GK POWER CAPSULE FOR NIACL & UIIC EXAM 2015

INTERNATIONAL
China and Russia Signed Energy Cooperation Agreements
China and Russia signed energy cooperation agreements on 9 November. The agreements were signed by the President
of Russia Vladimir Putin and President of China Xi Jinping at the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)
summit in Beijing.The deals include a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to develop a second major supply route to
supply Russian natural gas to China along a western route.
US and China Signed Climate Change Agreement
In a historic climate change deal, U.S. President Barack Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping on 12 November
announced both countries will curb their greenhouse gas emissions over the next two decades. Under the agreement,
the United States would cut its 2005 level of carbon emissions by 26-28% before the year 2025. China would peak its
carbon emissions by 2030 and will also aim to get 20% of its energy from zero-carbon emission sources by the same
year.It is the first time China, the worlds biggest polluter, has set an approximate date for emissions to peak.
Klaus Iohannis Elected As New President Of Romania
Klaus Iohannis was elected as the fifth President of Romania on 16 November. The Mayor of Sibiu Klaus Werner Iohannis
won the Presidential elections in Romania by defeating Prime Minister Victor Ponta of Social Democratic Party. Klaus
Iohannis belongs to Christian Liberal Alliance of Romania. He got 54.81 percent of votes and Victor Ponta got 45.18
percent.
UN General Assembly Adopted Resolution On Child Marriages
The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) rights committee on 21 November adopted the first-ever resolution
calling on governments to stop child marriages. The resolution was presented by Canada and Zambia.
INDIA & WORLD
India and Bhutan Signed MoU on Establishment Of Nalanda University
India and Bhutan on 7 November signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to develop Nalanda University in
Bihar as an international centre of excellence. The two sides signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in this
regard in Thimphu, the capital of Bhutan, after President of India Pranab Mukherjee held talks with the Bhutanese King
Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck.
Global Slavery Index 2014
Second Edition of Global Slavery Index was released on 17 November by the Australia-based Walk Free Foundation. The
Index ranks 167 countries in terms of the percentage of a national population and the total number of people living in
modern slavery country by country, region by region. In absolute terms, the index was topped by India followed by
China, Pakistan, Uzbekistan and Russia. Index highlighted that estimated 35.8 million people are in modern slavery
globally. Out of this, 61% people are living in top five countries.
India and Australia Siged Five Agreements
India and Australia on 18 November signed five agreements on social security, transfer of sentenced prisoners,
combating narcotics trade, tourism, and Arts and Culture.The agreements were signed after the bilateral talks between

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott in Canberra, Australia.
India Votes Against UN General Assembly Resolution On Death Penalty
India has voted on 25 November against a UN General Assembly draft resolution calling for moratorium on the use of
death penalty. The draft resolution on Moratorium on the use of the death penalty was approved in the General
Assemblys Third Committee, which deals with social, humanitarian and cultural issues.India was among the 36 nations
that voted against the resolution, which got 114 votes in favour and 34 abstentions.
NATIONAL
Commemorative Stamp on Liver Transplantation In India Released
The Department of Posts released a commemorative postage stamp on Liver Transplantation in India on 4 November on
the occasion of 15 years of Liver Transplantation in India. The patient who had undergone first successful liver
transplantation in India in 1998 Sanjay Kandaswamy was also present on the occasion.
21 New Ministers Inducted Into The Union Cabinet
Prime Minister Narendra modi on 9 November 2014 expanded his cabinet and added 21 more ministers to his
government. The 21 new ministers include four Cabinet Ministers, three Minister of State (Independent Charge) and 14
Minister of State. With this expansion, the total number of ministers under different ranks including the Prime Minister
has gone up to 66 from previous 45. It is also the first expansion of the Union Council of Ministers since the Modi
government took office on 26 May 2014. The Portfolios of Cabinet Ministers:- Manohar Parrikar (Goa) Defence Minister
; Suresh Prabhu (Maharashtra) Rail Minister ; J P Nadda (Himachal Pradesh) Health and Family Welfare Minister ;
Birender Singh (Haryana) Panchayati Raj and Drinking Water and Sanitation Minister.
PM Narendra Modi Launches Jeevan Pramaan Digital Life Certificate For Pensioners
The Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 10 November launched Jeevan Pramaan an Aadhar-based Digital Life
Certificate for pensioners.The digital certification will do away with the requirement of submitting a physical Life
Certificate in November each year by pensioners for getting pension.
Union Government Approved Launch Of DUGJY
The Union Government on 21 November approved the launch of the Deendayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana (DUGJY)
to provide access of electricity to rural households across the country. A decision in this regard was taken at the
Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi. The Union Cabinet also decided to merge the
ongoing Rajiv Gandhi Gramin Vidyutikaran Yojana (RGGVY) with DUGJY scheme.
STATES
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Launched Samajwadi Pension Scheme
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on 5 November launched the Samajwadi Pension Scheme for 40 lakh
families, including those belonging to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes and minorities.
PM Narendra Modi Adopts Jayapur Village In Varanasi
Jayapur was adopted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 5 November under the Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojana (MP
Model Village Plan). Narendra Modi chose Jayapur village in Varanasi district (Uttar Pradesh) under the Sansad Adarsh
Gram Yojana (SAGY).
Assam Zoo Set To Become First Zoo To Have The Endangered Pygmy Hog
Assam State Zoo in Guwahati in the month of November 2014 decided to have the critically endangered pig Pygmy
Hog (Porcula salvania). Pygmy Hog is the rarest and smallest wild pig in the world. With this decision, Assam State Zoo
is set to become the first and only zoo of the world to have this critically endangered species of pigs.
Namsai Becomes Arunachal Pradeshs 18th District
Namsai on 25 November 2014 officially became the 18th district of Arunachal Pradesh. The Chief Minister of Arunachal
Pradesh Nabam Tuki made the declaration.
CONFERENCES

