October 2012 Current Affairs Study Material

INTERNATIONAL

Imran Khan on anti-drone ‘peace march’ to tribal belt

Imran Khan on 6th October 2012 set off on a motorcade “peace march”
to the terrorists-riddled South Waziristan to protest US drone strikes in
the tribal belt.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez Re-Elected for fourth term

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has been re-elected for the third
term. Mr Chavez defeated opposition leader Henrique Capriles. Mr
Chavez garnered 54.42 per cent of the vote while his rival bagged 44
per cent votes.

Pakistani youth support Malala Yousufzai

Pakistani teenaged rights campaigner, Malala Yousafzai, who was on

14th October 2012 shot by the Taliban for publicly opposing them
against the girl education.She got the support from all over the world.

Ali Zidan elected Libya PM

Libya’s 200-member General National Congress has elected a former

congressman and human rights lawyer Ali Zidan as the country’s new
Prime Minister on 14th October 2012.

Austrian skydiver breaks sound barrier

Austrian national Felix Baumgartner, who jumped from a height of 39

km, became the first skydiver to record the highest ever freefall and also
the first human to go faster than the speed of sound.

Five New Non-Permanent Member Countries Elected to UN Security

Council

UN General Assembly elected five new non-permanent members to the

Security Council. The New Members are South Korea, Luxembourg,
Argentina, Australia and Rwanda.
Iran bans export of 50 basic foods to preserve supplies

Iran has banned the export of around 50 basic goods in order to

preserve supplies of essential items in the wake of tightening Western
sanctions.

INDIA & WORLD

India, Australia signs MoU to strengthen bilateral cooperation

India and Austrlia has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)

on 1st October 2012 for strengthening long-term relationship and
bilateral Cooperation on Road and Rail Infrastructure.The agreement
was signed between the Minister of Railways and Road Transport and
Highways, Dr. C.P.Joshi and visiting Federal Minister of Transport,
Innovation and Technology of Austrlia, Mrs. Doris Burse in New Delhi.

India, Austrlia tie up to develop ‘smart cities’

India tie up with Austrlia to develop two “smart cities” in all states with a
host of modern features like intelligent transport and carbon neutral
status in each of the states in the second phase of the Jawaharlal Nehru
National Urban Renewal mission.Initially half a million to one million
population cities will be developed as smart cities with the help of
Austrian Institute of Technology who is expertise in this field.

India gets $500 mn World Bank fund for secondary education

World Bank, the multilateral lending agency, and the government of

India 5th October signed a loan agreement worth $ 500 million for
Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) in the country.

India lags behind China, Pak in reducing hunger level

India lags behind neighbouring China, Pakistan and Sri Lanka in
reducing hunger level, says the 2012 Global Hunger Index (GHI)
released by US-based International Food Policy and Research
Institute.India is ranked 65th out of 79 countries in GHI, behind China at
2nd place, Pakistan at 57 and Sri Lanka at 37.

IOC signs MoU with Korea Gas

Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), on 17th October 2012, entered into a

memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Korea Gas Corporation
(Kogas) for jointly exploring opportunities in exploration of oil and gas
and LNG business.

Cabinet clears Rs 8,000cr missile purchase for armed forces

Proposals worth over Rs 8,000 crore for procuring around 10,000 ‘Invar’
missiles from Russia for the Army’s T-90 tanks and over 200 air-
launched versions of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles for the IAF
were cleared on 18th October 2012 by the Cabinet Committee on
Security (CCS).

India and Australia Sign Four Agreements of Cooperation

India and Australia agreed to expand cooperation in security and

Defence including fight against terrorism.They also agreed to begin
negotiations for an agreement on Civil Nuclear Energy Cooperation
which will precede actual cooperation. Both the countries also signed
four agreements in the field of space science technology and education,
cooperation in student mobility and welfare, skill development and
textiles.

Iran to complete gas pipeline work by year-end

Iran has said it was for India and Pakistan to sort out issues related to
the proposed Indo-Iran gas pipeline, even as it committed itself to
complete its part of 800 km of gas pipeline to India till Irani boundaries
by the end of this year.

India, New Zealand sign five pacts to cooperate in field of education

India and New Zealand signed five Memoranda of Understanding in the

different fields of education on 19th October 2012.

India, Switzerland to cooperate in Transport sector

India and Switzerland on 19th October 2012 discussed ways and means
for enhancing cooperation in the field of Transport sector including roads
and Railways.

India & Pakistan may introduce a common currency called “Papee”

After taking into consideration the decade long success of Euro, and due
to increasing demands of businessmen of India (and terrorists of
Pakistan), both countries’ ruling leaders (i.e. India’s UPA, and Pakistan’s
Military) are thinking about introducing a common currency for India and
Pakistan.The name with the highest votes , is a word derived by adding
“pa” from ‘Pa’kistan and “pee” from Indian Ru’pee’ i.e. “Papee”

Hyderabad is world’s 3rd best city to visit in 2013

Hyderabad has been named as one of the best cities in the world to visit
in 2013 by travel guide book Lonely Planet published on 22nd October
2012.The top 10 cities according to Lonely Planet to visit in 2013 are
San Francisco, Amsterdam, Hyderabad, Derry/Londonderry, Beijing,
Christchurch, Hobart, Montreal, Addis Ababa and Puerto Iguazu.

India, Japan focus on expanding defence cooperation

India and Japan on 22nd October 2012 discussed ways to expand their
security and defence cooperation at a meeting of their foreign and
defence secretaries in Tokyo.

‘Super 30’ ties up with Tokyo University

The ‘Super 30’ programme for training students of the backward

sections for the IIT-JEE tied up on 24th October 2012 with the University
of Tokyo, which will sponsor study of its students in Japan.This
agreement is a follow-up of the Japanese Government Program named
Global 30, of engagement with Super 30 for increasing the flow of Indian
Students to Japan.

–7th SAFF begins in Goa

The Seventh South Asia Film Festival (SAFF)-2012 held at Panaji in

Goa from.

India-US-Japan trilateral meet

The US’ ‘pivot-to-Asia’ policy, Iran, China-Japan maritime dispute and
South China Sea will be among the issues to be discussed during the
3rd round of India-US-Japan Trilateral dialogue in New Delhi on 29th
October 2012. The meet will also focus on finding areas of cooperation
between the three countries.

India to give financial assistance to Nepal’s Palpa District

India is to provide an assistance of four crore and thirty-three lakh Nepali

rupees for Palpa District in Western Nepal on 31st October 2012.

NATIONAL

FICCI urges Centre to ban bauxite exports

Trade body Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry

(FICCI) has urged the Union ministry of commerce and industry to ban
bauxite exports fearing closure of alumina refineries for shortage of the
key raw material required to produce alumina.

Supreme Court directs Centre and states to provide basic facilities

to students

The Supreme Court on 3rd October 2012 directed all schools across the
country to provide basic infrastructure facilities like drinking water and
toilets to school children within six months and failure to implement will
be viewed seriously. The order was passed on a petition filed by an
NGO Environmental and Consumer Protection Foundation.

Kejriwal forms political party, promises to change the system

Social activist Arvind Kejriwal added a new dimension to his movement

against corruption as he formally launched his political party and said it
belonged to the people of the nation.

Ministry of Rural Development Launched Nirmal Bharat Yatra

Ministry of rural development on 3 October 2012 started a campaign

named Nirmal Bharat Yatra which focuses on making the country free
from open defecation.The yatra will begin from Wardha District of
Maharashtra from 3 october 2012 and will go through Indore, Kota,
Gwalior, and Gorakhpur and end up in Bettiah district of Bihar on
November 17, covering about 2000 km of distance.

SC orders new survey to identify bonded labour

The Supreme Court on 15th October 2012 directed all states and Union
Territories to conduct fresh surveys to identify bonded labour problems
in the country and regretted that a large number of children continue to
work as domestic help even after the enactment of the Right to
Education Act.

Centre to launch Aadhaar based delivery system

The much awaited Aadhaar enabled system for direct cash transfer to
beneficiaries under social schemes such as MNREGA and pension will
be launched on 19th October 2012 by PM Manmohan Singh at Dudu,
Rajasthan.

India’s infant mortality rate drops

India’s infant mortality rate (IMR) has come down by three points from
47 to 44 deaths per 1,000 live births during 2011.

Centre, states sign MoU for broadband linking of villages

The Central government has signed a tripartite agreement with 16 states

and union territories and a special purpose vehicle Bharat Broadband
Network Ltd (BBNL) has been launched to expedite the mission of
connecting every gram panchayat with broadband network.

Reshuffling of Central Cabinet

Cabinet Ministers Portfolio

M. Veeerappa Moily Petroleum & Natural Gas
S. Jaipal Reddy Science & Technology and Earth
Science
Kamal Nath Urban Development & Parliamentary
Affairs
Vayalar Ravi Overseas Indian Affairs
Kapil Sibal Communications & Information
Technology
C.P. Joshi Road Transport & Highways
Kumar Selja Social Justice & Empowerment
Pawan Kumar Bansal Railways
Salman Khursheed External Affairs
Jairam Ramesh Rural Development
K. Rahman Khan Minority Affairs
Dinsha J. Patel Mines
Ajay Maken Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation
M.M. Pallam Raju Human Resource Development
Ashwani Kumar Law & Justice
Harish Rawat Water Resources
Chandresh Kumar Katoch Culture
Ministers of State with Portfolio
Independent Charge
Jyotiraditya Madharao Power
Scindia
K.H. Muniappa Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises
Sachin Pilot Corporate Affairs
Jitendra Singh Youth Affairs & Sports
Manish Tewari Information & Broadcasting
K. Chiranjeevi Tourism
Ministers of State Portfolio
E. Ahamed External Affairs
D. Purandeswari Commerce & Industry
Jitin Prasada Defence & Human Resource
Development
S. Jagathrakshakan New & Renewable Energy
R.P.N. Singh Home
K.C. Venugopal Civil Aviation
Rajeev Shukla Parliamentary Affairs & Planning
Shashi Tharoor Human Resource Development
Kodikunni Suresh Labour & Employment
Tariq Anwar Agriculture & Food Processing
Industries
K.J. Surya Prakash Railways
Reddy
Ranee Narah Tribal Affairs
Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury Railways
A.H. Khan Choudhury Health & Family Welfare
Sarvey Sathyanarayana Road Transport & Highways
Ninong Ering Minority Affairs
Deepa Dasmunsi Urban Development
Porika Balram Naik Social Justice & Empowerment
Kruparani Killi Communication & Inforamtion
Technology
Lalchand Kataria Defence

Resigned Cabinet Portfolio

Ministers
S.M. Krishna External Affairs
Ambika Soni Information and Broadcasting
Mukul Wasnik Tourism
Mahadev Khandela Minister of State Justice and
Empowerment

STATES

Door-to-door cancer campaign in Punjab

Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal sanctioned the “biggest

ever” door-to-door campaign for a symptoms-based early detection and
awareness about cancer.At least 50,000 personnel and volunteers
would visit 54 lakh households in 12,603 villages and 217 census towns,
for the exercise that begins in Faridkot district on October 2.

In Goa Housewives with family income less than Rs 3 lakh to get Rs

1000 to fight inflation

Housewives in Goa just got a breather from rising inflation, the Bharatiya
Janata Party (BJP)-led coalition government on 2nd October 2012
launched a scheme to provide an allowance of Rs 1,000 a month to
housewives in households whose annual incomes are less than Rs 3
lakh.

EC announces dates for assembly polls in Gujarat and Himachal

Pradesh

The Election Commission on 3rd October 2012 announced dates for

Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh Assembly elections. While Gujarat will
have elections in two phases – December 13 and 17, Himachal Pradesh
will vote on November 4. The counting for both the assembly elections
will take place on December 20.

UP government announces ban on gutka industry from April 2013

On 3rd October 2012 Uttar Pradesh government decided to impose a

ban on gutka industry in the state with effect from April 2013.

Supreme Court bans mining activities in Goa

In Goa, the Supreme Court imposed a complete ban on the mining

activities as well as transportation of iron and manganese ore on 5th
October 2012.

Arvind Kejriwal launches ‘bijli-paani satyagraha’ in Delhi

Activist Arvind Kejriwal on 6th Octomber 2012 launched a ‘bijli-paani

satyagraha’ in Delhi to protest against “inflated” power and water bills
and hike in tariffs by restoring electricity connection to the household of
a labourer which was disconnected for non-payment of bills.

EC fiat to Himachal Pradesh

On 7th October 2012 The Election Commission (EC) stopped the BJP
government in Himachal Pradesh from distributing free PDS bags
carrying photographs of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

Maharashtra tribals demand ban on alcohol

Tribal women from Maharashtra’s Chandrapur have sent 80,000

postcards to Chief Miniter Prithviraj Chavan asking to make the district
liquor-free.

UPRVUNL, NLC to set up thermal plant at Ghatampur

The UP Rajya Vidyut Utpadan Nigam Ltd (UPRVUNL) and the central
government PSU Neyveli Lignite Corporation Ltd (NLCL) signed a joint
venture agreement (JVA) to set up a 2,000 MW thermal power plant at
Ghatampur (Kanpur) on 7th October 2012 .

Union Government ruled out the decision of Cauvery River

Authority

Decision of the Cauvery River Authority was ruled out by the Prime
Minister Manmohan Singh on 8 October 2012. The Prime Minister
ordered Karnataka to release 9000 cusecs of water to Tamil Nadu every
day, till 20 October 2012.

Railways put 400 CCTVs at 10 stations to improve security system

The Delhi division of Northern Railway authorities have completed the

installation of 400 CCTVs at 10 stations with Rs. 20 crore to ensure
better security and mobility at its stations.Only in the New Delhi Railway
station they installed more than 100 CCTV cameras as part of an
integrated security system (ISS).

President’s son Abhijit Mukherjee wins Jangipur Lok Sabha by-poll

Abhijit Mukherjee, son of President Pranab Mukherjee and Congress

candidate, on 13th October 2012 won the Jangipur Lok Sabha by-
election by 2,536 votes defeating the CPI-M rival Muzaffar Hussain.

Union Power Ministry gave its Nod to Implement Islanding Scheme

in Delhi

The Union Power Minister Veerapa Moily on 17 October 2012

announced the implementation of Islanding Scheme for Delhi by January
2013 to protect it from massive disruptions caused due to grid failures in
power supply. The scheme of Delhi is different to that of the existing
ones in cities like Mumbai and Kolkata because the transmission lines of
different states is routed through Delhi.

Haryana to give Rs.11,000 to couples at mass weddings

The Haryana Government has announced on 20th October 2012 that it

will give Rs.11,000 to each newly wedding couple at a mass marriage.

Uttarakhand Named best Performing States in terms of

Environmental standards

The state of Uttarakhand on 29 October 2012 tops the Environmental

Performance Index (EPI) list of being best-performing States and Union
territories in terms of environmental well-being released by Planning
Commission.

CONFERENCES

The international biodiversity meet in Hyderabad

The XI Conference of Parties (CoP-11) on the Convention on Biological
Diversity (CBD) being hosted by India at Hyderabad starts on 1st
October 2012.

Asia Co-operation Dialogue Summit held in Kuwait

Asia Co-operation Dialogue Summit has given a call for stronger co-
operation among member nations and to work for the improvement of
living conditions.Leaders from 32 countries pledged to focus on key
areas to fulfill the aspirations of the people. These include sustainable
energy and development, economic growth, food security, trade and
commerce, health care, climate change and co-operation in financial and
education sectors.

South Korea to host next UN biodiversity meet in 2014

South Korea will host the 12th meeting of the Conference of the Parties
(COP12) to the Convention on Biological Diversity in 2014, it was
announced in Hyderabad on 19th October 2012.

Third Worldwide Cybersecurity Summit

The 3rd Worldwide Cybersecurity Summit organized by EastWest

Institute, a New York based think-and-do tank, kick-started in the New
Delhi on 30th October 2012.

AWARDS & HONOURS

President Confers Shastri awards to ISRO scientist Tessy Thomas

On 1st October 2012 President Pranab Mukherjee conferred the

prestigious Lal Bahadur Shastri National Award 2012 to ISRO scientist
Tessy Thomas at an award function in Rashtrapati Bhawan. Lal Bahadur
Shastri National Award is conferred every year for doing excellent work
in the field of Public Administration, Academics and Management.

Banaras Hindu University VC wins MV Pylee award for best

academician

Banaras Hindu University (BHU) vice chancellor and renowned

molecular biology scientist Dr Lalji Singh has won the 7th MV Pylee
award for the best academician. The MV Pylee award was constituted in
year 1996 in honour of Cochin University’s former vice chancellor MV
Pylee. The award includes Rs 2 lakh, a memento and citation for
excellence in teaching and research and contribution to academic
community. It is awarded once every three years.

S.No Department Name of the Country Field of Research

Person/
Organization
1. PHYSICS Serge Haroche France For ground-breaking
and experimental
methods that enable
measuring and
manipulation of
individual quantum
systems
David J. Wineland America
2. CHEMISTRY Robert J. America For studies of G-
Lefkowitz and Protein-coupled
receptors
Brain K. Kobilka America
3. PHYSIOLOGY Sir John B. Britan For the discovery
OR Gurdon and that mature cells can
MEDICINE be reprogrammed to
become pluripotent
Shinya Yamanaka Japan
4. ECONOMIC Alvin E. Roth and America For the theory of
SCIENCES stable allocations
and the practice of
market design
Lioyd S. Shapley America
5. LITERATURE Mo Yan China Who with
hallucinatory realism
merges folk tales,
history and the
contemporary
6. PEACE European Union Europe For over six decades
PRIZE (EU) contributed to the
advancement of
peace and
reconciliation.
 Democracy and
human rights in
Europe.

Sachin Tendulkar to be made member of Order of Australia

Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard made the announcement on 16th

October 2012 that the first Indian sportsperson Tendulkar to be
conferred with the Membership of the Order of Australia, an honour
“rarely” bestowed on non-Australians.

First-ever India Biodiversity Awards presented

The women who led the ecological restoration of Gundlaba village in

Odisha’s Puri district after the 1999 super cyclone are among the four
winners of the first India Biodiversity Awards. The awards, instituted by
the Ministry of Environment and Forests and the United Nation
Development Programme (UNDP).

Vijay Kumar honoured with ‘Services Best Sportsman’

London Olympics silver medallist shooter Vijay Kumar was named as

the ‘Services Best Sportsman’ award for 2012 at the Army Headquarters
in New Delhi.The award is given to best sportsman from out of all the
three services-Army, Air Force Navy.

Bangladesh honours fifty-two Indians

Bangladesh has honoured foreign friends who contributed to achieve the

nation’s independence from Pakistan in 1971.Of the 61 recipients of the
award in the third phase, 52 are from India and the rest are from Nepal,
the United States, the United Kingdom, Vietnam, Australia, Sweden, and
Italy.The former Indian Prime Minister, I.K. Gujral, and the former
Nepalese Prime Minister, the late Girija Prasad Koirala, received the
Bangladesh Muktijuddho Sammanana.

Singham Bravery Award Posthumously given to IAS and Security

Personnel

Narendra Kumar the IPS officer who was brutally killed by illegal mining
mafia in Madhya Pradesh and many other Security Personnel who had
laid down their life for fighting against Maoists and anti Social element
on 21 October 2012 were awarded with Singham Bravery Awards.
Bangladesh honours Babu Jagjivan Ram

Former Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister of India, late Babu
Jagjivan Ram has been awarded with the “Friends of Liberation War
Honour” by the Government of Bangladesh for his contribution in the
1971 War.

Narayan Murthy honoured with Hoover Medal

IT giant Infosys founder, N.R. Narayan Murthy honoured with Hoover

Medal for promoting science at Global Humanitarian Technology
Conference in Washington.

Gavaskar to receive BCCI’s lifetime achievement award

Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar will be conferred the Col C K

Nayudu Lifetime Achievement award at the annual BCCI awards
function on 25th October 2012.

Amitabh Bachchan gets best TV host award for Kaun Banega

Crorepati

Amitabh Bachchan has won the best television host award for the
popular game show Kaun Banega Crorepati.

Lord Indarjit Singh conferred Punjab Ratan Award

Lord Indarjit Singh, the first member of the House of Lords to wear a
turban, has been presented with the ‘Punjab Ratan’ (Jewel of Punjab)
award by the World Punjabi Organisation, in recognition of his
contribution to promoting Punjabi culture, heritage and inter-faith
services.

Delhi Metro bags JICA President Award

The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) was awarded the prestigious
Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) President’s Award 2012
on 29th October 2012.

Noted film lyricist and poet Gulzar presented with Indira Gandhi
award for National Integration

The Indira Gandhi award for National Integration for 2011 has been
given to noted film lyricist and poet Gulzar in recognition of his
contribution to national integration.
 SPORTS & GAMES

Indian judokas win 2 silver, 3 bronze in Asian Championship

Indian judokas bagged two silver and three bronze in the Asian Youth
and Junior Championships held in Chinese Taipei.In the Youth
Championships, Vijay Kumar Yadav and Besto Rani Devi won a silver
each in boys’ 60kg and girls’ 48kg categories respectively.Preety and
Mongjam Kabita Devi won a bronze each in gilrs’ 40kg and 44kg
respectively in the September 28-30 event.Khaidem Rashi Devi bagged
a bronze in 70kg category in the junior section.Indian judokas had won
one gold, four silver and two bronze in the Asian Youth and Junior
Championships in Lebanon last year.

India move up to 2nd spot in T20 rankings

India might have failed to qualify for the semi-finals of the ongoing ICC
World Twenty20, but four wins out of five matches have pushed the
India by one place to the second spot in the latest T20 International
team rankings released on 3rd October 2012.India now trail Sri Lanka
(129) by nine points and are followed by Pakistan (118) and England
(118).

India 168th in FIFA rankings

Indian football team moved a place up to be 168th in the latest FIFA

rankings, India, who last month won a hat-trick of Nehru Cup titles, have
114 points.

Red Bull driver Vettel wins Japanese Grand Prix

Sebastian Vettel ,the driver Red Bull won the Japanese Grand Prix
2012 on 7th Ocober 2012.

Australia retain women’s World Twenty20 title

The Australian Women Cricket team on 7 October 2012 defeated

England by four runs to retain the Women T-20 world cup title.

West Indies won the ICC World Twenty20 Tournament

West Indies 7th October 2012 clinched the ICC World Twenty20 crown
with a comfortable 36-run victory over Sri Lanka.
Kaltenborn becomes first female F1 team principal

India born Monisha Kalterborn is set to become Formula 1′s first woman
team principal after she takes charges from founder of Sauber chief
Peter Sauber on 12th October 2012.

Jeevan Neduncheziyan and Prerna Bhambri emerge champions

Jeevan Neduncheziyan and Prerna Bhambri emerge champions in the

Fenesta Open national tennis championship at the RK Khanna Stadium
in New Delhi on 13th October 2012.

Hat-trick for Vettel

Sebastian Vettel has claimed his third successive victory at the Korean
GP on 14h October 2012.He is already won the Singapore and Japan
GP titles.

Novak Djokovic beats Andy Murray to win Shanghai Masters

Novak Djokovic beated British Tennis Player Andy Murray, on 14

October 2012 saving five match points to seal a stunning 5- 7, 7- 6 ( 13/
11), 6- 3 victory in the Shanghai Rolex Masters final.

Bhullar wins Macau Open golf

India’s Gaganjeet Bhullar completed a commanding start-to-finish victory

at the Venetian Macau Open golf on 14th October 2012.

India’s Saina Nehwal win Denmark Open Badminton Title

Indian badminton player and Olympic bronze medallist Saina Nehwal

has won the Denmark Open Super Series Premier trophy on 21st
October 2012.

Martin Guptill wins NZ top cricket award

Opening batsman of New Zealand Cricket team Martin Guptill on 18

October 2012 claimed the top honour at the New Zealand Cricket
Awards in Auckland, winning the Sir Richard Hadlee Medal for 2011-12.
Martin Guptill was also named ODI and Twenty20 player of the year,
based on performances between 1 September 2011 and 31 August
2012.

Anaka Alankamony clinches her second WISPA title

Asian junior gold medallist Anaka Alankamony today claimed her second
title and first one abroad in the women’s professional squash tour when
she beaten the top seed Kylie Lindsay of New Zealand in the final of the
Ipswich Open in Queensland.

Lance Armstrong stripped of his 7 Tour de France titles, banned for

life

Cycling’s governing body agreed on 22nd October 2012 to strip Lance

Armstrong of his seven Tour de France titles and ban him for life,
following a report from the US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) that
accused him of leading a massive doping program on his teams.

Women’s Indian Golf Open from November 30

The creme-de-la-creme of Indian women’s golf will be up against a

strong international field, including the likes of Laura Davies and
defending champion Caroline Hedwall, when the tri-sanctioned Hero
Women’s Golf Open tees off from November 30.

Sun TV Network Acquired Hyderabad IPL Franchise

Chennai based SUN TV Network acquired the Indian Premier League

(IPL) Hyderabad franchise on 25 October 2012 for an enormous amount
of 85.05 crore Rupees per year.

Sebastian Vettel won F1 Second Indian Grand Prix

Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel won the Indian Grand Prix 2012 on 28
October 2012 at the Buddh International Circuit (BIC) for the second
time in a row extending his Formula One championship lead.This is his
fourth consecutive success in this year.

Pankaj Advani defeats Russell, clinches seventh World Billiards

Championship title

India`s Pankaj Advani won his seventh World billiards title when he
outclassed defending champion Mike Russell 1,895-1,216 in the final on
28th October 2012.

Joshna Chinappa wins Penang Open squash title

India’s top squash player Joshna Chinappa claimed the IJM Land
Penang Open, defeating top seed and local favourite Siti Munirah Jusoh
in straight games on 28th October 2012.

India retains third spot in ICC ODI ranking

India retains the third spot in the ICC ODI ranking after England and
South Africa. England has retained the top spot in the latest ODI
rankings with 121 points followed by South Africa. The latest ICC
rankings were released in Dubai on 30th October 2012.

India lifts the Asian Cricket Council Women’s Twenty-20 trophy at

Guangzhou in China

Indian women lifted the title of Asian Cricket Council Women’s Twenty-
20 Asia Cup cricket tournament by defeatingthe Pakistan by 18 runs in
the final match at Guangzhou in China.

ECONOMY

Govt approves 49% FDI in insurance & pension sectors

On 4th October 2012 The Cabinet has cleared proposals to allow more
Foreign Direct Investment or FDI in the insurance and pension sectors.In
both the sectors government approves 49% of FDI’s.

Govt approves 12th Five-Year Plan

On 4th October 2012 Government approved the 12th Five-Year Plan

(2012-17) document that aims to achieve annual average economic
growth rate of 8.2 per cent, down from 9 per cent envisaged earlier, in
view of fragile global recovery.

HDFC Bank partners Indian Oil Corporation to offer rural banking

services

HDFC Bank has partnered Indian Oil Corporation to provide banking

services in the rural areas where IOC’s petrol pump outlets Kisan Seva
Kendras will act as the business correspondents for the banks.

IMF cuts India’s Growth Forecast for 2012 to 4.9 Percent

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has slashed India’s growth
forecast to 4.9 per cent for 2012 due to low business confidence and
“sluggish structural reforms”.

India-US trade to touch $100 bn

Bilateral trade between India and the US is expected to touch USD 100
billion in the coming years on increasing economic engagement between
the countries.

Rangarajan lowers FY13 GDP growth forecast to 6%

Prime Minister’s key advisor C Rangarajan 25th October 2012 lowered

the growth projection for the current fiscal to 6 per cent from 6.7 per cent
estimated earlier.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Scientists discover bacteria that can produce 24-carat gold

Scientists have discovered a bacteria that has the ability to withstand

incredible amounts of toxicity and can be the key to creating 24-carat
gold.Researchers from the Michigan State University have found that the
metal-tolerant bacteria ‘Cupriavidus metallidurans’ can grow on massive
concentrations of gold chloride or liquid gold, a toxic chemical compound
found in nature.

India sucessfully test-fires Prithvi-II ballistic missile

On 4th October 2012 India sucessfully test-fired surface-to-surface

Prithvi-II ballistic missile from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) in
Chandipur of Balasore district off Odisha coast.

India successfully test-fires nuclear-capable Dhanush missile

A day after the launch of Prithvi-II, India successfully test-fired nuclear-

capable Dhanush ballistic missile for its full range of 350 km from a
naval ship off Odisha on 5th October 2012.

Australia launches world’s fastest radio telescope

In the remote Australian outback, scientists have launched the world’s

fastest radio telescope which will exponentially increase astronomers’
ability to survey the universe, mapping black holes and shedding new
light on the origins of galaxies.The Australian Square Kilometre Array
Pathfinder (ASKAP), located near the region of Murchison about 650
kilometres north of Perth, was officially opened 5th October 2012 by
Science Minister Chris Evans.

Indian navy successfully test-fires BrahMos supersonic cruise

missile

The Indian Navy on 7th October 2012 successfully test-fired the 290-km
range BrahMos supersonic cruise missile, capable of carrying a
conventional warhead of 300 kg, from a warship off the Goa coast.

