National Testing Agency (NTA) has substantially increased the number of examination centres for JEE-Mains and NEET-UG exams scheduled to be held next month.

In order to meet the social distancing requirements due to Covid-19 pandemic the number of Examination Centers have been increased from 570 to 660 in case of JEE-Mains and from 2 thousand 546 to 3 thousand 843 for NEET-UG 2020. Additionally, in case of JEE-Mains, the number of shifts have been increased from 8 to 12. Number of candidates per shift has also been reduced from 1 lakh 32 thousand to 85 thousand.
 
This year nearly 8 lakh 50 thousand candidates have registered for JEE-Mains while the number of registrations for NEET-UG has been nearly 16 lakhs. In order to ensure proper social distancing inside the examination halls, the candidates will be seated in alternate seats in case of JEE-Mains. As another precautionary step, the number of candidates allowed to take NEET-UG test in one room has been reduced from 24 to 12. For ensuring social distancing outside the examination hall, the entry and exit of candidates have been staggered. Adequate arrangements have also been made outside the examination centers to enable candidates follow social distancing norms.
 
Candidates have also been issued advisory guiding them about "Do’s and Don'ts" for proper social distancing. NTA has also written to the State Governments to extend support in local movement of the candidates so that they are able to reach their examination centres on time. JEE-Mains exam is scheduled to be held from 1st September to 6th September while NEET-UG will be held on 13th September this year.

Air Force Chief Air Chief Marshal Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria today launched a mobile application MY IAF at Air Force Headquarters Vayu Bhawan in New Delhi as a part of Digital India initiative. 

The application developed in association with Centre for Development of Advanced Computing, C-DAC provides career related information and details for those desirous of joining the Indian Air Force, IAF.
 
The user friendly format of the app serves as a single digital platform interfacing the users with the details of selection procedure, training curriculum, pay and perks for both officers and airmen in the IAF. 

The application is available in Google Play store for android phones, is linked to IAF social media platforms and games and also provides glimpses into the history and stories of valour in the IAF.

Union Minister for Road Transport, Highways and MSMEs Nitin Gadkari said that he wants to open a driving training school in every district of the country.

Shri Gadkari said this while inaugurating 45 highway projects in Madhya Pradesh today. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan presided over the virtual function.

The projects included 1 thousand 361 kilometers of Road, two over bridges and six bridges involving construction value of Rs 11 thousand 427 crore.

Shri Gadkari  said that every year 5 lakh accidents occur in the country taking the lives of 1.5 lakhs people. The highest number of these people is in the age group of 18 to 24 years.

Driving school will not only prevent accidents but as per the wishes of the Prime Minister, skill will also be developed among the youth. This will also fulfill the Prime Minister's dream of creating a
self-sufficient India.

In Football, German giants Bayern Munich have won the European Champions League for the sixth time after beating French side Paris Saint-Germain 1-0 at the final in Portugal's capital, Lisbon.

A goal by French winger Kingsley Coman at the 59th minute was enough for the Munich side to dash the Parisians' dream of winning for the first time the UEFA Champions League. A competition which started in June 2019 with the preliminary round comes to a climax between the best side in world football against one of the planet's finest forward lines.

Railways has said that the new tender document for 44 semi-high speed Vande Bharat trains will include provision for more than 50 percent local components. Addressing a virtual press conference yesterday, Railway Board chairman VK Yadav said, the new tender document will include provision for local components of more than 50 in line with the government’s Aatma Nirbhar Bharat initiative.

Earlier on Friday, Railways had cancelled the tender for manufacturing 44 Vande Bharat Express trains, which was floated last year. Mr Yadav said, while evaluating the technical bids of tenders, the tender committee had noticed that some of the details of financial offers have been revealed in the technical bids. To maintain the complete transparency, the tender committee has recommended canceling this tender and inviting fresh tenders, he said.

While cancelling the tender, Railway Ministry had said that the fresh tender will be floated within a week as per Revised Public Procurement order, which gives preference to Make in India. The fresh tender will have provision to manufacture the train sets at all three production units - ICF Chennai, Rail Coach Factory Kapurthala and Modern Coach Factory Raebareli.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had flagged off the maiden run of a Vande Bharat train on the New Delhi-Varanasi route on February 15, 2019. The second such train service between New Delhi and Shri Mata Vaishnodevi Katra was flagged off by home minister Amit Shah on October 3, 2019.

Government has activated Aadhaar authentication for new goods and services tax (GST) registration to enhance ease of doing business. For those opting for Aadhaar authentication, new GST registration will be issued within three working days and will not need to wait for physical verification.

