Current Affairs 18 August 2020

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Top 20 Current Affairs of 18 August 2020

NATIONAL AFFAIRS

PM Narendra Modi delivered 7th consecutive speech on 74th Independence Day; Announced Launch of New Projects

On August 15, 2020, Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi announced new projects in his 86 minutes speech (1 hour 26 minutes) during the 74th Independence Day from Red Fort, New Delhi. It was his 7th consecutive Independence Day speech and focused on the themes of “Aatma Nirbhar Bharat (self-reliant India)”, “Vocal for local” and “Make in India to Make for World”. The announcements are as follows:

• PM announced launch of National Digital Health Mission; rolled out in 6 UTs
• PM Modi announces optical fibre link connecting Lakshadweep, mainland India
• PM announced project for conservation of Gangetic Dolphins
• Launch of Project Lion to conserve Asiatic Lion announced by PM
• Committee set up to reconsider minimum age of marriage for women
• Ladakh, Leh, Kargil to be India’s first large carbon neutral region

<<Read Full News>>

MP CM: Gwalior Chambal Expressway will be Named Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Chambal Progressway

On 16th August 2020, Addressing the gathering on the 2nd death anniversary of the former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh Shivraj Singh Chouhan, announced that the Gwalior Chambal Expressway will be named as Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Chambal Progressway. Chouhan also stated that a grand statue of Vajpayee will be set up in Bhopal.
Key People:
VD Sharma, the state BJP president and Lok Sabha Member(Khajuraho), Suhas Bhagat, State general secretary of Madhya Pradesh paid the floral tribute along with the CM at the BJP party office.
Gwalior Chambal Expressway:
i.The Gwalior Chambal Expressway is a 6 lane expressway connecting Madhya Pradesh with Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, through the ravines of Chambal region.
ii.The expressway will go parallel to the Chambal river via Shivpuri, Bhind, Morena to Kota (Rajasthan).
Atal Bihari Vajpayee:
i.Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the first BJP member to become the Prime Minister of India.
ii.He served as the prime minister in 1996, from 1998 to 1999 and a term of five years from 1999 to 2004.
iii.Under his leadership the 1998 nuclear tests were conducted in Pokhran, Rajasthan.
Note:
In honour of Atal Bihari Vajpayee, 25th December is celebrated as Good Governance Day.
UNESCO sites in Madhya Pradesh:

• Rock shelters of bhimbetka
• Buddhist Monuments at Sanchi
• Khajuraho Group of Monuments

Indian Railways Constructing World’s Tallest Pier Bridge Across River Ijai in Manipur

i.As a part of 111 kilometre-long Jiribam-Tupul-Imphal line project, Indian Railways’ North East Frontier Railway zone is constructing world’s tallest pier bridge, having height of 141 metres, across river Ijai in Manipur with an outlay of Rs 280 crore. After completion, it will surpass the existing height record of 139 meters of the Mala – Rijeka Viaduct, Montenegro in Europe.
ii.The 703 meters long bridge is located at the hilly terrain of Marangching village in Noney district, about 65 km west of Imphal, Manipur. 
iii.The project will be completed in March 2022.
<<Read Full News>>

M/o SJ&E Launched ‘Nasha-Mukt Bharat’ Campaign; National Institute of Social Defence Building Inaugurated in New Delhi

i.On August 15, 2020, the State Governments and the 272 District Collectors launched a seven-month-long anti-drugs campaign namely “Nasha Mukt Bharat” or “Drug-Free India” by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment (SJE) which will run till March 31, 2021. 
ii.In order to give impetus to this launch, Union Minister of SJE Thaawarchand Gehlot addressed 272 district collectors, 31 State Secretaries as well as doctors, NGOs (non-government organizations) and Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) officers through videoconferencing.
iii.Notably, the financial allocation of Rs. 43 crore in 2017 has been enhanced to Rs. 260 crore in 2020 to curb drug abuse and illicit trafficking. 
<<Read Full News>>

Union Minister Nitin Gadkari lays foundation stone for 13 highway projects in Manipur among other measures for the NE states

i.On 17th August, 2020 Union Minister for Road Transport, Highways Nitin Jairam Gadkari laid the foundation stone for 13 highway projects and inaugurated a Road Safety Project in Manipur through video conference. 
ii.The meeting was presided by Manipur Chief minister Nongthombam Biren Singh, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Development of North East Region Dr Jitendra Singh & Minister of State (MoS) for Road Transport & Highways General (Retd) V K Singh. 
About Manipur:
Capital – Imphal  
Chief Minister –  Nongthombam Biren Singh
Governor – Dr Najma A. Heptullah
Lake – Loktak Lake
<<Read Full News>>

