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Current Affairs

February 2015

Compilation of Current Affairs as Published on GKTODAY [Useful for SSC, Bank PO, Bank Clerical, IBPS etc. Examinations]

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Month Highlights

Persons in news - Appointments / Elections Kanagasabapathy J Sripavan • He was recently appointed as second Tamil Chief Justice of Sri Lanka. The last Tamil chief justice was Herbert Thambiah, who left the position in 1991. Anish Aggarwal • Appointed as Director (Pipelines) at India's largest oil refining and marketing company, Indian Oil Corporation (IOC). Dr.Nandita Chatterjee • Dr. Nandita Chatterjee has taken charge as the new Secretary in the Ministry of Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation (HUPA). Mary McGowan Davis • Former US judge Mary McGowan Davis was appointed as the new head of United Nations Human Rights Council’s (UNHRC’s) Independent Commission of Inquiry on the 2014 Gaza Conflict. LC Goyal • LC Goyal has taken charge as the Union Home Secretary. He replaced Anil Goswami, who had resigned following a controversy over the arrest of former Union Minister Matang Singh in connection with the Saradha chit fund scam. Ajay Banga • United States Government has appointed Ajay Banga as member of the Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations (ACTPN). ACTPN is the US president’s private-sector advisory panel on international trade and helps him to coordinate trade related policies and resolve disagreements. Dr. M.O. Garg • Dr M.O. Garg has taken charge as Director General (DG) of the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR). CSIR is government’s autonomous research agency, established in 1942. Presently, CSIR has over 4,500 scientists working across 38 laboratories and employs over 9000 scientific and technical personnel. Pramod Asthana • Pramod Asthana is the head of the special investment team (SIT) recently set up by Union Home Ministry to probe 1984 anti-Sikh riot cases. The SIT is constituted for re-investigation of the 1984 anti-Sikh riot cases on the recommendation of government-appointed committee headed by former Supreme Court judge Justice G.P. Mathur. Balasubramaniam Venkataramani • Balasubramaniam Venkataramani has been appointed as new MD & CEO of Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX). He will replace then MD & CEO Manoj Vaish. Arvind Kejriwal richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] • Arvind Kejriwal was sworn-in as 8th Chief Minister of Delhi. Lieutenant Governor of Delhi Najeeb Jung administered the oath of office and secrecy to him at oath taking ceremony held at Ramlila Maidan, Delhi. In 2015 Delhi Assembly elections, AAP staged a historic victory by sweeping 67 of the 70 seats. This will be Arvind Kejriwal‘s second term as Delhi Chief Minister. Nitish Kumar • Nitish Kumar was sworn in as the Chief Minister (CM) of Bihar for the 4th time. In 2000, for first time he was made CM of Bihar but had resigned within 7 days. In 2005, he was sworn in as the CM of Bihar for second time and in 2010 for third time. In May 2014 he had resigned from the CM post taking the responsibility of his party’s (JDU) dismal performance in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls. Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic

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• Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic is Croatia’s first female President . She was sworn in on 15 February 2015. She is Croatia’s fourth president since its independence from Yugoslavia in 1991. Chrishantha de Silva • Sri Lanka’s President Maithripala Sirisena has appointed Major general Chrishantha de Silva as the new Sri Lankan Army chief. Zoe Konstantopoulou • New speaker of the Hellenic Parliament. Greek Parliament has elected Zoe Konstantopoulou, a member of the left wing party Syriza as its new speaker. Nickolay Mladenov • Nickolay Mladenov has been appointed by United Nations as new Special Coordinator for Middle East peace Process and Personal Representative to the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Palestinian Authority. Places in News Surajkund • Located in Haryana and venue of 29th Surajkund mela. This year's theme state was Chhattisgarh and partner country was Lebanon. Bannerghata • The Bannerghata Biological Park in Karnataka is to be developed as India's 1st solar fenced elephant sanctuary. The park has joined hand with PETA for this. Sikandara • Located in Uttar Pradesh, near Agra. Site for tomb of Mughal emperor Akbar. Lots of blackbucks (Antilope cervicapra) found here but now they are threatened by increasing number of Jackals. • The Uttar Pradesh Government is now taking up a Jackal Research & Translocation Project to relocate the Jackals somewhere else to save the antelopes. Monrovia • Monrovia is capital of African country Liberia, which is struggling with Ebola Virus in recent times. Here, first large-scale human trials of two experimental vaccines against Ebola virus began in February. • Liberia was worst hit country from Ebola. Most hit are three Western African countries viz. Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. Kolkata: First Wi-Fi-enabled metro city • Kolkata is slated to become India’s first Wi-Fi-enabled metro city as the service was launched from Park Street in city by state's chief minister Mamata Banerjee. The government of the state says that it will roll out this facility in phased manner in all wards under Kolkata Municipal Corporation. Ganjam • Ganjam district in Odisha is known for its Ganjam coast, rich in mineral resources. In February 2015, the Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (IDCO) has signed a MoU with public sector Indian Rare Earth Ltd (IRE) to set up a mineral separation plant here. Mumbai (Permanent Judicial Museum) • Permanent Judicialrichindia Museum | Unique was ID: 2776inaugurated | [email protected] at Bombay High Court as a part of the Sesquicentennial Celebration (150th year) of the Bombay High Court. It is first of its kind museum in Maharashtra designed by Advocate Rajan Jaykar. It displays antique items associated with the rich history of the 150 year old court. We note that first judicial museum in the country was opened at Supreme Court of India premises in Delhi. Jamaica • Jamaica is a Caribbean country which recently passed a law to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana up to 57 grams for personal use. Marijuana is a greenish-gray mixture of the dried, shredded leaves, stems, seeds and flowers of Cannabis sativa – the hemp plant. Medicinal values of marijuana is used as a drug for controlling pain for medical issues, like cancer, nervous

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system diseases, glaucoma, migraines, etc. It also can be used to treat nausea and improve appetites for people with HIV or other chronic illnesses. Sports Leander Paes & Martina Hingis • Winners of 2015 Australian Open mixed doubles title in Tennis Nicol David • Female squash player of Malaysia. She set a new record by topping the world squash rankings for 106th month. She is first Asian to achieve this record. She was also appointed as United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) National Goodwill Ambassador for Malaysia. Saeed Ajmal • Saeed Ajmal is a Pakistani Cricketer, who was suspended by ICC for an illegal bowling action in September 2014. Now, after bowling retests and remedial work; International Cricket Council (ICC) has cleared his bowling. Anirban Lahiri • Indian golfer Anirban Lahiri has won the Malaysian Open 2015. Anil Kumble (ICC Cricket Hall of Fame) • Former India Captain and ace spinner Anil Kumble has been chosen to be inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. He is the 4th Indian cricketer to be inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. Others are Bishen Singh Bedi, Kapil Dev and Sunil Gavaskar who were inducted into Hall of Fame in 2009. Chris Gayle first batsman to hit double century in World Cup history • West Indies opener batsman Chris Gayle created history by becoming the first batsman to score a double century in the World Cup. He made this record by scoring 215 runs off just 147 balls in a world cup match against Zimbabwe. India's Sachin Tendulkar is the First cricketer to reach double century landmark. He made 200 runs against South Africa in 2010. Hero Hockey India League 2015 • Ranchi Rays won the third edition of Champions of Hero Hockey India League (HHIL) 2015. Hockey India League is organized by Hockey India. Number of teams is Five which are franchisee based. Teams have players from India and around the world. The event is sanctioned by International Hockey Federation (FIH). AB De Villiers • South African cricketer AB De Villiers has hit the fastest 150 in one-day internationals (ODI’s). He achieved this feat in 64 balls in World Cup Pool B match against West Indies. Persons in news: Died Carl Djerassi • Father of the birth control pills. He developed a synthetic molecule norethindrone- a key component of the first birth control pill. Richard von Weizsaecker • Germany's former president. He was president during the reunification of East and West Germany. richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] Mrinalini Mukherjee • She was an acclaimed Indian sculptor and artist, best known for her sculptures, crafted using knotted hemp ropes and cast bronzes. She was the first Indian artist whose work was displayed at the Sydney Biennale in 1986. Atmaram Bhende • Atmaram Bhende was a veteran Marathi theatre artist and film actor. He was considered the doyen of Marathi experimental theatre and had graced the Marathi stage for more than six decades. Kesava Reddy

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• Kesava Reddy was a renowned Telugu novelist, well known for his novels and stories on social problems of the country. passed away in Nizamabad district of Telangana. He was 68. Louis Jourdan • Louis Jourdan was a French actor, best known for his role in the multi-Oscar winning musical film Gigi of 1958 . RR Patil • Raosaheb Ramrao Patil was former Home Minister of Maharastra. He died of complicacies due to oral cancer. He was among the longest serving home ministers of Maharashtra i.e. for two times during the NCP-Congress coalition government. For first time in December 2003 to December 2008 and for second time in October 2009 – September 2014. Rajinder Puri • Rajinder Puri was veteran journalist, cartoonist and political activist. He drew cartoons for international daily The Statesman in 1956-57. Later he drew cartoons briefly for international newspapers like The Guardian and The Glasgow Herald (1958–59). • He has authored many books which includes India 1969: a crisis of conscience (1971), India the wasted years: 1969-1975 (1975), Government that works– and how! (1989), Recovery of India (1992), Bull’s Eye (2004). Daggubati Ramanaidu • Daggubati Ramanaidu was a Veteran multilingual film producer. He was popularly known as movie mogul and was the only Indian filmmaker to produce movies in so many languages including in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Oriya, Punjabi and English. Nirad Mahapatra • Nirad Mahapatra was an Eminent filmmaker from Odisha. He was best-known for his cultural, ecological and industrial documentaries. He made into international fame with his very first film Maya Miriga. In 1984 the film had won a Rajat Kamal at the National Film Awards. Later it won a special jury award at the Cannes Film Festival. R.C Sakthi • R.C Sakthi was a popular Tamil director, known as mentor of famous actor Kamal Haasan. He had launched Kamal Hassan with lead role in his Tamil directorial debut Unarchigal in 1972. Rana Bhagwandas • Rana Bhagwandas was First Hindu Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP). He was the first Hindu and the second non-Muslim to head of the Supreme Court of Pakistan. First non-Muslim CJP was Alvin Robert Cornelius (He was Christian). Science, Technology & Environment SMAP • Refers to Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) launched by NASA to observe soil mositure. It can measure moisture from top 2 inches of soil, while revolving around earth at 426 miles away from earth. • The idea is to create high resolution global map, which might help in drought monitoring, predict richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] floods, assist crop productivity, weather forecasting and linking water, Energy and Carbon Cycles. Mitochondrial Donation Technique • UK parliament is set to become the first country to legalize creation of three-parent IVF designer babies using Mitochondrial Donation Technique. A bill was passed in House of Commons in this regard. • Mitochondrial Donation Technique uses a modified version of In vitro fertilization (IVF) of addition of healthy mitochondria from donor women to an egg from other women with defective mitochondria. Then it is fertilized with man’s sperm.

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• In this process, healthy mitochondria is passed to a child from the mother and thus prevents new born babies from brain damage, muscle wasting, heart failure and blindness due to defective mitochondria. Ulva Paschima Bast / Cladophora goensis Bast • These are the names of two beneficial algal species Ulva Paschima Bast and Cladophora goensis Bast recently discovered off the west coast of India. Both of these are endemic to west coast of India and have excellent carbon capture properties and medicinal values. SpaceX Falcon 9 • SpaceX Falcon 9 is an unmanned rocket that was successfully launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida on its third attempt. It took Deep Space Climate Observatory satellite with it, which will be used by US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to monitor the Sun. Friends for Life project • This project was launched by Kerala based Muthoot Group in partnership with World Wide Fund (WWF) for Nature-India as a part of its CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) works. The aim of the project is effective management of human-elephant conflict (HEC) to protect the habitats of Asian elephants in six states as 4 priority landscapes and 1 priority site earmarked by WWF-India. • These priority landscapes include North Bank landscape in Arunachal Pradesh, Kaziranga and Karbi- Anglong in Assam, Terai Arc landscape in Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, Western Ghats landscape in Tamil Nadu and Kerala and also some parts of northern West Bengal. Events & Observations Bharat Rang Mahotsav • 17th Edition of Bharat Rang Mahotsav launched in National School of Drama, New Delhi. This festival is conducted since 1999 and is known as largest theatre festival of India. World Wetlands Day • World wetland day (WWD) is observed on 2nd February every year. This date marks the adoption of Ramsar Convention on wetlands in 1971 at Ramsar in Iran. • The theme for the world wetland day 2015 was Wetlands for our future. • There are more than 2100 Ramsar wetlands around the world. Maximum Ramsar sites are in UK and largest area covered by Ramsar wetlands is in Canada. International Mother Language Day • International Mother Language Day (Bhasha Divas) was observed across the world, on 21 February. This year's theme was “Inclusion in and through education: Language counts”. The year 2015 is the 15th anniversary of International Mother Language Day. The Day is observed yearly by UNESCO member states and at its headquarters to promote linguistic and cultural diversity and multilingualism. Vanaj - India's first National Tribal Festival • The first National Tribal Festival ‘Vanaj’ was organized in New Delhi. Idea of this festival is to bridge the gaps of social divide and promote tribal culture in India. 3rd Tortoise Festival richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] • 3rd Tortoise Festival was organised on the banks of Hajong Lake in Dima Hasao district of Assam by Dima Hasao Environment and Forest Department. Hajong Lake is popularly known as the tortoise lake, is a natural habitat of the few unique tortoise i.e. hill terrapins. National Science Day: February 28 • Every year February 28 is celebrated as the National Science Day i.e. Rashtriya Vigyan Diwas (रा�ट्र�य �व�ान �दवस). This day marks the epoch-making discovery of Raman Effect by Indian physicist Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman (CV Raman) on February 28, 1928. Re-Invest-2015, New Delhi

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• Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the first Renewable Energy Global Investors Meet and Expo (Re-Invest) 2015 in New Delhi. The aim of the meet was to evolve innovative financial models for funding and to ensure the partnership of states and the Centre in harnessing renewable energy. This year's partner country was "Germany". First World Ocean Congress, Kochi • Kochi is Kerala was the venue of First World Ocean Science Congress. This year's theme was "Protect Oceans for Posterity and Blue Economy." It was organized by Swadeshi Science Movement, Vijnana Bharati, Kerala Chapter and the Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies (KUFOS). Fourth River Festival, Hoshangabad • Hoshangabad district in Madhya Pradesh was venue of the fourth River festival that was organized at Bandrabhan bank of Narmada River in the district. It was an environment oriented event. 10th Aero India, Bangaluru • 10th edition of Aero India was organized at Yelahanka Air Force Station in Bengaluru, Karnataka. The show witnessed the mind-boggling performance of Sarang aerobatic team from the Indian Air Force (IAF) flying the Dhruv helicopters. This is a biennial air show and aviation exhibition held in Bangaluru at the Yelahanka Air Force Station. RIC Forum Meet, Beijing • China's capital. It was venue of latest meet of RIC [Russia-India-China]forum. In the latest meeting, Russia, India and China have called for an early conclusion of negotiations on the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (CCIT). Towards Zero Poaching in Asia , Kathmandu • A symposium, Towards Zero Poaching in Asia concluded in Kathmandu, Nepal on 6th February 2015. • Nepal had celebrated two zero poaching years i.e. in 2011 and 2014. In both years no single critically endangered rhino was killed and for past three years not a single tiger was killed. • Nepal was able to achieve remarkable success in wildlife conservation mainly due to its three C policies, commitment, collaboration and coordination of conservation efforts undertaken by local communities and the security forces. Defense Related Ra’ad • Ra'ad is the name of Pakistan's indigenously developed Air Launched Cruise Missile (ALCM). It was tested successfully by Pakistan. • Its range is 350 kilometers and has stealth capabilities due to its cruise technology. LCA-Tejas • The successful launch of Naval Prototype 2 (NP2) variant of LCA Tejas was carried out in Bengaluru. Naval variant LCA Tejas has a complex landing gear design, which is significantly different from the Air Force version of LCA. Amogh • Amogh is the name of a high-speed patrolling ship recently indicted by Indian coast guard. This

ship will be stationedrichindia off Paradip | Unique ID:coast 2776 in | [email protected]. With this, there are six patrolling ships with the Indian Coast Guard. BrahMos supersonic cruise missile • The BrahMos supersonic cruise missile was successfully test fired from Navy’s indigenously built destroyer INS Kolkata. BrahMos supersonic cruise missile designed and developed by BrahMos Aerospace, a joint venture of India and Russia. Missile’s name has been derived from the names of two rivers, India’s Brahmaputra River and Russia’s Moskva River. BrahMos has already been inducted into the Indian Army and Navy. While, the Air Force version is in final stage of trial. Prithvi-II missile

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• India successfully test-fired its nuclear capable Prithvi-II surface-to-surface missile from a test range at Chandipur in Odisha. Prithvi Surface to surface ballistic missile has two variants viz. Prithvi-I for the Army; Prithvi-II for the Indian Air Force; and also the Dhanush for the Navy. This 350 kilometer range missile is a single stage, liquid propelled missile with payload capacity of 500-1000Kg. TROPEX 2015 • Indian Navy’s Theatre Level Readiness and Operational Exercise (TROPEX) exercise concluded on 27 February 2015. In TROPEX-2015, around 50 ships and submarines, along with 70 aircrafts from the three Naval Commands participated. It also saw the participation of units from the India Air Force and the Indian Coast Guard. Finance, Business and Economy Key Policy Rates • In the sixth Bi-Monthly Monetary Policy Statement, RBI kept the policy rate same but reduced SLR from 22.0% to 21.5%. Later, in the first week of March, RBI reduced repo also. • So, the current key rates stand as follows: Repo rate: 7.50%; CRR: 4%; SLR: 21.5%; Reverse Repo Rate: 6.50% (it is always 100 basis points below RR); Marginal Standing Facility (8.50%) and Bank Rate 8.75% LRS Limit doubled • In the monetary policy statement, RBI has also enhanced the limit for foreign exchange (FOREX) remittances under Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) to $250,000 (Rs. 1.5 crore) per person per year. This limit was doubled compared to earlier limit of $125,000 per person per year. • Under the LRS, Indians can open, maintain and hold foreign currency accounts with banks outside India for carrying out transactions, without permission from the RBI. Top FDI destination in the world - China • As per United Nations Conference of Trade and Development (UNCTAD) report, China has overtaken the United States (US) as the top destination for foreign direct investment (FDI). • US was on top as foreign investment destination for past 11 years i.e. since 2003. Top three FDI destination now are China, Hong Kong and United States. Micromax Mobile : Largest seller of mobiles in India • Micromax Mobile has emerged for the first time has largest seller of mobiles in India. It has taken over the top slot from Samsung. It has 22% market share, followed by Samsung at 20%. This company has been able to capture market mainly because of its cheap smartphones. It is headquartered in Gurgaon, Haryana, India. GIPC’s International Intellectual Property Index: India at 29th • The U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Global Intellectual Property Center (GIPC) has released its third annual international intellectual property (IP) index list. In this list India is placed at 29th rank among the 30 countries. While, US has been placed at the top in the list and Thailand at last position. World Press Freedom Index (WPFI) 2015 • In the World Press Freedom Index (WPFI), India was placed at 136th rank out of 180 nations. Finland is the top country. This index is created by France-based international non-governmental richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] organization Reporters Without Borders (RWB), or Reporters Sans Frontières (RSF). HAL-IAF contract for supply of Dornier Aircrafts • Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) has signed a Rs. 1,090-crore contract for supplying 14 Dornier- 228 (Do-228) aircrafts to the Indian Air Force (IAF). NMDFC • NMDFC (National Minorities Development and Finance Corporation) provides loans at concessional rates for self employment to minorities. It was recently in news as the Union government has increased its authorized capital from Rs. 1500 crore to Rs. 3000 crore. Internet.org

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• Facebook and India’s Reliance Communications Limited (RCOM) have jointly launched Internet.org, a Facebook-led initiative to bring internet to everyone in the world. Under this initiative both companies aim to bring the power of Internet to a billion people in India in order to increase internet inclusion and encourage more Indians to go online. Pockets • ICICI Bank has launched India’s first digital Bank on mobile phones, Pockets. This service will enable users to instantly send money to any e-mail id, mobile number, friends on Facebook and bank account. Chennai Super Kings Cricket (CSKC) Limited • India Cements has transferred the Indian Premier League (IPL) team- Chennai Super Kings Cricket (CSK) franchise to its new subsidiary Chennai Super Kings Cricket (CSKC) Limited. Under the ownership of India Cements, CSK led by Mahendra Singh Dhoni, had won IPL tournament twice. For first time in IPL Season 3 (2011) and second time in IPL Season 4 (2012). Apple : First company to reach a market value of $700 billion. • Apple Inc. has become the first company to reach a market value of $700 billion. This California based technology giant designs, develops, and sells consumer electronics, computer software, online services, and personal computers. Global Fund to supply ARV (anti-retroviral) drugs • Global Fund to supply ARV (anti-retroviral) drugs was established in 2002. It operates in a partnership model between governments, civil society, private sector and people to accelerate the end of diseases such as AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. India company Cipla was selected as its panel supplier.

Government Policy and Schemes CoD scheme of Indian Railways • Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has launched cash on delivery (CoD) system for rail ticketing. • With this initiative, passengers can now book a rail ticket online and get it delivered at home where the payment can be made. Haryana launches E-registration of Properties • Haryana government has launched e-registration of properties in all tehsils and sub-tehsils of the state. E-registration project seeks to bring transparency and curb corruption in tehsils of state. • Jeevan Amrut Yojana (Maharashtra) • Jeevan Amrut Yojana of Maharashtra is a "blood on call scheme", which was launched in 2014. The state government wants to strengthen the network of blood storage units in Rural Areas instead of current mechanism of transporting blood through motor cycles. Sukanya Samridhi Yojna • Sukanya Samridhi Yojna under Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (BBBP) campaign was launched in January 2015 from Haryana. All the girls of under 10 age, from all kinds of families in India can open Sukanya Samridhi Account in Post offices and in the Banks. This account will be opened by girls parents or legal guardians. richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] • In the account, a minimum of one thousand Rupees and maximum of One lakh fifty thousand Rupees can be deposited annually, upon which interest of 9.1% will be accrued. • When the girl child attains the age of 18 years, she herself would become eligible to operate the account. Under the scheme, the girl child can withdraw 50 per cent of the money after reaching age of 18 for higher education. The 18 years deadline will also help preventing child-marriages. National Deworming initiative • It was launched from Jaipur and aims to protect 24 crore children from worms. Albendazole tablets will be given to all targeted children in first phase.Worms interfere with nutrient uptake in

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small children causing parasitic infestation. It leads to severe complications among the children resulting in anemia, malnutrition and improper mental and physical development. About Socio Economic and Caste Census (SECC) • Union government has warned States to complete Socio Economic and Caste Census (SECC) before 15 March 2015. The SECC was started in June 2011 through a comprehensive door-to-door enumeration across the country. It was started to • Generate authentic information on a large number of social and economic indicators relating to households across the country to rank them on their Socio- Economic status. • Enable caste-wise population enumeration of the country and their socio economic condition. It also included education status of various castes and sections of the population. • It was conducted by the Registrar General of India. CCTNS • CCTNS (Crime and Criminal Tracking Network System) is a Union government project which aims to connect the police stations of the country to facilitate collection, storage, retrieval, analysis, transfer and sharing of data and information at the police station and between the police station and the State Headquarters and the Central Police Organizations. Himachal Pradesh has become the first state in India to launch this project. SLACC Project • SLACC (Sustainable Livelihoods and Adaption to Climate change ) is a World Bank led project which aims at improving the adaptive capacity of the rural poor particularly women farmers engaged in farm-based livelihoods to cope with climate change and scale up the demonstrated best practices. In India, the SLACC is being implemented with National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM), Mahila Kisan Sashaktikaran Pariyojana (MKSP) and Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGA). Soil Health Card Scheme • The Prime Minister has laucnhed nationwide Soil Health Card (SHC) scheme from Suratgarh town of Sriganganagar district, Rajasthan. During the launch PM gave slogan- Swasth Dharaa. Khet Haraa (Healthy Earth, Green Farm). This is a centrally-sponsored nationwide scheme which aims to help farmers to improve the productivity of farms by providing them basic information for use of nutrients or fertilizers. The card carries crop-wise recommendation of fertilisers that are required for farm lands. It also helps farmers identify health of soil and judiciously use soil nutrients. Madad (Portal) • Union Government has launched Consular Grievances Monitoring portal named MADAD (Help)- Because You Are Us. MADAD an e-portal will help Indian citizens living abroad to file consular grievances online on the services offered by the Indian Missions and Posts abroad. 14th Finance Commission Recommendations on Devolution • Government has accepted FC’s recommendation to increase the devolution of tax receipts from the Centre to the states to 42 percent. Previously, 13th FC had pegged the states’ share at 32 per cent. The share of States in the Centre’s net tax receipts will go up by Rs. 1,78,000 crore in 2015-2016. It is the largest ever change in percentage of devolution. richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] • 14th Finance Commission was constituted in January 2014. Commissions chairman was former RBI governor Y V Reddy National Sports Awards Scheme- amendments • On the basis of recommendations made by a committee headed by Kapil Dev, Government has amended the rule for National Sports Awards which include Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award, Arjuna Award, Dhyan Chand Award and Dronacharya Awards. Henceforth, the Selection Committee for Arjuna award will be headed by a Retired judge of Supreme Court or High Court. One of its member will be an expert of Para sports. The award will be given only to one sportsperson / coach per discipline.

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Awards National Award for Excellent work in MGNREGA- Madhya Pradesh • Madhya Pradesh bags 10th national award for excellent work in Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA). • Madhya Pradesh has over 1 crore MGNREGA job-card holders and tops in the construction of permanent assets. This state has also implemented Electronic Fund Management System for NREGA wage disbursal. King Faisal International Prize : Dr. Zakir A. Naik wins 2015 • India’s Dr. Zakir A. Naik wins the 2015 King Faisal International Prize (KFIP) in category of Service to Islam. dedicated men and women whose contributions make a positive difference. Bhalchandra Nemade - Jnanpith Award 2014 • Bhalchandra Nemade is an eminent Marathi writer. He has been selected for Jnanpith Award 2014. He is 50th recipient, 4th Marathi writer to get this award. Other three recipients are Vishnu Sakharam Khandekar (1974), Vishnu Vaman Shirwadkar (1987) and Vinda Karandikar (2003). Jnanpith award is given for lifetime contribution to Indian literature. 57th Annual Grammy Awards 2015 • The best album of the year award has been won by "Morning Phase" by Beck Hansen". There are two Indians in the awardees list this year viz. Ricky Kej (form album Winds of Samsara) and Neela Vaswani (for Am Malala: How One Girl Stood Up For Education And Changed The World (Malala Yousafzai). 68th BAFTA Awards 2015 • The best film award has gone to Boyhood. Best director is Richard Linklator (Boyhood), best actor Eddie Redmayne (The Theory of Everything) and best actress is Julianne Moore (Still Alice). John Maynard Keynes Prize 2015 - Amartya Sen • Eminent Indian economist and Nobel laureate Amartya Sen has been awarded the inaugural Charleston-EFG John Maynard Keynes Prize 2015. The aim of this prize is to honour individuals from around the world who continue to embody Keynes’ extraordinary attributes. Revised rules: Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puruskar • Government has revised the Scheme of Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puruskar. According to the revised plan, this scheme will be given in following four categories viz. Identification and nurturing of budding/young talent; Encouragement of sports through Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR); Employment of sportspersons and sports welfare measures and Sports for Development. 87th Academy Awards • Best Picture award was won by Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance). Best actor award was won by Eddie Redmayne (The Theory of Everything) and Best Actress award was won by Julianne Moore (Still Alice). Miscellaneous Terms and Facts About Indian Coast Guard • Indian Coast Guard is India’s statutory multi-mission organization that protects country’s maritime interests and enforcesrichindia maritime | Unique law. ID: It2776 has | [email protected] over the territorial waters of India, including its contiguous zone and exclusive economic zone(EEE). It was established on 18 August, 1978 by the Coast Guard Act, 1978 and operates under the aegis Ministry of Defence. World's most expensive art work: Nafea Faa Ipoipo • Paul Gauguin is a French artists, whose painting of two Tahitian girls named as Nafea Faa Ipoipo (When Will You Marry) was sold for 300 million dollars. This is world's most expensive work of art sold so far. About Maritime Silk Road (MSR)

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• The 21st century MSR project is an initiative by China to resurrect the ancient maritime Silk Road. It is perceived to be an attempt by China to ameliorate relations with South and Southeast Asia- in this case the focus is on maritime trade security. • The project will prioritize construction ports and infrastructure, industrial parks in strategically significant countries in Southeast Asia, the Mideast, Africa, Europe and the Indian Ocean region, which includes Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. • China has already begun building of port projects in Gwadar (Pakistan), Hambantota (Sri Lanka) and Chittagong (Bangladesh) respectively. • China has announced a USD 40 billion Silk Road fund which became operational in February 2015 for attracting small countries in the projects. Henn-na Hote • Henn-na Hote (means Strange Hotel) is World’s first humanoid robot-staffed hotel in Nagasaki, Japan. It is slated to be opened in July 2015. he hotel will be staffed with actroid androids – which are human-like robots. Ammu • 35th National Games mascot Ammu- the Great Hornbill, has made into the Limca Book of Records. It made into the record books owing to a play Kalikkunna Kuttikalkkayi Bharatham Kathirikkunnu (India Awaits Children Who Play) in which Ammu is featured as lead role. Kotak-ING Vysya Merger • The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has given its approval to proposed Rs 15,000-crore merger deal between Kotak Mahindra Bank and ING Vysya Bank.

richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected]

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Compendium

February 1 , 2015 Sri Lankan President appoints K Sripavan as Chief Justice February 1, 2015 Sri Lanka’s President Maithripala Sirisena has appointed Kanagasabapathy J Sripavan as Chief Justice. K Sripavan an ethnic-Tamil took oath as the 44th Chief Justice and replaces Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake, who had resigned a day after she was reinstated. He is second Tamil to hold be Chief Justice. The last Tamil chief justice was Herbert Thambiah, who left the position in 1991. 29th Surajkund International Crafts Mela begins in Haryana February 1, 2015 The 29th Surajkund International Crafts Mela was organized at Surajkund. This year, the theme state was Chhattisgarh and partner country was Lebanon. The mela showcased the tribal heritage and culture from forests of Bastar. This mela had started in 1987 and is held every year in first half of February. The artistes from Chhattisgarh showcased various folk dances namely Panthi, Rawat Nacha Pandwani, Chaitra, Kaksar, Saila and Soowa. Lebanon as partner nation of the Mela showcased its ancient heritage of creating crafts in style. 18 countries participated in the mela this year. Leander Paes & Martina Hingis clinch 2015 Australian Open mixed doubles title February 1, 2015 Leander Paes and his Swiss teammate Martina Hingis have won 2015 Australian Open mixed doubles title. In the final they defeated Canadian-French team of Daniel Nestor and Kristina Mladenovic, in straight sets, 6-4 and 6-3. This is their first Grand Slam of the season. With this win Leander Paes clinched his 15th Grand Slam title. Father of Birth Control Pill Carl Djerassi passes away February 1, 2015 Renowned chemist Carl Djerassi has passed away in San Francisco, United States (US). He was 91. He was famously known as the father of the birth control pills for his contribution to the development of oral contraceptive birth pills. About Carl Djerassi • He was born on 29 October 1923. In 1951, he had led a research team in Mexico City that developed a synthetic molecule norethindrone- a key component of the first birth control pill. • Later, he had submitted many research papers on birth control pills. It includes a public policy article about the global implications of U.S. contraceptive research in 1969 and another article about the feasibility of a birth control pill for men in 1970. • It should be noted that the first birth-control pill approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) was Enovid, developed Frank Colton at G.D. Searle & Co and not by him. He was also professor emeritus of chemistry at Stanford University and had written many poems, short stories and playsrichindia with | Unique an emphasis ID: 2776 | [email protected] mixing science and literature. Some of the poems reflected his life as a chemist. Awards: For his work on the contraceptive pills he was awarded US’s prestigious award National Medal of Science (1973), National Medal of Technology (1991). He was also inducted into the Inventors Hall of Fame in 1978 for his research. Germany’s ex-President Richard von Weizsaecker passes away February 1, 2015 Germany’s former President Richard von Weizsaecker has passed away on 31 January 2015. He was 94. He was in office as President for 10 years, from 1984 to 1994. His tenure also spanned the period of German reunification (Reunion of East and West Germany).