The Barcode Turns 60 Years Old

October 7, 2012 marks the 60th anniversary of the registration of the first
bar code patent. The original patent for what we know today as the
modern barcode was granted on October 7, 1952 to Norman Joseph
Woodland and Bernard Silver, its inventors.

New planet discovered in Earth’s backyard

Astronomers have found a new planet called exoplanet in Alpha

Centauri , the closest yet outside our solar system and just an
astronomical stone’s throw away at four light years.Alpha Centauri is a
three-star system consisting of two stars similar to our sun and a faint
red star called Proxima Centauriand another one is the Alpha Centauri
B.The Exoplanet orbits Alpha Centauri B.

PERSONS IN NEWS

a) Appointments

Congress selects Raja, Suresh Kalmadi and Kanimozhi as

members of standing committee

The congress on 3 October 2012 nominated the former Union Minister,

A. Raja, Kanimozhi and Suresh Kalmadi as the members of the
Parliamentary Standing Committees on Energy, Home Affairs and
External Affairs respectively.Raja was arrested in the 2G scam case on
February 2 last year and is on bail since 15 May 2012. Suresh Kalmadi,
who was accused in the Commonwealth Games scam case, spent about
nine months in jail and was released on bail on 19 January 2012. DMK
MP Kanimozhi, also an accused in some cases related to the 2G
spectrum allocation, was nominated to the Standing Committee on
Home Affairs.

Ajit Saran Appointed as Secretary in National Commission for

Women

Senior IAS officer Ajit M Sharan was appointed as Member Secretary in

National Commission for Women (NCW). Ajit Sharan is a 1979 batch
officer of Haryana cadre.

Vivek Rae appointed new MSME secretary

On 5th October 2012 the government appointed Vivek Rae as secretary,

ministry of micro, small and medium enterprises. Rae, a 1978 batch IAS
officer of the UT cadre, is currently director general, acquisition, defence
ministry. He will take over from RK Mathur.

Anil Kumble appointed chairman of ICC Cricket Committee

Former India captain Anil Kumble was unanimously appointed chairman

of ICC`s Cricket Committee by the game`s governing body, replacing
West Indies great Clive Lloyd on 11th October 2012.

Jaspal Rana appointed junior pistol chief coach

Multiple Asian Games gold medallist, Jaspal Rana, has been appointed
chief coach for junior pistol shooters by the National Rifle Association of
India (NRAI) on 16th October 2012.

Ashok Kumar appointed India’s ambassador to Brazil

Mr. Ashok Tomar has been appointed as the next Ambassador of India
to Brazil on 31st October 2012.

b). Resigns

Michael Schumacher announces retirement from Formula One

Michael Schumacher has announced that he will retire from Formula

One at the end of the season.Schumacher’s announcement follows
news last week that he will be replaced at Mercedes by Lewis Hamilton
in 2013.
UP revenue minister resigns due involved in CMO abduction

UP revenue minister Vinod Singh was forced to resign on 12th October

2012 for his alleged involvement in the abduction of Gonda chief medical
officer (CMO) SP Singh.

External Affairs Minister S M Krishna resigned

External Affairs Minister SM Krishna has resigned from his post ahead of
on 28th October 2012 cabinet reshuffle.

Badminton Player Peter Gade Retired From International Career

Danish legend Baminton Player, Peter Gade on 30 October 2012 retired

from international badminton.

c). Deaths

Historian Eric Hobsbawm dies, aged 95

Eric Hobsbawm, one of Britain’s most eminent historians, has died at the
age of 95, on 1st October 2012 at the Royal Free Hospital in London .Mr
Hobsbawm, a historian in the Marxist tradition, wrote more than 30
books.He published his final book, “How to Change the World”, in 2011.

Freedom fighter, ex-Governor Satyanarayana is dead

Freedom fighter and former governor of Uttar Pradesh B Satyanarayana

Reddy died at a hospital in Hyderabad on 6th October 2012.

Zimbabwe cricket coach Kevin Curran passes away

Kevin Curran, the former Zimbabwean all rounder and coach, has died
in Mutare on 10th Ocober 2012.

Cambodia ex-king Sihanouk dies

Cambodia’s former king Norodom Sihanouk died on 15th October 2012

in China at Beijing.

Bandya Kakade dead

Bandya Kakade, former India football goalkeeper, passed away here on

18th October 2012 evening. Kakade and Kuppuswami Sampath (MEG,
Bangalore) were the two goalkeepers of the Indian team that won the
bronze medal at the 1970 Bangkok Asian Games. Kakade was also part
of the Indian team

Yash Chopra, the ‘King of Romance’ passes away

Yash Chopra, one of Bollywood’s most well-known filmmakers, died of

dengue fever on 21st October 2012.

Eminent litterateur Sunil Gangopadhyay passes away

Eminent litterateur and Sahitya Akademi President Sunil Gangopadhyay

died at his South Kolkata residence on 23rd October 2012 following a
massive heart attack.

d). Visitors

U.S. Treasury Secretary Geithner to visit India on Oct. 9

U.S. Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner visit India on 9th October 2012
to participate in the third annual meeting of the U.S.-India Economic and
Financial Partnership with Finance Minister P. Chidambaram.

Australia PM Julia Gillard begins India visit

Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard has begun a three-day visit to

India.The two countries are expected to announce negotiations on civil
nuclear co-operation during Ms Gillard’s visit.

Suu Kyi to visit India next month

After 40 years, Myanmar’s Opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi will
travel to India on November 13. She will deliver the prestigious
Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Lecture in New Delhi on November 14.

Steven Joyce, Minister for Tertiary Education, New Zealand visited

India

Hon. Steven Joyce, Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills and

Employment, New Zealand visited the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade
(IIFT), New Delhi on 18th October 2012.

Ex-Bangladeshi PM Khaleda Zia to meet PM Manmohan Singh

Bangladesh’s former prime minister and Bangladesh Nationalist Party

(BNP) leader Begum Khaleda Zia, who is on a week-long trip to India,
will meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singhin New Delhi on 28th October
2012.

e). Miscellaneous

Pakistan spinner Rehman hit with ban after failed drug test

Pakistan’s Abdur Rehman has been banned from cricket for 12 weeks
after testing positive for cannabis during his recent stint with Somerset.

Mukesh Ambani richest Indian

The China-based research firm Hurun releases a report on 10th October

2012 declared Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani is the
richest person in India.

Hyderabad’s last Nizam named all-time richest Indian

Osman Ali Khan, the last Nizam (or ruler) of Hyderabad is India’s all-time
richest person.According to a new inflation-adjusted list of the world’s
richest people of all time, the Nizam, who ruled Hyderabad between
1886-1967, was ranked sixth with $ 236 billion.

Mukesh Ambani tops Forbes India rich list

Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani is the richest Indian for

the fifth year in a row with a net worth of $21 billion, according to the
Forbes India rich list.

Manju Seth appointed as next Ambassador of India to Madagascar

Ms Manju Seth has been appointed as the next Ambassador of India to

Madagascar.She is presently Consul General of India in Reunion Island,
which is a French-administered territory in the Indian Ocean between
Mauritius and Madagaskar.

PLACES IN NEWS

Shadman Chowk renamed as Bhagat Singh Chowk in Lahore

Pakistan government has finally renamed Shadman Chowk as Bhagat

Singh Chowk in Lahore as a mark of respect to the martyr and an
acknowledgement of his role in the struggle against British rule.
Mercedes-Benz rolls out M-Class luxury SUV from Pune facility

Mercedes-Benz India has rolled out its first locally manufactured M-

Class luxury SUV from its facility in Chakan, Pune. The company has
also declared the start of operations of its paint shop at the same
location.India is the only country outside of the USA where the German
luxury car maker has begun production out of the new ML-Class.

44 killed in Syrian air strikes

At least 44 people were killed in air strikes on the Syrian rebel-held town
of Maaret al-Numan on 18th October 2012.

5.5 magnitude earthquake hits off Taiwan

A 5.5-magnitude earthquake struck off southern Taiwan on 25th October

2012, the island’s Seismology Center said, but there were no reports of
any damage or casualties.

Earthquake in Canada triggers tsunami in Hawaii

A powerful 7.7-magnitude earthquake rattled the west coast of Canada,

triggering tsunami warnings for Hawaii on 28th October 2012.

ABBREVIATIONS IN NEWS

Abbreviation of FICCI

Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry

Abbreviate JNNURM

Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal mission

Abbreviate NCM

National Commission for Women

Abbreviate IOC

Indian Oil Corporation

Abbreviate ASKAP
The Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder

Abbreviate ISS

Integrated Security System

Abbreviate LPN

Liquefied Natural Petroleum

Abbreviate WISPA

Women’s International Squash Players Association

BOOKS IN NEWS

Hilary Mantel wins Booker Prize for Tudor saga

British writer Hilary Mantel won the prestigious Booker literary prize for a
second time on 16th October 2012 with her blood-soaked Tudor saga.
Ms Mantel, who took the 50,000 pound ($82,000) award in 2009 for
“Wolf Hall,” is the first British author, and the first woman, to achieve a
Booker double.

“The Folded Earth and A Free Man” won the 11th Economist
Crossword Book Award

The Folded Earth written by Anuradha Roy and A Free Man by Aman
Sethi won the 11th Economist Crossword Book Award that was declared
at Mumbai.

Governor releases ‘Ek Thhi Kusum’ by former Speaker

Uttarakhand Governor Aziz Qureshi on 22nd October 2012 released “Ek

Thhi Kusum”, a short stories collection authored by former State
Assembly Speaker Prakash Pant.

COMMITTEES IN NEWS

Rangarajan panel for total decontrol of sugar industry

Rangarajan Committee has recommended deregulation of the sugar
sector, by giving freedom to mills to sell sugar in the open market.The
Millers should sell the 10%of sugar to government below the market
price,for running the ration shops ,remaining should sell in the open
market.

DAYS & DATES

UP cancels holiday on Kanshi Ram’s death anniversary

The Samajwadi Party (SP) government on 6th October 2012 cancelled

the October 9 public holiday on the death anniversary of BSP founder
Kanshi Ram, which had been announced by the Mayawati government
in May 2007.

World Food Day Celebrated worldwide on 16 October 2012

World Food Day is celebrated every year across the globe on 16

October in honour of the date of the founding of the Food and
Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in 1945.The aim of this
World Food Day is to raise awareness on global food problems and to
create a sense of solidarity in the fight against poverty, hunger and
malnutrition.

November 2012 Current Affairs Study Material

INTERNATIONAL

Barack Obama re-elected as President of US

Barack Obama re-elected as President of US with a clear victory over

Republican challenger Mitt Romney on 7th November 2012.

Hindu-American elected to US Congress for the first time

Tulsi Gabbard is the first Hindu-American elected as the US House of
Representative from Hawaii in November 2012 elections.

Nepal elected to UN ECOSOC board

Nepal elected a board member of the United Nations Economic and

Social Council (ECOSOC) for a three-year term starting in January 2013.
Nepal along with 17 other countries were elected board members of
ECOSOC 8th November 2012 by the UN General Assembly.

Israel fires into Syria

Israel was drawn into the fighting in neighboring Syria for the first time
on 11th November 2012, firing warning shots across the border after an
errant mortar shell landed near an Israeli military installation in the Golan
Heights.

China’s Communist Party selects new leadership

China elects the new President as Xi Jinping and Prime Minister as Li

Keqiang on 14 November 2012.

Japan to go to polls on 16 December 2012

Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda dissolved the Lower House of Parliament

on 16 November 2012 ,paving the way for elections in which his ruling
party will likely give way to a weak coalition government divided over
how to solve Japan’s myriad problems. Elections were set for 16
December 2012.

U.N. approves Palestinian ‘observer state’ bid

The United Nations General Assembly on 30 November 2012 endorsed

an upgraded U.N. status for the Palestinian Authority, despite intense
opposition from the United States and Israel.The vote was 138
delegates in favor of the measure including India, nine against including
America, Brazil and Canada and 41 abstentions including Britain.

INDIA & WORLD

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) lift export ban

on some milk products
Amid surplus availability of milk powder in the country, the government is
likely to decide on 1st November 2012 on lifting ban on export of milk
products, especially whole milk powder, dairy whitener and infant milk
foods.

US included as dialogue partner of Indian Ocean countries

The US was inducted as a sixth dialogue partner in the 20-nation Indian

Ocean Rim-Association for Regional Cooperation (IOR-ARC) grouping
on 3rd November 2012.The ministers of countries which are members of
IOR-ARC decided unanimously to give the US the same status that they
had earlier accorded to the United Kingdom, France, Egypt and Japan.

Agreement with World Bank for Assam road project

India has signed a 320-million dollar loan agreement with the World
Bank for road projects in Assam on 5th November 2012.

Canada to allow civil nuclear trade with India

India and Canada signed an agreement on 6th November 2012 in New

Delhi for bilateral Cooperation in civil nuclear trade. So, India imports
Uranium from canada for civil nuclear reactors.

DRDO ties up with York University, Canada

Defence Research and Development Organisation and York University,

Canada signed a memorandum of understanding for doing collaborative
defence research in the areas of advanced materials, nanotechnology,
life sciences, bio-informatics, chemical and biological defence, sensors,
and others.

Indian-origin CEO of Datawind and MIT professor among Forbes’

top 15 education innovators list

Indian-origin CEO of Datawind, the maker of India’s low-cost tablet

Aakash, Suneet Singh Tuli and Massachusettes Institute of Technology
professor Anant Agarwal named by Forbes magazine among the 15
“classroom revolutionaries” who are using innovative technologies to
reinvent education for students and teachers globally.

Mahatma Gandhi Grandson elected to Kansas State Assembly

Mahatma Gandhi grandson Shanti Gandhi elected to a State Assembly
in the United States from Kansas’s 52nd Assembly District as a
Republican Party candidate during the general elections held on 6
November 2012.

India and Afghanistan signed four agreements

India and Afghanistan signed four agreements to cooperate in areas of

social welfare, fertilizer, coal mining and youth affairs on 12th November
2012.

Dr Ami Bera is the third Indian-American elected to the US House of

Representatives

An Indian-American physician from California became only the third

person of Indian-origin to be elected to the US House of Representatives
by defeating Republican Dan Lungren with just 184 votes lead.

Japan signs pact to import rare earths from India

India and Japan on 16 November 2012 inked a strategic agreement on

”Tokyo to import rare earth minerals from India”.

Maldivian Airlines inks pact with Apollo Hospitals

Maldivian Airlines on 19 November 2012 had signed a pact with the

Chennai-headquartered Apollo Hospitals to give discounts to each
others’ clients. For example, Apollo Hospitals will give a discount on its
service charges for those who fly the airline, and the airline will give
similar discounts to the hospital’s patients on the airfare.

India adds 22 items in the list of border trade with Myanmar

India had notified 22 additional items including agricultural tools,

bicycles, coal and garments in the list of items for border trade with
Myanmar.According to a study conducted by Confederation of Indian
Industry (CII), bilateral trade between India and Myanmar is expected to
double by 2015 from $1.3 billion, on the back of free trade agreement
between New Delhi and ASEAN region.

India votes against UN resolution on death penalty ban

India was among the 39 countries that voted against a UN General

Assembly draft resolution which called for abolishing the death penalty,
saying every nation had the “sovereign right” to determine its own legal
system.

India, China joint economic strategy held at New Delhi

The Second India-China Strategic Economic Dialogue was held in New

Delhi on 26 November 2012. In this meeting China and India discussed
several topics including greater cooperation at the global level,
strengthening communication on macroeconomic policies, deepening
and expanding trade and investment and promoting bilateral cooperation
in the financial and infrastructure sectors. The bilateral trade between
these two countries enhanced from $74 billion to $100 billion.

India- Maldives joint military training exercises held at Belgaum

The fourth joint military training exercises between the Indian Army and
the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) – EKUVERIN 2012 – was
held in Belgaum from 12 to 25 November 2012.

NATIONAL

President Pranab Mukherjee released a commemorative postage

stamp on late Ramgopal Maheshwari

President Pranab Mukherjee released a commemorative postage stamp

on late Ramgopal Maheshwari on 20 November 2012.

Arvind Kejriwal launches Aam Admi Party

Arvind Kejriwal announced the name for his newly launched party as
“Aam Admi Party” on 24 November 2012 in New Delhi.

Bangalore among top polluted megacities in the world

India’s silicone valley Bangalore was rated among top polluted

megacities in the world, claims a new study, using data collected by
NASA’s high-tech satellites.Scientists at Tel Aviv University tracked
pollution trends for 189 megacities, including Mumbai, New York City
and Tokyo, by analysing eight years’ worth of data from three of NASA’s
high-tech aerosol monitoring satellites.
 STATES

50% reservation for women in Assam Panchayat Elections

The Assam State Election Commission has announced 50 per cent

reservation of seats for women in the forthcoming panchayat polls as
stated by State Election Commissioner Biren Dutta on 9th November
2012

Chain of static sensors positioned along the coast of Andhra

Pradesh

Union Minister of State for Defence Jitendra Kumar inaugurated a chain

of static sensors positioned along the coast of Andhra Pradesh at a
programme organised at the Coast Guard district headquarters
Visakhapatnam on 23 November 2012.This will improve surveillance
along coast.

Ban on plastic bags comes into force in New Delhi

The ban on manufacture, sale and use of most types of plastic bags in
the Capital came into force on on 23 November 2012.

CONFERENCES

SAARC Speakers and Parliamentarians Conference held at

Islamabad

The sixth conference of the Association of SAARC Speakers and

Parliamentarians held in Islamabad on 4th November 2012.From India,
Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar and Deputy Chairman Rajya Sabha
Professor P. J. Kurien are participated the conference.In this
conference they discussed the role of women parliamentarians for social
justice and the strengthening of democracy in South Asia.

Countries G20 finance ministers and central bankers summit held

in Mexico

The G20 countries finance ministers and central bankers summit held in
Mexico on 4th November 2012.In this summit the Finance Minister P.
Chidambaram said the India’s economy should grow by 5.5 percent to
6.0 percent in the year 2012 and return to 7 percent growth in 2013.
E-9 countries review meeting held in New Delhi

E-9 countries review meeting held in New Delhi on 9th and 10th
November 2012.The E-9 countries are India, Pakistan, Bangladesh,
China, Brazil, Egypt, Indonesia, Nigeria and Mexico .

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh went to Cambodia for South Asian

summits

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh went to Cambodian capital Phnom

Penh on 18 November 2012 to attend the ASEAN and East Asia
Summits.

Bangladesh Opted out of D-8 Summit Scheduled to be Held in

Pakistan

Bangladesh opted out of the key summit known as D-8 Summit in

Pakistan which is scheduled to be held later in November, 2012.
Bangladesh opted out because Pakistan refused to apologise for the
deeds committed during 1971 war which eventually led to Bangladesh’s
independence.

The 8th meeting of the India-UK Joint Working Group (JWG) on

counter terrorism

The 8th meeting of the India-UK Joint Working Group (JWG) on counter
terrorism was held on 20 November 2012 in New Delhi.

AWARDS & HONOURS

Aishwarya Rai was honoured with French Civilian Award

Bollywood actress Aishwarya Rai Bachan was honoured with the second
highest French civilian award “Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters”
by French government for her contribution in promoting Indo-French
cooperation in Cinema on 1st November 2012.

Tata Literature Live! First Book Award

Banker and New York based – author Ruchir Sharma was awarded the
Tata Literature Live! First Book Award for his Breakout Nations:In
Pursuit of the Next Economic Miracles at the Mumbai Lit-fest on 4
November 2012.
Durgabai Deshmukh Awards for Women’s Development Presented
by President of India

President of India Pranab Mukherjee on 5 November 2012 presented

the Durgabai Deshmukh awards for women’s development for the years
2005, 2006 and 2007 at Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi.The eighth
Award for 2005 was jointly given to two winners, Mizoram Hmeithai
(Widows) Association and People’s Forum, Bhubaneswar. The ninth
Award for the year 2006 was awarded to Sumangali Seva Ashram of
Bangalore.The tenth Award for the year 2007 was awarded to the
Snehalaya of Ahmednagar.

Germany honoured the Baba Kalyani

The chairman and managing director of Bharat Forge, Babasaheb N.

Kalyani honoured with ‘Cross of Order of Merit’ by Germany. This is the
highest honour awarded to individuals for their services to the country in
Germany.

Madhav Chavan wins education ‘Nobel prize’

Dr Madhav Chavan has won the WISE Prize, which has been likened to
a “Nobel prize for education”.The award, announced on 13
November,2012 at the WISE summit in Qatar, recognises his education
work in the slums of Mumbai.

‘Bitter Seeds’ won 18 international awards

‘Bitter Seeds’, a documentary film produced by US-based filmmaker

Micha Peled on the agrarian crisis of cotton growers and their plight was
being shown in Vidarbha region. “Every 30 minutes, a farmer in the
country kills himself in despair because he no longer provide anything
for his family. The film has won 18 international awards.

Urdu Scholar Gopi Chand Narang Awarded Moortidevi Award for

2010

The Vice President of India Hamid Ansari presented the Moortidevi

Award for 2010 to eminent Urdu scholar Gopi Chand Narang for his
outstanding work on Urdu Ghazal aur Hindustani Zehan wa Tehzeeb at
a function organized by Bhartiya Jnanpith.

Chinese movie `11 Flowers` wins award at Kolkata Film Fest

Chinese movie ‘11 Flowers’, directed by acclaimed filmmaker Wang
Xiaoshuai has won the prestigious NETPAC (Network for the Promotion
of Asian Cinema) award at the 18th Kolkata International Film festival
(KIFF), which ended on 17 November 2012.

Liberian President got the Indira Gandhi peace prize for 2012

President of the Republic of Liberia Mrs. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf got the
Indira Gandhi peace prize for 2012 for her Excellency,
Peace,Disarmament and Development.

Malala chosen for bravery award

Malala Yousafzai,who became the face of Pakistan’s struggle against

the Taliban was honoured with bravery award by the Peace and
Prosperity Foundation Chairman Prince Ali Khan, at the Cholmondeley
Room of the House of Lords on 19 November 2012.

Gavaskar conferred with CK Nayudu Lifetime Achievement award

Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar was on 21 November 2012

conferred with BCCI’s prestigious Col CK Nayudu Lifetime Achievement
award.

Indian Origin Autar Kaw is U.S. Professor of the Year

Autar Kaw, an Indian born professor of mechanical engineering at the

University of South Florida was received the award of ’ 2012 US
Professor of the Year ‘.

Indira Gandhi Peace Prize presented to former Brazilian President

Lula

Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, the former President of the Federative

Republic of Brazil, was conferred the Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace,
Disarmament and Development at a function at Rashtrapati Bhavan on
22 November 2012.

Punjabi film “Andhey Ghorey Da Daan” bags Golden Peacock

Award 2012 in 43rd IFFI Goa

“Andhey Ghorey Da Daan” a Punjabi film directed by Gurvinder Singh

and produced by National Film Development Cooperation was bagged
the Golden Peacock award of the International Film Festival of India,
IFFI. The award carries a Golden Peacock with a cash prize of 20 lakhs
prize of20 lakh rupeex.

SPORTS & GAME

Kimi Raikkonen won Abu Dhabi GP

Kimi Raikkonen won an Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on 4th November 2012.

Mahesh Bhupathi-Rohan Bopanna win Paris Masters

Mahesh Bhupathi and Rohan Bopanna clinched the Paris Masters, their
second title of the year, after scoring a hard-fought win over Aisam-ul-
haq Qureshi and Jean-Julien Rojer in Paries on 4th November 2012.

Czech Republic lifted Fed Cup

The Czech Republic got the Fed Cup title after beating Serbia in the final
on 4 November 2012.

National Anti-Doping Disciplinary panel suspendes 11 athletes for

two years

The National Anti-Doping Disciplinary Panel (NADDP) suspended all the

11 athletes for two years, who were tested positive with methyl hexane
amine (MHA) in the run-up of the last Commonwealth Games.The
suspended 11 athletes are :Two athletes, Saurabh Vij and Akash Antil;
Six wrestlers, all of them internationals, Arjuna awardee Rajeev Tomar,
Joginder Singh, Sumit Sehrawat, Rahul Maan, Gursharanpreet Kaur and
Khatri; and three swimmers, Amar Muralidharan, Jyotsana Pansare and
Richa

Pakistan won Second Asian Kabaddi Championship 2012

Pakistan won the Second Asian Kabaddi Championship 2012 against

India on 6th November 2012.

Gaganjeet Bhullar, Youngest Indian on Elite Golfers’ League

Gaganjeet Bhullar, 24, became the youngest Indian to make it to the

elite group of the world’s top-100 players in the latest rankings.

Hanoi to host 2019 Asian Games

Vietnam’s capital Hanoi will host the 2019 Asian Games.

India bags four medals in 14th Asian Youth (boys & girls)
weightlifting championships

India won four medals on the opening day of the 14th Asian Youth (boys
& girls) weightlifting championships at Yangon, Myanmar, on 8th
November 2012.Santa won a bronze in snatch with a lift of 95 kg before
securing a gold each in clean and jerk and total lift with efforts of 126 kg
and 221 kg respectively. The other medal of the day for the Indians was
won by Chandrika Tarafdar in youth girls’ 44 kg category. She won a
silver with a total lift of 132 kg.

Rahul bags 3 more golds for India in Asian Youth Weightlifting

Ragala Venkat Rahul won three gold medals to help India increase their
medals tally to seven on the second day of the 14th Asian Youth (Boys
& Girls) Weightlifting Championships at Yangon, Myanmar on 9th
November 2012.Competing in the 77kg weight category, Rahul secured
the yellow metals in snatch, clean and jerk and overall with a total lift of
280 kgs.

International news agencies boycott India-England Test series

International news agencies on 15 November 2012 decided to boycott

the high-profile Test series between India and England which began in
Ahmedabad to protest against the restrictions imposed by the BCCI on
some photo agencies covering the tour.

Saina Nehwal retains 3rd place in Badminton World Federation

women’s rankings

London Olympics bronze medallist Saina Nehwal retained her third

place in the Badminton World Federation (BWF) women’s rankings
released on 16 November,2012.

Priyanka is Asian under-10 champion

Asian under-10 girls chess champion Nuthaki Priyanka bagged the world
youth chess championship at Maribor, Slovenia on 18 November 2012.
She completed with 9.5 points of 11 rounds.

McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton won United States Grand Prix 2012

McLaren-Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton won the 2012 United States
Grand Prix race at Circuit of the Americas, Austin, Texas. It was the first
F1 race in United States since 2007.

Usain Bolt, Allyson Felix named IAAF world athletes of the year

Usain Bolt won the IAAF(International Amateur Athletic Federation)

World male Athlete of the Year award for the fourth time and United
States sprinter Allyson Felix won the women’s World Athlete of the Year
award on 24 November 2012.

Sebastian Vettel won third Formula One world title

Sebastian Vettel became the youngest triple champion in Formula One

history on 25 November 2012.He stood sixth position in Brazilian Grand
Prix with 8 points.But overall he got F1 world title for this season with
281 points. This is the third time consecutively he got the F1 title.

India to hold 3rd World cup Kabaddi in December

Punjab would host 3rd World Kabaddi Cup from 1 to 15 December

2012. 23 countries are participating in this world cup.The prize money
for this world cup is Rs.4.54crores.

ECONOMY

Rs 6,000-cr fine on Tata Steel for illegal mining

The Odisha government imposed a fine Rs 6,000 crore on Tata Steel

for its alleged involvement in “illegal and excess mining” at its captive
mines.

India signs loan agreement with World Bank for USD 70 million

India signed a 70-million US Dollar loan agreement with World Bank for
financing the Karnataka Health Systems Development as well as Reform
Project on 22 November 2012.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Indian diamond fetches 16.9 million euros at auction

A 76-carat flawless diamond from India’s famous Golconda mines broke
world record by fetching a whooping 16.9 million euros (Rs
1,18,16,98,700) at an auction in Geneva on 14 November 2012.

Scientists Created a Paper-thin material that can stop bullets

A team of mechanical engineering and materials scientists from Rice

University and MIT has created special nanomaterials that were able to
stop bullets in the lab. The type of material, called a structured polymer
composite, can actually self-assemble into alternating glassy and
rubbery layers.

Solar System’s largest planet discovered

A team of astrophysicists had discovered an enormous gaseous planet

that is 13 times more massive than Jupiter, earning the name “Super-
Jupiter “ and is the largest planet in our own solar system.

India successfully test fires supersonic interceptor missile

India successfully test-fired an indigenously developed supersonic

interceptor missile, capable of destroying a hostile ballistic missile, from
a test range off the Odisha coast on 23 November 2012.

Drug that can halt cancer spread

Scientists was developed a new drug called Aflibercept, for stop the
cancer cells from multiplying.

Pakistan tests nuclear-capable ballistic missile

Pakistan successfully test-fired a nuclear-capable ballistic missile called

Hatf-V(Ghauri) on 28 November 2012 that can hit targets up to 1,300 km
(807 miles) away.

