General Knowledge & Current Affairs
August 2022 - 22nd to 31st
- National Conference of Women Police being held in Shimla on August 21-22
- Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah chairs 23rd meeting of Central Zonal Council in Bhopal (MP)
- India and Iran sign MoU mutually recognising certificates of competency of seafarers
- Paraguay: External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar unveils bust of Mahatma Gandhi in capital Asuncion
- Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan holds bilateral meeting with his Australian counterpart Jason Clare at Western Sydney University
- Veteran film-maker Abdul Gaffar Nadiadwala dies in Mumbai at 91
- Supreme Court refers conflict between the Shiv Sena factions of Uddhav Thackeray and Eknath Shinde to 5-judge constitution bench for resolution
- DRDO and Indian Navy flight-test VL-SRSAM (Vertical Launch Short Range Surface-to-Air Missile) off Odisha coast
- 3 officers of IAF sacked for the March 9 accidental firing of a Brahmos missile that landed in Pakistan
- Paraguay: External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar inaugurates newly opened Indian Embassy in Asuncion
- South African Army Chief Lieutenant General Lawrence Khulekani Mbatha meets Indian Army Chief General Manoj Pande in New Delhi
- Centre signs headquarters agreement with CDRI (Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure), enables international status
- Padma awards nominations portal launched; Sept 15 last date for submission
- Vikram Doraiswami appointed as next High Commissioner of India to UK
- CM Nitish Kumar’s Mahagathbandhan alliance wins trust vote in Bihar Assembly 160–0
- Punjab: PM inaugurates Homi Bhabha Cancer Hospital & Research Centre of Tata Memorial Centre in Mohali
- Haryana: PM inaugurates Rs 6,000 cr Amrita Hospital of Mata Amritanandamayi Math in Faridabad
- Transgender persons to get holistic health services under Ayushman Bharat –PMJAY (Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana), Ministry of Social Justice signs MOU with NHA
- EAM S Jaishankar calls on President of Brazil Jair Bolsonaro in Brasilia
- Defence Minister Rajnath Singh attends Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Defence Ministers’ meeting at Tashkent, Uzbekistan
- I&B Minister Anurag Thakur launches Azadi Quest App, a series of online mobile games on the heroes and milestones of Indian freedom
- National Conference of Labour Ministers of States & UTs being held in Tirupati (AP) on August 25-26
- Centre approves UP’s Parivar Kalyan Card scheme that will provide 12-digit ID number for each family
- PM security lapse in Punjab on Jan 5: SC panel finds Ferozepur SSP failed to discharge duty
- Distinguished scientist Samir V Kamat appointed DRDO Chairman
- Saawan Kumar Tak, director of films such as “Sanam Bewafa” and “Souten”, dies at 86
- Punjab & Haryana agree to rename Chandigarh International Airport after Shaheed Bhagat Singh
- India, Australia conclude Maritime Partnership Exercise (MPX) near Perth
- Scotland museum signs deal to return seven ancient artefacts to India
- Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal visits Chabahar Port in Iran to review work progress
- Former Jharkhand Governor Syed Sibtey Razi passes away in Lucknow
- Egypt releases postage stamp on 75th Anniversary of diplomatic ties with India
- UGC declares 21 universities as “fake” and not empowered to confer any degree, majority of which are in Delhi (8) followed by UP (7)
- SC refers freebies issue to 3-judge bench; calls for expert committee to discuss the subject
- Defence Minister Rajnath Singh holds talks with Tanzanian counterpart Dr Stergomena Lawrence Tax in New Delhi
- Indian Navy receives first-ever fully indigenous ammunition for AK-630 guns fitted on warships
- Tamil film director Mani Nagaraj dies at 45; known for film ‘Pencil’
- National parties collected Rs 15,077.97 crore from unknown sources in 2004-21: Association for Democratic Reforms
- Centre conducts door-to-door screening for Tuberculosis in over 68,000 villages under Aashwasan campaign
