyal said that 100 per cent FDI under
 automatic route in coal mining and associated
infrastructure has been approved.
• To boost domestic manufacturing, 100 per
cent FDI in contract manufacturing under
automatic route has been allowed.
• Mr Goyal said that 26 per cent FDI has also
been allowed under government route for
uploading and streaming of News and
Current Affairs through Digital Media.
ADB President meets PM Modi
Asian Development Bank, ADB, President Takehiko
Nakao met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and
pledged to support the government’s new flagship
initiatives.
• Mr Nakao commended the government’s
vision to make India a five trillion dollar
economy.
• The Prime Minister and ADB President
discussed how to further enhance the
partnership in areas such as the promotion of
new technologies and innovation, renewable
energy, solar-pump irrigation, electric
vehicle and battery, sustainable tourism, and
the recycling of plastic.
• ADB expects the country’s growth in 2019 at
0 per cent and in 2020 at 2 per cent, despite
downside risks in the global economy.
Meghalaya CM launches ‘walk to work’
campaign in the state
Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma took
the lead to launch the campaign of Fit India
Movement which has been launched in the country
by the Prime Minister.
• The Chief Minister took a two-kilometre
walk from his residential quarters to his
office chamber at Main Secretariat, Shillong
launching the #WalktoWorkMeghalaya
which is a part of the ‘Fit India Campaign’.
• The idea of 'walk to work' will have multiple
benefits, cuts the cost of fuel including
reduction of CO2 emission, reduce
congestion in the city and more importantly
for health and fitness.
Delhi government launched 10 Hafte, 10 Baje, 10
Minute - Har Ravivar, dengue par war campaign
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal launched a
campaign that aims to spread awareness against
dengue and chikungunya.
• The initiative is named ‘10 Hafte, 10 Baje, 10
Minute - Har Ravivar, dengue par war’.
• As part of it, the government has asked
residents to take 10 minutes from their
schedule every Sunday to clear potential
mosquito breeding spots from their homes.
India’s first garbage cafe to be opened in
Ambikapur, Chhattisgarh
In a unique initiative, the Ambikapur municipal
corporation of Chhattisgarh will open a first-of-its-
kind 'Garbage Cafe' within a few days.
• This initiative is a step towards making the
city plastic-free.
 • In this unique Cafe' poor people and rag
pickers will get free food in exchange for one
kilogram of plastic, while breakfast will be
provided if half a kilogram of plastic is
brought to the cafe.
• The collected plastic waste would further be
turned into granules and will then be used in
the construction of roads in the city.
• Ambikapur is Chhattisgarh’s first dustbin-
free city.
Air India Express, Alliance Air to ban single-use
plastic from October 2
Air India announced that the usage of single-use
plastic on the flights of its subsidiaries Air India
Express and Alliance Air will stop from October
• In his Independence Day speech, Prime
Minister Narendra Modi had urged people to
shun single-use plastic and encouraged usage
of jute and cloth bags to protect the
environment.
• In the first phase, it will implement in all
flights of Air India Express and Alliance Air
flights.
• In the 2nd phase, it will be implemented in
Air India flights.
Tamil Nadu's Dindigul locks and Kandangi
sarees get GI tag
Tamil Nadu’s Dindigul locks and Kandangi sarees
have received Geographical Indication (GI) tags.
• The Dindigul locks are known throughout the
world for their superior quality and
durability.
• It is unique as each is designed with different
lever pattern.
• The famous bright-coloured Kandangi saree,
manufactured in Karaikudi taluk in
Sivaganga district got GI tag.
Rajasthan launches AB-MGRSBY health
insurance scheme
The Rajasthan government launched a new health
insurance scheme - Ayushman Bharat-Mahatma
Gandhi Rajasthan Swasthya Bima Yojna (AB-
MGRSBY).
• The scheme will be implemented after
merging the Centre's Ayushman Bharat-
Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojna (AB-
PMJAY) and the state's Bhamashah
Swasthya Bima Yojna (BSBY).
• With the merger of AB-PMJAY and BSBY,
the number of families getting benefit will
increase.
• The Chief Minister said that complaints of
irregularities under BSBY were being
received and these shortcomings have been
taken care of in the new scheme.
BSE ties up with SUFI for steel futures
The Steel Users Federation of India has signed a
Memorandum of Understanding with the Bombay
Stock Exchange to help the later launch futures
trading in steel.
 • The BSE and SUFI will work towards
enlisting steel futures in both long and flat
steel to help industry players hedge the risk
on the exchange platform.
• Currently, Indian Commodity Exchange is
the only exchange that provides futures
trading in long steel used largely in the
infrastructure segment.
Government extends CBDT Chairman Mody's
tenure
The tenure of Central Board of Direct Taxation
(CBDT) Chairman P C Mody has been extended by
a year.
• The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet
(ACC), headed by Prime Minister Narendra
Modi, has approved "re-appointment" of
Mody for a period of one year.
• Mody was to retire on August 3
• A 1982-batch Indian Revenue Service
(Income Tax cadre) officer, Mody, took over
as the (CBDT) chief in February.
Postal dept decides to convert India Post
Payments Bank to an SFB
The postal department said it has decided to convert
the India Post Payments Bank into a small finance
bank, enabling it to offer small loans to customers.
• Besides, the department looks to open one
crore accounts for IPPB in 100 days.
• India Post will partner with Common Service
Centre to provide a suite of citizen-centric
services such as banking, remittance,
insurance, DBT, bill and tax payments etc at
post offices.
RBI slashes repo rate by 35 basis points
The Reserve Bank has cut the repo rate by 35 basis
points to 40 per cent to give a fillip to the economy.
• Repo rate is the rate at which RBI lends to
banks.
• This is the fourth consecutive time that the
RBI's Monetary Policy Committee reduced
the rate.
• On earlier three occasions, RBI had reduced
repo rate by 25 basis points each.
• The Monetary Policy Committee has noted
that domestic economic activity continues to
be weak, with the global slowdown and
escalating trade tensions posing downside
risks.
RBI to set up a central registry for tracking
frauds in payment systems
The Reserve Bank of India has decided to set up a
Central Payment Fraud Registry to track frauds in the
payment systems.
• Payment system participants will be provided
access to this registry for near-real-time fraud
monitoring.
 • The aggregated fraud data will be published
to educate customers on emerging risks.
• Currently, banks report all banking frauds to
the Central Fraud Monitoring Cell of the
Reserve Bank.
NCAER expects India's GDP to grow at 2% in
FY20
According to economic think-tank NCAER’s report,
India's GDP growth is likely to be 2 percent during
the current fiscal, down from 8 per cent in 2018-1
• The forecast is backed on account of flat
growth in the agriculture sector.
• As of August 5, 2019, out of a total number
of 36 agro-meteorological sub-divisions in
the country, three have received excess
rainfall, 21 get normal rainfall, while the
remaining 12 sub-divisions were rain
deficient.
SBI Life Insurance, Indian Bank ink
Bancassurance pact
SBI Life Insurance and Indian Bank have entered
into a bank assurance pact to offer holistic financial
planning solutions to the latter’s customers.
• The partnership will see over 2,851 branches
of Indian Bank spread across the country
offer SBI Life’s diverse range of individual
and group insurance solutions.
• SBI Life will work with Indian Bank to
ensure sales training, product support and
smooth operational processes in order to offer
life insurance policies to its customers.
• Indian Bank’s customers will have access to
an array of life insurance products from SBI
Life catering to varied life stage needs of the
customer.
Industrial production growth drops to 2% in
June
Industrial production growth dropped to two per cent
in June this year, mainly on account of the poor show
by mining and manufacturing sectors.
• There was a slowdown in the manufacturing
sector, which grew at 2 per cent in June as
compared to 9 per cent a year ago.
• The expansion in power generation sector
stood at 2 per cent, compared to 5 per cent in
the same period last year.
• Mining growth dropped to 6 per cent in June
from 5 per cent in the corresponding month
of the last fiscal.
Indian Bank inks pact with Cholamandalam MS
General Insurance
Public sector Indian Bank signed a corporate agency
agreement with Cholamandalam MS General
Insurance Company for distribution of its insurance
products to bank customers.

• According to the agreement, Cholamandalam

MS, a Murugappa Group company, would
sell its range of insurance policies to
customers of Indian Bank.
Indian ride-hailing giant Ola has ‘acquihired’
• Under the agreement, Cholamandalam MS
Pikup.ai, an artificial intelligence start-up from
insurance products will range from the motor,
Bengaluru, for an undisclosed amount.
home, health PA, travel insurance, and SME
& commercial line of business like fire,
• As part of the deal, Ola will hire Pickup.ai’s
engineering and marine insurance.
team following the acquisition.
• Pickup.ai is co-founded by Inder Singh and
RBL Bank launches India's first health-focused
Ritwik Saikia.
credit card
• The start-up uses autonomous technologies
like artificial intelligence, computer vision
and sensor fusion to provide seamless AI-
powered solutions for businesses.

RBI asks banks not to count failed transactions,

balance enquiry as free ATM transaction

RBL Bank and digital healthcare platform Practo

have partnered to launch an industry first co-branded
health credit card.

• This credit card is powered by Mastercard

and is available on both Practo and RBL
mobile apps and websites.
• It offers benefits like unlimited and round-
the-clock online consultations with
experienced and qualified doctors, one free
full body health check-up, while users can
use the card to earn points that can be
redeemed for availing Practo services like
ordering medicine, tests and online
consultations.
• Practo is currently the only platform in the
country that lets patients manage their
healthcare needs end-to-end.
Ola acquires Bengaluru-based AI startup
Pikup.ai
Reserve Bank of India has asked banks not to count
failed transactions at ATMs due to technical reasons
as part of "free ATM transactions" permitted every
month.
• Use of ATMs for balance enquiry and fund
transfers too should not be part of the free
transactions facility given to a customer.
• Banks provide a certain number of free
transactions at ATMs to their customers and
beyond that impose charges.
• The RBI clarified that transactions which fail
on account of technical reasons, non-
availability of cash, and any other reason
 attributable to the bank should not be counted
as valid ATM transactions for the customer.
• Consequently, no charges will be levied on
such transactions.
Retail inflation eases marginally to 15% in July
Consumer price index-based retail inflation eased
marginally to 15 per cent in July on the back of
softening fuel prices.
• Retail inflation was 18 per cent in June 2019,
while it stood at 17 per cent in the year-ago
period.
• Currently, the retail inflation is well below
the RBI's comfort level.
• The government has asked the central bank to
keep inflation in the range of 4 per cent.
RBI allows e-mandates on cards for recurring
transactions from September 1
Any individual who makes regular payments to
merchants through debit or credit cards now have the
option to automate payments, similar to the option
available while using net banking facilities.
• With the new facility, customers who
conduct a similar transaction using their cards
every month can now skip the two-factor
authentication process for that particular
transaction.
• The Reserve Bank of India permitted
processing of e-mandate on credit and debit
cards for recurring transactions.
• However, the limit for these automated card
transactions has been capped at Rs 2,000.
Acko signs a pact with ZestMoney to offer credit
insurance
Acko General Insurance announced a partnership
with ZestMoney, a consumer lending fin-tech
company.
• This collaboration will help ZestMoney
customers to cover their instalment payments
during times of crisis.
• Acko an InsurTech company offers
personalized underwriting, micro insurance
products, and automated micro claims
process.
BookMyForex, YES Bank tie-up for a foreign
exchange travel card
BookMyForex.com, a marketplace for foreign
exchange and remittances, has partnered with YES
Bank to launch a co-branded multi-currency forex
travel card for Indian overseas travellers.
• Customers will now be able to buy forex
travel cards at the click of a button on the
 BookMyForex platform and get free doorstep
delivery across major cities in India.
• BookMyForex will offer zero margin or exact
inter-bank rates 24x7 on forex card sales.
Bandhan Bank launches a co-branded credit
card with Standard Chartered
In a bid to offer a complete suite of services to its
existing customers, Bandhan Bank launched a co-
branded credit card in association with Standard
Chartered bank.
• The credit card would be offered to 40 lakh
savings bank account holders across the
1,000 branches of Bandhan Bank.
• As part of the tie-up, while Standard
Chartered bank will take the credit risk,
Bandhan Bank will be responsible for
identifying and issuing cards to its customers.
CBDT says small start-ups with turnover up to
Rs 25 cr to continue to get a promised tax holiday
The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has
clarified that small start-ups with turnover up to 25
crore rupees will continue to get the promised tax
holiday as specified in the section of the Income Tax
Act.
• The Act provides a deduction for 100 per cent
of the income of an eligible start-up for 3
years out of 7 years from the year of its
incorporation.
• According to the Finance Ministry, the
CBDT also clarified that all the start-ups
recognised by Department for Promotion of
Industry and Internal Trade-DPIIT which
fulfilled the conditions specified in the DPIIT
notification did not automatically become
eligible for deduction.
RBI to transfer Rs 76 lakh cr as a dividend to
government
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has decided to
transfer 76 lakh crore rupees as dividend and surplus
reserve to the government.
• RBI informed that this amount includes over
1,23,000 crore rupees of surplus for the year
2018-19 and 52,637 crore rupees of excess
provisions identified as per the revised
Economic Capital Framework.
• The statement informs that RBI’s Central
Board has accepted the recommendations of
a high-level panel headed by former RBI
Governor Bimal Jalan on the transfer of
excess reserves to the government.
Microsoft, ISB partner to build AI solutions for
better research and leadership
The Indian School of Business (ISB) and Microsoft
India announced a new partnership on to take
forward their shared vision for an AI-empowered
India in Hyderabad.
 • The two organizations will collaborate in
research which will use Artificial Intelligence
(AI) and Machine Learning (ML) to study
issues that are relevant for business and
public policy.
• In addition, the partnership will also jointly
introduce a new executive program titled
“Leading Business Transformation in the
Age of AI" in October 201
Canara Bank launches OTP facility for ATM
cash withdrawals over Rs 10,000
Public sector lender Canara Bank it has launched
India’s first OTP facility for ATM withdrawals.
• Canara Bank said that the OTP facility will
get activated on ATM cash withdrawals of
₹10,000 in a day.
• This additional factor of authentication
protects from unauthorized ATM cash
withdrawals for cardholders.
Total horticulture production estimated to be
over 313 million tonnes this year
Department of Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers
Welfare released the Third Advanced Estimate
(2018-19) of area and production of various
Horticulture Crops.
• The total horticulture production of the
country is estimated to be over 313 million
tonnes which is 0.69 per cent higher than the
production in 2017-1
• The overall increase is observed in the
production of fruits, vegetables, spices,
flowers and honey whereas decrease is
observed in the production of plantation and
aromatics and medicinal crops as compared
to last year.
IPS officer Rakesh Asthana takes charge as
Narcotics Control Bureau chief
IPS officer Rakesh Asthana took charge as the chief
of the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB).
• The 1984-batch Gujarat cadre officer has
been appointed as the Director-General (DG)
of the NCB in an "additional" capacity.
• He is already serving as the DG of the Bureau
of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS).
• The post of NCB chief was lying vacant since
July 4 after incumbent Abhay was appointed
as Director of Hyderabad-based Sardar
Vallabhbhai Patel National Police Academy.
Vishweshwar Hegde elected as Karnataka
Assembly Speaker
The six-time MLA from Sirsi Assembly constituency
and senior BJP leader Vishweshwar Hegde Kageri
was unanimously elected as the new Speaker of the
Karnataka state Assembly.
 • The post had fallen vacant after the
resignation of Speaker Ramesh Kumar.
• Deputy Speaker Krishna Reddy proposed his
name and tabled the motion in the Assembly.
• The proposal was unanimously adopted
through voice vote.
RN Ravi was sworn in as Nagaland Governor
RN Ravi was sworn in as the Governor of Nagaland
at a function at Raj Bhawan in Kohima.
• Acting Chief Justice of Guwahati High
Court, Arup Kumar Goswami, administered
him the oath of office and secrecy.
• Prior to his new appointment, 67-year-old
R.N Ravi served as a former Intelligence
Bureau officer and an interlocutor for the
Naga peace talks.
Ravi Capoor assumes Charge as Textiles
Secretary
Ravi Capoor, an Indian Administrative Service (IAS)
officer, assumed charge of the office of Secretary,
Ministry of Textiles in New Delhi.
• As Additional Chief Secretary, Assam, from
2016 to 2019, he was in charge of Mines &
Minerals, Forest & Environment, Act East
Policy Affairs and Public Enterprises
Department.
• Ravi Capoor worked as Joint Secretary in the
Ministry of Commerce and Industry,
Government of India from 2011 to 2016 and
was handling India’s trade with ASEAN, CIS
countries
Siddhartha Mohanty takes over as MD, CEO of
LIC HFL
Siddhartha Mohanty has assumed charge as
Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of
the LIC Housing Finance (LIC HFL).
• Prior to taking over as MD and CEO of LIC
HFL, Mohanty was the company's COO.
• Before joining LIC HFL, he was Executive
Director - Legal with LIC of India.
Valentina Elangbam named as Green
Ambassador of Manipur
Valentina Elangbam, a 9-year-old girl from Manipur,
has been appointed as the brand ambassador for the
Chief Minister's Green Manipur Mission.
• The young child was seen weeping profusely
in a viral video after two trees that she had
planted were cut down.
 • Kakching district's Valentina is a class 5
student of Amutombi Divine Life School in
Hiyanglam Wabagai.
• She had planted two Gulmohar trees when
she was in class 1 near the bank of a river in
her locality.
• Valentina was inconsolably upset after the
trees she had planted were cut down while the
river bank was being cleaned.
Alejandro Giammattei elected as Guatemala
President
Conservative Alejandro Giammattei was elected as
Guatemala's president after defeating former first
lady Sandra Torres in a run-off.
• He had polled almost 55 per cent with a lead
of 550,000 votes.
• Giammattei will take over in January from
corruption-tainted President Jimmy Morales.
KKR appoints Brendon McCullum as head
coach
Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Kolkata
Knight Riders (KKR) appointed Brendon McCullum
as its new head coach.
• Former New Zealand batsman McCullum
was closely associated with the KKR as a
player first from 2008 to 2010 and again from
2012-1
• He was part of the IPL Championship squad
in 201
• KKR finished at the fifth spot in the latest
edition of the IPL.
• KKR lifted the IPL title two times in 2012
and 2014 respectively.
Ravi Shastri re-appointed as head coach of
Indian men's team
Ravi Shastri was re-appointed head coach of the
Indian men's team by the Kapil Dev-led Cricket
Advisory Committee (CAC).
• The three-member CAC also comprised
former India coach Anshuman Gaekwad and
ex women's captain Shantha Rangaswamy.
• This will be Shastri's fourth stint with the
national team, having served briefly as the
Cricket Manager (2007 tour of Bangladesh),
Team Director (2014-2016) and head coach
(2017-2019).
• India has won 11 out of 21 Tests, 43 out of 60
ODIs and 25 T20 Internationals out of 36 on
his watch.
Harshad Pandurang Thakur appointed NIHFW
Director
Harshad Pandurang Thakur has been appointed as • Earlier, Deora has served as Managing
the Director of National Institute of Health and Director in Citigroup's investment banking
Family Welfare. business in New York, London and Mumbai.

