July Current Affair's 2015 (For Clat)

1.            Former Research and Analysis Wing chief AS Dulat is the author of Kashmir: The Vajpayee Years.

 

2.            The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) is an international financial institution proposed by the government of China. China will be the largest shareholder (at 30.34 per cent), followed by India (8.52 per cent) and Russia (6.66 per cent).

 

3.            Kalyan Jewellers' chairman and managing director T S Kalayanaraman, is the wealthiest jeweller in India with a personal fortune of USD 1.3 billion, as per the Wealth-X report. Kalayanaraman opened his first jewellery shop in Thrissur City in 1993 with only USD 100,000 capital, and his business has now expanded to 32 showrooms across South India. Nirav Modi was ranked second on the list with an estimated net worth of USD 1.1 billion. The third on the list is M P Ahammed, with a personal fortune of USD 1 billion. Bima Jewellers' B Govindan with a personal wealth of USD 620 million, Kiran Gems' Vallabhbhai S Patel (USD 590 million), Laxmi Diamond's Vasant Gajera (USD 580 million), Dharmanandan Diamonds' Laljibhai Patel (USD 480 million), Kiran Gems' Babubhai Lakhani (USD 470 million), Kiran Gems' Mavji Bhai Patel (USD 410 million) and Rajesh Exports' Rajesh Mehta (USD 310 million) are in the top ten.

 

4.            Matti Makkonen was a Finnish engineer in the field of mobile communications. He was known as the father of SMS after developing the idea of sending messages via mobile networks.

 

5.            Sir Fazle Hasan Abed, the founding chairman of Brac, a leading rural development and anti-poverty organisation, based in Bangladesh, has won the 2015 World Food Prize.

 

6.            Haryana government has launched Mhara Gaon-Jagmag Gaon, a new electricity scheme.

 

7.            Uttar Pradesh has highest number of households with a mobile phone (86.63 per cent). In other hand Odisha (33.56 per cent) has the least number of households with a mobile phone as per the Socio Economic and Caste Census 2011.

 

8.            The world's first exchange for physically-settled diamonds is slated to begin trading in September in Singapore.

 

9.            The country's first Metrino project is coming up in New Delhi.

 

10.        Google India and Tata Trust has launched a special programme called Internet Saathi to bring more women online.

 

11.        The Burkhan Khaldun is a mountain of the Khentii Mountains in the Khentii Province of Mongolia. It is inscribed as the UNESCO World Heritage Site at the 39th session of the World Heritage Committee, on July 4, 2015

 

12.        Carli Lloyd became the first woman to score a hat-trick in FIFA women's world cup. During the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup final, Lloyd scored a hat trick to lead the U.S. To a 5–2 win over Japan and the World Cup title. Lloyd received the Golden Ball Trophy as best player of the tournament and earned the Silver Boot for her six goals and one assist during the tournament.

 

13.        Union home ministry has declared entire Nagaland state as a 'disturbed area' for one year period with an immediate effect from June 30, 2015.

 

14.        According to Socio Economic and Caste Census (SECC) Madhya Pradesh has largest number of manual scavangers in the country. The top five states with manual scavengers, are Madhya Pradesh (23,093), Uttar Pradesh (17,619), Tripura (17,332) and Karnataka (15,375) and Punjab.

 

15.        The Central banks of BRICS countries have signed an operating agreement on the $100 billion currency reserve pool to protect BRICS member states from currency volatility shocks. China will make the biggest contribution to the pool: $41 billion. Russia, Brazil and India will donate $18 billion each, while South Africa's investment will be $5 billion. The goal of the pool is to give BRICS member states opportunity to provide each other financial assistance in case of problems with their balance of payments.

 

16.        Gennady Padalka, a Russian cosmonaut on board the International Space Station has broken the record for total time in space by spending more than two years in orbit during his career. He broke his countryman Sergei Krikalev's record of 803 days, nine hours and 41 minutes.

 

17.        India will chair the BRICS Summit from February 2016 to December 2016.(It will be held in Goa)

 

18.        India's rural employment guarantee programme, the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGA), has been ranked as the world's largest public works one, a World Bank report said. MGNREGA is providing social security net to almost 15 per cent of the country's population.

 

19.        The SAARC Festival of Literature is organised annually by the Foundation of SAARC Writers and Literature (FOSWAL), an organisation that works in areas of literature and culture to build up relations among the countries. Renowned scholars, intellectuals, laureates, media persons, film makers and social activists from all the SAARC countries and from Myanmar will be attending the festival. Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh is the site for the 2016 SAARC Literature Festival.

 

20.        Khanjar 2015 is a joint special exercise between India and Kyrgyzstan. The second edition of exercise was held in Kyrgyzstan in March. India hosted the first edition in 2011. Recently, both the countries decided to hold joint exercises on an annual basis.

 

21.        The Shanghai Cooperation Organisaiton (SCO) granted full membership status to Pakistan and India during its Ufa summit.

 

22.        Jammu and Kashmir India's longest road tunnel is ready to open in Udhampur, Jammu and Kashmir. The tunnel will cut the distance between Jammu and Srinagar by 30 kilometers. The tunnel is 9.2- kilometer-long and is part of the ambitious 286 km-long four-laning of the Jammu-Srinagar national highway. The road is likely to be opened to traffic in July 2016.

 

23.        The Meitei people live in Manipur.

 

24.        The Potala Palace is in Lhasa, Tibet. It was the primary residence of the Dalai Lama until 1959. Today the Potala Palace is a state museum, a popular tourist attraction, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was also recently named one of the "New Seven Wonders of the World" by the television show Good Morning America and the newspaper USA Today.

