Daily updates 6 September 2019

National News

1. HRD Ministry awarded Institute of Eminence status to 5 public institutions
i. The Human Resource Development Ministry has awarded the Institute of Eminence status to 5 public institutions. The status was awarded to the following institutions:

• IIT Madras
• IIT Kharagpur
• Delhi University
• Benares Hindu University
• University of Hyderabad

ii. Each of the above university has to sign an MoU with the HRD Ministry and will lay out its plan to achieve the objective of becoming a world-class institution. The public institutions on the list will then be eligible for a government grant of Rs 1,000 crore.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For IBPS RRB PO Mains:

• Union Minister of Human Resource Development: Ramesh Pokhriyal 'Nishank'.

2. Ministry of culture rolls out 25 new mobile science museums buses
i. Union Minister of State for Culture and Tourism (Independent Charge), flagged off the first-ever Mobile Science Exhibition buses for the entire Ladakh Region in Leh. 
ii.The  Minister simultaneously launched 25 new Mobile Science Exhibition buses for Aspirational Districts of India.
iii. Mobile Science Exhibition buses in Ladakh will benefit all the people of Ladakh through its mobility and knowledge. This programme, originally launched as Mobile Science Museum (MSM) in 1965, with a mission ‘If the people cannot visit the museum, let the museum visit the people at their doorsteps’, is the largest and the longest-running outreach programme of NCSM.
iv. It is very successful in supplementing formal education with the non-formal mode of science education, in creating a scientific awareness in the society and nurturing scientific temper and creative potential of the young people in the areas where MSE programmes.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For RRB NTPC/IBPS RRB Main 2019:

• Union Minister of State for Culture and Tourism (Independent Charge): Shri Prahlad Singh Patel.

International News

3. Indian army to participate in joint exercise "TSENTR 2019"
i. Indian army will participate in a multilateral exercise "TSENTR 2019" to be held in Russia. Armies of Pakistan, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Russia will also participate in the exercise. 
ii. This will be the first time that forces from India and Pakistan will participate in a multilateral exercise together since the Balakot airstrikes conducted by Indian forces.
iii. The exercise is a part of the annual series of large scale exercises that form part of the Russian Armed Forces’ annual training cycle. The exercise rotates between the four main Russian operational strategic commands.

4. WHO South-East Asia Region to eliminate measles & rubella by 2023
i. World Health Organisation South-East Asia Region have resolved to eliminate measles and rubella by 2023. 
ii. The resolution to eliminate the highly infectious childhood killer diseases "measles and rubella" was taken at the 72nd session of the WHO Regional Committee for South-East Asia in Delhi.
iii. The member-countries resolved to strengthen the immunisation systems against the two diseases to achieve the new targets.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For IBPS RRB PO Mains:

• Regional Director of WHO South-East Asia: Poonam Khetrapal Singh.

Banking and Economy

5. Standard Chartered Bank launches "DigiSmart" credit card
i. Standard Chartered Bank, a British multinational banking and financial services company has launched a DigiSmart credit card. The primary focus of the Bank on the ever-growing segment of millennials.
ii. The credit card will offer instant discounts and benefits across key e-commerce categories of travel, entertainment, fashion, groceries, and food delivery around the year. The new credit card is available for a nominal monthly fee of only Rs 49. However, this fee will be waived off if the spends of the customer are Rs 5,000 or above in the previous month.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For RRB NTPC/IBPS RRB Main 2019:

• Chairman of Standard Chartered Bank: Jose Vinals; Headquarters: London, United Kingdom.
• Tagline: Your Right Partner.

Agreement

6. Microsoft & CBSE partners to build AI learning for schools
i. Microsoft India and the Central Board of Secondary Education have partnered to build AI learning for schools. 
ii. They will conduct capacity building programmes for high school teachers with an aim to integrate cloud-powered technology in K12 teaching. 
iii. The programme is for teachers of grades 8-10 and will be conducted in 10 cities across the country.
iv. The programme will provide teachers better access to the latest Information and Communication Technology (ICT) tools.
v. Therefore, it will help the teachers to integrate technology into teaching in a safe and secure manner. The programme will also offer teachers the opportunity to become Microsoft Innovative Educators.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For IBPS RRB PO Mains:

• Chairperson of Central Board of Secondary Education: Anita Karwal.