• The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet, Ravinder Takkar appointed Vodafone Idea CEO
headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi,
appointed him for a period of five years.
• The NIHFW, an autonomous organisation
under the Ministry of Health and Family
Welfare, acts as an apex technical institute as
well as a think tank for the promotion of
health and family welfare programmes in the
country.

Bangladesh appoints Russell Domingo as head

coach Vodafone Idea’s CEO Balesh Sharma has stepped
down due to "personal reasons".

• The company has accepted Sharma's

Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) appointed South
African Russell Domingo as national team head
coach for a two-year term.
• Domingo had played junior cricket for
Eastern Province before moving into
coaching at an early age.
• He became South Africa U19 coach for the
2004 ICC U19 World Cup in Bangladesh.
• The 44-year-old is expected to arrive in
Dhaka on August 21 to take charge of the
team.
resignation and replaced him with the
representative of Vodafone Group, Ravinder
Takkar.
• Sharma was the representative of Vodafone
in the Joint Venture between British telecom
giant Vodafone and Aditya Birla Group's
Idea that was formed to fight the onslaught of
free calls and dirt cheap data plans unleashed
by Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Jio.
• Takkar will be appointed as his successor
with immediate effect.
Pakistan Army chief General Qamar Bajwa's
term extended by 3 years

Paytm elevates CFO Madhur Deora as the next

President

Paytm has elevated its CFO Madhu Deora as

President of the company. The term of Pakistan's army chief General Qamar
Javed Bajwa has been extended for a period of three
• Madhur joined the digital payment firm in years.
October 201
• Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan had
approved the extension of Bajwa's term.
 • The move had been taken taking into view the
security environment in the subcontinent.
• The extension of Qamar Bajwa's tenure
comes amid heightened tensions between
India and Pakistan over the political situation
in Jammu and Kashmir.
• Qamar Bajwa was appointed the chief of the
Pakistani Army in November 2016 by then
prime minister Nawaz Sharif.
Rajiv Gauba appointed new Cabinet Secretary
Union Home Secretary Rajiv Gauba will be the new
Cabinet Secretary.
• Mr Gauba who is a 1982 batch IAS officer of
Jharkhand cadre will replace P.K. Sinha.
• The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet
has approved the appointment of Mr Gauba
as the Cabinet Secretary with a tenure of two
years from 30th of this month.
Ajay Kumar appointed as Defence Secretary
The government has appointed Ajay Kumar as
Defence Secretary.
• Ajay Kumar is a 1985 batch IAS officer of
Kerala cadre and is currently serving as
Secretary, Department of Defence
Production.
• He will succeed Sanjay Mitra, upon
completion of his term.
• Brij Kumar Agarwal has been appointed as
Secretary to the Lokpal and Subash Chandra
as Secretary of Department of Defence
Production.
Ajay Kumar Bhalla appointed as new Home
Secretary
The government-appointed Ajay Kumar Bhalla as
new Home Secretary.
• He belongs to 1984 batch of Assam
Meghalaya cadre of Indian Administrative
Service (IAS) and is currently serving as
Officer on Special Duty in Home Ministry.
• He succeeds Rajiv Gauba who will move out
as Cabinet Secretary.
Vikram Rathour to replace Sanjay Bangar as
India's new batting coach
Former opener Vikram Rathour will replace Sanjay
Bangar as India's new batting coach.
• Also, Bharath Arun and R. Sridhar were
retained as bowling and fielding coaches.
• The 50-year-old Rathour has played six Tests
and seven ODIsin 1996 without much
 success but was a domestic heavyweight for
Punjab.
• Till 2016, he was a senior national selector
under Sandeep Patil's chairmanship.
India appoints Pavan Kapoor as ambassador to
UAE
India appointed Pavan Kapoor as its next
Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
• The 1990 cadre IFS officer will replace
Navdeep Singh Puri, who has been heading
the Indian mission in UAE since October 201
• Over his diplomatic career, Kapoor has
served in different capacities in the Indian
Missions in Moscow, Kyiv, London and
Geneva.
Wing Commander S Dhami becomes the first
female officer to become Flight Commander
Indian Air Force's Wing Commander S Dhami has
become the first female officer in the country to
become the Flight Commander of a flying unit.
• Dhami took over as Flight Commander of a
Chetak helicopter unit at Hindon airbase,
recently.
• She is a permanent commission officer of the
flying branch in the Air Force and has been
flying choppers.
• Flight Commander is the second in command
of the unit meaning that she is the number two
in the unit after the commanding officer.
Journalist Ravish Kumar wins 2019 Ramon
Magsaysay Award
Senior Indian television journalist Ravish Kumar has
been awarded the 2019 Ramon Magsaysay Award.
• Kumar is among five individuals who were
declared winners of the award, which is
Asia's premier prize and often referred to as
the Asian version of the Nobel Prize.
• Besides Ravish Kumar, Myanmar-based
journalist Ko Swe Win, Angkhana
Neelapaijit from Thailand, Raymundo
Pujante Cayabyab from Philippines and Kim
Jong Ki from South Korea were also
honoured with the prestigious prize.
• The award will be presented at a ceremony in
Manila on September 9, 201
President Kovind honoured with National Order
of Merit, highest award of Republic of Guinea

President Ram Nath Kovind has been awarded the
National Order of Merit by the President of Guinea.
• He has been awarded for his exceptional
contribution to the advancement of overall
relations and development of mutual
cooperation between India and Guinea.
• This is the highest award of the Republic of
Guinea.
• Three MoUs were signed between the two
countries, Cooperation in the Field of
Traditional System of Medicine, e-
Vidhyabharati - e-Aarogya Bharati Network
Project and Renewal Energy.
• President also announced a new Line of
Credit of US$ 170 million for Water Supply
Project of Conakry city.
Statue of Unity shortlisted for UK-based
structural award
The Statue of Unity, a memorial to Sardar Patel, in
Gujarat's Kevadia town has been shortlisted for 'The
Structural Awards 2019' of the UK-based Institution
of Structural Engineers (IStructE).
• The 182-metre-tall statue was unveiled by
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on October 31
last year.
• It is among the 49 structures that will vie for
the prestigious award.
• The awards will be announced in a function
in London on November 1
• Past winners of this award include iconic
structures such as the Sydney Opera House in
Australia, the Pompidou Centre in Paris and
the Severn Bridge in England.
ISRO announces Vikram Sarabhai Journalism
Award in Space Science, Technology and
Research
As part of the centenary year celebrations of Dr
Vikram Sarabhai, the father of Indian space
programme, ISRO institutes two categories of
awards in journalism.
• ISRO has announced its “Vikram Sarabhai
Journalism Award in Space Science,
Technology and Research” to recognize and
reward journalists who have actively
contributed towards the field of space
science, applications, and research.
• The articles published from 2019 to 2020 will
be considered, says the Indian Space
Research Organisation (ISRO).
• There are two categories of awards, wherein
the first category holds a cash price of Rs
5,00,000, a medal and citation and two
journalists or freelancers of print media will
be awarded.
• The second category of the award holds 3
cash prizes of Rs 3,00,000, 2,00,000 and
1,00,000 and citation each for journalists or
freelancers of print media.
President confers Bharat Ratna on Pranab
Mukherjee

