31 August 2018 - Daily Current Affairs

1. Swapna Barman becomes first Indian heptathlete to win Asian Games gold

Swapna Barman daughter of a rickshaw puller became the first Indian woman to achieve a top podium finish in the grueling heptathlon event at the Asian Games.
She has six toes in both her feet and produced her career-best performance by logging 6026 aggregate points from the seven events.
She competed over two days with a bandaged chin due to a toothache which caused her a lot of pain, especially in the high jump.
Swapna was a high jumper some five years ago but when she realised that she was not going to great heights, she turned to the heptathlon.
She hails from Jalpaiguri, West Bengal and her father Panchanan Barman was a van rickshaw puller but has been bedridden for the last few years due to his old age.

Note:

Before Barman, only Bengal's Soma Biswas and Karnataka's JJ Shobha and Pramila Aiyappa had returned with a medal from the Asian Games but none of them have won a gold.
The heptathlon is a seven-event contest which covers a range of track and field events and is spread over two days.

Source: NDTV Sports

2. Jinson Johnson won gold in men's 1500 m at the 2018 Asian Games

Jinson Johnson won gold in the men's 1500 metres at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta.
Earlier, Johnson had won silver in the 800m final.
Johnson was pipped for gold by compatriot Manjit Singh in the 800m race but he did not give any chance to his rivals to win the race in 3 minutes 44.72 seconds.
He crossed the finishing line after creating a huge opening in the last 80m stretch, leaving behind Amir Moradi (3:45.62) and Mohammed Tiouali (3:45.88).
Manjit Singh, who emerged a surprise winner in the 800m run, finished fourth with a timing of 3:46.57.

Note:

Johnson won the country's first 1500m gold medal in the men's competition after 56 years.
Bahadur Prasad was last Indian to win a medal in men's 1500m at the 1998 Asian Games, where he won a bronze.

Source: The Economic Times

National Affairs

3. HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar launches Innovation Cell & ARIIA

Union Human Resource Development Minister Prakash Javadekar has launched the Innovation Cell and Atal Ranking of Institutions on Innovation Achievements, ARIIA in New Delhi.
The Innovation cell, an initiative of the Ministry, has been established at the premises of All India Council for Technical Education with a view to foster the culture of innovation in all Higher Education Institutions across the country.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Javadekar stressed the need to create an innovation culture. He said, for this, the government is encouraging the institutions to create innovation club in their campuses.

Source: DD News

4. “Mil -Banche” programme organized in govt schools of MP state

In Madhya Pradesh, in a first of its kind initiative, “Mil -Banche”, an interactive programme between schools and society was organized in all government schools of the state today.
More than 80 thousand volunteers have expressed their desire to give gifts to the schools like books or any other gifts which will useful for students.
This programme is being organized in the state for multi-dimensional development of children through language skill up-gradation, reading other books in addition to textbooks, developing an interest in understanding and other co-curricular activities in government schools.
Over 2 lakh volunteers who have registered for the “Mil -Banche Madhya Pradesh” programme include 820 engineers, 843 doctors, 36 thousand employees of private sector, 19 thousand public representatives and around 45 thousand government employees and officers.

Source: DD News

5. Rupee slumps to 71-mark first time ever

The rupee slumped to a fresh record low of 71 against the dollar for the first time ever by falling 26 paise on persistent demand for the US currency amid rising crude prices.
At the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) market, the local currency opened lower at 70.95 a dollar and slipped further to hit its lifetime low of 71 from its previous close of 70.74.
Growing fears about rising inflation in amid high global crude oil prices and consistent outflow of foreign funds from the domestic equity market also weighed on the domestic currency.

Source: business standard

6. PM to launch India Post Payments Bank tomorrow

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch the India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) at Talkatora Stadium in New Delhi tomorrow.
India Post Payments Bank has been envisioned as an accessible, affordable and trusted bank for the common man to help speedily achieve the financial inclusion.
The payments bank, where the Indian government holds 100 percent equity, will leverage the vast network of the Department of Posts (DoP) that has more than three lakh postmen and Grameen Dak Sewaks.
The launch of India Post Payments Bank marks another significant milestone in the government’s endeavor to take the benefits of a rapidly developing India to the remotest corners of the country.
Earlier this week, the cabinet had approved 80 percent increase in spending for IPPB to Rs 1,435 crore.