Ninth G20 Summit Held In Brisbane

The 2014 G-20 Australia summit was the ninth meeting of the G-20 heads of government. It was held on 15-16
November 2014 in Brisbane, Australia. At the conclusion of the Summit, the G20 leaders released the final
communiqu known as the Brisbane Action Plan. The Action Plan contains a package of more than 800 reforms to boost
global growth, shore up financial institutions and improve economic resilience. If these are implemented, then global
growth will see an increase of 2.1 percent. After recovery from the global financial crisis the G20 agreed on the need for
bold and coordinated push to generate strong, sustainable economic growth across the bloc. It set an ambitious goal to
lift G20 growth by more than 2 percent to 2018 and millions of additional jobs. China will play host to the Group of
Twenty (G20) Summit of the emerging economies in 2016. Turkey took over the presidency from Australia and will host
the event in Antalya in 2015.
AWARDS & HONOURS
Manmohan Singh Received Japans Top National Award
Former Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was conferred with the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Paulownia
Flowers Award on 5 November. The Grand Cordon of the Order of the Paulownia Flowers is perceived as the second
highest civilian award of Japan after Order of the Chrysanthemum. The award was presented to Manmohan Singh by
Japanese Emperor Akihito at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo. He was given this award for his significant contribution to
the enhancement of relations and promotion of friendship between Japan and India. He became the first Indian to
receive this prestigious award.
West Bengals Darjeeling Zoo Selected For Earth Heroes Award 2014
The Darjeeling Zoo or the Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park was on 1 November selected for the prestigious
International Award The Earth Heroes Award 2014. It has become the first zoo in India. It has competed with 300 zoos
across the world. Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park is largest high altitude zoo of India. It is located in West
Bengal.The Earth Heroes award is annually awarded by the Royal Bank of Scotland in collaboration with the
Government of United Kingdom.
Neha Gupta Received International Childrens Peace Prize 2014
Indian-American student Neha Gupta has won the 2014 International Childrens Peace Prize Award for her exceptional
work to raise money for underprivileged children around the world. Nobel Peace Laureate Desmond Tutu the patron of
the Dutch childrens rights organization presented her with the award on 18 November in The Hague, Netherlands. She
is the first American to be awarded with this prize.
ISRO selected For Indira Gandhi Prize For Peace 2014
Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has been selected for the Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and
Development for 2014 in recognition of its path-breaking achievements including the Mars Orbiter Mission and
contribution in strengthening international cooperation in peaceful use of outer space. ISRO was selected for the award
by a jury chaired by Vice President Hamid Ansari on 19 November 2014.
SPORTS & GAMES
Central Zone Won Duleep Trophy 2014-15
Central Zone won the 2014-15 Duleep Trophy title on 2 November. They won by defeating South Zone in the finals
played at Feroz Shah Kotla Ground, Delhi with 9 runs. This was the first Duleep title for Central zone in ten seasons and
the narrowest win in the tournaments history, in terms of runs. K Rahul was adjudged as the Man-of-the-match for his
knocks of 185 and 130 in the final.
Salgaocar FC Won Durand Cup 2014
The 2014 Durand Cup , the 127th edition of the Durand Cup which is the third oldest association football competition in
the world, was won by the Salgaocar FC. Salgaocar FC defeated Pune FC in the final by 1-0 to claim their 3rd Durand
title.They were Durand Cup champions in the year 1999 and 2003 as well. 127th Durand Cup played at the Raia Sports
Complex, Goa.
India Won 3rd SAFF Womens Championship
India won the 2014 South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Womens Championship at the Jinnah Stadium in Islamabad
on 21 November. Indian team won 6-0 over Nepal to register their first series win on Pakistan soil.With this win, the

Indian team has won all the three SAFF women finals against Nepal.
Magnus Carlsen Won FIDE World Chess Championship 2014
Magnus Carlsen of Norway won the FIDE World Chess Championship 2014 on 23 November at Sochi (Russia). He
defeated Viswanathan Anand of India with a score of 6.5 4.5. Out of a total of 12 games played, he won the Game 2,
Game 6 and Game 11. With this he retained the FIDE World Championship which he had won in Chennai in 2013.
Karnataka Won Vijay Hazare Trophy
Karnataka won the Vijay Hazare Cricket Trophy on 25 November by defeating Punjab by 156 runs in the final at
Ahmedabad.Karnataka had won the title earlier this year in March 2014 to complete a historic treble (Ranji Trophy, Irani
Cup and Vijay Hazare Trophy) under R Vinay Kumar.
ECONOMY
WEF Recognizes 17 Indian Companies As Global Growth Companies
17 companies from India were recognised as Global Growth Company by World Economic Forum (WEF) as notified by it
on 5 November. Ratnakar Bank Limited (RBL), headquartered at Kolhapur (Maharashtra), is the only banking entity out
of these 17 companies from India, which have been described as regions most dynamic and high-growth companies by
the WEF. The Global Growth Companies community comprises over 370 companies around the world.
Government of India and World Bank Signed $200 Million Agreement
The Government of India (GoI) and the World Bank on 10 November signed a $200 million loan agreement to enhance
the productivity of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) by expanding and upgrading Technology Centers
across India. The Technology Center Systems Program (TCSP) will develop the technological and skills base of MSMEs in
selected manufacturing industries.
Kerala Becomes First State with Bank Accounts For All Families
Kerala has become the first state in the country with bank accounts for all families under Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan
Yojna (PMJDY). A formal declaration to this effect was made by Kerala Finance Minister K M Mani at the State-Level
Bankers Committee (SLBC) meeting in Thiruvananthapuram on 11 November.
Indias Growth Forecast Raised To 6.6 percent By OECD For 2015-16
Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) on 19 November raised Indias growth forecast to 6.6
percent for the financial year 2015-2016.
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Russia Successfully Test Fired Topol-M Intercontinental Ballistic Missile
Russian Strategic Missile Troops (RVSN) on 1 November successfully test fired a Topol-M Inter Continental Ballistic
Missile (ICBM) to test its technical features. The Topol-M, a silo-based ICBM, was launched from the Plesetsk
cosmodrome in Russias northern Arkhangelsk region.
Nuclear Capable Agni-II Missile Successfully Test Fired
India on 9 November successfully test-fired its medium-range nuclear-capable Agni-II missile with a strike range of
more than 2000 km from the Wheeler Island off Odisha coast as part of a user trial by the army.The 20-metre long AgniII missile is a two-stage, solid-propelled ballistic missile. It has a launch weight of 17 tonnes and can carry a payload of
1000 kg over a distance of more than 2,000 km.
Pakistan Successfully Test Fires Shaheen-II and Shaheen 1A
Pakistan has successfully test fired Shaheen-II (Hatf-VI) Ballistic Missile on 13 November 2014. Shaheen-II Missile is
capable of carrying nuclear and conventional warheads to a range of 1500 kilometers.
China Launched Yaogan-23 Remote Sensing Satellite
China launched remote sensing satellite Yaogan-23 from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Centre on 15 November. This
satellite was carried by the Long March 2-c rocket. This is the 198th mission of the Long March rocket project. The
Yaogan-23 will be deployed mainly for scientific experiments, crop yield estimates, national resource surveys and
disaster relief.

