21-22 August
Germany wins gold in women’s football event at Rio Olympics
Germany on 19 August 2016 defeated Sweden by 2-1 to win their first ever Olympic gold medal in women's football.
Germany is now one of only three women's teams to win both the Olympics and World Cup.
Germany failed to qualify for the Olympics in 2012 but won the bronze the last three times they played, in 2000, 2004 and 2008.
Canada won the bronze medal in the event.
About Germany women's national football team
•The Germany women's national football team is governed by the German Football Association (DFB).
•The German national team is one of the most successful in women's football.
•They are two-time world champions, having won the 2003 and 2007 tournaments. They are also the only nation to have won both the men's and women's tournament.
•Birgit Prinz holds the record for most appearances and is the team's all-time leading goalscorer.
•Silvia Neid has been the team's head coach since 2005.
22 August
IOA Chief N Ramachandran bestowed with the Olympic Order award
N. Ramachandran, President Indian Olympic Association (IOA), on 21 August 2016 was awarded the Olympic Order for his outstanding services to the Olympic movement.
The President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Thomas Bach, formally presented the award to Ramachandran.
About Olympic Order
•The Olympic Order is the highest award of the Olympic Movement which is awarded in recognition of efforts worthy of merit in the cause of sport.
•It was established in May 1975 as a successor to the Olympic Certificate by the International Olympic Committee.
•The Olympic Order originally had three grades gold, silver and bronze, although the bronze grade fell dormant in 1984.
•As a tradition, IOC bestows the Olympic Order upon the chief national organiser(s) at the closing ceremony of each respective Olympic Games.
•The insignia of the Olympic Order is in the form of a collar (or chain), in Gold, Silver or Bronze according to grade. The front of the chain depicts the five rings of the Olympic Movement. A lapel badge, in the form of the five rings in Gold, Silver and Bronze according to grade, is presented to recipients to wear as appropriate.
•Nadia Comaneci is the only athlete to be awarded the Olympic Order twice, that is, in 1984 and 2004. He is also the youngest ever recipient.
Urjit R Patel appointed as 24th Governor of Reserve Bank of India
Union Government on 20 August 2016 appointed Dr. Urjit R Patel as the 24th governor of Reserve Bank of India (RBI). He will be having tenure of three years with effect from 4 September 2016.
He will succeed the present RBI Governor Dr. Raghuram Rajan, the former International Monetary Fund chief economist.
At present, Dr Patel is the Deputy Governor of RBI and is holding this assignment since 2013. With this appointment, he also becomes the eight Deputy Governor to be elevated as the Governor at RBI.
Dr. Urjit R Patel
• He headed a panel that recommended landmark changes to monetary policy in India, which included a switch to inflation-targeting and the creation of a panel to set interest rates.
• In January 2016, he was reappointed as the deputy governor in charge of monetary policy, the department he ran since 2013.
• Earlier between 1990 and 1995, he had worked with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) covering US, India, Bahamas and Myanmar.
• He carried a doctorate from Yale University.
• He also carries M Phil from Oxford.
Reserve Bank of India (RBI)
• RBI was established on 1 April 1935 in accordance with the provisions of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934.
• The Central Office of the Reserve Bank was initially established in Calcutta but was permanently moved to Mumbai in 1937.
• At present, it regulates banks, prints money and prevents volatility in the foreign exchange market. It is also the government’s banker and lender of last resort.
Kamal Haasan chosen for France’s Chevalier de L’Ordre Arts et Lettres
The Minister of Culture and Communication, France, in the third week of August 2016 selected Kamal Haasan for the Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et Lettres (Knight in the National Order Arts and Letters).
The distinction is in recognition of his high level of artistic excellence and his distinguished career achievements.
Haasan is the second Tamil star after thespian Sivaji Ganesan to be honored with the prestigious French award.
About Kamal Haasan
•Kamal Haasan is an Indian film actor, screenwriter and director.
