PART 4

Persons in News Text Highlights ² ² National and International News ² World Makers ² Heads of Important Offices

1 INDIA 1.1 Union Government Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam: President Mr Bhairon Singh Shekhawat: Vice President 1.2 Council of Ministers Cabinet Ministers Dr : Prime Minister; in charge of Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions Planning, Statistics and Programme Implementation; Atomic Energy; Space and other Ministries/Departments that are not allocated Mr Pranab Mukherjee: Defence Mr Arjun Singh: Human Resource Development Mr Sharad Pawar: Agriculture, Food and Civil Supplies, Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution Mr Laloo Prasad Yadav: Railways Mr Shivraj Patil: Home Mr : Chemicals and Fertilisers; Steel Mr Ghulam Nabi Azad: Information and Broadcasting; Culture Mr Sis Ram Ola: Labour and Employment Mr P. Chidambaram: Finance Mr Mahavir Prasad: Small Scale, Agro and Rural Industries Mr P.R. Kyndiah: Tribal Affairs; Development of North East Mr T.R. Baalu: Road Transport, Highways and Shipping Mr S.S. Waghela: Textiles 4.64 THE PEARSON GENERAL KNOWLEDGE MANUAL

Mr Kamal Nath: Commerce and Industry Mr H.R. Bhardwaj: Law and Justice Mr P.M. Sayeed: Power Mr Raghuvansh Prasad Singh: Rural Development Mr P.R. Dasmunshi: Water Resources Mr : Petroleum and Natural Gas; Panchayati Raj Mr Sunil Dutt: Youth Affairs and Sports Ms Meira Kumar: Social Justice and Empowerment Mr K. Rao: Minister without Portfolio Mr A. Raja: Environment and Forests Mr Dayanidhi Maran: Communication and Information Technology Dr Anbumani Ramdoss: Health and Family Welfare Ministers of State (Independent Charge) Mr Santosh Mohan Dev: Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises Mr Oscar Fernandes: Statistics and Programme Implementation Ms Renuka Choudhury: Tourism Mr Subodh Kant Sahay: Food Processing Mr Kapil Sibal: Science and Technology; Ocean Development Mr : Non-Conventional Energy Sources Kumari Selja: Urban Employment and Poverty Alleviation Mr Praful Patel: Civil Aviation Mr Prem Chand Gupta: Company Affairs Ministers of State Mr E. Ahmed: External Affairs Mr Suresh Pachauri: Personnel; Parliamentary Affairs Mr B.K. Handique: Defence; Parliamentary Affairs Mr Panabka Lakshmi: Health and Family Welfare Mr Dasari Narayana Rao: Coal and Mines Mr Shaqeel Ahmed: Communications and Information Technology Mr Rao Inderjit Singh: External Affairs Mr Naranbhai Rathwa: Railway Mr Rehman Khan: Chemicals and Fertilisers Mr K.H. Muniappa: Road Transport and Highways Mr M.V. Rajashekharan: Planning Mr Kantilal Bhuria: Agriculture, Food, Civil Supplies, Consumers Affairs and Public Distribution Mr Manik Rao Gavit: Home Affairs Mr Sri Prakash Jaiswal: Home Affairs Mr Prithviraj Chavan: Prime Minister’s Office Mr Taslimuddin: Agriculture, Food and Civil Supplies, Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution Ms Suryakanta Patil: Rural Development; Parliamentary Affairs Mr Md. Ali Ashraf Fatmi: Human Resource Development Mr A Narendra: Rural Development Mr R. Velu: Railways Mr S. S. Palanimanikkam: Finance (Revenue Deptt.) Mr S. Regupathy: Home Affairs Mr K. Venkatapathy: Law and Justice Ms Subbulakshmi Jagadeesan: Social Justice and Empowerment Mr E.V.K.S. Elangovan: Commerce and Industry Ms : Human Resource Development Mr Namo Narayan Meena: Environment and Forests Mr Jay Prakash Narayan Yadav: Water Resources PERSONS IN NEWS 4.65