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Richard von Weizsaecker He was a soldier in the German army in World War II. Later, he was a member of the Christian Democratic Union. In 1980’s, he had served as the governing mayor of West Berlin. He was elected as President for first time in 1984. In 1989, he was elected unopposed to a second term. During his second term he oversaw the initial years of a reunited Germany as President (largely a ceremonial presidency). As a President he had won widespread praise worldwide for his efforts to persuade Germans to confront their Nazi past. In 1986, he had addressed a joint session of the UK parliament thus becoming the first German to do so. India’s 1st solar fenced elephant sanctuary to come up near Bengaluru February 1, 2015 India’s 1st solar fenced elephant sanctuary will come up near Bengaluru, Karnataka. It was announced by an international animal rights and conservation group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). In this regard, PETA and the Bannerghatta Biological Park, Karnataka have joined hands. Key facts about solar fenced elephant sanctuary • Its main objective is to allow elephants in this park to move around freely within the secure area to curb man- animal conflicts in this area. It will cover 49.5 hectare area within the Biological Park which is an extension of the Bannerghatta National Park. • Designed by the PETA consultant and elephant expert Carol Buckley and basically includes solar electric fence and a state-of-the-art emergency corral made of steel pipes. • Local caregivers will be also trained on the principles of protected contact. It will allow safe interaction between human beings and elephants by keeping them separated by a barrier. It will also replace age-old routine of physical punishment techniques to manage the elephants, by positive reinforcement techniques. February 2 , 2015 Jackal research and translocation project launched in Uttar Pradesh February 2, 2015 Wildlife SOS in collaboration with Uttar Pradesh (UP) Forest Department and Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is launching Jackal Research & Translocation Project in UP. Under this project, study and translocation of 30-35 wild jackals from Akbar’s Tomb in Sikandra, Agra to safe natural habitat will be undertaken. Jackal Translocation Project • It seeks to protect Blackbuck (Antilope cervicapra) population in Akbar’s tomb as well as jackals. • Recent surveys have shown that jackal population has increased inside the Akbars tomb premises. • It had resulted in decrease in population of Blackbuck’s as jackals were preying on the young fawn of the black bucks. This project will help to reduce unnatural proximity between these two species by translocating jackal to other safe natural habitat and save almost 100 blackbucks. NASA launches SMAP satellite to observe soil moisture February 2, 2015 National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has launched Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) satellite to observe soil moisture. It was launched from the Delta 2 rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP)richindia satellite | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] • SMAP satellite is three-year mission which will measure the amount of moisture in soil. • The satellite is built to measure moisture in the top 2 inches (5 centimeters) of soil. It can measure the moisture content of the soil from its spot in orbit about 426 miles (685 kilometers) above Earth’s surface. • SMAP satellite will produce high-resolution global maps from space and data collected from it will help scientists to monitor droughts and improve flood forecasts. • NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory located in Pasadena, California is responsible for SMAP satellite project management, system engineering, mission operations and the ground data system.

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• SMAP is going to take real-time measurements that will be incorporated into forecasts and replace current drought mapping and flash flood guidance mechanism as it issued based on computer modeling. Applications: It will help to monitor drought, predict floods, assist crop productivity, weather forecasting and linking water, Energy and Carbon Cycles.

Bharat Rang Mahotsav begins in New Delhi February 2, 2015 The 17th edition of Bharat Rang Mahotsav has begun in New Delhi. It is a theatre festival, organized by National School of Drama (NSD). It was inaugurated by Culture Minister Dr Mahesh Sharma and National Award-winning actor and NSD alumnus Om Puri. This year’s edition will showcase more than 200 national and international theatre performances. International performances will include theatre productions from countries like Poland, Israel, USA, France and Bangladesh. Bharat Rang Mahotsav • It was established in 1999 as an annual theatre festival of National School of Drama (NSD). • Originally it was founded to show case, works of Indian theatre practitioners but later it got international fame and attracted international performers as well. • Now it is acknowledged as the largest theatre festival of Asia. National School of Drama (NSD) is India’s premier theatre training institute operating under the aegis of Union Ministry of Culture. Malaysia’s Nicol David sets world No.1 squash record February 2, 2015 Malaysia’s female professional squash player Nicol David has set a new record by topping the world squash rankings for 106th month. She is first Asian to achieve this milestone and has overtaken previous 105th month record set by four time world champion Susan Devoy from New Zealand which was set in February 1993. For first time she had topped Women’s Squash Association (WSA) list in January 2006. Nicol David • She is considered as one of the greatest female squash players of all time and first squash player to win the World Junior title twice, in 1999 and 2001 • Her glittering professional squash career includes a record of eight World Championship titles, two Commonwealth Games gold medals and four Asian Games gold medals. • 8 World Championship titles: 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2014. • She also has won 8 Asian Squash Championship in year 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010 and 2011. • She was WSA Player of the Year on seven occasions i.e. from 2005-2010 and 2012. She was also appointed as United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) National Goodwill Ambassador for Malaysia. Anish Aggarwal takes over as Director (Pipelines) at Indian Oil Corporation richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] February 2, 2015 Anish Aggarwal has taken charge as Director (Pipelines) at nation’s largest oil refining and marketing company, Indian Oil Corporation (IOC). Previously, he was Executive Director (Operations) at the IOC’s Pipelines Division. Anish Aggarwal • As Executive Director (Operations), he was leading a IOC team that looked into operations and maintenance of company’s 11,221 kms long pipeline network across country for transporting crude oil and petroleum products. • He also had headed the IOC’s Western Region Pipelines as Executive Director and was responsible for operations of offshore crude oil terminals in this region.

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• He is an engineering graduate and also holds post graduate management degree from Management Development Institute, Gurgaon. He has over 30 years of work experience in IOC especially in pipeline projects. Pakistan successfully test-fires new cruise missile Ra’ad February 2, 2015 Pakistan has conducted a successful flight test of the indigenously developed Air Launched Cruise Missile (ALCM)Ra’ad. This successful launch has helped Pakistan to achieve strategic standoff capability both on land and at sea. Key facts about Ra’ad missile • Designed to operate with Pakistan Air Force (PAF) aircraft’s like Dassault Mirage III ROSE and JF-17 combat aircraft. • Range of 350 kms and stealth capabilities due to its cruise technology. • High maneuverability capabilities that can deliver nuclear and conventional warheads with pin-point accuracy. • Low altitude missile designed to attack fixed enemy installations such as radar posts, command nodes and stationary surface to air missile launchers at stand-off range World Wetlands Day is being observed on 2 February February 2, 2015 Every year World wetland day (WWD) is observed on 2 February. The theme for the world wetland day 2015 is Wetlands for our future. Significance of Day • This day marks the date of the adoption of the Convention on Wetlands also called as Ramsar Convention on 2 February 1971 in the Iranian city of Ramsar. • Each year on this day government agencies, non-governmental organizations (NGO’s), and groups of citizens at all levels of the community raise public awareness of wetland values and their benefits. They also spread awareness about Ramsar Convention in particular. Background For first time, WWD was celebrated in year 1997 and since then it is observed every year. The theme for the world wetland day 2014 was Wetlands and Agriculture. Some facts • Currently there are 2,186 wetlands of international importance sites under the Ramsar Convention known as Ramsar Sites covering around 208,449,277 hectares km². • The maximum Ramsar sites are located in UK i.e. 168. • The largest area covered by the Ramsar sites is in Canada. • The number of parties to the Ramsar Convention is 168. • Ramsar Sites in India are 26 (as of September 2012). First major trials of Ebola vaccine begins in Liberia February 2, 2015 The first large-scale human trials of two experimental vaccines against Ebola virus has begun in Liberia’s capital Monrovia. With help of these vaccines, scientistsrichindia | Unique are aiming ID: 2776 to | [email protected] more than 30,000 volunteers, including front-line health workers in Liberia. These trials are taking place after smaller studies determined that the vaccines were safe for human use. However, it is not yet clear whether these trial vaccines will offer protection against the disease. Background • As per World Health Organisation (WHO) Ebola outbreak (which started in July 2014) has infected more than 22,000 people and claimed more than 8,800 lives in three Western African countries Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.

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• Liberia was worst hit by this outbreak and alone had reported more than 3,600 deaths. But in past few months number of cases has been steadily decreased. • Previously without any vaccine, health workers in these nations had fought the outbreak with old- fashioned public health measures which included isolating the sick, tracking and quarantining those who had contact with them, and setting up teams to safely for disposing death bodies of infected. RIC Forum calls for early conclusion of Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism February 2, 2015 Russia, India and China have called for an early conclusion of negotiations on the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism in the RIC Forum held in Beijing. In this regard, a joint communiqué was issued by 3 nations in the 13th trilateral meeting of foreign ministers, under this forum. India’s External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, Chinese foreign Minister Wang Yi and Russian foreign Minister Sergey Levrov had participated in the meeting. Key highlights of RIC Forum • Condemned terrorism- Participating countries strongly condemned terrorism in all forms. They even mentioned that there can be no ideological, political, racial, ethnic or any other justification for acts of terrorism. • Join efforts to combat terrorism- Ministers affirmed the need for all countries to join efforts in combating terrorism under the auspices of United Nations. • Support to India- Russia and China supported India’s aspiration to play a greater role in the United Nations. They also welcomed India’s application for full membership of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO). • Economic front- All members expressed their support for the forthcoming WTO 10th Ministerial conference in December 2015, to expand their cooperation in several areas including agriculture, medical services and disaster relief. • Other Issues- They also discussed various issues including efforts to counter the threat of use of information and communication technologies for military and terrorism purposes, preventing arms race in outer space, solution to Iranian nuclear issue, latest developments in Syria, Israel- Palestine conflict and current crisis in Ukraine. The next trilateral meeting of the RIC Forum will be held in Russia later in 2015. February 3, 2015 IRCTC launches cash on delivery system to book train tickets on pilot basis February 3, 2015 Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has launched cash on delivery (CoD) system for rail ticketing. With this initiative, passengers can now book a rail ticket online and get it delivered at home where the payment can be made. IRCTC has launched this CoD scheme on pilot basis. Initially, this service will be available in more than 200 cities. Passengers can book a rail ticket 5 days prior to commencement of journey. But CoD scheme will charge additional Rs 40 for the delivery of each Sleeper Class ticket, Rs 60 for an AC class ticket. In this case,richindia passengers | Unique ID: can 2776 book | [email protected] tickets on IRCTC mobile application or on web-portal BookMyTrain.com. IRCTC has authorized Anduril Technologies through their web-portal (BookMyTrain.com) to provide CoD services. Madhya Pradesh gets 10th national award for excellent work in MGNREGA February 3, 2015 Madhya Pradesh has been awarded the 10th national award for excellent work in Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA). Union Rural Development Minister Virendra Singh presented the award to state’s Panchayats and Rural Development Minister Gopal Bhargava at the MGNREGA summit held on the occasion of MNREGA Divas (observed on 2 February) in New Delhi.

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Madhya Pradesh was chosen for this award for convergence of MGNREGA scheme and other schemes, which led to permanent construction of assets and providing opportunities for earning permanent income. MNREGA Implementation in Madhya Pradesh • In Madhya Pradesh, there are 1 crore 2 lakh MGNREGA job-card holder families. • State also has topped in construction of permanent assets through MGNREGA convergence in the country. It accounts for 74 percent construction of permanent assets. • State also has implemented Electronic Fund Management System, in order to ensure transparency in accountancy and immediate payment of wages to labourers. About Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act • MGNREGA is social security measure that aims to guarantee the right to work and create durable assets (such as roads, canals, ponds, wells). • Objective: To ensure livelihood security in rural areas by providing at least 100 days of wage employment in a financial year to every household whose adult members volunteer to do unskilled manual work. • Initially, it was started in 200 districts on 2 February 2006, since then it has covered all the districts of India from April 2008. Dr.Nandita Chatterjee takes charge as Secretary in Ministry of Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation February 3, 2015 Dr. Nandita Chatterjee has taken charge as the new Secretary in the Ministry of Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation (HUPA). She will succeed Anita Agnihotri who was transferred to the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment in recent secretary-level bureaucratic reshuffle. Prior to this appointment Dr.Nandita Chatterjee was a Member-Secretary of National Commission for Women (NCW). Dr.Nandita Chatterjee • Nandita Chatterjee is an IAS Officer of 1980 batch and belongs to West Bengal Cadre. • She holds Master’s degree in Economics and Masters in Development Economics. She also holds Doctoral Degree in Sociology and Anthropology. • At National level, she had served in the Union Government for the Ministries of Rural Development and Environment & Forests. • At International level, she had served in the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and World Health Organisation (WHO) for over six years. • Her last international assignment was in Afghanistan as Capacity Development Advisor, UNDP. Acclaimed sculptor and artist Mrinalini Mukherjee passes away February 3, 2015 Acclaimed Indian sculptor and artist Mrinalini Mukherjee has passed away in New Delhi. She was 65. She was best known for her sculptures, crafted using knotted hemp ropes and cast bronzes. Mrinalini Mukherjee • Ms. Mukherjee was daughter of seminal Santiniketan artists Benode Behari and Leela Mukherjee. • She had studied paintingrichindia at | UniqueM S University ID: 2776 | [email protected] Baroda between 1965 and 1970 and later undertook a post diploma in mural design under K G Subramanyan. • She was the first Indian artist whose work was displayed at the Sydney Biennale in 1986. • In 1994, her art sculptures were displayed in the Museum of Modern Art, Oxford and later travelled all over United Kingdom. • In 2013, her work was included in the The Body in Indian Art, an exhibition curated by Naman Ahuja at Bozar in Brussels. RBI Doubles the FOREX Remittance Limit under Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) February 3, 2015

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The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in its monetary policy review has enhanced the limit for foreign exchange (FOREX) remittances under Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) to $250,000 (Rs. 1.5 crore) per person per year. This limit was doubled compared to earlier limit of $125,000 per person per year. Under the LRS, Indians can open, maintain and hold foreign currency accounts with banks outside India for carrying out transactions, without permission from the RBI. Background RBI has taken this decision after reviewing the external sector outlook as India’s foreign exchange reserves touched all-time high at $322.135 billion in mid-January 2015 and further exercise in macro prudential management. Earlier in 2013, RBI had reduced the limit for FOREX remittances under this scheme to $75,000 as the rupee came under strong pressure. But later, in June 2014, it was again raised the limit to $125,000 (Rs. 75 lakh). China overtakes US as top foreign investment destination: UNCTAD report February 3, 2015 As per United Nations Conference of Trade and Development (UNCTAD) report, China has overtaken the United States (US) as the top destination for foreign direct investment (FDI). US was on top as foreign investment destination for past 11 years i.e. since 2003. Key facts from UNCTAD report • In 2014, foreign firms had invested 128 billion dollars in China compared to 86 billion invested in the US. • The growth in China’s foreign investment had benefited the services sector as manufacturing had slowed in 2014. • Hong Kong stood at the second spot after China and ahead of US with foreign investment of 111 billion dollars. • Globally, foreign investment had fallen by 8% to a total of $1.26trillion in 2014. The reasons cited for this decline was partly due to the fragility of the global economy due geopolitical risks. • In 2014, the foreign investment in developing nations had increased by 4%, whereas developed nations saw a decline of 14 percent, mostly due to the large fall in the US.

Top 10 foreign investment destinations in 2014 Rank Country FDI* 1 China 128 2 Hong Kong 111 3 United States 86 4 Singapore 81 5 Brazil 62 6 United Kingdom 61 7 Canada 53 8 Australia 49 richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] 9 Netherlands 42 10 Luxembourg 36 * Billion Dollars

February 4, 2015 MP’s in UK vote to legalise three-person babies using Mitochondrial Donation Technique February 4, 2015

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Members of Parliament (MPs) in United Kingdom (UK) have voted to legalise law for creation of three-parent IVF designer babies using Mitochondrial Donation Technique. In this regard, MPs in House of Commons during free vote, voted in favour of amendment bill to amend Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act, 1990 by 382 to 128 votes. With this historic move, UK is now set to become the first country to introduce law to allow the creation of babies from three people. Now this amendment bill needs to be passed in House of Lords. What is Mitochondrial Donation Technique? • It uses a modified version of In vitro fertilisation (IVF) to combine the DNA of the two parents with the healthy mitochondria of a donor woman. This technique was first pioneered by scientists at Newcastle University, UK. • This technique involves addition of healthy mitochondria from donor women to an egg from other women with defective mitochondria. Then it is fertilized with man’s sperm. • In this process, healthy mitochondria is passed to a child from the mother. • Advantage: It does not allow passage of defective mitochondria from mother to babies. Thus, preventing new born babies from brain damage, muscle wasting, heart failure and blindness due to defective mitochondria. Mitochondria: It is a tiny compartment inside cell within the body that converts food in usable energy. It is also called as the powerhouse of the cell. Hindol Sengupta’s book shortlisted for prestigious Hayek Prize February 4, 2015 Indian Journalist-writer Hindol Sengupta’s book Recasting India: How Entrepreneurship is Revolutionizing the World’s Largest Democracy, has been shortlisted for the U.S.’ prestigious Hayek Prize, 2015. His book on entrepreneurial ventures in India is among the six books in race for this prestigious award. Other shortlisted books include The Forgotten Depression: 1921: The Crash that Cured Itself by James Grant; The Rule of Nobody: Saving America from Dead Laws and Broken Government by Philip K. Howard; The Market and Other Orders (The Collected Works of F A Hayek) by F.A. Hayek, edited by Bruce Caldwell; Putin’s Kleptocracy: Who Owns Russia by Karen Dawisha; and The Tyranny of Experts: Economists, Dictators, and the Forgotten Rights of the Poor by William Easterly. About Hayek Prize It is awarded each year to writers whose work best celebrates the principles of Austro-Hungarian Nobel laureate in economics, Friedrich von Hayek. This prize is awarded by Manhattan Institute and carries monetary prize of $50,000. Haryana government launches e-registration of properties February 4, 2015 Haryana government has launched e-registration of properties in all tehsils and sub-tehsils of the state. It was launched by Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar to mark the completion of 100 days of his government. Previously in January 2015, pilot project of this system was implemented successfullyrichindia | Uniquein eight ID: tehsils. 2776 | [email protected] About Haryana’s e-registration of properties system • Under the new system, documents for land registration will be submitted at e-Disha centres. • At e-Disha centres, a helpdesk will provide information regarding stamp duty and collector rates. • Then help desk will fix the appointment date of applicants with tehsildars for registration of sale deed. • Thus, e-registration project seeks to bring transparency and curb corruption in tehsils of state. Dr. Zakir A. Naik wins 2015 King Faisal International Prize February 4, 2015

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India’s Dr. Zakir A. Naik has won the prestigious 2015 King Faisal International Prize (KFIP) in category of Service to Islam. It was announced by Makkah Governor Prince Khaled Al- Faisal and KFIP Secretary-General Abdullah Al-Othaimeen. About Dr. Zakir A. Naik • Zakir A. Naik is public speaker on the subject of Islam and comparative religion. Sometimes he is referred as a televangelist because of his work at Peace TV. He has published booklet versions of lectures on Islam and comparative religion • Before becoming a public speaker, he was trained as a medical doctor. • He is founder and President of the Islamic Research Foundation of India. He is also the founder of the Islamic International School in Mumbai and United Islamic Aid, which provides scholarship to poor and destitute Muslim youth. • Awards: He has been conferred with many awards including Islamic Personality of 2013, Malaysia’s Distinguished International Personality Award (2013), Sharjah Award for Voluntary Work (2013). About King Faisal International Prize (KFIP) • KFIP is an annual award presented to dedicated men and women whose contributions make a positive difference and sponsored by King Faisal Foundation. • It is awarded in five categories: Service to Islam; Islamic studies; Arabic Language and Literature; Science; Medicine. • Each prize consists of a handwritten Arabic certificate summarizing the laureate’s work, a commemorative 24-carat, 200-gram gold medal and a cash award of 750,000 Saudi riyal (US$ 200,000). • First prize was awarded to Sayyid Abul A’ala Maududi in the year 1979 for his service to Islam. 2015 KFIP other awardees are • Chemistry- Professor Omar Mwannes Yaghi (US) and Professor Michael Gratzel (Switzerland), • Islamic studies- Abdul Aziz bin Abdul Rahman Kaki. • Medicine- Jeffrey Ivan Gordon (US). Maharashtra government planning to revamp Jeevan Amrut Yojana February 4, 2015 Maharashtra Government is planning to revamp the Jeevan Amrut Yojana (blood-on-call) scheme to make it more beneficial to people. State government is seeking to strengthen the network of blood storage units in rural areas instead of current mechanism of transporting blood through motorcycles. About Jeevan Amrut Yojana • It is first of its kind scheme in the country, launched in 2014. • It aimed at facilitating blood supply to patients scheduled to undergo surgeries and medical procedures in remote areas. • The patients, who need the blood, have to pay 450 rupees towards the cost of blood and 50 rupees to 100 rupees as transportation cost depending on the distance after the request (for blood) is placed by the hospital concerned. • Upon receiving the call, the required blood and blood components are transported on motorcycle richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] to hospitals and nursing homes, in specially fitted cold storage boxes. Bihar Government to provide free education till PG to SC/ST and girl students February 4, 2015 Bihar government has decided to provide free education to Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST) and girl students till Post Graduation (PG) level in the state. This decision was taken at the state cabinet meeting headed by Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi. Now no fee will be taken from the SC/ST and girl students at the time of admission in government universities and colleges in state. State government will reimburse the financial loss to such universities/colleges after admitting students as per this decision.

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The move will cost the State exchequer Rs. 29 crore annually and benefit over four lakh students belonging to the three categories in the State. February 5, 2015 Micromax overtakes Samsung in India’s smartphone market: Canalys Report February 5, 2015 According to market research firm Canalys report, India’s Micromax Mobile has overtaken Korean tech giant Samsung as the largest seller of smartphones in India for the first time. As per Canalys report, Micromax accounted for 22% of India’s smartphone market share in the October-December 2014 quarter (Q4, 2014). While, Samsung’s market share has fallen down to 20%. Micromax’s smartphone market share in India is 4.7% and Samsung’s 4.4 in Q4, 2014. Micromax was able to overtake Samsung because of its cheap smartphone segment that catered India’s local smartphone market preference. Micromax and Samsung were followed by two other Indian budget smartphone brands, Karbonn and Lava. It should be noted that, India is the world’s third-largest smartphone market after China and United States. About Micromax • Micromax is consumer Electronics Company with the business of manufacturing of Mobile phones, Smartphones, Tablet Computers and LED Televisions. It is headquartered in Gurgaon, Haryana, India • It was started in 2000 as an IT software company and worked on embedded platforms. Later it started manufacturing low cost mobile and featured smartphones. • Micromax is the tenth largest handset seller in the world as of Q3 2014. Infosys appoints Roopa Kudva as independent member of board February 5, 2015 India’s second largest software services firm, Infosys has appointed Roopa Kudva as an independent member on its board of directors. At present, she is managing director (MD) and chief executive officer (CEO) of Crisil, a subsidiary of global rating agency- Standard & Poor’s. About Roopa Kudva • Kudva had joined Crisil in 1992 and was appointed its MD and CEO in 2007. • She also had worked with Standard & Poor’s in Paris as its Director at Financial Institutions Ratings covering the Middle-East, Eastern Europe, and Mediterranean countries. • Kudva holds a postgraduate diploma in management (PGDM) from Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM-A). • She is also a member of several policy-level committees relating to Indian government’s financial system, including committees of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). Ajay Shukla takes charge as new Member (Traffic) in Railway Board February 5, 2015 Ajay Shukla has taken additional charge as the Member (Traffic) in the Railway Board. He will replace D P Pande who had retired from this post on 31 January 2015. Currently, Ajay Shukla is an Additional Member (Commercial) Railway Board. About Ajay Shukla richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] • Ajay Shukla is senior officer of 1979 batch of Indian Railway Traffic Service (IRTS). • He has rich and varied experience of working on several important posts in Indian Railway like Chief Passenger Traffic Manager and Chief Safety Officer in Northern Railway, and Divisional Railway Manager in Dhanbad among others. • For his outstanding service he has won various prestigious Awards which includes DRM’s Award, General Manager Award, Railway Minister’s Award, and Railway Board’s Silver Medal for Rajbhasha. India ranked second last in GIPC’s International Intellectual Property Index February 5, 2015

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The U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Global Intellectual Property Center (GIPC) has released its third annual international intellectual property (IP) index list. In this list India is placed at 29th rank among the 30 countries. While, US has been placed at the top in the list and Thailand at last position. Key facts • In this edition of IP Index, India has scored a low 7.23 out of maximum 30 points. While, US topped with score of 28.53 among the 30 countries surveyed, making it the global leader in protecting IP. • It should be noted that in 2012 and 2014 GIPC Index, India was ranked last in the list, due to deterioration of IP climate in country. • But in 2015 GIPC Index, India has moved up by 1 position to 29th rank because of steps taken by the Union Government to address the concerns of international community related to the IP rights. About GIPC’s Intellectual property (IP) index It was started in 2012 and the first edition compared national IP environment in 11 economies. Now, this index is represented by 30 countries around the world which represents 80 per cent of the world’s gross domestic product (GDP). It is based upon 30 measurable criteria which includes patent, copyright and trademark protections, enforcement, and engagement in international treaties. Mary McGowan Davis appointed as new head UNHRC Gaza probe February 5, 2015 Former US judge Mary McGowan Davis was appointed as the new head of United Nations Human Rights Council’s (UNHRC’s) Independent Commission of Inquiry on the 2014 Gaza Conflict. She will replace William Schabas who had resigned after Israel accused him of a conflict of interest for the consultancy work he done for the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) in October, 2012. Earlier, McGowan Davis had served as a justice on New York’s Supreme Court, and chaired the UN follow-up committee to probe into the 2008-2009 war between Israel and Hamas. Background • Earlier in August 2014, UNHRC had appointed three members Independent Commission of Inquiry on the 2014 Gaza Conflict. This commission was tasked to probe possible war crimes and human rights violations during a month long conflict in Gaza in July 2014. • In this month long conflict more than 2,100 Palestinians, most of them civilians, 67 Israeli soldiers and 6 civilians in Israel were killed. • It was headed by William Schabas and included Amal Alamuddin and Doudou Diene as members. LC Goyal takes charge as the Union Home Secretary February 5, 2015 LC Goyal has taken charge as the Union Home Secretary. He replaced Anil Goswami who had resigned following a controversy over the arrest of former Union Minister Matang Sinh in connection with the Saradha chit fund scam. Goyal was appointed by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi for two year term. About LC Goyal • He is a 1979-batch IAS officer of Kerala cadre. • At the time of his appointment, he was serving as Union Rural Development Secretary. • Earlier, Goyal had servedrichindia in | theUnique Ministry ID: 2776 of | [email protected] Affairs (MHA) as Joint Secretary (Internal Security). Gujarat Handloom Corporation inks MoU with eBay February 5, 2015 Gujarat State Handloom and Handicraft Development Corporation (GSHHDC) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with global e-commerce giant eBay. • The main objective of this MoU is to expand sales base of handloom and handicraft products of Gujarat to online market from current retail shop sales. • In order to increase the online market share, GSHHDC is also planning to launch its own e- commerce portal under Garvi-Gurjari brand to reach out to a bigger customer base and boost sales in overseas markets.

