Genesis-November 2015 Issue II PDF

2
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The Genesis
November2015-Issue-II
Current Affairs
Parisattacks:Europes26/11
NepalandIndia:Friendsturningfoes
India,States
7,10
World
11
Sports
14
Economy
16
Corporate
29
CyberBuzz
24
Science&Technology
25
Paris attacks3
The
aftermath
of
every
terrorist attack leaves the
question: what could be done
to prevent
it happening
again? Already, a number of
intelligence
failures
and
security challenges have been
identified in the wake of the
Paris attacks
People
Faces:AungSanSuuKyi
13
BusinessBiography:AmarBose
18
Knowledge Corners
RecentReleases:AdvantageIndia,WrittenbySalimJaved
26
GD:ScrappingofNJACisJudicialOverreach
27
Crossword,Sudoku
28,36
Doyouremember?
29
CorporateKnowledgeQuiz
32
PointCounterpoint
35
Group Discussion: 27
In a landmark decision the
Supreme
Court
has
invalidated the governments
move to put in place a
National
Judicial
Appointments
Commission
that would have replaced the
existing Collegium System of
making appointments and
transfers in the higher
Ahmedabad CO & Centre: 101, Suyojan Towers, Near. Hotel President, Off. C.G. Road Ahmedabad 09:079 26464053/26420509
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Mumbai: Vashi: :022-65652221/7666587770; Vile Parle (W): :022-65568888/65567788; Borivali: :022-65354535/65354515
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Jaipur: 302, Ganga Heights, Opp. Apex Mall, Lal Kothi, Tonk Road, Jaipur:01414044315
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November 2015-Issue-II
THE GENESIS
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Paris atttacks: Eu
uropes 26/11
2
The carnag
ge in Paris was remin
niscent of the 26/11/2008 Mumbai attacks
s in the way terrorists
s
navigated the
t
landsca
ape, targeted populate
ed areas an
nd set out on
o their killing spree
DeadliesttinEurope
esince20
004
France has declared
d
a national state of
o emergency and
tightened borders after at leeast 128 peopple were killedd in a
night of gunn and bomb attacks
a
in Paaris on Novem
mber
13.French Prresident Franncois Hollandde has vowed to
wage a mercciless fight aggainst terrorism
m.
horities for exxtremist links aand yet made it out to Syriaa

auth
and then were able
a
to get bback to Fran
nce apparentlyy
und
detected. There may well hhave been a specific
s
failuree
heree but it is hardd to be sure yyet. A large teerror operationn
The Presidentt went on natiional TV to annnounce a staate of

emergency foor the first tim
me in Francee since 2005. The
decree enablees the authoriities to close public placess and
impose curfeews and resttrictions on the
t
movemennt of
traffic and people.
These are thee deadliest atttacks in Europpe since the 2004
2
Madrid train bombings thhat killed 191 people and were
w
directed by an
a al-Qaeda-innspired terrorist cell. Earlier in
January 20155, Paris saw three days off attacks in when
w
Islamist gunm
men murdereed 18 people after attaccking
satirical magaazine Charlie Hebdo, a Jeewish supermaarket
and a policew
woman on patrrol.
The attacks have
h
demonsttrated in horriific terms thaat the
so-called Islaamic State (IS
S) group reprresents not juust a
threat to the Middle
M
East buut to Western Europe too.
Attack sitees:
La Belle Equipe,
E
92 ruee de Charonnne, 11thdistrictt - at
least 19 deaad in gun attaccks
Le Carillonn bar and Le Petit
P
Cambodgge restaurant at
a rue
t
Alibert, 10th
district - at leeast 12 dead inn gun attacks
La Casa Noostra restaurannt, 92 rue de laa Fontaine au Roi,
11thdistrict - at least 5 dead in gun attaacks
Stade de France, St Denis,
D
just north
n
of Parris explosions heard outside venue, three attackers deadd
Bataclan concert venuue, 50 bouulevard Volttaire,
11thdistrict - stormed byy several gunnmen, at leasst 80
dead
Securityfflaws
The aftermathh of every terrrorist attack leeaves the quesstion:
what could be done to prevent it happening
h
aggain?
Already, a number
n
of inttelligence faillures and security
challenges haave been idenntified in the wake
w
of the Paris
P
attacks.
The first challlenge is for the
t French seecurity servicees. A
number of thhose involvedd in the attackks, such as Omar
O
Mostefai andd Sami Am
mimour, -weree known to the
www.endea
avorcareers..com
like Paris takes considerable

c
pplanning and normally thaat
wou
uld leave som
me kind of a fo
footprint - ofteen in the form
m
of electronic
e
com
mmunicationss and contactt with peoplee
und
der surveillancce - that intelliigence agenciees would hopee
to pick
p up and yet in this case tthey did not.
Thaat may be duue to operatioonal security by the groupp
invo
olved, especiaally if they foound ways to communicatee
thatt were not monitored.
m
Theere have been
n reports theyy
used
d encryption apps
a
but theree is no clear ev
vidence of thaat
yet.
But a real probleem for Frenchh security is the
t numbers 1,00
00 individualss are thought to have gone to Syria from
m
Fran
nce and keepping track off all of them
m and of thee
mov
vements of thhose who com
me back is a problem thaat
risk
ks swamping any
a security seervice.
Thee main task is risk assessm
ment and prioriitisation to tryy
to work out where
w
to deevote limited
d surveillancee
ources. But thhis is an art nnot a science and the riskkreso
proffile of individduals can easiily be underestimated. This
prob
blem of num
mbers applies to many otther Europeann
secu
urity and policce services as well.
Novvember 2015--Issue-II
THE GEN
NESIS

A second problem is the international dimension.
Jihadists operate internationally and the Paris attackers
moved across Europe and over borders. Jihadists will
always exploit the weakest link in security, including
internationally. In the Paris case they appear to have
organised in Belgium.The Belgian state is smaller and its
security services lack the capacity of the French.
Security services are focused on their own nations and
have to rely on liaison with other services to track people
who are moving. That leads to a reliance on relationships
and information sharing which is not always as good as it
should be. Police appear to have stopped individuals
involved in the plot and then let them go in some cases.
Addressing such grievances and structural problems

cannot be done militarily. The answer must involve
finding political solutions for the Syrian and Iraqi
conflicts, and engaging in cultural and educational efforts
to defeat ISISs ideology that sanctifies violence as the
only means for Sunni empowerment and glory. This is not
something Western governments are equipped to do or
capable of accomplishing. It is an effort that must emerge
from within the Arab and Muslim communities.
The possibility that one attacker posed as a refugee,

perhaps using a faked Syrian passport, adds another
element of complexity.
The vast flow of people who have entered Europe makes
it much easier to hide and move than in the past. Until
recently, there was little evidence of any jihadists hiding
among refugees but the Paris case, -if confirmed, may
change that. The problem is that border and entry checks
vary from place to place.
Some countries have fingerprinted and registered refugee
arrivals, others have not, sometimes because they are
overwhelmed but also because they simply want to usher
refugees onwards as fast as possible to the next country.
Border controls and the refugee crisis are politically
potent issues domestically in many countries which will
make finding common ground harder.
Every successful terrorist attack is, in one sense, an
intelligence failure but hindsight always makes that
clearer. The problems are often easy to spot afterwards
but the reality is that they are often complex and hard to
fix.
TheISISmonster
ISIS is an expression and symptom of the political
disenfranchisement and humiliation that many Sunnis, in
particular Sunni Arabs, feel in todays world. Such
feelings arise from a complex set of factors. Among these,
certainly, is Western intervention, such as the U.S.
invasion of Iraq and its devastating effects on Iraqi
society. But perhaps more important has been the decades
long brutalisation of Arab populations by their own
governments, who also have not delivered on promises of
economic development.
Signsofdesperation
Paris the first major terrorist attack inflicted by ISIS on a
territory outside its sphere of influence. For ISISs
ideologues, organised violence has invariably been
focussed on the enemy that is near, principally Shias and
agents of apostate Arab governments (e.g., Iraq or
Saudi Arabia). Major and coordinated attacks in distant
lands are to be avoided because these can result in a
massive retaliation and the loss of the territorial base that
was acquired by the caliphate. ISIS leaders have often
criticised al-Qaeda for the 9/11 attacks because this led to
the crushing of the movement in Afghanistan and the
defeat of its host, the Taliban regime. Furthermore,
attacking the distant infidel is not a priority given the
closer and more dangerous enemies at hand such as the
Shias.
So what explains the Paris attacks, which represent a
departure from ISISs tactics and perhaps even strategy?
In a word, defeat. ISIS has been dealt a string of recent
defeats with the loss of territory, the death of many of its
top commanders and numerous fighters as well as the
drying up of its recruitment networks.
ISIS has lost territory in both Syria and Iraq, most
recently the towns of Sinjar to the Kurds and Baiji in
THE GENESIS

October to the Iraqi government and irregular forces. The
road connecting ISISs two most important urban centres,
Mosul in Iraq and Raqqa in Syria, is no longer under ISIS
control. In Syria, ISIS has lost huge swathes of territory
and looks about to lose all its territory along the TurkishSyrian border as well. After ISISs suicide attack in
Ankara in October, Turkey effectively stopped the
pipeline that was feeding the movement with recruits
through its territory. At the same time, the Russian air
force became involved in the Syrian war on the side of the
Bashar al-Assad regime and ISIS has been targeted.
US: essentially to break down ISIS through sustained air

attacks, in the hope that over time, local anti-IS ground
forces will be up to the task of rolling back the extremists
on the ground.
In recent days there has been a significant surge in US
Today the ISIS not only lacks the confidence to inform

about the truth, but as a self-proclaimed divinely ordained
state it can only enjoy victory and never suffer defeat.
Here lies its Achilles heel because with defeat it loses its
appeal and its claims ring hollow
Farther away from Syria and Iraq, ISISs situation has
also worsened militarily: its top commander in Libya was
recently killed, and Boko Haram, its affiliate in Nigeria, is
suffering defeat too. Even in Yemen, ISIS appears to have
been eclipsed by other Sunni forces, including al-Qaeda
in the Arabian Peninsula.
This combination of factors helps explain why ISIS feels
the need to engage in attacks in places like Paris and to
break with its previous policy of focussing on the local.
ISIS is looking increasingly like a lost cause and it needs
to place itself back at the centre of global events, to prove
its relevance, and resilience, as well as to attract new
recruits. Its propaganda machine requires it to have
success stories.
The campaign by the Western allies, including at times an
uncomfortable coordination with Russia, to contain and
degrade ISIS is working. And the Paris attacks of
which we should now expect more to take place as the
Islamic States desperation increases are unfortunately
a sign of this success. But this success, and the ultimate
military victory against ISIS, is fraught with difficulty
because ISIS represents more than an organisation.
Wakingup
The Paris attacks and the fact that the operation looks to
have been planned in a suburb of Brussels suggest that
much more needs to be done within Europe to share
intelligence in a timely manner. The US has already said
it is to step up its intelligence-sharing with the French
authorities. Degrade and destroy This phrase sums up
the goal of the policy of the Obama administration in the
and coalition bombing. Some of this has been linked to

the re-capture the Syrian town of Sinjar by Kurdish
forces.
In the wake of the Paris attacks the French air force has
dramatically stepped up its rate of strikes against the de
facto IS capital, Raqqa. Operations from the French
aircraft carrier, the Charles de Gaulle, in the Gulf will
triple the number of French aircraft involved.
Russia too looks set to intensify its air campaign against
IS (which up to now has not been top of its target list) in
the wake of clear evidence that the downing of the
Russian airliner over Egypt was indeed caused by a
bomb.
The problem is that the application of air power alone,
however destructivecannot defeat IS. Territory needs to
be re-captured and held. The US is still ruling out
deploying its own combat forces. The experience of the
interventions in Afghanistan and Iraq is still raw. But the
US is stepping up arms supplies to certain rebel groups
and has deployed more special forces in an advisory role.
Belatedly, the US has been stepping up its air strikes
against the oil exporting infrastructure from which IS
gains a considerable portion of its funds.It is axiomatic
that some progress must be made to end the crisis and reestablish some kind of order in the country. There are
glimmers of progress, though dont hold your breath.
(Credits: www.bbc.com)
THE GENESIS
Nepal and India: Friends turning foes

Madhesi parties - who claim to
Nepals Terai region - and Tharu
which they see it as flawed and
steadfastly rejected Kathmandus
nation to support the agitation.
represent the interests of the Indian-origin inhabitants of

ethnic groups have been agitating against the Constitution
discriminatory to their interests. Meanwhile New Delhi has
claims of having blocked essential supplies to the Himalayan
Blamegame
Nepal and India have been locked in a war of words over
the protests related to the Constitution - which the
Madhesi community that lives in the Himalayan nations
plains argues discriminates against it.
India clashed publicly with Nepal on
November 4 for the first time at a
United Nations platform over its
controversial new Constitution, marking
a sharp escalation in the diplomatic
battle between traditionally fast friends.
New Delhi blamed Kathmandu for the
border protests that have blocked a
checkpoint responsible for 70 per cent
of bilateral trade between the neighbours, and referred to
allegations of violence, extra-judicial killings and ethnic
discrimination in Nepal. We are concerned over the
lack of political progress, B.N. Reddy, Indias deputy
permanent representative to the UN Human Rights
Council (UNHRC) in Geneva, said. Problems facing
Nepal are political in nature and cannot be resolved
through force or a security-based approach.
The criticism at a review of Nepals human rights record
at the UN in Geneva came a day after Kathmandu asked
UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon to intervene and press
New Delhi over the border blockade. Scores of trucks
have been stranded at the key India-Nepal border
checkpoint for more than a month due to the protest by
the ethnic Madhesi community. This has cut off vital
supplies and forced fuel rationing across the landlocked
Himalayan nation. India has consistently denied any role
in the blockade and suggested that Nepal needed to
address the demands of protestors to open up its trade
chokepoints.
Madhesicommunitysgrouse
The protests and agitations are not groundless. Nepals
new constitutiongives the citizens of its plains, tied to
India by kinship and culture, real reason for concern. The
framers of the new constitution used a geographical areaplus-population formula to allocate seats in the new
parliament, designed to enhance representation for thinly
populated regions in the hills. The Madhesi community

has argued that the delimitation of constituencies under
the new Constitution will leave it with far fewer seats that
its members can win compared to its population - 36 per
cent of Nepals citizens. The community is also worried
about a provision in the
Constitution that makes
it harder for children of
a Nepalese woman
married to a foreign
man to gain Nepals
citizenship than if the
father is Nepalese.
Since marriages across
the porous India-Nepal
border are common,
this provision affects lakhs of families. There are
concerns, too, about a constitutional provision barring
naturalised citizens born of Nepali mothers and foreign
fathers from high office. Madhesis, Tharus and Janajatis
also fear that the constitution isnt explicit in its promise
of community-based job reservation.
TheChinafactor
Indias comments at the international forum reveal a
breakdown of back-channel diplomatic attempts aimed at
defusing tensions. The death of a 21-year-old Indian
student in Nepal police firing along the border on
November 2, and Kathmandus decision to cosy upto
Beijing, have also injected fresh tension into a
relationship. Comments by a Nepal cabinet minister
suggesting New Delhi was planning to send in troops
dressed in plain clothes also drew a sharp response from
the Indian embassy in Kathmandu, which called the
statement baseless.
Trucks carrying petrol from China entered Nepal through
Rasuwagadhi trading point in the first week of November.
Nepal Oil Corporation and Petro China had signed an
agreement recently to ease crippling shortages. India had
a monopoly on Nepals fuel supplies for decades but
tensions over the blockade have prompted Nepal to turn
to its northern neighbour China.While the Chinese offer
of oil will ease the immediate crisis, it is hardly a longterm and cost-effective solution for the country.
THE GENESIS
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Current Affairs: India