Mr Akhilesh Singh: Agriculture, Food and Civil Supplies, Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution 1.3 Chiefs of Armed Forces President Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam: Supreme Commander Admiral Madhvendra Singh: Chairman, chiefs of Staff Committee General N.C. Vij: Chief of the Army Staff Air Chief of Marshal S. Krishnaswamy: Chief of the Air Staff Admiral Madhvendra Singh: Chief of the Naval Staff Vice-Admiral Raman Puri: Commander-in-Chief, Strategic Forces Command Lt. Gen. B.S. Thakur: Chief of Integrated Defence Staff 1.4 Judiciary Mr Justice Y.K. Sabharwal: Chief Justice of India Mr Milon Kumar Banerjee: Attorney General of India Mr Justice Ashok Agarwal: Chairman, Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT). Mr Goolam E V Ahanvati: Solicitory-General of India Mr Gopal Subramaniam: Additional Solicitory-General of India Capitals, Governors and Chief Ministers of States States Capitals Governors Chief Ministers 1. Hyderabad Mr Sushil Kumar Shinde Dr Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy 2. Arunachal Pradesh Itanagar Mr S.K. Singh Mr Gegong Apang 3. Assam Dispur Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Ajay Singh Mr Tarun Gogoi 4. Bihar Patna Mr Buta Singh President’s Rule 5. Chhattisgarh Raipur Lt. Gen (Retd.) K.M. Seth Mr Raman Singh 6. Goa Panaji Mr S.C. Jamir Mr Pratap Singh Rane 7. Gujarat Gandhinagar Mr Naval Kishore Sharma Mr 8. Haryana Chandigarh Mr A.R. Kidwai Mr Bhupendra Singh Hooda 9. Himachal Pradesh Shimla Mr Justice (Retd.) V.S. Kokiji Mr Virbhadra Singh 10. Jammu and Kashmir Srinagar (Summer) Jammu (Winter) Lt. Gen (Retd). S.K. Sinha Mr Ghulam Nabi Azad 11. Jharkhand Mr Syed Sibtey Razi Mr Arjun Munda 12. Karnataka Bangalore Mr T.N. Chaturvedi Mr Dharam Singh 13. Mr R.L. Bhatia Mr Oommen Chandy 14. Madhya Pradesh Bhopal Mr Balram Jakhar Ms Babulal Gaur 15. Maharashtra Mumbai Mr S.M. Krishna Mr Vilasrao Deshmukh 16. Manipur Imphal Mr Shivinder Singh Sindhu Mr Okram Ibobi Singh 17. Meghalaya Shillong Mr M.M. Jacob Mr D.d. Lapang 18. Mizoram Aizawl Mr A.R. Kohli Mr 19. Nagaland Kohima Mr Shyamal Dutta Mr 20. Orissa Bhubaneswar Mr Rameshwar Thakur Mr Current Affairs 21. Punjab Chandigarh Mr S.S. Rodrigues Captain 22. Rajasthan Jaipur Mr Pratibha Patil Ms Vasundhara Raje 23. Sikkim Gangtok Mr V. Rama Rao Mr Pawan Kr. Chamling 24. Tamil Nadu Chennai Mr S.S. Barnala Ms J. Jayalalithaa 25. Tripura Agarthala Mr Dinesh Nandan Sahaya Mr Manik Sarkar 26. Uttar Pradesh Lucknow Mr T.V. Rajeshwar Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav 27. Uttaranchal Dehradun Mr Sudarshan Aggarwal Mr N.D. Tiwari 28. West Bengal Kolkata Mr Gopal Krishna Gandhi Mr Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee 4.66 THE PEARSON GENERAL KNOWLEDGE MANUAL

1.5 Capital, Lt. Governor and Chief Minister of National Capital Territory National Capital Territory Capital Lt. Governor Chief Minister 1. Delhi Delhi Mr B.L. Joshi Ms 1.6 Capitals, Lt. Governors/Administrators and Chief Ministers of Union Territories Union Territories Capitals Lt. Governors/Administrators Chief Ministers 1. Andaman and Nicobar Port Blair Prof. Ramachandra – Islands Gnash Apse 2. Chandigarh Chandigarh Mr Justice (Retd.) – Om Prakash Varma 3. Dadra and Nagar Haveli Silvassa Mr Arun Mathur – 4. Daman and Diu Daman Mr Arun Mathur 5. Lakshadweep Kavaratti Mr S.K. Mehra – 6. Pondicherry Pondicherry Mr N.N. Jha Mr N. Rengaswamy 1.7 Heads of Important Offices Mr B.S. Shekhawat: Chairman, Rajya Sabha. Mrs : Chairperson, Congress Parliamentary Party; Chairperson, National Advisory Council. Dr Manmohan Singh: Chairman, Planning Commission. Mr Somnath Chatterjee: Speaker. Mr A.B. Vajpayee: Chairman, BJP Parliamentary Party. Mr L.K. Advani: Leader of Opposition (Rajya Sabha). Mr T.S. Krishnamurthy: Chief Election Commissioner. Mr V.N. Kaul: Comptroller and Auditor General of India. Mrs Najma Heptullah: Deputy Chairperson, Rajya Sabha; Chairperson, Indian Council of Cultural Relations (ICCR). Mr Charanjit Singh Atwal: Deputy