India and ADB Sign $375 Million Loan to Improve Irrigation Efficiency in Madhya Pradesh

The government of India and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) signed a $375 million loan agreement to contribute to double farming incomes in Madhya Pradesh by expanding irrigation networks and system efficiency.

The Madhya Pradesh Irrigation Efficiency Improvement Project will develop 125,000 hectares of new, highly efficient and climate resilient irrigation networks and improve water use efficiency in more than 400 villages, benefiting over 800,000 people in Madhya Pradesh. 
Source- Press Information Bureau (PIB)

Static/Current Takeaways Important for Indian Bank PO Exam 2018- 
  • The Asian Development Bank is a regional development Bank established in 1966.
  • Headquarters of ADB is in Manila, Philippines.
  • Takehiko Nakao is Present President of the Asian Development Bank. 

Cabinet Approves Earth Sciences Ministry’s Umbrella Scheme ‘O-SMART’

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave its approval for implementation of an umbrella scheme ‘Ocean Services, Technology, Observations, Resources Modelling and Science (O-SMART)’. The scheme encompasses a total of 16 sub-projects addressing ocean development activities such as Services, Technology, Resources, Observations and Science. 
The CCEA approved the scheme for implementation during the period from 2017-18 to 2019-20 at an overall cost of Rs 1623 crore. The scheme covers a total of 16 sub-projects, which address ocean development activities such as services, technology, resources, observations and science. 
Source- Press Information Bureau (PIB)

Static/Current Takeaways Important for Indian Bank PO Exam 2018- 
  • Nitin Jairam Gadkari is the present Minister of Shipping of India. 

4th BIMSTEC Summit 2018 Starts in Kathmandu

The 4th BIMSTEC Summit began in Kathmandu, Nepal. The two-day Summit will be held with the main focus on countering terrorism, enhancing regional connectivity and boosting trade. 
The theme of the summit is ‘Towards a peaceful, prosperous and sustainable Bay of Bengal region’. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold bilateral talks with leaders of BIMSTEC countries on the sidelines of the summit. 
Source- DD News

Static/Current Takeaways Important for Indian Bank PO Exam 2018- 
  • The group was formed in 1997 and it brings together Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Thailand. 
  • The grouping accounts for 22 per cent of the global population. 
  • Nepal is the current chair of BIMSTEC. 

Asian Games 2018: Arpinder Singh Wins Gold In Triple Jump

Arpinder Singh ended India’s 48-year long wait for a gold in triple jump at the Asian Games with an effort of 16.77m. India’s last Asian Games gold medal in men’s triple jump had come in 1970 from Mohinder Singh Gill. 
Arpinder, who has been without a medal in multi-sporting events since winning a bronze in the 2014 Commonwealth Games, produced his best jump of 16.77m in his third attempt. 
Source- The Hindu

Asian Games 2018: Swapna Barman, 1st Indian Heptathlete To Win Gold In Asian Games

Swapna Barman created history by becoming the first Indian heptathlete to win an Asian Games gold in Indonesia, a feat she achieved despite a toothache. 
The 21-year-old Barman logged 6026 points from the seven events competed for two days. En route to the title, she won the high jump (1003 points) and javelin throw (872 points) events and finished second-best in shot put (707 points) and long jump (865 points). 
What is Heptathlete Event: 
The women’s outdoor heptathlon consists of the 7 events, with the first 4 contested on the first day, and the remaining 3 on day two- 
1. 100 metres hurdles
2. High jump
3. Shot put
4. 200 metres
5. Long jump
6. Javelin throw
7. 800 metres. 
Source- Asian Games

Static/Current Takeaways Important for Indian Bank PO Exam 2018- 
  • The Host cities for Asian Games 2018 are Jakarta and Palembang, Indonesia. 
  • Bhin Bhin, Kaka, and Atung are the mascots of the 2018 Asian Games. 

ISRO To Outsource Production Of PSLVs and SSLVs To Private Industries

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will outsource the production of the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicles (PSLVs) and Small Satellite Launch Vehicles (SSLVs) to private Industries. The Indian Space agency Chairman K Sivan informed that private industries will play a major role in capacity building. 
The ISRO will launch Gaganyaan, India’s first manned mission to outer space in 2020. As per the announcement, the Indian Air Force will identify six persons who can be trained to be astronauts. The assistance of the country’s first astronaut Rakesh Sharma and that of foreign space agencies will be sought for the training of astronauts. 
Source- The Hindu

Static/Current Takeaways Important for Indian Bank PO Exam 2018- 
  • Dr K Sivan is Chairman of ISRO.
  • ISRO stands for Indian Space Research Organization.
  • Headquarters of ISRO– Bengaluru, Karnataka.

India’s Economic Growth Rate To Grow At 7.4% in 2018-19: RBI

The Reserve Bank of India has released its annual report in Mumbai. It was mentioned in the report that due to the evolving economic conditions, real GDP growth for 2018-19 is expected to increase to 7.4% from 6.7% in the previous year.

The RBI stated that its monetary policy will continue to be guided by the objective of achieving medium-term target for retail inflation of 4%. 


Source- AIR World Service

Static/Current Takeaways Important for Indian Bank PO Exam 2018- 
  • Urjit Patel- 24th Governor of RBI, Headquarters- Mumbai, Established on- 1st April 1935, in Kolkata. 

3rd Edition of World’s Biggest Open Innovation Model ‘Smart India Hackathon- 2019’ Launched

The third edition of World’s Biggest Open Innovation Model – Smart India Hackathon 2019 – was launched by the Union Minister for Human Resource Development, Prakash Javadekar in New Delhi. MHRD, AICTE, Persistent Systems and i4c have joined hands to make a hat trick with their highly popular and innovative Smart India Hackathon initiative (SIH). 
SIH-2019 is a nationwide initiative to provide students a platform to solve some of pressing problems we face in our daily lives, and thus inculcate a culture of product innovation and a mindset of problem-solving. For the 1st time, Private industry/organisations and NGOs can also send their problem statements to students under SIH-2019. 
Source- Press Information Bureau (PIB)

Static/Current Takeaways Important for Indian Bank PO Exam 2018- 
  • Dr Anil Sahasrabudhe is the Chairman of AICTE and Chairman of Smart India Hackathon 2019.

Important Cabinet Approvals: 29th August 2018

Important Cabinet Approvals- 29th August 2018
The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given the following set of approvals. The important Cabinet Approvals are given as follows-

The Cabinet has approved- 
1.  Signing of MoU between India and Bulgaria in the field of tourism,
2. Apprised of the MoU between India and Republic of Korea on the cooperation in the field of railways,
3. Apprised of the MoU between India and United Kingdom and Northern Ireland on the Cooperation in the fields of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries,
4. Signing of Air Services Agreement between India and Morocco,
5. Trade Cooperation Framework between India and Rwanda,
6. MoU between India and USA in insurance regulatory sector,
7. Additional 2% Dearness Allowance (DA) for Central Government employees and Dearness Relief (DR) to pensioners w.e.f. 1st July, 2018,
8. Revised Cost Estimate for setting up of India Post Payments Bank,
9. Umbrella scheme “Ocean Services, Technology, Observations, Resources Modelling and Science (O-SMART)” of Ministry of Earth Sciences,

World Bank To Provide $250 million Loan To Rajasthan

The Union Government, Rajasthan and the World Bank signed a USD 250 million Development Policy Loan (DPL) to support Rajasthan in improving the performance of its Electricity Distribution Sector under the State’s ‘24×7 Power for All’ program. 
The loan from the World Bank’s International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), has a 3 year grace period and a maturity of 21 years.

Source- The Indian Exopress