7.  MCX and Zhengzhou Exchange sign MoU for exchange of information
i. Multi Commodity Exchange of India (MCX) and Zhengzhou Commodity Exchange (ZCE), one of the leading commodity exchanges in China, have signed a Memorandum of understanding (MoU) for co-operation and the exchange of information.
ii. The MoU is intended to facilitate cooperation between the two exchanges in areas such as knowledge sharing, education & training, organizing events as well as to explore areas of mutual interests between the exchanges.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For RRB NTPC/IBPS RRB Main 2019:

• Managing Director & CEO of MCX: P S Reddy.

Ranks and Reports

8. India moves up 6 places to 34th rank on world travel and tourism competitiveness index
i. According to the World Economic Forum (WEF) report, India has jumped 6 places to claim 34th spot on world Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index 2019. 
ii. The WEF report shows, over 1.5 crore international tourists arrived in India while the share of travel and tourism industry was 3.6 per cent and that of industry employment was 5.1 per cent.
iii. Spain tops the ranking index followed by France and Germany. Other countries in the top 10 include Japan, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Italy, Canada, and Switzerland.

Award

9. Odisha won the IT Excellence Award, 2019 in disaster management
i.Odisha State Disaster Management Authority (OSDMA) has won the IT Excellence Award, 2019 for its innovative conception by using information technology in the field of disaster management. 
ii. The "SATARK" (System for Assessing, Tracking and Alerting Disaster Risk Information based on Dynamic Risk Knowledge) application has been chosen for the award.
iii. This app has been developed to provide real-time watch, alert and warning information for different natural disasters and hazards such as heatwave, lightning, agriculture risk, flood, tsunami, earthquake, cyclone or storm, road accident and snakebite.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For RRB Main 2019:

• Chief Minister of Odisha: Naveen Patnaik; Governor: Ganeshi Lal.

Summit and Conference

10. 5th Eastern Economic Forum held in Vladivostok, Russia
i. 5th Eastern Economic Forum held in Vladivostok, Russia. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi participated as the Chief Guest at the Eastern Economic Forum. During the plenary session,

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the “Act Far East” policy for Russia.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi also announced a $1 Billion line of credit to Russia for the development of the resource-rich region.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For IBPS RRB Clerk Mains:

• President of Russia: Vladimir Putin; Capital: Moscow.
• The Russian ruble is the currency of Russia.

Sports

11. Anupama Swain wins bronze in World Martial Arts Mastership
i. Indian woman athlete Anupama Swain won a bronze medal in the recently concluded World Martial Arts Mastership Jiu-Jitsu 2019.
ii. The event was held in Chungju, South Korea. Now she qualified for 2022 Asian Games. she was the only Indian to participate in the championship.
iii. Jiu-Jitsu is a form of martial art and combat sport and it puts the entire focus on grappling with particular emphasis on ground fighting.

12. Rashid Khan breaks 15-Year-Old record to become youngest Test Captain
i. Afghanistan leg spinner Rashid Khan holds a new record when he dons the whites for Afghanistan as captain. He broke the 15-year-old record by becoming the youngest Test captain in the Test Cricket history. 
ii. He is 20 years and 350 days old. Previously, the former Zimbabwe wicketkeeper Tatenda Taibu was holding this record who was 20 years and 358 days old.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For RRB NTPC/IBPS RRB Main 2019:

• Afghanistan Capital: Kabul; Currency: Afghan Afghani.

