GK and Current Affairs Updates

US shooter Kim Rhode became the first female Olympian to win medals at six straight Olympics, after a bronze-medal finish in the women's skeet shooting event. 
•    She also became the first person to win Olympic medals on five continents. 
•    Rhode won her first Olympic medal in 1996, which had made her youngest female gold medalist in Olympic shooting.
•    Her bronze in women’s skeet at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games marked the fifth continent on which Rhode has won a medal. 
•    She defeated Meng Wei of China 7-6 in a shoot-off in the bronze-medal match after both hit 15 of 16 targets.
•    Reigning world champion Morgan Craft of Team USA finished fifth in her first Olympic Games, losing in the shoot-off for the bronze-medal match when she missed her last clay out of four. 
•    Diana Bacosi of Italy defeated teammate and training partner Chiara Cainero 15-14 for the gold.
 

Union Ministers M Venkaiah Naidu and Uma Bharti on Saturday jointly launched 'Smart Ganga City' programme in 10 cities located along the Ganga to set up Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) and improve drainage. 
•    Haridwar, Rishikesh, Mathura, Varanasi, Kanpur, Allahabad, Lucknow, Patna, Sahibganj and Barrackpore are the cities/town where the programme will be implemented in the first phase.
•    Union Urban Development Minister Naidu and Water Resources Minister Bharti launched the works through video conferencing and were joined in by District Magistrates/Mayors of cities/towns.
•    Haridwar, Rishikesh, Mathura, Varanasi, Kanpur, Allahabad, Lucknow, Patna, Sahibganj and Barrackpore are the cities/town where the programme will be implemented in the first phase.
•    The government plans to form District-Level Mentoring committees in Ganga basin states - on the lines of High-Level Task Force chaired by Cabinet Secretary - to keep an eye on programme implementation.
•    This is a part of Namami gange program
•    This is a program based on PPP model so as to improve the present condition of Ganga

The Newly constructed office complex of All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) was inaugurated today by Sh. Upendra Kushwaha, Union Minister of State (HRD). 
•    Speaking on the occasion, the Minister of State stressed the importance of AICTE in cultivating technology for the transformation of India, especially the rural India. 
•    He wished that the AICTE in its best capacity fulfill the vision of our Prime Minister for transforming India through facilitating quality technical education for our youth. 
•    The statutory All India Council for Technical Education was established on May 12, 1988 following the passing of AICTE bill in 1987. 
•    First full time chairman was appointed in 1993 and council re-constituted next year in accordance with the provisions of the Act. 
•    The AICTE, was moved out of the Ministry of HRD Govt. of India into Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium complex at ITO New Delhi in 1994. 
•    Thereafter the office premises were shifted to Chanderlok Building Janpath New Delhi and partly to NBCC Building at Lodhi Road New Delhi and partly at Mayur Bhavan Income Tax Building Shankar Market Connaught Circle New Delhi. 
•    Now onwards, AICTE will work from the new Headquarters with increased efficiency to transform the technical educational sector of India.
 

​​​​​​​

The Minister for Information & Broadcasting Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu said that Bharat Parv, a festival to celebrate India’s 70 years of Independence will help foster the spirit of Unity and Integrity amongst the people across the country. The Government as a part of celebrations has developed a massive programme of 75 Ministers going all over the country and visiting the birthplace of great heroes and places of historical importance like Jallianwala Bagh, Kakori, etc. Shri Naidu stated this today while inaugurating the Photo Exhibition titled ‘Azadi 70-Yaad Karo Qurbani’ in remembrance of heroes of the freedom struggle at the Rajpath Lawn in New Delhi. Minister of State for Information & Broadcasting Col. Rajyavardhan Rathore and Secretary I&B, Shri Ajay Mittal were also present on the occasion.
•    Speaking on the occasion, the Minister said that the younger generation of the country should take inspiration from the lives of great leaders and should move forward while keeping the traditions and culture of the nation intact. He added that irrespective of caste, creed, sex, race and religion, India is one - One nation, One people and One country. He said that
•    "Alag Bhasha, Alag Bhesh, 
Phir bhi Apna Ek Desh.
Vividhta Mein Ekta, 
Bharat Ki Visheshta."
•    The exhibition will be open to the public from 12th to 18th August 2016 from 2 pm to 9pm every day. It has 70 exhibition panels and more than 300 photographs which highlight not only the freedom struggle but also the efforts at nation building since 1947. 
•    The exhibition is broadly divided into two broad sections-the first section covers the period from the First War of Independence in 1857 to freedom in 1947 and how the public angst spread from Bengal to South India. 
•    The second segment tracks the progress since independence including the adoption of the Constitution, efforts at developing nuclear capabilities including the Pokhran test. It covers a wide variety of subjects including Science and Sports. 
•    It also has a special focus on achievements made in the last two years including the changes in work culture, friendly relations with neighbours and other countries. 
•    The Directorate of Advertising and Visual Publicity (DAVP) had organized the exhibition in collaboration with Photo Division. The exhibition is a part of the mega event by Ministry of Tourism titled 'Bharat Parv' from 12th to 18th August 2016 to celebrate 70th anniversary of Indian Independence to showcase 'Unity in Diversity' and diverse culture of India.
 

