CURRENT AFFAIRS APRIL-2014 List of Important Days • IRDA, Insurers Launch Awareness Drive – Insurance companies launched awareness initiatives on the occasion of Insurance Awareness Day. Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) had declared April 19, as the Insurance Awareness Day to deepen insurance penetration in the country. • The world celebrated Earth Day on 22 Apr with the theme ‘Green Cities’ calling for transformation in the public transportation systems to make them more accessible, convenient, and clean fuel-run. • World Health Day 2014 – The World Health Day is celebrated every year on 7 Apr, under the guidance and sponsorship of the World Health Organization (WHO). The Theme for 2014’s World Health Day is “Vector-borne diseases: Small bite, big threat” which highlights dangers and threats from some of the most commonly known vectors such as mosquitoes, sand flies, bugs, ticks and snails.

Reserve Bank of India • RBI Committee Suggests Benchmark For Floating Rate Products – The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), on April 10, 2014, suggested measures for transport and appropriate pricing of credit under a floating rate regime. − The working group on pricing of credit, set up by the RBI, recommended that the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) develop a new benchmark for floating interest rate products, namely, the Indian Banks Base Rate (IBBR), which may be collated and published by the IBA on a periodic basis. To begin with, the working group said, “IBBR may be used for home loans.” It would be desirable that banks, particularly those whose weighted average maturity of deposits is on the lower side, move towards computing the Base Rate on the basis of marginal cost of funds. This may result in more transparency in pricing, reduced customer complaints, better transmission of changes in the policy rate and improved asset liability management at banks. The board of a bank should ensure that any price differentiation is consistent with banks credit pricing policy factoring Risk Adjusted Return on Capital (RAROC). Banks should be able to demonstrate to the RBI the rationale of the pricing policy. − Banks’ internal policy must spell out the rationale for and range of the spread in the case of a given borrower, as also, the delegation of powers in respect of loan pricing, the working group suggested. The floating rate loan covenant may have interest rate reset periodicity and the resets may be done on those dates only, irrespective of changes made to the Base Rate within the reset period. − There may be a sunset clause for Benchmark Prime Lending Rate contracts so that all the contracts thereafter are linked to the Base Rate. The working group has also said that the benefit of interest reduction on the principal on account of pre-payments should be given on the day the money is received by the bank without waiting for the next EMI cycle date to effect the credit. For retail loans, the working group said that customers should have a choice of ‘with exit’ and ‘sans exit’ options at the time of entering the contract. • Independent Body For Forex Benchmark Rate – The Reserve Bank of India, on April 16, 2014 asked the Fixed Income Money Market and Derivatives Association of India (FIMMDA) and the Foreign Exchange Dealers’ Association of India (FEDAI) to form an independent body, either separately or jointly, for administration of the benchmarks with regard to rupee interest rate and foreign exchange. This is “to overcome the possible conflicts of interest in the benchmark setting process arising out of the current governance structure of the FIMMDA and FEDAI”. • Two-Stage Verification For Online Transactions – Worried over rising number of frauds in online banking, The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has suggested that banks introduce two-stage authentication to ensure security of transactions. The RBI report on ‘Enabling Public Key

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Infrastructure (PKI) in Payment System Applications’ released on April 22, 2014, said banks should also inform customers about risks associated with different types of online banking transaction. − Internet banking applications of all banks should mandatorily create authentication environment for password-based two-factor authentication and transaction verification in online banking transaction. It also said customers should be given the option to choose from different methods of authentication for ensuring security of online transactions. − There are various PKI-enabled electronic payments systems introduced by the RBI such as RTGS, NEFT, CBLO, Forex Clearing, Government Securities Clearing, and Cheque Truncation System (CTS). In volume terms, these systems contributed 25.1 per cent whereas these systems contributed 93.7 per cent share to the total payment transactions carried out in 2012-13 in value terms. − Non-PKI enabled payment systems contributed 75 per cent in volume terms buy only 6.3 per cent in value terms in 2012-13. The objective of an effective payment system is to ensure a safe, secure, efficient, robust and sound payment system in the country. In order to secure electronic documents and transactions and to ensure legal compliance, digital technology is used. − The report said that the banks may carry out in three phases PKI implementation for authentication and transaction verification. The banks have been mandated to issue EMV (card with chip and pin) to certain category of customers and for the other customers, banks have been given option to either issue EMV cards or adopt Aadhaar biometric authentication as additional factor of authentication. • RBI Raises $ 3.3 Billion in Record Bond Auction – Government bonds jumped on April 17, 2014 recovering from two sessions of falls, after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) fully sold the Rs.20,000- crore ($3.31 billion) worth of debt on offer, accomplishing the biggest-ever auction. The cut-offs for the auction were also better than expected, indicating healthy demand, Concerns about how the government would accomplish the debt sale had hit bonds this week, while holidays left only three trading sessions. − Still, four dealers cited widespread market speculation that the Life Insurance Corporation had bought a significant chunk of the debt at the auction. Details on buyers are not publicised. However, traders added bonds would likely remain under pressure given the debt supply will continue while investors are also likely to stay cautious ahead of the election outcome in May 2014. − These two factors will likely remain key in the markets as the Reserve Bank of India will not set policy until early June 2014. The 10-year benchmark bond yield was down eight basis points on the day at 8.88 per cent, after dropping as much as nine basis points on the day to 8.87 per cent, its lowest since April 2, 2014. • Check on Extension of ECBs – The Reserve Bank of India, on April 22, 2014 disallowed overseas branches of domestic banks from extending external commercial borrowings (ECBs) to manufacturing and infrastructure companies for repaying rupee loans. If the ECB is availed of from overseas branches or subsidiaries of Indian banks, the risk remains within the Indian banking system. It has therefore, been decided that repayment of rupee loans availed of from the domestic banking system through ECBs extended by overseas branches or subsidiaries of Indian banks will, henceforth, not be permitted. • RBI To Audit Defaults Above Rs.1,000 crore – Companies that default in repaying large-ticket loans are set to come under the scrutiny of the Reserve Bank of India. The central bank is likely to undertake forensic audit of firms that default in repayment of loans of over Rs.1,000 crore. The decision to conduct forensic audits was taken by RBI governor Raghuraman Rajan in April 2014. − A forensic audit is an examination of financial information of a firm or individual for the use of the same for evidence in court. Such audits are usually conducted to prosecute a party for fraud or embezzlement of financial claims. The level of non-performing asset (NPA) in the Indian

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banking system has been witnessing a steady rise in the last couple of years. Banks have written off Rs.1 lakh crore in advances since 2000. In a case of concern for policymakers. The central bank had said earlier that over 90% have been written off for large business houses. The finance ministry meanwhile has already directed banks not to write off more than they can recover. − In 2012-13, banks restructured over Rs.75,000 crore in loans under the corporate debt restructuring (CDR) scheme, nearly double the level in the previous fiscal. Banks have also been asked to monitor the top 30 NPA accounts. Big companies including Kingfisher Airlines (KFA) and Deccan Chronicle have defaulted in loan repayment. • RBI to Spot Bad Loans – To check any further rise in the level of non-performing assets (NPAs) – assets that do not yield returns – the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has asked banks to indicate and highlight those accounts that are performing but could show signs of stress. For the borrower it means that despite repaying the debt on time he could come under the scanner in case the bank notices early signs of uncertainty either to do with the sector or the firm. − The RBI has asked banks to classify these accounts as special mention accounts. The central bank has also asked banks to get tough with those borrowers who are unwilling to co-operate with the lender’s restructuring plans. The RBI has also asked lenders to raise interest rates on the credit for any future loan that they seek. − According to RBI data, the level of bad debts in Indian banks has almost doubled since 2009 to 4.2% of total loans at the end of September 2013. Gross NPAs for 40 listed banks stood at Rs.2,29,007 crore at the end of September 30, 2013, which is 27% higher than Rs.1,79,891 crore recorded as of March 31, 2013. NPAs are likely to rise further in 2014. • Hedging Limit for Investors liberalised – The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on April 7, 2014 liberalised hedging limit for domestic investors to $250,000 from $100,000 on the basis of a simple declaration without any requirement of further documentation. • In the first bi-monthly monetary policy for 2014-15, the Reserve Bank of India keeps the indicative policy rate (repo) unchanged at 8 per cent while taking measures to provide longer term liquidity in the system. • RBI’s approval to IDFC, Bandhan – The Reserve Bank of India granted “in-principle” bank licences to Infrastructure Development Finance Co (IDFC) and microfinance lender Bandhan Financial Services Ltd, ending a four-year process that left many applicants including Reliance Capital and L&T Finance disappointed. The in-principle approval is valid for 18 months during which IDFC and Bandhan will have to meet all RBI rules to secure a permanent licence and begin banking activities. • RBI caps WMA limit for the Govt – RBI has set the upper limit for the WMA (Ways and Means Advances) for the Central Govt at Rs.35,000 crore per week for the first half of the FY 2015. If the govt utilises 75 per cent of WMA limit, RBI may further activate fresh floatation of market loans. The second-half limit will be fixed in Sep 2014. Highlights à Interest rate on WMA/overdraft will be 2% above the repo rate. à Minimum balance required to be maintained by the govt with the RBI should not be less than Rs.100 crore. à On the date of closure of govt’s financial year, the balance should not be less than Rs.100 crore. à The duration for advance for the Central Govt will be 10 consecutive working days and overdrafts beyond 10 consecutive working days will not be allowed. à To meet these temporary mismatches, under Section 17 (5) of RBI Act, 1934, the RBI provides WMA to the States. à WMA is temporary in character and used to bridge any gap arising from short periods between expenditure and receipt of the State Govts. à It is repayable in each case not later than 3 months from the date of making advance.

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à Section 17(5) of RBI Act allows RBI to make WMA both to the Central and State Govts. à In a period of natural calamity or disaster, ad hoc WMA limits are granted to the States to facilitate transactions in govt accounts.

State Bank of India • State Bank of India has hit the overseas bond market with a dual tranche benchmark issue of 5-year and 10-year maturity to raise up to $ 1 billion. According to one of the merchant bankers working on the issue, SBI on April 10, 2014 launched has roadshow in major global financial centres and closed the transaction later in the day. The bank has given an initial pricing of 240 basis points over the U.S. treasury for the 5-year money and 265 basis points over the treasury for the 10-year bond. The U.S. treasury is trading at around 2.75 per cent. On April 8, 2014, Oil India had raised $ 1 billion from a similar dual tranche issue, making it the single largest dual tranche Reg S issue from the country. − State Bank of India has mopped up $ 1.25 billion in overseas debt sales through a dual tranche bond programme, making it he largest ever offering from a domestic issuer. It raised $ 750 million in 5-year money, and $500 million in 10-year bonds. • SBI Sets Up RSETIs – As a multi corner approach to tackle un-employment, State Bank of India has set up Rural Self Employment Training Institutes (RSETIs) across the country. RSETIs are non-profit institutions established and maintained under Bank’s Corporate Social Responsibility activity with the support of State and Central Governments. The objective of this institute is to generate self employment in rural areas through proper training and by facilitating in settlement in vocations. • SBI sells stressed assets – During the end of the last financial year, banks sold a large part of their non-performing assets (NPAs) to asset reconstruction companies (ARCs). State Bank of India (SBI), India’s largest lender, sold Rs.3,500 of NPAs. • SBI launches Twitter handle – After launching accounts on Facebook and Youtube, the country’s largest lender SBI took one more step on the social media front by launching a Twitter handle. The Twitter handle for SBI is https://twitter.com/ TheOfficialSBI. Targeting huge customer base as well as potential customers, there will be round-the-clock tweets on the banks’ products and services, as also continuous education of the customers. The bank expects this Twitter handle to connect better with the tech-savvy young generation.