- Gujarat: PM virtually inaugurates new office building of Gujarat Rajya Khadi Gramodyog Board in Ahmedabad
- Chhattisgarh: Home Minister Amit Shah inaugurates office building of National Investigation Agency (NIA) in Raipur
- Lifetime domestic help, chauffeur for CJIs, SC judges after retirement
- Justice Uday Umesh Lalit sworn in as the 49th Chief Justice of India
- Builder Supertech’s 40-storey twin towers in Nodia demolished over violation of construction laws
- Govt. launches website www.swachhsagar.org to boost ongoing Coastal Clean-Up campaign
- Union Home minister Amit Shah attends first convocation of National Forensic Science University in Gandhinagar
- India-USA Joint Special Forces Exercise VAJRA PRAHAR 2022 concludes at Bakloh in Himachal Pradesh
- Enhanced range Pinaka rockets test-fired at Balasore and Pokhran; range extended from 37 kms to 45 kms
- SAREX-2022: ICG’s Dornier aircraft demonstrates ways of rescuing people from ships
- Gujarat: PM inaugurates Smriti Van memorial in Bhuj remembering people who died in 2001 earthquake in Kutch
- United Nations General Assembly, UNGA President and Foreign Minister of Maldives Abdulla Shahid visits India
- Queen Máxima of Netherlands calls on President Droupadi Murmu in New Delhi
- New envoys: 1. Francisco Teodoro Maldonado Guevara, Ambassador of Ecuador 2. Ahmed Ali Dahir, Ambassador of Somalia 3. Philipp Ackermann, Ambassador of Germany 4. Arunkoemar Hardien, Ambassador of Suriname
- Supreme Court closes contempt proceedings, arising out of the demolition of Babri Masjid at Ayodhya in 1992, against the state of Uttar Pradesh and others
- Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan holds talks with his Brazilian counterpart Victor Godoy in New Delhi
- MoS Dr Rajkumar Ranjan Singh visits ASEAN Secretariat in Jakarta, Indonesia
- Economist and former Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen passes away at 72
- India votes in favour of proposal seeking to allow Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to address UNSC virtually
- 8th India-Brazil Joint Commission Meeting held in Brasilia
- Ukraine: 22 people died when Russian rocket strikes hit Chaplyne town
- Tropical Storm Ma-On hits Philippines, 3 dead
- Thailand: PM Prayuth Chan-ocha suspended by Constitutional Court from office amid term-limit row
- US President Joe Biden marks Ukraine’s Independence Day with $3-bn military package
- International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition observed on August 23
- South Korea, US start joint military drills ‘Ulchi Freedom Shield’ in South Korea
- Sri Lanka: Chinese satellite tracking ship ‘Yuan Wang 5’ leaves Hambantota Port after 6-day stay
- The International Day Commemorating the Victims of Acts of Violence Based on Religion or Belief observed on August 22
- Somalia: Govt. forces end hotel attack in capital Mogadishu that killed 20 people
- World Mosquito Day observed on August 20; marks the 1897 discovery by Sir Ronald Ross that female Anopheles mosquitoes transmit malaria between humans
- International Day of Remembrance & Tribute to Victims of Terrorism observed on August 21
- World Senior Citizen’s Day celebrated on August 21
- Pakistani singer Nayyara Noor dies at 71; her family migrated from India in 1958
- Russia to allow UN officials to visit and inspect Zaporizhzhia nuclear power complex in Ukraine
- External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar meets Argentina’s President Alberto Fernández in Buenos Aires
- Russia blocks adoption of joint declaration by UN Conference on Nuclear Disarmament
- Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, occupied by Russian troops, back online
- Iraq: Influential Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr (49) announces retirement from politics
- Pakistan Floods: First aid flights begin arriving in country from Turkey, UAE
- International Day against Nuclear Tests observed by UN on August 29
- Stockholm World Water Week being held from August 23 to Sept 1; theme: “Seeing the Unseen: The Value of Water”