13. Manu-Saurabh won gold medal in ISSF World Cup
i. Manu Bhaker and Saurabh Chaudhary won the gold medal in mixed 10m air pistol at the ISSF World Cup in Rio de Janeiro. In the air pistol final, the pair of Manu Bhaker and Saurabh Chaudhary prevailed over Yashaswini Singh Deswal and Abhishek Verma 17-15. 
ii. With this, India finished the ISSF World Cup at the top of the medals tally with 5 gold, 2 silver, and 2 bronze.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For RRB Main 2019:

• Capital of Brazil: Brasilia; Currency of Brazil: Brazilian Real.

Obituaries

14. Former Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe passes away
i. Zimbabwe's former President Robert Mugabe passed away. He was the country's first post-independence leader and also considered as Zimbabwe's founding father. He served the country as its leader for 37 years. 
ii. He also served as the rotating chairman of the 54 nation African Union and the 15-nation Southern African Development Community.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For IBPS RRB Clerk Mains:

• Capital of Zimbabwe: Harare; President: Emmerson Mnangagwa.

15. Sahitya Akademi Award-winning writer Kiran Nagarkar passes away
i. Sahitya Akademi Award-winning writer Kiran Nagarkar passed away. He began his career as an educationist, a journalist and then later as a screenplay writer in the advertising industry. 
ii. His novel "Cuckold" (1997) won him the 2001 Sahitya Akademi award. He wrote his first book Saat Sakkam Trechalis in 1974 in his mother tongue, Marathi.

Miscellaneous

16. Asia's first 5th Generation: VR based simulator centre launched at Chennai
i.Asia's first 5th Generation - Virtual Reality based Advanced Driver Training Simulator Centre was launched at the Automobile Association of Southern India Centre (AASI), Chennai. In the first 6 months, AASI will train 200 Ambulance drivers free of cost, under 'Safe Drivers Campaign'. The simulator was ideated, designed and developed by Chennai based Red Chariots Technologies Pvt Ltd.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For RRB Main 2019:

• Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu: Edappadi K. Palaniswami; Governor: Banwarilal Purohit.
• Tamil Nadu Capital: Chennai.

Daily updates 7 September 2019

National News

1. ISRO loses contact with Moon lander "Vikram"
i. Indian Space Research Organisation has announced that it lost contact with the Moon lander "Vikram" which was scheduled to land on the moon between 1.30 a.m. and 2.30 a.m. (IST). 
ii. Further the roll out of the rover "Pragyan" was scheduled between 5.30 a.m and 6.30 a.m. Lander "Vikram" started its descent at about 1.38 a.m. from an altitude of 30 km at a velocity of 1,680 metres per second, but lost its communication with the Chandrayaan-2 Orbiter when it was at an altitude of 2.1 Km from Moon's surface.
iii. According to ISRO, the performance of the lander was as per the plan till it was 2.1 km from the moon surface. Although, the 2,379 kg Chandrayaan-2 orbiter continues to fly around the moon. Its mission life is of one year.
iv. ISRO launched the Chandrayaan-2 (on July 22, 2019) into the space from India's heavy lift rocket Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle-Mark III (GSLV Mk III). The Chandrayaan-2 spacecraft comprised three segments: the Orbiter, lander 'Vikram' and rover 'Pragyan'.

State News

2. UNESCO ties up with Rajasthan to promote state's intangible cultural heritage
i. UNESCO and Rajasthan government joined hands to promote music, art and craft forms, and other intangible cultural heritage of the state to spur socio-economic growth of several artist communities.
ii. It is a partnership agreement to promote community-based responsible tourism based on the rich intangible cultural heritage of Rajasthan. The project will be implemented in Jodhpur, Barmer, Jaisalmer and Bikaner districts.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For RRB NTPC/IBPS RRB Mains:

• Chief Minister of Rajasthan: Ashok Gehlot; Governor of Rajasthan: Kalraj Mishra.
• Capital of Rajasthan: Jaipur.

