NATIONAL NEWS

Air India to be Rebranded as Vihaan

• Tata group-owned Air India unveiled that it will be rebranded as Vihaan.

• Tata group-owned Air India also unveiled a comprehension transformation plan Vihaan.AI

• The carrier aims to focus on growing both its network and fleet, revamping its customer proposition, enhancing reliability and on-time performance, taking a leadership role in technology, sustainability and innovation.

• Over the next 5 years, Air India will also strive to increase its market share to at least 30% in the domestic market while significantly growing the international routes from the present market share.

Sikkim Government Hikes Minimum Wage

• The Sikkim government hiked the minimum wage for unskilled workers by 67 percent to Rs 500.
• The daily wage for unskilled laborers was Rs 300 which is now increased to Rs 500 with retrospective.
• The daily wage for semi-skilled workers was increased from Rs 320 to Rs 520.
• The skilled laborers or workers will now get Rs 535, which was earlier Rs 335. Highly skilled labor will be paid Rs 565 per day, instead of Rs 365 per day.

Wild Cheetahs in Kuno National Park

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi will release Cheetahs in Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh on 17 September 2022 under Project Cheetah, which is world’s first inter-continental large wild carnivore translocation project.
• The introduction of wild Cheetahs is part of Mr. Modi's efforts to revitalise and diversify India’s wildlife and its habitat.
• Cheetah was declared extinct from India in 1952.
• Cheetahs that will be introduced are from Namibia and have been brought under an MoU signed earlier 2022.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Mastercard Partners with UNDP

• Mastercard has partnered with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) on Mastercard’s Lighthouse MASSIV: a free start-up partnership program designed to help 1 billion people lead more prosperous and secure lives by 2025.

• It is to support impact tech companies on their impact measurement and management and connect them to the broader United Nations network and initiatives.

• Mastercard and UNDP will focus on the sustainability, monetary inclusion and social effect of targeted firms to achieve 2030 Sustainable Growth Objectives (SDG).
• MASSIV stands for Make and Scale Social Impact Vision.
• The Mastercard Lighthouse MASSIV program was launched in 2019.

BANKING

ICICI Lombard Introduces Digital Voice Agent

• A private non-life insurance company, ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company Limited (ICICI Lombard) launched an Artificial Intelligence (AI) powered digital voice agent, an AI-based Software as a Service (SaaS) voice automation platform.

• The new feature will assist customers with the status of their insurance claims for health and motor insurance policies.

• The augmented voice intelligence platform is integrated with ICICI Lombard’s customer relationship management (CRM) systems.

• It will enhance the speed, accuracy and ease of conversation.

SPORTS

Vinesh Phogat Wins Medals at World Championships

• Vinesh Phogat became the first Indian woman wrestler to win two medals at the World Championship.
• Vinesh Phogat won bronze at the World Wrestling Championship 2022 in the women’s 53kg category in Belgrade, Serbia.
• She also became the first Indian woman to win a gold medal at both the Commonwealth and Asian Games.
• At Commonwealth Games 2022, she won the gold medal in the women’s 53 kg freestyle wrestling category.
• She defeated Emma Malmgren of Sweden.

SAFF U-17 Championship

• In football, India clinched the SAFF championship in the category of under-17 by defeated Nepal 4-0 in the final held in Colombo.

• India captain Vanlalpeka Guite was named the Most Valuable Player of the tournament, while goalkeeper Sahil won the best Goalkeeper awards.

• India also won previous season title by beating Nepal 7-0 on 31 August 2019.

Rachael Haynes Announces Retirement from International Cricket

• Australian woman cricketer Rachael Haynes announced her retirement from international cricket at the age of 35.
• She is also retiring from state cricket. However, she would play one more season for Sydney Thunder in the Women’s Big Bash League.
• The left-hand batter has scored 3,818 runs in more than 150 internationals over all three formats since her debut in 2009 and won six global titles with Australia.
• She became the vice-captain in 2018.

Roger Federer Announces Retirement from Professional Tennis

• Roger Federer, one of the greatest tennis players, has decided to announce retirement to professional tennis after the conclusion of the Laver Cup 2022.

• He clarified that he would play more tennis in the future, but just not in Grand slams or on the tour.

• He Played more than 1500 matches over 24 years.

First Cricketer to have 50 million Followers on Twitter

• Virat Kohli has now become the first cricketer to have 50 million Twitter followers.

• Virat Kohli, Team India’s great cricketer and former captain has accomplished another major milestone on social media.

• Virat Kohli is well-liked across all social media platforms, with 211 million Instagram followers and 49 million Facebook followers.

BOOKS & AUTHOR

A New Book Titled ‘Will Power’

• Sjoerd Marijne, a former Dutch field hockey player and Indian Women’s Hockey Coach has authored a new book titled ‘Will Power: The Inside Story of the Incredible Turnaround in Indian Women’s Hockey.’

• HarperCollins Publishers India will release the book in September 2022.

• The book focuses on Sjoerd Marijne’s experiences as the Chief Coach of the Indian Women’s Hockey Team in 2017.

• It also discussed how the Indian Women’s Hockey team overcame failures, mental health difficulties and internal politics and preserved team bonding while maintaining a high-performance culture.

IMPORTANT DAYS

International Day of Democracy

• International Day of Democracy is celebrated every year on 15 September.

• The year 2022, marks the 15th anniversary of the International Day of Democracy.

• The day is celebrated annually around the world to strengthen democracies and highlight its values and principles.

• This year, Democracy Day will focus on the importance of media freedom to democracy, peace and delivering on the Sustainable Development Goals.
• The day was established through a resolution passed by the UN General Assembly in 2007 and was first observed in 2008.

Engineer’s Day in India

• National Engineer’s Day is celebrated every year on 15 September.
• Engineer’s Day is celebrated to pay tribute to Bharat Ratna Sir Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya.
• In 1968, the Indian government declared Sir M Visvesvaraya’s birth anniversary as Engineers’ Day.