Other Banks • HDFC Banks seeks govt nod to raise FII limit – The country’s second-largest private-sector lender HDFC Bank has proposed to increase the limit for foreign institutional investors’ (FII) stake in the bank as, according to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) it has reached its 74 per cent FII holding cap if parent HDFC’s shareholding is considered. FIIs hold a 75.7 per cent stake in Housing Development Finance Company (HDFC), the parent company that owns 22.64 per cent in HDFC Bank. Also the RBI is learnt to have opined that parent HDFC’s 22.64 per cent stake in HDFC Bank should be considered foreign investment, not domestic. The composite cap on foreign investment in a bank is 74 per cent. The foreign holding in HDFC Bank, including that of its parent is 73.73 per cent. In Dec 2013, RBI has barred foreign investors form buying additional shares in the company, after their shareholding hit the upper limit of 49 per cent through the automatic route. Increasing foreign shareholding beyond 49 per cent, up to 74 per cent, needs the approval of both the RBI and FIPB. • HDFC Bank has set a Guinness World Record by conducting a blood donation drive. The annual blood donation drive organised by the bank in Dec 2013 has been recognised as the largest effort of its kind across the globe which involved 61,902 participants and was achieved by HDFC Bank with 1,115 blood donation camps held across 709 locations in India. Among other sustainability initiatives. HDFC Bank also provides access to finance and skills training to families at the ‘Bottom of the Pyramid,’ and access to education and financial literacy, which is the life-blood of financial independence.

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Insurance • Insurers can file only 5 products a Year – The Insurance Regulatory Development Authority (Irda) has come out with a new product planner rule by which an insurance company can file only five products for approval a year. In an attempt to reduce time taken for product approvals, Irda has asked life insurers for a product planner before every financial year. At present, Irda follows the file-and-use method of application, wherein insurers apply to obtain prior approval of the authority to introduce/modify insurance products. • LIC trims stake in Infosys to 3.25% - State-run insurer Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) has reduced its stake in the country’s second-largest software services exporter Infosys to 3. 25 per cent in the last quarter with the share sale estimated at over Rs.850 crore.

Supreme Court • The Supreme Court refuses to stay the Centre’s notification to include Jats in the Central Other Backward Classes (OBC) list. • In a significant step, the Supreme Court recognizes the transgender community as a third gender along with male and female. • The Supreme Court asks the justice Mukul Mudgal Committee whether it would be in a position to conduct further probe into the allegations contained in the sealed against N. Srinivasan and 12 others, including some prominent cricketers, in the IPL spot-fixing and betting scam. • The Supreme Court appoints a three-member panel to suggest measures to prevent road accidents and ensure accountability. • The Supreme Court admits a plea filed by the president of the Federal Party of India challenging the formation of Telangana and Seemandhra States bifurcating Andhra Pradesh. • The Supreme Court constitutes a three member committee, headed by N.R. Madhava Menon, to suggest guidelines to regulate ruling party advertisements on the birthdays of political leaders and to highlight the government’s achievements. • SC lifts ban on iron ore mining in Goa – The Supreme Court allowed iron ore mining in Goa, lifting a ban imposed about 18 months ago, but placed a cap of 20 mm tonnes on annual production from these mines. • CAG empowered to audit private telcos - The Supreme Court held that the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) was empowered to audit private telecom companies. A two-judge bench comprising Justices KS Radhakrishnan and Vikramjit Sen held that private companies utilise spectrum, which is national wealth, is providing the services and so their profit-loss accounts could be looked into by the CAG. • Withdraw instruction regarding Aadhaar – The Supreme Court directed the Centre to immediately withdraw the instruction, if any, issued by it for making Aadhaar card mandatory for citizens to avail govt services. The SC bench also said biometric or any other data should not be shared with any authorities unless the accused gives consent in writing. The apex court had in its Sep 2013 interim order said Aadhaar card be not made mandatory for people for availing govt services, and nobody should be deprived of such facilities for want of the card. • SC commutes Bhullar’s death sentence – The Supreme Court commuted the death sentence of 1993 Delhi bomb blast cast convict and Khalistani terrorist Devinderpal Singh Bhullar to life term on the ground of delay in deciding his mercy plea and his medical condition. Bhuttar’s plea for commuting the sentence was rejected, in view of its recent judgment where it was held that delay in deciding mercy plea can be a ground for communication of death penalty.

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Election Commission (EC) • Election Commission (EC) confirmed Amir Khan as its national icon for the Lok Sabha elections 2014 on 1 April 2014. Amir Khan is the fifth National icon selected by EC to campaign for creating awareness among voters about elections. • The Election Commission gives the green signal to the Reserve Bank of India for ‘in-principle’ grant of licences to set up new banks. • The Election Commission of India (EC) approves the name of senior IPS officer Suresh Arora for the post of Punjab Police Chief in place of Sumedh Singh Saini.

Central Government • Govt notifies hike in dearness allowance – The Central Govt notified its decision to raise dearness allowance (DA) to 100 per cent, from 90 per cent. The Union Cabinet had decided on 28th Feb to release an additional installment of DA and dearness relief (DR) to pensioners with effect from 1 January 2014. The govt has estimated that the combined impact on exchequer on account of both DA and DR would be Rs.11,074.80 crore per annum. The increase in DA is in accordance with the accepted formula based on the recommendations of the 6th Central Pay Commission. • ETA: A New Mantra to Boost Tourism in India - The Government of India is in a move to grant in principle approval for Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) to travellers from 180 countries to India will boost tourism in the country, Tourism Secretary Parvez Dewan said on April 8, 2014. Travelling to India will be made easy once the ETA to visit the country becomes operational. ETA, which will allow foreign travellers to apply for a visa from home and receive an online confirmation in five working days, is expected to become operational by October 2014. Barring eight prior reference countries, which include Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Somalia, Sudan, Nigeria and Sri Lanka, government has decided to give e-visa to all the 180 countries. • E-Governance: A New Mantra of Good Governance – Soon Central Government departments could have a Chief Information Officer for IT adoption and to fast track e-governance projects as a part of the National e-Governance Plan (NeGP), which includes several other initiatives such as cloud implementation for all Mission Mode Projects (MMPs). At a recent meeting of the Apex Committee on NeGP, it was also decided to fast-track the adoption of ‘e-office’ for independent movement of e-files. The meeting was held under the chairmanship of Ajit Seth, Cabinet Secretary. Key Components of the e-Governance Initiatives à e-Taal: a portal for dissemination of e-Transaction statistics of Central and State level e- governance projects. à Mobile Seva: aims to provide a one-stop solution to all government departments and agencies for their mobile service delivery needs. à e-Pramaan : an initiative to ensure benefits of cloud computing for e-governance projects. à e-Kranti : eGP’s next wave NeGP 2.0 or e-Kranti aims to ‘transform governance’.

States • With the assent of Governor Lt Gen (Rtd) Nirbhay Sharma, the decks have been cleared for the creation of four new districts in Arunachal Pradesh. Four new districts – Kra Daadi, Namsai, Siang and Lower Siang. • Bihar – With the capita income of Rs.30,930, Bihar has been narrowing down the gap in a big way with the national average, according to the latest economic survey presented in the State Assembly. The ratio of Bihar’s per capita income to All India has increased to 41.18% in 2012-13 over 37.18% in 2011-12. • Gujarat – Reinforcing claims of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, a new study by researchers at the University of Cambridge and University College London reveals that the state has high levels of cash crops but lowest levels of farmer suicide rates in India.

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• Meghalaya – Announcing levy of export fee on forest products in Meghalaya, Chief Minister Mukul Sangma, who holds the finance portfolio, presented a Rs.527 crore deficit budget for the 2014-15 fiscal in March 2014. • Odisha – The Odisha government informed the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) that it did not intend to go for open market borrowings in the April-June quarter of 2014-15. • Tamil Nadu – A new report on global real estate investment has identified Chennai as the only Indian city among 12 world cities that are forecast to outperform prime world cities in the next few years and show strong residential price growth as investors look for secondary markets. • Tripura – Tripura tops for the fifth consecutive year for offering 66 person-days so far in the fiscal year 2013-14 in executing the central government’s flagship rural jobs scheme MGNREGS. • Maharashtra – Maharashtra has emerged as the number one investment destination in the country, replacing Gujarat. An analysis by the industry group ASSOCHAM shows that Maharashtra attracted cumulative investment proposals of 14,73,466 crore rupees as on Dec 2013, while Gujarat drew proposals worth 13,98,347 crore rupees. The other three states that attracted the most investment proposals are Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and Karnataka • Andhra Pradesh – Andhra Pradesh has recorded highest growth in terms of milk production at over 41 per cent and per capita milk availability about 36 per cent, during the period 2006-10. The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry (ASSOCHAM) of India said, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan (28 per cent), Kerala (24.8 per cent), Karnataka (24 per cent) and Gujarat (23.7 per cent) are the top five states in terms of clocking high growth in milk production in the country.

Place in News • The Ukrainian Government on 28 April 2014 announced to build a arch over Chernobyl to protect its citizens from radioactive dust. The arch is being built to mark the 28th anniversary of Chernobyl disaster. • Israeli Antiquities Authorities on 1 April 2014 discovered a monastery which belongs to Byzantine period in the Bedouin village of Hura in the Negev near South Israel. • Earthquake of magnitude 8.3 on Richter scale struck Solomon Islands on 13 April 2014.

Personalities • ‘Greater than Bradman - celebrating Sachin, the greatest batsman in Test history’, a new book on cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar by Rudolph Lambert Fernandez, is released in Chennai. • Two French daredevils Vince Reffet and Fred Fugen bread the Guinness World Record for the highest BASE jump after leaping off the top of Burj Khalifa in Dubai, the world’s tallest manmade structure. • The record has been achieved by Raj Kasu Reddy and Mani Shankar, who head the Hyderabad- based Nchant 3D (India), the company that was responsible for bringing alive the 53-minute long speech simultaneously at 53 locations across Gujarat, on Dec 10, 2012. The record is for the most simultaneous broadcasts of the Pepper’s Ghost Illusion, a technology used to create multiple illusions simultaneously. • Sachin Tendulkar - The legendary Indian cricketer adorned the cover of the 151st edition of the Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack. The 40-year-old cricketer is the first Indian to feature on the cover of the Almanack.

