29th August, 2023

1. Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT) has launched TRINETRA, a comprehensive security system on its 40th Foundation Dayon 25th August 2023.
2. The Ministry of Education’s (MoE) Innovation Cell in collaboration with the All-India Council of Technical Education (AICTE) has announced the launch of the 6th edition Smart India Hackathon (SIH) 2023.
3. Droupadi Murmu, the President of India has released a postage stamp in memory ofDadi Prakashmani, former chief of Brahma Kumaris, at Rashtrapati Bhavan Cultural Centre in New Delhi.
4. Murmansk, popularly called the capital of the Arctic Regionand the beginning point of the Northern Sea Route (NSR), is witnessing the rising trend of Indian involvement in Cargo traffic.
5. The Ministry of Coalhas launched the Khanan Prahari mobile app, revolutionizing the fight against illicit coal mining activities.
6. IIT Bombay has partnered with HSBC to pursue technological advancements towards making green hydrogen production more efficient, cost-effective, and scalable.
7. Assamgovernment has launched MODI scheme which stands for ‘Most Outstanding District Initiative’ with Rs 100 crore to reward the cleanest district in the state.
8. Mumbai police has traced around 5000 children as part of Operation Muskaan.
9. SpaceX and NASA have successfully launched the international Crew-7 astronaut mission to the International Space Station (ISS).
10. National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has launched “UPI Chalega 3.0”, the 3rd edition of its Unified Payments Interface (UPI) Safety Awareness campaign, developed in collaboration with key stakeholders in the payment’s ecosystem.
11. India’s first Artificial Intelligence (AI) school has been inaugurated at Santhigiri Vidyabhavan in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala by Former President of India Ram Nath Kovind.
12. Antler India, a Venture Capital (VC) firm has launched India’s first Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) focused venture platform, Antler OND
13. Airtel Payments Bank, Frontier Markets and the Mastercard Centre for Inclusive Growth have launched ‘She Leads Bharat: Udyam’
14. Exercise BRIGHT STAR-23
15. Ministry of Defence (MoD) has signed a contract with Visakhapatnam-based state-owned Hindustan Shipyard Limited (HSL) for acquisition of first of its kind 5 Fleet Support Ships (FSS).
16. World Athletics Championships 2023 (19th edition)
17. 2023 BWF World Championships (28th edition)
18. Dutch Grand Prix 2023
19. Meta has developed an AI model known as SeamlessM4T.
20. According to a recently published study, nearly 1 billion people globally will be living with osteoarthritis by 2050.
21. Emmerson Mnangagwa has been re-elected for second and final term as Zimbabwe’s President.

National News

1. Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT) has launched TRINETRA, a comprehensive security system on its 40th Foundation Dayon 25th August 2023.

About TRINETRA

• The solution provides 24×7 near real-time actionable cyber-security status and detection and resolution of cyber-threats (Virus, Malware, Ransomware, Spyware, etc.).
• It also performs security evaluation of the organisation’s IT assetsby protecting endpoints, including PCs, laptops, servers etc. and giving AI-enabled automated responses to cyber threats, ensuring the protection of sensitive data.
• The solution is capable of protecting the critical digital infrastructure of various Government departments from the ever-evolving cyber threat landscape.

2. The Ministry of Education’s (MoE) Innovation Cell in collaboration with the All-India Council of Technical Education (AICTE) has announced the launch of the 6th edition Smart India Hackathon (SIH) 2023.
   • SIH-2023 is supported by the participation of 26 Central Ministries, 6 State Ministries, and 4 Industry partners.

3. Droupadi Murmu, the President of India has released a postage stamp in memory ofDadi Prakashmani, former chief of Brahma Kumaris, at Rashtrapati Bhavan Cultural Centre in New Delhi.
   • The stamp was released under the ‘My Stamp’ initiative of the Department of Posts, Ministry of Communications, to commemorate Dadi Prakashmani’s 16th death anniversary.

4. Murmansk, popularly called the capital of the Arctic Regionand the beginning point of the Northern Sea Route (NSR), is witnessing the rising trend of Indian involvement in Cargo traffic.

Northern Sea Route (NSR)

• The Northern Sea Route (NSR), the shortest shipping route for freight transportation between Europe and countries of the Asia-Pacific region.
• The NSR route between Europe and Asia is just 13,000 km long, compared to the 21,000 km covered by the Suez Canal route, which reduces the travel duration from one month to less than two weeks.

