TODAY’S TOP NEWS: 19 AUGUST, 2020 (GPN):

NATIONAL NEWS

1. *Shri Satya Pal Malik was appointed as the Governor of Meghalaya.* He replaced Tathagata Roy. Mr Malik served as Governor of Goa previously. With his transfer, the Governor of Maharashtra Bagat Singh Koshyari is to discharge the functions of Governor of Goa.

2. PM Modi chaired a meeting to review preparations for National Master plan on Multi-modal Connectivity of Economic Zones Project. This will boost infrastructure, productivity, economic progress and opportunity for youngsters.

3. *The Naval Commanders’ Conference-2020 will be held in the National Capital starting from Wednesday.* The conference would discuss upon the ways to optimize joint planning structures, Tri-Service Synergy, and operational readiness, as also functional reorganisation within the IN to improve efficiency.

4. The Indian Air Force has moved some of its Tejas light combat aircraft from their home base in Sulur in Tamil Nadu to the western sector to strengthen its operational readiness against Pakistan amid border tensions with China in eastern Ladakh.

5. *Election Commissioner Ashok Lavasa,* who was next in line to head the poll panel, *resigned* on Tuesday to join the Philippines-based Asian Development Bank (ADB) as vice-president next month.The ADB had announced Lavasa’s appointment on July 15.

6. *Coronavirus vaccine update: India to begin phase 3 trial for COVID-19 vaccine*: India has two indigenous vaccines which are undergoing human trials. These are COVXIN and ZyCoV-D. Covaxin is being developed by Bharat Biotech, Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), and National Institute of Virology, Pune. COVAXIN already completed phase 1 human trials in just one month. It had begun its Phase 2 human trials. Human trials of COVAXIN are going on in 12 sites across India.

7. *Judgement on PM CARES Funds* : According to the judgement, the apex court refused to direct the centre to transfer the contributions made under PM Cares Funds towards National Disaster Response Fund.,
But The SC held that the organizations are free to contribute to NDRF and there are no prohibition to such contributions. The court pronounced that as PM-CARES funds was established as a public charitable fund.

8. *What is the issue ?*
GoI had brought in COVID-19 pandemic under National Disaster Management Act, 2005. COVID-19 was declared “Notified Disaster”. This was mainly to help the State Governments managing their funds and guide them in their counter measures towards COVID-19.

9. Union Minister Prakash Javadekar held a meeting with 24 state forest ministers. During the meeting, the minister announced that the CAMPA is *Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority* . funds shall be used only for plantation drives and afforestation. Also, the forest-based devolution funds are to be increased from 7% to 10%.

10. *PM Modi announced that GoI is to unveil a new National Cyber Security Policy, 2020 soon* . It envisages to create secure cyber space in India and is to be ready by the end of 2020. Currently, India is operating under National Cyber Security Policy, 2013.The 2020 policy will run for five years. With Chinese apps being banned already, the new policy is expected to ban more.

11. *Visva Bharati* university, founded by Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore, has snowballed into a major political row, after some ruling TMC supporters and varsity authorities filed police complaints against each other. *demands CBI probe after campus violence*.
The prime minister is the chancellor of the university. *The Issue was* : The heritage university was shut down indefinitely on Monday following violent protests against Visva Bharati’s decision to construct a boundary wall around the venue of Poush Mela, a prestigious annual cultural event started more than a century ago.

12. *Bihar announces bonanza for 3.5 lakh contractual teachers ahead of Assembly polls* : the Bihar government on Tuesday announced a slew of benefits for 3.5 lakh contractual teachers appointed by Panchayati Raj institutions and urban local bodies, hiking their pay by 15 percent besides providing gains of Employees Provident Fund (EPF) with effect from 01 Sep 2020.

13. *The government is likely to take a major decision on airport privatization in its scheduled cabinet meeting on Wednesday (August 19)* . The cabinet may approve the privatization of six airports including Amritsar, Indore, Ranchi, Trichy, Bhubaneshwar, and Raipur.