Agreement

3. Gujarat Govt, Delaware State of America sign MoU for sister-state
i. Gujarat Government and the Delaware State of America signed Memorandum of Understanding(MoU) for sister state. This is the first sister-state MoU signed by Gujarat with any state of America.
ii. The cooperation in the field of services and investment opportunities in GIFT-IFSC (Gujarat International Finance Tec-City - International Financial Services Centre) discussed during the meeting. The sectors like Biotechnology University, biosciences, financial services, animal husbandry and dairy, port services are the fields related to which the cooperation.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For RRB Main 2019:

• CM of Gujarat: Vijay Rupani, Governor: Acharya Dev Vrat.
• Capital of Gujarat: Gandhinagar.

4.  India to host 6th India-China Strategic Economic Dialogue
i. The 6th India-China Strategic Economic Dialogue (SED) begins in New Delhi. India will host the dialogue that will focus on collaboration between two countries on areas of infrastructure, energy, high-tech, resource conservation, pharmaceuticals policy coordination.
ii. From the Indian side, it will be chaired by NITI Aayog vice-chairman Rajiv Kumar and the Chinese side will be led by the chairman of the National Development and Reforms Commission (NDRC).

Appointments

5. B Bala Bhaskar appointed as next Indian Ambassador to Norway
i. Senior diplomat B Bala Bhaskar was appointed as the next Indian Ambassador to Norway. He will replace Krishan Kumar, who has been heading the Indian mission in Norway since July 2018. Formerly he served as a Joint Secretary of the WANA division of the MEA that deals with all the matters relating to India's trade with WANA region comprising 19 countries.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For RRB Main 2019:

• Prime Minister of Norway: Erna Solberg; Norway Capital: Oslo.
• Currency: Norwegian krone.

Awards

6. “Oscars of science” awarded to Event Horizon Telescope Team
i. The Event Horizon Telescope Team consisting of 347 scientists who produced the world’s first image of a black hole were felicitated with breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics. 
ii. The prize is known as the “Oscars of science”, with prize money $3 million. The team had published the image of black hole circled by a flame-orange halo of white-hot plasma on the Messier 87 (M87) galaxy on April 10, 2019.

Summit and Conference

7. 4th Indian Ocean Conference 2019 held in Male
i. 4th Indian Ocean Conference 2019 was recently held in Male, Maldives. Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar was one of the speakers at the Indian Ocean Conference 2019 event.
ii. The theme for 4th Indian Ocean Conference 2019 was: ‘Securing the Indian Ocean Region: Traditional and Non-Traditional Challenges’. This edition of the conference will provide yet another opportunity for stakeholders of the Indian Ocean Region to deliberate on building an institutional framework for managing the threats to regional peace and human security.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For RRB NTPC/IBPS RRB Mains:

• Capital of Maldives: Males; Currency of the Maldives: Maldivian Rufiyaa.

Books and Authors

8. Vice president releases a book titled ‘Glorious Diaspora - Pride of India'
i. A Coffee Table Book titled ‘Glorious Diaspora- Pride of India’ on Pravasi Bharatiya Samman awardees was released by Vice President of India, M. Venkaiah Naidu in New Delhi.
ii. The book contains the brief profiles of recipients of Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Awards (PBSA) from 2003 to 2019. It has been brought out by Indian Diaspora Club.
iii. It includes an inspiring profile of Distinguished Overseas Indians who have made their indelible mark in various fields.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For RRB Main 2019:

• Managing Director of Indian Diaspora Club: Rajat Kapoor.
• NRI Day (Pravasi Bhartiya Diwas): 9 January.

Obituaries

9. Pakistan’s master leg-spinner Abdul Qadir passes away
i. Pakistan’s master leg-spinner Abdul Qadir passed Away. Qadir, who played in 67 Tests and 104 ODIs had a total 368 wickets in his international career. He was worked as chief selector in 2009 and it was the squad that was selected by him that went on to win the ICC World T20 in England.