HAPPENIN
NGS
Rashtriya Ekta Diwaas celebrateed: The nationn celebrated thhe birth annivversary of the first Deputy Prime
P
Ministeer
of India, Sardar
S
Vallabhhbhai Patel ass Rashtriya Ekta
E
Diwas or the National Unity Day on
o October 311.
PM Modi recalled Sarddar Patels innitiatives as Mayor
M
of Ahm
medabad during the 1920s, including a
campaign for cleanlinesss, and a propoosal for 50 peercent reservattion for womeen. The PM allso launched a
new schem
me Ek Bharrat, Shresth Bharat
B
to prromote culturral understannding among states on thee
occasion. Under
U
this schheme, two staates would un
ndertake a unique partnershhip for a perio
od of one yearr,
which wouuld be markedd by cultural and student exchanges.
e
Eaach year, one state should connect
c
to anyy
one state. Suppose Harryana as a staate decides to
o connect witth Tamil Naddu for year 2016.
2
In 20177,
Haryana wouuld connect too any other sttate and in 20018 another state.
s
The aim
m is to give aan opportunity
y to people of
o
different statees to understannd one anotheer.
FTII strikee ends but differencees persist: The

T 139 day-o
old strike at thhe Film and T
Television Insstitute of Indiaa
(FTII) in Punne was calledd off on Octoober 28. Studdents called off
o their strike but said thhat their proteest against thee
appointment of Gajendra Chauhan
C
as Chairman
C
and also against the
t appointmeents of four otther members of Governingg
Council, willl continue. Meanwhile,
M
100 film makerrs announced that they wiill return their National Awards
A
to thee
government in
i Solidarity with studentts of FTII annd also in prrotest againstt the rise in intolerance. The group of
o
filmmakers inncludes directors Dibakar Bannerje, Haarshwardhan Kulkarni,
K
Inddraneel Lahirii, Lipika Sing
gh Darai, Harri
Nair and Pareesh Kamdar, documentary
d
f
filmmakers
A
Anand
Patward
dhan Rakesh Sharma and N
Nishtha Jain, and
a film editoor
Kirti Nakhwaa.
IAF holds Exercise Livewire: The

T Indian Air
A Force org
ganised its annnual exercisee, Exercise Livewire,
L
from
m
October 31 too November 8.
8 The exercisee involved utiilization of airr assets of all types available with the IA
AF. The aim of
the exercise iss to validate thhe full spectruum of IAF cappability in und
dertaking operrations in respponse to likely
y future threats
and operationnal contingenccies, and also to
t exercise its latest acquisiitions effectiveely in a netwoork centric env
vironment.
National Tribal
T
Adviisory Council set up: Government
G
has
h decided to set up Nationnal Tribal Adv
visory Counciil
under chairm
manship of thee Prime Miniister for real time monito
oring of varioous tribal devvelopment pro
ogrammes andd
schemes aimed at welfaree of tribal peeople and devvelopment of tribal areas. This was annnounced by Tribal Affairrs
Minister Juall Oram at thee conference of principal secretaries off tribal welfarre from varioous states in New
N
Delhi inn
October 29.
78 lighthou
uses to be developed as tourism
m beacons: The
T governmeent has decideed to develop
p 78 of its 1899
lighthouses dootting the couuntrys vast cooastline as new
w tourism beaccons, Shipping Minister Nitin Gadkari saaid in Octoberr.
The Directoraate-General off Lighthouses and Lightshipps (DGLL), Noida,
N
plans too develop them
m as attraction
ns on a publiccprivate partneership model. Four lighthouuses -- in Cheennai, Mahabaalipuram (Tam
mil Nadu), Alllepy and Kann
nur (Kerala) -have already been developed as tourist attractions
a
andd are seeing su
ubstantial foottfalls. Developpment of lighthouses wouldd
boost the locaal economy, generate
g
moree employmentt, and involvee creating infraastructure likee hotels or ressorts, thematicc
restaurants, viewing galleriies, museums and allied faccilities.
Govt. limitts surrogaccy to inferrtile Indian

n couples: Making
M
it clear that India w
will not be a baby farm foor
foreigners, the Centre toold the Suprem
me Court in October
O
that it
i did not support rent-a-womb commerrcial surrogacyy
and would make
m
such expploitation of women
w
and children
c
womb
bs punishablee under the laaw. The Unio
on Ministry of
o
Health and Family
F
Welfarre said surroggacy would be altruistic and not com
mmercial, and limited to in
nfertile Indiann
married coupples and not to foreigners. It further saaid that it was against the import of huuman embryo for surrogacyy
purposes.
Business Literature
L
F
Festival
heeld in Banggalore: A unnique fest, billled as Indiass first in businness literaturee,
explored busiiness storytelling through books, moviees, blogs, tweeets and sociaal media postts. The Bangaalore Business
www.endea
avorcareers..com
Au
ugust 2015-Isssue-II
THE GEN
NESIS
Literature Festival organised on October 31 saw business leaders, executives, entrepreneurs and students, engaging in
conversations with over 30 leading Indian business book authors, editors, writers and publishers in an informal setting.
The theme of the fest was Conversations with Authors. Prominent authors, speakers and editors who attended the event
include Vinita Bali, former MD of Britannia Industries; Subroto Bagchi, Chairman, Mindtree; columnist Aakar Patel and
Grammy Award winner Ricky Kej.
75 major cities to be rated for cleanliness: The Centre will conduct a survey of 75 cities in the country,
especially those with a population over 10 lakh, to ascertain the sanitation scenario and subsequently rate them. The
survey, commissioned by the Urban Development Ministry, is the first such since the Prime Minister launched Swachh
Bharat Mission in October in 2014 and aligns with the objectives of the Mission. In the proposed survey, solid waste
management is being given 60 per cent weightage followed by 15 per cent each for availability and use of individual
household toilets and public and community toilets besides 5 per cent each for city level sanitation plans and Information,
Education and Behaviour Change Communication (IEBC) activities.
Facebook founder vows commitment to net neutrality: Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg said that the
world cannot be connected without India and his company is committed to net neutrality. He was interacting with
students of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Delhi during a Townhall Meeting on October 28. Net neutrality stands
for equal treatment of data by service providers without any discrimination and prioritization of one type of data over the
other. The neutrality debate flared up in India after telecom operator Airtel had launched a platform, Airtel Zero that
would have allowed free access to some websites on its network. Following criticism by political parties, government has
been consistently maintaining that it is in favour of Net Neutrality.
IAF to recruit women as fighter pilots: The induction of women as fighter pilots in the Indian Air Force was
cleared by the government in October in a landmark move for the armed forces which have so far dithered over combat
role for women. The air force currently has about 1,500 women on its rolls of which 94 are pilots (helicopter and
transport aircraft) and 14 navigators.
SC asks govt to end quota in super-speciality medical courses: A Supreme Court Bench in October
directed the Centre and all state governments to ensure speciality medical courses are kept unreserved, open and free.
This observation was made by the Bench while delivering a judgment on petitions against some states allowing only
domiciled MBBS doctors to appear for entrance exams. Judges Dipak Misra and P C Pant said there should not be
reservations in such courses on the basis of caste, religion, residence or any other criteria.
ITBP to deploy women personnel in combat duties: In a first, the Indo-Tibetan Border Police has decided to
deploy women personnel in combat duties at its high-altitude posts along the Indo-China border. This is for the first
time that we are deploying women personnel in full combat role right at the border. The aim is that women work
shoulder-to-shoulder with men in this force. We are preparing infrastructure for them at these locations and they will take
charge soon, ITBP Director General Krishna Chaudhary said in New Delhi in October.
No interviews for lower posts in Central Govt from 2016: Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced in
October that interviews for lower posts in the Central Government wont be necessary from 2016. There wouldnt be any
interviews for non-gazette entry of group B, C and D.
AWARDS
Hridaynath Mangeshkar Award: Renowned music composer A R Rahman was conferred with Hridaynath
Mangeshkar Award in Mumbai on the 78th birthday of the veteran composer and younger brother of Lata Mangeshkar
and Asha Bhosle on October 26. Rahman won the Oscar for Best Original Score and Best Original Song, sharing it with
lyricist Gulzar, for Danny Boyles Slumdog Millionaire in 2009.
Peoples Choice Award at Rome Film Festival: Indian filmmaker Pan Nalins movie Angry Indian
Goddesses bagged the BNL Peoples Choice Award at the 10th Rome Film Festival in October. The film described as a
THE GENESIS
fresh and unbridled portrayal of women in India stars Sandhya Mridul, Sarah-Jane Dias, Tannishtha Chatterjee, Anushka
Manchanda, Amrit Maghera, Rajashri Deshpande and Pavleen Gujral. The movie had also bagged the runners-up
Grolsch Peoples Choice award at the Toronto International Film Festival.
PERSONSINNEWS
Geeta: A day after returning from Pakistan in the last week of October, Geeta, the deaf and mute girl stranded in
Pakistan for close to 15 years, was sent to Indore where she will stay at an institution for hearing-impaired people till her
family is located by the government. She was reportedly just 7 or 8 years old
when she was found sitting alone on the Samjhauta Express by the Pakistan
Rangers at the Lahore railway station 15 years ago. Geeta has failed to recognise
a family which she had initially identified from photographs. Her DNA sample
was examined at the AIIMS but did not match with the sample of Janardhan
Mahato, who claims that Geeta is his first born Heera. She was adopted by the
Edhi Foundations Bilquis Edhi and lived with her in Karachi. Edhi Foundation is
a Karachi-based NGO founded by Abdul Sattar Edhi in 1951.
Chhota Rajan: Chhota Rajan, one of Indias most wanted gangsters, was arrested in the tourist town of Bali,
Indonesia on a Red Corner Notice issued by Interpol after eluding law enforcement agencies for over two decades in the
last week of October and deported to India. The 55-year-old Rajendra Sadashiv Nikhalje alias Mohan
Kumar alias Chhota Rajan, the powerful aide-turned-rival of terrorist Dawood Ibrahim, started life as a
black marketer of movie tickets over two decades ago. Slowly, he took to murders, extortion,
kidnappings and other serious crimes once he joined the Mumbai underworld. Born in a middle-class
Marathi family, Nikhalje earned the nickname Chhota Rajan when he took over the gang of his mentor,
Rajan Nair alias Bada Rajan, who was killed in the 1970s. He then joined Dawoods crime syndicate,
popularly known as D Company. A close aide of Dawood, Rajan parted ways after the 1993 Mumbai blasts and
remained his fierce rival ever since.
Appointments: The government approved the appointment of Sharad Kumar on the post of Director General,
National Investigation Agency (NIA) on contract basis for a period of one year beyond the date of superannuation on
October 31.
Former Chairman of Dholera Port project in Gujarat and a social worker, V K Saxena, took charge as
Chairman of Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC), which is tasked with the planning, promotion,
organisation and implementation of programmes for development of Khadi and other village industries in the rural areas,
in October. Senior IRS officer Najib Shah was appointed as Chairman of Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC),
apex body on Indirect Taxes, in October.
Obituaries: Bollywood actor Abhay Deols father and industry legend Dharmendras younger brother Ajit Singh Deol,
who had been a part of many Punjabi films besides being known for Hindi movies like Khhotte Sikkay (1974),
Meharbaani (1982) and Barsaat (1995), passed away in Mumbai on October 24. Bengali film, television, and stage
actor Pijush Ganguly, who met with an accident recently, passed away in Kolkata on October 25 at the age of 50.
EXTERNALRELATIONS
AFRICA: Heads of States and Representatives of all 54 African countries participated in the third India-Africa Forum
Summit was organised in New Delhi from October 26 to 29. Algeria is Africas largest country by area, and Nigeria by
population. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had a series of bilateral meetings with visiting African leaders including Dr.
Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, the chairperson of African Union Commission. India announced a concessional credit of USD
10 billion to Africa in the next five years and a grant assistance of USD 600.
SRI LANKA: India and Sri Lanka organised their bilateral naval exercise SLINEX (Sri Lanka-India Exercise) off
Lankas Trincomalee from October 27 to November 1. The exercise started with a Harbour Phase during which the
participants engaged in professional and social interactions. It was followed by the Sea Phase that saw anti-piracy
exercises, gun firings, cross-deck helicopter operations and anti-surface exercises.
THE GENESIS
10
Current Affairs: States

DELHI: In a relief to private power distribution companies, the Delhi High Court in October quashed the Delhi
governments decision to get the accounts of three companies audited by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG).
Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited, BSES Rajdhani Power Limited and BSES Yamuna Power Limited had
challenged the Aam Aadmi Partys governments decision. The government said that a CAG audit of the private discoms
was necessary as these companies discharged public function and were 49% owned by the state.
RAJASTHAN: Rajasthan has decided to relax the two-child policy which was applicable to the state government
employees, allowing them to have a third child in case of remarriage. The decision was taken at a cabinet meeting
chaired by Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje in November. As per a government notification in June 2000, a candidate
having more than two children is not eligible for government recruitment. An employee, whose third child is born after
recruitment, is not given promotion for five years.
UTTAR PRADESH: Amid spate of litterateurs across the country returning state and central honours, Uttar Pradesh
Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav in October announced Rs 50 thousand monthly pension to Yash Bharti awardees of the
state. The award is given to eminent persons belonging to the state in the fields of art, culture, sports, literature,
medicine, journalism and social service.
JAMMU & KASHMIR: A full bench of Jammu and Kashmir High Court in Srinagar in October set aside an
earlier order to enforce a decades-old provision criminalising cattle slaughter and beef consumption in the state, saying
some laws become dead with passage of time, incapable of enforcement. The court asked the government to review
the existing law, take a policy decision within the framework of the Constitution and ensure no inter-religious conflict
takes place. It observed that laws which create a wedge between different sections and have the potential of disturbing
peace may not be just and valid.
MAHARASHTRA: Maharashtra government decided to lift the storage limits on imported pulses, cooking oil and
oilseeds in November. It had been imposed to keep a check on the spiralling prices of foodgrains. It had imposed
restrictions to ensure there is no black marketing of pulses at a time when prices were already high. The decision of
lifting the restrictions will ensure that all the foodgrains that are lying idle at ports can be sold in the open market.
TAMIL NADU: The Tamil Nadu Registrar of Societies cancelled the registration of Greenpeace India Society in
November. Greenpeace and some of the other prominent international voluntary organizations were charged in 2014 of
acting against the nations interest including mobilizing public opinion against its nuclear programmes and other
development initiatives. Greenpeace had been registered in Chennai as a society in 2001.
GOA: Konkan Railway would establish a tunnel technology institute at Goas Margao town, to enable training for the
technology hitherto unavailable in the country, Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu said in Panaji in October. The proposed
institute, a first in the country, would be named George Fernandes Institute of Tunnel Technology, after former
Railway Minister George Fernandes, who is said to be the driving force behind the Konkan Railway. Dependence on
foreign experts so far has resulted in high consultancy and training cost for the technology.
ASSAM: Nine Congress MLAs in Assam joined BJP in November at a function in its state head office in Guwahati.
With this, the Congress is reduced to 68 in the 126-member State Assembly. The Congress MLAs joining BJP came
within two months of one-time party strongman and dissident leader Himanta Biswa Sarma joining the party.
ANDAMAN & NICOBAR: Japanese war bunkers, constructed during Japanese occupation of the Andaman and
Nicobar islands during World War II, would be revived to bolster security. The Andaman and Nicobar Command has
taken a decision to operationalise the high-security bunkers located in strategic areas of the islands cluster. Intended for
surveillance, the structures are reportedly secure from air strikes. A majority of the bunkers in the civilian areas are
currently in ruins because of the administrations apathy and failure to maintain them.
THE GENESIS
11
Current Affairs: World