PERSONS IN NEWS
A) APPOINTMENTS
Anita Kapur is CBDT new Chairperson
Senior Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer Anita Kapur has been appointed as the new Chairperson of the Central
Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) on 5 November. CBDT is the topmost authority of the Income-Tax Department. Anita Kapur
will be serving as the Chairperson of CBDT till November 2015. She succeeded K V Chowdhary who has retired on 31
October 2014.
Laxmikant Parsekar Sworn In As Goas New Chief Minister
Laxmikant Parsekar sworn-in as the new Chief Minister of Goa. Parsekar was elected the leader of the Goa BJP
Legislative Party on 8 November 2014 and was administered the oath of office on the same day. He replaced Manohar
Parrikar, who took oath as Union Cabinet Minister on 9 November 2014. Laxmikant Yashwant Parsekar is the member of
the Goa Legislative Assembly from Mandrem constituency.
B)RESIGNS
Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar Resigned
Goa Chief Minister Manohar Gopalkrishna Prabhu Parrikar on 8 November 2014 resigned from his position. He took oath
as Union Cabinet Minister on 9 November 2014. Manohar Parrikar is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in
India. He has been Chief Minister of Goa first from 2000 to 2005 and later from March 2012 to November 2014 and
represented the Panaji constituency in the Legislative Assembly of Goa.
C)DEATHS
Former Union Minister Murli Deora Died
Murli Deora, Senior Congress leader from Maharastra and Former Petroleum Minister, was died on 24 November in
Mumbai. Deora was Indias longest serving Petroleum Minister, completing exactly five years in office in a tenure that
began in January 2006 and was spread between UPA-1 and II. He first contested the Lok Sabha polls from Mumbai
South constituency in 1980 . He was first time elected to the Rajya Sabha in 2002 from Maharashtra and since then had
completed two terms. At present, he was serving his third term.
D)VISITORS
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi Visited Myanmar
Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi visited Myanmar to attend the 25th ASEAN summit, 12th ASEAN-India Summit
and 9th East Asia Summit in Naypyidaw,the capital of Myanmar from 12-13 November 2014. During the visit, many
decisions were taken and on the sidelines of the summit, the Prime Minister also met with other leaders of ASEAN
countries. Narendra Modi also met Myanmar President U Thein Sein in Nay Pyi Taw, the capital of Myanmar. This was
the first meeting between the two leaders, and focus was on connectivity, cultural contacts and commercial ties.
E)MISCELLANEOUS
Narendra Modi Ranks 15th On Forbes Most Powerful People List
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been ranked 15th in the Forbes list of Worlds Most Powerful People for the year
2014. Forbes worlds most powerful people -2014 list was released on 5 November. Russian President Vladimir Putin
retains his numero uno seat just above his American rival Barack Obama (2nd) for the second consecutive year.
PLACES IN NEWS
Worlds 2nd Tallest Power Transmission Towers In West Bengal
The worlds second tallest power transmission towers, built by Haldia Energy Limited (HEL), has come up in West
Bengal.The 236-metre-long twin towers, located at HELs 600-MW capacity plant at Haldia and Raichak across the river
Hooghly, are the tallest in the country. Covering a span of 1.5 km, the twin towers weigh 1,800 tonnes.The worlds
highest transmission tower (370 metres) is located at Mount Damaoshan in China.

ABBREVIATIONS
AAFI Amateur Athletics Federation of India
APEC Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation
CDRI - Central Drug Research Institute
SAARC - South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation
ASEAN Association of South East Asian Nations
BOOKS IN NEWS
2014:The Election That Changed India Authored By Rajdeep Sardesai Released
A book titled 2014:The Election that Changed India authored by senior journalist Rajdeep Sardesai was released on 1
November. The book follows through the major stories of the 2014 Loksabha elections which affected the fate of
Narendra Modi, Manmohan Singh and Rahul Gandhi.
COMMITTEES
Justice Mudgal Committee Submitted Its Final Report on IPL Spot Fixing
The Supreme Court (SC) appointed Mukul Mudgal committee on 2013 Indian Premier League (IPL)-6 spot-fixing
submitted its final report to the court on 3 November 2014. The report of Justice Mukul Mudgal committee on match
fixing in IPL-6 was made public on 17 November 2014.The report gave a major relief to the stepped down BCCI
president N. Srinivasan observing that it could not be proved that he was involved with betting activities. The Mudgal
Committee submitted two reports to the Supreme court on 9 February 2014.The Mukul Mudgal panel was constituted
by the Supreme Court in October 2013 to probe the allegations of spot-fixing in IPL-6 matches. The committee is
headed by Justice (Retd.) Mukul Mudgal, former Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court.
IMPORTANT DAYS AND DATES
National Education Day was Observed on 11 November
National Education Day (NED) was observed on 11 November 2014 to mark of the birth anniversary of Maulana Abul
Kalam Azad. This NED was 125th birth anniversary of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad.National Educational Day was observed
on the birth anniversary of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, first Education minister of Independent India.In 2008,
Government of India declared that Azads birth anniversary will be celebrated as the National Education Day.
World Fisheries Day Observed Across The World On 21 November
World Fisheries day on 21 November 2014 was observed across the world by the fisher folk communities. The day will
remind the world to ensure sustainable stocks of fisheries and healthy oceans ecosystems.The day also helps to
highlight the problems like over fishing and mechanization and moves towards finding solutions to the increasingly
inter-connected problems that world facing and in the longer term, to sustainable means of maintaining fish
stocks.Fishing communities across the world celebrated through rallies, workshops, public meetings, cultural dramas,
exhibition, music show, and demonstrations to highlight the importance of maintaining the fisheries of world. As a part
of World Fisheries Day celebrations, Union Government of India announced to launch Blue Revolution to increase in fish
production and productivity in India.
Some Important General Knowledge Updates for Insurance Exam

1. Former Supreme Court judge CK Prasad is set to be appointed as the next Chairperson of the

Press Council
of India.Prasad will succeed Justice Markenday Katju as the Chairman of the PCI.
2. The fourth largest private bank (post merger with ING Vysya) received approval from RBI
to form a
100% subsidiary to enter general insurance industry, which is currently growing at a Rs.