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• GSHHDC is also planning to tie-up with domestic e-commerce majors as Flipkart and Snapdeal. As of now, GSHHDC’s sales are from offline market through their 23 showrooms and exhibitions across India. As expansion plan, GSHHDC’s within next three years is aiming to open 300 stores. Two beneficial algal species discovered off the west coast of India February 5, 2015 Recently, two beneficial algal species Ulva Paschima Bast and Cladophora goensis Bast were discovered off the west coast of India. They were discovered by Dr. Felix Bast and two research students working with him. These findings were published in the journals PLOS One and Indian Journal of Marine Sciences. Key Characteristics of discovered algal species • Carbon capture properties- These species have excellent carbon capture properties i.e. ability to absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. So it can be used as bio-fuels and help reduce global warming. • Endemic- Both of them are endemic species to the western coast of India. So, their cultivation is not going to cause any environmental harm and reduces the risk of bio invasion in this region. • Bloom forming- Both species being bloom forming they have spontaneous growth. So there is no need for any expensive cultivation systems such as photobioreactors or extensive use of fertilizers/pesticides. They can grow sporadically at shorelines and can sequester CO. • Medicinal values- Both species have similar characteristic like other algal species which have Kahalalide-F , used in in clinical trials against prostate and breast cancers. So they can be used in Pharmaceutical products. It should be noted that, this discovery was the first molecular study on Indian algae, and first algal species discoveed in past 40 years. February 6, 2015 Kolkata becomes India’s first Wi-Fi-enabled metro city February 6, 2015 Kolkata is slated to become India’s first Wi-Fi-enabled metro city as the service was launched from Park Street in city. This 4th Generation (4G) free Wi-fi service was launched by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. Free Wi-fi service will be will be rolled out in phased manner in all the wards under Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) as well as adjacent areas of Kolkata. The whole city is expected to come under Wi-Fi coverage by mid-April in 2015. Private telecom operator, Reliance Jio is providing the 4G enabled service Wi-fi s in the city. US President appoints Ajay Banga as member of the Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations February 6, 2015 United States (US) President Barack Obama has appointed Indian CEO Ajay Banga as member of the Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations (ACTPN). ACTPN is the US president’s private-sector advisory panel on international trade and helps him to coordinate trade related policies and resolve disagreements. This appointment came alongrichindia with | Uniqueseveral ID: other 2776 | [email protected] to key US administration posts. About Ajay Banga • At present, Ajay Banga is chairman of the US India Business Council. • Since 2009, he is president and CEO of MasterCard. Prior to joining MasterCard, he had held various senior management roles in Citigroup from 1996 to 2009 and has served as CEO of Citigroup Asia Pacific. • Ajay Banga also served as Director for Marketing and Business Development at PepsiCo Restaurants International India from 1994 to 1996.

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• He had started his career at Nestle India, where he served in various sales and management roles from 1981 to 1994. • At present he is a member of the Board of Directors of MasterCard and The Dow Chemical Company. • He holds a postgraduate diploma in management (PGDM) from Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM-A). He also has received a BA degree from St Stephen’s College of Delhi University. Tunisia Parliament approves first coalition government after Arab Spring February 6, 2015 Tunisia Parliament has approved the first historic coalition government after the Arab spring. In this regard, 166 out of 204 Members of Parliament (MPs) voted in favor of the new cabinet proposed by the Prime Minister Habib Essid. The new coalition Government comprised of liberal Nida Tounes party, moderate Islamist Ennahda party and the Free Patriotic party. In the coalition government, Nidaa Tounes party holds 6 portfolios, including the foreign ministry. While, the interior, defence and justice portfolios have been given to independents. Ennahda party holds labour ministry and three secretary of state posts. Background In October election 2014, Nidaa Tounes party had won the most seats in country’s first free presidential and Parliamentary elections in the wake of 2011 Arab Spring. They had formed a coalition government after the election. While, Beji Caid Essebsi was elected as President. Arab Spring Tunisia was birth place of Arab Spring which started in 2011 to overthrow country’s long time dictator Ben Ali. Later it spread to many parts of the Arab countries like Egypt, Libya, Syria and Yemen. In every country except Tunisia the revolution had turned violent. In case of Syria it turned into civil war. Eminent Marathi writer Bhalchandra Nemade selected for Jnanpith Award 2014 February 6, 2015 Eminent Marathi writer Bhalchandra Nemade has been selected for Jnanpith Award 2014. He is the 4th Marathi writer to receive the honour and is the 50th recipient of Jnanpith award. With this award he joined the league of noted Marathi writers who have won Jnanpith award. They are • Vishnu Sakharam Khandekar (1974) for his work Yayati. • Vishnu Vaman Shirwadkar (1987). He is famously known as Kusumagraj. • Vinda Karandikar (2003). About Bhalchandra Nemade • He was born in 1938 in the village of Jalgoan district of Maharashtra. • He completed his bachelor’s degree from Fergusson College, Pune and received PhD and D.Lit. degrees from North Maharashtra University. • He has taught English, Marathi, and comparative literature at various universities including the School of Oriental and African Studies at London and retired from Mumbai University’s Gurudeo Tagore Chair for comparativerichindia | Unique literature ID: 2776 studies. | [email protected] • In the 1960s, he had edited Marathi magazine Vacha. His work • Novel Collection- Kosla, Bidhar, Hool, Jarila, Jhool, Hindu- Jagnyachi Samruddha Adgal. • Poem Collection- Melody, Dekhani. • Criticism Collection- Teekaswayamvar, Sahityachi Bhasha, Tukaram, The Influence of English on Marathi : A Sociolinguistic and Stylistic Study, Indo-Anglian Writings: Two Lectures, Prasaranga Prakashan, Mysore, Nativism (Desivad). Awards- He has received Sahitya Akademi Award (1990) for his critical work Teeka Svayanwar. He is also recipient of Padma Shri (2011).

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About Jnanpith Award • Jnanpith award is one of the prestigious literary awards in India. The name of award is taken from Sanskrit words Jnana and Pitha (knowledge-seat). • It was instituted in 1961 and presented by Bharatiya Jnanpith, a trust founded by the Sahu Shanti Prasad Jain family. • The award is given to any Indian citizen who writes in any 22 official languages of India mentioned in VIII Schedule of Constitution of India. The award includes 11 lakh rupees and a citation plaque and a bronze replica of Saraswati. • Prior to 1982, the award was only given for a single work by a writer. But since 1982, the award is given for lifetime contribution to Indian literature. HAL signs contract with IAF to supply 14 Dornier-228 aircrafts February 6, 2015 Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) has signed a Rs. 1,090-crore contract for supplying 14 Dornier-228 (Do-228) aircrafts to the Indian Air Force (IAF). The contract also includes supplying six reserve engines, a flight simulator and associated equipment to IAF. These 14 aircraft’s will be manufactured by the HAL’s Transport Aircraft Division at Kanpur. Key facts about Dornier Do-228 aircraft • The Dornier Do-228 was designed and developed by Dornier GmbH in the late 1970s. • The aircraft cockpit allows for two-person operation and can carry 19 passengers in the commuter version. • It is reliable, multipurpose and fuel efficient aircraft. • It has special feature to operate from smaller airfields because of its light weight design and a retractable tricycle landing gear. HAL Dornier-228 production background • HAL holds the license to locally produce the Do-228 aircraft. Since 1983, HAL has produced more than 125 Do-228 aircraft. • Earlier, HAL had supplied this aircraft to Indian Armed Forces and also exported them to Indian Ocean nations of Seychelles and Mauritius. • In 2014, HAL had supplied one Do-228 aircraft to Bangalore-based Electronics and Radar Development Establishment (LRDE) for testing its new radars on flight. Symposium: Towards Zero Poaching in Asia concludes in Nepal February 6, 2015 A symposium, Towards Zero Poaching in Asia concluded in Kathmandu, Nepal on 6th February 2015. Symposium: Towards Zero Poaching in Asia • This five-day anti-poaching symposium started on 2 February 2015, was hosted by the Ministry of Forests and Soil Conservation of Nepal. • It was co-hosted by World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), Global Tiger Forum (GTF), National Trust for Nature Conservation (NTNC) and South Asia Wildlife Enforcement Network (SAWEN) • This event had broughtrichindia together | Unique ID:global 2776 |anti [email protected] experts and delegates from countries like Bangaladesh, Bhutan, China, Cambodia, India, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Russia, Thailand and Vietnam. • In this event, experts shared best anti-poaching practices, tools and technologies with the aim of launching a coordinated Asia-wide push to stop poaching. • Among the Tiger Range Countries that participated in this Zero Poaching in Asia symposium, Nepal is the only country to achieve zero poaching. Nepal’s achievement of Zero-poaching • Nepal had celebrated two zero poaching years i.e. in 2011 and 2014.

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• In both years no single critically endangered rhino was killed and for past three years not a single tiger was killed. • Nepal was able to achieve remarkable success in wildlife conservation mainly due to its three C policies, commitment, collaboration and coordination of conservation efforts undertaken by local communities and the security forces. Nepal’s wildlife • Nepal, which shares the Terai Arc landscape with India, has rich bio-diversity and rare flora and fauna. It is home to endangered animals like tigers, rhinos, elephants and gangetic dolphins. • It has 10 national parks, three wildlife reserves and six conservation areas that cover more than 13,000 square miles in total. As per the previous animal census there are 534 endangered rhinos and 198 tigers in Nepal. • Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation (DNPWC) is Nepal’s nodal agency to monitor its rich biodiversity. Micromax appoints Shubhajit Sen as new chief marketing officer February 6, 2015 India’s largest mobile vendor, Micromax has appointedShubhajit Sen as its chief marketing officer (CMO). His appointment seeks to boost its marketing efforts as it looks to further improve its position in the surging smart phone market in the country. As the CMO, Sen will be leading all marketing efforts for the company across markets while strengthening the overall brand communication. About Shubhajit Sen He is an economics graduate from Delhi University and holds a postgraduate diploma in management (PGDM) from Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM-A). He had started his career in 1992 with Glaxo Smith Kline (GSK) as a management trainee and advanced through the organization. He has rich experience of 21 years with GSK in both national and global operations. Prior to this appointment, he was the executive vice president- marketing of GSK. February 7, 2015 Greek Parliament elects Zoe Konstantopoulou as its new President February 7, 2015 Greek Parliament has elected Zoe Konstantopoulou, a member of the left wing party Syriza as its new President. She was elected after receiving a record number of 235 of 300 deputies’ votes in the Parliament. With this win, she has the record of more votes a President of parliament received after the restoration of democracy in Greece in 1974. She is second woman from Greek to be President of country after Anna Psarouda-Benaki who was elected in 2004. Zoe Konstantopoulou is also the youngest ever elected as President of the Greek Parliament. About Zoe Konstantopoulou She is a lawyer by profession and specialized in National, European and International Criminal Law and Human Rights. She was first elected in the Greekrichindia parliament | Unique ID: 2776in 2012 | [email protected] with the left wing party Syriza from the First Athens District. Dr. M.O. Garg takes charge as Director General of CSIR February 7, 2015 Dr M.O. Garg has taken charge as Director General (DG) of the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR). He will replace PS Ahuja who had held this post since May 2014. About M.O. Garg • M.O. Garg is a gold medalist in Chemical Engineering from Nagpur University and has M.Tech degree from IIT Kanpur. He also has completed PhD from University of Melbourne.

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• Prior to this appointment, he was Director of CSIR-Indian Institute of Petroleum (CSIR-IIP), Dehradun for the past 11 years. • As of now, Garg is the author for at least 245 papers published in high impact scientific journals and also he has 33 national and international patents to his credit. • He has received two CSIR Technology Awards as well as a CSIR Shield for his commercialization efforts. About Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR) • CSIR is government’s autonomous research agency, established in 1942. • Presently, CSIR has over 4,500 scientists working across 38 laboratories and employs over 9000 scientific and technical personnel. The research bodies under CSIR cover science and technology focus areas ranging from aeronautics, instrumentation, mining, environmental engineering and to oceanography, geophysics, chemicals, drugs, genomics and biotechnology. UN appoints Nickolay Mladenov as new Special Coordinator for Middle East peace February 7, 2015 United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has appointed Nickolay Mladenov of Bulgaria as new Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process and Personal Representative to the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Palestinian Authority. He will replace Robert Serry of the Netherlands and oversee the ongoing UN-backed reconstruction efforts in Gaza. This reconstruction is undertaken by UN, after thousands of people were displaced in July 2014 during the month long Israel-Palestinian conflict. About Nickolay Mladenov • Prior to this appointment, he was head of the UN Assistance Mission in Iraq (UNAMI). • Earlier, he was a Member of the European Parliament for Bulgaria. • Nickolay Mladenov also has served as Bulgaria’s Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister of Defence. ICC clears bowling action of Pakistan’s Saeed Ajmal February 7, 2015 The International Cricket Council (ICC) has cleared bowling action of Pakistan’s cricketer Saeed Ajmal. ICC’s decision comes after retests and remedial work undertaken by Saeed have shown that his bowling action is as per ICC guidelines. Now, he can now resume bowling in international Cricket. Earlier on 24th January 2015, he had undergone retests for his bowling actions at Sri Ramachandra University in Chennai. At the retests, it was revealed that the amount of elbow extensions of the off-spinner’s bowling action for all deliveries was within the 15-degree level of tolerance permitted under the ICC regulations. Background In September 2014, ICC had placed Saeed Ajmal under suspension from bowling in international cricket after an independent analysis had found the bowling action of him to be illegal. ICC during the ban had mentionedrichindia that | Unique Ajmal’s ID: 2776 bowling | [email protected] deliveries exceeded the 15-degree limit of tolerance permitted under the regulations. IDCO signs MoU with IRE to set up a mineral separation plant in Odisha February 7, 2015 State owned Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (IDCO) has signed a MoU with public sector Indian Rare Earth Ltd (IRE) to set up a mineral separation plant in Odisha’s Ganjam district. MoU was signed by IDCO CMD Vishal K Dev and IRE CMD R N Patra in the presence of State Industries minister Devi Prasad Mishra in Odisha. Key facts

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• Cost of mineral separation plant in Odisha’s Ganjam district is pegged at Rs 450 crore. • This project will be implemented through a Joint Venture (JV) Company, promoted by IDCO and IREL. • IDCOL will have up to 49 per cent equity shareholding and IRE will have of 51 per cent shareholding in this JV Company. • This project will play important role in mining and separation of heavy minerals like Limonite, Monazite, Zircon, Rutile, Garnet and Sillimanite obtained from sand from different villages along the Ganjam Coast. • This project also seeks to produce rare earth and thorium compounds from beach sand extracted from Odhisa’s 470 Kms long beach which is mostly untapped . • It will be implemented in 2 years and after its completion it will create employment opportunity for 400 people. 2nd prototype of naval variant of LCA-Tejas successfully tested February 7, 2015 The Naval Prototype 2 (NP2) of indigenously developed light combat aircraft (LCA) Tejas undertook its successful maiden flight in Bengaluru, Karnataka. This successful maiden flight is considered as significant milestone in the India’s indigenous carrier borne aircraft development programme. NP2 in its successful flight test showcased its arrested landing and ski-jump take off. Key facts about Naval Prototype 2 (NP2) of LCA Tejas • Naval variant LCA Tejas has a complex landing gear design, which is significantly different from the Air Force version of LCA. • It is designed and developed by the public sector aeronautics company Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) • The NP2 addresses several systemic deficiencies observed in the progress on flight test of Naval Prototype 1 as it is incorporated with most advance avionic hardware components to operate with Navy. • It is customized for a carrier landing and aided with Levcon Air Data Computer, Auto-throttle, external and internal Angle of Attack lights for carrier landing. • NP 2 is also incorporated with arrestor hook integration, Derby Beyond Visual Range missile and tactical data link for landing on carrier. Indian Coast Guard inductes high-speed patrolling ship Amogh February 7, 2015 Indian Coast Guard has inducted a high-speed patrolling ship Amogh into its fleet. Amogh will be stationed off Paradip coast in Odisha. • It can travel at maximum speed of 63 km per hour • The ship has facilities like firing gun, rubber boats including one motor-run, GPS system and upgraded radar system. • Amogh will be utilized by Indian Coast Guard during emergency situations such as accident and natural calamities besides security purposes. With the induction of this ship, the number of patrolling ships of the Coast Guard reached six. richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] About Indian Coast Guard Indian Coast Guard is India’s statutory multi-mission organization that protects country’s maritime interests and enforces maritime law. It has jurisdiction over the territorial waters of India, including its contiguous zone and exclusive economic zone(EEE). It was established on 18 August, 1978 by the Coast Guard Act, 1978 and operates under the aegis Ministry of Defence. February 8, 2015 Maharashtra government signs MoU with L&T for setting up CCTV based surveillance in Mumbai February 8, 2015

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Maharashtra government has signed an MoU with engineering and construction major Larsen & Toubro (L&T) for setting up closed-circuit television (CCTV) based surveillance in Mumbai. The MoU worth Rs 949 crore was signed by the company and Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in Mumbai. Key facts • As part of new security cover to Mumbai, CCTVs will guarantee safer city to its citizens. • This system will not only support Mumbai police to maintain law and order but will also help to improve traffic management. • It will also aid in deterring, detecting and dealing with criminal activities. • The installation work will be carried out in three phases and Mumbai city will get security cover of 6,000 CCTVs by September 2016. • In the first phase, installation of CCTVs in south Mumbai will be covered in November 2015, while north and east Mumbai will be covered by April 2016. • In the final and third phase, central and west Mumbai will be covered by September 2016. • Two command centres for the project will be set at Mumbai commissioner’s office and in Kalina in suburban Mumbai. French artist Paul Gauguin’s painting breaks sale record at nearly $300m February 8, 2015 A painting of two Tahitian girls named as Nafea Faa Ipoipo(When Will You Marry) by the French artist Paul Gauguin has been sold for 300 million dollars. It makes the painting as the most expensive work of art ever sold. This painting was painted in 1892 and was sold to a museum in Qatar. This painting broke the previous highest price record for a painting by Paul Cezanne, sold in 2011 for a reported 158 million dollars to Qatar. About Paul Gauguin • Paul Gauguin was French Post-Impressionist artist of 19th century. • He was recognized for his experimental use of color and synthetist style that were distinguishably different from Impressionism. • His work had influenced the French avant-garde and many modern artists, such as Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse. • Gauguin’s art became popular after his death and many of his paintings were in the possession of Russian collector Sergei Shchukin. Veteran Marathi theatre artist Atmaram Bhende passes away February 8, 2015 Veteran Marathi theatre artist and film actor Atmaram Bhendehas passed away in Pune, Maharashtra. He was 91. He was considered the doyen of Marathi experimental theatre and had graced the Marathi stage for more than six decades. About Atmaram Bhende • Atmaram Bhende was born in May 1923. He was affectionately called as Bapu by colleagues and coworkers.richindia | Unique He was ID: 2776a qualified | [email protected] engineer from Veermata Jijabai Technological Institute (VJTI), Mumbai. • Between 1954-60s, he was the Joint Secretary of the Marathi Natya Parishad and was first to introduce the concept of revolving stage in Marathi theatre. • In his 6 decade long acting career, he has acted in various Marathi, Hindi films and also in TV shows. He also had appeared in English plays and had translated two of the American playwright and novelist Thornton Wilder’s plays into Marathi. India’s Anirban Lahiri wins maiden European Tour title in Malaysia February 8, 2015

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Indian golfer Anirban Lahiri has won the Malaysian Open 2015. With this win, Anirban Lahir secured his breakthrough European Tour title. In the final 4th round he defeated Austria’s Bernd Wiesberger by one shot at the Kaula Lumpur Golf Club and Country Club. About Anirban Lahiri • Anirban Lahiri is professional golfer who currently plays on the Asian Tour. In 2008, he had joined the Asian Tour and currently has won five tittles in the Asian Tour. • In 2011, he had picked up his first victory at the Panasonic Open and his second victory in 2012 at the SAIL-SBI Open. Currently, his World Golf Ranking is 73. India’s liability law will not be amended: Union Government February 8, 2015 Union Government has notified that India’s Civil Liability Nuclear Damage (CLND) Act, 2010 or CLND rules will not be amended. In this regard, a detailed paper titled ‘Frequently Asked Questions and Answers on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act 2010 and related issues‘ was released by Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). This paper says that the foreign suppliers of the reactors cannot be sued for damages by the victims of a nuclear accident. However, the suppliers can be held liable by the operator, who has the right of recourse that could be operationalized through the contract between the operator and the supplier. Governments decision comes after the understanding was reached with the US, during President Barack Obama’s recent visit. About Civil Liability Nuclear Damage (CLND) Act, 2010 • CLND Act, 2010 was passed by the Parliament in August 2010. • This Act limits the liability of the operator in case of nuclear accident and secures the operator the right to recourse under certain circumstances and provides a mechanism to compensate victims of nuclear damage. • In November 2011 under the parent Act, Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Rules were notified. These Rules stipulate certain mandatory clauses for contracts that secure the operator the right to recourse. • It also prescribe the procedure to provide compensation to victims in case of nuclear incidents. Union Government’s Sukanya Samridhi Yojna begins in Uttar Pradesh February 8, 2015 Union Government’s Sukanya Samridhi Yojna under Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (BBBP) campaign has begun in Jaunpur district in the state of Uttar Pradesh. The first account under the scheme was opened in the name of a three-year old girl Vedika Tiwari in this district by her parents. Sukanya Samridhi Yojna under Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (BBBP) campaign • It was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 22 January 2015 in Haryana to enhance the strength and honour of the girl children across the country. • This scheme encompasses all the girls of every economic strata under 10 years of age to open Sukanya Samridhi Accountrichindia | Uniquein Post ID: offices 2776 | [email protected] in the Banks. This account will be opened by girls parents or legal guardians. • In the account, a minimum of one thousand Rupees and maximum of One lakh fifty thousand Rupees can be deposited annually, upon which interest of 9.1% will be accrued. • When the girl child attains the age of 18 years, she herself would become eligible to operate the account. • Under the scheme, the girl child can withdraw 50 per cent of the money after reaching age of 18 for higher education. The 18 years deadline will also help preventing child-marriages.

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February 9, 2015 PM Narendra Modi constitutes 3 sub-groups of CMs within NITI Aayog February 9, 2015 Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi has constituted three sub-groups of Chief Ministers within National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog. It was announced by PM while he was chairing the first meeting of the Governing Council of NITI Aayog in New Delhi. • First sub-group- It will study the 66 centrally-sponsored schemes and recommend which schemes should continue, which should be transferred to states, and which to discontinue. • Second sub-group- It will focus on skill development and creation of skilled manpower within states. • Third sub-group- It will decide on the institutional mechanisms to be evolved for Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan, so that cleanliness becomes a part of life in perpetuity. Key highlights of first meeting of the Governing Council of NITI Aayog • In this meeting, Governor of Jammu and Kashmir and Lt Governors of Andaman and Nicobar and Delhi, and the Chief Ministers of the rest of the states participated. • PM has asked all the states to create two task forces under the aegis of the NITI Aayog, one to focus on poverty alleviation, and the other to focus on future development of agriculture in the states. • First meeting also focused on issues related to growth, investment, decentralisation and poverty alleviation. • PM also stressed on the role of the states and emphasised how Jan Dhan Yojana and Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan had become successful with cooperation of the states. Adidas India appoints Damyant Singh as Brand Director February 9, 2015 German sportswear major Adidas Group has appointed Damyant Singh as its Brand Director in India. He will succeed Tushar Goculdas, who was recently appointed as the Brand Director- Adidas Emerging Markets. Damyant Singh has rich experience as marketing professional and has broad and strong knowledge of the Adidas brand, the Indian sports market and consumers. About Adidas • Adidas is Herzogenaurach, Bavaria based German Multinational Corporation that designs and manufactures sports shoes, clothing and accessories. • It is the largest sportswear manufacturer in Europe and the second biggest in the world, after Nike. Adidas India is subsidiary of Adidas Group which consists of the Reebok sportswear company, TaylorMade- Adidas golf company (including Ashworth), Rockport, and 9.1% of Football Club Bayern Munich. 57th Annual Grammy Awards 2015 February 9, 2015 Category Album Artist

Best album of the year richindia | UniqueMorning ID: 2776 Phase | [email protected] Beck Hansen Best record of the year Stay With Me Sam Smith Best song of the year Stay With Me James Napier, William Phillips & Sam Smith Best new artist - Sam Smith Children’s Album I Am Malala: How One Girl Stood Neela Vaswani Up For Education And Changed The World (Malala Yousafzai) Best Pop solo performance Happy (Live) Pharrell Williams

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Best Pop Duo/Group Performance Say Something A Great Big World With Christina Aguilera Indian’s in 57th Annual Grammy Awards This year two Indians have won Grammy Awards. They are • Ricky Kej- His collaborated album Winds of Samsara won the Best New Age Album Trophy. • Neela Vaswani- She won award in Children’s Album category for her album I Am Malala: How One Girl Stood Up For Education And Changed The World (Malala Yousafzai). About Grammy Awards • Grammy Awards (originally were called Gramophone Awards) are the recording industry’s most prestigious award presented annually by National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS) of the United States. It should be noted that NARAS is also known as The Recording Academy. • They are awarded to artists and technical professionals for their outstanding achievements in the music industry. The awards are presented to recipients at the annual presentation ceremony which features performances by prominent artists, and the presentation of those awards that have a more popular interest. The first Grammy Awards ceremony was held on 4 May 1959. 68th BAFTA Awards 2015 February 9, 2015 The 68th British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) held at the Royal Opera House in London. This year the BAFTA awards were conferred for the outstanding performances in films and documentaries screened at British Cinemas in 2014. Winners of the 68th Annual BAFTA Awards • Best Film: Boyhood. • Outstanding British Film: The Theory of Everything. • Best Director: Richard Linklater (Boyhood). • Best Actor: Eddie Redmayne (The Theory of Everything). • Best Actress: Julianne Moore (Still Alice). • Best Supporting Actor: K. Simmons (Whiplash). • Best Supporting Actress: Julianne Moore (Still Alice). • Best Original Screenplay: The Grand Budapest Hotel. • Best Adapted Screenplay: The Theory of Everything. • Best Editing: Whiplash. • Best Cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki (Birdman). • Best Production Design: The Grand Budapest Hotel. • Best Costume Design: The Grand Budapest Hotel. • Best Original Music: The Grand Budapest Hotel. • Best Makeup and Hair: The Grand Budapest Hotel. • Best Sound: Whiplash. • Best Visual Effects:Interstellar. • Best Film Not in therichindia English | UniqueLanguage: ID: 2776Ida. | [email protected] • Best Animated Film: The Lego Movie. • Best Documentary: Citizenfour. • Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director, or Producer: Stephen Beresford (Writer) and David Livingstone (Producer). • Best British Short Film: Boogaloo and Graham. • Best British Short Animation: The Bigger Picture. • The EE Rising Star Award: Jack O’Connell. • Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema: BBC Films. • Most awards: The Grand Budapest Hotel (5).