Astronomers Discovered Giant black hole in tiny galaxy

Astronomers claim to have discovered the most massive black hole ever
known in a small galaxy about 250 million light-years from Earth, holding
a mass equivalent to 17 billion Suns.The super-massive black hole is
located inside the galaxy NGC 1277 in the constellation Perseus.It
makes up about 14 per cent of its host galaxy’s mass, compared with
the 0.1 per cent a normal black hole would represent, scientists said,
adding that it has a mass equivalent to 17 billion Suns.
 PERSONS IN NEWS

a) Appointments

Rakesh Mohan appointed as executive director on IMF board

Former RBI Deputy Governor Rakesh Mohan appointed as executive

director on the board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

VK Malhotra re-elected Archery Association President

Vijay Kumar Malhotra was on 9th November 2012 re-elected as

President of the Archery Association of India after beating Assam unit
vice-president BVP Rao in Archery Association presidents elections.

Obama appoints Indian-American Rajiv Shah to head USAID

Indian-Americans won one of their highest-ever appointments in the US

government when President Obama on 13 November 2012 nominated
Dr Rajiv Shah as administrator of the United States Agency for
International Development (USAID).

Anil Dev Singh appointed new chief of IOA election panel

Anil Dev Singh, retired Chief Justice of the Rajasthan High Court,
appointed as the new Chairman of The Indian Olympic Association (IOA)
on 19 November 2012.

Scott Flemming named India’s basketball coach

The Basketball Federation of India (BFI) had appointed Scott Flemming,

who brings along with him over 30 years of collegiate and professional
experience in the United States, as the head coach of the men’s national
team on 19 November 2012.

BBC appointed Tony Hall as new director general

Royal Opera House chief executive Tony Hall had appointed as director
general of the BBC on 22 November 2012,replacing George Entwistle
who resigned earlier this month in a burgeoning scandal over the
corporations’ reporting of sexual abuse.

Ranjit Sinha appointed new CBI Director

Senior IPS officer Ranjit Sinha was appointed the Director of the
Central Bureau of Investigation for two-year term on 22 November 2012.

Barbosa sworn in as first non-white President of Brazil’s Supreme

Court

Joaquim Barbosa was sworn-in as Brazil’s Supreme Court’s first non-

White President on 23 November 2012 at a packed ceremony in the
capital Brazilia . Barbosa, became famous in Brazil after overseeing one
of the country’s biggest corruption trials involving key members of the
former President Lula Da Silva’s government.

Alok Joshi new RAW chief

The Haryana cadre IPS officer Alok Joshi was appointed head of India’s
external intelligence gathering agency – Research and Analysis Wing
(RAW) on 27 November 2012. Alok Joshi will take charge from S.K.
Tripathi on December 30, 2012.

Luiz Felipe Scolari appointed new Brazil Football team coach

Brazilian Football Confederation have appointed Luiz Felipe Scolari as

the new coach for Brazil Football team on 29 November 2012.

Mohan re-elected as vice president of IBSF

Capt Mohan, the president of the Billiards and Snooker Federation of

India, was re-elected as the vice president of the IBSF (International
Billiard & Snooker Federation). The election took place at the Annual
General Body meeting of International Billiards and Snooker Federation,
at Sofia, Bulgaria on 29 November 2012.

b) Resigns

American CIA Director David Petraeus resigned

American Central Intelligence Agency(CIA) Director David Petraeus

resigned on 10th November 2012 due illegal affair with Broadwell that
was proved by the FBI in investigation.

BJP suspended Ram Jethmalani from party for ‘indiscipline’

The BJP on 25 Novemebr 2012 suspended a Rajya Sabha member

Ram Jethmalani from the party for ”gross indiscipline”. He recently
attacked the for for criticizing the appointment of the new CBI chief.
Ricky Ponting retired from international cricket

Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting has announced he will retire

from international cricket at the end of the third Test against South
Africa.He is the second highest run scorer in Test history behind Sachin
Tendulkar.Ponting has scored 13,366 runs at an average of 52.21 in his
career.

Yeddyyurappa quits BJP, Assembly

The former Karnataka Chief Minister B.S.Yeddyurappa quits the BJP

and resigned to the Legislative Assembly on 30 November 2012. He
started his political career when he was elected as President of the
Shikaripura Taluk erstwhile Jana Sangha in 1972. He won his first
Assembly election in 1983 as BJP candidate. He became the first BJP
chief minister in South India.

c) Deaths

Yerram Naidu senior TDP leader dies in road accident

K. Yerran Naidu, Telugu Desam Party’s senior leader and former union
minister for rural development died in a car accident in Andhra
Pradesh’s Srikakulam district on 2nd November 2012.

Cartoonist,T.Samuel passes away

Veteran cartoonist, T Samuel, a pioneer of pocket cartoons in India,

passed away on 2 November 2012. He worked for the famous
newspapers like Times of India ,Indian Express and Nav Bharat Times
etc.. He became famous as the creator of pocket cartoon “Babuji”.

BJP leader Kailashpati Mishra passes away

Veteran BJP leader and former governor of Gujarat and Rajasthan

Kailashpati Mishra died in Patna on 3rd November 2012.

Veteran freedom fighter V P Murthy Raju passes away

Freedom fighter and former Andhra Pradesh minister Ch V P Murthy

Raju passed away in West Godavari district on 12th November
2012.Raju had been MLA for six terms and served as a minister when
late P V Narasimha Rao was Chief Minister.

Ex-Minister KC Pant passes away

India’s former defence minister and Planning Commission deputy
chairman Krishna Chandra Pant died on 15 November 2012.Pant was
India’s defence minister between 1987 and 1989, when the Congress
party was in power under then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi.

Shiv Sena Chief Balasaheb Thackeray died

Shiv Sena chief Balasaheb Thackeray died in Mumbai on 17 November

2012.

Ajmal Kasab hanged, buried at Pune’s Yerwada Jail

Mohammed Ajmal Amir Kasab, the only terrorist caught alive during the
26/11 attacks on Mumbai, was hanged at Pune’s Yerwada Jail on 21
November 2012.Two secret codes are used the government with
respect to Kasab to maintain secrecy 1. Operation X:-Hanging code
named Operation X. X stood for execution 2. C-7096 :-C-7096, the
number by which Kasab was identified officially.

Nobel winner and organ transplant pioneer Joseph Murray passes

away

Dr. Joseph Murray, the surgeon who carried out the first successful
kidney transplant and later won a Nobel Prize for his work in medicine
and physiology, died on 26 November 2012 in Boston.

India’s diplomatic politician and former PM IK Gujral passes away

“Former Prime Minister Inder Kumar Gujral passed away on 30

November 2012 in Gujral. Born on 4 December, 1919 in Jhelum.IK
Gujral started as the Vice President in NDMC in the 1950s and later
became a Union Minister. Later He became the India’s Ambassador to
the USSR. Gujral, an intellectual who propounded the ‘Gujral Doctrine’
of five principles for maintaining good neighbourly relations, left the
Congress to join the Janata Dal in the late-1980s. In the 1989 elections,
Gujral was elected from Jalandhar parliamentary constituency in Punjab
and he became Minister for External Affairs, first under V P Singh (in
December 1989) and then under Deve Gowda (in June 1996). Later he
became the 12th Prime Minister of India in April 1997 for one year. “

d) Visitors

William Hague on four day official visit to India

The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs of United
Kingdom, Mr. William Hague will be on a four day official visit to India
from 7th November 2012.During his visit Mr. Hague will discuss bilateral,
regional and international issues of mutual interest with External Affairs
Minister, Mr Salman Khurshid in New Delhi.

Canadian Prime Minister visited India

Prime Minister of Canada, Stephen Harper, visited the India from

November 3rd to 9th, during his visit India and Canada signed several
agreements including Civil Nuclear Deal, Social Security Agreement, a
Memorandum of Understanding for Cooperation in Information
Technology and electronics and an agreement to boost bilateral
cooperation in Defense Science and Technology.

Hamid Karzai arrived to India on four day visit

Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai arrived to India on 9th November

2012 on a four-day visit.

Aung San Suu Kyi met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh

Myanmar’s pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi met Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh In New Delhi on 14 November,2012 during her 6 day
visit to India.She then visited Shantivan to pay tribute to Jawaharlal
Nehru.Later in the day, she will deliver the Nehru Memorial Lecture on
the occasion of the former PM’s birth anniversary.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh went to Cambodia for South Asian

summits

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh went to Cambodian capital Phnom

Penh on 18 November 2012 to attend the ASEAN and East Asia
Summits.

Barack Obama makes first US presidential visit to Burma

Barack Obama became the first American president visited the

Myanmar. He visited the Myanmar on 18 November 2012 and then went
to Cambodia to attend the ASEAN and East Asia Summits.

e) Miscellaneous

Sunita Williams embarks on record 7th space walk

Indian-American Sunita Williams along with Flight Engineer Aki Hoshide
on 1st November 2012 ventured out of the International Space Station,
adding to her record-setting space walking sojourns, to find an ammonia
leak in the vital radiator system.

China invites Abdul Kalam to teach at Peking University

China invited APJ Abdul Kalam to teach at Peking University

Irom Sharmila, the Iron Lady of Manipur completed 12 Years of Fast

Iron Lady from Manipur, Irom Sharmila on 5 November 2012 completed

12 years of her fast demanding for cancellation of the Armed Forces
Special Powers Act, 1958 (AFSPA). She blames AFPSA as the main
cause for violence in the state of Manipur and other parts of
Northeastern India.

Life Ban on Mohammad Azharuddin Lifted by Andhra Pradesh High

Court

The Andhra Pradesh High Court on 8 November 2012 lifted the life ban
from playing Cricket on Mohammad Azharuddin which was imposed by
Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in Year 2000.

Ramanujan’s genius Proved by US Mathematician

Ramanujan’s genius Proved to the world by Ken Ono of Emory

University in Atlanta on the occasion 125th Birth Anniversary of
Ramanujan.Ken Ono of Emory University proved the Ramanujan’s
formula of outputs for the roots of 1 like the square root —1.

Cancer charity drops Armstrong name

Lance Armstrong’s cancer charity removed the former cycling champion

Lance Armstrong’s name from its title. The Lance Armstrong Foundation
now officially known as the Livestrong Foundation.

Burma’s Suu Kyi Named New UN Ambassador

The United Nations announced Myanmar’s opposition leader Aung San

Suu Kyi as an ambassador to its program on HIV/AIDS. Suu Kyi
accepted the invitation to head the program during a meeting with
UNAIDS executive director Michel Sidibé.
 PLACES IN NEWS

Earthquake in Guatemala

Guatemalans hit by A powerful earthquake with a magnitude of 7.4 on

8th November 2012.

Mumbai’s Sufi shrine Haji Ali Dargah bans entry of women

The management of Mumbai’s iconic Sufi shrine Haji Ali Dargah, which
is visited by thousands of devotees every year, has restricted the entry
of women.

Strong Earthquake strikes Myanmar

A strong earthquake with magnitude of 6.8 hit the Myanmar on 11th

November 2012 .

North Island New Zealand volcano Mt Tongariro erupts

New Zealand’s Mount Tongariro volcano in the central North Island

erupted on 21 November 2012.

ABBREVIATIONS IN NEWS

AITA—-All India Tennis Association.

IOR-ARC— Indian Ocean Rim-Association for Regional Cooperation

SAARC—-South Asian Association For Regional Cooperation

USAID—-United States Agency for International Development

IAAF—–International Amateur Athletic Federation.

BOOKS IN NEWS

Vice President Releases Series of Books Granthavali

The Vice President Mohammad Hamid Ansari released a collection of
writing and works -Granthavali of late Dr Dineshnandini Dalmia in New
Delhi on 2nd November 2012.

Saina Nehwal autobiography book released by Gagan Narang

Ace shuttler Saina Nehwal , Ace shooter Gagan Narang and badminton
player Parupalli Kashyap released book autobiography of Saina Nehwal
“Playing to win-My life on and off the court ” in Hyderabad on 7
November 2012.

Yuvi – book on Yuvraj released

“The book on Indian Cricketer Yuvraj Singh named Yuvi was released in
third week of November 2012. Yuvi, the book on Yuvraj Singh is
published by Harper Sport and written by Makarand Waingankar. The
book illustrates the brilliance of cricket shown by Yuvraj Singh in his
career as a cricketer and the way he recovered from Cancer.

Chief of the Air Staff and Chairman COSC Air Chief Marshal Nak
Browne Releases Book

Chief of the Air Staff and Chairman COSC Air Chief Marshal Nak
Browne Releases Book titled “VICTORY INDIA – A Key to Quality
Military Leadership” on 20 November 2012.The book is a collection of
well written contributory articles by military experts.The book focuses on
the process of identification, selection and training of our dynamic youth
to mould them into inspiring effective quality military leaders.

Amitav Ghosh, Jeet Thayil shortlisted for literature prize

Six books including “River of Smoke” by Amitav Ghosh, “Narcopolis” by

Jeet Thayil and “The Wandering” by Pakistan-based author Jamil
Ahmad, have been shortlisted for the DSC South Asian Literature Prize
2013.The finalist will be announced at the DSC Jaipur Literature Festival
January 2013.

COMMITTEESS IN NEWS

Pope Benedict XVI appoints six non-European cardinals for Pope

selection committee
Pope Benedict XVI has appointed six priests from non-European
countries to be cardinals, at a service in the Vatican’s St Peter’s
Basilica.From India Baselios Cleemis Thottumkal, head of the Syro-
Malankara Catholic Church was selected as a one of the Cardinal for
the pope selection committee.

DAYS & DATES

UN declared November 10th as “Malala Day”

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon declared November 10

as ‘Malala Day’

Celebration of “Water Conservation Day” on 19th November 2012

National Integration Day is celebrated on 19th November to mark the

birth anniversary of late Mrs Indira Gandhi, the 1st woman Prime
Minister of India. On this occasion Union Ministry of Water Resources
has decided to celebrate “Water Conservation Day” on 19th November
2012 to create awareness regarding concern about depleting water
resources & its vision for the water underlining the Ministry’s
commitment to be an active contributor to the sustainability of this very
important natural resource.

December 2012 Current Affairs Study Material

INTERNATIONAL

Mahama Re-elected as Ghana’s President

On 10 December Ghana’s incumbent President John Dramani Mahama

of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) has won the country’s
presidential election.Mahama took 50.70 percent of the total valid votes
cast, while his closest challenger, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo of
the New Patriotic Party (NPP) obtained 47.74 percent.With his re-
election, Mahama becomes the fourth president to be elected under the
Forth Republic.He had served as Ghana’s vice president since 2009.

UN, Pakistan Launched ‘Malala Fund’

Pakistan joined forces with the United Nations on 10 December 2012 to
launch a fund aimed at boosting girls’ education throughout the
world.The fund is named for Malala Yousafzai, the 15-year-old Pakistani
girl. Pakistan’s President Asif Ali Zardari also announced a $10-million
donation for a global war chest to educate all girls by 2015 set up in the
name of Malala Yousafzai for campaigning for girls’ education.

Shinzo Abe Elected As Japan’s New PM

The former Prime Minister and the Leader of LDP Shinzo Abe elected
as a Prime Minister with a clear victory over the Prime Minister and
leader of the Democratic Party of Japan(DPJ) Yoshihiko Noda in the
Parliamentary Elections on 26 December 2012.The lawmakers in Japan
voted in favour of Abe by 328 votes. Opponent Banri Kaieda, the newly
chosen leader of DPJ received merely 57 votes.

Jacob Zuma re-elected as South Africa’s President

South Africa’s ruling African National Congress on 18 December 2012

re-elected President Jacob Zuma as the party chief with a thumping
majority. Mr.Zuma received the support of over 75 per cent of the total
voting delegates at the ANC National Conference held in Bloemfontein.
Juma was Deputy President of South Africa from 1999 to 2005

Park elected South Korean President

Park Guen-hye, the daughter of former military dictator Park Chung-hee,

beat her opponent on 19 December 2012 in the South Korean
presidential elections. Park is the country’s first woman President. She is
the former head of the ruling Conservative Saenuri Party, had secured
the necessary votes and defeated Moon Jae-in, of the Democratic
United Party.

Pak Cleared Anti-terror Bill

On 20 December Pakistan’s National Assembly passed a bill that will

give intelligence and security agencies sweeping powers to conduct
surveillance and collect data from SMS’s and emails.The National
Assembly or lower house of parliament approved the “”Fair Trial Bill
2012 “” after incorporating amendments proposed by the main
opposition PML-N and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement, which is part of
the ruling coalition led by the Pakistan People’s Party.

U.S. House Passed Defense Bill

On 20 December US (United States) House of Representatives passed
the Defence Authorization Act of 2013. The bill authorizing 633.3 billion
– dollar in defense spending for 2013, easing limits on satellite exports
and providing more Marines for embassy security.

Napolitano Dissolved Italian Parliament

On 22 December Italian President Giorgio Napolitano dissolved

Parliament following the resignation of Prime Minister Mario Monti.
Italian Government under the leadership of Mario Monti brought forward
a series of austerity reforms backed by EU and business leaders.

Morsi signed on Egypt’s New Constitution

On 25 December Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi signed into law a

new Islamist-drafted constitution. He signed a declaration enforcing the
charter late after the official announcement of the result of a referendum
approving the basic law. Two-thirds of the members of the 270-seat
council were elected earlier this year in a vote in which only 12 per cent
of registered voters participated. The remaining 90 were appointed by
Mohamed Morsi, the Islamist president.

Pakistan Recognised the Republic of Kosovo

On 26 December Pakistan Government officially recognised Kosovo as

an independent state, almost five years after it declared independence
from Serbia on 17 February 2008. Pakistan is the 98th country among
the 193 U.N-member states to recognise Kosovo .Kosovo is a small
south east European state lies between Albania, Macedonia, Serbia and
Montenegro.

INDIA & WORLD

Nitish Kumar, Hazare, Malala Among “The Top 100 Global

Thinkers” List

On 2 December According to the United States-based Foreign Policy

magazine has released its list of the “100 Top Global Thinkers” from
2012. The magazine has placed the Indians in the list include Bihar
Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who features way below at the 77th place,
Anna Hazare who has been placed at the 37th position for his anti-
corruption crusade in the country. 15-year-old Pakistani child rights
activist Malala Yousafzai at 6th position, Aung San Suu Kyi is ranked
first in list.

Bangladesh Agreed on Zero Line Fencing along Tripura Border

On 2 December Bangladesh had agreed to set up barbed wire fencing

along zero line in nine stretches on the Indo-Bangladesh border in
Tripura. According to the MHA communique, fencing along zero line was
to be allowed in 9 areas.

India & Japan Signed Currency Swap Agreement

India signed a bilateral swap arrangement (BSA) with the Bank of Japan
to swap their local currencies for an amount of $15 billion for a three
year period on 4 December 2012.The BSA will effect from 5 December
2012.

India is Among Top Five Terror-Hit Nations

The Australian think tank released The Global Terrorism Index (GTI) on
4 December 2012, according to this GTI, India, Pakistan and
Afghanistan were among the nations most impacted by terrorism in
2011. In 2011, the Middle East, India, Pakistan and Russia were the
areas most impacted by terrorism. India’s GTI rank was 4 out of the 159
countries surveyed. While Iraq stood at number1, Pakistan at number 2,
Afghanistan at number 3 and Yemen was number 5.

Bangalore Best Indian City To Live

Bangalore ranks better than New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata
amongst Indian cities in overall global quality of living index, according to
a Mercer 2012 Quality of Living Survey.Bangalore’s overall quality of
living rank went up from 141 in 2011 to 139 in 2012 and is highest
amongst other Indian cities.

India Ranked 94th Position in Corruption

Denmark, Finland and New Zealand tied for the first place in watchdog
Transparency International’s 2012 index of the least corrupt countries.
India is on 94th position in the Corruption Perceptions Index. Most
corrupted nations are Afghanistan, North Korea and Somalia in 174th
positions.

US Extends Exemptions For India to Iran Oil Sanctions

On 8 December the US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has extended
exemptions to India, China ,South Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, South
Africa, Sri Lanka, Turkey and Taiwan from Iranian Sanctions Act mainly
because of their significant reduction in oil import from Iran.The 9
countries have again qualified for an exception to sanctions outlined in
Section 1245 of the National Defence Authorisation Act (NDAA) for
Fiscal Year 2012, based on additional reductions in the volume of their
crude oil purchases from Iran.This is for the second time that countries
including India has received waiver from US under the Iranian sanctions
act.

3 Indian Projects among Strategic- Global Infrastructure Projects

List

Three Indian projects have placed in the new york’s Global

Infrastructure Leadership Forum “Top 100 Strategic Global Infrastructure
Projects “ list. GIFT city (Gujarat International Financial Tech city),
Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail project (Maharashtra) and the
Hyderabad Metro Rail (HMR) project (Andhra Pradesh).

India, Ukraine Signed on Five Agreements

India and Ukraine on 10 December 2012 signed on five agreements in

New Delhi to enhance cooperation including in areas of defence,
Nuclear, Science and Technology and also to remove barriers in trade
and commerce.

Indians ‘Largest Ethnic Minority Group in UK

On 11 December According to the 2011 Britain population census record

Indians are the largest ethnic minority group in the UK.With 1.5 percent
of the Hindu religion became a third-largest religion in the nation’s. The
Christian population in the country is also a drop in the statistics.. The
Muslim community population in the country’s fastest growing
increased by 3 percent to 4.8.

India& Pak Signed on New Visa Agreement

The new Visa Agreement between India and Pakistan on 14th

December, 2012 at New Delhi. However, the Visa-on-Arrival will come
into effect from 15th January, 2013. Shri Sushilkumar Shinde, Home
Minister of India and Mr. A. Rehman Malik, Pakistan Interior Minister
singed on the agreement.
Cell Phone Connections to exceed the World Population by 2014

The International Telecommunications Communication Union (ITU) to be

designed and released Information Society 2012 – Observe report on 11
December. According to the report number of cell phone connections
exceeding the world’s population by 2014. Now 6 billion (hundreds of
millions) cell phone connections they will reach 730 Millions by 2014
.Then the world’s population is 700 crore.Already in Russia 1.8 times cell
phone accounts more than 25 million people.

Indians now Live Longer but in Poor Health in Old Age

According to the the prestigious British medical journal, ‘The Lancet ‘

report the life expectancy (LE) at birth of an average Indian male has
gone up by 15 years between 1970 and 2010. An average Chinese
male is living 10 years longer than an Indian male, while a Chinese
woman is living 11.5 years longer than her Indian counterpart. An
average American lives nearly 13 years longer than an Indian.

World Malaria Report 2012

According to the WHO “ World Malaria Report 2012” India, the country
most affected by malaria in the South East Asian Region, is projected to
see a decrease of 50-75 per cent in malaria case incidence by 2015.In
South East Asia Region, Bhutan, Korea, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand
have registered decreases of 75 per cent or more in the incidence of
microscopically confirmed malaria incidence rates between 2000 and
2011.

Hinduism Third Largest Religion of World

According to the ‘ Pew research ‘ survey report Hinduism is the third

largest religion of the world after Christianity , Islam and 97 per cent of
all Hindus live in the world’s three Hindu-majority countries (India,
Mauritius and Nepal), and nearly nine-in-ten Christians (87 per cent) are
found in the world’s 157 Christian majority countries.In the total world
population 2.2 billion Christians (32 per cent of the world’s population),
1.6 billion Muslims (23 per cent) around the world as of 2010.

India & Russia signed Rs 22,000 crore Defence Deals

India and Russia signed defence deals worth around Rs. 22,000 crore
($4 billion) on 24 December. According to this pact Russia will sell India
71 military helicopters for $1.3 billion and technological kits to assemble
42 Sukhoi jet fighters for $1.6 billion.

NATIONAL

Sexual Assault a Gender-Neutral Offence Bill Passed by Lok Sabha

The Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill, replacing the word ‘rape’ by the
phrase ‘sexual assault’ and seeking to widen the scope of the offence
passed by Lok Sabha on 4 December. Both men and women could soon
be able to invoke the provisions of a criminal law in case of sexual
assault .The amendment bill expands the definition so that cases of
sexual assault where victims were male would fall under the same law
along with cases where victims were women.

Cabinet Approved Naval Base Phase II of Project “Seabird “

On 7 December The Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) cleared a Rs

13,500 crore major expansion plan of the strategic Karwar naval base
Phase II Alpha of the project “Seabird “in Karnataka is set to become the
country’s biggest Naval base by 2025. The Karwar naval base is India’s
third major naval base after Mumbai and Visakhapatnam on the east
coast.

Over 7 Crore Unemployed Youth in India

According to the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) report an

approximate 7 crore youth people in India are either unemployed or
under-employed. The figures were revealed by Labour and Employment
Minister Mallikarjun Kharge in Rajya Sabha.”As per results of the latest
survey conducted by NSSO during 2009-10, the number of unemployed
or under-employed persons on usual status basis in the country was 95
lakhs and about six crore respectively.

Rajya Sabha Passed SC/ST Quota Bill

A Constitution 117th amendment bill providing for quota for SCs and
STs in government job promotions was on December 17 passed by
Rajya Sabha.

Unlawful Activities Amendment Bill Passed by Rajya Sabha

On 20 December Parliament passed a bill that makes economic
offences, including circulation of high quality counterfeit currency, a
terrorist act.The Rajya Sabha passed Unlawful Activities (Prevention)
Amendment Bill, 2012 by voice vote while several parties. The bill was
already passed by Lok Sabha.

LokSabha Approved Company Bill 2011

On 18 December Lok Sabha passed the Companies Bill 2011 paving the
way for a new modern company law.The Bill is aimed at improving
corporate governance. It contains provisions to strengthen regulations
for corporate as well as auditing firms.

Banking Bill passed by Lok Sabha

The Banking Laws Amendment Bill, 2011, have been passed in the Lok
Sabha on 20 December .The amendments pave the way for the Reserve
Bank of India (RBI) to issue new bank licences, and also opens door for
more foreign investment into the sector.

Usha Mehra commission for Delhi incident victim Nirbhaya’s Case

A female physiotherapy intern student Nirbhaya beaten and gang raped

in Delhi on 16 December and died on 29 December while undergoing
emergency treatment in Singapore for brain and gastrointestinal damage
from the assault.The government has formed a committee of enquiry
under justice Usha Mehra to reconstruct the events leading to the
incident identify lapses by police and other agencies and fix
responsibility for the crime.

Microsoft Launches 14 Innovation Centres in India

Microsoft Corporation (India) Pvt. Ltd had launched 14 Microsoft

Innovation Centres (MICs) in India. It has signed agreements with
leading academic institutions across four States.As part of the global
programme, which currently has 75 MICs, Microsoft aims to launch a
100 such centres in India in the next two years.

STATES

Delhi Government Launched “Delhi Annshri Yojna”

UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi was launched a major food security
programme of Delhi Government “Delhi Annshri Yojna” on 15 December
2012.under which a monthly cash subsidy of Rs. 600 will be transferred
directly into Aadhaar-linked bank accounts of the senior-most female
members of two lakh poor families.

BJP Won in Gujarat Assembly Elections

The BJP registered its fifth consecutive victory in Gujarat on 20

December 2012.This is the third victory under Modi leadership. BJP won
the 115 seats. Congress won the 61 seats. Modi won by a landslide
from Maninagar constituency in Gujarat, beating his nearest Congress
party rival Shweta Bhatt by a margin of 86,373 votes.

Congress has won Himachal Pradesh Elections

The Congress returned to power in Himachal Pradesh after five years,

defeating the Bharatiya Janata Party in the Himachal Pradesh State
Assembly elections conduced on 4 November 2012.The Congress
secured 36 seats and the BJP 26 seats. The Congress Leader
Virbhadra Singh won from Shimla (Rural) constituency and defeated the
rival from BJP Ishwar Rohal by 19033 Votes.

Meghalaya Passed Lokayukta Bill 2012

On 14 December the Meghalaya Lokayukta Bill, 2012 was passed in the

Meghalaya Legislative Assembly and replaced the existing Lokayukta
Act, 2002 amidst opposition from legislators. The new act under the
lokayukta bill covered the chief minister, governor and all public
servants, but allowed the state government through a clause to exclude
the complaints by citing public interest.

Madhya Pradesh Government Set Up a Senior Citizen Commission

On 21 December the Madhya Pradesh Government has set up a Senior

Citizen Commission to look into problems of the elderly in the State.

Assam Government Announced Special Health Scheme

On 12 December Assam government announced that 50 riverine public

health centres would be set up in the state soon under the National
Rural Health Mission.The public health centres would be located
primarily in the districts of Barpeta, Dhubri, Goalpara and Darrang.
30% Reservation for Rural Candidates in Assam Govt. Jobs

Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi on 26 December 2012 announced

that 30 per cent state government jobs will be reserved for candidates
belonging to rural areas from 2013.

CONFERENCE

UN Climate Change Conference (COP 18)

The United Nations Climate Change Conference , which is the 18th

session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 18) and 8th session of
the Conference of the Parties (serving as the Meeting of the Parties to
the Kyoto Protocol ) ends on 8 December in Qatar, Doha. United
Nations climate talks in Doha had agreed to extend the Kyoto Protocol
through 2020. Poland will host the next round of 19th session of the
Conference of the Parties (COP) UN climate talks in 2013.