President Ram Nath Kovind conferred country's
highest civilian honour Bharat Ratna on former
President Pranab Mukherjee and posthumously on
social activist Nanaji Deshmukh and singer Bhupen
Hazarika.
• Pranab Mukherjee received the award from
the President, at a function in Rashtrapati
Bhawan.
• Bhupen Hazarika's son Tej Hazarika received
the award on his behalf.
• While a relative of Nanaji Deshmukh,
Virender Jeet Singh received the award for
him.
Points to remember
• The Bharat Ratna is the highest civilian
award of the Republic of India.
• Recipients receive a Sanad (certificate)
signed by the President and a peepal-leaf–
shaped medallion.
NITI Aayog to launch the Fourth Edition of
Women Transforming India Awards
The NITI Aayog launched the Fourth Edition of
Women Transforming India (WTI) Awards
• The Women Transforming India (WTI)
Awards is being organized in collaboration
with the United Nations to recognize women
entrepreneurs from across India.
• This year’s theme is ‘Women and
Entrepreneurship’, in continuation of the
theme for WTI Awards 201
• WhatsApp has collaborated with NITI Aayog
for WTI Awards 2019 and will be providing
support amounting to US$100,000 to the
award winners.
66th National Film Awards for 2018 announced
The 66th National Film Awards were announced.
• Gujarati film ‘Hellaro’ was declared Best
Feature Film winner while ‘Badhai Ho’
bagged the award for Best Popular Film
Providing Wholesome Entertainment.
• Hindi movie ‘Padman’ was declared Best
Film on Social Issues, while Kannada film
‘Ondalla Eradalla’ got Nargis Dutt Award for
Best Feature Film on National Integration.
• Ayushman Khurana and Vicky Kaushal
jointly won Best Actor Award for their
performances in ‘Andhadhun’ and ‘Uri: The
Surgical Strike’, while Keerthy Suresh was
declared the winner of Best Actress trophy
for her performance in Telugu movie
‘Mahanati’.
• Aditya Dhar won Best Director Award for
‘Uri: The Surgical Strike’.
• Marathi movie Naal got the Indira Gandhi
Award for Best Debut Film of a Director.
• Uttarakhand was declared the Most Film
Friendly State.
'Gully Boy', 'Andhadhun' bag awards at Indian
Film Festival, Melbourne
‘Gully Boy' and 'AndhaDhun' managed to bag top
honours at The Indian Film Festival of Melbourne.
• 'Gully Boy' was awarded best film at Indian
Film Festival of Melbourne and Tabu was
awarded best actress in 'Andhadhun.'
• Meanwhile, Sriram Raghavan was awarded
best director for the movie 'Andhadhun.'
20 persons, three organisations conferred with
National Youth Awards for 2016-17
Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports Kiren Rijiju
conferred the National Youth Awards for 2016-17 on
20 individuals and 3 organisations on the occasion of
International Youth Day.
• The awards are presented to young persons
and voluntary organization every year in
recognition of their outstanding work in the
field of national development and social
service.
• The awards aim towards encouraging them to
develop a sense of responsibility to the
community and also to improve their own
potential as a good citizen.
• An individual award comprises a medal, a
certificate and a cash prize of 50 thousand
rupees while a cash prize of 2 lakh rupees is
given to the youth organisation.
IAF Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman
conferred with Vir Chakra
Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman of Indian
Air Force has been conferred with Vir Chakra on
Independence Day.
• Abhinandan Varthaman had shot down F-16
jet of Pakistan Air Force.
• President Ram Nath Kovind has approved
132 Awards to Armed Forces Personnel and
members of Paramilitary Forces.
• The awards include two Kirti Chakras, one
Vir Chakra, 14 Shaurya Chakras, eight Bar to
Sena Medals (Gallantry), 90 Sena Medals
(Gallantry), five Nao Sena Medals
(Gallantry), seven Vayu Sena Medals
(Gallantry) and five Yudh Seva Medals.
Tamil Nadu Honours ISRO Chief K Sivan With
APJ Abdul Kalam Award
In recognition of his stellar work in the promotion of
science and technology, Indian Space Research
Organisation Chairman K Sivan was awarded the Dr
APJ Abdul Kalam Award by the Tamil Nadu
government.
• The Kalam award is to honour those who
work for promoting scientific growth,
humanities and students' welfare and the
awardees should hail from Tamil Nadu.
• The award carries 8 gm gold medal, Rs. 5
lakh in cash and a citation.
• Under his tutelage, ISRO successfully
launched Chandrayan 2, the second mission
to the moon on July 22 and he was the chief
architect of SITARA, a 6D trajectory
simulation software.
Rajasthan gets an award at the World Education
Summit
Rajasthan has bagged the “best innovation and
initiative leadership award” for its achievements in
higher education in the World Education Summit-
2019 held in New Delhi.
• Minister of State for Higher Education
Bhanwar Singh Bhati received the award at
the summit.
• Representatives of eight countries and 17
States of India attended the two-day summit.
• The third higher education and human
resource conclave would be organised in
Rajasthan in November this year.
Wrestler Bajrang Punia nominated for Rajiv
Gandhi Khel Ratna Award
Asian and Commonwealth Games gold-medalist
wrestler Bajrang Punia has been nominated for the
country's highest sporting honour - the Rajiv Gandhi
Khel Ratna award.
• His name was finalised by a 12-member
selection committee on the opening day of a
two-day meeting.
• The panel comprises the likes of Bhaichung
Bhutia and MC Mary Kom among others and
is headed by Justice Mukundakam Sharma.
• Bajrang had last year won the gold medal in
the 65-kg freestyle event at the Asian Games
held in Jakarta.
• He had also won the gold medal in the same
category at the Gold Coast Commonwealth
Games.
Five sportspersons to get Dhyanchand award
The Selection Committee for sports awards 2019
recommended names of five sportspersons for the
Dhyanchand award this year.
• They are Manuel Fredricks (hockey), Arup
Basak (table tennis), Manoj Kumar
(wrestling), Nitten Kirrtane (tennis), and C
Lalremsanga (archery).
• Dhyanchand award is presented to
sportspersons for their lifetime achievements
and contribution to sport during both their
active career and following retirement.
• The committee also nominated 19 names for
Arjuna award including cricketers Ravindra
Jadeja and Poonam Yadav.
• Bajrang Punia and Deepa Malik have been
picked for Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna by the
committee.
Prasar Bharati to soon introduce two awards -
Neelum Sharma Tejaswini award &
Achyutananda Sahoo Award
Prasar Bharti Chairman A Suryapakash has
announced that Prasar Bharati would soon be
introducing two awards - the Neelum Sharma
Tejaswini award and the Achyutananda Sahoo
Award.
• The awards will be launched to remember
Senior DD News anchor Neelum Sharma
who passed away on the 17th of August.
• Neelum Sharma was remembered with
fondness and great affection as friends,
colleagues and acquaintances from across the
networks of Doordarshan paid her glowing
tributes.
WCD Ministry distributed Poshan Abhiyaan
Awards for 2018-19
Ministry of Women and Child Development Minister
Smriti Irani gave away the Poshan Abhiyaan Awards
for 2018-19 in different categories at a function in
New Delhi.
• The awards were given to the States,
Districts, Blocks and Anganwadi Workers for
their contributions in scaling up the Abhiyaan
and ensuring that it reaches every household
in the country.
• The awards are aimed at motivating the
primary stakeholders and encourage large
scale citizen participation in creating
awareness to combat malnutrition.
• As many ad 363 awards were given and 22
crore rupees were disbursed to the awardees.
BCCI awards title sponsorship rights to Paytm
for five more years
One 97 Communications Pvt. Ltd, owners of Paytm,
retained the sponsorship rights for BCCI's
International and domestic matches with a winning
bid of Rs 80 crore per match.
• The Board of Control for Cricket in India
(BCCI) announced the deal with the Paytm,
which had acquired the rights in 2015 for a
four-year period.
• The winning bid was INR 80 crores which are
at 58% incremental value in comparison to
the previous per match value of INR 4 crores.
Bahrain conferred PM Modi "The King Hamad
Order of the Renaissance award"
Prime Minister Narendra Modi held talks with King
of Bahrain Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa in Manama on
various bilateral and regional issues.
• The two leaders discussed ways to strengthen
the friendship between India and Bahrain,
with a focus on business relations and
cultural exchange.
• The two countries signed a string of
Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) in the
fields culture, space, solar energy and RuPay
card.
• Mr Modi was also honoured with "The King
Hamad Order of the Renaissance."
PM holds receives UAE's Highest Civilian
Honour
Prime Minister Narendra Modi discussed the full
spectrum of the strong India-UAE partnership with
the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Mohammed
bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
• Modi was also conferred with the highest
civilian award of the United Arab Emirates,
the "Order of Zayed".
• Earlier, Prime Minister Modi launched
Rupay Card in the UAE to promote cashless
transactions abroad.
• With this, UAE has become the first country
in the Middle East to have this facility.
Shri Prabhakar Singh chosen for ‘Eminent
Engineer Award- 2019’
Shri Prabhakar Singh, Director General, Central
Public Works Department has been chosen for the
‘Eminent Engineer Award for the Year 2019’ by the
Institution of Engineers (India) for his distinguished
and exemplary service in the field of Engineering and
Technology.
• This Elite and Prestigious Award shall be
conferred to him on the ‘Engineers Day’ on
September 15, 2019, in New Delhi.
• Shri Prabhakar Singh, an IIT graduate and
MBA from one of the Premier Business
Institute of the Country.
• His enormous contributions and dedicated
service to the Nation as an Eminent
Technocrat has been instrumental in
transforming the Premier Engineering
Organisation of the Central Government –
CPWD.
Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Awards
2018 announced
The government on has decided to confer Tenzing
Norgay National Adventure Awards to six
personalities - Aparna Kumar, Late Dipankar Ghosh,
Manikandan K, Prabhat Raju Koli,
RameshwerJangra and Wangchuk Sherpa.
• These awards are given to recognize the
achievements of persons in the fields of
adventure.
• The awardees will be facilitated by President
Ram Nath Kovind at the Rashtrapati Bhawan
on August 2
• They will receive statuettes, certificates and
award money of Rs 5 lakh each.
• The award is given in four categories namely,
land, water, air adventure and lifetime
achievement.
I&B Minister gives away excellence awards to
community radio channels
Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash
Javadekar gave away excellence awards to different
community radio channels for their valuable
contribution in sensitizing local people.
 • Mr Javadekar was speaking on the Second
Day of 7th National Community Radio
Sammelan held in New Delhi.
• For the year 2019, Friends Radio, Tripura
bagged the first prize in the thematic category
and Salam Namaste, Uttar Pradesh got
second prize in the same category.
Indian app Maitri, win tech prize in the US
Maitri application, that connects children at
orphanages with senior citizens in old-age homes,
won a bronze medal at global tech competition in the
US.
• The app, called Maitri, is aimed at bringing
together individuals suffering from
loneliness and depression and those lacking
the nurturing love of elderly role models.
• The app also allows users to volunteer and
donate to old-age homes and orphanages
through it.
Deepa Malik honoured with Rajiv Gandhi Khel
Ratna Award
President Ram Nath Kovind gave away the National
Sports at a special function held at Rashtrapati
Bhavan in New Delhi, on the occasion of National
Sports Day.
• Para-athlete Deepa Malik and Bajrang Punia
were conferred with Rajiv Gandhi Khel
Ratna Award.
• Fourteen sports persons were conferred with
Arjuna Awards for the year 201
• They include cricketer Poonam Yadav,
athlete Swapna Barman, wrestler Pooja
Dhanda, footballer Gurpreet Singh Sandhu,
bodybuilder S. Bhaskaran, boxer Sonia
Lather, kabaddi player Ajay Thakur, table
tennis player Harmeet Rajul Desai and
badminton player Bhamidipati Sai Praneeth.
• Dronacharya Awards in the regular category
were given to Sandeep Gupta in Table tennis
and Vimal Kumar in badminton.
• Dronacharya Awards in lifetime category
were given to Sanjay Bhardwaj in Cricket,
Rambir Singh Khokar in Kabaddi and
Merzban Patel in Hockey.
• Dhyan Chand Awards were given to Manoj
Kumar in Wrestling, C Lalremsanga in
Archery, Arup Basak in Table Tennis, Nitten
Kirrtane in Tennis and Manuel Fredricks in
Hockey.
Indian documentary 'I'm Jeeja' wins the top
award at We Care Film Festival
Indian documentary film "I'm Jeeja" beat several
international films to bag the top award in the 'Under
30 minute' category at the 14th edition of the 'We
Care Film Festival on Disability Issues'.
• The festival touted to be one-of-its-kind
international travelling film festival on
disabilities awarded a total of 10 films from
nine countries.
• The movies focus on stereotypes about
disability and the disabled.
 • "I'm Jeeja" directed by Swati Chakraborty
tells the story of disability activist Jeeja
Ghosh who suffers from cerebral palsy.
Virgil van Dijk wins 'Player of the Year' award
Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk created history
after being chosen UEFA Men's Player of the Year.
• In May, Van Dijk was named Premier League
Player of the Season.
• England footballer Lucy Bronze taking the
Women’s Player of the Year award.
• Barcelona's Lionel Messi bagged the
Forward of the Season award for the 2018/19
UEFA Champions League campaign.
India cricketer Venugopal Rao announces
retirement from all forms
India cricketer and Andhra Pradesh skipper
Venugopal Rao announced retirement from all forms
of the game.
• Y.Venugopala Rao, former captain of
Andhra Ranji team and India international
has represented India in 16 ODIs, and 65 IPL
matches.
• He played his last ODI against West Indies at
Basseterre on May 23, 200
• Rao played 121 first-class matches scoring
7,081 runs with 17 hundred and 30 fifties to
his credit.
• From 2008-2014 he played for Deccan
Chargers and Sunrisers Hyderabad in the
IPL.
Team India announced for WorldSkills
International Competition 2019
Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship
(MSDE), Government of India announced the 48-
member contingent which will represent India at the
biggest showcase of skills excellence in the world,
called WorldSkills International Competition 201
• Also referred as the ‘Olympics for Skills’, the
event is scheduled in Kazan, Russia from
22nd to 27th August 201
• More than 1,500 competitors from 60
countries will compete in 55 skill
competitions at this mega event.
• India will participate in 44 skills including
mobile robotics, prototype modelling,
hairdressing, baking, confectionary &
patisserie, welding, bricklaying, car painting,
floristry among others.
Sai Praneeth enters top 20 in World Badminton
Rankings
Indian shuttler B.Sai Praneeth has jumped four
places to enter in the top 20 players in the latest
World Badminton Rankings.
• Praneeth is now World No.19 in Men's
Singles badminton ranking.
• Among other Indian Men's singles shuttlers,
Kidambi Srikanth has maintained his tenth
position while Sameer Verma retains his 13th
position.
• In Women's Singles, P.V.Sindhu has retained
her 5th position and Saina Nehwal 8th
position.
• Japan's Kento Momota tops the rankings in
Men's Singles while another Japanese
Yamaguchi leads the rankings in Women's
singles.
BCCI suspends Prithvi Shaw for doping violation
Indian Test opener Prithvi Shaw has been suspended
by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI)
till November 15, 2019, for a doping violation.
• According to a BCCI release, Shaw had
inadvertently ingested a prohibited
substance, which can be commonly found in
cough syrups.
• His sample was subsequently tested and
found to contain Terbutaline.
• Terbutaline, a specified substance, is
prohibited both In & Out of Competition in
the WADA Prohibited List of Substances.
Football Giant ‘East Bengal Club’ turns 100
years
Football Giant East Bengal Club turns 100 years in 1
August 201
• On this day in 1920, East Bengal Club was
established at Kumartuli Park in North
Kolkata.
• Former Indian Cricket Captain Kapil Dev
was given ‘Bharat Gourav’ Award at the
function.
• Former footballer Manaranjan Bhattacherjee
and Bhaskar Ganguli were presented Life
Time Achievement Awards.
• P. K. Banerjee was given best football coach
of the Century award.
Adarsh Singh wins double gold in shooting meet
Adarsh Singh outclassed his rivals in the Sardar
Sajjan Singh Sethi Memorial Masters competition,
winning the gold medal in both the men and junior
25 metres rapid fire pistol event in New Delhi.
• The 17-year-old Adarsh shot 584 to top the
qualification rounds, his score way above the
second-ranked shooter in both the
competitions.
• Punjab's Anhad Jawanda bagged the bronze
with a score of 22 in the six-man final.
• In the junior event, Adarsh found it
comparatively easier, overcoming Vijayveer
 Sidhu of Chandigarh 30-27 to claim a double
on the concluding day of the tournament.
Lionel Messi banned for three months for
'corruption' comments
• Sharma blasted two sixes to go past West
Indies's Chris Gayle at the top spot.
• The right-handed Sharma now has 106 sixes
in the format whereas Gayle has 10
• Kiwi opening batsman Martin Guptill sits on
the third position with 103 sixes.
• The 32-year-old Sharma is currently the
highest run-scorer in T20Is and he also holds
the record for the most number of centuries
(four) in the T20I format.

Vinesh Phogat wins third successive gold in 53kg

World's best footballer Lionel Messi will not play

again for Argentina this year after being handed a
suspension and fine for his criticism of South
American Football Confederation.

• The Barcelona superstar accused the South

American governing body of being "corrupt"
Vinesh Phogat has bagged gold in women's 53kg
during the Copa America.
category of the Poland Open wrestling tournament in
• Messi will be given a three-month ban from
Warsaw.
international duty which will see him miss
Argentina's friendlies with Chile and Mexico
• The 24-year-old prevailed 3-2 over local
in September and Germany in October.
wrestler Roksana in the final of the
• The 32-year-old superstar was shown a red
competition.
card in the third-place play-off against Chile
• This was her third consecutive gold in the 53
at the start of July.
kg category after winning Gold at Grand Prix
• Argentina won the game, but Messi fumed
of Spain and at the Yasar Dogu International
and did not appear on the pitch for the medal
at Istanbul, Turkey last month.
ceremony.
Satwiksairaj, Chirag 1st Indian doubles pair to
Rohit Sharma becomes the batsman with the
win Super 500 title at Thailand Open
most number of sixes in T20Is

India's opening batsman Rohit Sharma became the

Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty became
batsman with the most number of sixes in the T20I
the first Indian pair to win a BWF Super 500
format.
badminton tournament.
 • They beat World champions Li Jun Hui and
Liu Yu Chen of China in the summit clash of
Thailand Open 21-19, 18-21, 21-18 in
Bangkok to win the men’s doubles category.
• The third-seeded Chinese pair settled for the
second position after battling hard for an hour
and two minutes as the Commonwealth
Games silver medallists Rankireddy-Shetty
claimed their maiden title.
Indian boxers end their campaign with six
medals in Boxing
Indian boxers have ended their campaign at the
Magomed Salam Umakhanov Memorial
International Boxing Tournament in Kaspiysk,
Russia with a rich haul of six medals.
• These comprised two gold, one silver and
three bronze.
• World Championships bronze-medallist,
Lovlina Borgohain (69kg) and India Open
gold-medallist champion Neeraj (57kg),
clinched gold medals.
• Gaurav Solanki ( 56 kg) had to settle for a
silver.
• Reigning Asian Championships gold
medallist Pooja Rani had to be content with a
bronze in the middleweight( 75 kg) category.
• Govind Sahani (49Kg) and Jony (60Kg) also
grabbed bronze medals after their semi-final
losses.
Lewis Hamilton wins F1’s Hungarian GP
Lewis Hamilton regained the momentum in the
world championship with a memorable strategic
victory on over Max Verstappen to win the
Hungarian Grand Prix.
• The 34-year-old defending five-time world
champion started third on the grid in his
Mercedes.
• It was Hamilton's record seventh win in
Hungary, his eighth this year and the 81st of
his career.
Former New Zealand captain Brendon
McCullum retires from all forms of cricket
Former New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum
will retire from all forms of competitive cricket after
the conclusion of the ongoing Global T20 Canada.
• McCullum, who is playing for Toronto
Nationals, had retired from all forms of
international cricket in 2016 but continued to
ply his trade in various T20 leagues across the
globe.
• The 37-year-old former New Zealand skipper
has played 101 Tests in which he scored 6453
runs with 12 hundred and the highest score of
30
• In 260 ODIs, he scored 6083 runs with five
hundred while 71 T20 Internationals fetched
him 2140 runs.
New Zealand retires Vettori's ODI jersey No.11
New Zealand Cricket on retired spin legend Daniel
Vettori's jersey no. 11 as a mark of respect to the
much-admired former captain's achievements.
• In fact, it's not just Vettori, NZC will retire
the jerseys of all those cricketers who have
represented the Black Caps in more than 200
ODIs.
• Players that represent New Zealand in 200
ODIs have their shirt number retired.
 • Daniel Vettori who wore number 11 has
played the most ODIs for New Zealand with
291 matches.
• Vettori was the captain of New Zealand from
2007 to 201
Mary Kom, Lovlina Borgohain selected for
world boxing championships
Six-time world champion M C Mary Kom and
Lovlina Borgohain have been selected for the
upcoming women's world boxing championships
based on their recent performances.
• The 36-year-old Mary Kom, who has already
claimed two gold medals this year India Open
and a recent tournament in Indonesia, has
been selected in the 51kg category.
• World and Asian bronze-medallist
Borgohain will be competing in the 69kg
category.
• The world championships are scheduled from
October 3 to 13 in Russia.
Bengaluru gears up to host the 10th AASF Asian
Age Group Championships 2019
Bengaluru for the very first time will host the 10th
AASF Asian Age Group Championships 2019
starting 24th September 201
• The event will give the country’s swimming
enthusiasts an opportunity to witness the
largest Aquatic Event in the continent.
• The nine-day sporting extravaganza will have
over 40 countries and more than 1200
participants vying for top honours in four
different aquatic disciplines such as
swimming, diving, water polo and the
visually-mesmerizing artistic swimming.
• This is the largest Aquatic Championships in
Asia as is also open for participants from Age
Groups I (15-17 years) and II (14 years and
below).
Fiona Kolbinger becomes the first woman to win
cycling's Transcontinental Race
German paediatric cancer researcher Fiona
Kolbinger, 24, has won the Transcontinental Race,
becoming the first woman to do so.
• She won after cycling nearly 4,000km from
Bulgaria to France unassisted in just 10 days,
two hours and 48 minutes.
• The ultra-endurance race, founded by the late
British cyclist Mike Hall, sees participants
travel through seven or more countries on a
self-navigated route, with several stops at
mandatory checkpoints in Bulgaria, Serbia,
Italy and France.
• Riders are only allowed to take along what
they can carry, and consume what they can
find from various services en route.
Amla retires from international cricket
South African batsman Hashim Amla has retired
from all international cricket with immediate effect.
 • Amla played 124 Tests, 181 ODIs and 44
T20Is between in his 15-year-long cricketing
career.
• He collected the country’s third-most runs in
ODI cricket after former skipper AB de
Villiers and Kallis.
• He is the only South African to have scored a
triple century in the Test format.
World Archery suspends AAI for defying
guidelines
• Now, All the cricketers will be tested by
NADA.
Points to remember
• Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI)
CEO: Rahul Johri
Shubhman Gill becomes youngest to score a
double century for Indian representative side

Shubhman Gill became the youngest Indian batsman

The World Archery (WA) suspended the Archery to score double hundred as he amassed unbeaten 204
Association of India (AAI) for defying its guidelines runs in the third unofficial Test against West Indies
by electing two parallel bodies. A.

