Current Affairs Today August 10 2018

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INDIAN AFFAIRS

Cabinet Approvals on August 10, 2018
i. The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has approved the extension of the term of the Commission to examine the issue of Sub-categorization of Other Backward Classes in the Central List till November, 2018.
ii. The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has approved the creation of two posts equivalent to Joint Secretary level in the Interpreters‘ cadre of the Ministry of External Affairs.
iii. On August 10, 2018, the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi approved transfer of the Central Hospital at Karma, Jharkhand under the Ministry of Labour & Employment to the Jharkhand Government free of cost within 3 months.
iv. Cabinet approved Concession Agreements & Land Lease Agreements for revival of Gorakhpur & Sindri units of FCIL and Barauni unit of HFCL by HURL
v. On August 10, 2018, the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi approved raising of four (4) additional battalions of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) at an estimated cost of Rs 637 crore.
vi. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi approved the release of pulses to States/UTs at discounted rate under Price Support Schemes (PSS).
vii. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, approved the project for construction of 6.930 km long 4-lane bridge at Phulaut in Bihar.
viii. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi approved the continuation and revision of the Centrally Sponsored Scheme of “Post Matric Scholarship for Other Backward Classes Students for studying in India” (PMS-OBC) for the years 2017-18, 2018-19 and 2019-20.……………………………….Click here to Read more

Cabinet Approvals with Foreign countries on August 10, 2018.
i. On August 10, 2018, the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi approved the signing the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Indonesia on health cooperation.
ii. The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi approved Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Indonesia on Scientific and Technological Cooperation.
iii. The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi approved MoU between “Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI)” and “Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada (CPA Canada)”.
iv. On August 10, 2018, the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi approved the MOU between India and Korea on Trade Remedy Cooperation.
v. On August 10, 2018, the Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi  approved the joint issue of Postage Stamps on India-South Africa.…………………………………..Click here to Read more

Parliament passes National Sports University Bill, 2018
On 9^th August 2018, Parliament passed the National Sports University Bill 2018, as the Rajya Sabha approved it.
National Sports University Bill, 2018:
i. The Lok Sabha had passed this Bill on 3^rd August 2018. This Bill aims to set up a first-of-its-kind National Sports University in Manipur to promote sports.
ii. The main campus will be in Manipur. Regional centres of the university will also be set up in other parts of India and other countries.
iii. The Chancellor of the University will be from the sports field. Also, the academic council and academic activities will have members from sports field.
iv. The proposed university at Manipur will also function as the national training centre for select sports disciplines. It will employ best international practices.
v. The government has signed an agreement with two Australian universities: University of Canberra and Victoria University to develop curriculum, research facilities and laboratories, etc. for the Sports University.
vi. The Sports University will offer education in the areas of sports sciences, sports technology, sports management and sports coaching.
vii. It will offer masters and bachelor degree in several fields like sports management and sports science.

Parliament passes SC and ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Amendment Bill, 2018
On 9^th August 2018, Parliament passed the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Amendment Bill, 2018.
SC and ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Amendment Bill, 2018:
i. On 9th August 2018, the bill was passed by Rajya Sabha through voice vote. It was passed in Lok Sabha on 6^th August 2018.
ii. Section 18A has been inserted to eliminate the need for a preliminary enquiry before registration of an FIR, or obtain approval of any authority before arrest of an accused, and to restore the provisions of Section 18 of the Act.
iii. The amended bill has removed the provision to obtain prior permission for the arrest of those committing atrocities against Dalits.
iv. Under the legislation, there is a provision to set up special courts to handle cases related to atrocities against SCs and STs.
v. The Bill has removed provision for anticipatory bail for a person accused of atrocities against SC/STs.
vi. It states that, no preliminary inquiry will be needed to register a criminal case and an arrest under this law will not be subject to any approval.

Global Innovation Index, GII- 2018 launched in India
On 8^th August 2018, Global Innovation Index 2018 (GII- 2018) was launched in India in New Delhi.