77,000 crore
premium per annum.
3. The bank already has a tie up with Tata AIG General Insurance Company to sell and
distribute its products.
Kotak also has a Life insurance unit called Kotak Mahindra Old Mutual Life Insurance Ltd, a
joint venture
between Kotak Mahindra Bank and South Africa-based Old Mutual Public Ltd.
4. Kathak queen Sitara Devi died. She was 94. She was honored with the Legends of
India Lifetime
Achievement Award 2011 for her contribution to the classical dance genre for over six
decades.
5. Adani Group-owned Dhamra Port Company Limited (DCPL) would invest around Rs
7000 crore for
expansion of cargo handling facility.
i. Gujarat-based Adani group bought out L&T and Tata Steel's shares in the company in
March 2014 at an enterprise value of Rs 5500 crore.
ii . Following the acquisition, the second phase of development was to be initiated within
90 days and completion targeted in 30 months.
iii. This continued expansion will allow Dhamra port to exceed 100 million tonnes of cargo
capacity by the year 2020.
Note:The port, situated between Haldia in West Bengal and Paradip in Odisha, was mostly
handling cargo like coal and limestone.
6. Nepal has given an Indian company permission to build a 900 megawatt hydropower plant.
i. The two countries will sign an agreement for the $1.04 billion project, which provides
Nepal with free electricity and India energy for its power-hungry economy.
ii. The project, which will be built by Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam (SJVN) Limited, was
originally cleared in 2008 but never implemented after Kathmandu lobbied for greater
benefits.
7. GMR Infrastructure has received the Securities and Exchange Board of India approval
to rise up
to Rs. 1,500 crore through rights issue.
i. In a rights issue, shares are issued to existing investors as per their holding at a predetermined price and ratio.
8. An Indian Railways team is in China to chalk out plans for conducting feasibility study to
build
the
1,754
km-long Delhi-Chennai high-speed train corridor; world's second largest bullet train line.
i.The proposed corridor could be the second largest in the world after China's 2,298 kmlong BeijingGuangzhou line which was launched last year. Running at a speed of 300
km per hour, it covers the distance in about eight hours.
Note: India is currently considering two corridors for high speed trains. While Japan is
conducting feasibility study for the Bullet train project in Mumbai-Ahmadabad corridor,
China will do the same for the Delhi-Chennai route which expected to begin by early next
year.
9. Imaging and information technology solutions provider
Ricoh India on Tuesday said that it has got a deal
worth Rs. 1,370 crore from Department of Posts to
modernize post offices through automation.
i. Under the project, Ricoh India will supply,
install and maintain
services
of
hardware,
peripheral devices and operating system.
ii. The primary goal of the Rural ICT project is to
improve the quality of service, provide more value
added services and achieve financial inclusion of
un-banked
rural
population.
Note: India Post is an iconic organization in

India, the largest such network in the world and

playing a crucial role in the socio economic
development of rural India, touching the lives of
common man
10. Three global organizations, the World Toilet
Organisation
(WTO),
WASTE
and
the
Financial
Inclusion
Improves
Sanitation
and
Health
(FINISH),
signed
a
memorandum
of
understanding (MoU) to end open defecation in
India.
The
agreement is for three years. They share the common
goal of
making sanitation accessible and affordable to all citizens.
11. International Day for the Elimination of Violence
against
Women observed across the world on 25 November
2014.i.
The campaign calledOrange Your Neighborhood to raise awareness against Gender-Based
Violence will
be held from 25 November to 10 December 2014.
ii. The campaign is part of Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon's campaign UNiTE to End
violence against Women.
12. Lahore-based author Bilal Tanweer on 24 November 2014 won the 2014 Shakti Bhatt First
Book
Prize
for
his novel The Scatter Here Is Too Great (Random House India).
13. West Bengal Governor Keshari Nath Tripathi was appointed as Governor of Bihar
Housing finance
company DHFL announced to name Shah Rukh Khan as its brand ambassador.
14. China beats India in November FII inflows: HSBC
i. According to the global financial services major, after two consecutive months of selloffs, FIIs have warmed up to Asian equities and all markets have received positive flows
in November as the region recorded net inflows of $5.3 billion, out of which India attracted
$1.4 billion.
ii. Among Asian economies, China regained the top position as the most loved market,
pushing India down to second position in the region, while Thailand was placed at the third
spot.
15. Modi proposes SAARC business traveler card
i. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday proposed a SAARC business traveler card 35 years for making it easier for traders and merchants in the region to travel and access
one anothers markets.
16. State Bank of India to launch Islamic equity fund
i. State-owned bank will launch an Islamic equity fund next month aimed primarily at the
country's 170 million Muslims. SEBI recently allowed the government-owned State Bank of
India BSE 0.41 % and three mutual funds to launch Sharia funds.
Note: India is only the second country outside the Islamic world where a state-owned bank
is offering a Sharia-compliant fund. The U.K. issued sovereign Islamic bonds in June.
17. Kotak Mahindra Bank is the first bank to fully own an insurance business
i. Kotak Mahindra Bank BSE 0.07 % on Tuesday became the first bank to get the Reserve
Bank of India's (RBI's) permission to set up a wholly-owned non-life insurance company.
ii. The bank is already the promoter of a life insurance company in partnership with Old
Mutual of South Africa.
Note: i. RBI guidelines allow a bank to hold max 50 per cent in insurance joint venture.

However, RBI
allowed some exceptions, like SBI and ICICI Bank. In both these partnerships, the banks hold
74 per cent.
ii. Kotak General Insurance will be the 29th non-life company in the country. The last nonlife insurer to
get permission from the regulator was Cigna TTK a health insurance company.
iii. The last company to set up a full-fledged general insurance business was Liberty
Videocon General
Insurance.
18. Canara Bank has signed a memorandum of understanding with Micro Energy Credits
Corporation to
finance bank customers buying energy efficient green products such as cook stoves, solar
home systems,
biogas digesters and water purifiers. The partnership has identified Chitradurga district in
Karnataka to
promote such green products on a pilot basis.
19. The Lok Sabha today passed the Delhi Special Police Establishment (Amendment) Bill, 2014
by voice vote.
As per the new provisions, CBI director will be selected by a panel which will comprise of
Prime Minister,
Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha or the leader of the Single largest party in the
House and
Chief Justice of India or any Supreme Court Judge.
20. Haryana government reversed the retirement age of government employees from 60 to 58
years. It also
reversed the retirement age of Class IV, visually impaired and handicapped employees
from 62 to 60
years.
21. United Nations (UN) Women announced the
appointment
of Indian tennis superstar and youth icon, Sania
Mirza, as
its Goodwill Ambassador for South Asia. The
organization
is dedicated to gender equality and
womens
empowerment. She became the first South Asian
woman to
be appointed as a Goodwill Ambassador. The
other
Goodwill Ambassadors include British actor Emma Watson, Academy Award winner Nicole
Kidman, HRH Princess Bajrakitiyabha Mahidol of Thailand, and Indian actor-filmmakersinger Farhan Akhtar.
22. Boxer Manoj Kumar today received the prestigious Arjuna Award from Sports Minister
Sarbananda
Sonowal.the 2010 Commonwealth Games gold-medalist, was bestowed with the honor
in a function
organized in the National capital.
23. Michael Phelps was crowned Male Athlete of the Year at the 2014 USA Swimming Golden
Goggle Awards.
He was crowned with the title for a fifth time. Earlier, he won the title in 2004, 2007, 2008
and 2012. He
was awarded with the title despite being suspended from competition for six months
after a drunken
driving arrest in September 2014.
24. Ms Deborah, a tribal girl from Andaman and Nicobar Islands has created history in