World Conference on International Telecommunications (WCIT-12)

The First ever World Conference on International Telecommunications

(WCIT) from 3 -14 December held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.The
conference reviewed the current International Telecommunication
Regulations (ITRs).The 193 member states of the ambassadors are
attended this conference.While 89 states have signed the UN
International Telecommunications agreement and another 55 countries
have refused the deal.The new agreement will come into effect in
January 2015.

ASEAN – India Commemorative Summit held in New Delhi

India is hosted the ASEAN-India Commemorative Summit held from

December 20-21 in New Delhi to mark the 20th anniversary of the
ASEAN – India dialogue partnership and the 10th anniversary of
ASEAN-India Summit-level partnership.The theme of the summit is
“ASEAN-India Partnership for Peace and Shared Prosperity”. ASEAN
and India have signed the awaited Free Trade Agreement (FTA) on
comprehensive economic cooperation as foundations for the
establishment of an ASEAN-India Trade and Investment Area.
 AWARDS & HONOURS

Katy Perry Honored With Billboard’s “Woman of the Year”

Pop Singer Katy Perry was honored with Billboard’s “Woman of the Year
2012” (The Star of the Women) award in New York.

Shah Rukh Khan Conferred With Morocco’s Medal of Honour

Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan had given the prestigious Medal
of Honour by the Prince of Morocco (Moulay Rachid) on 3 December
2012 in 12th Marrakech International Film Festival.

DRDO Scientist Gets Top Award

Brajnish Sitara scientist from Research Centre Imarat(RCI), a premier

laboratory of DRDO’s missile complex was conferred with INAE(Indian
National Academy of Engineering)Young Engineer Award for 2012 at the
academy’s annual conventionheld at Roorkee on 6 December 2012.

Rajan and Sajan Mishra Conferred ‘National Tansen Samman’

On 14 December 2012 noted vocalist duo of Rajan and Sajan Mishra will
be awarded prestigious ‘National Tansen Samman’ for year 2011-12 for
their contribution to Hindustani classical music

Stephen Hawking Won Yuri Milner Award

A Russian billionaire’s foundation was awarded two special prizes of $3

million each to British cosmologist Stephen Hawking for his work on
black holes and to seven scientists at the world’s biggest atom-smasher
for their roles in the discovery of a new subatomic particle believed to be
the long-sought Higgs boson. Yuri Milner’s Fundamental Physics Prize
Foundation announced the awards on 11 December 2012.Hawking is
honored for his discovery of Hawking radiation from black holes “and his
deep contributions to quantum gravity and quantum aspects of the early
universe.”

Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award for Ravi Shankar

Sitar maestro Pandit Ravi Shankar will be honoured with a Grammy

Lifetime Achievement Award posthumously.He becomes the first Indian
to get the prestigious award. The decision to honour Ravi Shankar, a
three-time Grammy winner, was made before his death.
Indian Journalist’s Association Honoured Sir Charles Wheeler

On 16 December Indian Journalists Association has conferred its

Lifetime Achievement Award for 2012 posthumously to former BBC
correspondent Sir Charles Wheeler.

Scientist Venkatesh Mannar honoured with Order of Canada Award

A Chennai born scientist of Indian origin, M.G Venkatesh Mannar and

President, Micronutrient Initiative, Canada was awarded with Canada’s
Highest Civilian Award – the “ Order of Canada “ on December .US, was
honoured with the award for his forty years long contribution working
towards reduction of debilitating micronutrient deficiencies among the
worlds most vulnerable.

Arunachal CM Selected for “IAEWP” Award

On 18 December Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Nabam Tuki has

been selected by the International Association of Educators for World
Peace (IAEWP) for a Lifetime Achievement Award. IAEWP is a non-
governmental organization affiliated to the United Nations and engaged
in the promotion of world peace. Besides the individual award he would
also receive the ‘Green State of the Year ‘ Award on behalf of the
Arunachal Pradesh Government for maintaining greenery in the state.

Top Honour For 7-year-old South African Indian Rhino Campaigner

A seven-year-old Indian-origin girl Afeefah Patel won a prestigious a

wildlife conservation award in South Africa for writing a letter to
President Jacob Zuma asking for his assistance in saving endangered
rhinos. Afeefah Patel, who has just finished Grade One, became the
youngest winner ever of SANParks’s Corporate Contribution to
Conservation Award in individual category at the 8th annual Kudu
Awards.

P.Chidambaram received “Best Administrator” Award

On 20 December Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram received

“”Best Administrator in India”” award instituted by K. Karunakaran
Foundation.The award was presented to him by Vice President of India,
M. Hamid Ansari.The award is being offered in the memory of renowned
Congress leader as well as the former Kerala Chief minister
K.Karunakaran. First Karunakaran Foundation Award was given to
Pranab Mukherjee.
Archaeologist C.Govindarajanar Received Presidential Award

President Pranab Mukherjee on 21 December 2012 conferred the

Presidential Awards for Classical Tamil at a function in Rashtrapati
Bhavan. Prof. C. Govindarajanar was conferred Tolkappiyar Award for
outstanding contribution in the field of Tamil studies.

Top U.S. Innovation Award For Indian-American

A renowned Indian-American inventor at IBM, Rangaswamy Srinivasan,

was nominated by U.S. President Barack Obama for the prestigious
National Medal of Technology and Innovation. He named the
phenomenon Ablative Photo Decomposition (APD). He got this award
for the discovery of APD.

Shihab Ghanem the First Arab to receive India’s Tagore Peace

Prize

On 26 December The Asiatic society will award the Tagore Peace Prize
to Emirati poet and translator Shihab Ghanem .Shihab Ghanem the first
Arab to receive India’s Tagore Peace Prize.The peace prize is named
after Rabindranath Tagore, a Bengali creative talent and India’s first
Nobel laureate.

Pratibha Ray Won 2011 Jnanpith Award

Leading Oriya novelist and academician Pratibha Ray, who has over 40
novels, travelogues and short stories to her credit, was named for the
prestigious Jnanpith Award for the year 2011 on 27 December 2012.

Astronautical Society’s Aryabhatta award for Muthunayagam &

Saraswat

The former secretary of the Department of Ocean Development, A.E.

Muthunayagam, will received the prestigious Aryabhatta award,
instituted by the Astronautical Society of India (ASI), for 2010 and V.K.
Saraswat, Scientific Adviser to the Defence Minister, will receive the
award for 2011.They have been selected for their achievements in
rocketry.

SPORTS & GAMES

Lalith Babu Top in Commonwealth Chess Championship

Grandmasters M R Lalith Babu and Sergei Tiviakov scored final round

victories to reached the top of the table with 9.5 points in the
Commonwealth Chess Championship in Chennai on 01 December
2012. Lalith was crowned the Commonwealth Champion 2012 title.

Rory McIlroy named PGA “Tour Player of the Year”

On 2 December The PGA( Professional Golfers’ Association of America)

Tour has announced Rory McIlroy as “Tour Player of the Year” after
McIlroy won four times on Tour in 2012. McIlroy, becomes the youngest
player to earn Player of the Year honors since Tiger Woods in 1998.

Anna Ushenina is World Women’s Chess Champion

Anna Ushenina of Ukraine 02 December 2012 won the women’s World

Championship crown, defeating Antoaneta Stefanova of Bulgaria in the
first set of tie-break games.

Air India Won Lal Bahadur Shastri Tournament

Air India defeated Bharat Petroleum 3-1 to emerge champion in the 23rd
Lal Bahadur Shastri hockey tournament at the Shivaji Stadium New
Delhi on 4 December 2012.

Jadeja Created History Hitting 3rd Tripleton in FC Cricket

Ravindra Jadeja became first Indian and only eighth batsman in the
First-Class (FC) cricket history of world to score three triple-centuries in
the unbeaten 320 runs against Railways in the Ranji Trophy Group A
match on 2 December 2012 in Rajkot.

International Olympic Committee Suspended India

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) suspended India’s national

Olympic committee on 4 December 2012 because of government
interference in its election process.

Australia Won 5th Consecutive Champions Trophy Hockey

On 8 December Australia won fifth Consective Champions Trophy

Hockey after defeated Netherlands in Melbourne.The bronze medal was
claimed by Pakistan after they beated India on 9 december.
Indian Wrestlers Won Nine Gold Medals in Copa Brasil Tournament

The Indian wrestling contingent finished with a haul of nine gold and four
bronze medals in the recent Copa Brasil-2012 tournament held at Rio in
December 2012.

Magnus Carlsen won the 4th London Chess Classic Tournament

On 10 December Norway’s chess ace Magnus Carlsen won the 4th

London Chess Classic Tournament in London .Carlsen defeated the
World Champion Viswanathan Anand in the final round and claim the
winner’s trophy.Kramnik is second place , Adams and Hikaru Nakamura
share the third place and Viswanathan Anand fifth place.

India Won Blind Cricket T20 World Cup

India won the first T20 world cup for the Blind .In the final on 13
December 2012 India defeated the Pakistan by 29-runs.India did well to
clinch the first ever blind cricket T20 World Cup on the home soil.

India Won the World Cup Kabaddi Tournament 2012

India won the 3rd World Cup Kabaddi Tournament for the third
consecutive time in the Men’s category and second consecutive time in
the Women’s category on15 December 2012. Indian men defeated the
Pakistan and India Women defeated the Malaysia in the finals held at
the Guru Nanak Dev Stadium in Ludhiana.

Jeev Honoured with Asia Pacific Lifetime Achievement Award

Indian golfer Jeev Milkha Singh (in pic) won the Asia Pacific Lifetime
Achievement award along with Jack Nicklaus and Colin Montgomerie on
15 December 2012.

China Claimed All Titles at Junior World TT Championship

On 16 December China claimed the all titles at Volkswagen 2012 World

Junior Table Tennis Championship after it won girls as well as boys
trophies. Girls Singles : Zhu Yuling, Girls Doubles: Gu Yuting and Zhu
Yuling, Boys Singles : Fan Zhendong, Boys Doubles : Gu Ruochen and
Lin Gaoyuan, Mixed Doubles : Zhendong and Liu Gaoyang.

Federer & Nicola named “ Swiss Athlete’s of the Year 2012

Tennis star Roger Federer was named Swiss male athlete of the year at
the 2012 Credit Suisse Sports Awards on 16 December in
Zurich.Federer received the honour for the fifth time. The female Athlete
of the year was Nicola Spirig, the Olympic triathlon champion of
Switzerland.

England Won Test Series

On 17 December The last test match between India and England of the
Tournament England Tour to India ended up as a draw and with this
India lost the four-test match cricket series against England .With this
win England succeeded in ending a 28 year long wait of winning a test
series on Indian Soil.

Syed Rahim Nabi Named “ AIFF Player of the Year 2012 “

Syed Rahim Nabi has been named the ‘AIFF (All India Football
Federation) Player of the Year, 2012′ on 20 December.

Sachin Retired From One Day Cricket

On 23 December Sachin Tendulkar announced retirement from one day

cricket. Sachin scored 18426 runs in 463 one-day matches and also
made 49 hundreds in the one-day format, including a double hundred
which is the first in this form of cricket and 96 half centuries. He became
the first cricketer to score a double century in the history of One Day
international Cricket against South Africa in February 2010.Tendulkar
scored his 100th international century on 16 March 2012 against
Bangladesh, where he scored 114 runs.

Kashyap Won First Grand Prix Title

Kashyap Parupalli defeated Thailand’s Tanongsak Saensomboonsuk in

a tight three game match to take his first Grand Prix title at the Shaheed
Dr. KL Garg, Syed Modi India Grand Prix Gold 2012.

Apurvi Chandela Won Air Rifle Gold

On 24 December Apurvi Chandela of Rajasthan won Women’s Air Rifle

Gold in the Sahara 56th National Shooting Championship.Former
champion and National record holder, Pournima clinched the bronze.

Djokovic won World Tennis Championship

On 29 December Spanish tennis player Novak Djokovic won World
Tennis Championship final after defeated Nicolas Almagro in Abu Dhabi.

Vijay Won Gold in National Shooting Championship

London Olympics silver medallist Vijay Kumar 30 december 2012

clinched the gold medal in the men’s rapid fire pistol event at the 56th
National Shooting Championship in New Delhi.

McGrath inducted into ‘Hall of Fame’

The ICC announced on 30 December 2012 that McGrath, who took

more Test wickets (563) than any other fast bowler and holds the record
for most wickets in World Cups (71), will be inducted as the 68th male
player in the International Cricket Council’s Hall of Fame.

ECONOM

The ADB cut India’s Growth Forecast to 5.4 percent

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) cut India’s growth forecast to 5.4
per cent in 2012-13 fiscal, barely two months after it had made a
projection of 5.6 per cent growth for the Asia’s third largest economy.
India’s growth forecast is revised from 5.6 per cent to 5.4 per cent in
fiscal year 2012 and from 6.7 per cent to 6.5 per cent in FY 2013.

Rich Gulf Families Own Wealth Worth USD 1.2 Trillion

According to the ‘KFH-Research’ report said one million wealthy families

in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries own investment assets
worth about USD 1.2 trillion.The report about wealth and funds
management said that the world’s population of high net worth
individuals (HNWIs) grew by a marginal 0.8 per cent year on year to 11
million in 2011.

India Economy Would Dominate the Economy of the World by 2030

US intelligence counsel was released report on 10 December 2012

declared that India would straddle international commerce and will also
dominate the economy of the whole world by 2030.

IOC Retains Top in Fortune 500 India List

Government owned Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) is ranked as the largest
company in terms of revenue, the Fortune 500 list of Indian companies
for 2012 . In this list Indian Oil Corporation got the first place with a full-
year revenue of Rs 4,202 billion, Reliance Industries Limited got the
second place with a full-year revenue of Rs 3,675 billion and Bharat
Petroleum Corporation got the third place with a full -year revenue of Rs
2,148 billion

India’s Lost $123 bn in Black Money

According to the report of ‘Illicit Financial Flows from Developing

Countries: 2001—2010,’ released by Global Financial Integrity (GFI)
India lost $123 billion in black money during 2001-2010. However India’s
loss is far less than that of China, which according to the report suffered
a loss of $ 2.74 trillion during the same period (2001 to 2010). India is
the eighth largest victim of black money loses.

India Lags Several Nations in Per Capita Income

India is lagging behind several countries in per capita income due to

different levels of development and various other factors, the central
government was informed on 19 December. India’s per capita GDP on
Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) basis was $3,403 in 2010 and is
estimated at $3,662.69 in 2011 and $3,851.31 in 2012.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Canadian Scientists Created Artificial Brain

Software engineers as well as neuroscientists at University of Waterloo,

Canada claimed that they have developed a closest model of the
functioning human brain, known as Spaun which is advanced enough for
passing the basic IQ tests. This is the virtual brain which functions on the
supercomputer and comprises of a digital eye, which can be used for
visual input. It also has the robotic arm which can be used for drawing
the response.

Voyager 1 Drifts Into Unknown Region of Space

NASA’s Voyager 1 spacecraft has discovered a new layer of the solar

system that scientists hadn’t known was there, researchers announced
on 4 December 2012. Voyager 1, in particular, has entered a new region
of the heliosphere that scientists are calling a “magnetic highway,” which
allows charged particles from inside the heliosphere to flow outward, and
particles from the galaxy outside to come in.

New Anti-HIV Gel for HIV Transmission

Researchers led by Dereuddre-Bosquet from the European Combined

Highly Active Anti-Retroviral Microbicides (CHAARM) Consortium
describe the gel’s key ingredient, which are small peptides engineered to
present a decoy to bind up the virus and prevent it from entering and
infecting the body cells. Because this is a gel it can be topically applied
and could represent a powerful preventative agent against sexual
transmission of HIV. Bosquet and colleagues engineered peptides
named ‘miniCD4s’ because they mimic the CD4 receptor used by HIV to
gain entry into immune cells of the body.

NASA to Send New Rover to Mars in 2020

NASA was announced plans to send a new robotic explorer to the the
Red Planet, Mars in 2020.

7 Planets Discovered In The Milky Way

New York Scientists have been discovered Seven planets in the Milky
Way outside our solar system that could potentially harbour life and
researchers from an ambitious project to catalogue all habitable worlds
claim.

Russia Delivered MiG-29 Fighter Jets to India

Russia on 10 December 2012 delivered the first three upgraded MiG-

29UPG fighter jets to India under a USD 900 million contract to
modernise the ageing fleet of MiG-29 aircraft with the IAF.

Tata Group Developed new “Artillery Gun”

On 11 December In a step towards developing the indigenous private

sector defence industry, the Tata group has created a new Artillery Gun.
The 155mm 52 calibre gun developed by the Tata group is likely to have
a strike range of 52 kms, which would probably be the longest in the
Indian inventory.

India Successfully Test Fired Agni-I Ballistic Missile

India on 12 December 2012 successfully test-fired its indigenously
developed nuclear capable Agni-I ballistic missile with a strike range of
700 km from a test range off Odisha coast. Weighing 12 tonnes, the 15-
metre-long Agni-I, which is capable of carrying payloads up to 1000 kg
and destroy the targets at a distance of 700 km.

North Korea Launched Unha-3 Rocket

On 12 December North Korea launched a long-range rocket Unha-3

despite international opposition and growing tensions in the region
successfully delivering a scientific satellite Kwangmyongsong-3 into
orbit.Unha-3 is the second version of satellite Kwangmyongsong-3 which
is successfully lifted off from the Sohae Space Center by carrier
rocket.The US and its allies view the launch as a disguised test of
ballistic missile technology.

NASA’s Twin Probes Crashed Successfully onto Lunar Mountain

Ebb and Flow, the gravity mapping satellites of NASA ended the
successful mission to Moon by crashing on the rim of crater. Lunar
surface on which Ebb and Flow crashed will be given a name after Sally
Ride, the first woman of America in the space who died earlier in 2012.

Rocket with 3 Astronauts Takes off for ISS

A Soyuz spacecraft carrying three astronauts took off atop a towering

Russian rocket on 19 December 2012, headed for the International
Space Station.It launched from Russia’s manned-space facility in the
frigid steppes of Kazakhstan. American Tom Marshburn, Russian
Roman Romanenko and Canadian Chris Hadfield are travelled in
capsule.

Prithvi-II Flight- Tested Successfully

The Strategic Forces Command (SFC) successfully flight-tested nuclear

weapons-capable Prithvi-II missile from Chandipur, off the Odisha coast
on 20 December 2012. The surface-to-surface ballistic missile, was
fired from a road mobile launcher and tested for its full range of 350
km.The single-stage, liquid propelled missile can carry a payload of 500
kg.

Astra Missile Successfully Test-fired

India on December 2012 test launched its indigenously developed
beyond visual range (BVR) air-to-air interceptor missile Astra at the
interim test range(ITR) at Chandipur in Odisha.Astra which has the
capability to intercept and destroy enemy aircraft at a supersonic speed
can be fitted into any fighter aircraft. Considered as one of the best of its
kind in the world, the 3.8 metre long missile which weighs about 160 kg
can carry explosive loaded conventional warheads up to 15 kg.

Scientists Discovered Mini Nile River on Saturn’s Moon Titan

Nasa scientists had spotted the longest extraterrestrial river system ever
– on Saturn’s moon Titan – and it appears to be a miniature version of
Earth’s Nile river.

Higgs Boson ‘ Tops Journal Science’s 2012 List

The discovery of the Higgs Boson, an invisible particle that explains the
mystery of mass, leads a list of the top 10 scientific advances of 2012
released by the US journal Science on 22 December .

America Launched Reusable Rockets

US California based SpaceX’s industry successfully launched

‘Grasshopper’ reusable rockets.The rocket took a giant leap for
commercial space flight and when it rose 131 feet and landed safely
back on Earth. Grasshopper rocket rose to a height of 131 feet around
ten storeys and hovered before landing safely on its launch pad using
closed loop thrust vector and throttle control.

Hot Spots For World’s more Powerful Earthquakes Revealed

The locations of where the world’s largest earthquakes are most likely to
take place had pinpointed with greater accuracy than ever before, by
researchers from the University of Sydney.The coasts of Southern Chile
and Peru, Indonesia’s Sumatra Island, and several regions along the
eastern Eurasian coastline, are some of the regions prone to great
earthquakes.

PERSONS IN NEWS

a) APPOINTMENTS
Visually-challenged Indian-American in key US post

On 1 December Obama administration was appointed a visually-

challenged Indian-American Sachin Dev Pavithran as a Architectural
and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board member.

Ajit Pawar sworn-in as Maharashtra Deputy CM

Ajith Pawar sworn-in as Maharashtra deputy chief minister on 7

December. After getting the clean chit from the government on
corruption in irrigation projects.

Chautala Elected as IOA President

Abhay Singh Chautala was on December 2012 unanimously elected

president of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) while Lalit Bhanot
became the new secretary general.

Parthasarathy Shome Appointed Adviser to Finance Minister

The government of India appointed tax expert Parthasarthi Shome as

adviser to Finance Minister P Chidambaram with minister of state rank,
sending a strong signal that tax reforms may top its economic agenda in
the remainder of the UPA government’s second term.

Malala’s Father Ziauddin Yousufzai Appointed UN Education

Adviser

Ziauddin Yousufzai, the father of 15-year-old Pakistani schoolgirl Malala

Yousufzai, who was shot by the Taliban for advocating girls’ right to
education, has been appointed as Special UN Adviser on Global
Education on 10 December.

Vijay Kumar appointed Senior Security Adviser in Home Ministry

The Union government had appointed the former Director-General of the

Central Reserve Police Force, K. Vijay Kumar, as Senior Security
Adviser in the Home Ministry where he will advise on security and
development in the Naxal-affected States.

Vinod Rai Re-elected as Chair of UN Auditors Panel

Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India Vinod Rai was re-
elected Chair of the (UN) auditors Panel for the year 2013, while the
CAG of the United Kingdom, Amyas Morse, was re-elected the vice-
chair of the Panel.

Naina Lal Kidwai Becomes First Woman President of FICCI

Country Head of HSBC India, Naina Lal Kidwai, took over as President
of FICCI on 15 December 2012. She become the first woman to head
the leading industry body.

Rita Singh Elected Federation of Indian Associations President

Rita Singh, an Indian American businesswoman from Bihar was elected

the first woman president of Chicago-based Federation of Indian
Associations (FIA).

Subhash Joshi Appointed As New BSF Chief

Subhash Joshi was appointed as the new chief of Border Security Force
(BSF) on 18 December 2012. Chadha, Special Secretary was
appointed as Director General of ITBP(Indo-Tibetan Border Police).

Obama Nominates John Kerry to be Secretary of State

The senior senator John Kerry was nominated as America’s Foreign

Minister by President Barack Obama on 21 December 2012.The John
Kerry, who is the senior Senator from Massachusetts, now he became
the chairman of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Smita Singh Appointed as member of Global Development Council

On 22 December The Obama administration has appointed Indian-

American Smita Singh as member of the president’s Global
Development Council.

Virbhadra Singh Sworn in as Himachal Pradesh’s Chief Minister

On 25 December Former Union Minister Virbhadra Singh was sworn-in

as Himachal Pradesh’s chief minister for a record sixth term in Shimla.
He was Chief Minister five times between 1983 and 1985; 1985 and
1990; 1993 and 1998 and 2003 and 2007.

Narendra Modi Sworn in Gujarat CM for 4th time

Narendra Modi sworn in as Gujarat chief minister for the fourth
consecutive time on 26 December 2012. He was sworn in along with
seven ministers of Cabinet rank and nine ministers of state.

Cyrus Mistry took charge as Tata Group Chairman

Cyrus Mistry, the new chairman of the Tata Group, took charge of his
office on 31 December.Mistry is the sixth chairman of the Tata empire.

b) RESIGNS

Mali Prime Minister Cheick Modibo Diarra Resigned

On 11 December Malian Prime Minister Cheick Modibo Diarra resigned

and dissolved his government after he was arrested by the army in the
West African nation.He was acting Prime Minister of Mali from April 2012

Singapore Parliament Speaker Resigned

Singapore’s parliament speaker Michael Palmer announced his

resignation on 12 December 2012 over an extramarital affair with a staff
member of the People’s Association, a statutory body leading efforts to
reach out to members of the public.

Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Resigned

Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman formally submitted his

resignation on 16 December 2012 due to a pending indictment against
him for fraud and breach of trust.

Japan Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda Resigned

On 16 December Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda resigned

from his post to take responsibility for his Democratic Party of Japan
(DPJ) defeat in Lower House Election .He was formally appointed by the
Emperor on 2 September 2011.

c) DEATHS
Geophysicist Devendra Lal Died

Devendra Lal, geophysicist and visiting professor at the Scripps

Institution of Oceanography (SIO) of the university of california, has died
on 1 December in San Diego.He was conferred with Padma Shri in
1971. Devendra Lal also won NASA Group Achievement Award.

World’s Oldest Woman and Tallest Woman Both Died

Besse Cooper, the woman listed as the world’s oldest person was died
on 4 December 2012 in Georgia at the age of 116. Meanwhile, a
Chinese woman, Yao Defen, was certified as the tallest in the world was
also died. Mrs Cooper was declared the world’s oldest person in January
2011.Chinese woman Yao Defen was listed as the world’s tallest woman
by Guinness World Records in 2010.

Jazz Pianist & Composer Dave Brubeck Died

On 5 December Legendary Jazz composer and pianist Dave Brubeck

died in Norwalk. He had also won various awards during his career
which spanned over six decades.The Library of Congress designated
him as the Living Legend.

British Astronomer Sir Patrick Moore Died

British astronomer and broadcaster Sir Patrick Moore on 9 December

2012 in Selsey, West Sussex.Sir Patrick presented the BBC programme
The Sky At Night for over 50 years, making him the longest-running host
of the same television show ever.

Ex-Bangladesh President Ahmed Died

Former Bangladeshi President and Bangladesh Nationalist Party(BNP)

leader Iajuddin Ahmed passed away on 10 December 2012. Iajuddin
Ahmed was the 13th president of Bangladeshserving from Sept. 6, 2002
until Feb. 12, 2009.

Bharat Ratna Pandit Ravi Shankar Died

Bharat Ratna Pandit Ravi Shankar, whose mastery over the sitar helped
rejuvenate the classical instrumental tradition in India and popularise
Indian music in the West through concerts and collaborations with well
known artists, died in San Diego, U.S. on 11 December 2012.
Former Ranji Cricketer Nimbalkar Died

Former Ranji cricketer B B Nimbalkar was passes away on 11

December 2012. BB Nimbalkar, who made an unbeaten 443 runs for
Maharashtra against Kathiawar in a Ranji Trophy match in 1948-49. Yet
this is the India’s highest scorer in first-class cricket.

First CM of Uttarakhand Nityanand Swami Passed Away

The first Chief Minister of Uttarakhand Nityanand Swami died at Dehra

Dun on 12 December 2012.He worked as a first Chief Minister of
Uttarakhand after dividing it from Uttar Pradesh in 2000.

Barcode Co-inventor Woodland Died

Norman Joseph Woodland, who co-created the barcode, was died on 9

December 2012 in New Jersey at the age of 91. Woodland was the co-
inventor of bar code. He as well as his partner Bernard Silver (who died
in 1963) patented this idea of bar code back in 1952.

Guinness World’s Oldest Person Dina Manfredini Died

Dina Manfredini (115 Years) the world’s oldest person and a resident of
Iowa, has died on 17 December in Johnston .Guinness World Records
identified Manfredini as the world’s oldest person on December 5, a day
after the death of 116-year-old Besse Cooper of Georgia.

Former India Volleyball Captain Tilakam Gopal Died

Tilakam Gopal, former India captain died on 18 December 2012.

Mr.Gopal’s achievements was being member of the silver medal winning
Indian squad in the 1962 Jakarta Asian Games and even led India in the
five-Test series against the visiting Russians in 1966 which later on
helped him to continue be captain in the Bangkok ASIAD in 1966 where
India stood fourth.

Hockey Legend Leslie Claudius Died

Legendary hockey player and one of India’s greatest Olympians Leslie

Claudius, passed away in Kolkata on 20 December 2012. India won the
silver medal in the Asian Games in 1978 in Bangkok, when he was the
team manager.He got the Padma Shree award in 1971.

Former England Cricket Team Captain Tony Greig Died

Tony Greig, the South Africa-born cricketer who became England cricket
team captain and later continued to make his mark on the game as a
revered commentator in Australia, died on 29 December 2012.He played
58 tests for England and scored 3,599 runs at an average of 40.43 and
took 141 wickets at 32.20.

d) VISITORS

Palestinian Hamas leader Meshaal Visited Gaza

The political leader of Hamas, Khaled Meshaal has visited Gaza on 6

December .He attended a commemoration of the 25th anniversary of
the founding of Hamas and a victory celebration .He visited southern
Gaza strip through Egypt’s Rafah border crossing over for the first time
in 45 years.

