1. Mohammad Mokhber named as first Vice President of Iran.

• Iran’s new President Ebrahim Raisi named the chairman of a powerful state-owned foundation sanctioned by the United States as his first vice-president.
• Mohammad Mokhber has for years headed the foundation known as Setad or the Execution of Imam Khomeini’s order.
• Mokhber was appointed to the position by the supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in 2007. The Setad was originally founded in the late 1980s to manage confiscated properties following the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

2. Pakistan successfully test-fires nuclear-capable ballistic missile Ghaznavi.

• The Pakistan Army successfully test-fired a nuclear-capable surface-to-surface ballistic missile Ghaznavi.
• The Ghaznavi missile can strike targets up to 290 kilometres and is capable of carrying both nuclear as well as conventional warheads.
• The training launch was aimed at ensuring the operational readiness of Army Strategic Forces Command (ASFC) and re-validating technical parameters of the weapon system.

1.Indian Railways Launches Rail Madad: A Unified Customer Care Solution.

• Indian Railways has launched an integrated one-stop solution “Rail Madad” in which the national transporter has merged a number of existing helplines that were used for various purposes into one.
• The Railway ministry toll-free number 139 can be used for all kinds of enquiries and making complaints and the helpline facility is available round-the-clock in 12 languages. 
• Rail Madad, the integrated and innovative one-stop solution for customer grievance, enquiry, suggestion and assistance, providing passengers with the choice to access Rail Madad through multiple channels, namely, Web, App, SMS, Social Media and Helpline number (139) during the journey for expeditious resolution of their complaints.

2. PM Modi announces palm oil initiative.

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced a Rs 11,000 crore National Edible Oil Mission-Oil Palm (NMEO-OP) to make India self-sufficient in cooking oils, including palm oil.
• The government will ensure that farmers get all the facilities, from quality seeds to technology under the mission. While India has become self-sufficient in rice, wheat and sugar, it was not enough as the country is hugely dependent on imported edible oils.
• The Centre has already been running a National Mission on Oilseeds and Oil Palm to boost oilseeds and palm oil production in India for the last few years with an aim to lower imports.

1.Karnataka becomes first state to issue order implementing NEP-2020.

• Karnataka has become the first state in the country to issue the order with regard to the implementation of the National Education Policy-2020.
• The state government has issued an order on the implementation of NEP-2020 with effect from the current academic year 2021-2022.
• This policy seeks to entirely overhaul the system through various reforms: A single regulator to oversee higher education; no more MPhil courses before PhD; fixed fees for public and private institutions; students can choose between three and four-year undergraduate courses; multiple entries and exit points in degree courses.

2. Gujarat CM launches eNagar mobile application and portal.

• Gujarat Chief Minister, Vijay Rupani has launched eNagar mobile application and portal. The eNagar covers 10 modules with 52 services including property tax, professional tax, water & drainage, Complaints and grievance redressal, building permission, fire and emergency services.
• Gujarat Urban Development Mission has been appointed as a nodal agency for eNagar project. Total 170 locations including 162 municipalities and 8 Municipal Corporations are covered under the eNagar project.

3. Chhattisgarh becomes 1st state to recognise Forest Resource Rights in Urban Region.

• Chhattisgarh became the first state to recognise Community Forest Resource Rights in an urban area, with the state government recognising the rights of residents of Dhamtari district over 4,127 hectares of forests.
• Community resource rights over 5,544 hectares of forest within the core area of the tiger reserve area were also recognised.
• Under Forest Rights Act, 2006, Community Forest Resource Right gives gram sabhas the right to protect, regenerate or conserve or manage any forest resources used by the entire community, or village.

4. Indore declared India’s first ‘Water Plus’ certified city.

• India’s cleanest city, Indore in Madhya Pradesh, has achieved another feat of being declared as the country’s first ‘water plus’ certified city, under the Swachh Survekshan 2021. Swachh Survekshan is an annual survey of cleanliness, hygiene and sanitation in cities and towns across India launched as part of the Swachh Bharat Mission.
• Indore carried out a survey and halted 7,000 outfalls of greywater that went in rivers, drains.
• Moreover, 30 per cent of the city’s sewage water was recycled and reused. This recycled water was used by people in their gardens and some construction sites.
• Seven sewerage treatment plants were constructed in the city and about 110 million litres per day (MLD) treated water from them is being used.

1.India to launch advanced geo imaging satellite “Gisat-1”.