GII- 2018:
i. The event was organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) along with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), in collaboration with Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP). CII is one of the founding partners of GII.
ii. Global Innovation Index 2018 is the 11^th edition of GII. The theme for GII 2018 is: “Energizing the World with Innovation”.
iii.The GII 2018 analyses the energy innovation landscape of the next decade and identify possible new technological breakthroughs and innovative approaches and their sources at the country, region, or firm level.
iv. It also analyses innovations in energy production, energy storage, energy transport and distribution, and energy consumption.
v. India’s rank on the Global Innovation Index (GII) is 57 in 2018. It has improved from 60 in 2017. India has been consistently improving in GII ranking in the last 2 years.
vi. Top countries in GII are as follows:

vii. Dr Anil Kakodkar, former Chairman, Atomic Energy Commission, is author of the India chapter in the report.
viii. The GII is co-published by Cornell University, INSEAD, and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).
About World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO):
♦ Director General – Francis Gurry
♦ Headquarters – Geneva, Switzerland

‘One District one Product’ Summit inaugurated by President of India in Uttar Pradesh
On August 10, 2018, President of India inaugurates ‘One District one Product’ Summit in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. It is a first of its kind summit in the country to boost trade of the MSMEs.

Objective:
To promote traditional industries and spur local trade.
Key Points:
i.This initiative will enhance skills of local people, result in economic progress of artisans of Uttar Pradesh.
In the Summit the following took place:
i. Distribution of loan sanction papers with a tagline: ‘Nayi Udaan, Nayi Pehchan’ worth Rs 1006 crore to 4085 artisans of 75 districts of ODOP scheme digitally.
ii. 2 MoUs were also signed with US-based companies. They were:

• MOU between Amazonand Quality Control of India to market products of artisans and
• Another between NSE and BSE with Wipro GE Health Care.

iii. Under this, Amazon will train the artisans and small entrepreneurs of districts, including Lucknow, Gorakhpur, Allahabad, Ferozabad, Moradabad, Agra, Kanpur, Meerut, Bhadohi and Varanasi.
iv. A 3-day exhibition was inaugurated in which one product of each district would be on display.
v. ODOP toll free number and website were launched by the President.
vi. Technical sessions on handloom, textiles craft, tourism, agro and food processing, credit and finance was held.
Background:
♦ Uttar Pradesh contributes around 44 per cent in the total handicraft exports of the country.
♦ Under the ‘One District One Product’ scheme, the state government has set a goal of providing employment to 25 lakh people in five years through the financial assistance of Rs. 25,000 crores. 

Swachh Survekshan 2019, ODF+ & ODF ++ Protocols, Ease of Living Index and Swachh Manch Web Portal launched by MoSHUA Shri Hardeep Puri
On August 10, 2018, Shri Hardeep S Puri, Minister of State (I/C), Housing & Urban Affairs launched the following in New Delhi.

• Swachh Survekshan 2019.
• SBM ODF Plus and ODF Plus Plus Protocol.
• Swachh Manch web portal
• Ease of Living Index.