• Gill achieved this feat at the age of 19 years

• The last event in which the archers can
participate under the Indian flag is the World
Archery Youth Championships in Madrid
from 19th to 25th of this month.
• The AAI had to find a solution by the end of
last month as per the deadline was given by
WA's executive board and since no progress
has been made, the world governing body
implemented the suspension order.
and 334 days.
• He broke the record of Gautam Gambhir who
had scored 218 for India Board President's XI
against Zimbabwe in 2002 at the age of 20
years and 124 days.
Bajrang Punia wins gold at Tbilisi Grand Prix

BCCI has agreed to come under NADA ambit

Sports Secretary Radheshyam Jhulaniya said that the

Indian cricket board has agreed to come under the
ambit of the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA).

• Till date, Sweden-based International Dope

Testing Management (IDTM) has been
collecting the cricketers' samples and
submitting them to the National Dope Testing
Laboratory (NDTL).
• IDTM was an outside agency hired by BCCI
to take samples.
India’s top two wrestlers continued their impressive
run this season with Bajrang Punia defending his title
at Tbilisi Grand Prix, while Vinesh Phogat reaching
her fourth final at Medved event.
 • Bajrang prevailed 2-0 over Iran’s Peiman
Bibyani in the 65kg final of the men’s
freestyle competition in the capital city of
Georgia.
• It is fourth gold of the season for the Asian
Games champion Bajrang after standing atop
the podium at Dan Kolov, Asian
Championship and Ali Aliev tournament.
• At the Medved event in Minsk, Belarus,
Vinesh outclassed local wrestler Yafremenka
11-0 in the 53kg semifinals to be in line for
her fourth consecutive gold.
33 players named for junior national camp ahead
of Sultan of Johor Cup
Hockey India named 33 players for the junior men's
national camp to prepare for the Sultan of Johor Cup.
• The preparation of Cup will begin 12th of
August at the Sports Authority of India centre
in Bengaluru.
• A total of three goalkeepers, 10 defenders,
mid-fielders and forwards each have been
called up for the 20-day camp.
• The Indian junior men's team is scheduled to
take part in the 9th Sultan of Johor Cup in
October.
Khelo India to be held in Assam from 10th to
22nd January
The Khelo India will be held in Assam from 10th to
22nd of January 2020.
• In a bid to give a boost to sports
infrastructure, the Assam government will
build 22 thousand playgrounds at the village
level.
• 500 such playgrounds will be inaugurated
this year.
Indian junior shuttlers win 6 medals at Bulgarian
Open
In Badminton, Indian junior shuttlers won six medals
at the Bulgarian Junior International Championships
which concluded in Pazardzhik, Bulgaria.
• The medals comprised of three gold, a silver
and two bronze.
• The gold medals were won by Samiya Imad
Faruqui in women's singles, the duo of Edvin
Joy and Shruti Mishra in Mixed Doubles and
pair of Tanisha Crasto and Aditi Bhatt in
women's doubles.
• Men's doubles combination of Ishan
Bhatnagar and Vishnuvardhan settled for the
silver medal.
• Malvika Bansod and Meiraba Luwang won
a bronze each in other singles events.
Sourabh Verma wins Hyderabad Open title
In Badminton, reigning national champion, Sourabh
Verma clinched the Men's singles title in the
Hyderabad Open.
• He beat Singapore's Loh Kean Yew 21-13,
14-21, 21-16 in a 52-minute final clash.
• The 26-year-old Sourabh from Madhya
Pradesh had won the Slovenian International
in May this year.
• He had also won two Super 100 titles at the
Dutch Open and Russian Open last year.
Virat Kohli becomes second-highest run-getter
for India in ODIs
Skipper Virat Kohli became the second-highest run-
getter for India in ODIs as he played a knock of 120
runs against Windies in the second ODI.
• Kohli broke the record of former captain
Sourav Ganguly who scored 11,363 runs in
311 ODIs.
• Kohli is only behind the legendary batsman
Sachin Tendulkar.
• Tendulkar has 18,426 runs, most in the ODI
cricket by any batsman in the world.
• Kohli also became the highest run-scorer
against West Indies in the ODIs.
Aishwarya Pissay becomes first Indian to claim a
world title in motorsports
Aishwarya Pissay became the first Indian to claim a
world title in motorsports.
• She won the FIM World Cup (Fédération
Internationale de Motocyclisme) in the
women's category after the final round of the
championship at Varpalota in Hungary.
• The 23-year old from Bengaluru also finished
second in the FIM Junior category.
• She was placed second in the junior category
with 46 points, behind championship winner
Tomas de Gavardo (60) of Chile.
Netherlands' star footballer Wesley Sneijder
announces retirement
Netherlands' star footballer Wesley Sneijder has
announced his retirement from football.
• The player has signed a contract with
Utrecht's business partners and he will be
able to watch the team play from a private
box in the upcoming season.
• Sneijder had begun his career in 2002 with
football club Ajax and later on in his career,
he went on to represent Real Madrid.
• With Real Madrid, the player was able to win
the La Liga title in the 2007-08 season.
• Sneijder represented the Dutch 134 times
from 2003 to 201
Djokovic remains at top of ATP rankings
Wimbledon 2019 champion Novak Djokovic
remains to be at the top of the ATP rankings.
• Rafael Nadal, who secured his 35th Master's
title, takes the second position.
• Nadal overwhelmed Russia's Daniil
Medvedev 6-3 6-0 to win his fifth Rogers
Cup in Montreal.
• The top three ATP rankings are unchanged.
Serbia's Djokovic has collected 12,325 points
atop Roger Federer of Switzerland with 7,460
points is on the third-placed.
• Austria's Dominic Thiem retains the fourth
place.
Women's cricket to be part of Birmingham 2022
Commonwealth Games
The Commonwealth Games Federation announced
that women's T20 Cricket has been confirmed for
inclusion at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games
in 202
• Eight teams will compete across eight match
days, as cricket returns to the Commonwealth
Games for the first time since 199
• The 2022 Commonwealth Games will take
place in England from 27th July to 7th
August.
Deepak Punia Becomes India's 1st Junior
Wrestling World Champion in 18 Years
Grappler Deepak Punia became India's first junior
World Champion in 18 years after he claimed a gold
medal at the junior worlds with a win over Russia's
Alik Shebzukhov at Tallinn, Estonia.
• The score was tied 2-2 at the end of the 86kg
men's freestyle bout but the Indian was
declared champion because he had scored the
last point.
• Vicky Chahar, on the other hand, won bronze
in the 92 kg category by beating Mongolia's
Batmagnai Enkhtuvshin.
• Deepak is the first Indian in 18 years to win a
Junior World Championship title.
India beat England to win Physical Disability
World Series 2019
India won the Physical Disability World Series 2019
in England after defeating the hosts in the final at the
New Road Stadium in Worcester.
• The Indian team defeated England by 36 runs
in the final on to clinch the elusive trophy.
• The six-nation tournament was organized by
the England and Wales Cricket Board.
• Ravindra Sante scored a quickfire half-
century to star in India's victory.
Liverpool beat Chelsea to win Super Cup
Liverpool won the UEFA Super Cup for a fourth time
following a penalty shoot-out defeat of Premier
League rivals Chelsea in Istanbul.
• After an enthralling contest that finished at 2-
2 after extra time, it was Liverpool that
prevailed 5-4 on spot-kicks.
Hima Das, Mohammad Anas win gold at
Athleticky Mitink Reiter event
Top Indian sprinters Hima Das and Mohammad
Anas have won a gold each in 300m races at the
Athleticky Mitink Reiter event in the Czech
Republic.
• While Hima won the gold in women's event,
Mohammad Anas claimed the gold medal in
the men's category.
• This was Hima's sixth gold in 2019 in
European races since last month.
• India’s Nirmal Tom clinched a bronze medal
in the same event by clocking a timing of 303
seconds.
India win gold at Under- 12 Asian Tennis Team
championship in Kazakhstan
India has won gold at the Under 12 Asian Tennis
Team championship held in Kazakhstan.
• India defeated Chinese Taipei 2-1 in the
summit clash to win the title.
• The final was a tie of three matches - 2 singles
and one double and India won both the
singles matches while lost the doubles
encounter.
• The team comprised Manas Dhamme, Arnav
Paprakar and Tamil Nadu's Pranav Rethin.
• Manas and Rethin won their singles matches.
India's junior women boxers win 4 gold medals
at Serbian tourney
India's junior women boxers clinched 12 medals at
the third Nation's Cup in Vrbas, Serbia.
• The team won four gold, four silver and four
bronze medals and claimed the runners-up
trophy.
• Tamanna clinched gold in 48 Kilogram
category along with Ambeshori Devi in 57
Kilogram, Preeti Dahiya in 60 Kilogram and
Priyanka in 66 Kilogram category.
• Over 160 boxers from 20 countries
participated in this tournament, for which
India sent a 13-member squad.
Indian-American teen wins South Asian Spelling
Bee competition
An Indian-American teenager from New Jersey, In football, Gokulam Kerala FC won the 129th
Navneeth Murali won the 2019 South Asian Spelling Durand Cup, defeating heavyweights Mohun Bagan
Bee (SAS Bee). 2-1 at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata.

• He won after correctly spelling the word • At half time, Gokulam Kerala was leading 1-
‘flipe’ and earned the national title and nil. Gokulam captain Marcus Joseph scored
$3,000 grand prize. both the goals.
• The South Asian Spelling Bee (SASB) is an • It was a close game throughout which saw
annual spelling bee platform in the US for both the teams go through testing moments.
children of South Asian descent. • With this win, Gokulam Kerala became the
first club from the state in 22 years to clinch
Madhya Pradesh para swimmer Satendra Singh the tournament.
Lohia crosses America's Catalina Channel
PV Sindhu becomes first Indian to win BWF
World Championships

Divyang Satendra Singh Lohia from Madhya

Pradesh has become the first Asian swimmer to cross
P V Sindhu became the first Indian to win badminton
the Catalina Channel of America.
World Championships gold by beating familiar rival
Nozomi Okuhara of Japan in Basel, Switzerland.
• Satendra holds the Asian record of crossing
both the English and Catalina channels.
• The Indian won 21-7 21-7 in the summit
• Gwalior born Satendra led the Indian Para
clash that lasted just 38 minutes.
Relay team along with five teammates and
• Sindhu has also won Olympic silver in 2016
crossed the Catalina Channel in 11 hours 34
Rio Games, silver at Gold Coast
minutes.
Commonwealth Games, an Asian Games
• At that time, the water temperature was
silver at Jakarta and the BWF World Tour
around 13 degrees Celsius.
Finals last year.
• Satyendra has also honoured with the Vikram
Award, the highest sports award in Madhya
Komalika Bari wins World Archery Youth
Pradesh.
Championships
Gokulam Kerala FC wins Durand Cup
The 17year-old Indian Komalika Bari defeated • Bumrah’s magical figures of 5/7 are also the
Japan's Waka Sonoda in the recurve cadet women's cheapest five-for by an India bowler.
final to win a gold medal at the 2019 World Archery • Recently, Jasprit Bumrah has also become
Youth Championships. the quickest Indian fast bowler to 50 wickets
in Test cricket.
• Bari won her first major event and became
the third Indian archer to hold a world title. India bags four medals in Worldskills Kazan
• She is the second Indian archer to become competition
world champion in the Under-18 recurve
women's category.
• Deepika Kumari held the title in 2009 and
then won the junior (U21) gold in 201

Sumit Nagal becomes first Indian to win a set

against Roger Federer

The Indian team created history by winning one gold,

one silver and two bronze medals at the 45th
WorldSkills Kazan 2019 competition, in Russia.

• It has been the country's best performance

Sumit Nagal became the first Indian to win a set
against Roger Federer.
• Nagal achieved the feat during his first-round
match against Federer in the ongoing US
Open as he outclassed him in the first set.
• Nagal ended up losing the match 6-4, 1-6,2-
6,4-6 against Federer.
• Nagal had become the youngest Indian in 25
years to qualify for the main draw of a Grand
Slam as he had defeated Brazil's Jaao
Menezes 5-7, 6-4, 6-
• He had earlier won the Wimbledon Boys'
doubles title in 201
since it first participated at the event in 200
• S Aswatha Narayana won the gold medal in
water technology.
• Pranav Nutalapati won the silver medal in
web technologies.
• China emerged top overall with 35 medals,
16 of which were gold, while Russia took
second place with 14 golds among its 22
medals.
25th Senior Women’s National Football
Championship to be held in Arunachal Pradesh