• India will finally launch its most advanced geo-imaging satellite (GiSAT-1), which will allow better monitoring of the subcontinent, including its borders with Pakistan and China, by imaging the country 4-5 times a day.
• The satellite will be launched on August 12 from Sriharikota. Isro’s GSLV-F10 rocket will finally put the 2,268-kg Gisat-1, codenamed EOS-3, into the geo-orbit. This will be India’s first launch of a primary satellite this year.
• Once placed 36,000 km above the earth in the geostationary orbit after space manoeuvres, the advanced ‘eye in the sky’ can constantly monitor areas of interest (the satellite will move in sync with the rotation of the Earth and hence would look stationary) and will give real-time information about a large area unlike other remote sensing satellites placed in lower orbits that come to a spot only at regular intervals.

2. South Africa grants patent to an artificial intelligence system.

• South Africa grants a patent relating to a “food container based on fractal geometry” to an artificial intelligence (AI) system called DABUS. DABUS (which stands for “device for the autonomous bootstrapping of unified sentience”) is an AI system created by Stephen Thaler, a pioneer in the field of AI and programming.
• The system simulates human brainstorming and creates new inventions.

3. IT Ministry to host the first Internet Governance Forum in the country.

• India will host the first Internet Governance Forum in the country, starting from October 20, this year. The theme of this year’s meeting is Inclusive Internet for Digital India.
• With this announcement, the Indian chapter of the United Nations-based forum namely the Internet Governance Forum has begun. It’s an Internet Governance policy discussion platform to bring representatives together from various groups, considering all at par to discuss public policy issues related to the Internet.
• National Internet Exchange of India (NIXI), Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY) and the Chairman of the Coordination Committee, India Internet Governance Forum 2021 (IGF), announced the launch of India Internet Governance Forum (IIGF) -2021.

4. ISRO chief K Sivan inaugurates Health Quest study.

• ISRO chief, Dr. K Sivan has formally inaugurated the Health QUEST study (Health Quality Upgradation Enabled by Space Technology of ISRO) which will be undertaken by 20 private hospitals across India. The event was co-organised by the Association of Health Care Providers India (AHPI) and the Society for Emergency Medicine in India (SEMI).
• The objective of the study is to strive towards reducing human errors and achieve zero defect and quality service in the emergency and intensive care units of the hospital. The study aims to upgrade healthcare standards in line with ISRO quality standards and best practices.
• The quality assurance mechanism in vogue in ISRO will be shared with the study team to establish the parameters for healthcare quality standards.

5. Chandrayaan-2 orbiter detects water molecules on lunar surface.

• India’s Chandrayaan-2 moon mission may have made a hard landing on the lunar surface in 2019, but the orbiter accompanying it has been providing useful information to scientists back on Earth.
• A research paper revealed that the Chandrayaan-2 orbiter confirmed the presence of water molecules (H2o) and hydroxyl (OH) on the surface of the moon. The findings were published in the journal Current Science.
• The Chandrayaan-2 mission was launched by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in July 2019. But Vikram lander on-board the mission crash-landed on the lunar surface just 2.1 km from its destination in September that year.
• Chandrayaan-2 was launched with the aim of mapping the variations in lunar surface composition, as well as locating and studying the surface of the Moon for the presence of water.

1.Finance Ministry: over 5.82 crore Jan Dhan accounts inoperative.

• The Finance Ministry has informed Rajya Sabha that over 5.82 crore Jan Dhan (PMJDY) accounts are inoperative. This is 14 per cent of the total number of accounts. It means at least one out of 10 Jan Dhan accounts is inoperative.
• According to guidelines issued by the Reserve Bank of India, “savings, as well as current account, should be treated as inoperative/dormant if there are no transactions in the account for over a period of two years.
• According to the website of PMJDY, the total number of Jan Dhan accounts is 42.83 crore with a balance of nearly ₹1.43 lakh crore.

2. Number of Billionaires In India Dropped From 141 to 136.

• In the pandemic-hit financial year of 2020-21, the number of billionaires in India dropped from 141 in FY20 to 136 in FY21, as per a statement issued by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in the Rajya Sabha.
• The count is based on the gross total income declared in the income tax returns. In FY 2018-19, the number of individuals with a gross total annual income of more than Rs 100 cr is 77.
• As per the information available with the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), there is no legislative or administrative definition of the term billionaire under direct taxes. Wealth tax has been abolished with effect from 01.04.2016 and, therefore, CBDT does not any more capture information about the complete wealth of an individual taxpayer.