14. *India is negotiating with 13 countries, including Australia, Japan and Singapore, to establish separate bilateral air bubble arrangements* for international flight operations, Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said

15. *The Supreme Court on Tuesday (August 18) reserved its order on a batch of pleas challenging a circular of the University Grants Commission (UGC)* mandating to conduct the final term exams in all affiliated universities by the end of September.

16. *Union Home Minister Amit Shah has been admitted to AIIMS for post COVID care* after complaining of fatigue and body ache. He has been complaining of fatigue and body aches for the last 3-4 days. He has tested negative for COVID-19.

17. *Defence Minister Rajnath Singh launched NAG Missile Carrier (NAMICA)* . It may be fitting that India sought to boost its firepower on the Independence Day of Pakistan. NAMICA has been made by Ordnance Factory in collaboration with Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). The entire project costs about Rs 3 thousand crore.

18. *An Indian Army Jawan Prashant Thakur made supreme sacrifice while fighting against terrorists during an encounter in Baramulla district* in Jammu and Kashmir. 24-year-old Prashant Thakur belonged to Gvana village in Renukaji area of Sirmaur district in Himachal Pradesh.

19. *Missing soldier’s body found 7 months after LoC avalanche in Gulmarg* : Indian Army’s Havildar Rajendra Singh Negi went missing in an avalanche, around seven months ago, while on patrol duty near the LoC in Gulmarg. His family was informed on Saturday that the body of Garhwal Rifles Havildar has been recovered.Negi, a resident of Dehradun ,is survived by his wife Rajeshwari, two daughters and a son. Rajendra joined the Garhwal Rifles regiment in 2001.

20. *Forensic audit of Sushant Singh Rajput’s bank account reveals no transaction in favour of Rhea Chakraborty in last one year.* According to Mumbai Police sources, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) which is probing into the money laundering aspects of the Bollywood actor’s death, has sent a letter to Mumbai Police asking for the details of statements they have recorded and electronic evidence related to the case.

21. *Sanjay Dutt’s wife Maanayata Dutt on Tuesday issued a statement informing about the preliminary treatment of the Bollywood actor* and requested everyone to stop speculating the stage of his illness. Dutt was diagnosed with Stage-3 lung cancer on August 11 and is expected to fly to the US for treatment soon.

22. Haryana board follows CBSE, cuts syllabus by 30 per cent due to COVID .

23. *COVID CASES IN INDIA*
CONFIRMED 27,02,742
DEATHS 51,797

*✈INTERNATIONAL NEWS*

1. *Foreign Secretary of India Harsh Vardhan Shringla arrived in Dhaka on Tuesday on a two-day official visit* to Bangladesh from August 18-19 to discuss and take forward cooperation on matters of mutual interest.

2. *India and Nepal agreed to speed up India-aided Development Projects* . This is being done amidst China’s continuous efforts by China to draw Kathmandu into its sphere of influence by providing infrastructure projects and loans at low rates.

3. The discussions were held between Indian Ambassador to Nepal, Vinay Kwatra and his Nepalese counter part Shanker Das Bairagi.
The leaders discussed about the progress of development projects in the last one year. This included reconstruction of earthquake damaged houses in the districts of Gorkha, Nuwakot, operationalization of cross border petroleum pipeline (Motihari-Amlekhgunj), High Impact Community Development Projects, Integrated Check Post at Biratnagar.

4. The meeting also discussed about the Pancheshwar Multipurpose project, construction of Nepal Police Academy, power and transmission line construction project, Ramayana circuit for tourism, motorable bridges over Mahakali river.

5. *Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $1 billion loan* to support the construction of the modern, high-speed Delhi–Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System (82-kilometer).

6. *India and UAE held their 13th Joint Commission Meeting virtually.* : The five sub-committees from India and UAE participated in the meeting. This included the following:-
Economic, Trade and Investment Cooperation
Defence and Security Cooperation
Education, Culture and Youth Cooperation
Consular and Community Affairs Cooperation.

7. *India-UAE Joint Commission Meeting,* Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman held a bilateral meeting with her UAE counterpart. The minister has sought for Rs 111 trillion of investment from UAE for the National Infrastructure Pipeline projects. India has identified 7,000 projects between the years 2020 and 2025. During the meet, the leaders agreed to work together in aligning interests of India and UAE in several international forums such as G20 and International Telecommunication Union.