Ukrainian President Yanukovych Visited India

Viktor Yanukovych the President of Ukrainian visited India from 9th to

12th December. During this visit he signed 5 agreements .He met
Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan and the both nations discussed ways to
improve bilateral relations.

Pak Minister Rehman Malik Visited India

Pakistan’s Interior Minister Rehman Malik visited India from 14th to 16th
December .During the visit he met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and
both nations signed on new visa agreement.

Russian President Putin Visited India

Russian President Vladimir Putin visited India on 24 December .During

the visit he met Manmohan Singh in New Delhi and signed a series of
pacts on defense cooperation and reached consensus to develop
economic and trade relations.Putin last visited India as prime minister in
2010.

e) MISCELLANEOUS

China Launched First High Speed Train in Extremely Cold Areas

The world’s first high-speed train in areas with extremely low

temperature started operation in China 01 December 2012.This train
move with a speed of 350 Kmph in the areas of minus 40 degrees
temperature. This is the fastest train world in this areas.

Forbes 2012 Most Powerful Persons List

On 6 December 2012 Forbes Magazine released the most powerful

persons list in the world. In that list AICC President Sonia Gandhi got the
12th place and Prime Minister of India Man Mohan Singh got the 20th
place. As usually this year also American President Barack Obama got
1st place. German chancellor Angela Merkel got the 2nd place. The list
also includes Russian President Vladimir Putin at number three,
Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates (4), Richest Person in India Mukesh
Ambani (37).

Mumbai Among World’s ‘Dirtiest’ Cities

India’s commercial capital, Mumbai, was named among the world’s

‘dirtiest’ cities, ranking last in the “cleanest streets” category, a global
survey of 40 key tourist cities has found. According to TripAdvisor’s
Cities Survey, Tokyo grabbed the first place while Mumbai ranked last in
the list of “cleanest streets”.

Jiroemon Kimura named ‘ World’s Oldest Person

On 18 December Jiroemon Kimura (115 years) has been named the

world’s oldest person after the death of his predecessor, an American
woman named Dina Manfredini who died on 17 December after
receiving the title of oldest person of the world.Jiroemon Kimura was
born on 19 April 1897 and is just 15 days younger than the deceased
Dina Manfredini.

Miss Universe 2012 Olivia Culpo (USA)

Miss USA Olivia Culpo is crowned Miss Universe 2012 on 19 December

2012, on the Las Vegas. Miss Philippines, Janine Tugonon, came in
second, while Miss Venezuela, Irene Sofia Esser Quintero, placed third.

Obama is Time’s ‘Person of the Year’

President Barack Obama had been named Time magazine’s “Person of

the Year” for 2012 on 19 December 2012. Obama also received the
honour in 2008.

8 Indians Among World’s Best Performed CEOs

Eight Indian CEOs have made it to the list of 100 best performing global
chief executives, compiled by Harvard Business Review (HBR).
Deveshwar was first among the Indian CEOs featured in this list, and
cornered the seventh place overall.Former chairman and MD, ONGC
Subir Raha (Rank 13).Chairman and CEO, Reliance Industries, Mukesh
Ambani (Rank 28).Chairman and Managing Director, Larsen & Toubro,
AM Naik (Rank 32). Former CMD, Bharat Heavy Electricals, AK Puri
(Rank 38). Chairman, Bharti Airtel, Sunil Bharti Mittal (Rank 65). CEO,
Jindal Steel & Power, Naveen Jindal (Rank 87). Former Chairman,
SAIL,VS Jain (Rank 89). Former Apple CEO, Steve Jobs (Rank 1). CEO,
Amazon.com CEO, Jeff Bezos (Rank 2).

China Launched World’s Longest High-Speed Rail

China launched service on the world’s longest high-speed railway on 26

December 2012 with trains scheduled to run 2,298 kilometres between
Beijing and Guangzhou in about eight hours.Travelling at an average
speed of about 300 km per hour, the service would cut the journey time
from more than 20 hours by conventional trains.

PLACES IN NEWS

Typhoon Bopha Killed Hundreds in Philippines

Bopha, the strongest typhoon hit the Philippines on 5 December 2012,

was left at least 325 died. The typhoon with central winds of 115 kph and
gusts of up to 145 kph was moved to west-northwest of the central
Philippines on 6 December 2012.

Powerful Earthquake in Japan

The powerful earthquake had occurred in Japan on 7 December

2012.The magnitude of this earthquake was recorded as 7.3. This
earthquake had occurred in 240 km beyond the Miyagi coast in the
Pacific Oceanin a depth of 10m.

ABBREVIATIONS

UNFCCC - United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change

WCCB – Wildlife Crime Control Bureau

TRAI – Telecom Regulatory Authority of India

SCI – Shipping Corporation of India

NSC – National Security Council

OIL – Oil India Limited

GAAR – General Anti Avoidance Rules

NCHRH – National Council for Human Resources in Health

IOA – Indian Olympic Association

GCC – Gulf Cooperation Council

NDAA – National Defence Authorisation Act

INAE – Indian National Academy of Engineering

ITSMA – Information Technology Services Marketing Association

GTI – Global Terrorism Index

BOOKS IN NEWS

“The Peak” Book Released on Sachin Tendulkar

On 2 December Indian Cricketer Yuvraj Singh was launched Sachin

Tendulkar’s new book named ‘The Peak’ which is a unique
photographed story on Tendulkar by photo-journalist Suman
Chattopadhyay. The book captures some rare and memorable
moments of Tendulkar’s life through Chattopadhyay’s lens and the
stories behind them in the master’s own words

“Pankaj, Bengal’s Forgotten Hero” Book Released

On 3 December Senior batsman Sachin Tendulkar and former India

captain Sourav Ganguly released a book on former India opener Late
Pankaj Roy named ‘Pankaj, Bengal‘s Forgotten Hero‘ has been written
by Bengali sports journalist Gautam Bhattacharya. Pankaj Roy had
played 43 Tests for India in a span of 10 years scoring 2442 runs with
five centuries.

“My Tryst with Justice” Book Released

On 12 December President Pranab Mukherjee released a book “My

Tryst with Justice” which was written by Former Chief Justice
P.N.Bhagwati .The book would be a prized possession for every Indian
who wants to make a difference to the world and who aspires for a world
more just, he added.

’M.S. Subbulakshmi – Queen of Carnatic Music’ Book Launched

The life story of carnatic music legend M.S. Subbulakshmi, the first
musician to be conferred the Bharat Ratna, is now detailed in a graphic
illustrated book launched on December. The story of the nightingale of
carnatic music, fondly known as MS. It is being told through Amar Chitra
Katha’s new title “M S Subbulakshmi – Queen of Carnatic Music’’

COMMITTEES

Usha Thorat Committee for NBFCs

India’s majority of Non-Banking Finance companies (NBFCs) may be

freed from the regulatory clutches provided Reserve Bank of India (RBI)
implements one of the recommendations made by Usha Thorat
Committee. The committee had submitted its recommendations to RBI.
Currently, those recommendations are under RBI’s consideration.

Chandrashekhar Committee to Frame Rules for Foreign Investors

On 13 December The market regulator Sebi has appointed a committee

under ex-Cabinet secretary K M Chandrashekhar to frame a single set of
guidelines for all types of foreign investors.The committee will suggest
ways to simplify the investment process for all overseas entities like
foreign institutional investors, foreign venture capital investors (FVCIs),
qualified financial, institutional investors (QFIs)
 IMPORTANT DAYS & DATES

Feb 4 – World Cancer Day

Feb 20 – World Day of Social Justice

Feb 21 – International Mother Tongue Day

Feb 22 – World Scout Day

Feb 22 – World Thinking Day

Feb 23 – World Peaces and Understanding Day

Feb 24 – Central Excise Tax Day

Feb 28 – National Science Day

January 2013 Current Affairs Study Material

Palestinian Authority to be Named ‘State of Palestine’

On 7 January Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has

signed a decree changing the name of the Palestinian Authority to the
“”State of Palestine,”" according to the organization’s official news
agency.

Pakistani Supreme Court Orders Arrest of Prime Minister

On 15 January 2013 Pakistan’s Supreme Court ordered the arrest of the

prime minister in connection with a corruption case linked to power
projects. The Supreme Court gave authorities 24 hours to arrest Prime
Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf and 16 others.This is the first in the history
of Pakistan to arrest a Prime Minister. The orders of the Court came
following the allegations in connection with a corruption case linked to
power projects, done during his office of the Water and Power Minister.

Obama Signed 23 Executive Orders on Gun Safety

On 16 January President Barack Obama announced 23 executive

actions on gun control laws, making them stricter,which would come into
effect immediately after his signatures. One of these measures include
requiring the target shooters to keep their guns locked and also to ban
military-style assault weapons, high capacity magazine as well as to
make the background check mandatory.Obama announced that this was
his attempt to keep children safe, keeping in view the massacre of
Newtown where 20 first grade children along with six adults were killed.

140 Nations Agreed On Global Mercury Limits

On 19 January , More than 140 nations have agreed on the first legally
binding treaty to curb mercury pollution.Delegates at UN discussed in
Geneva approved measures to control the use of the highly toxic metal,
which is widely used in chemical production and small-scale mining, in
order to limit mercury emissions.The governments agreed to ban the
production, export and import of a range of products containing mercury
by 2020.The treaty has been discussed for four years, but it is only now
that the negotiators agreed over the final version of the document. The
treaty, known as the Minamata Convention on Mercury, provides
controls and reductions across a range of products and processes
where mercury is used, released and emitted.

Milos Zeman Elected as Czech Republic new President

On 25 January A leftist candidate Milos Zeman won the Czech

Republic’s first presidential election decided by direct vote.Milos Zeman,
a former prime minister and head of the Citizens’ Rights Party, won with
54.8% of the vote.He defeated Karel Schwarzenberg, an aristocratic
foreign minister with the TOP09 party, who garnered 45.2%.Zeman
replaces Vaclav Klaus, who must step down after serving the maximum
of two terms.

INDIA & WORLD

India – Pakistan Exchanged Nuclear Unit’s Lists

On 1 January India and Pakistan exchanged their nuclear units’ lists , as

it is customary since 20 years. The list which contains the names of
nuclear units of two countries, are exchanged between India and
Pakistan as a custom and part of an agreement which prevents them
from aiming the nuclear installations of each others’ nations.

Thousands of illegal Indian Migrants in UK

According to a 2012 UK Home Office report, India has been named
along with Pakistan, China, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Bangladesh,
Afghanistan, Vietnam, Brazil and Iran as the main sources of illegal
immigration to Britain.What the report does not mention is how many of
the 863,000 illegal migrants that it says are living in the UK are students.
This is a contentious area because critics of the coalition government
claim it is counting students among overall immigrants.

World Economic Forum’s Global Risks Report

According to the World Economic Forum (WEF) report , India ranks

lowest among the world’s major economies for its preparedness to
tackle global environmental risks and second-lowest for economic
risks.Switzerland is best placed among the world’s 10 major economies
for adapting to or recovering from global economic and environmental
risks.While India is ranked 9th in terms of its ability to tackle global
economic risks, it comes last at 10th position for environmental
risks.However, India fared relatively better at 6th position in terms of the
government’s risk management effectiveness.The US and China were
ranked fourth and fifth respectively.

Indians Top the List of Working in Dream Jobs

According to survey conducted by networking website LinkedIn,Indians

have emerged at the top of the list of people working in their dream
job.The dream job league table:1. India – 44 percent 2. Indonesia – 42
percent 3. United Arab Emirates – 35.7 percent 4. Germany – 33
percent 5. Brazil – 32 percent 6. Austria – 31 percent 7. Switzerland – 30
percent 8. USA – 29 percent 9. France, Canada, Sweden, South Africa –
28 percent 13. Singapore, Hong Kong – 27 percent 15. Australia – 26
percent 16. New Zealand – 25 percent 17. UK – 21 percent

India – Vietnam Signed on Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises

On 15 January India and Vietnam signed an MoU aimed at building

capacity for developing institutional framework and identifying thrust
areas and opportunities for micro, small and medium enterprises in this
country.The MoU was signed here between the Ministry of Planning and
Investments of Vietnam and Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium
Enterprises (MSMEs) of India .

India and Sri Lanka signed Anti-terror, Tax evasion Agreements

On 22nd January India and Sri Lanka signed two separate agreements
on combating international terrorism and avoidance of double taxation,
eyeing elevation of “robust” bilateral ties to building of a special
economic partnership.The two key accords were signed after the 8th
India-Sri Lanka Joint Commission meeting held at New Delhi , both
countries discussed enhanced cooperation in a range of areas including
civil nuclear energy.At the meeting, the Indian side was led by External
Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid while the Lankans were led by his
counterpart G.L. Peiris.During the meet, both the parties also decided
setting up of the Special Economic Zone at Trincomali and a textile and
pharmaceutical cluster in Sri Lanka.

International Tea Producers Forum formed

On 22 January India, along with five other tea producing countries, has
formed the International Tea Producers Forum (ITPF) at Colombo.Union
Minister of State for Commerce and Industry D Purandesari signed the
joint communique on behalf of India along with representatives of Kenya,
Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Rwanda and Malawi in Colombo.The ITPF will
initially be an independent body but in future may get affiliated to Food &
Agriculture Organisation of United Nations.

India , Bangladesh Signed Extradition and Visa Agreements

On 28 January Bangladesh and India signed an extradition treaty and

struck a deal to relax business visa restrictions between the
neighbouring countries. However, refusal provisions were incorporated
into the extradition treaty.Home minister Sushilkumar Shinde signed the
agreement with his Bangladeshi counterpart Mohiuddin Khan Alamgir at
the end of their bilateral talks.

India Dropped to 140th Rank in Press Freedom

According to the report Reporters Without Borders India has dropped

nine places to the 140th rank in the list of 179 countries in the latest
World Press Freedom Index.China (173rd, +1) shows no sign of
improving. Its prisons still hold many journalists and netizens, while
increasingly unpopular Internet censorship continues to be a major
obstacle to access information.As last year, the list is topped by three
European countries – Finland, Netherlands and Norway.Turkmenistan,
North Korea and Eritrea continue to be at the bottom of the list as has
been in the last three years.
 NATIONAL

Govt Launched Direct Cash Transfer Scheme in 20 Districts

On 1 January 2013 The government launched its scaled down Cash

Transfer Benefit (CBT) in 20 districts,but food, fertiliser and fuel
subsidies will not be covered in the initial phase. All 26 schemes are
ready for rollout. On 1 January 2013 the seven schemes in which payout
is due in the (20 selected) districts, the money will be transferred through
the direct benefit transfer system using the UIDAI platform.The scheme
is going to be rolled out in 43 districts by 1 March 2013, 20 districts from
January 1, 11 districts from February 1 and 12 districts from March 1. By
end of 2013, the direct cash benefit transfer will be rolled out in all the
districts of the country.

PA Sangma launched National People’s Party

PA Sangma, who broke away with the NCP in 2012 to contest the
presidential elections, though unsuccessfully, on 05 January 2013
launched National People’s Party (NPP), and chosen a book as its
symbol. Sangma has chosen to align his party with the BJP-led National
Democratic Alliance (NDA).

President Released Stamps on Swami Vivekananda

On 12 January The President, Shri Pranab Mukherjee released the

Commemorative Postage Stamps, at the Commemoration of the 150th
Birth Anniversary of Swami Vivekananda, in New Delhi .

Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) 2012

On 17 January According to the Annual Status of Education Report

(ASER) 2012 report has found that learning levels have dipped to an all-
time low. So, almost half the 6-7 year-olds (Class I) in India cannot read
even one letter in any language, over 57% cannot read any English
while almost 40% cannot recognize numbers between 1 and 9.The
12.8% children between Class I and V could not read a single letter
while 10.7% could not recognize numbers 1 to 9. The number of children
in Class V who could read Class II text fell from 53.7% in 2010 to 46.8%
in 2012. In 2010, seven out of 10 children could solve a two-digit
subtraction problem with borrowing. This has come down to five out of
10 in 2012.

STATES
Odisha Launched ‘ Public Service Delivery System ‘

On 2 January The Odisha government launched the much-sought after ”

Public Service Delivery System ” for citizens under the Odisha Right to
Public Service Act, 2012.Under the new act, people will get services like
issue of driving license, birth and death certificates, passport and trade
license within a stipulated time.Odisha is among the 12th state to
implement the law.

Haryana Government announced Kanyadan Scheme for Bride

participants of Mass Marriages

The Government of Haryana on 3 January 2012 announced its plan of

launching a Kanyadan Scheme in the state for brides participating in the
mass marriage ceremony, which would be organised by any of the
registered NGO or the Red Cross Society. The scheme would carry an
incentive amount of 11000 rupees and would come into effect from 1
April 2012. The incentive amount of 11000 rupees would be given to
brides from all castes, creeds, race, religion and the income category to
which the girl belongs.

Arunachal Pradesh Collaborated with NSDL for Adoption of

National Pension Scheme

On 9 January The state of Arunachal Pradesh entered into an

agreement with signing of MoU with National Securities Depository Ltd
(NSDL), permitting it to work as a Central Record Keeping Agency
(CRA) for adoption of the National Pension System (NPS).National
Pension Scheme NPS is an initiative of the Union Government of India
and Arunachal Pradesh is the 26th State to adopt it.

Gujarat Tops List of Indian States on Economic Freedom Policy

According to the ‘ Economic Freedom of States in India ‘ report which

was released by former Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor and
present Rajya Sabha Member Bimal Jalan.The top state in India in
(terms of) economic freedom in 2011 was western Indian state Gujarat.
It displaced southern Indian state Tamil Nadu which had been at the top
in 2009.Gujarat freedom index has been rising fast and estimated at
0.64 points. The biggest improvement has been registered by Madhya
Pradesh with freedom index score rose from 0.42 in 2009 to 0.56 in
2011 enabling it to move up from sixth to third position.
Assembly polls in Tripura,Meghalaya and Nagaland on Febrauary

Assembly elections in Tripura will be held on February 14 and in

Meghalaya and Nagaland on February 23 and their results will be out on
February 28, the Election Commission announced on 10 January
2013.The EC also announced byelections to nine assembly
constituencies in Mizoram, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Punjab on
February 23 and in Assam, Bihar and Maharashtra on February 24, but
their results will be out together on February 28.

President’s Rule Imposed on Jharkhand

On 18 January Pranab Mukherjee, the President of India imposed

President’s Rule in Jharkhand under Article 356(1) of the
Constitution.The President’s Rule for the third time since its formation 12
years ago.The decision came as a follow up of the recommendation
made by the Union Cabinet of India and fall of the state machinery in
form of Government on 8 January after the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha the
supporting party to BJP led Coalition Government withdrew its support
from it. The state was placed under President’s Rule in 2009 and 2010.

Three New High Courts for North East

The Centre has constituted three new High Courts in the northeast
Meghalaya, Manipur and Tripura taking the total number of High Courts
in the country from 21 to 24.According to Law Ministry sources, the
strength of judges in each High Court will be as follows: Tripura 4
(including the Chief Justice), and Meghalaya and Manipur: three each
(including the Chief Justice).

CONFERENCES

100th Indian Science Congress held in Kolkata

The 100th Indian Science Congress was held from 3 to 7 January in

Kolkata (West Bengal) .The theme of the session is ” Science for
Shaping the Future of India ” .The session was inaugurated by
Pranab Mukherjee the President of India .In the session Prime
Minister Manmohan Singh released ‘ The Science, Technology and
Innovation Policy(STI) 2013 ’ .On 4 January Former President Dr.
A.P.J.Abdul Kalam inaugurated a Children Science Congress as part of
the 100th Indian Science Congress .The 100th Indian Science Congress
(ISC 2013) is also organized a special programme “ Women
empowerment for the development of the country” to showcase the
contribution of women in science and technology.This is the 13th time
the Indian Science Congress is being hosted by Kolkata

11th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas held in Kochi

11th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) was held from 7- 9 January at Kochi
(Kerala).Mauritius President Rajkeswur Purryag was the chief guest of
this official inaugural session.2000 delegates from 40 countries
attended the convention.The theme for this year’s Pravasi Bharatiya
Divas is “Engaging Diaspora – the Indian Growth Story”.On 7th January
in the event they discussed on problems that people from Kerala face in
the region.Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will inaugurated the annual
flagship event and released the postage stamp on Ghadar Movement on
8 January and President Pranab Mukherjee will delivered the
valedictory address on January 9 and also presented the Pravasi
Bharatiya Samman awards.Pravasi Bhartiya Divas (PBD) is celebrated
on January 9 every year to mark the contribution of overseas Indian
community in the development of India.The Pravasi Bharatiya Divas, the
first of its kind involving the Indian Diaspora, was held in 2003 at New
Delhi.

Fourth Meeting of ASEAN and India Tourism Ministers held in

Vientiane

The Fourth meeting of ASEAN and India Tourism Minister (4th M-ATM+
India) was held in Vientiane, Lao PDR from 21 to January in
conjunction with the ASEAN Tourism Forum 2013 (ATF2013).The
Meeting was jointly co-chaired by H.E. Prof. Dr. Bosengkham Vongdara,
Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism, Lao PDR, and H.E. Dr. K.
Chiranjeevi, Minister for Tourism, Government of India.In the meeting
Both the Ministers have signed the Protocol to amend the Memorandum
of Understanding between ASEAN and India on Strengthening Tourism
Cooperation.

World Economic Forum Summit Held in Davos

The 43rd World Economic Forum Annual Meeting held from 23 – 27

January at Davos-Klosters in Switzerland.The annual forum, which has
been running for over 40 years, provides a platform for decision-makers
in politics, non-governmental organisations and businesses to gather
and to exchange views on the world’s most pressing problems.The
World Economic Forum (WEF) unites international political leaders,
business leaders and journalists from across the globe to discussed and
shape global, regional and industrial agendas with regards to
economics, health and the environment.The WEF was founded in 1971
as a non-profit organization by the German Klaus Schwab, a business
professor at the University of Geneva.

AWARDS & HONOURS

Malala won ” 2012 Tipperary International Peace Award “

On 3 January Malala Yousafzai, the teenaged Pakistani school girl shot

by a Taliban gunman last year , has been awarded the ” 2012 Tipperary
International Peace Award ” from Ireland for her courage and
determination to speak out in support of equal access to education for
children.Malala is the second Pakistani to get the award. In 2007, it was
given to late Benazir Bhutto.

Malala honored with the French ” Simone de Beauvoir ” Prize

On 9 January Malala Yousafzai (15), the schoolgirl from Pakistan shot

by Taliban for campaigning girls’ education, received France’s Simone
de Beauvoir Prize for Women’s Freedom in Paris. Malala’s father
Ziaudin Yousafzai received the honour on her behalf. he award is
accompanied with 2.5 million RupeTes honorarium.

Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award 2013

On 9 January Pranab Mukherjee President of India presented the

Pravasi Bharatiya Samman (Awards) 2013 to 14 people, included
Overseas Indian Affairs Vayalar Ravi and Mauritius President
Rajkeswur Purryag, He was also the Chief Guest of 11th Pravasi
Bharatiya Divas 2013. In accordance to Tradition, Pravasi Bharatiya
Samman (Awards) 2013 have been given to notable Indians living
abroad.

The other awardees are Prof Dr Gurusharan Singh Chhatwal of

Germany for science, Dr Rasik Vihari Joshi (Mexico) for Literature,
Gilbert Canabady Moutien (Reunion Island) and Mohammed Rabeeh
Karuvanthodi (Saudi Arabia) for business, Patricia Maria Rozario(UK) for
Music, Dr Narendra Ramakrishna Kumar (USA) for Healthcare, Subash
Razdan (USA) and Islmail Ebrahim (South Afrcia) for Public service.
Dr Satendra Kumar Singh (New Zealand), Australia India Society of
Victoria (Australia) and Bava Pandalingal (UAE), Ashok Shambhomal
Vaswani (Guinea), Indian Doctors Forum, Kuwait for community service,
Tan Sri Ravindran Menon from Malaysia for Community service, are
among others on the list of awardees.

Mamata Banerjee gets gift from PCB

Overwhelmed’ by the hospitality at the Eden Gardens during India-

Pakistan second ODI in Kolkata, the PCB sent the gift as a silver-coated
Quran to the Cricket Association of Bengal who handed it over to the CM
during a function at the Netaji Indoor in Kolkata on 10 January 2013.

Mahaveer Golechha Bags Award for Alzheimer’s Drug

On 17 January The London-based Indian researcher Mahaveer

Golechha, was selected to be felicitated for an award that includes his
work on a drug that can be a potential cure of Alzheimer’s disease.In the
study conducted by Golechha, he found discovered that naringin has
essential anti-Alzheimer activity.

70th Golden Globe Awards – 2013

On January 13 The 70th Golden Globe Awards honored the best in film
and television of 2012, was presented in California .

Best Film – : Argo

Best Actor – : Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln)

Best Actress – : Jessica Chastain (Zero Dark Thirty)

Best Director - Ben Affleck (Argo)

Best Musical or Comedy -: Les Miserables

Best Foreign Language Film – : Amour

Best Animated Feature Film -: Brave

Krishi Karman Awards 2011- 2012

On 15 January President Pranab Mukherjee presented the Krishi

Karman awards for the year 2011-12 at an award ceremony at the
Rashtrapati Bhavan. The awards were presented to the State
Governments for their excellent performance in increasing the
production of food grains in their respective states.

Awards in Different Segments :-

- The Awards for Special Contribution to Total Food Grains Production

- Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Manipur and Nagaland

- Award for Contribution to Production and Productivity of Rice – Bihar

- Award for Contribution to Production and Productivity of Wheat -

Haryana

- Award for Contribution to Production and Productivity of Pulses -

Jharkhand

- Award for Contribution to Production and Productivity of Coarse

Cereals – Uttar Pradesh

58th Filmfare Awards

The 58th Filmfare Awards were held honoring the best films of 2012
from the Hindi-language film industry (commonly known as Bollywood).
The ceremony was held on January 20, 2013 at Mumbai.

Best Movie :- Barfi!

Best Actor :- Ranbir Kapoor (Film -Barfi!)

Best Actress :- Vidya Balan (Film – Kahaani )

Best Director :- Sujoy Ghosh (Film – Kahaani )

Lifetime Achievement Award :- Yash Chopra (After Death)

Prof C N R Rao awarded by Chinese Academy of Sciences

The Chinese Academy of Sciences was awarded Prof C N R Rao,

National Research Professor and Honorary President of Jawaharlal
Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCAR), the
prestigious “International Scientific Cooperation Award 2012″. The award
is designed to acknowledge outstanding scientists for their contribution
to science and for promoting global networking of international science
cooperation.
Padma Awards – 2013

President of India Approved the Conferment of 108 Padma Awards

On 25 January Pranab Mukherjee, the President of Union of India

approved conferment of 108 Padma Awards. Four people have been
conferred with Padma Vibhusan, twenty four are conferred with Padma
Bhushan and 80 people would be receiving Padma Shree Awards. Out
of all the awardees twenty-four are ladies and 11 people belong to
categories like NRIs, PIOs, Foreigners and Posthumous awardees.

Padma Vibhushan

Raghunath Mohapatra, Art, Orissa

S Haider Raza, Art, Delhi

Prof Yash Pal, Science and Engineering, Uttar Pradesh

Prof Roddam Narasimha, Science and Engineering, Karnataka

Padma Bhushan

Sharmila Tagore, Art, Delhi

Dr (Smt) Saroja Vaidyanathan, Art, Delhi

Late Rajesh Khanna, Art, Maharashtra

Late Jaspal Singh Bhatti, Art, Punjab

Adi Burjor Godrej, Trade and Industry, Maharashtra

Prof Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, Literature & Education USA

Rahul Dravid, Sports, Karnataka

H Mangte Chungneijang Mary Kom, Sports, Manipur

Padma Shri

Hosanagara Nagarajegowda Girisha, Sports, Karnataka ,

Subedar Major Vijay Kumar, Sports, Himachal Pradesh

Yogeshwar Dutt, Sports, Haryana

B Jayashree, Art, Karnataka

Sridevi Kapoor, Art, Maharashtra

Ramesh Gopaldas Sippy, Art, Maharashtra

359 Gallantry and Other Defence Decorations Announced

On 26 January President Pranab Mukherjee has approved awards of

359 Gallantry and other Defence decorations to Armed Forces
personnel and others on the eve of the 64th Republic Day Celebrations
.This includes 01 Kirti Chakra, 11 Shaurya Chakra, 56 Sena Medal
(Gallantry), 01 Bar to Nao Sena Medal (Gallantry), 03 Nao Sena Medal
(Gallantry), 03 Vayu Sena Medal (Gallantry), 28 Param Vishisht Seva
Medal, 03 Uttam Yudh Seva Medal, 06 Bar to Ati Vishisht Seva Medal,
44 Ati Vishisht Seva Medal, 12 Yudh Seva Medal, 02 Bar to Sena
Medal (Devotion to Duty), 37 Sena Medal (Devotion to Duty), 01 Bar to
Nao Sena Medal (Devotion to Duty), 07 Nao Sena Medal (Devotion to
Duty), 14 Vayu Sena Medal (Devotion to Duty), 04 Bar to Vishisht Seva
Medal and 116 Vishisht Seva Medal..Major Abup J Manjali of the
Rashtriya Rifles was selected for the award of Kirti Chakra for his
extraordinary bravery efforts in counter- terrorist operations in Jammu
and Kashmir.