10. Veteran Congress leader Sukhdev Singh Libra passes away
i. Veteran Congress leader and former MP Sukhdev Singh Libra passed away. He was the member of the 14th and 15th Lok Sabhas. 
ii. In 1985, he became MLA(Member of the Legislative Assembly) from Khanna in Ludhiana. He was a member of Rajya Sabha from 1998-2004. He contested from Fatehgarh Sahib and Ropar parliamentary constituencies.

Miscellaneous

11. India Pavilion inaugurated at 44th TIFF 2019
i. High Commissioner of India to Canada Vikas Swarup inaugurated the India Pavilion at the 44th Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) 2019.
ii. The Inauguration of India Pavilion at TIFF 2019 will provide a platform to showcase Indian Cinema in the overseas market and facilitate new business opportunities. 
iii. TIFF also provides the ideal platform for the global outreach of the 50th International Film Festival of India 2019.

Daily updates 8 and 9 September 2019

National News

1. GoI to spend 3.5 lakh crore rupees on Jal Jeevan Mission
i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced that the central government will spend 3.5 lakh crore rupees in the next five years on 'Jal Jeevan Mission' to deliver potable water at every household across the country. 
ii. Jal Jeevan Mission involves saving water and delivering water at one's doorstep.

Appointment

2. Vijay Kumar Chopra, Vineet Jain elected PTI chairman & vice-chairman
i. Vijay Kumar Chopra, who is the Chief Editor of the Punjab Kesari Group of newspapers and Vineet Jain, Managing Director (MD) of Bennett, Coleman and Company Limited (BCCL), the publisher of Times of India, is unanimously elected as Chairman and Vice-Chairman of Press Trust of India(PTI) the country's premier news agency.
ii. Vijay Kumar Chopra was succeeding N Ravi, publisher and former Editor-in-Chief of the Hindu and Vineet Jain earlier served as the chairman of PTI in 2010.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For RRB Main 2019:

• Headquarters of PTI: New Delhi; Established: 27 August 1947.

Defence

3. SLINEX 2019: Indo-Lanka maritime fleet exercise
i. ‘SLINEX 2019’, the bilateral maritime exercise between India and Sri Lanka commenced on 7 September 2019 at Visakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh). Sri Lankan Navy has sent two offshore patrol vessels SLNS Sindurala and SLNS Suranimala to India to participate in seventh annual Joint Indo-Lanka Maritime Fleet Exercise- SLINEX 2019.
ii. The exercise signifies the desire of both countries to enhance co-operation and to further strengthen mutual trust and interoperability between the two navies.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For RRB NTPC/IBPS RRB Mains:

• Navy, Day in India is celebrated on 4th December.
• Chief of the Naval Staff of the Indian Navy: Admiral Karambir Singh.

Banking and Economy

4. Code of Conduct introduced for non-official directors at PSBs
i. The Finance Ministry has introduced a Code of Conduct for non-official directors of public sector banks. Under the new rules, the PSBs board will also have to send an annual performance report that rates a director based on professional and ethical conduct, and contribution to the board.
ii. The performance evaluation by peers will measure the director on various parameters including avoidance of direct or indirect conflict of interest, acting according to rules in the best interest of the bank, avoiding any gain to self or associates and maintaining confidentiality.
iii. The above measures taken by the department of financial services at the finance ministry aims to improve corporate governance in banks.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For IBPS RRB PO Mains:

• Union Finance Minister: Nirmala Sitharaman.

5. Government to recapitalise Public Sector Insurance companies
i. The Department of Financial Services has approved the Rs 12,000 crore capital infusion plan in the 3 state-run general insurance companies. The decision has been taken to boost their capital base and meet regulatory norms. 
ii. The 3 state-run general insurance companies list includes National Insurance, Oriental Insurance and United India Insurance.
iii. The recapitalisation will also improve their solvency ratio and prepare the 3 companies for the merger which will make the entity the largest insurance company in the country.

Summit and Conference

6. 68th Plenary session of NEC begins in Guwahati
i. The 68th Plenary session of the North Eastern Council (NEC) begins in Guwahati, Assam. Union Home Minister Amit Shah Chaired the 2-day event. 
ii. Governors and Chief Ministers of North Eastern states will attend the event. During the two-day session, there will be presentations from various ministries and state governments on various developmental issues which are critical to the North East.