Defence and National Security • The Navy sells the iconic INS Vikrant to a ship-breaking company in Mumbai for Rs.63.2 crore. • In its first night trial, the Agni-1 surface-to-surface nuclear-capable ballistic missile is test-fired for its full 700-km range from the Wheeler Island off the Odisha coast.

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• As the Indian Navy’s INS shivalik prepare to leave Qingdao port after a six-day stay in China, both countries declare that the missile frigate’s visit has deepened strategic trust between two navies. • Ukraine launches a military operation to crush anti-government protests in the Russian-speaking eastern part of the country, deploying thousands of troops, armor and aircraft to Donetsk region. • Pakistan conducts a successful training launch of the short range surface-to-surface ballistic missile Hatf III (Ghaznavi), which can carry nuclear and conventional warheads to a range of 290 km. • The navies of Iran and Pakistan, in April 2014, held joint military exercises in the eastern part of the Strait of Hormuz. • India and France would start a ten-day joint air exercise ‘Garuda-5’, aimed at training the pilots and crew of Indian and French fighters in air superiority operations in Rajasthan’s Jodhpur airbase from 3 Jun. The objective of the exercise is to expose IAF pilots to french fighter tactics and French pilots to Indian fighter tactics. • India is the world’s ninth biggest military spender, in the latest list for the 15 countries with the highest defence expenditure, released by Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). The US is yet by far the largest spender with $ 640 bn in 2013. China, Russia and Saudi Arabia are the next three on the list. • India successfully test-fired its indigenously developed Prithvi II missile from a test range near Balasore in Orissa as part of a user trial by the Army.

Highlights à It is a nuclear-surface-to-surface missile with a strike range of 350 km. à The missile is capable of carrying 500 kg to 1,000 kg of warheads. à The missile was inducted into Strategic Force Command (SFC) in 2003 and clearly indicates the country’s operational readiness to meet any eventuality besides establishing the reliability of this deterrent component of India’s strategic arsenal. à It is the first missile to be developed by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) under the country’s prestigious Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme and is now a proven technology. • Pak, China begin joint military exercise – Two-week-long Pak-China joint military exercise started near the garrison city of Rawalpindi in Pakistan. The exercise, Peace Angel 2014, is particularly designed for disaster relief operations caused due to massive floods and terrorist attacks on relief camps.

Committees/Commissions • The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on 20 April 2014 chose names of the panelists to be a part of a three-member panel to probe into allegations of betting and spot-fixing during the sixth edition of IPL. The three member panel will comprise: The former Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court, Jai Narayan Patel, and former Director of the Central Bureau of Investigation, RK Raghavan, and former India captain-turned-commentator, Ravi Shastri. • Even as journalists and civil society members protest the attack on Geo TV anchor Hamid Mir in Karachi, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif announced a three-member Judicial Commission to inquire into the incident. • The Reserve Bank of India has accepted the Vijay Bhaskar Committee’s recommendations, which suggested Indian money and currency markets move their benchmarks towards transaction based from poll-based in an attempt to weed out manipulation. • Special CBI unit for sports fraud – To check fixing in sports, CBI has set up a dedicated ‘Sport Integrity Unit’ to look into cases of fraud, including betting in any sporting event. The stated objectives of this Sport Integrity Unit include investigating and inquiring into matters related to sports fraud, combating malpractices in sports and coordinating with sports federations and law enforcement agencies.

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Schemes/Initiatives • The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), on May 5, 2014 proposed a new set of rules, which would require greater disclosures by companies and give more powers to stock exchanges to check any non-compliance. The proposed norms, to be called SEBI (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2014, would need to be followed by all listed companies, as also for listing of debentures, bonds and mutual funds on stock exchanges.

Summit/Conference • President Barack Obama expresses no desire to contain or counter China despite clinching a defence pact with the Philippines which will inject U.S. forces close to the volatile South China Sea. • In a 577-page report submitted to Supreme Court, Amicus Curiae Gopal Subramaniam urges the court to order an audit of the wealth of the Sree Padmanabhan Swamy temple by former Comptroller and Auditor General of India Vinod Rai. • Dubai – A two-day World Green Economy Summit (WGES) 2014, a global effort to combat climate change, was held here on April 15-16. The summit, under the theme “Global Partnership and Sustainable Future”, is the first green summit in the Middle East and North Africa region. • Nepal to host 18th SAARC Summit – Nepal will hold the 18th SAARC Summit in Kathmandu on 14 Nov, the third time the country is hosting the event since the establishment of eight-member regional grouping in 1985. The date is subject to approval by SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) member states that include India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and Afghanistan.

Agreement/Deal/Sign/Talk • The Philippines and the United States sign an agreement to allow a greater U.S. military presence on Filipino soil for the next decade. • Foreign Ministers of Russia, the united States, the European Union and Ukraine reach a deal in Geneva to defuse the Ukraine crisis through a constitutional reform that would grant more powers to Russian speaking regions. • President Barack Obama signs into law a Bill designed to bar from U.S. soil Iran’s pick for U.N. ambassador, over his links to the 1979 American embassy hostage siege. • Israel halts peace talks with the Palestinians following their unity deal with the Hamas rulers of Gaza. • The tiny Pacific nation of the Marshall Islands takes on the United States and the world’s eight other nuclear-armed nations with an unprecedented lawsuit in the International Court of Justice in The Hague. Nethlands, accusing them of “flagrant violations” of international law. • After years of deadlock on liability issue, India and Russia have signed an agreement about building units 3 and 4 of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant Project (KKNPP). − The Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd. (NPCIL) signed a General Framework Agreement (GFA) with its counterpart on April 10, 2014 sources revealed this in New Delhi on April 11, 2014. • India, Bhutan to improve ties – India and Bhutan signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for improving cooperation and exchange of information in the field of audit of public finances. The MoU was signed by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India Shashi Kant Sharma and Auditor General of Bhutan Dasho Ugen Chewang in Bhutan. • India, Bhutan sign agreement – India and Bhutan have signed an agreement on development of hydropower projects. The inter-governmental agreement provides framework for implementing four hydro-electric projects totalling 2120 MW on a joint-venture model between public sector undertakings of the two countries.

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• India, Nepal and Bhutan agree join hands – India, Nepal and Bhutan have agreed to join hands on an initiative for Kanchenjunga trans-boundary landscape to address biodiversity conservation in a sustainable way in the Himalayan region.

Meet/Visit • Visiting Vice Foreign Minister of China Liu Zhenmin says in Colombo: “Sri Lanka will always find a friend in China.” • At a closed-door meeting of the influential Trilateral Commission, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry tells a group of senior international officials that Israel risks becoming an “apartheid” state if it does not make peace soon.

Fund • Assistance for hailstrorm-hit states – The Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM), has cleared an assistance of Rs.352 crore for replanting horticultural crops in four hailstorm-hit States. The States are Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Rajasthan. Apart from that, the centre has decided to release Rs.92 crore to Karnataka for providing relief to farmers who lost the rabi crops and homes to unseasonal rains. The funds will be released from the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF). This would be over and above the assistance that is already being provided as part of a scheme under the National Horticultural Mission (NHM).

Economy/Business • India’s current account deficit (CAD) is likely to be around 2 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) in the coming few years due to slackening of gold imports, among other factors, Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council Chairman C Rangarajan said on May 5, 2014. • The International Monetary Fund (IMF) raised its economic growth forecast for China on April 28, 2014 but warned that its financial system faces risks due to the rapid expansion of debt. The IMF’s 0.3 percentage point increase to 7.5 per cent in its growth outlook for China may help reassure investors who worry the world’s second largest economy might be slowing too abruptly. • The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on May 5, 2014 said that it signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on mutual co-operation with Financial Intelligence Unit, India (FIU-IND). • New India Assurance has recorded a net profit of Rs.1,089 crore for the year ended March 31, 2014, a 29 per cent increase as compared to Rs.844 crore in the previous year. • India has overtaken Japan to emerge as the third largest economy in purchasing power parity (PPP) terms, after the United States and China, according to the latest data released by the World Bank. The previous version of the World Bank’s International Comparison Program (ICP) report had said that India was ranked 10th in 2005 in terms of PPP. PPP is used to compare economies and incomes of people by adjusting for differences in prices in various countries. OCED Share of World GDP in % (Based on PPPs) China 14.9 India 6.4 Brazil 3.1 Indonesia 2.3 Turkey 1.5 S. Africa 0.7

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− The economies of Japan and the United Kingdom became smaller relative top the United States, while Germany increased slightly and France and Italy remained the same. The six largest middle-income economies – China, India, Russia, Brazil, Indonesia and Mexico – accounted for 32.3% of world GDP, while the six largest high-income economies – United States, Japan, Germany, France, United Kingdom and Italy – accounted for 32.9%, showing the distance that the emerging economies had travelled through rapid growth in recent years. − At 27%, China has the largest share of the world’s expenditure for investment, with the United States at half the level with 13% share. India, Japan and Indonesia followed with 7%, 4% and 3% respectively. à The United States controls 17.1% of world GDP based on PPP measure followed by China (14.9%) and India (6.4%) à Share of middle-income economies in global GDP is 48% when using PPP and 32% by exchange rates. à $ 90,647 billion world GDP based on purchasing power parity à $70,294 billion Global GDP by exchange rates. • SAIL has achieved 7 per cent growth in sales volume with 12.1 million tonnes (MT) sales in Financial Year 2014, as compared to 11.3 MT sales in Financial Year 2013. • Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd, (HAL) has posted its best ever turn-over of Rs.15,180 crore in 2013-14. The turnover is an increase of 6 per cent over its last year’s figure of Rs.14,324 crore. HAL also contributed to two key projects of the Indian Space Research Organisation by making structures for the Mars Orbiter Mission and the crew module structure for the Human Spaceflight Programme. • World Economic Out-Look – IMF – According to the World Economic Outlook, released by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on April 8, 2014. India’s growth is expected to recover from 4.4 per cent 2013 to 5.4 per cent in 2014. The outlook also projected India’s growth rate to increase to 6.4 per cent in 2015. In 2012, India’s growth rate stood at 4.7 per cent. The forecast for China is the growth will remain broadly unchanged at about 7.5 per cent in 2014-15 only a modest decline from 2012-13. For Asia as a whole, growth is expected to accelerate modestly, from 5.2 percent in 2013 to about 5.5 percent in both 2014 and 2015. • World Bank Projects 5.7% Growth for India – The World Bank on April 9, 2014 projected an economic growth rate of 5.7 per cent in fiscal year 2014 for India on the back of a more competitive exchange rate and many large investments going forward. “India, would see growth rise to 5.7 per cent in fiscal year 2014 from 4.8 per cent last fiscal year with activity receiving a boost from a more competitive exchange rate and many large investment projects going ahead”, the World Bank said in its latest edition of ‘South Asia Economic Focus’. • The Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER) says that the total worth of Indian app economy is worth $ 150 million currently (about Rs.900 crore) but is likely to grow by more than four times to $626.23 million (around Rs.3,800 crore) by 2016. • IIP returns in negative zone – The manufacturing sector continued to underperform in Feb, crippled by weak consumption as show data released by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) recently. The Index of Industrial Production (IIP) for the month was 1.9 per cent lower compared to Feb 2013. Manufacturing was down 3.7 per cent. Advanced estimates by the CSO had earlier pegged India’s overall GDP growth in 2013-14 at 4.9 per cent, slightly above the 4.5 percent it clocked in 2012-13. • India is second-most powerful nation – When it comes to competing on the world market, India is the second-most powerful nation, a group that tracks nations’ abilities on the economic front has revealed. The ‘world market power’ index was issued by the group, the multinational Spanish banking outfit Banco Bilbao Vizcaa Argentaria, as part of its research project on Emerging and Growth-Leading Economies. China topped the list of can-do nations followed by India, Indonesia Brazil, Russia, Turkey and Mexico.

