AUGUST 201424 Standing Committees formed; BJP to head 11, Congress 5Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan has declared the list of members and chairpersons for 24 DRSCs (Department Related Standing Committees) of Parliament. While the ruling BJP grabbed 11 chairperson posts of these panels, the Congress will chair 5, including the coveted Committee on Finance.The Trinamool Congress will chair two panels. Members of Bahujan Samaj Party, Telugu Desam Party, Biju Janata Dal, Janata Dal (United), Shiv Sena and the AIADMK will chair one panel each.Rajya Sabha PanelsCommittee on Commerce: Chandan Mitra (BJP)Committee on Home Affairs: P Bhattacharya (Congress)Committee on Human Resource Development: JP Nadda (BJP)Committee on Industries: KC Tyagi (JD-U)Committee on Science and Technology, Environment and Forests: Ashwani Kumar (Congress)Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture: KD Singh (Trinamool Congress)Committee on Health and Family Welfare: SC Mishra (BSP)Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice: EM Sudarsana Natchiappan (Congress)Lok Sabha PanelsCommittee on Finance: Veerappa Moily (Congress)Committee on Agriculture: Hukm Deo Narayan Yadav (BJP)Committee on IT: Anurag Singh Thakur (BJP)Committee on Defence: BC Khanduri (BJP)Committee on Food, Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution: JC Divakar Reddy (TDP)Committee on Labour: Virendra Kumar (BJP)Committee on Petroleum and Natural Gas: Prahlad Joshi (BJP)Committee on Railways: Dinesh Trivedi (Congress)Committee on Urban Development: Pinaki Mishra (BJD)Committee on Water Resources: Hukum Singh (BJP)Committee on Chemicals and Fertilizers: Anandrao Adsul (Shiv Sena)Committee on Rural Development: P Venugopal (AIADMK)Committee on Coal and Steel: Hansraj Ahir (BJP)Committee on Social Justice and Empowerment: Ramesh Bais (BJP)Committee on Energy: Rajiv Pratap Rudy (BJP)Committee on External Affairs: Shashi Tharoor (Congress)Financial CommitteesCommittee on Estimates: Murli Manohar Joshi (BJP)Committee on Public sector Undertakings: Shanta Kumar (BJP)Public Accounts Committee: K V Thomas (Congress)2. Harry Belafonte to receive honorary humanitarian OscarOscar organizers declared that they will give a esteemed humanitarian award to US actor-producer-singer Harry Belafonte, whose efforts as an activist has assisted throw light on racism and discrimination.He was a supporter of the Civil Rights Movement and marched besides Martin Luther King, Jr in his prime. In 1987, he was named a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador.3.August 29: India celebrates National Sports DayAugust 29 was celebrated as National Sports Day across the country. The day marks the birth anniversary of Hockey Wizard, Major Dhyan Chand.The legendary player contributed immensely in winning gold medals for India at 1928, 1932 and 1936 Olympic Games.4.PM Narendra Modi inaugurates Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana a record 1.5 Crore (15 million) bank accounts were opened under this scheme.The ambitious scheme aims to achieve the gargantuan task of enrolling over 7.5 crore (75 million) households and to open their accounts. In its current phase, the scheme targets to provide universal access to banking facilities starting with Basic Banking Accounts with overdraft facility of Rs.5000 after six months and RuPay Debit card with inbuilt accident insurance cover of Rs. 1 lakh and RuPay Kisan Card. The scheme will add micro insurance & pension etc. in the next phase.The slogan for the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan mission is Mera Khata Bhagya Vidhaata.5.Recep Tayyip Erdogan: New President of TurkeyRecep Tayyip Erdogan was sworn in as 12th President of Turkey. He was sworn-in a ceremony held at Parliament of Turkey in Ankarra.6.Ahmed Davutoglu: New PM of TurkeyTurkeys Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has been named the new Prime Minister of the country7.Shahrukh Khan to become the brand ambassador for Turn Back Crime campaign of InterpolBollywood megastar Shah Rukh Khan (SRK) has become the first Indian to become the brand ambassador of the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL).Interpol has signed SRK as the ambassador for its global Turn Back Crime campaign.8.Dot Bharat (.) domain lauched by Govt.Union Government launched a new domain Dot Bharat (.) in Devanagari script . Originally the domain will cover 8 languages like Hindi, Bodo, Dogri, Konkani, Maithili, Marathi, Nepali and Sindhi.These 8 languages are from the list of 22 languages that has been contained in the Schedule-8 of the Constitution of India.Objective of . domain:To connect individuals with social media and deliver content in regional languages, particularly to those who are not acquainted with English.To deliver information to persons in their own regional languages which will help in advancement of e-governance.9.Rajiv Gandhi National Quality Awards for 2012 declaredRajiv Gandhi National Quality Awards for the year 2012 were declared by Union Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, Ram Vilas Paswan. The awards are awarded by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS).BEST OF ALL AWARDRail Wheel factory (Ministry of Railways), Bangalore, KarnatakaCATEGORY AWARDS:Large scale manufacturing: Sakthi Masala