Taiwan Business Magnate Launched Tang Prize (Asian Noble Prize)

On 28 January Samuel Yin , A business magnate tycoon from Taiwan

has launched the Tang Prize(Asian Noble prize) for outstanding
achievements in natural and social sciences.He announced that he
would establish Tang Prize Foundation which would have an initial
donation of 103 million dollar.Tang Prize Foundation was decided that
the prizes under the Tang Prize Foundation will be awarded every
alternate year to the international leaders in sustainable development,
biopharmaceutical science, the rule of law as well as the study of China.

SPORTS & GAMES

Kohli is CEAT ” International Cricketer of the Year “

On 4 January Vice-captain of Indian Cricket team Virat Kohli was
named the International Cricketer of the Year while Pakistan cricket
team was named as the Best International Cricket Team in the 2011-
2012 season at the CEAT cricket awards in New Delhi. Unmukt Chand,
who led India to the U-19 World Cup win last year, got the inaugural
Indian Youngster of the Year award.The Former Pakistan cricket captain
Zaheer Abbas received the Lifetime Achievement Award.

Uttarakhand won 63rd National Basketball Championship

On 4 January Uttarakhand won 63rd National basketball championship

men’s title after defeated Punjab in the final at Ludhiana (Punjab).In the
women’s section, Railways won the title against by first-time finalist
Tamil Nadu in the final.

Tipsarevic won Chennai Open Tennis Title

On 6 January Second-seeded Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia has won the

ATP Chennai Open Title after defeated Roberto Bautista-Agut of Spain
in the final at Chennai.Tipsarevic won the chennai open title for the first
time in his career.

Nicol David won World Series Squash Title

On 6 January Nicol David won the World Series Squash Finals women’s
title after defeated England’s Laura Massaro in the final at London.In
the men’s final, Egypt’s Amr Shabana came from behind to beat
England’s Nick Matthew .

Australia Won Test Against Sri Lanka

Australia secured a five-wicket won in the third and final Test match
against Sri Lanka on 6 January at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) .

Brisbane International Tennis Winners – 2013

Womens Single’s :Serena Williams (USA) won the WTA Brisbane

International womens single’s title on 5 January with a straight sets
demolition of Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.

Men’s Singles : In the Men’s singles Category Andy Murray from

scotland won the title after defeated Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov .
Women’s Doubles : Sania Mirza and her partner Bethanie Mattek-
Sands won the women’s doubles trophy by winning against Kveta
Peschke and Anna-Lena Groenefeld

Men’s Doubles : Marcelo Melo – Tommy Robredo won the doubles title
after defeated Eric Butorac – Paul Hanley .

Pakistan won the Three – Match Series

On 6 January Pakistan won the three-match series by 2-1 against

India.With this win over Pakistan, India lost the three matches one day
series .Nasir Jamshed of Paksitan was declared as the Player of the
tournament.MS Dhoni was once again chosen as the Player of the
match.

Lionel Messi, the man of the four Golden Balls

Lionel Messi became the first four-time winner of the FIFA Player of the
Year award after shattering the world record with 91 goals last
year(2012) for Barcelona and Argentina.His 91 goals topped Gerd
Mueller’s mark of 85 for Bayern Munich and Germany in 1972.

Bangar quits first-class cricket

Former India player and Railways captain Sanjay Bangar announced

his retirement from first-class cricket after guiding his team to a 122-run
victory over Bengal in the final league game of the Ranji Trophy on 01
January 2013 in Kolkata.He played 165 first class matches amassing
8342 runs at an average of 33.35 and has 300 wickets to his credit.

National Table Tennis Championship Winners

On 11 January Soumyajit Ghosh became the youngest national

champion after he defeated six-time winner Achanta Sharath Kamal in
the summit clash of the 74th National Table Tennis Championship mens
singles final at Raipur.Shamini Kumaresan won the womens singles
title.Sourav Chakraborty and Ganeshan Sathiyan won the doubles
title.In the Women doubles category K. Spoorthy and Nikhat Banu (AP)
defeated Madhurika Patkar and Pooja Sahasrabudhe in the final and got
the title.

Haryana girls retain U-20 hockey title

Haryana defeated Uttar Pradesh 1-0 to retain their under-20 women
hockey national championship at the Gachibowli Stadium on 16 January
2013.

Kerala won 61st National Volleyball Championship Title

On 16 January Kerala defeated Tamilnadu to retain the men’s title in the

61st Senior National Volleyball Championship at the Sawai Man Singh
Indoor Stadium in Jaipur.In the women’s section, Railways defeated
Kerala and won the title in the final.

Malaysian Open Badminton Championship Winners

Men’s Singles: Lee Chong Wei (Indonesia) won the Men’s singles title
after defeated Sony Dwi Kuncoro in the final at Kuala Lumpur on 20
January.

Men’s Doubles: Mohd Ahsan (Indonesia) -Hendra Setiawan (China)

defeated Ko Sung-hyun-Lee Yong-dae (Malaysia) in the final.

Women’s Singles: Tai Tzu-ying (Thailand) won the women’s singles

title after defeated Yao Xue (Korea)

Women’s Doubles: In the event Bao Yixin-Tian Qing (China) won the
title after defeated Misaki Matsutomo-Ayaka Takahashi (Japan)

Lalith Babu takes top honours

Lalith Babu defeated Swapnil Dhopade in the final round to clinch the
Chennai Super Kings International Grandmaster chess tournament that
concluded at the Nehru Stadium in Chennai on 23 January 2013.Lalith
Babu won Rs.200,000 and the trophy after becoming the first Indian
player to claim the Chennai Open

Australian Open Tennis Tournament – 2013 Winners

Womens Single’s :- Victoria Azarenka of Belarus won the Women’s

Singles title of the Australian Open Tennis tournament after defeated Li
Na of China in the final at Melbourne on 26 January .

Men’s Singles:- Novak Djokovic (Serbia) has won the men’s singles
title after defeating Andy Murray (Britain) in four sets. This is Djokovic’s
fourth Australian Open and over all six Grand Slam single title.
Women’s Doubles:- Top seeds Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci won the
title, defeating wild cards Ashleigh Barty and Casey Dellacqua in the
final.

Men’s Doubles : Top seeded American brothers Bob and Mike Bryan
won the men’s doubles title. Americans Mike and Bob Bryan won their
record 13th Grand Slam doubles title, defeating the Dutch team of Robin
Haase and Igor Sijsling .

Magnus Carlsen Won Tata Steel Chess Championship

Magnus Carlsen won Tata Steel 2013 Chess tournament title in the final
at Netherlands on 27 January .In the final round tournament, he scored
10 points , winning clear first ahead of second-place finisher Aronian
(Armenia).World champion Viswanathan Anand at third position.

Mumbai won 40th Ranji Trophy Title

On 29 January Mumbai won its 40th Ranji Trophy title against

Saurashtra by an inning and 125 runs in the final at Wankhede at
Mumbai .Wasim Jaffar was declared Man of the Match. Ajit Agarkar was
the captain of the winning team.

ECONOMY

Philippines introduced ‘sin tax’

A “sin tax” on cigarettes and alcohol was introduced in the Philippines on

01 January 2013, as part of a government bid to boost finances.Many
stores started selling tobacco and drink at inflated prices before midnight
, ahead of the official implementation of the tax hikes on January 01,
hitting partygoers in the pocket.Tax on cigarettes will gradually be raised
to 30 pesos ($0.72) per pack by 2017, roughly doubling the current price
to around 52 pesos.Duty on alcohol will also increase gradually until
2017, increasing the price of a bottle of beer by 23.50 pesos, with
varying levels for other drinks including wine and spirits.

LIC Launched New Jeewan Nidhi & Flexi Plus Policies

The Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India launched two new

Insurence policies New Jeevan Nidhi, a pension scheme, and Flexi Plus
on 3 January .New Jeewan Nidhi provides the facility of insurance
coverage of full amount while the insured person keeps depositing
premiums.The Flexi policy is a unit linked insurance product. The plan
not only provides a lump sum benefit on death but also maturity benefit
irrespective of survival of the policy holder

Mukesh Ambani 18th richest man in world

Indian business magnate Mukesh Ambani is the 18th richest person in

the world with a personal wealth of $24.7 billion in 2012, according to the
Bloomberg Billionaires Index, a daily ranking of the world’s 100
wealthiest individuals. Mexican telecommunications magnate Carlos
Slim remained the world’s richest person last year holding a personal
fortune of more than $70 billion.Microsoft founder Bill Gates and the
founder of fashion retailer Zara, Amancio Ortega, got a second and third
places respectively.

Indian Companies Top Globally in R&D Investment

According to the European Commission report Indian companies have

come on the top globally when it comes to growth in their research and
development (R&D) investments, leaving their counterparts in the US
and Europe far behind.Indian firms rank far below when it comes to
absolute R&D investments made by them and the top-ranked company
from the country.These are the only 14 Indian companies present in a
list of top-1500 entities worldwide in terms of their annual R&D
investments.The top-ranked Indian company is Infosys at 329th place
and Japanese company Toyota Motor appears at the top of the ranking
in the 2012 Scoreboard.

IMF forecasted Indian Economic Growth Rate to be 5.9 percent in

2013

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on 23 January 2013 pegged

India’s economic growth rate in 2013 at 5.9 per cent and projected a
higher growth of 6.4 per cent next year in line with the gradual
strengthening of global expansion.

World Bank’s “Global Economic Prospects 2013″ Report

According to the World Bank “Global Economic Prospects 2013″ report ,
India’s growth is expected to inch closer to that of China in near future,
in which the economies of developing countries like India, China and
Brazil are projected to be recovering and higher growth rate.The World
Bank expects that by 2015, the growth rate of China would be 7.9% and
that of India 7%.While the growth of the world economy growth is
projected to inch up from 2.3% in 2012 to 2.4% in 2013, with the high-
income countries remaining at the same level of growth of 1.3% in both
2012 and 2013, it is the emerging markets like India, China and Brazil
that would show significant signs of recovery.They are expecting a
recovery in India from 5.1% growth in 2012 to 6.1% growth in 2013.

India 119th on Economic Freedom Index

According to the ‘Heritage Foundation’ 2013 Index of Economic

Freedom survey report , India has been ranked as the 119th freest
country in the world and India’s economic freedom score stood at 55.2,
as its institutional shortcomings continue to undermine the foundations
for long-term economic development.The top ten countries in the list
include Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, Switzarland,
canada, Chili, Mauritius, Denmark and US.

India second in steel production globally

India is second only to China in terms of steel production. In the last 5

years India’s production grew by 33 percent, thus making it behind
China among the top 5 steel producing nation. World Steel Association
(WSA) data has revealed that China’s production grew by 39 per cent
during 2008-2012, India’s by 33 percent and India’s production grew
constantly in the last five years from 57.8 MT in 2008 to 63.5 MT in
2009, 69 MT in 2010, 73.6 MT in 2011 and 76.7 MT in 2012

RBI cuts CRR, Repo Rates

On 29 January The Reserve Bank of India slashed its key interest rates
by 0.25 per cent and released 18000 crore rupees additional liquidity
into the system to perk up growth through reduced cost of borrowing.
RBI in its third quarter monetary policy review surprised the market by
cutting short-term lending rate called repo, by 0.25 per cent to 7.75 per
cent and Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) by similar margin to 4 per cent.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

US approved First new Tuberculosis Drug

On 1 January The US Food and Drug administration approved a

Johnson & Johnson tuberculosis drug in 40 years .This is the first new
medicine to fight the deadly infection in more than four decades.The
disease is rare in the US, but kills about 1.4 million people a year
worldwide.

Spiral galaxy IC 2233

Astronomers had captured one of the flattest galaxies known in the

universe, sitting like a silver needle in the haystack of space. The
NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope produced a beautiful image of the
spiral galaxy IC 2233, one of the flattest galaxies. The IC 2233 is located
about 40 million light-years away from Earth. This galaxy was earlier
discovered by British astronomer Isaac Roberts in 1894.

“Immune system ‘booster’ may hit cancer”

Japanese research where stem cells were used to clone and produce
large numbers of a specialized type of white blood cell. These cells,
known as cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs), are produced by the immune
system and are able to recognize specific markers on the surface of
various tumour cells, causing them to launch an attack to kill the tumour
cells.The researchers are succeeded in using stem cells to “mass-
produce” CTLs in laboratory conditions.

Chinese Biologists Discovered Antibiotic In Panda Blood

Chinese biologists have discovered that the blood of the endangered

giant panda includes a compound called ” Cathelicidin-AM ” which acts
as a natural antibiotic. The nature of the blood compound makes it an
attractive treatment for so-called superbugs, those strains of disease
that have become immune or resistant to traditional antibiotics.

India to make world’s largest solar telescope

India is likely to begin construction of the world’s largest solar telescope

on the foothills of the Himalayas in Ladakh to understand the
fundamental processes taking place on the Sun by year-end.A 2-metre
class, state-of-the-art National Large Solar Telescope (NLST), built by
Bangalore-based Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA), will permit Indian
scientists to carry out cutting edge research aimed to study Sun’s
atmosphere.
Internet emits 830 mt of carbon dioxide annually

According to Researchers from the Centre for Energy-Efficient

Telecommunications (CEET) and Bell Labs, Internet and other
components of information communication and technology (ICT) industry
annually produces more than 830 million tonnes of carbon dioxide
(CO2), the main greenhouse gas, and is expected to double by 2020

‘Lakshya’ Missile Successfully Tested

India’s indigenously developed, ‘Lakshya’ was sucessfully tested on 7

January .It was launched from the Integrated Test Range – ITR, at
Odisha .25 meters in length, 100 km away from the target to the missile .

17 billion’ Earth-sized planets in Milky Way

The Milky Way contains at least 17 billion planets the size of

Earth.Astronomers using NASA’s Kepler spacecraft found that about 17
percent of stars in our galaxy have a planet about the size of Earth in a
close orbit.The Milky Way is known to host about 100 billion stars,
meaning that about one of every six has an Earth-sized planet around it.

Brahmos cruise missile test fired in successfully

Supersonic cruise missile BrahMos scored once again in its 34th launch
on 09 January 2013 off Visakhapatnam in the Bay of Bengal, hitting a
decommissioned vessel with accuracy.As it took off vertically from a
naval warship, reached an altitude of 14 km, levelled out and started
cruising at three times the speed of sound, it performed “a double
manoeuvre in S-form” and hit the decommissioned ship, about 290 km
away.

Astronomers Found ” NGC 6872 ” Largest known Spiral Galaxy

A team of astronomers from the United States, Chile and Brazil has
crowned it the largest-known spiral galaxy, a spectacular behemoth five
times bigger than our own Milky Way, based on archival data from
NASA’s Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX) mission.The title-holder is
now NGC 6872, a barred spiral found 212 million light-years away in the
southern constellation Pavo. The distance between NGC 6872′s two
huge spiral arms is 522,000 light-years, compared to about 100,000
light-years for the Milky Way.

Indian Scientists Discovered Molecule for Cancer Treatment

A team of Indian researchers, led by Dr Sathees C Raghavan of the
Indian Institute of Science at Bangalore, have identified a molecule
which they claim will revolutionise the cure for cancer.The molecule has
been named after “Sathees as SCR7” and a detailed account of it has
been carried in the international scientific journal “Cell”".Scientists world
over believe that the double strand break (DSB) of DNA is one of the
most lethal form of DNA damage, resulting in drastic consequences
such as genome instability, and cancer.

“Largest Space structure in the Universe:Large Quasar Group

An international team lead by astronomer Roger Clowes of the

University of Central Lancashire in England discovered the largest
known structure in the universe, a clump of active galactic cores that
stretches 4 billion light-years from end to end.This is the largest Space
structure in the Universe.This structure is known as a “Large Quasar
Group(LQG)”.

Indian Scientists Discovered Molecule for Cancer Treatment

A team of Indian researchers, led by Dr Sathees C Raghavan of the

Indian Institute of Science at Bangalore, have identified a molecule
which they claim will revolutionise the cure for cancer.The molecule has
been named after “Sathees as SCR7” and a detailed account of it has
been carried in the international scientific journal “Cell”".Scientists world
over believe that the double strand break (DSB) of DNA is one of the
most lethal form of DNA damage, resulting in drastic consequences
such as genome instability, and cancer.

World’s First Global Renewable Energy Atlas Launched

On 13 January Abu Dhabi-based International Renewable Energy

Agency (IRENA) launched the world’s first clean energy atlas at
IRENA’S General Assembly , currently offers open-access information
on solar and wind power throughout the world and the creators plan to
expand to other renewable energy resources over the next two
years.The atlas includes information on clean energy resources in 37
countries, including those which have no diplomatic relations with the
United Arab Emirates.The International Renewable Energy Agency
(IRENA) is working in partnership with the Renewable Energy Policy
Network for the 21st Century (REN21) to build a qualitative and
quantitative data framework for renewable energy in developing
countries.
Ancient River Found on Mars

On 17 January The European Space Agency scientists have revealed a

1500 km long and 7 kilometre wide river that once ran across Mars.The
images which were captured by the ESA’s Mars Express showed Reull
Vallis, the river-like structure, which is believed to have formed when
water ran from the surface of Mars in distant past. The structure which
surprised the astronomers stretches for around 900 miles or 1500 km
across the Martian surface and also shows various tributaries. These
structures, it is believed, were formed somewhere around 3.5 billion
years ago.

India Increased Rafale Fighter Jets’ Order

India could buy up to 189 of the Rafale fighter jets currently being used
by France to bomb Islamist militants in Mali, sources close to
negotiations on the multi-billion dollar deal .The possibility of an
additional 63 jets being added to an expected order for 126 was raised
by India .The Indian press has estimated the value of the deal for 126
Rafales at $12 billion (nine billion euros).A 50 per cent increase in the
number of planes ordered would take it to around $18 billion, in a huge
boost for the French defence industry.

‘Japan to replace Fukushima plant with world’s largest wind farm’

In the wake of the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster, Japan had decided
to build the world’s largest offshore wind farm to replace the crippled
nuke plant.The country plans to build a total of 143 wind turbines on
platforms 16 kilometres off the coast of Fukushima by 2020, which is
home to the stricken Daiichi nuclear reactor that hit the headlines in
March 2011 when it was damaged by a severe earthquake and
tsunami.The wind farm will generate 1 gigawatt of power once
completed, and is part of a national plan to increase renewable energy
resources following the post-tsunami shutdown of the country’s 54
nuclear reactors.The wind farm will surpass the 504 megawatts
generated by the 140 turbines at the Greater Gabbard farm off the coast
of Suffolk, UK – currently the world’s largest farm.

India, US finalise Rs 3,000 crore deal for jet engines

India and the US have finalised a Rs 3000-crore deal for supplying 99 jet
engines to be used in the indigenous Light Combat Aircraft ‘Tejas’ being
developed by the DRDO.Around two years ago, India had selected the
American company General Electric over its rival European Eurojet 2000
for the LCA Mark II programme expected to be ready around 2014-
15.The deal worth Rs 3,000 crore has been finalised with the US for
procuring 99 engines for the LCA Tejas MkII.As per the contract, the
order could be for 99 engines initially but India will have the option of
ordering another 100 engines in the future.

INS Saryu Inducted into Indian Navy

On 21 January Air Marshal PK Roy, Commander-in-Chief, Andaman and

Nicobar Command, commissioned INS Saryu into the Indian Navy at
Goa .INS Saryu is the lead ship of the indigenous Naval Offshore Patrol
Vessel (NOPV) Project designed and built by Goa Shipyard Limited, the
ship aptly demonstrates the immense potential of the country’s
indigenous designing and ship building capabilities.Capable of carrying a
helicopter (ALH) onboard, the ship’s weapon and sensor outfit includes a
SRGM 76.2 mm gun with an electro-optic fire control system, two 30mm
guns as close in weapon systems, latest navigational and early warning
radars, chaff launchers for self protection and an integrated ESM system
to undertake all assigned missions.

MIT researchers Created Moisture – Powered Polymer

MIT ( Massachusetts Institute of Technology ) researchers have created

a new polymer film that can generate electricity by drawing on a
ubiquitous source: water vapor.The new material changes its shape after
absorbing tiny amounts of evaporated water, allowing it to repeatedly
curl up and down. Harnessing this continuous motion could drive robotic
limbs or generate enough electricity to power micro- and nanoelectronic
devices, such as environmental sensors.

India Sucessfully Test Fired K-5 Ballistic Missile

On 27 January India successfully test fired medium range K-5 ballistic

missile ,with a strike range of around 1500 kilometres, from an
underwater platform in Bay of Bengal.K-5 is part of the family of
underwater missiles being developed by Defence Research and
Development Organization (DRDO) for the Indian strategic forces’
underwater platforms.

Iran ‘successfully sent monkey into space’

Iran on 28 January 2013 announced that it had successfully send a

monkey to the space.It also declared that the monkey come back to the
Earth successfully.The rocket called Pishgam (meaning Pioneer)
reached at a height of 120 km (75 miles) for a sub-orbital flight before
“returning its shipment intact”. The first country to launch the primate into
space was US.

PERSONS IN NEWS

A) APPOINTMENTS

Asif Ibrahim appointed as chief Intelligence Bureau

Indian Police Service officer SA Ibrahim appointed as chief of the

Intelligence Bureau on 01 January 2013 and he becoming the first from
the country’s main minority community(Muslim Community) to hold the
post. Ibrahim, an IPS officer of the Madhya Pradesh cadre, has taken
over as from Nehchal Sandhu who retired December 31. He will hold the
post for two years.

Urjit Patel appointed as RBI deputy governor

On 02 January 2013 Urjit Patel, a consultant at Boston Consulting

Group, had been appointed a deputy governor at the Reserve Bank of
India, succeeding Subir Gokarn who was aiding the governor in shaping
the monetary policy.

YV Reddy to head 14th Finance Commission

On 02 January 2013 former RBI governor YV Reddy was appointed

chairman of the 14th finance commission to suggest principles of
sharing of revenues between the Centre and the states and insulate
pricing of public utilities like electricity, water and public transport from
policy fluctuations.

Ami Bera and Tulsi Gabbard Sworn In As US Lawmakers

On 4 January Indian American physician from California, Ami Bera, and

the young Iraq war veteran from Hawaii, Tulsi Gabbard, created history
after being sworn in as new members of the US House of
Representatives.Bera is only the third Indian American have ever been
elected to the House of Representatives.Tulsi Gabbard is the first Hindu
ever to won the Congressional election.

Malala’s Father Appointed as Education Attache in Birmingham

On 3 January Malala’s father Ziauddin Yousafzai has been appointed as
the education attache at the Pakistan consulate in Birmingham,
England.The job is believed to be for up to three years.

Indian American Srinivasan re-nominated as Federal Judge

On 4 January Srikanth Srinivasan a brilliant Indian American legal mind

has been re-nominated by US President Barack Obama to serve as
Federal Judge for the District of Columbia Circuit.In June 2012 he was
nominated by Obama to serve on the US Court of Appeals for the
District of Columbia Circuit.

Justice D K Jain appointed new Law Commission chief

The Union Cabinet of India on 7 January 2013 appointed Justice D K

Jain as Chairman of 20th Law Commission of India. He gives advice to
the government on complex legal issues. Justice Jain, 64, will take over
as the chief of the law panel on January 24 after retiring from the
Supreme Court on the same day.

John Brennan as a CIA director

U.S. President Barack Obama announced on )7 January 2013 John

Brennan wasnominated as director of the American Intelligence
Agency(CIA) and Chuck Hagel as a Defense secretary. John Brennan
played a key role in encounter the Osama Bin Laden.

Indian-origin politician to be Singapore’s first woman speaker

Indian-origin politician Halimah Yacob elected as the first woman

Speaker of Singapore’s Parliament on 08 Janauary 2013.She take
charges from 14 January 2013.Halimah, a former labour lawyer, is a
member of Parliament from the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP).

Kulwant Singh Gill Took charge as new Commandant of NDA

On 8 January Air Marshal Kulwant Singh Gill took charge as the new
commandant of the National Defence Academy (NDA) at Khadakwasla,
Pune.The NDA provides three-year training in defence and academics to
its cadets before they move on to their respective officers’ training
academies for another one-year course and get commissioned into the
armed forces.

R.K. Dubey Took Charge as Canara Bank’s new CMD

On 11 January R.K. Dubey has assumed charge as the Chairman and
Managing Director of Canara Bank .Mr. Dubey was previously worked
as a Punjab National Bank General Manager in 2008 and was appointed
as Executive Director of Central Bank of India in 2010.

Rajkumar Goyal Took Charge as Central Bank of India new ED

On 11 January Rajkumar Goyal has took charge as Executive Director

(ED) of Central Bank of India (CBI).He was previously with the bank of
India as the General Manager of Human Resources Department

Obama nominated Jack Lew as new Treasury Chief

On 11 January President Barack Obama nominated his chief of staff,

Jack Lew, to become the next Treasury secretary and succeed Timothy
Geithner.Last year, Lew was named Obama’s chief of staff, and before
that he had served as the White House budget director.

First Gujarati in UK cabinet

Lord Dolar Popat has appointed a minister in the UK cabinet .He

become the first Gujarati taking his place in the UK cabinet .Popat was
appointed minister for business, innovation & skills and transport.

Mohan Pieris assumes duties as 44th Chief Justice of Sri Lanka

On 15 January 2013 ,Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa

appointed his cabinet’s legal advisor as the country’s new Chief Justice
to succeed Shirani Bandaranayake. Rajapaksa sworn in new Chief
Justice Mohan Peiris to replace Sri Lanka’s first woman chief justice who
was impeached by the parliament in a controversial move.Peiris, a
British qualified solicitor who retired in 2011 as the Attorney General was
serving as the legal advisor to the Cabinet.

Ved Prakash is UGC chairman

Ved Prakash, serving as acting chairman of the University Grants

Commission, had been appointed as its chairman on 18 January
2013.The chairman’s post remained vacant ever since S. Thorat retired
in February 2011. Since then Mr. Prakash had been the acting
chairman.

Obama Sworn in as the US President for Second Term

On 20 January US President Barack Obama Barack Obama was sworn
in as the President of the country for a second four-year term.Obama as
the 44th president of the United States and also he is the third
consecutive president to win two terms, after Bush and Clinton. Joe
Biden sworn-in for second term as US vice-president.

Suchitra Ella, Founding Chairwoman of CII’s women wing

Suchitra K. Ella, Joint Managing Director, Bharat Biotech International,

had been nominated as the Founding Chairwoman of the Indian Women
Network of CII. The network aims to provide a platform for working
women to come together and discuss issues and opportunities and
share best practices. She is currently the Chairperson of CII Andhra
Pradesh State Council for 2012-13. She had earlier been elected to the
CII Andhra Pradesh State Council. She has been awarded the
International Women Entrepreneurial Challenge award 2007 by the
Chamber of Commerce of Barcelona, the Manhattan Chamber of
Commerce and the FLO GR8 Women Achievers Award 2008 for
entrepreneurial excellence.

B)RESIGNS

Jharkhand CM Arjun Munda resigned

Political uncertainty deepened in Jharkhand on 08 January 2013, with

Chief Minister Arjun Munda submitted his resignation to Governor Syed
Ahmed. On 07 January 2013, the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM)
announced the withdrawal of its support to the BJP-led government.

Rajapaksa Dismissed First Woman Chief Justice of the Country

On 13 January Mahinda Rajapaksa, the President of Sri Lanka

dismissed the first woman chief justice of the country, Shirani
Bandarnayake after endorsing her impeachment by the Parliament that
caught her guilty on the corruption charges.She appointed as a chief
Justice on May 2011.

C)DEATHS

Violin maestro MSG passes away

M.S. Gopalakrishnan — legendary violinist known for his mastery of both

the Carnatic and Hindustani systems of classical music — passed away
on 03 January 2013 in Chennai.In his career spanning 75 years, he not
only broke new ground as an accompanist, but also rose to become one
of the best solo violinists in the country, along with Lalgudi G.
Jayaraman and T.N. Krishnan. The three are considered the ‘violin
trinity’ of south Indian classical music.Despite enviable success and
accolades that came in the form of national honours such as the Padma
Bhushan and Padma Shri, and innumerable titles, including the ‘Sangita
Kalanidhi’ title awarded by The Music Academy, Chennai.

Pakistani singer Mehnaz Begum is no more

Renowned Pakistani singer Mehnaz Begum died on 19 January

2013.Mehnaz specialized in ghazal, thumri, dadra, khayal, drupad and
reciting salam, noha and marsiya.Mehnaz was the daughter of popular
sub-continental singer Kajjan Begum.She sang over 2,500 songs for
radio‚ television and films in a variety of genres like ghazal, thumri,
dadra, khayal and drupad.