- Angola: Ruling MPLA (Movement for the Liberation of Angola) wins election; President Joao Lourenco gets 2nd term
- Solomon Islands bans US Navy’s ships from entering its ports; had signed security pact with China in May
- International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances observed on August 30
- Govt launches 2nd phase of Grameen Udyami Project to promote skill development and entrepreneurship amongst tribal youth
- India’s first indigenously built Hydrogen Fuel Cell bus by CSIR, KPIT launched in Pune
- Vijay Shekhar Sharma to continue as Paytm’s MD & CEO for another 5 years
- Asian Development Bank (ADB) to provide $96.3-mn loan to improve water supply in Himachal Pradesh
- Union MoS for Textiles Darshana Jardosh inaugurates Silk Mark Expo in New Delhi
- Godrej Agrovet signs MoUs with Assam, Manipur and Tripura to promote oil palm cultivation under NMEO-OP (National Mission on Edible Oils-Oil Palm) scheme
- Adani group-owned AMG Media Networks (AMNL) acquires 29.18% stake in NDTV, makes Rs 493-crore open offer
- Finance Ministry makes unauthorised publication of export-import data compoundable offence
- Centre implements ‘One Nation One Fertiliser’ plan under ‘Bharat’ brand
- Printing question paper exempt from GST, but not answer booklet, rules AAR (Authority for Advance Rulings)
- International Conference on Indian Minerals and Metals Industry held in New Delhi on August 23-24
- RBI lifts restrictions on American Express imposed in May 2021 for not complying with payments data storage rules
- SC agrees to examine a plea seeking a review of the PMLA verdict which upheld the Enforcement Directorate’s powers, including those relating to arrest
- Govt decides to put restrictions on export of wheat flour to curb prices
- Centre advises edible oil manufacturers to declare net quantity in volume without temperature
- India-Mauritius Joint Committee Meeting on Small and Medium Enterprise Cooperation held in New Delhi
- Former Chief Economic Adviser Krishnamurthy Subramanian appointed as Executive Director (India) at IMF
- Essar Group announces USD 2.4 billion deal to sell its ports business to Arcelor Mittal Nippon Steel Ltd
- FM Nirmala Sitharaman meets US Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo in New Delhi
- AAI, Sweden’s LFV Air Navigation Services join hands for developing next generation sustainable aviation technology
- 8th India International MSME and StartUp Summit and Expo held in New Delhi
- Govt bans export of wheat flour, maida, semolina to curb rising prices
- Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY), the National Mission for Financial Inclusion, completes 8 years of implementation
- Gujarat: Event held in Gandhinagar to mark 40 years of Suzuki Motor Corporation in India
- $4.7-bn BillDesk acquisition: Prosus-backed PayU gets show-cause notice from Competition Commission of India (CCI)
- All subsidised fertilisers, including Urea and DAP (Diammonium phosphate), to be sold from October under single brand name – “Bharat” – as part of the Centre’s ‘One Nation, One Fertiliser’ initiative
- Delhi HC sets aside arbitral award directing ISRO’s Antrix Corporation to pay damages of USD 562.2 million with interest to Devas Multimedia Private Limited for unlawfully terminating a deal in 2011
- Large scale exports and deepening the ecosystem vital to higher Domestic Value Addition in Electronics Sector: ICRIER report
- Stop charging platform fee on BBPS (Bharat Bill Payment System) payments: NPCI (National Payments Corporation of India) directs payment apps
- Economic Advisory Council to Prime Minister releases Competitiveness Roadmap for India@100
- Public sector contributes 20% to national income, 40% of total wages: India Ratings and Research
- Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal Chairs progress review of Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC)
- MoU signed between PCIM&H (Pharmacopoeia Commission for Indian Medicine and Homoeopathy) and IPC (Indian Pharmacopoeia Commission) for Inter-Ministerial cooperation for promotion and facilitation of “One Herb, One Standard”
