GK August 2023

Awards

The country which has conferred the Grand Cross of the Order of Honour on the Indian Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi – Greece

 

Defence

The biennial multilateral tri-service exercise to be held at Cairo (West) Air Base, Egypt from 27 August to 16 September 2023 with the participation of India, USA, Saudi Arabia, Greece, Qatar and Egypt is named – Ex Bright Star-23

The 5th edition of biennial maritime exercise between Indian Navy and Royal Australian Navy (RAN) conducted from 22-25 August 23 at Sydney, Australia was named – AUSINDEX

The multilateral naval exercise conducted at Sydney, Australia from 11 to 21 August 2023 with participation of Indian Navy, US Navy, Japan Maritime Self Defence Force and Royal Australian Navy is named – Exercise MALABAR 2023

 

Persons

The former CM of Andhra Pradesh and cinema actor in whose memory the President of India, Smt Droupadi Murmu, has released a postage stamp – NT Rama Rao

The former chief of Brahmakumaris in whose memory the President of India, Smt Droupadi Murmu, has released a postage stamp – Prakashmani Dadi

The social activist and founder of Sulabh International who passed away on 15 August 2023 – Shri Bindeshwar Pathak

The renowned nuclear physicist, recipient of Padma Bhushan (2010), who passed away on 11 August 2023 – Shri Bikash Sinha

The well-known Telugu poet and folk singer, active in the demand for statehood for Telangana, who passed away on 06 August 2023 – Gummadi Vittal Rao (Gaddar)

 

Places

The six new countries which have been invited to join BRICS are – Saudi Arabia, UAE, Iran, Argentina, Ethiopia and Egypt

The venue of 15th BRICS Summit held under the Chairship of South Africa from 22 to 22 August 2023 – Johannesburg

The Asian country which was hit by Typhoon Lan, causing wide scale disruption of normal life – Japan

The venue of the First WHO Traditional Medicine Global Summit scheduled on 17 and 18 August 2023 – Gandhinagar, Gujarat

The city in which the President of India Smt Droupadi Murmu inaugurated the Unmesha (International Literature Festival) and Utkarsh (Festival of Folk and Tribal Performing Arts) on August 3, 2023 – Bhopal

 

Sports

The Norwegian chess player who has won the 2023 FIDE Chess World Cup defeating Indian chess player R. Praggnanandhaa in the finals at Baku, Azerbaijan – Magnus Carlsen

The team which was defeated by India in the finals at Chennai on 11 August 2023 to win the 2023 Men's Asian Champions Trophy for the 4th time – Malaysia

The Indian chess grandmaster who has overtaken Vishwanathan Anand in FIDE ratings – D. Gukesh

 

Miscellaneous

The failed Russian lunar lander mission by Roscosmos which crashed on the Moon's surface after a failed orbital maneuver – Luna 25

The total number of districts in Rajasthan after announcement of new districts by the govt – 50

The rank in Indian Army above which it has been decided to have a common uniform for all officers irrespective of their parent cadre – Brigadier

The Pune based institution which has conferred the Lokmanya Tilak National Award on the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi – Tilak Smarak Mandir Trust

 

Definition of Green Hydrogen

For the purpose of National Green Hydrogen Mission, the Govt of India has defined Green Hydrogen as follows:

Green Hydrogen shall mean Hydrogen produced using renewable energy, including, but not limited to, production through electrolysis or conversion of biomass. The non-biogenic greenhouse gas emissions in the process should not be greater than 2 kg of carbon dioxide equivalent per kilogram of Hydrogen.

New GI Tags

The following items have been bestowed Geographical Indication (GI) tags recently

1. Chikri wood craft from Rajouri district (J&K)

2. Mushqbudji rice from Anantnag district (J&K)

3. Matti Banana from Kanniyakumari (Tamil Nadu)

3. Chokuwa Rice from Assam

 

Chandrayaan 3

Launch date: 14.07.2023

Launched from: Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota

Launch vehicle: Launch Vehicle Mark-3 or LVM3

Pay load consisted of: Lander named Vikram and Rover named Pragyan

Landed on Moon: 23 August 2023

Place of landing: South pole of moon, named Shiv Shakti

 

Redevelopment of Railway Stations

No of stations to be redeveloped: 508

Cost of redevelopment: Rs. 24,470 crores

Statewise number of stations:

1. Uttar Pradesh: 55

2. Rajasthan: 55

3. Bihar: 49

4. Maharashtra: 44

5. West Bengal: 37

6. Madhya Pradesh: 34

7. Assam: 32

8. Odisha: 25

9. Punjab: 22

10. Gujarat: 21

11. Telangana: 21

12. Jharkhand: 20

13. Andhra Pradesh: 18

14. Tamil Nadu: 18

15. Haryana: 15

16. Karnataka: 13

17. Chhattisgarh: 7

18. Kerala: 5

19. Uttarakhand, Jammu and Kashmir, Tripura, Delhi : 3 each (Total 12)

20. Himachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Puducherry, Chandigarh: 1 each (Total 5)

 

