CURRENT AFFAIRS: IMPORTANT DAYS

• World Humanitarian Day is commemorated every year on 19 August to pay tribute to humanitarian workers killed and injured in the course of their work.
• World Photography Day is observed on August 19 each year.
• World Senior Citizen Day is observed on August 21.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: NATIONAL NEWS

• The Government of India’s Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has identified 75 Municipal Corporations to implement comprehensive rehabilitation of people engaged in begging under the “SMILE: Support for Marginalized Individuals for Livelihood and Enterprise” initiative, known as the “SMILE-75 Initiative.”
• Dr. Jitendra Singh has launched India’s first Saline Water Lantern which uses seawater as the electrolyte between specially designed electrodes to power the LED lamps.
• To harness the export potential of honey in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of a ‘sweet revolution’ through the promotion of beekeeping and allied activities, the Government has planned to organize a series of events across the country in collaboration with state governments and farmers.
• The Department of Expenditure has released an additional ₹807 crore as a one-time settlement for the Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Rurban Mission (SPMRM) to pay for all the works that were sanctioned before March 31.
• The Seafood Exporters Association of India (SEAI) and the Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) will collaborate to host the 23rd India International Seafood Show (IISS) in Kolkata, the City of Joy.
• The world’s highest railway bridge, the Chenab Railway Bridge, has been inaugurated at its golden junction.
• India has added 11 more wetlands to the list of Ramsar sites, bringing the total number of such sites in the nation to 75, spanning an area of 13,26,677 hectares.
• Under the Har Ghar Tiranga Abhiyan, the first Tiranga park has been set up in Gurugram by the district administration.
• The first artificial cornea to be 3D printed in India was successfully implanted in a rabbit eye by researchers in Hyderabad.
• The Ministry of Corporate Affairs has removed 4.33 lakh companies from the Register of Companies in the last five years.
• Bharti Pravin Pawar, the Union Minister of State for Health, introduced the Parenting App and the Paalan 1000 national campaign in Mumbai.
• Prime Minister Modi laid out his “Panch Pran Targets” (Five Resolves) to transform India into a developed nation by the time it marks its 100th Independence Day in 25 years.
• The Permanent Mission of India to the United Nations in Geneva has announced that India has contributed $400,000 (more than Rs 3 crore) to as many as four Voluntary Trust Funds.
• NTPC Limited, India’s largest integrated energy company achieved 69454 MW of group installed and commercial capacity with the commissioning of 56 MW Kawas Solar PV Project at NTPC Kawas, Gujarat
• The portal–NIDAAN or the National Integrated Database on Arrested Narco-offenders–has been developed by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB).
• The government has raised the thresholds for prosecutions and arrests under the Customs Act to ₹50 lakh from ₹20 lakh for smuggling and illegal imports of goods in baggage and ₹1 crore to ₹2 crores for cases involving commercial fraud.
• The event “Yamuna Par Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav” was organized at the water sports club in New Delhi by the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG), the Ministry of Jal Shakti, and the Department of Water Resources, River Development, and Ganga Rejuvenation.
• A draft to amend the Indian Ports Act, of 1908, has been made public by the Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: INTERNATIONAL NEWS

• The Government of Singapore has declared the iconic green site Padang, from where Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose gave the slogan of ‘Delhi Chalo’ in July 1943, as its 75th national monument as the city-state celebrates its 57th National Day.
• The British government stated that parts of southern, central, and eastern England had officially moved into drought status after a prolonged period of hot and dry weather.
• The United Kingdom (UK) has become the first country to approve Moderna’s “bivalent” COVID-19 vaccine that targets both the original strain of COVID-19 and the newer Omicron variant.
• Scotland has become the first in the world to legally protect the right to access free period products with a new law, the Period Products (Free Provision) (Scotland) Act in November 2020.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: STATE NEWS