5. The Ministry of Coalhas launched the Khanan Prahari mobile app, revolutionizing the fight against illicit coal mining activities.

What is Khanan Prahari?

• This innovative app allowscitizens to take an active role in reporting incidents of illegal coal mining through the submission of geo-tagged photographs and textual information.
• The corresponding web portal called as Coal Mine Surveillance & Management System (CMSMS)has been developed in association with the Bhaskaracharya Institute of Space Application & Geoinformatics, Gandhinagar, and Central Mine Planning and Design Institute (CMPDI), Ranchi.

• Features:
• Reporting Incidents: Users can easily report incidents of illegal mining by taking photographs and providing comments on the incident.
• Confidentiality: The user’s identity is kept confidential, ensuring privacy and security.
• Complaint Tracking: Complainants receive a complaint number, which they can use to easily track the status of their reported complaints.

6. IIT Bombay has partnered with HSBC to pursue technological advancements towards making green hydrogen production more efficient, cost-effective, and scalable.
   • According to the National Green Hydrogen Mission, by 2030, India hopes to develop green hydrogen production capacity of at least 5 MMT (million metric tons) per annum.
   • HSBC is a British universal bank and financial services group headquartered in London, England.
     Source: PIB

State News

1. Assam government has launched MODI scheme which stands for ‘Most Outstanding District Initiative’ with Rs 100 crore to reward the cleanest district in the state.
   • The launch was made during the 100th meeting of the state cabinet.
   • The districts will be assessed on 108 parameters before being given the cleanest tag.
     Source: ET
2. Mumbai police has traced around 5000 children as part of Operation Muskaan.
   • Operation MUSKAAN also called as Operation Smile is an initiative of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) to rescue/rehabilitate missing children.
   • It is a dedicated campaign for a month where several activities are taken up by the State Police personnel to trace and rescue the missing children and reunite them with their families.
     Source: ToI

International News

1. SpaceX and NASA have successfully launched the international Crew-7 astronaut mission to the International Space Station (ISS).
   • The mission includes four astronauts from four countries – the US, Denmark, Japan, and Russia.

   International Space Station (ISS)

   • It is a space station, or a habitable artificial satellite, in Low Earth Orbit.
   • Launch
     • The first piece of the International Space Station was launched in 1998, since then it is evolving.
     • NASA and its partners around the world finished the space station in 2011.
     • The ISS is one of the most ambitious international collaborations in human history.
   • The ISS programme is a joint project between five participating space agencies:
     • NASA (United States), Roscosmos (Russia), JAXA (Japan), ESA (Europe), and CSA (Canada).
     • The ownership and use of the space station is established by intergovernmental treaties and agreements.
   • In 2022, Russia announced that it will pull out of ISS after 2024 and focus on building its own orbiting outpost.
     Source: IE

Banking and Economy

1. National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has launched “UPI Chalega 3.0”, the 3rd edition of its Unified Payments Interface (UPI) Safety Awareness campaign, developed in collaboration with key stakeholders in the payment’s ecosystem.
   • Aim: To drive UPI adoption and safe usage through engaging initiatives such as enhancing brand awareness of UPI, improving understanding of its features, and encouraging wider adoption among new users.
   • A dedicated microsite, upichalega.com, has been created to provide a comprehensive resource hub, which offers informative videos, instructional guides, details about participating banks and third-party apps, and dynamic social media updates.
   • In 2020, the UPI Chalega campaign was launched under the guidance of the Financial Literacy Advisory Committee (FLAC).
     Source: BF
2. India’s first Artificial Intelligence (AI) school has been inaugurated at Santhigiri Vidyabhavan in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala by Former President of India Ram Nath Kovind.
   • AI School was created by iLearning Engines (ILE) of the United States of America (USA) in collaboration with Vedhik eSchool which was managed by a committee of veteran professionals including former Chief Secretaries, DGPs and Vice Chancellors.
   • AI School facility will be initially available to students from classes 8 to 12. The curriculum and methodology are designed in compliance with the National School Accreditation Standards, which are based on the New National Education Policy (NEP 2020).
     Source: LM
3. Antler India, a Venture Capital (VC) firm has launched India’s first Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) focused venture platform, Antler ONDC.
   • The venture capital firm has partnered with Infosys non-executive chairman, Nandan Nilekani’s Foundation for Interoperability in Digital Economy (formerly Beckn Foundation) and ONDC for this platform.