HAPPENINGS
Freedom on the Net 2015: Internet freedom has improved in India in the last one year due to the Supreme
Courts landmark ruling on the IT Act, a US-based independent watchdog has said which placed the worlds largest
democratic country under partly free category. Internet freedom improved in India for the second consecutive year in
2015, even as more governments worldwide censored information of public interest and expanded surveillance, said the
Freedom on the Net 2015 released by Freedom House in Washington in October. In 2014, India had 42 points which
came down to 40 points in 2015. More points means more restrictions on internet freedom. For instance, China with 88
points was the worlds worst abuser of internet freedom followed by Syria (87) and Iran (87). Iceland is the most internet
free country with six points.
18 countries join UN Human Rights Council: The General Assembly elected 18 nations in October to serve
on the United Nations Human Rights Council for three-year terms beginning on January 1, 2016. Those elected were
Belgium, Burundi, Cte dIvoire, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Georgia, Germany, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Panama,
Philippines, Republic of Korea, Slovenia, Switzerland, Togo, United Arab Emirates and Venezuela. Members of the
Council serve for a period of three years and are not eligible for immediate re-election after serving two consecutive
terms. Created in 2006, the 47-member Council is an inter-governmental body within the UN system responsible for
promotion and protection of human rights around the globe and for addressing situations of human rights violations and
making recommendations on them.
China to allow couples two kids: China has decided to allow all couples to have two children, abandoning its
decades-long one-child policy, the Communist Party of China (CPC) announced after a key meeting in Beijing in
October. The change of policy is intended to balance population development and address the challenge of an ageing
population. Chinas family planning policy was first introduced in the late 1970s to rein in the surging population by
limiting most urban couples to one child and most rural couples to two children, if the first child born was a girl. The
policy was later relaxed to any couples could have a second child if they both were the only children of their parents.
Turkey gifts 37 fighter jets to Pakistan: Pakistan will get 34 trainer-cum- fighter aircraft from Turkey free of
cost under a major defence deal inked between the two countries, the Defence Ministry announced in Islamabad in
October. The agreement is reached at a time when Turkey is believed to be seeking Pakistans increased security and
defence cooperation to deal with the emerging threat posed by Islamic State terrorist group as well as Kurdish rebels.
Turkey returns to single-party rule: President Recep Tayyip Erdogans Justice and Development Party (AKP)
swept back into power in a surprise election win in November. The AKP party founded by Erdogan, who has dominated
Turkish politics for more than a decade, won 49.4% of the vote to secure 316 seats in the 550-member parliament, easily
enough to form a government on its own. The AKP lost its majority for the first time in 13 years in June 2015. Growing
conflict with the Kurd minority remains a key challenge for the new government. The collapse of a truce with outlawed
Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in July has triggered a surge in bloody attacks.
Law & Justice party wins Poland elections: Parliamentary elections to both the Sejm and Senate were held in
Poland in the last week of October. Conservative opposition Law and Justice Party won 235 seats (51%) in the 461
member Sejm with 37.6% of the vote against the governing Civic Platform (138 seats), who achieved 24.1%. Beata
Szydo is now designated Prime Minister and is likely to form a one-party cabinet, succeeding Ewa Kopacz.
132 killed in Pakistan quake: More than 260 people have died, mostly in Pakistan, after a magnitude-7.5
earthquake hit north-eastern Afghanistan on October 26. Tremors from the quake were also felt in northern India and
Tajikistan. The epicenter of the quake was in the mountainous Hindu Kush region, 76km south of Faizabad. Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa province, where at least 179 people were known to have died, bore the brunt of the quake. However as the
earthquake originated more than 200 km below the earths surface, the damage was much less than which a similarly
THE GENESIS
12
powerful but shallow tremor can cause. The 7.8 quake which brought widespread destruction to eastern Nepal in April
was only 8 km deep.
AWARDS
Global Leaders Dialogue Humanitarian Award: Indian social activist and the founder of Sulabh
International, Bindeshwar Pathak was selected for the prestigious New York Global Leaders Dialogue Humanitarian
Award in recognition of his effort to enhance quality of life for millions of fellow human beings. Pathak established
Sulabh International - a social and behaviour change coalition - to promote the adoption of improved hygiene practices
across the country. Sulabh has constructed nearly 1.3 million household toilets and 54 million government toilets based
on an innovative design. Apart from the construction of toilets, the organisation is leading a movement to discourage
manual cleaning of human waste.
Sakharov Prize for Human Rights: Saudi blogger Raif Badawi, who has been sentenced to 10 years in prison
and 1,000 lashes for insulting Muslim clerics, was declared winner of the European Unions prestigious Sakharov Prize
for Human Rights in Brussels in October. The freedom of thought award is named after the Soviet scientist and dissident
Andrei Sakharov and was set up in 1988 to honor people and organizations defending human rights and fundamental
freedoms.
Liberty Medal: Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama was honoured with the $100,000 Liberty Medal in Philadelphia
for his efforts to promote compassion and human rights around the world in October. The Tibetan leader, who received a
Nobel Peace Prize in 1989, has lived in exile in India since a failed 1959 Tibetan uprising against Chinese rule.
UN Climate Solutions Award: An Indian environment group was awarded this years UN Climate Solutions
Awards for their work with waste pickers and e-waste to tackle climate change. The prestigious award was bagged by
Delhi-based Chintan group in October for its project E-waste: From Toxic to Green which revolves around preventing
greenhouse gas emissions due to mass burning of electronic waste in Delhi NCR while promoting green livelihoods for
urban waste-pickers.
PERSONSINNEWS
Nelson Mandela: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is the 10th most admired personality globally, as per a new survey
by the World Economic Forum (WEF) that has ranked late South African President Nelson Mandela on the top. Mahatma
Gandhi is ranked fourth most admired leader, according to a survey of more than 1,000 millennials spread across 285
cities in 125 countries. After Mandela, the WEFs Global Shapers Annual Survey 2015 found that Pope Francis is the
second most admired leader. About Mandela, the report said that abolition of apartheid remains his greatest legacy, and
under his leadership, South Africa emerged as a genuine democracy that saw many changes.
Appointments/Resignations: Ivory Coasts electoral commission said in capital Abidjan that President Alassane
Ouattara won a second five-year term earning 83% of the vote in the polls held in October. Jimmy Morales, a former
television comedian with no political experience, was elected the as the new President of South American nation
Guatemala in October. Tanzanias ruling party candidate John Pombe Magufuli won Presidential elections with over
58% of votes in October. Former guerrilla commander from Nepals UCPN (Maoist) Nanda Kishor Pun was elected as
the countrys new vice-president in November.Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta resigned in November after
around 20,000 people took to the streets to protest over a nightclub fire killed 32 people on October 30 in Bucharest.
Obituaries: The former spokesman of East Germanys ruling communist party, Guenter Schabowski, who
inadvertently announced the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 died on November 1 aged 86. ET and The Indian in the
Cupboard screenwriter Melissa Mathison died at the age of 65 in in Los Angeles on November 5. Pakistani journalist
Muhammad Zaman Mehsud, was killed on November 3 when unidentified gunmen opened fire on his vehicle in
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Maureen OHara, the Irish movie star who appeared in classics ranging from the grim
How Green Was My Valley to the uplifting Miracle on 34th Street, died on October 24 at the age of 95.
THE GENESIS
13
Faces
Aung San Suu Kyi: from prison to power
Her party won a staggering majority in Myanmars landmark election, ending half a century of
dominance by the military and providing the symbol of a decades-old democracy movement
with a mandate to rule.
Aung San Suu Kyis National League for Democracy

(NLD) won a landslide victory in the
Myanmar general elections in
November. It was the countrys first
national vote since a nominally
civilian government was introduced
in 2011, ending nearly 50 years of
military rule. The NLD was
confirmed to have won the two-thirds
of seats they needed to control both
houses of parliament and choose the next president.
Under the constitution, Suu Kyi cannot become president
herself.
NLD won 348 of the 664 seats in the two houses of
parliament. Meanwhile, the ruling military-backed Union
Solidarity Development Party (USDP) had only 40 seats.
Current President Thein Sein and the head of the military
had already said they would respect the outcome and
work with the new government.
The military-drafted constitution guarantees that
unelected military representatives will take up 25% of the
seats in the Parliament and have a veto over constitutional
change. In 1990 the Suu Kyi-led NLD had won 52.5% of
the national vote but the military rulers refused to
relinquish power and put her in prison.
Born on June 19, 1945 in capital Rangoon (now Yangon),
Aung San Suu Kyi, was the eldest daughter of Aung San
(a martyred national hero of independent Burma) and
Khin Kyi (a prominent Burmese diplomat), and winner of
the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1991.
Suu Kyi was two years old when her father, then the de
facto prime minister of what would shortly become
independent Burma, was assassinated. She attended
schools in Burma until 1960, when her mother was
appointed ambassador to India. After further study in
India, she attended the University of Oxford, where she
met her future husband, the British scholar Michael Aris.
She and Aris had two children and lived a rather quiet life
until 1988, when she returned to Burma to nurse her
dying mother, leaving her husband and sons behind.
There the mass slaughter of protesters against the brutal
and unresponsive rule of military strongman U Ne Win
led her to speak out against him and to begin a nonviolent

struggle for democracy and human rights in that country.
In July 1989 the military government placed Suu Kyi
under house arrest in Yangon and offered to free her if
she agreed to leave Myanmar, but she refused to do so
until the country was returned to civilian government and
political prisoners were freed. The NLDwon more than 80
percent of the parliamentary seats that were contested in
1990, but the military government annulled the results.
She was awarded the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize that was
received by her son in Oslo as the military junta refused
to release her.
Suu Kyi was freed from house arrest in July 1995,
although restrictions were placed on her ability to travel
outside Yangon. The junta once again placed Suu Kyi
under house arrest from in 2003. Calls for her release
continued throughout the international community in the
face of her sentences annual renewal, and in 2009 a
United Nations body declared her detention illegal under
Myanmars own law.
A new election lawenacted by the junta in
2010disqualified anyone who was (or had been) married
to a foreign national from running for office. The
government parties faced little opposition in the 2010,
election and easily won an overwhelming majority of
legislative seats amid widespread allegations of voter
fraud. Suu Kyi was released from house arrest soon after
the election.
Following internal pressure and threats of sanctions by
leading powers like the US and EU she was allowed to
move freely in the country from 2011. In June 2012 she
visited Oslo to give the acceptance speech for her 1991
Nobel Peace Prize.
Suu Kyi maintained a high international profile
including a visit to China in mid-2015as she worked
toward greater political liberalization in Myanmar.
Although some progress was achieved, no changes were
made to the constitutional provision banning a candidate
from running for the presidency whose spouse or children
are foreign nationals. Nonetheless, Suu Kyi and the NLD
campaigned vigorously for what turned out to be the
countrys first openly contested parliamentary election.
THE GENESIS
14
Current Affairs: Sports