 

25.        Tamil Nadu has retained the top position among all states in getting domestic tourists during 2014 followed by Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra. During 2014, the number of domestic tourist visits to the states was 1,282 million, an increase from 1,145 million in 2013 and 1,045 million in 2012. This signified a growth of 11.93 per cent over 2013 as compared to 9.59 per cent in 2013 over 2012. In terms of numbers, the top 10 performing states for domestic tourists in 2014 were Tamil Nadu (327.6 million), Uttar Pradesh (182.8 m), Karnataka (118.3m), Maharashtra (94.1m), Andhra Pradesh (93.3m), Telengana (72.4m), Madhya Pradesh (63.6m), West Bengal (49 m) Jharkhand (33.4 m) and Rajasthan (33.1 m).

 

26.        GAGAN or GPS based Geo Augmented Navigation System is an indigenous navigational guide system developed by Isro on the lines of GPS system of the US. It was jointly developed by the Isro and Airports Authority of India (AAI) with a view to assist aircraft in accurate landing.

 

27.        Haryana became the first state in the country to initiate state-wide birth defect surveillance.

 

28.        Justice Loda panel appointed by Supreme Court has suspended two top Indian Premier League teams for two years over a corruption scandal.Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals have been found guilty in an illegal betting and match-fixing probe. The panel also suspended Royals co-owner Raj Kundra and Gurunath Meiyappan of Super Kings from all cricket-related activities for life.

 

29.        Microsoft has been developing White-fi technology. White-fi is a term being used to describe the use of a Wi-Fi technology within the TV unused spectrum, or TV white space.

 

30.        Varanasi has been chosen as a part of the 'Cities of Music' under UNESCO's cultural division, the Creative Cities Network. It has been chosen in the music category under UNESCO's "field of excellence" plan.

 

31.        years The Godavari Maha Pushkaralu, which started on July 14, occurs once in 144 years. The next such event will take place in 2159. Maha Pushkaralu is also known as Maha Kumbh of the South.

 

32.        Brazil is the largest Portuguese speaking country in the world. Brazil is followed by Mozambique.

 

33.        Pipavav Shipyard was established in 1997 at west coast of Saurashtra, Gujarat and one of the largest and leading shipbuilding company in India that is spread over 500 acres.

 

34.        India's largest E-commerce company is mJunction which is run by its CEO & MD Viresh Oberoi. It is also largest online steel marketplace in the world.

 

35.        The key mandates of the Rashtriya Gokul Mission include: 1. Enhance milk production and productivity of indigenous bovines.

                                                        

36.        Professor Stephen Hawking launched a $100-million project (also known as Breakthrough Listen) to search for Aliens at the Royal Society in London. The project is funded by Silicon Valley technology investor and physicist Yuri Milner.

 

37.        India already has one nuclear fuel complex at Hyderabad. Another nuclear fuel complex is coming up in Kota in Rajasthan.

38.        The South-Korean car maker, Hyundai launched its Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) Creta in India in both diesel and petrol variants.

 

39.        Mr. Bhupender Yadav is the chairman of the Rajya Sabha committee on the constitutional amendment Bill regarding National Goods and Services Tax (GST).

 

40.        Conakry, the capital of the Republic of Guinea, has been named as the World Book Capital for 2017 by United Nations Organization for Education, Science and Culture (UNESCO) in Paris. Conakry is the 17th city to be designated as World Book Capital. At present, Incheon is the World Book Capital for 2015 and Wroclaw for 2016.

 

41.        As of July 2015, No President of India has visited Israel. President Pranab Mukherjee may be the first Indian President to visit Israel in October 2015.

 

42.        There are only two Arab countries viz. Jordan and Egypt, which maintain full diplomatic relations with Israel.

 

43.         Jin Liqun, Former finance Minister of China has been appointed as President of $100 billion Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB).Presently, Jin is Secretary General of AIIB's interim secretariat. Prior to this he was chairman of China International Capital Corporation (CICC), one of the mainland's largest investment banks.

 

44.        Kazakhstan, a member of the Russia-led economic blocks became 162th member of World Trade Organization (WTO). Kazakhstan's entry has ended its long wait of 20 years to become a member of WTO as its accession talks were initiated in 1996. 

 

45.        The Finance Ministry is moving towards launching its flagship project called "Project Insight" to widen the tax base by nabbing tax evaders using modern technology. It is based on data analytics and data mining. Recently, tenders to by software was floated.

 

46.        India is the world's biggest consumer of edible oils. Edible oil is India's third-biggest import item after crude oil and gold. India imports most of its edible oil from Indonesia and Malaysia.

 

47.        India's first Integrated Underwater Harbour Defence and Surveillance System (IUHDSS) has been commissioned in Kochi, Kerala.

 

48.        Pakistan became the first Asian country to get European Organisation for Nuclear Research (CERN) membership.

 

49.        After the approval by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the African country, South Sudan became the 206th member of the Olympic family. Now, South Sudan will compete at 2016 Rio de Janeiro summer Olympics under its own flag. 

 

50.        The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has officially recognized ' Frisbee' as an Olympic sport.

 

51.        India's leading car manufacturer, Maruti Suzuki launched its first premium crossover "S-Cross" in India.

 

52.        Bharti Airtel became the first telecom operator in India to commercially launch its 4G high-speed data services in 296 towns across India.