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• ADB Pegs India’s GDP Growth Rate at 5.5% for 2014-15 - In ADB’s view, India economy will accelerate to 5.5 per cent growth this financial year from 4.9 per cent in 2013-14 with the deceleration bottoming out. But this number is less than the 5.7 per cent growth projected for 2014- 15 by ADB earlier. Analysing the Asian region, the ADB said developing Asia will have steady growth in 2014. The Asian development outlook forecast developing will achieve 6.2 per cent GDP growth in 2014 and 6.4 per cent in 2015. The region grew 6.1 per cent in 2013. • Rural India Leaves Urban Areas in Consumption Charts: NSSO - According to the consumer expenditure survey of the National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO), during the period 2009-14, rural India’s consumption expenditure grew at a faster pace than urban India’s. It happened for the first time in the country since 1991. From 2007-08 to 2011-12, the monthly per-capita consumption expenditure (MPCE) in rural areas increased at a compound annual rate of 16.7 per cent, compared with 15.6 per cent in urban centres,. − In many states, the gap between urban and rural consumption has closed at a very fast pace. In Bihar, for instance, rural consumption has increased at a CAGR of 17.2 per cent, against 8.2 per cent in urban areas. − In Chhattisgarh, rural spending rose at 15.3 per cent (urban 5.6 per cent) and in Odisha at a CAGR of 15.7 per cent (urban 7.8 per cent). • FICCI Projects 5.5% Growth in 2014-15 - As per the projection made by FICCI, India’s economic growth is likely to pick up and reach 5.5 per cent in 2014-15 as industrial output will recover to expand at 3.3 per cent. The Economic Outlook Survey by FICCI pegs agriculture and services sector

growth in the next financial year 2014-15 at 3.3 per cent and 7 per cent respectively. • India’s Fiscal Deficit during April-February at Rs.5.99 Lakh Crore, Stays Above Budgeted Estimates - India’s fiscal deficit in the first eleven months of financial year 2013-14 touched Rs.5.99 lakh crore, or 114.3 per cent of the full year target, government data showed on Monday. In the interim budget in February, the Congress-led government had revised the full-year fiscal deficit target to Rs.5.25 lakh crore, or 4.6 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), from Rs.5.42 lakh crore, or 4.8 per cent, earlier. Net tax receipts were at Rs.6.27 lakh crore in the first eleven months of the current fiscal year to March 2014, while total expenditure was about Rs.14 lakh crore. • Sri Lanka registers 7.3% economic growth – Issuing a statement on credit policy, the country’s central bank said the economy had registered a robust 7.3 per cent growth in 2013 while the inflation continued to be stable at around 4 per cent. The bank has forecast a growth rate of 7.8 per cent in 2014.

Companies/Industry • Ajay Piramal-led Piramal Enterprises is set to pick up 10% in Shriram City Union Finance for Rs.790 crore, underlining his role as a high-profile investor in industry consolidation. • TCS Forms it Venture with Mitsubishi – Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and Mitsubishi Corp on April 21, 2014 announced a joint venture that could be a trendsetter for Indian companies in addressing a huge Japanese market that has been by and large not tapped by the nation’s IT industry. The venture involves TCS Japan and Mitsubishi’s own software arm merging to form a new company that is expected to see $600 million in annual revenues in the first year. • Global pharma major Novartis will acquire GlaxoSmithKline plc’s (GSK) cancer drugs portfolio for USD 16 bn and sell its vaccines business in return for USD 7.1 bn, apart from forming a joint venture for the consumer healthcare business in a three-part transaction. • Cadbury India. Ltd. a subsidiary of Mondelez International Inc, has changed its name to Mondelez India Foods Limited. The change in the name of Cadbury is in line with the gradual changeover of the name of all subsidiaries of the Nasdaq-listed $35-bn firm globally. The change in company’s name will have no impact on the names or packaging of its popular products like Cadbury Dairy Milk, 5 Star, Gems, Bournville, Perk, Celebrations, Choclairs, Halls, Bournvita, Tang and Oreo, which will continue to be sold under the same brand names as before.

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• Sun Pharma buys Ranbaxy – Sun Pharma has acquired Ranbaxy Laboratories from Daiichi Sankyo in a landmark $4-bn transaction. The deal marks the coming together of two major Indian pharmaceutical companies to create the world’s fifth-largest generic drug maker by sales. The all- share deal, the biggest in the pharmaceutical sector in the Asia-Pacific region this year, is seen as a rare purchase of a local rival by a leading Indian company.

Stock Market • SEBI terms for FIIs buying govt securities – Capital market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) restricted foreign investors from buying govt securities having maturity of less than one year, a move that aims at encouraging inflows of long-term overseas fund. FIIs (Foreign Institutional Investors)/QFIs (Qualified Foreign Investors) shall henceforth be permitted to invest only in dated govt securities having residual maturity of one year or above. SEBI added that the “existing FII/GFI in investments in Treasury Bill shall be allowed to taper off on maturity/sale”. • Bourses cash turnover rises – Cash turnover on the nation’s three stock exchanges – NSE, BSE and MCX-SX – rose 2.59 per cent to Rs.33.41 lakh crore in 2013-14 from a year earlier an account of improvement in the global and domestic economy. • FII inflows in stocks touch Rs.80,000 crore – Foreign investors have made net inflows of a staggering nearly Rs.80,000 crore in 2013-14 in the Indian stock while they pulled out money from the debt market. The data available with Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) mentioned that during the current fiscal 2013-14, FIIs have pumped in net amount of Rs.79,709 core in the equity market. This was the fifth consecutive fiscal year inflows by foreign investors after pulling out a net amount of Rs.47,706 crore from the share market in 2008-09. • Inflows via P-notes shoot up – The exposure taken by foreign investors through the participatory notes (P-notes) route is again on the rise. P-Notes or PNs are instruments issues by registered foreign institutional investors (FIIs) to investors abroad who wish to invest in the Indian stock markets but without registering themselves with the market regulator, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). Almost a fourth of foreign inflows during 2013-14 into the country had come in Mar, the final month of the financial year. FIIs invested about Rs.20,000 crore ($ 3.2 bn) in Indian equities, while total investment during the financial year was Rs.79,000 crore.

Exports/Imports • India’s Exports Falls Short of Target for 2013-14 - In 2013-14 country’s exports grew 3.98 per cent to $312.3 billion but remained short of the $325 billion target. Imports during the fiscal year 2013-14 fell 8.11 per cent to $450.9 billion, which made trade deficit stood at $138.6 billion.

Exports & Imports (Provisional : April-March) (US $ Million) (Rs. Crore) Exports (including re-exports) 2012-12 300400.69 1634318.84 2013-14 312355.45 1892892.23 % Growth 2013-14/2012-13 3.98 15.82 Imports 2012-13 490736.66 2669161.96 2013-14 450949.04 2719206.15 %Growth 2013-14/2012-13 -8.11 1.87 Trade Balance 2012-13 -190335.97 -1034843.12 2013-14 -138593.59 -826313.92

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• Gold and Silver imports declined 40 per cent to US $ 33.46 billion in 2013-14 mainly due to restrictions imposed by the government on inbound shipments of the precious metal to narrow the current account deficit. • India’s Share in Global Exports Static in 2013: WTO – India’s share in global exports and ranking amongst top exporters remained unchanged in 2013. India exported goods worth $312 billion in 2013 posting a 5 per cent rise over the previous year. Its share in world exports was 1.7 per cent in 2013-the same as in 2012. India ranked 13 amongst top exporting countries in 2013 as opposed to last year’s ranking of 19, but the improvement was only on paper.

Taxation/Trade • In a major relief for Nokia India Private Ltd., the Madras High Court sets aside the Commercial Taxes Department (CTD)’s order imposing a total tax of Rs.2,400 crore on the company under the Central Sales Tax Act for three assessment years from 2009-10. • Revised DTC proposes super rich tax – The finance ministry has proposed significant changes to the Direct Taxes Code (DTC) Bill. It has not accepted Parliamentary Standing Committee recommendation widening of tax slabs. • CCI imposes Rs.6.75 crore fine on ITPO – The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has imposed a Rs.6.75 crore penalty on the Indian Trade Promotion Organisation (ITPO), a central govt, agency for indulging in unfair business practices. Besides penalising ITPO for abusing its dominant market position in holding trade shows and exhibitions, the CCI asked it to “cease and desist” from anti-competitive practices. ITPO is the govt’s nodal agency to promote external trade and it accords approvals for holding of international trade fairs in India and abroad. • The World Trade Organisation (WTO) in its trade forecast report released on April 14, 2014. The forecast upgraded the expected world trade growth for 2014 to 4.7 per cent from 4.5 per cent estimated earlier. The prospect for 2015 is better with a 5.3 per cent expected growth in merchandise trade.

Production/Agriculture • India became net steel exporter in 2013-14 after gap of six years and is likely to maintain the momentum in 2014-15. Total steel exports by India during the last fiscal stood at 5.59 mn tonnes (MT), Joints Plant Committee (JPC), a unit of the Steel Ministry, said in a report. India is the world’s fourth largest steel maker. About 4.1 per cent higher exports and 31.3 per cent decline in imports helped India become net exporter of steel. • The govt has decided to continue with the export subsidy of Rs.3,300 per tonne on raw sugar shipments for the Apr-May period. During Feb-end, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) had approved an incentive for export of four mn tones of raw sugar for two years in order to help the cash starved industry to pay arrears to sugarcane farmers. • India second among world tea producers- More than three bn cups of tea is served every day around the world and a large share comes from the developing world and the emerging economies. The estimates came to light at the Global Dubai Tea Forum. Four countries produce approximately 70% of the world’s tea, with India at the second place, contributing around 9,80,000 tonnes every year, which amounts to 20 per cent of the total tea production. China occupies the first place with 1.64 bn tonnes yield per annum contributing to 35 per cent of the overall tea production. Kenya and Sri Lanka follow next. However, in terms of exports, Kenya tops the ratings with 396,000 tonnes tea export annually. Sri Lanka comes next followed by China and India.