• Meghalaya will host the 2nd edition of the North East Olympic Games 2022, in Shillong which will be held from October 30 to November 6, 2022.
• On the Occasion of World Elephant Day 2022 (Aug 12), Tamil Nadu Government has notified its 5th Elephant Reserve at Agathiyamalai in Tirunelveli district, Tamil Nadu.
• Under the Har Ghar Tiranga Abhiyan, the first Tiranga Park was set up in Gurugram, Haryana by the district administration.
• Asia’s largest Compressed Biogas (CBG) plant has been commissioned in the Sangrur district of Punjab, in a step to generate clear and inexperienced power.
• The Ministry of Home Affairs sanctioned approval for the creation of the Village Defense Guard Scheme (VDGS) 2022 in Jammu and Kashmir.
• The Rajasthan government has approved signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited (SJVN Ltd) for developing 10,000 MW renewable energy projects.
• On the 75th anniversary of India’s independence, Karnataka Chief Minister Shri Basavaraj Bommai has launched new schemes on sanitation, nutrition, and the well-being of farmers, laborers, and brave soldiers.
• In a first of its kind, the Border Road Organization (BRO) is planning to construct a pilot road stretch on the Arunachal Pradesh border using steel slag.
• Madhya Pradesh’s tribal-dominated Mandla region has become the first fully “functionally literate” district in
• Union Minister of Road, Transport and Highway Shri Nitin Gadkari launched India’s first electric double-decker bus named Switch EiV 22 at YB Center in south Mumbai, Maharashtra.
• The Directorate of Agriculture, Jharkhand & global blockchain technology company, SettleMint, India jointly announced the launch of seed distribution to farmers based on blockchain technology.
• Goa and Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu (D&NH and D&D) became the first ‘Har Ghar Jal’ certified State & first ‘Har Ghar Jal’ Certified UT in India
• The Central Power Research Institute (CPRI) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Government of Chhattisgarh to set up Central India’s largest regional testing laboratory in Raipur district, Chhattisgarh.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BANKING & FINANCE

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has imposed a monetary penalty of Rs 2.33 crore on Spandana Sphoorty Financial Limited, based in
• On the occasion of India’s 76th year of Independence, celebrated as Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, the State Bank of India (SBI), introduced a unique term deposit program called ‘Utsav Deposit’.
• Build Your Dreams (BYD) India Private Limited, a subsidiary of the Warren Buffett-backed world’s leading New Energy Vehicle manufacturer BYD, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the HDFC Bank towards a stock financing solution to its pan India dealer network.
• Yes, Bank has partnered with SellerApp, a seller-centric intelligence platform, to encourage the seller segment of its client base to adopt Open Network Digital Commerce (ONDC) and help them expand their digital commerce footprint.
• On the occasion of 75 years of Independence as Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, the Karnataka Bank has introduced a new Term Deposit Scheme, KBL Amrit Samriddhi under Abhyudaya Cash Certificate (ACC) and Fixed Deposit (FD) for a tenure of 75 weeks (525 days).
• State Bank of India (SBI) has launched its first branch dedicated to start-ups in Koramangala, Bengaluru, and Karnataka.
• Axis Bank, India’s third largest private sector bank, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Food Corporation of India (FCI) to provide “Ultima Salary Package”, a best-in-class salary account with exclusive benefits & features to all its employees.
• Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Mr. Shaktikanta Das announced Bharat Bill Payment System (BBPS) to facilitate inward gross payments for Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) to pay bills in India.
• Mirae Asset Mutual Fund has launched 2 new funds – Mirae Asset Global Electric & Autonomous Vehicles ETFs Fund of Fund (FoF) and Mirae Asset Global X Artificial Intelligence and Technology ETF Fund of Fund.
• The asset management company (AMC) Edelweiss Mutual Fund is scheduled to launch India’s first scheme Edelweiss Gold and Silver Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) Fund of Fund (FoF) that offers exposure to gold and silver via a single fund on 24 August 2022.
• The J&K Regional Office National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the promotion and financing of 700 Joint Liability Groups (JLGs) in the conference hall of NABARD, J&K Regional Office.
• Bank of Baroda (BoB) has launched the ‘Baroda Tiranga Deposit Scheme’ – a special retail fixed deposit product offering interest rates of 5.75% for 444 days and 6% for 555 days is open till December 31, 2022.
• Indian Overseas Bank (IOB) Managing Director (MD) & Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Shri. Partha Pratim Sengupta has launched a special variant of debit card IOB Rupay Select Card that can be used for domestic and international payments.
• ReNew Power has raised a $1-billion project loan through external commercial borrowings (ECB), collaborating with 12 international banks for the finance.
• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) canceled the license of Deccan Urban Co-operative Bank Ltd, Vijayapur, Karnataka due to inadequate capital and no earning prospects.
• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has imposed a monetary penalty of ₹5,93,000 on Obopay Mobile Technology India Private Limited for non-compliance with certain provisions of the Master Directions on Prepaid Payment Instruments (PPIs) dated August 27, 2021, & the Know Your Customer (KYC).
• Capital markets regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has allowed new guidelines for Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs) and Venture Capital Funds (VCFs) for investing abroad, under which overseas investment firms won’t need to have an Indian connection.
• For the welfare of its troops, the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) signed MoUs with 8 banks to get customized banking services for its personnel deployed across India & along with the IDFC First bank, the MoU was signed with 7 other banks including ICICI, Axis, HDFC, Yes Bank, and Punjab National Bank (PNB).
• To celebrate 75 years of India’s independence, Aegon Life Insurance Company (ALIC), digital India’s life insurance company, has launched ‘#PlayForOurHeroes’. 