P. Ltd., Erode, Tamil NaduLarge scale service sector: Tata Business Support Services Limited, HyderabadSmall scale service sector: Elin Appliances Pvt. Ltd., Solan, Himachal PradeshCOMMENDATION CERTIFICATESLarge Scale Manufacturing IndustryChemical: Dalmia Cement (B) Limited, Kadapa, Andhra PradeshElectrical & Electronic: EOS Power India Pvt. Ltd., Mumbai, MaharashtraEngineering & Others: Currency Note Press (A unit of security Printing & Minting Corporation of India Ltd.), Nashik, MaharashtraFood & Drug: Mehsana Dist Co-Op Milk Producers Union Ltd., Dudhsagar Dairy, Mehsana, GujaratLarge Scale Service IndustryHealth care: Apollo Speciality Hospital Madurai, Tamil NaduOthers: Engineers India Limited, New DelhiEducation: Amity University Uttar Pradesh, Noida, Uttar PradeshFinanace: Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency Limited (IREDA), New DelhiSmall Scale Manufacturing IndustryEngineering & Others: Suprabha Protective Products Pvt. Ltd, Pune, Maharashtra Rajiv Gandhi National Quality AwardsIntroduced in 1991, the Rajiv Gandhi National Quality Award is given by the BIS to Indian manufacturing and service organizations that show excellence in their performance.The award purposes to encourage quality services to the customers and to provide special appreciation to organizations that contribute considerably towards the quality movement of India.The award is presented annually as per the financial year, and is similar to other national quality awards worldwide like the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award of the United States, European Quality Award of the European Union and the Deming Prize of Japan.The award is presented to organizations in 5 broad categories:Large scale manufacturingSmall scale manufacturingLarge scale service sectorSmall scale service sectorBest overallCash prize of Rs 5,00,000 for BEST OF ALL category, Rs 2,00,000 for each winner in respective category and Rs 1,00,000 for each winner of commendation certificate.Hindi Sevi Samman for 2010 and 2011 presented by President Pranab MukherjeeAugust 26, 2014The President of India Pranab Mukherjee presented the Hindi Sevi Samman for the years 2010 and 2011:Various Categories included: Ganga Sharan Singh Award(For work in the field of promotion and training of Hindi)2010:Janhu BaruaPadma SachdevR.F. NirankattiS.A. Suryanarayan Verma2011:C Kulchandra SharmaDr. H. BalasubrahmaniumRobin DasT. R. Bhatt Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi Award(For work in the field of journalism and creative literature)2010:Dilip Kumar ChaubeyRavish Kumar2011:Dr. ShivnarayanGovind Singh Atmaram Award(For work in the field of Science and Technology Literature and Machinery growth)2010:Anil Kumar ChaturvediKali Shankar2011:Mahesh D KulkarniVijay Kumar Malhotra Subramanyam Bharti Award(For work for promotion of Hindi in constructive or criticism way)2010:Sudhish PachauriDr. Shyam Sundar Dubey2011:Dilip SinghNityanand TiwaryMahapandit Rahul Sankrityayan Award(For work in the field exploration and research as well as for description on its journey)2010:Dr. Parmanand PanchaalRaghuveer Chaudhary2011:Ashgar VajahatVed RahiDr. George Grierson Award(Awarded to people of foreign origin for promotion and training of Hindi outside India)2010:Samtoff Azad (Uzbekistan)2011:JO Kim (South Korea)Padmabhushan Dr. Moturi Satyanarayan Award(Awarded to people of Indian origin for promotion and training of Hindi outside India)2010:Madanlal Madhu (Russia)2011:Tejendra Sharma (UK)10.The Green Bus project: Indias first ethanol-run public bus launched in Nagpur11.Oscar-winning director and actor Richard Attenborough passed away As a director he was best known for Gandhi, which won him two Oscars.12.General Prayuth Chan-ocha is new PM of Thailand13.MoU inked between Ministry of Textiles and Flipkart: ABHIYAAN Flipkart Kaarigar Ke Dwar to provide an online marketing platform to handloom weavers14.INS Kamorta: Indias first domestically built stealth warship commissioned into NavyIndias first indigenously-built stealth anti-submarine warfare INS Kamorta was commissioned into Indian Navy by Defence Minister Arun Jaitley at naval dockyard in Vishakhapatnam15.T M Bhasin: New Chairman of Indian Banks AssociationAugust 20, 2014Mr. T M Bhasin, CMD, Indian Bank, has been elected by the managing committee of Indian Banks Association (IBA) as its Chairman for the year 2014-15.On behalf of IBA, Mr Bhasin, will be associated with Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojana Mission, headed by Union Finance Minister.Indian Bank Association (IBA)16.Filmmaker Muzaffar Ali conferred Rajiv Gandhi National Sadbhavana AwardAugust 20, 2014AliNoted filmmaker and Poet, Muzaffar Ali (69), has been conferred 22nd Rajiv Gandhi National Sadbhavana Award. Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Sonia Gandhi, the president of All-India Congress Committee (AICC), presented him the award.17.KV Thomas is new Chairman of Public Accounts Committee (PAC) The Comptroller and Auditor General is the friend, philosopher and guide of the Committee (PAC).18.Yoga exponent B.K.S. Iyengar passed awayAugust 20, 2014BKSGlobally acclaimed yoga exponent B.K.S. Iyengar (95) passed away in Pune.19.Yamaha launches Project Indra to manufacture global low-cost bike20.IBM Simon: Worlds first smartphone turns 2021.Rajni Razdan: New UPSC chief22.PM Modi accentuates promoting Tourism, Clean India campaign to be launched on October 223.Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his maiden Independence Day speech from the Red Fort shared his dream of a Digital India.24.PM Modi announced Snsad Adarsh Gram YojanaWhile delivering his maiden Independence Day speech from the ramparts of the Red Fort, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a scheme on behalf of the Member of Parliament- Sansad Aadarsh Gram Yojana.25.Indias future lies in manufacturing with Zero-Defect and Zero-Effect: PM Narendra ModiAugust 15, 2014PM Narendra Modi, in his maiden speech from Red Fort, stressed on achieving economic self-reliance, saying the country should strive to become a manufacturing hub for global investors with Zero-defect products and Zero-effect on environment.Zero Defect, Zero Effect manufacturingPM Modi urged entrepreneurs that they would never compromise, at least on two fronts. First, Zero defect and, second, Zero effect. He suggested that Indian goods should be manufactured in such a way that they bear zero defects and that our exported goods are never returned to us. The goods should also have zero effect that they should not have a negative impact on the environment.26.PM Modi indicates creation of a new body to replace Planning CommissionAugust 15, 2014During his speech on Independence Day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a radical measure to replace the Planning Commission with a new body in a short span of time. Mr. Modi said the new institution would foster cooperative federalism, facilitate Public-Private Partnership (PPP) and help tackle the new economic challenges the faced by country in a much better way.PM Modi announces Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana on Independence Day27.Independence Day: Modis mantras for new IndiaAugust 15, 2014Addressing India on the occasion of countrys 68th Independence Day, PM Narendra Modi made a sensational and motivational speech using catchy slogans expressing his vision and mantras for building a new India.Excerpts from his speech:Pradhan Sevak: Today Indians, both in India and all over the world, are celebrating Independence Day. I convey my greetings to them not as a Pradhan Mantri, but Pradhan Sevak (prime public servant).Make in India: We need to build up the manufacturing sector. I want to tell the world: Come, make in India. It is an invitation to investors with a view to make India a manufacturing hub.Zero defect, zero effect: Our manufacturing should have zero defect so that our products should not be rejected in the global market. Besides, we should also keep in mind that manufacturing should not have any negative impact on our environment. This underscores the importance of skilled workforce, while also keeping in mind the importance of protecting the environment.Digital India: India used to be called a land of snake charmers. Today, our youth has surprised the world with its IT skills. Our dream is to build a Digital India. The digital focus was in consonance with Modis election promises of a new India and focus on IT.He concluded his speech saluting the devotion, the sacrifices of the security forces of the country, para-military forces of the country, and all the security forces of the country to protect Mother India. He urged the countrymen with the quote , , Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty. He exhorted the countrymen to be vigilant and take the country to new heights and move forward with this resolution.28.Now only 3 transactions per month from ATMs of other Banks29.PM Modi promised in J&K:1.Completion of Leh-Kargil-Srinagar power grid by 2017 at a cost of Rs 1,800 crore, with Centre funding 95% of the cost.2.One rank one pension to be effected3.National war memorial to be built4. 3 Ps to develop Ladakh: Prakash (light), Paryavaran (environment), Paryatan (tourism)5. Special attention to kesar grown in Valley, pashmina and solar energy schemes.30.Swiss tennis star Roger Federer achieved a new milestone as he became the first man to win 300 matches at the ATP Masters 1000 level, defeating Vasek Pospisil in Cincinnati.31. justice Banumathi: Frist woman to become Supreme Court judge from TN32. Bimal Jalan appointed as head of Expenditure Management Commission33.Outstanding Parliamentarian Award to Arun Jaitley, Karan Singh and Sharad YadavAugust 13, 201434.Panel recommends Awardees for Arjuna Award, No Khel RatnaSportspersons recommended for Arjuna Award: Ravichandran Ashwin (cricket)Akhilesh Varma (archery)Tintu Luka (athletics)H N Girisha (paralympics)V Diju (badminton)Geetu Ann Jose (basketball)Jai Bhagwan (boxing)Anirban Lahiri (golf)Mamta Pujari (kabaddi)Saji Thomas (rowing)Heena Sidhu (shooting)Anaka Alankamony (squash)Tom Joseph (volleyball)Renubala Chanu (weightlifting)Sunil Rana (wrestling)34.PM Modi inaugurates 44MW Chutak hydropower station at KargilPrime Minister Narendra Modi dedicated to the nation the Chutak Hydroelectric Plant at Kargil in Jammu and Kashmir. The power station is a run-of-the-river power project on the Suru River (a tributary of Indus). The barrage of the project is at Sarze village and the powerhouse has been built on the right bank of the Suru near Chutak Village.M Thambidurai to be deputy speaker of Lok Sabha