8. *The Cooperation between India and UAE strengthened after PM Modi visited UAE in 2015.* This was the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to UAE after 24 years. This renewed the interests of the countries under Link West Policy. The bilateral trade between India and UAE was 60 billion UAE in 2019-20. This has made UAE the third largest trading partner of India after China and US. Also, UAE is the second largest export destination for India.

9. *The International Solar Alliance will hold World Solar Technology Summit for the first time on September 8, 2020* . The summit aims to bring the world scientists and engineers together to address the challenges to make energy affordable. According to the Central Electricity Authority, the solar power generation in India stood at 35 GW by July 2020. India has set an ambitious target of achieving 100 GW of solar power by 2022.

10. *The Centre has allowed foreign journalists with valid visas to come to India* along with family members. The Union Home Ministry in an August 17 notification said.

11. *Turkey has once again taken an anti-India stand on Kashmir, based on Pakistani lines* , and the Turkish media has begun the use of new terminology for Jammu and Kashmir from August 5. It has started using the term “Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK)”–a term that was propped up by Pakistan.

*WORLD NEWS*

1. *Brazil’s indigenous community demands help against coronavirus* : Brandishing bows and arrows, dozens of indigenous protesters, Members of the Kayapo Mekranoti ethnic group set up a road block across highway BR-163 blocked a main highway through the Brazilian Amazon on Monday, demanding help against the new coronavirus and an end to illegal mining and deforestation.

2. The coronavirus pandemic has hit especially hard among indigenous people in the region, who have a history of vulnerability to outside diseases. In Brazil, 21,000 have been infected and 618 have died, according to the Brazilian Indigenous Peoples’ Association (APIB).

3. *China’s Xi Jinping facing widespread opposition in his own party,* insider claims: A former professor at China’s elite Central Party School has issued an unprecedented rebuke of the Chinese leader, Xi Jinping, accusing him of “killing a country” and claiming that many more want out of the ruling Chinese Communist party.

4. *Oracle Corp has held preliminary talks with TikTok’s Chinese owner,* ByteDance, and was seriously considering buying the app’s operations in the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

5. *Coronavirus cases in the Americas have reached almost 11.5 million* and over 4,00,000 people have died as a result of the pandemic, the World Health Organization regional director Carissa Etienne said .

6. *China’s Xinjiang province is known to have a majority population of Muslims, but people here are devoid of every right to follow their religion.* The state is 1.5 times the size of Pakistan and 12 times more than Bangladesh, and it also borders eight countries, including India, along with 5 other nations where Islam is the largest religion.

7. *Chinese atrocities on Uighur Muslims continue as Islamic community maintains strategic silence* : Muslims here, known as Uighur Muslims, are not allowed to grow their beards or observe fast in the month of Ramadan, women are not allowed to wear a burqa, and they cannot celebrate their religious festivals. The DNA report will reveal several other facts in today’s analysis and will also let you know why Islamic countries maintain a strategic silence against these atrocities while they have waged a war in other parts of the world in the name of Muslim brotherhood.

8. *US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will likely travel to New York on Thursday* to seek a return of all UN sanctions on Iran and meet with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, diplomats.

*WORLD COVID CASES*
CONFIRMED 2,19,43,183
DEATHS 7,75,439

* SPORTS:*

1. *Hockey India (HI) on Tuesday announced it will provide 61 unemployed players* , including 34 women, with financial assistance amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

2. Under the initiative, *each player will be provided a sum of 10,000 rupees* to help them return to sporting activities. Hockey India officiating President, Gyanendro Ningombam said the objective of the initiative is to provide basic financial relief to the athletes.

3. Netaji Subhash National Institute of Sports *(NSNIS) Patiala’s catering manager,* who travelled from Lucknow earlier this week, has *tested positive for COVID-19.*

4. *Indian opening batsman Rohit Sharma and wrestler Vinesh Phogat are among the four sportspersons who have been recommended for the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award* — India’s highest sporting honour. Apart from Rohit and Vinesh, table tennis player Manika Batra and Paralympian M Thangavelu are the other two names.

