GK POWER CAPSULE - MAY 2015 – HINDU REVIEWS This capsule has been prepared by the Career Power Institute Delhi (Formerly known as Bank Power). This document contains all the important news and events of the Month May 2015, which can be helpful in the upcoming exams and interviews. 1. AIADMK General Secretary J Jayalalithaa was sworn- 7. President Pranab Mukherjee authorized Justice in as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu for fifth time. (retd) Cyriac Joseph to act as the interim She is the 18th Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu and chairperson of the National Human Rights succeeded O Panneerselvam who resigned on 21 Commission (NHRC). He will replace K.G. May 2015 following her acquittal on 11 May 2015 in Balakrishnan. the disproportionate assets case by the Karnataka 8. Eminent banker Kundapur Vaman Kamath was High Court. The court overruled the Bangalore’s appointed as the first President of the New special court judgment which found Jayalalithaa Development Bank (NDB) of BRICS nations. He will guilty. serve a five year term after the bank becomes operational within one year. 9. The Union Ministry of Finance appointed a committee under the chairmanship of Justice Ajit Prakash Shah to look into the issue of Minimum Alternate Tax (MAT) on Foreign Institutional 2. David Cameron’s Conservative Party on 8 May 2015 Investors (FIIs). As per the Finance Act, 2015 the 20 won the UK General election 2015 by securing 331 percent MAT on Capital Gains made by FIIs is seats in a Parliament of 650. With this win, the waived off from the financial year 2015-16. incumbent Prime Minister David Cameroon will However, the issue of imposing MAT for past years continue to be in the office. (till 2014-15) has become controversial. At present, 3. The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet gave Justice A P Shah is heading the 20th Law its nod for appointing G Mohan Kumar as the Commission of India. Secretary of the Ministry of Defence. 10. Achal Kumar Jyoti was appointed as the Election 4. Akhil Amar, an Indian-American professor from Yale Commissioner of India. At present, Nasim Zaidi, the University, was appointed as a member of the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC), is the other prestigious National Council on Humanities of member of election commission. United States. 5. Peter M Christian was elected as the eighth President of the Federated States of Micronesia. 6. SS Ahluwalia was appointed as the chairman of Joint Parliamentary Committee on the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition Rehabilitation and Resettlement (LARR) (Amendment) Bill, 2015. The committee has 20 11. Senior IPS officer Surender Singh took over as members from the Lok Sabha and 10 members from Director General of central paramilitary force the Rajya Sabha. Central Industrial Security Force. 12. Actor and producer Mukesh Khanna was appointed at the Washington DC International Film festival. as the Chairperson of the Children's Film Society of Kalki Koechlin-starrer film is a disability drama. India. 23. Prime Minister Narendra Modi conferred the 50th 13. Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz appointed his Jnanpith Award on eminent Marathi litterateur nephew Mohammed bin Nayef as the new Crown Bhalchandra Nemade. Prince and as a Deputy Prime Minister. 24. Former Union Finance Minister and veteran BJP 14. Hungarian writer Laszlo Krasznahorkai won the leader Yashwant Sinha was conferred with prestigious Man Booker International Prize for the Officier de la Légion d’Honneur(Officer of the 2015. Legion of Honour- highest French civilian 15. Veteran Bollywood actor Shashi Kapoor was distinction) in recognition of his valuable honoured with the prestigious Dada Saheb Phalke contribution to thought on international issues. award. 25. President of the United States (US) Barack Obama entered Guinness Book of World Record for reaching a million followers in a span of mere 5 hours after going live. Barack Obama debuted on Social Media Platform Twitter with @POTUS account. 16. The French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo was 26. V Shanmuganathan was sworn in as 15th Governor presented with the 2015 Freedom of Expression of Meghalaya at the Raj Bhawan in Shillong. Courage Award of the PEN American Centre at the 27. Indian-Origin Harbhajan Kaur Dheer became the American Museum of Natural History. first Asian woman to be elected as mayor in the 17. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and United Kingdom (UK). Cultural Organization (UNESCO) presented the 2015 28. Indian-origin Priti Patel was appointed as Minister UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom of State for Employment in British Government. Prize to Syrian journalist and rights activist Mazen 29. Bollywood actor Salman Khan was in news as he Darwish. was sentenced to five years imprisonment by 18. Ace tennis player Rafael Nadal received the Golden Mumbai Sessions Court. He was sentenced for his Medal for Merit in Work. Golden Medal is one of 28 September 2002 hit and run case in which one the top civilian honours of Spain which aims to pavement dweller was killed and four others were highlight an exemplary performance in any job or injured. profession. 