CRICKET
BCCI appoints ombudsman, Manohar to replace Srinivasan at ICC: Cracking the whip on conflict of
interest in the Board, the BCCI unveiled a slew of reforms, including the appointment of a retired
judge Justice (Retd) A P Shah as its ombudsman in November to deal with any complaints of
conflict of interest. The Board also dropped Indian Team Director Ravi Shastri from the IPL
Governing Council and axed Roger Binny from the selection panel to negate the perceived conflict
of interest. Also ex-captain Sourav Ganguly was appointed Chairman of the Technical Committee,
replacing Anil Kumble. Besides, Visakhapatnam, Ranchi, Indore, Pune, Dharamsala and Rajkot
were accorded the status of Test venues. Meanwhile current BCCI president Shashank Manohar has
replaced former President N. Srinivasan as the Chairman of the International Cricket Council (ICC)
at the Boards AGM in Mumbai.
Shoaib Malik retires from Test cricket: Former Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik announced his retirement from
Test cricket in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates in November. The 33-year-old had made a comeback in the longer format
of the game after five years in the first Test against England in Abu Dhabi, smashing a career-best 245. But in the
remaining five innings of the series, he could not score much. Malik who is married to Indian tennis star Sania Mirza, has
played 35 Tests, scoring 1,898 runs with three centuries and eight half-centuries. He has so far taken 29 wickets, with his
best figures of 4-33 coming on November 3 against England in Sharjah.Also 37-year-old batsman Younis Khan ended
his ODI career in November after scoring 7,249 runs with seven hundreds and 48 half-centuries in 265 matches.
IPL COO Sundar Raman quits: Indian Premier League (IPL) Chief Operating Officer (COO) Sundar Raman has
quit from his post, putting an end to the intense speculation over his future in the wake of the change of regime in the
BCCI. The BCCI promptly accepted his resignation in November. Raman, who had been associated with IPL since its
inception, faced a lot of flak following the outbreak of 2013 IPL spot-fixing scandal involving former Board President N
Srinivasans son-in-law Gurunath Meiyappan and Rajasthan Royals then co-owner Raj Kundra. Despite all the
controversies, Raman managed to sail through for two years.
Wasim Jaffer scores 10000 runs in Ranji: Vidarbha opener Wasim Jaffer became the first cricketer in Ranji
Trophy history to notch up 10000 runs during a match against Bengal in Kolkata in November. Having made his debut
for Mumbai in 1996-97, the 37-year-old Jaffer reached the milestone in his 126th match. His former Mumbai teammate
Amol Muzumdar (9202) is next followed by Delhis Mithun Manhas (8197) in the list of leading run-getters in Ranji
Trophy. Jaffer scored most of the runs for Mumbai before being forced to move to Vidarbha this season.
J&K batsman scores fastest 50 in Ranji: Jammu and Kashmir right-hand batsman Bandeep Singh quietly
entered the record books of Indian cricket hitting the fastest 50 in the history of Ranji Trophy achieving the landmark in
only 15 balls against Tripura in a group C encounter at Agartala on October 25.
Sri Lanka win WI test series 2-0: Milinda Siriwardanas all-round performance helped Sri Lanka to clinch a 72run win in the second and final Test against West Indies in Colombo on October 26. With this win, the hosts won the
two-match series 2-0. Chasing the target of 244, the West Indies team was bundled out for 171 in their second innings.
Sri Lanka had won the first Test in Galle by an innings and six runs.
ATHLETICS: A World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) commission report has recommended suspension of Russia
from all world athletics competition in Geneva in November. The commission examined allegations of doping, coverups, and extortion in Russian athletics and also implicated the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF)
for failure to address these pressing issues. The commission also wants five athletes and five coaches to get lifetime
doping bans. The report also said there were systemic failures in the IAAF that prevented an effective anti-doping
program. The report said that the London 2012 Olympics were sabotaged by the widespread inaction by the IAAF
and the Russian athletics federation against Russian athletes who had suspicious doping profiles.
THE GENESIS
15
WRESTLING: Yogeshwar Dutt emerged as the costliest Indian grappler in the inaugural Pro
Wrestling League (PWL) auctions in November, picked up by Haryana for Rs. 39.70 lakhs.
However, it was Ukraines Oksana Herhel who drew the overall highest bid after being bought for a
whopping Rs. 41.30 lakhs by Haryana. A total of six franchises representing Delhi, Punjab,
Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Mumbai and Bangalore purchased 54 wrestlers with each team getting to
pick nine players -- five Indians and four foreigners. Each team bought an icon player -- Sushil
(74kg), Yogeshwar (65kg), Narsingh Yadav (74kg), Geeta Phogat (Female 58kg), Adeline Gray
(USA, 69+kg) and Sofia Mattison (Sweden, Female 53kg). During the tournament, every team
would be required to field mandatory 5 Indians and 4 foreign wrestlers, which would include five men and four women.
RACING: Defending champion Lewis Hamilton secured his third world title when he won the F1 United States Grand
Prix in Austin on October 25. The 30-year-old Briton finished ahead of his Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg to record
his 10th win of the season. Hamilton now has an unbeatable total of 327 points, moving him beyond the reach of his
rivals. Meanwhile at Mexico City on November 1, Rosberg won the F1 Mexican Grand Prix beating Hamilton into
second place with Williams-Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas finishing third.
HOCKEY: Hockey India (HI) has announced the appointment of Neil Hawgood as the chief coach of the Indian
womens hockey team ahead of next years Rio Olympics in October. The Sports Ministry announced the setting up of a
National Hockey Academy at Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium in New Delhi in November. Hockey India (HI)
nominated former President Vidya Stokes, who is currently serving as the Irrigation and Public Health Minister of
Himachal Pradesh, as the Life President of the federation in November. Indian Railways won the 32nd Surjit Hockey
Tournament beating Indian Oil Mumbai by 4-3 in Jalandhar on November 5.
FOOTBALL: Nigeria defeated Mali 2-0 in the final of the 2015 FIFA Under-17 World Cup at the Sausalito Stadium
in Vina del Mar (Chile) on November 8. Victor Osimhen and Funsho Bamgboye scored the goals for the winners.
Meanwhile at Bangalore, India finally tasted victory after five straight losses in their 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying
campaign as they beat Guam by a solitary goal at the Kanteerava Stadium on November 12. India are already out of
contention for a final round berth for the 2018 World Cup.
TENNIS: Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis beat the Spanish pair of Garbine Muguruza and Carla Suarez Navarro 6-0,
6-3 in the final to clinch the WTA Finals Womens Doubles title in Singapore in November while the Singles title was
won by Polands Agnieszka Radwanska who beat Czech Republics Petra Kvitova 6-2, 4-6, 6-3 in the final. Spains
David Ferrer beat American Steve Johnson 4-6, 6-4, 7-5 in the final of the ATP Tour event in Vienna on October 25.
James Ward of UK won the Mens Singles title at the AirAsia Open defeating Adrian Menendez-Madeira 6-2, 7-5 in
Bengaluru on October 25 while the Indian pair of Saketh Myneni and Sanam Singh won the Mens Doubles title. Roger
Federer defeated Rafael Nadal to win Swiss Indoors Basel Tennis title 6-3, 5-7, 6-3 on November 1.
CHESS: Indian Grandmaster Abhijeet Gupta won the Hoogeveen International Open Chess Tournament in The
Netherlands on October 25. USAs Wesley So defeated Anish Giri of Holland to win the Bilbao Masters chess
tournament in Bilbao, Spain in November while former world champion Viswanathan Anand finished joint third with
Liren Ding of China.
Paragliding World Cup held: Swiss pilot Michael Kuffer emerged as the mens champion of the Paragliding
World Cup that concluded at Bir-Billing (Himachal Pradesh) on October 30 while the womens crown was claimed by
Japans Yuki Sato. About 60 km from Kangra town, Bir-Billing is considered one of the most natural locations for
paragliding. The take-off site at Billing, situated at an altitude of 2325 metres, was refurbished to enable 15 to 50 gliders
to take off simultaneously. The landing site at Bir, located at 1360 metres, was also expanded for safe landing.
MISC: New Zealand lifted the Rugby World Cup for a record third time beating Australia 34-17 in the final played at
the Twickenham Stadium in London on November 1. The bronze medal was won by South Africa. Indian golfer Chikka
S won the TAKE Solutions India Masters in Bangalore on October 31.
THE GENESIS
16
Current Affairs: Economy

India 130thin Doing Business 2016: Marking a significant improvement, India has been ranked at the 130th
position (142nd last year) among 189 economies in the World Banks Doing Business 2016 report launched in October.
Singapore retains the top position followed by New Zealand, Denmark, South Korea, Hong Kong, Britain and the US.
Indias overall ranking is based on ten factors -- starting a business (155th rank), dealing with construction permits (183),
getting electricity (70), registering property (138), getting credit (42), protecting minority investors (8), paying taxes
(157), trading across borders (133), enforcing contracts (178) and resolving insolvency (136).
Centre announces draft aviation policy: Union Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju Pusapati
announced draft aviation policy in October that aims to improve regional connectivity, bring down fares for short-haul
flights and facilitate higher foreign investment. A two per cent cess has been proposed on all domestic and international
tickets to fund a new regional connectivity scheme. The policy has proposed hiking FDI in domestic airlines to over 50
per cent in open skies policy, which is 49 per cent at present. Under open skies policy, overseas airlines can operate
unlimited number of flights into and out of India. The policy proposes to put service tax at zero to promote Maintenance,
Repair and Overhaul, MRO facility in order to develop India as an MRO hub in Asia.
Taxpayer friendly measures launched: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley launched two taxpayer friendly measures
-- eSahyog and PAN camps in October with a view to streamlining the taxation procedure. The e-Sahyog scheme is an
online mechanism to resolve mismatches in I-T returns of taxpayers whose returns have not been selected for scrutiny,
reducing the need for the taxpayer to physically appear before tax authorities. The PAN camps are aimed at expanding
the coverage of number of people through Permanent Account Number. The government has also set up a committee
under retired judge Justice R V Easwar to identify clauses in the (Income Tax) Act which are leading to litigation.
WB retains India growth forecast at 7.5% for 2015-16: The World Bank retained its Indias growth
forecast for 2015-16 at 7.5% in its India Development Update in in October. The bank also expects Indias economic
growth to accelerate to 7.8 per cent in 2016-17 and 7.9 per cent in 2017-18. Among the positives listed by the bank, India
has taken advantage of the sharp decline in global oil and commodity prices to eliminate petrol and diesel subsidies and
increase excise taxes. Resources from lower subsidies and higher taxes have been well utilised in lowering deficits and
increasing capital expenditure. Risks: The most significant risks to the economy stem from the huge bad debts of the
public sector banks and financing requirements of infrastructure companies.
India Ratings lowers 2015-16 growth to 7.5%: India Ratings and Research revised downwards to 7.5 per
cent the GDP growth forecast, from earlier estimate of 7.7 per cent, for the current financial year because of weak
agricultural growth caused by a deficient rainfall. The rating firm expects agricultural growth to expand 0.9% in 2015-16
from 0.2% of 2014-15. The report said that although the sector has over the years become more resilient to monsoon
shocks, agricultural output in a large parts is still dependent on rains. The governments key focus Make in India, a
budgetary push, the early signs of revival in investment or consumption cycle coupled with a fall in inflation and interest
rates are expected to drive the industrial recovery.
CMs panel recommends reducing number of CSS: The Chief Ministers panel constituted by NITI Aayog
to rationalise the centrally sponsored schemes (CSS) has made a case for reduction of their number and hiking flexi fund
component to 25 per cent from existing 10 per cent. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who is
convener of the Chief Ministers Sub-Group on CSS, submitted the report to the PM in October. The report has
recommended the reduction in number of CSS. It has suggested increasing the flexi fund component in the CSS to 25 per
cent from existing 10 per cent for giving more leeway to states for spending money for development and social welfare.
CMs panel recommends tax sops for funding skill development: Noting that skill is yet to become
aspirational among youth, a Chief Ministers panel has called for roping in private players, tax sops and use of MPLAD
funds, cess like education and construction for skill development programmes. The report of a Chief Ministers SubGroup on Skill Development in NITI Aayog, which had Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal as its convener, was
THE GENESIS
17
submitted to the Centre in October. It said funds obtained from 2% corporate social responsibility cess can be utilised for
skill development initiatives.
TRAI asks telcos to ready their systems to compensate for call drops: Telecom Regulatory Authority
of India (TRAI) on October 29 asked mobile service providers to ready their systems to compensate consumers for call
drops from January 2016. The mobile operators associations had met TRAI chairman and reiterated their request to
review the regulation of compensation on call drop. TRAI chairman RS Sharma said he will examine the request of
telecom operators but it does not mean that a stay has been given.
First batch of AMRUT projects for 89 cities approved: The Ministry of Urban Development has approved
the first batch of state level Action Plans under Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT)
aimed at enabling water supply as per the norm and providing water supply and sewerage connections to all urban
households. Plans worth more than Rs. 2700 crore were cleared 89 cities in AP, Gujarat and Rajasthan in October.
S&P retains Indias rating at BBB-: Global agency Standard and Poors retained Indias rating at BBB- with
stable outlook but ruled out any rating upgrade in its assessment of the Indian economy in October. BBB is the lowest
investment grade rating and stable outlook reduces risk of possible sovereign rating downgrade. S&P said the current
ratings of India reflect the countrys sound external profile and improved monetary credibility. These factors, combined
with strong democratic institutions and a free press, both of which yield policy stability and predictability, underpin the
investment-grade rating on India. These strengths are balanced against vulnerabilities stemming from the countrys low
per capita income and weak public finances it added. S&P projected the economy to grow at 7.4% in 2015.
India to grow at 7-7.5% in 2015-16-Moodys: India will clock the highest growth rate among the G20 nations
in 2015-16, at 7-7.5 per cent, Moodys Investors Service said in October. It added that the country is less exposed to
external shocks than its peers and is supported by lower oil prices that will reinforce gradual growth-enhancing reforms.
The positive outlook on its Baa3 rating reflects our view that the relatively resilient growth and the policy reform
momentum will slowly stabilise inflation, improve the regulatory environment, increase infrastructure investment and
lower government debt, it said.
Wind turbine parts exempted from excise duty: Government in October exempted parts and components
used in wind operated electricity generators (WOEG) like tower, rotor and blades from excise duty, a move aimed at
promoting clean energy. The government is focusing on renewable energy, considered as clean energy, to meet the
countrys growing power demand. The target has been set at 175 GW renewable power generation, including 100 GW
solar energy, 60 GW wind energy, and 10 GW from bio-mass.
India lowers exposure to US government bonds: India further trimmed its holdings of the US government
securities to $115.6 billion in August amid continuing global economic uncertainties. As per the latest data from the US
Treasury Department in October, China remained the largest holder of the US government securities and its holdings rose
to USD 1.271 trillion while Japan was at the second spot with USD 1.197 trillion worth exposure. Despite concerns about
global economic conditions, the US economy has been seeing improvement and its GDP grew 3.9% in June quarter.
Validity of environment clearance now 7 years: Government has extended the validity of environment
clearance (EC) from five years to seven years in October. The EC can be renewed for a maximum period of three years.
Panel for model central law to curb ponzi schemes: The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance
has suggested framing of a model central law to curb illegal money pooling activities done in the garb of direct selling.
The law would cover collective investment schemes, chit funds and other permissible direct selling schemes. There have
been rising instances of gullible investors getting cheated by fraudulent investment schemes that mostly offer high
returns within a short period of time. Observing that broad definition of money circulation is the main reason for the
failure of Prize Chits and Money Circulation (Banning) Act, the panel said in October that permissible activities should
be clearly defined so that prohibited schemes do not operate by camouflaging as legitimate schemes like direct selling.
THE GENESIS
18
Business Biography
Amar Bose: The sound of music
His name is synonymous with the invention of revolutionary sound technologies and high-quality audio
equipment
Sound technology pioneer Amar Bose (1929-2013),

founder and chairman of the audio
technology company Bose Corporation, is
well-known in the world of acoustics for the
rich sound of its small tabletop radios and its
noise-canceling headphones popular among
frequent fliers.
It was a disappointing stereo that started off
Amar Bose. When he bought it in the 1950s,
Dr Bose at the time a student at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
(MIT), near Boston was frustrated to find
the sound quality was a pale comparison to listening to
live music.
That purchase sparked a lifetime of research into audio
technology for Bose and resulted in the eponymous
company known for its high-quality, and high-cost,
speakers.
He was the son of a Bengali freedom fighter who escaped
from India to the US, after being imprisoned for opposing
British rule, where he married an American
schoolteacher.
During WWII, Boses fathers import business failed,
leaving a 13-year old Amar as the primary breadwinner
for the family. It was then that Boses penchant for
tinkering with gadgets became more than a hobby. Bose
worked with local electronic repair shops to help fix
radios using a unique method that helped re-fuse broken
filaments in vacuum tubes.
After graduating high school, Bose scored a scholarship
to attend MIT where he earned his Bachelors, Masters
and Ph.D. in electrical engineering. Bose was a professor
of electrical engineering at MIT by the time Bose itself
was founded in 1964. There were early contracts with
NASA, but the breakthrough came with the release of the
901 system in 1968, with its radical approach to speakers
creating audio that sounded much closer to live
performances.
While trying to work out how to make speakers sound
better Dr Bose, left, and his team discovered that when
listening to live music most of the sound was actually
rebounding off the walls and ceilings of a venue before

reaching the eardrums. Speakers, however,
directed the sound straight to the listener,
with very little reflecting.
As a result, Boses breakthrough 901 speaker
system contained eight drivers at the back
of the speaker and only one at the front,
which resulted in 89 per cent of the sound
being reflected off the walls, creating the
spacious quality of live music.
It was by no means the only breakthrough
that Bose would make. Boses acoustic waveguide
technology challenged the idea that the larger the speaker,
the better the sound. In the 1980s he found a way to
produce quality sound from small speakers technology
which was put to use in its Wave radios.
Boses noise-cancelling headphones were another hit, and
not only among consumers: they are also used by pilots
for both military and commercial airlines. Its sound
systems are found in venues including the Sistine chapel
and it has also made innovations away from audio,
including a car suspension system.
Despite the companys success, Dr Bose stayed as a
member of the MIT faculty for 45 years, having originally
only planned to teach for two. In 2011 he gave the
university most of his Bose stock, with the dividends to
be used to fund research and education.
MIT called Amar Bose an exceptional human being and
an extraordinarily gifted leader who made quality
mentoring and a joyful pursuit of excellence, ideas and
possibilities the hallmark of his career in teaching,
research and business.
On his success Bose said. I never went into business to
make money. I went into business to do interesting things
that hadnt been done before.
Today, Boses products remain some of the most
recognizable audio equipment in the world. But it is
Boses passion and dedication to scientific research in the
area of acoustics that have had the greatest impact on
society.
THE GENESIS
19
Current Affairs: Corporate