*USD 74.58 GBP 98.81*
_In Kolkata_(WB)
*Gold ₹55,650@10 gm 24 (Krt)*
*Silver ₹71,100@ Kg*
⛽ *Petrol ₹ 82.43*
⛽ *Diesel ₹ 77.06*

* FACTS ABOUT INDIA*

*Kerala* is a state on the southwestern Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956. The Chera Dynasty was the first prominent kingdom based in Kerala. there were two major princely states in Kerala- Travancore State and the Kingdom of Cochin. They united to form the state of Thiru-Kochi in 1949.

Kerala is also called *Parasurama Kshetram*
The name Kerala has an uncertain etymology. One popular theory derives “Kerala” from “Kera” (coconut tree in Malayalam) and “alam” is land, thus ” *land of coconuts”,* locals.The word Kerala is first recorded as Keralaputra in a 3rd-century BCE rock inscription left by the maurya emperor ashoka (274–237 BCE).

The production of pepper and natural rubber contributes significantly to the total national output. In the agricultural sector, coconut, tea, coffee, cashew and spices are important.

*THOUGHT OF THE DAY*

Nothing is particularly hard if you break it down into small jobs.

*JOKES OF THE DAY*

1)Pappu के हाथ में नया फोन देखकर Frnd बोला: नया फोन कब खरीदा?
*Pappu* : नया नहीं, गर्लफ्रेंड का है!
*Frnd* : गर्लफ्रेंड का फोन क्यूँ ले आया?
*Pappu* :रोज कहती थी, मेरा फोन नहीं उठाते..! आज मौका मिला, तो उठा लाया!!

2)कल रात लाइट गई तो मच्छरों ने पप्पू को इतना काटा की
,
,
,
,
,
पप्पू  ALLOUT पीकर बोला:-
अब काटो सालो
सब मरोगे

3)हर इंसान की तरह मेरे फ्रेंड की भी एक ख्वाइश थी कि
” एक नौकरी (naukri) हो,
रुपयो से भरा रूम (room) हो,
सुकून की नींद और आराम हो ”

अभी अभी उसकी खवाइश पूरी करके आया हु
,
,
,
उसे ATM में गार्ड की जॉब (job) लगवा दी

4)क्या बात है दोस्त आजकल तेरे घर से लड़ाई झगडे की आवाज नहीं आती,

* TELL ME WHY❓❓*

*The science behind Navratri Fasting: Why you are not allowed to eat onion and garlic*

According to Ayurveda, foods can be divided into three categories:-

*A. Raajasic foods*
*B. Taamasic foods*

Rajas and Tamas are referred to things that are unripe, weak, resentful and destructive. During Navratri, people are supposed to denounce the worldly pleasure

*C. Saatvik foods :* Saatvik foods include fresh fruits, curd, rock salt, seasonal vegetables and subtle spices like coriander and black pepper.

Onion and garlic are considered to be taamsic in nature and are said to invoke carnal energy in the body. Onions also produce heat in the body and thus are not allowed during the Navratri fast. Garlic along with onion is known as Rajogini, which means a substance that can make one lose grip over their instincts. This makes it difficult to differentiate between your desires and priorities.

*LEARN SANSKRIT*

*नारिकेल* : Coconut

*HOW IT WORKS* ⁉

*Chopping an onion make you cry?*

Onions produce the chemical irritant known as syn-propanethial- S-oxide. It stimulates the eyes’ lachrymal glands so they release tears.

The process goes as follows:

Lachrymatory-factor synthase is released into the air when we cut an onion. The synthase enzyme converts the amino acids sulfoxides of the onion into sulfenic acid. The unstable sulfenic acid rearranges itself into
Syn-propanethial-S-oxide gets into the air and comes in contact with our eyes. The lachrymal glands become irritated and produces the tears!

‍♂️ *GK TODAY*

The currency of Russia is the Rouble.