Speaker. Mr B.K. Chaturvedi: Cabinet Secretary. Mr Kamal Pande: Secretary, Inter-State Council Mr Tarlochan Singh: Chairman, National Commission for Minorities. Mr Justice Shyam Sunder: Chairman, National Commission for Backward Classes. Mr Suraj Bhan: Chairman, National Commission for SCs. Mr Kunwar Singh: Chairman, National Commission for Scheduled Tribes. Mr Mata Prasad: Chairman, UPSC. Justice C.N. Nayar: Chairman, MRTPC. Dr M.S. Swaminathan: Chairman, National Commission for Farmers. Mr J.N. Dixit: National Security Adviser (Foreign Affairs). Mr M.K. Narayanan: Special Adviser to PM (Internal Security). Mr J.P. Batra: Chairman, Railway Board. Mr Yogendra Narain: Secretary-General, Rajya Sabha. Mr P.D.T. Acharya: Secretary-General, Lok Sabha. Mr Uma Shankar Mishra: Director, CBI. Mr C.D. Sahay: Director, Research and Analysis Wing. Mr Ajai Raj Sharma: Director-General, BSE Mr J.K. Sinha: Director-General, CRPF Mr R.C. Agarwal: D.G., ITBP. Mr K.M. Singh: Director-General, Central Industrial Security Force (CISF). Vice-Admiral Suresh Mehta: Director General, Coast Guard. Lt. Gen. Avtar Singh: Director General Defence Intelligence Agency. Mr K. P. Singh: Director, Intelligence Bureau. Dr R. Chidambaram: Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government. Mr G. Madhavan Nair: Chairman, Space Commission and ISRO. PERSONS IN NEWS 4.67

Mr S. P. Sukhatme: Chairman, Atomic Energy Regulatory Board. Dr M. Natrajan: Scientific Adviser to Defence Minister and Secretary, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) Mr Anil Kakodkar: Chairman, Atomic Energy Commission and Secretary, Department of Atomic Energy. Mr M. S. Verma: Charman, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India. Mr B. K. Mishra: Chairman, SSC. Mr Anil Kumar: Chairman, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India. Mr Justice (Rtd.) A. S. Anand: Chairman, National Human Rights Commission. Mr Justice (Rtd.) B. N. Kirpal: National Forest Commission. Dr Amrita Patel: Chairperson, National Dairy Development Board (NDDB). Mr Arun Nigavekar: Chairman, UGC. Mr R. S. Mooshahary: Director-General, National Security Guards. Lt. Gen Prakash Suri: Director-General, Border Roads Organisation. Dr Nirmal Kumar Ganguly: Director-General, Indian Council of Medical Research. Mr T. K. Nair: Chairman, Public Enterprises Selection Board. Mr J. K. Banthia: Registrar-General of India and Census Commissioner. Mr Y. V. Reddy: Governor, RBI. Mr Justice D. P. Wadhwa: President, National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission. Mr Justice M. Jagannadha Rao: Chairman, Law Commission. Mr Ravindra Varma: Chairman, National Commission on Labour. Mr C. P. Jain: Chairman and Managing Director, NTPC. Mr Justice Jayachandra Reddy: Chairman, Press Institute of India. Mr Ajit Bhattacharjee: Director, Press Institute of India. Mr Jacob Mathews: Chairman, United News of India. Mr M. P. Veerendra Kumar: President, Indian Newspapers Society. Mr Vineet Jain: Chairman, Press Trust of India. Mr C. S. Rao: Chairman, Insurance Regulatory Authority. Mr M. S. Darda: Chairman, Central Board of Direct Taxes. Mr D. Sengupta: Chairman, GIC. Mr A. K. Singh: Chairman, Central Board of Excise and Customs. Mr Subir Raha: Chairman and Managing Director, ONGC. Mr V. S. Jain: Chairman, SAIL. Mr Prabir Sengupta: Director-General, Indian Institute of Foreign Trade. Mr M. S. Ramachandran: Chairman, IOC. Mr Ranjit Kumar Dutta: CMD, . Mr G. N. Bajpai: Chairman, Securities and Exchange Board of India. Mr A. K. Purwar: Chairman, SBI. Mr M. Damodran: Chairman, UTI and IDBI. Mr Justice Ajay Kumar Banerji: Chairman, Company Law Board. Mr L. M. Singhvi: President, National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA).