About Swachh Survekshan 2019:
i. Swachh Survekshan 2019 has been planned to be conducted from 4th – 31^st January 2019 – to rank all cities under Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban (SBM-U).
ii. This will be the fourth survey of MoHUA.
About SBM ODF Plus and ODF Plus Plus Protocol:
i. The SBM ODF Plus and SBM ODF Plus Plus protocols aims at addressing the issue of holistic sanitation.
ii. SBM ODF Plus protocol focuses on sustaining community/ pubic toilet usageon parameters of functionality, cleanliness and maintenance.
iii. SBM ODF Plus Plus will focus on achieving sanitation sustainability by including safe containment, processing and disposal of fecal sludge and septage.
iv. A total of 3,223 cities of 18 states have become Open Defecation Free and they will be judged on these parameters.
About Swachh Manch web portal:
i. It is a web-based common platform which aims to bring together every stakeholder contributing to the Swachh Bharat Mission.
ii. It will enable uploads of pictorial evidence of citizens and organizations participating in the initiatives.
iii. The Swachh Manch will also be integrated with the Swachhata App as a citizens’ grievance redressal platform.
About Ease of Living Index:
i. The Ease of Living Index is an initiative of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) and will be launched with an Ease of Living Index dashboard.
ii. It would contain overall national ranking of 111 cities across pillars, category, geographical zone and population classifications.
iii. The cities are ranked based on 4 parameters namely : Institutional, Social, Economic and Physical which are further broken down into 15 categories and 78 indicators.
iv. The dashboard will also have a comparison feature.
v. The Ease of Living assessment standards are closely linked to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Parijat Urja Chakra launches campaign to educate farmers about ill effects of crop residue burning
On August 10, 2018, Parijat Urja Chakra in collaboration with Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) organized a special campaign at Fatehgarh villageof Ambala in Haryana.
Objective:
It aims to create awareness about the ill effects of crop residue burning and management
Key Points:
About the campaign:
i. The campaign focused on sensitizing the participants about the importance of straw management  and recommended machinery and techniques of straw management.
ii. Safety handbooks were also distributed amongst the farmers on safe use of crop protection products.
iii. The burning of agricultural Crop Residue (CRB) has

• exposure to extremely high levels of Particulate Matter concentration,
• leads to air, land and water pollution,
• leads to reduction of nutrients in the soil.

Other announcements:
Haryana government is also set to launch a massive campaign in the state to create awareness of proper management of crops residue.
About Parijat industries (India Pvt Ltd ).
♦ It is one of the leading agro-chemical manufacturing company with its manufacturing base at Ambala, Haryana.
♦ It is present in 16 Indian states, and exports to over 70 countries.
♦ It sells branded formulations in countries of Asia, Africa, CIS, Europe, North and South America.

“PARIVESH” – an environmental single window hub for Environment, Forest, Wildlife and CRZ clearances launched
On 10^th August 2018, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, launched PARIVESH (Pro-Active and Responsive facilitation by Interactive, Virtuous and Environmental Single-window Hub) on the occasion of World Biofuel Day.

PARIVESH:
i. PARIVESH is a Single-Window Integrated Environmental Management System, developed in line with ‘Digital India’ initiative. It also follows the Minimum Government and Maximum Governance ideology.
ii. PARIVESH automates the complete process of submitting the application and tracking the status of proposals at every stage of processing.
iii. It will deal with proposals submitted by Project Proponents to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MOEFCC), State Level Environmental Impact Assessment Authorities (SEIAA), to obtain clearances from Central, State and district-level authorities.
iv. It is a workflow based application. It is based on the concept of web architecture.
v. It has been designed, developed and hosted by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, with technical support of National Informatics Centre (NIC).
vi. Highlights of PARIVESH:

• single registration and single sign-in for all types of clearances (i.e. Environment, Forest, Wildlife and CRZ clearances)
• unique-ID for all types of clearances for a particular project

vii. PARIVESH is available at: https://parivesh.nic.in.
About National Informatics Centre (NIC):
♦ Director General – Ms. Neeta Verma
♦ Headquarters – New Delhi

BANKING & FINANCE

Bajaj Allianz General Insurance and Vijaya Bank entered into a bancassurance deal
On August 10, 2018, Bajaj Allianz General Insurance entered into a bancassurance deal with Vijaya Bank.

i. The General Insurance products would be available through the bank’s network of 2,129 branches.
ii. Insurance products such as health, personal accident, home, motor and travel along with a commercial line of insurance products will be offered.
iii. The partnership will strengthen the presence of Bajaj Allianz General Insurance in southern India.
Vijaya Bank:
♦ Headquarters: Bengaluru.
♦ Tagline: A Friend you can bank upon.
Bajaj Allianz:
♦ Tagline: Jio Befikar.
♦ Headquarters: Pune.