19. Prannoy Roy, the Executive Co-chairman of NDTV, was conferred with the Redink Lifetime Achievement Award 2015 at a function in Mumbai. 20. Two Indians namely Dr Ananda Kumar and Dr Pramod Patil won the prestigious Whitley Awards (also known as Green Oscar) for their contribution to wildlife conservation. 21. Srinagar-born novelist Siddhartha Gigoo won the 2015 Commonwealth Short Story Prize for Asia region for his work Umbrella Man. 22. Margarita, with a Straw directed by Shonali Bose of 30. Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu O Panneerselvam India won the Audience Award for Best Feature Film resigned. 31. Veteran jazz musician Bob Belden passed away. Line of Credit to Mongolia. India-Mongolia signed 32. Eminent economist and academics Mrinal Datta 13 agreements including enhancement in Chaudhuri passed away. cooperation in border defence, air services, cyber 33. Popular Indian stage, film and television actress security, renewable energy and others. Modi Sudha Shivpuri died. addressed to the Mongolian Parliament. Modi 34. Aruna Shanbaug, the nurse of Mumbai’s King gifted a rare history manuscript to Mongolian Edward Memorial (KEM) Hospital, died on 18 May President. 2015. She died after battling with coma for past 42- 42. Highlights of the visit to South Korea - Narendra years following a sexual assault by a hospital ward Modi announced to set up a special panel to clear boy. and fast-track South Korean investments into India. 35. Veteran Hollywood actress Elizabeth Wilson passed South Korea became the second country after Japan away. for which a special panel will be constituted. South 36. Former Union Minister and veteran Congress leader Korea announced to invest 10 billion dollar for Baleshwar Ram. Indian infrastructure development. India-South Korea signed seven agreements including revised avoidance of double taxation, cooperation in audio- visual co-production, Youth Matters as well as co- operation between the National Security Council of India and South Korea. 43. Muglawali village of Yamun nagar district in Haryana came into news after district authorities 37. Authorities of the Gangotri National Park in claimed that they have dugged out a paleo (old) Uttarakhand on 21 May 2015 opened the Nelong channel which resembles now inactive River Valley for tourists for the first time since its closure Saraswati. in 1962. 44. 19th century Dharahara (Bhimsen) tower at the 38. Islamic State for Iraq and Syria (ISIS) militants on 21 center of Sundhara in Kathmandu, Nepal on 25 April May 2015 seized full control of ancient city of 2015 was reduced to rubbles after an earthquake of Palmyra in Syria. magnitude 7.9 on the Richter scale struck the 39. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 19 May 2015 country. returned to India after completing his tour to three 45. The United Nations released Mid-2015 World nations namely China, Mongolia and South Korea. Economic Situation and Prospects. Growth of world 40. Highlights of the visit to China - Prime Minister GDP will accelerate slightly from 2.6 percent in 2014 raised the boundary question with China and asked to 2.8 percent in 2015. for an early settlement of the issue and decided to maintain peace and tranquility at the border point for maturity of relations. India-China signed 24 inter-governmental agreements. 21 business agreements worth 22 billion US dollars signed between Indian and Chinese companies. PM Modi inaugurated ICICI’s first branch in China at Shanghai. 41. Highlights of the visit to Mongolia - Modi is the first 46. United Nations Conference on Trade and ever Prime Minister of India to visit the country. Development (UNCTAD) released a report titled India announced to provide one billion US dollar Global Investment Trends Monitor. The report highlighted that developing Asia now invests more 56. The term Nuclear Insurance Pool was in news as the abroad than any other region. Hong Kong (China) General Insurance Corporation of India was and China were the second and the third largest collecting views from the stakeholders in the investors in the world, after the United States which Insurance industry and Nuclear Energy sector about remains the largest single source of outward foreign the creation of the NIP. The NIP is intended to cover direct investment (FDI). the liability of Nuclear Plant operators and 47. The World Economic Forum released the Human Equipment and Material Suppliers under Civil Capital Report 2015 in Geneva, Switzerland. India Liability for Nuclear Damages (CLND) Act, 2010 in occupied the 100th position among the 124 case of nuclear accidents. The creation of the Pool countries surveyed in the Index. Finland topped the has become necessary due to the reluctance of the list.