Mr Nirupam Sen: India’s Permanent Representative to UN. Current Affairs Mr K. M. Chandrasekhar: India’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to UN. Dr R. A. Mashelkar: Director-General, CSIR. Mr R. S. P. Sinha: Chairman, MTNL. Mr Ramesh Chandra: Chairman, Central Water Commission. Ms Poornima Advani: Chairperson, National Commission for Women. Dr C. Rangarajan: Chairman, 12th Finance Commission. Mr J.C. Kala: Director General, Forests. Mr V. Rajagopalan: Chairman, Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). Mr Nafisa Ali: Chairman, Central Baord of Film Certification. Ms Raveena Tandon: Chairperson, Children Film Society of India. Ms Gauri Chatterji: Director-General, Archaeological Survey of India. Mr Justice A. B. Saharya: Head, POTA Review Committee. 4.68 THE PEARSON GENERAL KNOWLEDGE MANUAL

Mr R. N. Das: Director, Enforcement Directorate. Mr P. Shankar: Chief Vigilance Commissioner. Mr S. Banerjee: Director, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre. Mr V. K. Agarwal: Managing Director, RITES. Lt. Gen. B. K. Bopanna: Director-General, NCC. Mr Vijay Kumar Malhotra: President, All India Sports Council. Mr Prem Kumar: Chairman, FCI. Mr Santosh Nautiyal: Chairman, National Highway Authority of India. Ms Rajni Patel: Chairperson, Central Social Welfare Board. Mr Suresh Kalmadi: President, Indian Olympic Association. Prof. H. P. Dixit: Vice-Chancellor, IGNOU and Chairman, SACO DIL. Prof. D. N. Tripathi: Chairman, ICHR. Mr Ashok Soota: Chairman, CII. Mr Y. K. Modi: Chairman, FICCI. Mr Naveen Kumar: Director-General, Doordarshan. Mr T. R. Malakar: Director-General, AIR. Mr M. V. Kamath: Chairman, Prasar Bharti Board. Mr K. S. Sarma: CEO, Prasar Bharti. Mr M. V. Kamath: Chairman, Prasar Bharti. Mr Wajahat Habibullah: Chief Information Commissoner Mr Arun Kapur: President, PHDCCI. Mr V. R. Panchmukhi: Chairman, Indian Council of Social Sciences Research (ICSSR). Mr Jerry Rao: Chairman, NASSCOM. Mr Kiran Karnik: President, NASSCOM. Mr E. Sridharan: Managing Director, DMRC Mr Manmohan Shetty: Chairman, National Film Development Corporation. Mr Tripurari Sharan: Director, Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) Mr V. Thulasidas: CMD, Air-India. Ms Sushma Chawla: CMD, Indian Airlines Mr A K Puri: CMD, BHEL Mr Ram Niwas Mirdha: Chairman, Sangeet Natak Akademi Prof. D N Tripathi: Chairman, ICHR Mr Andre Beteille: Chairman, ICSSR Mr Subodh Bhargava: Chairman, VSNL Mr Jumarmangalam Birla: Chairman, Board of Trade Mr Mathew Verghese: Chairman, GIC Dr Karan Singh: President, ICCR Dr Ishwar J Ahluwalia: Chairperson, ICRIER 2 WORLD Afghanistan: President–Hamid Karzai; Capital–Kabul. Albania: President–Alfred Moisui; Prime Minister–Fatos Nano; Capital–Tirana. Algeria: President–Abdelaziz Bouteflika; Prime Minister–Ahmed Ouyahia; Capital–Algiers. Argentina: President–Nestor Carlos Kirchner; Capital–Buenos Aires. Australia: Governor General–Michael Jeffrey; Prime Minister–John Winston Howard; Capital (Federal)–Canberra. Austria: President–Thomas Klestil; Chancellor–Wolfgang Schussel; Capital–Vienna. Bangladesh: President–Iaujuddin Ahmed; Prime Minister–Begum Khaleda Zia; Capital–Dhaka. Belarus: President–Alyaksandr Lukashenka; Prime Minister–Henadz Novitski; Capital–Minsk. Belgium: King–Albert II; Prime Minister–Guy Verhofstadt; Capital–Brussels. Bhutan: King–Jigme Singye Wangchuk; Capital–Thimphu. Bolivia: President–Eduardo Rodriguez; Capital–Lapaz. Bulgaria: President–Georgi Parvanov; Prime Minister–Mr Simeon II; Capital–Sofia. Burkina Faso: President–Blaise Compaore; Capital–Ouagadougou. Cambodia: King–Prince Norodom Sihanouk; First Prime Minister–Ung Huot; Second Prime Minister–Hun Sen; Capital–Phnom Penh. PERSONS IN NEWS 4.69