Space • Europe on 3 April 2014 launched a satellite named Sentinel-1A, designed to monitor Earth for climate change and environmental damage and help disaster relief operations.

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• India on 27 April 2014 test-fired an exo-atmospheric interceptor missile, called Prithvi Defence Vehicle with capability to neutralize any long-range missile at higher altitude. • Astronomers on 17 April 2014 announced that they have discovered an Earth-size planet, named Kepler-186f. • Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) on 4 April 2014 launched India’s 2nd regional navigational satellite, IRNSS 1B from Sriharikota Space Station of Andhra Pradesh. • India’s spacecraft to Mars completes half the distance (34 crore km) of its epic voyage to the Red Plant. • United States space agency National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) launches the largest ever plant growth chamber to the International Space Station (ISS) – Vegetable Production System aboard Space X’s Dragon capsule. • INSAT-3E expires – Communications satellite INSAT-3E has completed its life and gone out of service. Built to last 15 years, it has completed ten-and-a-half years in orbit. • Russian cargo ship Progress M-23 M successfully docked with the International Space Station on April 10, 2014 bringing the crew crucial supplies and water, Russia’s space agency said. • Lunar Eclipse Turns Moon into ‘Blood-Red’ – Recently a rare lunar eclipse was visible in America, Australia, New Zealand and some other countries. This part of the world saw a rare celestial event when the Earth’s shadow fell across the Moon turning it orange. The lunar eclipse unfolded over three hours. First the Moon began moving into Earth’s shadow. A little more than an hour later, the Moon could be seen eclipsed and bathed in an orange, red and brown glow. • NASA to Launch Spacecraft for Asteroid Trip – NASA has approved to develop a highly sophisticated spacecraft for its ambitious mission to collect the first ever samples from an asteroid in 2018. • NASA’s robotic moon explorer, LADEE, is no more. Flight controllers confirmed that the orbiting spacecraft crashed into the back side of the moon as planned, avoiding the precious historic artifacts left behind by moonwalkers. • Israel has successfully launched a new observation satellite Ofek 10 into orbit, one which expected to be used to observe Iran and hostile militant groups in the Middle East.

Science and Technology • A new robot called Borewell Robot has been developed by M. Manigandan to rescue kids who fall into borewells. • Indian railways information and technology arm, Centre for Railway Information Systems (CRIS) on 23 April 2014 launched a new mobile application. This application can be used for various enquiries including train running status. An important feature of this application is ‘Spot your train’ option. • Scientists from University of California, Riverside, in April 2014, announced to have created a 3D model of the human malaria parasite genome for the first time. • An Israeli startup StoreDot on 8 April 2014 developed a new smart phone battery called Nanodots. The new battery can recharge a smart phone in just 30 seconds. • Researchers in the UK on 14 April 2014 for the first time announced to conduct a test on patient of artificial blood made from human stem cells. • Bluefine 21- a robotic submarine was launched on 14 April 2014 to solve the mystery of the lost Malaysian plane MH370. • Boston Dynamics of US has developed a lifesized Atlas Anthropomorphic robot called Atlas.

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• A new software app Sandesh Pathak has been developed to help the illiterate farmers. The app users’ text-to-speech method to help the farmers. • Scientists on 29 April 2014 for the first time developed Solar Jet Fuel using Sunlight, water and carbon dioxide (Co2). • Scientists from South Korea have developed Silver nanowires-based nanoscale fingerprint would help protect the credit cards and other gadgets. • The upgraded solar-powered plane Solar Impulse 2 was unveiled on 13 April 2014 at Payerne Air Force Base of Switzerland. • Implantable Gel that Would Help to Get Rid of Diabetes – Scientists have developed an implantable gel that contains genetically modified light-sensitive cells and it can be used to treat diabetes. • Device Developed to Detect Dangerous Ultraviolet Light – Scientists have developed a new device that can detect in just a milliseconds a certain type of high energy ultraviolet light which is powerful enough to bread the bonds to DNA and harm living creatures. • World’s First Atomic Wristwatch is Now in Market - The first atomic wrist watch of the world, which loses just one second ever 1000 years is being manufactured and will cost £ 3,500. Size of the wristwatch will be that of a large match box.

• Scientists at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have for the first time designed nanoparticles that can deliver three cancer drugs at a time. Such particles could be designed to carry even more drugs, allowing researchers to develop new treatment regimens that could better kill cancer cells while avoiding the side effect of traditional chemotherapy.

Health/Nutrition/Diseases/Drugs • International aid organisations launch a series of emergency measures across west Africa in a bid to contain one of the worst ever outbreaks of the deadly Ebola virus threatening every country in the region.

• The world’s largest-ever swarm of genetically modified Aedes aegypti mosquitoes is released in Brazil to combat infectious disease.

• NHRC seeks report on artificial ripening of fruit – The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has sought a report from the health ministry on the action taken to stop the use of calcium carbide for the artificial ripening of fruit. The petitioner alleged that many traders continue to use calcium carbide to ripen fruit such as mangoes, bananas, oranges and watermelons despite a ban by the govt. It contains traces of arsenic and phosphorus, which pose a serious threat to human health.

• High-fat Diets can Destroy Stomach’s Signals to Brain – Indulging in fatty foods could destroy stomach’s signals to brain. A team of Scientists of New University of Adelaide (Australia) has found the nerves in the stomach which signal fullness to the brain appeared to be desensitised after long- term consumption high-fat diet.

Energy/Gas/Oil • Russia scraps the last discount on gas price granted by Moscow to Ukraine, effectively raising the price by $100 to $485 for every 1,000 cubic metres.

Environment • Government representatives meeting in Berlin approve a U.N. report listing options for rolling back emissions from greenhouse gases.

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Transport/Cars/Scooters • Audi A3, the premium compact from the brand with the four rings, is the 2014 World Car of the Year. This is the second overall title for Audi in the 10-year history of the World Car of the Year Awards.

Films/Film Festival • The 15th International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) Awards is rocks the coastal town of Tampa in Florida.

Media/Telecommunication/IT • In a major relief to Bharti Airtel, Vodafone and Idea Cellular, telecom tribunal TDSAT on April 29, 2014 upheld their plea to provide 3G intra-circle roaming services, while also quashing the cumulative penalty of Rs.1,200 crore imposed on them by the department of telecoms. • In a bid to make Facebook a more useful resource for journalists and news publications, the social networking site launches FB Newswire that promises to offer scribes a repository of verified, real- time content for use. • India decides to propose renaming of Internet as ‘Equinet’ at the impending global meet on Internet governance in Sao Paulo (Brazil). Appointments/Election • US President Barack Obama, on 24 April 2014, nominated three Indian-Americans to the 14-member advisory commission on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs). The Indian Americans include: US Air Force Officer Lieutenant Colonel, Ravi Chaudhary, Prominent community leader Shekar Narasimhan and Popular film and television actor Maulik Pancholy. • Economic Affairs Secretary Arvind-Mayaram has been designated as new Finance Secretary. The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) approved a proposal to designate Arvind Mayaram as the new Finance Secretary on 15 April 2014. • The Union Government on 2 April 2014 appointed senior IPS officer D K Pathak as the new Director General of the Border Security Force (BSF). • Japanese foods firm Nissin Foods on 23 April 2014 appointed Gautam Sharma as the Managing Director (MD) of its Indian arm Indo Nissin. He succeeds Yuji Indo Nissin. He succeeds Yuji Tabeta. Yuji Tabeta was promoted to a senior role. He is the first non-Japanese MD of Indo Nissin. • Justice Rajendra Mal Lodha was, on 27 April 2014, sworn-in as the 41st Chief Justice of India. • Marie-Lousie Coleiro Preca was sworn-in as the President of Malta on 4 April 2014 in Valletta, Malta • R. Gandhi was appointed as the Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank of India on 3 April 2014 for a period of three years. • Ratan Tata was on 10 April 2014 appointed as a member of the Board of Boao Forum for Asia (BFA). • Rajeev Suri was appointed as President and CEO of Nokia Corporation on 29 April 2014. • Ravi Chauhan was on 7 April 2014 appointed as Managing Director for SAP India. • Admiral Robin K Dhowan on 17 April 2014 took over as the 22nd Chief of Indian Navy. • President Barack Obama on 4 April 2014 nominated Sunil Sabharwal as the next US Alternate Executive Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). • Union Ministry of External Affairs (MoEA) on 23 April 2014 appointed Suresh Kumar Reddy as India’s first Ambassador to the separate Indian Mission to Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) & East Asia Summit.

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• Viktor Orban was re-elected as Prime Minster of Hungary for the second consecutive four-year term on 8 April 2014. • John XXII and John Paul II were declared as saints of the Roman Catholic Church on 27 April 2014 by Pope Francis. • The Indian Olympics Association announces Raj Singh (Dronacharya awardee) as the chef-de- mission for the 2014 Commonwealth Games to be held in Glasgow. • Justice Gorla Rohini is administered the oath of office and allegiance by Lieutenant-Governor Najeeb Jung at Raj Niwas in New Delhi, becoming the first woman Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court. • Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, whose poor health forced him to vote from a wheelchair, wins a fourth term with 81.53 per cent of the votes. • Sudarshan Seneviratne has been appointed Sri Lanks’s new High Commissioner to India. • Appointed – Karim Massimov: He has been named Kazakhstan’s new PM after Serik Akhmetov resigned. • Ill Patnaik: The noted economist has been appointed principal economic advisor in the Union finance ministry. • Muqrin bin Abdul Aziz: The half-brother of Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah and Country’s formaer intelligence chief has been appointed as the deputy crown prince, paving the way for him to become a future monarch. • Jens Stoltenberg: He has been appointed the next Secretary General of the 28 nation military alliance NATO.

Resignation/Dismissed/Retired/Quit • Prime Minister of South Korea Chung Hong won-resigned on 27 April 2014. He resigned over the government’s in-ability and untimely response to the ferry disaster that happened on 16 April 2014. • George Clooney on 29 April 2014 stepped down from his role as UN’s Messenger of Peace amid the reports of his engagement with the human rights lawyer, Amal Alamuddin (36-year old). • Gareth Hopkins the former New Zealand wicketkeeper on 11 April 2014 announced his retirement from cricket. • Britain’s Culture Secretary Maria Miller resigns from the government of Prime Minister David Cameron stating that the controversy over her parliamentary expense claims had become a “distraction” to the “vital work” of the government. • Libya’s interim Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thani steps down, saying he and his family has been victims of a “traitorous” armed attack the previous day. • Aquilino Morelle resigns as senior political adviser to French President Francois hollande following allegations of conflict-of-interest and extravagance. • Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi - Egypt’s army chief and Defence Minister resigned to run for president in an election he is expected to win easily.