4. Airtel Payments Bank, Frontier Markets and the Mastercard Centre for Inclusive Growth have launched ‘She Leads Bharat: Udyam’
   • This is an initiative to elevate 1,00,000 women-owned small businesses in Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh with resources, tools and opportunities to grow and diversify their incomes.
   • The initiative will be funded by the Mastercard Impact Fund, while Mastercard will bring the capital and global expertise of its Center for Inclusive Growth to unlock tools, resources, and networks for the women-owned small businesses.
   • The announcement was made at the Asia Inclusive Growth Forum, an event convening over 100 cross-sector leaders for candid, impact-driven dialogues on advancing inclusive growth in India and the global south.
     Source: HBL

Defence News

1. Exercise BRIGHT STAR-23
   • Exercise Bright Star is a series of biannual combined and joint military exercises led by the United States and Egypt, which began in 1980.
   • Exercise BRIGHT STAR-23 is scheduled to be held at Cairo (West) Air Base, Egypt from 27 August to 16 September 2023.
   • This is for the first time that IAF is participating in Ex BRIGHT STAR-23 which will also see participation of contingents from the United States of America, Saudi Arabia, Greece and Qatar.
   • The Indian Air Force contingent will consist of five MiG-29, two IL-78, two C-130 and two C-17 aircraft.
     Source: ET
2. Ministry of Defence (MoD) has signed a contract with Visakhapatnam-based state-owned Hindustan Shipyard Limited (HSL) for acquisition of first of its kind 5 Fleet Support Ships (FSS).
   • The FSS is employed for replenishing ships at sea with fuel, water, ammunition and stores.
   • The ships in the 44,000 tonnes category for the Indian Navy will come at an overall cost of ₹19,000 crore.
     Source: HBL

Sports

1. World Athletics Championships 2023 (19th edition)
   • Held in- Budapest, the capital of Hungary
   • Top three nations in the medals tally:
     • USA – 12 gold, 8 silver and 9 bronze medals
     • Canada – 4 gold and 2 silver medals
     • Spain – 4 gold and 1 silver medals
   • India’s medal tally- 1 Gold, India has finished 18th in the championship
     • Neeraj Choprahas won India’s only medal – a gold in the men’s javelin throw with an impressive throw of 17m.
     • He has become the first Indian athlete to become a world champion. This was India’s third medal ever at the World Athletics Championships 2023 after Anju Bobby George’s long jump bronze at Paris 2003 and Neeraj’s silver at Oregon 2022.
     • India has also finished 5th in men’s 4x400m relay final. Indian quartet of Muhammed Anas Yahiya, Amoj Jacob, Muhammed Ajmal Variyathodi and Rajesh Ramesh had broken the previous Asian record to enter finals.
     • Parul Chaudhary has finished 11th in women’s 3000m steeplechase final with a new National Record. She has qualified for 2024 Paris Olympics.
       Source: Sportstar
2. 2023 BWF World Championships (28th edition)
   • Held in- Copenhagen, Denmark
   • Indian badminton player HS Prannoy has secured a bronze medal in the men’s singles.

   Other winners in different format-

3. Dutch Grand Prix 2023
   • Max Verstappen of Red Bull has won the Dutch Grand Prix for third time in a row.
   • This is his 9th consecutive victory in Formula One.
   • The Dutch Grand Prix is an annual Formula OneWorld Championship auto racing event held in Netherlands, from 1950 through 1985, and after a 35-year gap, from 2021 onwards.
   • It has been a part of the Formula One World Championship since
     Source: BT

Miscellaneous

1. Meta has developed an AI model known as SeamlessM4T.
   • The model is capable of translating and transcribing in over 100 languages, both in text and speech.
   • It alsosupports speech-to-speech translation in around 100 input languages and around 35 output languages, including English.
   • Meta’s text-to-text machine translation model, known as No Language Left Behind (NLLB), supports approximately 200 languages. Notably, NLLB has been integrated into Wikipedia as one of its translation providers.
     Source: IE
2. According to a recently published study, nearly 1 billion people globally will be living with osteoarthritis by 2050.
   • Arthritis literally means joint inflammation. Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis. It occurs when the protective cartilage that cushions the ends of the bones wears down over time.
   • The research has analysed 30 years of data covering over 200 countries, highlighting a rapid increase in cases due to factors like aging, population growth, and obesity.
     Source: HT
3. Emmerson Mnangagwa has been re-elected for second and final term as Zimbabwe’s President.
   Source: NoA

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