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• Most nominations: The Grand Budapest Hotel (11). About British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) • Formed: 1947. • Headquarters: London. • Purpose: To supports, promotes and develops the art forms of the moving image – film, television and video games – by identifying and rewarding excellence, inspiring practitioners and benefiting the public. Australian PM Tony Abbott survives confidence vote on leadership in Liberal party February 9, 2015 Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott has survived a spill vote of confidence on his leadership in the Liberal Party. In a Liberal party room voting, the ruling Liberal Party voted to defeat the leadership spill motion by 61 to39 votes. The party decided to not open up the top positions to contenders. Tony Abbott was elected as the Prime Minister of Australia in September 2013. Background Earlier in first week of February, some MPs from Abbott’s Liberal Party openly had called a spill vote of confidence after his decline in popularity and poor ratings due to series of policy backflips. The main aim of motion was to declare vacant the positions of party leader and deputy leader- currently occupied by Abbott and Deputy Prime Minister Julie Bishop. China launches first Maritime Silk Road cruise liner February 9, 2015 China has launched first cruise liner to sail via its ambitious transcontinental initiative Maritime Silk Road (MSR). The cruise liner sailed off from the Beihai port located in southwest China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. On its maiden voyage, cruise liner will visit three South-East Asian nations including Malaysia, Vietnam and the Gulf of Thailand. This cruise liner is 135-metre-long 20-metre-wide ship and can accommodate about 400 people. It also equipped with wireless Internet access. About Maritime Silk Road (MSR) • The 21st century MSR project is an initiative by China to resurrect the ancient maritime Silk Road. It is perceived to be an attempt by China to ameliorate relations with South and Southeast Asia- in this case the focus is on maritime trade security. • The project will prioritize construction ports and infrastructure, industrial parks in strategically significant countries in Southeast Asia, the Mideast, Africa, Europe and the Indian Ocean region, which includes Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. • China has already begun building of port projects in Gwadar (Pakistan), Hambantota (Sri Lanka) and Chittagong (Bangladesh) respectively. • China has announced a USD 40 billion Silk Road fund which became operational in February 2015 for attracting small countries in the projects. Adani Enterprises Ltd, Rajasthan Government inks MoU to develop 10,000 MW solar parks February 9, 2015 richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] Adani Enterprises Limited (AEL) and Rajasthan Government have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for developing solar parks in state with a capacity of 10,000 MW. In this regard, both AEL and state owned Rajasthan Renewable Energy Corporation Limited (RRECL) have agreed to form a joint venture (JV) to develop these solar parks in state within next ten years. Of these, solar parks of 5,000 MW capacity will be developed in the next five years.

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JV of both companies will set up the solar parks, which will include generation projects and a manufacturing unit for solar module, parts and equipment. Once set up, these solar parks will include solar power projects and manufacturing unit for solar module, parts and equipment in Rajasthan. After completion, these solar park will produce clean & green energy of approximately 16,644 million units, furthering India’s goals for clean, renewable energy independence and reduce carbon footprint by approximately 16.2 MT. February 10, 2015 M Ravindran takes over as Chairman of Indraprastha Gas Limited February 10, 2015 M Ravindran has taken over as the Chairman of Indraprastha Gas Limited (IGL). He has replaced K K Gupta, Director (Marketing) of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL), who has relinquished the charge upon completion of his two-year tenure. Presently M Ravindran is Director (Human Resources) of state-owned gas utility GAIL (India) Limited. About Indraprastha Gas Limited (IGL) • IGL is a joint venture of GAIL, BPCL and government of Delhi. • It is the sole supplier of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) and Piped Natural Gas (PNG) in the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, Noida, Greater Noida and Ghaziabad. • The post of chairman of IGL is rotated among GAIL and BPCL every two years. Market Base: IGL has around 9500 km of pipeline network and meets fuel requirements of over 7.7 lakh vehicles running on CNG through a network of 297 CNG stations in Delhi Region. IGL is also supplying PNG to nearly 5,30,000 households in Delhi and NCR towns. World’s first humanoid robot staffed hotel set to open in Japan February 10, 2015 World’s first humanoid robot-staffed hotel is set to open in Nagasaki, Japan in July 2015. The Henn-na Hotel which means Strange Hotel will be employing Robots as its staff and other advanced technologies in order to significantly reduce operating costs. The hotel will come up with a Huis Ten Bosch theme park which is named after a town of Netherlands. Some facts • The hotel has been developed by Japan’s Osaka University and its robots are manufactured by the Japanese robotics company Kokoro. • This hotel will implement in two phases. In the first phase, the two-story of hotel with 72 rooms will begin its operation in July 2015. While, the second phase will be completed in 2016 with an additional 72 rooms. Robot employees • The hotel will be staffed with actroid androids – which are human-like robots. • These robots will function as humans to greet, carry luggage to rooms, make cups of coffee and even smile like. These robots will speak Japanese, Chinese, Korean and English. • The hotel will have richindiathree robots | Unique that ID: 2776 will | [email protected] as receptionists, four service and porter robots, and robots engaged in menial tasks such as cleaning. Other advanced technologies • The hotel has facial-recognition technology to access the Guestroom doors of the hotels. While, Guests will request items through a tablet when needed. • It will be not having air-conditioning, instead of it a radiation panel will be used. This panel will detect body heat in rooms and adjust the temperature. • Advance solar power and other energy-saving features will be used in order to reduce operating costs.

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First World Ocean Science Congress concludes in Kochi February 10, 2015 First World Ocean Science Congress (WOSC) concluded in Kochi, Kerala. The four-day- long event had started in Kochi on 5 February 2015. Key facts about World Ocean Science Congress (WOSC)-2015 • Themes of WOSC-2015: Protect Oceans for Posterity and Blue Economy. • It was organized by Swadeshi Science Movement, Vijnana Bharati, Kerala Chapter and the Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies (KUFOS). • Eminent oceanographers, environmentalists, naval exponents and maritime industrialists from across the world participated in the event. • First edition of WOSC-2015 witnessed to deliberate findings on sustainable means to utilise ocean resources without causing damage to the oceans and their marine life. • It also witnessed presentation of 450 technical papers in 13 sessions by 86 Indian institutions and 14 foreign institutions. Outcomes of WOSC-2015 • A set of recommendations have been outline in the congress. These recommendations will be submitted to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for further guidelines. • Delegates of WOSC-2015 have urged the Union Government to form a separate ministry in the fields of ocean research and fisheries research in order to bring all the agencies and institutions working on it under one roof. This separate ministry will help for the smooth implementation and management of all the government policies related to the ocean and fisheries research sectors.

Economist Amartya Sen awarded inaugural John Maynard Keynes Prize 2015 February 10, 2015 Eminent Indian economist and Nobel laureate Amartya Sen has been awarded the inaugural Charleston-EFG John Maynard Keynes Prize 2015. He was chosen for this award for his ground-breaking work that has profound impact on the formation of development policy worldwide and outstanding contribution to society. Amartya Sen will receive £7,500 to commission a work of art. He will also give the annual Charleston-EFG Keynes Lecture on the topic The Economic Consequences of Austerity at the Charleston Festival on 23 May 2015. About Amartya Sen • Amartya Sen was born on 3 November 1933 in Manikganj district in British India (Now in Bangladesh). • He is regarded as one of the foremost thinkers in the field of famine, poverty, social choice and welfare economics. • He was teacher and a research scholar in the Department of Economics, Jadavpur University, West Bengal. Currently, he is a Professor of Economics and Philosophy at Harvard University. • His has authored more than 100 books which have been translated into more than 30 languages. Awards He has won many prestigious awards. Few of them are • Nobel Memorial Prizerichindia in Economic | Unique ID:Sciences 2776 | [email protected] in 1998 for his work in welfare economics. • Bharat Ratna- India’s highest Civilian Award in 1999. • National Humanities Medal in 2012. About Charleston-EFG John Maynard Keynes Prize • It is an international award, instituted in the memory and spirit of British Economist John Maynard Keynes’ work, life and legacy. • The aim of this prize is to honour individuals from around the world who continue to embody Keynes’ extraordinary attributes. 2015 Delhi Legislative Assembly election result February 10, 2015

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Election Commission of India (ECI) has declared the results of Delhi Legislative Assembly election 2015. Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) headed by social activist turned politician Arvind Kejriwal with 67 seats has emerged as the largest party in the house of 70 seats. Arvind Kejriwal is going to take oath as Chief Minister on 14 February 2015 at Ramlila Maidan, Delhi. Key facts • Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) – Won record 67 seats with record vote share of 54.2% percent. It should be noted that AAP 1st party in Delhi to win with record 67 seats with more than 50% vote share in history of assembly elections. • Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) – Won 3 seats with vote share of 32.3% percent. • While other big parties like Indian National Congress (INC), Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) etc were not able to win single seat in this election. Background 2015 Delhi Legislative Assembly election was held on 7 February 2015 to elect 70 members of the Delhi Legislative Assembly. Voter turnout for this election was recorded 67.14%, it was highest voter turnout in history of Delhi Legislative Assembly elections. In this election Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Indian National Congress (INC) had contested 70 seats. While, Bharatiya Janata Party had contested 67 seats and its ally Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) had contested 3 seats. Union Cabinet approves hike in share capital of NMDFC February 10, 2015 The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has given its approval to increase the Authorised Share Capital of the National Minorities Development and Finance Corporation (NMDFC). As per this decision, NMDFC’s Authorised Share Capital has doubled from Rs. 1500 crore to Rs. 3000 crore. Cabinet also gave its approval to revise the shareholding pattern from present 65:26:9 to 73:26:1 among the Centre, States/Union Territories and Individuals/Institutions respectively. Further, approval was also given for restructuring of the NMFDC’s business model. About National Minorities Development and Finance Corporation (NMDFC) • NMFC is Central Sector Public Enterprise (CPSE) under the aegis of Union Ministry of Minority Affairs. • It was constituted in 1994 as a non-profit making company under Section 25 of the Companies Act, 1956. Functions • NMDFC provides loans at concessional interest rates for self-employment and economic development activities to backward sections of minority communities having family income up to Rs. 1,03,000 in urban areas and Rs. 81,000 in rural areas. • In this case minority communities are Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Parsis. It also includes Jains as they have been notified as a minority community recently in 2014. February 11, 2015

Facebook, Reliance Communicationrichindia tie | Unique up to ID:provide 2776 | [email protected] access to Internet February 11, 2015 India’s Reliance Communications Limited (RCOM) has partnered with social networking giant Facebook to offer free internet access. Both companies have launched Internet.org, a Facebook-led initiative to bring internet to everyone in the world. Key facts • Under this initiative both companies aim to bring the power of Internet to a billion people in India in order to increase internet inclusion and encourage more Indians to go online. • As part of this initiative, RCOM will offer free data access to 33 popular websites for all its customers under the umbrella of Internet.org.

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• Most of the services of 33 popular websites will be available in several Indian languages including English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Gujarati and Marathi. • All the subscriber of RCOM who have internet enabled hand set (mobile phones) will get access to this free service. • Android based app of Internet.org on smartphones will be also provided for accessing free internet. It should be noted that India will be the first country in Asia to get this app. • It is estimated that 70 per cent of RCOM’s customers who have such phones will benefit from this service that are now off line i.e. don’t have internet connection. In the first phase this service has gone live in RCOM’s 7 circles which include Mumbai, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Chennai and Kerala. While in second phase, this service will be launched in pan India by May 2015. Both companies by launching this initiative are opening new socioeconomic opportunities to users in fields like education, information and commerce. It will in turn create more jobs and opportunities in India which is world’s second-biggest mobile market with Internet. February 11, 2015 Union Government to infuse Rs. 6,990 crore in nine public sector banks February 11, 2015 Union Government is planning to infuse Rs. 6,990 crore in 9 Public Sector Banks (PSB’s) for enhancing their capital and meeting the global risk norms. In this regard, Government has allocated Rs.11,200 crore in the Union Budget 2014-15, for the first tranche of capital infusion in these banks. Capital infusion in PSBs was decided on the basis of the performance of the bank. In this case efficiency parameters for all PSBs for last three years were put together. PSBs which were above the average, were considered for capital infusion. Two parameters were chosen to find efficiency parameters of all PSBs. They were weighted average of return on assets (ROA) and return on equity (ROE) during the last financial year. 9 PSBs are: State Bank of India (Rs 2,970 crore), Bank of Baroda (Rs 1,260 crore), Punjab National Bank (Rs 870 crore), Canara Bank (Rs 570 crore), Syndicate Bank (Rs 460 crore), Allahabad Bank (Rs 320 crore), Indian Bank (Rs 280 crore), Dena Bank (Rs 140 crore) and Andhra Bank (Rs 120 crore).

ICICI Bank launches India’s first digital bank Pockets February 11, 2015 The Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation of India (ICICI) Bank, has launched India’s first digital Bank on mobile phones, Pockets. This service will enable users to instantly send money to any e-mail id, mobile number, friends on Facebook and bank account. Key facts • Anyone, including those who are not customers of ICICI Bank, can download the e-wallet from Google Playstore. • This digital banking richindiaservice | willUnique be ID:funded 2776 |from [email protected] customers any bank account in the country. • Customers can also choose to add a zero balance Savings Account to this digital wallet, which will allow them to earn interest on their idle money. • This wallet uses a virtual VISA card which enables the users to transact on any website or mobile application in India. • Customers can also request for a physical card to use it at any retail outlet. • The users can pay bills, recharge mobiles, book movie tickets, order food, send physical & e-gifts, split and share expenses with friends by using this e-wallet. Union Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports revises Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puruskar Scheme February 11, 2015

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The Union Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports has revised the Scheme of Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puruskar. This scheme was introduced by government in 2009 to encourage involvement of corporate and sports promotion boards in the development of sports in the country. Revised Scheme of Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puruskar According to the revised plan, this scheme will be given in following four categories. They are • Identification and nurturing of budding/young talent. • Encouragement of sports through Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). • Employment of sportspersons and sports welfare measures. • Sports for Development. The revised Scheme, prescribes the eligibility criteria for all four categories. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR): Corporate now can spend and provide funds for promotion and development of sports from the funds earmarked for CSR. In this regard, training to promote rural sports, nationally recognized sports, Paralympic sports and Olympic sports have been included in the Schedule VII of the Companies Act, 2013. Non-governmental organizations (NGOs): In case of NGOs, who are working in promotion and development of sports, a separate category, Sports for Development has been provided for the NGOs in order to recognize their contributions. First National Deworming Day observed on 10 February February 11, 2015 On the eve of the National Deworming Day, Union Minister for Health & Family Welfare Jagat Prakash Nadda launched the National Deworming initiative on 10th February 2015 at Jaipur, Rajasthan. National Deworming initiative • Aim: To protect more than 24 crore children in India between the age of 1 to 19 years from intestinal worms. It also aims target intestinal parasitic worms among the children to achieve status of being Worm-free. • It is one of the largest programmes in the world undertaken to deworm children. • In the first phase, about 14 crore children will be covered across eleven States/UT. They are, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Dadra & Nagar Haveli, Haryana, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Tripura. • Albendazole tablets will be given to all targeted children in first phase. Dosage of half tablet to 1-2 years children and one full tablet for 2-19 years will be given. • While in second phase, nearly 10 crore children will be targeted between 11 February and 14 February 2015. Parasitic worms infestation Worms interfere with nutrient uptake in small children causing parasitic infestation. It leads to severe complications among the children resulting in anemia, malnutrition and improper mental and physical development. According to World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates, nearly 24 crore children in India in the age group of 1-14 years are at risk of intestinal parasitic worm infestation. 35th National Games mascot Ammu the Great Hornbill in Limca Book of Records February 11, 2015 richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] 35th National Games mascot Ammu- the Great Hornbill, has made into the Limca Book of Records. It made into the record books owing to a play Kalikkunna Kuttikalkkayi Bharatham Kathirikkunnu (India Awaits Children Who Play) in which Ammu is featured as lead role. According to the Limca Book’s 2015 Special Literature Edition, this play is about a mascot, which had been staged in most number of schools. By 9 April 2014, the play had been staged in 147 schools across seven districts of Kerala.

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Kalikkunna Kuttikalkkayi Bharatham Kathirikkunnu is scripted and directed by theatre artist Anil Karetee and enacted by a team of police officers. It was envisaged to promote sports among children and persuade them to take up sports along with academics. About Ammu- the Great Hornbill mascot • Ammu- the Great Hornbill is official mascot 35th National Games held in Kerala. Designed by Rakesh. • The Great Hornbill is the State bird of Kerala and was selected as the Games Mascot to reflect state’s concern for conservation of this species which is facing extinction. • It is also expresses Kerala’s concern to preserve its rain forests and regenerate the lost habitat of this precious bird. • The feminine name Ammu was chosen for the mascot as a tribute to the women of Kerala and is a reminder that Kerala is proud to have a gender ratio which is tilted in favour of women – the only State in India. February 12, 2015 Union Government warns States to complete Socio Economic and Caste Census (SECC) before 15 March 2015 February 12, 2015 Union government has warned States to complete Socio Economic and Caste Census (SECC) before 15 March 2015. If states fail to complete the exercise before 15th March, the central assistance to states for building rural houses and welfare pensions will be blocked. In this regard, Union Ministry of Rural Development has issued a note which strictly mentions that for year 2015-16 and onwards, SECC data will be the base for selecting the beneficiaries for the Indira Awas Yojana (IAY) and the National Social Assistance Programme (NSAP). If states failed to select the beneficiaries from this data base will not receive financial assistance. Background • Union government’s tough decision came in the wake of a PIL petition filed by human rights’ body People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL). • In the PIL petition PUCL had alleged that non-completion of SECC by states and UTs is the main reason for delay in implementation of National Food Security Act (NFSA), 2013. • It should be noted that some states even have failed to publish the draft list of the census. About Socio Economic and Caste Census (SECC) The SECC was started in June 2011 through a comprehensive door-to-door enumeration across the country. It was started to • Generate authentic information on a large number of social and economic indicators relating to households across the country to rank them on their Socio- Economic status. • Enable caste-wise population enumeration of the country and their socio economic condition. It also included education status of various castes and sections of the population. It was conducted by the Registrar General of India, Union Ministry of Rural development and Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation (HUPA). Four new fish species discovered in Kerala February 12, 2015 Four new fish species namedrichindia Puntius | Unique nelsoni, ID: 2776 |Puntius [email protected] nigronotus, Systomus chryseus and Systomus rufus have been discovered in Kerala. They were discovered by Mathews Plamoottil, a zoology professor at Baby John Memorial Government College in Kollam. Facts about discovered species • Puntius nelson- Body and fins of this fish is yellowish in colour. Its head is deeper, the snout shorter and the mouth wider. It was discovered at Kallumkal in Thiruvalla, at the place where Pamba and Manimala rivers merge. • Puntius nigronotus- It has dorsal fin, black in colour and has more rays. Its lateral line scales are greater than its closest relatives. It was discovered at Mananthavady in the hilly Wayanad district.

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• Systomus chryseus- It is golden in colour and its pectoral fin is greatly elongated. It was discovered from Keezhvaipur near Thiruvalla. • Systomus rufus- Its fins are red in colour. It was discovered from Venpala, near Thiruvalla district. All the four new species have received a Zoo bank register number from the International Commission of Zoological Nomenclature (the worldwide scientific authority for naming new animals). The new species of the genus Systomus was discovered after one-and-a-half century. Detailed articles describing these new species have been published in international publications like Journal of Research in Biology and International Journal of Fauna and Biological Studies. India Cements transfers Chennai Super Kings franchise to new subsidiary February 12, 2015 India Cements has transferred the Indian Premier League (IPL) team- Chennai Super Kings Cricket (CSK) franchise to its new subsidiary Chennai Super Kings Cricket (CSKC) Limited. This decision was taken by India Cements Vice-Chairman and Managing Director (MD) N Srinivasan led company’s Board of Directors meeting held in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. While demerging CSK, the Board has approved a reorganisation plan for the newly formed subsidiary. This move will also help shareholders of India Cements exercise their choice- to own only the cement business or the cricket franchise or both With this decision, CSK will be first franchise team in IPL history to be owned by the shareholders of a company. Background • Earlier in September 2014, the Board of Directors India Cements had approved the proposal to demerge Chennai Super Kings (CSK) into a wholly-owned subsidiary of the company, by transferring its net assets at cost. • Under the ownership of India Cements, CSK led by Mahendra Singh Dhoni, had won IPL tournament twice. For first time in IPL Season 3 (2011) and second time in IPL Season 4 (2012). Apple Inc. becomes first company worth over $700 bn in global corporate history February 12, 2015 US technology giant Apple Inc. became the first company to reach a market value of $700 billion. It was able to hit this milestone after its shares rose 1.9 per cent and closing at $122.02, which in turn increased company’s market value to $710 billion. Earlier in January 2015, Apple Inc had recorded highest quarterly profit of 18 billion US dollar in corporate history worldwide after the company sold 74.5 million iPhones in quarter ending December 2014. With its $710 billion market value Apple is far ahead from the number two company, oil giant Exxon Mobil, which is worth around $382 billion in terms of market value. About Apple Inc • Apple Inc. is California based technology giant that designs, develops, and sells consumer electronics, computer software, online services, and personal computers. • It is best-known for its niche hardware products which includes Mac line of computers, the iPod media player, the iPhone smartphone, and the iPad tablet computer. • Apple was foundedrichindia by Steve | Unique Jobs, ID: Steve 2776 |Wozniak, [email protected] and Ronald Wayne in 1976 to develop and sell personal computers. Later in 1977, it was incorporated as Apple Computer. • It was renamed as Apple Inc. in 2007, to reflect its shifted focus towards consumer electronics. • At present, Apple is the world’s second-largest information technology company by revenue after Samsung Electronics, and the world’s third-largest mobile phone maker. SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket successfully launched from Florida February 12, 2015 Unmanned SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket has been successfully launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida on its third attempt.

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• It was carrying unmanned Deep Space Climate Observatorysatellite. This satellite will be used by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to monitor the Sun. It will particularly monitor changes in solar wind and provide warnings on hazardous outbursts from our star to warn forecasters. In turn it will help forecasters to predict changes which affect satellites, power grids and communication systems. About SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket • Falcon 9 rocket is a two-stage rocket designed and manufactured by Space Exploration Technologies Corporation (SpaceX)- a private space transport services company. • It is basically used for the reliable and safe transport of satellites and the Dragon spacecraft into orbit. It is powered by liquid oxygen (LOX) and rocket-grade kerosene (RP-1) propellants. • In 2008, the Falcon 9 and Dragon capsule combination had won a Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) contract from NASA to resupply the International Space Station (ISS) under the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program. Indian Navy conducted HADR Exercise in Lakshadweep Islands February 12, 2015 Indian Navy had conducted Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster relief (HADR) exercise in Lakshadweep Islands (Kavaratti, Aggatti, Kalpeni and Androth). HADR was Indian Navy’s large scale exercise to test its readiness for handling a tsunami like disasters in order to provide immediate succour and relief to the affected people. It involved participation of more than 20 Indian Naval Ships from the Western and Eastern Fleet along with various aircraft of the Indian Navy. Some facts about HADR exercise • The exercise spanned an area of approximately 8,000 square miles in the Indian Ocean. • HADR exercise simulated a major cyclone striking the islands, disrupting essential services and causing widespread destruction of property, loss of life and dislocation of personnel. • The ships in the drill were grouped into four forces, each having a humanitarian assistance and security component. • It involved the navy personnel setting up medical camps and making provisions for food, shelter from the elements, restoration of basic facilities and limited restoration work till the situation stabilised. Indian Navy’s Disaster relief work • December 2014-Indian navy played key role resolving Maldives fresh water crisis by deploying its ships. • 2004- After the disastrous Indian Ocean Tsunami, Indian navy was also at the forefront of relief operations. • Indian navy took part in evacuation operations from Lebanon in 2006 and Libya in 2011 • 2007- provided assistance in Bangladesh during Cyclone Sidr and also in 2008 during Cyclone Nargis in Myanmar. Himachal Pradesh government launches Crime and Criminal Tracking Network System Project February 12, 2015 • Himachal Pradesh government has launched Crime and Criminal Tracking Network System (CCTNS)richindia Project | Unique in ID: the 2776 state. | [email protected] • This project will enable the State Police to raise the benchmark of professional efficiency besides catching interstate criminals more quickly. • It was launched by Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh from State Police Headquarters in Shimla. About Crime and Criminal Tracking Network System (CCTNS) Project • CCTNS project is funded by the Union government with budget of Rs. 19 Crore. • Himachal Pradesh is the first state in India to launch this project prepared by the Union Home Ministry after Mumbai attack of 26/11.

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• CCTNS project will connect 177 sites and 114 police stations in the state besides13 district headquarters, 26 sub-divisional police officers and three police ranges headed by IPG rank officers with state crime records bureau. • It will also connect CID crime branch, 14 control rooms, finger print bureau, forensic science laboratory, 16 CCTNS training centres including state data centre and data recovery centre. • CCTNS project will also provide multiple channels to access citizen-centric services and online access for registering petitions on real-time basis. February 13, 2015 Indian-origin scientist Gurpreet Singh wins $500,000 National Science Foundation CAREER award February 13, 2015 An Indian-origin scientist Gurpreet Singh has won prestigious $500,000 National Science Foundation CAREER award. He has won this award for his research on Scalable liquid exfoliation processing of ultrathin two-dimensional metal dichalcogenides nanosheets for energy storage devices. This CAREER award will help him to study large-scale production of ultrathin sheets, a few atoms thick and several micrometres wide using transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs). At present no methods are available to produce thin TMDs in large quantities cost-effectively. His research aims to make that possible. The prestigious award will also help him to organize educational activities for high school students and teachers. About Gurpreet Singh Currently, Gurpreet Singh is assistant professor of mechanical and nuclear engineering at Kansas State University. Some of his other research had focused on using graphene oxide to improve sodium and lithium ion flexible batteries and creating carbon nanotubes for better laser detectors and rechargeable batteries. About National Science Foundation CAREER award • National Science Foundation CAREER award is given by US National Science Foundation as part of Faculty Early Career Development Programme. • It is awarded to persons for supporting early career faculty who effectively integrate research and education within the context of their institution’s mission. India ranks 136 in World Press Freedom Index (WPFI) 2015 February 13, 2015 In recently released World Press Freedom Index (WPFI), India was placed at 136th rank out of 180 nations surveyed worldwide in terms of press freedom in 2015. In WPFI 2015, India has shown improvement from its rank of 140 in 2014. However, India’s absolute score has declined from 40.34 to 40.49. Top 10 countries: Finland (1st), Norway (2nd), Denmark (3rd), Netherlands (4th), Sweden (5th), New Zealand (6th), Austria (7th), Canada (8th), Jamaica (9th), Estonia (10th). India’s Neighbours: Sri Lanka (165th), Pakistan (159th), Afghanistan (122th), China (176th), Bangladesh (146th). About World Press Freedom Indexrichindia (WPFI) | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] • World Press Freedom Index is produced by France-based international non-governmental organization Reporters Without Borders (RWB), or Reporters Sans Frontières (RSF). • The WPFI ranks the performance of countries according to index calculated based upon various parameters. • These parameters include media pluralism and independence, respect for the safety and freedom of journalists, and the legislative, institutional and infrastructural environment in which the media operate. • WPFI aims to promotes and defends freedom of information and freedom of the press.

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Telugu novelist Kesava Reddy passes away February 13, 2015 Renowned Telugu novelist Kesava Reddy has passed away in Nizamabad district of Telangana. He was 68. He was well known for his writings that had addressed many important social problems in India like poverty, prejudices and superstitions. About Kesava Reddy • Kesava Reddy was born 10 March 1946 in Thalapula Palli village of Chittoor District in Andhra Pradesh. • Medical career: He was doctor by profession and had obtained MBBS degree from Pandichheri medical college. He also had PG diploma in dermatology and had worked as Medical officer in Victoria Hospital, Dichpally, Nizamabad. During his medical career, he had treated a number of leprosy patients. • Writer Career: He had penned eight novels, short and long stories. Some of his novels were translated into English and other languages • His novels are Mugavani Pillana Grovi (1996), Chivari gudise (1996), Athadu Adavini Jayinchadu (1980), Incredible Goddess or Kshudra Devatha (1979), Swasanam dunneru (1979), City Beautiful (1982), Ramudunaadu- Raajjaymundaadi (1982), Muneamma (2008). Union Home Ministry forms three-member SIT to probe 1984 anti-Sikh riot cases February 13, 2015 Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has constituted a three-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) for re- investigation of the 1984 anti-Sikh riot cases mainly in Delhi and other States. • Members: Three-member SIT will be headed by Pramod Asthana, an IPS officer of 1986 batch. It will have retired district and sessions judge Rakesh Kapoor and Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police in Delhi Police Kumar Gyanesh as its members. • Function: Newly-constituted SIT has been empowered to examine afresh evidence in cases which had even been closed. It will also look into all serious criminal cases relating to the riots, examine evidence and even re-open cases and file charge sheets in the courts concerned. Three-member SIT has been given six months to complete its work, including filing of charge sheets in nearly three-decade old cases. Background • The SIT is constituted for re-investigation of the 1984 anti-Sikh riot cases on the recommendation of government-appointed committee headed by former Supreme Court judge Justice G.P. Mathur. • G.P. Mathur committee was constituted in December 2014 to look into the possibility of re- investigation of the 1984 riots and had submitted report to Union Government in January 2015.

