IMPORTANT CURRENT AFFAIRS OF AUGUST 27th, 2017

 IMPORTANT CURRENT AFFAIRS OF AUGUST 27th, 2017

1. HDFC Bank Launches All-in-one PoS Machine

i. HDFC Bank announced a software upgrade to create a single point-of-sale (PoS) machine which will accept payments through Unified Payments Interface (UPI), BharatQR, SMS Pay and the bank’s mobile wallet, in addition to the traditional mode of swiping cards.

ii. The merchant has to do is to update his/her machine with a software at no cost. The new software will work only on HDFC Bank-issued PoS machines, but will accept any card or app from any bank/service provider.

2. Banks to Pay 3% IGST on Gold Imports

i. Banks importing gold and precious metals will have to pay 3 per cent tax under the GST which can be claimed as input tax credit.

ii. Under GST 3% Integrated-GST is payable on all imports of precious metals in addition to the basic customs duty. IGST paid can be taken as input tax credit by the banks.

3. Dharmendra Kumar Appointed Director General of RPF

i. CISF ADG Dharmendra Kumar has been appointed as Director General of the Railway Protection Force. Kumar, who is a 1984 batch IPS officer of Arunachal Pradesh-Goa-Mizoram-Union Territories (AGMUT) cadre, took charge.

ii. After the retirement of S K Bhagat in June 2017, the additional charge of DG, RPF, was being handled by National Security Guard (NSG) DG, Sudhir Pratap Singh. Kumar will retire on September 30, 2018.

4. Biju Patnaik Award for Scientific Excellence

i. Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik granted the Biju Patnaik Award for Scientific Excellence for the year 2016 to Prof Digambar Behera.

ii. Digambar Behera is senior professor and Head, Department of Pulmonary Medicine, Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) in Chandigarh. The award is given by Odisha Bigyan Academy(OBA).

5. Messi Becomes First Ever Player to Score 350 La Liga Goals

i. Barcelona forward Lionel Messi scored a second-half brace against Alaves, becoming the first ever player to score 350 goals in La Liga.

ii. Messi's best goal tally for a season came in 2011/12 when he netted 50 goals in 37 appearances. Messi, who has played 384 league matches, is now 66 goals ahead of rival Cristiano Ronaldo