3. Retail inflation eases to 5.59% in July.

• Retail inflation eased to 5.59% in July mainly due to softening of food prices. The Consumer Price Index (CPI)-based inflation was 6.26% in June and 6.73% in July 2020.
• Inflation in the food basket slowed down to 3.96% in July from 5.15% in the previous month.
• Earlier this month, the RBI pegged the CPI inflation at 5.7% during 2021-22 — 5.9% in the second quarter, 5.3% in third, and 5.8% in the fourth quarter of the fiscal, with risks broadly balanced.

1. Kakori Train Conspiracy now renamed to Kakori Train Action.

• The Uttar Pradesh government has renamed a landmark freedom movement event as Kakori Train Action while paying tributes to the revolutionaries who were hanged for robbing a train at Kakori to buy weapons in 1925. The new name was used in official communications to refer to the event, usually described as the ‘Kakori train robbery’ or the ‘Kakori train conspiracy’.
• UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Governor Anandiben Patel attended a programme held on the anniversary of the event at Kakori-based Kakori Shaheed Smarak on the outskirts of Lucknow.
• Family members of the freedom fighters were honoured on this occasion, and an art exhibition was also held. A government official stated it was derogatory to describe the robbery that was a part of the freedom movement as “conspiracy”.

2. LG Manoj Sinha inaugurates “Bungus Awaam Mela” in J&K.

• Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha has inaugurated the Bungus Awaam Mela with grand arrangements for village games, exhilarating local performances, and other activities to celebrate the 75th year of Independence at Bungus valley in Kupwara district.
• While inaugurating the fair, the Lt Governor paid tributes to the great revolutionary, freedom fighter Khudiram Bose, on his death anniversary. He also remembered countless others who made sacrifices and invaluable contributions towards achieving the Independence of the country.

1. Haryana govt signs MoU with Walmart Vriddhi to help MSMEs.

• The Haryana government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with ‘Walmart Vriddhi’ and ‘Haqdarshak’ to create a pathway for Indian MSMEs’ products to move to the international markets.
• The MoU was signed in the presence of Haryana Deputy Chief Minister Dushyant Chautala, Vikas Gupta, MSME Department Director-General, the Indian government, Nitin Dutt from Walmart Vriddhi, and Aniket Doegar (CEO of Haqdarshak).
• To promote MSMEs apart from large industries, many important concessions have been given to investors in ‘Haryana Enterprises and Employment Policy-2020’. This move will bring a big opportunity for the MSME sector, as their products will be displayed in 24 countries and will be available in 10,500 stores under 48 banners.

2. UNICEF India, Facebook collaborate to make a safer online world for children.

• UNICEF India and Facebook have launched a one-year joint initiative on ending violence against children with a special focus on online safety. The partnership seeks to create a safe environment for children online and offline.
• It aims to improve children’s resilience and capacity to access the digital world safely, increase awareness on violence against children and its impact on children, families, and communities, and increase the skills of communities and frontline workers to better prevent and respond to violence.
• The partnership includes a nationwide social media campaign and capacity building for 100,000 school children on online safety, digital literacy, and psychosocial support. Well-known actor and UNICEF India’s celebrity advocate on ending violence against children, Ayushmann Khurrana, gave his keynote message during the virtual event.

1.India-UAE Navy undertakes bilateral exercise ‘Zayed Talwar 2021’.

• The Indian Navy and UAE Navy conducted the bilateral naval exercise ‘Zayed Talwar 2021’ on August 07, 2021, off the coast of Abu Dhabi.
• The main objective of the ‘Zayed Talwar 2021’ naval exercise was to enhance interoperability and synergy between the two navies. Indian Navy participated with INS Kochi, with two integral Sea King MK 42B helicopters, deployed in the Persian Gulf.
• From UAE, UAES AL – Dhafra, a Baynunah class guided missile corvette and one AS – 565B Panther helicopter took part in the exercise.

2. Indian Army contingent to participate in International Army Games 2021 in Russia.

• The 7th edition of the International Army Games, 2021, will be held from 22 August to 04 September 2021 in Russia. The competition will be hosted in eleven countries in the 2021 Games. Over 280 teams from 42 countries will compete in the game to show their combat skills, professionalism and determination to win.
• The International Army Games also referred to as ‘War Olympics’, is an international military sports event, which aims to strengthen military-to-military cooperation between countries and trust between the participating nations.
• From India, 101 members of the Indian Army will participate in the International Army Games, which is organised each year by the Russian Ministry of Defence, since 2015.