Fourth river festival begins in Madhya Pradesh February 13, 2015 Fourth River festival has begun at Bandrabhan bank of Narmada River in Hoshangabad district in Madhya Pradesh. • Three day festival was inaugurated by Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. • Theme of this year’s river festival is River, its catchment area, chemicals and crisis. In this year’s festival more thanrichindia 100 participants | Unique ID: 2776 will | [email protected] topics like effects of chemicals used in agriculture on forests, wild life and human beings. Success stories on natural farming will also be part of discussion. Ashish Agrawal appointed as Chief Technology Officer of Micromax Informatics February 13, 2015 Micromax Informatics has appointed Ashish Agrawal as its new Chief Technology Officer (CTO). As CTO of Micromax, he will be responsible for defining the vision and the direction of company’s software services and driving new initiatives to provide a strong impetus to its brand and bring future technology disruptions into the market. Prior to this appointment, he was working as the CTO for mobile and cloud services player

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Sirqul. He had worked for the execution and adoption of Sirqul’s suite of mobile engagement products and services. Ashish Agrawal has rich corporate experience of 16 years in the field of mobile, e-commerce, payments, web services and large scale distributed systems. Of 16 years, he had spent 14 years with eCommerce giant Amazon in software & product development including Amazon Anywhere (mobile), AWS and payments and also lead development of m-commerce applications for Amazon. Cipla wins Rs 1170 cr tender from Global Fund to supply HIV drugs February 13, 2015 Indian pharmaceutical giant, Cipla has been awarded $188.95 million (around Rs. 1,172 crore) Contract by Global Fund to supply ARV (anti-retroviral) drugs. Cipla has been selected as a Panel Supplier for a supplier partnership agreement. This contract is effective from 1 January 2015 and will run for a period of three years i.e. till 2018. ARV drugs will be made at Cipla’s manufacturing facilities in India which has been approved by various international regulatory agencies. Earlier, Cipla had played a pioneering role in supplying cheaper HIV/AIDS treatment. In 2001, Cipla was first pharmaceutical company to offer ARV drugs at a fraction of the cost in Africa. Since then, it had offered a triple combination ARV at less than a dollar a day and has treated several million patients. Cipla has been associated with Global Fund since 2002. It also one of the suppliers of Global Fund awarded with a long-term contract to supply anti-malarial drugs. About Global Fund It was established in 2002. It operates in a partnership model between governments, civil society, private sector and people to accelerate the end of diseases such as AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. It raises and invests nearly $4 billion annually to support its programs in more than 140 countries. CCSHAU selected for Mahindra Samriddhi India Agri Award 2015 February 13, 2015 Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University (CCSHAU) has been selected for the prestigious Mahindra Samridhi India Agri Award 2015. CCSHAU was selected for this year’s award for • Its contribution in increasing agriculture productivity, rural prosperity and agriculture development of Haryana. • Developing two single cross maize hybrids HM-12 and HM-13 and a wheat variety WH-1105 under the innovative farming technology in year 2014. These hybrids are high yielding, disease resistant and environment friendly and capable of reducing the cost of cultivation. About Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University (CCSHAU) • CCSHAU is state university established under Haryana and Punjab Agricultural Universities Act, 1970 and named after India’s 7th Prime Minister, Chaudhary Charan Singh. • Since its formation CCSHAU had played pivotal role in Green Revolution and White Revolution in India. • Prior to formation ofrichindia Haryana | Unique state, ID: it2776 was | [email protected] satellite campus of Punjab Agricultural University. But after formation of Haryana it was declared as an autonomous institution. • In 1991 it was renamed as Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University. • In 1997, university was awarded Indian Council of Agricultural Research’s Award for the Best Institute. About Mahindra Samridhi India Agri Award • It was instituted in 2010 by multinational automobile manufacturing corporation Mahindra & Mahindra. • Its sole objective is to commend the purposeful contributions that made a difference in the field of agriculture to increase productivity and enhance rural prosperity.

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February 14, 2015 Balasubramaniam Venkataramani appointed as MD & CEO of Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) February 14, 2015 Balasubramaniam Venkataramani has been appointed as new MD & CEO of Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX). He will replace then MD & CEO Manoj Vaish. Prior to this appointment B Venkataramani was Chief Business Officer of Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). The top post at MCX was lying vacant since May 2014, after then MD & CEO Manoj Vaish had resigned. Till the vacant time, Joint Managing Director of MCX P K Singhal was looking after the day-to-day operations of the exchange. About Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) • The MCX is country’s first listed commodity futures exchange that facilitates online trading, and clearing and settlement of commodity futures transactions, thereby providing a platform for risk management. • It began functioning in November 2003 and operates within the regulatory framework of the Forward Contracts Regulation Act, 1952 (FCRA, 1952). • MCX offers futures trading in bullion, ferrous and non-ferrous metals, energy, and a number of agricultural commodities (mentha oil, cardamom, potatoes, palm oil and others). • Globally, MCX ranks no. 1 in silver, no. 2 in natural gas, no. 3 in crude oil and gold in futures trading. Arvind Kejriwal sworn in as 8th CM of Delhi February 14, 2015 Arvind Kejriwal was sworn-in as 8th Chief Minister of Delhi. Lieutenant Governor of Delhi Najeeb Jung administered the oath of office and secrecy to him at oath taking ceremony held at Ramlila Maidan, Delhi. Along with Arvind Kejriwal following 6 Cabinet Ministers were sworn in: • Manish Sisodia, Asim Ahmed Khan, Sandeep Kumar, Satyendar Jain, Gopal Rai and Jitender Singh Tomar. Earlier, President Pranab Mukherjee had appointed Arvind Kejriwal as Chief Minister of Delhi and 6 Ministers of his government as per provisions of Article 239AA of Constitution. With these appointments, President revoked the President’s rule in Delhi which was imposed in February 2014 under Article 239AB of the Constitution . Background In 2015 Delhi Assembly elections, AAP staged a historic victory by sweeping 67 of the 70 seats. This will be Arvind Kejriwal‘s second term as Delhi Chief Minister. Earlier in February 2014, he had resigned after running a 49-day government with the support of Congress. About Arvind Kejriwal • He was born on 16 August 1968 in Siwani, Haryana. • Education: Graduated in Mechanical Engineering from IIT Kharagpur. • He had worked for the Indian Revenue Service (IRS) as a Joint Commissioner in the Income Tax Department. • He was instrumental in drafting a proposed Jan Lokpal Bill and his efforts to bring and implement the Right to Information (RTI) Act at grassroots level. richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] • In 2012, he had launched Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) which ousted the Shiela Dixit’s regime of Congress after winning 2013 Assembly polls. • He is second youngest Chief Minister of Delhi. Chaudhry Brahm Prakash was the youngest Chief Minsiter at 34 when he took over in 1952. • In 2006 he was awarded Ramon Magsaysay Award for Emergent Leadership. 23rd edition of New Delhi World Book Fair begins February 14, 2015 The 23rd edition of the New Delhi World Book Fair began at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi.

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This year the theme of fair is Suryodaya: Emerging Voices from Northeast India. Singapore has been accorded the Guest of Honour Country status for this edition of fair while the Focus Country is South Korea. The nine-day event has been organised by National Book Trust (NBT), an apex body of the under the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development. While, India Trade Promotion Organisation (ITPO) is the Co- organizer. Over 1,500 exhibitors from all over India and 30 countries are participating in this year’s fair. Besides, the fair also hosting many literary and publishing conferences, emerging new voices in Indian writing as well as special programmes for children and youth. About New Delhi World Book Fair The Delhi Book Fair is India’s oldest book fair organized at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi. First Delhi Book Fair Was held in March 1972 and was inaugurated by then President of India VV Giri, India signs $8 million loan agreement with World Bank for SLACC Project February 14, 2015 India signed a loan grant agreement worth US $8 million with World Bank for Sustainable Livelihoods and Adaption to Climate change (SLACC) Project. The agreement was signed by Joint Secretary in Union Ministry of Finance Tarun Bajaj and World Bank’s India Country Director Onno Ruhl. About Sustainable Livelihoods and Adaption to Climate change (SLACC) Project • SLACC Project aims at improving the adaptive capacity of the rural poor particularly women farmers engaged in farm-based livelihoods to cope with climate change and scale up the demonstrated best practices. • SLACC project will be implemented in collaboration with government programs such as Mahila Kisan Sashaktikaran Pariyojana (MKSP) and Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS). • While, National Rural Livelihoods Mission (NRLM) is the implementing agency of SLACC. • It will focus to provide assistance in Climatic hazards that affect the availability of natural resources, which adversely affect the livelihoods of the poor by impacting production, affecting incomes and preventing building up of assets. India successfully test-fires BrahMos supersonic cruise missile from INS Kolkata February 14, 2015 India has successfully test-fired its 290-km range BrahMos supersonic cruise missile from the Navy’s indigenously built destroyer INS Kolkata. The successful test fire of missile took place off the Goa coast after it met all its designed test parameters. Thus, showcasing INS Kolkata’s capability of firing the BrahMos missiles. About INS Kolkata • INS Kolkata was commissioned by the Indian Navy on 16 August 2014. The ship was indigenously built by Mazagon Dockyards Limited under Project 15-Alpha series. • INS Kolkata has unique feature of firing 16 BrahMos missiles in one go in salvo mode compared to normal destroyer which has the capacity to fire eight missiles. • The ship also equipped with the Universal Vertical Launcher (UVLM) which is designed, developed and patented by BrahMos Aerospace. UVLM provides ship with the benefits of stealth and permits launching of the missilerichindia vertically | Unique in ID: any 2776 direction. | [email protected] About BrahMos missile • BrahMos supersonic cruise missile designed and developed by BrahMos Aerospace, a joint venture of India and Russia. Missile’s name has been derived from the names of two rivers, India’s Brahmaputra River and Russia’s Moskva River. • Features- It is capable of carrying a warhead of 300 kilogram and has top supersonic speed of Mach 2.8. It is two-stage missile, the first one being solid and the second one ramjet liquid propellant. • BrahMos has already been inducted into the Indian Army and Navy. While, the Air Force version is in final stage of trial.

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PM Narendra Modi inaugurates Permanent Judicial Museum at Bombay High Court February 14, 2015 Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated a Permanent Judicial Museum at Bombay High Court located on the ground floor of the heritage building of court. This museum is conceived and set up as part of the Sesquicentennial Celebration (150th year) of the Bombay High Court. Key highlights • It is first of its kind museum in Maharashtra designed by Advocate Rajan Jaykar. It displays antique items associated with the rich history of the 150 year old court. • Museum displays some historic and important documents such as the barrister certificates of Mahatma Gandhi, Dr B R Ambedkar, Mohammed Ali Jinnah, judgment copies of sedition cases against Lokmanya Tilak. • It also displays barrister certificates of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, K M Munshi and the first Chief Justice of India, M C Chhagla. • It showcases a cannon dating back to 1864, the charter by which Queen Victoria established the Bombay High Court in 1862, and subsequent charters from 1879 giving more powers to the court. • There are old candle stands with original glass casings, inkpots and paperweights, an original wig, a silver mace and other judicial paraphernalia on display. The first judicial museum in the country was opened at Supreme Court of India premises in Delhi. It should be noted that Madras high court, Punjab and Haryana high court and Madhya Pradesh high court, also have their own museums displaying their glorious past. February 15, 2015 Muthoot Group partners with WWF for elephant project February 15, 2015 Kerala-based business conglomerate Muthoot Group has launched the Friends for Life project in partnership with World Wide Fund (WWF) for Nature-India. This project aims at effective management of human-elephant conflict (HEC) to protect the habitats of Asian elephants in six states as 4 priority landscapes and 1 priority site earmarked by WWF-India. Priority landscapes include North Bank landscape in Arunachal Pradesh, Kaziranga and Karbi-Anglong in Assam, Terai Arc landscape in Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, Western Ghats landscape in Tamil Nadu and Kerala and also some parts of northern West Bengal. This project was launched in Kochi as part of the Muthoot’s Haathi Mera Saathi Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative. This project will address the problems and provide solutions in terms of reducing elephant and human lives lost in the earmarked priority landscapes. It will also secure crop and property damage in villages and build a future where humans and elephants can live in harmony with each other in selected landscapes. Third National Lok Adalat disposes 56000 cases, disburses Rs 265 crore February 15, 2015 The third National Lok Adalatrichindia was | Uniqueorganised ID: 2776 on | [email protected] February 2015 throughout India involving the Supreme Court, high courts, districts courts and taluka-level courts, except in Assam and Uttar Pradesh. It was organised under the patronage of Chief Justice of India (CJI) H L Dattu and the leadership of Supreme Court Judge Justice T S Thakur. Nearly 56,000 cases were disposed of by the third National Lok Adalat in a single day. It also saw disbursal of Rs 265 crore as claims towards final settlement in bank recovery and cheques bounce cases.

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Third Lok Adalat was organised by the National Legal Service Authority (NALSA) to disburse cases related bank recovery, cheques bounce cases, particularly under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881. Several banks, financial institutions and others had participated in it. First National Lok Adalats was held in November 2013 and had settled a record 71.50 lakh cases pending in various courts. The second National Lok Adalat was held in December 2014 and had disposed of over 1.25 crore cases. About Lok Adalats • Lok Adalats (people’s courts) settle dispute through conciliation and compromise. The First Lok Adalat was held in Una city in Junagarh district of Gujarat in 1982. • Generally, Lok Adalat accepts the cases pending in the regular courts within their jurisdiction which could be settled by conciliation and compromise. • The decision of the Lok Adalat is binding on the parties to the dispute and its order is capable of execution through legal process. No appeal lies against the order of the Lok Adalat.

Women Scientists Tessy Thomas, Geeta Varadan selected for Dr.Y. Nayudamma Memorial Award 2014 February 15, 2015 Two women scientists have been chosen as joint recipients of Dr.Y. Nayudamma Memorial Award 2014. The award is being conferred on them jointly for their significant contributions in the fields of missile technology and remote sensing. Recipients are • Tessy Thomas- Director, Advanced Systems Laboratory of DRDO and Project Director (Mission) Agni V. • Geeta Varadan- Director Advanced Data Processing Research Institute of ISRO. This is the first time in history of this award that two eminent women scientists are being awarded concurrently. About Dr.Y. Nayudamma Memorial Award • This award was established in 1986 in memory of distinguished chemical scientist and internationally renowned leather technologist Yelavarthy Nayudamma. • It is conferred annually on persons who have made important contributions to the development of science and technology in the country. World renowned astrophysics scientist and cosmologist Jayant Vishnu Narlikar was conferred with this award for the year 2013. PM Narendra Modi inaugurated first renewable energy global investors meet February 15, 2015 Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the first Renewable Energy Global Investors Meet and Expo (Re-Invest) 2015 in New Delhi. The aim of the meet is to evolve innovative financial models for funding and to ensure the partnership of states and the Centre in harnessing renewable energy. Germany is the partner country for Re-Invest 2015 and over 2500 delegates including exhibitors from 45 countries are participating in the three day event. Key highlights of Re-Invest 2015 • Re-Invest 2015 will showcaserichindia | Unique the Union ID: 2776 Government’s | [email protected] commitment in the development and scaling up of renewable energy in a socially, economically and ecologically sustainable manner to meet the national energy requirement. • It will provide single platform to attract large scale investments for solar and wind power generation in India. • Re-Invest 2015 includes several sessions headed by experts from the renewable energy industry, equipment manufacturers. It also include sessions of global financial institutions, Public Sector Enterprises, regulatory authorities, Central and state governments, research institutions and academia.

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At present, renewable energy contributes over 6 percent of the total power generated in India. Union government is planning to double its share to 12 percent with an investment of $100 billion over the next four-five years. To increase the share of renewable energy, government also has revised the target of solar power generation from 20,000 MW by 2022 to 100,000 MW by 2020. Chhattisgarh government gets award for renewable power development February 15, 2015 Chhattisgarh has won award for being one of the best-performing states in the renewable energy segment in India. Principal Secretary of Chhattisgarh’s Energy department, Aman Singh was presented this award by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the first Renewable Energy Global Investors Meet (RE-Invest) 2015 held in New Delhi. The state was adjudged this award on the basis of criteria fixed by 13th Finance Commission headed by Vijay Kelkar. Renewable energy sector in Chhattisgarh • Chhattisgarh has done commendable work in renewable energy sector. • Currently, solar power is powering 600 primary health centre, 100 community health centre, 350 police stations, 1800 tribal hostels, 27 collectorates and 1,700 villages of the state. • In addition, various villages in Chhattisgarh are using 3,000 solar power pumps for drinking water and 1,500 for irrigation purpose. • State is generating 45 MW off grid solar power and 200 MW through rice husk. February 16, 2015 Nagesh Kukunoor’s film Dhanak honoured at 65th Berlin Film Festival February 16, 2015 Filmmaker Nagesh Kukunoor’s film Dhanak has been honoured with The Grand Prix of the Generation Kplus International Jury for the best feature-length film at the 65th Berlin International Film Festival (also known as the Berlinale). The movie, which was premiered at the festival also has received a honour of special mention with the children’s jury at the festival. About film Dhanak • Film’s story revolves around the relationship between a 10-year old girl Pari and Chotu, her 8-year old brother who live in a picturesque village. • Directed by Nagesh Kukunoor • The film stars: Hetal Gada and Krrish Chhabria. • Produced by: Elahe Hiptoola, Nagesh Kukunoor, Manish Mundra China opens largest embassy in Islamabad, Pakistan February 16, 2015 China has opened new embassy in Islamabad, Pakistan. It is the largest overseas diplomatic mission of China. An opening ceremony of this embassy was held on 13 February 2015, during China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi ‘s three day visit to Pakistan. During the opening ceremony Wang Yi has described its largest overseas embassy as a symbol of friendshiprichindia between | Unique ID:China 2776 and | [email protected] Pakistan. • However, China has not disclosed the details of the new embassy. • The opening of China’s largest Islamabad based embassy came after China and Pakistan deepen their all weather relations by constructing the multi-billion Economic Corridor through the Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK) region. • Economic Corridor through PoK, is part of the China’s ambititous Silk Road projects which is proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping. This Corridor aims to connect China’s Xinjiang province with Pakistan’s Gwadar Port located in Balochistan. At present, China maintains large diplomatic missions abroad, including in Washington, New York and New Delhi. Its mission in New Delhi has over 300 personnel.

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UN adopts resolution to resolve political & security crisis in Yemen February 16, 2015 The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) has adopted a unanimous resolution to resolve the political and security crisis in Yemen. In this regard, Resolution 2201 (2015) was adopted unanimously, at 15 nations UNSC’s emergency meeting. UNSC in its adopted resolution has asked for immediate and unconditional withdrawal of Shia Houthi rebel forces from Yemen’s government institutions in its capital Sanaa. It also has sought the release of President Mansour Hadi and his Cabinet from house arrest, and urged Houthi rebels to engage in good faith in U.N.- led peace talks. Background The UN resolution comes a day after foreign ministers of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) had urged the U.N. to intervene in order to maintain regional security. The security situation in Yemen deteriorated after the Shia Houthis rebels had seized power by dissolving Yemen’s government and parliament in January 2015 after taking control of key government buildings in capital Sanaa including Presidential Palace. Amidst security concerns, nine Arab and Western countries have closed their embassies in Yemen and evacuated diplomats. It include’s countries like UAE, Saudi Arabia, the United States, Germany, Britain, France and Italy. French actor Louis Jourdan passes away February 16, 2015 French actor Louis Jourdan has passed away on 14 February 2015 in Los Angeles, United States. He was 93. He was best known for his role in the multi-Oscar winning musical film Gigi of 1958 . About Louis Jourdan • Louis Jourdan was born on 19 June 1921 in Marseilles, France. • He began his acting career in French films and later acted in the Hollywood films. He is often described himself as Hollywood’s French cliche. • His early career in France was interrupted by Second World War as he had refused to star in Nazi propaganda films and joined the resistance. • He was best known for his suave roles in several Hollywood films, including The Paradine Case (1947), Letter from an Unknown Woman (1948), Gigi (1958), The Best of Everything (1959), The V.I.P.s (1963) and Octopussy (1983). • Jourdan had sang title tune of film Gigi which had won the Oscar for best song in 1958. Film Gigi had dominated the 1959 Academy Awards by winning nine Oscars, a record at the time. • His also had played evil villains role in many films including in the 1983 Bond film Octopussy. • In 2010 he was given France’s top civilian award, the Legion D’Honneur. India, Sri Lanka inks agreement on civil nuclear cooperation, Cultural cooperation February 16, 2015 India and Sri Lanka have signed an agreement on civil nuclear cooperation, Cultural cooperation during Sri Lanka’s newly elected President Maithripala Sirisen four-day visit to India. Sri Lanka has signed first such bilateral agreement on civil nuclearichindiar |cooperation. Unique ID: 2776 Following | [email protected] agreements were signed between India and Sri Lanka • Agreement on Cooperation in the Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy- It will facilitate the transfer and exchange of knowledge and expertise, resources in peaceful uses of Nuclear energy between both nations. This agreement also includes capacity building and training of personnel for nuclear security, radioactive waste management and nuclear and radiological disaster mitigation and environmental protection. • Programme of Cultural cooperation between both nations for years 2015-18 –It seeks to enhance cooperation in different fields like arts, visuals arts, cultural documentation, archeology, handicrafts etc between both nations.

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• MoU on establishment of Nalanda University- It will enable Sri Lanka to participate in India’s Nalanda University project. • Work Plan 2014-15 under MoU on Cooperation in the field of Agriculture- It will facilitate bilateral cooperation in Agro Processing, Agricultural extension, horticulture, agricultural machinery, training in farm mechanization, livestock diseases, etc. between relevant institutes and organizations from both countries. Former home minister of Maharashtra RR Patil passes away February 16, 2015 Former Home Minister of Maharashtra, Raosaheb Ramrao Patilhas passed away in Mumbai. He was 57 years old and was suffering from oral cancer. About Raosaheb Ramrao Patil • R. R Patil was born on 16 August 1957 in Anjani village of Sangli district in Maharashtra. He was popularly known as Aaba. • His political career spanned over 25 years and belonged to the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). He was elected to the Maharashtra legislative assembly for consecutive 6 times in 1990, 1995, 1999, 2004, 2009 and 2014 from Tasgaon constituency of Sangli district. • R. R Patil was Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra from November 2004 to December 2008 during the NCP-Congress coalition government. • He was among the longest serving home ministers of Maharashtra i.e. for two times during the NCP-Congress coalition government. For first time in December 2003 to December 2008 and for second time in October 2009 – September 2014. HTC appoints Faisal Siddiqui as new South Asia chief February 16, 2015 Taiwanese smartphone maker HTC has appointed Faisal Siddiqui as new regional President of HTC South Asia. He will replace current president Jack Yang, who is leaving the company for personal reasons. Currently, Faisal Siddiqui is Vice President and head of HTC India. As president of HTC South Asia he will lead company and work to strengthen the company in the region which includes, India, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and emerging markets in Asia. Faisal Siddiqui has more than 18 years of rich industry experience and has been leading HTC’s India operations since 2011. February 17, 2015 Punit Renjen appointed as CEO of Deloitte’s global operations February 17, 2015 Punit Renjen was appointed as the Chief executive officer (CEO) of accounting giant Deloitte’s global operations. He will succeed Barry Salzberg and assume his new role of Deloitte Global CEO from 1 June 2015. Currently he is serving asrichindia US business | Unique ChairmanID: 2776 | [email protected] and CEO of the Deloitte group. Deloitte is U.S. based accounting giant which is present across 150 countries including India and employs over two lakh people. It is one of the four largest audit firms in the world and competes with PwC, KPMG and EY. With this appointment, Punit Renjen is the first Indian-origin person to head a Big-Four global audit firms. He also has joined a growing list of persons of Indian origin who have made to the top posts at multi-billion dollar global corporations. This list includes Indira Nooyi of PepsiCo, Satya Nadela of Microsoft and Anshu Jain of Deutsche Bank. About Punit Renjen • Punit Renjen hails from Rohtak, Haryana.

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• He grew up in India and holds a bachelor’s degree with honours and a master’s degree in management from Willamette University, U.S. • Renjen has rich and wide experience of 27 years with Deloitte and has held a number of leadership positions, including chairman and CEO of Deloitte Consulting LLP. • In addition, he also had served as a member of the board of directors of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited (Deloitte Global). • Renjen was also Chairman of the Deloitte Foundation board of directors. • In 2007, he was named in Consulting magazine’s Top 25 Most Influential Consultants. Union Government imposes Anti-dumping duty on graphite electrodes imports February 17, 2015 Union Ministry of Finance has imposed an anti-dumping duty on imports of graphite electrodes used in steel plants for five years. The imposed duty ranges between $278.19 and $922.03 per tonne. The decision was taken following the recommendations of the Directorate General of Anti-Dumping Duty (DGAD). Earlier, DGAD had initiated and conducted investigation into dumping, on complaints of domestic manufacturers- HEG and Graphite India With this move, government aims to protect the domestic industry from below-cost shipments of graphite electrodes. It should be noted that the graphite electrodes are used in melting of steel. What is Anti-Dumping Duty? • It is duty imposed by government on imported products which have prices less than their normal values or domestic price. • Usually countries initiate anti-dumping probes to check if domestic industry has been hurt because of a surge in below-cost imports. • Anti-Dumping Duty is imposed under the multilateral WTO regime and vary from product to product and from country to country. • In India, anti-dumping duty is recommended by the Union Ministry of Commerce, while the Union Finance Ministry imposes it. Veteran journalist, cartoonist Rajinder Puri passes away February 17, 2015 Veteran journalist, cartoonist and political activist Rajinder Puri has passed away on 15 February 2015 in New Delhi. He was 80. About Rajinder Puri Rajinder Puri was born in on 20 September 1934 in Karachi (in undivided India) now in Pakistan. • His distinguished career as journalist and cartoonist spanned for more than six decades. • He drew cartoons for international daily The Statesman in 1956-57. Later he drew cartoons briefly for international newspapers like The Guardian and The Glasgow Herald (1958–59). • He was associated with Hindustan Times from 1959 to 1967. From 1972 to 1977, he was the editor and proprietor of Stir Weekly. richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] • Rajinder Puri was the founding General Secretary of the Janata Party in 1977. He has authored many books which includes India 1969: a crisis of conscience (1971), India the wasted years: 1969-1975 (1975), Government that works– and how! (1989), Recovery of India (1992), Bull’s Eye (2004). Infosys acquires automation tech firm Panaya for $200 million February 17, 2015 India’s software services giant Infosys has announced to acquire to acquire US-based automation technology firm Panaya. In this regard, Infosys has signed a definitive agreement to fully acquire Panaya for an enterprise value of $200 million (1200 crore rupees) in cash.

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Acquisition of Panaya is part of Infosys new strategy to enhance its competitiveness and productivity of current service lines by leveraging automation, innovation and artificial intelligence. It also the first major acquisition since Vishal Sikka took over as the CEO and MD of the company. Panaya was founded in 2005 in Israel by its current CEO Doron Gerstel. It has around 50 employees and its clients include Coca-Cola, Mercedes-Benz, Bosch, Whirlpool, GSK and Siemen . Panaya is the Infosy’s second largest acquisition after it had acquired Zurich-based consulting company in 2012 for around $350 million. Jawed Usmani takes oath as Chief Information Commissioner (CIC) of UP February 17, 2015 Former IAS officer Jawed Usmani took oath as Chief Information Commissioner (CIC) of Uttar Pradesh (UP). He was administered oath to office by Governor of UP Ram Naik at a function at Raj Bhawan in Lucknow. He was sworn-in to office after he had taken voluntary retirement as Chairman of the Uttar Pradesh Board of Revenue. Background Jawed Usmani was appointed as UP CIC in November 2014. But during this appointment, he was the chairman of Uttar Pradesh Board of Revenue. He was able to take over as state CIC as Right to Information Act, 2005 has provision mentioning that any person while he/she is in government service cannot be can be appointed to this statutory post. Croatia’s first female president Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic sworn-in February 18, 2015 Croatia’s first female President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic was sworn in on 15 February 2015. She is Croatia’s fourth president since its independence from Yugoslavia in 1991. The Croatian president has a largely ceremonial role and has term a five-year term. In January 2015 election run-off, Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic had narrowly defeated her left- wing predecessor Ivo Josipovic. In this election she had secured 50.5% of the votes while her predecessor Ivo Josipovic had secured 49.5% votes. About Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic is member of Croatia’s politically conservative Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) party, which had played in the country’s independence. She was also the first woman appointed as Assistant Secretary General for Public Diplomacy at NATO and was in office from 2011 until 2014. Prior to this Kitarovic was also the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Croatia from 2005 to 2008 and Croatia’s Ambassador to the United States from 2008 to 2011. February 18, 2015 IGI Airport ranked best by Airport Council International February 18, 2015 Airport Council International (ACI) has ranked Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport of Delhi as the world’s most performing airports in the 25-40 million passengers per annum (MPPA) category. For this achievement, IGI has won the annual ASI’s Airport Service Quality (ASQ) award for the year 2014. This award recognises and rewards the best airports in the world based upon Geneva-based ACI’s ASQ passenger satisfaction survey.richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] While in this rankings, Chhatrapati Shivaji International (CSI) Airport of Mumbai was placed at Fifth position. IGI is run by Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL), a joint venture between the Airports Authority of India (AAI) and GMR Group-led consortium. While, the CSI is run by Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL), a joint venture between the AAI and GVK group-led consortium. ASI’s Airport Service Quality (ASQ) passenger satisfaction survey The survey rates each airport’s performance in 34 key service areas under eight major categories. These 8 categories include access, check-in, security, airport facilities, food and beverage providers etc at more than 300 airports worldwide.