7. 1st conference on military medicine for SCO to be held in Delhi
i. The 1st conference on military medicine for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) member states will be held in Delhi. The conference will be the first military co-operation event hosted by India, under the SCO Defence Co-operation Plan 2019-2020, after it became an SCO member-state in 2017.
ii. The conference will be conducted by the Indian Armed Forces under the aegis of Headquarters Integrated Defence Staff (HQ IDS), with the aim to share best practices in the field of military medicine, build capacities and overcome a common challenge. During the conference, the Indian Armed Forces will also demonstrate the Rapid Action Medical Team and organise a visit for the delegates to the Army Research and Referral Hospital.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For RRB NTPC/IBPS RRB Mains:

• SCO Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Headquarters: Beijing, China.
• SCO Established: 26 April 1996.

Sports

8. World's highest marathon "Ladakh Marathon" held in Leh
i. The 8th edition of Ladakh Marathon was held in Leh. It is the highest marathon in the world as it is held at over 11,000 feet above the mean sea level. 
ii. The Marathon was held in the categories of 42 Km Full Marathon, 21 Km half marathon and 7 km long Run for Fun. Over 6000 runners from 25 countries participated in the four categories of Ladakh Marathon.
iii. The 9th Edition to be held in 2020 will be a qualifying race for the Abbot World Marathon Majors.

9. India Red beat India Green to clinch Duleep Trophy title
i. India Red beat India Green by an innings and 38 runs to clinch the Duleep Trophy title on the fourth day at Bengaluru. India Red had scored 388 in their first innings. 
ii. On the other hand, India Green compiled 231 runs in their first innings and 119 in their second innings. Abhimanyu Easwaran, who made a brilliant 153 for India Red, was named player of the match.

10. Charles Leclerc wins the Italian Grand Prix
i. Ferrari's Charles Leclerc has won the Italian Grand Prix. The event was held at the Autodromo Nazionale Monza track, Italy. Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes finished the race at 2nd and 3rd position respectively.

11. US Open 2019 Concludes: Complete List of Winners
i. The 2019 US Open was the 139th edition of tennis' US Open. Since 1987, the US Open has been chronologically the fourth and final Grand Slam tournament of the year. 
ii. This year US Open was held on outdoor hard courts at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York City. The tournament was an event run by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and was part of the 2019 ATP Tour and the 2019 WTA Tour calendars under the Grand Slam category. 
iii. The tournament consisted of both men's and women's singles and doubles draw as well as a mixed doubles event.
iv. The United States Open Tennis Championships is a hard court tennis tournament. The tournament is the modern version of one of the oldest tennis championships in the world, the U.S. National Championship, for which men's singles and men's doubles were first played in 1881. 

Here is the Complete List of Winners in Different Category (with their Respective Countries):

S. No.	Category	Winner	Runner Up
1.	Men's Singles	Rafael Nadal (Spain)	Daniil Medvedev (Russia)
2.	Women's Singles	Bianca Andreescu (Canada)	Serena Williams (USA)
3.	Men’s Doubles	J.S. Cabal (Colombia) and R. Farah (Colombia)	M. Granollers (Spain) and H. Zeballos (Argentina)
4.	Women's Doubles	E. Mertens(Belgium) and A. Sabalenka(Belarus)	V. Azarenka (Belarus) and A. Barty(Australia)
5.	Mixed Doubles	B. Mattek-Sands (USA) and J. Murray (U.K)	H. Chan(Taipei) and M. Venus (New Zealand)

12. Brigid Kosgei runs fastest-ever women's half-marathon
i. Kenya's Brigid Kosgei completed the fastest half-marathon ever ran by a woman. She won the Great North Run in a time of 1 hour, 04 minutes and 28 seconds. She took 23 seconds less than the world record set in 2017 by fellow Kenyan Joyciline Jepkosgei.