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BUSINESS NEWS

• The Life Insurance Corporation of India has registered a whopping 23,127.21% rise in standalone net profit to ₹89 crores for the quarter ending June 30, 2022, as per the financial results released by the insurer.
• According to former RBI Governor D Subbarao, India may reach a USD five trillion economies by 2028–2029 assuming GDP growth is sustained at 9% annually for the following five years.
• To reduce its reliance on oil imports and address environmental concerns, India will begin delivering gasoline containing 20% ethanol at some gas stations starting in April 2023.
• The Wholesale Price Index (WPI)-based inflation rate in India reduced to 13.93% in July, according to data released by the commerce ministry.
• The Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) limit was increased by Rs 50,000 crore to Rs 5 lakh crore with the approval of the Union Cabinet, with the additional sum being reserved exclusively for businesses in the hospitality and associated industries.
• As the 106th unicorn in India, Shiprocket, a logistics technology platform backed by Zomato, raised $33.5 million (about Rs 270 crore) in a financing round co-led by Temasek and Light rock India.
• The world’s fastest rate of growth in 2022 will be seen in India, where demand for petroleum products like gasoline and diesel would increase by 7.73 percent.
• In India, Edelweiss Mutual Fund (Edelweiss MF), an asset management company (AMC), will launch the first program that offers exposure to both gold and silver through a single fund.
• Goodfellows is a company that provides companionship services for senior citizens, and it was established by Ratan Tata, a pioneer in the sector.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: ACQUISITIONS & MERGERS

• Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) will be investing Rs 655 crore for a 9.99% stake in conglomerate Aditya Birla Health Insurance Company Limited (ABHICL).
• Fair trade regulator Competition Commission of India (CCI) has approved the merger proposal of HDFC Bank, India’s Largest Private Sector Bank & its parent HDFC Ltd, India’s Largest Housing Finance Company.
• The Competition Commission of India (CCI) approves the acquisition of the stake in Holderind Investments Limited, Ambuja Cements Limited, and ACC Limited by Endeavour Trade and Investment Limited.
• The Competition Commission of India (CCI) approves the acquisition of majority shareholding in Optimus Drugs Private Limited (ODPL) by Sekhmet Pharmaventures Private Limited (Sekhmet) and ODPL’s acquisition of a shareholding in Optimus Pharma Private Limited (OPPL) and Optimus Life Science Private Limited (OLSPL) under Section 31(1) of the Competition Act, 2002.
• The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has approved the acquisition of a stake in IIFL Home indirectly by Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA).
• Promoter BRDN Investment Management, formerly Standard Life Investments, divested its 5.58% stake in Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC) Asset Management Company (AMC) for a little over Rs 2,300 crore through an open market transaction.
• The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has approved EQT AB’s acquisition of Baring Private Equity Asia Group Limited (BPEA) including its subsidiaries (BPEA Group) 100% of the general partner entities (GPs).
• The Competition Commission of India (CCI) approves the acquisition by Katsura Investments in Varmora Granito Private Limited and certain other entities & Varmora Granito Private Limited in some of its Group Companies and other entities.
• The Competition Commission of India (CCI) approves the amalgamation of Creixent Special Steels Limited (CSSL) & JSW Ispat Special Products Limited (JSW Ispat) with & into JSW Steel Limited (JSW Steel) under Section 31(1) of the Competition Act, 2002.
• The Competition Commission of India (CCI) approves the acquisition of the stake in Simpolo Vitrified Private Limited (SVPL/ Target) by India Business Excellence Fund IV (IBEF IV), India SME Investments Fund – I (India SME), Motilal Oswal Finvest Limited (MOFPL), partners of Simpolo Ceramics (SC / Simpolo Ceramics) (collectively, SC Partners) and the shareholders of Nexion International Private Limited (Nexion), viz., Aghara & Sons (Aghara) and Ceramiche Speranza SPA (Ceramiche SPA).