The Assam Assembly on 12 August 2016 passed a resolution to become the first state to ratify The Constitution (122nd Amendment) (GST) Bill, 2014.
The bill was passed by the Lok Sabha on 8 August 2016 and by the Rajya Sabha on 3 August 2016.
•    The GST will have two components keeping in mind the federal structure of India: the Central GST (CGST) and the State GST (SGST).
•    For goods and services that pass through several states, or imports, the Centre will levy another tax, the Integrated GST (IGST).
•    Alcohol for human consumption has been kept out of the purview of GST.
•    It empowers the centre to impose an additional tax of up to 1% on the inter-state supply of goods for two years or more. This tax will accrue to states from where the supply originates.
•    Initially, GST will not apply to (a) petroleum crude, (b) high speed diesel, (c) motor spirit (petrol), (d) natural gas and (e) aviation turbine fuel. The GST Council will decide when GST will be levied on them.
•    Tobacco and tobacco products will be subject to GST. The centre may also impose excise duty on tobacco.
•    Parliament may provide for compensation to states for revenue losses arising out of the implementation of GST for up to 5 years, based on the recommendations of the GST Council.
 

NASA's Cassini spacecraft has found deep, steep-sided canyons on Saturn's moon Titan that are flooded with liquid hydrocarbons. 
•    The finding represents the first direct evidence of the presence of liquid-filled channels on Titan, as well as the first observation of canyons hundreds of meters deep.
•    A new paper in the journal Geophysical Research Letters describes how scientist’s analyzed Cassini data from a close pass the spacecraft made over Titan in May 2013. 
•    During the flyby, Cassini's radar instrument focused on channels that branch out from the large, northern sea Ligeia Mare.
•    The branching channels appear dark in radar images, much like Titan's methane-rich seas. 
•    This suggested to scientists that the channels might also be filled with liquid, but a direct detection had not been made until now. 
•    Previously it wasn't clear if the dark material was liquid or merely saturated sediment -- which at Titan's frigid temperatures would be made of ice, not rock.
 

The Summer Sonic festival will be held simultaneously in the Japanese cities of Tokyo and Osaka on August 20 and August 21. 
•    The line-up for this year includes Fergie, Flo Rida, Radiohead and Panic! At the Disco. 
•    The annual rock festival which was founded in 2000, features Japanese artists in addition to international ones.
•    The Summer Sonic Festival is an annual two- or three-day rock festival held at the same time in Osaka and Chiba. 
•    The majority of the bands playing in Osaka the first day go to Chiba the following day and vice versa. 
•    The line-up contains many Japanese rock musicians from both major and indie record companies, and also international acts. 
•    It also operates the festival sonic mania, with an EDM focus, since 2011. 
•    Producer Creative man formed a joint venture with Live Nation Entertainment in 2012, and Live Nation bought full control of the venture in 2014.
 

Japanese gymnast Kohei Uchimura became the first man in 44 years to retain his Olympic gold medal in men's all-around gymnastics, when he won the Rio event on Wednesday. 
•    Uchimura, who won silver in Beijing 2008, is only the fourth man worldwide to achieve the feat and the first since compatriot Sawao Kato, who did it in 1972.
•    Uchimura became only the fourth man, and the first since his compatriot Sawao Kato in 1972, to win successive golds in the event that tests skills across six apparatus.
•    He won with a total of 92.365. 
•    Max Whitlock becomes the first British man in over a century to win a medal in the event after picking up bronze with a total of 90.641.
•    Kōhei Uchimura is a Japanese artistic gymnast. 
•    He is a seven-time Olympic medalist, winning three gold and four silvers, a 19-time World medalist and is considered by many to be the greatest gymnast of all time.
 

Jack Ma, Founder of Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba, is the richest Asian in the '100 Richest Tech Billionaires in the World in 2016' list released by Forbes. 
•    With an estimated fortune of $25.8 billion, Ma is ranked as the eighth richest tech billionaire worldwide. 
•    China has the second highest number of listed tech billionaires, behind only the US.
•    Ma Yun known professionally as Jack Ma, is a Chinese business magnate and philanthropist. 
•    He is the founder and executive chairman of Alibaba Group, a family of successful Internet-based businesses. 
•    He is the first mainland Chinese entrepreneur to appear on the cover of Forbes.
•    In 2004, Ma was chosen by China Central Television and its viewers as one of the "Top 10 Business Leaders of the Year".
•    He was selected by Business week as a "Businessperson of the Year" in 2007 and one of the 30 "World’s Best CEOs" by Barron's in 2008.
•    Microsoft founder Bill Gates once again tops the list with a fortune estimated at US$78 billion, which also makes him the richest person in the world.
 

Simone Manuel became the first African-American woman to capture an Olympic gold medal in swimming.
•    The 20-year-old Manuel upset world-record holder Cate Campbell and tied with Penny Oleksiak of Canada at the Rio Games on Thursday.
•    Campbell was on pace to take her world record even lower when she made the turn out front, with little sister Bronte right behind her. 
•    But the Australian siblings, who teamed up to lead their country to gold in the 4x100 freestyle relay, couldn't hang on. Bronte faded to fourth, and Cate dropped all the way to sixth at the finish.
•    Manuel's victory took on extra significance in a sport that still has few people of color, especially in light of the racial divide in her country. 
•    Until now, Cullen Jones had been the face of swimming for minorities in America, having won two golds and two silvers at the last two Olympics.
•    But Jones failed to make the U.S. team this year in what could have been his final attempt.