National Level by
winning four Gold Medals in the Track Asia Cup Cycling Championship 2014 which
concluded at Indira
Gandhi Stadium, New Delhi.
25. The SAARC Framework Agreement on Energy (Electricity) Cooperation was signed among
the SAARC
member countries. Chairperson Sushil Koirala also announced that the 19th SAARC Summit
will be held at
Islamabad in 2016.
26. SAARC countries today signed a framework agreement on cooperation in power sector
but failed to
finalise the much-awaited motor vehicle and railway pacts for greater people-to-people
contact and
movement of goods due to opposition from Pakistan. A time period of three months have
been set for
approval to the Motor Vehicle and Railway pacts.
27. Australia Test cricketer Phillip Hughes passed away
today
in
Sydney in a Sheffield Shield match.
28. Sanskrit to be 3rd language in Classes 6-8 in KV:
Centre
to SC
29. President of India Pranab Mukherjee penned a book
titled
The Dramatic Decade: The Indira Gandhi Years,
published by
Rupa.
30. Biography My Name is Abu Salem released written by S
Hussain Zaidi and published by Penguin.
31.
Punjab National Bank (PNB) on Wednesday said it will
continue giving free transactions to all saving bank
account cardholders using PNB ATMs, irrespective of
the number of transactions.
32. To provide liquidity to retail investors investing in
long-term
bonds issued by banks for financing
infrastructure and
affordable housing, the Reserve Bank of India said
banks can
extend loans to individuals against these bonds.
such loans
should be subject to a ceiling, say, Rs. 10 lakh per
borrower,
and tenure of loan should be within the maturity
period of
the bonds.The RBI also stated that banks are not
permitted to
lend against such bonds issued by other banks.
33. Trilochan Sastry, Professor in Quantitative Methods
and
Information Systems, Indian Institute of
Management
Bangalore (IIMB), has been awarded the 11th Bharat
Asmita,
an honor instituted by the Pune-based MIT group of

institutions.
34. Pakistani actress Veena Malik sentenced to 26 years in jail for blasphemy
i. Pakistani actress Veena Malik, Mir Shakil-ur-Rahman, owner of Geo TV and Jang group,
Maliks
husband
Asad Bashir Khan and TV host Shaista Wahidi were sentenced to 26 years and also imposed
a
1.3
million
in jail on 26 November 2014 by an Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) of the Gilgit region of
Pakistan.
35. The Reserve Bank of India has issued final norms for payment banks and small finance
banks that would
allow mobile firms and supermarket chains, among others, to enter the banking arena to
cater to
individuals and small businesses. The move aims at deepening financial inclusion and boost
saving
habits. Shriram Capital, Janalakshmi Financial Services, Magma Fincorp and Muthoot Finance,
among
others, are expected to throw their hats into the ring to set up small banks.The Department
of Posts,
Bharti Airtel, Vodafone India, Tata Teleservices, Western Union and online digital payment
players such as
Paytm, Oxigen and MobiKwik have expressed interest in floating payment banks.Companies
will have to
apply by January 16, 2015, for licences in both categories.
Key
i. The small bank will primarily undertake basic banking activities of acceptance of deposits
and lending
to un-served and under-served sections, including small business units, small and marginal
farmers,
micro and small industries and unorganized sector entities.
ii. Small banks will be required to maintain a minimum capital adequacy ratio of 15 per
cent
of
the
loans
on a continuous basis. In the draft guidelines, the RBI had suggested that small banks
would
have
a
restricted area of operations (possibly contiguous districts in a homogenous States).
However, in the final guidelines, these restrictions have been removed. The small bank will
be required to extend 75 per cent of its credit to the priority sector
Payment Banks:
i. Payments banks can accept deposits current and savings bank from individuals,
small
businesses
and other entities but cannot provide loans.. However, they cannot accept nonresident
Indian
deposits.The payment bank will initially be restricted to holding a maximum balance of
Rs1
lakh
per
individual customer.While the bank can issue ATM/debit cards, it cannot issue credit cards.It
can
contract
outside liabilities (deposits) but not exceeding 33.33 times (against 20 times in the draft
guidelines)
its
net worth.
36. Country's economic growth has declined to 5.3 per cent during July to September, from
the previous
quarter's 5.7 per cent.the manufacturing sector, which accounts for about 15 per cent of
India's gross
domestic product rose by 0.1 per cent during the quarter from the previous period's
3.5 per cent.
Agriculture sector growth declined to 3.2 percent against 3.8 percent.

37. India today signed a Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, with Mozambique for
cooperation in the field
of oil and gas. The MoU was signed in the presence of Minister of State for Petroleum
and Natural Gas,
Dharmendra Pradhan in New Delhi.
38. Former Uttar Pradesh chief secretary Anoop Mishra was appointed as new Secretary
General
of
the
Lok
Sabha. He was appointed by Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan.
39. Historian Tapan Raychaudhuri died
40. Namsai officially became the 18th district of Arunachal Pradesh. The Chief Minister of
Arunachal
Pradesh
Nabam Tuki made the declaration.
41. European Union lawmakers overwhelmingly backed a motion urging anti-trust regulators
to
break
up
Google.
42. The book titled Your Dreams Are Mine Now: She Showed him What Love was authored by
Ravinder Singh
was released.
he book titled Black Tornado: The Three Sieges of Mumbai 26/11 authored by Sandeep
Unnithan.
43. Crime novelist PD James died at the age of 94
44. RBI eased gold imports and scrapped 20:80 scheme. The decision to withdraw the 20:80
scheme
will
cut
smuggling of gold and raise legal shipments into India.
45. Beijing banned smoking in all indoor public spaces like workplaces and public transport
vehicles
and
it
will be effective from 1 June 2015.
46. Next China-India War- World's First Water War - authored by General S. Padmanabhan
released
47. NASA celebrated the 50th anniversary of its first mission to Mars, Mariner 4 mission on
28
November
2014. Mariner 4 mission launched on 28 November 1964 was the NASAs first successful
journey to Mars.
48. India and Nepal launched the first ever bus service between the two countries.To begin
with daily buses
will ply between Delhi and Kathmandu. Later, there will be similar buses which will ply
on two other
routes - Delhi-Pokhara and Varanasi- Kathmandu.
49. Former Union Minister GK Vasan, who split from the Congress, has revived the Tamil Maanila
Congress.
50. Prime Minister Narendra Modi flagged off the first train from Mendipathar in Meghalaya to
Guwahati.
51. Theatre personality Veenapani Chawla passes away
52. Russian film Leviathan by Andrey Zvyagintsev won the best film award comprising
Golden
Peacock
and
Rs.40 lakh at the 45th International film Festival of India.
ii. Mr. Alexey Serebryakov from the Leviathan also shared the best male actor award in
the Cimena of the World competition.
53. Book titled Letters for a Nation written by Jawaharlal Nehru & Madhav Khosla was
published
by
Allen Lane an imprint of Penguin Books .
54. Mumbai, Kolkata most vulnerable to loss of
life,
properties due to coastal flood: United
Nations
Framework Convention on Climate Change