 

53.        India's oldest organized retailer, Shoppers Stop has tied up with Snapdeal (online shopping portal) to retail their products online. This partnership will allow consumers to buy Shoppers Stop merchandise on Snapdeal and collect it from the brick-and-mortar stores.

 

54.        India has decided to boycott 61st Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference (CPU) to be held in Islamabad next month in protest against Pakistan not inviting the Speaker of Jammu and Kashmir Assembly.

 

55.        The Larsen and Toubro (L&T) has become the first Indian private firm to get license from Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to manufacture Lakshya, a pilotless target aircraft.

 

56.        As per section 302 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), the death penalty is given by courts. On this issue, the Tripura Legislative Assembly passed resolution on abolishing death penalty and they send a proposal to the Government of India (GoI) to bring necessary amendments in this Act and provide life imprisonment up to death in case of heinous crimes.

 

57.        Kochi has become the first city in India to be a member of Beijing-headquartered World Tourism Cities Federation (WTCF) Council.

 

58.        As per section 306 (abetment of suicide) of the Indian Penal Code, the Rajasthan high court banned "Santhara" or a religious fast to death practised by followers of Jainism, declaring it unconstitutional. The judgement came after the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) was filed by Nikhil Soni in 2006 against the practice of Santhara. According to the Press Trust of India, on average 240 Jains practice santhara (also known Sallekhana Vruta) until death each year in India.

 

59.        As per recently released data by US Department of Agriculture (DoA), India is the world's largest exporter of beef in FY-2015. In FY-2015, India exported 2.4 million tonnes of veal and beef, while Brazil exported 2 million tonnes and Australia exported 1.5 million tonnes.

 

60.        Google will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Alphabet Inc, it is announced by Google co-founder, Mr. Larry Page. In other words, Alphabet Inc. will replace Google Inc. as the publicly-traded entity and all shares of Google will automatically convert into the same number of shares of Alphabet, with all of the same rights. After create a new organizational structure, "Alphabet Inc.", Mr. Larry Page will become the CEO of Alphabet , Mr.Sergey Brin will be President and Mr.Sundar Pichai will take over the CEO role at Google.

 

61.        Former Indian Cricketer Saurav Ganguly appointed as the social ambassador of Beverage Maker Coca Cola India and signed a 3-year contract uptil 2017.

 

62.        The Netravali wildlife sanctuary is located in South Eastern Goa.Recently, here the new frog species "Netravali Leaping Frog (Indirana salelkari)" has been discovered.

 

63.        On 69th Independence Day, Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi announced a new campaign "Start-up India, Stand up India" to encourage entrepreneurship among the youth of India. The campaign will also promote bank financing for start-ups and offer incentives to boost entrepreneurship and job creation.

 

64.        Mr. Om Prakash Munjal was the founder and the current chairman of Hero Cycles, who died in Ludhiana recently.

 

65.        Mr. Om Prakash Rawat, a former Madhya Pradesh cadre IAS officer, has been appointed as the new Election Commissioner of India. Mr. Nasim Zaidi is the current Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commissioner other than Mr. Om Prakash Rawa is Mr. Achal Kumar Jyoti.

 

66.        Taj Mahal, the symbol of true love and architectural brilliance, has become the first historical monument in the world to have its own Twitter account. The Twitter Account was lauched by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mr. Akhilesh Yadav.

 

67.        Telangana
To empower gram panchayats, the Telangana Chief Minister Mr. K. Chandrasekhar Rao launched a flagship programme "Grama Jyothi" at Gangadevipally, a village in Warangal district. The purpose of the scheme is to strengthen villages in areas viz. water and sanitation, health and nutrition, education, social security and poverty eradication, natural resources management, agriculture and infrastructure. It will ensure inclusive and holistic development of villages through people's participation in planning and collective decision-making. Each village will be allocated Rs.2 crore to Rs.6 crore depending on their population.The country's largest lender, the State bank of India (SBI) lanunched a mobile wallet app "SBI Buddy" in collaboration with Accenture and MasterCard.

 

68.        The ICICI Bank launched the 'Smart Vault', a fully automated state-of-the-art locker available 24×7, including weekends and post banking hours.

 

69.        The Cochin International Airport became the world's first fully solar-powered airport.

 

70.        The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) granted in-principle approval to 11 entities viz. Reliance Industries, Aditya Birla Nuvo, Vodafone, Airtel, Department of Posts (DoP), Cholamandalam Distribution Services, Tech Mahindra, National Securities Depository Limited (NSDL), FinoPayTech, Sun Pharma's Dilip Shantilal Shanghvi and PayTM' to set up Payments Banks. The key features of Payments banks are as follows: a) the bank licence will allow companies to collect deposits (initially up to Rs. 1 lakh per individual). b) offer Internet banking, facilitate money transfers and sell insurance and mutual funds. c) can issue ATM/debit cards, but not credit cards. d) can also distribute non-risk sharing simple financial products viz. mutual funds and insurance products. e) will not be allowed to undertake lending services and Non Resident Indians (NRIs) will not be allowed to open accounts.

 

71.        The Bangladesh Novelist Zia Haider Rahman won the UK's oldest literary award, James Tait Black Award 2015, for his debut novel "In the Light of What We Know". The novel is based on a disillusioned banker who is reunited with an old friend before embarking on an epic journey.