Arrests/Jailed/Released • Cu Huy Ha Vu, one of Vietnam’s most prominent dissidents, who was jailed after trying to sue the Prime Minister, is freed. • U.S. contractor Alan Gross ends an eight-day hunger strike to press for his release from prison in Cuba.

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Deaths • Canadian author Alistair MacLeod on 20 April 2014 died due to a heart storke. • Pulitzer Prize winning journalists Anja Niedringhaus was, on 4 April 2014, shot dead by a policeman in Afghanistan. • Ashish Bose, veteran demographer, 83, died in New Delhi due to illness on 7 April 2014. • Gabriel Garcia Marquez, the Nobel laureate in literature died at the age of 87 in Mexico on 17 April 2014. • The unsung hero of the NASA’s Apollo Program John C. Houbolt died on 20 April 2014 due to Parkinson’s disease. • Former President of Guinea Kumba Yala died at the age of 61 due to cardiac arrest on 4 April 2014. • Kevin Sharp, the country musician and a survivor of the well-publicized battle with cancer died on 19 April 2014 at the age of 43. • Micky Rooney, an American film actor and entertainer died on 7 April 2014. • Novelist Sue Townsend on 11 April 2014 died after a short illness. • A Dutch priest Frans Van der Lugt was shot dead on 7 April 2014 in Homs by a gun man. • Former American middleweight boxer, Rubin ‘Hurricane’ Carter died on 20 April 2014 at his home in Toronto, Canada following a battle with prostate cancer. • British actor Bob Hoskins, known for his roles in films including Who Framed Roger Rabbit, dies in London. • Former Barcelona coach Tito Vilanova dies at the age f 45 after a prolonged battle against cancer. • VK Murthy, the renowned cinematographer and Dada Saheb Phalke awardee died on 7 April 2014. • Veteran pro-democratic Journalist of Myanmar Win Tin died on 19 April 2014.

Awards/Honours • Indian-American professor Rajendra Singh was named as one of ten Solar Champions of Change by the White House on 19 April 2014. • The Asian Awards Ltd released a list of the 100 most influential Asian People of 2014 on 6 April 2014. Chinese President Xi Jinping topped the list of the 100 Most Influential Asian People. Sonia Gandhi is on second, followed by Modi at fourth position, Rahul Gandhi at fifth position and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at sixth position. • The 15th International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) Awards2014 was held in Tampa Bay, US from 23 April to 26 April 2014. IIFA awards in different categories are as follows: à Best Direction – Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra – Bhaag Milkha Bhaag à Performance in a Leading Role (Male) – Farhan Akhtar – Bhaag Milkha Bhaag à Performance in a Leading Role (Female) – Deepika Padukone – Chennai Express à Performance in a Supporting Role (Male) – Aditya Roy Kapoor – Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani à Performance in a Supporting Role (Female) – Divya Dutta – Bhaag Milkha Bhaag à Performance in a Comic Role – Arshad Warsi – Jolly LLB à Performance in a Negative Role – Rishi Kapoor – D-Day à Music Direction – Mithoon, Ankit Tiwari, Jeet Ganguly – Aashiqui 2 à Best Story – Prasoon Joshi-Bhaag Milkha Bhaag à Lyrics Writer – Mithoon – Song (Tum Hi Ho) – Aashiqui 2 à Playback Singer (Male) – Arijit Singh – Song (Tum Hi Ho) – Aashiqui 2

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à Playback Singer (Female) – Shreya Ghoshal – Song (Sunn Raha Hai) – Aashiqui 2 à Best Debutant Male – Dhanush – Raanjhanaa. à Best Debutant Female – Vani Kapoor – Shudh Desi Romance. à Outstanding Contribution by An Indian in the US – Drs. Kiran & Pallavi Patel. à Entertainer of the year – Deepika Padukone. à Outstanding Contribution To International Cinema – John Travolta. à Lifetime Achievement – Shatrughan Sinha. − Hollywood star John Travolta received a special honour, the Most Popular All Time International Star in India at the International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) awards, held in Tampa Bay, Florida from 23 to 26 April 2014. • MS Dhoni, the captain of Indian cricket team on 4 April 2014 won the United Kingdom’s 2014 Asian Award for outstanding achievement in Sports. Under the Forbes list of highest paid athletes, Dhoni is ranked at the 16th position. Other awards given to Indians during the occasion are: à The Asian Business Leader of the Year award for his outstanding contribution to the field of medicine – Dr Cyrus Poonawalla. à The Asian outstanding achievement in Cinema award – Irfan Khan. à Asian outstanding achievement award in Science and Technology – Venkatraman “Venki” Ramakrishnan. à Asian Public Servant of the Year award – Salil Shetty (Secretary General of the Amnesty International). à Outstanding achievement in music award – Norah Jones. • Indian American novelist, Jhumpa Lahiri’s Lowland has been shortlisted for the 2014 Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction on 8 April 2014. • Vijay Seshadri on 14 April 2014 won the Pulitzer Prize in Poetry category. • NR Narayana Murthy, the founder and executive Chairman of Infosys was honoured with 2014 Canada India Foundation Chachalani Global Indian Award in Toronto, Canada on 26 April 2014. • Environmental activist Ramesh Agrawal, on 28 April-2014 won the prestigious Goldman Environmental Prize for the year 2014. The prize is commonly called as the Green Nobel. • Mathangi Sathyamurthy, Karnataka musician was selected for MS Subbulakshmi Award 2014. • British-American physicist Stuart Parkin won Millennium Technology Prize 2014 for discoveries leading to a thousand-fold increase in digital data storage on magnetic disks. • Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) on 3 April 2014 received the Most Efficient Navratna Award for the year 2013. The award was collected by the Chairman of HAL, Dr. RK Tyagi. • Randstad have awarded the Global software major Microsoft as the most attractive employer in India followed by Sony India as the runner-up. • Ratan Tata on 10 April 2014 received the Knight Grand Cross (GBE) award by UK Government. GBE is one of the highest civilian honours of Britain. • An Indian – American Cardiologist, Dr. Sumit Chugh along with one more researcher has been chosen for the Prestigious Simon Dack Award for Outstanding Scholarship. • Renowned music director and concert conductor Zubin Mehta on 30 March 2014 won the special jury award of Times Now NRI Awards 2014. The award ceremony was held in Mumbai. • Bollywood Superstar Amitabh Bachchan was named India’s global icon. Keertika Rawat was awarded in the entertainment category. Dr. Kunal Saha won the NRI award in My India category. • Indian Squash Player Saurav Ghosal won Dato Alex Lee Award 2013 on 24 April 2014.

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• Luis Suarez, the Uruguayan striker of Liverpool was named as the Professional Footballers’ Association Player of the Year at an award ceremony on 28 April 2014 in London. • The 151st edition of the Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack published on 9 April 2014 carries a picture of Sachin Tendulkar on its cover page. • Shikhar Dhawan, the Indian cricketer on 9 April 2014 was named as one of the Five Cricketers of 2014 for his performance in 2013. • 61st National Film Awards (Regional Languages) – Anand Gandhi’s three-plot philosophical story, “Ship of Theseus” won the Best Feature Film award on May3, 2014 at the 61st National Film Awards for 2013. − The Best Actor award was conferred on Raj Kumar for Bollywood film “Shahid” and Suraj Venjaramoodu for Malayalam film “Perariyathavar”. Actor Geetanjali Thapa bagged the Best Actress award for Hindi film “Liar’s Dice”. Saurabh Shukla has got the best supporting actor for his performance in “Jolly LLB”. Best direction has gone to Hindi film “Shahid”. Best Feature Film in Each of the Language specified in the schedule VIII of the Constitution à Best Assamese Film – Ajeyo ; Producer – Shiven Arts; Director – Jahnu Barua. à Best Bengali Film – Bakita Byaktigato; Producer – Tripod Entertainment Pvt Ltd; Director – Pradipta Bhattacharya. à Best Hindi Film – Jolly LLB ; Producer – Fox Star Studios ; Director – Subhash Kapoor.

à Best Kannada Film – December I ; Producer – Basant Production ; Director – P. Sheshadri. à Best Konkani Film – Baga Beach – Producer – Sharvani Production; Director – Laxmikant Shetgaonkar. à Best Malayalam Film – North 24 Kaadham ; Producer – Surya Cine Arts ; Director – Anil Radhakrishnan Menon. à Best Marathi Film – Aajcha Diwas Majha ; Producer – White Swan Production ; Director – Chandrakant Kulkarni. à Best Tamil Film – Thanga Meengal ; Producer – JSK Film Corporation ; Director – Ram. à Best Telugu Film – Na Bangaru Talli ; Producer – Sun Touch Production ; Director – Rajesh Touchriver.

Best Feature Film in Each of the Language Specified other Than schedule VII of the constitution à Best English Film – The Coffin Maker ; Producer – Shree Narayan Studio ; Director – Veena Bakshi. à Best Khasi Film – Ri ; Producer – Kurbah Films – Director – Pradip Kurbah. à Best Sherdukpen Film – The Crossing Bridges ; Producer – TNT Films Production ; Director – Sange Dorjee Thongdok. à Special Mention – Yellow (Marathi) ; Gauri Gadgil, Sanjana Rai and Na Bangaru Talli (Telugu) – Anjali Patil. • The Advertising Standard Council of India (ASCI) has bagged the European Advertising Standards Alliance (EASA) Global Best Practice Gold Award for significantly reducing the average time it takes to hancue complaints. • Rene Redzepi’s daringly innovative Danish restaurant Noma in Copenhagen reclaims the title of world’s top restaurant. • M. Rajendra Chaitanya of India is awarded the bronze medal in the Asian junior weightlifting championship in Kyrgyzstan. • Ace Indian player Saurav Ghosal is chosen for the Dato Alex Lee award for being the ‘outstanding Asian men’s player of 2013’ by the Asian Squash Federation. CSB, Ch-17, Ph: 044-24333346 GA/April2014/Page-21

• Tennis star Leander Paes and woman cricketer Anjum Chopra are among 56 distinguished people who receive the Padma awards from President Pranab Mukherjee at the Rashtrapati Bhawan in New Delhi. • Churchill Brothers striker Balwant Singh is adjudged the ‘best Indian player’ of the year at the Football Players’ Association of India awards function in Kolkata. • India, Bangladesh and the United Kingdom join hands to honour Rabindranath Tagore, one of the greatest poets of the Commonwealth, at the House of Commons. • Award-winning Bollywood actor Nandita Das and head of the Godrej India Culture Lab Parmesh Shahani are named 2014 Yale World Fellows, taking the number of Indians selected for the prestigious club to 15. • President Pranab Mukherjee presents the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowships and Sangeet Natak Akademi awards for 2013 at a function at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi. • The government decides to give the 45th Dadasaheb Phalke Award to veteran film lyricist and director Gulzar for his outstanding contribution to the growth and development of Indian cinema. • The Supreme Court refuses to allow N.Srinivasan to function as Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president so long as the probe into IPL betting and spot-fixing allegations is going on. • Bharatiya Janatha Party’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi and Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal make it to TIME’s list of the world’s 100 most influential people along with Indian novelist Arundhati Roy. • Siddharth, a Hindi film by Indian-Canadian director Richie Mehta, is the surprise winner at the Beijing film festival. • The Hunger Games: Catching Fire earns the prize for best film at the MTV Movie Awards in Los Angeles, besting even top Oscar winner 12 Years a Slave. • The Washington Post and The Guardian win Pulitzer prizes in public service for revealing the massive U.S. government surveillance effort. • Actress Lupita Nyong’o, winner of the best supporting actress Oscar for her poignant portrayal of slave girl Patsey in Steve McQueen’s 12 years a Slave, is declared as the most beautiful woman by People magazine. • The 2014 Pulitzer Prize winners were announced at Columbia university on April 14, 2014. The staff of the Boston Globe won the Pulitzer award in the Breaking News category for its coverage following the Boston Marathon bombings last year. It was the 98th edition of Pulitzer Prize.