(UNFCCC).
55. Country's biggest oil company Indian Oil Corporation is looking at setting up a greenfield
refinery on the
West coast as part of its expansion plans.Indian Oil Corporation Chairman B Ashok said
there is a need for
green field refinery by 2021-22. After setting up of Paradip Refinery in East coast, focus is
now on setting
up of a refinery in West coast region.
56. Dubai to invest $32-billion to build worlds largest airport.The Dubai International
Airport
is
the
worlds second busiest airport after the London Heathrow.
57. The new natural gas price of USD 5.61, which is already among the lowest in Asia Pacific, is
likely to drop
to around USD 5 per unit in three years due to the variables included in the formula,
Goldman Sachs has
said.
58. PV Sindhu today bagged the Macau Open Grand Prix Gold Badminton title for the second
consecutive
time
defeated Korean Kim Hyo Min
59. Israeli cricket umpire Hillel Oscar dies after being struck by ball
60. Officials from over 190 nations, including India converged in Lima at the UN climate
summit
to
negotiate
on a new ambitious and binding deal to cut global carbon emissions.During the 12-day
summit in the
Peruvian capital, countries will put forward what they plan to contribute to the 2015 pact in
the
form
of
Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) by the first quarter of 2015, well in
advance
of
the
Paris conference in December. Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar leads India's
17- member
delegation to negotiate terms for the final agreement to be signed in Paris, which will take
effect in 2020.
61. Tabare Ramon Vazquez Rosas won Uruguay Presidential Election 2014.Vazquez belongs to
the
leftist
Broad Front coalition party of Uruguay.replaed Jose Mujica who was barred by law from
running for a
second consecutive term.
62. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday dedicated to the nation the second unit of the
726 MW gasbased power plant at Palatana in Tripura. A host of dignitaries from India and Bangladesh,
which
facilitated transportation of heavy machineries to the plant, were present on the occasion.
63. Focusing on improving connectivity to the Northeast, Prime
Minister Narendra Modi said the Centre would
provide Rs 28,000 crore for laying new railway lines
in the region and develop the untapped tourism
potential of the area.Prime Minister said that the
Centre has sanctioned Rs 5000 crore to provide 2G
mobile coverage in this area for comprehensive
telecom development plan of the northeast region.The
Prime Minister
said
his
government
has
decided to set up a National Sports University in
Manipur and the people of the region will be great
beneficiaries.

64. The Economic Times Awards for Corporate

Excellence
announced
i. The Economic Times Awards for Corporate
Excellence was announced.
The awards were announced in the following
category: Business Leader of the Year - Dilip
Shanghvi
Company of the Year - Tata Consultancy Services
Emerging Company of the Year - Adani Ports &
SEZ Global Indian of the Year - Satya Nadella
Startup of the Year - Zomato
Business Reformer of the Year - UK Sinha
Corporate Citizen of the Year - Tata Steel
Lifetime Achievement - Yusuf Hamied
Entrepreneur of the Year - Dhiraj Rajaram andChandra Shekhar
Ghosh
The award was sponsored by Standard Chartered Bank. Since 2012, Standard Chartered
Bank has been the presenting sponsor of The Economic Times Awards for Corporate
Excellence.
65. Egypt court declared Islamic State of Iraq and Syria a terrorist group
66. Former Arunachal Pradesh CM Jarbom Gamlin passes away
67. ICC names SAP SE as analytics and cloud partner for 2015 World Cup
68. UAE captain Khurram Khan became the oldest player to score a century in ODI against
Afghanistan
in Dubai.
69. Mascot for the 2016 European football championship named Super Victor.The name for the
cartoon
character boy dressed as a footballer in blue and white with a red cape and number
16 jersey was
preferred to Driblou and Goalix. Euro 2016 will take place in France from 10 June 2016 to 10
July 2016.
70. Former Indian football captain Baichung Bhutia has been conferred with the Asian Football
Confederation
(AFC) Hall of Fame Award.He received the award in Manila, Philippines on the occasion
of afc's 60th
anniversary. FIFA President Sepp Blatter presented the award to Baichung, the only Indian
in the AFC's
Hall of Fame.
71. RBI keeps interest rate unchanged
i. RBI in its fifth bi-monthly monetary policy statement kept the policy rates unchanged.
ii. The headline inflation has been receding steadily, and current readings are below the
January 2015
target of 8 per cent as well as the January 2016 target of 6 per cent,'' the RBI said.
72.
Former Prime Minister Atal Behari
Vajpayee's birthday on
25th December would be
observed
as national 'Good Governance Day'.
73. Senior Congress leader, former Maharashtra Chief Minister, A R Antulay passed ..
74. India today successfully test-fired its nuclear-capable strategicballistic missile Agni-IV, with a
strike range
of about 4,000 km, from a test range off the Odisha coast.This was the fourth trial of AgniIV missile. The
last trial was carried out successfully on January 20 this year from the same test range off
Odisha coastaid

75. Film artist of Ireland Duncan Campbell Turner Prize 2014 for a video called It For
Others. The video
reflects on African art and includes a dance sequence inspired by Karl Marx. He
received the prize of
25000 pounds at Tate Britain in London.
76. Rajdeep Sardesai penned the book titled 2014: The Election That Changed.
77. Veteran music critic SV Krishnamurthy passed away
78. The Prime Minister of Taiwan Jiang Yi-huah on 29 November 2014 resigned after election
loss.
He
lost
his first election since protests erupted over a controversial TRADE deal with mainland
China.
79. Bollywood actor Deven Varma passes away. He shot to fame with his performance in 1975
film
Chori
Mera Kaam, which bagged him his first Filmfare Award for Best Comedian.
80. Russia launched new generation GLONASS-K navigation satellite from the Plesetsk space
centre in
Russias northwestern Arkhangelsk region.This is the fifth launch of a Global Navigation
Satellite System satellite (GLONASS) from the Plesetsk space centre. The first launch of a
GLONASS satellite from Plesetsk took place on 26 February 2011.
81. Anil Sinha takes over as new CBI Chief. Mr. Sinha is the third consecutive chief of the agency
from
Bihar
following Ranjit Sinha and A.P. Singh
82. SBI Cards ties up with Future Group company Fashion at Big Bazaar
branded CREDIT CARD, Styleup.
83. World Bank, ADB to assist AP in Hudhud cyclone relief
works. The World Bank Country Director is Omno Rahl
and Country Director of Asian Development Bank (ADB) is
Theresakho.
84. Central Bank to raise Rs. 626.23 cr from preferential issue to LIC. The capital raising
committee of the
board approved raising of additional equity capital by issuance of up to 8.28 crore shares
at Rs. 75.55 a
equity, Central Bank of India said in a statement.
85. Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait Delhi branch offers full-fledged services
86. India has showed some improvement in addressing corruption this year, ranking
85th
among
175
countries as against 94th last year, graft watchdog Transparency International India
(TII).Denmark
retained its position as the least corrupt country in 2014 with a score of 92 while North Korea
and Somalia shared the last place, scoring just 8, it said.
Cricket world bids tearful adieu to Phil Hughes at Macksville.
87. Canara Bank
has been conferred with the Niryat Bandhu
Silver Trophy in the in the banks category for
its support services rendered for promotion of exports.
88. India celebrates 43rd Navy Day; President, PM salute devotion of Navy personne.
89. Union Finance Ministry constituted High Level Committee to interact with trade and industry
on taxrelated issues on a regular basis. The high level committee will be headed by former
Chief Economic Advisor (CEA) Ashok Lahiri.The HLC will give recommendations to the
Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) and the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC)
for issuance of appropriate clarifications by way of circulars, instructions on tax issues.
90. Justice Krishna Iyer passes away
91. Prince of Gujarat: The Extraordinary Story of Prince Gopaldas Desai releasedauthored by
Rajmohan
Gandhi.