Canada: Governor General–Adrienne Clarkson; Prime Minister–Paul Martin; Capital–Ottawa. Chile: President–Ricardo Lagos; Capital–Santiago. China: President–Hu Jintao; Prime Minister–Wen Jiabao; Capital–Beijing. Colombia: President–Alvaro Uribe; Capital–Bogota. Costa Rica: President–Abel Pacheco De La Espriella; Capital–San Jose. Croatia: President–Stipe Mesic; Prime Minister–Ivicia Racan; Capital–Zagerb. Cuba: President–Fidel Castro Ruz; Capital–Havana. Czech Republic: President–Mr Vaclav Klaus; Prime Minister–Milos Zeman; Capital–Prague. Denmark: Queen–Margrethe II; Prime Minister–Anders Fogh Rasmussen; Capital–Copenhagen. East Timor: President–Xanana Gusmao; Prime Minister–Mari B.A. Alkatiri; Capital–Dili. Egypt: President–Hosni Mubarak; Prime Minister–Atef Ebeid; Capital–Cairo. El Salvador: President–Francisco Flores Perez; Capital–San Salvador. Ethiopia: President–Girma Woldegyiorgis; Prime Minister–Meles Zenawi; Capital–Addis Ababa. Fiji: President–Ratu Josefa Iloila; Prime Minister–Laisenia Qarase; Capital–Suva. Finland: President–Ms Tarja Halonen; Capital–Helsinki. France: President–Jacques Chirac; Prime Minister–Jean-Pierre Raffarin; Capital–Paris. Germany: President–Horst Koehler; Chancellor–Angela Merkel; Capital–Berlin. Greece: President–Constantinose Stephanopoulos; Prime Minister–Costas Simitis; Capital–Athens. Guyana: President–Bharrat Jagdeo; Prime Minister–Samuel Hinds; Capital–Georgetown. Haiti: Interim President–Boniface Alexandre; Prime Minister–Gerard Latortue; Capital–Port-au-Prince. Hungary: President–Ferenc Madl; Prime Minister–Peter Medgyessy; Capital–Budapest. Indonesia: President–Megawati Sukarnoputri; Capital–Jakarta. Iran: President–Mahmoud Ahmedinejad; Capital–Teheran. Iraq: President–Jalal Talabeni; Prime Minister–Dr Ibrahim-Al-Jaasari; Capital–Baghdad. Israel: President–Moshe Katzav; Prime Minister–Ariel Sharon; Capital–Jerusalem. Italy: President–Carlo Azeglio Ciampi; Prime Minister–Silvio Berlusconi; Capital–Rome. Japan: Emperor–Akihito; Prime Minister–Junichiro Koizumi; Capital–Tokyo. Jordan: King–Abdullah II; Prime Minister–Faisal Al-Sayer; Capital–Amman. Kazakhstan: President–Nursultan A. Nazarbayev; Prime Minister–Danyal Akhmetov; Capital–Astana. Kenya: President–Mwai Kibaki; Capital–Nairobi. Korea, North: President–Marshal Kim Jong II; Prime Minister–Hong Song Nam; Capital–Pyongyang. Korea, South: President–Roh Moo-hyun; Prime Minister–Goh Kun; Capital–Seoul. Kuwait: Emir–Shaikh Jaber al-Ahmed al-Sabah; Prime Minister–Shaikh Sabah al-Ahmed al-Jabir al-Sabah; Capital– Kuwait. Kyrgyzstan: President–Kurmanbek Bakiyev; Capital–Bishkek. Laos: President–Gen. Khamtay Siphandone; Prime Minister–Gen. Boungnang Volachit; Capital–Vientiane. Libya: President–Col. Muammar El-Gaddafi; Prime Minister–Shokri Ghanem; Capital–Tripoli. Madagascar: President–Marc Ravalomanana; Prime Minister–Jacques Sylla; Capital–Antananarivo. Malawi: President–Bingu wa Mutharika; Capital–Lilongwe. Malaysia: King–Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin Syed Putra Jamalullail; Prime Minister–Abdullah Ahmad Badawi; Capital– Kuala Lumpur. Maldives: President–Maumoon Abdul Gayoom; Capital–Male. Current Affairs Mauritius: President–Karl A. Offmann; Prime Minister–Navin Ramgoolam; Capital–Port Louis. Mexico: President–Vicente Fox Quesada; Capital–Mexico City. Morocco: King–Mohammed VI; Prime Minister–Driss Jettou; Capital–Rabat. Myanmar (Burma): Head of Government–Gen. Than Shwe; Prime Minister–Lt. Gen. Soewian; Capital–Wangon (Rangoon). Namibia: President–Sam Nujoma; Prime Minister–Theo-Ben Gurirab; Capital–Windlhoek. Nepal: King–Gyanendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev; Capital–Kathmandu. Netherlands: Queen–Beatrix, Prime Minister–Jan Peter Balkenende; Capital–Amsterdam New Zealand: Governor General–Dame Silvia Cartwright; Prime Minister–Ms Helen Clark; Capital–Wellington. Niger: President–Tandja Mamadou; Prime Minister–Hama Amadou, Capital–Niamey. Nigeria: President–Gen. Oluseguri Obasanjo; Capital–Abuja. 4.70 THE PEARSON GENERAL KNOWLEDGE MANUAL