RANKINGS&INDEXES
Forbes Worlds Most Powerful Persons
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has emerged as Worlds ninth Most
Powerful Person in the Forbes annual ranking of 73 persons list released in
November 2015. Russian President Vladimir Putin retained his position as
the Worlds most powerful person, followed by German Chancellor Angela
Merkel, Barack Obama, Pope Francis and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Others in the top ten are Microsoft Founder Bill Gates at the sixth place, US
Federal Reserve Chairperson Janet Yellen (7), UK Prime Minister David
Cameron (8) and Googles Larry Page (10). To compile the list of worlds
most powerful people, the magazine said it considered hundreds of
candidates from various walks of life all around the globe, and measured their power along four dimensions. They are
whether the candidate has power over lots of people, financial resources controlled by each person, whether the candidate
is powerful in multiple spheres and whether the candidates actively used their power.
Platts Top 250 Global Energy Companies

Reliance Industries has regained the top slot among Indian energy companies on the Platts global list by surpassing stateowned Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) in the rankings for this year released in October. In all, 14 Indian energy
companies made it to the 2015 Platts Top 250 Global Energy Company Rankings, a financial performance roster of
publicly traded companies with assets greater than USD 5 billion. Rankings are based on assets, revenues, profits and
return on invested capital for the prior fiscal year. Global giants Exxon Mobil Corp, Chevron Corp and Royal Dutch
Shell plc occupied the top three slots while Chinese firm CNOOC Ltd was fourth while PetroChina was a close fifth.
Forbes Top-earning Dead Celebrities

Fast & Furious star Paul Walker is a new entry in the latest Forbes list of top-earning dead celebrities in October. Walker,
who died in a car accident in 2013, earned $10.5m over the past year and is in ninth place. Michael Jackson is number
one for the third year running, with takings of $115m, down from the estimated $140m he earned in 2014. Here are the
top 13 celebrities on the Forbes list: Michael Jackson: $115m, Elvis Presley: $55m, Charles Schulz: $40m, Bob Marley:
$21m, Elizabeth Taylor: $20m, Marilyn Monroe: $17m, John Lennon: $12m, Albert Einstein: $11m, Paul Walker:
$10.5m, Bettie Page: $10m, Theodor Geisel (Dr Seuss): $9.5m, Steve McQueen: $9m, James Dean: $8.5m.
Forbes Highest-earning Female Musicians

Pop star Katy Perry has been named this years highest-earning female musician by Forbes
magazine, more than tripling her earnings from 2014. Perry made USD 135m between June
2014 and June 2015. The 31-year-old pop stars Prismatic world tour contributed to the bulk
of her earnings. Perry also has deals with cosmetics brand Covergirl, fashion accessory brand
Claires and Coty, the company responsible for releasing her fragrances. Taylor Swift, whos
also had a busy year on her 1989 world tour, ranked second on the list for the second year
running. She made USD 80m. Singers Lady Gaga and Beyonce secured the fourth and fifth
spot respectively.
Bank Safety Rankings

Private sector lender HDFC Bank has been rated 27th safest bank in the world, according to latest Bank Safety Ranking
by The Banker, a Financial Times publication, in October. The bank has been ranked 27th globally among 250 banks
and stood at number 6 in Asia Pacific region. The ranking is based on capital, asset quality, profitability, how the bank
funds itself, and the risk environment for each banks home country. As per the report, Axis Bank has been ranked at 71,
ICICI Bank at 85 and State Bank of India at the 201 position. Also, Punjab National Bank has been ranked at 206, Bank
of Baroda 214, Canara Bank 222 and IDBI at 235 position in the Asia Pacific region.
THE GENESIS
20
HAPPENINGS
ASCI upholds complaints against companies for misleading ads
Advertising industry watchdog ASCI has upheld complaints against 74 campaigns for misleading ads, including those of
e-commerce majors like Amazon and FMCG biggies such as HUL and Reckitt Benckiser in October. According to the
Customer Complaints Council (CCC) of Advertising Standard Council of India (ASCI), it upheld about 28 complaints of
misleading ads from personal and healthcare category in July.
Online auction and shopping platform, ebay, was pulled for misleading claims. The regulator has found that companys
claims under ebay guarantee and 100 per cent satisfaction or refund/replacement were false, not substantiated and
were misleading.
Similarly, ASCI also pulled cosmetics major Shiseido for the ad of Za True White Day Cream after it failed to
substantiate claims made by it. The advertisement claims like 94 per cent improvement in skin clarity, more glowing &
radiant skin, 100 per cent improvement in skin tone, reduction of spots and pigmentation and now see results in just
seven days, were inadequately substantiated, it added.
FMCG major Hindustan Unilever also failed to substantiate claims of its Fair & Lovely Men Charcoal face wash of
giving a fair look for eight hours.
Private sector lender HDFC Bank was found on the wrong side after it failed to substantiate its claims on pre-approved
loans. The advertisement (HDFC) claim Avail of your pre-approved paperless personal loan of up to Rs 7.50 lakh in
just 12 hours was not substantiated and is misleading by ambiguity, the advertising regulator said.
LG Electronics was also pulled for not substantiating its claim with evidence that its Inverter V air-conditioners keep
mosquitoes away.
Glaxo Smith Kline Consumer Healthcares claim in a TV commercial of an increase in stamina from its energy drink
Boost was also found misleading. The visual depicted in the TVC read in conjunction with the disclaimer, is misleading,
as the disclaimer in the TVC is about the scientific study published in a peer reviewed scientific journal and are proven
for the age group of 7-11 years, the CCC said.
Similarly, water purifier maker Kent RO claims of sabse surakshit pani, 100 per cent protection and 100 per cent
Health were found misleading.
Reckitt Benckisers claims for its Harpic toilet cleaner were also found on the wrong side as CCC observed disclaimers
in the TVC were legible, and contravened the ASCI Guidelines on Supers.
InterGlobe Aviation IPO over-subscribed: IndiGo-parent InterGlobe Aviations Rs 3,018-crore initial public
offer (IPO) was over-subscribed several times in October. IndiGo has a fleet of 98 aircraft and about 75 of them are on
operating lease - a business model which has helped it lower costs.
S H Kelkar IPO oversubscribed: Fragrance maker S H Kelkar & Companys Rs 500-crore initial public issue
received an overwhelming response from investors in October and was over-subscribed several times. The company
proposes to use the issue proceeds for repayment of loans as well as investment in its subsidiary K V Arochem Private
Ltd and for other general corporate purposes.
IPL 2015 contribution to Indias GDP: IPL 2015 made contribution of a whopping Rs. 11.5 billion to Indias
GDP. A survey conducted by top financial auditing firm KPMG on behalf of the BCCI said in October that the total
economic output associated with IPL matches in India for 2015 is estimated at Rs. 26.5 billion. According to the survey,
the 2015 season saw around 20 per cent of attendees visiting from cities other than the host city. Also notable were
international visitors primarily from the United Kingdom, Australia and South Africa.
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21
Maggi noodles clear tests: After being off the shelves for five months, Nestle Indias Maggi noodles is set to
make a comeback with its popular masala variant in November. The company said
that it has got a clean chit for its freshly manufactured samples of the masala variant
from the three National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories
(NABL)-accredited labs. It said the samples tested were found to have lead below the
permissible limit. The popular instant-noodle brand was pulled off the market on June
5, after the Food Safety and Standards of India (FSSAI) banned it as the presence of
lead in samples was found to be higher than permissible limits. It also said the
companys No Added MSG label was misleading as traces of MSG were found in the samples.
Tata Trusts, Harvard announce collaboration: Tata Trusts and Harvard University South Asia Institute
(SAI) announced collaboration for social and economic empowerment in India in October. A key component of the
project is the opportunity for budding social entrepreneurs and institutions in India to apply for social innovation grants
totalling Rs. 50 lakh that will spur interventions and scale up existing initiatives resulting in greater impact in select
geographies. The 18-month research project titled Livelihood Creation in India through Social Entrepreneurship and
Skill Development is the first step in this direction.
TVS-BMW to roll out super bike in 2016: TVS Motor Company has indicated that the first set of products out
of its strategic partnership with BMW Motorrrad will be rolled out by next year. It has confirmed that the project was on
track to introduce super bikes in the fast growing sub-500cc segment. The companys CMD Venu Srinivasan had said
that the first bike from the partnership project will be introduced during the second of this fiscal.
RInfra to sell cement business, focus on defence: In a strategic move to unlock value, the Anil Ambani-led
Reliance Infrastructure (RInfra) said in November that it will sell its 5.8 MTPA cement business and monetise 11 road
projects worth Rs 8,800 crore, making the defence sector as primary driver of the companys growth. RInfra expects to
complete the acquisition process of Pipavav defence and offshore company this fiscal itself post which it will be renamed
as Reliance Defence and Engineering. In the biggest deal in the defence sector, billionaire RInfra in March 2015 had
announced acquisition of controlling stake in Pipavav Defence and Offshore Engineering for up to Rs 2,082.3 crore.
Amazon opens first physical bookstore: US online giant Amazon, which has led the bookselling industrys
shift to the Internet, opens its first physical bookstore in USA in November. The store, called Amazon Books, is a
physical extension of Amazon.Com which integrates the benefits of offline and online book shopping, the company
said. The stores will also be selling Amazon-branded devices such as the Kindle, Echo, Fire TV, and Fire Tablet.
Landmark Group to expand Easybuy: Easybuy, the new apparel value retail format from the diversified
Landmark Group, has begun to expand its network of stores and is planning to set up 50 stores within three years.
Landmark Group, the Dubai-based retail major promoted by Micky Jagtiani, has a turnover of over $5 billion and a chain
of over 1,600 stores across 19 countries. In India, it has retail formats of Lifestyle, Max and Spar under its umbrella.
PERSONSINNEWS
APPOINTMENTS: Realty portal Housing.Com announced the appointment of Jason Kothari as its new CEOin
November after it had co-founder and then CEO Rahul Yadav in July. The board of 94-year-old BK Birla-promoted
Century Textiles and Industries appointed his grandson Kumar Mangalam Birla (48), Chairman of Aditya Birla group,
as Centurys vice-chairman, in October. P K Gupta was appointed as its Managing Director by the countrys largest
lender State Bank of India in October.
BRAND AMBASSADORS: Volini, the pain reliever brand from Sun Pharma, signed tennis star Sania Mirza and
Indian football team captain Sunil Chhetri as its brand ambassadors in November. Tata Motors signed-up Argentine
footballer Lionel Messi as its global brand ambassador for its passenger vehicles in November.Tyre maker Ceat inked a
three year bat endorsement deal with cricketer Rohit Sharma, who is the first player to score two double- centuries in the
history of ODIs, in November.
THE GENESIS
22
LAUNCHES
Project Aasman: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Tata Trusts, MSD in India,
Reliance Foundation and United States Agency for International Development
(USAID) have collaborated to form a healthcare initiative -- Project Aasman -- to
reduce infant, neonatal and maternal mortality in the country in November. The
alliance will work in synergy with the governments at the Centre and the states
levels. The Project will work towards facilitating the availability of quality
healthcare under the five pillars of the Centres reproductive, maternal, newborn,
child and adolescent health programme.
Cube+: Action camera maker Polaroid has forayed into the Indian market with a bang in November. Riding on its new
age products such as the Polaroid Cube, the Cube+ camera and a pocket-friendly Polaroid ZIP printer, the company aims
to make a mark amongst the youth.
OnePlus X: Chinese handset-maker OnePlus launched a new affordable smartphone - OnePlus X - at a price of
Rs.16999 in partnership with e-commerce player Amazon.in in October. The new phone will come with a compact 5inch display, a 13-megapixel rear camera combined with f/2.2 aperture and 0.2-second autofocus with phase detection
autofocus (PDAF).
Snapdeal Motors: Snapdeal launched a new platform Snapdeal Motors in November through which it would sell
two-wheelers as well as cars online. The company has already partnered with automobile giants such as Mahindra, Hero
MotoCorp, Suzuki, Datsun and Piaggio, while discussions are on with other manufacturers. Snapdeal expects
transactions facilitated through its platform to touch $2 billion in the next two years for the automobile category.
Motoplex: Two-wheeler manufacturer Piaggio India will open three to four Motoplex stores in the country by March
2016. Motoplex stores offer the companys most prestigious brands Vespa, Aprilia and Moto Guzzi under the same roof,
said Piaggio India MD Stefano Pelle in November. European two-wheeler giant Piaggio Group operates in India under
Piaggio Vehicles Private Limited and makes the iconic Vespa and 3-wheeler Ape.
Genesis: South Koreas Hyundai Motor Co announced plans to launch a new global luxury car brand called Genesis in
November. The launch comes weeks after Hyundai, the worlds fifth-biggest carmaker along with its Kia Motors Corp
affiliate, reported a seventh straight drop in quarterly profit.
Clarity: Honda launched Clarity, a fuel cell sedan meant for everyday use, at the 44th Tokyo Auto Show in October.
Honda Clarity ups the ante in the zero-emission FCV market, a still-evolving niche that has the potential of turning into
the technology of future, by taking on Toyotas Mirai that has gone on sale in select in the US.
Milaze: Tyre manufacturer Ceat has forayed into the tubeless tyre segment for scooters and launched a new range of
such products in the country. Named Milaze Tubeless Tyres, the products will be available in key markets across India.
According to the flagship company of RPG Enterprises, these tyres have been specifically designed to suit the need of
business community who use scooters for day-to-day business.
Magicbricks Now: Times Network announced the launch of a new real estate and property channel Magicbricks
Now in October. The channel will focus on domestic real estate and infrastructure sector and is being launched in
partnership with property portal Magicbricks.Com. The channel would be distributed on DTH and cable platforms which
carries Times Network.
Samayam: Times Internet (TIL), Indias premier digital products company and part of the Times of India Group,
launched `Samayam - a news, entertainment and lifestyle content destination available in Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam
languages in November. `Samayam is exclusively created to bridge the gap between users looking for quality content in
their very own languages and trustworthy platforms providing them.
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23
SeedTheRise: Mahindra & Mahindra launched an initiative to crowd source funds for farmer-specific projects in
October. In this initiative SeedTheRise, Mahindra & Mahindra will make a matching contribution. Announcing the
innovative campaign to support Indian farmers, the company said: The initiative targets to crowd fund a maximum
amount of Rs 2 crores from the contributors and Mahindra will add in an equivalent sum. The company has launched a
distinctive CSR campaign which allows the urban audience to use a crowd funding platform to donate directly to farmerspecific projects, it added.
VOOT: Viacom 18 Digital Ventures, the digital arm of Viacom18, announced its new OTT video platforms brand
name and identity in October. The company says that the soon-to-be-launched service has been branded VOOT - an
expression used by todays digital generation to express happiness, enthusiasm and triumph. Besides being the singular
and exclusive destination for Viacom 18 networks content portfolio, the platform will have an aggressive original
programming strategy for the service.
Priv: The new Android-powered BlackBerry Priv smartphone was launched in USA in November. Blackberry has been
struggling to attract new users to handsets running its homegrown BB10 OS.
Point Cove: Reliance Trends announced launch of brand Point Cove in collaboration with Cherokee Global Brands for
apparels, accessories and footwear for children in the age group of 2-14 in November. Point Cove is a California lifestyle
brand, which offers colourful and fun-filled products.
MERGERS&ACQUISITIONS
Activision Blizzard buys King Digital: Activision Blizzard, the company behind the hugely successful Call of
Duty video games, will shell out $5.9 billion for the maker of Candy Crush Saga King Digital Entertainment in a
deal disclosed in November. The purchase will help Activision Blizzard keep pace as video gaming continues to move
from TV-connected consoles to smartphones.
United Spirits sells Bouvet Ladubay: Diageo-controlled United Spirits Ltd (USL) has sold French winery
Bouvet Ladubay to an undisclosed buyer as part of its restructuring exercise in November. In 2006, USL Chairman Vijay
Mallya had bought the French winery, located in the Loire Valle, for 15 million (Rs 108.16 crore) to market high quality
wines in India. USL was importing wines from Bouvet Ladubay, founded in 1851, in both bottled and bulk formats.
Virtusa to buy Polaris: NASDAQ-listed Virtusa Corporation entered into an agreement to buy Chennai-based
Polaris Consulting & Services in a deal valuing Polaris at $348 million (Rs 2,300 crore). The Boston-headquartered IT
companys chairman and CEO Kris Canekeratne and Arun Jain, founder-chairman of Polaris, signed a share purchase
agreement in November whereby the Indian companys promoters and associates will sell their 53% stake to Virtusa.
HCL buys PowerObjects: HCL Technologies acquired the Minneapolis-based provider PowerObjects for $46
million in October. The company employs over 250 people, who will be transferred to the rolls of HCL.
Bridgestone buys Pep Boys: Tire and auto service company Bridgestone Corp is buying auto parts and repair
company Pep Boys for USD 835 million in a deal that will help Bridgestone gain a more dominant position.
Wassup acquires Chamak: On-demand laundry and refurbishment service Wassup announced the acquisition of
laundry service provider Chamak in November in Mumbai for an undisclosed amount in a full equity deal.
CAMPAIGNS
Make Life a sport: Bajaj Auto and Ogilvy and Mather have launched the newest campaign for brand Pulsar in
October. Titled Make Life a sport, the ad seeks to raise the bar of motorcycle communication in India, but at the same
time also comes with a strong notice not to imitate the actions shown in the ad, which have been performed under
controlled and supervised environment by trained professionals.
THE GENESIS
24
Cyber Buzz
India tops FB content restriction requests
The social networking major, however, added, Facebook