92. India, Japan to cooperate in the fields of Cyber security and Green Information and
Communication
Technology, ICT.
93. East Zone lifts Deodhar Trophy cricket tournament, beating West Zone by 24 runs at the
Wankhede
Stadium in Mumbai
94. India's S Ravi in ICC panel of umpires for World Cup
95. Narndra Modi named 'Asian of the Year' by
Singapore's
Straits Time.
96. RBI relaxed norms for Pre-paid Payment
Instruments
(PPIs) and doubled the limit to one lakh rupees
from
50000 rupees.
Highlights of RBI norms on PPI
i.
The maximum validity of gift cards has been
enhanced from one year to three years. Other
provisions of PPI guidelines with respect to gift cards
will continue.
ii. RBI also allowed issue of multiple PPIs by banks
from
fully-KYC compliant bank accounts for dependent or
family
members.Only one card can be issued to one
beneficiary.The
central bank also permitted banks to issue
rupee
denominated PPIs for visiting foreign nationals and
NRIs.
97. RBI issued guidelines for setting up a trading
platform for
trade receivables and bills of exchanges of Micro
and Small
and Medium Enterprises - MSME.The Trade
Receivables
Discounting System - TReDS should have a minimum
paid up
equity capital of 25 crore rupees and non-promoters
would
not hold over 10 per cent of the equity capital of
TReDS.
98. HDFC Bank rules out a JV for payment bank
99. National Rifle Association of India ,NRAI, chief Raninder becomes first elected Indian in
ISSF
International Shooting Sport Federation committee
100. Private entity cannot hold more than 26% stake in public-private joint ventures for
coal block
allocations. However, if it is more than one private sector entity, the structure should be such
that its stake
does not exceed 49 per cent.A total of 92 blocks are being offered under the first round.
101. Air India, NBCC National Buildings Construction Corporation Limited sign MoU for
development of of
Air India at various locations on joint venture basis.
102. PSU bank ATMs will be able to print in Hindi soon

103. Ashton Carter new US defense secretary to replace Chuck Hagel as US Defence Secretary.
104. Arun Duggal appointed as non-executive Chairman of Credit rating agency ICRA. He will
replace
Pranab Kumar Choudhury who will resign from ICRA Limited and all other affiliated
entities on 29
January 2015.
105. ICICI Bank ties up with price comparison app Zopper for offline and online.
106. ICICI Bank sells Russian subsidiary Russian subsidiary ICICI Bank Eurasia to
Sovcombank 107. Govt appoints Dinesh Kumar as CEO of Polavaram Project
108. Orion spacecraft marks dawn of new chapter in space exploration: US NASAs unmanned
spacecraft
completed its first test flight.Orion is expected to take up its first crew in 2021.
109. Fifth World Cup Kabaddi begins at Jalandhar in Punjab. 19 teams from 15 nations are
participating in
the tournament. These include 11 Men's and 8 women's teams.Prize worth 5.27 crore
rupees are up for
grabs in team and individual events.
110. Kotak Mahindra Bank launches savings bank account for customers of 55 years and
above.
According to the release, customers will earn 6 per cent pa on savings balance of over Rs
1 lakh and 5
per cent on balances up to Rs 1 lakh.To earn higher return on their balances, they can
sign up for the
Kotak ActivMoney facility, which converts savings account balance above a certain
amount into term
deposits.
111. India sets new world record for largest human flag formed by over 50,000 volunteers,
beating
the
previous record held by Pakistan.
112. Modi, Mukesh Ambani most searched personalities in 2014: Yahoo
113. Dev Shah becomes world champion in Under-7 category in World Schools Chess
Championships
at Juiz de Fora in Brazil.
114. Mandatory for PSUs from 1st April, 2015 to procure 20 percent of products
manufactured
by
MSME: Govt
115. India forex reserves up $ 1.432 billion to $ 316.311 billion
i. India's forex reserves surged by 1.432 billion US dollar to 316.311 billion dollar in the week
ended 28th
November.The country's gold reserves remained unchanged at 19.738 billion dollar.
The Special
Drawing Rights increased by 6.4 million dollar to 4.229 billion dollar, while the
country's reserve
position with the IMF also rose by 2.5 million dollar to 1.521 billion dollar during the week.
116. Indian Blind Cricket Team lifts World Cup after defeating Pakistan in Cape Town, South
Africa .
117. Indias communication satellite GSAT-16 launched from Kourou in French Guiana
functioning
normally. GSAT 16 has highest number of 48 transponders that will be used for
television, telephone
and internet applications.
118. Kumar Sangakkara became fourth batsman to complete 13000 ODI
runs 119. Amos Meindi of Kenya won 29th Pune International
full Marathon
120. Carnatic vocalist Nedanuri Krishnamurthy died
121. Uber taxis banned in Delhi, company blacklisted

122. Modi wins TIME readers poll for Person of the Year.
123. Satyarthi, Malala to receive Nobel awards
on
Wednesday
i. Child rights activists Indias Kailash Satyarthi and
Pakistans
Malala Yousafzai, along with 11 others will
receive this
years Nobel Prizes.The Nobel Laureates take
centrestage in
Swedens capital Stockholm and Norwegian Oslo,
where
they will receive the Nobel medals, Nobel
diplomas and
documents confirming the Nobel Prize amount.
ii. Satyarthi, 60, and Yousafzai, 17, will share the $1.1million
Peace Prize at Oslo, while all the other awards
will be
presented in Stockholms.
124. Gwladys Nocera of France won Hero Women's
Indian
Golf Open 2014 at the Delhi Golf Club. She
received the
prize money of 300000 US dollars.
125. Subramanian Committee on Leveraging the Post
Office
Network submitted report to the Union Ministry
of
Communications
and Information Technology.The
objective of the Committee was to transform the
Post Office Network in keeping with changing
market trends and competition.
126. Hockey Olympian Grihanandan Singh died
127. Warren buffet became second richest person of
World
He replaced Carlos Slim, business magnate of
Mexico. Bill
Gates is the world richest person.
128. Andhra Pradesh Government signed MoU with Singapore for development of its new
capital
that
is set to come up near Vijawayada region.
129. Richard Rahul Verma -US Ambassador to India replaced Kathleen Stephens.
130. Human Rights Day observed globally on 10 December- theme for the 2014 Human Rights
Day is
Human Rights 365.
131. SBI launches first homegrown economic indicator the SBI Monthly Composite Index and
the SBI
Yearly Composite Index that will primarily track manufacturing activity and offer a
forward-looking
economic trends.
132. Indias second most up and coming destination for expats after China :
HSBC 133. Indias GDP may grow 5-6% in 2015: Moodys
134. BHEL commissioned
28 MW
Nyaborongo Hydro Electric Project in Rwanda on
turnkey basis.