D)VISITORS

Mauritius President Rajkeswur Purryag Visited India

Mauritius President Rajkeswur Purryag visited India from 3 – 10

January .During the visit Purryag met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh
and Pranab Mukherjee on 4 January in New Delhi. In Bihar , he visited
his ancestral village , Bojeetpore near Patna.President Purryag also the
chief guest of Pravasi Bharatiya Divas .He attended the 3 days event
11th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas held in Kochi (Kerala).

Vice President Hamid Ansari Visited Vietnam

Vice President Hamid Ansari visited Vietnam from 14 to 17

January.During the visit Ansari met Vietnam’s Deputy Prime Minister Vu
Van Ninh and discussed the both countries bilateral issues , signed
several agreements .Ansari attended the closing ceremony of the
celebrations to mark the 40th anniversary of the India-Vietnam
diplomatic ties.

Bhutan King Wangchuck Visited India

The King of Bhutan, Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck visited India
from 23-30 January.During the visit he attended the India’s Republic Day
celebrations as a Chief Guest.Wangchuck met President Pranab
Mukherjee, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, and the United
Progressive Alliance’s Chairperson, Sonia Gandhi.This is the fourth time
since 1954 that a Bhutanese King will be a Chief Guest at India’s
Republic Day celebrations.

E)MISCELLANEOUS

Ex-Haryana CM Chautala, son get 10 years jail

Former Haryana chief minister Om Prakash Chautala and his son Ajay
had been sentenced to 10 years in jail in connection with a teachers
recruitment scam.Special CBI Judge Vinod Kumar sentenced the
Chautalas and seven others to 10 years in jail while one convict was
given five years in jail and 45 others four years in jail.

Swaminarayan sect opens $100-million quake-proof temple near

Hollywood

One of the biggest Hindu temples in the US, built at a whopping cost of
$100 million near the Hollywood city in Los Angeles .The 68th
Swaminarayan temple of Bochasanwasi Shri Akshar Purushottam
Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS) had been built using 35,000 pieces of
meticulously hand carved Italian Carrara marble and Indian Pink
Sandstone.

Premlata Conquers Summit of Mt Vinson in Antarctica

On 17 January Premlata Agrawal, the oldest woman in India to have

climbed Mt. Everest, has conquered Mt. Vinson in Antarctica in pursuit of
the ‘Mountaineering Challenge’ of climbing the ‘Seven Summits’.She
completed her Mt. Vinson expedition on January .The person successful
in conquering all the seven summits is considered a member of the ‘Hall
of Fame’ for mountaineers.Premlata will become the first Indian woman
and one of the oldest in the world to conquer all seven summits.

Ex-ISRO chairman Inducted in to ‘ Satellite Hall of Fame ‘

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) announced its former

chairman and Department of Space secretary Prof U R Rao by inducting
him as the member of the prestigious ‘ Satellite Hall of Fame ‘ ,
Washington.Since 1987, the SSPI Hall of Fame has been recognising
the invaluable contribution of the visionaries who have transformed life
on planet earth for the better through satellite technology. Members of
the Hall of Fame are recognised pioneers in communications, satellite
related aerospace scientific research or development and delivery of
applications for business, institutions and government via satellite.

David Headley sentenced for 35 years for 26/11 role(Mumbai

attacks)

Pakistani-American Lashkar-e-Tayiba terrorist David Headley was on 24

January 2013 sentenced to 35 years in jail by a Chicago court for his
‘unquestionable’ role in the massacre of 166 people in the 2008 Mumbai
attacks.

Forbes India Celebrity 100 List

According to the Forbes India “” Celebrity 100 List “” The Bollywood

superstar Shah Rukh Khan, topped the inaugural Forbes India Celebrity
100 list.Forbes India estimates, the total earning of Shah Rukh from
October 2011 and September 2012 was 202.8 crore Rupees.The
ranking was given based on the popularity as well as income of the
biggest entertainers of India. Second on the list was Salman Khan and
MS Dhoni followed in the third position.The special edition of Forbes
India judged in eight different categories – directors, film actors, TV
personailities, models, comedians, sports stars, authors and
singers/musicians.The youngest celebrity in the list of Forbes India was
Saina Nehwal, aged 23 years.

Switzerland best place to be born, India 66th

Switzerland has been called the best place in the world to be born in
2013 according to the The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), a sister
company of The Economist. The worst place for a baby to start life was
violence-hit African country Nigeria. The survey included 80 nations and
Australia ranked second followed by Norway, Sweden and Denmark.
Singapore, Netherlands, Hong Kong, Canada and New Zealand were
also ranked among top 10. India was ranked 66th place.The survey
included significant parameters to judge the best country to be born and
these factors included demography, geography, cultural and social
characteristics, state of economy, future income per head as well as
public policy.
 PLACES IN NEWS

Strong Quake in Indonesia

On 22nd January A strong, shallow earthquake rocked parts of western

Indonesia early killed 30 persons and panicking residents and ruining
homes. Several other people were injured.Indonesia’s meteorology and
geophysics agency put the preliminary magnitude at 6.0 and said the
inland quake caused no tsunami. It was centered southwest of the city of
Banda Aceh and 10 miles (6 kilometers) beneath the earth’s crust,
according to the U.S. Geological Survey..

233 People Killed in Brazil Night Club Fire Accident

On 27 January The blaze in the university town of Santa Maria nightclub

fire killed at least 233 people in southern Brazil .Most of those who died
were suffocated by toxic fumes that rapidly filled the crowded club after
sparks from pyrotechnics used by the band for visual effects set fire to
soundproofing on the ceiling.

ABBREVIATIONS

CBT————-Cash Transfer Benefit

EIU————–Economist Intelligence Unit

CBS————Central Bureau of Statistics

NLST———-National Large Solar Telescope

CEET———-Centre for Energy-Efficient Telecommunications

CIA———–American Intelligence Agency

WEF———-World Economic Forum

PBS———Pravasi Bhartiya Divas

MSME——–Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises

BWF———–Badminton World Federation

 BOOKS IN NEWS

Swami Vivekananda “The Monk as Man ” Book Released

The renowned Bengali writer Shankar wrote a “The Monk as Man ” book
on Swami Vivekananda ,who spread the message of India’s spiritual
heritage across the world.In the book Shankar described Vivekananda
used to emphasise greatly on physical strength and is known for the
shocking statement ‘Better to play football than read the Gita’.

McChrystal “My Share of the Task: A Memoir ” Book Released

General Stanley McChrystal, the former American commander in

Afghanistan, wrote a “My Share of the Task: A Memoir,” book which was
released on 7 January .In the book Chrystal explained that tensions
between the White House and the Pentagon were evident in the Obama
administration from its opening months in office.This book is not just for
aficionados of military history or for students of American foreign policy .

COMMITTEES

Vijay Kelkar Committee for Fiscal Consolidation

The Vijay Kelkar Committee, which was appointed by Finance Ministry

to suggest a roadmap for fiscal consolidation, has suggested immediate
hike in fuel prices and complete deregulation of diesel prices by start of
2014-15 fiscal.It also suggested raising kerosene and LPG rates.Now
the Kelkar committee recommendation is still at proposal stage.

Justice Verma Committee Submitted Report

On 23 January The three-member committee included former Chief

Justice of India, J S Verma, who headed the committee, Justice (Retd.)
Leila Seth, former Chief Justice of Himachal Pradesh High Court and
Gopal Subramanian, former Solicitor General of India , set up to suggest
ways to make rape laws stronger in the country, has submitted its report
with recommendations to enhance and amend existing laws dealing with
cases of sexual crime.The Justice Verma panel recognised failure of
governance as primary cause of sexual crimes.The Panel suggested
Trafficking should be made punishable with imprisonment ranging from
not less than 7 years to 10 years .There was a need for the separate Bill
of Rights for women that will make sure that women would have their
own rights for having sexual autonomy.”

February 2013 Current Affairs Study Material

UK, Afghan, Pakistan Leaders Hold Talks in Britain

On 4 February The leaders of Britain, Afghanistan and Pakistan pushed

for the Taliban to come to the table for peace talks to end Afghanistan’s
protracted conflict and gave themselves a six-month deadline to get a
deal.British Prime Minister David Cameron hosted Afghanistan’s
President Hamid Karzai and Pakistan’s President Asif Zardari for
trilateral talks on Afghanistan’s floundering peace and reconciliation
process.

UNICEF Syria Crisis Humanitarian Situation Report

On 8 February According to the UNICEF (United Nations Children’s

Fund )Syria Crisis Humanitarian Situation Report, The vaccination effort
in collaboration with the Ministry of Health is well underway, with over
53,000 children receiving measles vaccinations, over 44,000 receiving
vitamin A supplements, and over 10,000 polio doses administered.

Pakistan to Renamed Sindh Province to ‘Sind’

On 12 February 2013, the Sindh Assembly approved a bill to rename the

southern Pakistani province as Sind.The assembly approved the Sindh
Laws Amendment Bill of 2012, whereby the letter “h” will be removed
from the name of the province.

Russia Rejected U.S. Nuclear Warheads Proposals

On 14 February Russia rejected U.S. president Barack Obama

proposals , which deployed nuclear warhead delivery systems including
bombers, missile launchers and nuclear submarines – a cut of about
60%.In 2010 Russia and the United States signed on “New START”
agreement.The New Start treaty limits each side to no more than 800
deployed nuclear warhead delivery systems including bombers, missile
launchers and nuclear submarines – a cut of about 50%.

Rafael Correa Re-elected for 3rd term as Ecuador’s President

On 17 February Ecuadoreans president Rafael Correa has been re-
elected for a third term with more than 50 percent of votes in his
favour.As per the results, Rafael Correa got 56.7 percent while his
closest competitor Guillermo could secure only 23.3 percent.Correa is a
socialist leader who was first elected in 2006 December and he was
sworn in on 15 January 2007 as the 56th president of Ecuador.Correa
was re-elected to a second term in 2009.

Pakistan Hands Over Strategic Gwadar Port To China

On 18 February Pakistan and China signed an agreement to hand over

control of the strategic Gwadar port on the Arabian Sea to a Chinese
company.Under the agreement for transfer of concession rights, the
deep sea port will remain the property of Pakistan while the Chinese
company will share profits from its operation. China Overseas Port
Holdings Limited will fully assume responsibility for Gwadar port in
Balochistan province.

Israel’s Netanyahu Announced Coalition Deal with Tzipi Livni

On 19 Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has announced a coalition deal

with former Foreign Minister and the rival centrist Hatnua Party
Chairwomen Tzipi Livni, at Jerusalem. Under the deal agreement, Livni
will serve as the new Justice Minister and will oversee the peace efforts
with the Palestinians.Tzipi Livni is an Israeli Politician and the first
women to be the leader of opposition in Israel. She is the leader of the
new centrist party, Hatnuah. She served Israel as its Foreign Minister
from 2006 to 2009.

Russia and Brazil Signed on Defence Cooperation Agreements

On 20 February Russia and Brazil signed a Defence, Energy and

Agricultural agreements .Brazil agreed to negotiate the purchase of
Russian anti-aircraft missile batteries on the condition that Russia
transfer the technology to Brazilian defense companies without
restrictions.The agreements are signed by Russian Prime Minister
Dmitry Medvedev and Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff .

Nicos Anastasiades Elected as Cyprus New President

On 24 February the centre-right DISY (the Democratic Rally) party

leader Nicos Anastasiades, has won the presidential elections of Cyprus
with 57.5 percent votes.Nicos Anastasiades had a very easy going
victory over Communist-backed Stavros Malas who secured 42.5
percent votes in the election.

Raul Castro re-elected for Second Term as Cuba’s President

On 25 February Raul Castro has been re-elected as Cuba’s president

officially to his last five-year term.The National Assembly of People’s
Power approved, in the capital Havana, Army General Raul Castro Ruz
as president of the Council of State, and elected Miguel Diaz-Canel
Bermudez, as its first vice president.Raul Castro became interim
president when his brother, revolution icon Fidel, took ill in 2006. He
then formally became president in 2008.

INDIA & WORLD

India-Malaysia Double Taxation Agreement in Force

On 2 February India and Malaysia signed on double-taxation avoidance

agreement (DTAA). Dividends paid by Indian companies to Malaysian
investors or entities will attract a lower withholding tax of 5 percent
against 10 per cent earlier. The new agreement has also, in line with
international practice, introduced a new article for taxing capital gains
from alienation of property.

India Failed To Curb Sexual Violence Against Women

According to the Human Rights Watch (HRW) ‘ World Report 2013 ‘

India has been accused of failure to curb incidents of sexual violence
against women and for restrictions on right to free speech, India “has a
thriving civil society, free media, and an independent judiciary”, the city-
based rights group said in its assessment of rights abuses in India.

Six Indian Institutes in Global 150 Top Think-Tanks

On 3 February Six Indian research institutes, including Centre for Civil

Society (CCS), are among top 150 global think – tanks in the annual list
released by the University of Pennsylvania for the year 2012.The list
was topped by Brookings Institution (United States) followed by
Chatham House (United Kingdom) and Carnegie Endowment for
International Peace (United States).Other Indian think-tanks featured in
the list are:- Institute for Defence Studies and Analysis , Indian Council
for Research on International Economic Relations , The Energy and
Resources Institute , Observer Research Foundation and Development
Alternatives.

India and Austria Signed a Social Security Agreement

On 5 February India and Austria signed a social security agreement at

Vienna, under which the Indian professionals working in Austria would
be exempted from paying the social security contribution of the country,
if such payments are already made in India. Overseas Indian Affairs
Minister Vayalar Ravi and Austrian Minister for Labour and Social
Security, Rudoulf Hundstorfer signed on the agreement.

India Pledges $100m For Mali Reconstruction

On 5 February India pledges $100m for Mali reconstruction .India has

committed to giving $1 million for the upgrade of the Malian army with a
pledge to ramp up contributions for reconstruction to $100 million after
the situation stabilizes.

India and China Tourists Triple Australian Visits

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics report , Chinese and

Indian visitors, with tourist numbers from those countries tripled in the
past decade.630,000 visits from Chinese tourists in 2012 compared with
190,000 in 2002. Indian visits went from 45,000 to 160,000 in the same
period.Despite a high Australian dollar, Australia’s short-term visitor
numbers were up by nearly five percent since 2011 with 6.1 million short
trips made to Australia 270,000 more than in 2011.

Special Purpose Vehicle Formed for TAPI Pipeline Project

On 7 February The Union Cabinet gave its approval for formation of the
Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) for the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-
Pakistan-India (TAPI) Pipeline Project and to permit GAIL India Ltd. to
join the SPV. The four countries involved in the TAPI Gas pipeline
project, signed an Inter-Governmental Agreement along with a Gas
Pipeline Framework Agreement (GPFA).Turkmenistan and Pakistan
agreed to the formation of TAPl Ltd. The 1,680 km pipeline will carry 90
million metric standard cubic metres a day (mmscmd) of gas, and is
scheduled to become operational in 2018.

India and Japan to Strengthen Cooperation in Tourism Sector

India and Japan have resolved to strengthen cooperation in tourism
sector. This was decided at a meeting between the visiting Japanese
Senior Vice-Minister of Tourism, Mr. Hiroshi Kajiyama and Union
Tourism Minister Shri K Chiranjeevi in New Delhi on 12 February 2013.

India and France Signed 22 Agreements

On 14 February France and India have signed on 22 agreements after

French President Francois Hollande’s meetings with the Indian president
and the prime minister in New Delhi.Both nations exchanged views on a
number of bi-lateral, regional and multilateral issues and signed a
Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in order to facilitate technical
cooperation in Railways to each other.Chairman, Railway Board, India
and Chairman and CEO SNCF from the French side signed this
MoU.Both the nations also concluded negotiations on the short range
surface to Air missile to be co-produced in India. They also agreed on
the need to reinvigorate economic engagement between the two
countries.

India and Bangladesh Signed Land Boundary Agreement

On 16 February India and Bangladesh held the second Joint

Consultative Commission meeting in Dhaka .After the meeting , both
countries exchanged one strip map as part of the process of the
implementation of the agreement signed to resolve land boundary issues
between them.In addition, two MOUs were also signed for the
construction of a rail link to connect Akhaura in Bangladesh to Agartala
in India and for setting up a thinktank to be called Bangladesh-India
Foundation.The India-Bangladesh Joint Consultative Commission is an
interministerial body of the two countries headed by the Minister of
External Affairs of India and Foreign Minister of Bangladesh.

CBI probe Ordered into Rs 3700 crore Italian Chopper Deal Scam

In February 2010, India had inked the deal with Italain Finmeccanica to
acquire the 12 three-engine AW-101 helicopters from AgustaWestland
for IAF’s elite Communication Squadron ,which ferries around the
President, PM and other VVIPs.The deal came under the scanner of
Italian agencies after allegations of kickback given in India surfaced.The
agencies arrested Giuseppe Orsi, the head of Italian defence and
aerospace giant Finmeccanica as part of their probe related to
international corruption.Around 50 million euros , about 10 per cent of
the deal, were alleged to have been given as bribes to ensure that the
company won the contract.On February The Defence Ministry has
ordered CBI probe into alleged scam in a Rs 3600 crore defence
helicopter deal after arrest of head of Italian firm Finmeccanica on
charges of bribery.

India and Britain Discussed on Nuclear Cooperation

“On 19 February Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Britain

Prime Minister David Cameron discussed on regional and global issues
,which included key issues of nuclear energy cooperation, security,
terrorism and trade .The two sides have also decided to commence
negotiations on a bilateral Civil Nuclear Agreement.Britain has assured
that it will extend all cooperation to any Indian probe into the multi-
million-dollar helicopter scam which involves Italian defense giant
Finmeccanica’s UK-based subsidiary AgustaWestland.David Cameron
announced that his country is going to introduce sameday visa service
for Indian businessmen in a bid to accelerate the bilateral trade between
the two sides.”

India won Kishanganga Case Against Pakistan

On 18 February the Court of Arbitration at the Hague allowed India to go

ahead with the Construction of the Kishanganga hydroelectric project in
Gurez valley near Bandipura in North Kashmir, the court rejected the
plea of Pakistan that the construction was a violation of 1960 Indus
Water Treaty.The Court of Arbitration, chaired by Stephen M. Schwebel
in its orders stated that India can move ahead with the diversion of water
plans of Kishanganga that is a tributary of Jhelum, for generation of
hydro-electric power. But it restrained India from adoption of the
drawdown technique of flushing for clearing the sedimentation of the
run-of-the river project that had been designed and asked it to adopt a
different technique for generation of 330 MW power facilities.

NATIONAL

President Gave Assent to the Criminal Law (Amendment)

Ordinance, 2013

On 3 February President Pranab Mukherjee gave his assent to the

Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance, 2013 which provides for,
amongst other things, stricter punishment for crimes against women.
The Ordinance was to be largely based on the recommendations of the
Justice Verma Committee.However, the Ordinance will have to be
passed by Parliament within six months otherwise the same shall lapse.

All Juvenile Crimes 64% by 16-18 yr Old Age Group

On 4 February According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB)

data shows that most juvenile crimes are committed by those in the age
group of 16-18 years.In 2011 the growth in rape by juveniles (34%) over
2010 was again among the highest.In 2011, 64% of all juvenile criminals
fall in the age group of 16-18. In 2011, 33,887 juveniles were arrested
for 25,178 instances of crime.All together make for over 50% of all rape
cases by juveniles.

Aero India 2013 “ Held in Bangalore

The Asia’s biggest airshow “Aero India 2013”, a biennial air show and
aviation exhibition held from 6 – 10th February at the Yelehanka Air
Force Station in Bangalore .In the event displays magnificent aerobatic
skills and belongings that created a chance of winning potential business
tieups and networking. Defence Minister of India, A K Antony
inaugurated the Air Show on 6 February .In the event 53 civil and
military aircraft and 27 countries participated and 78 delegations
attended from US, Israel and Russia.The first Edition of the show was
organised for the first time in 1996.The next Aero India show is
scheduled to be held from 18 February to 22 February 2015 at
Bangalore.

Cabinet Approved Rs.38500 cr Rural Road Development Plan

On 7 February The Union Cabinet approved a Rs 38,500 crore rupees

for road connectivity under the Prime Minister’s Gram Sadak Yojana
(PMGSY).The schemes approved were mainly for connectivity to
villages in tribal areas, desert and hilly areas, with a population of at
least 250 each.In 82 areas hit by Naxalite violence, villages with less
than 250 people are also to be connected under the scheme.

Parliament Attack Case Convict Afzal Guru Hanged

On 9 February in a top secret operation , the 2001 Parliament attack

case convict Mohammed Afzal Guru was hanged in Delhi’s Tihar
jail.Afzal Guru was given the death sentence by the Supreme Court in
2004.The President rejected the Afzal Guru’s mercy petition on 23
January 2013.The code name of the secret operation was Operation
“Three Star “ .
Centre Notified Cauvery Dispute Tribunal Award

After six years,on the directions of the Supreme Court, the Central
Government of India has notified the final award of the Cauvery Water
Disputes Tribunal (CWDT) on sharing the waters of the Cauvery system
among the basin States of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala and
Union territory of Puducherry on 20 February.The Tribunal, comprising
chairman Justice N.P. Singh and members N.S. Rao and Sudhir Narain,
in a unanimous award in February, 2007 had determined the total
availability of water in the Cauvery basin at 740 thousand million cubic
(TMC) feet at the Lower Coleroon Anicut site.In, what was then
described as a balancing act, the Tribunal gave Tamil Nadu 419 TMC of
water (as against the demand of 562 TMC); Karnataka 270 TMC (as
against its demand of 465 TMC); Kerala 30 TMC and Puducherry 7
TMC.After the issuance of the notification, institutions like the Cauvery
River Authority (CRA) chaired by the Prime Minister and the CMC will
cease to exist.

STATES

Sonia Gandhi Launched “Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram “

Scheme

On 6 February Congress President and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi

launched “ Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram (RBSK)”, a new children
health care project initiative in Palghar, a tribal block in Thane district of
Maharashtra.The Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram, is a part of the
National Rural Health Mission of the Union Ministry of Health and Family
Welfare. The scheme is aimed at improving overall quality of life of
children through early detection of birth defects, diseases and
deficiencies, which are among key factors for child mortality.

Maharashtra Promulgates Ordinance To Amend Cooperative

Societies Act

On 15 February the Maharashtra Government promulgated an

ordinance to amend the Maharashtra Co-operative Societies Act, which
aims to promote voluntary formation, autonomous functioning,
democratic control and professional management of co-operative
societies.The ordinance is to amend the Act to make it in consonance
with the 97th constitutional amendment by Parliament last year.
India’s First Geothermal Plant in Chhattisgarh

On 17 February Chhattisgarh has signed an agreement with the National

Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) to set up the country’s first
geothermal power plant in its newlyformed Balrampur district.A
memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the project was signed
between the NTPC and the Chhattisgarh Renewable Energy
Development Agency (CREDA). The plant will come up at Tata Pani in
Balrampur, a district located in extreme northern region of the state.

Rajasthan Constituted a Task Force to Check the Spread of Swine

Flu in State

On 19 February the State Government of Rajasthan decided to

constitute a task force to control Swine Flu effectively. Chief Secretary of
the State, CK Matthew was appointed as the head of the task force
constituted.The state had witnessed 148 cases of death and 834
positive cases since April 2012. A central team that constitutes of five
doctors and microbiologist is on the state visit and would pay a visit to
Jodhpur, Ajmer and Bikaner, areas worst affected from the disease.

Cabinet Approved NTPC Power Project in Jharkhand

On 20 February the Cabinet Committee on Investment (CCI) approved

the setting up of the 1,980 MW North Karanpura Super Thermal Power
Plant in Jharkhand by the National Thermal Power Corporation
(NTPC).The Cabinet committee of investment also agreed for restoring
the original coal linkage for the project and declared that the project will
be based on environment friendly super-critical technology. This supply
will be made available in the 13th Five Year Plan.

Tripura, Meghalaya and Nagaland Assembly Elections Results

Northeastern states of Tripura ,Meghalaya and Nagaland Assembly

election was released on 28 February .The Assembly elections in the
three states, having 60 seats each, were held February 14 and February
23.In Tripura the CPI-M on its own won 49 seats out of the total 60 seats
and stormed back to power in Tripura for the fifth straight term.Chief
Minister Manik Sarkar won from Dhanpur by a margin of around 5,000
votes. It was Sarkar’s sixth win.Meghalaya – The Indian National
Congress here has won 29 seats in the election to the 60-member
Meghalaya Assembly with Chief Minister Mukul Sangma, winning with
huge margins.Nagaland – Ruling Naga Peoples Front combine returned
to power with an absolute majority in Nagaland winning 39 seats in the
60-member Assembly.The ruling NPF-led Democratic Alliance of
Nagaland (DAN) alliance will form government for a third consecutive
term.Congress managed to win eight seats. Nagaland Chief Minister
Neiphiu Rio won from Northern Angami II seat by defeating his nearest
Congress rival Kevise Sogotsu of Congress by 12,671 votes.

Desalination Plant in Tamil Nadu Commissioned

On 22 February J. Jayalalithaa, Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu

inaugurated a desalination plant at Nemmeli in Kanchipuram district of
the state.The plant which will benefit over 15 lakh residents in Velachery,
Pallipattu and Tiruvanmiyur areas of south Chennai has been set up with
an investment of Rs 871 crore. About 265 million ltrs of water will be
drawn from the sea to realise 100 million ltrs per day of drinking water
through the plant spread over 40 acre.

CONFERENCES

13th Delhi Sustainable Development Summit (DSDS)

The 13th Delhi Sustainable Development Summit (DSDS) concluded on

2 February at NewDelhi.The theme of the summit is ‘The Global
Challenge of Resource Efficient Growth and Development’.”Among from
30 countries Heads of Governments , research institutions, policy-
makers, NGOs and corporates attended the summit.The Summit
organized annually since 2001 by The Energy and Resources Institute
(TERI), is an international platform for exchange of knowledge on all
nuances of sustainable development.

AWARDS & HONOURS

Malala Yousafzai nominated for Nobel Peace Prize

Malala Yousafzai, who was shoot by the Talibans against the girl
education was nominated for this year’s Nobel Peace Prize, as the
deadline expired on 01 February 2013. French, Canadian and
Norwegian MPs have all separately nominated Malala.This year’s award
will be announced in early October, but speculation was already
underway as the deadline for nominations ran out on 1 February .

L. N. Tallur won Skoda Art Prize 2012

On 1 February Karnataka artist L. N. Tallur, whose works depict majorly

the underbelly of India, has won the Rs 1 million Skoda Prize 2012 for
contemporary art, from among a shortlist of four artists including an artist
collective.

13th Delhi Sustainable Development Summit (DSDS) Awards

Sustainable Development Leadership Award :- The Seychelles

President, Mr James Michel has been awarded the Sustainable
Development Leadership Award at the Delhi Sustainable Development
Summit . Georgescu roegen Award : The award is Kozo Mayumi
(Professor at Faculty of Integrated Arts and Sciences, The University of
Tokushima). The co-winners of the Georgescu-Roegen Award
(bioeconomic practice) are Accion Ecologica and Oilwatch.

South Sudan Bishop Taban won UN Peace Award

On 9 February A South Sudan’s Bishop Emeritus Paride Taban has won

a coveted 2013 UN peace prize ( Sergio Viera de Mello Prize ) in
recognition of his efforts to build trust among warring communities in the
conflict-torn region.Vieira de Mello, the UN’s former human rights chief,
was killed in a bombing in Iraq in 2003. The annual prize in his honour is
awarded to a person, community or institution that has made an
exceptional contribution to reconciliation of communities or groups in
conflict, and whose example can be duplicated elsewhere.

Pandit Ravi Shankar honoured with the Lifetime Achievement

Grammy award

Sitar legend Pandit Ravi Shankar was honoured with the Lifetime
Achievement Grammy award, which was jointly accepted by his
daughters Anoushka Shankar and Norah Jones on 9 February 2013.He
was posthumously awarded the best world music album trophy at the
55th Grammys, a day after being honoured with a Lifetime Achievement
award by The Recording Academy.He got “55 Grammy award for his
album ‘The Living Room Sessions Part 1’ .

National e-Governance award for Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh had been conferred upon the prestigious National e-
Governance Gold Award for 2012-13, for its ‘Sparsh Abhiyan’ aimed
towards the disabled and the aged.

Amartya Sen honoured with France’s highest civilian award

The French president Mr Francois Hollande honoured the Amartya Sen

with the France’s highest civilian award, ‘Commandeur de la Legion
d’Honneur’ (Legion of Honour) after delivering the Madhavrao Scindia
Memorial Lecture in New Delhi on 15 February 2013.The prestigious
honour is the reason for his enormous contribution to the field of
economics and for his exchanges with French academic institutions
would also be recognised.

Paul Hansen Won “2012 World Press Photo “ Award

On 15 February Swedish photographer Paul Hansen has won the “2012

World Press Photo award” with a picture of two Palestinian children
killed in an Israeli missile strike being carried to their funeral.The picture
shows a group of men marching the dead bodies through a narrow
street in Gaza City.World Press Photo, one of photojournalism’s most
prestigious contests, issued awards in nine categories to 54
photographers of 32 nationalities.

