Daily Current Affairs, 29th August 2018

1) National Sports Day: 29 August

•The National Sports Day is celebrated on 29th August every year to mark the birthday of legendary hockey player Dhyan Chand. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has greeted all sports enthusiasts and stated that this year has been great for the sporting fraternity, with the Indian athletes excelling in various tournaments including Asian Games 2018 and Commonwealth Games. 

2) Government Constitutes New Science And Technology Council To Advise PM

•The Union Government has constituted a 21-member science and technology council to advise Prime Minister Narendra Modi on matters related to science, technology and innovations. The council will be headed by K Vijay Raghavan, the principal scientific adviser to the Union Government. 

•The council has been named as Prime Minister's Science Technology and Innovation Advisory Committee (PM-STIAC). The panel will advise the Prime Minister on all matters related to science, technology and innovation and monitor the implementation of PM’s vision on the same. 

3) 1st SAARC Agri Cooperative Business Forum Begins In Kathmandu

•The First South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Agri Cooperative Business Forum has begun in Kathmandu, Nepal. The theme of three-day Forum is the ‘Organizing and Strengthening Family Farmers’ Cooperatives to attain the Sustainable-Development-Goals-1 and 2 in South Asia’. 

•It is being co-organized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and Asian Farmers’ Association with the support from the International Fund for Agricultural Development.

4) 3rd Edition Of World’s Biggest Open Innovation Model ‘Smart India Hackathon- 2019’ Launched

•The third edition of World’s Biggest Open Innovation Model - Smart India Hackathon 2019 - was launched by the Union Minister for Human Resource Development, Prakash Javadekar in New Delhi. MHRD, AICTE, Persistent Systems and i4c have joined hands to make a hat trick with their highly popular and innovative Smart India Hackathon initiative (SIH). 

•SIH-2019 is a nationwide initiative to provide students a platform to solve some of pressing problems we face in our daily lives, and thus inculcate a culture of product innovation and a mindset of problem-solving. For the 1st time, Private industry/organisations and NGOs can also send their problem statements to students under SIH-2019. 

5) Satya S Tripathi Appointed Assistant Secretary-General & Head Of New York Office Of UNEP

•Veteran Indian development economist Satya S Tripathi has been appointed as the Assistant Secretary-General and Head of the New York Office of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) by UN Chief Antonio Guterres. He will replace Elliott Harris. 

•Tripathi has worked for the United Nations since 1998 in Europe, Asia and Africa on strategic assignments in sustainable development, human rights, democratic governance and legal affairs. 

6) Asian Games 2018: Manjit Singh Wins Gold In 800m Race

•India's 28-year-old sprinter Manjit Singh won the gold medal in the men's 800m event at the 2018 Asian Games, securing the ninth gold for the country. 

•Another Indian sprinter Jinson Johnson, who is ranked first in Asia, won the silver at the event. Meanwhile, Dutee Chand secured herself a place in the women's 200m finals, while Hima Das was disqualified.