UK Launched £3 million Innovation Challenge Fund for India to Tackle Covid-19 Challenges & Climate Change

i.On August 17, 2020, the government of United Kingdom (UK) launched a £3 million “Innovation Challenge Fund 2020” in India to support scientists in academia and industry to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic and climate change.
ii.In this regard, tech innovators with connections to the AI-Data cluster in Karnataka and the future mobility cluster in Maharashtra will submit research and development proposals for tackling COVID-19 or which promote a greener planet till August 31, 2020. 
iii.At least 6 grants up to £250,000 are expected to be awarded for projects lasting 12 months, with a proposed start in January 2021.
About United Kingdom:
Prime Minister– Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson
Capital– London
<<Read Full News>>

India Post Issued 5 Commemorative Postage Stamps and 1 Miniature Sheet on UNESCO World Heritage Sites in India-III

On August 15, 2020 India Post has issued 5 Commemorative Postage Stamps namely: Historic City of Ahmedabad- Sarkhej Roza, Churches and Convents of Goa- Church of  Bom Jesus, Group of Monuments at Pattadakal, Khajuraho Group of Monuments Javeri Temple and Qutb Minar its Monuments, Delhi. It also issued 1 miniature sheet consisting of all the above stamps on UNESCO World Heritage Sites in India-III.
Note:

• Group of Monuments at Pattadakal- Karnataka
• Khajuraho Group of Monuments Javeri Temple- Madhya Pradesh

Key Points
i.The Sarkhej Roza, is not a part of the inscribed ‘Historic Metropolis Of Ahmedabad’ which obtained the tag of India’s 1st UNESCO World Heritage Metropolis in July 2017.
ii.The leaflet issued by India Submit with the stamps phrases the Sarkhej Roza as one of many outstanding landmarks of the Historic Metropolis of Ahmedabad for its wealthy historical past and reverence.

Piyush Goyal Virtually Inaugurated 4th edition of NPPC 2020: Digital Exhibitions and Conferences

Piyush Goyal, Union Commerce and Industry & Railways Minister virtually inaugurated the 4th edition of 2 day ‘National Public Procurement Conclave (NPPC) 2020: Digital Exhibitions and Conferences’, on August 9, 2020(the anniversary of GeM Establishment Day) under the theme “Technology enabled Govt Procurement -Towards efficiency, transparency, and Inclusiveness”. 

• It is organized by Government e Marketplace (GeM), in association with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) through CII Hives Digital Platform.
• Digital Exhibitions & conference will be held from August 9 – September 30,2020.

Key People
Shri Chandrajit Banerjee, Director General of CII and Talleen Kumar, CEO of  GeM  spoke on the occasion among others.
Key Features of 4th edition of NPPC
i.It includes a detailed overview of the enhanced version of GeM – GeM 4.0, virtual panel sessions on the role of MSMEs, Startups, Women Entrepreneurs, Weavers & Artisans, Information Technology, Defense and Railways in Public Procurement. 
ii.In Addition to this it also includes the following:

• Virtual B2B and B2G meetings between Govt buyers and sellers, training and technical sessions on GeM features and new developments.
• Virtual GeM stall to resolve queries on the spot and facilitate registration of sellers and buyers, special session for Services.

Click here to read more.
About CII:
Headquarters- New Delhi, India
President– Uday Kotak
President Designate– T V Narendran
Constituency:
Piyush Goyal– Rajya Sabha, Maharashtra

BANKING & FINANCE

PNB Launched ‘DIGITAL APNAYEN’, a Campaign to Promote Digital Banking

On August 15, 2020 S S Mallikarjuna Rao, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Punjab National Bank(PNB) launched a campaign, ‘DIGITAL APNAYEN’ to encourage customers to use digital banking channels and participate in the noble cause of donating to PM CARES Fund for COVID-19. 

• The campaign begins on 15th August 2020 and runs till 31st March 2021.

Rs 5 towards the PM CARES Fund
The bank under the campaign will contribute Rs 5 towards the PM CARES Fund on behalf of each customer who conduct the 1st financial transaction to activate the following:

• RuPay Debit card either on point of sale (PoS) or e-commerce platform.
• AePS account through fund transfer, AePS account through Bharat Interface for Money (BHIM) Aadhaar Merchants payment and activation of UPI service.
• Download and Registration for UPI facility will also be eligible for contribution.