CURRENT AFFAIRS: APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS

• A 1994 batch IAS officer of Nagaland cadre, Shri Piyush Goyal has been appointed as the new National Intelligence Grid or NATGRID Chief Executive Officer (CEO) by the Union government.
• Drug firm Pfizer announced that its Managing Director Mr. S Sridhar has resigned from the company to take early retirement.
• The Central government has appointed IAS, Mr. Shah Faesal as Deputy Secretary in the Tourism Ministry.
• Kuwait has appointed Bader Abdullah Al-Munaikh as the first ambassador to Iran since 2016.
• Kenya’s Deputy President Mr. William Samoei Arap Ruto won the presidential election in 2022 after defeating Raila Odinga garnered 7176,141 votes or 50.49 percent of the total votes.
• The Financial Services Institutions Bureau (FSIB) has recommended Mr. Mohammad Mustafa for the post of National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) Chairman.
• Consumer durable products maker Bajaj Electricals elevated it’s Executive Director Mr. Anuj Poddar to Managing Director (MD) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO).
• The Centre and the board of the National Bank for Financing Infrastructure and Development (NaBFID) have appointed Rajkiran Rai G as its managing director (MD) for five years (2022-2027)
• India’s Electronics and Information Technology Secretary Mr. Alkesh Kumar Sharma has been appointed to a panel of 10 eminent experts on internet governance in the United Nations (UN) by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
• Bharti Airtel’s shareholders have reappointed Gopal Vittal as Managing Director (MD) & Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Bharti Airtel for a period of 5 years with effect from Feb 1, 2023, to Jan 31, 2028.
• The American multinational financial services firm, Mastercard has appointed 4 Indian badminton players Lakshya Sen, Kidambi Srikanth, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy, and Chirag Shetty as brand ambassadors of Mastercard in India.
• According to an order issued by the Union Health Ministry, The tenure of V G Somani as the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has been extended by three months

CURRENT AFFAIRS: AWARDS AND HONOURS

• Muthoot Finance has won the ‘best growth performance award’ at Dun & Bradstreet’s 22nd edition of ‘India’s Top 500 Companies’ corporate awards.
• The 13th edition of the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM) 2022 began on August 12 and will end on August 30.
• Droupadi Murmu, President of India, has authorized 107 gallantry medals for Armed Forces and Central Armed Police Forces troops for the occasion of India’s Independence Day in 2022.
• Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences, Bhubaneswar is one of the winners of the UNESCO King Sejong Literacy Prize 2022.
• Shiv Shankar Singh, CEO of Gramin Vikas Trust (established by KRIBHCO of GoI) has been honored with the “Best CEO of the Year Award ” by the Indian Achiever’s Forum.
• Wing Commander Deepika Misra, a pilot of the Indian Air Force, was conferred with the Vayu Sena medal, becoming perhaps the first woman to bag the prestigious award.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: MOUS NAD AGREEMENT

• A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the Ministry of Ayush and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) for providing technical support to the Ministry of Ayush for the digitalization of the Ayush Sector under the Ayush Grid project for 3 years.
• National Institute of Ocean Technology, (NIOT) Chennai will undertake climate resilient protection measures to save the life and property of people of coastal Odisha from natural disasters.
• State-owned NBCC Ltd has signed an agreement with the External Affairs Ministry to redevelop a housing complex in central Delhi for Rs 175 crore.
• The National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT) in Chennai and the government of Odisha have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to safeguard coastal regions from different natural disasters including floods, cyclones, soil erosion, high tide, etc.
• Leading digital payments and financial services, Paytm has partnered with Samsung authorized stores across India to facilitate smart payments as well as Paytm Postpaid (Buy Now, Pay Later) at their retail outlets through the deployment of PoS devices.
• A Financial Institutions, Inc. subsidiary named “Five Star Bank” and Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) have teamed up to embark on a digital transformation project.
• The Border Security Force (BSF) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) to ensure the safety and security of booking data for the troops of India’s border guarding force via its air e-ticket service.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: DEFENCE NEWS

