Current Events-4 August 2016

1.  Bimalendraimalendra Nidhi, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Home Affairs of Nepal called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi.  Bimalendra Nidhi briefed the Prime Minister about developments in Nepal. (Foreign Policy - NEPAL)
2. Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan inaugurated two-day the conference of BRICS Women Parliamentarians' in Jaipur. Around 42 women Parliamentarians from the BRICS countries, including 28 MPs of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha participating in the meeting.
3. As a part of the 70th Independence day celebrations "Yaad Karo Qurbani," several ministers are visiting various parts of the country. Home Minister Rajnath Singh visited Shahjahanpur to pay tributes to freedom fighters and unveiled a statue of Chattrapati Shivaji in Lucknow.
4. Commerce minister Nirmala Sitharaman  launched the government e-marketplace. It's a one stop online marketplace for govt buyers and is expected to be a game changer.
   -The "e-marketplace" has been launched online purchase of goods and services by various central government ministries and departments.
   -The e marketplace is expected to bring tranparency and improve governance. To begin with common use items in 26 categories like computers, office equipments, stationery has been placed on the portal.
   -By april 1, 2017 more items will be included in the list.
   -A call center has been step up for the market place that will help both buyers and sellers in conducting transactions.all in all govt e market place is expect to bring in new ear of govt procurement. 
5. Union Minister Kiren Rijiju dedicated the nation the Pasighat "Advanced Landing Ground" (ALG) in Arunachal Pradesh which will allow fighter aircraft like Su 30 MKI to land and take off, in a major fillip to India’s military capabilities along its border with China.
   -Inauguration of the ALG that is capable of operating all types of aircraft and helicopters after Tezpur and Chabua, development process has started in the state which was lagging behind even after 70 years of independence. (Read more : http://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-news-india/kiren-rijiju-dedicates-pasighat-alg-to-nation-2985279/)
6. Sakshi Malik is an Indian freestyle wrestler. At the 2016 Summer Olympics, she won the bronze medal in the 58 kg category, becoming the first Indian female  wrestler to win a medal at the Olympics and the fourth Olympic medalist from the country.
7. Indian wrestler Narsingh Yadav has been given a four-year ban by the Court of Arbitrationfor Sport (HQ- Lausanne, Switzerland) barred from present Olympics also.
8. Woman gymnast Tripura born, Dipa Karmakar, who created history by entering the vault final at the Rio Olympics before finishing fourth, and ace shooter Jitu Rai Jitu, (Jitu was ranked third in the world in the men's 10m air pistol) were recommended for the prestigious Rajiv Khel Ratna Award by the selection panel appointed by the Sports Ministry.
9. The first National Conference of Investigating Agencies was held at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi. The two-day conference was inaugurated by the Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh. The conference was attended by more than 100 delegates from States/UTs/Central Police Organisations.
10. The India Post Payments Bank Limited IPPB received the certificate of incorporation from the  Registrar of Companies that will help it to roll out pan-India branches by Sept 2017.
11. Maharashtra Government became first state in the country to launch India’s first comprehensive ‘Crime Criminal Tracking Network System’ (CCTNS) in Mumbai.
    -It was launched through the operationalisation of 34 cyber laboratories across the state in order to combat growing cybercrimes.
    -CCTNS developed by Pune based Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (CDAC).
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13. India ranks a low 39th in terms of fixed broadband adoption in the list of 53 Asia Pacific countries.
    -It was revealed by the recently released report ‘State of ICT in Asia and the Pacific 2016: Uncovering the Widening Broadband Divide’. It was published by United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP). 
14. India has ranked 66th in the 2016 Global Innovation Index (GII).
    -In this edition, India has jumped up by 15 spots from 81st position in 2015 GII.
    -The annual index was released by France-based international business school INSEAD and World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), a specialized agency of the United Nations.
    -The index ranks world economies since 2007 according to their innovation capabilities using more than 80 indicators.
15. India’s first ever BIO-CNG plant producing CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) from agricultural residue was inaugurated in Pune, Maharashtra. 
    -The bio-fuel will help in reducing the import of diesel up to 50% and therefore the huge amount of foreign exchange can be saved.
    -This energy source is also cost effective and pollution free.
    -This project is remarkable step in Make In India and also will help reduce problem of disposal of agricultural waste was a major concern in the country.
16. The only Indian cricketer who figured in the Top 10 Test Player Rankings of the ICC - Ajinkya Rahane. 
17. Karnataka ranks 1st in IT Investments with Rs. 53396 crore followed by Gujarat with Rs. 35300 crore - ASSOCHAM Report 2015-16.
18. China blasted the world’s first quantum communications satellite into orbit frm the Gobi Desert :- Micius
    -The transfer of data using quantum communications is considered impenetrable due to a particle phenomenon known as quantum entanglement, with eavesdroppers unable to monitor the transfer without altering the quantum state and thereby being detected. In theory, two parties can communicate in secret by sharing an encryption key encoded in a string of photons.