Bumrah became the first Asian to pick fifers in

SA, Eng, Aus & WI
The 25th Senior Women’s National Football
India pacer, Jasprit Bumrah galloped to the record Championship will be held in Arunachal Pradesh for
books by becoming the first Asian bowler to grab a the first time from September 10 to 2
five-wicket haul in South Africa, England, Australia
and West Indies, all in his first tour to all these
countries.
 • The tournament will be held in the oldest
town of the state Pasighat in East Siang
District.
• A total of 30 teams from across the country,
representing various States, Union Territories
and Indian Railways will participate in the
tournament.
India's Elavenil claims maiden World Cup gold
medal in shooting
In shooting, India's Elavenil Valarivan claimed her
maiden senior World Cup gold medal in the women's
10m air rifle competition at Rio de Janeiro.
• With this, Valarivan became the third Indian
to achieve the feat.
• In her debut year at the senior level, Elavenil
shot 257 in the finals to help India extend
their new-found dominance in the event.
• India has now won three out of the four
World Cup gold medals in the women's 10m
air rifle this year.
Indian Sprinter VK Vismaya Wins 400m Gold In
Czech Republic
Indian sprinter, VK Vismaya, claimed the gold
medal at the International Athletic Meeting.
• She produced a personal best timing of 512s
at the women 400m run, that took place at the
Josef Seckár Memorial (MJS) in Brno, Czech
Republic.
• Hima Das, who has recently won six gold
medals in European races, didn't compete in
this event.
India bags gold in 10-meter air pistol event in
Shooting World Cup
In shooting, Abhishek Verma won the gold medal
and Saurabh Chaudhary the bronze, in a dominant
display by Indian shooters in the men's 10m air pistol
event of the World Cup at Rio de Janeiro.
• Verma shot 242 in the eight-man finals, while
Chaudhary's 229 was good enough to get him
the bronze.
• India has already exhausted the maximum
Olympic quotas available per country in this
event.
• Now, India's quota holders are Sanjeev
Rajput, Anjum Moudgil, Apurvi Chandela,
Saurabh Chaudhary, Abhishek Verma,
Divyansh Singh Panwar, Rahi Sarnobat and
Manu Bhaker.
• India was placed at the top of the medals tally
with two gold, one silver and a bronze.
Former cricketer Malcolm Nash passes away
Former England county cricketer Malcolm Nash has
died at the age of 7
 • He was perhaps best known internationally
for being hit for six sixes in an over by West
Indies great Garry Sobers.
• Nash played 17 seasons of first-class cricket,
from 1966 to 1983, turning out in 336
matches in which he picked up 993 wickets.
Cricket commentator Anant Setalvad passes
away
Cricket commentator Anant Setalvad passed away in
Mumbai.
• Setalvad had started his radio commentary
stint in the pre-TV days and had shared the
mike with the likes of former Test opener and
ex-selection panel chief Vijay Merchant on
All India Radio.
• He used to draw pictures of the game's
progress on airwaves with his fine command
of the English language.
Veteran Gujarati journalist Kanti Bhatt passes
away
Veteran Gujarati journalist, author and columnist
Kanti Bhatt passed away.
• Kanti Bhatt was born on 15th July 1931 in
Sachra village in the erstwhile Bhavnagar
state of Gujarat.
• Kanti Bhatt joined journalism in 1966 in
Mumbai. He also worked as journalist,
writer, columnist and editor in various
Gujarati publications like Chitralekha,
Mumbai Samachar, Janshakti, Sandesh,
Yuva Darshan, Jansatta, Vyapar and
Abhiyan.
Former External Affairs Minister Sushma
Swaraj passes away
Former External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj
passed away in New Delhi.
• She was the first woman external affairs
minister of India.
• The 67-year-old leader, who had served her
fourth term in Lok Sabha had long been her
party’s most prominent woman face.
• She was the youngest cabinet minister at 25
when she joined the Haryana government in
1977 and the first woman chief minister of
Delhi.
• She was elected seven times as a member of
parliament and three times as a member of the
legislative assembly.
Noble Prize-winning author, Toni Morrison dies
Nobel laureate Toni Morrison, the renowned author
of acclaimed novels such as "Beloved" and "Song of
Solomon," died at the age of 8
• Morrison published a total of 11 books during
a career spanning over five decades and was
the first black woman to receive a Noble
Prize.
• Her work, which delved into the themes of
race and racism, among others, helped raise
United States' multiculturalism to the world
stage.
Singer-songwriter David Berman dies
Singer-songwriter David Berman who formed the
indie group 'Silver Jews' in the 1990s passed away.
• Berman had suffered from drug addiction for
years and had survived several overdoses and
one suicide attempt.
• The 'Silver Jews' that recorded six studio
albums between 1994 and 2008 rarely
performed live.
• Berman also authored two books of poetry,
'Actual Air,' and 'The Portable February.
Freedom fighter Dayanidhi Nayak passes away
Noted freedom fighter Dayanidhi Nayak, who
struggled against the British Government during the
Quit India movement,passed away.
• One of the 32 freedom fighters from
Panimora, he joined the Quit India movement
against the British government and was a
devout follower of Mahatma Gandhi.
• During Quit India movement, he was jailed
for nine months.
• He was a pure Gandhian and he even used to
weave his own clothes like him.
Music star DJ Arafat dies in road crash
DJ Arafat, a singer from Ivory Coast with a huge
following in francophone Africa, has died after a
road accident in Abidjan.
• Born in Abidjan in 1986, the artist, whose
real name is Ange Didier Huon, had a
massive audience in French-speaking
western and central African countries.
• He issued 11 albums, mainly of "coupe-
decale" a dance music form combining rapid
percussion, choppy rhythms with hip hop-
style vocals.
• He Arafat was named "Best Artist of the
Year" at the Ivorian "Coupe-decale" Awards
in 2016 and 201
Former India cricketer and national selector VB
Chandrasekhar passes away
Former India opener and national selector VB
Chandrasekhar passed away in Chennai on following
a massive cardiac arrest.
• Chandrasekhar played 7 ODIs between 1988
and 1990, scoring only 88 run.
• At the domestic level he was prolific for a few
seasons, aggregating 4999 runs in 81 games
with the highest score of 237 not out.
1 Veteran actor Vidya Sinha passes away
Veteran actor Vidya Sinha, famed for her roles in
'Rajnigandha' and 'Pati Patni Aur Woh' among others
died on at the age of 7
• As per the media reports, the actor was
suffering from lung and heart disorder.
• The actor who spread her magic on the silver
screen was also popular on television where
she essayed roles in daily soaps like 'Bahu
Rani,' 'Hum Do Hain Na,' 'Bhabhi' and
'Kavyanjal'.
• Vidya who began her career at the age of 18
as a model and actor were loved and admired
by many in the industry.
• After a break in her career, she made a
comeback to films with Salman Khan's
'Bodyguard'.
Renowned Bangladeshi novelist Rizia Rahman
passes away
Renowned Bangladeshi novelist and the Ekushey
Padak winning author Rizia Rahman passed away in
Dhaka.
• She wrote in all genres of creative work
including short stories, poems, essays and
children's fiction but she was renowned for
her novels.
• Bong Theke Bangla, Rokter Okshor and
Ghar-Bhanga-Ghar are among some of his
more well-known novels.
• She was born in Kolkata in 1939 and
migrated to East Bengal after the partition.
• She received the Bangla Academy Literary
Award in 1978 and was awarded Ekushey
Padak this year.
Doordarshan Anchor and Nari Shakti Award
Winner Neelum Sharma passes away
Doordarshan news anchor, Neelum Sharma passed
away.
• Neelum Sharma was known was her
programmes like ‘Tejaswini’ and ‘Badi
Charcha’.
• She had been awarded the Nari Shakti
Puruskar by President Ram Nath Kovind in
201
• As part of her ‘Tejasvini’ programme,
Sharma highlighted the achievements of
woman achievers from the remotest parts of
India who went on to become role models for
the society.
Padma Shri awardee Damodar Ganesh Bapat
passed away
Eminent social worker and Padma Shri awardee
Damodar Ganesh Bapat passed away.
• He dedicated his life to the treatment and
service of leprosy patients
• Bapat was awarded Padma Shri, the fourth
highest civilian award, by President Ram
Nath Kovind in 201
Former Bihar CM Jagannath Mishra passes
away
• He was 92 and his complete name was
Mohammed Zahur Khayyam Hashmi.
• Besides ‘Kabhi Kabhi’ and ‘Umrao Jaan’, the
musician's other notable works include films
such as "Trishul", "Noorie" and "Shola Aur
Shabnam".
• In 2007, Khayyam was honoured with the
Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in Creative
Music by the Sangeet Natak Akademi. Four
years later, he was conferred with Padma
Bhushan.

Former Madhya Pradesh CM Babulal Gaur

passes away

Veteran Congress leader and three-time Bihar Chief

Minister Dr Jagannath Mishra passed away after a
Former Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh Babulal
prolonged illness.
Gaur died in Bhopal.
• Dr Mishra became Chief Minister in 1975,
• Babulal Gaur served as the Chief Minister of
1980 and 198 He was also Union Minister.
• Bihar Governor Phagu Chouhan, Chief Madhya Pradesh from August 2004 to
November 2005 and represented Govindpura
Minister Nitish Kumar and several leaders
expressed grief over the demise of Jagannath Assembly seat for 10 times.
• Born on 2nd June 1930, the Bharatiya Janata
Mishra.
Party leader was credited with expanding
party's foothold in Madhya Pradesh.
Veteran music director-composer Khayyam
• Babulal Gaur retired from electoral politics in
passes away
2018 citing old age.

Former Finance Minister, Arun Jaitley passes

away

Veteran music director-composer Khayyam, best

known for his music in classic films such as 'Umrao
Jaan' and 'Kabhi Kabhi', passed away.
Former Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley passed
away at the age of 66 due to health-related ailments
at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences
(AIIMS) Delhi.
• Jaitley was accorded full state honours in the
presence of several leaders from BJP as well
as the Opposition.
• His most important legacy will be rolling out
of Goods and Services Tax (GST) in 2017,
the biggest tax reforms after Independence.
• Arun Jaitley stepped down from contesting in
the 2019 loksabha election citing health
issues.
Country's first woman DGP Kanchan
Chaudhary Bhattacharya dies
The first woman Director General of Police (DGP),
Kanchan Chaudhary Bhattacharya, passed away
following an illness.
• Bhattachary, a 1973 batch IPS officer, made
history when she was appointed the DGP of
Uttarakhand in the year 200
• She retired as the DGP on October 31, 200
• After retirement, she took a plunge into
politics by contesting the 2014 Lok Sabha
elections on an Aam Aadmi Party's ticket
from Haridwar constituency.
Naval war hero Noel Kelman dies at 92
Naval war hero and Kirti Chakra awardee,
Commander Noel Kelman, passed away at the age of
9
• Commander Kelman was awarded the Kirti
Chakra for valour during the liberation of
Goa in 196
• He was involved in an operation to flush out
the Portuguese from the Anjadip Island.
• Kelman had also been awarded the King's
commendation in the Second World War for
his role in sinking a Japanese submarine.
Amit Shah releases book on VP M Venkaiah
Naidu's two years in office
Home Minister Amit Shah released a book titled
‘Listening, Learning & Leading’ chronicling the two
years in office by Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu.
• The book was released in Chennai at a
function organised by Information and
Broadcasting Ministry.
• The book captures the glimpses of the Vice
President’s 330 public engagements across
the country in the last two years.
• The book also showcases the Vice
President’s feat as the Rajya Sabha Chairman
in enhancing its effectiveness and promoting
its efficiency.
Culture Minister launches the book ' The Diary
of Manu Gandhi'
 Paris

Moscow

Madrid

Q. Who among the following became Minister for

Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation in Nepal after the

Culture Minister Prahlad Singh Patel launched the death of Rabindra Adhikari in a helicopter crash?
book - ‘The Diary of Manu Gandhi’ at a function in
Lal Babu Pandit
New Delhi.
Yogesh Bhattarai
• The book has been brought out by National
Archives of India, on the occasion of 150th
Ishwor Pokhrel
anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi in
collaboration with Oxford University Press. Upendra Yadav
• The first volume covers the period 1943-194
• The Diary of Manu Gandhi originally in Ram Bahadur Thapa
Gujarati has been edited and translated by Dr
Tridip Suhrud, a well-known scholar engaged Q. Culture Minister Prahlad Singh Patel has announced
in understanding the Gandhian Intellectual
tradition. to include ________ and ________ languages in
• Manu Gandhi (Mridula) was a grand niece of fellowships for Artistes?
Mahatma Gandhi and stayed with Gandhiji
until his assassination. Nepali and Santhali

Monthly Quiz August 2019 Bodo and Dogri

Bodo and Nepali

Q. Which of the following country is the host for 52nd
ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting? Dogri and Santhali

Thailand Telugu and Maithili

Cambodia Q. Birth anniversary of Munshi Premchand is observed

every year on ________,
Vietnam
19 July
Indonesia
2 August
Philippines
31 July
Q. Cabinet has approved the setting up of ISRO
Technical Liaison Unit (ITLU) at ________. 1 August

London 28 July

Berlin
Q. Who among the following has been appointed as the Prithvi Shaw
new Finance Secretary?
Shikhar Dhawan
Anuj Sharma
Shreyas Iyer
Rajiv Kumar
Sanju Samson
Rajat Sharma
Q. Sai Praneeth is associated with which of the
Sanju Nair following sports?

Ajay Tomar Badminton

Q. Recently, India cricketer Venugopal Rao announces Table Tennis

retirement from all forms. He is the former the captain of
Chess
which of the following Ranji team?
Tennis
Maharashtra cricket team
Football
Railways cricket team
Q. Which of the following city has been named as
Vidarbha cricket team
India’s best city for student?
Andhra cricket team
Bengaluru
Rajasthan cricket team
Dehradun
Q. WorldSkills International Competition 2019 which is
also referred as Olympics for Skills is scheduled to take Mumbai
place in which of the following country?
Chandigarh
Canada
Delhi
Russia
Q. Mekong River does not flow through which of the
France following country?
Japan Myanmar
China
Laos
Q. Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has
Thailand
suspended Indian Test opener ________ for a doping
violation. Indonesia

Rishabh Pant Cambodia

Q. What is the capital of Gambia? commemorate Golden Jubilee edition of
International Film Festival of India (IFFI)?
Bangui
Ministry of Information and Broadcasting
Banjul
Ministry of Commerce and Industry
Dakar
Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate
Conakry
Change
Accra
Ministry of Corporate Affairs
Q. _______ company has been set up to ensure the
Ministry of Human Resource Development
supply of critical Minerals to the Indian domestic
market. Q. The postal department has decided to convert
India Post Payments Bank to an SFB. SFB stands for
KHANIJ
_______.
MINRL
Subsidised Functional Bank
KABIL
Semi Finance Bank
NRL
Small Functional Bank
None of these
Small Finance Bank
Q. Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) would set up a
None of these
Pashmina testing centre at which
Q. Who among the following has been appointed as
of the following location?
the chief of Narcotics Control Bureau?
Shimla
Ankur Teja
Leh
Rakesh Asthana
Manali
Ajay Jha
Narkanda
Sanjay Singh
Chamba
Rajeev Kaushik
Q. Which of the following ministry has launched a
Q. Who among the following has been awarded
competition for designing Postage Stamp to
‘Bharat Gourav’ award?
Mohammad Azharuddin Chennai

Sunil Gavaskar New Delhi

Sachin Tendulkar Q. President Ram Nath Kovind inaugurated exhibitions

on Mahatma Gandhi and Khadi in which of the following
Sourav Ganguly country?

Kapil Dev The Gambia

Q. Recently, Malcolm Nash passed away. He was Benin

associated with which of the following sports?
Mali
Football Ghana

Basketball Niger

Cricket Q. One Nation-one Ration Card scheme has been

implemented in 4 Indian states on a pilot basis. Which one
Badminton
of the following is not one of them?
Swimming
Telangana
Q. The US has formally withdrawn from Intermediate-
Andhra Pradesh
Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF) with which of the
following country? Maharashtra

China Madhya Pradesh

Pakistan Gujarat

Russia Q. Which of the following state has recently launched

‘Save Green, Stay Clean’ campaign?
India
Gujarat
North Korea
Madhya Pradesh
Q. 11th Annual General Meeting of Indo-Lanka Chamber
of Commerce & Industry held in _______. West Bengal

Anuradhapura Bihar

Galle Goa

Colombo Q. What is the theme of World Breastfeeding Week?

Empower Parents, Enable Breastfeeding

Empower the child by Breastfeeding Q. Who among the following has been appointed as the
Textiles Secretary?
Encourage Breastfeeding
Ajay Bisht
A healthy mother, A healthy child
Sanju Das
None of these
Ajeet Tripathi
Q. Recently, Angkhana Neelapaijit won 2019 Ramon
Magsaysay Award. She is from which of the following Ravi Capoor
country?
Rahul Tandon
Philippines
Q. The Gandhi Nagar model village was built with Indian
Cambodia assistance in which of the following country?

Thailand Nepal

Myanmar China

Vietnam Bangladesh

Q. Who among the following has been elected as Sri Lanka

Karnataka Assembly Speaker?
Myanmar
Laxman Savadi
Q. In which of the following state Aadi Perukku festival
R. Ashoka was celebrated?

S. Suresh Kumar Jharkhand

Vishweshwar Hegde Nagaland

None of these Tamil Nadu

Q. RN Ravi was sworn in as the Governor of which of the Maharashtra

following Indian state?
Assam
Madhya Pradesh
Q. Which of the following state government has launched
Telangana ‘Vhali Dikri Yojna’?