Important Days of August

International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples: 09 August 2023

Designated by: United Nations General Assembly

First observed: 1995

Theme: Indigenous youth as agents of change for self-determination

International Youth Day: 12 August 2023

Designated by: United Nations General Assembly

First observed: 2000

Theme: Green Skills for Youth: Towards a Sustainable World

World Elephant Day: 12 August 2023

Designated by: Patricia Sims and Elephant Reintroduction Programme of Thailand

First observed: 2012

World Humanitarian Day: 19 August 2023

Designated by: United Nations General Assembly

First observed: 2009

Theme: #Nomatterwhat

International Day of Remembrance of and Tribute to the Victims of Terrorism: 21 August 2023

Designated by: United Nations General Assembly

First observed: 2018

International Day against Nuclear Tests: 29 August 2021

Designated by: United Nations General Assembly

First observed: 2010

International Day of Victims of Enforced Disappearances: 30 August 2023

Designated by: United Nations General Assembly

First observed: 2011

 

69th National Film Awards

1. Best Feature Film: Rocketry: The Nambi Effect directed by R. Madhavan

2. Best Direction: Nikhil Mahajan for Godavari (Marathi)

3. Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment: RRR directed by SS Rajamouli

4. Best Feature Film on National Integration: The Kashmir Files directed by Vivek Agnihotri

5. Best Actor: Allu Arjun for Pushpa, the rise

6. Best Actress: Alia Bhatt for Gangubai Kathiawadi and Kriti Sanon for Mimi

7. Best Feature Film in Hindi: Sardar Udham by Shoojit Sircar

 

FIFA Women's World Cup 2023

Venue: Budapest, Hungary

Held from: 19 to 27 August 2023

Medals Tally

#	Country	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
1.	USA	12	8	9	29
2.	Canada	4	2	0	6
3.	Spain	4	1	0	5
18.	India	1	0	0	1

 

1. The lone gold medal for India was won by Neeraj Chopra in javelin throw.

2. Indian athletes Muhammed Anas, Amoj Jacob, Ajmal Variyathodi, and Rajesh Ramesh set a new Asian record in 4x400 m relay and became the first Indian team to reach the World Athletics Championships final.

3. Noah Lyles of USA won the men's 100 m race clocking 9.83 seconds and Sha'Carri Richardson also of USA won the women's 100 m race clocking 10.65 secs

 

FIFA Women's World Cup 2023

Hosts: Australia and New Zealand

Held from: 20 July to 20 August 2023

Teams: 32

Winners: Spain

Runners-up: England

Best Player (Golden Ball): Aitana Bonmatí (Spain)

Top Scorer (Golden Boot): Hinata Miyazawa (Japan)

Fair play award: Japan

 

FISU World University Games 2023

Venue: Chengdu, China

Held from: 28 July and 8 August

Medals Tally

#	Country	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
1.	China	103	40	35	178
2.	Japan	21	29	43	93
3.	South Korea	17	18	23	58
4.	Italy	17	18	21	56
7.	India	11	5	10	26

 

PM Vishwakarma Yojana

Announced by the Prime Minister on 15 August 2023 and approved by the Cabinet on 16 August 2023.

Financial outlay: Rs. 13,000 crores for 5 years from 2023-24 to 2027-28

Aim of the scheme: To strengthen and nurture the Guru-Shishya parampara or family-based practice of traditional skills by artisans and craftspeople working with their hands and tools.

Under PM Vishwakarma scheme, the artisans and craftspeople will be provided recognition through PM Vishwakarma certificate and ID card, Credit Support upto Rs.1 lakh (First Tranche) and Rs.2 lakh (Second Tranche) with a concessional interest rate of 5%. The Scheme will further provide Skill Upgradation, Toolkit Incentive, Incentive for Digital Transactions and Marketing Support.

Eighteen traditional trades will be covered in the first instance under PM Vishwakarma. These trades include (i) Carpenter (Suthar); (ii) Boat Maker; (iii) Armourer; (iv) Blacksmith (Lohar); (v) Hammer and Tool Kit Maker; (vi) Locksmith; (vii) Goldsmith (Sonar); (viii) Potter (Kumhaar); (ix) Sculptor (Moortikar, stone carver), Stone breaker; (x) Cobbler(Charmkar)/ Shoesmith/Footwear artisan; (xi) Mason (Rajmistri); (xii) Basket/Mat/Broom Maker/Coir Weaver; (xiii) Doll & Toy Maker (Traditional); (xiv) Barber (Naai); (xv) Garland maker (Malakaar); (xvi) Washerman (Dhobi); (xvii) Tailor (Darzi); and (xviii) Fishing Net Maker.