Current Affairs - August 8, 2020 Current Affairs

Indian Railways has launched an Overhead Equipment (OHE) Inspection app which will help in minimizing the train delays and long waits due to technical snags. The app has been rolled out on a Pan India basis.

In order to give a major boost to "Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao" campaign, on August 5, 2020, state government of Haryana has launched two schemes, with a total outlay of Rs 256 crore, viz. launched "Mahila Evam Kishori Samman Yojana" to provide free sanitary napkins to girls and women of below poverty line (BPL) families, and also initiated "Mukhya Mantri Doodh Uphar Yojana" to provide fortified flavoured skimmed milk powder to women and children.

An order of Department of Personnel Training informed that the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet(ACC), Government of India (GoI), has approved another extension of Ajay Tyagi's term as Chairman of Securities and Exchange Board of India(SEBI) for 18 months, with effect from(w.e.f)01.09.2020 up to 28.02.2022 or until further orders, whichever is earlier.The government had granted a 6-month extension to him before the expiry of his three-year tenure on March 1, 2020.He took charge from his predecessor, U K Sinha, on March 1, 2017.

On the occasion of birth anniversary of slain Congress leader Mahendra Karma, i.e. on August 5, 2020, the Chhattisgarh Chief Minister (CM) Bhupesh Baghel launched a social security scheme namely "Shaheed Mahendra Karma Tendupatta Sangrahak Samajik Suraksha Yojana" for tendu leaves collectors in the state covering over 12 lakh families, mostly tribals and forest dwellers.

On august 6, 2020 the famous fiction writer and Pulitzer Prize-winner, Shirley Ann Grau, died at the age of 91 due to stroke in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. She was born on July 8, 1929 in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States.

On 4th August 2020, Antonio Guterres Secretary-General of United Nations(UN) launched the report titled "Policy Brief: Education during COVID-19 and beyond" states that around 23.8 million additional children and youths may drop out or not have access to education in 2021 due to the economic impacts of COVID-19.

Union Minister of Education Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank has laid the foundation stone of Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Sirmaur at Dhaula kuan in the Sirmaur district of Himachal Pradesh through Video conference ,along with Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh Shri Jai Ram Thakur;Minister of State for Finance Shri Anurag Singh Thakur and Minister of State for Education Shri Sanjay Dhotre.

Prem Bhatia award 2020 is conferred upon Indian Express reporter Dipankar Ghose- 'Outstanding Political Reporting of The Year 2020' and People's Archive of Rural India(PARI), a non-profit journalism website - 'Outstanding Environmental Reporting of The Year 2020'.Dipankar Ghose bagged the award for his political reporting on issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic, including the migrant labour crisis. PARI was awarded for its extensive field reports, including climate change effects and the impact of the pandemic on rural India. It is dedicated to reporting on rural India.

In accordance with the report by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) published on August 3, 2020, if the economic impact of Covid-19 persists throughout the year then global remittances may fall by $108.6 billion in 2020.Migrant workers are in extreme situations while many others are facing scant job security and limited access to social assistance. In the last three months of the outbreak, global remittances will fall by $108.6 billion in 2020. This is equivalent to an 18.3% decline from what would have been expected without the impact of Covid-19.

On 5th August 2020, Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh launched the 'Pride of Punjab' programme through video conferencing.The programme is a partnership programme between the Department of Youth Services and Sports and YuWaah - a joint initiative of UNICEF, other UN agencies, civil society organisations and the private sector.

On August 5, 2020, India has extended the Line of Credit (LoC) worth US$18 million to the Government of Maldives for the expansion of fishing facilities at Maldives Industrial Fisheries Company (MIFCO) based in Felivaru, Lhaviyani Atoll, through the development of fish collection and storage facilities, and the setting up of a tuna cooked plant and fishmeal plant.

On August 6, 2020, Airtel Payments Bank has entered into a partnership with Bharti AXA General Insurance to offer the latter's affordable and newly launched shop insurance product namely "Smart Plan Shop Package Policy" for financial protection of the bank's retailers and merchants.The policy will provide financial protection in case of damage to assets inside the shop due to fire and allied perils and burglary, among others, as covered in the product.

The famous Journalist and Author, Yatish Yadav wrote a new book titled, "RAW (Research and Analysis Wing): A History of India's Covert Operations", narrates the heroic operations carried out by the Indian external spy agency, RAW has been published by Westland Publications and is available in Amazon and other bookstores in India.

On 2nd August 2020, Malayalam film 'Moothon' and National Award winning documentary 'Son Rise' won awards at the 20th edition of New York Indian Film Festival (NYIFF) of Indo-American Arts Council (IAAC) which was conducted as a virtual event with the celebrities of the film industries and award winners participating from all across India and the United States.