Source: DD News

7. India has the most number of internet shutdowns in the world, says a report

According to Access Now data reported by Vice News, India has the most number of shutdowns of any country by a huge distance - 154 between January 2016 and May 2018.
By comparison, second-placed Pakistan only had 19 shutdowns during the same period.
A report by The Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER), found that 16,315 hours of intentional internet downtime between 2012 and 2017 has cost the Indian economy $3.04 billion.

Note:

An internet shutdown occurs when someone (usually the government) intentionally disrupts the internet or mobile apps to control what people say or do.

Source: business standard

8. 'Krishna Kutir' largest home for widows inaugurated in UP'

A special home to the house around 1,000 widows was inaugurated at Vrindavan in Uttar Pradesh by Union Minister for Women and Child Development Maneka Gandhi and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
'Krishna Kutir' -- said to be largest such facility constructed by a government -- was constructed on 1.4 hectares at a cost of 57.48 crores,".
It was constructed by the Ministry of Women and Child Development under its "Swadhar Greh scheme" through National Building Construction Corporation.
The four-storey building was designed in consultation with NGO HelpAge India and includes facilities like ramps, lifts and other amenities as per the requirements of senior citizens and differently-abled people.
The facility has a large modern kitchen and also a skill center, funded by the Centre but managed by the Uttar Pradesh government.

Source: business standard

9. Kashmir gets its first Muslim woman pilot

Thirty-year-old Iram Habib has become the first Kashmiri Muslim woman to become a pilot.
Habib will join a private airline next month.
Iram succeeds Tanvi Raina, a Kashmiri Pandit, who joined Air India as the Valley’s first woman pilot in 2016.
In April last year, 21-year-old Ayesha Aziz, also from Kashmir, became India’s youngest student pilot.

Source: The Economic Times

10. Google launches Project Navlekha for bringing offline content online

Understanding the importance of regional languages in India, search giant Google has announced a new program that will empower offline newspapers and magazines in India to bring their content online.
Announced during the fourth edition of 'Google for India' event, the Project Navlekha claims to bring offline content online in just a few clicks.
Project Navlekha — its new initiative to bring India’s 135,000 Indic language publications online in a hassle-free manner.
Navlekha, which means ‘a new way to write’ in Sanskrit, will allow local publishers who do not have websites to make their offline content fit for online publishing in less than a minute.

Source: business standard

Agreement & Deals

11. ADB, India Sign $346 Million Loan to Improve State Highways in Karnataka

Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved USD 346 million loans to finance road improvement across a dozen districts in Karnataka.
ADB and the Government of India signed a USD 346 million loan agreement to finance improvement of over 400 kilometers of state highways that will enhance connectivity and access to economic centers across 12 districts in Karnataka.
The loan agreement for the Karnataka State Highways Improvement III Project (KSHIP-III) was inked between Sameer Kumar Khare, Joint Secretary in the Finance Ministry and Kenichi Yokoyama, Country Director of ADB's India Resident Mission.

Source: The Times of India

12. Germany to provide euro 120 mn soft loan for Clean Ganga Mission: Envoy

Germany will provide a soft loan of 120 million euros (approx. Rs 990 crore) to India as part of its contribution to the ongoing river Ganga cleaning programme.
The money will be used in Uttarakhand for various activities including construction of sewerage network, sewage treatment plants, and rehabilitation of existing wastewater systems.
“The purpose of the project is to reduce the inflow of untreated wastewater in River Ganga and, thus, to improve the water quality of the river,”.
This project also includes construction of 13 sewage pumping stations.

Source: The Economic Times

Science & Defense

13. Vostok-2018: Russia to hold the largest military exercise in September

According to the Russia defense minister, Russia will conduct its biggest war games since at least the 1980s, with around 300,000 troops and 1,000 aircraft.
The Vostok-2018 exercises will be carried out from September 11 to 15 in the country's east with the participation of China and Mongolia.
Vostok-2018 will involve the participation of units from the Russian Army, Air Force, and Navy.
China and Mongolia will also participate in Vostok 2018.