However, those not opting for Aadhaar authentication will be granted it only after physical verification of the place of business or documentary verification which may take up to 21 working days or more.

Government said Aadhaar authentication for new registration will substantially enhance ease of doing businesses for genuine businesses. It said, the move will facilitate genuine and honest taxpayers while at the same time keeping the fake and fraudulent entities away from GST.

The facility of quick approval of GST registration through Aadhaar authentication can be availed by all Indian citizens. 

Former finance secretary Rajiv Kumar has been appointed new election commissioner. He will replace Ashok Lavasa, who resigned earlier this week. Mr Kumar will take charge the day Mr Lavasa leaves his office on August 31. Mr Kumar's appointment comes at a time when the election commission is preparing to hold Bihar assembly polls amid the coronavirus pandemic.

A 1984-batch IAS officer of Jharkhand cadre, Rajiv Kumar has over three decades of experience in public policy and administration across various sectors. He played a major role in merging 10 public sector banks into four. During his two-and-half year stint as financial services secretary, he took several policy decisions to promote responsive and responsible banking. Known for his bold moves, Mr Kumar undertook a massive 3 lakh crore rupees recapitalisation of banks during his tenure. He also played a key role in taking ahead Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s plan of financial inclusion, aimed at boosting credit access and job creation, through flagship schemes such as Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana, Mudra loan scheme, among others. He is known to have initiated and implemented the 59-minute loan scheme for the MSME sector.

Health Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan has launched an interactive first-of-its-kind game on COVID-19, the Corona Fighters. The Minister yesterday also launched two new videos urging adherence to key COVID Appropriate Behaviours.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Harsh Vardhan said that the game presents a new and extremely creative way to teach people the right tools and behaviours to fight the Covid-19 pandemic. He stated that the game was designed to influence the players’ actions in the real world, reminding them to take the right precautions and escape infection. He further added that this along with two promotional videos is a simply designed and enjoyable medium to get a serious message across to the wider public.

The Minister also recollected his experience with the Polio Abhiyaan which was transformed into a social movement through people’s participation and support and contribution of many film industry professionals. He said that till a vaccine is ready for fighting COVID-19, the COVID appropriate behaviours will serve as a potent social vaccine and keep everyone protected and safe.

Indore in Madhya Pradesh has been awarded as the cleanest city in the country in the Swachh Survekshan 2020 awards. The city bagged the position for the fourth consecutive time. The awards were presented by Union Urban Development Minister Hardeep Singh Puri in a function held virtually today.

Among the towns along the banks of river Ganga, Varanasi has been awarded the cleanest town award. New Delhi has been awarded as the cleanest capital city in the country. Chhattisgarh was awarded the first place in the states with over 100 cities while Jharkhand bagged it for being the state in the category of states with less than 100 cities. Jalandhar Cantonment Board was conferred the cleanest cantonment board in the country. Ahmedabad in Gujarat was awarded for being the cleanest city with over 40 lakh population.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Puri said, Swachh Survekshan 2020 witnessed several innovations and best practices emerging from the cities. He said that through a mix of innovative thinking, technological interventions and active stakeholder engagement, cities have found novel ways to address issues of sanitation and waste management in their areas.

Government will announce the results of the fifth edition of the nationwide annual cleanliness survey, ‘Swachh Survekshan 2020’, at 11 AM today. This year, around 1 Crore 87 lakh citizens participated in the survey of 4 thousand 242 cities, 62 cantonment boards and 92 towns along the Ganga river. 129 awards will be handed over to the top performing cities and States in today’s Swachh Mahotsav event.

Swachh Survekshan 2020’, which was completed in 28 days, saw registration of 1.7 crore citizens on Swachhata App, over 11 crore impressions on social media along with linking of more than 5.5 lakh sanitary workers to social welfare schemes and over 84,000 informal waste-pickers being integrated into the mainstream. Swachh Survekshan was introduced by the government with the objective of generating large-scale citizen participation in the Mission, along with inculcating a spirit of healthy competition among cities towards becoming India’s cleanest cities. The event will also witness felicitation of Urban Development Ministry’s partner organisations in the Urban- Swachh Bharat Mission journey, including the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) and Google. Mysuru had won the award for the cleanest city of India in the first edition of the survey, Indore has retained the top position for three consecutive years. In the ‘Swachh Survekshan 2020’, Swachh Survekshan League, a quarterly cleanliness assessment of cities and towns was also introduced to ensure continuous assessment.