1. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) released its Annual Report for FY 2018-19. Key Highlights (Stats as on June 30, 2019) -
- RBI stated that growth deceleration is cyclical downswing and not a structural slowdown.
- Balance sheet size of RBI increased by 13.42 % to Rs 41.03 lakh crore from 36.17 lakh crores an year ago.
- RBIcontingency fund, which is useful in fighting any exigency is reduced to Rs 1.96 lakh crores, after 52,000 crore excess payout to government.
- Income for 2018-19 increased by 146.59 % to Rs 1.93 lakh crore in 2018-2019. Expenditure decreased to Rs 17,045 crore, from 28,277 crore in 2017-18. Interest income grew by 44.62 % to Rs 1.06 lakh crore and other income rose to Rs 86199 crores.
- RBI’s holding of government securities grew by 57.19 per cent, from Rs 6.29 lakh crore to Rs 9.89 lakh crores.
- Year ended with an overall surplus of Rs 175987 crores as against 50000 crores in previous year.
- RBI held 618.16 metric tonnes of gold as compared to 566.23 metric tonnes as on June 30, 2018.
- After IL& FS crisis, credit flow from NBFCs to commercial sector dips 20%.
- Value of bank fraud cases increased 74%, from 41,167 crore in FY18 to 71,543 crores in FY19.
- Number of bank fraud cases rose from 5,900 in FY18 to 6,800 in FY19.
- Gross non-performing assets (GNPA) ratio of banking system declined to 9.1 per cent in March 2019, from 11.2 per cent in previous year.
- Currency in circulation soars _________________ to Rs 21.10 trillion.
2. Aug 29 is observed as National Sports Day in India. It marks birth anniversary of India’s hockey legend, Major Dhyan Chand.
- On this occasion, PM Narendra Modi launched a nation-wide ‘Fit India’ Movement, aiming to take India towards a healthier future by preventing lifestyle diseases such as diabetes, hypertension. Advisory Committee under chairmanship of sports minister Kiren Rijiju has been formed for Fit India Movement which aims to encourage people to inculcate physical activity and sports in their everyday lives.
- Aug 29 is also observed as UN International Day Against Nuclear Tests, established in December ____________________.
3. Geographical Indication Registry of India granted Geographical Indication (GI) tag to the state of ___________________ for Dindigul lock and Karaikudi Kandangi sarees.
- Handmade Dindigul locks were famous for their traditional design, superior quality, and durability. They are concentrated in the villages of Nagelnagar, Nallampatti, Kodaiparailpatti, Kamalapatti, and Yagappanpatti.
- Kandangi Sarees are the symbol of entire Karaikudi taluk of Sivaganga district. The hand-woven Kandangi sarees are characterized by brilliant colour large contrast borders.
4. Ashish Kasodekar from Pune became 1st Indian to complete _________________ kms long 10th edition of ‘La Ultra The High’ marathon 2019 held in Ladakh, Jammu, and Kashmir(J&K). He came 3rd with 126 hrs 18 min timing.
5. New book on Former ___________________ Prez Barack Obama titled “Obama: The Call of History”, written by Peter Baker has been released in India.
6. ________________________ test-fired nuclear-capable surface-to-surface ballistic missile Ghaznavi, with range up to 290 kms.
7. NGOs World Vision India and Institute for Financial Management and Research-Leveraging Evidence for Access and Development (IFMR LEAD) launched Child well-being index, to assess and track children’s well-being -
- Index was topped by __________________________ (0.76), followed by Tamil Nadu (0.67) and Himachal Pradesh (0.67). Among Union Territories(UT), Puducherry topped the spot.
- Meghalaya, Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh (Bottom) were poor performers and were ranked at the bottom. Among UTs Dadra and Nagar Haveli was ranked at the bottom.
8. Hardeep S Puri, Minister of State (I/C) for Housing and Urban Affairs launched __________________ campaign for change managementande-Course on Vulnerability Atlas of India.It has been launched for social behaviour change, focusing on issues such as water & energy conservation for beneficiaries of completed houses under PMAY (U).
9. Department of Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers Welfare released 3rd Advanced Estimate (2018-19) of Area and Production of various Horticulture Crops. Total Horticulture Production of country is estimated to be _______________________ Million Tonnes, 0.69% higher than 2017-18.
10. Oklahoma court (______________________) court ordered Johnson & Johnson to pay $572 million for Opioid addiction crisis in ____. J&J is accused of its role in fostering state’s opioid addiction crisis.
11. 2019 Indo Pacific Chiefs of Defence (CHOD) Conference held in _____________________’s capital city Bangkok. India was represented by Chairman Chiefs of Staff Committee (COSC) and Chief of the Air Staff Birender Singh Dhanoa. Theme was Collaboration in a free and Open Indo – Pacific.