 

72.        Per the recently released Red List of International Union For Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Asiatic Wild Ass has been classified as an endangered animal. The IUCN has moved the Asiatic wild ass from the 'vulnerable' to 'endangered' category and indicates the need for heightened protection measures. The Asiatic Wild Ass is locally known as ghudkhar and found only in the Little Rann of Kutch in Gujarat. ( Scientific name of Asiatic Wild Ass : Equus hemionus).

 

73.        The veteran actor-director Mr. Amol Palekar has been appointed as the chairman of India's Oscar jury by Mumbai based Film Federation of Indiaof India (FFI). Mr. Palekar will head the 17-member jury panel, which will select the country's official entry in the Best Foreign Language Film at the Oscar awards 2016.

 

74.        The Justice AP Shah Committee has recommended that the Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) must be granted relief on Minimum Alternate Tax (MAT) for the period before April 1, 2015. As per the Finance Act, 2015 proposed in the union budget, the 20 % MAT on capital gains made by FIIs is waived off from the financial year 2015-16. Though, the issue of imposing MAT for past years till 2014-15 has become controversial. If this recommendation is accepted, it would mean a significant relief for FIIs facing several years of levies on capital gains made by them.

 

75.        The Temple of Baalshamin was an ancient temple in the city of Palmyra, Syria, dedicated to the Canaanite deity Baalshamin. On August 2015, the temple was demolished by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) after the capture of Palmyra during the Syrian Civil War.

 

76.        The Union Telecom Minister Mr. Ravi Shankar Prasad released a Rs.5 postal stamp in honour of Ashoka, the Great, the great Indian emperor of Mauryan dynasty.

 

77.         The 6th Joint Military Training Exercise "EXERCISE EKUVERIN – VI" will be conducted between the Indian Army and the Maldives National Defence Forces at Pangode Military Station, Trivandrum, Kerala from August 31 to September 13, 2015.

 

78.        The World Health Oraganistion (WHO) has officially declared India as Maternal and Neonatal Tetanus free country, i.e. mothers and newborns are free from tetanus at the time of birth. Before that, India was declared polio free country in 2014.

 

79.         Mr. Raghav Chandra has been appointed as the Chairman of National Highways Authority of India (NHAI). Mr. Chandra is a 1982 batch IAS officer from Madhya Pradesh cadre.

 

80.        The first Sunhak Peace Prize 2015 was awarded to President of Kiribati Islands Mr. Anote Tong and noted Indian agricultural scientist Dr. Modadugu Vijay Gupta with a certificate, a medal and shared $ 1 million prize money. This award is given to eminent individuals from around the world for their contribution to peace and development of the world.

 

81.        Tennis ace Ms. Sania Mirza has been conferred with Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award 2015. She became the second tennis player to receive the country's highest sporting honour after Leander Paes.

 

82.        The Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister, Mr. Dharmendra Pradhan has launched SAHAJ scheme for online release of new LPG connections for the consumers as parts of its consumer friendly initiative in New Delhi.

 

83.        The 1978-batch Rajasthan cadre IAS officer, Mr. Rajiv Mehrishi has been appointed as Union ome Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs for a period of two years. He succeeded Mr. L C Goyal. Previously, Mr. Mehrishi was serving as Secretary in the Department of Economic Affairs in the Ministry of Finance.

 

84.        Himadri Station, established in 2008, is India's first Arctic research station. It is located at Spitsbergen, Svalbard, Norway. It's research goals include analysis of the surface water, and atmospheric research near Arctic region, apart from aerosol radiation, space weather, microbial communities, glaciers, sedimentology, and carbon recycling.

                                                                                       

September 2015 Current Affair’s for Clat

1.            India won the top UNESCO prize 'Award of Excellence' 2015 for the remarkable conservation efforts of the majestic Sree Vadakkunnathan Temple at Thrissur, Kerala. It is an ancient Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Shiva. The award recognises the remarkable conservation effort undertaken at the sacred site which employed age-old rituals and conservation techniques drawn from vastu shastra focusing on architecture and construction.

 

2.            The South African city of Durban is selected as the host for the 2022 Commonwealth Games at the Federation's general assembly in Auckland, New Zealand.

 

3.            To help women in distress, the state government of Haryana launched "Sakhi" a One Stop Crisis Centre (OSCC) at Karnal district. The centre will provide help and assistance to rape survivors and victims of dowry harassment, domestic violence and other atrocities on women, all under one roof. It is an initiative of Union Government under the 'Nirbhaya Fund' for women safety pertaining to strategic areas of prevention, protection and rehabilitation.

 

4.            The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) declared State Bank of India (SBI) and ICICI Bank as Domestic Systemically Important Banks (D- SIBs).

 

5.            The Indian-American Pulitzer Prize winner Ms. Jhumpa Lahiri has been selected for the prestigious 2014 US National Humanities Medal. The other recepients are The Clemente Course in the Humanities, Annie Dillard, Everett L. Fly, Rebecca Newberger Goldstein, Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham, Fedwa Malti-Douglas, Larry McMurtry, Vicki Lynn Ruiz and Alice Waters. The medal honors an individual or organization whose work has deepened the nation's understanding of the human experience, broadened citizens' engagement with history and literature or helped preserve and expand Americans' access to cultural resources.

 

6.            The West-Central Railway (WCR) zone headquartered in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh has become the first Railway Zone in Indian Railways to eliminate all unmanned level crossings.

 

7.            On September 2, 2015, the Tropical Storm Etau caused extensive and destructive floods across eastern Japan. It originated near Guam and made a landfall in Honshu, Japan.