98th Pulitzer Award Winners Journalism à Public Service - The Guardian US and The Washington Post. à Breaking News Reporting – Staff of The Boston Globe à Investigative Reporting – Chris Hamby of The Center for Public Intergrity, Washington, DC à Explanatory Reporting – Eli Saslow of The Washington Post à Local Reporting – Will hobson and Michael LaForgia of Tampa Bay Times à National Reporting - David philipps of The Gazette, Colorado Springs, CO à International Reporting – Jason Szep and Andrew R.C. Marshall of Recters à Feature Writing – No Award à Commentary - Stephen Henderson of Detroit Free Press à Criticism – Inga Saffron of The Philadelphia Inquirer à Editorial Writing – Editorial Staff of The Oregonian, Portland à Editorial Cartooning - Kevin Siers of The Charlotte Observer CSB, Ch-17, Ph: 044-24333346 GA/April2014/Page-22

à Breaking News Photography – Tyler Hicks of The New York Times à Feature Photography - Josh Haner of The New York Times

Letters, Drama and Music à Fiction – The Goldfinch by Doona Tartt (Little, Brown) à Drama - The Flick by Annie Baker à History – The internal Enemy : Slavery and War in Virginia, 1772-1832 by Alan Taylor (W.W. Norton) à Biography or Autobiography – Margaret Fuller : A New American Life by Megan Marshall (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) à Poetry- 3 Sections by Vijay Seshadri (Graywolf Press) à General Non-fiction – Toms River : A Story of Science and Salvation by Dan Fagin (Bantam Books) à Music – Become Ocean by John Luther Adams (Taiga Press/Theodore Frong Musical Literature)

Sports/Game • Athletics – Meb Keflezighi on 21 April 2014 became the first US male athlete to win the Boston Marathon in three decades (since 1983). The women winner of the marathon was Rita Jeptoo of Kenya. • Wilson Kipsang (Kenya) won the 34th London Marathon on 13 April 2014. • Badminton – Defending champion, Lee Chong Wei of Malaysia on 6 March 2014 won the men’s singles title of 250000 US dollar India Super Series Badminton in New Delhi. Shixian Wang won the women’s singles title. The women’s double title was clinched by Yuanting Tang and Yang (F) Yu of China. • Simon Santoso (Indonesia) won the OUE Singapore Open 2014 for the first time on 13 April 2014. • Billiards – Chitra Magimairaj of India won the World Women’s Senior Snooker Championship on 22 April 2014 at Leeds, Britain. • Boxing – Iwao Hakamada, the Japanese boxer was, on 6 April 2014, awarded with an honorary championship belt by World Boxing Council (WBC). • Chess – Grand Master Adhiban won silver medal at the Asian Continental Chess Championship held in Sharjah on 26 April 2014. • Cricket – Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the captain of Indian cricket team on 7 April 2014 was named as the captain of the ICC World T20 team. • Baroda on 14 April 2014 won the National Syed Mustaq Ali Cricket T20 Trophy title after defeating Uttar Pradesh in the final match by three runs. • Formula One - Lewis Hamilton of Britain won the Bahrain Grand Prix in Manama Bahrain on 6 April 2014. • Hockey – Punjab on 6 April 2014 won the 4th Hockey India Junior Men National Championship 2014 (Division A) by defeating Hockey Odisha 6-2 in the finals at Chennai, Tamil Nadu. • Soccer – Real Madrid won the Copa del Rey Cup on 16 April 2014. They defeated Barcelona 2-1 in the final played at Mestalla in Valencia, Spain. • Benfica on 21 April 2014 won the 33rd Portuguese Football league title after four years. Benfica won the title by defeating the Olhanense. • Squash – Joshna Chinaapa won inaugural Richmond Open of Squash at the country Club of Virginia, US on 19 April 2014.

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• India’s Dipika Pallikal on 14 April 2014 was defeated by Egyptian Nour El Sherbini (ranked 13th) in the title clash of the Women’s Champion Fiberlass Texas Open Squash tournament at Houston, Unites States. • Swimming – Paralympic swimmer Sharat Gaikwad won two Bronze and one Silver at the IDM Berlin 2014. He won Bronze Medals in the 200m Individual Medley (2:44.06 seconds) and the 100m Butterfly (1:09.67 seconds) and won the Silver Medal in the 100m Breaststorke. Niels Korfitz Mortensen of Denmark won the Gold Medal and Oliver Hynd of Britain won the Silver Medal respectively in the 100m Butterfly, S8 category. • Tennis – Donna Vekic of Croatia won the BMW Malaysian Open 2014 at Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on 20 April 2014. • Stanislas Wawrinka on 20 April 2014 won the men’s single Montec Carlo Masters Tennis title by defeating former world number one Roger Federer. • Family Circle Cup - Andrea Petkovic of Germany on 6 April 2014 won her first WTA title in last three years at the Family Circle Cup in Charleston, United States. • Kritsanakorn Sangaroon of Thailand won the 2014 Thailand Tour women’s title of Asian Bowling Federation (ABF) on 19 April 2014 at Blu-O Rhythm & Bowl Ratchayothinon in Bangkok, Thailand. • Wimbledon on 29 April 2014 announced an increase of 10.8 percent (to 25 million Pound) in the total prize amount for 2014 Wimbledon.

• The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) ratifies the gold medal for long jumper Anju Bobby George at the IAAF World Athletics Final in Monte Carlo in 2005. • Following his brilliant victory at the Candidates Tournament in Russia, Viswanathan Anand jumps five places to become the World No.3 in the latest rating list released by FIDE, the world chess governing body. • Indian Olympic Association (IOA) president N. Ramachandran announces in New Delhi that the National Games would be held in 2015. • Roger Federer seals Switzerland’s place in the Davis Cup semifinals when he completes a comeback win over Kazakhstan in Geneva. • Ana Ivanovic defeats Jovana Jaksic in an all Serbian final of the WTA Tour’s Monterrey Open. • Mumbai Indians, winner of the Champions League T20 and IPL-VI, names Sachin Tendulkar as its icon. • Former world champion Manavjit Singh Sandhu assets his class yet again as he wins the men’s trap gold in the Shotgun World Cup in Tucson. United States. • Top Brazilian motor racer Lucas di Grassi becomes the newest Laureus Ambassador. • Manny Pacquiao wins a unanimous decision in his WBO welterweight world title rematch with Timothy Bradley. • Ramkumar Ramanathan of GAIL defeats Vishnu Vardhan (ONGC) in the final to win the men’s singles title at the 33rd PSPB inter-unit tennis championship in Bangalore. • India receives a cheque for $265,000 for finishing third while South Africa pockets $475,000 for claiming the top spot in the ICC Test team rankings at the April 1 cut-off date. • BCCI interim President, Sunil Gavaskar stresses on the importance of playing the game according to MCC Spirit of Cricket – ‘Play hard, Play fair’. • Rafael Nadal’s 30-match winning streak on clay ends when the world No.1 is upset by fellow Spaniard David Ferrer in the ATP Monte Carlo Masters quarterfinals.

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• Samaresh Jung comes up with a sterling performance as he pips World Cup medalist Prakash Nanjappa by 0.1 point for the top spot in the men’s air pistol in the National shooting selecting trials at the Dr.Karni Singh Range, Tughlakabad. • Kerala’s K.T.Neena breaks her own national record in the girls’ 5,000m race walk by more than half a minute at the 11th National Youth athletics championships at Bambolin. • Anirban Lahiri holes a sensational 20-foot eagle putt on the 18th hole to grab his fourth Asian Tour title and the first outside India at the CIMB Indonesian Masters golf in Jakarta. • Maria Sharapova wins her third straight Porsche Grand Prix title. • FOOTBALL-Real Madrid clinched the Coveted King’s Cup football title beating its arch-rival Barcelona 2-1 in the final on April 16 at Mestalla stadium in Valencia. • TENNIS - Fourth seed Fernando Verdasco of Spain clinched the US Men’s Clay Court Tennis title on April 13 beating compatriot Nicolas Almagro in the final by 6-3, 7-6 (4) in Houston. It is Verdasco’s first title since 2010. • France’s Alize Cornet defeated Italy’s Camila Giorgi on April 13 to lift the Katowice Open tennis title. • Sixth seeded Maria Sharapova of Russia clinched the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix women’s singles title for the third time a row on April 27 in Stuttgart defeating Ana Ivanovic of Serbia in the final. • In Barcelona, Kei Nishikori of Japan beat Colombia’s Santiago Giraldo to win the Barcelona Open on April 27, for his first career title on clay. • Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria defeated Lukas Rosol of the Czech Republic in the final on April 27 to clinch the Bucharest open men’s singles title, his second ATP title of this year. • ATHLETICS - Ethiopia’s Kenenisa Bekele emerged the Champion of Paris Marathon (men’s) on April 6 in Paris by finishing the 42.195 km (26.22 miles) distance in just 2 hours, 5 minutes and 4 seconds. In the women’s race Kenya’s Flomena Cheyech emerged champion with 2 hours, 22.44 seconds timing. • BADMINTON - Five-time World any Olympic champion Lin Dan clinched the Asian Badminton Championship men’s singles title beating Sho Sasaki of Japan in the final on April 27 at Gimcheon in South Korea. In the women’s singles final of Asian Badminton Championship, Sung Ji-Hyun of South Korea emerged victorious beating Wang Shixian of China. The men’s doubles title of the championship also went to the host country as Shin Baek-Cheol and Yoo Yeon-Seong of South korea defeated Li Junhui and Liu Yuchen of China in the final. • FORMULA-1 RACE - Mercedes‘ Lewis Hamilton maintained his dominance in the 2014 Formula One season as he won the Chinese Grand Prix, his third formula one win in a row of this season on April 20 in Shanghai. • Anirban Lahiri of India holed a sensational 20-foot eagle putt on the 18th hole to clinch his fourth Asian Tour title and the first outside India at the CIMB Indonesian Masters golf in Jakarta on July 27. • India’s S. Chikkarangappa emerged the winner of the Surya Nepal Masters Golf title in Kathmandu on April 27. • Judo – Indian judokas won an impressive haul of 10 gold, one silver and one bronze medal at the seventh South Asia Judo Championship s held in Kathmandu. • India’s Heena Sidhu has clinched the World’s Number One spot in 10 metres air pistol event. • Indian shooter Manavjit Singh Sandhu has bagged a gold medal in the Men’s trap event of the ISSF Shotgun World Cup, in Tucson, US.