Key Info
i.The DIGITAL APNAYEN campaign is in line with the campaign introduced by the Mission Office, Dept. of Financial Services, Ministry of Finance, Govt. of India. 
ii.Under this campaign during the period from 15.08.2020 to 31.10.2020 each branch shall on-board at least 100 Merchants and Financial Inclusion (FI) segment customers on digital payment mode and extend handholding support to customers for on-boarding for digital payments to develop the habit of making digital transactions.
About PNB:
Headquarters– New Delhi
Tagline– The name you can bank upon.

ECONOMY & BUSINESS

Google Partners with CWC of India for Flood Forecasting Initiatives

i.On 14th August 2020, Google in association with the Central Water Commission(CWC) of India launched the flood forecasting initiatives across India for the past several months.
ii.Central Water Commission is the first governmental partner of Google to measure water levels on an hourly basis using around 1000 stream gauges across India.
iii.Under the flood forecasting initiatives, google has sent out numerous public alerts to people in flood impacted regions of India.
About Central Water Commission(CWC):
Chairman– Rajendra Kumar Jain
Headquarters– Sewa Bhawan, New Delhi
<<Read Full News>>

APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS          

AAIB forms 5 Member Panel Headed by Captain S S Chahar to Investigate the Kozhikode Plane Crash

The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau(AAIB) formed a 5-member panel headed Captain S S Chahar to investigate the circumstances of the Air India Express Dubai-Calicut flight IX 1344Crash at the Kozhikode airport, Kerala on 7th August 2020.

• The 5-member team will probe and determine the cause and contributory factors that led to the accident.
• The team will also make recommendations to avoid similar accidents in the future.
• Captain S S Chahar, the in charge of the investigation will submit his reports within next 5 months.

The 5-member panel:
i.Captain S.S. Chahar – Former Examiner of Boeing 737 NG.
ii.Ved Prakash – Operations Expert of Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) .
iii.Mukul Bharadwaj – Senior Aircraft Maintenance Engineer for Boeing 737.
iv.Captain Y S Dahiya – Aviation Medicine Expert of Indian Air Force.
v.Jasbir Singh Larhga – AAIB’s Deputy Director.
About the crash:
i.The Air India Express flight departed from Dubai with over 190 people aboard, which skidded at a table top runway during landing.
ii.The crash killed 18 people including both the pilots.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

AIFF and SAI Jointly Launched “E-pathshala” a Web Platform to Promote Football

On 15th August 2020, on the occasion of 74th Independence Day, The All India Football Federation(AIFF) and the Sports Authority of India(SAI), jointly launched the E-Pathshala, a web platform to recognise creativity of the children and to develop their interest in football.
Key People:
Subrata Dutta. senior vice-president of AIFF, Isac Doru, technical director, Abhishek Yadav, national team director Savio Medeira represented AIFF in the webinar along with Dr. G. Kishore, Principal and Regional Director, SAI, LNCPE, Trivandrum and Dr. Pradip Dutta, Associate Professor, SAI, LNCPE Trivandrum.
E-Pathshala:
i.E-Pathshala is designed to engage the footballers across the nation and connect them with SAI and AIFF.
ii.The platform develops the children’s interest through cognitive approaches like painting, skills, building blocks and others.
iii.The Platform is an Athlete Coaching Program for footballers at the grassroot and intermediate levels.It has been divided into three parts: My Football Culture, My Skills and My Training.
Note:
Cerebral Palsy Sports Federations of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Afghanistan, Nepal, Bhutan and several other South Asian countries are under the framework of E-Pathshala.
Web Platform- http://saiaiffepathshala.in/
About AIFF:
President– Praful Patel
Headquarters– New Delhi
About Sports Authority of India(SAI):
Director General– Sandip Pradhan
Executive Director– Anjan Kumar Mishra
Head Office– Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Delhi

Astronomers Found SPT0418-47, a Look-alike of the Milky Way at 12 Billion Light Years Away