1^st of its kind iris authentication for Aadhaar-based transactions introduced by Axis Bank
On August 10, 2018, Axis bank has become the first bank in the country to introduce Iris Scan Authentication feature for Aadhaar -based transactions through its micro ATM tablets.

i. This is being run as a pilot project in 8 branches of rural Punjab, Haryana, Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh.
ii. The bank will be launching the same process for loan processing, insurance, eKYC  account opening and others sections mostly extending to the semi-urban and urban regions as well.
How it works:
i. A Customer needs to select the desired service (funds transfer, cash withdrawal) and feed-in their Aadhaar numbers in the micro ATM.
ii. Next they will choose ‘IRIS’ as the desired mode of authentication.
iii. Verification will be done in 3-5 seconds.
iv. The transaction will be completed after the biometric details are verified from the UIDAI database.
About the technologies used:
i. The micro ATM tablets which are STQC certified and UIDAI compliant registered devices do not require debit cards, passwords, PINs, and user IDs.
ii. The Iris scan technology is completely contactless and provides up to 98.2 per cent authentication success rate.
Axis Bank:
Headquarters: Mumbai.

APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNS

Dr. R. G Anand appointed Member, National Commission for Protection of Child Rights
Dr. R. G Anand has been appointed as member of National Commission for Protection of Child Rights.
i. Government has appointed Dr. R. G Anand as Member of National Commission for Protection of Child Rights with effect from 13^th July 2018 for a period of 3 years, or until he attains 60 years of age, or until further orders, whichever is earlier.
About National Commission for Protection of Child Rights:
♦ Chairperson – Ms. Stuti Kacker
♦ Headquarters – New Delhi

SPORTS

Saina Nehwal out of top 10, Kidambi Srikanth at 8th spot in BWF ranking
India’s Saina Nehwal has come out of the top 10 and Kidambi Srikanth has come down to 8^th place in BWF ranking, as per the Badminton World Federation (BWF) rankings released on 9^th August 2018.
BWF ranking of Indian Shuttlers:
i. Following poor performance at the badminton World Championship, the ranks of Saina Nehwal and Kidambi Srikanth have dropped.
ii. Saina Nehwal has been ranked world number 11 currently, in women’s singles rankings. Kidambi Srikanth has gone down two places and has reached 8^th position in men’s singles rankings.
iii. PV Sindhu remains at world number 3 in women’s singles rankings.
iv. Women’s singles ranking toppers:

• Rank 1 – Tai Tzu Ying
• Rank 2 – Akane Yamaguchi

v.Men’s singles ranking toppers:

• Rank 1 – Viktor Axelsen
• Rank 2 – Shi Yuqi

vi. Current men’s singles world champion Kento Momota improved three places and reached 4^th rank.
vii. India’s, HS Prannoy remains at number 11 in the men’s singles rankings.B Sai Praneeth improved two places to the 24th place, while Sameer Verma dropped two places to world no 21st.
viii. There is no Indian pair in the top 20 of the women’s doubles rankings. India’s Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty improved two positions and secured 23rd place in the men’s doubles rankings.
ix. In the mixed doubles pairs, India’s Pranaav Jerry Chopra and N Sikki Reddy have moved down to 24^th place. Ashwini Ponnappa and Satwik have improved 12 places and reached 28 position.
About Badminton World Federation (BWF):
♦ President – Poul-Erik Høyer
♦ Headquarters – Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

COTIF Cup(under-20):Argentina Won the Tournament by defeating Russia
On August 8,Argentina’s U-20 football team won Torneo Internacional de Fútbol Sub-20 de L’Alcúdia (L’Alcúdia International Under-20 Football Tournament),also known as COTIF Tournament,held at Valencia, Spain by defeating Russian team in the Extra Time by 2-1 goals.
Indian Team Performance:
i. India was playing for the first time in the tournament.Floyd Pinto was the coach of the Under 20 team appointed by AIFF(All India Football Federation).
ii. Indian team won over Argentina in the final group stage match,which held on August 5^th, 2018 by 2-1 & Created History by defeating the 6 time Champion.
iii. Deepak Tangri’s goal in the fourth-minute at the start of the game was the first goal from India.
iv. Anwar Ali scored the second goal in free kick which lead India to win the match.
About COTIF:
The first COTIF Cup was held in 1984 in Valencia, Spain.