Bihar Madhya Pradesh

Nagaland Gujarat

Tripura Uttar Pradesh

Sikkim Ajay Pandey

West Bengal Siddhartha Mohanty

Q. According to ‘Vhali Dikri Yojna’, An amount of Brijbhushan Mishra

_______ will be given to the girl child at the time of
Rajat Nagpal
admission to Standard 4th.
Rohit Walia
Rs 1000
Q. President Kovind has been honoured with National
Rs 4000
Order of Merit. It is the highest award of ________.
Rs 5000
Guinea
Rs 8000
Ghana
Rs 10,000
Togo
Q. World’s first ultra-fast Hyperloop project will link
Senegal
________.
Benin
Shanghai to Beijing
Q. Who among the following won the double gold in the
Mumbai and Pune
Sardar Sajjan Singh Sethi Memorial Masters
Pune to Banglore competition?

Delhi to Agra Rajat Singh

Tokyo to Osaka Ankur Goel

Q. Which of the following bank became the 1st Indian Ajay Deep
bank to link up with China's National Advance Payment
Sohan Mishra
System?
Adarsh Singh
HDFC Bank
Q. Lionel Messi has been banned for ________ for
Punjab National Bank
'corruption' comment on South American Football
State Bank of India Confederation.

Axis Bank 1 month

Indian Bank 3 months

Q. Who among the following took over as the MD, CEO 6 months
of LIC Housing Finance (LIC HFL)?
9 months
None of these
Q. India test-fired its all-weather tracked-chassis
Quick Reaction Surface-to-Air Missile (QR-SAM)
from which of the following location?
Q. Which of the following Indian monument has
been shortlisted for UK-based structural award ‘The
Structural Awards 2019'?
Taj Mahal

Chandipur India Gate

Pokhran Qutub Minar

Thiruvananthapuram Red Fort

Sriharikota The Statue of Unity

None of these Q. Which of the following Indian batsman became

the batsman with the most number of sixes in T20Is?
Q. What is the name of the riot control vehicle
launched by Arunachal Pradesh? Shikhar Dhawan

Prahar Virat Kohli

Vajra MS Dhoni

Tejas Hardik Pandya

Cheeta Rohit Sharma

Ghaj Q. Vinesh Phogat wins third successive gold in

Poland Open wrestling tournament in Warsaw in
Q. Who among the following inaugurated
_______ category.
Technology Expo at IIT Delhi?
56kg
Arjun Munda
58kg
Ramesh Pokhriyal
50kg
Nirmala Sitharaman
53kg
Prakash Javadekar
55kg
Ram Vilas Paswan
Q. Which of the following became 1st Indian doubles Q. Recently, Kanti Bhatt passed away. He was a
pair to win Super 500 badminton title at Thailand famous ________.
Open?
Actor
Abhinn Shyam Gupta and Chirag Shetty
Journalist
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty
Footballer
Ajay Jayaram and Aditya Joshi
Golf player
Sameer Verma and Siril Verma
Scientist
None of these
Q. According to the European Union's Copernicus
Q. Who among the following won the gold medal at Climate Change Service, Which of the following
the Magomed Salam Umakhanov Memorial month has been confirmed as the hottest month ever
International Boxing Tournament in Kaspiysk, recorded?
Russia?
June 2019
Lovlina Borgohain
July 2019
Neeraj
June 2018
Govind Sahani
July 2018
1 and 2
July 2010
1,2 and 3
Q. Which of the following statement is not true
Q. Recently, Anant Setalvad passed away. He was a about revoking of Article 370 and 35-A?
famous ________.
The government revoked Article 370 which gave
Cricket commentator special status to Jammu and Kashmir.

Journalist Article 370 will no longer be applicable in Jammu

and Kashmir.
Actor
The state will be bifurcated into two union
Poet
territories -Jammu and Kashmir division and
Writer Ladakh.
Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir will have Raipur
seperate legislature.
Hyderabad
All are correct
Q. Lalit Kala Akademi celebrates _______
Q. According to The Supreme Court (Number of Foundation Day on 4 August 2019.
Judges) Amendment Bill, the number of judges in
50th
the Supreme Court shall e increased to _______
excluding the Chief Justice of India. 55th

31 65th

32 49th

33 70th

35 Q. Which of the following city installed the first 3-

D traffic signal?
37
Hyderabad
Q. International Army Scout Masters Competition
started in _______. Mohali

Jaipur Agra

Agra Lucknow

Pune Pune

Bhopal Q. Who among the following won Hungarian Grand

Prix?
Jaisalmer
Lewis Hamilton
Q. Which of the following city hosted 2nd All India
annual conference of Indian Information Service S. Vettel

Officers? M. Verstappen

Kolkata Charles Leclerc

New Delhi Valtteri Bottas

Chandigarh
Q. Brendon McCullum retires from all forms of Q. Bangladesh has signed a deal for the supply of uranium
cricket. He played International cricket from which for its 2400 MW Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant (RNPP)

of the following team? with which of the following country?

Russia
Australia
USA
New Zealand
Japan
South Africa
Canada
England
India
Sri Lanka
Q. Scientists from which of the following university have
Q. New Zealand cricket has decided to retire the developed World's thinnest '2D' gold that measures just
jersey of all of the cricketers who had played more two atoms?
than _______ matches.
The University of Manchester, England
100
University of Cambridge
150 Stanford University

200 University of Leeds, England

250 Massachusetts Institute of Technology

300 Q. India has contributed ______ to the UN Palestine

refugee agency
Q. Which of the following country has been recently
designated as a “currency manipulator’ by the United USD 1 million
States?
USD 2 million
South Korea
USD 3 million
North Korea
USD 4 million
Russia
USD 5 million
China
Q. Shripad Yesso Naik flagged off an expedition team of
Japan mountaineers to Mount Elbrus. It is the highest peak of
_________.

North America
South America Q. Which of the following statement is nor correct about
Sushma Swaraj?
Asia
She was the first woman external affairs minister of India.
Africa
She was the youngest cabinet minister at 25 when she
Europe
joined the Haryana government in 1977.
Q. Which of the following became the second state after
She was the first woman chief minister of Delhi.
Manipur which passed a law to curb lynching cases?
She was elected seven times as a member of parliament.
Uttar Pradesh
All are correct
Jharkhand
Q. Recently, Toni Morrison died. She was a famous
Tamil Nadu
_______.
Rajasthan
Journalist
Madhya Pradesh
Author
Q. Which of the following state government will launch
Poet
‘Navodayam’ scheme for MSMEs?
Film director
Telangana
Swimmer
Assam
Q. India ranks ______ on the World Resources
Andhra Pradesh
Institute's Aqueduct Water Risk Atlas water-stressed
Uttarakhand country.

Madhya Pradesh 61th

Q. Which of the following Indian city will host the third 22th
edition of ScooNews Global Educators Fest’ (SGEF)?
13th
Agra
6th
Gwalior
32th
Udaipur
Q. Quit India Movement was launched in the year
Jaipur ________.

Lucknow 1931

1942
1944 Q. NCAER expects India's GDP to grow at ________ in
FY20.
1938
6.8%
1937
6.6%
Q. Airports Economic Regulatory Authority of India,
AERA (Amendment) Bill- 2019 has increased the 6.5%
threshold of annual passenger traffic for major airports
6.3%
from 15 lakh to over ________.
6.2%
25 lakh passengers
Q. ISRO has announced Vikram Sarabhai awards in the
20 lakh passengers
field of ________.
35 lakh passengers
Art
30 lakh passengers
Literature
27 lakh passengers
Music
Q. According to the new monetary policy of the Reserve
Journalism
Bank of India, What is the current repo rate?
Sports
5.20%
Q. Who among the following has been selected for
5.40%
world boxing championships?
5.30%
Mary Kom
5.50%
Lovlina Borgohain
5.60%
Pinki Jangra
Q. Which of the following organisation has decided to
1 and 2
set a Central Payment Fraud Registry to track frauds in
the payment systems? 1,2 and 3

Securities and Exchange Board of India Q. Which of the following Indian city will host the 10th
AASF Asian Age Group Championships 2019?
National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development
Pune
Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority
Hyderabad
Reserve Bank of India
Bengaluru
National Payments Corporation of India
New Delhi Promoting solar energy

Udaipur Encourage faster adoption of electric and hybrid

Q. Who among the following became the first woman to vehicle

win cycling's Transcontinental Race?
Promoting tree plantation in the rural area
Anna van der Breggen
Protecting the tiger population
Fiona Kolbinger
None of these
Sara Poidevin
Q. Which of the following Indian state has topped in
Megan Guarnier Breastfeeding, Infant & Young Child Feeding
Sara Penton Practices?

Q. The reconstruction of 380 earthquake affected Madhya Pradesh

cultural and heritage sites have been completed in
Manipur
which of the following country?
Assam
Bangladesh
Punjab
China
Telangana
Nepal
Q. India's first underwater train will be launched in
Sri Lanka
which of the following city?
Myanmar
New Delhi
Q. Who among the following inaugurated ‘Samagra
Gandhinagar
Shiksha-Jal Suraksha’ drive?
Pune
Vijay Bahuguna
Kolkata
Ramesh Pokhriyal
Puri
Trivendra Singh Rawat
Q. The Bharat Ratna is the highest civilian award of
Prakash Javadekar
the Republic of India. The awardee gets a medallion
Narendra Singh Tomar in the shape of ________ leaf.

Q. FAME India scheme is related to ________. Mango

Rose West Indies

Peepal South Africa

Palm Q. World Archery has suspended which of the

following Archery Association for defying its
Banana
guidelines by electing two parallel bodies?
Q. What is the theme of NITI Aayog’s Women
Pakistan
Transforming India Awards?
Bangladesh
Women and Entrepreneurship
India
Women Empowerment
SriLanka
Role of Women in Transforming India
Myanmar
Transforming Womens to Sucessful Entrepreneurs
Q. World Biofuel Day is observed every year on
None of these
_______.
Q. Which of the following company has
6 August
collaborated with NITI Aayog for WTI Awards
7 August
2019?
8 August
Facebook
9 August
Google
10 August
WhatsApp
Q. Which of the following institute has partnered with
TCS NIOT to harness electricity from ocean waves?

Microsoft IIT Delhi

Q. Hashim Amla has retired from all forms of IIT Mumbai

international cricket. He played international cricket
IIT Kanpur
for which of the followinng country?
IIT Madras
New Zealand
IIT Kharagpur
Australia
Q. The 14th Session of the Conference of the Parties
England (COP14) will take place in _________.
Ranchi None of these

Greater Noida Q. Which of the following movie has won the best film
award at the Indian Film Festival, Melbourn?
Pune
Padman
Indore
Zero
Agra
Gully Boy
Q. Which of the following state government has
approved ‘Mukhyamantri Nirashrit Besahara Govansh Sanju
Sahbhagita Yojana’?
Raazi
Madhya Pradesh
Q. Who among the following is the CEO of BCCI?
Uttar Pradesh
Vinod Rai
Bihar
Rahul Johri
Jharkhand
Anurag Thakur
Punjab
Ravi Shastri
Q. SBI Life Insurance has entered into a bank assurance
Shashank Manohar
pact to offer holistic financial planning solutions to the
customers of which of the following bank? Q. Who among the following became the youngest
batsman to score a double century for Indian
Indian Bank
representative side?
Canara Bank
Prithvi Shaw
Bandhan Bank
Mayank Agarwal
ICICI Bank
Himmat Singh
Punjab National Bank
Shubhman Gill
Q. Which of the following movie has won the Best
Ishan Kishan
Feature Film award at the 66th National Film Awards?
Q. Recently, David Berman passed away. He was a
Uri: The Surgical Strike
famous _______.
Period. End Of Sentence
Footballer
Hellaro
Journalist
Padman
Singer Andhra Pradesh

Scientist Q. In June 2019, Industrial production growth drops

Actor to _________.

Q. The 3rd International Electric Vehicle Conclave 2.8%

was held in ________ 3.2%
Pune 2%
Agra 3%
Greater Noida 5%
Manesar Q. Which of the following bank has signed a pact

Gandhi Nagar with Cholamandalam MS General Insurance to sell

its range of insurance policies to customers?
Q. Which of the following state government has
launched 'MukhyaMantri Krishi Aashirvad Yojna'? Bandhan Bank

Madhya Pradesh State Bank of India

Jharkhand Indian Bank

Assam Axis Bank

Tamil Nadu Allahabad Bank

Bihar Q. Who among the following won a gold medal at

Tbilisi Grand Prix?
Q. Which of the following state government has
created a world record after planting more than 22 Yogeshwar Dutt
crore saplings in ‘Vriksharopan Mahakumbh’ Bajrang Punia
drive?
Sushil Kumar
Uttar Pradesh
Pawan Kumar
Kerla
Jeet Rama
Bihar
Q. Sultan Johor Cup is associated with which of the
Madhya Pradesh following sports?
Football Bidyananda Singh

Badminton Jitendra Singh

Cricket Q. International Youth Day is celebrated every year

on ________.
Hockey
09 August
Volleyball
10 August
Q. Which of the following Indian state will host
Khelo India in January 2020? 11 August

Gujarat 12 August

Andhra Pradesh 13 August

Himachal Pradesh Q. Who among the following is known as the Father

of India's Space Programme?
Assam
C. V. Raman
Tripura
Vikram Sarabhai
Q. Home Ministry, the Tripura state government
and the NLFT has signed a memorandum of Satish Dhawan
settlement. NLFT stands for ________.
Homi J. Bhabha
New Liberation Front of Tripura
None of these
National Liberation Front of Tripura
Q. Which of the following city has unfurled the 5-
New Liberation Fund of Tripura km long national flag and entered the Champions
Book of World Records for the longest tricolour?
Nationa Liberation Fund of Tripura
Gandhinagar
None of these
Raipur
Q. Who among the following has been named as
Green Ambassador of Manipur? Agra

Valentina Elangbam Gwalior

W. A. Shishak Aurangabad

Bedashwor Singh
Q. Which of the following state will provide 28000 Q. Who among the following has clinched the
agro-machines to farmers to prevent stubble Men's Singles title in the Hyderabad Open?
burning?
Sourabh Verma
Haryana
Chetan Anand
Uttar Pradesh
Parupalli Kashyap
Punjab
Sameer Verma
Bihar
Chirag Shetty
Himachal Pradesh
Q. Who among the following became the second-
Q. Which of the following bank has partnered to highest run-getter for India in ODIs?
launch India's first health-focused credit card in
M S Dhoni
partnership with digital healthcare platform Practo?
Suresh Raina
ICICI Bank
Virat Kohli
Axis Bank
Shikhar Dhawan
RBL Bank
Rohit Sharma
HDFC Bank
Q. Recently, Dayanidhi Nayak passed away. He was
Yes Bank
a _______ .
Q. Who among the following won a gold medal in
Actor
the women's singles category at the Bulgarian
Junior International Championships? Director

Samiya Imad Faruqui Freedom Fighter

Malvika Bansod Football player

Meiraba Luwang Army officer

Sanjana Tripathi Q. Recently, Home Minister Amit Shah released a

book titled ‘Listening, Learning & Leading’. The
None of these
book captures the glimpses of the public
engagements of _______.
Rajnath Singh Tushar Mehta

Sushma Swaraj Uday Lalit

Pranab Mukherjee Q. The Union Territory of Ladakh will have _________

districts.
Arun Jaitley
2
Venkaiah Naidu
3
Q. 'Madadgaar Helpline' number 14411 has been
4
restored in Jammu and Kashmir. This helpline was
launched by ________. 5

Border Security Force 6

Central Reserve Police Force Q. Alejandro Giammattei has been elected as the
president of _______.
Central Industrial Security Force
Honduras
Indo-Tibetan Border Police
Guatemala
Sashastra Seema Bal
Mexico
Q. The Army has launched ________ in Jammu in
Kashmir to ensure basic necessities and essential Costa Rica
services are available in the region.
Panama
Mission Reach Out
Q. What was the prize money given to the recipient of
Mission Shanti National Youth Awards for 2016-17 if it is conferred to
a youth organisation?
Mission Shakti
1 lakh rupees
Mission Find Out
2 lakh rupees
None of these
2.5 lakh rupees
Q. Who among the following is the chairperson of
National Green Tribunal? 4 lakh rupees

Adarsh Kumar Goel 5 lakh rupees

Dipak Misra Q. Who among the following became the first Indian to
claim a world title in motorsports after shehe won the
Jagdish Singh Khehar
FIM World Cup?
Aishwarya Pissay Q. Which of the following city has banned the flying of
drones without permission from any authority?
Neharika Yadav
Kathmandu
Sapna Sukesh
Islamabad
Firdaus Shaikh
Dhaka
Anam Hashim
Colombo
Q. Recently, Wesley Sneijder announced retirement. He
was associated with which of the following sports? Karachi

Cricket Q. Which of the following airline will become the first

Indian airline to fly over the North Pole?
Basketball
Air Express
Volleyball
Air India
Football
Indigo
Golf
Go Air
Q. Novak Djokovic remains to be at the top of the ATP
rankings. He is from which of the following country? Spicejet

Russia Q. Who among the following has launched the Swachh

Survekshan 2020?
Switzerland
R. K. Singh
Serbia
Piyush Goyal
France
Prakash Javadekar
None of these
Satya Pal Singh
Q. Recently, Ange Didier Huon of Arafat died in a road
accident. He was a famous ________. Hardeep Singh Puri

Footballer Q. Who among the following is the singer of the

patriotic song ‘Watan’?
Scientist
Mohit Chauhan
Singer
Shreya Ghoshal
Writer
Javed Ali
Actor
Sukhwinder Singh Pune

Sonu Nigam Srinagar

Q. Who among the following is the current Comptroller Nanital

and Auditor General of India?
Kolkata
Shashi Kant Sharma
Q. Aadhaar-enabled payment system has crossed
Rajiv Mehrishi ________ transactions in July 2019.