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• Six-time Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic claimed his fourth Miami Masters crown with a dominating straight-set win over World number one Rafael Nadal. • Serena Williams won her seventh Miami title, defeating Li Na during the Miami Masters or Sony Open Women’s final. • Pooja Dhandha won a bronze in the Senior Asian wrestling Championship in Astana, Kazakhstan.

Report • World Economic Forum (WEF) released 13th Edition of the Global Information Technology Report 2014 on 14 April 2014 in New York. India was ranked 83 among 148 economies in terms of leveraging information and communications technologies for growth and well being. The top ten ranks in the list are Finland (rank 1); Singapore (rank 2); Sweden (rank 3); Netherlands (rank 4); Norway (rank 5th); Switzerland (rank 6th); United States (rank 7th); Hong Kong SAR (rank 8th); United Kingdom (rank 9th); Republic of Korea (rank 10th) Among emerging market economies, China was ranked 62nd position, Brazil (69th), Mexico (79th) and India (83rd). India is the least performing of the BRICS economies and slipped from rank 68th (out of 144 economies) to the 83rd rank. • The Grant Thornton UK LLP’s India Tracker 2014 report, released in April 2014, claimed that Indian companies are playing an increasingly important role in the British economy. • An Amadeus-Oxford Economics report, titled Shaping the Future of Travel, was released on 2 April 2014. As per the report India, China and other emerging economies like Brazil and Russia will lead the growth in global aviation market over the next 10 years. • Archaeologists in April 2014 announced to have discovered a 3500-year-old inscription on a stone block in Egypt and claimed that it is the oldest weather report of the world. • The Obama administration has retained India on the ‘Prority Watch List’ of nations in the U.S. Trade Representative’s ‘Special 301’ annual report on global intellectual property rights (IPR) regimes, on the basis that there were “growing concerns with respect to the environment for IPR protection and enforcement in India.” The report was released on April 30, 2014. • The Indian government has topped the list of global governments asking for censorship of content on social network Facebook, according to the ‘Global Government Data requests’ report released by the US-based company. • India Tops Global Remittances League – India remained the highest recipient of remittances with $ 70 billion in 2013, followed by China with $ 60 billion and Philippines with $ 25 billion, according to the World Bank’s annual assessment report released on April 12, 2014. • Performance of Major Ports – According to statistics compiled by Indian Ports Association, Kandla has retained its No.1 status by handling 87.01 million tonnes, followed by Paradip 68 million tonnes, JNPT 62.35 million tonnes and Mumbai 59.19 million tonnes. Visakhapatnam Port secured the third position during 2012-13 with a total throughput of 59.04 million tonnes. • According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), vector-borne diseases are adding to the vicious cycle of poverty and have a significant impact of socio-economic status of communities. • According to security solutions firm Websense, India was the third most affected country in 2013 by the notorious Zeus malware-attack that is used to steal sensitive data from industries like finance, government, manufacturing and services. • As per a report published in the British medical journal, The Lancet, over 41 per cent of urban households and 60 per cent of rural households with access to safe water get contaminated water. • As per the data released by the International Comparison Program, hosted by the Development Data Group at the World Group, India replaced Japan as the third largest economy in 2011, behind USA and China.

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• As per the latest report of the United States Department of Commerce, the number of Indian tourists visiting the U.S. is likely to cross 10 lakhs in 2015 and Indian visitors will register the third fastest growth after Chinese and Columbians from 2013 to 2018.

General – National • In a significant verdict on April 26, 2014 the Supreme Court has held that a Muslim woman will be entitled to maintenance from her husband even after divorce and she can file an application before a magistrate court. (Iddat is the waiting period after a declaration of divorce.) Justice Misra said: “A divorced Muslim woman who has not remarried and who is not able to maintain herself after the iddat period can proceed as provided under Section 4 of the Act against his relatives, who are liable to maintain her.” • Air passengers can now use portable electronic devices such as mobiles, laptops and tablets in all phases of flight. The Directorate General Civil Aviation (DGCA) announced it on April 23, 2014. • The Supreme Court made it clear on April 17, 2014 that private companies that share revenue from natural resources such as spectrum with the government would be subjected to audit by the Comptroller and Auditor General. • On World Heritage Day, India got a special gift from the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation which on April 18, 2014 put 15 additional sites located across the country in its tentative list of world heritage sites. • Itanagar, the capital of Arunachal Pradesh, is put on the country’s railway map with the first passenger train of about 400 commuters arriving at Naharlagun. • Nobel laureate Amartya Sen question the declaration by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh that the India-U.S nuclear deal is the greatest achievement of the UPA government. • India to Have 30 Million Online Shoppers by 2015 - With more and more people buying products online, credit card issuers are seeing an increase in their business, and the number of online shoppers in India is likely to reach 38 millions by 2015, says a study. à The number of online shoppers in India is currently estimated at 14% of the total 74 million internet users. à The number of online shoppers has been growing at 35% over the last three years. à India is the world’s third largest online market in terms of internet user base. à The credit card base in the country has grown by 4% in the recently-concluded financial year. à Credit card providers saw two times more transactions on e-commerce web portals Flipkart, 1.6 times at Jabong and six times at Infibeam.

International • The tiny Marshall Islands on April 25, 2014, has taken the United States and eight other nuclear- armed countries to the United Nations highest court for April 25, 2014 falling to halt the nuclear arms race and rid the world of atomic weapons. China, North Korea, France, India, Israel, Pakistan, Russia, Britain and the United States are accused of “not fulfilling their obligations with respect to the cessation of the nuclear arms race at an early date and to nuclear disarmament.” • The United States and its allies have agreed to ramp up pressure on Russia over Ukraine as Kiev’s military crackdown on pro-Russian protesters in the east has stalled. In a joint statement the Group of Seven nations said they would “move swiftly” on new sanctions against Russia, which “has taken no concrete actions” to implement the Geneva agreement on defusing the Ukraine crisis. The statement was released by the White House on April 25, 2014 when it became clear that Kiev’s anti- terrorist operation” in Ukraine’s southest had bogged down. • Thousands of Dutch deck in orange lined the streets as the Netherlands celebrates its first-ever “King’s Day” in honour of Willem-Alexander, inaugurated one year ago.

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• Hennady Kernes, Mayor of Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, is critically wounded in a sniper attack in a further sign of a rapidly deteriorating situation in the country’s troubled southeast. • Lebanon’s Parliament fails to elect a President for a second time in a week raising fears the post will remain vacant amid tensions over neighbouring wartorn Syria. • Quoting a report by the Senate Intelligence Committee, the Washington Post claims that the CIA misled the government and the public about parts of its interrogation programme for years. • China’s president Xi Jinping says that multiparty democracy and development models of other countries does not suit China and would “lead to catastrophic consequences” if adopted by Beijing. • Turkey’s government lifts a controversial ban on Twitter, a day after the country’s top court says the ban breached the right to free speech. • A powerful offshore earthquake measuring 7.6 rocks northern Chile late, sparking a new tsunami warning and sending thousands of people fleeing for higher ground a day after a deadly tremor killed six people. • Sri Lanka’s Foreign Minister G.L. Peiris announces in Colombo that the country will not participate in any investigation carried out by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). • Chinese miners drill a record seven-km-deep borehole- the deepest ever dug by a Chinese company on the Tibetan plateau – in the latest push by the government to accelerate the search for oil and minerals on the untapped but energy-rich “roof of the world”. • A rare Ming-era wine cup breaks the world auction record for any Chinese porcelain, selling in Hong Kong for $36.05 million to shanghai tycoon Liu Yiqian. • The world’s largest single crystal of gold, weighing 217.78 grammes, found in Venezuela, is verified by US experts. • The White House announces not to grant a visa to Tehran’s newly appointed U.N. ambassador, Hamid Aboutalebi, over his alleged links to the 1979 United States hostage crisis. • Canada announces its decision to withhold funding to the Commonwealth Secretariat, pointing to the Secretariat’s silence on alleged war crimes and rights abuse in Sri Lanka, which currently chairs the international association. • China has for the first time releases details of its recently announced “maritime Silk Road” plan, announcing that the Indian Ocean-focused initiative will prioritise building ports and improving infrastructure in littoral countries like Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. • Rubin “Hurricane” Carter, a U.S. boxer made famous by a racially tinged wrongful murder conviction that landed him behind bars for 19 years, dies in Toronto. • Russia accuses Ukrainian authorities of “flagrantly” violating the Geneva peace accord and vows to “thwart” attempts to unleash civil conflict in Ukraine’s Russian-speaking southeast. • Queen Elizabeth II’s 88th birthday is marked across the United Kingdom with traditional gun salutes. • Hundreds of men and women gather at the site of Rana Plaza in Dhaka, to mark the first anniversary of the world’s worst industrial disaster that killed more than a 1,000 factory workers. • Ecuador’s President Rafael Correa orders all U.S. military officers to leave the country by the end of the month and cancel a security cooperation programme with the Pentagon. • Post-Crimea, NASA Aborts Russian Contact -In a grim reminder of Cold War days, US space agency NASA on April 2, 2014 suspended majority of its ongoing engagements with the Russian Federation and the Russian space agency Roscosmos because of Russia’s ongoing violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

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• Japanese whaling not for scientific purpose – The Hague-based International Court of Justice held that Japan’s Antarctic whaling programme is not for scientific purposes and has ordered a temporary stay on the programme. • Visa-on-arrival facility to South Koreans - Govt has extended tourist visa-on-arrival facility to citizens of South Korea, in an effort to increase people-to-people contact with that country. Visa-on- arrival with a maximum validity of 30 days with single entry facility will be offered to South Korean tourists at Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi airports at a fee of USD 60. Tourists can also continue to avail the facility of obtaining visas at the Embassy of India in Seoul prior to their travel to India, if they so prefer.

Abbreviation • AERB – Atomic Energy Regulatory Body • BCCI – Board of Control for Cricket in India • CME – Continuing Medical Education • IPCC – Intergovernment Panel on Climate Change • KKNPP – Kudan Kulam Nuclear Power Plant

Books and Authors # The Accidental Prime Minister – by Dr. Sanjaya Baru # The Candidate – by Anirudh Bhattacharyya # Hard Choices – by Hillary Clinton # Crusader or Conspirator? Coalgate and other Truths – by P.C. Parekh # Greater than Bradman: celebrating Sachin, the greatest batsman in Test history – Rudolph Lambert Fernandez

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