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All participating airports use the same survey questions, creating an industry standard set of responses that allows participants them analyse their performance. The results of the survey also allow airports to track and analyse their performance by comparing other airports around the globe. 10th Aero India show begins in Bengaluru February 18, 2015 10th edition of Aero India show has begun at the Yelahanka Air Force Station in Bengaluru, Karnataka. It was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. During the inaugural ceremony audience witnessed the mind-boggling performance of Sarang aerobatic team from the Indian Air Force (IAF) flying the Dhruv helicopters. Audience also witnessed the aerobatic performances of the aerobatic teams from Sweden, England, Czech Republic and Open Sky Jump team from US. Key highlights 10th Aero India show • This edition of Aero Show is placing special emphasis on Union governments Make in India campaign. It is also focusing to encourage small and medium industries to invest in defence manufacturing base. • Delegates from 109 countries are participating in the event and over 700 companies from India and abroad are taking part in the exhibition. • In the exhibition, India is showcasing its indigenously made Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas, Advanced Light Helicopter Dhruv, radars, missiles, satellites, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and Airborne early warning and control system (AWACS) . • While the foreign military aircraft that are displayed include F-15C Eagle, Lockheed F- 16C, Boeing KC-135, Boeing C-17, Rafale and Embraer EMB-145I etc. About Aero India show Aero India Show is a biennial air show and aviation exhibition held in Bangaluru at the Yelahanka Air Force Station. The exhibition provides a single platform to many manufacturers and service providers from the Indian aerospace and abroad to meet the potential buyers for their products. It is organized by Defence Exhibition Organisation under the aegis of Ministry of Defence. The first edition of the air show was held in 1996. Veteran film producer and movie mogul Daggubati Ramanaidu passes away February 18, 2015 Veteran multilingual film producer Daggubati Ramanaidu has passed away in Hyderabad, Telangana. He was 78 and was suffering from prostate cancer. D Ramanaidu was popularly known as movie mogul and was the only Indian filmmaker to produce movies in so many languages including in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Oriya, Punjabi and English. About Daggubati Ramanaidu • D Ramanaidu was born on 6 June 1936 in Karamchedu village of Prakasam district in Andhra Pradesh. • Film career- In his early life before getting into film industry, he had taken several odd jobs such as

rice mill business and richindiaa bus transport | Unique ID: business 2776 | [email protected] in Karamchedu. • In 1960’s he started Suresh Productions and in 1964, made debut as producer in film Raamudu Bheemudu. • In 1980’s he had established Rama Naidu Studios in Hyderabad. • He holds the Guinness Book of World Records for the most films produced by an individual, as he has produced more than 150 films in 13 Indian languages. • Political career- He was a member of parliament (MP) in the 13th Lok Sabha from 1999–2004. He had represented Telugu Desam Party (TDP) from Bapatala constituency of Guntur District, Andhra Pradesh. • Awards- He was conferred with the Dada Saheb Phalke Award (2009) and Padma Bhushan (2012) in recognition for his contribution to Telugu cinema.

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• Film awards- National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Bengali- Asukh (1999), Filmfare Best Film Award (Telugu)- Jeevana Tarangalu (1973), Filmfare Best Film Award (Telugu)- Soggadu (1976), Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award- South (2000) • His Preminchu movie has won 5 Nandi Awards during the year 2001 – 2002. First National Tribal Festival Vanaj concludes in New Delhi February 18, 2015 The first National Tribal Festival ‘Vanaj’ concluded on 18 February 2015 in New Delhi. It was organised by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs and was inaugurated by the Union Minister of Tribal Affairs Jual Oram on 13 February 2015 at the Indira Gandhi National Center for Arts (IGNCA), New Delhi. Key facts • The aim of weeklong National Tribal Festival was to bridge the gaps of social divide and promote tribal culture in India. • The purpose of the festival was to uplift the quality of tribal lives of the country in order to conserve and promote their distinctive cultures by providing them national platform. • More than 900 folk and tribal artists from states like Assam, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Nagaland, Odisha, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal participated in it. • Maiden edition of the festival showcased the rich diversity of Tribal culture, art, painting, music, dance, tribal medicine, tribal food, and a special attraction- tribal cuisine. • The events of this festival were held at three venues in Delhi which included Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts, Baba Kharak Singh Marg and Central Park in Connaught Place. • Tribal market was also recreated at the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts, which provided tribals from different states platform to sell the rural crafts, herbs and medicines etc. Former Odisha minister and senior BJD leader Kalindi Charan Behera passes away February 18, 2015 Biju Janata Dal (BJD) Vice-President and former Odisha Minister Kalindi Charan Behera passed away at Bhubaneswar. He was 71. About Kalindi Charan Behera • Prior joining politics Kalindi Charan Behera was a professor and also a writer of repute with keen interest in socio-cultural affairs. • He was elected to the Odisha State Legislative Assembly for five times. For the first time, he had won from Salepur constituency in 1977 as a Janata Party candidate. • Later, he represented the same seat for three times as a Janata Dal candidate in 1990 and as BJD candidate in 2000 and 2004. In 2009, he was elected from the Cuttack Sadar constituency on a BJD ticket. • He also had held several important portfolios in the state council of ministers, first under the late Chief Minister (Cm) of Odhisa Biju Patnaik and then under his son and current CM of Odhisa Naveen Patnaik. Highlights of India-Myanmar 5th Joint Trade Committee Meeting February 18, 2015 richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] The 5th India- Myanmar Joint Trade Committee (JTC) meeting was held in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar. The JTC meeting was co-chaired by Minister of Commerce & Industry Nirmala Sitharaman and Myanmar Union Minister of Commerce U Win Myint. Both sides had intensive interaction and exchanged views to find ways and means to enhance the bilateral trade and investment ties. In 5th India- Myanmar JTC meeting, both nations agreed to • Remove the bottlenecks- Work together to remove the bottlenecks that hampers the bilateral trade and investment such as lack of good connectivity, banking arrangement both for regular and

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border trade. In order to remove bottlenecks, India has offered to support Myanmar to develop infrastructure at the border trade points, upgrade its trade training institutes in Yangon. • India’s assistance to Myanmar- India to provide training to Myanmar officials on WTO and international trade related issues and supporting the subsidized direct shipping link between India and Myanmar to promote bilateral trade. • Strengthen mutual relationship in various fields- Both nations will strengthen mutual relationship in the field of promoting two-ways investment, infrastructure development particularly to promote border trade, connectivity, agriculture, energy, skill and entrepreneurial development, pharmaceutical and people-to-people contacts. • The next Joint Trade and Investment Forum in Chennai during which Myanmar will organize a roadshow showcasing investment opportunities in Myanmar especially in the special economic zones. In future, two Ministers will jointly inaugurate the land custom station in Zawkhatar, Mizoram. Bharti Airtel partners with UNICEF to provide education content in Africa February 18, 2015 Indian telecom giant Bharti Airtel Limited has partnered with United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to provide health, education and youth-focussed content to its customers in 17 African countries. In this regard, Bharti Airtel limited and UNICEF have signed partnership agreement. Partnership between them aims to improve African population’s access to health and education-related information from various innovative projects supported by UNICEF. This agreement will help UNICEF to tap into Airtel’s mobile services to spread its health, education and youth-focused content to Airtel customers across the 17 African countries. Through Airtel’s improved connectivity, mobile applications and services developed by UNICEF, such as eduTrac, mTrac and U-report will be freely accessible to Africans in these 17 countries. Thus, by improving connectivity, this partnership seeks to empower millions of African children and youth with information and opportunities to help them become agents of change in their societies. February 19, 2015 Bihar government announces 35% reservation for women in non-gazetted government jobs February 19, 2015 Bihar government has announced 35% reservation for women in non-gazetted government jobs in group C and D grade. This decision was taken at state cabinet meeting presided by Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi. The cabinet meeting also took following decisions • Hiked Member of Legislative Assembly Development Fund (MLADF) from the present Rs. 2 crore in a year to Rs. 3 crore from the next financial year. • Proposal to pay 13 months salary in place of 12 months to policemen upto inspector rank. • Hiked the daily wage of home guards to Rs. 400 from Rs. 300 at present. • Enhance the paymentrichindia of agricultural | Unique ID: 2776advisors | [email protected] to Rs. 7,000 per month from Rs. 6,000 per month at present. Snapdeal acquires luxury goods portal Exclusively.com February 19, 2015 Online retailer Snapdeal.com has acquired luxury fashion portal Exclusively.com for an undisclosed amount. With this acquisition, Snapdeal is seeking to expand its presence in the high-end fashion segment and targeting $2 billion in gross merchandise value (GMV) by the end of the current calendar year.

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It will also complement Snapdeal’s existing ecosystem and provide it with a consolidated offering for the luxury and lifestyle shopper, making it India’s first online luxury mall. The acquisition of Exclusively is similar to India’s e-commerce giant and Snapdeal’s arch rival Flipkart. Earlier in May 2015, Flipkart had acquired online fashion retailer Myntra for an estimated Rs 2,000 crore deal. About Snapdeal.com • Snapdeal.com was started in February 2010. • It was founded by Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal, an alumnus of IIT Delhi. Since its formation Snapdeal has grown to become the largest online marketplace in India. At present it offers an assortment of 4 million+ products across diverse categories from over 50,000 sellers, shipping to 4,000 towns and cities in India. Kalyani Group announces joint venture with Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defence System February 19, 2015 India’s Kalyani Group has announced a joint venture (JV) with Rafael Advanced Defence System of Israel. This joint venture company will be based in India. It was announced by Chairman and Managing Director (MD) of Kalyani Group Baba Kalyani. It will be the first such venture under the new Foreign direct investment (FDI) limits in defence sector. Key facts • The joint venture company initiative is in line with the government’s Make in India policy. • It will enable the development and production of high-end technology and expand the defence industry base in the country. • The joint venture will be a 51:49 partnership basis. • Kalyani Group will be holding 51 per cent stake in it as per the new FDI norms (FDI cap in defence to 49 per cent). While, Rafael Advanced Defence System will be holding 49 per cent stake. Rashad Hussain appointed as US Special Envoy and Coordinator February 19, 2015 Rashad Hussain, an Indian-American has been appointed United States (US) Special Envoy and Coordinator for Strategic Counterterrorism Communications. He will hold both posts. Prior to this appointment, he was Special Envoy of the US to Organisation for Islamic Countries (OIC). As Special Envoy he will lead a staff from a number of U.S. departments and agencies to expand global engagement and partnerships of the US to counter violent extremism. As part of new role, he will also coordinate, orient, and inform government-wide strategic communications focused on violent extremists and terrorist organisations. About Rashad Hussain • Rashad Hussain is son of Indian immigrants from state of Bihar. • In 2009 he had served as Deputy Associate Counsel to US President Barack Obama and focused issues related to national security, new media, and science and technology. • He had also served as Director for Global Engagement at the National Security Council (NSC) and as a Special Assistant US Attorneyrichindia in | UniqueWashington, ID: 2776 where | [email protected] he had prosecuted criminal cases. • Award- In 2013, he was awarded US Distinguished Honor Award for his exceptionally outstanding service to the agencies of the US Government. India successfully test-fires N-capable Prithvi-II missile in Odisha February 19, 2015 India successfully test-fired its nuclear capable Prithvi-II surface-to-surface missile from a test range at Chandipur in Odisha. Test- It was conducted by the Strategic Force Command (SFC) and monitored by the scientists of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). Missile was fired from

58 / 87 Current Affairs : February 2015 a mobile launcher from launch complex-3 of the Integrated Test Range (ITR) as part of a user trial by the army and met all mission objectives. About Prithvi-II missile Prithvi-II missile is the first missile indigenously developed by DRDO under India’s prestigious Integrated Guided Missile Development Program (IGMDP). It was inducted into India’s SFC in 2003. Features • Surface to surface ballistic missile. • Variants: Prithvi-I for the Army; Prithvi-II for the Indian Air Force; and the Dhanush for the Navy. • Single-stage, Liquid-propelled. • Advanced inertial navigation, control and guidance system. It uses advanced inertial guidance system with manoeuvering trajectory. • Payload capacity: 500-1,000 kg. • Range: 350 km. Eminent Odisha film maker Nirad Mahapatra passes away February 19, 2015 Eminent filmmaker from Odisha Nirad Mahapatra passed away in Mumbai. He was 67. As a film-maker, he was best-known for his cultural, ecological and industrial documentaries. About Nirad Mahapatra • Nirad Mahapatra was born on born 12 November 1947 in Bhadrak, Balasore district of Odisha Odisha. • He was an alumni of the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune. • Mahapatra was lecturer at FTII from 1972-1974 and had taught acclaimed directors like Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Saeed Mirza and Ketan Mehta. He was also in the Board of Directors of FTII. • He made into international fame with his very first film Maya Miriga. In 1984 the film had won a Rajat Kamal at the National Film Awards. Later it won a special jury award at the Cannes Film Festival. • In his film maker career, he made several exceptional documentaries and won many awards. Veteran Spinner Anil Kumble inducted in ICC Cricket Hall of Fame February 19, 2015 Former India Captain and ace spinner Anil Kumble has been chosen to be inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. He will be 77th inductee into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. He will be felicitated and inducted on 22 February 2015 during the ICC Cricket World Cup match between India and South Africa in Melbourne. • Anil Kumble had played 132 Tests and 271 One Day Internationals (ODIs) from 1990 to 2008. • In his cricket career he had taken 619 Test wickets and is the 3rd highest wicket-taker in Test cricket after Muttiah Muralidaran (800 wickets) and Shane Warne (708 wickets). • He alsorichindia had claimed | Unique ID:337 2776 wickets | [email protected] in ODIs making him the 9th most successful all-time great bowlers in this format. • Kumble is one of only two bowlers in history of cricket after England’s Jim Laker who had taken all 10 wickets in an innings. • He was captain of Indian Team and led it in 14 Tests between 2007 and 2008 . • Kumble also has scored 2,506 runs in Tests and 938 runs in ODIs. He is the 4th Indian cricketer to be inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. Others are Bishen Singh Bedi, Kapil Dev and Sunil Gavaskar who were inducted into Hall of Fame in 2009. About ICC Cricket Hall of Fame

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The ICC Cricket Hall of Fame recognises the achievements of the legends from the game of cricket. It was launched in January 2009 by the International Cricket Council (ICC) as part of its centenary celebrations in association with the Federation of International Cricketers’ Associations (FICA). Union Government launches single window e-biz portal February 19, 2015 Union Government has launched a single window government-to-business (G2B) portal- e-Biz (www.ebiz.gov.in) for 11 Central government services to bring transparency and ease of doing business in the country. The portal was unveiled to public by Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in New Delhi. Key facts • It is government’s approach aimed at improving India’s ranking in Ease of doing business index by leveraging technology to bring transparency, improve efficiency and promote convenience. • It provides single platform for online submission and processing of forms including online payment. • Government has identified 10 pilot states for its initial implementation and later to expand it across the country. The portal will provide in total 11 Union government services to meet its objective. Among the 11 services, • 4 services are from Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) – Services such as name availability, Director Identification Number (DIN), certificate of incorporation and commencement of business. • 2 services of Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) – Provide Permanent Account Number (PAN) and Tax-Deduction Account Number (TAN). • 2 services of Reserve Bank of India (RBI) – to simplify the process such as foreign collaboration through general permission route from RBI. • 1 service of Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) – Know importer-exporter code (IEC). • 1 service of Employees Provident Fund Organization (EPFO)- To complete employer’s registration • 1 service of Petroleum and explosives Safety Organization (PESO)- issue of explosive licences. Government is also planning to roll-out more than 200 services related to investors and businesses in next few years. February 20, 2015 India, US hold first ever bilateral dialogue on United Nations February 20, 2015 India and United States have held their first ever bilateral dialogue on the UN and multilateral issues. The dialogue was held in Washington, on the spirit of the Delhi Declaration of Friendship that strengthens and expands the two countries’ relationship. Indian delegation for dialogue was led by Ministry of External Affairs Joint Secretary Vikas Swarup while the US delegation was led by Assistant Secretary of State for International Organisation Affairs Sheba Crocker. First bilateral dialogue provided an opportunity for both nations to discuss a wide range richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] of important issues. It focused on issues like international peace and security, peacekeeping operations, counter-piracy. It also discussed issues like Post-2015 Development Agenda, UN Human Rights Council, and other matters of mutual interest. Background In January 2015, during the US President Barack Obama’s visit to India, both nations had agreed to elevate their long-standing strategic partnership. In this regard both nations had signed Delhi Declaration of Friendship that strengthens and expands the relationship between the two countries.

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RIL appoints ex-IAS officer Maheshwar Sahu as independent director on board February 20, 2015 Retired IAS officer Maheshwar Sahu from Gujarat has been appointed as an independent director on the board of Mukesh Ambani led Reliance Industries Limited (RIL). With this appointment, he joins RIL as one of the eight independent directors on its 14- member board. Sahu is popularly known as the man behind the success of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s brainchild event- Vibrant Gujarat summit. About Maheshwar Sahu • Maheshwar Sahu holds a degree in Electrical Engineering and Masters in Public Administration from University of Birmingham, UK. • He has more than 23 years of experience in Civil Service and 15 years practical experience in industries including that of more than 5 years in Union Government. • Sahu was Additional Chief Secretary (Industries and Mining) in Gujarat government. He has also served as Vice Chairman & Managing Director of Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation. • He also had worked as Joint Secretary in Department of Telecom in Union Government for about 4 years and in Ministry of Environment & Forest as Joint Secretary. • Sahu also had served as a Project Director in an UN assignment of Director of an International Technology Centre. Union Government approves various highway projects worth Rs 8,600 crore February 20, 2015 Union Government has approved various highway projects in states of Uttar Pradesh, Odisha and Chhattisgarh worth over Rs 8,600 crore. The work for these approved road projects will be under the National Highways Development Project (NHDP) Phase-V. This decision was taken by Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Decisions taken by CCEA • Uttar Pradesh- Approved six-laning of the Handia-Varanasi section of National Highway. This project’s cost is estimated to be Rs 2378.59 crore and total length of the road will be approximately 72.4 kms. • Odisha- Approved six-laning of Baleshwar-Chandikhole section of National Highway. The project cost is estimated to be Rs 2296.82 crore and total length of the road will be approximately 137 kms. • Chhattisgarh- approved development of four to six laning of the Raipur-Bilaspursection of National Highway. The cost is estimated to be Rs 1,963.88 crore and total length of the road will be approximately 127 kms. Other Decisions taken by CCEA • Approved the continuation of the incentive scheme for marketing and promotion services of raw sugar production during current sugar season of 2014-15. This approval has been given for quantity of 14 lakhrichindia Metric | Uniquetonne. ID: 2776 | [email protected] • CCEA also fixed uniform rate of 4000 rupees per metric tonne for this season. The decision will help sugar mills to clear the cane price dues of the farmers.

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Union Government launches Soil Health Card Scheme in Rajasthan February 20, 2015 Prime Minister Narendra Modi has launched nationwide Soil Health Card (SHC) scheme in Suratgarh town of Sriganganagar district, Rajasthan. During the launch PM gave slogan- Swasth Dharaa. Khet Haraa (Healthy Earth, Green Farm). Key facts of Soil Health Card (SHC) scheme • SHC is centrally-sponsored nationwide scheme which aims to help farmers to improve the productivity of farms by providing them basic information for use of nutrients or fertilizers. • The card carries crop-wise recommendation of fertilisers that are required for farm lands. It also helps farmers identify health of soil and judiciously use soil nutrients. • Under this scheme Centre plans to target over 14 crore farmers in the next three years. In financial year 2014-15, around 3 crore farmers will be covered to check the excess use of fertilisers. Soil Health Card (SHC) scheme was announced by NDA government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in its first budget presented in July 2014. In the budget, government had allotted Rs. 100 crore for issuing cards under the scheme. Government also had allotted additional Rs. 56 crore to set up 100 mobile soil testing laboratories across India. US, Turkey ink deal to train, arm Syrian rebels to fight IS militants February 20, 2015 United States (US) and Turkey have signed an agreement to train and arm moderate Syrian opposition forces taking on Islamic State (IS) militants. The deal was inked by Turkey’s foreign ministry undersecretary Feridun Sinirlioglu and US ambassador to Ankara John Bass. Key facts • Under the plan, the US will train about 5,000 Syrian fighters from the Free Syrian Army a year for three years. To train these fighters US is planning to send more than 400 troops. • This deal marks important step for US President Barack Obama’s plan to turn moderate Syrian rebels into ground forces that will wage war on IS militants. • While, Western and Arab countries assist them by providing airstrikes to stop IS militants. • Saudi Arabia and Qatar also have agreed to host similar training programmes which will begin in March 2015. Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi resign February 20, 2015 Chief Minister (CM) of Bihar Jitan Ram Manjhi has resigned. His resignation was accepted by Governor of Bihar Keshri Nath Tripathi. He had resigned from office, before the trust vote he was to face in Bihar Legislature after the Governor address to the joint session. Jitan Ram Manjhi was 23rd CM of Bihar, elected in May 2014 by the Janata Dal (United) Party legislators. He was appointed as CM following the resignation of then CM Nitish Kumar, who had resigned from the post taking the responsibility of hisrichindia party’s | Unique(JDU) dismalID: 2776 performance | [email protected] in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls. About Jitan Ram Manjhi • Manjhi hails from Mahkar village in Gaya district. He is a legislator from the Makhdoompur assembly constituency in Jehanabad district. • He was the third Dalit CM of Bihar after Bhola Paswan Shastri and Ram Sundar Das. • Prior to his appointment as CM, Manjhi was SC/ST welfare minister in the Nitish Kumar cabinet.

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Scientist Tapan Misra appointed as Director of ISRO’s Space Application Centre February 20, 2015 Eminent scientist Tapan Misra has been appointed the Chief of ISRO’s Space Applications Centre (SAC), Ahmedabad Gujarat. He will succeed A S Kiran Kumar, who was appointed as the Chairman of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) in January 2015. About Tapan Misra • In 1984, started his career at SAC as a digital hardware engineer. Since then played important in system design, planning and development of Microwave Remote Sensing Payloads of ISRO. • Prior to this appointment, he was Deputy Director of Microwave Remote Sensing Area in SAC. He is also heading the Office of Innovations Management of ISRO at Bengaluru. Contribution • He was lead designer for the development of C-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) of India’s Radar Imaging Satellite-1 (RISAT-1). He also led the team of SAC that had developed a special airborne radar system called DMSAR (SAR for Disaster Management). • In 1990, developed an important algorithm for real time processing of SAR data during his tenure as Guest Scientist in German Aerospace Agency (DLR). • Misra also contributed to the system design, simulation, integration, checkout and ground calibration for Multi-frequency Scanning Microwave Radiometer instrument which was carried onboard India’s OCEANSAT-1 satellite. Awards • He was awarded Hari Om Ashram Prerit Vikram Sarabhai research Award (2004), ISRO Merit award (2008), Sir JC Bose National Talent Search (JBNSTS) Scholarship (1981). • He has 2 granted patents, 6 pending patents, 5 copyrights and many research papers to his credit. Thailand passes law to ban commercial surrogacy for foreigners February 20, 2015 Thailand’s parliament under ruling military junta has passed a legislation banning commercial surrogacy. Provisions of new law • Completely bans foreign couples seeking to have children through Thai surrogate mothers. • Only married Thai couples or couples with one Thai partner who have been married at least three years can seek surrogacy. • Forbids any middlemen or agencies, receiving any assets or benefits through the surrogacy process. • Anyone who violates this law i.e. caught hiring a surrogate mother faces a maximum jail sentence of 10 years. Agents will also face imprisonment if caught. • Ban on advertising and promotions, shuts down surrogate agents and unregistered clinics. Background Earlier in November 2014, Thailand’s Parliament had voted a draft bill to ban commercial surrogacy. This draft bill banning commercial surrogacy was formulated to regulate the illegal commercial surrogacy after outrage erupted over this unregulated industry. This industry came under intense scrutiny after a series of surrogacy scandals broke in the country involving richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] foreigners. KVIC, RSETIs sign MoU to provide vocational training to unemployed youth February 20, 2015 The Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) has joined hands with Rural Self Employment Training Institute (RSETI), to provide vocational training to unemployed youth. In this regard memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between the two bodies in the presence of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Minster Kalraj Mishra. Along with vocational training MoU also aims at providing loan linkages to deserving beneficiaries linked to the Prime Minister’s Employment Guarantee Programme (PMEGP).

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The Monitoring Cell of RSETI will also utilise infrastructure of KVIC Departmental Training Centres for skill development courses. The MoU is for initial period of three years. However, its performance will be reviewed after two years The MSME Ministry through KVIC is implementing PMEGP for generating employment opportunities through setting up of micro enterprises in rural and urban areas of the Country. Around 2.9 lakhs micro enterprises have been set up so far providing employment opportunities to 25.93 lakh persons. February 21, 2015 CCI gives nod to Kotak-ING Vysya Bank merger February 21, 2015 The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has given its approval to proposed Rs 15,000-crore merger deal between Kotak Mahindra Bank and ING Vysya Bank. CCI in its approval mentioned that this merger is not likely to have an appreciable adverse effect on competition in India. The CCI also has 0bserved that the ING Vysya does not have significant market share in any of the relevant markets and there is presence of large players in these markets. So it will act as a competitive constraint to the parties. This approval is considered as important step for merging of two banks to form new entity. This merger will make Kotak Mahindra Bank fourth-largest private bank in India in terms of total business. The biggest three private banks are ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank and Axis Bank. Background • In November 2014, Kotak Mahindra Bank had announced that it is acquiring ING Vysya Bank in an all-stock deal. • The management of these banks are expecting that the new merged entity will be operational by April 1, 2015. • The acquisition will help Kotak Mahindra Bank to widen its reach in South Indian market and also help in acquiring SME customers as ING Vysya Bank was having stronghold in SME customers. • After merger the combined banking entity will have a widespread network of 1,214 branches across pan India. Chrishantha de Silva appointed as Sri Lanka Army chief February 21, 2015 Sri Lanka’s President Maithripala Sirisena has appointed Major general Chrishantha de Silva as the new Sri Lankan Army chief. De Silva is the 21st Commander of the Sri Lankan Army, since the island nation gained independence from Britain in 1948. He will succeed Lieutenant General Daya Ratnayake with effect from 22 February 2015. De Silva had joined the Sri Lanka Army as cadet officer in 1980 and has served in many regions including operational areas. Along with this appointment, Sri Lanka’s new government reinstated the rank of former army Chief General Sarath Fonseka, who was stripped of all ranks and was sentenced to jail by previous President Mahinda Rajapaksa. General Sarath Fonseka was Sri Lanka’s only four-star general who had led the Army to defeat the Tamil richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] Tigers in 2009. In 2010, he had fallen out with Rajapaksa and challenged him in the election of 2010. Thereafter Fonseka was arrested, court martialled and jailed for corruption. India signs loan agreement with ADB to boost power generation capacity in Assam February 21, 2015 India has signed loan agreement with Asian Development Bank (ADB) for 50 Million dollars to boost power generation capacity in Assam. The loan agreement was signed for the second Assam power sector investment programme. Key facts • This programme aims to build up the capacity of power generation and distribution systems in state to meet the growing energy demand.

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• Loan funds are going to finance investments of the programme to augment and improve generation capacity in Assam for replacement of an inefficient generating plant and construction of new hydropower plant. This programme is expected to be completed by 31 December 2018. • Since 2003, ADB has supported Assam’s power sector with five loans totaling $450 million. These loan funds have helped the State enact key reforms and improve transmission and distribution systems. Problems of Assam’s Power Sector At present Assam is facing problem of power crunch. More than third of households in the State are facing daily electricity cuts for 5 to 6 hours. Many important businesses in state such as the tea gardens are not connected to the grid. In peak periods Assam has to buy up to 15% of its power from independent producers at very high cost. Drug-resistant malaria detected at Myanmar-India border February 21, 2015 Scientists have detected drug-resistant malaria at the Myanmar-India border. It was revealed in a Oxford University led study published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases journal. Tests have shown that this drug-resistant malaria is on the verge of entering India and now poses an enormous threat to global health. These detected drug-resistant malaria parasite have ability to shrug off the effects of artemisinin (normally given as part of combination therapy to fight malaria) has been spreading since it emerged in South-east Asia. Drug-resistant malaria has been detected in South Asian countries like Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Vietnam and Myanmar. In case Myanmar, 940 parasite samples were collected at 55 malaria treatment centres and its border regions. Scientist have found that almost 40 percent of the samples had mutations in their so-called kelch gene, K13 a known genetic signal of artemisinin drug resistance. Earlier, drug-resistant malaria parasite to Chloroquine was discovered in 1957 around the border between Cambodia and Thailand. Deaths from malaria have nearly halved since 2000, and the infection now kills about 584,000 people each year. But drug-resistant malaria parasite may threat to global health in future. Union Government launches portal Madad to redress consular grievances February 21, 2015 Union Government has launched Consular Grievances Monitoring portal named MADAD (Help)- Because You Are Us. MADAD an e-portal will help Indian citizens living abroad to file consular grievances online on the services offered by the Indian Missions and Posts abroad. It was launched by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj at the MEA headquarters in New Delhi. Features of MADAD • MADAD allows direct registration of the grievances by the members of the public and effective monitoring of the grievance handling process thereafter, until it is redressed. • It incorporates several innovative features including flexible architecture to handle a variety of richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] grievances, linking of similar grievances on the basis of passport number to avoid duplication and automatic escalation and enhancement of priority. • It will also help to speed up forwarding and handling of complaints, improve tracking and redressal and escalate unresolved cases. • The authorities will be assigned responsibility through a colour-coded dashboard. This dashboard will change its colour if the response in not given in a stipulated time. • It also has colour code system of red-amber-green pattern. It will keep check on performances of authorities in redressing grievances. The green colour indicates cases are cleared, while the pending cases will be indicated in red colour.

