National News

Offices under women officers

• · For the first time in the history of the South-Central Railway (SCR), five of its most crucial departments, Operations, Commercial, Finance, Security, and Medical, are currently being led by women officers named K Padmaja, Ity Pandey, Aroma Singh Thakur, Dr. Nirmala Narasimhan, and T. Hema Suneetha.

Indian Railway

Establishing IIM at Guwahati

• The Lok Sabha has passed the Indian Institutes of Management (Amendment) Bill, 2025 to amend the Indian Institutes of Management Act, 2017 for establishing Indian Institute of Management at Guwahati in Assam.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

India and China

• India and China have agreed to resume direct flight connectivity between the Chinese mainland and India at the earliest and finalise an updated Air Services Agreement.

China

NSA & Chinese FM co-chair Dialogue

• National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi co-chaired the 24th round of the Special Representatives’ Dialogue on the Boundary Question between India and China in Delhi.

ECONOMY & BANKING

India Post Launched IT 2.0

• India Post launched IT 2.0 – Advanced Postal Technology to drive Digital Transformation Nationwide and this platform is designed by the Centre for Excellence in Postal Technology, the system runs on the government’s MeghRaj 2.0 cloud and is supported by BSNL’s nationwide connectivity.

Indian Post

Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2025

• Parliament has passed the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2025 which seeks to amend Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957.

Decline in country’s unemployment rate

• · According to Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), India’s unemployment rate dropped to 5.2 per cent in July 2025, down from 5.6 per cent in June, for individuals aged 15 years and above.

Unemployment and Labour Force Data (MoSPI, July 2025)

Indian Oil Corporation

• Indian Oil Corporation has entered into an MoU with Air India for supply of (sustainable aviation fuel) SAF to promote the adoption of low-carbon fuels in aviation and contribute to the transition towards a more sustainable air transport operations.

IMPORTANT DAYS

Birth Anniversary of Former PM Rajiv Gandhi

• August 20th is celebrated as the birth anniversary of former Prime Minister of India, Rajiv Gandhi.
• This day is also celebrated as Sadbhavana Diwas (Harmony Day).

PERSON IN NEWS

Parag Agrawal

• Parag Agrawal, the former CEO of Twitter, has founded Parallel Web Systems Inc., an Artificial Intelligence (AI) startup.

AWARDS & HONOURS

Miss Universe India 2025

• Rajasthan’s Manika Vishwakarma has been crowned Miss Universe India 2025, earning the opportunity to represent the country at the 74th Miss Universe competition, scheduled to be held in Thailand on 21 November 2025.

RANKS, REPORTS & INDICES

Saltwater crocodiles

• According to a survey by the State’s Forest Department of West Bengal, estimated population of saltwater crocodiles (Crocodylus porosus), one of the largest reptiles in the world, has increased in the Sundarban Biosphere Reserve (SBR) from last year.

The Work Ahead report

• According to The Work Ahead report by job listing platform Indeed, many workers in India, including a significant portion of the blue-collar workforce, are embracing AI as a means to stay employable, grow in their careers, and secure future opportunities

SPORTS

U20 World Wrestling

• In Under 20 World Wrestling Championships held in Samokov, Bulgaria, wrestler Sumit Malik won silver medal in the men’s 57 kg category.

Sahgal Wins Gold

• In the 16th Asian Shooting Championship, Rashmika Sahgal has won gold at Shymkent in Kazakhstan.