using 9.1d....
wanted to know that what function can i use toget todays date, such as in dd/mm/yyyy format and assign it to a field variable, which is of type 'date'...
As long as you assign it to a DATE variable, the format is not rellevant. Try:
ASSIGN dtYourDateVariable = TODAY .
When you need to format it - to assign it to a character variable etc. - do:
ASSIGN dtYourCHARVariable = STRING(TODAY, "99/99/9999") .
And make sure your -d startup parameter is set to dmy.