•He has won several Indian film awards including four National Film Awards and 19 Filmfare Awards.
•He has starred in the highest number of films submitted by India for the Academy Award Best Foreign Language Film.
•His breakthrough as a lead actor came in the 1975 drama Apoorva Raagangal.
• He won his first National Film Award for his portrayal of a guileless schoolteacher who cares for a childlike amnesiac in Moondram Pirai.
•He was honoured with the Padma Shri in 1990 and the Padma Bhushan in 2014.
About Chevalier de L’Ordre Arts et Lettres
•The Ordre des Arts et des Lettres is an Order of France, established on 2 May 1957 by the Minister of Culture.
•Its purpose is the recognition of significant contributions to the arts, literature, or the propagation of these fields.
•Its origin is attributed to the Order of Saint-Michel as acknowledged by French government sources.
Former international umpire Subrata Banerjee dies
Subrata Banerjee, the former international umpire, passed away on 19 August 2016 in Kolkata. He was 71.
Banerjee had a 15-year career at the international level, where he officiated in 13 ODIs.
About Subrata Banerjee
• Banerjee officiated in men's and women's international matches, as well as in age group tournaments, and stood in a women's Test match.
• He made his international debut in November 1983 in an ODI between India and West Indies in Baroda.
• His last international appearance came in May 1998 in a match between India and Kenya in Gwalior.
• He also worked as an umpire coach for the BCCI in addition to serving as an umpire's educator.
• He had also served as a television umpire in ODIs and was the reserve umpire in the India-England Test in Mohali in 2001.
• His umpiring career spanned for 39 years wherein he officiated in 64 first-class matches.
Summer Olympics 2016 concluded at Rio de Janeiro
The 2016 Summer Olympics concluded on 21 August 2016 at ceremony held at the Maracana Stadium, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
More than 11000 athletes from 207 National Olympic Committees, including first time entrants Kosovo, South Sudan and the Refugee Olympic Team, took part in the games.
The games featured 28 Olympic sports, including rugby sevens and golf, which were added to the Olympic programme in 2009.
The United States topped the medal tablefor the fifth time in the past six Summer Olympics, winning 46 gold medals and 121 medals overall. Great Britainand Chinafinished in second and third respectively.
India at the Rio Olympics 2016
•The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) had sent a total of 117 athletes, the nation's largest ever delegation in Summer Olympic history.
•Indian bagged a total of two medals, one silver and one bronze, in the games, and stood at the 67th place in the medal tally.
•Badminton player P V Sindhu won historic silver medal in women’s singles badminton event. With this, she became the first Indian woman to clinch a silver medal in Olympics.
•WrestlerSakshi Malik secured a bronze in the 58 kg category to become India's first female wrestler to win an Olympic medal.
•India had qualified one artistic gymnast into the Olympic competition for the first time since 1964. Dipa Karmakarbecame the first Indian female ever to book an Olympic spot in the apparatus events and all-around event at the Olympic Test Event. She narrowly missed out in the bronze medal, finishing 4th in the finals of the event with a score of 15.066.
• Abhinav Bindra came fourth in the Men's 10m Air Rifle singles event after losing a shootoff for the top 3 to Serhiy Kulish, who finally won the silver.
•At the 2016 Summer Olympics, Indian long distance runnerLalita Babar scored a time of 9:19.76 in her heat, qualifying to the final. With this, she became the first Indian in 32 years to enter a final in any track event. At the final, she finished 10th with a time of 9:22.74.
Key highlights of the 2016 Summer Olympics
•The opening ceremony took place in the Maracana Stadium on 5 August 2016.
•The Games were officially opened by Acting President of Brazil Michel Temer.
•These were the first Summer Olympic Games under the IOC presidency of Thomas Bach.
•Rio became the first South American city to host the Summer Olympics.
•The two new sports for 2016 Olympic Games were golf and rugby sevens.