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International Mother Language Day is being observed across the world on 21 February February 21, 2015 International Mother Language Day (Bhasha Divas) is observed across the world, on 21 February every year. 2015 Theme: “Inclusion in and through education: Language counts”. The year 2015 is the 15th anniversary of International Mother Language Day. Objective: To promote awareness of linguistic, multilingualism and cultural diversity. About International Mother Language Day • The Day is observed yearly by UNESCO member states and at its headquarters to promote linguistic and cultural diversity and multilingualism. • On 16 May 2007, by resolution 61/266, the General Assembly proclaimed 2008 as the International Year of Languages, to promote unity in diversity and international understanding, through multilingualism and multiculturalism. Importance of International Mother Language Day: It is the greatest weapon to express one’s feeling. Mother Language of one country is the sign of independence of that country. About Bangla Language Movement • The day assumes special significance in Bangladesh where scores of people, mostly students and teachers of the Dhaka University, were mercilessly shot down by the Pakistani army in 1952 in erstwhile East Pakistan. • This day is commemorated in Bangladesh since 1952 where a number of Dhaka university student activists were killed by the Pakistani police and army during the Bangla Language Movement. • The activists had protested against imposition of Urdu as the national language side-stepping Bengali – their mother tongue. • But the incident calls for celebration too as the protest sowed the seeds of home-grown nationalism that ultimately led to the creation of Bangladesh from the ashes of the Liberation War in 1971. February 22, 2015 Purnendu Dasgupta wins American Chemical Society award 2015 February 22, 2015 Purnendu Dasgupta, an Indian-American has won 2015 American Chemical Society (ACSs) Division of Analytical Chemistry J. Calvin Giddings Award. He was awarded this award for his special contribution in the field of analytical chemistry. He will receive this award in August 2015 at ACS national conference in Boston. About Purnendu Dasgupta • At Present, Dasgupta is a Jenkins Garrett professor of chemistry at The University of Texas at Arlington. • He has authored of more than 400 scientific papers and book chapters. He also holds 25 US patents. His work has earned more than USD 18 million in research grants. • Dasgupta research area includes: methods for environment-friendly analysis of arsenic in drinking water, rapid analysis of trace heavyrichindia metals | Unique in ID: the 2776 atmosphere, | [email protected] iodine nutrition in women and infants and the role of the chemical perchlorate and the development of a NASA-funded ion chromatograph for testing extraterrestrial soil, such as on a trip to Mars. About American Chemical Society (ACSs) Division of Analytical Chemistry J. Calvin Giddings Award It is national award named after J. Calvin Giddings, Professor of chemistry at the University of Utah, US who was credited with the invention of field flow fractionation. The award carries a plaque and cash prize. It is cognises scientist, who has • Enhanced the professional development of analytical chemistry students. • Developed and published innovative experiments. • Designed and improved equipment or teaching labs.

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• Published influential textbooks or significant articles on teaching analytical chemistry. Sri Lanka Parliament enacts witness protection law February 22, 2015 Sri Lankan Parliament has passed the Assistance to and Protection of Victims of Crime and Witnesses Bill. This bill aims at protecting the rights of criminal victims and witnesses especially in human rights accountability. Key provisions of enacted law • Compensation to witnesses who cooperate with investigations. • Strict punitive action against those who harass victims or witnesses. • Stringent punishment of prison sentence from three to 10 years to the culprits. • Witnesses will receive fair treatment and privacy from judicial and investigatory authorities and protections against harassment. Passage of this bill is seen as reflection of the Sri Lankan new government’s will to implement reforms. It also seeks to fulfill a long-held international demand for justice and human rights accountability in the country. Background • Since 2012, for consecutive three years Sri Lanka had faced US-backed UN Human Rights Council (UN-HRC) resolutions on Human rights accountability. • UN-HRC 2014 resolution also had mandated Sri Lanka to set up of an international investigation into alleged human rights abuses during the 3 decade-long civil war that wiped out the LTTE. Environmental loss in Sundarbans worth Rs. 1290 Crore: World Bank Report February 22, 2015 As per World Bank’s recently released report Building Resilience for Sustainable Development of the Sundarbans, environmental damage in the climate change-hit islands of Sundarbans is costing India Rs. 1,290 crore each year. This report was jointly prepared by World Bank in collaboration with the West Bengal government. Key facts of report • Losses- Annually the cost of environmental damage associated with ecosystem degradation and biodiversity loss is about Rs. 670 crore. While, the cost of health effects due to poor environment is estimated at Rs. 620 crore. • Factors- The losses are due to combination of factors associated with unsustainable and inefficient economic activities in Sundarbans. • These factors include mangrove destruction, impact of cyclones, reduced agricultural yields and unsustainable fisheries as well as destruction of ecosystem services. • Cyclones- Damage costs from cyclones are the highest and accounts for damages worth Rs. 290 crore. It also includes damages to houses, agriculture, human injuries and fatalities. • Health issues- Due to environmental degradation, villagers in Sundarbans are suffering from poor health outcomes. This degradation is generally in the form of adverse natural events, such as cyclones and storms and increases in soil salinity. • These risk factors contribute considerably to mortality and morbidity, particularly among women and children. • Other losses- Climaterichindia change | Unique along ID: with2776 the| [email protected] sea level rise also has resulted in shrimp losses, carbon sequestration losses associated with degradation of mangrove forest, soil salinity in terms of impact on rice yields, loss of biodiversity and agricultural land losses. About Sundarbans Sundarbans is an archipelago of 54 islands and is home to about 44 lakh people. It is a UNESCO World Heritage site. In recent times it is hit hard by an increase in floods, storms, salinity and erosion caused by rising sea-levels and global warming.

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Nitish Kumar sworn in as CM of Bihar for 4th time February 22, 2015 Nitish Kumar has sworn in as the Chief Minister (CM) of Bihar for the 4th time. Governor of Bihar Keshri Nath Tripathi administered the oath of office and secrecy to him at the oath taking ceremony held at Raj Bhawan in Patna. Along with Nitish Kumar, 22 Janta Dal United (JDU) Party legislators, including three women were also sworn in as Cabinet Ministers. Earlier on 20 February 2015, Jitan Ram Manjhi had resigned as CM ending a month long political turmoil in Bihar About Nitish Kumar • Nitish Kumar was born on 1st March 1951 in Bakhtiarpur District of Bihar. • He had started his political career by taking part in the mass movement led by Jayaprakash Narayan between 1974 and 1977. • Kumar was elected to Bihar legislative assembly for first time in 1985. He was elected to Lok Sabha for 4 consecutive times, first in 1989 than in 1991, 1996 and 1998. • Union Minister- In 1990, for a brief stint he was Union Minister of Agriculture. In 1998-99, he was Union Minister for Railways and Surface Transport and Minister for Agriculture. • He was Union Cabinet Minister for Railways in the NDA Government of Atal Bihari Vajpayee from 2001- 2004. • CM of Bihar- In 2000, for first time he was made CM of Bihar but had resigned within 7 days. In 2005, he was sworn in as the CM of Bihar for second time and in 2010 for third time. In May 2014 he had resigned from the CM post taking the responsibility of his party’s (JDU) dismal performance in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls. February 23, 2015 3rd Tortoise Festival organised in Assam February 23, 2015 3rd Tortoise Festival was organised on the banks of Hajong Lake in Dima Hasao district of Assam by Dima Hasao Environment and Forest Department. This festival aims to create awareness among the villagers surrounding villages of Hajong Lake about the safety of the endangered tortoise species available in the area. Key facts • Hajong Lake is popularly known as the tortoise lake, is a natural habitat of the few unique tortoise i.e. hill terrapins. • It is situated 80 kilometres north of Haflong in the remote Dima Hasao district. • Hajong Lake is the only natural tortoise habitat in Assam, where some endangered species of tide- water tortoise of north-east India are still living. • It is facing a hostile condition due to ever-growing human intervention in their habitats and at present, there are around 400 to 500 tortoises dwelling in this Lake. Oscar Awards: 87th Academy Awards February 23, 2015 The 87th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) was held atrichindia the Dolby | Unique Theatre ID: 2776 in Hollywood,| [email protected] Los Angeles. The Academy Awards (commonly referred as Oscars) were presented in twenty four categories. They are • Best Picture- Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance). • Best Actor- Eddie Redmayne (The Theory of Everything). • Best Actress- Julianne Moore (Still Alice). • Best Supporting Actor- J. K. Simmons (Whiplash). • Best Supporting Actress- Patricia Arquette (Boyhood). • Best Director- Alejandro G. Iñárritu for Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance). • Best Original Screenplay- Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance).

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• Best Adapted Screenplay- The Imitation Game. • Best Original Song- Glory (Selma). • Best Original Score- The Grand Budapest Hotel. • Best Production Design- The Grand Budapest Hotel. • Best Editing- Whiplash. • Best Cinematography- Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance). • Best Sound Editing- American Sniper. • Best Sound Mixing- Whiplash. • Best Foreign Language Film- Ida (Poland). • Best Documentary Feature- CitizenFour. • Best Documentary Short Subject- Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1. • Best Live Action Short Film- The Phone Call. • Best Visual Effects- Interstellar. • Best Animated Feature Film- Big Hero 6. • Best Animated Short Film- Feast. • Best Makeup and Hairstyling- The Grand Budapest Hotel. • Best Costume Design- The Grand Budapest Hotel. Most awards: Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) and The Grand Budapest Hotel (Both received 4 awards). Most nominations in 87th Academy Awards- Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) and The Grand Budapest Hotel (both 9 nominations) Takahiro Hachigo appointed as new President and CEO of Honda February 23, 2015 Japanese automaker Honda Motor Co has appointed Takahiro Hachigo as its new President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO). He will assume charge in June 2015 and replace Takanobu Ito, who had stepped down from the top most post in an unexpected move on 23 February 2015. Prior to this appointment, Hachigo was Managing Officer of Honda Motor Co. and was appointed to this post in April 2014. He had joined Honda in 1982, and began his career in its automobile Research & Development (R&D) operations, principally as an engineer in the area of chassis design. Since then his career with Honda had spanned in several countries like United States, China and United Kingdom. About Honda Motor Co • Honda Motor Co is Japan’s third largest automaker after Toyota and Nissan. It is primarily manufacturer of automobiles, motorcycles and power equipment. • Since 1959, Honda is the world’s largest motorcycle manufacturer. It is also world’s largest manufacturer of internal combustion (producing 14 million internal combustion engines each year). • It was established in 1946 by Soichiro Honda and Takeo Fujisawa. Its headquarter is located at Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Adya Sharma, cultural icon andrichindia pioneer | Unique of mobile ID: 2776 theatre | [email protected] in Assam passes away February 23, 2015 Adya Sharma, a cultural icon and pioneer of mobile theatre in Assam passed away in Nalbari town, Assam. He was 86. • Sharma was pioneer in bringing innovation in the technical aspects of mobile theatre which made it more attractive and capable of staging more complex themes. • He was born in 1929 and was famously known as Guruji in the artist circle of Assam. He had made his debut into mobile theatre in 1966 through Purbajyoti Theatre. • He was also well known painter and sculpture artist in Assam.

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• He was awarded Bishnu Prasad Rabha Award by Assam Government and Pranab Barua Award for contribution to the cultural world. Assam government also had honoured him with artiste’s pension. He is also founder of Ranghar, an organisation dedicated to promote paintin in Nalbari. Tata Power signs MoU with Russia’s SEUK to tap opportunities in the energy sector February 23, 2015 India’s second largest private power producer Tata Power has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Russia’s largest coal producer Siberian Coal Energy Company (SUEK). As part of this initial agreement, both the companies will cooperate with each other to identify and target opportunities in the energy sector. Both parties will tap the opportunities in the energy sector in Russia and other geographies to develop common mutual interest. At present, Tata Power is generating about 8,621 MW of power of which 7,407 MW is from thermal power generation. By signing this agreement, Tata Power is endeavoring to be a significant player in the international energy market as SUEK is reliable and world class player in the mining business. Presently SUEK has its presence in more than 30 countries as a coal supplier. Union Ministry of Youth Affairs makes amendments in National Sports Awards Schemes February 23, 2015 Union Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports has amended National Sports Awards Schemes. The amended schemes include Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award, Arjuna Award, Dhyan Chand Award and Dronacharya Awards. These amendments were based upon several suggestions made by selection committee for Arjuna Awards headed by Kapil Dev. Henceforth, in case of Selection Committee for Arjuna Award • Retired Judge of Supreme Court or High Court will be its head. • Expert belonging to para sports will be its member. He/she will be a sportsperson of eminence or sports administrator. • It will have only one sportsperson or coach from a particular sports discipline as a member in order remove the biasness particularly in favour of a particular sports discipline. • Nominating agencies must send nominations of most deserving sportspersons, coaches. These nominations must be irrespective of whether they have applied to them for awards. In order to increase the power of Selection Committee • The weightage for performance in sports events has been reduced from 90% to 80%. • While, the weightage of marks given by the Committee for factors like profile and standard of sports events has been increased from 10% to 20%. In case of the marks criteria, more marks will be given for medals won in individual events. While, for team events marks will be computed taking into consideration strength of the team. Henceforth, the proceedings of Selection Committee will be videographed. Detailed internal Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) will be also prepared to deal with nominations received. Views of discipline experts will be also obtained for shortlisted nominations in team games. Ram Niwas Goel elected Speaker of Delhi Legislative Assembly February 23, 2015 Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLArichindia Ram Niwas| Unique Goel ID: 2776 was | [email protected] elected Speaker of the Delhi Assembly. • It was announced by pro-tem Speaker Fateh Singh who presided the session of assembly for electing Speaker and Deputy Speaker of House. • Goel was elected as Speaker on the first day of the two-day session of the House. • In recent Delhi Assembly election, he was elected from Shahdara constituency located in north Delhi. He defeated Bhartiya Janta Party’s Jitender Singh Shunty by a margin of over 11,000 votes.

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While AAP legislator Ms. Bandana Kumari, was elected Deputy Speaker of the House. Ms. Kumari, is an MLA from Shalimar Bagh constituency. In recent election she had defeated BJP’s Rekha Gupta by a vote margin of 10,978. Earlier in 2013 Assembly election as well, she was elected from same constituency on AAP ticket. Popular Tamil director R.C Sakthi passes away February 23, 2015 Popular Tamil director R.C Sakthi passed away in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. He was 76. He was mentor of famous actor Kamal Haasan and had launched him as lead role in his Tamil directorial debut Unarchigal in 1972. About R.C Sakthi • Sakthi was born in Ramanathapuram district of Tamil Nadu. • He had started his career in film industry as a theatre artist and later shifted to cinema. • In his two decade long career, he had directed 17 films. He began his directorial career as an assistant director for the Tamil films Porsilai (1969) and Annai Velankanni (1970). • Later in 1972, in directorial debut he launched Kamal Haasan in Unarchigal. It was released in 1976. • Later in his career, he directed many films. Some of his critically acclaimed films are Manidharil Ithanai Nirangala (1978), Dharma Yuddham (1979) which starred Rajinikanth and Amma Pillai (1990). • His last directed Tamil film Pathini Penna (1993) has been awarded two Tamil Nadu state awards. They are Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Film and State award for Best Dialogue Writer. February 24, 2015 Rana Bhagwandas first Hindu Chief Justice of Pakistan passes away February 24, 2015 First Hindu Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Rana Bhagwandas passed away in Karachi, Pakistan. He was 72 year old. He was the first Hindu and the second non-Muslim to head of the Supreme Court of Pakistan. First non-Muslim CJP was Alvin Robert Cornelius (He was Christian). About Rana Bhagwandas • Bhagwandas was born on 20 December 1942 in Naseerabad, Larkana district (now in Qamber Shahdadkot district of Sindh province). • He was considered an expert on constitutional law and had a postgraduate degree in Islamic Studies. • In 1967, two years after he started practicing as an advocate he was appointed as a judge. In 1994, he was appointed as a judge of the Sindh High Court. • In 2005 for first time he was appointed as acting Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) for few days and again in 2006 during the absence of then CJP Iftikhar Chaudhry. • During the Pakistan’s judicial crisis of 2007, he was again appointed as acting Chief Justice. • After his retirement from Supreme Court, he was appointed as the chairman of Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC) of Pakistan. In 2009, as chairman FPSC, he had headed the interview panel for the selection of Pakistan’s Civil Servants. NGT issues the whip on vintage cars richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] February 24, 2015 National Green Tribunal (NGT) has issued whip on vintage cars and directed that no such car will be permitted on the roads of Delhi. • This order was issued by bench of NGT headed by Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar on the lines of its earlier order that had banned all vehicles older than 15 years. • In its order NGT bench also mentioned that, no fitness certificates to the vintage cars will be issued by any authority without specific permission of the tribunal. • NGT’s order was issued on a plea hearing, filed by Madan Mohan, director of 21 Gun Salute International Vintage Car Rally, who had moved the tribunal seeking permission for the rally. Background

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• In November 2014, NGT in its judgment had held that vehicles which are more than 15 years old are banned to run on the city roads. • NGT also had directed the concerned authorities take appropriate steps in accordance with law including seizure of these vehicles it they are found running on road. About National Green Tribunal NGT is a special fast-track court to handle the expeditious disposal of the cases pertaining to environmental issues. It was constituted by Parliament under National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 (NGT) under India’s constitutional provision of Article 21, which assures the citizens of India the right to a healthy environment. TRAI removes interconnection usage charges (IUC) February 24, 2015 The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has removed the interconnection usage charges (IUC). Earlier, IUC of 20 paise was charged for calls made from landline to landline or landline to mobile. TRAI also has reduced network IUC on calls made from mobile phones by about 30 percent to 14 paise per call from 20 paise earlier. The main aim to remove IUC is to boost fixed line phone connections in the country and lower tariffs of calls for the customers. What are interconnection usage charges (IUC)? • IUC are the charges that a landline or mobile service provider has to pay to the other service providers for transmitting its customers’ phone calls. • Generally, an IUC gets added to the price of the call made by customer, which the customer has to pay. Because of addition IUC, call tariffs were high. Impacts of IUC • Due to high call tariffs, landline connections in the country had declined in past few years. While, the mobile subscriber base had increased since the mobile incoming calls were made free. • At the end 2014, mobile subscriber base in the country had reached all-time high at 94.39 crore. While, the landline connections had declined to 2.7 crore subscriber. Implications of removing IUC • It will help to boost fixed line phone connections in the country and lower tariffs of calls for the customers. • Thus in turn promote an investment and adoption of wireline networks which is much needed for the delivery of high-speed Internet in the country to remove digital divide. Chris Gayle becomes first batsman to hit double century in World Cup history February 24, 2015 West Indies opener batsman Chris Gayle created history by becoming the first batsman to score a double century in the World Cup. He made this record by scoring 215 runs off just 147 balls in a Pool-B match against Zimbabwe held at Manuka Oval stadium in Canberra, Australia. Gayle’s record score comprised of 10 fours and 16 sixes that helped West Indies score 372 runs during the match. His fastest double century in One-Day Internationals (ODIs) also broke the previous record whichrichindia was | heldUnique by ID: Indian 2776 | [email protected] Virender Sehwag. In December 2011, Sehwag had scored a double century in 140 balls in a match against West Indies held at Holkar Cricket Stadium in Indore. With this record, Gayle also became the first non-Indian to score a double century in one day cricket. Indian cricketers to hit double century in ODI’s are • Sachin Tendulkar – First cricketer to reach double century landmark. He made 200 runs against South Africa in 2010. • Virendra Sehwag- second cricketer who scored 219 against West Indies.

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• Rohit Sharma- third cricketer to score 209 runs against Australia in 2013. In November 2014, he broke his previous record and became highest ODI scorer with 264 runs in match against Sri Lanka. He is only cricketer to hit 2 double centuries in ODIs. State Bank of India and Indian Army signs MoU on Defence Salary Package February 24, 2015 State Bank of India (SBI) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Indian Army on the Defence Salary Package (DSP). Signed MoU is revised version of the first MoU which was signed on DSP between two parties in 2011 and was valid for a period of three years. The revised MoU meets the requirements of serving soldiers, pensioners and their families. Key facts about new MoU • MoU include provisions for number of free and concessional banking services like drafts, cheque books, funds transfers to any other bank in India through Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS), free ATM cards etc. • It also includes provision for implementing the Nepal Express Remittance Scheme. This scheme will benefit of the Nepali Domicile Gorkha Soldiers serving in the Indian Army in order to instantly transfer funds to Nepal. • MoU adds improved features for linking of the Personal Accident Insurance (PAI) to the Savings account instead of the debit card. • It also seeks to enhance the PAI amounts and the exemption percentage of margin money for house and car loans. It also waives off of the processing charges on the loans. The revised MoU is going to benefit 19.5 lakh pensioners and 10 lakh serving personnel with access modern banking facilities. These personnel’s either hold Pay or Pension accounts with SBI. Union Government accepts 14th Finance Commission Recommendations on Devolution February 24, 2015 Union government has accepted recommendations of the 14th Finance Commission (FC) as per its agenda of cooperative federalism. The accepted recommendations are for the five-year period 2015-16 to 2019-20. Key facts • Government has accepted FC’s recommendation to increase the devolution of tax receipts from the Centre to the states to 42 percent. Previously, 13th FC had pegged the states’ share at 32 per cent. • The share of States in the Centre’s net tax receipts will go up by Rs. 1,78,000 crore in 2015-2016. It is the largest ever change in percentage of devolution. • As per the increased devolution suggested by 14th FC, States will get Rs 3.48 lakh crore in 2014-15 and Rs 5.26 lakh crore in 2015-16. • Higher tax devolution will allow states greater autonomy in financing and designing of schemes as per their needs and requirements. • FC also recommended the distribution of grants of Rs 2 .88 lakh crore to states for strengthening duly elected gram panchayats and municipal bodies for five years. • FC also has identified 11 revenue deficit states and granted them Rs 48,906 crore as additional resources for the year 2015-16. Background richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] The 14th Finance Commission was constituted in January 2014. Commissions chairman was former RBI governor Y V Reddy and its members were Sushma Nath, M. Govinda Rao, Abhijit Sen, Sudipto Mundle. In December 2014, Commission had submitted its report to the President Pranab Mukherjee. Ranchi Rays wins Champions of Hero Hockey India League 2015 February 24, 2015 Ranchi Rays won the third edition of Champions of Hero Hockey India League (HHIL) 2015. In the final match they defeated Jaypee Punjab Warriors by score of 3-2 in the penalty shootout after 2-2 tie in regular time match.

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With this Jaypee Punjab Warriors took second position followed by Delhi Waveriders in third position. Awards from the Hero Hockey India League (HHIL) 2015 • Hero Goal of the Day- Barry Middleton of Ranchi Rays. • Man-of the-Match- Tyler Lovell of Ranchi Rays. • Hero Most Valuable Player of the Tournament- Ashley Jackson of Ranchi Rays • Dhruv Batra Motivator of the Tournament- PR Sreejesh. • Ponty Chadha Trophy for Upcoming Player of the Tournament- Harmanpreet Singh of Uttar Pradesh Wizards. • Airtel Award for Most Goals in the Tournament- Jaypee Punjab Warriors. About Hockey India League Hockey India League is organized by Hockey India. Number of teams is Five which are franchisee based. Teams have players from India and around the world. The event is sanctioned by International Hockey Federation (FIH). Rajya Sabha passes Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Orders (Amendment) Bill, 2014 February 24, 2015 Rajya Sabha has passed the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Orders Amendment Bill, 2014. It was unanimously passed by a voice vote. The bill seeks to modify the list of Scheduled Castes in three states- Haryana, Karnataka, Odisha and one Union Territory- Dadra and Nagar Haveli. Amendments The Bill amends the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950 and the Constitution (Dadra and Nagar Haveli) Scheduled Castes Order, 1962. The Bill adds the following communities to the list of Scheduled Castes: • Haryana: Kabirpanthi, Julaha. • Karnataka: Bhovi, od, odde, Vaddar, Waddar. • Odisha: Dhoba, Dhobi, Dom, Dombo, Duria Dom, Katia, Kela, Nalua Kela, Khadala and Turi. • Dadra and Nagar Haveli: Chamar. Background • The bill was first tabled in 2014 but lapsed after the previous 15th Lok Sabha was dissolved. It was again introduced by the NDA government to end all kinds of atrocities against the Scheduled Castes in these states. • The bill was introduced in Parliament as per the provisions of Article 341 of the Constitution. Article 341- It empowers the President to specify castes which will be deemed as Scheduled Castes through a notification. It also empowers Parliament to include or exclude castes from the list of Scheduled Castes in the notification. February 25, 2015 Highlights of Uttar Pradesh budget 2015-16 February 25, 2015 Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav presented Rs 3.02 lakh crore annual budget of state on 24 February 2015. In annual budget state governmentrichindia has | Unique given ID: main 2776 |thrust [email protected] on agriculture, education, power, health, roads and infrastructure development. Key facts from budget • The budget also contains the fiscal deficit of 2.96% of the total GDP of the state. Whereas the state’s debt is expected to be around 27.5% of its GDP. • Taxes: For 2015-16 no new taxes have been levied in the budget. • Agriculture: State government has declared year 2015-16 as the Farmers year. In this regard 1000 Agri centrs will be established to promote agriculture as a good mean of livelihood among young farmer entrepreneurs.

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• Government Schemes: State government has included new schemes of over Rs 9388 crores in the budget. For farmer’s accident insurance scheme, Rs 600 crores have been allocated. • For women empowerment, Rs. 100 crore Mahila Samman Kosh has been created. • For free laptop for meritorious students scheme, state government has allocated Rs 100 crores. • Power sector: Rs 25764 crores have been allocated for power up gradation and line maintenance in the state. • Health: State government of built state of the art cancer Institute in Lucknow with a cost of Rs 854 crores. for In proposed budget Rs 111 crores have been allocated. • Infrastructure: State government allocated Rs 3000 crores to Lucknow Agra Express way. It will longest elevated expressway in India on completion. UK becomes 1st country to legalise creation babies using DNA three-person February 25, 2015 United Kingdom has become the first country to legalise the creation of three-parent IVF designer babies using Mitochondrial Donation Technique. In this regard, House of Lords has voted in voted in favour of the Bill that amends the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act (HFEA), 1990. Earlier on 3 February 2015, House of Commons had passed the bill. Now UK’s fertility regulator Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) will decide how to license the procedure to prevent babies inheriting deadly genetic diseases. After legalisation and final procedural nod from HFEA, the first baby may be born as early as 2016. Implications • This law will help to prevent serious inherited diseases that are being passed on from mother to child. • It will also help to remove the hereditary problems related to defective mitochondrial diseases that has passed down through the generations. • Now in United Kingdom, women with hereditary mitochondrial diseases will be able to give birth to healthy babies without transferring their hereditary diseases. Advantages Mitochondrial Donation Technique • It does not allow passage of defective mitochondria from mother to babies. • Thus, preventing new born babies from dangerous diseases related brain damage, muscle wasting, heart failure and blindness due to defective mitochondria. Ravi Chaudhary appointed as Executive Director for FAA Operations February 25, 2015 Ravi Chaudhary, an Indian American has been appointed as Executive director for Regions and Center Operations at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), a key federal aviation post of United States (US). As Executive director of FAA, Chaudhary will be responsible to • Execute and oversight aviation operations in 9 different regions of US as well as the FAA’s Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center. • Execute a $288 million operating budget and lead over 2100 federal employees assigned to the FAA in 9 regions. About Ravi Chaudhary richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] • Chaudhary is a former US Air Force officer with 21 years of service experience at various Air Force bases. He also is a C-17 pilot and had completed various assignments in Air Force command, operational, engineering, and senior staff assignments. • He holds FAA commercial, instrument pilot and multi-engine certificates. Since 2001 in his deployments he has logged over 3000 hours as a pilot and flight test engineer which includes 760 combat hours. • In May 2014, US President Barack Obama had appointed him as a member of the President’s Advisory Commission on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI).

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• Chaudhary holds a B.S. degree in aeronautical engineering from the Air Force Academy and M.S. degree in industrial engineering as a NASA graduate fellow from St. Mary’s University. About Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) FAA is a national aviation authority of the United States. At present it is part of the U.S. Department of Transportation. It is nodal agency in US that regulates and oversees all aspects of American civil aviation.