Ranjan Gogoi 100 million

Rishi Kumar Shukla 200 million

Sunil Arora 300 million

Q. Former PM Manmohan Singh has filed Rajya Sabha 400 million

nomination from which of the following Indian state?
500 million
Goa
Q. Which of the following country will host the 2022
Rajasthan Commonwealth Games?

Sikkim New Zealand

Karnataka Canada

Himachal Pradesh India

Q. Legislative Party of Sikkim Democratic Front has England

merged with which of the following political party?
Australia
Indian National Congress
Q. On the occasion of Independence day, PM Modi has
All India Trinamool Congress announced _______ mission to make drinking water
available to all households.
Bharatiya Janata Party
Jal Amrut
Aam Aadmi Party
Jal Jivan
Bahujan Samaj Party
Swach Jal
Q. Which of the following city will host Global
investors summit 2019? Pay Jal

New Delhi None of these

Q. Who among the following has been appointed as the Paytm
chairman of Inter-State Council?
Zomato
Narendra Modi
Q. Which of the following organisation has launched the
Nitin Gadkari ‘Operation Number Plate’?

Ravi ShankarPrasad Central Reserve Police Force

Ram Vilas Paswan Indo-Tibetan Border Police

S Jaishankar Border Security Force

Q. According to recent RBI guidelines, which of the Railway Protection Force

following transaction will not be counted as a free ATM
Central Industrial Security Force
transaction?
Q. First Indian Institute of Skills will be set up in which
Balance enquiry
of the following city?
Fund transfers
Indore
Fail transaction on account of technical reasons
Gwalior
Non-availability of cash
Aurangabad
All of these
Mumbai
Q. Who among the following is the current Jal Shakti
Pune
Minister of India?
Q. IAF Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman has
Giriraj Singh
been conferred with _______.
Madan Lal Saini
Vayu Sena Medal
Santosh Gangwar
Kirti Chakra
Gajendra Singh Shekhawat
Mahavir Chakra
Arjun Ram Meghwal
Vir Chakra
Q. Which of the following company has acquired
Shaurya Chakras
Bengaluru-based AI startup Pikup.ai?
Q. Recently, Panchamritham of Palani temple got GI tag
Uber
from which of the following Indian state?
Ola
Karnataka
TCS
Assam Chennai

Jharkhand Q. Which of the following country has won the 5th

Kerala International Army Scout Masters competition?

Tamil Nadu Russia

Q. In July 2019, Consumer price index-based retail China

inflation stood at ________.
India
3.15%
Kazakhstan
2.45%
Sudan
2.95%
Q. Which of the following state government has
4.45%
started 'Mo Sarkar' initiative for transparency in
4.35% governance?

Q. Which of the following ship of Indian Navy is Punjab

participating in the 14th Edition of KONKAN series
Haryana
of annual bilateral exercises between Indian Navy
and Royal Navy of Britain? Odisha

INS Teg Uttar Pradesh

INS Talwar Goa

INS Trishul Q. Who among the following has been honoured

with APJ Abdul Kalam Award by Tamil Nadu
INS Tarkash
government?
INS Rajput
Bimal Verma
Q. India’s first space museum has been inaugurated
K Sivan
in ________.
Om Prakash Rawat
Pune
A. S. Kiran Kumar
New Delhi
Karambir Singh
Hyderabad

Bengaluru
Q. Which of the following state has bagged the Football
“best innovation and initiative leadership award” in
Badminton
the World Education Summit-2019?
Cricket
Andhra Pradesh
Volleyball
Sikkim
Q. Recently, Vidya Sinha passed away. She was a
Himachal Pradesh
famous_______.
Telangana
Writer
Rajasthan
Actor
Q. Who among the following won Junior Wrestling
Journalist
World Championship in Russia?
Scientist
Ajay Phogat
Singer
Deepak Punia
Q. Who among the following is the chairman of the
Rajat Chaudhary
15th Finance Commission?
Raj Singh
Urjit Patel
Sanjay Malik
Arvind Subramanian
Q. Brendon McCullum has been appointed as the
Ajay Bhushan Pandey
head coach of which of the following IPL team?
N.K. Singh
Royal Challengers Bangalore
Shivanand Tiwari
Sunrisers Hyderabad
Q. Who among the following announced the launch
Chennai Super Kings
of a campaign to make India free of single-use
Kings XI Punjab plastic?

Kolkata Knight Riders Rajnath Singh

Q. Recently, VB Chandrasekhar passed away. He Prakash Javadekar

was associated with which of the following sports?
Arun Jaitley
Chess
Harsh Vardhan
Piyush Goyal Kapil Dev

Q. National tribal festival 'Aadi Mahotsav' started in Anil Kumble

_________.
Ravi Shastri
Shimla
None of these
Agartala
Q. Who among the following has been appointed as
Leh-Ladakh the Director of National Institute of Health and
Family Welfare?
Agra
Ajay Singh Khattar
Guwahati
Harshad Pandurang
Q. Tirur Betel leaf got Geographical Indication (GI)
from which of the following state? Sanjay Joshi

Assam Puneet Chaudhary

Bihar Rohit Sardana

Karnataka Q. Recently, Asian and Commonwealth Games

gold-medalist wrestler Bajrang Punia has been
Tamil Nadu
nominated for ________.
Kerala
Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar
Q. Recently, the state of Mizoram got GI tag for
Arjuna Award
which of the following product/products?
Dhyan Chand Award
Tawlhlohpuan
Dronacharya Award
Mizo Puanchei
Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award
Palani Panchamirtham
Q. Which of the following team has won the UEFA
Both 1 and 2
Super Cup?
1,2 and 3
FC Barcelona
Q. Who among the following has been appointed as
Liverpool F.C.
head coach of Indian men's cricket team?
Arsenal F.C.
Sunil Gavaskar
Manchester City F.C. Visakhapatnam

Chelsea F.C. Chennai

Q. Recently, Rizia Rahman passed away. She was a Kolkata

famous novelist from _________. Goa

Pakistan Q. After the formation of Ranipet, Tirupattur districts,

the total number of districts in Tamil Nadu is ________.
Sri Lanka
31
Bhutan
28
Bangladesh
37
Myanmar
42
Q. Recently PM Modi has inaugurated Mangdechu
44
hydroelectric plant in which of the following country?
Q. The first-ever CNG fuel station of Assam has been
Nepal
inaugurated at _______.
Bangladesh
Dibrugarh
Myanmar
Jorhat
Bhutan
Silchar
Thailand
Dimapur
Q. What is the capital of Lithuania?
Guwahati
Tallinn
Q. Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ)
Helsinki has forecasted India’s GPD forecast at _______ in 2019-

Oslo 20.

Vilnius 6.8%

Riga 6.5%

Q. Indian Navy will host a multilateral naval exercise 6.6%

‘MILAN’ in ________. 6.2%

Daman 6.7%
Q. Arup Basak will be conferred with Dhyanchand 2018
award. He is associated with which of the following
2017
sports?
2014
Hockey
Q. What is the theme of World Humanitarian Day 2019?
Tennis
Treat them well
Chess
Women Humanitarians
Badminton
Encourage Humanitarians
TableTennis
Towards a better place for humans
Q. Russell Domingo has been appointed as the head
coach of which of the following country’s cricket team? None of these

New Zealand Q. World Photography Day is observed every year on

_______.
Bangladesh
16 August
Sri Lanka
17 August
India
18 August
England
19 August
Q. Recently, Nari Shakti Award Winner Neelum Sharma
passed away. She was a famous ________. 20 August

Novelist Q. Okjokull glacier has been officially declared dead.

This glacier was located at _______.
Actor
Norway
News anchor
Iceland
Musician
Greenland
Athlete
Alaska
Q. Recently, Padma Shri awardee social worker
Damodar Ganesh Bapat passed away. He was awarded Denmark
Padma Shree in the year_______. Q. Which of the following city will host the 5th Meeting
2016 of India-Nepal Joint Commission?

2015 New Delhi

Lalitpur Q. Recently, Five new species of fish have been
discovered in which of the following Indian state?
Kolkata
Mizoram
Kathmandu
Assam
Pokhara
Himachal Pradesh
Q. President Ram Nath Kovind inaugurated Bunker
museum in which of the following city? Manipur

New Delhi Arunachal Pradesh

Gandhinagar Q. Who among the following won a gold medal in the

300m race at the Athleticky Mitink Reiter event in the
Mumbai
Czech Republic?
Pune
Hima Das
Aurangabad
Mohammad Anas
Q. Who among the following has inaugurated two-day
Lalit Mathur
international conference on teacher education in New
Delhi? 1 and 2

Arjun Munda 1, 2 and 3

Ramesh Pokhriyal Q. Which of the following country hosted Under- 12
Subrahmanyam Jaishankar Asian Tennis Team championship?

Nirmala Sitharaman Russia

Prakash Javadekar China

Q. Which of the following state will have the country's India

first Central Institute of Chemical Engineering & Bangladesh
Technology (CICET)?
Kazakhstan
Assam
Q. What is the name of rover of the Chandrayaan-2
Maharashtra
mission?
Jharkhand
Vijay
Gujarat
Vikram
Uttar Pradesh
Pragyan Google India

Abhinav Q. Which of the following organisation has recently

announced the launch of Neelum Sharma Tejaswini
Vikrant
award & Achyutananda Sahoo Awards?
Q. Sadbhavna Diwas is the birth anniversary of
Union Public Service Commission
_______.
Steel Authority of India
Indira Gandhi
Bhabha Atomic Research Centre
Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Prasar Bharati
Mahatma Gandhi
Indian Space Research Organisation
Rajiv Gandhi
Q. India's junior women boxers clinched ______
Lal Bahadur Shastri
gold medals at the third Nation's Cup in Vrbas,
Q. In August 2019, The National Green Tribunal Serbia.
(NGT) has formed a committee to examine
2
allegations of illegal sand mining in which of the
following river? 4

Alaknanda 5

Kosi 7

Ganga 11

Yamuna Q. Recently, Jagannath Mishra passed away. He

was the former Chief Minister of which of the
Ghaggar
following Indian state?
Q. Madhur Deora has been named as the president
Assam
of which of the following organisation?
Goa
Zomato
West Bengal
Paytm
Bihar
Uber
Uttarakhand
Ola
Q. Recently, Mohammed Zahur Khayyam Hashmi Niger
passed away, He was a famous _______. Libya

Novelist Zambia

News Anchor Mali

Music Director Q. Recently, DRDO hands over the design of MMR to

the Indian Army. MMR stands for _______.
ISRO Scientist
Mobile Multilateral Radar
Journalist
Mobile Mulltiaxis Radio
Q. Rajiv Gandhi was sworn in as the Prime Minister
Mobile Metallic Ramp
of India in _______.
Mobile Multirole Rail
1981
None of these
1982
Q. Railways' second double-decker Uday Express will
1984
run between ______ and _______.
1987 Mumbai, Surat

1988 Visakhapatnam, Vijayawada

Q. Who among the following is the governor of New Delhi, Udaipur

Manipur?
Kanpur, Varanasi
Om Prakash Kohli
Chennai, Kolkata

Baby Rani Maurya Q. Greenfield Airport/Hollongi airport is located in

Kalyan Singh which of the following Indian state?

Assam
Phagu Chouhan
Tripura
Padmanabha Acharya
Arunachal Pradesh
Q. Recently, Edgar Chagwa Lungu arrived on a three-
day visit in New Delhi, He is the president of which of Jharkhand
the following country?
Sikkim
Sudan
Q. Wipro has signed a pact with which of the following Naveen Tripathi
institute for robotics and 5G space?
Akash Swami
IIT Madras
Q. Who among the following has become the first Asian
IIT Kanpur swimmer to cross the Catalina Channel of America?

IIM Ahmedabad Satendra Singh Lohia

IISc Bengaluru Virdhawal Khade

IIT New Delhi Bimal Chandra

Q. Who among the following has been appointed as the Nalin Malik
CEO of Vodafone Idea?
Sri Chand Bajaj
Amar Nagpal
Q. Recently, Babulal Gaur passed away. He was the
Sachin Teja former Chief Minister of which of the following Indian
state?
Ranjeet Chaudhary
Madhya Pradesh
Ravinder Takkar
Bihar
Nirmal Vijay
Himachal Pradesh
Q. General Qamar Bajwa is the Army Chief of which of
the following country? Uttar Pradesh

Bangladesh Punjab

Afghanistan Q. Ministry of Railways has directed all its units to

Pakistan enforce a ban on single-use plastic material from

_______.
Indonesia
01 September 2019
Sri Lanka
01 October 2019
Q. Who among the following won the 2019 South Asian
Spelling Bee (SAS Bee)? 05 September 2019

Ajeet Rawat 02 October 2019

Navneeth Murali 31 December 2019
Sanjeet Vyas
Q. According to new health warnings, What text
messages will be printed on the on tobacco products?
Tobacco is injurious to health
Tobacco causes a painful death
Food Safety and Standards Authority of India
NTPC Limited
Q. Who among the following has launched the State
Rooftop Solar Attractiveness Index -SARAL?

Tobacco is a leading contributor to death Hardeep Singh Puri

Smoking causes about 1 out of 5 deaths R. K. Singh

None of these Satya Pal Singh

Q. ‘Op-Blue Freedom’ is related to _______. Jitendra Singh

Promote fishing as an occupation Ravi Shankar Prasad

Train sports enthusiasts in survival training Q. The Securities and Exchange Board of India
(SEBI) has announced a reward of up to _______ to
Access to safe drinking water to everyone
insider trading informants.
Promote hockey in the country
1 Lakh
None of these
10 Lakh
Q. HRD Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal launched a
20 Lakh
Teachers Training Programme titled as ________.
50 Lakh
GURU
1 Crore
TEJAS
Q. Who among the following has been appointed as
NISHTHA
the new Cabinet Secretary?
GURU SHIKSHA
Rajiv Mehrishi
LAKSHYA
Sanjay Mitra
Q. FASTag is operated by ________.
Shashi Kant Sharma
NHPC Limited
Rajiv Gauba
National Highways Authority of India
Ajay Kumar
Reserve Bank of India
Q. Who among the following has been appointed as Peru
the new Defence Secretary?
Colombia
Achal Kumar Jyoti
Libya
Anil Dhasmana
Bolivia
Ajay Kumar
Q. What is the name of Russia’s life-sized robot that
Pramod Kumar Misra has been sent to International Space Station?