•Due to the European migrant crisis and other reasons, the International Olympic Committee allowed athletes to compete as Independent Olympians under the Olympic Flag.
•Due to the suspension of the National Olympic Committee of Kuwait, participants from Kuwait were allowed to participate under the Olympic Flag as Independent Olympic Athletes.
•The official mascot of the 2016 Summer Olympics was Vinicius. It is named after musician Vinicius de Moraes. The mascot represented Brazilian wildlife and carries design traits of cats, monkeys and birds.
About 2020 Summer Olympics
•The 2020 Summer Olympics will be held in Tokyo, Japan.
•The city was announced as the host at the 125th IOC Session in Buenos Aires on 7 September 2013.
•The games are planned to be held from 24 July 2020 to 9 August 2020.
Intel unveils Project Alloy device to create merged reality
Intel on 16 August 2016 unveiled Project Alloy, an all-in-one virtual reality solution, in San Francisco, the USA.
Alloy delivers a set of new and immersive experiences thanks to Intel’s RealSense technologies that are optimized for VR usages. It is a headset that uses the RealSense technology enabling people to use their hands to interact with elements of the virtual world. There is no need for cables to connect to the computer.
Key highlights of the Alloy
•The device can be operated without cords dangling from the VR headset connecting to the computer. The computing power is located in the Alloy Head-Mounted Device (HMD), which allows the user to experience VR untethered.
•The device uses Intel RealSensetechnology, which allows one to see elements from the real world. One can also use one’s hands to interact with elements of the virtual world, merging realities.
•Alloy’s merged reality is made possible by Intel RealSense cameras attached to the headset.
What is merged reality?
•The merged reality is more dynamic and natural, and allows people to do things that are now impossible.
•It digitises the real world and allows people to experience the virtual world without coming into conflict with the real world.
•One example is playing two musical instruments at the same time: a virtual piano with one hand and a cello with the other.
Gymnothorax indicus, new species of eel found in Bay of Bengal
A group of researchers discovered a new species of eel, Gymnothorax indicus, from the northern Bay of Bengal along the West Bengal coast. It is likely to be calledIndian unpatterned moray.
The discovery was published in an international journal, Zootaxa, in the second week of August 2016.
The eel was studied by the scientists at Sankarpur fishing harbour in West Bengal’s Purba Medinipur district. It was collected in a trawl net by fishermen in northern Bay of Bengal, about 70 km off the coast.
Key highlights of the Gymnothorax indicus
•The newly found species is slender-bodied, about one feet-long and edible.
•The one-foot long fish has 194 vertebrae.
•Its dorsal fin has a black margin.
•When fresh, the body is uniformly pale brown without spots or patterns and the eye rim is pale.
Noted Odia actor Gobind Tej passes away
Noted Odia filmmaker, actor and director Gobind Tej passed away on 18 August 2016 following a brief illness in Bhubaneswar, Odisha. He was 88.
In his career spanning over 50 years, he has contributed in many Odia feature films either as an actor, director or producer.
About Gobind Tej
• He started his acting career with the movie Kedar Gouri in 1954 and as a director, he directed first movie in 1979 titled Ramayana.
• He acted in films like Krushna Sudama, Bandhan, Bandhu Mohanty, Dharitri, Gouri, Mana Akasha and Schoolmaster.
• He received the Odisha State Film Award for Best Director for movies like School Master, Kaberi, Tunda Baida and Gare Sindura Dhare Luha.
• He also has received the Odisha State Film Award In 1977 for Best Actor for his remarkable acting in the movie Bandhu Mohanty.
• In 1986, he was conferred with the Jaydev Award for his lifelong contribution to the growth and development of Odia cinema.
Hindi author Sunita Jain conferred with Vyas Samman award 2015
Hindi scholar and writer Sunita Jain was on 17 August 2016 awarded with the prestigious 25th Vyas Samman 2015 for her poetry collection Kshama. She received the award by West Bengal Governor K N Tripathi.