13. Rafael Nadal beats Daniil Medvedev to win US Open men's final
i. Rafael Nadal captured his 19th career Grand Slam title by winning the US Open final, outlasting Russia's Daniil Medvedev to seize his fourth crown in New York. 
ii. The 33-year-old Spanish left-hander moved one shy of Roger Federer's all-time men's record 20 Grand Slam triumphs.
iii. Nadal, who was in his fifth US Open championship match and 27th Grand Slam final, is the first man to claim five major titles after turning 30.

14. Bianca Andreescu Clinch US Open Women's Singles Title
i. Canadian teenager Bianca Andreescu stunned Serena Williams 6-3, 7-5 to grab the US Open 2019 women's singles title. 
ii. The 19-year-old Andreescu becomes the first Canadian singles player to win a Grand Slam event. iii. With the victory, Andreescu also jumps into the top 10 in the WTA rankings. The 19-year-old teen is also the first woman to win the trophy at Flushing Meadows in her tournament debut in the Open era.
iv. Meanwhile, Serena Williams has lost each of her last four Grand Slam finals, all with a chance to tie Margaret Court's record of 24 Grand Slam singles titles.

15. Lasith Malinga becomes first T20I bowler to claim 100 wickets
i. Sri Lanka's Lasith Malinga has become the first T20I bowler to take 100 wickets during the 3rd T20I against New Zealand at Pallekele. He also took a hat-trick, dismissing 4 batsmen in 4 consecutive deliveries and became the first-ever bowler to pick up 2 hat-tricks in T20I cricket.
ii. Lasith Malinga also surpassed Wasim Akram and set a record for the most number of hat-tricks in international cricket. Till now he has claimed 5 hat-tricks in his international career.

Books and Authors

16. A book titled ‘Fortune Turners: The Quartet That Spun India To Glory’ launched
i. ‘Fortune Turners: The Quartet That Spun India To Glory’, book on India's spin quartet has been launched. The book on India's 4 spin legends: Bishan Singh Bedi, Erapalli Prasanna, Bhagwat Chandrashekhar and S. Venkataraghavan has been written by Aditya Bhushan and Sachin Bajaj.

Obituaries

17. Ram Jethmalani Passes Away at 95
i. Ram Jethmalani, one of India's finest lawyers and a former union minister has passed away. He was 95.
ii. He was a six-time Rajya Sabha member, served as a Union Minister in the United Front and NDA governments. 
iii. He joined the BJP-led NDA ministry in 1998 and then again in October 1999.
iv. Mr. Jethmalani had also served as the chairman of the Bar Council of India.

18. Actor, Kathak Dancer Veeru Krishnan Passes Away
i. Actor and Kathak dancer Veeru Krishnan passed away. He was best known for his work in films like Raja Hindustani, Dulhe Raja, Akele Hum Akele Tum among others. He was trained several actresses in dance over the years.

Important Days

19. International Literacy Day: 08th September
i. International Literacy Day celebrated annually on 8 September. It is an opportunity for Governments, civil society and stakeholders to highlight improvements in world literacy rates, and reflect on the world's remaining literacy challenges. The issue of literacy is a key component of the UN's Sustainable Development Goals and the UN's 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
ii. The Theme of International Literacy Day 2019 is Literacy and Multilingualism.

Miscellaneous

20. Visakhapatnam railway station sets up ‘fun zone’
i. A fun zone, the first of its kind in India, has been set up by the Railways at the Visakhapatnam Railway Station, Andhra Pradesh.
ii. The Gaming zone was inaugurated at platform number 1. The children can enjoy games during their waiting period for trains. The gaming zone has different interesting games for children & adults. iii. The fun zone will have all the high-tech gaming activities at par with game parlours.

Static/Current Takeaways Important For RRB NTPC/IBPS RRB Mains:

• Union Minister of Railways: Piyush Goyal.
• John Mathai was the first Railways Minister of Independent India.