Norway: King–Harald V; Prime Minister–Jens Stoltenberg; Capital–Oslo. Pakistan: President–Gen. Pervez Musharraf; Prime Minister–Shaukat Aziz; Capital–Islamabad. Panama: President–Ms Mireya Elisa Moscoso; Capital–Panama City. Peru: President–Alejandro Toledo; Prime Minister–Luis Solari; Capital–Lima. Philippines: President–Ms Gloria Macapagal Arroyo; Capital–Manila. Poland: President–Aleksander Kwasniewski; Prime Minister–Marek Belka; Capital–Warsaw. Portugal: President–Jorge Sampaio; Prime Minister–Jose Socrates Capital–Lisbon. Romania: President–Ion Illiescu; Prime Minister–Adrian Nastase; Capital–Bucharest. Russia: President–Vladimir Putin; Prime Minister–Mikhail Fradkov; Capital–Moscow. Rwanda: President–Paul Kagame; Capital–Kigali. Saudi Arabia: King–Abdullah bin-Abdul Aziz Al-Saud; Capital–Riyadh. Serbia and Montenegro: Union President–Svetozar Marovic; Capital–Belgrade. Sierra Leone: President–Ahmed Tejan Kabbah; Capital–Freetown. : President–S.R. Nathan; Prime Minister–Mikulas Dzurinda; Capital–Bratislava. South Africa: President–Thabo M. Mbeki; Capital–Cape Town (legislative) and Pretoria (Administrative). Slovakia: President-Ivan Gasparovic; Prime Minister-Nikulas Dzurinda; Capital-Bratislava Spain: King–Juan Carlos I; Prime Minister (elect)–Jose Rodriguez Zapatero; Capital–Madrid. Sri Lanka: President–Ms Chandrika Kumaratunga; Prime Minister–Mahinda Rajapakse; Capital–Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte (Colombo). Sudan: President–Omar Hassan Ahmad al-Bashir; Capital–Khartonum. Sweden: King–Carl XVI Gustaf; Prime Minister–Goran Persson; Capital–Stockholm. Syria: President–Bashar Al-Assad; Prime Minister–Mohammed Najial-Otari; Capital–Damascus. Taiwan: President–Chen Shui-bian; Prime Minister–Yu Shyi-kun; Capita–Taipei. Tajikistan: President–Emomali Rakhmonov; Prime Minister–Akil Akilov; Capital–Dushanbe. Tanzania: President–Benjamin William Mkapa; Prime Minister–Frederick Tluway Sumaye; Capital–Dodoma. Thailand: King–Bhumibol Adulyadej; Prime Minister–Thaksin Shinawatra; Capital–Bangkok. Trinidad and Tobago: President–Maxwell Richards; Prime Minister–Patrick Manning; Capital–Port-of-Spain. Tunisia: President–Zine El Aabidine Ben Ali; Prime Minister–Mohamed Ghannouchi; Capital–Tunis. Turkey: President–Ahmet Necdet Sezer; Prime Minister–Recep Tayyip Erdogan; Capital–Ankara. United Arab Emirates: Prime Minister–Sheikh Maktonum bin Rashid al-Maktoum; Capital–Abu Dhabi. United Kingdom: Queen–Elizabeth II, Prime Minister–Tony Blair; Capital–London. United States of America: President–George W. Bush; Secretary of State–Condoleezza Rice; Capital–Washington, D.C. Vanuatu: President–Kalkoat Mahashelekel, Prime Minister–Ham Livi; Capital–Vila. Vietnam: President–Tran Duc Luong; Prime Minister–Phan Van Khai; Capital–Hanoi. Zambia: President–Levy Patrick Mwanawasa; Prime Minister–General M.N. Masheke; Capital–Lusaka. Zimbabwe: Executive President–Robert Mugabe; Capital–Harare. 3 HEADS OF IMPORTANT OFFICES Kofi Annan: Secretary-Gemeral, United Nations Organisation. Ms Louise Frechette: First Deputy Secretary-General, UN. Kiran Bedi: UN civilian Police Adviser for Dept. of Peace–keeping Operations. James Wolfensohn: President, World Bank (International Bank for Reconstruction and Development). Anil Sood: Vice President, World Bank. Rodrigo Rato: Managing Director, International Monetary Fund. Koichiro Matsuura: Director-General, UNESCO. Jacques Diouf: Director-General, Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO). Juan Somavia: Director-General, International Labour Organisation (ILO). Ms Carol Bellamy: Executive Director, United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF). Jong-Wook Lee: Director-General, World Health Organisation(WHO). Ruud Lubbers: UN High Commissioner for Refugees. Mark M. Brown: Director-General, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Donald J. Johnston: Secretary-General, Organisation of Economic Corporation and Development (OECD). PERSONS IN NEWS 4.71