Jain, through her poetry, portrays the fine emotions between poet Tulsidas and his wife Ratnavalli inKshama. She has managed to aptly convey the sentiment of forgiveness between Tulsidas and his wife using very fine language.
The award instituted by the K K Birla Foundation carries a cash prize of 2.50 lakh rupees. It is given annually to outstanding literary work in Hindi authored by an Indian citizen.
About Sunita Jain
• She writes in both English and Hindi and has over 100 books to her credit.
• She began to write at the age of 22 and has published short-stories, novels and poems in Hindi and English.
• Her works in English include A Girl of Her Age and two short-story anthologies A Woman is Dead and Eunuch of Time and Other Stories.
• She had also worked as the professor and the Head of the department of Humanities and Social Sciences at the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi.
• Her book Kshama was published in 2008.
• She was awarded with the Padma Shri in 2004.
23August
V P Singh Badnore sworn in as Governor of Punjab
V P Singh Badnore on 22 August 2016 took oath as the new Governor of Punjab. He was also sworn in as the Administrator of Chandigarh Administration.
Punjab and Haryana High Court Chief Justice S J Vazifdar administered the oath of office and secrecy to Badnore at Punjab Raj Bhawan in Chandigarh.
Badnore replaced Kaptan Singh Solanki, who is the Governor of Haryana. Solanki had been holding additional charge of Punjab Governor and Administrator of Chandigarh Administration since January 2015.
Who is V P Singh Badnore?
•Badnore belongs to Bhilwara.
•He is a four-time BJP legislator in the Rajasthan assembly.
•He was an MLA from 1977 to 1980, 1985 to 1990, 1993 to 1998 and 1998 to 1999.
•During his last term as an MLA, he served as the state Irrigation minister.
•He was a member of the 13th and 14th Lok Sabha from 1999 to 2004 and from 2004 to 2009.
•He was elected to the Rajya Sabha in July 2010.
•He studied at Mayo College, Ajmer, and Administrative Staff College of India (ASCI), Hyderabad.
•He is a graduate in business management.
•He was the chairman of the special task force to rehabilitate tigers in Sariska National Park from 2005 to 2009.
National Sports Awards 2016 announced
The Union Government on 22 August 2016 announced the National Sports. Olympic Medalists PV Sindhu and Sakshi Malik will get Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Awards.
Shooter Jitu Rai and Gymnast Dipa Karmakar have also been selected for the top national sports award.
National Sports Awards are given every year to recognize and reward excellence in sports.
Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna
Four sports person from different discipline of sports were chosen for the award and they are P.V. Sindhu for Badminton, Dipa Karmakar for Gymnastics, Jitu Rai for Shooting and Sakshi Malik for Wrestling.
The award is given for the spectacular and most outstanding performance in the field of sports by a sportsperson over a period of four years.
Dronacharya Awards
Six sports coaches will be honoured with Dronacharya Awards and they are Nagapuri Ramesh for Athletics, Sagar Mal Dhayal for Boxing, Raj Kumar Sharma for Cricket, Bishweshwar Nandi for Gymnastics, S Pradeep Kumar for Swimming (Lifetime) and Mahabir Singh for Wrestling (Lifetime).
Dipa Karmakar's coach Bishweshwar Nandi will receive the award for Gymnastics.
The award is conferred on coaches for producing medal winners at prestigious international sports events.
Arjuna Awards
15 sports person from different discipline of sports were selected for the award and they are Rajat Chauhan for Archery, Lalita Babar for Athletics, Sourav Kothari for Billiards & Snooker, Shiva Thapa for Boxing, Ajinkya Rahane for Cricket, Subrata Paul for Football, Rani for Hockey, Raghunath VR for Hockey, Gurpreet Singh for Shooting, Apurvi Chandela for Shooting, Soumyajit Ghosh for Table Tennis, Vinesh for Wrestling, Amit Kumar for Wrestling, Sandeep Singh Mann for Para-Athletics and Virender Singh for Wrestling (Deaf).