does not provide any government with back doors or
direct access to peoples data. We scrutinise each request
we receive for legal sufficiency, whether from an
authority in the U.S., Europe, or elsewhere. If a request
appears to be deficient or overly broad, we push back
hard and will fight in court, if necessary.
Facebook launches Notify news app
Facebook has restricted access to over 15,000 pieces of

information on its website in India during the first six
months of 2015 the highest for any country, following
requests from the government and law enforcement
agencies.
We restricted access in India to content reported
primarily by law enforcement agencies and the India
Computer Emergency Response Team within the
Ministry of Communications and Information
Technology because it was anti-religious and hate speech
that could cause unrest and disharmony within India,
Facebook said in November.
In its Government Requests Report, the social networking
platform said the number of pieces of content restricted
by India stood at 15,155 in January-June 2015. The
number is significantly higher compared to 5,832 in JulyDecember 2014 and 4,960 requests in January-June 2014.
There is an increase in content restrictions and
government requests for data globally. The amount of
content restricted for violating local law stood at 20,568
worldwide, more than doubling from the second half of
2014, when the social networking firm took down 9,707
pieces of content. Turkey had the second highest number
of content restricted at 4,496, followed by France (295),
Israel (195), Germany (188) and Austria (170).
India is ranked second, just behind the U.S., for
government requests for access to information on users
and accounts. Facebook said it received 5,115 total
requests for data on 6,268 accounts or users from the
Indian government. It added that percentage of requests
where some data were produced stood at 45.32 per cent
during January-June 2015. For the U.S., the number stood
at 17,577 concerning 26,579 accounts.
Facebook released an app for iPhone owners in the US

called Notify in November that gathers news and
entertainment stories into one regularly updated feed.
CNN, Fox News and the Washington Post are among the
70 organisations providing stories to the app. Any user
who installs the app chooses their own mix of sources
that will post notifications to their feed. Notify app
competes directly with Twitters Moments and Apples
News service, which create feeds of breaking stories.
Notifications about new articles appear on the lock screen
of an iPhone and can be shared from that display.
Facebook to fund 100 BSNL wi-fi hotspots

Boosting the governments ambitious Digital India
drive, social media giant Facebook has come forward to
facilitate state-run BSNL in setting up 100 wi-fi sites in
rural areas of western and southern India. Facebook will
spend Rs 5 crore per annum for sponsoring these 100 wifi hotspots in the country. Facebook will pay Rs 5 lakh
for BSNL bandwidth for each hotspot per annum. The
hotspots are being set up by BSNL selected vendor Quad
Zen. BSNL CMD Anupam Shrivastava said in November
that Facebook is only sponsoring the hotspots and not
taking any revenue share. The sponsored wi-fi spots are
being set-up in addition to 2,500 wifi spots that BSNL is
setting up in partnership with Quad Zen and Trimax.
Twitter replaces button for favourite posts

Twitter retired its star button that users click to
favourite a post and replaced it with a heart in
November. The messaging platform said the new system
of likes, which is also used by Facebook, offers a better
way for users to express their views. But it quickly
sparked an outcry from some users. Twitter said the move
was designed to be easier to understand for users around
the world. The heart symbol had already been used on
Twitters Periscope livestream app, and it now will
appear on Twitter and Vine, the app for short videos.
Some critics said the change puts people in an awkward
position of liking tweets related to tragic news events.
THE GENESIS
25
Science & Technology
satellites can also play a crucial role in universalising

education.
GSAT15launchedbyAriane5
Indias latest communication satellite GSAT-15 was

successfully launched by Ariane-5 rocket in the early
hours on November 11from the spaceport of Kourou in
French Guiana. The 3164 kg GSAT-15 carries
communication transponders in Ku-band as well as a GPS
Aided GEO Augmented Navigation (GAGAN) payload
operating in L1 and L5 bands.
After a flight of 43 minutes and 24 seconds, GSAT-15
separated from the Ariane 5 upper stage in an elliptical
Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) with a perigee
(nearest point to Earth) of 250 km and an apogee (farthest
point to Earth) of 35,819 km, inclined at an angle of 3.9
degree to the equator. The achieved orbit was very close
to the intended one.
ISROs Master Control Facility (MCF) at Hassan in
Karnataka took over the command and control of GSAT15 immediately after its separation from the launch
vehicle. Preliminary health checks of the satellite
revealed its normal health.
In the coming days, orbit raising manoeuvres will be
performed to place the satellite in the Geostationary Orbit
(36,000 km above the equator) by using the satellites
propulsion system in steps.
The launch is timely as India is facing an acute shortage
of transponders in the sky affecting many sectors like
communication, telecommunication, health, rural
development and education. Direct to home TV services,
internet services and data transfers will become
affordable to all only if communication satellites with
more transponders are deployed in space. Communication
While India has demonstarted its capability in building

state of the art communication satellites the real challenge
is in the development of the rockets capable of launching
these heavier payloads from the Indian soil. Foreign
launch services such as Arianespace charge a fat sum and
India needs to master the technology used in launching
them from home. Development of a reliable indigenous
cryogenic engine is crucial for GSLV rockets. ISROs
PSLV rocket has already established its credentials as
reliable launcher for low-weight satellites. Developing
the expertise to launch heavier satellites like GSAT-15
from home will help India save not only save money but
also enable the country to emerge as serious player in the
multi-million dollar commercial launch market.
BookonIndianSpaceMissionlaunched
On the occasion of the second anniversary of the launch
of Mars Orbiter Spacecraft, a book From Fishing Hamlet
to Red Planet was released by
Prof U R Rao, former
Chairman, ISRO in Bangalore
on November 6 in the presence
of A S Kiran Kumar,
Chairman,
ISRO.
This
comprehensive compendium
traces the evolution of Indias
satellite, launch vehicle and
application programmes from
a historical perspective. Many
pioneers of the Indian space
programme, who contributed
to this compendium, were
present during the function. Kumar said the book places
on record the innovative approach adopted by ISRO right
from the beginning to develop space technologies for
national development. He stressed the need for ISRO to
shoulder new responsibilities in the contemporary
times.The e-version of the book is made available on
ISRO Website for free download.
During its journey around Mars, the spacecraft has sent
hundreds of Mars images including numerous full disc
images of Mars, because of the unique elliptical orbit in
which it was placed.
THE GENESIS
26
RECENT RELEASES
AdvantageIndia
On the way from Delhi to Jaunpur in eastern Uttar
Pradesh is the dusty town of
Badshahnagar. Even in this
nondescript settlement, people
receive money via mobile
transfer from family members
working in distant cities. There
are computer training centres
offering diploma courses in
Bhojpuri, Hindi and English.
Badshahnagar is an example of
Indias numerous remote towns
that have skipped the stage of
basic learning and landed straight to digital literacy as
they strive to keep up with the times.
In this book, A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, writing with Srijan Pal
Singh,
draws
upon
examples
ranging
from
entrepreneurship in places like Badshahnagar to a
sophisticated missile programme like Agni to show how
it can be Advantage India in the last lap of the journey to
2020 the landmark year by which he had envisioned the
country could transform into an economic power. How
can the new initiatives such as Make in India, Swachh
Bharat, smart cities and skill development for the youth
be used to unleash the countrys vast potential?
Advantage India offers the answers.
Kalam (1931-2015) was the eleventh President of India,
from 2002 to 2007. He was a recipient of the Padma
Bhushan, the Padma Vibhushan and the nations highest
civilian award, the Bharat Ratna.IIMApassout Srijan Pal
Singh is a social entrepreneur. He previously co-authored
Target 3 Billion (2011) with Dr Kalam.
TheWorldofHrishikeshMukherjee
One of Indias best-loved film directors, Hrishikesh
Mukherjee is perhaps best known today for his
perennially popular creations like Anand, Chupke
Chupke and Gol Maal. But hrishi-das best work was
provocative, wide-ranging and always aware of the
complexities of people and their relationships, even when
the setting was a simple, middle-class household. Often
combining breezy narratives with serious ideas, his films
created a distinct world with recurring themes such as the
relationship between fantasy and life, an individuals
journey towards becoming more responsible in a flawed
world, performance (Naatak-Baazi) as a revelation of

character, and gender relations in a conservative society.
Jai Arjun Singh looks closely at Hrishikesh Mukherjees
Oeuvre, from well-known films like Satyakam, Guddi,
Abhimaan and Khubsoorat to
lesser known (but equally
notable) works such as MemDidi, Biwi aur Makaan and
Anuradha. Combining a fans
passion with a critics rigour,
the world of Hrishikesh
Mukherjee is a book for anyone
who
takes
their
filmed
entertainment seriously.
Jai Arjun Singh has previously
authored a book about the cult
comedy film Jaane bhi Do
Yaaro and edited the popcorn essayists, an anthology of
personal essays on cinema. His columns, reviews and
essays have appeared in several newspapers including
Business Standard and The Hindu. Most of his published
writings can be found on his widely read culture blog
jabberwock.
WrittenbySalim
Javed
The dramatic, entertaining story
of the dream team that
pioneered
the
Bollywood
blockbuster. Salim Khan and
Javed Akhtar reinvented the
Bollywood formula with an
extraordinary lineup of super
hits, becoming game changers
at a time when screenwriting
was dismissed as a back-room
job. From Zanjeer to Deewaar and Sholay to Shakti, their
creative output changed the destinies of several actors and
filmmakers and even made a cultural phenomenon of the
Angry Young Man. Even after they decided to part ways,
success continued to court them-a testament not only to
their impeccable talent and professional ethos, but also
their enterprising showmanship and business acumen.
Fizzing with energy and brimming over with enough
trivia to delight a cinephiles heart, Written by SalimJaved tells the story of a dynamic partnership that
transformed Hindi cinema forever.
THE GENESIS
27
Group Discussion
Scrapping of NJAC is Judicial Overreach
In a landmark decision the Supreme Court has invalidated the governments move to put in place a National Judicial Appointments
Commission that would have replaced the existing Collegium System of making appointments and transfers in the higher judiciary
FOR
AGAINST
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has rightly argued that