Gilbert Guiliaume: President, International Court of Justice. Tadao Chino: President, Asian Development Bank. Omar Bakhaj: President, African Development Bank. Jacques Rogge: President, International Olympic Committee. Don McKinnon: Secretary-General, Commonwealth. Blaise Compaore: Chairperson, African Union. Najat Al-Haijjaji: Chairman, UN Human Rights Commission. Ehsan Mani: President, International Cricket Council. Amara Essy: Secretary-General, African Union. Abdullah Ahmad Badawi: Chairman, Non-Aligned Movement. Jose Manuel Barroso: President, European Commission. Rubens Ricupero: Secretary-General, UNCTAD. Mauricio Maria J. Campos: Director-General, UNIDO. Jamel Al Hujilan: Secretary-General, Gulf Co-operation Council. Azzedine Laraki: Secretary-General, Organisation of Islamic Conference. Yasser Arafat: Chairman, Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) and President, Palestinian National Authority. Alvaro Silva Calderon: Secretary-Genera, Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries. Cesar Gaviria Trujilo: Chairman, Organisation of American States. Sam Nujoma: President, South-West African People’s Organisation (SWAPO). Dr Mohamed EIBaradei: Director-General, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). George Robertson: Secretary-General, NATO. Pascal Lamy: Director-General, World Trade Organisation (WTO). Harshvardhan Singh: Deputy Director-General, World Trade Organisation (WTO). Dr Abdul Waheed Khan: Director, Commonwealth of Learning. Ms Thoraya Ahmed Obaid: Executive Director, UNFPA. Wally N’Dow: Secretary-General, ASEAN. Q. A.M.A. Rahimm: Secretary-General, SAARC. Mark Wood: Editor-in-Chief, Reuters. Lamine Diack: President, International Amateur Athletic Federation (IAAF). Irene Zubaida Khan: Secretary-General, Amnesty International. 4 NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL NEWS MAKERS Admiral Arun Prakash The Chief of Naval Staff, Admiral Arun Prakash, was appointed as the new Chairman, Chiefs of Staff Commission (COSC), on January 20, 2005. He succeeded the outgoing Chairman General Vij who held the post for just one month. Asafa Powell Asafa Powell, of Jamaica (West Indies), became the fastest man on Earth when he set a new world record in the 100-metres, clocking 9.77 seconds on June 14, 2005 in Tsiklitiria Super Grand Prix held at Olympic Stadium in Athens (Greece). In the process, he broke the previous record of Tim Montgomery of the US (9.78) by hundredth of a second. B B Tandon Mr B B Tandon succeeded Mr T S Krishna Murthy as the new Chief Election Commissioner

of India on April 25, 2005. He was an Election Commissioner since October 2001. Current Affairs D Swarup The Former Expenditure Secretary in the Union Ministry of Finance was appointed the Chairman of Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) in May 2005. Donald Tsang He was appointed as the new Chief Executive of Hong Kong for a period of two years on June 21, 2005. Mr Donald is a former civil servant. Edurado Rodriguez The Chief Justice of Bolivia, Mr Eduardo Rodriguez, took over as the new President of Bolivia on June 10, 2005 after Former President, Mr Carlos Mesa, resigned on June 7, 2005. Greg Chappell The Former Australian Captain and a stylish batsman of yesteryears, Greg Chappell, succeeded John Wright, as the new cricket Coach of India in June 2005. Chappell, an unrivalled strategist of the game has been appointed for a tenure of two years, till the end of 2007 ICC World Cup in West Indies. 4.72 THE PEARSON GENERAL KNOWLEDGE MANUAL