The award is given for consistently outstanding performance for four years.
Dhyan Chand Award 2015
Three sports person were selected for the awards and they are Athlete Satti Geetha, hockey player Sylvanus Dung Dung and Rower Rajendra Pralhad Shelke.
The award is conferred for life time contribution to sports development.
Rashtriya Khel Protsahana Purushkar
Seven organisations were selected for Rashtriya Khel Protsahana Purushkar, 2016 and they are Reserve Bank of India (Employment to sportspersons and other welfare measures), India Infrastructure Finance Corporate Limited (Encouragement to sports through corporate social responsibility), and Subroto Mukherjee Sports Education Society (Sports for Development). Four organisation who were chosen for the award for identification and nurturing of budding and young talent includes Hockey Citizen Group, Dadar Parsee Zorostrian cricket club, Usha School of Athletics and STAIRS.
The award is given to the corporate entities (both in private and public sector) and individuals who have played a visible role in the area of sports promotion and development.
Maulana Abul Kalam Azad (MAKA) Trophy: Punjabi University, Patiala.
The trophy is given to the overall top performing university in inter-university tournaments.
The awardees will receive their awards from President Pranab Mukherjee at a function at the Rashtrapati Bhawan on 29 August 2016, which is celebrated as the National Sports Day.
Apart from a medal and a citation, Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Awardee will receive a cash prize of 7.5 lakh rupees.
Arjuna, Dronacharya and Dhyan Chand Awardees will receive statuettes, certificates and cash prize of five lakh rupees each. Recipients of Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puruskar will be given Trophies and certificates. Award money of ten lakh rupees and Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Trophy will be given to Punjabi University, Patiala for overall top performing university in inter-university tournaments.
Selection Committee for Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award and Arjuna Awards was headed by Justice SK Agarwal, Retired Delhi High Court Judge.
Selection Committee for Dronacharya Awards and Dhyan Chand Awards was headed by MC Mary Kom.
Selection Committee for Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puruskar was headed by Rajiv Yadav, Secretary (Sports).
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NOTE: Shuttler Sindhu created history by becoming the first female athlete from India to win silver in the Rio Olympics. On the other hand, Sakshi Malik who bagged a bronze in the 58kg female wrestling became the first Indian female wrestler and the fourth Indian woman to win an Olympic medal. Besides the medal winners, Dipa Karmakar also became the first Indian female gymnast ever to compete in the Olympics. She attained 4th position in Women's Vault Gymnastics event of Rio Olympics 2016 with an overall score of 15.066. Karmakar is one of only five women who have successfully landed the Produnova, the most difficult vault currently performed in women's gymnastics. |
Banwarilal Purohit sworn in as Governor of Assam
Banwarilal Purohit on 22 August 2016 was sworn in as the Governor of Assam.
Chief Justice of Gauhati High Court Ajit Singh administered the oath of office and secrecy to Purohit at the Raj Bhavan in Gauhati.
Purohit succeeded Padmanabha Balakrishna Acharya, Governor of Nagaland who was Governor in-charge of Assam.
Who is Banwarilal Purohit?
•Banwarilal Purohit was a Member of Parliament from the Nagpur (Lok Sabha constituency) three times, twice as a Congress member, once as a BJP member.
•In 1984, he was elected to the 8th Lok Sabha as member of Congress Party. He was re-elected in 1989.
•Later, he joined Bharatiya Janata Party when it launched a movement to build Ram Temple in Ayodhya.
•In 1996, he was elected to 11th Lok Sabha as BJP's candidate.
•He gained ownership of the Nagpur daily newspaper The Hitavadain 1980s. The Hitavada was English daily founded by Gopal Krishna Gokhale. Under Banwarilal Purohit, The Hitavada became a leading newspaper of central India and apart from its headquarters edition at Nagpur the daily also launched editions from Jabalpur, Raipur, and Bhopal.