Indian democracy cannot be the tyranny of the
unelected, in which the judiciary reifies its status and
diminishes the other pillars of democracy.
Jaitleys comment conveys the impression that unelected

institutions are inherently less legitimate than elected
bodies like Parliament. This is a spurious argument, since
both categories derive their legitimacy from the very same
Constitution.
The present collegium system, in which the five seniormost judges decide whom to call to the bench, essentially
makes judicial appointments entirely an internal process,
without any scope for the other organs of state to play any
role in the selection process.
It is difficult to think of a good reason to deny the
legislature, the organ of state that is closest to the people,
the ultimate sovereign in a democracy, a determinate role
in judicial appointments. The SC has sought to ensure that
the political executive of the day does not have a say in
the appointment of senior judges.
The Supreme Courts decision flouts the will of the
legislature expressed through the amendment being
passed unanimously by both Houses of Parliament and
also endorsed by a majority of the state legislatures.
The NJAC had sought to restore the system of checks and
balances which, according to the government, was lost
after the Supreme Court created the collegium scheme of
appointments.
The demand for the NJAC began with the observation
that the standing of the judiciary has been reduced in the
eyes of the public by pervasive inefficiency and
embarrassing instances of corruption.
It is important to understand why there is no public outcry

over what the political class is seeking to portray as
judicial overreach undermining the sovereignty of
Parliament. The record of the political class in making
appointments to critical positions, which are not just
impartial but are also seen to be so, is fairly dismal. The
country desperately needs an independent head of the
Central Bureau of Investigation or CBI (so that it ceases
to be a parrot of the government of the day), an
independent Lok Pal and heads of organisations leading
national educational institutions. With none of these in
sight, the political class lacks credibility when it says it
has devised a system (in which it will have a say) for
selecting independent-minded judges.
The SC has rightly asserted that the clauses provided in
the NJAC Act are inadequate to preserve the primacy of
the judiciary. The inclusion of the Law Minister in the
body impinged on both the independence of the judiciary
and the doctrine of separation of powers.
The judiciary remains the sole authority to decide whether
a law violates the basic structure of the Constitution and
the need for a better functioning of the judiciary cannot
come at the expense of its independence.
Judges dont have unbridled power to appoint judges in

most other liberal democracies. For example, US
Supreme Court judges are appointed by the president and
ratified by the Senate. For the UKs apex court, an
independent
committee
makes
candidate
recommendations to the prime minister who makes a final
recommendation to the queen.
Since the government is a major litigant, giving it an edge

in appointments would amount to fixing the courts.
Besides, the executive had sought to bring persons of
eminence into the voting process, with veto powers. Now
persons of eminence is a woolly category that consists
of unspecialised people without judicial experience, and
the impression that it can be manipulated politically is
scarcely imaginary.
Under NJAC the commission to select judges is

composed equally of judges and non-judges, which
should prevent power vesting exclusively with either
judges or the political class
The NJAC violates the separation of powers between the

judiciary and the executive, which, the apex court rightly
holds, is fundamental to the basic structure of the
Constitution.
THE GENESIS
28
Crossword:
(Solution on page No: 36)
ACROSS:
1. Old name for Chennai (6)
4. An anaesthetic (5)
7. Rip to pieces? (4,2)
13. Not bankrupt, able to pay (7)
14. An Ethiopian prince (3)
15. Opposed to (7)
16. Taj Mahal site (4)
17. Thin flat organ on body of a fish (3)
18. You are morally bound to do yours (4)
21. Withdraws, falls back or rescinds (8)
23. Setting right, correcting (8)
27. Barriers made of felled trees (9)
29. Ex-Chief Minister of West Bengal (5,4)
31. Fouls at football, for example? (5,4)
32. The smallest parts of substances which
retain their properties of that substance (9)
33. Of various types; mixed or classified (8)
37. Inhabitant (8)
42. Kept as a prisoner (4)
43. Inertial Navigation Sys. (3)
44. University city in Iowa (4)
47. Cape ___: the southern tip of India? (7)
48. Boeing Commercial Airplanes (3)
49. Dismiss in disgrace (7)
50. ___ lime: lime mixed with water? (6)
51. Yellow fever bug (5)
52. Ring-shaped rolls relished by the Jews (6)
DOWN
1. Person or thing bringing good luck (6)
2. A stupid fellow! (4)
3. He wants to get even? (7)
5. Duties on a particular class of imports or exports (7)
6. Inner nature (7)
8. Raised high or glorified (7)
9. ___ and file: the common soldier or just a commoner? (4)
10. Uneven in quality? (6)
11. Layers of rocks, atmosphere etc.? (6)
12. Walk with short, swaying steps (6)
19. Go over the bridge (3,6)
20. Necessitating, involving unavoidably (9)
22. Relating to those between childhood and adulthood (7)
24. Centre-piece for folk dancing (7)
25. Small box for tea (5)
26. ___ into: suddenly begin to utter a song, etc.? (5)
DOWN
28. __ will be done: your wishes will be
fulfilled (3)
30. Internet Relay Chat, acronym? (3)
34.___ ____ hill: a tourist spot with just one
plant at the peak? (3,4)
35. ______ person over: helping person through
temporary need or difficulty (6)
36. Let saliva trickle from the mouth? (7)
37. Put into other words (7)
38. A stiffening agent (6)
39._ _ diving: done by divers seeking pearls,
perhaps? (4,3)
40. ___ out: obliterates or obscures? (6)
41. Large marine mammal related to the seals
(6)
45. South Africas Hashim ____ (4)
46. Take the bait offered? (4)
Binge-watchis Word of the Year: Binge-watch - watching a large number of television programmes in
succession - has been named the 2015 Word of the Year by Collins dictionary, after relentless consumption of shows
such as Game Of Thrones led to increase in its usage by a whopping 200% last year. The rise in usage of binge-watch
is clearly linked to the biggest sea change in our viewing habits since the advent of the video recorder nearly 40 years
ago. Its not uncommon for viewers to binge-watch a whole season of programmes such as House of Cards or
Breaking Bad in just a couple of evenings - something that, in the past, would have taken months.
THE GENESIS
29
Do you remember?
(All questions based on content of previous issue; Answers on page No: 31)
1. Which party won the most seats (80) in Bihar

2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
Assembly polls in October-November?

Which party had the highest vote share (24.5%) in
Bihar Assembly polls in October-November?
Which of these parties saw a drop in its vote share but
rise in number of seats in 2015 Bihar Assembly polls
compared to 2010 JD(U)/BJP/Congress/LJP?
Which of these parties has won more seats in 2015
Bihar Assembly polls than in 2010
JD(U)/BJP/Congress/LJP?
What were the voter turnout for the 243-seat Bihar
Assembly
polls
in
October-November
(46%/56%/66%/76%)?
Who is the only winner for Hindustani Awam Morcha
(Secular), a party that was in BJP-led NDA alliance?
Which Constitutional Amendment is about the
National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC)
Act that was ruled as unconstitutional by the Supreme
Court (89th/99th/109th/119th)?
Which of the five judges in the Supreme Court bench
on the validity of the National Judicial Appointments
Commission (NJAC) Act gave a dissenting view (J.S.
Khehar/J. Chelameswar/Madan B. Lokur/Kurian
Joseph/A.K. Goel)?
Which Article of the Constitution is about the Uniform
Civil Code (Article 19(1)/Article 370/Article
80/Article 44)?
Who is the Union Law & Justice Minister in news for
calling a wider debate on Uniform Civil Code?
Research Centre Imarat (RCI) of DRDO is in which
state capital? Its Missile complex was renamed after
former President Kalam in October?
The government has decided to unveil the secret files
related to which late leader from his birth anniversary
on January 23, 2016?
Claim of copyright on title of which book by writer
Shyam Vithalrao Devkatta was rejected by the
Supreme Court in October?
Where was the Indian Police Foundation and the
Indian Police Institute inaugurated by the Home
Minister in October?
The _____ Awareness Week was observed from
October 26 to 31 with the theme Preventive Vigilance
as a tool of Good Governance.
Who is the Central Vigilance Commissioner?
Prime Minister released a book titled Warriors
Remembered on the occasion of the Police
Commemoration Day on October 21. The book is
about ________ (BSF/Army/ITBP/CRPF):
18. Governments
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.
Mission Indradhanush aims to

immunise children against seven life-threatening but
vaccine-preventable diseases -- diphtheria, whooping
cough, tetanus, tuberculosis, polio, measles and_____.
Parliamentary Panel on which issue is headed by Lok
Sabha MP E. M. Sudarsana Natchiappan?
Punjab CM Parkash Singh Badal is the head of NITI
Aayog Sub-group on _____ Development Missions.
AP CM N. Chandrababu Naidu is the head of NITI
Aayog Sub-group on ____.
The National _____ Week was observed from Oct9 to
15.
Which of the following was established on October 9,
1874 in the Swiss capital Berne?
Where is the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel National Police
Academy (SVPNPA) based and who is the Director?
R.C. Tayal is the Director General of which
paramilitary force?
The Government has decided to set up the Indian ____
____ Service, a Group A service of the technical
cadre of the Ministry of Skill Development &
Entrepreneurship (MSD&E) in October.
The rural development ministry has decided to train
1000 barefoot technicians in the basic concepts of
civil engineering for work on which welfare
programme?
The government has decided to set up the National
War Memorial and National War Museum at which
landmark in New Delhi?
DRDOs Defence Institute of _____ _____ Research
(DIHAR) is based at Leh.
Which writer is known for books like Raavan and
Eddie, Cuckold and Gods Little Soldier?
Whose new book of poems titled Summer Requiem
was launched recently and for which magnum opus is
he best-known?
Which London-based publication selected Arun Jaitley
as Asias Finance Minister of the Year in Oct?
Who won the Worlds Childrens Prize in October for
helping destitute children in Cambodias capital,
Phnom Penh?
Which Indian activist received the Harvard
Humanitarian of the Year Award in October?
Which Indian-American is among CNNs Top 10
Heroes of 2015 for drought relief efforts in Rajasthan?
Who was appointed as the new Chairman of the
Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) in October?
Who was appointed as Indias new Ambassador to
China?
THE GENESIS
30

38. Former Navy Chief Admiral Radhakrishna Hariram
39.
40.
41.
42.
43.
44.
45.
46.
47.
48.
49.
50.
51.
52.
53.
54.
55.
56.
57.
58.
59.
Tahiliani (Retd) died on October 14. He is credited

with setting up the India unit of which well-known
international NGO in 1997?
Music composer and lyricist Ravindra Jain died on
October 7. He was awarded the Padma ______
(Shri/Bhushan/Vibhushan) in 2015.
Padma Bhushan recipient N. Ramani died on October
9. He was a noted exponent of which musical
instrument?
Who are the President and Prime Minister of
Palestine?
Who is the ruler of Jordan and which is its capital?
Al-Quds University conferred honorary doctorate on
President Mukherjee in October. It is based in _____
(Israel/Jordan/Palestine/Lebanon).
Who are the President and Prime Minister of Israel and
what is the countrys Parliament called?
Sergei Lavrov is the _____ Minister of Russia. Foreign
Which country is participating in the Agnipariksha-2
joint anti-terrorism exercise of Indias National
Security Guard (NSG) (France/Israel/Russia/USA)?
Teaching of which language as an optional subject will
soon resume in Kendriya Vidyalayas (KVs) following
an
agreement
in
October
(Spanish/German/Russian/Italian)?
After which region of Kerala was the naval exercise
involving India, USA and Japan in the Bay of Bengal
in October named?
Exercise Mitra Shakti-2015 was organised near Pune
in October. It involved troops of which neighbouring
country?
Which article of the Constitution grants special status
to Jammu and Kashmir?
Which scheme was launched by Haryana government
to provide shelter and support to needy women?
Which is Indias National Aquatic Animal?
Which dynasty founded Amaravati as their capital in
present day Andhra Pradesh centuries ago?
Non-Permanent Members of UN Security Council are
elected for a term of how many years?
UN Security Council comprises 5 Permanent and
_____ Non-Permanent Members.
Where was the World Congress on Marxism organised
in October?
Which African island nation launched a special stamp
on Goddess Durga having a face value of 86,000
Dobra in October?
What is the trade pact launched by USA and 11 other
countries in October named?
Which are the three movie in Satyajit Rays Apu
Trilogy?
60. Which party won Parliamentary polls in Canada in
October and who is the new Prime Minister?

61. What is the NATO exercise launched in October in
62.
63.
64.
65.
66.
67.
68.
69.
70.
71.
72.
73.
74.
75.
76.
77.
78.
79.
80.
81.
82.
83.
84.
85.
Europe involving 36,000 troops from more than 30

countries named?
Ahmed Mansoor of UAE won the 2015 Martin Ennals
award in October. The award is given for work in the
field
of
_______
(Sports/Science/Human
Rights/Films).
Ashwini Kumar passed away in New Delhi on October
19 at 94. He was known for his work in the field of
_______ (Sports/Science/Human Rights/Films).
Who received the World Food Prize on the World
Food Day on October 16?
Which African leader received Chinas Confucius
Peace Prize in October?
International Day of Non-Violence was observed on
____.
World Sight Day was observed on _____.
International Day of the Girl Child was observed on
_____.
International Day for Disaster Reduction was observed
on _____.
International Day of Older Persons was observed on
____.
World Teachers Day and the World Habitat Day were
observed on October ____.
International Walk to ______ Day was observed on
October 7.
World ____ Health Day was observed on October 10.
International Day of Rural Women, Global
Handwashing Day, White Cane Day and World
Standards Day were observed on _____.
World Statistics Day was observed on _____.
World Day Against ______ _____ was observed on
October 10.
World Day for which ailment was observed on
October 12?
International Day for Eradication of _____ was
observed on October 17.
World Polio Day, United Nations Day and World
Development Information Day were observed on
____.
World Day for Audiovisual _____ was observed on
October 27.
World Cities Day were observed on _____.
World Thrift Day were observed on _____.
India defeated hosts New Zealand in the four-match
series in which sport in October?
Who is the new President of Nepal?
President Alpha Conde was re-elected in which
African country in October?
THE GENESIS
31

86. Who is the new National Security Advisor of
93. Which
Pakistan?
87. Who was re-elected as President of Belarus in Oct?
88. Jioji Konousi Konrote was elected President in which
Pacific island country in October?
94.
95.
89. Who are the three bowlers ahead of Zaheer Khan in
the list of Indias leading wicket-takers in Test cricket?