US announces to provide work permits to spouses of H-1B visa holders February 25, 2015 United States (US) has announced to provide work permits to spouses of H-1B visa holders from 26 May 2015. Under existing US laws, spouses of H-1B visa holders are not eligible to work. This announcement is expected to benefit thousands of talented and professional spouses who have settled in US but are unable to work. As per new rules, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will begin accepting applications for work visas of H-1B spouses from 26 May 2015. In this regard H-1B visa holders spouse has to submit Form I-765 to USCIS. Once this form is accepted by USCIS, H-4 dependent spouse will be granted an Employment Authorisation Card to start working in US. This move is going to benefit more than 1.79 lakh in the first year and 55,000 annually in subsequent years especially Indians. About H-1B visa • It is a non-immigrant visa in US under section 101(a)(15)(H) of Immigration and Nationality Act. • H-1B visa allows US employers to temporarily employ foreign workers in specialty occupations. It should be noted that H-1B work-authorization is strictly limited to employment by the sponsoring employer. 27 Indian satellites currently operational: Union Government February 25, 2015 Union Government has announced as many as 27 Indian satellites are currently operational. It was announced by Minister of State for Prime Minister Office (PMO) & Department of Space Jitendra Singh said during Question Hour of Lok Sabha. Among the 27 operational satellites, 11 are communication satellites, 12 are earth observation satellites, 3 are navigational satellites and 1 is Mars orbiter mission. Union Government also announced: • One more satellite will be launched in March 2015, while 3 more are in the pipeline. • India is also taking leading role in launching satellites for the SAARC nations. • Currently 95 Ku-band (a part of K band) transponders onboard indigenous communication satellites are being utilised for various communication applications. • India also has perfected the science of weather forecasting. Thus accurately predicting cyclone and other natural calamities in recent times. • With successful launch of five satellites in June 2015, India has entered the area of commercial satellites. It also laid the foundation of future satellite programmes. 44 Armoured Regiment of Indianrichindia Army | Unique honoured ID: 2776 with | [email protected] President’s Standards February 25, 2015 44 Armoured Regiment of Indian Army on 25 February 2015 was honoured with President’s Standards for its meritorious and distinguished service to the nation for more than three decades. The honour was bestowed on 44 Armoured Regiment by Chief of the Army Staff General Dalbir Singh on behalf of the President Paranb Mukherjee at function held at Suratgarh military station in Srigangangar district of Rajasthan. Chief of the Army Staff also released a Special Day Cover to commemorate this historic event. About 44 Armoured Regiment

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• It was raised on 15 December 1981. Its founding commanding officer was Brig D.S. Dhillon. At present, the regiment is operating along the western borders. • Since its formation, regiment had participated in a large number of operations, including Operation Meghdoot (1984), Operation Rakshak-II (1991) and Operation Parakram (2001). • The regiment also has been recognised with the numerous awards. They are 2 Vishisht Seva Medals, 1 Uttam Jeevan Rakshak Padak, 21 Chief of the Army Staff Commendation Cards. • It also include 6 Vice Chief of Army Staff Commendation Cards, 19 General Officer Commanding in Chief Commendation Cards and 1 United Nations Force Commander Commendation. About President’s Standards • The President’s Standard is the highest and most prestigious honour bestowed upon any regiment (unit) of the Armed Forces since their inception. • It is bestowed upon them in recognition to their invaluable contribution to the security of our Nation both during hostilities and peace. • It also marks and epitomises their selfless service hard work, valour and sacrifice of all the personnel posted in regiments. TRAI amends regulation to facilitate Pan-India Mobile Number Portability February 25, 2015 Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) on 25 February 2015 has amended regulation to allow Pan-India Mobile Number Portability (MNP). In this regard, TRAI has issued 6th amendment to the Telecommunication Mobile Number Portability Regulation, 2009. It will come into effect from 3rd May 2015. Key facts • MNP enables mobile telephone users to retain their mobile telephone numbers when changing from one mobile network operator to another. • At present, MNP norms allow users to retain their numbers while changing their operators within the same service area or telecom circle, which in most cases, is limited to a particular State. • The new amended rule will allow mobile telephone users to retain their numbers by changing their operators in different telecom circles which in this case is different states across country i.e. Pan- India MNP. Background Earlier in November 2014, the Department of Telecom (DoT) had issued an amendments to MNP licence agreement. In this amended agreement, DoT had stated that MNP should be implemented Pan-India within a period of six months from the date of amendment of the licenses. Union Cabinet gives nod for creation of two additional benches of the Authority for Advance Rulings (Income Tax) February 25, 2015 Union Cabinet on 25 February 2015 gave nod for creation of two additional benches of the Authority for Advance Rulings (AAR- Income Tax). This decision was taken in Union Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in order to enable resident taxpayers to obtain an advance ruling in respect of their income tax liability above a defined threshold. Two additional benches of therichindia AAR will | Unique be established ID: 2776 | [email protected] in New Delhi and Mumbai. Implications of establishment additional benches of AAR • Increase disposing of number of cases to reduce pendency of cases in order to benefit tax payer and the Government. • Operationalise the facility of advance ruling for resident tax payers. • Provide tax clarity in certain situations to the resident tax payers. Along with this decision Union Cabinet also gave its approval Creation of various posts: • 2 posts of Vice-Chairmen in the Apex scale.

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• 4 posts of Members (two posts of Revenue Members and two posts of Law Members) in the Higher Administrative Grade (HAG+). • 2 posts of Secretary at the level of Commissioner of Income Tax/Joint Secretary. Expenditure for establishment and running these two additional benches: • Establishment: One time expenditure of Rs. 7.48 crores. • Running: Annual recurring expenditure of Rs. 6.61 crores. Background As per the provisions of Income-Tax Act, 1961 AAR was constituted for advance rulings to settle income-tax liability AAR provided the facility of settle income-tax liability of a non-resident and to plan their Income-tax affairs in advance in order to avoid long drawn and expensive litigation. Union Cabinet gives approval for establishing New Development Bank & BRICS Contingent Reserve Arrangement February 25, 2015 Union Cabinet on 25 February 2015 gave its approval for establishing the New Development Bank (NDB) and the BRICS Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA). This decision was taken in Union Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Benefits of New Development Bank (NDB) • Mobilise resources for projects related to infrastructure and sustainable development among member nations of BRICS i.e. in Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. • The bank will help India and signatory member countries to raise and avail resources for their infrastructure and sustainable development projects. • Act as a binding agent to maintain close relations among BRICS countries and provide a powerful instrument for increasing their economic cooperation. Benefits of BRICS Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA) • In order to effectively deal with short term liquidity pressures it will provide short-term liquidity support to the members. • It will also help India and other signatory countries to forestall short-term liquidity pressures. • CRA will strengthen financial stability among BRICS countries by providing mutual support to each other. February 26, 2015 Union Cabinet gives nod for 15000 MW grid-connected solar projects February 26, 2015 Union Cabinet on 25 February 2015 approved the implementation of the scheme for setting up of 15,000 Mega Watt (MW) Grid-connected Solar Photo Voltaic Power projects under the National Solar Mission. This decision was taken at Union Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Facts about approved Scheme • It will be implemented under the National Solar Mission through state-run National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) Limited and its subsidiary NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam (NVVN) Limited. • This project will also accelerate the process of achieving grid tariff parity for solar power and help to reduce consumptionrichindia of conventional | Unique ID: fuel2776 such| [email protected] as kerosene and diesel. • Bundled power produced from these projects will allotted to various states that will provide land for setting up projects. • In case of projects development both private and government companies can take part in it. But they will be allocated projects through international competitive bidding. Veteran cinematographer Aloysius Vincent passes away February 26, 2015 Veteran cinematographer and multilingual director Aloysius Vincent passed away on 25 February 2015 in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. He was 86.

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He is survived by his two cinematographer sons Jayanan Vincent and Ajayan Vincent and wife and daughter. About Aloysius Vincent o Vincent was born on 14 June 1928 in in Calicut (now known as Kozhikode) in Kerala. • In 1953, he started his career as a guest cinematographer Telugu film Chandi Rani. Since then he has worked as cinematographer in more than 150 films. His last film as cinematographer is Telugu film Annamayya (1997). • He also had dominated the Tamil film world as cinematographer and later become renowned in Telugu and Hindi films. o Vincent is also multilingual director. Since mid-1960s he had directed around 30 movies in Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu and Hindi. Some of his famous directed films were Bhargavi Nilayam (1964), Murrapennu (1965), Nagarame Nanni (1967) and Asuravithua (1968). • Vincent was also credited for introducing the zoom shot in Indian cinema in 1958 Tamil film Uthama Puthiran. Awards • In 2003, Indian Society of Cinematographers (ISC) awarded him an honorary membership. He also has won Filmfare Best Cinematographer Award for Prem Nagar (1974). Jamaica passes law to decriminalises marijuana for personal use February 26, 2015 Jamaica’s Parliament on 25 February 2015 has passed a law to decriminalise the possession of small amounts of marijuana up to 57 grams for personal use. The newly passed law allows licensing authority to oversee the medical and scientific uses of the Marijuana plant in the country. Jamaica’s decision to legalise marijuana comes in line with global trend which include several Latin American countries and US states that have decriminalised marijuana possession. Marijuana is widely grown in Jamaica and has cultural roots there. It is also the biggest exporter of marijuana to the United States among Caribbean countries. Global trend of decriminalisation of marijuana • In 2014, Uruguay was the first country in the world to approve the growth, sale and distribution of marijuana. • In United States, states like Alaska, Colorado, and Washington have legalises the sale and possession of marijuana for both medical and non-medical use. • Mexico, Colombia and Argentina also have decriminalised the possession of small amounts of marijuana. About Marijuana • Marijuana is a greenish-gray mixture of the dried, shredded leaves, stems, seeds and flowers of Cannabis sativa – the hemp plant. • Most people smoke marijuana, though it can also be used in other forms such as edibles, powders and oils. • Medicinal values of marijuana is used as a drug for controlling pain for medical issues, like cancer, nervous system diseases, glaucoma, migraines, etc. It also can be used to treat nausea and improve appetites for peoplerichindia with HIV | Unique or other ID: 2776 chronic | [email protected] illnesses. Apple Inc fined $553 million for patent infringement February 26, 2015 US Tech giant Apple Inc has been fined $553 million for three patent infringements owned by patent licensing firm Smartflash LLC. This verdict was given by federal Jury in US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. The Jury in its verdict found out that Apple Inc’s iTunes software has infringed three patents owned by Smartflash LLC. The federal jury in its verdict also held that Apple had not only used Smartflash’s patents without permission, but also used them willfully.

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Background In May 2013, Smartflash LLC had sued Apple Inc, alleging that iTunes software has violated its 3 patents related to accessing and storing downloaded songs, videos and games. In this regard, Smartflash LLC had asked $852 million in damages from Apple. Russia and Cyprus sign military deal on port access in Mediterranean Sea February 26, 2015 Cyprus has signed an agreement with Russia to give Russian navy ships access to Cypriot ports in the Mediterranean Sea. The agreement in this regard was signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Cyprus counterpart President Nicos Anastasiades in Moscow. Military deal between both nations comes at the time when the tensions between Russia and Western countries over the Ukrainian conflict have worsened. Key facts about agreement • Russia will use these ports in Cyprus to dock its naval ships for the purpose of counter-terrorism and anti-piracy operations. • Russia is also looking to use an air base in Cyprus for humanitarian relief missions in this region. • It is also considered that by building up base in Cyprus, will replace its search for base in Mediterranean since it has lost its previous base in on Syria in the Syrian crisis. Highlights from Railway Budget 2015-16 February 26, 2015 Union Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu on 26 February 2015 presented the Railway Budget 2015-16 in the Parliament. Below are the highlights of this Budget: Railway Fares • No new hike in passenger fares • While, the Freight fares have been raised incase of urea by 10%, iron and steel by 0.8%, kerosene and cooking gas by 0.8%, coal by 6.3% and cement by 2.7%. Railway Finances • Plan Budget is gone up by 52 percent Rs. 100011 crore for financial year 2015-16 compared to Rs. 65789 crore in FY 2014-15. • For next five year envisaged investment for railways is Rs. 8.5 lakh crore rupees. • Funds for railways will be raised from pension, institutional and multilateral agencies. • In order to improve passenger amenities, MPs requested to use part of their MPLAD funds. • Railways to set up an infrastructure fund and holding company to raise long-term debt. Passengers Amenities • 120 days in advance ticket booking facility for passengers instead of earlier 60 days. • Railways is aiming to move towards paperless ticketing. • Operation 5 minutes- Passengers can buy railway tickets within five minutes unde. • SMS updates to inform passengers about any change in schedule of trains. • Open wi-fi facility at 400 railway stations. • Mobile charging units will be installed. • For women safety CCTVs to be installed in selected trains and suburban trains. • Food ordering facilityrichindia food |while Unique booking ID: 2776 |tickets [email protected] through IRCTC website. • Water-vending machines to be set up at stations. • 138 will be a nationwide 24×7 helpline number for railway-related queries. While, 182 will be a toll- free number for security-related issues. • On-board entertainment in Shatabdi Express. Infrastructure • Track capacity will be increased by 10% to 1.38 lakh km. • Speed of passenger trains on 9 corridors will increased to 160-200 km/h from 110-130 km/h. • Wagon-making scheme will be reviewed in order ease private investment • By inviting open bids, station redevelopment policy will be revamped.

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• 10 satellite railway terminals will be developed in major cities in 2015-15. • PPP cell of Indian Railways will be revamped. • Feasibility report of high-speed train between Mumbai and Ahmedabad expected by mid-2015. • Connectivity to North-East India will be improved. In J&K rail connectivity will be on focus. Tourism • Railways will promote Gandhi circuit in order to mark centenary year of Mahatma Gandhi’s return from South Africa. • Special travel scheme Kisan Yatra for farmers for farming and marketing technique centres. • Under Incredible India, Incredible Rail will be launched. World’s first 3D-printed jet engine developed in Australia February 26, 2015 Researchers from Australia’s Monash University have created world’s first 3 Dimensional (3D) printed jet engine. The first of kind 3D printed engine was developed by team of researchers from Monash Centre for Additive Manufacturing in partnership with spin-out company Amaero Engineering. Process of Production • The jet engine was created using innovative additive manufacturing technique. Firstly, the scanned computer models of engines were created by the researchers. • Then the 3D printing machine incorporated with high-powered laser fused the nickel, titanium or aluminium into the shape of engine parts. Significance of this development • It opens the door for engineers to make and test parts of jet engines in days instead of months. • It will also help engineers to manufacture cheaper, lighter and more fuel-efficient jet engines. About 3D printing technology • 3D printing is a process of making three dimensional solid objects from a digital file with extreme precision. • This technology is also termed additive manufacturing as the 3D printed object is created us additive processes. • In an additive process an object is created by laying down successive layers of manufacturing material on each other until the entire object is created. • This technology has limitless possibilities and can create almost anything with just raw material and a computer generated model. Six Indian women among Forbes’ 50 ‘Power Businesswomen’ 2015 February 26, 2015 Six Indian women entrepreneurs and businesswomen have been named by Forbes magazine as among the 50 ‘Power Businesswomen’ from Asia. Indians included in the list are • Arundhati Bhattacharya- Chairperson of State Bank of India (SBI). Forbes list referred her as the first lady of Indian banking and as chair of the Indian behemoth with 225 million customers. • Chanda Kochchar- MD & CEO of ICICI Bank. Forbes list referred her as India’s second-most- powerful banker afterrichindia Bhattacharya | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] • Akhila Srinivasan- MD of Shriram Capital. • Kiran Mazumdar Shaw- Chairman & MD of Biocon. • Shikha Sharma- CEO of Axis Bank. • Usha Sangwan- MD of Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC). About Forbes 50 Power Businesswomen list The Asia’s 50 Power Businesswomen list showcases accomplishments of the region’s female entrepreneurs and executives for particular year. The list includes women CEOs and founders, who are active in the upper echelons of the business world in Asia. These women wield significant business power and have access to robust financial resources.

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China’s President Xi Jinping unveils new ‘four comprehensives’ political theory February 26, 2015 China’s President Xi Jinping has unveiled a new political theory, grouped into four slogans also known as the four comprehensives. His new political theory was declared ahead of the upcoming meeting of the Committee of the People’s Political Consultative Conference, which is going to discuss national policies. Xi Jinping’s new political theory is summed up into following four Comprehensives: • Comprehensively build a moderately prosperous society. • Comprehensively deepen reform. • Comprehensively govern the nation according to law. • Comprehensively strictly govern the Party. In the above 4 comprehensives, the first three are familiar to slogans of previous Chinese leaders, but the fourth comprehensive is a specific reference to the current anti-corruption campaign being prosecuted by Xi Jinping. Previously also, similar slogans were put forward by his predecessors, including Hu Jintao’s Three Supremes and Jiang Zemin’s Three Represents. Since 1950s several communist leaders had given number of similar kind of slogans. The Cultural Revolution begun by Mao Zedong also included phrases such as smash the four olds. February 27, 2015 Zoological Society of London and Gujarat Forest Department inks MoU for Asiatic lion Conservation February 27, 2015 Zoological Society of London (ZSL) and Gujarat Forest Department on 26 February 2015 have inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for conservation of Asiatic lion and its habitat. As part of MoU, ZSL with its expertise in managing zoo will provide • Technical assistance to forest department to manage rescue and treatments centres. • Technical support in veterinary support and expertise in managing the landscape and the habitat of the area and also training the staff in handling rescue operations. • It will also help to manage Sakkarbaug Zoo in Junagadh. • State Forest Department will use smart software jointly developed by the ZSL and the Gujarat forest department for tracking the movement of their staff and even the lions. Earlier in 2014, ZSL had launched charity’s new Lions400, a fundraising campaign and had raised over £135,000 towards helping to save the Asian lions. A person can be treated as SC even after re-conversion: Supreme Court February 27, 2015 The Supreme Court on 27 February 2015 held that a person can be accorded Scheduled Caste (SC) status even on re-conversion to Hinduism. The status can be accorded if the person is accepted by people of his caste and he proves that before converting either he or his forefathers previously belonged to SC caste. The ruling was given by tworichindia member | Unique Supreme ID: 2776 Court | [email protected] bench of justices Dipak Misra and V Gopala Gowda on a plea of K P Manu, a Kerala resident, who had challenged the Kerala High Court verdict. Supreme Court bench held that Beneficiary person for the caste certificate are • Absolute proof that he belongs to the caste that has been recognised by the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950. • Converted to other religion from original religion to which the parents and earlier generations had belonged. • There must be evidence establishing the acceptance by the community.

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Background • Petitioner K P Manu was born as a Christian. But his grandfather had embraced Christianity after leaving Hinduism. Petitioner later again became a Hindu and was C certificate of a Hindu caste, to which his ancestors belonged. • Earlier, the scrutiny committee also had held that the petitioner cannot be treated as a Hindu on the grounds that his forefathers were Christians. • Employer of the petitioner was directed to remove him from service and also to recover a sum of 15 lakh rupees towards the salary paid to him by the state government on the basis of the report of the scrutiny committee. • Kerala High Court also had given the ruling in favour of scrutiny committee and against Petitioner. Ratan Tata honoured with Doctorate of Automotive Engineering by Clemson University February 27, 2015 Ex-chairman of the Tata Group Ratan Tata has been honoured with Doctorate of Automotive Engineering by the Clemson University. He was conferred with Doctorate for his contributions to the global automotive industry at the South Carolina Automotive Summit. About Ratan Tata • Ratan Tata holds bachelor’s degree in architecture from Cornell University. He also has completed the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School. • In 1962 he had joined the Tata Group. In 1981, he was named chairman of Tata Industries and led the group in various fields including transportation, consulting, communications, chemicals, hospitality and steel. • During his stint as chairman of Tata group, he was responsible for transforming the group into a strategy think tank and a promoter of new ventures in high technology businesses. • Ratan Tata serves as director on the boards of Alcoa Inc., Mondelez International. He is also on the international advisory boards of, JP Morgan Chase, Rolls-Royce, Mitsubishi Corp., Temasek Holdings and the Monetary Authority of Singapore. Justice Amitava Roy sworn in as Supreme Court judge February 27, 2015 Justice Amitava Roy has sworn in as a judge of the Supreme Court (SC). He was administered the oath of office by the Chief Justice of India (CJI) H. L. Dattu and will have a tenure of three years. Prior to this appointment he was Chief Justice of Orissa High Court. It should be noted that Amitava Roy was appointed as judge of SC through traditional collegium system rather than newly created National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC). With the elevation of Justice Amitava Roy, the strength of the SC judges has gone up to 29 out of total sectioned strength of 31 judges. At present only one woman judge, Justice R Banumathi is among SC judges. About Justice Amitava Roy • Justice Roy had started his legal career by practicing in the district courts in Dibrugarh and Tinsukia in Assam from 1976richindia to 1981. | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] • Later in 1981, he shifted his lawyer practice in Gauhati High Court and focused mainly on the Constitutional, Civil, Criminal, Labour and Revenue cases. • In February 2002, he was appointed as judge of the Gauhati High Court. • In 2013, Justice Roy was appointed as Chief Justice of the Rajasthan High Court and later in August 2014 as the Chief Justice of Orissa High Court.

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AB De Villiers hits fastest 150 in ODI history February 27, 2015 South African cricketer AB De Villiers has hit the fastest 150 in one-day internationals (ODI’s). He achieved this feat in 64 balls in World Cup Pool B match against West Indies held at Sydney and also broke the previous record of Australia’s Shane Watson by 19 balls. AB De Villiers in the innings scored 162 runs from 66 balls and it comprised of 8 sixes and 17 fours. In this match, South Africa scored 408 runs which is the second-highest total in World Cup history. Fastest 150s in ODIs • AB de Villiers (South Africa) – Scored in 64 balls against West Indies. • Shane Watson (Austraia) – Scored in 83 balls against Bangladesh in 2013. • Luke Ronchi (New Zealand) – Scored in 92 balls against Sri Lanka in 2015. • Sanath Jayasuriya (Sri Lanka) – Scored in 95 balls against England in 2006. • Ricky Ponting (Australia) – Scored in 99 balls against South Africa in 2006.

February 28, 2015 IRCTC partners with Amazon.in for online shopping February 28, 2015 Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has partnered with e-commerce giant Amazon.in to provide convenient online shopping experience and sell various products. With this tie-up, IRCTC is going to offer its customers (especially Indian railways passengers) with seamless online shopping opportunities in addition to booking travel tickets and hotel accommodations. In this regard IRCTC is going to provide Amazon. In a link on the IRCTC website (www.irctc.co.in). Thus IRCTC customers and Indian railways passengers who access the IRCTC portal now can buy wide range of products from Amazon’s wide distribution network. The products will be consumer electronics, apparel, bags to toys, exotic food products, books, shoes. It will also include pet supplies, musical instruments, personal hygiene products and many more products. Acclaimed US actor Leonard Nimoy passes away February 28, 2015 Acclaimed US actor Leonard Nimoy passed away on 27 February 2015 in Los Angeles. He was 83 and died of end stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. He was best known for his half-human, half-Vulcan character of Mr Spock in the cult sci-fi series Star Trek. About Leonard Nimoy • Leonard Nimoy was born in 26 March 1931. • In 1950s, he started his career in teaching acting classes at Hollywood and making minor film and television appearances. • In 1965, for first time he appeared in rejected role in Star Trek as pilot The Cage. From 1966-69, he played the role of Spockrichindia in |original Unique ID: Star 2776 Trek | [email protected] series. • The character of Spock had a significant cultural impact and had garnered Nimoy three Emmy Award nominations. He also had appeared in multiple films, television series and video games. • Autobiography- two volumes, I Am Not Spock (1975) and I Am Spock (1995).

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Annual exercise TROPEX 2015 of Indian Navy concludes February 28, 2015 Indian Navy’s Theatre Level Readiness and Operational Exercise (TROPEX) exercise concluded on 27 February 2015. TROPEX-2015 was a month long exercise aimed at validating the Indian Navy’s Concept of Operations and the area of operations spanned the Arabian Sea and Northern Indian Ocean. It also encompassed all dimensions of maritime warfare. Key facts about TROPEX-2015 • In TROPEX-2015, around 50 ships and submarines, along with 70 aircrafts from the three Naval Commands participated. It also saw the participation of units from the India Air Force and the Indian Coast Guard. • In the month long exercise, Indian Navy had deployed two Carrier Task Forces simultaneously at sea. It saw participation of both INS Viraat and INS Vikramaditya with their integral flights in an operational scenario. • TROPEX 2015 also saw extensive deployment of the nuclear submarine INS Chakra, the recently inducted P8I Long Range Maritime Reconnaissance aircraft. • Recently commissioned guided missile destroyer Kolkata and Anti-Submarine Warfare corvette Kamorta also took part in it. • TROPEX-15 provided a reinforce platform for Indian Navy’s offensive capabilities across all dimensions. It also included Network Centric Operations (NCO) by using indigenous satellite Rukmani. • It also provided, Navy platform for its Op Logistics capability to effectively sustain Fleet Operations for extended period’s at large distances. Highlights of Union Budget 2015-16 February 28, 2015 Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley presented Union Budget 2015-16 in the Parliament. It was the first full year Budget of the NDA government under leadership of Prime Minister of Narendra Modi and the second budget of Arun Jaitley as Finance Minister. Highlights of Union Budget 2015-16 Taxation • No change in the Tax slab on personal income. • Wealth tax abolished. • Additional 2% surcharge for the super-rich with income more than Rs. 1 crore. • For next 4 years, corporate tax has been reduced to 25 percent from present 30 percent. • Service tax increased to14 per cent. • Apart from CSR, 100% tax exemption for contribution to Swachch Bharat Abhiyan. New projects • 5 more AIIMSs in Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh, Bihar and Assam. • IIT in Karnataka. While, the Indian School of Mines in Dhanbad, Jharkhand will be converted into IIT. • 2 more IIMs in Jammu and Kashmir and Andhra Pradesh. richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected] • Post-Graduation institutes of Horticulture in Amritsar, Punjab. • University of Disability Studies will be established in Kerala. • In Arunachal Pradesh, Centre of film production, animation and gaming will come up. • For Infrastructure sector Rs. 70,000 crores allocated. • Projects in rail road and irrigation bonds will be tax free. • Infrastructure development through PPP model will be revitalised and government will bear majority of the risk. • Atal Innovation Mission will be established to draw on expertise of researchers and entrepreneurs to foster scientific innovations. For this mission Rs. 150 crore allocated.

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• 5 ultra-mega power projects each of 4000MW proposed by Government Defence • 2,46,726 crore allocated for Defence. It is 9.87 per cent greater than last year. • Make in India campaign will take into consideration for speedy manufacturing of Defence equipment. Welfare Schemes and new programmes • Under the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, six crore toilets across the country will be built. • By 2020, housing for all. • MGNREGA will get MGNREGA of Rs. 5,000 crore. It is highest allocation to this scheme. • To improve quality of life of common man, GST and JAM trinity (Jan Dhan Yojana, Aadhaar and Mobile) will be launched. • To encourage first generation SC/ST entrepreneurs, MUDRA bank will provide finance. • Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) will be further be expanded to 10.3 crore from 1 crore. • Government will contribute 50% of the premium limited to Rs. 1,000 a year for the Atal Pension Yojana. • 9,000 crore unclaimed funds in PPF/EPF will be used for Senior Citizens Fund. • For all Indian, government will create universal social security system. • For electric cars production Rs. 75 crore allocated. • Renewable energy target for 2022: 60K MW in wind; 10K MW in biomass, 100K MW in solar and 5K MW in small hydro plants. • Under the new tourism scheme, development of churches and convents in old Goa; Hampi, Elephanta caves, , Jallianwala Bagh, Forests of Rajasthan, Leh palace, Varanasi Qutb Shahi tombs at Hyderabad. • Visa on Arrival (VoA) facility to be increased for 150 countries from present 43 countries. • As an alternative to purchasing gold, Sovereign Gold Bond will be launched. • In order to facilitate depositors of gold to earn interest and jewellers to obtain loans on their metal accounts new scheme will be launched. • Forward Markets Commission (FMC) will be merged with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). • Under SARFAESI Act 2002, NBFCs registered with the RBI having asset size of Rs 500 crore and above to be considered as financial institution for mid-corporate businesses and fund SME. • For Rural Infrastructure Development Bank, Rs. 25,000 crore allocated. • To support Micro Irrigation Programme, Rs. 5,300 crore allocated. First Assamese dictionary for Science and Technology terms released February 28, 2015 First Assamese dictionary for Science and Technology terms was released recently. It was released by Dr Alok Kumar Buragohain, Vice Chancellor of Dibrugarh University. Key facts • This dictionary is prepared by Asomiya Jatiya Abhidhan (AJA) and consists of over 40,000 words compiled in total 160-pages. • First of kind Sciencerichindia and | UniqueTechnology ID: 2776 |dictionary [email protected] in Assamese language is considered as a milestone in development of this language. • It also seeks to make scientific terminology simple and easily understandable by the people and particularly by students. • This scientific terminology dictionary covers almost all streams of science, including Physics, Chemistry, Botany, Geography, Computer Science, Zoology, Mathematics, Geology, Statistics and Astronomy among others.

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Haryana Government increases cash reward for inter-caste marriage February 28, 2015 Haryana government has decided to increase the cash reward under the inter-caste marriage scheme from 50,000 to 1 lakh rupees. This decision was taken by state level Vigilance and Monitoring Committee meeting held under the chairmanship of the Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar at Chandigarh. The increased cash reward for inter-caste marriage will be provided through bank accounts opened under the Pradhanmantri Jan Dhan Yojna (PMJDY). About Inter-caste marriage scheme • The scheme was constituted under Rule 16 of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989. • It aims to remove caste discrimination from society by providing support to inter caste marriage scheme. 28 February observed as National Science Day February 28, 2015 Every year February 28 is celebrated as the National Science Day i.e. Rashtriya Vigyan Diwas (रा�ट्र�य �व�ान �दवस). In 2015, the theme of the day is “Science for Nation Building”. This year’s theme has been chosen for the purpose of raising public appreciation on scientific issues for the development of nation. Why National Science Day is celebrated? • This day marks the epoch-making discovery of Raman Effect by Indian physicist Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman (CV Raman) on February 28, 1928. • In 1930, for this discovery he was awarded with the Nobel Prize in Physics. • In 1986, National Council for Science and Technology Communication (NCSTC) demanded the Union Government to assign February 28 every year as the ‘National Science Day’ for India. • In 2000, the first National Science Day was celebrated on February 28, 2000. • In 2013, the American Chemical Society designated the ‘Raman Effect’ as an International Historic Chemical Landmark. • Theme for the National Science Day 2013 – “Genetically Modified Crops and Food Security”. • Theme for the National Science Day 2014 – “Fostering Scientific Temper and Energy conservation”.

richindia | Unique ID: 2776 | [email protected]