Habiba Sorabi Ms Habiba Sorabi (47) became the first woman Minister in the Afghanistan Parliament when she was appointed Minister of Women Affairs in March 2005. Ibrahim al-Jaafari The new President of Iraq, Mr Jalal Talabani, appointed a Shi’ite Arab and Chairman of Islamic Dawa Party, Mr Ibrahim al-Jaagari as the new Prime Minister of Iraq on May 3, 2005. Jalal Talabani Mr Jalal Talabani (a veteran Kurdish leader) was chosen the new President of Iraq on April 6, 2005 after intense political impasse following January 30, 2005 Parliamentary elections. Mr Talabani is the first non-Arab President of Iraq. Jiri Paroubek Mr Jiri Paroubek (52) has succeeded Mr Stanislav Gross as the New Prime Minister of Czech Republic on April 26, 2005. Lee Hsien Loong Singapore Prime Minister, Mr Lee Hsien Loong, during his visit to India signed the landmark Comprehensive Economic Co-operation Agreement (CECA) on June 29, 2005. CECA is the first bilateral pact by India in services with any country, which is expected to create an economic super highway for bilateral trade, foreign investment and economic cooperation. The two countries also signed a Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT). M Damodaran The Chairman and Managing Director of IDBI was appointed as the new Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on February 18, 2005. He succeeded Mr G N Bajpai. Mr Damodaran was appreciated in the financial circles of India for his handling of UTI fund which was eventually split into two orgranisations after his recommendations. Mahmoud Abbas The Former Prime Minister of the Palestinian Liberation Army (PLA), was elected as the new President of the Palestinian National Authority on January 9, 2005 following the death of Yasser Arafat. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Former Tehran Mayor Mahmoud Ahmedinejad has been elected Iran’s new President on June 25, 2005, defeating Mr. Rafsanjani. He succeeds Ali Mohammed Khatami. Maj. Gen. R K Mehta Major General Randhir Kumar Mehta was appointed as the Military Adviser in the United Nation’s Department of Peace Keeping Operations in February 2005. He is the first Indian to be appointed as the Military Adviser in any of the UN Department. Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka South African President Mr Thabo Mbeki appointed Ms Phumzile Mlambo- Ngcuka, who championed black capitalism, as Deputy President on June 24, 2005. Ms. Mlambo- Ngcuka succeeds Mr Jacob Zuma who was sacked a week earlier over corruption allegations. Punita Arora Ms Punita Arora became the first woman Vice-Admiral in the Navy on June 20, 2005. Seconded from the Army where she holds the equivalent rank of Lt. General, she has taken over as Director-General of Medical Services in the rank of Surgeon Vice-Admiral. She was earlier the commandant of the Armed Forces Medical College (AFMC), Pune. R A Mashelkar The Director-General CSIR, Mr R A Mashelkar, was appointed as the Chairman of the technical expert group of Patent Law Panel in May 2005, to study important aspects of certain patent law issues. S I S Ahmed The Additional Director-General of Border Security Force (BSF), succeeded Mr K M Singh as the new Director-General of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) in May 2005. Subodh Bhargava A Former CII President and leading private sector executive, Mr Subodh Bhargava succeeded Mr Ratan Tata as the new Chairman of VSNL in May 2005. Viktor Yushchenko The western supported leader Mr Viktor Yushchenko was formally elected by the Central Election Commission as the new President of Ukraine in February 2005.