135. Ministry of Railways inaugurated Wi-Fi broadband services at New Delhi railway station
136. Azim Premji awarded Swiss Ambassador's Award in Mumbai for inspirational and
socially
responsible leadership.
137. Veteran Journalist Piratla Venkateswarlu passed away
138. A US-based intelligence think tank has placed Pakistan eighth in the list of the most
dangerous countries
in the world which is led by Iraq.Afghanistan, the only other South Asian country in the
list, is placed
fourth in the Country Threat Index.
139. Ebola fighters named Time's 2014 'Person of the Year'
140. Russia agrees with India to construct 12 nuclear reactors India over 20 years, under an
agreement
aimed at boosting nuclear energy cooperation signed by the two countries.
141. The UN's annual economic report yesterday said that growth edged up in 2014 at an
estimated
2.6
percent. The UN is forecasting 3.1 percent economic growth in 2015 and 3.3 percent
growth in 2016.

142. India likely to improve economic growth to 6.3%

in
2016: UN.India is estimated to record a 5.4
percent
economic growth this year and its GDP will
improve to
5.9 per cent next year and to 6.3 per cent in 2016.
143. Bhutan became 181st member of Multilateral
Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA). A, agency of
World Bank.MIGA is the political risk insurance and credit enhancement arm of the World
Bank Group. Benefits of becoming a member
i. The move will allow the private sector and corporations of a country to explore external
commercial
borrowing (ECB).Once a member of MIGA, the private sector and corporations in the
country
will
have
the option of directly applying to MIGA for issuance of guarantee to attract Foreign Direct
Investment
(FDI).
144. Pioneer of home video game console Ralph Henry Baer died
145. Randhir Singh appointed as honorary member of International Olympic Committee (IOC) in
Monaco.
146. Anurag Jain appointed as joint Secretary in Prime Minister's Office (PMO) of India.
147. Tata Power acquired 540 MW thermal power plant for 3000 crore rupees in
Maharashtra.With
this
deal, Tata Power aimed to increase its total capacity to 8885 MW.
148. Delhi HC banned Xiaomi to sell phones in India over patent issue with Ericcson. LS passes
bill
on
204 coal block allocations.
149. 22 states, UTs support bill to prevent 'honour killings'.
150. Russian President Vladimir Putin, offered the Ruias-promoted Essar Group a $1-billion
credit line and an
$8-billion crude supply contract.The steel-to-oil Indian conglomerate signed two separate
agreements
with St Petersburg-based Vneshtorgbank (VTB) and Moscow-based Rosneft.
151. Dineshwar Sharma has been appointed as the next chief of Intelligence Bureau(IB).

he

will
succeed Syed Asif Ibrahim whose tenure ends on December 31.
152. Ruhi Singh won Miss Universal Peace & Humanity 2014. at Beirut, Lebanon among the
145
other
countries.
153. Asha Bhosle awarded DIFF Lifetime Achievement Award 2014 at the 11th Dubai
International Film
Festival (DIFF) held in Dubai.Along with her, another Egyptian actor Nour El-Sherif was
also received
the DIFF Lifetime Achievement Award for his work on over 100 films.
154. Oil India signs contract for two oil blocks in Myanmar
155. ONGC declares interim dividend, notifies 3 discoveries in Krishan Godavari Basin and
Mumbai
offshore and it will pay its shareholders an interim dividend of 100 per cent.
156. Indias Forex reserves down $1.64 billion plunged $867.4 million at $289.95
billion.The value of
special drawing rights (SDRs) was lower by $21.6 million at $4.20 billion.Gold reserves
for the week
under review were down by $753.2 million at $18.98 billion.
157. Lima talks: New draft text introduced without consultation.190 countries gathered at
the U.N.
Climate Change Conference in Lima, Peru to work on drafts for a global climate deal that
is supposed to
be adopted next year in Paris.Developing countries have been opposing the mitigation
centric approach
of the developed countries which are not ready to commit to financial targets or technology
transfer.
158. Central Sydney under Siege:Terrified hostages cowered inside a cafe in central Sydney
with an Islamic
flag displayed against a window at the Lindt chocolate caf.
159. Rahman and Jal for Oscars:rehman his third Oscar nomination in the best original score
category after
making it to the list of 114 probables.while Hindi film Jal also features in the long list of
best picture
Oscar hopefuls.Jal features in the best picture list as an independent submission,
while India will
officially be represented at the Academy awards in the best foreign feature category by
Liars Dice.
160. PM Narendra Modi launched Born Again on the Mountain by Arunima Sinha
161. Miss South Africa Rolene Strauss crowned Miss World 2014 at the final of the beauty
pageant held in
London, UK. Miss Hungary, Edina Kulcsar, was the runner-up and Miss United States,
Elizabeth Safrit,
came third in the 64th annual competition, contested by women from 121 countries.
162. Miss World 2014: Aishwarya Rai Bachchan felicitated by the Miss World Organisation at
the 64th
edition of the international beauty pageant for her commitment to beauty with a
purpose since
winning the crown two decades ago.
163. Wholesale inflation hits zero, lowest in over 5 years.The Wholesale Price Index (WPI) based
inflation
was at 1.77 per cent in October and 7.52 per cent in November 2013.
164. Anil Ambani led Reliance Group has sold its multiplex business to South India-based
Carnival
Group
in
the largest ever deal in this space.

165. World Hockey Body Suspends Two Pakistani Players Following Obscene
Gestures..Muhammad
Tousiq and reserve goalkeeper Ali Amjad were handed a one-match ban that sidelined
them from the
final.
166. Germany beat Pakistan 2-0 to win Champions Trophy.it was Germany's 10th Champions
Trophy
title.
167. Anerood Jugnauth appointed as Mauritius Prime Minister by the President Purryag by
replacing
Prime Minister Navinchandra Ramgoolam.