1 Russian Ruble equals
1.02 Indian Rupee

The ruble sign (₽) is the currency sign

*VEDIK GYAN*

According Purana

onion and garlic came from the dead body of a murdered cow and therefore they are considered like eating meat. They break the non-vegetarian principle from the shastric point of view. Strict vegetarians don’t eat onion nor garlic. Since meat is tamasic, onions and garlic are also tamasic and rajasic food. They may have some medicinal value like even wine is used in medicines sometimes. Thus they are taboo for followers of Vedic culture. “Once, in Satya Yuga the rishis were performing gomedha and asvamedha sacrifices for the welfare of the whole universe. A cow or a horse would be cut into pieces and placed in the fire. Afterwards the rishis would utter mantras and the same animal would come alive in a beautiful young body.

One time the rishi who was about to perform a gomedha sacrifice, his wife was pregnant. She had a very strong desire to eat and she had heard that if, during pregnancy one has a desire to eat and does not fullfill this, then the baby that will be born will always have saliva coming from its mouth. Very strange, she desired strongly to eat meat, thus she decided to keep one piece of meat of the cow’s body that was offered in sacrifice. She hid it and was making a plan to eat it very soon. At that time the rishi was finishing the sacrifice and uttered all the mantras for the new young cow to come to life. However when he saw the new cow, he noticed that there was a little part missing from her left side. He went into meditation and realized that his wife had taken away a piece of meat during the sacrifice. Now his wife also understood what happened and quickly threw the meat far away.
Due to the effect of the mantras uttered by the rishi there was now life in this piece of meat. Then the blood of this meat became red lentils, the bones became garlic and the meat became onions. Thus these foods are never taken by any Vaishnava situated in the mode of goodness as Vaishnavas should be because it is not considered by us as offerable due to its association as a non-vegetarian food. Plus it is in the mode of ignorance.”
“It is not vegetarian to eat onions and garlic. They have discovered 21 different types (?) of slow poison in both. So they are not so innocent.”

*HEALTH CARE: HOME REMEDIES*
( *Note* : These home tips followed in villages/ancient traditions, it is up to you to use it or not)

*According to Puranas*
*onion and garlic* came from the dead body of a murdered cow and therefore they are considered like eating meat. They break the non-vegetarian principle from the shastric point of view. Strict vegetarians don’t eat onion nor garlic. Since meat is tamasic, onions and garlic are also tamasic and rajasic food. They may have some medicinal value like even wine is used in medicines sometimes. Thus they are taboo for followers of Vedic culture. “Once, in Satya Yuga the rishis were performing gomedha and asvamedha sacrifices for the welfare of the whole universe. A cow or a horse would be cut into pieces and placed in the fire. Afterwards the rishis would utter mantras and the same animal would come alive in a beautiful young body.

One time the rishi who was about to perform a gomedha sacrifice, his wife was pregnant. She had a very strong desire to eat and she had heard that if, during pregnancy one has a desire to eat and does not fullfill this, then the baby that will be born will always have saliva coming from its mouth. Very strange, she desired strongly to eat meat, thus she decided to keep one piece of meat of the cow’s body that was offered in sacrifice. She hid it and was making a plan to eat it very soon. At that time the rishi was finishing the sacrifice and uttered all the mantras for the new young cow to come to life. However when he saw the new cow, he noticed that there was a little part missing from her left side. He went into meditation and realized that his wife had taken away a piece of meat during the sacrifice. Now his wife also understood what happened and quickly threw the meat far away.
Due to the effect of the mantras uttered by the rishi there was now life in this piece of meat. Then the blood of this meat became red lentils, the bones became garlic and the meat became onions. Thus these foods are never taken by any Vaishnava situated in the mode of goodness as Vaishnavas should be because it is not considered by us as offerable due to its association as a non-vegetarian food. Plus it is in the mode of ignorance.” .”It is not vegetarian to eat onions and garlic. They have discovered 21 different types of slow poison in both.”

Many other stories also there it will be continued in tomorrow session.

*Watermelon* and basil drinks are quite effective when it comes to hydration. Mineral-rich watermelon helps to balance your electrolyte. Packed with agnesium, potassium, and salt, watermelon is made up of 90% water, which helps your body maintain a fluid balance. While basil leaves are good for digestion, they help detoxify the body and promote a healthy gut.

PLZ FOLLOW GOVT. NORMS, MAINTAIN SOCIAL DISTANCE, KEEP YOURSELF & YOUR FAMILY SAFEENDS