 

8.            Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT)

 

9.            To promote global gender-inclusive economic growth, the Group of Twenty (G20) launched Women-20 (W20) group. The W20 group will have 20 women leaders from G20 nations. The first W20 summit 2015 will held on October 7-8, 2015 at Istanbul, Turkey. Ms. Gulden Turktan from Turkey has been appointed as the first President of W20 forum. The Group of Twenty (G20) is the premier forum for global economic and financial cooperation that brings together the world's major advanced and emerging economies, representing around 85 % of global GDP.

 

10.        Forwards Markets Commission (FMC) has been recently merged with SEBI to strengthen the regulation of Commodity Forward Markets.

 

11.        Currently there are 82 districts of 10 states in India affected by Left Wing Extremism (LWE). These include Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Telangana.

 

12.        Kala Utsav is an initiative of Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) to promote arts in education by nurturing and showcasing the artistic talent of school students at the secondary stage in the country.

 

13.        The Bollywood actor, Mr. Anupam Kher (60) has been conferred with the Honoured Guest award by the U.S. State of Texas for his contribution to the cinema and the world of art.

 

14.        The Indian Railways partnered with Google under the 'Project Nilgiri' to create India's largest network of free WiFi across 400 railway stations, pan India.To provide high speed Internet service, the project will use Google Fiber technology. In it, first 30 minutes of this service would enable high speed Internet, after which the speed will drop, but the connection remains active. Google has collaborated with RailTel for the platform and infrastructure to get started with the project.

 

15.        The 10th World Hindi Conference held in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh. It is a joint event of Union Ministry of External Affairs in partnership with the state Government of Madhya Pradesh. The theme of this conference is "Hindi Jagat-Vistar and Sambhavnaye". It has been organised in Madhya Pradesh for the first time and held in India after a gap of 32 years . The first World Hindi Conference was held in 1975 at Nagpur, Maharashtra.

 

16.        The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Mr.Narendra Modi gave its approval on the Constitution of the 21st Law Commission of India, for a period of three years w.e.f. September 1, 2015 to August 31, 2018. The 21st Law Commission shall undertake research in law and review of existing laws in India for making reforms therein and enacting new legislations. It shall also undertake studies and research for bringing reforms in the justice delivery systems for elimination of delay in procedures, speedy disposal of cases, reduction in cost of litigation, etc.The Law Commission will consist of: (a) a full-time Chairperson. (b) four full-time Members (including a Member-Secretary). (c) Secretary, Department of Legal Affairs as ex offcio Member. (d) Secretary, Legislative Department as ex offcio Member. (e) not more than five part-time Members. 

 

17.        The Veer Savarkar International Airport (also known as Port Blair Airport) is a customs airport located at south of Port Blair and is the main airport of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands of India.

 

18.        Renowned water policy expert Ramaswamy R. Iyer passed away recently. He was instrumental in drafting India's first National Water Policy in 1987.

 

19.        Mr. Hormusji N Cama appointed as the Chairman of the Press Trust of India (PTI). Mr. Cama is the director of Bombay Samachar, which is the oldest continuously-published newspaper in India since 1855. He succeeded Mr. Mahendra Mohan Gupta, Chairman and Managing Director of the Jagran Prakashan. Apart from him, Mr. Riyad Mathew (Director of Malayala Manorama) was unanimously elected as the Vice Chairman of the PTI.

 

20.        Kalarippayattu is the traditional martial art dance of Kerala and the mother of all martial arts. A kalari is the school (or training hall) where martial arts are taught.The weapons used in it are strikes, kicks, etc. Footwork patterns is the most important key in this martial art dance. Recently, Union Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports has recognized the Indian Kalarippayattu Federation (IKF) as Regional Sports Federation (RSF). This decision was taken with a view to promote and provide due acknowledgement and importance to sports having regional spread. This recognition also grants major role to the IKF for promotion and development of Kalarippayattu sport in India.

 

21.        The World Bank report titled "Assessment of State Implementation of Business Reforms" is the first ever ranking of States on the ease of doing business in India. Gujarat is at the top position followed by Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand, Chattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh.

 

22.        The Government of India (GoI) approved the purchase of 10 Heron TP drones from Israel. This $ 400 million deal to buy armed missile-armed drones from Israel is expected to enhance India's cross-border military strike capability. These drones will be operated by the Indian Air Force (IAF), which has a fleet of reconnaissance drones. IAF also has a fleet of Harpy UAVs from Israel, which are self destructing systems primarily tasked with taking out enemy radar positions.

 

23.        The mobile banking app "LIME" has been launched by Axis Bank. The app will allow customers in both account and non-account holders to compare and shop, split bills, transfer money and even share their mobile banking wallets. This app can also be used to pool money to buy gifts or for group travel by friends.

 

24.        The State Bank of India (SBI) launched the the SimplyCLICK SBI Card for online shopping. For this new credit card, SBI Card has partnered Amazon India,Book My Show, Cleartrip, FabFurnish, Food Panda, Lens Kart and Ola Cabs. The card has been inspired by the needs and aspirations of the generation that is always online.

 

25.        Hangzhou, the capital city of Zhejiang Province in east China has been chosen by the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) to host the 2022 Asian Games. It will be the third time that the Asian games will be held in a Chinese city after Beijing in 1990 and Guangzhou in 2010. Hangzhou is best known for the West Lake, a placid and tourist attraction and is also home base of Chinese Internet (ecommerce) giant Alibaba.