The Astronomers at the Max Planck Institute of Astrophysics found a baby galaxy called “SPT0418-47” a look-alike of the Milky galaxy at 12 billion light-years away using the Atacama Large Millimeter/sub-millimeter Array(ALMA) Telescope.
Research:
i.The team utilised gravitational lensing, an effect of using a nearby galaxy as a powerful magnifying glass, to overcome the difficulties due to the distance, this allowed ALMA to see into the distant past the unprecedented detail.
ii.The galaxy appears as a near-perfect ring of light like the “Einstein Ring”.
iii.The research published in the Journal Nature was led by Francesca Rizzo, PhD student from the Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics, Germany.
Findings about SPT0418-47:
i.SPT0418-47 does not have any spiral arms like the Milky Way but has a rotating disc and a bulge which are similar to the Milky Way.
ii.This is the first time to find a bulge this early in the history of the universe, which makes SPT0418-47 as the most distant Milky way look-alike.
iii.Despite forming stars at a high rate, and therefore being the site of highly energetic processes, SPT0418-47 is the most well-ordered galaxy disc ever observed by astronomers in the Universe.
iv.The astronomers expect the galaxy to evolve into an elliptical galaxy rather than a spiral galaxy like Milky Way.

SPORTS

Indian Cricketers MS Dhoni, Suresh Raina retire from international cricket

Former India Skipper and Wicket-Keeper Mahendra Singh Pansingh Dhoni & Veteran middle-order Batsman Suresh Kumar Raina announced retirement from International Cricket on August 15, 2020.
i.MS Dhoni has represented India in 90 test matches, 350 One-Day Internationals (ODI) & 98 Twenty20 Internationals(T20I).
ii.The left-hander Suresh Raina has represented India in 18 Test Matches, 226 ODIs & 78 T20I.
iii.Dhoni made his debut for the Indian team in December 2004 versus Bangladesh while Suresh Raina made his debut in July 2005 versus Sri Lanka.
<<Read Full News>>

Lewis Hamilton Claims Record 156th Podium Finish with Win at Spanish GP

On August 16, 2020 Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton claimed his 156th Podium with a victory in Spanish Grand Prix. It is the Fourth race of the season at the Circuit de barcelona-Catalunya, Spain. Lewis Hamilton now holds the record for most podium finishes in F1 history surpassing Former F1-Great Michael Schumacher’s record. 
i.The British driver Lewis Hamilton also claimed his 88th Formula One career victory with his podium finish at the Spanish Grand Prix.
ii.Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen finished second while second Mercedes’ driver Valtteri Bottas finished Third. 
iii.This is Lewis Hamilton’s fifth win in Spain in four consecutive years, with this victory he extended the lead in the World Championship table to 39 points. 

OBITUARY

Arjuna awardee, UP Cabinet Minister and  Former Indian Cricketer Chetan Chauhan Passed Away at 73 Due to COVID-19

i.Former Indian cricketer and Uttar Pradesh (UP) Cabinet Minister of Sainik Welfare, Home Guards, Prantiya Rakshak Dal and Civil Security Chetan Chauhan(Full Name- Chetan Pratap Singh Chauhan) passed away at 73 in Medanta hospital, Gurugram, Haryana due to COVID-19. 
ii.He belongs to Bharatiya Janata Party(BJP). He was honoured with the Arjuna award in 1981. He was born on July 21, 1947 in Bareilly, UP.
About UP:
National Park– Dudhwa National Park
UNESCO Heritage Sites– Agra Fort, Taj Mahal, Fatehpur Sikri
Airports–  Kushinagar international airport, Chaudhary Charan Singh International Airport, Lal Bahadur Shastri International Airport.
<<Read Full News>>

BOOKS & AUTHORS

Actor Sharon Stone’s Memoir “The Beauty of Living Twice” to Release in March 2021

On 12th August, 2020 Hollywood Actor Sharon Stone announced the release of her Memoir “The Beauty of Living Twice” in March 2021. She unveiled the cover of the book on Twitter.
i.The Book will reflect on her journey from painful childhood in Pennsylvania to her experience in acting in films like Martin Scorsese’s mobster epic ‘Casino’ which earned her an Academy Award nomination and a Golden Globe award.
ii.Additionally she will be writing about her two marriages, her near-fatal stroke and humanitarian work on behalf of AIDS research and other causes.
iii.The book is set to be published by Alfred A Knopf, and is set to release both in hardcover and ebook. 

Ex-Air Vice Marshal Arjun Subramaniam Authored a New book titled, “Full Spectrum: India’s Wars, 1972-2020″

Retired Air Vice Marshal Arjun Subramaniam has authored a new book titled, “Full Spectrum: India’s Wars, 1972-2020″. The book portrays the comprehensive account of war and conflict in contemporary India over the past five decades next month. It will be  published by HarperCollins Publishers India Pvt. Ltd.