India wins four-match Test Series against West Indies, 2-0
India on 22 August 2016 won the four-match test series against West India 2-0. Fifth day's play in the fourth test in Port of Spain was called off due to rain.
West Indies was 62-2 in its first innings with only 22 over bowled in the entire match.
Series Report
1st Match: Played at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, Antigua between 21 July and 25 July 2016. India won by an innings and 92 runs. Ravichandran Ashwin (India) was declared Man of the Match.
2nd Match: Played at Sabina Park, Kingston, Jamaica between 30 July and 3 August 2016. The match was drawn. Roston Chase (West Indies) was declared Man of the Match.
3rd Match: Played at Darren Sammy National Cricket Stadium, Gros Islet, St Lucia between 9 August and 13 August 2016. India won by 237 runs. Ravichandran Ashwin (India) was declared Man of the Match.
4th Match:Played at Queen's Park Oval, Port of Spain, Trinidad between 18 August and 22 August 2016. The match was drawn. Ravichandran Ashwin (India) was declared Man of the Series.
The draw in the last and final test helped Pakistan to be number one position in ICC Test rankings displacing India. India needed to win the fourth test to retain their top spot. Pakistan takes the top spot for the first time after its 2-2 test series draw with England.
Pakistan has 111 points whereas India is on 110. Australia is on third position with 108 points. West Indies was 62-2 in its first innings with only 22 overs bowled in the entire match.
Legendary journalist George E. Curry passes away
Legendary journalist George E. Curry, considered the‘dean of black press columnists’, passed away on 20 August 2016 in Maryland, USA.
Curry mainly reported on racism, poverty and national politics for newspapers. He most recently wrote a syndicated column that ran in more than 200 black-owned newspapers.
About George E. Curry
•George E. Curry worked for Sports Illustrated and St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
•In 1983, he joined the Chicago Tribunewhere he focused on the interest of the African American community.
•In 1984, he covered the presidential campaign that included Jessie Jackson and vice-presidential campaigns of Geraldine Ferraro and George H. W. Bush.
•In 1993, he published a bold depiction of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas with an Aunt Jemima handkerchief on his head on the front cover.
•In May 1996, he published a 17-page cover story entitled, Kemba’s Nightmare. It was about a girl who had been sentenced to 24 years in prison for a minor drug incident. President Clinton pardoned her in 2000 after hearing and talking with Curry.
• From 1993 to 2000, he was editor-in-chief of Emerge. This magazine won over 40 national journalism awards while under his leadership.
Jagdish Mukhi sworn in as Lieutenant Governor of Andaman and Nicobar Islands
Senior BJP leader Jagdish Mukhi was on 22 August 2016 sworn in as the 12th Lieutenant Governor of the Union Territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
He was administered the oath of office and oath of secrecy by Justice Girish Chandra Gupta, acting chief justice of Calcutta High Court.
Mukhi Succeeded Lt General A K Singh (Retd) who was appointed in July 2013. Earlier, he had been a minister and Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Assembly in the past.
Mukhi was also a professor in Delhi University and has authored a book titled 'Company Law and Secretarial Practice'.
India, Germany sign agreement on vocational training
India and Germany on 22 August 2016 signed an agreement to foster conditions that will help create and improve workplace-based vocational training in India's industrial clusters.
The agreement was signed between the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) and German International Cooperation (GIZ).
Highlights of the Agreement
• Under the pact, German technical assistance will be used to enhance industry institute partnerships between Indian and German organizations.
• It will help build capacity of local training institutions and foster industry linkages which will help adapt elements of the German dual system into the Indian context.
• It will initiate a new project focused on adapting elements of the German dual system in select industrial clusters in India.
• The project will run for three years starting August 2016 with a budget of 22.6 crore rupees made available by the German Government.
• It will be implemented in three selected clusters, which include the Automobile cluster in Maharashtra and Electronics cluster in Bangalore.