- NHPC inks MoU with PTC India Limited for sale of power to be generated from upcoming West Seti & Seti River-6 Projects in Nepal
- UKRAINE
A Russian strike on a train station in the city of Chaplyne in central Ukraine killed 22 people on August 24, Ukraine’s Independence Day and the six-month anniversary of the Russian invasion. - RUSSIA
Daria Dugina, a fiery nationalist ideologue in Russia, was killed by a car bomb. The intended target is rumoured to be her father, Alexander Dugin, another nationalist commentator who is said to influence President Vladimir Putin. - PAKISTAN
The Pakistan government filed a case against Imran Khan, the rabblerousing former prime minister, under antiterrorism laws. He is accused of threatening a judge and senior police officers. It is unclear whether he will actually be arrested. - MALAYSIA
Malaysia’s highest court upheld a guilty verdict against Najib Razak, the country’s prime minister from 2009 to 2018. He had been convicted of various crimes related to a colossal scam in which $4.5bn was looted from Malaysia’s sovereign wealth fund. Some $700m was found in Najib’s personal account; he insisted it was a political donation from an unnamed Saudi royal. - THAILAND
The Constitutional Court in Thailand suspended Prayuth Chan-ocha from his position as prime minister until a decision is reached as to whether he has breached the eight-year term limit codified in a constitution that was written by a committee favourable to him. Prayuth, a former general, took power in a coup in 2014. - NIGERIA
The US on August 23 agreed to return another instalment of $23m to Nigeria – part of money allegedly looted and stashed abroad by former Nigerian military ruler Sani Abacha. The US had in 2020 returned more than $300m to the West African country. - MALI
Mali’s military government, which has promised to hold elections in 2024, replaced its ailing civilian prime minister with an army person — Colonel Abdoulaye Maïga. The President, Colonel Assimi Goïta, is also from the military. - SOMALIA
Al-Shabab, a jihadist group linked to al-Qaeda, stormed a hotel close to presidential palace in Somalia’s capital Mogadishu, and held it for 30 hours, leaving at least 20 people dead. - ETHIOPIA
A humanitarian truce between Ethiopia’s government and rebels in the northern region of Tigray, enabling food and other aid to reach thousands of famished civilians, appeared to break down as fighting flared up in Tigray. - UNITED STATES
California, the most populous US state, readied new regulations that will ban the sale of new petrol-powered cars by 2035. The state reckons that 8% of cars sold in 2021 were zero-emission vehicles.
- Chess: Norway’s Magnus Carlsen Wins FTX Crypto Cup; India’s R. Praggnanandhaa 2nd
- Boxing: Ukraine’s Oleksandr Usyk defeats UK’s Anthony Joshua in Jeddah; retains world heavyweight title
- India (167/5 in 25.4) beat Zimbabwe (161/10 in 38.1) by 5 wickets in 2nd ODI at Harare
- Former India football team captain Samar ‘Badru’ Banerjee dies at 92 in Kolkata
- Chess: India’s Arjun Erigaisi clinches Abu Dhabi Masters
- BWF World Championships badminton in Tokyo: India’s Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty get bronze in men’s doubles after losing in semifinal
- FIFA lifts ban on AIFF, decks cleared for India’s hosting of women’s U-17 World Cup in October
- Diamond League athletics in Lausanne: Neeraj Chopra wins gold in men’s javelin with a throw of 89.08m
- Manu Gandas wins Impiger Technologies-Chennai Open golf tournament
- Badminton World Championship in Tokyo: Denmark’s Viktor Axelsen (men’s), Japan’s Akane Yamaguchi (women’s) win singles titles
- India (148/5 in 19.4) defeat Pakistan (147/10 in 19.5) by 5 wickets in Asia Cup T-20I at Dubai
- Red Bull’s Max Verstappen wins Formula One Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps
- Indian wins gold at World Cadet Judo Championships in Sarajevo
- National Sports Day celebrated on August 29, birth anniversary of hockey legend Major Dhyan Chand.