Teenage Saudi gamer Mosaad Aldossary wins FIFA eWorld Cup
On 4^th August 2018, Saudi Arabia’s Mosaad Aldossary won the FIFA eWorld Cup held at The O2 Arena in London, Britain.
Mosaad Aldossary wins FIFA eWorld Cup:
i. Mosaad Aldossary defeated Belgium’s Stefano Pinna 4-0 on aggregate in the two-legged FIFA eWorld Cup Grand Final.
ii. Mosaad Aldossary won a prize money of $250,000. He is 18 years old. He competes with the name ‘MSDossary’.

BOOKS & AUTHORS

Dr. Mahesh Sharma releases 3 books at IGNCA, New Delhi
On 9^th August 2018, Minister of state for Culture (I/C), Dr. Mahesh Sharma, released 3 books: ‘Jewellery’, ‘Ghats of Banaras’and ‘Untold Story of Broadcasting’, at IGNCA (Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts), in New Delhi.

‘Jewellery’, ‘Ghats of Banaras’ & ‘Untold Story of Broadcasting’:
i. ‘Jewellery’ was written by Dr. Gulab Kothari. ‘Ghats of Banaras’ was written by Dr. Sachidanand Joshi and ‘Untold Story of Broadcasting’ was written by Dr. Gautam Chatterjee.
ii. “Untold Story of Broadcasting” is a book about behind-the-scenes developments during the quit India movement.
iii. It furnishes details of the secret broadcast made during the quit India movement led by Ram Manohar Lohia. The book has been published in collaboration with Publication Division, Government of India.
iv. “Ghats of Banaras” has been developed from recent documentation done at Varanasi. These Ghats are located at the bank of river Ganga in a semi-circular shape (ardhachandrakar).

IMPORTANT DAYS

World Biofuel Day
On August 10, World Biofuel Day was Observed every year.

Objective:
The Objective of the World Biofuel Day is to raise awareness about the significance of non fossil fuels which can be used as an alternative to fossil fuels.
KeyPoints:
i. The World Biofuel Day is being observed by the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas for the last three years.
ii. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was the Chief Guest for the inaugural session of the World Biofuel Day programme.
iii. On the occasion, Prime Minister launched web portal PARIVESH, a single window for environmental, wildlife, forest and Coastal Regulation Zone clearances.
iv. The Prime Minister also released a booklet on“National Policy on Biofuels 2018”.
v. For the Significant use of Biofuel,the Government has also approved the National Policy on Biofuels-2018 in June 2018. The policy has the objective of reaching 20 per cent ethanol blending and 5 per cent biodiesel blending by 2030.
Future Enhancements:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that 12 modern biofuel refineries worth ten thousand crore rupees will be established across the country & this will provide employment to 1.5 lakh youth.
Target:
The Prime Minister said, the government is targeting ten per cent ethanol blending in petrol by 2022 and 20 per cent by 2030.

International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples – August 9
On 9^th August 2018, International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples was observed all over the world.
International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples:
i. In 1994, the United Nations General Assembly declared August 9 as International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples.
ii. This date marks the day of the first meeting, of the UN Working Group on Indigenous Populations of the Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights in 1982.
iii. This day is observed to promote and protect the rights of the world’s indigenous population.
iv. The theme for International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples 2018 is: Indigenous peoples’ migration and movement.
v. 1993 was observed as the International Year of the World’s Indigenous Peoples.
vi. Also, the United Nations General Assembly has declared 2019 as the International Year of Indigenous Languages.
About United Nations:
♦ Secretary‑General – António Guterres
♦ Headquarters – New York City, United Nations