35. PIOs win top awards in the field of MathematicsPersons of India Origin (PIOs) Manjul Bhargava bagged the Fields Medal 2014 while Subhash Khot won the Rolf Nevanlinna Prize conferred by the IMU at International Congress of Mathematicians 2014 held in Seoul, South Korea.36.Vistara is the name of Tata-SIA airline, operations to begin from October 2014August 12, 2014Vistara has been announced as the brand name of the Tata-SIA joint venture Airlines. Vistara is derived from the Sanskrit word, which means limitless expanse.The airline by the Tata Group and Singapore International Airlines is targeting to start its operations in October 2014. The launch of operations is subject to the Directorate General of Civil Aviations (DGCA) approval, which is examining the airlines application for an air operators permit.37.A book Strictly Personal, Manmohan and Gursharan penned by Daman Singh was released. It tells the untold story of Manmohan Singh, Indias 14th PM, and his wife Gursharan.38.Rosetta: First spacecraft placed into orbit around a comet39. Ebola is a Public Health Emergency: WHOThe emergency committee of the World Health Organization has unanimously agreed to proclaim the Ebola virus a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.40.Kapil Dev to chair Arjuna Award selection panelAugust 8, 2014Legendary India cricket skipper Kapil Dev will head the Arjuna Awards selection committee for selecting outstanding sportspersons of the country for year 2014. Former hockey captain Ajitpal Singh is expected to head the Dronacharya Awards selection committee.41.Union Cabinet gives nod to increase FDI in defence sector to 49%42.ZMapp: Experimental drug to treat Ebola infected U.S. Aid WorkersAugust 7, 2014A small biotech company Mapp Biopharmaceutical Inc. based in San Diego-based has provided an experimental Ebola treatment for two Americans infected with the deadly virus in Liberia. The biotechnology drug, produced with tobacco plants, appears to be working.43.NGRBA brought under Ministry of Water ResourcesAugust 5, 2014The National Ganga River Basin Authority (NGRBA) has been shifted from the Ministry of Environment to the Ministry of Water Resources .44.RBI leaves Repo unchanged, SLR slashed by 50 basis pointsAugust 5, 2014As per RBIs third bi-monthly monetary policy statement for 2014-15 the central bank has not made any change in Repo rate which is currently at 8%. The Reverse Repo rate has also been left unchanged at 7% and the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) is also the same at 4%. The only major change is in Statutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR) which has been slashed by 50 basis points (bps) to 22% from previous 22.50%.45. NASAs Mars 2020 rover mission to have MOXIE to generate Oxygen on MarsAugust 5, 2014The US space agency NASA has decided to put MOXIE Mars Oxygen ISRU Experiment as one of the payloads on the Mars 2020 rover mission. MOXIE will produce oxygen on MARS using the Martian atmospheric Carbon Dioxide (CO2).46.Micromax dethrones Samsung, emerges as Indias No. 1 mobile supplierAugust 4, 2014As per a report by an independent market research and consulting firm, CounterPoint Research, Micromax has overtaken Samsung to become the largest mobile phone supplier in India in Q2 201447.PM Modi to induct warship INS KolkataAugust 4, 2014Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to induct countrys largest indigenously-built combat vessel INS Kolkata in Mumbai in August 2014.48. Glasgow Commonwealth Games: With Kashyaps historic gold India finishes 5thAugust 4, 2014GlasgowParupalli Kashyap created history as he clinched Gold in the mens singles badminton at 20th Commonwealth Games being held in Glasgow, Scotland. With his gold medal, the country earned a fifth-spot finish with 64 medals, including 15 gold. He created history by becoming the first Indian male shuttler in 32 years to win a gold in the Commonwealth Games. Kashyap put up brilliant show to register triumph over Derek Wong of Singapore in the final showdown. The shuttler from Hyderabad thus joined badminton legend Prakash Padukone and the late Syed Modi, who had won the title in the past. While Padukone had won the mens singles gold medal at the 1978 Commonwealth Games in Canada, Modi bagged it four years later. Commonwealth Toppers:EnglandAustraliaCanadaScotlandIndiaGold Cost The XXI Commonwealth Games will be held in Gold Coast City, Queensland, Australia between 4 to 15 April 2018. The Gold Coasts creative concept in the Ceremony brought to life the three brand pillars of the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games The Place, The Event and The Sport49.Indias PM Narendra Modis Nepal visit concludes:Highlights of Mr. Modis Nepal visit:Mr. Modi is the first Indian PM to Nepal in 17 years. He was welcomed by the guard of honour.