 

26.        Pradhan Mantri Khanij Kshetra Kalyan Yojana (PMKKKY) for welfare of the people living in areas which are affected directly or indirectly by mining.

 

27.        PepsiCo CEO Indra Nooyi is the sole Indian-origin executive in Fortune's list of 50 most powerful women in business, which has been topped by General Motors CEO Mary Barra.

 

28.        India ended their Commonwealth Youth Games with fifth spot in the overall tally with 19 medals (9 gold, 4 silver, 6 bronze) behind Australia (24, 19, 19), South Africa (13, 7, 15), England (12, 16, 16) and Malaysia (11, 3, 3).

 

29.        Leander Paes created history by winning the US Open mixed doubles title with Swiss partner Martina Hingis to become the format's most successful male player in the Open era. With this win, the Paes-Hingis duo, which also won the Australian Open and the Wimbledon titles early this season, have become the first mixed doubles team since 1969 to win three Grand Slam mixed doubles titles in the same year.

 

30.        In September 2015, the Russian astronaut Gennady Padalka has returned to Earth with the record for having spent the most time in space. The 57-year-old's latest mission lasted 168 days, bringing his total to 879 days in space over five trips; which is more than anyone else so far.

 

31.        India Rapid Reaction Cell is the name of first ever country special cell established by the Pentagon, headquarters of the United States Department of Defense. It is a part of India- U.S. Defence Trade and Technology Initiative (DTTI) and has been set up to speed up defense ties with India, which is not only a big buyer but also a potential collaborator in defense sector. It is headed by Keith Webster, Director, and International Cooperation Office of the Under Secretary of Defence for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics.

 

32.        G-4 group is a group of four countries viz. Japan, Germany, Brazil and India and this group wants expansion of the United Nations Security Council and permanent seats for themselves.

 

33.        Amogha-1 is the name of India's indigenously-developed second generation Anti-Tank Guided Missile. It has a range of 2.8 kilometres. This is the first-ever design and developmental effort in respect of missiles by Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL), Hyderabad. It was recently successfully test fired at Babina Army Range, Madhya Pradesh.

 

34.        The Ministry for Water Resources has constituted a seven-member committee led by former Planning Commission member Mihir Shah to restructure the Central Water Commission (CWC) and the Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) to encourage optimal development of water resources in the country.

 

35.        After Rajasthan, Haryana has become the second BJP-ruled State to fix minimum educational qualifications for those contesting panchayat polls, thus excluding a vast swathe of the poor and socially disadvantaged from aspiring to becoming members of local bodies.

 

36.        Top potato producing states of India are Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Assam, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab and West Bengal

 

37.        The Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi launched the National Integrated Power Development Scheme (IPDS) in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh to provide 24×7 power supply to every house. The key features of the IPDS scheme are as follows: a) IT enablement of distribution sector and strengthening of distribution network. B) Strengthening of sub-transmission and distribution network in the urban areas. C) Metering of distribution transformers /feeders / consumers in the urban areas.

 

38.        The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has been shifted to the administrative control of the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology from Niti Aayog. The Cabinet Secretariat has amended Government of India (Allocation of Business) Rules, 1961 and put it under Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DeITy), Ministry of Communication and Information Technology. Earlier, UIDAI was the part of Planning Commission. Aadhaar is a 12-digit individual identification number issued by UIDAI.

 

39.        The Indian cricketer Mr. Rohit Sharma has joined an anti-poaching campaign to save the wild animals of Africa in Kenya. Mr. Sharma along with Hollywood actors Matt Le Blanc and Salma Hayek will be involved in taking care of the last surviving Northern White Rhinoceros of the rare species. He is the member of PETA (People for Ethical Treatment of Animals).

 

40.        The "Metro Man" Mr. E Sreedharan has been invited to the United Nations' High Level Advisory Group on Sustainable Transport (HLAG-ST). The service is for a period of 3 years and Mr. Sreedharan has accepted the offer. He was given the nickname of Metro Man by the Indian media for his grand success in executing the completion of the Delhi Metro on time and with stipulated budget.

 

41.        On the request of Union Environment Ministry, the Union Health Ministry banned the sale of multiple-dose vials of a painkiller "diclofenac" whose use in the veterinary sector has pushed vultures in India to the brink of extinction. The commonly-used anti-inflammatory drug for cattle is considered the chief cause for the steep decline in the number of vultures in recent years. The drug is harmless to the cattle it is administered to, but is fatal for the vultures, who routinely feed on the carcass of dead cattle. Studies have shown that the drug causes kidney and liver failure in vultures.

 

42.        The Development cell of Indian Railways has developed a "Hybrid Vacuum Toilet" design that combines the advantages of Vacuum toilets and Bio toilets. It will help to maintain hygiene and cleanliness in toilets or tracks of Indian Railways as there will have no direct evacuation of human waste. This newly developed toilet facility has been fitted on trial basis in Dibrugarh Rajdhani. The concept of a hybrid vacuum toilet is a first ever system of its kind to have been developed and built by any railway system in the world.

 

43.        The Supreme Court of India launched a public access portal of the National Judicial Data Grid (NJDG) for district courts to demystify the judicial process for the ordinary citizen. The public access portal will disseminate national, state, district and court-wise information about institution and disposal of cases on a monthly basis. The NJDG will also provides daily statistics on case pendency before the courts under the e-courts projects.

