AWARDS AND HONOURS

APPOINTMENTS

INDIAN AFFAIRS

• Global taxi aggregator Uber is teaming up with Maruti Suzuki to push up the number of drivers on its platform to over one million.
• India’s largest mobile payment and commerce platform, Paytm has emerged as the most credible and convenient payment option on the IRCTC platform.
• The scripts of AdilHussain-starrers “Sunrise” and “Parched” have been archived at the library of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
• India has 112^th positions, out of 159 countries and territories according to the Economic Freedom of the World: 2016 Annual Report.
• Union Human Resource Development Minister PrakashJavadekar launched the PARAM-ISHAN supercomputing facility at IIT, Guwahati.
• The state government in association with International Labour Organisation (ILO) will organize a two-day long national conference on labour in the city from September 20.
• Road Transport and Highways Ministry is considering aRs 4,000 crore-overhaul of around 80 border check posts across the country to ensure seamless flow of goods ahead of the implementation of GST.
• As part of its Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives, Federal Bank has launched its second Federal Skill Academy at Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu.
• World Bank has announced investment of nearly 1000 crore rupees in Assam for the betterment of the inland waterways
• Delhi’s iconic Race Course Road, where the Prime Minister’s residence is located, will now be known as LokKalyan Marg.
• To make rail travel comfortable for elderly,differently-abled and ailing travelers, Railways has launched ‘YatriMitraSewa’ to facilitate access to wheelchairs, battery operated cars and porter services.

SNIPPETS FROM THE STATES

• Haryana chief minister ManoharLalKhattar announced a district status for Dadri, the biggest sub-division in the state, increasing the district count of Haryana to 22 from 21.
• Haryana Health Minister Anil Vij said the state would be developed as the capital of Ayurveda and Yoga.
• Lt Governor KiranBedi joined Coast Guard and volunteers in cleaning garbage from the beach as part of the ‘31nd International Coastal Cleanup Day‘.
• Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar launches a three-day international Sikh conventionwould be held here ahead of the PrakashUtsav of Guru Gobind Singh.
• The Naropa festival, which is held every 12 years, began at the 17th century Hemis Monastery in Ladakh.

BANKING AND FINANCE

• Deutsche Bank has been asked to pay a fine of $14 billion by the US Department of Justice to settle an investigation into mis-selling of mortgage-backed securities.
• State Bank of India (SBI) has cut deposit rates by up to 25 basis points (bps) in some maturities, even as credit growth remains sluggish.
• The initial public offering (IPO) of ICICI Prudential Life Insurance was subscribed 0.16 times (or 16 per cent), with investors bidding for 2.08 crore of the total 13.23 crore shares on offer.
• State-owned Postal Savings Bank of China (PSBC) raised $7.4 billion in theworld’s biggest initial public offering in two years.

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

• Chinese communities are celebrating the Mid-Autumn Festival, a harvest festival which takes place on the 15th day of the eighth month of the Lunar calendar.
• A first-of-its-kind Indian music and dance festival aimed to showcase the country’s rich and diverse culture was kicked off in iconic Sydney Opera House in Sydney, Australia.
• New Yorkwill host its first ever dessert festival ‘Dessert Goals’, a festival dedicated to all things dessert, on October 23.

FOREIGN RELATIONS

• Vice-President Hamid Ansari will be representing India at the upcoming 17th Summit of the Non Aligned Movement (NAM) to be held at Margarita Island in Venezuela from September 17-18.
• The National Gallery of Australia returned artefactsfrom its troubled Asian art collection to India at a handback ceremony in Canberra.

MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS

• State-run Oil and Natural Gas Corp. Ltd (ONGC) has signed definitive agreements withRussia’s national oil company Rosneft PJSC to acquire an additional 11% stake in its unit, JSC Vankorneft, which has a licence to produce hydrocarbons from the Vankor field in Siberia.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

• India has successfully test-fired a long range surface-to-air missile, as part of its efforts to bolster its defence capability.

SPORTS

• NicoRosberg has taken the lead of the world championship after winning the Singapore GP while title rival Lewis Hamilton struggled to third place.

OBITUARY

IMPORTANT DAYS