Current Affairs - August 1, 2017 Current Affairs

An Army medic who ran into danger to save wounded soldiers during a Vietnam War battle despite his own serious wounds became the first Medal of Honor recipient under President Donald Trump. 48 years after the selfless acts of bravery, James McCloughan is now nationally recognised.

Los Angeles reached an agreement with the leaders of the International Olympic Committee on plans to host the 2028 Summer Games. It announced its bid for the 2028 Summer Olympics after agreeing on a deal that paves the way for Paris to host in 2024.

Tech giant Cisco named former Philips Healthcare executive, Sameer Garde as President for its India and South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) operations. He succeeded Dinesh Malkani.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said it has imposed a penalty of Rs 1 crore on state-owned Union Bank of India for "non-compliance" with the directions on Know Your Customer (KYC) norms.

The Supreme Court imposed a ban on the use of five harmful metals including lead and mercury in firecrackers as they cause enormous air pollution. A bench headed by Justice Madan B Lokur prohibited use of lithium, mercury, arsenic, antimony, lead metals which are used in the manufacturing of firecrackers.

The Punjab government has recently launched its flagship 'Apni Gaddi Apna Rozgar' scheme for jobless youth by flagging off over 100 uberMOTO bikes. Under the scheme, the state government will provide commercial two wheelers and four wheelers to unemployed youth at subsidised rates. The scheme will be a game-changer for the youth of Punjab and will play a catalysing role in encouraging micro-entrepreneurship opportunities throughout the state.

The new bilateral Agreement on Trade Commerce and Transit between India and Bhutan. It aims to further strengthen the bilateral trade relations between both countries. The agreement provides for a free trade regime between the territories of India and Bhutan. The bilateral trade relations between India and Bhutan are governed by the Agreement on Trade, Commerce, and Transit.

Central government launched 'Swachh Survekshan-2018' to rank all the 4,041 cities and towns of the country based on infrastructure development for improved sanitation services and their sustainability, outcomes, citizen connect and visible impact on ground. This would be the first Pan-India survey to assess sanitation levels in all the cities and towns of the country impacting the lives of about 40 crore urban citizens, considered as the largest of its kind in the world.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the two-day "Rajaswa Gyansangam" on 1st September in New Delhi. The focus of the discussion will be on GST as well as on unearthing black money.

The 19th round of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Trade Negotiating Committee (TNC) meetings and other related meetings were held from 17 to 28 July 2017 in Hyderabad, India. RCEP is a proposed comprehensive regional economic integration agreement (mega Free Trade Agreement) amongst the 10-ASEAN countries (Brunei, Indonesia, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, Singapore and Vietnam) and its six Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) partners namely Australia, New Zealand, India, China, Japan, and Korea.

The government has ordered state-run oil companies to raise subsidised cooking gas, LPG, prices by four rupees per cylinder every month to eliminate all the subsidies by March next year. Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.

The researchers at the IIT Kharagpur have developed a low-cost dirt detector that alerts authorities when a place needs cleaning. The Smart Hygiene Monitor (SHM) records levels of ammonia, sulphur dioxide, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, volatile organic compounds and particulate matter through sensors and sends online alerts to stakeholders when a certain threshold is crossed. It can be installed at any place where cleanliness needs to be monitored at regular intervals.