 

44.        With reference of the newly adopted constitution of Nepal, the list of national symbols of Nepal are a) National Bird: Himalayan monal (Lophophorus impejanus). b) National Flag: World's only non-quadrilateral national flag. c) National Emblem: Coat of arms. d) National Dress: Daura-Suruwal. e) National Anthem: Sayaun Thunga Phool Ka. f) National Animal: Cow. g) National Flower: Rhododendron (or lali gurans). h) National Language: Nepali.

 

45.        Ms. Stuti Narain Kacker appointed as the chairman of National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR). Ms. Kacker, a 1978 batch IAS officer, was appointed the Head of the child rights panel by Women and Child Development Ministry. The Commission deals with education, child development, care of neglected and marginalised children, elimination of child labour, child psychology and other laws related to children.

 

46.        The PepsiCo Chairman Ms. Indra Nooyi and Hindustan Times Group chairperson Ms. Shobhana Bhartia have been presented with the 2015 Global Leadership Award of the US India Business Council, for their commitment to driving a more inclusive global economy and their roles as women leaders. The renowned Indian-American artist, Mr. Natvar Bhavsar, who is known for his abstract expressionism and "color-field" painting, was awarded the Artistic Achievement Award.

 

47.        The National award winning Marathi film 'Court' has been selected as India's official entry for the 88th Academy Awards 2016. The movie has been short listed for the 'Best Foreign Movie' category. The movie is written and directed by Mr. Chaitanya Tamhane and produced by Vivek Gomber.

 

48.        The automaker Bajaj Auto launched its much-awaited RE60 quadricycle 'Qute' at a Free-on-Board (FoB) price tag of $2,000 (around Rs. 1.35 lakh). The vehicle is meant only for export markets for now, as the regulations for India are not yet in place because of an ongoing Public Interest Litigation (PIL) in the Supreme Court. Here, FoB refers to terms requiring the seller to deliver goods on board a vessel designated by the buyer. Depending on the duties and taxes of each country, the price will differ in each market.

 

49.        The first conference on the contemporary relevance of the 'Bhagvad Gita' was held in London, United Kingdom. The conference was organised by Indian Council of Cultural Relations and High Commission of India. The purpose of the conference was to deal with the innumerable questions that exercise and confound through Bhagvad Gita and help to tap unique transformational energy. The 'Bhagvad Gita' is the most widely read and crucial one for the understanding of Eastern mysticism.

 

50.        The Gujarat High Court has held that the special law " Prohibition of Child Marriage Act (PCMA), 2006″ will prevail over the Muslim Personal Law in cases where Muslims marry off their minor daughters. The promoters of such marriages will face legal proceedings. The ruling held that the Child Marriage Act is a Special Act and it will override the provisions of Muslim Personal Law, Hindu Marriage Act or any personal law. The ruling was made by Justice JB Pardiwala.

 

51.        Dibang Valley is in Arunachal Pradesh. Hemis Monastery is a Buddhist monastery of Drupka lineage. Salt Valley is in Rupshu region of Ladakh.

 

52.        Burkina Faso is a land-locked West African state surrounded by six countries. It has a population of just over 17 million people. Formerly known as the Republic of Upper Volta, the official language is French. It is an important ally for the US and France in the fight against militants in the Sahel region. A military coup was held here recently.

 

53.        Nuakhai is an agricultural festival mainly observed by people of Western Odisha in India. Nuakhai is observed to welcome the new rice of the season. According to the Hindu calendar it is observed on panchamitithi (the fifth day) of the lunar fortnight of the month of Bhadrapada or Bhaadra (August–September), the day after the Ganesh Chaturthi festival. This is the most important social festival of Western Odisha.

 

54.        Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has been named as one of the winners of the UN's highest environmental accolades – Champion of the Earth in recognition of Bangladesh's far-reaching initiatives to address climate change. According to UNEP: Bangladesh is the first developing country to prepare a Climate Change Strategy and Action Plan and to set up its own Climate Change Trust Fund in 2009.It has one of the world's largest solar home energy systems covering over 10% of its off-grid population, and earmarks 6% of its annual budget for climate change adaptation. Previous winners include National Geographic Society, South Africa's Black Mamba Anti-Poaching Unit and Brazil's cosmetic firm Natura.

 

55.        China has successfully launched a newly-developed carrier rocket Long March-6, capable of taking satellites into the orbit, as part of the country's space program. The 29.3-meter- long rocket carried 20 micro satellites into the space, which are due to be used for experiments in technology and new products, adding that the new carrier rocket uses a fuel composed of liquid oxygen and kerosene, which is purportedly free of toxicity and pollution. Based on a 2011 policy paper, the Long March-6 rockets are expected to be capable of putting not less than one ton of payload into the orbit at an altitude of 700 kilometres.

 

56.        International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has recently taken environmental samples from the sensitive military site in Iran. Parchin is a military complex located some 30 kilometres South of Iran's capital Tehran. It has also served as a missile test range.

 

57.        According to the State of Broadband 2015 report by the United Nations, Republic of Korea continues to have the world's highest household broadband penetration, with 98.5 per cent of homes connected.

 

58.        Maternal mortality ratio is highest in Assam, with 300 per one Lakh live births and the lowest in Kerala, with 61 per one Lakh live births.

