Current Affairs 29th August 2018
NATIONAL
- India’s first Indian human mission will be launched by Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) by 2022. This was stated by the Union Minister of State (I/C) Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh.
- Union Water Resources Minister Nitin Gadkari signed an MoU with six states for the construction of the Lakhwar multi-purpose project in the upper Yamuna basin to deal with water crisis.
- An MoU was signed between the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) and National Health Agency (NHA), to provide capacity building for Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) to ensure effective rollout and continued quality implementation
INTERNATIONAL
- The G20 Digital Economy Ministerial Meeting was held in Salta, Argentina. It took place as part of Sherpa Track for 2018 G20 Leaders’ Summit, which is to be hosted by Argentina by end of 2018. The theme of the meeting was ‘Building consensus for fair and sustainable development’.
BANKING & ECONOMY
- Alphabet Inc’s Google has partnered with four Indian banks to grant consumer loans online, as the fight for a $1 trillion digital finance market intensifies. The U.S. search giant has teamed with HDFC Bank Ltd., ICICI Bank Ltd., Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd. and Federal Bank Ltd. to offer instant, pre-approved loans to customers.
- DBS Bank has been named the world’s best bank by Global Finance magazine, in a reflection of its ability to invest in digital innovation while still maintaining stable operations for its customers.
- Punjab National Bank (PNB) has announced that the Department of Financial Services report has rated it as number one state-owned bank in terms of digital transactions.
- According to the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion data, Foreign Direct Investment, FDI in India rose 23% to 12.8 billion dollars during the April to June quarter of this fiscal.
SPORTS
- The 2019 Asian Youth and Junior Weightlifting Championships will be held in the North Korean capital Pyongyang, a signal that the secretive country may be coming in from the sporting cold.
- Neeraj Chopra became the first-ever Indian javelin thrower to win a gold medal at the Asian Games.
- World number three PV Sindhu lost to world number one Tai Tzu-ying (Taiwan) in the women’s singles final to bag India’s first-ever silver medal in badminton at Asian Games.