3. ITBP inducts its first women officers in combat.

• For the first time, India-China LAC guarding the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) force has commissioned its first two women officers in combat.
• The two women officers, Prakriti and Diksha will be posted as company commanders in ITBP battalions. Heretofore, women officers in the ITBP were serving in the medical branch or were on deputation from the Indian Police Service at top echelons.
• Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami and Deswal put the ranks of Assistant Commandant, the entry-level officer rank in the paramilitary, on the shoulders of Prakriti and Diksha after the passing out parade and attestation ceremony where they took an oath to serve the country.
• The ITBP started recruiting women combat officers in its cadre in 2016 through an all-India examination conducted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC).

4. India & Saudi Arabia set to conduct “AL-MOHED AL-HINDI 2021” exercise.

• India and Saudi Arabia are all set to conduct their first-ever naval exercise Al-Mohed Al-Hindi 2021. To participate in the exercise, India’s guided-missile destroyer INS Kochi reached Saudi Arabia.
• The joint naval exercise will showcase the reflection of growing defence and military cooperation between India and Saudi Arabia.
• The exercise is taking place amid rising tension in the Gulf region after a drone attack on a merchant tanker off Oman killed a British national and a Romanian citizen.
• The UK and the US pointed fingers at Iran for the attack on MV Mercer Street, operated by an Israeli-owned firm.
• In December 2020, Army Chief Gen MM Naravane visited the UAE and Saudi Arabia in a first-ever visit ahead of the Indian Army to the two important Gulf countries.

5. IAF builds one of the world’s highest mobile ATC towers in Ladakh.

• The Indian Air Force (IAF) has built one of the world’s highest mobile air traffic control (ATC) towers at the Advanced Landing Ground in Ladakh. The ATC controls operations of the fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters operating in the eastern Ladakh region.
• Meanwhile, India has been considering multiple options of developing airfields in eastern Ladakh including Daulat Beg Oldi (DBO), Fukche and Nyoma which are at a distance of few minutes from the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China.

6. DRDO Successfully Test-Fires Nirbhay Missile.

• The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has successfully test-fired medium-range subsonic cruise missile Nirbhay from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur, off Odisha coast.
• Nirbhay is India’s first Indigenous Technology Cruise Missile (ITCM).
• ITCM Nirbhay was successfully test-launched with a Made-in-India Manik turbofan engine.
• This was the first successful test-firing of the missile with the indigenous booster engine. It can use both conventional and nuclear weapons of 200 to 300 kilograms.
• The missile can be launched from multiple platforms. ITCM Nirbhay can travel at a speed of 0.7 to 0.9 Mach, or 4 to 7 times faster than the speed of sound.

7. Quad Navies to undertake Ex-Malabar 2021.

• The Quad country navies including, India, the US, Japan and Australia, will be conducting the annual Malabar naval exercises, from August 21, off the coast of Guam, in the Indo-Pacific.
• The harbour phase of the Malabar naval exercises will take place from August 21 to 24, 2021. The sea phase of the exercise will be held on August 25 to 29, 2021.
• Indian Navy will be represented by two surface combatants led by Guided Missile Destroyer INS Ranvijay and Frigate INS Shivalik along with maritime reconnaissance aircraft P-8I, ASW helicopters and Special Forces (Marine Commandos-MARCOS).
• The objective of the Malabar series of Exercises is to increase the interoperability of naval powers of the four QUAD countries.

8. Indian Navy takes part in US Navy-led multinational SEACAT exercises.

• The Indian Navy participated in the U.S. Navy-led Southeast Asia Cooperation and Training (SEACAT) military exercise in Singapore, to demonstrate its maritime manoeuvres.
• The main objective of SEACAT 2021 was to enhance the interoperability and shared maritime security concerns and preserve rules-based international order. The exercise comprised approximately 400 personnel and 10 ships.
• The 20th edition of the exercise was organised by the U.S. Navy, in Hybrid format, and included 20 other partner nations from the Indo-Pacific region, including India.
• SEACAT was held for the first time in 2002. The exercise aims to foster enhanced cooperation between Southeast Asian countries by incorporating standardized training, tactics and procedures when faced with crises, contingencies or illegal activities in the maritime domain.