1 Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods Mission launches Million Designers, Billion Dreams with LEAP
Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana -National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM) on August 6 announced the launch of the “Million Designers, Billion Dreams ” initiative. This innovative programme aims to empower individuals across India with systems design knowledge to tackle complex societal challenges. It is powered by LEAP in collaboration with DAY-NRLM. LEAP is a catalytic organisation that emerged from multidisciplinary work developed in India by the Design Laboratory at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health (D-Lab) and Transform Rural India Foundation (TRIF), with seed investment provided by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF).
2 IIT-Madras gets top spot for higher education institutions in overall category
Indian Institute of Technology Madras has topped the National Institutional Ranking Framework 2024 for Higher Education Institutions in the overall category. Indian Institute of Science Bangalore is at second place and Indian Institute of Technology Bombay is at third place. Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan released the ranking in New Delhi. Shri Pradhan said that ranking and accreditation are the key features of the National Education Policy 2020. He said that all educational institutions should join this process. He said that out of more than 58 thousand educational institutions in the country, 6500 institutions are included in this system. He called upon all private and public institutions to apply to join this new system that promotes competition. In the University category, the top three positions are occupied by Indian Institute of Science Bangalore, Jawaharlal Nehru University New Delhi and Jamia Millia Islamia New Delhi. In the Management category, Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad is at the top position. Indian Institute of Management Bangalore is at second place and Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode is at third place. All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Delhi secured first position in the Medical Education category.
3 10th bilateral Mitra Shakti military exercise begins in Sri Lanka
The annual bilateral Mitra Shakti military exercise between the Indian Army and the Sri Lankan Army began on 12 August 2024 at the Sri Lankan Army Training School, Maduru Oya. The week-long exercise from 12 to 25 August is an annual joint training exercise of the armies of the two countries. The main objective of this joint exercise is to strengthen military ties with the Sri Lankan Armed Forces and is a part of Indian diplomacy to strengthen bilateral relations between the two friendly countries. The annual Mitra Shakti exercise was started in 2012 and is held alternately in India and Sri Lanka.
4 Shahrukh Khan received the Pardo alla Carriera Award
Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan was awarded the Pardo Alla Carriera Award on 10 August . This award was given during the 77th Locarno Film Festival, 2024 being held in Switzerland . 58-year-old Shah Rukh is the first Indian to be honored with the Pardo Alla Carriera Award. His 2002 film ‘ Devdas ‘ was also screened at the film festival . After receiving the award, Shah Rukh Khan gave a long speech. The award ceremony took place at Piazza Grande Square in Switzerland , in which about 8000 people attended. Shah Rukh is often called ‘Badshah of Bollywood’, ‘King Khanat’, ‘Romance King’ and ‘King of Bollywood’ in the media. He has won fourteen Filmfare Awards out of thirty nominations for his contribution to the film industry. He and Dilip Kumar are the only two actors who have won the Filmfare Best Actor Award 8 times. In 2005, the Government of India awarded him the Padma Shri for his contribution to Indian cinema .
5 Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh launched ‘Amrit Gyan Kosh’ and ‘Faculty Development’ portals under Mission Karmayogi
Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh launched the ‘ Amrit Gyan Kosh ‘ Portal and ‘ Faculty Development Portal ‘ at the Civil Service Training Institutes Conference at Vigyan Bhavan, New Delhi . Dr Jitendra Singh mentioned the journey of National Capacity Building Commission and Mission Karmayogi Bharat. He said, “This marks a paradigm shift in our approach to civil service training and also envisions a future-ready civil service based on Indian ethos with a global perspective.”
6 Release of booklet titled “Women and Men in India 2023”
The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, Government of India released the 25th issue of its handbook titled “ Women and Men in India 2023 ” . The handbook is a comprehensive and insightful document that attempts to present a holistic view of the status of women and men in India and provides data on a wide range of topics such as population, education, health, participation in the economy, participation in decision making, etc. It presents disaggregated data by gender, urban-rural divide and geographical area, which helps in understanding the inequalities existing between different groups of women and men. The handbook includes important indicators derived from published official data of various Ministries/Departments/Organizations. India’s population is expected to reach 152.2 crore by 2036, with the female percentage to rise marginally to 48.8 per cent from 48.5 per cent in 2011. The proportion of persons under 15 years of age is projected to decline in 2036 compared to 2011, possibly due to a decline in fertility. In contrast, the proportion of the population aged 60 years and above is projected to increase more during this period.
7 Border Roads Organisation successfully completed reconstruction of Indrani Bridge in Sikkim
The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) has successfully completed the reconstruction of the Indrani Bridge in Sikkim . The bridge was damaged in a flash flood in October 2023. Now the northern region of the state will be connected to the rest of India through this bridge. The project was led by 764 Border Roads Task Force (BRTF) under Project Swastik after a joint survey with Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE). It also includes the construction of a 300-foot Bailey suspension bridge.
8 International Youth Day
International Youth Day is celebrated every year on 12 August . This day is an important occasion to highlight the voice, actions and efforts of youth and promote opportunities for their development. International Youth Day was first celebrated on 12 August 2000. The United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution to celebrate this day on 17 December 1999. Subsequently, International Youth Day was celebrated for the first time in 2000, which is celebrated every year on 12 August till date. The year 1985 was declared as the “International Youth Year”. Seeing the success of this year, in 1995, the United Nations launched the “World Programme for Youth”. Later in 1998, the importance of youth development and participation was emphasized at the World Youth Conference held in Lisbon, Portugal. The theme of the 2024 International Youth Day is ” From Clicks to Progress: Youth Digital Pathways for Sustainable Development “.
9 IIT Indore developed e-shoes for live location tracking
Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Indore has prepared special shoes for soldiers with innovative technology . Walking in these shoes not only can produce electricity, but the location of military personnel can also be detected in real time. IIT officials have given this information. Officials said that IIT Indore has also provided 10 pairs of such shoes to Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) . They said that these shoes have been developed under the guidance of Professor IA Palani of IIT Indore. Officials said that these shoes have been made with Tribo-Electric Nanogenerator (TENG) technology due to which electricity will be produced with every step taken while wearing them. They said that this electricity will be stored in a machine installed in the soles of the shoes, which can run small devices. Officials said that with the help of shoes equipped with ‘Global Positioning System’ (GPS) and ‘Radio Frequency Identification’ (RFID) technology, the location of military personnel can also be detected in real time.
10 Highly porous xerogel dressings can save lives by making blood clot faster
Researchers have developed a porous composite xerogel dressing incorporating silica nanoparticles and calcium that can help blood coagulate faster and provide relief from uncontrolled bleeding . The mixture has shown significant improvement in the rate of blood clotting as compared to commercial dressings. Uncontrolled bleeding is one of the major causes of traumatic deaths during accidents or injuries and military or surgical operations. More than 40% of trauma deaths are caused by severe blood loss. Agharkar Research Institute (ARI) Pune , an autonomous institute of the Department of Science and Technology (DST) , has developed a highly porous spongy xerogel hemostatic dressing supplemented with substances that bind to a receptor inside a cell (agonist) such as silica nanoparticles (Silicon Nanoparticles – SiNPS) and calcium.