Notes:
India Ratings and Research (Ind-Ra) has revised down India’s GDP growth to 7.2% for FY19 from 7.4% earlier in its latest report titled ‘Mid-year FY19 Outlook’. The key reason for this is the upward revision in the estimation of inflation for 2018-19 due to increasing crude oil prices and the government’s decision to fix the minimum support prices of all kharif crops at 1.5 times the production cost. On rupee, the rating agency stated that in 2018, rupee has already depreciated 7.7% till July in response to elevated global turbulence, worsening of current account, rising inflation and concerns related to fiscal deficit. It expects the aggregate fiscal deficit of the states to moderate to 2.8% of GDP. Ind-Ra is one of the India’s most respected credit rating agency that provides ratings, research and rigorous analytics of market in India. The headquarters of Ind-Ra is located in Mumbai and is belong to Fitch group.

Notes:
Kofi Annan (80), the former UN secretary-general and a Ghanaian diplomat, has passed away in Switzerland on August 18, 2018. He served two terms as UN chief from 1997 to 2006. Mr Annan was the first black African to become UN secretary-general. He later served as the UN special envoy for Syria, leading efforts to find a peaceful solution to the conflict. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2001 for helping to revitalize the international body, during a period that coincided with the Iraq War and the HIV/Aids pandemic. In September 2016, Annan was appointed to lead a UN commission to investigate the Rohingya crisis.

Notes:
The World Humanitarian Day (WHD) is held every year on August 19 to pay tribute to aid workers who risk their lives in humanitarian service, and to rally support for people affected by crises around the world. The day recognizes humanitarian personnel and those who have lost their lives working for humanitarian causes. The campaign theme of 2018 WHD is #NotATarget. The day was designated by the UN General Assembly (UNGA) to commemorate the 19th August 2003 bombing of the United Nations headquarters in Baghdad, Iraq.

Notes:
On 16 August, the Amnesty International India (AII) has launched a new campaign “Our Safety, Our Rights” to create awareness among children to help them understand and identify sexual abuse. The campaign seeks to empower children to speak up and report sexual abuse without fear. The AII has collaborated with Bharat Gyan Vigyan Samiti (BGVS), People’s Action for Rural Awakening (PARA), Institute of Social Education (ISE) to engage with children in 400 schools, across four Indian states – Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Through this campaign, an estimated 50,000 students, parents, teachers and other key stakeholders will be sensitized on the issue of child sexual abuse.The campaign will culminate on 2018 International Day of the Girl Child.

Notes:
Vinesh Phogat has created history by becoming the first Indian woman wrestler to win a gold medal at the Asian Games. in the final match in freestyle 50 kg category, she defeated Japan’s Yuki Irie in Jakarta, Indonesia on August 20, 2018. The gold also enabled Vinesh to achieve another feat as she became the only woman wrestler to win two medals in back-to-back Asian Games. Earlier, Vinesh had won a bronze medal in the 48kg category at the 2014 Incheon Asian Games. Vinesh also won back-to-back gold medals in Glasgow and Gold Coast Commonwealth Games this year. Beside her, Wrestler Bajrang Punia clinched India’s first gold medal at the Jakarta Asian Games 2018 after defeating Takatani Daichi of Japan in the men’s 65 kg freestyle title bout.

Notes:
Satya Pal Malik has been appointed the new Governor of Jammu & Kashmir. He will replace N N Vohra. Prior to this post, Malik was the Governor of Bihar. On 21 August, other governors of states appointed were Lal Ji Tandon for Bihar, Ganga Prasad for Sikkim, Tathagata Roy for Meghalaya and Kaptan Singh Solanki for Tripura. Satyadev Narayan Arya was appointed as the Governor of Haryana while Baby Rani Maurya was appointed as the Governor of Uttarakhand.

Notes:
Jhulan Nishit Goswami, the veteran Indian women’s team pacer, has announced her retirement from International T20 cricket. She represented India in 68 T20Is picking up 56 wickets which included a 5-wicket haul against Australia in 2012. Goswami will only play One Day International (ODIs) (as India don’t play Test cricket), in which format she is the world’s highest wicket-taker with 200 scalps from 169 games. She hails from a non-descript town of Chakdah in West Bengal’s Nadia district.

Notes:
Indian shooter Shardul Vihan (15) from Uttar Pradesh clinched silver in the men’s double trap shooting event at the Jakabaring shooting range in the 18th Asian Games 2018 on August 23. He shot 73 to claim the silver medal, while Korea’s Shin Hyunwoo clinched gold with a score of 74. Qatar’s Al Marri Hamad Ali bagged the bronze after shooting 53 at the Jakabaring shooting range. Vihan, who is coached by former Asian Championship double gold medallist Anwer Sultan, had grabbed four gold medals at Shotgun Nationals Championship in 2017.

Notes:
On August 23, the 2018 India Banking Conclave (IBC) was held in New Delhi to address issues of India’s Banking Sector. It was organized by Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR) and the government Think Tank NITI Aayog. IBC 2018 is an important platform for varied stakeholders connected to India’s banking and financial sectors. The 2-day thought awareness programme witnessed panel discussions on NPAs, development of banks with changing times, privatization versus merger and the future of banking, among other issues.

Notes:
The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has appointed former Punjab and Haryana High Court Chief Justice S J Vazifdar as head of a 3-member committee to decide mining company Vedanta Limited’s plea challenging the Tamil Nadu government’s order to close the Sterlite copper plant at Thoothukudi. The committee may, if necessary, visit the site and consider the technical data and take a decision as early as found viable preferably within 6 weeks after it assumes it’s working. Recently, on 9th August 2018, the Tribunal had allowed Vedanta to access the administrative unit inside its Sterlite copper plant at Thoothukudi in Tamil Nadu. Though, the plant would remain closed and the company would not have access to its production unit and directed the district magistrate to ensure this. In March 2013, Sterlite’s factory came into limelight when a gas leak led to the death of one person and injuries to several others, after which then chief minister J Jayalalithaa had ordered its closure.