90. Who won the Golden Boot award in Octfor scoring
96.
most goals in Europes leagues in last season?

91. Beighton Cup was won by PNB in which sport in Octo
92. Who won the World Blitz Chess in Berlin in October?
97.
98.
Indian player won the Dutch Open

badminton Mens singles title in October?
Which city was the venue of Russian Grand Prix won
by Lewis Hamilton in October?
Mumbai-born Lord Gulam Noon died in London on
October 27. He was known for his business empire in
____. (Food/Apparel/Broadcasting/Shipping)?
Who is the head of the All India Council of Sports set
up by the government in October?
Who is the author of The Brothers Bihar?
Who is the author of Dont Let Him Know?
Do you remember? Answers

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
RJD
BJP
Congress
Congress
56%
Jitan Ram Manjhi
99th
J. Chelameswar
Article 44
D. V. Sadananda Gowda
Hyderabad
Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose
Desi Boys
New Delhi
Vigilance
K.V. Chowdary
CRPF
Hepatitis-B
Lokpal & Lokayuktas, and
Other
Related
Law
(Amendment) Bill, 2014
Skill
Swachh Bharat Abhiyan
Postal
Universal Postal Union
Hyderabad, Aruna Bahuguna
NSG
Skill Development
MGNREGA
India Gate
High Altitude
Kiran Nagarkar
Vikram Seth, The Suitable
Boy
Emerging Markets
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.
38.
39.
40.
41.
42.
43.
44.
45.
46.
47.
48.
49.
50.
51.
52.
53.
54.
55.
56.
57.
58.
59.
60.
61.
62.
63.
64.
Phymean Noun
Kailash Satyarthi
Bhagwati Agrawal
Sekhar Basu
Vijay Gokhale
Transparency International
Shri
Flute
Mahmoud
Abbas,
Rami
Hamadallah
King Abdullah II, Amman
Palestine
Reuven Rivlin, Benjamin
Netanyahu, Knesset
Foreign
USA
German
Malabar
Sri Lanka
Article 370
Swadhar Greh
Gangetic Dolphin
Satavahana
Two
10
Beijing
Sao Tome and Principe
Trans-Pacific Partnership
Pather Panchali, Aparajito
and Apur Sansar
Liberal Party, Justin Trudeau
Trident Juncture
Human Rights
Sports
Sir Fazle Hasan Abed
65.
66.
67.
68.
69.
70.
71.
72.
73.
74.
75.
76.
77.
78.
79.
80.
81.
82.
83.
84.
85.
86.
87.
88.
89.
90.
91.
92.
93.
94.
95.
96.
97.
98.
Robert Mugabe
October 2
October 8
October 11
October 13
October 1
October 5
School
Mental
October 15
October 20
Death Penalty
Arthritis
Poverty
October 24
Heritage
October 31
October 31
Hockey
Vidya Devi Bhandari
Guinea
Nasser Khan Janjua
Alexander Lukashenko
Fiji
Anil Kumble, Kapil Dev and
Harbhajan Singh
Cristiano Ronaldo
Hockey
Alexander Grischuk
Ajay Jayaram
Sochi
Food
Prof V.K. Malhotra
Sankarshan Thakur
Sandip Roy
THE GENESIS
32
Corporate Knowledge Quiz

(All questions based on content in this issue& previous issue)
(Answers Key on Page No: 36)
1. CEO of which of the following was in news for

donating $200 million shares to his employees in Oct?
a) Twitter
b) ebay
c) Amazon
d) Facebook
2. A campaign Join the Indian _____ and Live a Life
Less Ordinary was launched by the Defence Ministry in
October.
a) Army
b) Air Force
c) Coast Guard
d) Navy
3. Which government-owned bank is facing CBI probe in
October for alleged transfer of over Rs. 6000 crore black
money to Hong Kong in July 2014?
a) State Bank of India
b) Bank of Baroda
c) Bank of India
d) Punjab National Bank
a) Food
b) Metals
c) Energy
d) Media
8. Which of the following was cautioned by the Customer
Complaints Council (CCC) of Advertising Standard
Council of India (ASCI) for not substantiating its claim
with evidence that its Inverter V air-conditioners keep
mosquitoes away?
a) Videocon
b) LG
c) Onida
d) Samsung
9. Which domestic airlines parent company was in news
for a successful IPO in October?
a) IndiGo
b) GoAir
c) SpiceJet
d) Jet Airways
4. Dilip Chenoy has resigned as the MD & CEO of which

government-owned organisations in October?
a) NABARD
b) NSDC
c) IFCI
d) KVIC
10. Which is the best ranked Indian bank in Bank Safety

Ranking by The Banker, a Financial Times publication,
in October?
a) Axis Bank
b) ICICI Bank
c) HDFC Bank
d) Kotak Mahindra Bank
5. Which global consultancy firm has ranked India as the

most attractive investment destination in the world for the
next three years in October?
a) McKinsey
b) E&Y
c) KPMG
d) PwC
11. Which Indian IT company acquired the Minneapolisbased CRM provider PowerObjects for $46 million in
October?
a) Wipro
b) TCS
c) Infosys
d) HCL Technologies
6. Brijmohan Lall Munjal, founder & chairman emeritus

of Hero MotoCorp, died at 92 on November 1. Which
national honour was conferred on him in 2005?
a) Padma Shri
b) Bharat Ratna
c) Padma Bhushan
d) Padma Vibhushan
12. Which Indian 2-wheeler company will launch

motorcycles in tie up with BMW Motorrrad in 2016?
a) Mahindra2Wheelers
b) TVS Motor
c) Hero MotoCorp
d) Bajaj Auto
7. Fourteen Indian companies have found place in the

Platts Global 250 Rankings released in October 2014.
These rankings are of companies in which sector?
13. Which of the following is acquiring auto parts and

repair company Pep Boys for $835 million?
a) Pirelli
b) Michelin
THE GENESIS

c) Continental
d) Bridgestone
14. Which Indian tyre company has launched Milaze
Tubeless Tyres?
a) Apollo Tyres
b) JK Tyres
c) CEAT
d) MRF
15. Who among the following was named top-earning
dead celebrity in 2014 by Forbes magazine in October
2015?
a) Michael Jackson
b) Elvis Presley
c) Charles M Schulz
d) Elizabeth Taylor
16. Which of the following has launched a real estate
channel in partnership with Times Network in October?
a) www.magicbricks.com
b) www.99acres.com
c) www.indiaproperty.com
d) www.proptiger.com
17. Which of the following has announced collaboration
with and Harvard University South Asia Institute (SAI)
on knowledge creation and capacity building for social
and economic empowerment in India?
a) Vedanta
b) Tata
c) Mahindra
d) L&T
18. Century Textiles and Industries is owned by which
business family?
a) Wadia
b) Singhania
c) Lalbhai
d) Birla
19. S H Kelkar & Company was in news in October for
Rs 500-crore initial public issue. It is in which business?
a) Lubricants
b) Perfumes
c) Food
d) Real estate
20. IPL 2015 made contribution of a whopping Rs. 11.5
billion to Indias GDP. This was revealed in a survey
unveiled by which audit firm in October?
a) KPMG
b) PwC
33
c) Ernst & Young
d) McKinsey
21.SeedTheRise is an initiative launched by which
corporate group for crowd funding of famer-specific
projects?
a) Vedanta
b) Tata
c) Mahindra
d) L&T
22. Which government-owned bank appointed P K Gupta
as its new MD and CEO for three years from October?
a) State Bank of India
b) Bank of Baroda
c) Bank of India
d) Punjab National Bank
23. Which of the following is launching Viacom18
Digital Ventures video-on-demand platform named
VOOT?
a) Viacom
b) Star
c) Zee
d) Sony
24. Which of the following rolled out the fuel cell sedan
Clarity in October?
a) Toyota
b) Honda
c) General Motors
d) Volkswagen
25.Make Life a sport is the advertising campaign for
which two-wheeler brand in October?
a) Pulsar
b) Saluto
c) Vespa
d) Unicorn
26. Which online ventures appointed Jason Kothari as its
new CEO in November?
a) Housing.com
b) Infibeam.com
c) Askme.com
d) Naaptol.com
27. Who was named worlds most powerful person by
Forbes magazine in November 2015? The list of 73 most
powerful people in the world has Indian Prime Minister
Narendra Modi on ninth position.
a) Vladimir Putin
b) Barack Obama
THE GENESIS

c) Xi Jinping
d) Pope Francis
28. Which of the following has launched the smartphone
Priv in USA in November?
a) LG
b) BlackBerry
c) Apple
d) Samsung
29. Philanthropic arm of which corporate group has
launched a healthcare initiative -- Project Aasman -- to
reduce infant, neonatal and maternal mortality in the
country in tie up with Mukesh Ambanis RIL and Bill
Gates Foundation?
a) Vedanta
b) Tata
c) Mahindra
d) L&T
30. Who is the founder of Landmark Group which has
operates retail formats such as Lifestyle, Max and Spar in
India?
a) Gulu Lalwani
b) Micky Jagtiani
c) Ragu Kataria
d) Sant Singh Chatwal
31. Who among the following announced plans to exit his
groups 5.8 MTPA cement business and focus on defence
production in November?
a) Gautam Adani
b) Grandhi Mallikarjuna Rao
c) Mukesh Ambani
d) Anil Ambani
32. Which of the following announced the launch of a
new global luxury car brand called Genesis in November?
a) Ford
b) Honda
c) Renault
d) Hyundai
33. Which of the following is well-known for its Candy
Crush Saga mobile game?
a) Rovio
b) Zynga
c) King Digital Entertainment
d) Activision Blizzard
34. Which Indian liquor company sold off its French
winery Bouvet Ladubay in November?
a) Jagatjit Industries
34
b) Radico Khaitan
c) United Spirits
d) Tilaknagar Industries
35. Which of the following sells TVs and tablets under
the Fire brand in USA and Europe?
a) ebay
b) Amazon
c) Microsoft
d) Google
36. Which of the following launched a camera called
Cube+ in India in tie up with Flipkart in November?
a) Kodak
b) Polaroid
c) Cannon
d) Sharp
37. Which Indian IT company was acquired by Bostonbased Virtusa for $348 million in November?
a) Tech Mahindra
b) Happiest Minds
c) Mindtree
d) Polaris
38. Which of the following announced plans to Motoplex
stores to sell two-wheelers in India in November?
a) KTM
b) Ducati
c) Triumph
d) Piaggio
39. Who was named this years highest-earning female
musician by Forbes magazine in November?
a) Rihanna
b) Kate Perry
c) Taylor Swift
d) Beyonce
40. Which Indian pharma company signed Sania and
Chhettri as brand ambassadors for its pain reliever brand
Volini in November?
a) Cipla
b) Dr. Reddys Labs
c) Sun Pharma
d) Wockhardt
41. Which of the following has launched the Point Cove
brand for apparels, accessories and footwear for children
in November?
a) Madura Fashion
b) Future Group
c) Reliance Trends
THE GENESIS
35

d) Bombay Dyeing
b) Idea Cellular
c) Tata Communications
d) Reliance Communications
42. Which newspaper group has launched `Samayam - a

news, entertainment and lifestyle content portal in Tamil,
Telugu and Malayalam languages in November?
a) Hindustan Times
b) The Indian Express
c) The Hindu
d) Times of India
47. Which of the following was the joint venture partner

of Brijmohan Lall Munjal-led Hero group until 2010?
a) Piaggio
b) Suzuki
c) Honda
d) Kawasaki
43. Which Indian vehicles company signed footballer

Lionel Messi as its global brand ambassador in Nov?
a) Force Motors
b) Mahindra & Mahindra
c) Tata Motors
d) Ashok Leyland
48. Which of the following has forecast 7.5% growth for

the Indian economy in its Trade and Development
Report 2015 released in October?
a) WTO
b) ADB
c) UNCTAD
d) IMF
44. Which MNC retail chain was founded by Thomas

Stemberg who died in October?
a) Tesco
b) Metro
c) Staples
d) Office Depot
49. An Induction Publicity Exhibition Vehicle (IPEV)

was flagged off by the Indian ________ to show the
various facets and the working of the Indian ____ to
aspirants across the country in October.
a) Army
b) Air Force
c) Coast Guard
d) Navy
45. Which social networking portal has launched the

Brand Hub feature for advertisers?
a) Twitter
b) Instagram
c) Google+
d) Facebook
50. Which of the following has announced partnerships

with Indian studios Yash Raj Films and ErosNow to
develop custom Mojis for users in India?
a) Spotify
b) Skype
c) Twitter
d) Tumblr
46. Who launched IZO Private Cloud service in Oct that

gives direct control to organisations hosting it over their
critical data?
a) Bharti Airtel
Point-Counterpoint
We are capable of sorting out (the

problem) ourselves without external
meddling.
They ask for Indias help when they need

it. But if they dont like what we do, they
describe it as interference.
Khadga Prasad Sharma Oli, Nepals

PM, on Indias call for responding to
concerns of Madhesis about the new
Constitution
Prof SD Muni, strategic analyst who

closely follows events in Nepal
THE GENESIS
36
Corporate Knowledge Quiz: Answer Key

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12.
13.
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15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
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24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
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36.
37.
38.
39.
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41.
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44.
45.
46.
47.
48.
49.
50.
Sudoku
(Solution below)
SUDOKU II
SUDOKU I
Solutions:
CROSSWORD
SUDOKU I
SUDOKU II
THE GENESIS

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2

Endeavor Careers Dream Endeavor Achieve

Many a false step was made by standing still. Fortune Cookie

horities for exxtremist links aand yet made it out to Syriaa

The Presidentt went on natiional TV to annnounce a staate of

like Paris takes considerable

Endeavor Careers Dream Endeavor Achieve

Addressing such grievances and structural problems

The possibility that one attacker posed as a refugee,

Endeavor Careers Dream Endeavor Achieve

US: essentially to break down ISIS through sustained air

Today the ISIS not only lacks the confidence to inform

and coalition bombing. Some of this has been linked to

Endeavor Careers Dream Endeavor Achieve

Nepal and India: Friends turning foes

represent the interests of the Indian-origin inhabitants of

populated regions in the hills. The Madhesi community

Current Affairs: India

FTII strikee ends but differencees persist: The

IAF holds Exercise Livewire: The

Govt. limitts surrogaccy to inferrtile Indian

Endeavor Careers Dream Endeavor Achieve

Endeavor Careers Dream Endeavor Achieve

Endeavor Careers Dream Endeavor Achieve

Current Affairs: States

Endeavor Careers Dream Endeavor Achieve

Current Affairs: World

Endeavor Careers Dream Endeavor Achieve

Endeavor Careers Dream Endeavor Achieve

Aung San Suu Kyis National League for Democracy

led her to speak out against him and to begin a nonviolent

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Current Affairs: Sports

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Endeavor Careers Dream Endeavor Achieve

Current Affairs: Economy

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Endeavor Careers Dream Endeavor Achieve

Sound technology pioneer Amar Bose (1929-2013),

rebounding off the walls and ceilings of a venue before

Endeavor Careers Dream Endeavor Achieve

Current Affairs: Corporate

Platts Top 250 Global Energy Companies

Forbes Top-earning Dead Celebrities

Forbes Highest-earning Female Musicians

Bank Safety Rankings

Endeavor Careers Dream Endeavor Achieve

Endeavor Careers Dream Endeavor Achieve

Endeavor Careers Dream Endeavor Achieve

Endeavor Careers Dream Endeavor Achieve

Endeavor Careers Dream Endeavor Achieve

The social networking major, however, added, Facebook

Facebook launches Notify news app

Facebook has restricted access to over 15,000 pieces of

Facebook released an app for iPhone owners in the US

Facebook to fund 100 BSNL wi-fi hotspots

Twitter replaces button for favourite posts

Endeavor Careers Dream Endeavor Achieve

Science & Technology

satellites can also play a crucial role in universalising

Indias latest communication satellite GSAT-15 was

While India has demonstarted its capability in building