He addressed the Nepalese Parliament.

Aim was to forge a new relationship with Nepal and to begin a new chapter in bilateral ties that will serve as a model and catalyst for regional collaboration.

Mr. Modi gave a HIT formula for Nepal expressing Indias willingness to help Nepal build Highways (H), Information highways (I) and Transways- transmission lines (T).

He promised to grant Nepal 10,000 crore Nepali rupee concessional line of credit, for its development.

He announced Indias keenness to double power supply to Nepal.

India would help Nepal in building pipelines to help transport oil to Nepal.

The scholarships to students from Nepal would be increased.

India extended help to Nepal to enable it to emerge as a major exporter of herbal medicines.

India would also help develop the tourism potential of Nepal, both as a spiritual, and adventure tourism destination.

Mr. Modi extended assistance to Nepal in the fields of organic farming, and soil health.

50.Israel-Gaza conflict destroys ancient Omari Mosque in Jabaliya in Gaza51.Right to Research (R2R) Foundation to promote Indian researchers launchedThe R2R Foundation calls it Intelligent Reverse Brain Drain.52.Dongfeng-41: Chinas 12,000-kms intercontinental missileAugust 2, 2014Enhancing the reach of its fire-power, Chinas has unveiled the sophisticated Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile (ICBM), which has a range of 12,000 kms, placing it among the worlds longest-range missiles53.Rajiv Gandhi National Sadbhavana Award to Filmmaker Muzaffar Ali