63rd Berlin Film Festival Awards

The awarding ceremony of the 63rd Berlinale ended on 16 February in

Berlin.Romanian film “Child’s Pose” won the Golden Bear, the top jury
prize awarded to the best film in the Berlin International Film Festival.

Best Film :- Child’s Pose ( Romania )

Best Actor :- Nazif Mujic in “Life of an Iron Picker”

(Bosnia/France/Slovenia)

Best Actress :- Paulina Garcia in “Gloria” (Chile/Spain)

Best Director :- David Gordon Green for “Prince Avalanche” (US)

Best ScreenPlay :- Jafar Panahi for “Parde” (Closed Curtain) Iran.

Ela Bhatt honoured with Indira Gandhi Peace Prize

Ela Bhatt, founder of the Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA),

was presented with the Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and
Development for the year 2011 by the President of India, Pranab
Mukherjee at Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi on 18 February 2013.Ela
Bhatt was honoured for her life time achievements in empowering
women, promoting grassroot level entrepreneurship and for her
contribution towards promoting equitable development and peace.

Ratan Tata receives E&Y lifetime award

Former Tata Group head Ratan Tata is this year’s recipient of the ‘life
time achievement award’ instituted by Ernst & Young, for ‘asserting a
greater role for Indian entrepreneurs on the global business
landscape’.The entrepreneur of the year (2012) award went to Godrej
Group Chairman Adi Godrej.The entrepreneur of the year is the only
business award to be based on self-nomination.

Oscars Awards-2013

85th Oscar awards presentation ceremony held in Los Angels on 25

February 2013.In this ceremoney Life of Pi cinema got a 4 Oscar
awards.

Best Picture: Argo

Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln)

Best Actress: Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook)

Best Supporting Actor: Christoph Waltz (Django Unchained)

Best Supporting Actress:Anne Hathaway (Les Misérables)

Best Directing: Ang Lee(Life of Pi)

Best Adapted Screenplay:Chris Terrio( Argo)

Best Original Screenplay: Quentin Tarantino (Django Unchained)

Best Documentary Feature: Searching for Sugar Man

Best Original Song:Skyfall” from Skyfall, music and lyrics by Adele

Adkins and Paul Epworth

Best Original Score: Life of Pi

Best Animated Feature: Brave

Best Cinematography:Life of Pi

Best Costume Design: Anna Karenina

Best Documentary Short Subject:Inocente

Best Film Editing:Argo

Best Foreign Language Film:Amour (Austria)

Best Makeup and Hairstyling: Les Misérables

Best Production Design:Lincoln

Best Short Film (Animated): Paperman

Best Short Film (Live Action): Curfew

Best Sound Editing: Skyfall (TIE), Zero Dark Thirty (TIE),

Best Sound Mixing: Les Misérables

Best Visual Effects: Life of Pi

SPORTS & GAMES

Leander Paes, Jaideep Mukherjee Received” Davis Cup

Commitment “ Award

On 2 February Indian tennis legends Leander Paes and Jaideep

Mukherjee were felicitated by the All India Tennis Association (AITA) at
the RK Khanna Tennis Stadium , when they were presented with the
Davis Cup Commitment Trophy.Mukherjee made his Davis Cup debut in
1960 against Thailand and had a 62-35 win-loss record while Paes is
currently playing his 49th Davis Cup tie here against South Korea.

Graeme Smith Captains his 100th Test

On 4 February South African test cricket team captain Graeme Smith

has created a unique record by leading the side in 100th test.As the
South African captain Graeme Smith stepped on the field against
Pakistan, he became the only captain in the world to have led the team
in 100 test matches.Earlier, the record for captaining in most number of
test matches was held by former Australian skipper Allan Border. Allan
Border led the Australian test cricket team in 93 test matches. Sourav
Ganguly holds the record of captaining Indian test team in most number
of test matches. Sourav played as skipper in 49 test matches. Now,
Graeme Smith is the only cricketer to play as captain in 100 test
matches.

India Won Record 46 Medals in Special Olympics

On 6 February India’s differently-abled athletes returned with the largest

haul of medals in the 2013 Special Olympics World Winter Games at
Pyeong Chang, South Korea.The Indians won 46 medals – 13 gold, 17
silver and 16 bronze – from among mentally-challenged 2200 athletes
from over 120 nations in the Games .India doubled its medal tally from
the World Winter Games 2009.The Games are being competed in eight
sports .

Sachin Equaled Sunil Gavaskar’s First Class Cricket Record

On 8 February Sachin Tendulkar equaled the record of Sunil Gavaskar

of 81 first class hundreds in first class cricket at Mumbai. He managed to
equal Gavaskar’s record after scoring an unbeaten 140 runs in Irani
Trophy against Rest of India in the first innings of the tournament of
Mumbai team.When he reached 106, Tendulkar also completed 25,000
runs in first class cricket.

Wrestling Dropped From 2020 Olympic Games List

On 12 February the International Olympic Committee (IOC) leaders

dropped wrestling from the 2020 Olympic Games.Wrestling will be
included at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.The IOC board acted
after reviewing the 26 sports on the current Olympic program.
Eliminating one sport allows the IOC to add a new sport to the program
later this year.Wrestling will now join seven other sports in applying for
inclusion in 2020. The others are a combined bid from baseball and
softball, karate, squash, roller sports, sport climbing, wakeboarding and
wushu. They will be vying for a single opening in 2020.The last sports
removed from the Olympics were baseball and softball, voted out by the
IOC in 2005 and off the program since the 2008 Beijing Games. Golf
and Rugby will be joining the program at the 2016 Games in Rio de
Janeiro.

Victoria Azarenka won Qatar Open Tennis Title

On 18 February Defending champion Victoria Azarenka from Belarus
defeated Serena Williams (America) to won the Qatar Open tennis title
in the final at Doha.

Sania Mirza won Dubai Tennis Championship Title

On 23 February India’s Sania Mirza and her American partner Bethanie-

Mattek Sands won the Dubai Tennis Championship title. The Indo-
American duo defeated the second seeded Russian-Slovenian
combination of Nadia Petrova and Katarina Srebotnik. Sania bagged her
second Doubles title of the season.

ECONOMY

BHEL and GAIL Granted Maharatna Status

On 1 February The Union Government of India granted Maharatna

status to BHEL (Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd ) and GAIL (Gas Authority
of India Limited), a development which will provide them greater financial
and functional autonomy and also ensure better valuation for shares of
the two public sector undertakings.Ideally any Maharatna firm has a
capacity to take investment decision of around 5000 crore Rupees
without taking assistance from the government. On the other hand,
forms with Navratna status have the capability of 1000 crore Rupees.For
any company to qualify for Maharatna status, the annual turnover should
be over 25000 crore Rupees in past three years, as per the guidelines
issued by Department of Public Enterprises.

Per capita Monthly Income Growth Eases to 14% in 2011-12

On 1 February According to the the revised data of national accounts the

per capita monthly income, a measure to assess standard of living, grew
at a slower rate of 13.7 per cent to Rs 5,130 in 2011-12 at current prices
compared to Rs 4,513 in 2010-11.On the Gross Domestic Saving (GDS)
front, the data revealed that the growth at current prices in 2011-12
slowed to 30.8 per cent of GDP at market prices against 34 per cent in
the previous year.The gross domestic capital formation has increased
from “Rs 28,71,649 crore in 2010-11 to Rs 31,41,465 crore in 2011- 12
at current prices.It further revealed that the per capita private final
consumption expenditure (PFCE) at current prices in 2011-12 is
estimated at Rs 42,065 as against Rs 36,677 in the year 2010-11,
showing an increase of 14.7 per cent against an increase of 15.7 per
cent in the previous year.

Argentina Censured by the IMF for Economic Data

On 3 February The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has censured

Argentina for the quality of its official inflation and GDP data.Inflation in
Argentina is estimated by private economists to be at 25% a year and
rising but the government reported it at 11% or less for last
year.Argentina became the first country to be censured by the
International Monetary Fund for not providing accurate data on inflation
and economic growth under a procedure that can end in expulsion.

Mumbai Is World’s Cheapest City

Mumbai shares the title of the world’s cheapest city with Karachi, in
Pakistan, according to the “Worldwide Cost of Living 2013” survey by the
Economist Group’s Economic Intelligence Unit.After Mumbai and
Pakistan comes Delhi ,Algiers, Bucharest, Colombo and Panama
City.According to the report, the five most expensive cities in the world
are Tokyo and Osaka in Japan, Sydney, Oslo and Melbourne.

Railway Budget 2013-14

On 26 February Railway Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal presented the

2013-14 Railway Budget in the Loksabha . Railway Budget 2013-14
Highlights :-

2013-14 Railway Budget Estimates – Rs.42,210 crores

Highest ever plan outlay of Rs.63,363 crores in 2013-14

Good Earnings – Rs.93,554 crores

Good Traffic Receipts – Rs.1,43,742 crores

Total Revenue Receipts – Rs.1,46,626 crores

Ordinary Working Expenses – Rs.96,500 crores

Operating Ratio to be 87.8%. -

A new Forged Wheel Factory at Rae Bareli, Coach Manufacturing Unit in

Sonepat District (Haryana) ,Midlife Rehabilitation Workshop at Kurnool
(Andhra Pradesh), new wagon maintenance workshop in Kalahandi
(Odisha).

Highest ever plan outlay of Rs.63,363 crores

5.2 per cent growth in passenger traffic expected in 2013-14

Freight loading of 1047 MT, 40 MT more than 2012-13.

67 new Express trains to be introduced.26 new passenger services, 8

DEMU services and 5 MEMU services to be introduced. Run of 57 trains
to be extended. Frequency of 24 trains to be increased.22 new rail lines
to be taken up in 2013-14

Proposal for setting up of Railway Tariff Regulatory Authority formulated

and at inter-ministerial consultation stage. Fuel Adjustment Component
(FAC) linked revision for freight tariff to be implemented from 1st April
2013.

72 additional suburban services in Mumbai and 18 in Kolkata

An independent Rail Tariff Authority has been formalised

ndian Railways Institute of Financial Management to be set up at

Secunderabad

Recruitment to RPF with 10% vacancies reserved for women.Seek to fill

1.52 lakh vacancies in railways this year. 47000 vacancies for weaker
sections and physically challenged to be filled up soon

By end of 2013-14, 1,500 km of contracts to be awarded for two

dedicated rail corridors Economic Survey of contracts to be awarded for
two dedicated rail corridors.

Union Budget 2013-14

On 28 February Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram Presented the

Rs.16,65 279 Crore(Planed Expenditure Rs. 5,55,322 crore , Non
Planed Expenditure Rs 11,09,975 crore) Union budget in the Lok Sabha
for the financial year 2013-14.This is the 82’nd Budget for India and 8th
Budget for the Finance Minister P Chidambaram.In the past, former
Prime Minister Morarji Desai presented the Union Budget 8 times as
Finance Minister. The Highlights of Union Budget 2013-14: Total budget
expenditure seen at 16.65 trillion rupees in 2013-14.
on-plan expenditure estimated at about 11.1 trillion rupees in 2013-14.

India’s 2013-14 plan expenditure seen at 5.55 trillion rupees

Revised estimate for total expenditure is 14.3 trillion rupees in 2012-13,

which is 96 point of budget estimate

Expect 133 billion rupees through direct tax proposals in 2013-14

Expect 47 billion rupees through indirect tax proposals in 2013-14

Target 558.14 billion rupees from stake sales in state-run firms in 2013-
14

Expect revenue of 408.5 bln rupees from airwave surcharges, auction of

telecom spectrum, licence fees in 2013-14

But will give some tax relief of Rs. 2000 for every person who has an
annual income of up to Rs. 5 lakh

RBI expected GDP growth of 5.5% for Financial Year 2013-14

Rs.1000-crore Nirbhaya Fund announced for the empowerment of

women

Rs.6,000 crore to be allocated for rural housing fund

Defence allocation increased to Rs. 2.03 lakh crore

Rs. 6,275 crore to ministry of science and technology, Rs. 5,880 crore to
Department of Atomic Energy

Rs.27,049 crore allocation to the Agriculture Ministry

Rs. 37,330 crore allocated for Ministry of Health & Family Welfare

Rs.110 crore to be allocated to the department of disability affairs

Rs.37,330 crore allocated for Ministry of Health & Family Welfare

Rs.14000 crore will be provided for PSB recapitalization. He will

constitute a panel on transaction costs, and financial policies.

Rs.6,5867 crore for Education , an increase of 17 percent over RE for

2012- 13.
Rs 6275 crore to Ministry of Technology

Rs.2 trillion for defence sector

Rs.15,260 crore to be allocated to Ministry of Drinking Water and

Sanitation.

Rs.14,873 crore for JNNURM for urban transportation

Rs.80,194 crore allocation for Ministry of Rural Development

Rs.33,000 crore for MGNREGA

Rs.37,330 crore allocated for Ministry of Health & Family Welfare.

Rs.13215 crore for mid-day meal programme

Rs.41,561 crore for SC plan and Rs 24,598 crore for tribal plan.

3511 crore allocation to minorities which is 12 per cent hike over budget
estimates, 110 crore rupees allotted for welfare of disabled.

65867 crore rupees have been allocated to the Ministry of Human

resources development which is 17 per cent hike over the revised
estimates.

A surcharge of 10 percent on persons (other than companies) whose

taxable income exceeds Rs.1 crore have been levied.

Relief of Rs. 2000 for the tax payers in the first bracket of 2 to 5 lakhs.”

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Iran launches new fighter jet

Iran had unveiled a new home-made combat aircraft on 02 February

2013.Iran announced that this is the most Sophisticated aircraft in the
world.The name of this aircraft was Qaher F313 (Dominant F313).Qaher
F313 was designed using the Advanced Electro-Aviation System.

World’s Largest Prime Number Discovered with 17,425,170 digits

Researchers from the University of Central Missouri in Warrensburg
discovered the largest prime number of the world, Contains 17 Million
Digits. This is the 48th Mersenne prime found so far. However there are
certain rare kinds of prime numbers called Mersenne primes which have
the form 2 multiplied by itself p times minus 1, where p denotes a prime
number. The new largest prime is 2 multiplied by itself 57885161 times
minus 1.

First Complete Bionic Man Unveiled in U.K

On 7 February The world’s first complete ‘Bionic Man’ named “ Rex ”

was unveiled at London’s Science Museum. The bionic man was
created using 1 million US dollar limbs as well as organs.Rex has a
human face with brown eyes and a height of 6.5 feet. It was designed
jointly with assistance from 18 universities and companies.

Rudra Inducted into the Army

On 8 February The first indigenously built Weapon System Integrated

Advanced Light Helicopter, “Rudra” was handed over to the Indian Army
by the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) .Rudra is the Mk-IV variant
of the Advanced Light Helicopter designed and manufactured by HAL.
The helicopter is fitted with weapons, targeting systems, warning and
counter-measure systems and survivability features.This is the first of
the 60 armed helicopters provided to the army by the Hindustan
Aeronautics Limited (HAL) after the Defence Ministry handed over the
control of all attack helicopters to the land force.

Indian Coast Guard Ship ‘Rajratan’ Commissioned

On 11 February Indian Coast Guard ship “ Rajratan “ , the fifth in a

series of eight Inshore Patrol Vessels (IPVs), was commissioned by
Indian Coast Guard.The vessel has been indigenously built by Garden
Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers, Kolkata.The 50m long IPV can
achieve a maximum speed of 34 knots, with an endurance of 1,500
nautical miles at an economical speed of 16 knots.

North Korea conducted third nuclear test

On 12 February 2013,North Korea “successfully” conducted a third

underground nuclear test with the violation of United Nations
sanctions.In the past North Korea two times conducted nuclear tests but
this is most powerful than those tests.North Korea announced that,a
miniaturised nuclear device had been detonated successfully at the test
site.The test was reported to have taken place at a test site in the North
Hamgyeong province, where the Punggye-ri nuclear complex that
conducted tests in 2006 and 2009 is located.

Asteroid “ 2012 DA14 “ Passed Very Near To Earth

The small Asteroid named “ 2012 DA14 “ with an estimated diameter of

50 meters (160 ft) and an estimated mass of 190,000 metric tons passed
within about 3.5 Earth radii of the Earth’s surface on February 15.During
its 2013 close passage, the asteroid passed 27,700 km (17,200 mi) from
the surface of Earth. Scientists at NASA estimated that an asteroid the
size of 2012 DA14 flies this close to Earth about once every 40 years. A
2012 DA14-size asteroid impacts Earth once every 1,200 years, on
average.

PSLV-C20 Successfully Launched ‘SARAL’ and 6 Other Satellites

On 25 February ISRO’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) from the

Satish Dawan Space centre at SPSR Nellore in Sriharikota , launched
the Indo-French satellite “SARAL” along with six commercial payloads
from Austria, Britain, Canada and Denmark into a 785-km polar
sunsynchronous orbit.It was the 23rd mission of PSLV, which has an
impeccable record of 21 consecutive successful flights.

About SARAL:- – The Saral mission results from the common interest of
both ISRO and CNES in studying the ocean from space. For instance, it
can provide information on seasonal forecasting, study on animal
migration, locating ‘buoys’ and fishing vessels, collecting environmental
data such as ocean temperature profiles and currents.

Besides Saral, the PSLV-C20 has put into orbit two micro-satellites
UniBRITE and BRITE (both from Austria), AAUSAT3 from Denmark and
STRaND from UK. It also carried one micro-satellite (NEOSSat) and one
mini-satellite (SAPPHIRE) from Canada.With a lift-off mass of 407 kg,
Saral is the 56th satellite to be launched by PSLV.The six commercial
payloads from abroad together have a lift-off mass of 259.5 km.PSLV-
C20 is the ninth PSLV in ‘core alone’ configuration (without solid strap-
on motors).

PERSONS IN NEWS

A) APPOINTMENTS
Mo Yan and Jackie Chan Selected As Members of Chinese
Parliament

On 3 February Mo Yan, the winner of Nobel Prize for literature, 2012

and Jackie Chan, the movie star were given a political role in China by
being selected as members of the Chinese People’s Political
Consultative Conference, one of the houses of Chinese parliament.

Prachanda elected as Maoist president of ruling UCPN-Maoist party

Prachanda, the powerful Maoist leader who became prime minister after
toppling the 239-year-old monarchy in Nepal, was elected as the
president of the ruling UCPNMaoist party on 08 February 2013.58-
yearold Prachanda, whose real name is Pushpa Kamal Dahal.

Indian American Subra Suresh Appointed as President of Carnegie

Mellon

On 9 February US President Obama’s top science official and Indian

American Padma Shri awardee Dr Subra Suresh has been appointed as
the new president of Carnegie Mellon University. He will succeed Dr.
Jared L. Cohon, who led the university to unprecedented growth during
his 16-year tenure. Dr Suresh will assume office on July 1 after Dr
Cohon would step down on June 30, this year.

Ratan Tata Elected To “National Academy of Engineering“

On 9 February Ratan Tata, chairman emeritus of the Tata Group, has

been elected as a member of the prestigious ‘ National Academy of
Engineering ‘ of the US along with 10 new foreign members.This is the
highest professional distinction accorded to an engineer in the US.Ratan
Tata has been selected for his outstanding contributions to industrial
development in India and the world.

B)RESIGNS

D.C.Chief Financial Officer Natwar Gandhi To Resign

Indian American, Natwar M. Gandhi, Chief Financial officer (CFO) of

Washington DC ,announced his resignation on 1 February.He will resign
on 1 June 2013.Gandhi has held the office since 2000 and was
appointed to a new, five-year term last year.

Solicitor-General Rohinton Nariman resigns

Solicitor-General of India Rohinton Nariman resigned 04 February
2013.Mr. Nariman was appointed as the second most senior law official
of the country on July 23, 2011 following the resignation of Gopal
Subramanium on July 14, 2011.

Obama’s Top Science Official Suresh Resigned

On 6 February US President Barack Obama’s top science official and

Padma Shri awardee Subra Suresh has resigned from his current
position to join the prestigious Carnegie Mellon University as its chief.As
director of National Science Foundation (NSF) since 2010, Suresh was
responsible for driving scientific research of the country.Suresh has co-
authored more than 240 journal articles, registered 21 patents and
written three widely used materials science books.

Nagaland Home Minister resigns

Nagaland Home Minister Imkong L. Imchen was resigned from the ruling
Naga People’s Front (NPF) government on 19 February 2013.Mr.
Imchen put in his papers after the Election Commission authorities
seized cash amounting to more than Rs.1 crore and weapons from his
vehicle on 18 February by troopers of Assam Rifles at Sathupang area
in Wokha district.

Pope Benedict XVI Resigned

On 28 February Pope Benedict XVI a position in which he serves dual

roles as Sovereign of the Vatican City State and leader of the Catholic
Church resigned his post.Pope Benedict XVI’s birth name is Joseph
Aloisius Ratzinger.Benedict XVI was elected on 19 April 2005 in a papal
conclave, celebrated his Papal Inauguration Mass on 24 April 2005, and
took possession of his cathedral, the Archbasilica of St. John Lateran,
on 7 May 2005. A native of Bavaria, he has both German and Vatican
citizenship.

C)DEATHS

Former Puducherry CM Shanmugam passes away

Former Chief Minister of Puducherry P. Shanmugam passed away at the

Karaikal Government Hospital on 02 February 2013.A bachelor,
Shanmugam was the chief minister of Puducherry from March 22, 2000
to Oct 27, 2001 and represented the union territory in the Lok Sabha
between 1980-1991.
China’s Table Tennis Legend Zhuang Zedong Died

On 10 February the china’s table tennis legend , Zhuang Zedong died in

Beijing .Zhuang Zedong is a three-time world table tennis
champion.Zhuang Zedong remained a crucial figure in ping-pong
diplomacy of 1971 and is popularly also called the Architect of Ping-
Pong Diplomacy. Pingpong diplomacy means exchange of the table
tennis (ping-pong) players between China and US

American Philosopher and Legal Scholar Dworkin Died

Ronald Dworkin a renowned American philosopher and a Constitutional

Law expert died on 14 February at London .He wrote books named A
Matter of Principle, Law’s Empire and Justice for Hedgehogs.

Radhakishan Malviya former Union Minister died

Former Union Minister and senior Madhya Pradesh Congress leader

Radhakishan Malviya died on 19 February 2013 in Indore.Malviya was
elected MLA from Sanver in Indore district in 1972. A three-time Rajya
Sabha MP, he was Labour Minister in the Rajiv Gandhi government in
mid-1980s. Malviya was Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee
president during 1998-2003 when Digvijay Singh was the chief minister.

D)VISITORS

Bhutan Prime Minister Jigmi Y. Thinley Visited India

Prime Minister of Bhutan Jigmi Y Thinley visited India from 7 – 9

February.During his three-days visit he met Prime Minister Manmohan
Singh at NewDelhi and discussed on developmental issues of his
country with the Indian leadership, and sought financial assistance for
the 11th five year plan of his country.

France’s President Francois Hollande Visited India

France’s President Francois Hollande Visited India from 14th and 15th
February.During the 2 day visit he met manmohan singh at NewDelhi
and discussed the sale of Rafale fighter jets , bilateral issues , after
signed the both nations on several agreements .

Britain’s PM David Cameron Visited India

David Cameron, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain
and Northern Ireland , visited India from 18 – 20 February.During the
visit on 18 February he attended India – Britain delegations meeting in
Mumbai .On 19 February Cameron met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh
in New Delhi and discussed bilateral and global issues.The British Prime
Minister last visited India in July 2010.

E)MISCELLANEOUS

Three Year Old Girl Joins Mensa After Taking IQ Test in Russian

A brainy 3 year old girl Clever Alice Amos has been unveiled as the
youngest new member of Mensa with a higher IQ than Stephen
Hawking.Amos has been granted full membership of the brain box
society after scoring an incredible 162 on an IQ test – she took in
Russian.Her IQ of 162 ranks her higher than a list of the world’s greatest
luminaries – dead and living.Former US presidents Abraham Lincoln,
Benjamin Franklin and Bill Clinton could only muster 128, 160 and 137
respectively.

Mohamed Nasheed Took Refuge In Indian High Commission

On 13 February the former Maldivian President Mohamed Nasheed took

refuge in the Indian High Commission in Capital Male to evade arrest, a
year after he was toppled.He turned up at the single-storey Indian
mission around noon to evade arrest warrant issued by a court in a case
concerning the detention of Chief Judge of the Criminal Court during his
Presidency in January last year.The Indian government has permitted
him to stay in Mission.

Queen Elizabeth II named Britain’s Most Powerful

According to the BBC power list of Britain’s most influential women,

Queen Elizabeth II has been named the most powerful woman in Britain,
while two Indian-origin women also found a place in the list of UK’s 100
most powerful women. Two Indian-origin women who featured among
the 100 most powerful British women were Kolkata-born Pinki Lilani,
founder of the Asian Women of Achievement Awards in the UK, and
human rights champion and director of Liberty Shami Chakrabarti.

World’s oldest woman is Misao Ookawa

Misao Ookawa,the oldest woman in the world receives a Guinness

World Records certificate in Osaka, Japan,on 27 February 2013.She will
ready to celebrate its 115th birth anniversary on 5 March 2013. The
oldest man in the world,Jiroemon Kimura(115) also belongs to Japan.

PLACES IN NEWS

Strong 6.6 Magnitude Quake Hits Solomon Islands

On 6 February a strong 6.6-magnitude tremor struck the Solomon

Islands , the latest in a series of aftershocks from a powerful earthquake
that triggered a tsunami The quake hit 36 kilometres south-southwest of
Lata, the main town on the remote island of Ndende.At least six people
were confirmed dead and some 3,000 left homeless but the national
disaster management office has been struggling to get a clear picture of
the scale of destruction on the island, more than 600 kilometres from the
capital Honiara.The Solomons are part of the “Ring of Fire”, a zone of
tectonic activity around the Pacific that is subject to frequent
earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.

Snow Storm “ Nemo “ Hits US and Canada

On 8 February Seven people have been killed in the United States and
Canada as the massive blizzard Winter Storm Nemo dumped nearly two
feet of snow in New England and knocked out power to more than a half
a million homes.Throughout the Northeast, more than 600,000 homes
and businesses lost electricity. Airlines cancelled more than 5,300 flights
today, and New York City’s three major airports and Boston’s Logan
Airport closed.

Huge Meteorite Hits The Russia

On 15 February A huge meteor hits the Russia, injuring more than 1000
people, many hurt by broken glass, and causing explosions.Fragments
of the meteor fell in a thinly populated area of the Chelyabinsk
region.The meteorite, which weighed about 10 metric tons and may
have been made of iron, entered Earth’s atmosphere and broke apart
30-50 km (19-31 miles) above ground.The meteorite explosion, a very
rare spectacle, also unleashed a sonic boom.The energy released when
it entered the Earth’s atmosphere was equivalent to a few kilotonnes, the
power of a small atomic weapon exploding.
 ABBREVIATIONS

DSDS – Delhi Sustainable Development Summit

BHEL – Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd

GAIL – Gas Authority of India Limited

TERI – The Energy and Resources Institute

EIU – Economist Intelligence Unit

NSF – National Science Foundation

TAPI – Turkmenistan–Afghanistan–Pakistan–India

POTA – Prevention of Terrorism Act

IAEA – International Atomic Energy Agency

CAIR – Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics

CITU – Centre of Indian Trade Unions

FAO – Food and Agriculture Organisation

HDI – Human Development Index

UNHCR – United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees

WIPO – World Intellectual Property Organisation

BOOKS IN NEWS

“Khushwantnama: The Lessons of My Life” Book Released

On 2 February The indomitable Khushwant Singh has released a new

book named “Khushwantnama: The Lessons of My Life” on his 98th
birthday in which he writes about his life, lessons it has taught him,
politics, future of India and what religion means to him.The book,
published by Penguin Books India, is dedicated to Kaur who is a close
friend of the author.Khushwant Singh was a Member of Parliament from
1980 to 1986. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1974 but
returned the decoration in 1984 in protest against the storming of the
Golden Temple in Amritsar by the Indian Army. In 2007, he was
awarded the Padma Vibhushan.

“Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose and Germany” Book Released

Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose new book named ‘Netaji Subhas Chandra
Bose and Germany’ released on 6 February.The First copy of the book
by Professor Anita B. Pfaff was given to the President of India Pranab
Mukherjee at Rashtrapati Bhavan at NewDelhi. The book was brought
out by the Federation of Indo-German Societies in India.The book is a
collection of the records shared by Professor Anita Pfaff as well as other
known biographers and writers.The book portrayed some interesting
facets of the life of Netaji and his extraordinary contribution to India’s
freedom struggle.

COMMITTEES

Padmanabhan Committee To Help Boost Bank Finance For Exports

On 3 February The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) constituted a technical

advisory committee to iron out existing issues and boost bank finance for
exports.The committee will be headed by RBI Executive Director G
Padmanabhan.The committee look into the issues related to exporters,
we have decided to constitute a technical working group which will also
look non-cost issues like transaction costs, accounting norms,
documentation required, procedural difficulties.