Aruna Sundararajan Denon

Q. Who among the following has launched the book Fedor

'The Diary of Manu Gandhi'?
Austin
R. K. Singh
Raven
Prahlad Singh Patel
None of these
Kiren Rijiju
Q. The government is planning to launch an e-
Pralhad Joshi commerce project called ______ for micro small
and medium enterprises (MSME).
Narendra Singh Tomar
DesiCraft
Q. International Day for the Remembrance of the
Slave Trade and its Abolition is observed every year BharaCraft
on _______.
MyCraft
20 August
NationCraft
21 August
None of these
22 August
Q. Recently, a two-day National Conference on
23 August Varmam Science has been inaugurated at _______.

24 August New Delhi

Q. Which of the following country is not a part of Chennai

the Amazon forest?
Pune
Brazil
Kochi
Mumbai Kirti Azad

Q. Who among the following has chaired the 24th Sandeep Patil
meeting of Western Zonal Council in Goa?
Yashpal Sharma
Arun Jaitley
Vikram Rathour
Rajnath Singh
Sunil Valson
Nirmala Sitharaman
Q. The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has
Amit Shah suspended India's National Dope Testing
Laboratory (NDTL) for a duration of _______.
Subrahmanyam Jaishankar
3 months
Q. Akshay Kumar ranked _______ on Forbes
highest-paid actors list of 2019. 5 months

2nd 6 months

3rd 1 year

4th 2 year

5th Q. Recently, Which of the following organisation has

put Pakistan in the Enhanced Expedited Follow Up
6th
List (Blacklist)?
Q. Who among the following has been appointed as
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
the new Home Secretary?
Development
Ajay Kumar Bhalla
Financial Action Task Force
Rahul Joshi
International Organization of Securities
Sanjay Saxena Commissions

Ajay Singh International Monetary Fund

Ranjeet Nagpal Office of Foreign Assets Control

Q. Who among the following has been appointed as Q. WWF India and ________ has partnered to
India's new batting coach after replacing Sanjay preserve Sundarbans?
Bangar?
History TV18 7:30 AM

Travelxp 7:45 AM

Discovery India Q. According to RBI’s mandate, What is the upper

limit of automated card transactions for recurring
CNBC Awaaz
transactions?
None of these
Rs 1000
Q. Which of the following city hosted the First World
Rs 1500
Youth Conference on Kindness?
Rs 2000
Chennai
Rs 2500
New Delhi
Rs 5000
Gandhi Nagar
Q. Which of the following general insurance
Pune
company has signed an MoU with ZestMoney to
Mumbai offer credit insurance?

Q. Which of the following housing company has Acko General Insurance

signed with Indian Army to take over dwelling units
ICICI Lombard
in its ‘Ready to Move in’ projects?
HDFC ERGO
Godrej Properties
TATA AIG
Tata Realty
Bajaj Allianz
DLF
Q. BookMyForex has tied up with which of the
Omaxe
following bank for a foreign exchange travel card?
SRS Group
ICICI Bank
Q. As per RBI guidelines, RTGS system will open at
Yes Bank
_______ from August 26 2019.
HDFC Bank
6 AM
IndusInd Bank
6:30 AM
Kotak Mahindra Bank
7 AM
Q. Which of the following ministry has distributed Scarlett Johansson
Poshan Abhiyaan Awards for 2018-19?
Nicole Kidman
Ministry of Home Affairs
Elizabeth Olsen
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
Brie Larson
Ministry of Women and Child Development
Q. PM Modi announced to celebrate _______ as a
Ministry of Human Resource Development month of nutrition.

Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment August

Q. BCCI gave the title sponsorship rights to which of September

the following company for the next five years?
October
Paytm
November
Zomato
December
Uber
Q. Which of the following state has started 'Purna'
Phone Pe project to eliminate malnutrition among the girls in
the age group of 14 to 18?
Ola
Bihar
Q. Which of the following country is not a part of
the G7 group? Assam

France Gujarat

Italy Madhya Pradesh

China Sikkim

United States Q. Which of the following bank has partnered with

Standard Chartered bank to launch a co-branded
Japan
credit card?
Q. Who among the following has topped the
Punjab National Bank
Forbes’ list of highest-paid female actors in the
world? State Bank of India

Angelina Jolie Indian Bank

Yes Bank Q. Durand Cup is associated with which of the
following sports?
Bandhan Bank
Badminton
Q. According to CBDT, small start-ups with
turnover up to _______ will continue to get a Cricket
promised tax holiday.
Football
Rs 10 crore
Volleyball
Rs 15 crore
Tennis
Rs 20 crore
Q. What is the theme of 2019 G7 summit?
Rs 25 crore
Counter-Terrorism
Rs 50 crore
Fighting Inequality
Q. Which of the following country has conferred
Fraternity
‘The King Hamad Order of the Renaissance award’
to PM Modi? Fight Hunger

Bahrain None of these

Oman Q. What is the name given by NASA to the stone

that was sent rolling after NASA's InSight lander
Saudi Arabia
touched down on the Mars' surface?
UAE
InSight Rock
None of these
Lander Rock
Q. Which of the following country has conferred
Rolling Stones Rock
‘Order of Zayed’ to PM Modi?
Rolling Pebble
Saudi Arabia
None of these
UAE
Q. According to The US space agency NASA, The
Oman
first crime committed in space is of _______.
Kuwait
Theft in International Space Station
Qatar
Fight in International Space Station
Murder in International Space Station Chennai

Improperly accessing of bank accounts form Jaipur

International Space Station
Q. Who among the following will head the Central
Abusing someone from International Space Station Vigilance Commission’s pannel (CVC) to examine
bank fraud?
Q. In August 2019, Which of the following country
has recently allowed women to spectate the football V K Johri
World Cup qualifier?
T M Bhasin
Saudi Arabia
Shashi Kant Sharma
Turkey
Vinod Rai
Egypt
Arvind Kumar
Iran
Q. Who among the following has been chosen for
UAE ‘Eminent Engineer Award- 2019’?

Q. Who among the following has inaugurated the Ranjan Das

FSSAI's National Food Laboratory in Ghaziabad?
Prabhat Mishra
Harsh Vardhan
Anil Jaiswal
Piyush Goyal
Prabhakar Singh
Jitendra Singh
Sanjay Pathak
Narendra Singh Tomar
Q. PV Sindhu has defeated _______ in the final to
Thawar Chand Gehlot become the first Indian to win BWF World
Championships.
Q. Soho House that has been included in Time's 100
greatest places in the world, is located in which of Akane Yamaguchi
the following Indian city?
Yuki Fukushima
New Delhi
Ayaka Takahashi
Pune
Nozomi Okuhara
Mumbai
Carolina Marin
Q. Recently, Who among the following won the Laos
gold medal at the 2019 World Archery Youth Cambodia
Championships?
Thailand
Ankita Bhakat
Vietnam
Trisha Deb
Q. Which of the following ministry has launched
Komalika Bari ‘National Digital Library of India’?

Laxmirani Majhi Ministry of Information and Broadcasting

Reena Kumari Ministry of Home Affairs

Q. Recently, Arun Jaitley passed away. He served Ministry of Human Resource Development

as the _________ in the Government of India from Ministry of Women and Child Development
2014 to 2019.
One of these
Defence Minister
Q. In August 2019, The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has
Rail Minister decided to transfer _______ as dividend and surplus
reserve to the government.
Finance Minister
1.76 lakh crore rupees
External Affairs Minister
1.32 lakh crore rupees
Human Resource Development Minister
1.38 lakh crore rupees
Q. G7 has agreed to spend ______ to tackle the huge
1.85 lakh crore rupees
forest fires engulfing the Amazon rainforest?
2.57 lakh crore rupees
8 million US Dollars
Q. The 7th Community Radio Sammelan has been started
22 million US Dollars
in which of the following Indian city?
18 million US Dollars
New Delhi
10 million US Dollars
Pune
35 million US Dollars
Mumbai
Q. Which of the following country will host Indo Pacific
Chennai
Chiefs of Defence Conference?
Agra
Indonesia
Q. Who among the following became the first Indian to Ishant Sharma
win a set against Roger Federer?
Jasprit Bumrah
Vishnu Vardhan
Bhuvneshwar Kumar
Leander Paes
Q. Which of the following company has partnered with
Sumit Nagal the Indian School of Business (ISB) to build AI solutions
for better research and leadership?
Sanam Singh
Apple
Vishal Uppal
Facebook
Q. Recently, Kanchan Chaudhary Bhattacharya passed
away. He was India’s first women ______. Microsoft

Central Bureau of Investigation Chief TCS

Director-General of Police IBM

Cabinet Secretary Q. ‘Shaheen VIII’ is a joint military exercise between

Pakistan and ________.
Research and Analysis Wing Chief

Election Commissioner Afghanistan

Q. Recently, Noel Kelman passed away. He was a/an China

_______. Bangladesh
Journalist
Iran
Singer
Indonesia
Naval officer
Q. Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium in Delhi will be
BSF Chief renamed as ________.
Fighter Pilot Sushma Swaraj Stadium
Q. Who among the following became the first Asian
Ram Manohar Lohia Stadium
bowler to grab a five-wicket haul in South Africa,
England, Australia and West Indies, all in his first tour to Vallabhbhai Patel Stadium
all these countries?
Arun Jaitley Stadium
Mohammed Shami
Atal Stadium
Umesh Yadav
Q. The price of Oxo-Biodegradable Sanitary Napkin Indian Bank
sold from Jan Aushadhi Suvidha Kendra will be
Bandhan Bank
priced at _______ per piece.
Punjab National Bank
Rs 1
Canara Bank
Rs 1.5
Allahabad Bank
Rs 2
Q. Who among the following has been appointed as
Rs 2.5
the next Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates
Rs 5 (UAE)?

Q. Which of the following country will host COP14 Pavan Kapoor

of UN Convention?
Rajeev Dev
France
Sanjay Pal
China
Rohit Nigam
Italy
Ajay Nair
India
Q. Who among the following has became the first
Russia female officer to become Flight Commander?

Q. Which of the following panel has recommended a Bhawana Kanth

review of the economic capital framework every five
Pooja Thakur
years?
S Dhami
Mehta Panel
Avani Chaturvedi
Bimal Jalan Panel
Mohana Singh
Rajeev Panel
Q. Who among the following is not a recipient of
R K Jha Panel
Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Awards 2018?
None of these
Aparna Kumar
Q. Which of the following bank has launched OTP
Late Dipankar Ghosh
facility for ATM cash withdrawals over Rs10,000?
Manikandan K
Ajay Rawat Amit Shah

Prabhat Raju Koli Narendra Modi

Q. Which of the following country has topped the Smriti Irani

medals tally at the 45th WorldSkills Kazan 2019? Rajnath Singh

Japan Prakash Javadekar

China Q. What is the name was given to to the Integrated

Online Junction for School Education launched by HRD
Singapore
Minister Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal?
Vietnam
Deeksha
India Gyan

Q. Humanoid robot ‘Fedor’ arrives at the International Ashray

Space Station. It has been sent to space by which of the
Shagun
following country?
Kutumb
China
Q. India is buying ‘Spice-2000’ bombs from which of
Russia
the following country?
USA
Russia
France
France
Germany
USA
Q. Approximately, _______ per cent of Sundarban Delta
Israel
is in India.
Germany
20%
Q. Agni Prasad Kharel is Attorney General of which of
40%
the following country?
60%
Bhutan
70%
Bangladesh
80%
Indonesia
Q. Who among the following launched the ‘Fit India
Nepal
Movement’?
Afghanistan Connects children at orphanages with senior citizens
in old-age homes
Q. Which of the following became the first country in
the world to issue Biometric Seafarer Identity Connects free tutors to the students
Document, BSID?
Connects homeless people to free shelter homes
India
None of these
Japan
Q. The French government moved a bill to shrink
China the country's parliament by ________.

France 22%

Italy 20%
Q. Government has permitted _______ Foreign Direct 25%
Investment (FDI) in coal mining.
30%
70%
50%
100%
Q. Recently, Takehiko Nakao met Indian Prime
50%
Minister Narendra Modi. Nakao is the president of
30% which of the following organisation?
80%
World Bank
Q. For the year 2019 which of the following program
World Trade Organization
bagged the first prize in the thematic category?
Asian Development Bank
Friends Radio, Tripura
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
Jago Mumbai, Maharastra
Development
Gyan Vani, Uttar Pradesh
International Labour Organization
Salam Namaste, Uttar Pradesh
Q. Which of the following state government has
None of these
launched ‘walk to work’ campaign in the state as a
Q. Indian app Maitri that has won a bronze medal at part of ‘Fit India Movement’?
global tech competition in the US is an app related to
Assam
_______.
Himachal Pradesh
Connects senior citizens to common people
Andhra Pradesh 981 million tonnes

Goa 313 million tonnes

Meghalaya Q. Recently, Swapna Barman has been conferred

with Arjuna Awards for the year 2019, She is a/an
Q. Which of the following State/UT has launched
______.
‘10 Hafte, 10 Baje, 10 Minute - Har Ravivar,
dengue par war’ campaign? Boxer

Uttar Pradesh Bodybuilder

New Delhi Athlete

Chandigarh Table tennis player

Karnataka Badminton player

Maharashtra Q. Which of the following documentary won the top

award in 30-minute category at the 'We Care Film
Q. India’s first garbage cafe will be opened in
Festival on Disability Issues' awards?
______.
I'm Jeeja
Korba
India's Daughter
Ambikapur
Man on Wire
Bilaspur
Nomad
Ahmedabad
None of these
Nagpur
Q. Which of the following state will host 25th
Q. According to the Department of Agriculture,
Senior Women’s National Football Championship?
Cooperation and Farmers Welfare’s report, What is
the estimated production of various Horticulture Assam
Crops for (2018-19) is ______.
Manipur
872 million tonnes
Nagaland
483 million tonnes
Arunachal Pradesh
179 million tonnes
Jharkhand
Q. Recently, Who among the following won the Q. Which of the following Airline has recently
World Cup gold medal in the women's 10m air rifle announced to ban single-use plastic from October
competition at Rio de Janeiro? 2?

Elavenil Valarivan Jet Airways

Manu Bhaker IndiGo

Mehuli Ghosh SpiceJet

Anjum Moudgil GoAir

Apurvi Chandela Air India Express

Q. International Day of the Victims of Enforced Q. Dindigul locks received Geographical Indication
Disappearances is observed every year on _______. (GI) tags from which of the following Indian state?

29 August Andhra Pradesh

30 August Jharkhand

31 August Tamil Nadu

01 September Madhya Pradesh

02 September Uttar Pradesh

Q. Which of the following are two frequencies Q. Which of the following Indian state has merged
allocated by Department of Telecommunications for Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya
running Community Radio? Yojna (AB-PMJAY) and the state's Bhamashah
Swasthya Bima Yojna (BSBY)?
89.6 and 90.0 MHz
Jharkhand
99.6 and 111.0 MHz
Odisha
101.1 and 90.0 MHz
Karnataka
86.2 and 117.6 MHz
Rajasthan
None of these
Himachal Pradesh
Q. Steel Users Federation of India has signed a Q. Who among the following won a gold medal at
Memorandum of Understanding with which of the the International Athletic Meeting in the Czech
following organisation to help the later launch Republic?
futures trading in steel?
Dutee Chand
Bombay Stock Exchange
VK Vismaya
National Bank for Agriculture and Rural
Swapna Barman
Development
Hima Das
Small Industries Development Bank of India
Jauna Murmu
National Housing Bank
Q. Who among the following won a gold medal in
State Bank of India
the men's 10m air pistol event of the World Cup at
Q. Government has extended the tenure of P C Rio de Janeiro?
Mody. He is the Chairman of which of the
Anish Bhanwala
following organisation?
Ronak Pandit
UIDAI
Karam Lehal
Central Board of Direct Taxation
Abhishek Verma
Employees' Provident Fund Organisation
Abbas Ansari
Union Public Service Commission

Election Commission of India

Q. Who among the following won UEFA Men's

Player of the Year award?

Lionel Messi

Cristiano Ronaldo
Thank You
Virgil van Dijk

Paul Pogba

Mohamed Salah