• The 4th Edition of India-Oman Joint Military Exercise ‘AL NAJAH-IV’ concluded in Rajasthan at the Foreign Training Node of Mahajan Field Firing Ranges.
• The Indian Army has launched the ‘Him Drone-a-thon’ program in association with the Drone Federation of India (DFI), to support indigenous drone ecosystems.
• A US Navy Ship named USNS Charles Drew arrived at Larsen & Toubro Kattupalli Shipyard at Ennore, near Chennai, for undertaking repairs and maintenance.
• The four-day air exercise ‘Udarashakti’ between the Indian Air Force (IAF) and the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) concluded in Malaysia.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: RANKING AND INDEX

• India ranks globally 3rd in the Start-Up ecosystem and also in terms of the number of Unicorns.
• The University of Hyderabad (UoH) continues to be in the top position in the latest Nature Index 2022 ranking.
• Razorpay, India’s leading full-stack Payments and Banking Platform for Businesses have become the first Indian company to be named in the 2022 Forbes Cloud 100 List, the definitive ranking of the top 100 private cloud companies in the world.
• Full-service With a 10.4% share of the domestic market last month, Vistara overtook IndiGo, the market leader with 58.8%, as the second-largest airline.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

• Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Guwahati has announced plans to partner with the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) to develop solutions to problems of accessing water, electricity, and internet for the AICTE-affiliated technical institutions in North-East India.
• The Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser (PSA) to the Government of India (GoI)has launched a Manthan platform with the vision to enable and empower all spheres of science and technology within India.
• A team of stem cell researchers in Israel has developed the world’s first synthetic embryo outside the womb using stem cells cultured in a petri dish.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: BOOKS AND AUTHOR

• Finance Minister Smt Nirmala Sitharaman internationally launched the book entitled “India’s vaccine growth story- from cowpox to vaccine maitry” & the book is written by Dr. Sajjan Singh Yadav, who is currently posted as Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Finance.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: SPORTS NEWS

• The first edition of the Women Indian Premier League will begin in March 2023 and would most likely feature five clubs
• Dwyane Bravo became the first cricketer to achieve the milestone of 600 wickets in T20 cricket
• The FIFA Council Bureau unanimously voted to suspend the All-India Football Federation (AIFF) with immediate effect owing to improper interference from third parties, which constitutes a major violation of the FIFA Statutes.
• The Sultan Azlan Shah Cup 2022, which is the premier men’s hockey tournament in Malaysia, will take place in Ipoh from November 16–25,2022.
• Durand Cup, Asia’s Oldest Football Tournament, has begun.
• Kevin O’Brien, an all-rounder for Ireland, has declared his retirement from international cricket after being eliminated from the running for the T20 World Cup in Australia this year.
• Bengaluru will serve as the host city for the FIBA U-18 women’s Asian Basketball Championship from September 5 to 11, according to Narayanagowda, the Karnataka minister of sports and youth empowerment.

CURRENT AFFAIRS: OBITUARIES

• Noted Kannada singer Shivamogga Subbanna passed away at the age of 83 in Bangalore, Karnataka.
• Veteran stock investor and newly-launched Akasa Air founder Rakesh Jhunjhunwala passed away at the age of 62  in Mumbai, Maharashtra.
• Former Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) acting secretary and former president of the Jharkhand State Cricket Association (JSCA), Amitabh Choudhary passed away at the age of 58.
• Deutsche Bank’s former India-born co-Chief Executive Officer, Anshu Jain, Passed away at the age of 59.
• British writer Nicholas Evans, who authored the international best-selling novel “The Horse Whisperer”, Passed away at the age of 72.
• Popular Malayalam novelist and Kendra Sahitya Akademi awardee Narayan Passed away at the age of 82.