• It is the sequel to his 1st book, ‘India’s Wars: A Military History, 1947-1971’. 

Essence of the Book
The book includes all major operation that the armed forces have participated in, including the Kargil conflict of 1999, insurgencies in the Northeast, terrorism and proxy wars in Jammu and Kashmir, separatist violence in Punjab, the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) intervention in Sri Lanka, and the continued stress along the Line of Control( LoC)and the Line of Actual Control(LAC).
Note– Arjun Subramaniam is an accomplished fighter pilot who flew MiG-21s and Mirage-2000s in his career.
Key Info
Arjun Subramaniam stated that the book is a tribute to the soldier, an ode to the unsung helicopter and transport pilots & a salute to the sailors who help their captain on the bridge.
About HarperCollins Publishers India Pvt. Ltd.
Headquarters– Noida, Uttar Pradesh
Chief Executive Officer– Ananth Padmanabhan

STATE NEWS

Chhattisgarh Govt  Launched ‘Padhai Tuhar Para’ scheme for school students

i.Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel launched the ‘Padhai Tuhar Para’ scheme  to enable school students to learn from their respective localities as the classes are being suspended due to the outbreak of the coronavirus. 
ii.He informed that a Bluetooth-based programme ‘Bultu Ke Bol’, ‘Mukhyamantri Slum Swasthya Yojana’, ‘Radhabai Diagnostic Centre Scheme’ will also be introduced and committees will be set up for new appointments and promotions in the state.
About Chhattisgarh
Capital– Raipur
Governor– Anusuiya Uikey
National Park– Indravati National Park, Kanger Ghati National Park
<<Read Full News>>

Nagaland CM Neiphiu Rio launches ‘Yellow Chain’ e-commerce platform on Independence day 2020

On August 15, 2020 Chief Minister of Nagaland Neiphiu Rio launched ‘Yellow Chain’ an e-commerce platform during the State level celebration of India’s Independence Day at Secretariat Plaza, Kohima. The centralized e-commerce platform is expected to promote local business & entrepreneurship in the state. It is seen as a “new era in Naga marketing culture”.
i.‘Yellow chain’ is developed by Investment & Development Authority of Nagaland (IDAN) to promote local business & entrepreneurship. It has also released an app for mobile services in the same name. 
ii.Using the platform any seller/service provider/Individual/Group can register and upload their products, skills or services to enable the customer to purchase it.
iii.The list of services included in the platform include Home service (Barber, Electrician, Plumber, Painter, Carpenter, Water Service) & Delivery service such as IT Products & Services, Cab & Tax Service, Grocery Stores, Real Estate, Rentals, Bakeries & Confectionaries. 
About Nagaland:
Capital – Kohima
Chief Minister – Neiphiu Rio
Governor – Ravindra Narayana Ravi (RN Ravi)
Festivals – The Hornbill Festival, The Moatsü Mong festival 

Meghalaya CM Launched Restart Meghalaya Mission Worth Rs. 14,515 Crore to Revive Activities Stalled due to COVID-19

i.On 15th August 2020, on the occasion of the 74th Independence day, Conrad K Sangma, Chief Minister of Meghalaya launched the restart Meghalaya Mission worth Rs. 14,515 crores to revive the development activities which were stalled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
ii.This mission was based on the recommendations on the short, medium and long term measures to revive the state’s economy, by the Chief Minister’s Task Force on Economy.
iii.The Mission consists of a series of programmes to support the farmers and entrepreneurs of the state to build a growth promoting basic infrastructure.
About Meghalaya:
Shillong of Meghalaya is also known as the Scotland of East.
Wildlife Sanctuary:Nokrek National Park (Biosphere Reserve), Balpakram National Park, Baghmara Reserve Forest, Siju Bird Sanctuary, Nongkhyllem Wildlife Sanctuary.
<<Read Full News>>

AC GAZE

Fit India Freedom Run launched : Kiren Rijiju

Union Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports Shri Kiren Rijiju has launched a country-wide event “Fit India Freedom Run” from August 15( 74th Independence Day) to October 2( 151st Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi) through an online programme.

AYUSH Ministry launches campaign “Ayush for Immunity”

To enhance immunity and prevent any disease, The Ministry of AYUSH (Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy) has launched a three-month campaign on “Ayush for Immunity” through webinar on Ayush Virtual Convention Centre (AVCC),which aims to increase awareness about affordable and easy practices to boost immunity.

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