 

59.           The Kalasa Banduri is a controversial canal project between Karnataka and Goa. Karnataka plans to divert a meagre 7.56 tmc of its Mahadayi basin contribution to the Malaprabha dam to meet the drinking water needs of the twin cities of Hubballi-Dharwad and the surrounding towns and villages. The plan is to channelise the diverted water through Kalasa- Banduri, two separate canals so that water could be supplied to the twin cities and Nargund, Navalgund, Badami, Ron, Gadag and 100 villages. Kalasa-Banduri project planned in 1989; Goa raised objection to it. Goa filed a complaint seeking setting up of a tribunal in July 2002. The Ministry of Water Resources kept the clearance given to Karnataka in abeyance in September 2002. Goa moved the Supreme Court in 2006 seeking constitution of a tribunal, withdrawing approval for any work in the basin. Mahadayi (Mandovi) is a water deficit basin and water diversion could impact the environment. The Mahadayi Water Disputes Tribunal was set up on 22.11.2010. The tribunal has framed 70 issues for determination of claims by the riparian states. The matter has been posted for hearing on November 23, 2015. The states have completed filing the statements before the tribunal. The final verdict should be given before August 2016.

 

60.           The 24th Vyaas Samman award was conferred on eminent Hindi writer Dr Kamal Kishore Goenka for his work "Premachand ki Kahaniyon ka Kaal kramanusaar Adhyayan". It was published in 2012, this book is a chronological study of short stories written by Munshi Premchand.

 

61.           Cow, which is sacred to Hindus, has been declared the animal of Nepal. Now, the animal has constitutional protection and cow slaughter has also been banned in Nepal.

 

62.           The Lapis Lazuli corridor connects Afghanistan through Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, Georgia to the Black Sea and ultimately through Turkey to the Mediterranean Sea and Europe. The Lapis Lazuli corridor is a historic corridor. Some 2,000 years back, lapis lazuli stone was exported from Badakhshan in north-eastern Afghanistan through this route to Europe.

 

63.           Indelible ink typically contain Silver Nitrate which stains the skin on exposure of ultraviolet light, leaving a mark that is impossible to wash off and is only removed on external skin cells are replaced.

 

64.           The ease of doing business index is prepared by World Bank Group. The index ranks economies from 1 to 189, with first place being the best. A high ranking means that the regulatory environment is conducive to business operation. The index averages the country's percentile rankings on 10 topics covered in the World Bank's Doing Business.

 

65.           Gaia Vince became the first solo woman to win the prestigious Royal Society Science Book of the year award. She won 2015 Royal Society Winton Prize for Science Books for her book, Adventures in the Anthropocene: A Journey to the Heart of the Planet. Ms. Vince is a science editor and journalist who completed a 800 day tour of the globe which was the basis of her book. The book investigates the Anthropocene Age the epoch in which we currently live and how humans are changing the planet, for the better and for the worse. The Royal Society Winton Prize for Science Books was founded in 1988 to celebrate outstanding popular science books.

 

66.           Madhesis are a group of People from lower land of Nepal. Madhesis occupy most important geographical location called Terai (or Madhesh) which is most strategic location for Nepal's economic prosperity and development. Terai is bordering the Indian states Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Uttaranchal. The high density of Madhesis is concentrated along the Indo-Nepal border line. Madhesi form 40-50 per cent of the total population of Nepal.

 

67.           Picchwai Paintings are intricate paintings which portray Lord Krishna. They exist in the holy town of Nathdwara in the Rajasthan.

 

68.           Astrosat is the country's first dedicated multi-wavelength space observatory. ASTROSAT, with a life span of five years, will observe the universe through optical, ultraviolet, low and high energy X-ray components of the electromagnetic spectrum, whereas most other scientific satellites are capable of observing through a narrow wavelength band.

 

69.           FASTag is a radio frequency identification device that enables cashless transaction at toll plazas. FASTag is currently operational on Delhi-Mumbai, Delhi-Chandigarh and Bengaluru- Chennai highways.

 

70.           Syed Akbaruddin has been appointed as India's permanent representative at the United Nations. He will replace Ashok Mukherji who will be retiring soon. Syed Akbaruddin is an additional secretary in the ministry of external affairs from April 2015.

 

71.           Hornbills are unique birds. They get their name from the horn-like projection called a casque on top of their beak. Hornbills are often called as the 'farmers of the forest' as they disperse the seeds of many tropical trees and keep the forest alive.

 

72.           Jacob Tsimerman of the University of Toronto, Canada has been chosen for the prestigious 2015 SASTRA-Ramanujan Prize for his contribution in the field of Mathematics. Tsimerman is one of the few mathematicians to have complete mastery over two very different areas of mathematics, analytic number theory and algebraic geometry. Much of Tsimerman's research stems from his spectacular doctoral thesis entitled "Towards an unconditional proof of the Andre-Oort conjecture and surrounding problems" that he wrote at Princeton University in 2010 under the direction of Prof Peter Sarnak. Born The prize will be awarded in December, 2015 at the International Conference on Number Theory at SASTRA University in Kumbakonam, Ramanujan's hometown.

 

73.           Nandan Nilekani, the former chairman of Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) is the author of Rebooting Government. The book is co-authored with former UIDAI colleague Viral Shah and to be released in November 2015.

 

74.           The German car giant Volkswagen is in news for emission cheating scandal. The automaker has admitted cheating emissions tests in the US. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), some cars being sold in America had devices in diesel engines that could detect when they were being tested, changing the performance accordingly to improve results. This resulted in a major discrepancy between the measured emissions and those produced during real-world driving—where the affected vehicles emitted up to 35 times the legal limit of nitrogen oxides (Nox). The offending programming was included in Volkswagen and Audi models between model years 2009 and 2015; it was included on 500,000 vehicles in the United States, and an estimated eleven million cars worldwide.