National & International Appointments
1. Pankaj Kumar Singh appointed new BSF Director General
- Pankaj Kumar Singh (1988-batch IPS officer from Rajasthan cadre) took over as the Director General (DG) of Border Security Force
- He is considered as the architect of police reforms in India
- He replaced SS Deswal, who was holding the DG post since Rakesh Asthana moved to Delhi Police
- Apart from him, Sanjay Arora assumed charge of Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP)
- BSF is India's Primary border guarding organization on its border with Pakistan and Bangladesh.
Sports
2. Javelin Thrower Sumit Antil wins Gold for India at Tokyo Paralympics
- India’s Sumit Antil (23 years) has won Gold Medal in men’s javelin throw F64 final event at 2020 Tokyo Paralympics
- She set a new world record throw of 68.55m, winning second gold medal for India at Tokyo Paralympics Games
- Michal Burian of Australia won the silver medal (66.29m), while Sri Lanka’s Dulan Kodithuwakku won bronze medal.
- Now, total medal tally of India has reached 7.
- Bronze medal won by Vinod Kumar in the discus throw F56 final was declared as ineligible
Honours & Awards
3. Dorje Angchuk becomes first Indian to be inducted as IAU Honorary Member
- Ladakh based Dorje Angchuk has been inducted as an Honorary Member of the International Astronomical Union (IAU).
- He is an Engineer in charge at the Indian Astronomical Observatory of the Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA) at Hanle in Ladakh region
- He is the first and only Indian to be inducted in IAU, among 10 members around the world
- He has been selected for ‘his passionate promotion of astronomy in the Ladakh region, through his excellent astrophotography’.
National & International Organizations
4. Amul ranks 18th in Rabobank 2021 Global Dairy Top 20 Report
- Amul has dropped two places to rank 18th in the Rabobank’s 2021 Global Top 20 Dairy Companies list with annual turnover of $5.3 billion
- Amul was placed at 16th spot in 2020.
- French-based dairy company Lactalis has topped the list as the world’s largest dairy company with turnover of US $23.0 billion, followed by Nestle.
- Rabobank’s Global Diary Top 20 Report is released annually to rank the dairy industry upon their sales data and financial statements
Defense
5. India conducts maiden Maritime Partnership Exercise with Algerian Navy
- INS Tabar is participating in the Maiden Maritime Partnership Exercise with Algerian Navy, off the Algerian coast, in the Mediterranean Sea.
- Algerian Naval Ship ANS Ezzadjer participated in this exercise.
- Aim: to enhance interoperability, understand the concept of operations and open the possibility of increasing interaction and collaboration between the two navies in the future.
- INS Tabar is a Talwar-class stealth Frigate built in Russia for the Indian Navy.
National Affairs
6. Union Minister launches e-GOPALA web version
- Union Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry, and Dairying, Parshottam Rupala has launched E-GOPALA web version to aid dairy farmers
- It has been developed by National Dairy Development Board (NDDB)
- Along with this, i-MAP web portal has also been launched that provides real-time information to dairy farmers for better productivity of dairy animals.
- This portal will facilitate real time checking of coverage and progress of various projects and government schemes.
Science & Technology
7. IIT Madras to launch online platform ‘E-Source’ to tackle e-Waste
- IIT Madras is developing an innovative digital model to address the problem of e-waste (electronic wastes).
- This e-waste digital platform will be named as ‘e-Source’
- It will act as an exchange platform to serve as an online marketplace for Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE)
- It will link various stakeholders (buyers and sellers) of used and waste electronic equipment and components
- The initiative is being led by Indo-German Centre for Sustainability (IGCS)
National & International Appointments
8. Nine New Supreme Court Judges takes oath
- Chief Justice of India N V Ramana administered the oath of nine new judges, including 3 women judges, took oath as Supreme Court judges
- With the swearing-in of the nine new judges, total strength of Supreme Court has increased to 33, including the CJI.
- Total sanctioned strength Supreme Court: 34.
- The nine new judges are: Abhay Shreeniwas Oka, Vikram Nath, Jitendra Kumar Maheshwari, Hima Kohli, B V Nagarathna, C T Ravikumar, M M Sundresh, Bela M Trivedi, P S Narasimha.
Agreement
9. PayU to acquire Indian digital payments provider BillDesk for $4.7 bn
- Netherlands-based Prosus NV has announced to acquire the Indian digital payments provider BillDesk and merge it with its own fintech service business PayU for $4.7 billion.
- This acquisition will make the combined entity of PayU and BillDesk as the leading online payment providers globally and in India by total payment volume
- Transaction is subject to approval from Competition Commission of India (CCI)
- It will also raise Prosus’s investement into India to $10 billion.
Sports
10. Dale Steyn announces retirement from all forms of cricket
- South African cricketer Dale Steyn has announced his retirement from all forms of cricket with immediate effect on 31st August, 2021.
- He is regarded as one of the greatest fast bowlers of all time and is fondly known as 'Steyn Gun'
- He made his international debut in 2004 and played 93 Tests, 125 ODIs and 47 T20Is.
- He holds the record for the fastest bowler to 400 Test wickets (80 matches), 196 wickets in ODIs and 64 wickets in T20
- He had also played for RCB in IPL
Sports
11. Mariyappan Thangavelu, Sharad Kumar wins silver, bronze at T63
- India’s Mariyappan Thangavelu has won silver medal in men’s high jump (T63) at Tokyo Paralympics with 1.86m mark.
- In the same event, Sharad Kumar won the bronze medal, clearing 1.83m mark.
- Sam Grewe of United States won the gold medal with 1.88m mark.
- With the two new medals, India’s medal tally at the Tokyo Paralympics has now reached to 10.
Obituaries
12. Legendary cricket coach Vasoo Paranjape passes away
- Former Indian cricketer and renowned coach, Vasudeo Paranjape (82 years) passed away in Mumbai, Maharashtra due to age related illness.
- He played a crucial role in shaping the careers of numerous Indian cricket players
- He was popularly known as Vasoo.
- He had played in 29 first-class matches for Mumbai and Baroda cricket team, with 785 runs.
- He was the father of Jatin Paranjape, former national selector and cricketer
Important Dates
13. International Day for People of African Descent: 31 August
- International Day for People of African Descent is observed every year on August 31, 2021 by United Nations.
- Aim: To promote the extraordinary contributions of the African diaspora around the world and eliminate all forms of discrimination against people of African descent.
- International Decade for People of African Descent is being observed from 2015 to 2024.
- It is celebrated for the first time in 2021.
Sports
14. Singhraj Adhana wins Paralympics Bronze Medal in 10m Air Pistol
- Indian shooter Singhraj Adana has won the bronze medal in P1 Men’s 10m Air Pistol SH1 final at the ongoing Tokyo Paralympics 2020
- He shot a total of 216.8 to finish at third place.
- China dominated the finals with defending champion Chao Yang (237.9 - Paralympic record) and Huang Xing (237.5) winning Gold and Silver medals respectively.
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